Category Archives: Storms
Poseidon
Pronunciation: Po-si-dun
Etymology: Greek – Husband (of Wheat)
Alternate Spellings & Other Names: Ποσειδων
Epithets: Aegeus (“of the High Sea”), Alidoupos (“Sea Resounding”), Asphaleios (Protector from Earthquakes), Domatites (“of the House” in reference to his shrine near Sparta), Empylios (“At the Gate”), Enosichthon (“Earth Shaker”), Ennosidas, Ennosigaios (“Earth Shaker”), Enosichthon, Ennosidas, Epactaeus (“god worshiped on the coast”), Epoptes (“Supervisor”), Eurykreion (“Wide-Ruling”), Eurymedon (“Widely Ruling”), Eutriaina (“with Goodly Trident”), Gaieochos (“Earth Shaker”), Genesios, Genethlios (“of the race or family”), Helikonios (of Mount Helikon), Helikonios anax (“Lord of Helicon or Helike”), Hippokourios (“Tender of Horses”), Isthmios, Krenouchos (“Ruling over Springs”), Kyanochaites (“dark-haired, dark blue of the sea”), Kymothales (“Abounding with Waves”), Kronios, Patrigenios, Pelagios (“of the open sea”), Petraios (related to rocks), Phratrios (“of the Brotherhood”), Phykios (related to seaweed), Phytalmios, Pontomedon (“Lord of the Sea”), Porthmios (“of strait, narrow sea”), Posidaeia (This is probably a feminine counterpart to Poseidon found on the Linear B script), Poseidon Aegaeus, Poseidon Hippios (Horse Poseidon), Poseidon Temenites (“related to an official domain”), Ptorthios, Seisichthon (“Earth Shaker”), Semnos (“August, Holy”), Tavreios (related to bulls), Themeliouchos (“Upholding the Foundations”), “Savior of Sailors,” “Averter of Earthquakes,” “The Creator and Tamer of Horses,” Nymphagetes (“The Leader of Nymphs”), Poseidon Erechtheus
Poseidon is the god of the Oceans and not just the seas in Greek mythology, but all the waters from streams to rivers, lakes, and storms. The middle brother to Zeus and Hades. As a god of storms, Poseidon could also be very moody and mercurial in his demeanor.
Attributes
Animal: Bull, Coral, Dolphin, Fish, Horse, Sea Lion, Tuna
Color: Blue, Green
Day of the Week: Thursday
Element: Water
Patron of: Sailors
Planet: Neptune
Plant: Kelp, Pine, Seaweed, Wild Celery
Sphere of Influence: Earthquakes, Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, Protection, Storms
Symbols: Coral, Trident
Time of Day: High Tides
Early Greek Depictions
Poseidon is often considered a moody and sometimes quarrelsome deity. When Poseidon is in a good mood, that is when new lands will appear, and the sea will be calm. When Poseidon is in a foul mood, that is when earthquakes could happen, and portions of land and island can sink into the seas to be claimed by him. Storms at sea are attributed to Poseidon, especially if there are shipwrecks and drownings.
Greek art will show Poseidon as a bearded man with curly hair wielding a three-pronged fish spear or trident. Other art will show him in a chariot pulled by either horses or hippocampus. In some art, Poseidon can be shown holding a boulder with various sea creatures on it.
Homeric Hymns – There is a brief invocation, comprising seven lines that address Poseidon as an earth-shaker and God of the deep, that he is the lord of Helicon and Aegae. Homer also says that Poseidon has a shriek as loud as ten thousand men.
Cult & Worship
In pre-Bronze Age Greece, Poseidon was worshiped in Pylos and Thebes as the chief deity. When looking at Arcadia, there is a very regional-specific myth told of Poseidon and Demeter in horse forms. There is some thought that these early Greeks entering the area only had Poseidon, Zeus, Eos, and Dioskouroi among the deities that they brought with them and worshiped.
The early worship of Poseidon clearly links him to horses and as a Chthonic deity of the underworld. As Poseidon Wanax, he is the male counterpart to a goddess of nature, Demeter. A similar myth is seen in Minoan myths where Pasiphae mates with a white bull, giving birth to the Minotaur. The Bull is an old pre-Olympian symbol of Poseidon. In the Eleusinian cults, there is mention of how Potnia gives birth to a strong son in relation to Poseidon being the father.
In Mycenaean culture, we don’t have enough evidence or information to know if Poseidon was connected to the sea during this time. We don’t know if the female counterpart “Posedeia” was a sea goddess either. In the writings of Homer and Hesiod, they say that Poseidon becomes the lord of the sea after the defeat of his father Cronos, and the world is divided among his three sons.
The scholar Walter Burkert puts forward the idea early Hellenic worship of Poseidon as a horse god may be due to the introduction of the horse and war chariots from Anatolia to Greece around 1600 B.C.E. In the local Arcadian myths and Poseidon’s cult in Peloponnesos, we see Poseidon worshiped as a horse.
During the Hellenic era of Greek culture, Poseidon is the protector of sailors and ships out at sea. Poseidon was also the patron god of several Greek cities, though, in Athens, he was second only to Athena.
Corinth – This is the ancient city that Poseidon is often associated with. This port city was regarded as being close to Poseidon’s heart due to how important a sea route it was. Clay plaques dating from the Archaic era have been found to connect Poseidon with maritime trade and navigation. Local games known as the Isthmian games were held here in honor of the sea god. These games would be held once every two years with athletes, charioteers, and horse races. Early on, a crown of pine would be awarded and later, it would be a crown of dried celery.
Sounion – Located some 69.5 km to the southeast of Athens in East Attica, this is the site of a 5th-century temple dedicated to Poseidon that still stands overlooking the Saronic Gulf. Boat races were held every four years to honor Poseidon.
Delphi Oracle – Pausanias writes that Poseidon was once one of the caretakers at Delphi before the arrival of Apollo. The two deities worked in tangent with many aspects. For example, Apollo gave approval for Greek colonization and Poseidon provided safe travels for those crossing his seas.
Sacred Disease – The Greek gods are known for causing or inflicting madness and various mental illnesses upon people. There is a Hippocratic text from 400 B.C.E. that notes Poseidon is responsible for certain forms of epilepsy.
The Panionia – This was a festival that the Ionians held every year near Mycale.
Pohoidaia – This is another game and festival held in Poseidon’s honor at Helos and Thuria.
Poseidon’s Palace
It should come as no surprise that as a sea god, that Poseidon’s abode is found on the ocean’s floor in a palace of coral and gems.
Aegae – In the Odyssey, Poseidon is mentioned as having his home here, the once capital of Macedonia.
Atlantis – In Plato’s Timaeus and Critias, this island is said to be Poseidon’s domain.
What’s In A Name?
The earliest mention of Poseidon’s name are found in the Linear B script in Mycenean Greek where the name appears as Poseidaon and Poseidawonos. Other variations of Posedion’s name are Poteidaon (Aeolic), Poteidan (Doric), Poteidaon, and Poteidas.
As to the meaning of Poseidon’s name, that part is unclear. There is a theory put forward that it means “husband” or “lord” seen in the Greek posis or potis and the last part meaning “earth.” The Doric Greek links Poseidon as being a spouse to Demeter, the “Earth-Mother.”
Another theory is that the second element in Poseidon’s name relates to dâwon meaning “water” and that would interpret the name as Posei-dawon as “the master of waters.” In Plato’s Cratylus dialogue, he gives two ideas for an etymology to Poseidon’s name. The first is “foot-bond” and the second is “knew many things.”
Hesiod in his Theogony describes Poseidon as “the earth-holder who shakes the earth.” Both Hesiod and Homer call Poseidon the “deep sounding Earth-shaker” and “dark-haired-one.” Both poets refer to Poseidon as the “encircler of the earth,” which alludes to this era of history when people believed that all the waters of the Earth were connected and that the land merely floated on top of them.
Parentage and Family
Parents
Cronus and Rhea
Consort
Amphitrite – The daughter of Nereus and Doris and granddaughter of the Titan Oceanus
Cleito – Poseidon’s wife in Plato’s myth of Atlantis. Cleito is the daughter of the autochthons Evenor and Leucippe.
Sometimes the goddesses Aphrodite and Demeter are given as consorts.
Siblings
He is the fifth child born of Cronus and Rhea.
The birth order is Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus.
Chiron – a half-brother by way of Cronus and the nymph Philyra.
Children
Theseus – with Aethra through rape
Benthesicyme – son with Amphitrite
Rhode – daughter with Amphitrite
Triton – A half fish, half human with Amphitrite
Monstrous Offspring – Chrysaor and Pegasus with Medusa
Plato’s Atlantis – with Cleito, Poseidon is the father of Ampheres, Atlas (the first king of Atlantis), Autochthon, Azaes, Diaprepes, Elasippus, Euaemon, Eumelus (Gadeirus), Mestor, Mneseus
Other Children
Antaeus, Arion (a talking horse), Atlas, Desponia, Eumolpus, the Giant Sinis, Polyphemus (a cyclops), Orion, King Amycus, Proteus, Agenor and Belus from Europa, Nauplius, Neleus, Pelias, and the King of Egypt, Busiris, Laistrygon
Alebion, Bergion, Otos, Ephialtae are all noted as being giant children of Poseidon.
In general, there are a good many mythical creatures, a tribe of giants known as the Laistrygons, barbarians, cannibals, savages, and other uncivilized peoples like thieves who were said to be descendants of Poseidon.
Grandson
Periclymenus – Through his son Neleus, the king of Pylos, Poseidon granted him the power of shape-shifting. He is listed as one of the Argonauts and is later killed by Herakles.
Olympian God
Poseidon is counted among the twelve major deities who resided on Mount Olympus, the highest mountain peak in Greece and all of Europe. For the Greeks, this was the perfect location where the gods would preside while keeping watch on humankind down below them.
As there are several deities within Greek mythology, just who numbers among the Olympians vary. It’s generally agreed that the twelve major Olympians are: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, and then either Hestia or Dionysus.
Trident
Where Zeus has his thunderbolts and Hades has his bident, the mighty Poseidon is known for his trademark weapon, the trident!
A trident is a three-pronged weapon that Poseidon is often shown with. It has also been pointed out that Hades has a bident, a two-pronged weapon, and that Zeus has his thunderbolt, which is a one-pronged weapon. Just in case someone thought there should be some sort of connection.
With this trident, Poseidon could shatter anything in his way, much like Hades does with his bident.
Birth Of A God
We start with Cronus and Rhea, the parents of Poseidon and all his siblings.
As the story goes, Cronus defeated his father, Uranus, overthrowing him to become the leader and King of the Titans. Shortly after, Cronus receives a prophecy that just as he killed his father, so too, would a child of his kill him.
This prompts Cronus to decide to devour and swallow his children whole as soon as they are born. This would happen five times. Poor Rhea just gets to where she can’t take it anymore. With the birth of her sixth child, Zeus, Rhea hides him away and manages to convince Cronus that this large stone is their latest child. Bon Appetit, Cronus eats the “stone baby” none the wiser that he’s been tricked.
Rhea takes and hides Zeus, so that later, when he is older, he can come to fulfill the prophecy killing his father Cronus. During the battle, Zeus splits open Cronus’ stomach, freeing all of his brothers and sisters: Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Hera, and Hestia. Incidentally, Hades is the last of Cronus’ children that is either regurgitated or comes out after Zeus splits their father open.
In other versions I have found of this story, Zeus meets with Metis who concocts a drug for Zeus to give to Cronus so that he disgorges or vomits up the stone and all of his children.
Poseidon’s Infancy
There is a version of the birth story of gods in that Poseidon does manage to get secreted away by his mother Rhea and is not eaten by his father. That Rhea gives Cronus a colt to eat instead of an infant. Poseidon is then placed in a flock of sheep in either Arcadia or Rhodes to conceal him.
There is a well in a Mantineia neighborhood where this event is believed to have happened and is called the “Lamb’s Well” or Arne.
Kourotrophos
This is the name that a group of ancient Greek deities were given for their roles as protectors and caregivers, essentially the nurses or nannies to children.
Arne – Poseidon’s kourotrophos was Arne, a spring nymph and daughter of Aeolus. Arne denied knowing where the infant was when Cronus came searching for him. The town of Arne gained its name from this nymph.
Telchines – According to Diodorus Siculus, Poseidon was raised by the Telchines, the original inhabitants of the island of Rhodes just as his brother Zeus was raised by the Korybantes on the island of Crete. Capheira, an Oceanid nymph would become Poseidon’s nurse.
Titanomachy
There is a ten-year-long divine war known as the Titanomachy, and by the end, Zeus takes his place as ruler and king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Hades and the other gods take up their roles as part of the newly formed Pantheon.
During the war, Gaia gave a prophecy to Zeus that he would have victory over the Titans by freeing the Cyclops who were then prisoners in Tartaros. Zeus slew Campe, the jail-keeper of the Cyclops. As a reward and thanks for releasing them, the Cyclops forged weapons for the three brothers. Thunderbolts for Zeus, a Trident for Poseidon, and a Bident for Hades along with a magical helmet of invisibility.
During this war, Hades used his helmet of invisibility to sneak into the Titans’ camp and destroy their weapons. After the war, the Titans were imprisoned within Tartoros and the Hecatoncheires were placed in charge of guarding the new prisoners. One titan, Atlas would be punished by forever having to hold the earth up.
Dividing the Spoils of War – After defeating Cronus and all of his father’s followers, the three brothers, Hades, Poseidon and Zeus divided up rulership of the cosmos between them. Hades would become ruler of the Underworld; Poseidon would become ruler of the seas and Zeus would become ruler of the air. The earth, the domain of Gaia, would be available to all three gods.
Iliad – The Iliad describes the three brothers as pulling lots to determine who would rule which realm.
Gigantomachy – Battle For The Heavens!
After the battle with the Titans, Zeus would still need to secure his throne. During this battle, Poseidon would use his trident to break off part of the island Kos and use it to entomb the giant Polybotes. Today, this island is known as Nisyros.
When The Oceans Were King!
You see remnants of this in the story of Perseus & Andromeda and certain stories of Elysian Mysteries where Poseidon is Persephone‘s father and not Zeus. Even Homer’s Odyssey shows this connection where Poseidon is the primary instigator of events and not Zeus.
In the Linear B script, Poseidon is listed as the chief deity.
After the collapse of the Mycenaean culture in the Mediterranean, we see a dark age period for Greek culture that resurges again some hundreds of years later, and now, it is Zeus who is the head of the pantheon and Poseidon is second only in power.
When we look at the Linear B tablets from Mycenean Greece, we find that Poseidon’s name as po-se-da-wo-ne appears more frequently than Zeus’ name di-u-ja. There is also a feminine form of po-se-da-ia which suggests there is a potential lost consort goddess to Poseidon. One who is a precursor to Amphitrite.
Chthonic Deity
In the same Linear B script previously mentioned, Poseidon has a title of wa-na-ka or “wanax” that suggest the role of king of the Underworld. Other titles for Poseidon-Wanax are seen in the title E-ne-si-da-o-ne in Mycenean Knossos and Pylos, an epitaph that references the earthquakes that saw the collapse of the Minoan culture.
In Crete, in the cave of Amnisos, we see the name Enesidaon connected to the cult of Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth. Eileithyia also has a part in the annual birth of a divine child.
There is evidence in the Bronze Age, that a goddess of nature held a dominant role in both Minoan and Mycenean religions. That Wanax is her male consort in the Mycenean cults. Some scholars have tried to make a connection to Demeter where her name might appear as Da-ma-te, but this is still disputed.
Looking at the Linear Be scripts found at Pylos, the name E-ne-si-da-o-ne in association with Poseidon, and the name Si-to Po-tini-ja is associated with Demeter giving a suggestion of these two deities as consorts.
This fits when looking at the Eleusinian mysteries and seeing how they predate the Olympian pantheon. Inscriptions from Pylos show records of sacrificial offerings to “the Two Queens and Poseidon.” Those two queens just might be Demeter and Persephone when trying to look at the archeological evidence.
This association also makes sense as the ancient Greeks would have seen rivers and streams flow from the rocks and then disappear beneath the land in other areas. Plus there was a belief anciently during this period that the land merely floated above the water. That Poseidon could create the land as much as swallow it back down into the depths with earthquakes.
Lord of the Sea Gods
So, Poseidon may no longer rule over all of Olympia and be the head of the Pantheon by the time we get to the Classical, Hellenistic era of Greek history that everyone is more familiar with. Poseidon is still the lord over all the gods of the oceans, various rivers, and lakes. Poseidon was also regarded as a protector of many cities located near the sea as they relied on their whole economies from the sea trade and bounty provided by the deeps of the ocean.
Mediterranean Ocean
It should also be noted by many people that Poseidon should be seen as the god of the Mediterranean Ocean as that is the sea that many of the ancient Greeks and even Romans when they renamed Poseidon to Neptune are familiar with.
God Of Storms
While this aspect seems to be more connected to Zeus in his roles as a Sky God and god of thunder, Poseidon also has power over storms, particularly those out at sea.
God Of Earthquakes
Another aspect of Poseidon is that of earthquakes, giving him an epitaph of Earth Mover or Earth Shaker. As a deity representing the forces of nature, this aspect is another reason why Poseidon could be seen as unpredictable and moody.
The connection of Poseidon to earthquakes is not hard to make when you understand that the Greeks believed that the cause of earthquakes was due to the erosion of rocks by water, where there are rivers that disappear below the earth and then seemingly reemerge later. The Greeks also believed that just as Poseidon’s earthquakes caused the land to sink into the sea, he also created the land with the appearance of new islands. This belief is seen in the philosophers Thales, Anaximenes, and Aristotle in how they explained the natural world around them.
God Of Horses
There are a couple of different stories I have come across about Poseidon’s role as a god of horses. One story holds that Poseidon created the first horse named Skyphios when he struck a rock with his trident.
A fragment of papyrus reveals that people would offer up horses by drowning them as a sacrifice to Poseidon to curry his favor for a safe sea voyage. Poseidon’s chariot is said to be pulled by horses, though more modern depictions show this chariot being pulled by a half-horse, half-fish creatures known as hippocampus.
In pre-Bronze Age Greek culture, there is a strong connection between horses, the element of water, and the Underworld. This is a connection we see continued with later, northern-European folklore with the Kelpies, Nuckelevee, and Puca.
Athena & Poseidon – In this story, the two gods are in competition for the favor of the future city of Athens. The two deities created all sorts of animals such as hippopotami, giraffes, camels, and zebras. In the end, when Poseidon created the horse, he was so pleased with the creation that he rode away on the mighty steed, forgetting about his desire to claim the favor of Athens, hence the city becoming named after Athena.
Demeter & Poseidon – In this story, Demeter is trying to put off the advances of Poseidon and asks him to create the most beautiful animal ever. To impress her, Poseidon creates the first horse. Of course, in the process of getting there, there are several other animals that Poseidon created before he achieved perfection and by this time, Poseidon has lost interest in Demeter.
God Of Fertility
As a god of the Oceans and waters, it leads handily to Poseidon being a god of fertility as he bestows the life-giving waters.
Droughts – Just as he giveth, Poseidon also taketh. So, a lack of water and rainfall leading to droughts would also be Poseidon’s doing.
Your Reputation Precedes You Sir!
On the heels of being a fertility deity, it must be noted that Poseidon has a reputation much like Zeus for being rather promiscuous. Granted, this is an aspect that we can find in numerous stories of the Greek deities.
There are numerous stories of Poseidon’s love affairs, romances, and some of which are just outright rape stories no matter how euphemistically later rewrites try to retell them. The most famous of which is Poseidon’s affair with Medusa before she’s turned into a Gorgon by Athena. I’ll cover several of these stories later so I’m not repeating them in this section.
There’s a certain prestige, especially seen in the ancient Egyptian culture where all the Pharaohs are earthly incarnations of Ra. This divine birthright is what justifies them to be the rulers over the common, ordinary people.
I can imagine a similar thing happening among the Greeks where they want to claim a divine heritage to justify their rule over various cities states. Stories that often just served to explain how a thing came to be, why something is, and to explain the divine right of rulership.
We also know there are two major areas of Greek history, the Mycenean Greek era and those whom we think of as the Ancient or Classical Greeks with a dark age period in between. If you look at the myths carefully from these periods, Poseidon had been the ruler of the Olympian gods during the Mycenean era of Greek history. This later changes to Zeus being the head of the pantheon.
There is also a Neolithic, Cycladic culture that is best known for its female idols. Couple this with Hera and her vehemence towards Zeus and his numerous affairs. Now it appears to be clear that the Greek myths we get of Zeus are the result of revisionist history and storytelling.
As there’s a theological takeover of replacing Poseidon with Zeus as the head of the pantheon and a patriarchal takeover of the regions that reduce goddesses like Hera’s importance. Just taking a close look at some of these myths, you can see the hints of it and some of the discrepancies that come up as Greece and then Rome expanded, trying to absorb all of these local myths and to equate local deities and variations with their own.
