robinhood
 
Who was that Hooded         Man?
Historian         Ronald Hutton points out that the search for the "original" Robin Hood has taken two divergent         paths within academic circles:
"From         the beginning of scholarly investigation into the         lengends about the outlaw, it had been obvious that at         the end of the Middle Ages he had been celebrated in         plays as well as ballads. Two very different approaches         to research into his legend were proposed in response.         The first, by Joseph Ritson in 1795, assumed that Robin         had been a real human being; the second, started by         Thomas Wright in 1837, opined that he was originally a         woodland god, honoured in the May revels. This latter         argument gained more support in the early twentieth         century. Douglas Kennedy and Lord Raglan suggested that         he had been the dying and returning god of vegetation         postulated by Sir James Frazer as a universal focus of         devotion in ancient religion. Margaret Murray, copied by         Robert Graves and Pennethorne Hughes, hailed him as the         high priest of a coven of pagan witches, representing the         horned god of nature worshipped by the "witch         cult" which Murray believed to have existed in         medieval Europe."
Although         this second "mythical" approach to the meaning         of the Robin Hood legend has fallen into disfavour among         academics since the 1950s, I believe it is still the more         interesting of the two perspectives. While the work of         Frazer, Murray, Graves, and their followers has been         dismissed as too speculative for historical research, it         remains a clear indication of the extent to which the         academic mindset of the late 19th and early 20th century         was open to the concept of ancient pagan survivals         embedded in modern Western culture. Indeed, these         writers' imaginative analyses of myth, folklore and         legend have provided the ideational basis for the         neo-pagan spiritual movement of the late 20th century.
If we are to assume that         the legend of Robin Hood derives in any part from         memories of ancient pagan deities, we should examine the         mythology of the pagan cultures that once inhabited the         British Isles, namely the "Celts", the Romans,         the Anglo-Saxons, and the Danes, to find likely         archetypes for the Robin Hood figure.
 
The King of the Wood
and the Battle between         Summer and Winter
To begin his         masterpiece, The Golden Bough, Sir         James Frazer relates the story of the ancient cult of         Diana at Nemi, and the priest who stood guard over her         sacred grove and bore the title Rex         Nemorensis, or "King of the         Wood". He was the consort of the virgin goddess of         the hunt, the divine lover/son who died only to return         again, as the greenery does each year.
The archaic         title "King of the Wood" seems to sit naturally         on Robin Hood's head. Even his name is sometimes claimed         to have originally been Robin (of the) Wood, and he holds de facto sovereignty         over the forest of Sherwood (or in some tales,         Barnesdale).
Moreover, Robin         is clearly the consort of the goddess. In the earliest         extant ballads, he is devoted to the Virgin Mary, the         Christian Queen of Heaven. Most often, however, he refers         to her only as "dear Lady", an appellation that         has strong connotations for neo-pagans; moreover, he         speaks of her as being "both mother and may".         Later in the canon, of course, Robin is joined by Maid         Marian, in her role as the May Queen, an archetype of the         goddess in her virgin aspect.
Frazer         argued that the "King of the Wood" was a         manifestation of the universal pagan archetype of the         dying and resurrected vegetation god, whose rebirth was         often acted out in springtime mock combat between the         personifications of Summer and Winter. Frazer gives         several Germanic examples of this folk custom, in which         Summer is clad in greenery or finery, and Winter is clad         in skins or fur.
The battle between Robin Hood and Guy         of Gisborne , then, provides an echo of this pagan         pageantry. Robin, in the role of Summer King, defeats Guy         of Gisborne, the villain whose appearance in a horse-hide         is utterly inexplicable, unless, of course, he represents         the Winter King in his animal skins. Similar mock         combats, complete with resurrection, took place in         England at Yuletide in mummers' plays , in which Robin Hood         occassionally appeared as the hero.
After killing         Guy, Robin dons his horse-hide as a disguise in order to         rescue Little John from the Sheriff. In so doing, Robin         takes on the attributes of the Winter King, conflating         the two roles and becoming a Year God, presiding over the         entire cycle of vegetative growth, death and rebirth.
This motif of         seasonal alternation and conflict seems to have also been         an underlying theme in the May Games of the 15th and 16th         centuries, at which Robin Hood replaced or appeared with         the traditional Summer Lord who presided over the         festivities. In his monograph Early         Plays of Robin Hood, David Wiles,         the first scholar to thoroughly study the historical         records of these games (which usually involved mock         combat) determined that, "beneath         all this lies the ritual combat of winter and spring." Moroever, Wiles concluded that, through these         festivities, "from a very early         date, Robin Hood the outlaw became identified with the         May King, the anarchic priest of the pagan summer         spirit."
 
