nt.[357:4] "Throughout Hellas," says Mr. Cox, "AEsculapius
remained the 'Healer,' and the 'Restorer of Life,' and accordingly the
serpent is everywhere his special emblem."[357:5]

Why the serpent was the symbol of the Saviours and beneficent gods of
antiquity, will be explained in Chap. XXXIX.

The _Dove_, among the Christians, is the symbol of the Holy Spirit. The
Matthew narrator relates that when Jesus went up out of the water, after
being baptized by John, "the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw
the Spirit of God descending like a _dove_, and lighting upon him."

Here is another piece of Paganism, as we find that the _Dove_ was the
symbol of the Holy Spirit among all nations of antiquity. Rev. J. P.
Lundy, speaking of this, says:

"It is a remarkable fact that this spirit (_i. e._, the Holy
Spirit) has been symbolized among all religious and civilized
nations by the _Dove_."[357:6]

And Earnest De Bunsen says:

"The symbol of the Spirit of God was the _Dove_, in Greek,
_peleia_, and the Samaritans had a brazen fiery dove, instead
of the brazen fiery serpent. Both referred to fire, the symbol
of the Holy Ghost."[357:7]

Buddha is represented, like Christ Jesus, with a dove hovering over his
head.[357:8]

The virgin goddess Juno is often represented with a dove on her head. It
is also seen on the heads of the images of Astarte, Cybele, and Isis; it
was sacred to Venus, and was intended as a symbol of the Holy
Spirit.[357:9]

Even in the remote islands of the Pacific Ocean, a _bird_ is believed to
be an emblem of the Holy Spirit.[357:10]

R. Payne Knight, in speaking of the "mystic Dove," says:

"A bird was probably chosen for the emblem of the third
person (_i. e._, the Holy Ghost) to signify incubation, by
which was figuratively expressed the fructification of inert
matter, caused by the vital spirit moving upon the waters.

"The _Dove_ would naturally be selected in the East in
preference to every other species of bird, on account of its
domestic familiarity with man; it usually lodging under the
same roof with him, and being employed as his messenger from
one remote place to another. Birds of this kind were also
remarkable for the care of their offspring, and for a sort of
conjugal attachment and fidelity to each other, as likewise
for the peculiar fervency of their sexual desires, whence they