102,843
edits
Changes
Created page with 'File:lighterstill.jpgright|frame 82:3.1 Marriage is the institutional response of the social organism to the ever-presen...'
[[File:lighterstill.jpg]][[File:The_eye_of_all_ur60.jpg|right|frame]]
82:3.1 [[Marriage]] is the [[institutional]] [[response]] of the [[social]] [[organism]] to the ever-present [[biologic]] [[tension]] of man's unremitting urge to [[reproduction]]—self-propagation. [[Mating]] is [[universally]] [[natural]], and as [[society]] evolved from the [[simple]] to the [[complex]], there was a [[corresponding]] evolution of the [[mating]] [[mores]], the [[genesis]] of the marital institution. Wherever [[social]] [[evolution]] has progressed to the [[stage]] at which mores are generated, [[marriage]] will be found as an [[evolving]] [[institution]].
82:3.2 There always have been and always will be two distinct realms of [[marriage]]: the [[mores]], the [[laws]] regulating the external aspects of [[mating]], and the otherwise [[secret]] and [[personal]] relations of [[men]] and [[women]]. Always has the [[individual]] been rebellious against the [[sex]] regulations imposed by [[society]]; and this is the reason for this agelong [[sex]] [[problem]]: Self-maintenance is [[individual]] but is carried on by the [[group]]; self-perpetuation is [[social]] but is secured by [[individual]] impulse.[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_69#69:1._BASIC_HUMAN_INSTITUTIONS]
82:3.3 The [[mores]], when respected, have ample [[power]] to restrain and [[control]] the [[sex]] urge, as has been shown among all races. [[Marriage]] [[standards]] have always been a true indicator of the current [[power]] of the [[mores]] and the functional [[integrity]] of the civil [[government]]. But the early [[sex]] and [[mating]] mores were a mass of inconsistent and crude regulations. [[Parents]], [[children]], relatives, and [[society]] all had [[conflict]]ing interests in the [[marriage]] regulations. But in spite of all this, those races which exalted and practiced marriage naturally evolved to higher [[levels]] and [[survived]] in increased numbers.
82:3.4 In [[primitive]] times [[marriage]] was the price of [[Social status|social]] standing; the [[possession]] of a [[wife]] was a badge of distinction. The [[savage]] looked upon his wedding day as marking his entrance upon [[responsibility]] and [[manhood]]. In one age, [[marriage]] has been looked upon as a [[social]] [[duty]]; in another, as a [[religious]] [[obligation]]; and in still another, as a [[political]] requirement to provide [[citizens]] for the [[state]].
82:3.5 Many early [[tribes]] required feats of stealing as a qualification for [[marriage]]; later peoples substituted for such raiding forays, [[athletic]] [[contests]] and [[competitive]] [[games]]. The winners in these contests were awarded the first prize—choice of the season's brides. Among the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headhunting head-hunters] a [[youth]] might not marry until he [[possessed]] at least one head, although such skulls were sometimes purchasable. As the buying of [[wives]] declined, they were won by riddle contests, a [[practice]] that still survives among many [[groups]] of the black man.
82:3.6 With advancing [[civilization]], certain [[tribes]] put the severe [[marriage]] tests of [[male]] [[endurance]] in the hands of the [[women]]; they thus were able to [[favor]] the men of their [[choice]]. These marriage tests [[embraced]] [[skill]] in [[hunting]], fighting, and [[ability]] to provide for a [[family]]. The groom was long required to enter the bride's [[family]] for at least one year, there to live and labor and prove that he was [[worthy]] of the wife he sought.
82:3.7 The qualifications of a [[wife]] were the ability to [[perform]] hard [[work]] and to bear [[children]]. She was required to [[execute]] a certain piece of [[agricultural]] work within a given time. And if she had borne a child before marriage, she was all the more valuable; her [[fertility]] was thus [[assured]].
82:3.8 The [[fact]] that [[ancient]] peoples regarded it as a disgrace, or even a [[sin]], not to be married, explains the [[origin]] of child marriages; since one must be married, the earlier the better. It was also a general belief that unmarried persons could not enter spiritland, and this was a further incentive to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_marriages child marriages] even at [[birth]] and sometimes before birth, [[contingent]] upon [[sex]]. The ancients believed that even the dead must be married. The [[original]] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matchmakers matchmakers] were employed to [[negotiate]] marriages for deceased individuals. One [[parent]] would arrange for these intermediaries to [[effect]] the marriage of a dead son with a dead daughter of another [[family]].
82:3.9 Among later peoples, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puberty puberty] was the common age of [[marriage]], but this has advanced in direct [[proportion]] to the [[progress]] of [[civilization]]. Early in [[social]] [[evolution]] peculiar and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celibate celibate] orders of both men and women arose; they were started and [[maintained]] by [[individuals]] more or less lacking [[normal]] sex urge.