"There lives a curtal frier in Fountains Abby
Will beat both him and thee
Furthermore,         Robin and the friar's reciprocal piggybacking across the         river is sometimes described as "playing         horsey". And indeed, we see the vagaries of fortune         and pride as each goes in turn from being in control and         on top to being the beast of burden. The idea of floating         down the river and seeing where fate takes you also shows         up in this ballad:
And         coming to the middle stream,
There he threw Robin in:
"And chuse thee, chuse thee, fine fellow,
Whether thou wilt sink or swim."
Robin Hood swam to a bush of broom,
The frier to a wicker wand;
This         incident also appears to be a mock "baptism",         which would link it further to the Feast of St. John the         Baptist, aka Midsummer Day.
There         is no explicit reference to Midsummer in the later ballad         of Robin Hood and Little         John ,         but it also seems to explore the same solstitial themes.         Again, we have a reciprocal baptism in a river, this time         involving someone named John, recalling the baptist         saint. In addition, Robin's youth and "hot"-headednesss in fighting are emphasized --         themes which Billington also links to the Midsummer         sub-text in medieval and early modern European literature         as mirroring the heat of the sun at its peak (with the         stages of a man's life frequently symbolized by the         metaphor of the four seasons). Also, there is a rapid         change of fortune with the foes becoming friends.
These         two ballad thus seem to fit within what Sandra Billington         terms a "festive matrix", which links the Robin         Hood legend to a cultural subtext of midsummer religious         metaphors that can be traced back to ancient Roman         celebrations.
 
The Green Man
We         may gain some clues to Robin's mythic nature if we         analyze his habitual form of dress. Why is Robin so         frequently described as wearing green? Likely because he         is associated with the mysterious Green Man of art and         folklore. Like the Green Man, Robin possibly represents         the ancient pagan god of vegetation and fertility, a         primordial "Lord of the Trees".
In his seminal study of the May Games,         Robin Hood scholar David Wiles wrote that:
"[I]n         the figure of Robin Hood two elements are combined, the         outlaw who ignores the requirements of society, and the         green man, the incarnation of spring."
However, the         term "Green Man" is problematic, as it has been         applied to a number of very different figures from         folklore and religious art over the centuries.         Originally, the term referred to 17th century pageant         figures, who were dressed in costumes of leaves, wielded         clubs in a comically drunken manner, and behaved as "whifflers" to control crowds. These figures,         because of their apparent drunkenness, became popular         images for pub signs, as evidenced by the large number of         Green Man pubs at the time. However, during the         Reformation, such images were roundly denounced as "pagan", and the image of the whiffler on "Green Man" signs was often replaced by that of         Robin Hood. Clearly, these two folk figures were already         considered roughly interchangeable at this time.
The term "Green Man" was further expanded in the popular         imagination, however, in 1939, when folklorist Lady         Raglan asserted that the late medieval foliate head         carvings in medieval churches represented:
"the         figure variously known as the Green Man,         Jack-in-the-Green, Robin Hood, the King of the May, and         the Garland, who is the central figure in the May-Day         celebrations throughout Northern and Central Europe".
This         perspective was accepted as standard wisdom in folklore         and academic circles until the late 1970s, when two         historians, Kathleen Basford and Roy Judge, examined two         key components of the claim in greater detail. Basford's         monograph, The Green Man,         and Roy Judge's study of The         Jack-in-the-Green were         groundbreaking works in the field of folklore and are         best viewed as companion pieces. Written almost         simultaneously, published in 1978 and 1979 respectively,         both took as their starting point Lady Raglan's 1939         article on the Green Man and attempted to use historical         methodologies to test her claim.
Both Basford         and Judge's monographs are often cited as historically         documented refutations of the very influential claim made         by Lady Raglan. Yet, neither author entirely rejected or         disproved Lady Raglan's theory. Basford did reject         Raglan's claim that late medieval English congregations         were actively "worshipping" the foliate heads         as pagan deities. However, Basford found that the very         first appearance of such a foliate head in a European         church was actually a physical "borrowing" and         remounting of reclaimed ancient pagan art. Moreover,         Basford admitted that perhaps a few of the later English "Green Man" carvings could be interpreted as         May King figures. And of course, we know that Robin Hood         WAS equated with the May King in the May Games of the         15th and 16th century. Furthermore, Basford almost         automatically accepted Lady Raglan's name for the figure.         And while Judge could find no direct historical evidence         of a link between the 18th century "Jack" figure and the late medieval carvings, he still accepted         Lady Raglan's (and C.J.P. Cave's earlier) equation of the         two figures as a potentially valuable "poetic         insight".
More recent         scholarship has also gone on to rehabilitate Lady         Raglan's offhand and much maligned equation of these         various green/man motifs. Brandon Centerwall, in his         article "The Name of the Green Man" (in Folklore,         1997) notes several examples of 16th century English         church art that seem to explicity equate the pageant         figures called "Green Men", who act as         whifflers with the earlier medieval foliate head         carvings. He concluded that:
"... when         Lady Raglan pondered the foliate head in St Jerome's,         Llangwm, Gwent she recollected the "extraordinary         number of 'Green Man' inns all over the         country"(Raglan 1939, 53). It was her intuition that         a phenomenon so widely diffused as the Green Man inns         must be ancient in origin and must stem from the same         root as the equally widely diffused foliate heads of         church architecture. It is unfortunate that she         subsequently dragged into her hypothesis every green         figure in sight, but heroriginal intuition was not only         correct but grounded on sound observation. It was not         just luck. // By the standards of sober scholarship, her         argument would never pass muster today. Lady Raglan has         no business being right, yet there it is: the name of the "Green Man" was, and is, the Green Man."
Lorraine Stock,         in a paper entitled "Lords of the Wildwood: The Wild         Man, the Green Man, and Robin Hood", delivered at         the International Robin Hood Conference [collected in         Hahn, ed., Robin Hood in Popular         Culture Violence, Transgression, and Justice (D.S. Brewer, 2000)] argued that the modern tendency to "lump" such figures together (as Lady Raglan         did) is actually not a new phenomenon at all. Indeed she         argues that these figures ARE semantically analogous, and         have been perceived as such at least since the late         medieval period when both the Robin Hood ballads/games         and the foliate head church carvings flourished in         England.
In her analysis         of Green Man carvings at Exeter Cathedral, Stock states         quite boldly that: "I believe         that exposure to the conjoined iconography of a May queen         and May king, Mary and the Green Man in the local         cathedral ...suggested or influenced the creation of         festive representations of another May king and queen,         Robin and Marian, in Exeter" [the location of the first recorded Robin Hood play-game         in 1427].
Moreover, Stock         points out that:
"A         fourteenth century misericord at Southwell [14 mi. NE of         Nottingham] depicts a seated human male figure, from         whose mouth issue two branches of oak leaves, each as         large as he is. Thisotherwise human figure wears a gown and a stylized coif, hood, or cap. Situated in the heart         of Robin Hood's literary locale, this misericord's "Green Man" could easily suggest the Lincoln         green-gowned outlaw, devotee of Mary, and greenwood         denizen of the forest near Nottingham."
Thus, while         Lady Raglan's claim may have lacked scholarly rigour, we         see that Robin Hood was explicitly associated with the         Green Man at least as early as the Reformation, and         possibly even in the earliest medieval forms of the         legend.
Received and did deliver to our age
This tale of Herne the hunter for a truth.
In God         of the Witches, Margaret Murray         posits that both Herne and Robin Hood were local variants         of the Horned God of the witch cult, or his priestly         representatives.
 
