+ The Sin Eater + by NekhbetSun
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Mornin' Y'All !
I can remember many moons ago seeing, I think it was on The Twilight Zone, about a Sin Eater and I thought this was horrible, yet morbidly fascinating.
Here's some info on Sin Eaters taken from Wikipedia.
The term sin-eater refers to a person who, through ritual means, would take on by means of food and drink the sins of a deceased person, thus absolving his or her soul and allowing that person to rest in peace. Sin-eating is a form of religious magic, part of the study of folklore. This is similar to the religious ceremony of the scape-goat which was once a part of the ceremonies of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, in Judaism.
This practice was once common in many parts of England and Scotland, and survived until recent years in Wales. Traditionally, it is performed by a beggar and certain villages maintained their own sin-eaters. They would be brought to the dying person's bedside, where a relative would place a crust of bread on the breast of the dying and pass a bowl of ale to him over the corpse. After praying or reciting the ritual, he would then drink and remove the bread from the breast and eat it, the act of which would remove the sin from the dying person and take it into himself.
The act of being a sin-eater was considered a cardinal sin by the Roman Catholic Church because it provided absolution outside the purview of the priesthood, and resulted in immediate excommunication.
Although the figure of the sin-eater has had various references in modern culture, the questions of how common the practice was, what regions of the world in which it was most common, and what the interactions between sin-eaters, common people, and religious authorities were, remain largely unstudied and in the realm of folklore.
The 1926 book Funeral Customs by Bertram S. Puckle mentions the sin-eater:
"Professor Evans of the Presbyterian College, Carmarthen, actually saw a sin-eater about the year 1825, who was then living near Llanwenog, Cardiganshire. Abhorred by the superstitious villagers as a thing unclean, the sin-eater cut himself off from all social intercourse with his fellow creatures by reason of the life he had chosen; he lived as a rule in a remote place by himself, and those who chanced to meet him avoided him as they would a leper. This unfortunate was held to be the associate of evil spirits, and given to witchcraft, incantations and unholy practices; only when a death took place did they seek him out, and when his purpose was accomplished they burned the wooden bowl and platter from which he had eaten the food handed across, or placed on the corpse for his consumption.
Howlett mentions sin-eating as an old custom in Hereford, and thus describes the practice: 'The corpse being taken out of the house, and laid on a bier, a loaf of bread was given to the sin-eater over the corpse, also a maga-bowl of maple, full of beer. These consumed, a fee of sixpence was given him for the consideration of his taking upon himself the sins of the deceased, who, thus freed, would not walk after death.'"
~ Love n Hugs To You All ~ * Mina *
Credits: type_VII_STOCK...deviant art
I can remember many moons ago seeing, I think it was on The Twilight Zone, about a Sin Eater and I thought this was horrible, yet morbidly fascinating.
Here's some info on Sin Eaters taken from Wikipedia.
The term sin-eater refers to a person who, through ritual means, would take on by means of food and drink the sins of a deceased person, thus absolving his or her soul and allowing that person to rest in peace. Sin-eating is a form of religious magic, part of the study of folklore. This is similar to the religious ceremony of the scape-goat which was once a part of the ceremonies of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, in Judaism.
This practice was once common in many parts of England and Scotland, and survived until recent years in Wales. Traditionally, it is performed by a beggar and certain villages maintained their own sin-eaters. They would be brought to the dying person's bedside, where a relative would place a crust of bread on the breast of the dying and pass a bowl of ale to him over the corpse. After praying or reciting the ritual, he would then drink and remove the bread from the breast and eat it, the act of which would remove the sin from the dying person and take it into himself.
The act of being a sin-eater was considered a cardinal sin by the Roman Catholic Church because it provided absolution outside the purview of the priesthood, and resulted in immediate excommunication.
Although the figure of the sin-eater has had various references in modern culture, the questions of how common the practice was, what regions of the world in which it was most common, and what the interactions between sin-eaters, common people, and religious authorities were, remain largely unstudied and in the realm of folklore.
The 1926 book Funeral Customs by Bertram S. Puckle mentions the sin-eater:
"Professor Evans of the Presbyterian College, Carmarthen, actually saw a sin-eater about the year 1825, who was then living near Llanwenog, Cardiganshire. Abhorred by the superstitious villagers as a thing unclean, the sin-eater cut himself off from all social intercourse with his fellow creatures by reason of the life he had chosen; he lived as a rule in a remote place by himself, and those who chanced to meet him avoided him as they would a leper. This unfortunate was held to be the associate of evil spirits, and given to witchcraft, incantations and unholy practices; only when a death took place did they seek him out, and when his purpose was accomplished they burned the wooden bowl and platter from which he had eaten the food handed across, or placed on the corpse for his consumption.
Howlett mentions sin-eating as an old custom in Hereford, and thus describes the practice: 'The corpse being taken out of the house, and laid on a bier, a loaf of bread was given to the sin-eater over the corpse, also a maga-bowl of maple, full of beer. These consumed, a fee of sixpence was given him for the consideration of his taking upon himself the sins of the deceased, who, thus freed, would not walk after death.'"
