Blood brother can refer to two or more people not related bybirth who have sworn loyalty to each other. This is in modern times usually done in a ceremony, known as ablood oath, where each person makes a small cut, usually on a finger, hand, or theforearm, and then the two cuts are pressed together and bound, the symbolism being that each person's blood now flows in the other participant'sveins.
The act carries a risk due toblood-borne diseases. The process usually provides a participant with a heightened symbolic sense of attachment with the other participant.
TheNorsemen entering the pact of foster brotherhood (Icelandic:Fóstbræðralag) involved a rite in which they let their blood flow while they ducked underneath an arch formed by a strip of turf propped up by a spear or spears. An example is described inGísla saga.[1][2] InFóstbræðra saga, the bond of Thorgeir Havarsson (Þorgeir Hávarsson) and Thormod Bersason (Þormóð Bersason) is sealed by such ritual as well, the ritual being called aleikr.[3]
Örvar-Oddr's saga contains another notable account of blood brotherhood.Örvar-Oddr, after fighting the renowned Swedish warriorHjalmar to a draw, entered a foster brotherhood with him by the turf-raising ritual. Afterwards, the strand of turf was put back during oaths and incantations.[citation needed]
Among theScythians, the covenantors would allow their blood to drip into a cup; the blood was subsequently mixed with wine and drunk by both participants. Every man was limited to having three blood brotherhoods at any time lest his loyalties be distrusted. As a consequence, blood brotherhood was highly sought after and often preceded by a lengthy period of affiliation and friendship (Lucian,Toxaris). The4th-century BC depictions of two Scythian warriors drinking from a singledrinking horn (most notably in a gold appliqué fromKul-Oba) have been associated with the Scythian oath of blood brotherhood.[4]
The Hungarianhajduks had a similar ceremony, but the wine was often replaced with milk so that the blood would be more visible.[citation needed]
InAsian cultures, the act and the ceremony of becoming blood brothers is generally seen as atribal relationship for bringing about alliance between tribes. It was practiced for that reason most notably by theMongols,Turkic andearly Chinese.[citation needed]
InRomance of the Three Kingdoms, the Chinese classical literature, the three main characters took an oath of blood brother, theOath of the Peach Garden, by sacrificing a black ox and a white horse and by swearing faith.[5] Other blood oaths involving animal sacrifice were characteristic of rebel groups, such as the uprising led byDeng Maoqi in the 1440s, of criminal organizations, such as thetriads or the pirates ofLin Daoqian, and other East Asians such as theMongols and theManchu.[6]Genghis Khan had ananda calledJamukha.[7] The term also exist inOld Turkic:ant ičmek ("to take an oath"), derived from the "ancient test by poison". The Turkic term, if it is not a loanword inMiddle Mongol, is related to Mongolanda.[8]
In thePhilippines,blood compacts (sandugo orsanduguan, literally "one blood") were ancient rituals that were intended to seal a friendship or treaty or to validate an agreement. They were described in the records of the early Spanish and Portuguese explorers to the islands. The most well-known version of the ritual from theVisayan people involves mixing a drop of blood from both parties into a single cup of wine that is then drunk. Other versions also exist, like inPalawan which describes a ritual involving making a cut on the chest and then daubing the blood on the tongue and forehead.[9][10]
The blood oath was used in much the same fashion as has already been described in much ofSub-Saharan Africa. The British colonial administratorLord Lugard is famous for having become blood brothers with numerous African chiefs as part of his political policy in Africa. A powerful blood brother was theKikuyu chieftainWaiyaki Wa Hinga.David Livingstone wrote of a similar practice called 'Kasendi'.[11]
In 1066,Robert d'Ouilly andRoger d'Ivry, two Norman knights taking part in theNorman Conquest of England were known as blood brothers. It was said they had agreed beforehand to share profits of this adventure. Both survived theBattle of Hastings, were granted lands inOxfordshire and elsewhere, then worked together on various projects such asWallingford Castle.
In the 12th century AD, the Mongol leadersYesükhei (father of Temüjin) andToghrul (later ally of Temüjin) were blood brothers.
Temüjin (Genghis Khan) andJamukha were childhood friends and blood brothers, although Jamukha later betrayed Temüjin. Jamukha refused reconciliation and thus was executed at the orders of Temüjin.
In the 18th century AD, emissaries of British KingGeorge III and leaders of theJamaican Maroons reportedly drank each other's blood when conducting peace treaties.[13]
Samoanwrestler"High Chief" Peter Maivia was a blood brother of Amituanai Anoaʻi, father of fellow wrestlersAfa andSika Anoaʻi, renown asthe Wild Samoans, who regard Peter as their uncle. Thus, from that time onwards, theAnoaʻi family regard theMaivia line as an extension of their own clan.
The Norse godsLoki andOdin are famously stated to have mixed blood indays of old inLokasenna. This has been taken as an explanation why Loki is at all tolerated by the gods.
In the Chinese taleJourney to the West,Sun Wukong (the Monkey King) became blood brothers withNiu Mowang (the Bull Demon King) and several other demon leaders, but later on this brother relationship was forgotten because of a conflict that occurred involving the bull demon's son that caused other problems for Wukong. Wukong also mentions being sworn brothers withErlang Shen. Erlang has six other sworn brothers from Plum Hill.
^Caspar Meyer,Greco-Scythian Art and the Birth of Eurasia: From Classical Antiquity to Russian Modernity, OUP (2013),246 (fig. 98b) "Gold relief appliqué showing two Scythians drinking from one drinking horn. FromKul-Oba (Inventory 2, K.12h). Rostoftzeff identified the scene with the Scythain sacred oath described in Herodotus 4.70. Fourth century BC. 5 × 3.7 cm, 28.35 gr."; see also "Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine",Scythian gold statuette depicting the ritual of brotherhood.
^Trumbull, H. Clay (1885).The Blood Covenant (Outlook Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 2018 ed.). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.ISBN9783732636679. Retrieved2019-10-19.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Bilby, Kenneth (1997). "Swearing by the Past, Swearing to the Future: Sacred Oaths, Alliances, and Treaties among the Guianese and Jamaican Maroons".Ethnohistory.44 (4):655–689.doi:10.2307/482884.ISSN0014-1801.JSTOR482884.