82:3.10 Many [[tribes]] allowed members of the ruling [[group]] to have [[sex]] relations with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bride bride] just before she was to be given to her [[husband]]. Each of these men would give the girl a present, and this was the [[origin]] of the custom of giving wedding presents. Among some [[groups]] it was expected that a young woman would earn her [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dowry dowry], which consisted of the presents received in reward for her [[sex]] [[service]] in the bride's exhibition hall.
82:3.11 Some [[tribes]] married the young men to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widow widows] and older women and then, when they were subsequently left widowers, would allow them to marry the young girls, thus insuring, as they [[expressed]] it, that both [[parents]] would not be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foolishness fools], as they conceived would be the case if two [[youths]] were allowed to [[mate]]. Other [[tribes]] limited mating to similar age groups. It was the [[limitation]] of marriage to certain age [[groups]] that first gave [[origin]] to [[ideas]] of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incest incest]. (In [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India India] there are even now no age restrictions on marriage.)
82:3.12 Under certain [[mores]] widowhood was greatly to be feared, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widow widows] being either killed or allowed to commit [[suicide]] on their [[husband]]s' graves, for they were supposed to go over into spiritland with their spouses. The surviving widow was almost invariably blamed for her husband's [[death]]. Some [[tribes]] burned them alive. If a widow continued to live, her life was one of continuous [[mourning]] and unbearable [[social]] restriction since remarriage was generally disapproved.
82:3.13 In olden days many [[practices]] now regarded as immoral were [[encouraged]]. Primitive wives not infrequently took great [[pride]] in their [[husband]]s' affairs with other [[women]]. [[Chastity]] in girls was a great hindrance to marriage; the bearing of a child before marriage greatly increased a girl's desirability as a wife since the man was sure of having a [[fertile]] companion.
82:3.14 Many [[primitive]] [[tribes]] [[sanctioned]] [[trial]] [[marriage]] until the woman became pregnant, when the regular marriage [[ceremony]] would be performed; among other groups the wedding was not celebrated until the first child was born. If a wife was barren, she had to be redeemed by her [[parents]], and the marriage was annulled. The [[mores]] demanded that every pair have [[children]].
82:3.15 These [[primitive]] trial marriages were entirely free from all semblance of [[license]]; they were simply [[sincere]] tests of [[fecundity]]. The contracting [[individuals]] married permanently just as soon as [[fertility]] was [[established]]. When [[modern]] couples marry with the [[thought]] of convenient [[divorce]] in the background of their [[minds]] if they are not wholly pleased with their married life, they are in [[reality]] entering upon a form of trial marriage and one that is far beneath the [[status]] of the [[honest]] [[adventures]] of their less civilized [[ancestors]].
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_82 Go to Paper 82]</center>
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Urantia_Text_-_Contents Go to Table of Contents]</center>
[[Category:Paper 82 - The Evolution of Marriage]]
82:3.1 [[Marriage]] is the [[institutional]] [[response]] of the [[social]] [[organism]] to the ever-present [[biologic]] [[tension]] of man's unremitting urge to [[reproduction]]—self-propagation. [[Mating]] is [[universally]] [[natural]], and as [[society]] evolved from the [[simple]] to the [[complex]], there was a [[corresponding]] evolution of the [[mating]] [[mores]], the [[genesis]] of the marital institution. Wherever [[social]] [[evolution]] has progressed to the [[stage]] at which mores are generated, [[marriage]] will be found as an [[evolving]] [[institution]].
82:3.2 There always have been and always will be two distinct realms of [[marriage]]: the [[mores]], the [[laws]] regulating the external aspects of [[mating]], and the otherwise [[secret]] and [[personal]] relations of [[men]] and [[women]]. Always has the [[individual]] been rebellious against the [[sex]] regulations imposed by [[society]]; and this is the reason for this agelong [[sex]] [[problem]]: Self-maintenance is [[individual]] but is carried on by the [[group]]; self-perpetuation is [[social]] but is secured by [[individual]] impulse.[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_69#69:1._BASIC_HUMAN_INSTITUTIONS]
82:3.3 The [[mores]], when respected, have ample [[power]] to restrain and [[control]] the [[sex]] urge, as has been shown among all races. [[Marriage]] [[standards]] have always been a true indicator of the current [[power]] of the [[mores]] and the functional [[integrity]] of the civil [[government]]. But the early [[sex]] and [[mating]] mores were a mass of inconsistent and crude regulations. [[Parents]], [[children]], relatives, and [[society]] all had [[conflict]]ing interests in the [[marriage]] regulations. But in spite of all this, those races which exalted and practiced marriage naturally evolved to higher [[levels]] and [[survived]] in increased numbers.
82:3.4 In [[primitive]] times [[marriage]] was the price of [[Social status|social]] standing; the [[possession]] of a [[wife]] was a badge of distinction. The [[savage]] looked upon his wedding day as marking his entrance upon [[responsibility]] and [[manhood]]. In one age, [[marriage]] has been looked upon as a [[social]] [[duty]]; in another, as a [[religious]] [[obligation]]; and in still another, as a [[political]] requirement to provide [[citizens]] for the [[state]].