 
Wood                 Sprite and Trickster
Because                 of the similarity in name, Robin Hood is often                 thought to be a manifestation of Robin                 Goodfellow, the mischievous hobgoblin also known                 as Puck . Jacob Grimm                 apparently noted the close association of the two                 Robins, but did not elaborate upon it.
Robin                 Hood is a clearly a trickster figure, and may                 have indeed taken on attributes associated with                 Robin Goodfellow. He is often content to publicly                 humiliate a foe, rather than kill him. Moreover,                 he is a master of disguise and enjoys misleading                 his enemies.
 
 
Germanic Gods
The Saxons re-paganized         Britain after the initial conversion to Christianity         under the Romans, and the Danes brought a later wave of         pagan culture after even the Saxons themselves had         converted to Christianity. It is the shared mythology of         these two cultures, then, that is most likely to have had         the strongest potential pagan influence on the         construction and development of the Robin Hood legend.
Within the         Germanic pantheon (common to both the Saxons and the         Danes), the chief god is Woden or Odin. As both a Summer         Lord and a leader of the Wild Hunt, Woden is often         proposed as a Robin precursor.
In the ballad         of Robin Hood and the         Monk , Little John         swears constantly "by him that died on tree".         Now, this expression is generally interpreted to refer to         Christ on the cross; however, it is more strongly         evocative of Woden, who sacrificed himself to himself by         hanging for nine days on the world tree Yggdrasil, until         he had almost perished. Yggdrasil spanned the three         levels of Norse cosmology, and was a haven to wildlife.         As a primordial paradise, Yggdrasil could thus be equated         with Sherwood. Interestingly enough, Little John is bound         to a tree after being captured by the Sheriff in the very         early ballad Robin Hood and Guy         of Gisborne , and must be rescued at the last moment         by Robin Hood, in the guise of Sir Guy, a Winter King         archetype.
An equally         compelling candidate for a Robin prototype within the         Germanic pantheon is Woden's rival (or sometimes son) Ull         (also known as Hollin, Holler, Oller, Uller or Vulder). He is the         Norse god of archery, and the personification of Winter.         According to some versions of the Norse myths, each         summer, Ull must descend to Hel so that Odin, in his role         of Summer King, can govern the weather. Ull is sometimes         portrayed as the husband of the giantess Skadi, another         personification of Summer; elsewhere he is one of the         lovers of Frigga, the goddess of love and beauty.
Robin Hood, as         a Year God, thus takes on attributes of both Odin and         Ull, playing both the Summer King and the Winter King,         and wins the love of the Summer Queen, or Queen of the         May, Marian.
Ull:         Archer God of Winter
Skadi         and Njord (another Winter God)
A         further Germanic model for Robin Hood would be Vali , the archer god of         revenge. Vali, son of Odin and Rind, goddess of the         frozen earth, was conceived for the sole purpose of         killing Hoder (the blind god of Darkness) in revenge for         the death of Baldur (the god of Light). Robin, of course,         is a clear force of vengence against the oppressive         feudal hierarchy. In the early ballads, he takes savage         revenge on his enemies, beheading both Guy of Gisborne         and the Sheriff.
Vali is considered the Eternal God of         Light, and is one of the few gods prophecied to survive         Ragnorak (the Germanic equivalent of Armageddon). Like         Robin, Vali is also a vegetation god, born from the         frozen earth, Rind, as she thaws and accepts the advances         of Odin, the Summer God.
Vali:         God of Vengence and Rebirth
Finally,         Robin Hood also assumes some of the attributes of the         Germanic trickster god Loki, who continually stirs up         trouble among the other gods, and deftly evades capture         on many occassions.
 
