>>822962>>822937>>822347>>822347>The death of the sun, how the DRESS came into existence, and the legend of the first IDOLEarly nomadic hunter gather societies had little room for religion in their lives. No temples, no priests, no true superstition. Every day is just the grind against starvation.
This changed with the arrival of agriculture. With this apparent progress, so came tragedy. Unlike hunters, whose survival depend mostly of their skill, farmers are literally at the mercy of the elements. A long drought or a flood can destroy your town with no one to blame but butterflies in the west coast of Africa.
The word "fate" was probably first pronounced in the first city. The solution was clear: the gods must be appeased. The deal has changed - they gave prosperity, but they have the power to take it away if they choose. They were in their hands.
An idea begins to shape in the minds of our ancestors - how we can please them? A dance, a celebration in their honor, a sacrifice. Maybe a pig, maybe a lamb. A feast. They now can afford it.
Music was already invented, but now it would be used for ceremonial purposes for the first time. So would dance.
When? Well two dates come to mind to them: the darkness night of the year, and the beginning of spring.
But this couldn't be a normal party near the fire, this time there had to be special music, and a special dance, executed by someone special.
Who would do it? Well, obviously the purest, you did not want to offend the gods.
"The children will" demands logic, but alas, you can't trust them with a task of such importance.
"Well what about those who were just children, but are not yet adults", sounds more reasonable.
A dance of the maidens. They must take some training of course, they are still children for all purposes. Perhaps practice their singing and dancing for an entire year.
But how to draw the line? When they would be too old to participate? Well, clearly, it should be reserved only for those who had not become mothers yet. So, they will chose the "virgins".
Now we got almost everything. But they couldn't just wear the same robes of everyday, this is a special occasion. A dress must be made, the best dress the town can afford. This will please the gods, and it will please the people. They will cheer their efforts through the year, watch them grow better every day, and it would culminate with those two feasts. Then the next year they will do it again with other girls, maybe, the cast will have to switch as soon as they become mothers, for then they would have no time to practice.
As per usual, the test run was probably done with just a few individuals, three at tops. A small girl too young to be a mother, but no longer a child, seemed surprisingly apt at dancing and singing. She was chosen to be the "center" of this ceremony, while the other two provided back up. A special dress was just made for her, made with the best materials available for the age period.
This was the first idol, and she wore the first dress.
