logy--the ambrosia
of the Indian gods? It has been the subject of much discussion and some
difference among comparative mythologists. Soma was the chief deity
among the ancient Hindus--the author of life, the giver of health, the
protector of the weak, and the guide to immortality. Once he took upon
himself the form of man, but was slain by men and braised in a mortar.
The similarity with the Christian legend is remarkable, and the method
of death should be borne in mind. After his death, Soma rose in flame to
heaven, 'to be the benefactor of the world and the mediator between God
and man.'

One of the articles of faith with the Hindus, therefore, is that they
must hold communion with Soma, and they are taught thus to pray to him:
'O Soma! thou art the strength of our heroes and the death of our
enemies, invincible in war! Fulfil our vows in battle, fight for us!
None can resist thee; give us superiority! O Soma immortal! May we drink
to thee and be immortal like thee!' Mr. Baring-Gould says that the whole
legend of Soma is but the allegorical history of the plant _Sarcostemma
viminalis_, which is associated with passionate love 'because of the
intoxicating liquor which is derived from its juice. It is regarded as a
godsend. The way in which it is prepared is by crushing it in a mortar;
the juice is then thrown on the sacrificial flame and so rises to
heaven.' The same writer tells us that a similar worship prevailed among
the Iranians, who called the juice Homa, but they did not ferment it,
and although they ascribed to it divine attributes, they did not make
Homa a supreme deity. But both with them and with the Hindus, 'the
partaking of the juice was regarded as a sacramental act, by virtue of
which the receiver was embued with a portion of the divine nature.'

Another writer, the author of Bible Folklore, says that the 'old Soma
was the same as the Persian Homa, a brilliant god, who gives sons to
heroes, and husbands to maidens. The juice of the plant, pounded in an
iron mortar, is greenish in colour, and is strained through a cloth and
mixed with the sap of a pomegranate branch; the yellow juice is then
strained through a vessel with nine holes. Among the Parsees it is
drunk, not as by the Brahmins in large quantities by sixteen priests,
but in small quantities by the two chief priests, and is thus not
intoxicating.'

The symbol is confused with the deity, and 'Soma is at once the
life-giving spring of the juice