 
Death of a Celtic Hero
In one of the         earliest versions of " The Death of Robin Hood " ballad, we find a         surprising pagan echo. As Robin makes his way to Kirklees         abbey, to be bled as a cure by his cousin the Abbess, he         meets on old woman kneeling on a bridge "banning" (i.e. mourning for) him:
Until they came to blacke                 water,
And over it laid a planke.
Upon                 it there kneeled an old woman,
Was banning Robin Hoode;
"Why dost thou bann Robin Hoode?" said                 Robin,
"Knowst thou of him no good?"
"We                 women have no benison
To give to Robin Hoode;
Wee weepen for his deare body,
That this day must be lett bloode."
Robin         Hood scholars Stephen Knight and Thomas Ohlgren suggest         that the old woman is a "washer at the ford" figure. In Celtic folklore, this fairy figure presaged a         hero's death in battle by washing his bloodied garments         in a river as he passed by on his way to war. Her         presence, in somewhat altered form, at the death of Robin         Hood, links the mediaeval woodland hero to such ancient         semi-divine figures as the Irish hero Chu Chulainn , suggesting that the         Robin legend may have roots in pre-Roman British         mythology.
 
 
Robin's Band of Merry         Men
Robin, like         Woden, is the leader of a Wild Hunt, as represented by         his band of Merry Men.
In Shakespeare's "As You Like It", the deposed Duke and his         retinue are described in the following manner:
They         say he is already in the forest of Arden, and
a many merry men with him; and there they live like
the old Robin Hood of England.
As "Merry         Men", the Duke's followers participate in an arcane         hunting ritual, with obvious pagan overtones. They place         the antlers of the slain deer on the successful hunter's         head and carry him on their shoulders, while singing:
What         shall he have that kill'd the deer?
His leather skin and horns to wear.
Then sing him home;
[The rest shall bear this burden]
Take thou no scorn to wear the horn;
It was a crest ere thou wast born:
Thy father's father wore it,
And thy father bore it:
The horn, the horn, the lusty horn
Is not a thing to laugh to scorn.
Robin's band of         Merry Men may thus be a holdover from ancient pagan men's         mysteries and initiation rites. This secret brotherhood         retreats to the woodland to live in all-male isolation,         hunting together and sharing cameraderie. In the modern         context, remnants of these practices may have survived in         customs such as the "blooding" of a young man         at his first fox hunt in England. The Iron John movement         (though arising from misguided political perspectives) is         an attempt to reclaim some of these lost traditions. Even         fraternal organizations such as the Freemasons, although         thoroughly Christianized, may harken back in structure         and practice to such pagan rites.
Robin Hood and         his Merry Men may also be a late British parallel to the         Celtic Fianna, or Fenians, of the Irish myth cycle. The         Fianna were a legendary band of heroes who defended         Ireland and Scotland and kept law and order. Their main         passtime, however, was hunting. Their leader was the         semi-divine Fionn mac Cumhaill, a decidedly Robinesque         figure.
 
