The Golden Bough, Part 2 by James George Frazer: chapters 12-24, from the sacred marriage to the killing of the divine king, read in full.

Timestamps:
0:00 Chapter 12. The Sacred Marriage
20:26 Chapter 13. The Kings of Rome and Alba
36:10 Chapter 14. The Succession to the Kingdom in Ancient Latium
56:37 Chapter 15. The Worship of the Oak
1:04:19 Chapter 16. Dianus and Diana
1:22:54 Chapter 17. The Burden of Royalty
1:54:36 Chapter 18. The Perils of the Soul
2:42:06 Chapter 19. Tabooed Acts
3:06:38 Chapter 20. Tabooed Persons
4:09:40 Chapter 21. Tabooed Things
5:11:53 Chapter 22. Tabooed Words
6:05:52 Chapter 23. Our Debt to the Savage
6:11:56 Chapter 24. The Killing of the Divine King

Frazer continues his study of the priest-king of Nemi through sacred marriage rites, the kings of Rome and Alba, the worship of the oak and the heavy burden of royalty. Then comes his long and influential survey of taboo: the perils of the soul, and tabooed acts, persons, things and words, from the names of the dead to iron, blood and hair. The part closes with his reflections on what modern people owe to early thought, and with the killing of the divine king.

This audiobook uses the single-volume edition of The Golden Bough (69 chapters), presented in five parts. Frazer wrote in the late Victorian era, so the text reflects the vocabulary and assumptions of its time.

About the author: James George Frazer (1854-1941) was a Scottish social anthropologist whose work shaped the study of myth and comparative religion and influenced modern anthropology, psychology and literature.

Listen if you enjoy: comparative religion, mythology, folklore and the history of magic.

Narration: AI text-to-speech voice reading the public-domain text. Chapter timestamps are included in this description.

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