Seven Sleepers

Seven Sleepers, the heroes of a celebrated legend, which is first related in the West by Gregory of Tours in the close of the 6th century (Miraculorum Liber, c. 92), but the date of which is assigned to the 3d century, and to the persecution of the Christians under Decius. According to the story, during the flight of the Christians from the persecution, seven Christians of Ephesus took refuge in a cave near the city, where they were discovered by their pursuers, who walled up the entrance in order to starve them to death. They fell instead into a preternatural sleep, in which they lay for nearly 200 years. This is supposed to have taken place in 250 or 251; and it was not till the reign of Theodosius II. (447) that they awoke. They imagined that their sleep had been but of a single night; and one of the seven went secretly into the city to purchase provisions, and he was amazed to see the cross erected on the churches and other buildings. Offering a coin of Decius in a baker's shop he was arrested, his startling story not being believed until he guided the citizens to the cavern where he had left his comrades. The emperor heard from their lips enough to convince him of the life beyond the grave of the dead, whereupon they sank again to sleep till the resurrection. Gregory explains that his story is of Syrian origin—it is widely current in the East, and was adopted by Mohammed (sur. xviii.), who even admits their dog Kitmer also into Paradise. The Roman Catholic Church holds their festival on June 27. The names usually given are Maximianus, Malchus, Martinianus, Dionysius, Joannes, Serapion, and Constantius. Paulus Diaconus (8th century) locates a similar story in Germany, and Rydberg makes out a good case that the myth is of Teutonic origin intimately connected with the return of the dead Balder and of the other dead men from the lower world, with the idea of resurrection and the regeneration of the world, but possibly enough first Christianised in Syria or Asia Minor. The seven sons of Mimer awakening from their long sleep at the blast of Heimdal's trumpet to take their part in the final struggle of the universe is a close parallel to the seven saints of Ephesus. Both in Germany and Sweden the seven sleepers are connected with the weather—if it rains on their day rain will follow for seven weeks together. They are supposed also to take especial care of sailors. See Koch, Die Siebenschlüferlegende (Leip. 1882); and Rydberg, Teutonic Mythology (Eng. trans. 1889).