 
Maid Marian
Marian         represents the Goddess in her maiden aspect. According to         Rober Graves, the name "Marian" is a variant of "Mare", one of the most ancient names for the         Lady, dating back thousands of years to ancient Egypt,         Sumeria and Minoan Crete. In his masterpiece of         mythological interpretation, The         White Goddess, Graves equates Maid         Marian with the goddess of the sea and sensuality,         variously known as Mari, Miriam, Mariamne, Myrrha, Marina         and Mary Gipsy. This goddess was Christianized as both         St. Mary of Egypt and the Virgin Mary.
Graves suggests         that the name "Maid Marian" is a sort of         cultural pun on the term 'mermaid' (literally, "maiden of the sea"), also formerly written         'merry-maid'.
The         painting above is by Howard Pyle, whose beloved 19th         century retelling of the legend, The         Merry Adventures of Robin Hood of Great Renown in         Nottinghamshire, has become a         classic of the canon.
The         goddess Mare also appears in classical mythology as         Venus, who rose from the sea and is the mother of the         archer god of love, Cupid.
Maid         Marian's hidden divinity manifests itself in this         mysterious paradox: she is clearly Robin's lover, yet she         remains ever the "Maid" or virgin, both in name         and reputation. Thus she is like the threefold goddess,         ever renewed as the maiden in springtime.
Despite the         limited acceptable social roles for mediaeval women,         Marian is not disparaged in the Robin Hood ballads for         following her lover Robin into the Greenwood and living         the life of an outlaw, as the only woman among a band of         men. As the maiden aspect of the Goddess, Marian is         simultaneously slut and virgin, expressing her sexuality         outside patriarchal norms of morality and choosing her         own lover, yet remaining autonomous and unsubordinated.         Her strong, unconventional character is made clear in the         ballad of Robin Hood and Maid         Marian.
Moreover, Robert Graves argues that         Marian is not even faithful to Robin, but rather, during         the dark time of the year, becomes the mistress of his         mythical rival. Thus, she becomes the Lady of Misrule         during Twelfth Night celebrations.
Although Marian         appears in very few of the surviving ballads, she is         central to the legend. Even where Marian is absent, it is         apparent that Robin is inherently the consort of the         Goddess in her maiden aspect. In the Christianized         versions, Robin is devoted to the Virgin Mary and follows         a code of chivalry, never harming a woman.
 
With her bow & quiver and         crescent-shaped horn,
Marian         closely resembles the classical goddess Diana/Artemis,         the virgin huntress,
whose         consort at Nemi was the King of the Wood.
 
 
Beltane Rites & Greenwood Marriage
The         pagan themes embedded within the Robin Hood legend become         increasingly clear when we examine the rites associated         with the celebration of Beltane, or May Day as the         festival is now more commonly known.
In pre-christian Britain         on Beltane Eve, large bonfires were lit on the hilltops,         and the community gathered and danced around them. Young         couples would sneak away from the festivities, into the         shadows and nearby woods to tryst. They would stay out         all night, ostensibly gathering hawthorn flowers (the "may" flower) to welcome in the dawn on May Day         morn.
In anticipation         of these trysts, the young men would prepare a lovers'         nest somewhere private, in the nearby woods or         countryside. They would make a bower, a crude shelter of         branches, decorated with flowers. The folk name for these         love nests is "Robin Hood's Bowers". The young         couples would make love in these rustic arbours and their         unions were sanctioned by the community and referred to         as "Greenwood Marriages". Children born of         these couplings were considered particularly blessed and         known as "Children of the May" or "merrybegots". Some couples chose to make their         liaisons more formal and entered into trial marriages at         Beltane, becoming handfast for a year and a day. At some         of these weddings, a Friar Tuck figure officiated.
With the         Christianization of Britain, these gleefully orgiastic         rites became somewhat more symbolic, yet they were not         entirely extinguished. To this day, many towns in Britain         still choose a young girl as their May Queen (originally         representing the maiden aspect of the Goddess) and her         traditional escort is the Green Man.
In the May Games the         mediaeval church festival begun at Exeter, (generally         held somewhat later in May or June, at Whitsuntide), the         King and Queen of the May were explicitly represented by         Robin Hood and Maid Marian in plays and processions.
We are all         familiar with the image of the Maypole and the quaint         country dances that children still do around it.         Originally, however, the Maypole was a pagan symbol of         sexuality, as phallic as Robin's quarterstaff, and those         dances were fertility rites. At Beltane, the Maypole, a         large sapling harvested from the greenwood, was thrust         into the earth, symbolizing the sacred marriage of the         god and goddess, in their springtime form of young         lovers. Young men and women danced with ribbons around         the pole, binding it to the earth to ensure fertility for         the land and the people. Similarly, Morris dancers,         traditionally all "merry men", or as Robert         Graves suggests, "Marian's men", danced and         beat the earth with phallic sticks to ensure fertility.
 