The most obvious is the Titanomachy story where Zeus and his siblings all displace the older pantheon, and the survivors get absorbed into the new divine order.
Male Lovers – Poseidon is also said to have had a few male lovers in the way of Nerites, Pelops, and Patroclus. There are not a lot of these myths that I could find to support this other than a footnote.
Marriage To Amphitrite
Like his brother Zeus, Poseidon has also had numerous lovers. His consort and wife is Amphitrite, a nymph, an ancient sea goddess in her own right, and the daughter of Nerus and Doris.
In the story told by Eratosthenes, Poseidon desired to marry Amphitrite, however, she had other ideas and ran away, hiding with Atlas. Off Poseidon went in search of her to no avail. Finally, it is the dolphin, Delphius tracked Amphitrite down. Delphius talked Amphitrite into accepting Poseidon as her husband.
At Amphitrite and Poseidon’s wedding, Delphius presided over the ceremony. In gratitude, Poseidon placed Delphius up into the stars. Amphitrite would give birth to the merman Triton who also wields a trident like his father.
Variation: According to Oppian, Delphius actually betrays Amphitrite’s location to Poseidon who comes and carries her off against her will to be married.
Medusa & Poseidon – Birth of Pegasus & Chrysaor
Poseidon is also known to transform into a horse too. A suggestion I came across is that Poseidon may have come to Medusa in Athena’s temple in the guise of a horse before changing to his true form and forcing himself on her. Unfortunately, instead of punishing Poseidon, Athena punishes Medusa by turning her into a Gorgon. Later, when the hero Perseus comes along and slays the gorgon, the winged horse Pegasus and the winged boar Chrysaor spring up from the blood from Medusa’s severed neck and head.
In Hesiod’s Theogony, Poseidon and Medusa were out in a field of flowers and not Athena’s temple. The whole being in Athena’s temple and sacrilege being committed comes to us courtesy of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, where Poseidon comes in the form of a bird to seduce Medusa.
Birth Of The Minotaur
Poseidon cursed Mino’s wife, Pasiphae to have sexual intercourse with a white bull after the Cretan king Minos wouldn’t sacrifice the bull to him. This resulted in the birth of the hybrid monster called the Minotaur.
I strongly suspect that we are seeing a rewriting of this myth from the fall of the Mycenaean Greece culture and the later rise of the Hellenic Greece culture when Poseidon ceases to be the main deity and is replaced by Zeus as the head of the Pantheon. Bulls are an old pre-Olympian symbol of Poseidon. Rewrite the myth so that instead of a divine child born of Poseidon and a nature goddess, there is instead a monster to whom the youth of vassal city-states are sacrificed to.
Poseidon & Aethra (Birth of Theseus)
With Aethra, the princess of Troezenian, Poseidon is the father of the Greek hero Theseus. King Aegeus of Athens is also reputed to be Theseus’ father as he had lain with Aethra on the very same night. This is still enough for Theseus to have a demigod status and to be the hero who would eventually volunteer to set sail to the island nation of Crete with the other Athenian youth who could be sent into a labyrinth to be eaten by the Minotaur.
When Minos heard that Theseus was the son of Poseidon, he mocked the youth by taking off his own ring and throwing it into the sea. If Theseus really was Poseidon’s son, he was to go and retrieve the ring. Theseus immediately dove in, and dolphins came to guide the young demigod down to Poseidon’s palace. There, both Poseidon and Amphitrite greeted Theseus, not only by giving him the ring but a purple wedding cloak and crown as well. Theseus swam back up to the surface and proved himself to King Minos.
In Crete, Theseus would kill the Minotaur. Theseus eventually succeeded his father as king of Athens and would have children. Poseidon promised Theseus three favors. One of which was called upon when his wife, Phaedra accused Hippolytus, the son Theseus had with an Amazon, of forcing himself on her. Poseidon granted this favor by sending a sea monster to spook Hippolytus’ horses as he was driving by the sea and thus dragging him into the ocean to his death.
Poseidon & Alope
Alope is Poseidon’s granddaughter through Cercyon, his son, and the King of Eleusis. Through this affair, Alope gives birth to the Hippothoon, an Attic hero. As a result, Cercyon has Alope buried alive and Poseidon transforms her into a spring near Eleusis.
Poseidon & Amymone
Shortly after the city of Argos came under Hera’s rule and Poseidon sent a drought to plague it, an Argive woman, Amymone came across a rather lecherous satyr who tried to rape her. Amymone prayed to Poseidon for help and he answered by scaring off the satyr. After rescuing her, Poseidon then fathered a child with her by the name Nauphus.
Poseidon & Caenis
In this story, Poseidon spotted the maiden Caenis walking along the shore. Overcome with lust, Poseidon forced himself on Caenis and raped her. Having satisfied himself, Poseidon offered Caenis a wish, of which she made the request to be turned into a man. Granting her request, Poseidon transformed her into the male warrior Caeneus.
Poseidon & Corone
Corone is the daughter of Coronaeus who was out walking along the shore. Poseidon saw her and attempted to court Corone only to have her reject him and run away. Poseidon chased her down, this time trying to rape her. Athena saw what was happening and changed Corone into a crow so she could fly away.
Poseidon & Halia
In the stories where Poseidon grows up in secret on the island of Rhodes with the Telchines, the young god fell in love with Halia, the beautiful sister of the Telchines. With Halia, Poseidon fathered six sons and a daughter.
By this time, Aphrodite has already been born and rose up from the sea. When she made an attempt to stop at the island of Rhodes while heading to Cyprus, the sons of Halia and Poseidon denied the goddess hospitality. Out of anger, Aphrodite caused the sons to fall in love with their mother and rape her. After seeing this, Poseidon made the sons sink beneath the sea.
Poseidon & Tyro
Tyro is a mortal woman married to Cretheus and by whom she already had a son, Aeson. Tyro loved a river god, Enipeus who spurned her advances. One day, Poseidon becomes infatuated with Tyro and lusts after her, disguises himself as Enipeus, and from their union, Tyro gives birth to the twin heroes Pelias and Neleus.
Poseidon & Asteria
In this story, we first see Zeus falling in love with this goddess who changed herself into a qual in order to escape his advances and being raped, only to have Poseidon equally enamored and lustful for her give chase with the intent to rape her. Asteria transforms herself a second time, this time into the small rocky island known as Delos.
At best, this could be an archaic myth that shows a changeover of when Poseidon and Zeus changed prominence during the fall of the Mycenaean Greek culture.
Poseidon & Demeter
Demeter is the Goddess of the Earth and Poseidon is the God of Water. That’s a good match and they’re consenting adults and gods.
Mycenaen Greek – This is Bronze Age Greece, there is a script known as Linear B found in Mycenae and Mycenaean Pylos where both Demeter and Poseidon’s names appear. Poseidon is given the epitaph of E-ne-si-da-o-ne “earth-shaker” and Demeter’s name is given si-to-po-ti-ni-ja. In these inscriptions, Poseidon’s title and epitaph E-ne-si-da-o-ne (Enesidaon) links him as a King of the Underworld and gives him a chthonic nature.
Touching back to the Eleusinian Mysteries, there are tablets found in Pylos that mention sacrificial goods for “the Two Queens and Poseidon” or “to the Two Queens and King.” It’s agreed that the Two Queens very likely refer to Demeter and Persephone or it’s later precursor goddesses who are not associated with Poseidon later.
Eileithyia – Demeter is a local Minoan goddess found in Amnisos, Crete where she is a goddess of childbirth who gives birth to a divine child. Her consort is given as Enesidaon, the “earth-shaker” whom we just mentioned is Poseidon. Her cult and worship would survive within the Eleusinian Mysteries. Plus, we see where local deities’ worship gets absorbed and conflated with a more popular, well-known deity.
Arcadia – We’re still in Bronze Age Greece! Here, Demeter and Poseidon Hippios or Horse Poseidon give birth to a daughter, Despoina, who is a goddess in her own right before some of the myths confuse her with Persephone or make her an epitaph of Demeter.
In this myth, Poseidon is a river spirit of the Underworld, appearing as a horse. In this form, Poseidon pursues Demeter, who is also in horse form. Demeter hid among the horses of King Onkios. Due to her divinity, Demeter couldn’t remain hidden for long and Poseidon caught up with her and forced himself on her. When the two gods copulate, Demeter gives birth to a goddess who is also in horse or mare form. This is a myth that sounds very similar to another one between Poseidon and Athena and more accurately, Philyra and Cronos when Chiron is born. The horse motif is very common in northern-European myths and folklore.
As a mare-goddess, Demeter is known first as Demeter Erinys due to her fury with Poseidon for forcing himself on her. She becomes Demeter Lousia, “the bathed Demeter” after washing away her anger in the River Ladon. There’s something to be said for this as you can’t hold onto your anger forever, you must let it go or otherwise it consumes you.
The whole myth of pairing up Demeter and Poseidon is to connect Demeter as a Goddess of the Earth and Poseidon as a God of Water with their connection over nature. Despoina is the daughter who results from their union and whose name could not be spoken outside of the Arcadian Mysteries. Demeter and Poseidon also have another child, a horse by the name of Arion who is noted as being able to speak, immortal, swift, and having a black mane and tail.
Poseidon & Scylla
This is a bit of an obscure myth I came across, as an alternative to Scylla’s origins found in the Tzetzes on Lycophron & Servius on Aeneid writings.
Scylla and Poseidon were having an affair. Out of jealousy, Amphitrite mixed some magical herbs into Scylla’s bath, transforming her into a monster with twelve feet and six heads. Scylla would then join Charybdis to terrorize the coastlines of Italy and Sicily, sinking many ships.
In Nonnus’ Dionysiaca, Poseidon still sleeps with Scylla and then transforms her into a rocky cliff along the coast.
Poseidon & Nerites
Nerites is the son of Nereus and Doris and thus Amphitrite’s brother. In some accounts, Poseidon takes Nereus as his charioteer as they’re lovers. As a charioteer, Nereus was said to be very good and fast.
The myth isn’t clear why, but one day, the sun god Helios turns Nerites into a shellfish. The Greek author who recorded this story isn’t sure why, but puts forward a theory that Helios may have been offended by Nerite’s skill or was a rival lover to Poseidon. Helios may have wanted Nerites to travel among the constellations instead in the sea.
It is known that from the love that Poseidon and Nerites have, comes Anteros, mutual love.
Plato’s Atlantis
In this dialogue, Plato tells of a mortal woman who lived on an isolated island by the name of Cleito. Poseidon fell in love with her and created a sanctuary on top of a hill in the middle of the island and surrounded the place with rings of water and land to protect her. Cleito would give birth to five sets of twin boys. The firstborn, Atlas would become the first ruler of the legendary Atlantis.
Descendant of Poseidon – Plato was regarded by his fellow Greeks to be able to trace his lineage to Poseidon through his father Ariston and to the demigod kings of Codrus and Melanthus.
Centauromachy
There are several Greek heroes such as Herakles and Theseus who killed several centaurs. There is also a story of the sirens luring the centaurs to their death in the sea. In the Apollod, it is stated that the island of Sirens is where Poseidon crushed the centaurs instead of giving them refuge.
Ares & Aphrodite’s Love Affair
A version of the story found in Homer’s Odyssey has Hephaestus refusing to release the lovers unless Zeus returned the bridal gifts. Zeus staunchly refused as he felt that Hephaestus shouldn’t have made the affair so public. Though in the Odyssey, Poseidon does agree to play Hephaestus’ price to release both Ares and Aphrodite.
Though it is just after this story happens that Poseidon brings charges against Ares in the Areiopagus for having killed his son Halirrhothius.
The Founding Of Athens
This story is similar to another story where Poseidon creates the first horse. In this version of the story, the two gods are competing for the city of Athens (at this time the region is called Attica) ruled over by Athens’s legendary first king, Cecrops. Even after Athena became the patron goddess of the city, Poseidon still had a presence at the Acropolis through his avatar Erechtheus. By the Athenian calendar, at the end of the year, a festival would be held, and the priests of Athena and the priest of Poseidon would hold a procession under the canopies to Eleusis. There, the gods would give a gift to the Athenian people and the people would choose which one they preferred.
To start things off, Poseidon throws a trident into the ground, creating a spring at the Acropolis. However, the water that sprung up was rather salty. Athena won the competition with the creation and gift of the olive tree. In anger, Poseidon flooded the Attic Plain as punishment to the Athenians for not choosing him. Both deities eventually worked together with Athena creating the first chariot and Poseidon creating the first horse. Athena also built the first ship to sail over the oceans that Poseidon rules.
The place where Poseidon’s trident struck the ground; filled with salt water was closed off by the northern hall of the Erechtheum and remained open to the air.
The story of this conflict between Poseidon and Athena can be found on reliefs along the western pediment of the Parthenon and is the first such relief that a visitor sees on arriving.
Many scholars have interpreted this myth as a clash between the Mycenaean Greeks and newly arrived immigrants to the area. The city of Athens was at one point a major sea power that defeated the Persian fleet at the island of Salamis. The scholar Walter Burkert notes that Poseidon led his son Eumolpus against Athens and killed Erectheus.
Further, Poseidon sent another of his sons, Halirrhothius to cut down Athena’s olive tree. While Halirrhothius was swinging his axe, he missed and managed to kill himself. In anger, Poseidon accused Ares of the murder and the matter would eventually be resolved on the Areopagus, or “hill of Ares” in favor of Ares. Another version of the story has Halirrhothius raping Alcippe, Ares’s daughter and understandably so, Ares kills him. And that is what leads to Ares’ trial and eventual acquittal.
The Divison of Corinth
In a similar story to that of Athens, this time it is Helios and Poseidon clashing over who would be the patron deity. The dispute was bad enough that the two gods brought the issue before one of the Hecatoncheires, Briareos, an elder god to settle the matter. Briareos awarded the Acrocorinth to Helios and gave the isthmus of Corinth to Poseidon.
This tale is noted as representing the conflicts between fire and water. Helios being a sun god gets the area closest to the sky and Poseidon being a sea god, gets the area closest to the water.
The City Of Argos – Poseidon & Hera
This dispute is over the city of Argos. The two deities chose a local king Phoroneus to settle this matter. Phoroneus decided in favor of Hera to award her the city to become the patron goddess. An enraged Poseidon then sent a drought to plague the city.
Exchanging Islands & Temples
Then there is this story, where Poseidon and Leto decided to exchange islands to be patrons of. Poseidon gave Leto the island of Delos and he got the island of Caluria where a temple to Poseidon has stood since antiquity.
With Apollo, Poseidon gave him Delphi in exchange for Taenarum.
These are likely just quick little stories to explain the change of worshipers and who a patron deity was for a certain region.
Heavenly Revolt
Sometime after Zeus has succeeded in overcoming all the previous challenges from Gaia, the various giants, and titans to become ruler of the heavens, a young Zeus had gotten rather prideful, temperamental, and arrogant in his rulership.
Enter Apollo, Hera, and Poseidon (and depending on the source, all the other gods except Hestia join in) and decide that Zeus needs to be taught a lesson.
Hera’s part was to drug Zeus so that he fell into a deep sleep. While Zeus is sleeping, they come in to steal his thunderbolts and tie him up with some one hundred knots. Powerless, Zeus lays there until the Neriad, Thetis comes and seeing the god’s predicament, calls the Hecatoncheire, Briareus who comes and unties Zeus.
With Briareus’ support, Zeus is able to put an end to the rebellion and punish those involved. Most notable is Hera’s punishment as she led the rebellion. Zeus hung her up in the sky with golden chains. Hera’s weeping kept Zeus up all night and the next morning, he agreed to end the punishments after Hera and all the gods swear never to rise up against him again.
As for Apollo and Poseidon? They were stripped of their godly powers for a time to serve King Laomedon of Troy.
The Marriage Of Thetis
Both Poseidon and Zeus had pursued the goddess Thetis’ hand in marriage. However, when Themis gave the prophecy that Thetis’ son would be greater than his father, both Poseidon and Zeus withdrew and decided that it would be better if Thetis married the mortal Peleus. The same marriage where the goddess Eris tossed her golden apple among the goddesses after she wasn’t invited and leading to the Trojan War.
Trojan War
Divine Set Up – If we go by the “lost” epic, The Cypria attributed to Stasinus, this whole Trojan War was planned by Zeus and Themis. There are only about 50 lines of text from the Cypria and it’s seen as a prequel to Homer’s The Iliad and explains how the events came about.
Because of Apollo and Poseidon’s part in helping Hera with her rebellion, Zeus stripped the two gods of their power for a time, and they were sent to serve King Laomedon of Troy. There, King Laomedon had the two gods build a huge wall around the city with the promise of reward. When it came time to pay up, King Laomedon refused. By this time, Poseidon had regained his godly powers and out of vengeance, he sends a sea monster to attack the city of Troy. The legendary hero Hercules defeated and killed this monster.
Book XX sees Poseidon rescue the Trojan Prince Aeneas after Achilles drops them in combat.
At first during the Trojan War, Zeus forbids any of the gods to take part. When Zeus rescinds this ban, Poseidon sides with the Greeks against the Trojans, causing earthquakes. Poseidon would also help the Greeks indirectly by appearing in the guise of an old seer named Calchas.
In Rome, Troy is called Neptunia Pergama.
The Odyssey
After the events of the Iliad and Trojan War, the titular hero, Odysseus earns Poseidon’s wrath after blinding his Cyclops son, Polyphemus. Such was Poseidon’s wrath, that it would take Odysseus ten years to make the return trip home to Ithaca.
The Aeneid
A Latin epic poem written by Virgil, this involves the story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the city after the fall of Troy and his travels to Italy and become the ancestor of the Romans.
Because of how closely the Greek and Roman gods are equated with each other, we read in this epic how Poseidon, under the name of Neptune is still angry with wandering Trojans. However, he is not as vindictive as Juno (Hera). In Book I, Neptune rescues the Trojan fleet from Juno’s attempts to wreck it, even if the only reason was to prevent Juno from interfering with his domain of the sea.
Hepom Nepōts – Indo-European
This is the name of a reconstructed proto-Indo-European deity that historians, etymologists, and linguists have hypothesized when tracing a prehistoric Eurasian population and the language that may have been spoken. The name Hepom Nepōts translates to “Descendant of the Waters.”
Nethuns – Etruscan
An Etruscan deity from the region of Umbria in Italy. Nethuns is a god of springs and water who is identified with the Grecian Poseidon and Roman Neptune. Their name is found in the Latin expression “flere Nethuns,” meaning “the divinity of Nethuns.”
Neptune – Roman
Where Poseidon is the god of the Ocean, his Roman counterpart is Neptune.
Thanks greatly to the influence of the Romans, many people will identify and equate Poseidon with Neptune. The Romans were famous for subsuming many deities in their conquest across Europe, particularly the Mediterranean area, and identifying their gods with those of a conquered culture. The most famous being the Greeks, where many deities were renamed to those of Roman gods. Prominent examples like Zeus and Jupiter, Hera and Juno, Ares and Mars, and so on down the line.
With the Hellenization of Latin literature, many Greek writers and even Roman writers rewrote and intertwined the myths of these two deities so that they would virtually become one and the same. And that’s the tradition passed down through the centuries and has become accepted. Just that there are still some differences that separate the two.
Pontus – Greek
The oldest of the Greek Water deities, Pontus is regarded more as the personification of the sea.
Shango
Etymology: Strike from shan
Also Known As: Badé, Changó, Esango (Edo people), Hevioso, Jakuta, Nzazi, Sango, Ṣàngó, Siete Rayos, Xangô (Latin America), Sogbo or Ebioso (Fon people)
In Nigeria, among the Yoruban people and the Dahomey religion, Shango is a god or Orisha of fire, thunder, and lightning. Like many storm and thunder gods, Shango lives up in the sky where he hurls thunderstones down to the earth, killing those who offended him or setting houses on fire.
Attributes
Animal: Black Cat, Dog, Duck, Fresh Water Turtles, Quail, Ram, Sheep, Tortoise
Colors: Red, White
Day of the Week: Friday and Ojo Jakuta, the fifth day of the week in Yorubaland.
Elements: Fire
Feast Day: December 4th, same as Saint Barbara
Gemstones: Thunderstones; either meteorites or stone celts
Metal: Iron
Number: 3 and 6
Patron of: Resistance, Strength, Power
Sphere of Influence: Thunder, Lightning, Fertility, War, Truth, Intelligence, Courage, Power, Dominance, Resistance
Symbols: Stone Celt, Double-Headed Axe, Bangles, Brass Crown, any object struck by lightning
Taboo (Yoruba): Cowpea, don’t eat this.
Depictions
Statues, imagery, and other art featuring Shango show him with a double axe on his head that represent thunder. He will often be dressed in clothing that’s red and white. Sometimes Shango has six eyes and other times he has three heads. In some traditions, Shango wears a headdress with cowrie shells on it.
