Summary
This 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica entry on *Das Rheingold* does not present a unified argument about the opera itself. Instead, the passages compile entries on unrelated topics—including the Flying Dutchman legend, ritual ablutions in comparative religion, and the philosophy of Abelard—with only a brief mention that Wagner used the Flying Dutchman story in his opera *Der fliegende Holländer*. The central content concerns the cathartic and magical properties of water in religious and folk practices, drawing on examples from the Atharva-Veda, Brahmanic rituals, Hebrew sin-offerings, and early Christian baptism. The text argues that water’s purifying power is enhanced by ritual blessing or consecration, and that ablutions serve to transfer evil influences—such as disease or demonic taint—from a person onto an object like a frog or into running water. A reader takes away a comparative survey of purification rites across cultures, emphasizing the shared belief in water as a vehicle for removing spiritual or physical contamination.
Key concepts
- Cathartic ablutions — Ritual washings intended to purge evil influences, such as disease or demonic taint, from persons or objects.
- Contagious holiness — The idea that holiness, like uncleanness, can be transferred through contact, making common things taboo or dangerous.
- Allopathic remedy (Atharva-Veda) — A magical cure for fever where the patient’s ablution water is directed onto a frog, transferring the fever to the cold-skinned animal.
- Living or running water — Water that flows, used in ritual washings to carry away miasma or unseen demons of disease.
- Taboo — A state of being so holy or unclean that a person or object becomes dangerous and unusable for daily life.
From the book
For other versions of this work, see Encyclopædia Britannica . ← 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica ( 1911 ) Title page → related portals : Reference Works Shortcut : EB11 or EB1911 Notes on reading the Wikisource edition . A special disclaimer for this project . Collaboration page for contributors . 12543 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica 1911 Table of contents This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1931. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works . Public domain Public domain false false← Alabama 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 "Alabama" Arbitration by Montague Hughes Crackanthorpe Alabama River → See also Alabama Claims on…
He is commonly known as Rab.← Abbadie, Jakob 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 'Abbahu Abba Mari → See also Abbahu on Wikipedia ; and our 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica disclaimer . 12925 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 — 'Abbahu ʼABBAHU, the name of a Palestinian ʼamora ( q.v. ) who flourished c . 279–320. ʼAbbahu encouraged the study of Greek by Jews. He was famous as a collector of traditional lore, and is very often cited in the Talmud.
He was author of Quaestiones ( Sheiltoth ), a collection of homilies (at once learned and popular) on Jewish law and ethics. This is recorded to have been the first work written by a Jewish scholar after the completion of the Talmud.← Alphabet 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 'Al-phasi, Isaac Alphege, Saint → See also Isaac Alfasi on Wikipedia ; and our 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica disclaimer . 1202415 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 — 'Al-phasi, Isaac ’AL-PHASI, ISAAC (1013–1103), Jewish rabbi and codifier, known as Riph , was born near Fez in 1013 and died at Lucena in 1103. ’Al-Phasi means the “man of Fez” (medieval Jews were often named after their birthplaces). He was forced to leave Fez when an old man of 75, being accused on some unknown political charge. He then…
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