 
Robin as Sun                 God and Sacrificial King
As the King of                 the May, Robin can be equated with Bel, the                 Celtic sun god worshipped at Beltane. Called "The Shining One", Bel is parallel to                 Apollo in the Classical Greek pantheon. Indeed,                 Robert Graves argues that, during Celtic times,                 Stonehenge would have been the primary shrine of                 Bel, and he points out that the ancient                 monument's layout is similar to an Apollonian                 temple.
Appropriately,                 Apollo is both an archer and the twin brother of                 Artemis, who appears to be a likely model for our                 image of Marian. Apollo also appears as a lusty                 woodland god equivalent to Pan in the myth of                 Daphne, the nymph who transformed herself into a                 laurel tree to escape the god's advances.
If we assume Robin & Marian are         siblings, like Apollo & Artemis, we are faced with         the problematic issue of incest. Within mythology,         however, brother/sister incest is often accepted         unthinkingly. We need only look to Mt. Olympus for         evidence of that. We see the same theme played out         between Arthur & Morgana in the Arthurian tradition.         Within the modern pagan religion of Wicca, the sun god is         depicted as first the son and then the lover of the earth         goddess, as the cycle of the year progresses. Each year,         the god is sacrificed at the harvest, only to be reborn         as his own son/self at the Winter Solstice. The pagan theme of divine incest goes back at least as far as the         ancient Egyptians, and is often tied to the divine right         of kings.
Robin,                 like Arthur, may also be a Sacrificial King,                 whose blood is shed to heal the land. In the                 ballad The Death of                 Robin Hood , Robin is ill                 and goes to his cousin, the Abbess of Kirklees, a                 knowledgeable healer, in order to be bled and                 cured. The Abbess cuts Robin's vein, then allows                 him to bleed to death. Within the ballad, the                 Abbess betrays Robin for petty political reasons.                 However, from a pagan perspective, the Abbess may                 have been carrying out a ritual duty to collect                 the blood of the Sacrificial King (who must not                 die of illness or old age) and pour it on the                 earth for the good of the land. In fact, the                 Abbess may represent Marian in her crone aspect.                 Indeed, she was portrayed as such in the 1970s                 film Robin and Marian, starring Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn. Notice                 also the theme of consanguinity, in that the                 Abbess is called Robin's "cousin".
Coincidentally, we see the theme of consanguinity played out in                 popular culture as well. Only a decade after Sean                 Connery portrayed the aging Robin Hood in Robin                 and Marian, his son, Jason                 Connery, took on the role of Robert of Huntington                 in the British TV series Robin                 of Sherwood. The King is                 dead; long live the King!
 