In the Candomblé traditions, Xangô as he is called wears red and has a brass crown.
Worship
There is a religious ritual of Shango designed to help devotees and followers of Shango to gain and have self-control. Shango beads tell the story of his essence with white beads representing Obatala’s logic alternating in balance with the red beads of Aganju’s fire and passion when pursuing a goal.
The initiation ceremony of Shango came about after his deification which preserves his memory and the prosperity he brings to his followers on a personal level just as he brought prosperity to the Oyo kingdom in life.
Altars to Shango will often have a carved image of a woman holding her bosom as a gift to Shango with a double-bladed axe sticking out of her head. The axe symbolizes the devotee as being possessed by Shango. The woman has an expression that is calm and collected, representing the attributes or qualities she has gained from her faith.
Ritual foods for Shango include guguru, bitter cola, àmàlà, and gbegiri soup. The Bata drum is also used during Shango’s worship and rituals.
Candomblé
In this religion, Shango or Xangô was the son of the Oyo king Oranyan. During the African diaspora, Xangô gained strong importance among the slaves in Brazil for his strength, resistance, and aggression. Xangô became a patron orixa of plantations and many Candomblé terreiros. In contrast, Oko, the orixa of agriculture didn’t receive as much favor among slaves in Brazil and given the circumstances, I don’t blame them.
A dish known as amalá (a stew of okra with shrimp and palm oil) is sacred to Xangô.
Santería
In the Santería religion, Shango, or Changó as he is known is the focal or center point of the religion and represents the Oyo people of West Africa. Changó is a representative of the ancestors and all who adhere to the Santeria faith.
In Latin America, there is a major initiation ceremony that has been held for the last few hundred years that is based on the Shango ceremony of the Ancient Oyo. It is a ceremony that has survived and is considered the most complete to have arrived on the Western shores.
Yoruba
There is an initiation ceremony that is also based on the Shango ceremony and is the basis for all the Orisha initiation ceremonies within the Americas.
Other Traditions
Other traditions that venerate Shango are Folk Catholicism, Louisiana Voodoo, Palo, the Portuguese Candomblé and Umbanda, the Trinidad Orisha, Haitian Vodou, and Vodun.
Royal Ancestor
Before becoming deified or an orisha, Shango was once a mortal king, the third king of the Oyo Kingdom. After his death, Shango became deified. I have other sources that say Shango is the fourth king.
The lineage of kings is as follows: Oduduwa, Oranyan, and Ajaka. In life, Shango was known as Jakuta and was the third king or Alafin of Oyo kingdom. Jakuta was the brother to Ajaka known to be more peaceful compared to Jakuta’s more violent rule who could wield supernatural forces to create thunder and lightning. Jakuta ruled for a period of seven years that was noted for constant war campaigns and numerous battles. Towards the end of Jakuta’s reign, it is said he caused the unintentional destruction of his palace with lightning. While alive, Jakuta was married to three women named Oshun, Oba, and Oya.
Oral traditions tell how during Shango’s mortal reign, a subordinate chief challenged Shango’s rule. Many people were impressed by the subordinate chief’s feats and demonstration of magic, such that they went to follow this new leader. Dismayed by this public defeat and humiliation, Shango left Oyo and committed suicide by hanging.
A variation to this story I came across is that Shango was so fascinated by the use of magic that while calling down the powers of thunder and lightning, Shango accidentally set fire to his palace and killed his wives and many of his children. It is in shame from that, that Shango left the kingdom of Oyo.
When enemies and detractors of Shango were contemptuous and spreading his shame, a series of storms swept over Oyo, destroying many homes. This caused people to believe that Shango’s powers had made him a god or orisha and these storms were proof of his wrath. There are suggestions that Shango’s followers set fire to these homes.
However, those loyal to Shango said that he really ascended to the heavens by climbing a chain and that he became an orisha. Shango would gain the attributes of an earlier orisha, Jakuta who represented the wrath of the supreme deity Olorun-Olodumare. Shango’s cult and worship would continue to grow and spread throughout Oyo and Yorubaland. Even neighboring people of the Edo and Fon would adopt Shango into their religions.
Orisha
Shango is a member of the Orisha, who are either a spirit or deity. In the Yoruba religion, a nature-based tradition, it is believed that the source of everything is called Olorun or Olodumare. The Orisha themselves are regarded as being different aspects of the main deity, Olorun-Olodumare. Shango is regarded as the most powerful of all the Orisha.
With the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, the worship of Shango was brought with the slaves and is now found throughout much of the southern U.S., Latin America, and South America.
Irunmole
Much like the Hindi avatars, Shango has had many Irunmole or manifestations. The names of some of them are Airá, Agodo, Afonja, Lubé, and Obomin. All of these people are believed to have been an incarnation of Shango and like many such Irunmole, had great wisdom and power while they lived.
Parentage and Family
Father
Oranyan – The mortal king of Oyo before Shango become deified.
Mother
Yemaja – Orisha mother goddess and protector of birth.
Consort
In some traditions, Shango’s wives are said to be the rivers.
Oba – She tried to win Shango’s love by offering her ear to him to eat. In anger, Shango sent her away and she became a river goddess.
Oshun – A river goddess and Shango’s favorite as he loves her cooking.
Oya – A Storm and Mother goddess, she is also the Niger river. It is said she stole the secrets of Shango’s magic.
Siblings
Oya – Depending on the stories or tradition, Oya and Shango are brother and sister, not husband and wife.
Shango’s Wives
As noted, the main wives of Shango are venerated as Orisha. All three are associated with rivers in Nigeria. The first is Oya, connected to the Oya River. Oya would become the orisha of battle, storms, and hurricanes. Oya had once been married to Ogun but would fall in love with Shango. Together, Oya and Shango partner up when going out to battle.
Then there is Oshun who is connected to the Osun River. Oshun is the orisha associated with love, sensuality, and femininity.
Lastly, we have Oba who was forever hopelessly in love with Shango. Oba would find herself rejected by Shango after another of his wives tricked Oba into cutting off her ear to feed to him. Oba went into exile in a cemetery and become the orisha of violent storms and death. She would also become the Oba River, specifically where it meets with the Osun River.
Orisha Of Thunder & Lighting
Shango is known as an orisha of thunder and lightning.
Fire – It should come as no surprise that one of Shango’s domains is that of fire as well. After all, lighting strikes are known to cause a fire.
Oṣè – This is the name that the double axe in Yorubaland that Shango has is called. The double axe symbolizes and represents lightning.
Resistance – During the African diaspora and slavery, Shango became a very important symbol of resistance.
Thunderbolts – Stone Celt
A celt in this case is a primitive stone tool like an adze, hoe or axe. Farmers would sometimes find these primitive, prehistoric tools while out-tilling their fields. Believing these stone celts were Shango’s thunderbolts, the farmers would take them to Shango’s priests who kept these in Shango’s shrine in an inverted mortar.
Shango was renowned and feared for his powers and whenever he spoke, fire came out of his mouth.
Jakuta – When not identified as an ancestor, it is believed that Shango likely usurped the duties and aspects of an older deity by the name of Jakuta. This older deity, Jakuta was known to hurl fire stones as punishment towards people if they acted against the wishes of Olodumre, the Supreme God, or Orisha. The name Jakuta means “Hurler of stones” or “Fighter with stones.” The prefix Ja means to hurl from aloft and the suffix okuta means stone. That’s interesting to note in connection to the stone celts that farmers would find out in fields and believed to be thunderbolts. Jakuta is also associated with a fellowship of meteorites.
Possession – Those who worship Shango and become possessed by him can eat fire, using oil-soaked cloth known as itufu to do so. Some may carry pots of live coal on their head or shove their hands into coals without any harm.
Fertility Orisha
As a fertility deity, particularly masculine fertility, Shango grants wealth and prosperity to his followers just as he did for the kingdom of Oyo during his mortal life and reign.
Dance – Shango’s power, seen in his ritual dances represents the dangerous side of sexual relationships. Another interpretation is a warning of the arrogancy in using military force for political gains and leadership. The bata drums are beaten to represent the sound of thunder.
War Orisha
As seen in the dances that Shango does, he is also he orisha of war as in life, he held many continuous campaigns and battles to expand his influence.
Oṣè – The double axe that represents lightning is also a symbol of military prowess and the use of violence.
Justice – There is also a close association of the use of force or might to make right and enforce justice. Shango was known for being rather harsh and strict with his subjects.
Catholic Saints
There are a few different Saints that Shango has been equated to and it varies by the religion revering him.
Saint Barbara – The Saint whom Shango is equated to in the Candomble tradition. She is the patron saint of armorers, artillerymen, military engineers, miners, and others who work with explosives. She has an old legend that connects her to lightning and mathematicians.
Saint Jerome – They are the patron saint of translators, librarians, and encyclopedists. In some traditions, he is regarded as the husband to Saint Barbara and for that reason, Saint Jerome gets syncretized or equated with Shango.
Syno-Deities
Jupiter – The Roman god of the heavens, his attributes are the lightning bolt.
Marduk – The Mesopotamian god of fertility and storms can be comparable to Shango.
Raijin – The Japanese god of thunder.
Teshub – The Hurrian god of the sky and thunder.
Thor – The mighty thunderer of Norse mythology, he is the god of thunder and war.
Zeus – The Greek god of the heavens, his attributes are the lightning bolt.
Veles
Also Known As: Benec, Vėlinas (Baltic, Lithuanian),Volos, Volusu, Volusu, Vyeles, Ganyklos (Lithuanian), Vlas (Russian), Walgino, Weles
Epitaphs: King of Bears, Lord of all Wolves, Master of the Forest, “Skotiybog“ (God of Cattle)
Etymology: “Uel-“ to see, fields, spirits of the dead. Also likely from the proto-Indo-European word “wel-“ wool
In Slavic beliefs, folklore, and mythology, Veles is a god of many things from storms and trickery to God of the underworld and domestic animals as well as the god of the earth and water. Veles is indeed a significant and major supernatural force within Slavic mythology and beliefs. Depending upon your source, some of it can seem rather contradictory.
Given the nature of Slavic beliefs, there isn’t much concrete documentation. There is still a lot of oral history and traditions about Veles found in Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Russia. All of this can get very confusing as for the longest time, first with the arrival of Christianity, a lot of local Slavic pagan beliefs were done away with and made to be seen as aspects of evil and the devil. Then later, when that’s no longer so prominent, there just isn’t a lot that has been documented and what survives has been by oral tradition and that, can vary widely by local, regional traditions that have managed to get passed on. We also hit on several dubious sources that over time have proven not to be reliable.
Naturally, this will be where I’ve got some mistakes and expect I Veles to be a post I will come back to correct several times and update.
Attributes
Animal: Bear, Cattle, Crows, Dragons, Owl, Ravens, Rooster, Serpents, Wolf
Colors: Black, Blue, Green, Red
Day of the Week: Sunday
Directions: North, West
Element: Earth, Water
Gemstones: Bloodstone, Garnet, Jasper, Jet, Obsidian, Onyx
Incense: Cedar, Clove, Ginger, Wormwood
Month: February, March
Plant: Cedar, Hawthorne, Holly, Ivy, Mistletoe, Pine, Wheat, Willow
Planet: Mercury
Season: Autumn
Sphere of Influence: Cattle, Commerce, Divination, Fertility, Magic, Medicine, Music, Pastures, Underworld, Wealth, Wildlife
Symbols: Cattle, Horns, Serpents, Wool
Tarot: Cups, Pentacles
Weapon: Spear
Description
In some sources, Veles is described as a wolf-headed god. In other sources, Veles is described as a large serpent with horns that lives in the water or is pictured at the bottom of the Slavic World Tree with Perun in his eagle form at the top. Frequently, Veles is depicted as an elderly man with a gray beard and hair. As a shapeshifter, Veles often takes on the traits of those animals favored or associated with him such as horns and bear fur.
When in the form of a bear, Veles is regarded as the King of Bears. As a wolf, among the southern Slavs, Veles is the lord of all wolves.
Velinas – In the Balto-Slavic regions, a description is given that describes him as being a one-eyed god with a gift for divination and leader of the Wild Hunt, lord of the dead, and to whom people sacrificed to were killed with a spear. This version of Veles warrants having its own post as one source found, discusses Velinas as similar to, yet clearly different from Veles. Taking a look at the Mediterranean region among the Greek and Roman cultures, there were other culture groups like the Etruscans, the Dacians, Phrygians who have their own local deities who were similar to those of the Greek and Roman deities and would frequently be absorbed into the Greco-Roman pantheons and survive as epitaphs for the local region.
What’s In A Name?
According to the linguist Roman Jakobson, the name Veles comes from the word “uel-“ and “esu-“ while the name Volos comes from another root word for where “-el” changes to “olo.” The root word “uel” or “wel-“ can have variable meanings and refer to any number of words such as “to die,” “grass,” “to see,” “to want,” “to turn,” “to cull,” “tepid”, “hair,” “wool,” “forest,” and “deception” as in magical deceptions. The book “The Mythology of All Races” published in 1918 says that Veles’ name comes from “weles” for wolf.
The root word “uel” is also related to the proto-Germanic word “walaz” that is also seen in the old Norse “valr,” “valkyria,” and “Valholl” all words related to the Norse god Odin who is known too by the name “Valfǫðr.” In the Baltic dialects and language, we see this reflected in the word “vėlės/veļi” for the “spirits of the dead,” “shade of the deceased,” and “shadow of death.”. This is reflected in the Baltic god’s names of Vėlinas, Velnias, and Velns. A connection of the word “uel” from “ṷélsu-“ for meadow or pasture has been made with the Greek Elysium, the fields of the blessed dead.
Where “uel-“ relates with “to see,” there is a connection in the name of the seeress Veleda. Going off this, in Norse mythology there is a “Völva,” a seeress connected to water and foretelling known as “Völuspa.” The word “Völuspa” is connected to spinning or braiding the Thread of Fate of those whose futures have been seen. “Völva” is also the cognate for a “Wheel” or “Spinning Wheel.”
In the proto-Indo-European language, etymologists have found the root word “wel-“ meaning wool and likely where the English word “wool” comes from. The Russian word for “hair” is “volos.” As a god of horned cattle and other livestock, this makes sense.
Worship
First off, “The Primary Chronicle” is the main source and historical record that provides us with evidence for Veles’ importance and worship. Veles is one of the Slavic gods that can be concretely confirmed while there are several others that have been disproved or there’s still information being gathered to confirm them.
Veles is worshiped in two distinct forms. One as Veles and one as Volos. This makes sense as that can be a way to break down all the aspects of what Veles is a god of and the domains he presides over. Scholars and etymologists suggest that Veles and Volos are two different gods being referred to. However, that does make sense for a need to see two different deities once the Slavic regions began to be Christianized and there’s a split of Veles’ dualistic nature.
Cocks or Roosters would be sacrificed to Veles at the rivers or lakes sacred to him.
During the later 10th century, Vladimir I, the Prince of Kiev erected seven statues in his city, of which Veles was one of them. However, Veles’ statue is the only one that didn’t stand up on the hill next to the other statues and castle. Instead, Veles’ statue could be found in the city in the marketplace. This placement indicates strongly Veles’ importance to commerce. Plus, it also shows that the worship of Perun and Veles needed to be kept separate as Perun’s shrines and worship were to be conducted up high with Veles’ place down in the lowlands. Among the Southern Slavs, Veles’ name is often found in place names.
Triglav – Veles was worshipped as an aspect of the three-headed Slavic god Triglav and the Slavic trinity consisting of Perun, Veles, and Svarog.
Christian Influence
With the arrival of Christianity in the Slavic regions and countries, the aspect of Veles has largely been suppressed, at least the aspects connecting him to the Underworld and as a trickster. He has been equated with the Devil with his name becoming the same word for ghosts and devils. There is a record of Czech’s referring to Veles as a devil in the 16th century. An idol was thrown in the Pocayna River. Veles is used frequently in medieval curses from Bohemia.
Due to Veles’ dualistic nature, we see a split in his name with Veles and Volos. The name Veles under Christian influence holding a more negative connotations and associations. Whereas with Volos, he is held more benignly, and this aspect survives, becoming associated with different Saints.
St. Blaise – Or Saint Vlas, Saint Vlaho, St. Blaz, or St. Vlasiy, he is connected more to the aspect of Volos, he is a shepherd and patron saint cattle and domestic animals. Icons of St. Vlas were placed in cattle sheds for their protection. The Saint’s name day is February 12th and, on this day, cattle are treated to a special feed to eat. In Yaroslavl, the church built on the site of Vele’s shrine was dedicated to St. Blaise.
St. Nicholas – Veles is associated with this saint who is a patron of merchants, fishermen, and mariners. There is also this connection due to the association with water and being a snake who is slain by St. George, a motif similar to the enmity between Perun and Veles.
Parentage and Family
Parents –
Father – Rod, the creator god in Slavic beliefs.
Mother – Zemun, a divine or celestial cow.
Sometimes Veles’ parents are given as Svarog and Lada.
Siblings
Perun and Dażbóg
Consort
Depending on the region or the source cited, Veles is married either to Mokosh, the goddess of the earth, or to Devana, a goddess of the wilds and hunt.
Mokosh – She is somewhat conflicting as in other stories Mokosh is the wife to Perun and whom Veles kidnaps in their never-ending feud.
Devana – Or Dziewanna was forced to marry Veles after she rebelled against Perun.
Children
Jarilo – A fertility god raised by Veles after being kidnapped. So he may not really count.
Chaoskampf
The struggle against Chaos; this is a familiar motif found throughout the world in many different regions and mythologies of a culture hero or God going up against a creature of chaos. This creature is often shown as and takes the form of a great serpent or dragon. This is the familiar Knight slaying the Dragon seen in many European mythologies. Parallels to this concept are even found in other cultures.
This aspect is seen in the descriptions of Veles where he is a serpent with horns and the battle that he has with Perun. It’s a dragon or serpent-slaying motif seen with the story of Saint George slaying the dragon.
Storm Myth – Battle With Perun, the Storm God
As previously mentioned above under Chaoskampf, this story is perhaps the best-known Slavic story, especially as it fits into the Christian ideas of a hero slaying the dragon or evil or order triumphing over chaos.
Russian scholars and philologists Vyacheslav Vsevolodovich Ivanov and Vladimir Toporov have reconstructed this mythical battle of Perun and Veles with comparative studies to various Indo-European myths, Slavic folk tales, and songs.
Perun, the god of thunder battles against Veles in his dragon form. Depending on the story, Veles has stolen either Perun’s son, wife, or cattle which leads to their conflict.
As a challenge, in the shape of a huge serpent, Veles comes up from the underworld of Nav and wind his way up the Slave World Tree towards the heavens and Perun’s domain. Naturally, Perun responds by sending lightning bolts so that Veles flees back down and turns himself into various animals, people, and even trees to escape from or ambush Perun as they battle it out.
In the end, Veles is slain by Perun and the person or thing that Veles is to have stolen is released from within his body and it comes out in the form of falling rain from the heavens.
Scholars have commented that this “Storm Myth” is probably how the ancient Slavs would explain the changing of the seasons throughout the year. Any dry periods would be seen as Veles’ theft with the storms and lightning being interpreted as a divine battle up in the heavens and Perun’s ultimate triumph over Veles with the arrival of rain and Perun establishing order over chaos.
The Slavs have a saying that wherever lighting strikes, that is Perun attacking Veles.
Variation 1 – In the stories where Veles kidnaps Perun’s son, it is Jarilo, the tenth son who is stolen. Veles then raises Jarilo as his own son, who when he is older, becomes a god of fertility and heralds the arrival of spring when he returns to the lands of the living.
Variation 2 – It is Perun who is stolen as an infant and raised in the underworld. Once Perun is grown, he battles many creatures in order to fight his way back up to the mortal world.
Fertility God
Since the “Storm Myth” is cyclical and repeats every year. It connects Veles as a god of fertility and a god who dies and then is resurrected. The snake or serpent aspect of Veles would be him shedding his old skin or old life to be reborn as the year changes.
The “Storm Myth” and battle with Perun places Veles in a more negative role as one who brings chaos. Certainly, change is chaotic, but there is a pattern that emerges and soon you can make sense of that pattern and bring about a certain order to things so it doesn’t get destructive.
For the ancient Slavs, Veles wasn’t evil, he was the god of the wilds and nature which can appear to be very unpredictable if you’re not careful or respectful.
Later Christian influences will place him as evil and why in so many places Veles’ name does become synonymous with the devil and evil. But we do see where Veles appears as a Saint such as Saint Nicholas to save a poor farmer’s cattle from the destructiveness of St. Elias, a representative of Perun.
While Perun is more associated with agriculture, there is a Russian custom during harvest season to cut the first ear of wheat and tie it into an amulet that would protect crops from evil spirits. This was known as “tying the beard of Veles” which meant to invoke good fortune and wealth.