~ Love n Hugs To You All ~ * Mina *
Credits: type_VII_STOCK...deviant art
Comments (32)
miashadows
OUTSTANDING IMAGE,I SAW THE MOVIE AND CAN REMEMBER IT FAGELY BUT I KNOW THAT IT STAYS WITH YOU FOR A WHILE,VERY THOUGHT PROVOKING,THANKS FOR THE INFO MINA,EXELLENT,EXELLENT WORK, YOUR POTRAIL COULDN`T BE MORE EFFECTIVE+
ARTWITHIN
Very interesting history and image Mina. I see a loosely similar idea within the monastic tradition I am familiar with. The nun retires from the world in part to deny self and do penance for those who cannot do it for themselves. The only relation to food is the denial of pleasure and restriction of diet. It is purely a necessity to sustain life. The denial of pleasure is linked to penance, as is everything that brings denial of self, pain and suffering to oneself within the monastic life. This is balanced by the pursuit of intimate spiritual union with God, and the sublime joy of that union. From that union flows the grace to endure the other side of the coin. While the means are not the same, there is a similarity in the theory & objective.
meico
This is an outstandingly striking image, chockful of anguish and agony as befits the theme. The information attached is fascinating. Thank you so much. Hugs Mike
wannes
Very well crafted and thought through work of art!! Excellent!!
amirapsp
Love your attention to detail!
Pewter7
Fantastic and excellently produced image! Reminds me of a soul in torment in Hell, except that in Hell there will be no light at all . . . Brrr! Thanks be to Jesus Christ that HE is the Lamb of God, the sacrifice which satisfied God's righteous wrath. What an amazing and wonderful truth ~that there exists One Who is truly able to save our souls from the Final Death . . . and not only that ~ but to take away our hearts of stone for a heart of flesh, to create us anew! Again, Fantastic work! More, please . . .
mac4gman
Mina Macabre strikes again! You're certainly in the spirit of the season lately, boo'ful! ;^D
wildgoha
AUUU Mina I am scared - GREAT JOB thank you so much ;) The best time to post it ! Hugs and Bardzo dziekuje i mocno caluje ;-)
Lenord
I think there may have been an X-File about this also. I have read about this before, a most interesting subject, they would well fed these days. Outstanding Image Mina, as always your attention to detail is astounding. Masterful work. & Peace
22446655
A very interesting story and a wonderful "terrible" image! There is this fire burning within.... 22446655 Gabrielle
jimw1
Never heard of a sin eater....wouldnt want to be a sin eater when Bush and Blair pop off......Excellent work and thanks for the insight....5++
caviedes
Well done!
Talt
A truly potent image that sears itself on to your eyes. The swirling energy is the perfect framing
TheAnimaGemini
Great details hun. The story behind your image is fascinating. Excellent work and very interesting. Strange that we love and fear the dark side. Big hugs hon. Ilona
gunsan
A fantastic story of something I nver have heard of, and your illustration of it is very powerful and intense. Great work Mina!!
2Loose2Trek
Sin! It's what's for dinner. Grill once, dine twice with mouthwatering sin recipes from the new brochure "SIN!Outdoors at the Grill." Charcoal and gas grilling guidelines ensure foolproof results whatever your sin grilling choice sin-steaks, sin-burgers or sin-kabobs. SIN! It's GR8!!! And before that perfect mouth watering meal of well prepared sin, don't forget that most tasty apertif, sin&tonic. Slurp! Very cool image Mina! Well done as always.
1hawks1
Lovely work of art..Fantastic image.
three_grrr
Breathtaking image, you've worked that magic yet again!
Margana
What a coincidence.I'm reading,'A Breath of Snow and Ashes', by Diana Gabaldon,and she just described a scene involving a sin-eater.It was the first time I'd heard of it.I can understand the correlation to the 'scape-goat' in Yom Kippur,which I had learned about recently,as well.Thanks for the info,Mina.Your image suits the 'theme' wonderfully.I love how you express yourself in such myriad ways...-M :^)
ReBorne
An excellent image.... the torment, the colours.... brilliant! (",)
JLyons
Wow, very cool piece!
catmandennis
Compelling, striking and colorful. An intense piece. Great work.
kenmo
Excellent creation....
Axeye
Fabulous image and a very informative intro! It seems that people have always had these various forms of religious rites and rituals in cultures all over the world. Still today we have many but sin abounds, even by those who profess their beliefs, and their faith.
darktower
Very intense image! The essence of a whole story captured in one picture!!!
angel_dust
Great image! well done!!
Richardphotos
what crazy things humans think up and too many go along like sheep to slaughter. excellent representation of a a sin eater,although I think it would be more fun to indulge into some sinning while still kickin'.very powerful art
romanceworks
Oh, this is haunting, chilling, and fascinating. A loaf of bread, some beer, and a few sixpence seems a meager payment for such a frightening appetite. CC
lior
Impressinve and really:Outstanding!!! Have a nice evening, Lior
danger_boy
Awesome concept, and the artwork is stunning! :)