 
The Robin and the Wren
The association         of Robin Hood with the Celtic god Bel clarifies some         otherwise arcane yuletide customs and helps us interpret         an obscure English nursery rhyme.
Within the         Welsh mythic cycles, Bel, of course, had a rival, Bran.         Respectively, their totemic birds were the Robin of         springtime, and the Raven of winter, while their sacred         woods were the Willow and the Alder. Over time, within         English folklore, these rival gods came to be represented         by the Robin & the Wren; the Oak King & the Holly         King; Robin Hood & the Sherrif of Nottingham.
The battle         between Bel and Bran is a religious metaphor for the         cyclical transition from light to darkness and back again         throughout the year. While we have already equated Bel         with Apollo, the archer god of the Sun, Robert Graves         suggests that Bran is equivalent to Saturn, the classical         god of time and crops. Upon the Wheel of the Year,         Beltane, or May Day, the beginning of summer, is the         festival of Bel, and its celebration is clearly linked to         the Robin Hood legend; the Midwinter celebrations of Yule         and Twelfth Night, on the other hand, mark the festival         of Bran, or Saturn, with customs going back to the Roman         Saturnalia. During the dark time of the year surrounding         the Winter Soltice, Bran appears as the Lord of Misrule         at Twelfth Night, and as Father Time, with his hour glass         and scythe (both symbols of Saturn) on New Year's Eve. In         these last days of the year, Bran, the Holly King, is         making merry, before he must relinquish his role as Lord         of the Greenwood to his rival, Bel, the Oak King.
The yule log,         of course, is traditionally a piece of oak. Graves links         the burning of the yule log to both the Robin Hood         legend, and the bizarre custom of "Hunting the         Wren" on St. Stephen's Day (Boxing Day):
"By         his successful defiance of the ecclesiastics, [the         historical] Robin became such a popular hero         that he was regarded as the founder of the Robin Hood         religion, and its primitive forms are difficult to         discover. However, 'Hood' (or Hod or Hud) meant 'log' -         the log put on the back of the fire - and it was in this         log, cut from the sacred oak, that Robin was once         believed to reside. Hence, 'Robin Hood's Steed', the         wood-louse which ran out when the Yule log was burned. In         the popular superstition, Robin [Hood] himself         escaped up the chimney in the form of a Robin [bird] and, when Yule ended, went out as Belin         against his rival Bran, or Saturn - who had been 'Lord of         Misrule' at the Yule-tide revels. Bran hid from pursuit         in the ivy-bush disguised as a Gold Crest Wren; but Robin         always caught and hanged him. Hence the song:
'Who'll         hunt the Wren?' cries Robin the Bobbin."
The         song Graves refers to is part of an old yuletide custom         still practiced in Ireland and parts of England. Young         boys hunt and kill a wren on St. Stephen's Day or on         Christmas day itself. At any other time of the year, it         was considered unlucky to harm this bird. Sir James         Frazer, in The Golden Bough,         describes the wren hunt as it was carried out on the Isle         of Man in the late 19th century:
"On         the twenty-fourth of December, towards evening, all the         servants got a holiday; they did not go to bed all night,         but rambled about till the bells rang in all the churches         at midnight. When prayers were over, they went to hunt         the wren, and having found one of these birds, they         killed it and fastened it to the top of a long pole with         the wings extended. Thus they carried it in procession to         every house chanting the following rhyme:
"We         hunted the wren for Robin the Bobbin,
We         hunted the wren for Jack of the Can,
We         hunted the wren for Robin the Bobbin,
We         hunted the wren for every one."
When         they had gone from house to house and collected all the         money they could, they laid the wren on a bier and         carried it in procession to the parish churchyard, where         they made a grave and buried it 'with the utmost         solemnity, singing dirges over her in the Manks language,         which they call her knell; after which Christmas begins.'         The burial over, the company outside the churchyard         formed a circle and danced to music."
A         similar custom prevailed in parts of Ireland, although         the rhyme is a bit more to the point:
"The         wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
St.         Stephen's Day was caught in the furze;
Although         he is little, his family's great,
I         pray you, good landlady, give us a treat."
In         Irish tradition, the treat was usually money or food. "
By         killing the wren, the boys are symbolically slaying the         Holly King, so that his solar brother, the Oak King, can         again take his place as the Lord of the Greenwood. At the         same time, they represent Robin Hood's band of merry men,         catching and executing the Sherrif of Nottingham.
The         flip side of this yuletide custom can be found in the         Mother Goose rhyme "The Death and Burial of Cock         Robin" :
The                 DEATH and BURIAL of COCK ROBIN
Who killed Cock Robin?
Listen to a Real Audio         folk-punk rendition of this song by Chris Piuma
The         first lines of the Cock Robin rhyme and the wren hunting         song that Graves quotes are nearly identical in         structure: "Who'll hunt the wren?"; "Who         killed Cock Robin?" Perhaps the old Mother Goose         rhyme even relates to a lost pagan custom of hunting the         robin, possibly at the Summer Solstice, parallel to the         wren hunt at Yule. It is not surprising we should find         old pagan wisdom hidden in the apparently nonsensical         rhymes of Mother Goose , as she clearly         represents a sort of crone goddess or witch figure.
The "bow & arrow" reference in the first stanza         of the rhyme suggests that Cock Robin is a metaphor for         Robin Hood. Similary, the other birds and animals         represent characters within the Robin Hood legend, and         can be taken together as Robin's band of merry men. The         third stanza, in which the fish catches Robin's blood in         a dish, brings us back to the theme of the sacrificial         king. Indeed, the fish symbolizes the goddess of the sea,         or the mermaid, and thus Marian.
It         is interesting to note that the pall-bearer, the Wren,         Robin's rival, appears as part of a mated pair in this         rhyme: Who'll bear the pall?/"We," said the         Wren,/"Both the cock and the hen;/We'll bear the         pall." All the other birds and animals, however, act         out their parts alone. Where does the Wren's mate come         from? It could be argued that she is, again, Marian,         since, in another children's rhyme, Jenny Wren is the         mate of Robin Redbreast. Graves points out that, during         the yuletide and Twelfth Night revels, Maid Marion became         the Lady of Misrule, the mistress of the Lord of Misrule,         and thus the consort of Robin's rival, the Wren or Holly         King. Graves claims that this inconstancy on Marian's         part was well known, and that she was often referred to         as Maud Marian during the yuletide celebrations, "Maud" being a diminutive of Mary Magdalene,         and used in the middle ages as an epithet equivalent to "whore". Within more contemporary versions of         the Robin myth, we see this theme played out in the         abduction, attempted rape and attempted forced marriage         of Marian by the Sherrif of Nottingham (or, sometimes,         Prince John or Guy of Gisbourne).
In "going over to the dark side" at midwinter,         Marian evokes another maiden goddess of the classical         world, Persephone, who was abducted by Pluto and taken to         the underworld to be its Queen. Persephone's mother,         Demeter, Goddess of Grain, was so distraught by her         daughter's abduction, that she refused to allow anything         to grow. The world withered and died, experiencing its         first winter. Zeus intervened, allowing Persephone to         return to her mother and the world for most of the year.         However, because Persephone had eaten several pomegranate         seeds (varying from 3 to 6 in various versions of the         myth) during her stay with Pluto, Zeus decreed that each         year, Persephone must return to the underworld for the         equivalent number of months. During the months her         daughter is absent, Demeter mourns, and we experience the         dark time of the year, or winter.
The         pattern of romantic triangle between Robin, his rival,         and Marion can also be found within Arthurian lore. We         have already suggested that, as a sacrificial king, Robin         is equivalent to Arthur. Similarly, Maid Marion's         inconstancy at Twelfth Night can be equated with         Guinevere's infidelity. Moreover, although Arthur and         Lancelot become fast friends, they first meet each other         as rivals and engage in single combat. In fact, Lancelot         is referred to within some sources as the son of King Ban         of Brittany, whom Graves equates with Bran. Camelot,         moreover, is presented as a land of eternal summer.         However, when Marian betrays Arthur with Lancelot, the         realm becomes a bleak, barren wasteland, engulfed in         winter, with nothing able to flourish or grow.
 