Duality – Ultimately the conflict of Perun and Veles is the duality in the clash of good and evil and the cyclical nature of the passing of the seasons and year. Veles represents the earth, water, and physical world and Perun represents fire, the heavens, and spirit.
Marriage To Devana
Also known as Dziewanna, she is a goddess of the wilds and hunt. As punishment, Devana found herself forced to marry Veles after she rebelled against Perun. Wanting to be wild and free, Devana didn’t initially love Veles at first despite the two having a domain that’s very similar to each other. After a bit of thought, Veles managed to win Devana over when he changed into a basil flower and calmed her. While they’re still not really in love, together they do watch over the lowlands of the wilds and are a force not to be taken lightly.
God of Mischief
Like Loki, Veles is considered a god of mischief and trickery. This ties strongly to the association of Veles’ use of magic, shapeshifting, and the arts. This aspect holds where Veles is seen as a god of chaos and a disruption during any long periods of dryness, or no rain as primarily seen in the “Storm Myth.”
Magic & The Arts
In this aspect, we see Veles the god of divination, magic, music, poetry, the earth, and water. Oaths would be sworn in Veles’ name. Traveling musicians, skalds, bards, and poets were known to pray to Veles for his protection as they traveled.
As a god of poetry, divination, and the arts, Veles has been equated with the Norse Odin. There is a 12th-century Russian epic, “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” where the character Boyan the wizard is referred to as Vele’s grandson. Poetry, music, and magic were closely linked in both Nordic and Slavic beliefs.
Veles is regarded as a protector of traveling musicians. Up into the 20th century, in some wedding ceremonies held in northern Croatia, the music won’t begin playing unless the groom while making a toast, spills some of the wine onto the ground, especially near the roots of a tree. This tradition would be musicians making a toast to their patron deity.
The Slavic magician-priests were called: volhov, volchvi, vlъsvi and volъsvi. They were not priests of an elite religion like those belonging to Perun. Rather, these magician-priests were known to be seers, soothsayers, poets, magicians and sorcerers as well as healers and herbalists. It is thought the etymology of volchys connects them to Volos.
God of the Underworld
Veles is a god of the Underworld, in charge of the spirits of the dead whom he would send out as his messengers. In his connection to the earth, Veles is also a god of all the bounties and riches of the earth, growing above and found below.
Nav – Also known as Nawia, this is Veles’ abode in the underworld. Incidentally, the word nav could also refer to the spirits or souls of the deceased who had premature deaths or poor deaths such as drowning, or being murdered, or if you were a murderer or warlock, these were all spirits that would come back as demons to afflict the living. The navias could take the form of birds. In Bulgaria, there is folklore that says twelve navias could suck the blood from a pregnant woman. The navias were also the demonic representation of the 1092 plague in Polotsk, Belarus.
Very similar to Norse beliefs, the Slavs also believed a huge world tree connected the mortal world to the heavens and the underworld. The roots of the world tree formed the roof of the underworld as they stretched out.
Where Perun was seen as either a hawk or eagle sitting in the branches of the world tree looking out over the heavens, Veles was seen as a huge serpent coiled around the roots ruling over the underworld.
Unlike descriptions of other underworlds, Nav was viewed as a beautiful place in folktales as a place where it’s forever Spring with green, grassy plains and plenty of water. Many fantastical creatures could be found here, not just the spirits of the dead who watched over Veles’ herds of cattle.
For the Slavs, Nav was described as being somewhere “across the sea” and was the place where migrating birds would go to every winter. In folktales, we find a different name, Virey or Iriv and that Jarilo, the god of fertility and vegetation lived here during winter and would return when it was time for spring. Jarilo would cross the seas, returning to the lands of the living bringing spring and birds back.
The Separation Of The Human World & Underworld
This story concerns the separation and boundary separating the mortal, living world with that of the underworld and lands of the dead. A shepherd pledged to Veles to sacrifice his best cow and to keep the god’s prohibitions. From this, Veles divides the human world and the underworld with either a furrow that he plows or groove over the road that the shepherd carves with a knife to prevent evil or negative powers from crossing.
God of Cattle
As Volos, he is known as “skotiybog,“ the god of cattle who watches over and protects flocks, cattle and all domestic animals, keeping them from harm. The name skotnyi bog is also the name for livestock in general. This aspect of Veles survives and continued under Christian influence well into the 18th century as Saint Blaise where he is a protector of shepherds and their flocks or cattle.
It must be noted too that it isn’t just domestic animals that Volos watches over, but all wild animals, connecting him to the image of him as a horned serpent and thus, horned gods like Pan or Cernunnos who watch over the forests and animals. In addition to the horns associated with either a bull or ram, there is also sheep’s wool that is used as a symbol for Veles.
The Koledari would sing that they come to “weaving black wool.” There is some folklore involving wool and the expressions, “presti vunu” meaning weaving wool, and “crnu vunu presti” meaning the weaving of black wool. These are illusions to magical crafts and Veles’ role as a god of magic.
God of Commerce & Wealth
Given how cattle were regarded as a sign of wealth and influence, it’s not hard to see Volos become the god and patron of commerce, business, prosperity, trade, and wealth. Merchants would seal their agreements by swearing Volos’ name and even legal documents would sometimes have oaths to him. If you broke an oath, you could be sure of Volos’ punishment and retribution.
A Rus-Byzantine Treaty of 971 is the earliest record we have where signers swore by Vele’s name with violators being warned of a punishment. They would be killed by their own weapons that would become “yellow as gold.” It is thought that this meant they would be cursed with a disease.
Veles’ Feast Day
Or the Festival of Veles, this festival is celebrated either February 11th or 24th for the observance of midwinter. In Christian folk rituals, this festival corresponds with Saint Blaise’s feast day. In the Orthodox traditions, St. Blaise as the protector of cattle is said to have defeated Winter or Morana. Among Catholic traditions, St. Blaise is the patron of throat diseases and apples and candles are blessed to provide protection from those diseases. In Catholic tradition, St. Blaise’s feast day is February 3rd and apples would be sacrificed to him by feeding them to cattle.
Prayers would be offered to Veles for the protection of livestock and their health by sacrificing milk. The festival would be held near a place of worship. During this time, it is forbidden to eat veal. The food eaten during this time is groats seasoned with fat. Ritual fights would also be held during this festival.
The best part is knowing that this held close to Valentine’s Day and Lupercalia!
Velja Noc
The Great Night, in Slavic beliefs, following a lunar calendar, the first day of the New Year would begin on what corresponds with the Gregorian calendar of March 1st to celebrate the end of Winter and return of Spring. This festival could last from Christmas all the way to the end of February. After the arrival and Christianization of many Slavic countries, for those Slavs falling under the Orthodox Churches, this day came to be known as Velik Dan or the Great Day. For the Catholic Slavs, this day became Velika Noc, still the Great Night. Both names correspond with the day or the week in which Easter is observed.
In pre-Christian worship, Velja Noc is the night that the spirits of the dead walk the earth and would enter villages and homes to celebrate the New Year with their living relatives. It is believed that Veles, as the god of the underworld would send out the souls of the dead to the living world to act as his messengers. One tradition has young men known as koledari or vucari would dress up in long coats of sheep wool and wear grotesque masks as they went around the villages making a lot of noise and singing songs. They would be wet and muddy to symbolize the wet underworld of Nav and the ghosts of the dead. In the koledari traditions, they would visit different homes and people presented them with gifts as if they were messengers from Veles to gain his favor for wealth and fortune in the following year.
Which I find very fascinating as this all sounds very much like the Irish celebration of Samhain and Halloween with spirits of the dead passing over to the world of the living and dressing up in costume. Plus, the spirits visiting living relatives is a lot like celebrations of Día de Los Muertos in Mexico and Kalan Goañv in Brittany, France.
Syno-Deities
Apsat – A Georgian or Sarmatian deity and god of cattle and herds who has been equated with Velese.
Cernunnos – A god of the druids in Celtic myth, he is symbolized as a horned snake and god of nature and horned animals.
Hermes – A trickster god and messenger of the Greek pantheon, Veles has been compared to them.
Loki – Veles has been compared to the trickster god Loki from Norse mythology.
Mercury – The trickster and messenger god of the Roman pantheon.
Odin – Some descriptions of Veles also sound just like Odin with his one-eye and gift of prophecy.
Triglav – A three-headed underworld god worshiped by the Pomeranians and some of the Polabian Slavs in Szczecin, Wolin and Brandenburg. It was a short-lived cult confirmed by St. Otto of Bamberg in his biographies.
Vala – A demon who opposes the thunder god Indra in the Vedas.
Vėlinas – A Baltic deity who is very similar in appearance to the Norse Odin and not just Veles.
Teshub
Etymology: As Tarhun, the name means “The Conqueror”
Also Spelled: 𒀭𒅎 (cuneiform), Teshup, Teššup, and Tešup
Also Called: Tarhun, Tarhunt, Tarhunzas, Tesheba (Urartian)
Teshub is the Hurrian god of the sky, thunder, and storms. He is best known for his slaying of the dragon Illuyanka.
There are several different storm and weather gods throughout the Anatolian region (modern Turkey) that are all very similar. During the religious reforms of Muwatalli II’s reign in the New Kingdom of the 13th century B.C.E. the various Hurrian and Hittite pantheons and deities were combined and identified with major Hittite deities. Teshub’s worship would carry forward into the Urartu kingdom as Tesheba.
Hurrian Depictions
In the art and reliefs found, Teshub is shown holding a triple thunderbolt and a weapon, often a double-headed ax or mace.
Teshub’s sacred bull is seen in the horns on his crown. His horses, Seri and Hurri would either pull Teshub’s chariot or he rode them. Similarly, this chariot would be pulled by bulls.
With the mixing of Hurrian and Hittite theology, Teshub is indistinguishable from his Hittite counterpart Tarhun. Exceptions to this are when Teshub is shown with his wife Hebat. In the Kingdom of Urartu when he is known as Tesheba, he is shown standing on a bull.
Near Yazilikava, the ancient capital of the Hittites, there is a rock sanctuary that depicts Teshub as the lead god as he steps on the bowed necks of two mountain gods. Other depictions show Teshub holding a lituss or long crook.
Parentage and Family
Grandparent
Alalu – Great Grandfather
Grandparent
Anu – His father and representing the sky.
Parents
This one is s a bit gross, but the genitals that Kumarbi swallowed when he bit them off of either Enlill or Anu.
Spouse
Arinniti – A sun goddess, she is married to Teshub in Hittite texts and myth.
Hebat – The goddess of beauty, fertility, and royalty. She is paired with Teshub in the Hurrian texts and myths.
Siblings
Aranzah, the personification of the Tigris River, Tashmishu – brothers through Kumarbi.
Ullikumm – A stone giant, they can be considered a half-brother.
Šuwaliyat – A Hittite storm or wind god mentioned in the “Ullikummi Song” who accompanies Tarḫunna (Teshub). He is mentioned as the older brother and vizier to Tarḫunna.
Children
With Hebat, Teshub has the following children –
Sarruma, a mountain god, and Inara, goddess of wild animals.
With Arinniti, Teshub has the following children –
Telipinu, a fertility god
Birth Of A God
The Song of Kumarbi or Kingship in Heaven is the title given to a Hittite version of the Hurrian Kumarbi myth, dating to the 14th or 13th century B.C.E. It is preserved on three tablets, but only a small fraction of the text is legible and able to be translated.
In this story, Teshub is born when Kumarbi bites off the genitals to his father, Anu. It is a story that has strong similarities to the succession of Uranus, Cronus, and Zeus in Hesiod’s Theogony.
Overthrowing Kumarbi
Knowing that history repeats itself and how Kumarbi overthrew his father Anu, just as he had overthrown his father Alalu; Kumarbi seeks out the goddess of the Sea (no name given) to see what to do to prevent his own demise.
The Sea tells Kumarbi to copulate with a rather large boulder, which then becomes pregnant and gives birth to a stone giant by the name of Ullikummi.
Once Ullikummi is born, he is taken to the Underworld and placed upon the shoulders of Ubelluris, the giant that holds up the earth. There, Ullikummi rises up like a pillar out of the sea. He is huge, some 9,000 leagues tall and 9,000 leagues in circumference.
Just huge. Worse, Ullikummi keeps on growing.
This worries the other gods who look to the trickster god Ea for advice on what to do. Ea says that Teshub should take the copper knife that had been used to split the heaven and earth at the beginning of time. Using the copper knife, Teshub sunders Ullukummi from Ubelluris, thus defeating him.
With Kumarbi defeated, Teshub then takes his place as the new King of Heaven.
So, what happens next!?!
That we don’t know as the last tablet that the story is written on is broken off. We can maybe guess by looking at similar myths like the Babylonians and the Greeks for how things might have progressed.
Illuyanka Versus Teshub
This is the story that Illuynak is best known from. It’s pretty much his only appearance in Hittite mythology. This myth was rediscovered by archeologists and historians in 1930 in the Catalogue des Textes Hittites 321. Less than a hundred years ago with this post. An English translation of the text wouldn’t see publication until 1982 done by Gary Beckman. This translation is not yet in the public domain that I am aware of. These cuneiform tablets were found at Çorum-Bogazköy, the old Hittite capital of Hattusa.
In both myths, it is noted that Illuyanka threatens the whole of creation with destruction and why it is that Teshub needs to battle him.
1st Myth – Illuyanka’s Defeat At A Feast
This story begins with one of Teshub or Tarhun’s (Hittite or Hurrian) priests telling the story at the New Year’s festival of Purulli. In the story, Teshub and the serpent Illuyanka fight within the city of Kiškilušša. As they fight, Illuyanka defeats Teshub.
Defeated, Teshub approaches the other gods and asks his daughter Inara for help. Inara sets about to prepare a feast with lots of alcohol, namely wines and beer. That done, Inara traveled to the city of Ziggaratta where she asks the hero Ḫupašiya to help her with a task. Ḫupašiya agrees only if Inara will have sex with him. Since there’s a job to do, Inara agrees and invites Ḫupašiya and his sons to the feast.
At the feast, Inara has Ḫupašiya hide before inviting Illuyanka and his sons to the feast. As Illuyanka and his sons consume all the food and become drunk, Ḫupašiya comes out of hiding and ties up the mighty dragon with some rope.
Teshub enters back into the story by slaying Illuyanka.
Meanwhile, Inara instructs Ḫupašiya to stay within a house on a rock in Tarukka. She tells Ḫupašiya that he is to never look out of the house windows as he is to stay hidden from his wife and children. Eventually, after twenty days, Ḫupašiya looks out a window and on seeing his family, demands to be let go.
Inara asks Ḫupašiya why he looked out the window.
Now, this is where the text for the story is damaged and it’s unclear what we missed and why, where it can be read again, Inara has decided to travel to Kiškilušša to give her house and underground spring to the king.
This event though is where the New Year’s festival of Purulli originates.
Second Myth – This section begins with the invocations for strong, heavy rain. Illuyanka defeats Teshub, taking his eyes and heart.
In the aftermath of this defeat, Teshub marries the daughter of a poor man, where they have a son. This son grows up and marries Illuyanka’s daughter.
Teshub continually asks his son to request his eyes and heart back from Illuyanka. Eventually, Illuyanka relents and gives them to Teshub’s son to bring back to him.
Restored, Teshub heads down to the sea where he battles against Illuyanka, only to find his own son having sided with the dragon. The son begs Teshub to kill him too to which, he obliges.
The text then is unclear what happens next. We know that Teshub was about to do something, but this is where the text is damaged.
The rest of the text that can be read, details the different cults, their priests of the various gods, and their merits and revenues.
Hedammu – In Hurrian-Hittite mythology, this is the sea-dragon, son of Kumarbi and Šertapšuruḫi. Hedammu is basically the Hurrian version of Illuyanka.
The Myth Of Telipinu
In this myth, following the pairing of Teshub and Arinniti, they have a son by the name of Telipinu who is a fertility god and storm god like his father before him.
Telipinu was known for having a temper and one day, waking up in a foul mood, one not helped by putting his boots on the wrong feet, he stormed off into the steppes. Eventually, Telipinu wore himself out and he fell asleep in a meadow.
As Telipinu slept, all the plants and trees died from lack of water, and animals and humans alike stopped giving birth. The land had become lifeless and barren. Greatly concerned, the sun goddess, Arinniti sends out an eagle to look for her son. Then Teshub sets out in search of his missing son to no avail, even after trying to smash in the door to Telepinu’s house.
It is the great mother goddess, Hannahanna who sends out a bee to find Telepinu. The bee finds the sleeping Telepinu and sets about stinging him on the hands and feet to wake him. Then the bee smears wax on the hands and feet, causing Telepinu to finally wake. However, Telepinu is still angry.
Arinniti suggests that someone go help Telepinu with moving. The text for this part of the myth is fragmented. We do know that Telepinu is brought back by an eagle and that the goddess of healing, Kamrusepas heals him.
Twelve rams are sacrificed, and torches are lit, then put out. Presumably by the person that Arinniti called for. This man casts a spell, banishing all the evils caused by Telepinu down to the underworld.
Telepinu returns to his house where he takes care of the king and queen. A pole is set up whereon a sheep fleece is hung. This fleece symbolized all the grain, meat, wine, cattle, livestock, numerous children, and long life.
Jason & The Argonauts – Greek Connections
For some background, the Hittite Empire was active in the 18th century B.C.E. Anatolia, modern-day Turkey. After the 12th century B.C.E., Hittite culture began to decline, continuing with smaller city-states to around the 8th century B.C.E.
Scholars know that the Mycenaean Greeks were in contact with the Hittites and interacted with them. The belief is that elements of Hittite mythology found their way into Greek myths. Two scholars, Jan N. Bremmer and Volkert Haas both argue that the story of Teshub slaying the dragon Illuyanka has a strong influence on the story of Jason and the Argonauts. Notably between Jason, Medea, and the Gold Fleece.
Bremmer and Volkert both identify the Golden Fleece with a sacred kursa sack, made of fleece. At every Purulli, the New Year’s festival, the story of Teshub’s slaying the dragon is retold. This annual pageant would include representatives for Teshub and his wife, conducting a sacred marriage.
In this respect, the kursa, among the Hittites held strong symbolisms as representing a deity’s power, protection over a place, and influence such as abundance and fertility.
It is strongly noted that there is no mention of a kursa in Teshub’s myth with slaying the dragon. There is one mentioned in the Myth of Telepinu. It could be that what we see in the story of Jason and the Argonauts could be the merging of two different myths and stories together.
This is merely one idea among many of just exactly what the Golden Fleece is meant to be or represent.
Hesiod’s Theogony – The Greek Connections
Scholars have noted a similarity between the Hurro-Hittite Song of Kumarbi and Hesiod’s Theogony, a Babylonian Creation Epic. Especially between the characters of Uranus, Cronus, and Zeus from the Greek mythos with those of the Hurrian creation myth with Alalu, Anu, and Kumarbi.
Particularly with the progression of successors. Both the deities of Anu and Uranus are noted as having names that mean “Sky.” Likewise, Kumbari was a Grain-Deity and Cronus likely was one as well. It brings the line of succession to Teshub (or Teššub) and Zeus who are both Storm-Deities.
Another similarity is seen in how both Anu and Ouranos both have their genitals cut or bitten off. Either way hurts immensely… This is seen as removing themselves from heaven and the source from where other divinities originate.
Anu also warns Kumarbi that there will be consequences for what he has done. Again, a similar motif is seen in the Greek story where Ouranos tells the Titans that they too will pay a toll for castrating him.
Syno-Deities
Adad – Canannite/Mesopotamian
Also known as Hadad, he is a similar storm and weather god.
Indra – Indian
The leader of the Devas and God of storms, thunder, and war. He was seen as a defender of the people against evil.
Jupiter – Roman
The Roman god of the sky and thunder, he is equated with Teshub.
Tarḫunna – Hittite
The Hittite god of thunder, lightning, and the weather, he is equated with Teshub.
Tarḫunz – Luwian
The Luwian God of the sky, thunder and lightning, he is equated with both Teshub and Tarḫunna.
Taru – Hattian
A similar storm and weather god.
Zeus – Greek
The Greek god of the sky and thunder, he is equated with Teshub. It’s easy to see in Hesiod’s Theogony the strong connection and similarities between the Hittite and Greek myths.
Viracocha
Also Called: Wiracocha, Wiro Qocha, Wiraqoca, Apu Qun Tiqsi Wiraqutra, Huiracocha, Ticciviracocha, and Con-Tici
Etymology: “Sea Foam”
Epitaphs: Ilya (Light), Ticci (Beginning), Tunuupa, Wiraqoca Pacayacaciq (Instructor)
In Incan and Pre-Incan mythology, Viracocha is the Creator Deity of the cosmos. As a Creator deity, Viracocha is one of the most important gods within the Incan pantheon. Everything stems ultimately from his creation. The universe, Sun, Moon and Stars, right down to civilization itself. Similar to other primordial deities, Viracocha is also associated with the oceans and seas as the source of all life and creation. If it exists, Viracocha created it. Something of a remote god who left the daily grind and workings of the world to other deities, Viracocha was mainly worshiped by the Incan nobility, especially during times of crisis and trouble.
