purposes, a ceremonial cult would naturally grow up by which this would
become possible. Otherwise, to come in contact with these objects
directly or indirectly, besides profaning their sanctity would be
exceedingly dangerous for the transgressor, because of this same power
of transmission of a dread and little understood force. Therefore, all
such persons, animals or objects are taboo and must be avoided. Under
these circumstances it can be seen that taboos are unanalyzed,
unrationalized "Don'ts," connected with the use and wont which have
crystallized around the wish of man to manipulate the mysterious and
often desirable features of his environment, notably those connected
with possession, food, and sex.

[Footnote A: The Australians call it Arunkulta, the Iroquis Indians
Orenda and other North American tribes Wakonda, the Melanesians Mana.]

[Footnote B: Dr F.B. Jevons[2] says: "These things ... are alike taboo:
the dead body; the new-born child; blood and the shedder of blood; the
divine being as well as the criminal; the sick, outcasts, and
foreigners; animals as well as men; women especially, the married woman
as well as the sacred virgin; food, clothes, vessels, property, house,
bed, canoes, the threshing floor, the winnowing fan, a name, a word, a
day; all are or may be taboo because dangerous. This short list does not
contain one-hundredth part of the things which are supposed to be
dangerous; but even if it were filled out and made tolerably complete,
it would, by itself, fail to give any idea of the actual extent and
importance of the institution of taboo."]

The idea of the transmission of _mana_ through contact is concomitant
with the notion of _sympathetic magic_, defined as the belief that the
qualities of one thing can be mysteriously transferred to another. The
most familiar illustration is that of the hunter who will not eat the
heart of the deer he has killed lest he become timid like that animal,
while to eat the heart of a lion would be to gain all the fierce courage
of that beast.[A] This belief becomes so elaborated that the qualities
of one object are finally thought to be transferred to another which has
never come into direct contact with the first, the transition being
accomplished through the agency of a third object which has been in
contact with both the others and thus acts as the conducting medium
through which the qualities of one pass into the other.

[Footnote A: E.B. Tylor[3] h