82:3.5 Many early [[tribes]] required feats of stealing as a qualification for [[marriage]]; later peoples substituted for such raiding forays, [[athletic]] [[contests]] and [[competitive]] [[games]]. The winners in these contests were awarded the first prize—choice of the season's brides. Among the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headhunting head-hunters] a [[youth]] might not marry until he [[possessed]] at least one head, although such skulls were sometimes purchasable. As the buying of [[wives]] declined, they were won by riddle contests, a [[practice]] that still survives among many [[groups]] of the black man.
82:3.6 With advancing [[civilization]], certain [[tribes]] put the severe [[marriage]] tests of [[male]] [[endurance]] in the hands of the [[women]]; they thus were able to [[favor]] the men of their [[choice]]. These marriage tests [[embraced]] [[skill]] in [[hunting]], fighting, and [[ability]] to provide for a [[family]]. The groom was long required to enter the bride's [[family]] for at least one year, there to live and labor and prove that he was [[worthy]] of the wife he sought.
82:3.7 The qualifications of a [[wife]] were the ability to [[perform]] hard [[work]] and to bear [[children]]. She was required to [[execute]] a certain piece of [[agricultural]] work within a given time. And if she had borne a child before marriage, she was all the more valuable; her [[fertility]] was thus [[assured]].
82:3.8 The [[fact]] that [[ancient]] peoples regarded it as a disgrace, or even a [[sin]], not to be married, explains the [[origin]] of child marriages; since one must be married, the earlier the better. It was also a general belief that unmarried persons could not enter spiritland, and this was a further incentive to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_marriages child marriages] even at [[birth]] and sometimes before birth, [[contingent]] upon [[sex]]. The ancients believed that even the dead must be married. The [[original]] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matchmakers matchmakers] were employed to [[negotiate]] marriages for deceased individuals. One [[parent]] would arrange for these intermediaries to [[effect]] the marriage of a dead son with a dead daughter of another [[family]].
82:3.9 Among later peoples, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puberty puberty] was the common age of [[marriage]], but this has advanced in direct [[proportion]] to the [[progress]] of [[civilization]]. Early in [[social]] [[evolution]] peculiar and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celibate celibate] orders of both men and women arose; they were started and [[maintained]] by [[individuals]] more or less lacking [[normal]] sex urge.
82:3.10 Many [[tribes]] allowed members of the ruling [[group]] to have [[sex]] relations with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bride bride] just before she was to be given to her [[husband]]. Each of these men would give the girl a present, and this was the [[origin]] of the custom of giving wedding presents. Among some [[groups]] it was expected that a young woman would earn her [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dowry dowry], which consisted of the presents received in reward for her [[sex]] [[service]] in the bride's exhibition hall.
82:3.11 Some [[tribes]] married the young men to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widow widows] and older women and then, when they were subsequently left widowers, would allow them to marry the young girls, thus insuring, as they [[expressed]] it, that both [[parents]] would not be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foolishness fools], as they conceived would be the case if two [[youths]] were allowed to [[mate]]. Other [[tribes]] limited mating to similar age groups. It was the [[limitation]] of marriage to certain age [[groups]] that first gave [[origin]] to [[ideas]] of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incest incest]. (In [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India India] there are even now no age restrictions on marriage.)
82:3.12 Under certain [[mores]] widowhood was greatly to be feared, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widow widows] being either killed or allowed to commit [[suicide]] on their [[husband]]s' graves, for they were supposed to go over into spiritland with their spouses. The surviving widow was almost invariably blamed for her husband's [[death]]. Some [[tribes]] burned them alive. If a widow continued to live, her life was one of continuous [[mourning]] and unbearable [[social]] restriction since remarriage was generally disapproved.
82:3.13 In olden days many [[practices]] now regarded as immoral were [[encouraged]]. Primitive wives not infrequently took great [[pride]] in their [[husband]]s' affairs with other [[women]]. [[Chastity]] in girls was a great hindrance to marriage; the bearing of a child before marriage greatly increased a girl's desirability as a wife since the man was sure of having a [[fertile]] companion.
82:3.14 Many [[primitive]] [[tribes]] [[sanctioned]] [[trial]] [[marriage]] until the woman became pregnant, when the regular marriage [[ceremony]] would be performed; among other groups the wedding was not celebrated until the first child was born. If a wife was barren, she had to be redeemed by her [[parents]], and the marriage was annulled. The [[mores]] demanded that every pair have [[children]].
82:3.15 These [[primitive]] trial marriages were entirely free from all semblance of [[license]]; they were simply [[sincere]] tests of [[fecundity]]. The contracting [[individuals]] married permanently just as soon as [[fertility]] was [[established]]. When [[modern]] couples marry with the [[thought]] of convenient [[divorce]] in the background of their [[minds]] if they are not wholly pleased with their married life, they are in [[reality]] entering upon a form of trial marriage and one that is far beneath the [[status]] of the [[honest]] [[adventures]] of their less civilized [[ancestors]].
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_82 Go to Paper 82]</center>
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Urantia_Text_-_Contents Go to Table of Contents]</center>
[[Category:Paper 82 - The Evolution of Marriage]]