Attributes
Direction: North
Element: Water
Metal: Gold
Month: January
Patron of: Creation
Planet: Sun, Saturn
Sphere of Influence: Creation, Ocean, Storms, Lightning, Rain, Oracles, Language, Ethics, Fertility
Incan Depictions
In Incan art, Viracocha has been shown wearing the Sun as a crown and holding thunder bolts in both hands while tears come from his eyes representing rain. There is a sculpture of Viracocha identified at the ruins of Tiwanaku near Lake Titicaca that shows him weeping.
Under Spanish influence, for example, a Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa describes Viracocha as a man of average height, white with a white robe and carrying a staff and book in each hand. The Spanish described Viracocha as being the most important of the Incan gods who, being invisible was nowhere, yet everywhere.
In the village of Ollantaytambo in southern Peru, there is a rock facing in the Incan ruins depicts a version of Viracocha known as Wiracochan or Tunupa. This rock carving has been described as having mouth, eyes and nose in an angry expression wearing a crown and by some artists saying the image also has a beard and carrying a sack on its shoulders.
Another figure called Tunupa found in Ollantaytambo was described by Fernando and Edgar Elorrieta Salazar.
What’s In A Name?
Viracocha’s name has been given as meaning “Sea Foam” and alludes to how often many of the stories involving him, have him walking away across the sea to disappear. When we look into the Quechuan language, alternative names for Viracocha are Tiqsi Huiracocha which can have several meanings. The first part of the name, “tiqsi” can have the meanings of foundation or base. The second part of the name, “wira” mean fat and the third part of the name, “qucha” means lake, sea or reservoir. An interpretation for the name Wiraqucha could mean “Fat or Foam of the Sea.”
Continued historical and archaeological linguistics show that Viracocha’s name could be borrowed from the Aymara language for the name Wila Quta meaning: “wila” for blood and “quta” for lake due to the sacrifices of llamas at Lake Titiqaqa by the pre-Incan Andean cultures in the area.
Viracocha also has several epitaphs that he’s known by that mean Great, All Knowing and Powerful to name a few. Another epitaph is “Tunuupa” that in both the Aymara and Quechua languages breaks down into “Tunu” for a mill or central support pillar and “upa” meaning the bearer or the one who carries. This is a reference to time and the keeping track of time in Incan culture. The other interpretation for the name is “the works that make civilization.”
Further, with the epitaph “Tunuupa,” it likely is a name borrowed from the Bolivian god Thunupa, who is also a creator deity and god of the thunder and weather. Another god is Illapa, also a god of the weather and thunder that Viracocha has been connected too.
Incan Culture & Religion
The Incan culture found in western South America was a very culturally rich and complex society when they were encountered by the Spanish Conquistadors and explorers during their Age of Conquest, roughly 1500 to 1550 C.E.
The Inca held a vast empire that reached from the present-day Colombia to Chile. Their emperor ruled from the city of Cuzco. They worshiped a small pantheon of deities that included Viracocha, the Creator, Inti, the Sun and Chuqui Illa, the Thunder. The constellations that the Incans identified were all associated with celestial animals. The Incans also worshiped places and things that were given extraordinary qualities. These places and things were known as huacas and could include a cave, waterfalls, rivers and even rocks with a notable shape. Essentially these are sacred places.
In the city of Cuzco, there was a temple dedicated to Viracocha. There was a gold statue representing Viracocha inside the Temple of the Sun. Nearby was a local huaca in the form of a stone sacred to Viracocha where sacrifices of brown llamas were notably made. During the festival of Camay that occurred in time of year corresponding to the month of January, offerings were also made to Viracocha that would be tossed into a river and carried away to him. Hymns and prayers dedicated to Viracocha also exist that often began with “O’ Creator.”
Like many cosmic deities, Viracocha was probably identified with the Milky Way as it resembles a great river. His throne was said to be in the sky. All the Sun, Moon and Star deities deferred and obeyed Viracocha’s decrees.
Deific Late Comer
Old and ancient as Viracocha and his worship appears to be, Viracocha likely entered the Incan pantheon as a late comer. Mostly likely in 1438 C.E. during the reign of Emperor Viracocha who took on the god’s name for his own.
For a quasi-historical list of Incan rulers, the eighth ruler took his name from the god Viracocha. According to story, Viracocha appeared in a dream to the king’s son and prince, whom, with the god’s help, raised an army to defend the city of Cuzco when it was attacked by the Chanca. This prince would become the ninth Incan ruler, Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui. He is thought to have lived about 1438 to 1470 C.E. Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui is the ruler is renowned for the Temple of Viracocha and the Temple of the Sun along with the expansion of the Incan empire.
Record Keepers
The Incas didn’t keep any written records. Like many other ancient cultures, there were those responsible for remembering the oral histories and to pass it on. Aiding them in this endeavor, the Incans used sets of knotted strings known as quipus number notations. By this means, the Incan creation myths and other stories would be kept and passed on.
In a comparison to the Roman empire, the Incan were also very tolerant of other religions, so those people whom they either conquered or absorbed into their empire would find their beliefs and deities easily accepted and adapted into Incan religion. One such deity is Pacha Kamaq, a chthonic creator deity revered by the Ichma in southern Peru whose myth was adopted to the Incan creation myths. At the same time, the Incan religion would be thrust on those they conquered and absorbed.
On one hand, yes, we can appreciate the Spanish Conquistadors and the chroniclers they brought with them for getting these myths and history written down. They did suffer from the fallacy of being biased with believing they were hearing dangerous heresies and would treat all the creation myths and other stories accordingly. Which is why many of the myths can and do end up with a Christian influence and the idea of a “white god” is introduced.
Parentage and Family
Parents
Unknown, Incan culture and myths make mention of Viracocha as a survivor of an older generation of gods that no one knows much about.
Consort
Mama Qucha – She is mentioned as Viracocha’s wife in some myth retellings.
Children
Daughters – Mama Killa, Pachamama
Sons – Inti, Imahmana, Tocapo
Sun & Storm God
Viracocha was worshipped by the Incans as both a Sun and Storm god, which makes sense in his role as a Creation deity. The sun is the source of light by which things can grow and without rain, nothing has what it takes to even grow in the first place.
Cosmic Myths In The Rain
Many of the stories that we have of Incan mythology were recorded by Juan de Betanzos. Naturally, being Spanish, these stories would gain a Christian influence to them.
Rise Of A Deity – In this story, Viracocha first rose up from the waters of Lake Titicaca or the Cave of Paqariq Tampu. This was during a time of darkness that would bring forth light. It is at this time that Viracocha makes the sun, the moon, and stars. He then goes to make humans by breathing life into stones. The first of these creations were mindless giants that displeased Viracocha so he destroyed them in a flood. After the destruction of the giants, Viracocha breathed life into smaller stones to get humans dispersed over the earth.
Taking A Leave Of Absence – Eventually, Viracocha would take his leave of people by heading out over the Pacific Ocean where he walked on the water. He wouldn’t stay away forever as Viracocha is said to have returned as a beggar, teaching humans the basics of civilization and performing a number of miracles. People weren’t inclined to listen to Viracocha’s teaching and eventually fell into infighting and wars. Despite this, Viracocha would still appear to his people in times of trouble.
Incan Flood – As the All-Creator, Viracocha had already created the Earth, Sky and the first people. Giants. There wasn’t any Sun yet at this point. These first people defied Viracocha, angering him such that he decided to kill them all in a flood. This flood lasted for 60 days and nights. This great flood came and drowned everyone, all save two who had hidden themselves in a box. The flood water carried the box holding the two down to the shores of Tihuanaco.
Seeing that there were survivors, Viracocha decided to forgive the two, Manco Cápac, the son of Inti (or Viracocha) and Mama Uqllu who would establish the Incan civilization. Viracocha created more people this time, much smaller to be human beings from clay. These people, Viracocha taught language, songs and civilization too before sending them out into the world through underground passages. It is now, that Viracocha would create the Sun, Moon and stars to illuminate the night sky.
Another legend says that Viracocha fathered the first eight humans from which civilization would arise. Some of these stories will mention Mama Qucha as Viracocha’s wife.
The Cañari People – Hot on the heels of the flood myth is a variation told by the Cañari people about how two brothers managed to escape Viracocha’s flood by climbing up a mountain. After the water receded, the two made a hut. Some time later, the brothers would come home to find that food and drink had been left there for them. This would happen a few more times to peak the curiosity of the brothers who would hide.
Two women would arrive, bringing food. When the brothers came out, the women ran away. The two then prayed to Viracocha, asking that the women return. Viracocha heard and granted their prayer so the women returned. It is from these people, that the Cañari people would come to be.
The Creation of People – Dove tailing on the previous story, Viracocha has created a number of people, humans to send out and populate the Earth. These people, known as Vari Viracocharuna, were left inside the earth, Viracocha created another set of people known as viracohas and it is there people that the god spoke to learn the different aspects and characteristics of the previous group of people he created. The viracochas then headed off to the various caves, streams and rivers, telling the other people that it was time to come forth and populate the land.
Teaching Humankind – This story takes place after the stories of Creation and the Great Flood. Viracocha sends his two sons, Imahmana and Tocapo to visit the tribes to the Northeast or Andesuyo and Northwest or Condesuvo. Viracocha headed straight north towards the city of Cuzco. The intent was to see who would listen to Viracocha’s commands. As the two brothers traveled, they named all the various trees, flowers and plants, teaching the tribes which were edible, which had medicinal properties and which ones were poisonous. Eventually, the three would arrive at the city of Cusco, found in modern-day Peru and the Pacific coast. Here, they would head out, walking over the water to disappear into the horizon.
The Canas People – A side story to the previous one, after Viracocha sent his sons off to go teach the people their stories and teach civilization. As Viracocha traveled north, he would wake people who hadn’t been woken up yet, he passed through the area where the Canas people were. When they emerged from the Earth, they refused to recognize Viracocha. This angered the god as the Canas attacked him and Viracocha caused a nearby mountain to erupt, spewing down fire on the people. Realizing their error, the Canas threw themselves at Viracocha’s feet, begging for his forgiveness which he gave.
Founding The City Of Cuzco – Viracocha continues on to the mountain Urcos where he gave the people there a special statue and founded the city of Cuzco. He would then call forth the Orejones or “big-ears” as they placed large golden discs in their earlobes. These Orejones would become the nobility and ruling class of Cuzco.
His tasks done, Viracocha would head off into the ocean, walking out over it with the other Viracocha joining him. One final bit of advice would be given, to beware of those false men who would claim that they were Viracocha returned.
Right Of Conquest – In this story, Viracocha appeared before Manco Capac, the first Incan ruler, the god gave him a headdress and battle-axe, informing the Manco that the Inca would conquer everyone around them.
Christian Connection
Yes, it’s easy to see how incoming Spaniards would equate Viracocha with Christ and likely influenced many of the myths with a Christian flair.
White God – This is a reference to Viracocha that clearly shows how the incoming Spanish Conquistadors and scholars coming in, learning about local myths instantly equated Viracocha with the Christian god. At first, in the 16th century, early Spanish chroniclers and historians make no mention of Viracocha. In 1553, Pedro Cieza de Leon is the first chronicler to describe Viracocha as a “white god” who has a beard.
It must be noted that in the native legends of the Incas, that there is no mention of Viracocha’s whiteness or beard, causing most modern scholars to agree that it is likely a Spanish addition to the myths. Other deities in Central and South America have also been affected by the Western or European influence of their deities such as Quetzalcoatl from Aztec beliefs and Bochica from Muisca beliefs all becoming described as having beards.
Though that isn’t true of all the Central and South American cultures. Some like the Peruvian Moche culture have pottery that depicted bearded men. The Aché people in Paraguay are also known to have beards. Though the debates and controversy are on with scholars arguing when the arrival of European colonialism began to influence the various native cultures.
Ultimately, equating deities such as Viracocha with a “White God” were readily used by the Spanish Catholics to convert the locals to Christianity. Much of which involved replaced the word God with Viracocha.
Syno-Deities
Pacha Kamaq – The “Earth Maker”, a chthonic creator god worshiped by the Ichma people whose myth would later be adopted by the Inca.
Saturn – It is through Viracocha’s epitaph of Tunuupa that he has been equated with the Roman god Saturn who is a generational god of creation in Roman mythology and beliefs.
Thunupa – The creator god and god of thunder and weather of the Aymara-speaking people in Bolivia.
Zeus Part 1
Pronunciation: zyoos
Etymology: Greek – dios “bright”
Alternate Spellings & Other Names: Ζευς, Kronion
Epithets: Zeus has some 150 epitaphs that he is known by. I expect to miss a few, if not several. Here are some of his many names and epitaphs.
Zeus-Amphitryon (Zeus in the form of Amphitryon when he seduced Alcmene), Zeus Areius (“War-Like” or “The Atoning One”), Abrettenus or Abretanus (Zeus’ surname in Mysia), Achad (Syrian name), Adad (Syrian name), Zeus Adados, Adultus (Invoked as a name of Zeus in marriage), Zeus Agamemnon, Zeus Amphiaraus, Apemius (Averter of Ills), Apomyius (Dispeller of Flies), Acraeus (name in Smyrna ), Acrettenus (name in Mysia), Zeus Areius, Brontios (“Thunderer”), “Ceneus” – An epithet of Zeus after the temple on Cape Canaeum of Euboea. “Kosmetas” (Orderer), “Soter” (Savior), “Polieus” (Overseer of the City) and “Eleutherios” (guarantor of political freedoms), “The Lord of Justice,” “Father of Gods and Men,” “Nephelegereta” (Cloud-Gatherer), Zeus Helioupolites (“Heliopolite” or “Heliopolitan Zeus”), Zeus Olympios, Zeus Panhellenios (“Zeus of all the Hellenes”), Zeus Xenios (“Zeus of Hospitality, Strangers & Foriegners”), Zeus Herkios (“God of Courtyards”), Zeus Herkeios (Guardian of the House), Zeus Hikesios (“God of those seeking sanctuary”), Zeus Larisaeus, Philoxenon or Hospites, Zeus Horkios and Zeus Pistios (“Keeper of Oaths’), Zeus Hypsistos (“Supreme God”), Zeus Agoraeus (“Presider over Businesses”), Zeus Aegiduchos or Aegiochos (“Bearer of the Aegis”), Zeus Nikephoros (“Zeus holding Nike”), Zeus Tallaios (“Solar Zeus”), Zeus Ktesios (“Protector of Property”), Zeus Labrandos, Zeus Trephonius (“the nurturing”), Zeus Naos and Bouleus, Zeus Georgos (“Earth Worker” or “Farmer”), Kasios (“Zeus of Mount Kasios”), Ithomatas, Astrapios (“Lightninger”), Diktaios, Bottiaeus, Zeus Velchanos (“Boy-Zeus”), Kouros (Boy Zeus and early Cretan fertility god), Zeus Lykaios (Wolf Zeus), Zeus Katachthonios (Zeus of the Underworld), Eubouleus, Zeus Meilichios (“Zeus the Easily-Entreated”or Zeus as a snake), Zeus Maimaktes (the bloody aspect of Zeus Meilichios), Zeus Chthonios (“earth”), Zeus Plousios (“wealth-brining”) and Zan (Zeus’ name in Crete).
Zeus, mighty Zeus. King and “All-Father” of the Gods in Greek mythology. He is the mighty thunderer who rules from his abode on Mount Olympus. As King of the Gods, Zeus’ decrees dispense law, order, and justice throughout the mortal and divine realms. If you believe the myths, Zeus is also highly respected(?) in having fathered many of the gods and demigods alike. Exactly how he fathers them all is another matter, of which, his wife Hera is often not too pleased.
Universal Problems Require Universal Solutions
While researching the mythology for Zeus, it can get very problematic. There are at least three different major mythos for Zeus. Two Arcadian versions of his legend and the Hellenistic Zeus that so many are familiar with. Other versions are Zeus found at the Dodona oracle.
As more Greek writers and even modern retellers try to create an all-encompassing myth for all of Greece, it can often get contradictory as to which versions of the myths are correct. Hesiod’s Theogony is a big contributor to the version of the myths that most are familiar with.
Further, for all that the Greeks saw Zeus as the head of their Pantheon, he can often lose a lot of emphasis and power as too often, as the myths try to show his importance, Zeus just ends up having a cameo appearance or mention in the stories. The king who sits up on high passing out judgements.
Add in too, the numerous affairs that Zeus is to have had. Depending on the era of myths, this is Greek influence spreading and trying more to have Zeus as the progenitor for many deities and demigod heroes. If people are creating the gods in their image to reflect them, what does it say for a culture where a god gets to have his way with every female he desires and lusts after? The euphemism of ravish is used a lot for many of Zeus’ “romantic” pursuits. How much is Zeus a victim of his own reputation or not, can be hard to say.
Attributes
Animal: Bull, Dove, Cuckoo, Golden Eagle, Lion, Quail, Rooster, Swan, Wolf, Woodpecker
Element: Air
Patron of: Kings, People, Fate
Planet: Jupiter
Plant: Oak, Olive Tree
Sphere of Influence: Law, Order, Justice, Weather, Rain, Sky
Symbols: Aegis, Cornucopia, Courage, Lightning, Scepter, Sky, Strength, Thunderbolt
Early Greek Depictions
In art, Zeus is often shown as a middle-aged looking male with a long beard and hair and youthful, athletic figure, sporting a toga as he wields his lightning bolts. Sometimes Zeus is shown wielding a hammer. In Greek statuary, Zeus can be shown either standing or sitting with a lightning bolt or scepter in his hand. Zeus is sometimes shown wearing a crown of oak leaves. As King of the gods, Zeus is often seen as being very regal and imposing in this role.
Cult & Worship
Being the head god of the Greek pantheon, Zeus had several temples and festivals held in his honor. Zeus has what’s known as Panhellenic cults, centers of worship that are found spread throughout all of Greece.
Olympia – This is the biggest and major center of worship for Zeus. Located at Thessaly, Thessalia, the Olympic Games would be held here. An alter made of ash dedicated to Zeus is found here. Centuries of animal sacrifice remains can be found here. Such sacrifices were a white animal.
Olympic Games – These games were held every four years in honor of Zeus.
Nemean Games – Similar to the Olympic Games, only held every two years.
Theogamia – Or Gamelia, a festival celebrating Zeus and Hera’s marriage in Athens.
The Divine Youth – The island of Crete was unanimously recognized by the Greeks as being the birthplace of Zeus. Crete of course, was the center of the Minoan culture and civilization at one point. In Crete, the “Boy-Zeus” or Zeus Velchanos is a strong part of a Great Mother and Divine Child or Son and Consort mythos and religion. Zeus Velchanos would also be known as Kouros or Megas Kouros, “the Great Youth.”
On the island of Crete, Zeus is shown in art as a young, long-haired boy rather than the mature adult many statues depict. Ivory statues of the “Divine Boy” have been found near the Labyrinth of Knossos.
There’s even coinage that will show Zeus as a young boy sitting in a tree with a rooster or cockerel. Other coinage will show an eagle and a goddess in a sacred marriage. Inscriptions found at Gortyn and Lyttos show that a Velchania festival was still widely celebrated even during Hellenistic times.
There are several caves at Knossos, Ida and Palaikstro where Zeus was worshiped at. During the Hellenistic era, there was a small sanctuary dedicated to Zeus Velchanos at the Hagia Triada in the ruins of the Minoan palace. Looking at the stories of Minos and Epimenides, there is suggestion that these caves used as incubatory divination by kings and priests. Plato’s dialogue for Laws uses the pilgrimage route of these caves for its setting.
There was a secret rite held at the Cretan paideia. Zeus was said to preside over this military training and athletics. The participants were known as Kouretes, a group of armed dancers.
There is also a death or end-of-year fertility spirit where Zeus as Velchanos’ death is revered. The stories related to this myth are found in several mountain site where a fire would be lit annually at Zeus’ birth cave. Bees are also somehow connected to this observance.
There’s speculation, some holding that Zeus may have been a Cretan King that became deified after his death.
Lykaia – Under the name Zeus Lykaios or Wolf Zeus, Zeus is connected to the festival of Lykaia near Mount Lykaion in Arcadia.
The festival of Lykaia had a secret festival held on Mount Lykaion (Wolf Mountain) in Arcadia and it’s tallest peak. The myths that surround this ritual are believed to relate the story of Lycaon’s feast he held for the gods and involved having served up one of his sons Nyctimus as one of the main courses. Another version of this story given by an Eratosthenes, holds that Lycaon had served up his grandson Arcas at this feast. In either eventuality, an enraged Zeus turns Lycaon into a wolf and proceeds to kill by means of lightning; Lycaon’s other sons before restoring the dead child back to life.