A Mythical Place,         Outside of Time
The         Major Oak, Sherwood Forest
There         is much debate as to where Robin's forest really was.         Although Nottingham has the strongest literary tradition,         Barnsdale Forest in Yorkshire and Plumpton Park in         Lancashire also lay claim to the legend. Sadly, the         Sherwood Forest near Nottingham is greatly diminished in         size, increasingly encroached by human settlement. To         learn about the efforts being made to conserve what is         left, check out the Sherwood Initiative homepage.
Within the remaining         forest of Sherwood is a huge, ancient oak tree, known as         the Major Oak. Once thought to be 1000 years old, it is         the fabled meeting place of Robin and his men. The tree         is now propped up to prevent it succumbing to age. Modern         dating techniques suggest the tree may actually be only         300 years old, but it is symbolic of Robin and the         Greenwood nonetheless. As we have argued, Robin is the         Oak King, and any such venerable tree would be sacred to         him.
The name "Sherwood" derives from the term "shire         wood", meaning the forest         local to a shire or region. As such, it is a fairly         generic term. Rather than being a single physical place,         Sherwood is more likely an abstraction, representing "the wilderness" as a whole.
Within the         legends of Sherwood, time stands still. It is perpetually         May Day inside Sherwood forest. The Wheel of the Year has         ground to a halt. Robin and Marian are the eternal         springtime divine lovers. They live happily ever after         together without needing to marry, have children, work or         grow old. Although there is a ballad         telling of the death of Robin, the character will not         die. Rather, he is continuously reborn, like the Sun at         the Winter Solstice. The tales of Robin & Marian         continue to be rewritten and retold even to this day.         Perhaps, just as Arthur sleeps in Avalon, to arise when         Britain has need of him, so too does Robin sleep in         Sherwood, ready to awake and return.
 
Comic Book Robins:
Projecting the Robin         Hood Myth into the Future.
Comic books         have often been described as modern mythology,         transmuting ancient tales of wonder and transmitting them         to the young in a secularized form. Robin Hood has been         portrayed many times in comic book form, and other more         modern heros have also assumed his mythic attributes.
Could         the young, masked, cape-wearing comic book superhero         named Robin thus be a manifestation of Robin Hood in pop         culture? I think so! Here we find Robin paired with the "bird" of night, The Bat, roughly equivalent to         the Wren or Raven of winter. This time, however, the         relationship between the two is not one of rivalry, but         rather that of master and apprentice. And where is Marian         in this modern myth? Given her two-fold nature, she shows         up twice: first in her maiden aspect as Bat Girl; then as         the Lady of Misrule, the Cat Woman. Sherwood now is an         urban jungle: Gotham City. The Sheriff has mellowed into         Commissioner Gordon, but there are plenty of villains to         battle just the same.
A more blatant example         of a Robin Hood figure in the modern mythical realm of         comic books is, of course, The Green Arrow .
 
Hindu Archer                 God and
Mediaeval                 Chinese Heroes
The         story of Robin Hood has many parallels around the world         in myth, folklore and mythology. One of the most         strikingly similar stories is the Ramayana , the sacred tale of the         adventures of the Hindu lord Rama, an atavar (human         incarnation) of the god Krishna.
Rama was a         crown prince who was wrongly exiled to the forest for         fourteen years. He was a skilled archer who won his         wife's hand by proving his skill with the bow. His         beautiful wife Sita and his loyal brother Laksmana         accompanied him into the forest in exile, where they         lived by hunting game. Sita was abducted by a monster and         Rama was aided in rescuing her by a monkey named Hanuman,         a servant of the monkey king. In return, Rama helped the         deposed king of the monkeys reclaim his throne from a         usurper brother.
From this         synopsis, we can see the structural parallels with the         Robin Hood story. Robin, the outlaw archer, banished to         the forest, like Rama, is accompanied by his wife Marian         (from the early 16th century at least) and his loyal         lieutenant (and, in a 17th century version, cousin)         Little John. In many of the later romances, Marian is         abducted by the sheriff or his men and must be rescued.         Also, since Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe, Robin Hood has been the supporter         of King Richard over his usurper brother Prince John.
Certainly from         the time of the British colonization of India, beginning         in 1600 CE, there has been contact between the two         cultures. The evolution of the Robin Hood story may thus         in part reflect a knowledge of the Ramayana among Britons         who had visited India. At the same time, the two cultures         share an ancient linguistic and cultural heritage,         representing the western and eastern extremities of the         Indo-European language region. The basic similarity then,         of Rama and Robin, as archer heroes exiled to the forest,         may reflect an ancient Proto-Indo-European myth that has         developed separately in the two wideflung cultures, only         to coalesce further at the time of renewed cultural         contact.
Looking farther         east, beyond the Indo-European region, we find a second         surprising parallel to the Robin Hood myth, in the 14th         century Chinese novel "The Water Margins",         about the 12th century outlaw Song Jiang and his band of         108 freedom fighters who retreated to a swampland         wilderness to wage war against a corrupt feudal system.         Perhaps, here the closer parallel is to the historical         figure Hereward the Wake, the Saxon hero who held Ely and         its surrounding boglands against the invading Normans.         Hereward, of course, is thought to be one of the         historical models for the Robin Hood legend.