Mmm…. Cannibalism. Not.
The festival of Lykaia were held annually at the beginning of May. It was a primitive ritual festival and rite of passage for young males known as epheboi among the Greeks into adulthood. With the ritual held at night, evidence taken by some with the name of Lycaon’s son Nyctimus, a lot of rumors about cannibalism and werewolf transformations circulated widely among the Greeks as to just what was going on up there. Even Plato wrote about one clan who would gather every nine years and sacrifice to Zeus Lykaios where a piece of human flesh would be mixed in among the pieces of animal.
The belief held that whoever ate the human flesh would turn into a wolf and they could only return to human form after nine-years if they hadn’t eaten human flesh. The famous Olympic boxing champion, Damarchus is said to have turned into a wolf during the ritual sacrifice held for Zeus Lykaios. Games were also a big part of the Lykaios festival held every year after the secret ritual held at night.
It has been put forth, that the epitaphs of Lykaios and Lykeios likely originate in a Proto-Greek word *λύκη, meaning “light.” It’s a word still seen in other Greek words for “twilight” and “year.” This connection is seen in the tragedy writer Achaeus referring to Zeus Lykaios as being “starry eyed.”
This Arcadian Zeus connects strongly to Zeus being the son of Aether. It more easily makes a connection of Lykosoura being the “first city that the sun beheld” as described by Pausanias. The other connection is the alter to Zeus on the summit of Mount Lykaion standing between two columns with eagles that faced the sun-rise.” This all connects Zeus as a god of light.
Eleusinian Mysteries & Orphic Mysteries – Zeus gets around, a lot. Not much is known about the Eleusinian Mysteries and there is plenty known about the Orphic Mysteries given the amount of literature and hymns that have been found and translated.
Both the Eleusinian Mysteries and Orphic Mysteries concern themselves with the death & rebirth of a deity. A role often given to Hades and Dionysus in order to connect them to the mysteries of Demeter and Persephone. As Zeus Katachthonios or Eubouleus (a youthful version of the Lord of the Underworld), Zeus finds himself venerated in many local customs that honor the Underworld Lord and the symbolic rebirth at Spring.
It varies greatly as the local customs varied from one Greek city to another. The Athenians and Siclians honored a chthonic Zeus as Zeus Meilichios (“kindly” or “honeyed”). More epitaphs of Zeus claiming a chthonic role are Zeus Chthonios (“earth”), Zeus Katachthonios (“under-the-earth”) and Zeus Plousios (“wealth-brining”). These versions of Zeus would be depicted as snakes or in a more humanoid form. Sacrifices to the chthonic form of Zeus would be offerings of black animals in sunken pits. Some places, such the Lebadaea shrine in Boeotia, a local hero, Trophonius was revered and then attached as an epitaph to Zeus as Zeus Trephonius (“the nurturing”). Another hero, Amphiaraus was honored as Zeus Amphiaraus near Thebes and the Spartans honored a shrine to Zeus Agamemnon.
Tripartite God
It all makes for an interesting connection. Hades as the God of Death, Dionysus as the God of Life and Zeus tying them both together to represent the birth, death and resurrection of a deity.
Aetnaea – A local festival near Mount Aetna. A statue of Zeus is found here where he is worshiped as Zeus Aetnaeus.
Really getting around as the All-Father and God of Everything.
Temples And Sacred Sites
Cave of Zeus – Found on the slopes of Mount Ida on the island of Crete, the Cave of Zeus is a sacred place dating to antiquity. Sometimes the location of this Cave is given as the Psychro Cave on Crete or the Cave of Zeus is found on the Aegean island of Naxos.
It is the cave that the infant Zeus was hidden in from his father, the titan Cronos. Some variations of Zeus’ origins will place this as his birthing place. A band of mythical warriors known as the Kouretes would dance wildly and loudly as a means to drown out the infant’s cries to keep Cronus from discovering his son.
Archeology discoveries of the cave have found a number of votive offerings in this place.
Dodona Oracle – The site of Zeus’ most famous and oldest oracle, found at Dodona in Epirus, Northwestern Greece. It was known as a land of Oak trees and likely why the tree is associated with Zeus. At this site, Zeus was known as Zeus Naos and Zeus Bouleus. Zeus’ priests were known as Selloi and barefoot. They would lay on the ground and observe the rustling of leaves and branches for their divinations. It is thought that their name contributed to the Hellenes. Later, female priests replaced the male priests and were called Peleiades or Doves. Here, Zeus’ consort is reputed to be Dione, not Hera. Dione is a titaness who may have predated the Hellenic era and likely the original goddess worshipped. Her name is a female form of Zeus’ own name.
Siwa Oracle – The oracle of Ammon near the Siwa Oasis in the western Egyptian desert. Herodotus writes of a Zeus Ammon whould be be consulted at this oracle. This version of Zeus favored the Spartans and a temple dedicated to him was already built during the Peloponnesian War. After Alexander’s trek to this oracle, this figure became the Libyan Sibyl.
Temple of Zeus – This is the most famous of Zeus’ temples in Olympia. It features a gold and ivory statue of Zeus seated on a throne. This statue was sculpted by Phidias and was regarded as one of the “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.”
Mount Aenos – Located on the island of Cephalonia, Zeus was worshiped as either Zeus Aeneius or Zeus Aenesius.
Mount Olympus – This is the tallest mountain peak in Greece, Thessaly, Thessalia to be more precise. It is place from which Zeus and all of the gods are to have resided at, looking down on their domains below.
Shrines – There are several smaller shrines where it’s not always clear if it was dedicated to Zeus or to a local hero that had become defied. Some shrines were Lebadaea in Boeotia that might have belonged to Trophonius or Zeus Trephonius. Just outside of Thebes was Oropus was the shrine dedicated to Amphiaraus or Zeus Amphiaraus. There was a shrine to Zeus Agamemnon revered by the Spartans. At Tralles, there was a shrine dedicated to Zeus Larisaeus.
What’s In A Name?
Proto-Types – It has been put forward that Zeus’ name likely derives from a Proto-Indo-European god of the sky known as Dyeus phter or “Sky Father.” With this name, he is linked to the Rigveda Dyaus or Dyaus Pita. While there is a lot of speculation and hypothesizes about the Proto-Indian-European people, what their language was, culture and myths, Zeus is one whose name clearly comes from the Indo-European language that etymologists have tried to reconstruct. Another root word is “dyeu-“meaning to “to shine” or “bright.” The word is noted to have a similar meaning to the Latin word dies for “day.”
The Proto-Indo-Europeans aren’t really well known as they’re largely a hypothetical group as scholars try to track and guess which directions early humans migrated as they spread over Europe, the Middle East and Asia, which ideas and words stayed the same, ect.
With Mycenaean Greek as seen in the Linear B script, we have the words di-we and di-wo that very similar to the word dyeus.
In Plato’s Cratylus he gives the folk meaning for Zeus’ name as “cause of life always to all things.” It’s based on a pun with Zeus and Dia with Greek words for life and the phrase “because of.” As a result, persisting with this connection as correct isn’t supported with modern scholars.
Parentage and Family
Grandparents
Ouranos (the Sky) and Gaia (the Earth)
Parents
Depending on the source, Zeus can have a few different origins.
Cronus and Rhea – The often recognized version of Zeus’ parentage, especially when referencing Hesiod’s Theogony as the source.
Father – Aether (Arcadian origin)
Father – Coelus (Arcadian origin)
Father – Saturnus (Cretan origin)
Consort
Hera – Also his sister, who becomes Queen of the Gods.
Dione – In the Iliad, at the Oracle of Dodona, Dione is his consort.
Metis – In some myths, Zeus is married to this Titaness before swallowing her.
This list is more the willing consorts and lovers, not those who were raped, no matter what euphemisms are used.
Siblings
He is the sixth child born of Cronus and Rhea.
The birth order is Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus.
Chiron – a half-brother by way of Cronus and the nymph Philyra.
Children
A lot. Suffice to say, there are a lot of children that Zeus has fathered. As time went on and the Greek myths get rewritten and added to, there are even more children added to the roster of Zeus’ progeny. Either the god is really busy, or everyone wants to claim divinity and Zeus as their daddy!
With Aega, Zeus is the father of Aegipan or Goat-Pan. Not Pan, a different Pan.
With Alcmene, Zeus is the father of the famous Greek demi-god and hero Heracles.
With Callisto, Zeus fathers Arcas.
With Danae, Zeus is the father of Perseus.
With Demeter, Zeus is the father of Persephone and Iacchus.
With Dione, at the Oracle of Dodona, in the Iliad, Zeus fathers Aphrodite.
With Electra, Zeus fathers Iasion.
With Europa, Zeus fathers Minos, Rhadamanthys and Sarpedon.
With Eurynome, Zeus fathers the Charites or Graces.
With Io, Zeus is the father of Epaphos.
With Leda, Zeus fathered two sets of twins: Castor and Polydeuces and Clytemnestra and Helen of Troy.
With Leto, Zeus fathers the twin gods Apollo and Artemis.
With Maia, Zeus is said to be the father of Hermes.
With Metis, Zeus is the father of Athena.
With Hera, Zeus is the father of Ares, Eileithyia, Eris, Hebe, Hephaestus
With Mnemosyne (Memory), Zeus fathers nine daughters, the Muses over a period of nine nights.
With Semele, Zeus fathers Dionysus in some versions of the myths.
With Themis, the goddess of Justice, Zeus fathers the three Horae, goddesses of the seasons, and the three Moirai or Fates.
Aeacus, Agdistis, Angelos, Dardanus, Enyo, Ersa, the Litae, Pandia,
In addition, Zeus is also said to be the father of the Magnesian and Macedonian people.
Olympian God
Zeus is counted among the twelve major deities who resided on Mount Olympus, the highest mountain peak in Greece and all of Europe. For the Greeks, this was the perfect location for where the gods would preside at while keeping watch on humankind down below them. Add in that as King and Ruler of the other Olympians, this is really the ideal place as Zeus can look down upon the earth and see what’s going on.
As there are several deities within Greek mythology, just who numbers among the Olympians varies. It’s generally agreed that the twelve major Olympians are: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, and then either Hestia or Dionysus.
King Of The Gods
Zeus is the ruler of the Olympian gods, ruling over all of the gods and mortals alike from Mount Olympus. As King, Zeus was the patron of Kings before later Grecian history, Kings were no longer followed. Zeus dispensed with wisdom, authority, divine decres over the lot of mortals.
Mortal Fates – Before the Moirai were born, Zeus governed the fates of men. He had two urns, one filled with ill fortune and the other filled with luck. Zeus would arbitrarily dole out man’s lot by way of fortunes and misfortunes according to his whim.
Prophecies – As an all-knowing deity who saw and knew everything he ruled over, the powers of prophecies were once Zeus’ domain before passing them on to his son Apollo.
Sky & Weather God
Zeus’ main domain is the Sky and with it, the weather and rain. Especially the thunderbolts and lightning that are his primary weapons. One of his epitaphs is Nephelegereta or “Cloud-Gatherer.” Closely connected to this epitaph as one of his symbols is the scepter, thought to be influenced with imagery from the Ancient Near East.
It was believed and still believed, even if in fun, that Zeus would strike those he sought to punish with lightning. Zeus would especially punish those who lied or broke their oaths.
Zeus would also send thunderstorms at enemies as seen in Homer’s epic, The Iliad.
Sun God
On occasion, Zeus is equated with the Hellenic sun deity, Helios who is said to be Zeus’ eye. In Hesiod’ss Theogony, the sun is outright stated to be Zeus’ eye.
The Cretan version of Zeus Tallaios, the local cult equated their local deity Talos with Helios.
Nature God
The Zeus that originates from Arcadia and Dodona was a nature god as seen in his connection to the oak tree and doves as a symbol of fertility. Even the Cretan Zeus connects him as a nature deity with the cornucopia, milk and honey symbols.
By the time that the Homeric poems, the nature aspect of Zeus seem to have been discarded and he is viewed more as a political and national deity that guards over Kings and the protector of law, tradition and religion.
Marduk
Etymology: “Bull Calf of the Sun,” “Calf of the Sun” or “Solar Calf”
Also known as: Bel (“Lord,” Akkadian), Bel-Marduk, Murdoch
Other Spellings: 𒀭𒀫𒌓 (Cuniform), dAMAR.UTU, Amar utu k (Sumerian), Μαρδοχαῖος, Mardochaios (Greek), מְרֹדַךְ, Mərōdaḵ (Masoretic Hebrew), Merōḏaḵ (Tiberian), Marōdak (Septuagint), Merodach (Biblical Hebrew), Martuk
Pronunciation: mah’-duk
In Mesopotamian mythology, Marduk is a fertility and storm deity of Babylon. He is known for defeating the dragon goddess Tiamat and becoming the Leader of the Babylonian pantheon.
Marduk came to prominence as the patron deity of the city of Babylon during the rule of Hammruabi, the sixth king of the First Babylonian dynasty of the Amorites in the 18th century B.C.E. when Babylon became the political center of the Euphrates valley. Marduk’s full acceptance as the head of the Babylonian pantheon would be completed by the last half of the second millennium B.C.E.
Attributes
Animal: Dogs, Horse, Mušḫuššu (Snake-Dragon)
Element: Air, Water
Planet: Jupiter
Sphere of Influence: Fertility, Judgement, Storms, Vegetation
Symbols: Hoe, Spade
Weapon: Imhullu
Mesopotamian Depictions
In what surviving art and texts we have, Marduk is shown as being human dressed in royal robes decorated with stars. Marduk is often accompanied by his snake-dragon that he got from the god Tishpak.
When shown riding in his war chariot, Marduk carries his other emblems of a scepter, arrows, bow, spear, net and lightning bolt.
What’s In A Name?
To start, there is some controversy over the translation of Marduk’s name. There is the Sumerian dAMAR.UD that translates as: “calf of the sun/sun-god.” Then comes the suggestion that this spelling should call for the translation of: “calf of the storm,” “the son of the storm, and “maker of storms.” The latter translation is often rejected due to a lack of evidence with Marduk’s role as a storm god. Accepting this interpretation of the name nixes any connection to Marduk as a solar deity.
The Akkadian spelling for Marduk’s name is AMAR.UTU that translates to mean MERI.DUG. The name is translated to mean “Solar Calf.” In the Hebrew Torah, his name is spelled as Merodach and the Greek spelling of his name is given as Mardochaios.
Marduk’s name is thought to derive from the phrase: amar-Utu meaning: “Bull Calf of the Sun God Utu.” This naming convention could easily be an indicator of early genealogy. Or, it’s an indicator of cultural ties to the city of Sippar, whose main deity was Utu, a Sun God. The city of Sippar dates to the third millennium B.C.E.
The Encyclopedia of Religion comments that the name Marduk was likely pronounced as Marutuk.
Temple Sites
Esagila – “Temple whose top is raised” or “Proud/Honored Temple.” While Marduk would come to claim prominence throughout most of Mesopotamia, his primary temple is Esagila, located in Babylon. This is the famous ziggurat that’s described by Herodotus.
Etemenanki – “Temple that is the foundation of Heavens and Earth” A ziggurat with Marduk’s shrine located at the top. This may be the temple that inspired the “Tower of Babel.”
Cult of Marduk – As the patron god of Babylon, this city was the main location for Marduk’s worship. The rise and popularity of this religion venerating Marduk is tied closely with the rise of Babylon as a strong political power and capital of the Mesopotamian empire. To the degree that many other deities were subsumed and seen as aspects and epitaphs of Marduk. Outside of Babylon, Marduk was worshipped in Borsippa, Nippur, and Sippar.
In the Assyrian period of Babylonian history, Aššur becomes the head of the pantheon and Marduk takes on a symbolic role of Babylon’s resistance to Assyrian rule. The cult of Aššur would compete with the cult of Marduk. In the Assyrian version of the Enūma Eliš, it is Aššur who becomes the head of the pantheon, not Marduk.
The Marduk Prophecy also shows the conflicts of this change of power as Marduk’s statue is continually “taken captive” until finally the resulting destruction of Babylon and Esagila with the different shifts of power in the region.
Marduk Statue
This is a very important aspect of the ancient world beliefs and Mesopotamia is no different. Within the temple of Esagila there was a golden statue of Marduk. This statue wasn’t just dedicated to Marduk, the ancient Mesopotamians believed that statue to actually be the god himself. Seen in the Marduk Prophecy, if the statue of the god wasn’t present, then he wasn’t in his temple or there to protect his city-state and all sorts of calamities and problems would happen.
Originating during the rule of the Kassites, a new king wishing to see his rule as legitimate, needed to “take the hands of Marduk,” symbolizing the king’s submission and accepting the will and guidance of the god.
In 485 B.C.E., the Persian king Xerxes attacked the city of Babylon and there is no mention of Marduk’s statue. The same goes when Alexander the Great conquers Babylon in 331 B.C.E., there’s no mention of the statue. This lack of evidence and records leads many scholars to believe and agree that Marduk’s statue disappearance from history means that it has, in all likelihood been destroyed.
Without a statue, the Babylonian religion and worship of Marduk declined.
Akitu Festival
This was the ancient New Year’s festival that the Sumerians and Mesopotamian cultures celebrated. This festival occurred sometime during March and April, marking the planting of barley. This festival was presided over by Nabu and Marduk to such a degree, that a text known as the Akitu Chronicle documents a time when the festival couldn’t be observed as Marduk (his physical statue, thus him) wasn’t present in the city of Babylon. Without the statue to carry through the city out to a small house outside the city walls, the people thought that disaster would soon befall them if the patron god wasn’t there to stop the forces of chaos.
Every year at the Akitu House located outside the city, the Enuma Elish would be recited for the New Year’s festival. There was also involved a ritual slapping of the king. Gotta’ stay humble, I guess.
Parentage and Family
Anu – Grandfather and the original head of the Mesopotamian pantheon before other deities arrive on the scene.
Parents
Ea – The previous head and leader of the gods before stepping down. Known as Enki in Sumerian. Ea was the creator god, associated with the fresh, life-giving waters.
Damkina – A Fertility and Mother goddess originally known as Ninhursag.
Consort
Sarpanitu – Also spelled Zarpanitu. She is a Mother and Fertility Goddess
Nanaya – She is sometimes given as Marduk’s wife in the myths.
Children
Nabu – Son and god of literature, scribes and wisdom. Nabu was originally Marduk’s first minister before being identified as his son.
Birth Of A Legend
For as old and ancient as the Mesopotamian mythologies are, it makes sense that we might not know that much about them. To a point.
Marduk goes from obscurity with almost nobody knowing anything about him in the third millennium B.C.E. to the head of the Mesopotamian pantheon in Babylon in the first millennium B.C.E.
By the time the Enuma Elish is written, Marduk’s original nature has already been altered and obscured. As now, he’s a deity linked to the attributes of judgment, magic, vegetation, and water. He is now identified as the son of Ea and Damkina.
As the politics of Babylon and the whole of the Euphrates Valley ramped up, Marduk’s attributes and aspects begin to alter as he would be placed as the head of the Mesopotamian pantheon, especially for his patron city-state of Babylon.
Once Babylon becomes the capital of Mesopotamia, Marduk who was currently just a patron deity of the city now ascends to become the head of the Mesopotamian pantheon and a supreme deity, ruling or presiding over everything else. Explaining this power shift of head honcho, head god and the transfer of power from Ea to Marduk, the Enûma Elish gets written, showing a peaceful abdication of power as Ea steps down and concedes rulership to his son.
There are a couple little snags later on, such as the revival of the god Enlil’s worship to Marduk, reflecting a real-world, historical rise of the cult of Enlil during Kassite control in Babylon between 1570 B.C.E. to 1157 B.C.E. The worship of Marduk and thus, his triumph over Enlil returns at the end of this era of Kassite control.
The other snag to Marduk’s popularity and his being the supreme deity comes during 1000 B.C.E. when the deity Aššur up north in Assyria gains popularity and worship. Down in the southern parts of the region, Marduk is still the head deity. The history of these events is reflected in the Marduk Prophecy.
Enuma Elish
This ancient epic creation poem was written in the 18th century B.C.E. when the city of Babylon becomes the political capital of Mesopotamia. It’s largely written to show Marduk’s birth, many of his heroic deeds and how Ea (Enki) steps down to allow Marduk, in a relatively peaceful transfer of power to become the king and head of the pantheon.
The Enuma Elish begins at the start of time when the universe is nothing more than chaos with freshwater represented by Apsu and saltwater represented by Tiamat, a dragoness. The male and female principles, not unlike the concept seen in the Japanese Yin & Yang. The joining of these two primordial deities would see the creation of all the other gods, known as the Anunnaki.
While Tiamat loved all her children, Apsu, on the other hand, didn’t care for them, saying they were too noisy, keeping him up all night and unable to get any work done during the day. Apsu’s response to this problem was to kill his children.
A horrified Tiamat told her eldest son, Enki of what Apsu planned. Enki decided that the best plan for dealing with this was to put Apsu into a deep sleep and then kill him. From Apsu’s corpse, Enki then creates his home, the earth and the marshy region of Eridu.
This further horrifies Tiamat who wasn’t expecting for Enki to just up and kill Apsu. As a result, she decided to wage war on her own children. The mighty Tiamat raises up an army of chaos and sets Kingu (Quingu) as the general of this army and her new consort.
This has Enki and the other gods worried about what to do. That is, until Marduk steps forward, saying he will lead everyone in this war. Marduk has one condition, that is that he be named as the new king of the pantheon. Enki agrees and Marduk leads the Anunnaki to battle.
Marduk prepares his weapons consisting of bow and arrows, a mace, lightning as he is a storm god, flames and a net. Gathering up the four winds, Marduk encircles and nets the mighty Tiamat to prevent her from escaping him. New winds are created by Marduk such as whirlwinds and tornadoes. As he is a storm god, Marduk brings down a fierce flood of rain. It’s a battle between a storm god and a primordial goddess of chaos and the sea, it’s epic as Marduk rides in his storm-chariot pulled by four horses who have poison in their mouths. Spellcasting and an herbal antidote as Marduk faces off against one of the mightiest dragons known in mythology.
After Marduk finally slays Tiamat with an arrow to her stomach, he then goes after Tiamat’s son, Kingu who oversaw the army and wears the Tablets of Destiny over his chest. Marduk makes short work of Kingu in single combat, claiming the tablets and establishing himself as the new head of the pantheon.
This is a lot of power that Marduk has now accumulated and he sets about to create the universe. But didn’t that already exist? He’s at least making a new one as Marduk takes the two halves of Tiamat’s corpse to create the heavens and the earth, completing the work started by Enki. From Tiamat’s eyes, the Tigris and Euphrates rivers flow.
With Kingu’s blood, Marduk mixes it with the earth to create the first humans. The creation of humans would allow the gods the leisure time and the time to focus on higher purposes, taking care of human needs as humanity basically did the grunt work. All humans would need to do is respect and give heed to the will of the gods living in Eridu with Marduk ruling overall as a benevolent god.
That doesn’t sound like it will end well and I’m sure there’s another story concerning that.
Side Note: Depending on the version of the creation myth, it is solely Marduk involved in all of it and there’s no mention of Enki.
Further, knowing that this is a revision of the original myths, I’m curious about what the originals may have been.
Eridu – The First City
Yes, there really is a historical site for an ancient city of this name. Eridu is the oldest city built by the Mesopotamians around 5400 B.C.E. Depending on who you ask, it may be the oldest city in the world. In the Babylonian texts, namely Enuma Elish, it is a holy city where all the other gods lived a life of leisure.
This city was originally the city-state for the god Enki who is later known as Ea by the Akkadians. For modern times, it was first excavated by John George Taylor in 1855. Later, archeological discoveries found that the city was ultimately abandoned around 600 B.C.E. due to a change in climate as the water became more salinized from all the constant irrigation.
As seen later, in the Marduk Prophecy, with the Enuma Elish, the story here likely reflects on the transition from Eridu to Babylon as it became the political and religious center of the Euphrates valley and a cultural shift as the newer city becomes more prominent over the older city of Eridu.
Revisionist History – Scholars have noted that the city of Eridu is founded in the 5th millennium B.C.E. and that Marduk ascends to head of the Mesopotamian pantheon in the 2nd millennium B.C.E. That is a lot of time to have passed. It clearly marks that someone decided to rewrite the myths to favor Marduk when his popularity and the importance of Babylon as a political center become prominent.
Fertility God
Marduk is a god of fertility and vegetation and thus, agriculture. The triangular spade or hoe that Marduk is shown with in some art represents his role and power over fertility and vegetation.
The roles and aspects of Marduk being a Spring, Storm and Solar god also blend in with this function. However, making these connections relies on accepting certain etymological interpretations for Marduk’s name.
Patron God
As a patron god, Marduk, not just King of the gods, also presided over the city of Babylon. The importance of a patron deity is shown in the Marduk Prophecy where Babylon has fallen to chaos and disarray when Marduk’s statue and thus the god himself leaves and order is later restored when King Nebuchadnezzar returns Marduk’s statue to the city.
Not the Original Patron – This was a fun little fact to come across. Before Marduk became the patron god of Babylon, that honor belonged to Inanna, goddess of sexuality and warfare. She would still be a prominent and important goddess throughout the Mesopotamian culture.
Protector
Marduk’s role as Patron, also places him prominently as a protector deity. Aside from the Akitu Chronicles and the Marduk Prophecy, there are two other texts: “The Ludlul-Bel-Nimeqi” and “The Wrath of Erra” that highlight just how vital having one’s patron deity present was, not just for the city, but for the individual as well.
The Ludlul-Bel-Nimeqi – Also called the “Let me praise the Lord of Wisdom” or “The Poem of the Righteous Sufferer,” it is often classified as “Wisdom Literature.” This text is a long treatise some four tablets long with 120 lines each. that details the amount of suffering that Tabu-utu-bel, a city official of Nippur goes through because Marduk isn’t close enough to help as he is too far away for any meaningful help. Biblical scholars have compared this text with the Book of Job for the themes of suffering when one’s God seems absent.
The Wrath of Erra – This is another text, in which the war god, Erra (Irra or Nergal) grows bored and decides the only way to cure his boredom is to attack Babylon. The other gods try to persuade Erra that this is a bad idea and don’t do it. Undaunted, Erra heads off to Babylon anyways. Once there, Erra convinces Marduk that his clothes are shabby and perhaps he should go about getting some new threads. Marduk says he’s much too busy to take of this matter and Erra convinces Marduk that he’ll watch over the city. Off Marduk goes and Erra takes advantage of the opportunity to proceed with destroying the city and killing civilians. Depending on the source translated from, either the other gods stop Erra’s path of destruction or he’s halted when Marduk finally returns with his fancy new duds. Regardless, the story ends with giving praise to Erra, the god of war for sparing a part of the city so people could rebuild.
Yay?
The idea of having a protector and patron god of one’s city was very strong among the Babylonians. This was their whole city and personal identity that in 485 B.C.E. the Persian king Xerxes had Marduk’s statue destroyed when he sacked the city. Eventually, with the sands of time, Babylon is deserted and left to ruin and people have forgotten about worshiping Marduk.
King Of The Gods
As head of the Mesopotamian pantheon, Marduk takes on a lot of aspects. In some cases, this is taking over the role of other gods who had previously been the head of the pantheon. Such aspects that Marduk comes to preside over are justice, compassion, mercy, healing, regeneration, magic.
Mušḫuššu
A “snake-dragon, mušḫuššu is Marduk’s sacred animal that he got from the god Tishpak. The mušḫuššu is depicted on the city walls of Babylon.
50 Titles
If you ask me this is a lot of titles and epitaphs to be known by. We get this list from two different sources, “The Seven Tablets of Creation” that Leonard W. King studied in 1902 to reconstruct from fragments a list of names. Then there is the “King’s List” that Franz Bohl studied in 1936. Finally, we get to 1958, when Richard Litke compared and noticed similarities with Marduk’s name between the two lists of An (Anum, a deity list) and Enuma Elish.
These names demonstrate the level of prominence that Marduk held within the Babylonian pantheon. These fifty names of Marduk are found and documented in the Enûma Elish and the Anum.
Why 50? – The number 50 was originally associated with the god Enlil, the former head of the pantheon. So this is just part of showing the transfer of power from Enlil to Marduk.
Asalluhi – As Marduk came to prominence, he took over the role and identity of Asalluhi, the son of Ea and god of incantations and magic. With both Asalluhi and Marduk becoming equated as the same entity, Asalluhi’s name survives as one of Marduk’s many names and epitaphs. Some commentary has noted that equating or syncretizing Marduk and Asalluhi together is a means to create a stronger tie to the god Ea and the city of Eridu as Ea was not part of the original pantheon.
Bel – Meaning “Lord,” this is the name that Marduk would eventually be known by, making him a god of order and destiny.
He is normally referred to as Bel “Lord”, also bel rabim “great lord”, bêl bêlim “lord of lords”, ab-kal ilâni bêl terêti “leader of the gods”, aklu bêl terieti “the wise, lord of oracles”, muballit mîte “reviver of the dead”, etc.
The Marduk Prophecy
This is an interesting text, not so much as it’s telling prophecies, but more about being a history around the movement of Marduk’s cult as they follow Marduk’s statue from Babylon. This text was found at the House of the Exorcist in Assur and dates from 713 to 612 B.C.E. It appears to be similar to another set of texts, the Shulgi prophecy.
It begins with Marduk’s statue getting stolen by Mursilis I of Hatti in 1531 B.C.E. The god Marduk is described as visiting the land of Assyria. Then, when a Tukulti-Ninurta I overthrows Kashtiliash IV in 1225 B.C.E., Marduk’s statue is taken Assur and then Elam as Kudur-nahhunte sacks the city in 1160 B.C.E.
Each time, Marduk is described as willingly heading off to visit these places. Which makes sense when you remember that this far back, a statue of a deity… hence an idol was the actual deity in question, not just a representation.
The way Marduk’s travels are told, they are allegories of the history involved. The first couple of journeys that Marduk takes are fairly favorable. When it comes to the city-state of Elam, that’s a whole other matter as the other gods following after Marduk, likely shows the changing climate of the region as they abandon Babylon due to famine and pestilence.
There’s also a familiar theme as Marduk prophecies that he will return again to Babylon with a new king will rise to power bringing about redemption and salvation to the city, taking it back from the Elamites and restoring the Ekursagila temple. Where the Marduk Prophecy is concerned, King Nabu-kudurri-uṣur (Nebuchadnezzar), who reigned from 1125 to 1103 B.C.E. is accepted as being the king who returns Marduk’s statue to Babylon and is victorious over the Elamites.
The main importance of the Marduk Prophecy text is to highlight the necessity of the patron deity staying in Babylon. Each time that the Marduk statue (Marduk himself) is abducted, chaos falls on the city of Babylon while the places where the statue resides, prosper.
Like some epic game of football where the opposing team comes and steals the home team’s mascot to weaken their morale.
Propaganda?
No! Say it isn’t so!
Remember the previously mentioned King Nebuchadnezzar? It’s been noted that the dates of when the Marduk Prophecy (1 millennium B.C.E.) and even the Enuma Elish both date to around the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule and reign between 1125-1103 B.C.E. It makes him look good for restoring order (his defeat of the Elamites and bringing Marduk’s statue back) that he’s the prophesied king come to do Marduk’s will.
Jupiter – Roman
With Marduk’s position and role as the head of the Mesopotamian pantheon, the Romans equated him with Jupiter, the head of their pantheon.
Zeus – Greek
With Marduk’s position and role as the head of the Mesopotamian pantheon, the Greeks equated him with Zeus, the head of their pantheon.
Bel – Babylonian
Yes, Bel is previously mentioned earlier as one of Marduk’s fifty names.
He is mentioned as being a separate deity here as in the 1 millennium B.C.E., by the time we get to this era of history, as a title, Bel is the name that other deities Enlil and Dumuzid, not just Marduk have been known by.
Taken separately, Bel holds all the titles and aspects that Enlil did. To the point that Bel eventually becomes a god of order and destiny. Even Greek historians mentioned Bel in their writings. As a separate deity, Bel was the god of order and destiny. Both Marduk and Bel’s cults were similar, so it’s not hard to see how Bel becomes absorbed and an epitaph for Marduk.
Bel and the Dragon – This is a Jewish story and apocryphal addition to the Book of Daniel in which the Babylonians offer a substantial amount of food and wine every day to an idol of Bel. This vast quantity of food seemingly, miraculously disappears each night. This is enough to convince the Persian king Cyrus the Great that the idol is alive, and he tells Daniel this.
Daniel being a wise man and rather smart knows this isn’t the case. Afterall Daniel says it’s clay on the inside and bronze outside. It likely has never eaten anything. To prove this, Daniel discreetly covers the floor of the temple with ash.
Both Daniel and Cyrus leave for the night. When they return in the morning, Daniel is able to point out the footprints left behind, thus proving that it is the seventy priests of Bel who are eating the food, not the idol.
Biblical Connections
Some scholars point out that the name Bel is derived from the Semitic word “Baal” that has the same meaning of “Lord.” There are several places within the Bible where Bel is mentioned, this more than likely referencing Marduk. The Hebrew version of Marduk’s name, Merodach is found in many places in the Bible as a surname for non-Israeli kings.
Continuing this trend for Biblical Connections, Marduk and a couple other Mesopotamian and Canaanite deities are made mention of in the Torah or Old Testament.
Thanks to Cyrus the Great of Persia, when he captured Babylon, he reversed the policies of the previous ruler by calling for the rebuilding of temples and reinstating religions that had been destroyed or banned before.
Where the Bible (Torah) is concerned, Cyrus allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their temple to Yahweh. Cyrus records inspiration for this as coming from Marduk. The bible will say that it is Yahweh who inspired Cyrus.
The “Cyrus Cylinder” found in 1879 at Babylon records the following: “Marduk, the great Lord, established as his fate for me a magnanimous heart of one who loves Babylon, and I daily attended to his worship… I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there [in Babylon], to their places; and I let them dwell in eternal abodes. I gathered all their inhabitants and returned to them their dwellings… at the command of Marduk.”
In the Book of Ezra 5:13 this event is recorded: “In the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild this house of God.”
The Book of Isaiah is where Yahweh is given credit for inspiring Cyrus.
“I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness:
I will make all his ways straight.
He will rebuild my city
and set my exiles free” (Isaiah 45:13)
The connections don’t end there, Biblical scholars see a similar theme with Marduk’s slaying Tiamat with the Canaanite story of Baal slaying Tannin and notably Yahweh’s defeating the giant sea monster Leviathan in Psalm 74: 13-14 or a future time in Isaiah 27:1.
The previously mentioned Etemenanki temple is thought to be the inspiration for the Tower of Babel. Babylon’s destruction is prophesied in the book of Jeremiah (50:2).
Who do you accept? It’s a matter of two different religions, cultures and perspectives. Of course, it’s easy, after the fact, to say there was divine intervention and that it is all prophesied.
Sitchin Time
According to Zecharia Sitchin, the claim is made that the great battle between Tiamat and Marduk is symbolic for the creation of our solar system’s asteroid belt. Sitchin writes that this asteroid belt was once a planet that the Sumerians called Tiamat. Due to an impact, the planet was destroyed, creating the “Great Band” or asteroid belt. The planetary impact responsible is that of the planet Nibiru, associated with the god Marduk.
Babylonian Astronomy, Astrology & Zodiac
I will call bunk on Sitchin’s ideas.
When you look at the word Nibiru in the Akkadian language, it refers to a crossing or transition points like with rivers. In Babylonian astronomy, Nibiru came to refer to the Equinox, notably, the Autumn Equinox. In their star lore, the term nibiru can refer to any crossing. Tracking the movement of the stars and planets in the heavens as they appear from Earth. The star or planet associated with Marduk is the one we know modernly as Jupiter.
For the Babylonians, the Autumn Equinox occurred in the month of Tisritum, roughly coinciding with between September and October. If we’re following the Greek Zodiac, then the constellation of Libra is prominent. A further fun fact, depending on the time of the year and the location of the planet Mercury, it could sometimes be called Nibiru.
Some of it is confusing. Mainly it’s understanding how to read and interpret what the Babylonians meant when tracking the night sky.
It should come as no surprise, that as old as the Mesopotamian cultures and religions are, that they would have mapped out the night sky to mark the turning of the seasons, creating a calendar. Many of these early constellations and zodiacs were adopted by the later Greeks who incorporated the constellations into their own mythology.
In Babylonian beliefs, it is Marduk who creates the astrological calendar and mapped out the different signs of the Zodiac. Marduk would be identified with the planet Jupiter, who of course is later equated with the Greek Zeus and renamed for the Roman deity Jupiter as all three are heads of their respective pantheons.
Cetus – Greek Mythology & Constellation
While many are familiar with the constellation’s connection to the Grecian story of Andromeda and Perseus in its role as the giant sea monster sent by Poseidon to destroy the coast of Aethiopia.
The constellation of Cetus has been identified with Tiamat, the dragon goddess of Chaos. Marking Tiamat’s story one of many that the Greeks likely inherited from the Mesopotamians and retold for their legends.
Cetus
Etymology – “Big Fish” or Whale
Alternate Spellings: Κηφεύς Kepheús (Greek), Ketos, Cetea (plural)
Pronunciation: SEE-tus
Cetus is the name of the monstrous sea creature whom King Cepheus was to sacrifice his daughter Andromeda. The giant monster has a bit part in the overall story of Perseus and Andromeda, though it is enough to earn it a place up in the heavens to be immortalized as a constellation.
Description
The name cetus can mean any large fish, especially a shark, whale or a sea monster. In Greek art, as well as seen in the Hercules The Legendary Journeys series, the cetea were shown as large sea serpents. And yes, both Hercules and Perseus slay giant sea monsters in their adventures.
Visualizing Cetus as a huge, monstrous sea serpent makes it easier to see how it could destroy the coast of Aethieopia or rise up out of the sea to try and devour Andromeda.
Side Note – The art historian John Boardman has the idea that the images of the cetus along the silk road influenced the image of the Chinese dragons and the Indian makara.
Story Of Perseus
In the Greek story of Perseus, Cepheus was the king of Acrisios or Aethiopia, the husband of Queen Cassiopeia and the father to Andromeda. For the Greeks, Cepheus is known as the father of the Royal Family.
The story begins when Cassiopea started bragging about how Andromeda was more beautiful than the Nereids. This kind of attitude of extreme arrogance and pride, especially when a person claims to be better than the gods, creates what’s known as hubris.
Offended by Cassiopeia’s remarks, the Nereids approached Poseidon and complained, asking him to punish this mortal woman. Poseidon agreed and he sent a flood as well as the sea monster Cetus (or Kraken) to destroy the coastline of Aethiopia.
After consulting with the oracle of Ammon (identified by the Greeks with Zeus,) located at an oasis near Siwa in the Libyan desert, Cepheus was told that he would be able to end the destruction of his country by giving up his daughter Andromeda in sacrifice to Cetus. At the urging of his people, Cepheus had Andromeda chained to a rock by the sea to await her fate.
Luck was with Andromeda, for the hero Perseus was flying by on the Pegasus and on seeing her, he flew down to ask her why she was bound to the rocks. Andromeda told her story to the hero Perseus.
After hearing the story, Perseus went to Cepheus, saying he could save Andromeda from the sea monster and that in return, he wanted her hand in marriage. Cepheus told Perseus that he could have what he wanted.
At that, Perseus then, depending on the accounts given, pulled his sword and found a weak spot in the scales of the sea monster Cetus or he used the severed head of Medusa to turn the monster to stone.
In either event, the monster is slain, Perseus saved Andromeda and a grateful Cepheus and Cassiopeia welcomed them to a feast where the two were married.
The story doesn’t completely end there as it seems Andromeda had also been promised to her uncle Phineus to marry. This wouldn’t have been disputed or contested if Phineus had been the one to save Andromeda and slay Cetus himself. So Phineus picked a fight with Perseus about his right to marry Andromeda at the wedding.
After slaying a Gorgon and a Sea Monster, a mere mortal man is no challenge for Perseus who once again pulls out Medusa’s head and turns Phineus to stone. Given variations of the story, sometimes this is when Cepheus and Cassiopeia are also turned to stone when they accidentally look at the gorgon’s severed head. With Phineus now dead, Andromeda accompanies Perseus back to his home Tiryns in Argos where they eventually founded the Perseid dynasty.
Some accounts give that Perseus and Andromeda had seven sons and two daughters. Others place this count a little differently saying its seven children all together, six sons and one daughter. Most accounts agree that the eldest son, Perses founds his own kingdom and becomes the ancestor to the kings of Persia. A variation to this account is that Perses was adopted by his grandfather Cepheus and named an heir to the throne.
Eventually, years later, as the major figures of the storied died and passed away, the goddess Athena placed Cepheus and the others up into the heavens as constellations to immortalize and commemorate this story.
In another account, because Cepheus was descended from one of Zeus’ lovers, the nymph Io, that earned him a place in the night sky.
Further, it is the god Poseidon who places both Cepheus and Cassiopeia up into heavens to become a constellation.
Hyginus’ Account – By his account, Cepheus’ brother is Agenor who confronts Perseus as he was the one to whom Andromeda had been promised in marriage. This is who Perseus ends up killing instead of Phineus.
Aethiopia or Ethiopia?
The accounts can vary and much of this owes to some lack of clarity among the ancient Greek Scholars and Historians. Homer is the first to have used the term Aethiopia in his Iliad and Odyssey. The Greek historian Herodotus uses the name Aethiopia to describe all of the inhabited lands south of Egypt. The name also features in Greek mythology, where it is sometimes associated with a kingdom said to be seated at Joppa, (what would be modern-day Tel-Aviv) or it is placed elsewhere in Asia Minor such as Lybia, Lydia, the Zagros Mountains, and even India.
Modern-day Ethiopia is located on the horn of Africa and has some tentative ties to the legend of Andromeda. The Egyptian priest Manetho, who lived around 300 BCE called Egypt’s Kushite dynasty the “Aethiopian dynasty.” And with the translation of the Hebrew Bible or Torah into Greek around 200 BCE, the Hebrew usage of “Kush” and Kushite” became the Greek “Aethiopia” and “Aethiopians.” This again changes later to the modern English use of “Ethiopia” and “Ethiopians” with the arrival of the King James Bible.
Given the way that Countries, Empires, Kingdoms, and Nations rise and fall, expand and shrink, it’s very well possible that both Aethiopia and Ethiopia are one and the same and that modern-day Tel-Aviv once known as Joppa (Jaffa) may have once been part of Ethiopia. Some sources cite Joppa as having been a city of Phoenicia. There is a lot of history that has been lost to the sands of time that can only be guessed at and speculated upon.
Hercules Vs Cetus
This is a very similar story that follows much the same theme that the story of Perseus and Andromeda follows.
Now, Hesione is a Trojan princess and the daughter of King Laomedon. Being Trojan, Hesione in some versions and not Helena gets the blame as the trigger for the famous Trojan War.
Enough of that, the gods Apollo and Poseidon became angry with King Laomedon when he refused to pay his tribute to the gods for the construction of Troy’s walls. Fair enough, if you don’t pay, we’ll send a plague and a giant sea monster after you to collect.
After consulting the Oracles for what he could do to set things right, Laomedon was told he would need to sacrifice his daughter Hesione to the monster Cetus. Some versions say a series of pulling lots saw Hesione get this fate. Like Andromeda, Hesione too is chained to the rocks near the ocean for Cetus to come and get.
The hero Hercules along with Oicles and Telamon were returning from their campaign against the Amazons when they come across Hesione chained up and exposed. Hercules finds out what’s going on and goes to her father, Laomedon saying that he can save her for a price.
What price? The horses Laomedon received from Zeus as compensation when Ganymede was abducted. Though it’s Tros who is often given as the father of Ganymede and Laomedon is a nephew of said Ganymede. This story follows the lineage with Laomedon as Ganymede’s father rather than a nephew.
Back on track, Laomede agrees to Hercules’ price of giving the horse and the hero sets off to kill the sea monster Cetus.
When it came time for Hercules to collect his reward, Laomedon refused to pay. Why am I not surprised by that? Some people just don’t learn.
Hercules and his companions are angry enough that they come back to attack Troy, killing Laomedon and all his sons except for Podarces. Telamon takes Hesione for his wife and Podarces, becoming king of Troy, changes his name to Priam.
The whole famous Trojan War fits in as Priam wanted Hesione returned to Troy. When Antenor and Anchises, both sent by Priam, couldn’t get Hesione, they return. Paris is then sent to Greece to bring Hesione back and while on the way, brings back Helen, Queen of Sparta and wife to Menelaus.
Other Grecian Legends
Gates of the Underworld – With Cetus’ location under the ecliptic, it’s stars, along with those of Pisces are connected to the capture of Cerberus in The Twelve Labors of Hercules. Having written a post for Pisces, this is the first I’ve come across this story being connected to either constellation. It seems to me, part of a series of connection several constellations to the story of Hercules and his labors.
Western Astronomy
The constellation known as Cetus is one of 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy in his book, Almagest. Today it remains as one of the 88 current or modern constellations. The Cetus constellation is found in region of the sky called “The Sea” with other water-based constellations of: Aquarius, Capricornus, Eridanus, Piscis Austrinus, and Pisces.
17th-century astronomer, Johannes Bayers thought Cetus resembled a dragonfish. In his star map or Uranographia, Johann Elert Bode gives an alternative name of Monstrum Marinum for Cetus. Other astronomers, Willem Jansson Blaeu and Cellarius saw a Whale in the Cetus constellation. It’s not unusual either for Cetus to be shown as a giant, monstrous fish with varying animal heads on it.
The Cetus constellation is found in the southern hemisphere where it can most likely be seen during autumn evenings, especially in November, along with several other constellations named after characters in the myth of Perseus. Because of its southern location, Cetus is visible between the 70° and -90° latitude lines and for observers farther south it lies below the horizon. It is 4th largest constellation found in the night sky. Bordering constellations to Cetus are: Aquarius, Aries, Eridanus, Fornax, Pisces, Sculptor and Taurus.
Arabic Astronomy
Arab astronomers were aware of Ptolemy’s constellations, in their star lore, one of the hands from the Pleiades (Al-Thurayya) is said to extend into part of the Cetus constellation. Additionally, two pearl necklaces were seen as making up the stars of Cetus. One necklace is intact and whole while the other is depicted as broken and the pearls scattered.
Brazilian Astronomy
The Tukano and Kobeua people see a jaguar in the Cetus constellation. This jaguar is the god of hurricanes and violent storms. The stars Lambda, Mu, Xi, Nu, Gamma and Alpha Ceti make up the head. The stars Omicron, Zeta and Chi Ceti make up the body with the stars Eta Eri, Tau Ceti and Upsilon Ceti making up the legs and feet. Lastly, the stars Theta, Eta, and Beta Ceti mark the tail of the jaguar.
Chinese Astronomy
The stars of Cetus are located in two areas of the Chinses Night Sky, the Black Tortoise of the North or Bei Fang Xuán Wu and the White Tiger of the West or Xi Fang Bái Hu.
The area of the night sky that Cetus occupies is associated with Autumn, agriculture and the harvest season, especially with the need for storing grains and cereals.
Bakui – This is an old asterism comprised of the stars 2, 6 and 7 Ceti that represents a bird catching net. In older maps, this asterism will be placed further south in the constellations of Sculptor and Phoenix. It’s thought that perhaps Chinese astronomers have moved this asterism further north with the slow precession of stars in the night sky.
Chuhao – Or called Chugao, it is located south of Tianjun. This asterism is made up of six stars, two of which are Epsilon and Rho Ceti that border with Eridanus. This asterism represents either a measure of animal feed or medicinal herbs.
Tiancang – Is a square granary, made up of six stars from main body of Cetus, including Iota, Eta, Theta, Zeta, Tau and Upsilon Ceti form this asterism.
Tianhun – This asterism is a loop of seven stars near Eta Ceti and represents either a manure pit or pig sty.
Tianjun – Is a circular granary, made up of thirteen stars from the head and neck of Cetus, including Alpha, Gamma, Delta and Xi Ceti form this asterism.
Tianlin – Is a third granary that borders between the Cetus and Taurus constellations. It is comprised of four stars Omicron, Xi, 4 and 5 Tauri. This storehouse or granary is used to store millet or rice.
Tusikong – One star, Beta Ceti marks this asterism that represents the Minister of Works and Land Usage Overseer.
Hawaiian Astronomy
It’s thought that this constellation was called Na Kuhi and the star, Omicron Ceti might have been called Kane.
Mesopotamian Astronomy
As I study the old Grecian myths and the history behind them, the stronger a connection and correlation between the Greek and Mesopotamian myths appears. The story of Andromeda and Perseus is just one set of myths the Greeks inherited from the Mesopotamian cultures.
The constellation of Cetus has been identified with Tiamat, the dragon goddess of Chaos. She bore many demons for her husband, Apsu, but eventually she decided to destroy them in a war that ended when Marduk killed her. He used her body to create the constellations as markers of time for humans.
Biblical Connection – Lost In Translation!
The Greeks weren’t the only ancient people that the Mesopotamians influenced. We see another interesting connection come in the Torah or Hebrew Bible and with the Canaanites.
Jonah and the Whale – This is the story that many people are most likely familiar with for any connection of Cetus with the Bible. If you don’t really dig any further, that can be good enough for people when linking this constellation to the Bible.
If we go a little further, yes, the Hebrew text in Jonah calls the whale a dag gadol, meaning “great fish.” And yes, when the Old Testament was translated to the Greek Bible or Septuagint, the translation is “mega ketos.” Then translated again, in the Latin Vulgate, it translates to Cetus and then later to “piscis grandis.”
Torah – What gets interesting, is another creature, Tanninim (or Tannin for singular) that gets mentioned in the Hebraic Books of Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomy, Psalms, Job, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. Now, the translation into the King James Bible will translate many of these instances to mean a serpent or whale.
Why mention one particular creature, Tannin in all of these other passages and books and call it a dag gadol in Jonah? It’s assumed that whales are what’s being mentioned. Yet when we get into Isaiah, tannin is again mentioned as a sea monster that will be slain by God or Yahweh. When we go into the King James Bible, that translation of tannin becomes a dragon.
If dag gadol is a whale or rather, a great fish; then what’s tannin? Sticking to just Jewish mythology, tannin is often linked to the sea monsters Leviathan, Lotan, and Rehab. In modern Hebrew, tannin means crocodile.
Canaanite Mythology – Tannin also appears in Canaanite myths, specifically the Baal Cycle. It is a story very similar to the Mesopotamian myth of Marduk (or Enlil) slaying Tiamat and the Grecian Perseus slaying Cetus.
Tannin is a monstrous servant of the sea god Yam who is defeated by Baal or is bound by his sister Anat. This serpentine sea monster is used in Canaanite, Hebrew, and Phoenician mythologies as being symbolic of chaos and evil. Much like how Tiamat is equated as a symbol of chaos. It is this part of being a sea monster or dragon and chaos that has modern scholars identifying Tiamat with Tannin.
Nautical Lore & Superstitions
A ship or a ship’s maidenhead will be called Cetus to indicate a ship undaunted by the sea or a fearsome and ruthless pirate ship.
By sailors, the name Cetus is an omen and harbinger of a bad storm or misfortune. The name could also mean lost cargo, the presence of pirates or getting steered/pulled off course. The superstition was so great, that sailors would avoid mentioning the name Cetus.
Here Be Dragons! – Continuing the bit of nautical connection, some retellings of Perseus and Andromeda will refer to Cetus as being a sea serpent or outright calling it a dragon.
Release The Kraken!
Thanks to the 1981 stop-motion movie Clash of the Titans and it’s later 2010 remake, the part that Cetus played is replaced with an even scarier and more compelling monster, the now famous Kraken that rises up to destroy a coastline and kill Andromeda.
Think about it, “Release the Cetus!” just doesn’t have as dramatic of flair as “Release the Kraken!” does. Even the old stop-motion Kraken is more ominous to see on the screen then a giant whale or monstrous sea serpent rising up out of the ocean. It’s more exciting for a modern audience whether seen in theaters or on the small screen to watch.
This also simply shows how Hollywood will often change the source material for what they think is more exciting and action-oriented. Then, when enough people are familiar with this version as the story of Perseus and Andromeda, it shows how these stories and mythologies are still active and evolve with the different cultures that retell them.
It’s been pointed out that the Kraken isn’t even Greek in origin, it’s from Norse & Icelandic lore and mythologies.
Even in Renaissance paintings depicting Perseus, this is where we see the hero going from wearing Hermes’ flying sandals to riding the winged horse Pegasus.
Perseus Family
The constellation of Cetus, along with eight other constellations of Andromeda, Auriga, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Lacerta, Pegasus, Perseus, and Triangulum.
All these constellations have some connection to the overall legend and myth of the Grecian hero Perseus.
Stars Of Cetus
Alpha Ceti – Also known as Menkar that means “nose.” It is a giant red star. It forms a double star with 93 Ceti. Alpha Ceti gets to have a bit of a claim to fame with its use in Science Fiction, particularly the original Star Trek series. It is Alpha Ceti V where Khan and his crew are exiled. Then in Star Trek: Enterprise, Alpha Ceti V is the planet that humans find refuge at after the Xindi destroy Earth.
Beta Ceti – Also known as Deneb Kaitos and Diphda is the brightest star found within Cetus. It is an orange star. The name Deneb Kaitos comes from the Arabic phrase Al Dhanab al Ḳaiṭos al Janūbīyy meaning: “the whale’s tail.” The name Diphda comes from the Arabic: “aḍ-ḍafdaʿ aṯ-ṯānī” meaning: “the second frog.” It should be noted that the star Fomalhaut found within Piscis Austrinus is the first frog.
Gamma Ceti – This a double star, the main star is yellow while the secondary star is blue.
Omicron Ceti – Also known as Mira, meaning “The Wonderful,” is the first variable star to have been discovered. Because this star seems to appear and disappear to the unaided eye, it was given the common name of “The Amazing One.” It was discovered by David Fabricius in 1596.
Tau Ceti – Is only notable for being a star similar to the Earth’s own sun. There aren’t any known planets for this star.
AA Ceti – Is a triple star system. The third star is only known by the shadow it casts when passing in front of the primary star.
Pac-Man Nebula
NGC 246 also known as the Cetus Ring, is a planetary nebula found within the Cetus constellation. It’s roughly 1600 light-years away from Earth. It earns the nickname of Pac-Man Nebula due to how its central stars and surrounding star field appear.
Cetids
There are a series of three meteor shows associated as originating out of Cetus, they are the October Cetids, the Eta Cetids and finally, the Omicron Cetids.
Raiju
Etymology: Rai (“Thunder”) and Ju (“Animal” or “Beast”)
Pronunciation: Rye-Gin
Other Names and Epithets: 雷獣, らいじゅ, Raijuu
Raiju is a curious mythical creature from Japanese mythology sometimes viewed as a type of demon or yokai. It’s best known for being a companion animal to Raijin, the god of storms and lightning.
Description
The descriptions of Raiju vary greatly in description as it is sometimes described as having a body made of electricity and resembles either a badger, cat, monkey, tanuki, weasel or even a wolf. Sometimes Raiju flies about as a ball of lightning. The cries of a Raiju are said to sound like thunder.
Thunderstorms
Normally peaceful, Raiju becomes agitated and active during thunderstorms, leaping from one tree to another. After a storm is over, any lightning marks on the tree were believed to have been caused by Raiju ripping it open.
Raiju! I Choose You!
That sounds like the name of a pokemon. There are a couple, Raichu and Raikou, a legendary pokemon who is based on Raiju and other thunder gods.
In Japanese mythology, raiju is the name of Raijin’s animal companion that is described as a blue and white wolf or a wolf wrapped in lightning.
It doesn’t stop there as Raiju is referenced in a number of different Japanese animes, manga and video games.
More Than One?
That might seem to be the case with some of the articles that I looked up and likely an evolution to the mythology of Raiju. Instead of one animal companion, that there are multiple of this creature. It could serve too to explain why the descriptions of Raiju and what animal it really looks like varies so much.
Raikiri – Lightning Cutter
As legend holds, a samurai by the name of Tachibana Dōsetsu was taking shelter beneath a tree during a storm. When lightning struck the tree, Dōsetsu drew his sword swiftly enough to block being hit by the bolt. Once the smoke cleared, Dōsetsu saw that there was a dead raiju laying on the ground. Dōsetsu named his sword Raikiri or “Lightning Cutter.”
Possible Reality Behind The Myths
That’s very typical of human nature to try and explain the universe around us and to try to make sense of events and occurrences. Especially with natural phenomenon, like lightning strikes, that they’re caused by the gods or oh, this tree looks like it has scratch marks where the lightning hit it. Must have been a beast of some sort.
Ball Lightning – A ball lightning, when they’re reported, are balls of lightning or electricity that occur during thunderstorms. Given how rare these are, the science behind what causes them and what’s being seen is and can be disputed. Some reports say the ball lighting glows like a 100-watt lightbulb with tendrils of electricity. The balls vary in color from yellow, orange, blue and red and size from a grapefruit to a beachball. Other reports say the ball lightning explodes, leaving behind a sulfurous smell.
Traveling Shows – During the Edo period of Japan, reportedly “real raiju” would be caught and put on display as sideshow attractions. Much like “real kappa” and the mummified remains of mermaids, the mummified and stuffed taxidermy of animals ranging from cats to badges, tanuki and monkeys would-be put-on display for people to view. The descriptions of caged raiju would match those of other captive animals during a thunderstorm as they get agitated and try to flee the confines of their cage.
As scientific knowledge and advances progressed in the Meiji period, as people better understood what was going on with lightning and electricity, the belief in raiju began to taper off, becoming a rather minor figure that still shows up in pop culture references.
Hide Your Navel!
It’s believed that Raijin is found of eating human navels. It was common practice for Japanese parents to tell their children to hide their belly buttons during a thunderstorm lest Raijin come eat it.
If it’s any minor consolation, according to some beliefs, it’s not really Raijin who eats children’s belly buttons, but his animal companion Raiju who actually does. Or if Raiju isn’t eating your navel, he’ll curl up inside to sleep during a thunderstorm. Of course, you only manage to get Raiju sleeping in your navel if you were sleeping outside. If you must sleep outside during a storm, try sleeping on your stomach to keep Raiju from curling up in your belly button. Raijin is said to hurl to shoot arrows at Raiju to wake up, which getting hit by arrows or lightning will hurt.
Okay then…
Fūjin
Other Names and Epithets: 風神, Futen, Kami-no-Kaze, Ryobu
Fujin is one of the oldest Shinto goes in Japan. He is a god of wind and is often paired with the storm god Raijin.
Description
Fujin is often shown as a fearsome wizard-like demon with green skin and a red head wearing only a leopard skin and carrying around a large bag or bags of wind with him. He is also noted to have only four fingers or digits that represent each of the four cardinal directions.
Parentage and Family
Parents
The gods Izanami and Izanagi, the main deities in Shinto are who birthed or created Fujin and all the other gods in Japan.
Siblings
In addition to Raijin and his brother Fujin, all of the Kami of Japan can be said to be Fujin’s brothers and sisters as they were all created after the creation of Nippon (Japan).
Divine Origins
Like Raijin, Fujin was born or created by the gods Izanami and Izanagi after creating Nippon. When Fujin opened his wind bag for the first time, the winds he released cleared away the morning mists and filled the space between the earth and the heavens so the sun could shine.
In Japanese lore, both Raijin and Fujin were a pair of oni who actively opposed the other deities. Under the orders of Buddha, it took an army of thirty-three gods to subdue Raijin and Fujin and convert them to work alongside the other deities.
Kojiki – This ancient Japanese text is the primary source for everything known about Fujin.
The Silk Road – Surprisingly, the imagery for Fujin seems to have originated from the West, during the Greek’s Hellenistic era when they were once spread throughout areas of Central Asia and India. Meaning, that the wind god Boreas is whom Fujin could have originated from. As the imagery for Boreas traveled, he would become the god Wardo in Greco-Buddhist era, changing then to the wind god Fei Lian (or Feng Bo) in China before making his way to Japan as Fujin. What appears to be the connecting motif is that all these deities carry a bag of wind (or shawl in the case of Boreas) and has a disheveled, wild appearance.
Kamikaze – The Divine Wind
In 1274, the Mongols for the first time would attempt to set sail and invade Japan. However, a massive typhoon would destroy a good number of the Mongol fleet, disrupting plans for a conquest of Japanese archipelago. Going by the legend, only three men are said to have escaped. A second attempt in 1281 saw a similar typhoon blow through and wreck most of the Mongol fleet again. Both massive storms or Kamikaze as they would come to be known were attributed as being sent by Raijin and Fujin to protect Japan.
One of Fujin’s alternative names is Kami-no-Kaze, directly connecting him to these fierce, massive storms.
Kami or Oni?
Some of the descriptions of Fujin say he’s an oni and that certainly seems true given his description and when looking at more Buddhist influenced stories where the gods had to battle Raijin and Fujin to tame them and convert them to Buddhism.
Kami – When we go back to the Shinto religion that predates Buddhism in Japan, Fujin is one of many, numerous gods or kami found throughout the region. They range in power from low level spirits all the up to gods.
Shintoism holds the belief and idea that everything seen in nature has a spirit, or kami. As spirits, they just are. The greater the spirit or kami, more of a force of nature and raw power it will be. So many of these spirits would be revered and respected just to avoid needlessly getting them angry and ticked off.
Oni – By Japanese mythology, Oni are very synonymous with the Western concept of demons. Ugly, ogre-like creatures of varying descriptions. An Oni’s only purpose is to create chaos, destruction and disaster. Given depictions of Fujin, he looks very much the part of an Oni and when it comes to wind storms, a more severe storm can be very destructive.
With some of the more primal nature spirits and gods, it’s a very thin line for the concepts of good and evil if you’re trying to pin them to those categories.
Thunder Buddies!
When Raijin is mentioned, he is frequently paired with Fujin, another Weather God is also a sometimes rival. The two are constantly at it, fighting amongst themselves over who will rule the skies. The more intense a storm, the more intense their fighting.
Temple Guardians – Statues of Raijin and Fujin can be found at the gates to many temples and holy places in Japan where they are seen as protectors and guardians.
Brickthology 