Demeter In ancient Greek religion and myth, Demeter (/diˈmiːtər/; Attic: Δημήτηρ Dēmḗtēr; Doric: Δαμάτηρ Dāmā́tēr) is the goddess of the harvest, who presided over grains and the fertility of the earth. Her cult titles include Sito (Σιτώ), "she of the Grain",[1] as the giver of food or grain[2] and Thesmophoros (θεσμός, thesmos: divine order, unwritten law; "phoros": bringer, bearer), "Law-Bringer," as a mark of the civilized existence of agricultural society.[3] Etymology[edit] Demeter's character as mother-goddess is identified in the second element of her name meter (μήτηρ) derived from Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr (mother).[11] In antiquity, different explanations were already proffered for the first element of her name. An alternative, Proto-Indo-European etymology comes through Potnia and Despoina; where Des- represents a derivative of PIE *dem (house, dome), and Demeter is "mother of the house" (from PIE *dems-méh₂tēr).[20] Agricultural deity[edit] Festivals and cults[edit] Myths[edit]
Iara (mythology) Iara was a beautiful young woman, sometimes described as having green hair and light skin, connected to a freshwater water body[clarification needed] (the Tupi word y did not have a distinct meaning, being used in general for any such place) who would sit on a rock by the river combing her hair or dozing under the sun. When she felt a man around she would start to sing gently to lure him. Once under the spell of the Iara a man would leave anything to live with her underwater forever, which was not necessarily a bad thing, as she was pretty and would cater for all needs of her lover for the rest of his life. Iaras are immortal (like the nymphs of Greek mythology), but her lovers do age and die, which means that they live most of eternity alone. The legend of the Iara was one of the usual explanations for the disappearance of those who ventured alone in the jungle. Iara (or Yara) is also a very popular female name in Brazil.
The Inner Earth & Realm of Aghartha Aghartha In The Hollow Earth! By Dr Joshua David Stone The biggest cover-up of all time is the fact that there is a civilization of people living in the center of Earth, whose civilization's name is known as "Aghartha". This may be hard for some of you to believe. I know it was for me at first, however, I now have an absolute knowingness of the truth of this. To begin with, the Buddhists, in their theology fervently believe in its existence. The famous Russian channel, Nicholas Roerich, who was a channel for the Ascended Master, El Morya, claimed that Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, was connected by a tunnel with the inner earth, Shamballa. The Indian epic, the Ramayana and the Bhagavad Gita are the two most famous texts of India. The first public scientific evidence occurred in 1947 when Rear Admiral Richard E. His plane was finally greeted by flying machines, the type he had never seen before. In January, 1956, Admiral Byrd led another expedition to the Antarctic and/or the South Pole.
Inanna Inanna (/ɪˈnænə/ or /ɪˈnɑːnə/; Cuneiform: 𒀭𒈹 DMUŠ3; Sumerian: Inanna; Akkadian: Ištar; Unicode: U+12239) is the Sumerian goddess of love, fertility, and warfare, and goddess of the E-Anna temple at the city of Uruk, her main centre. Part of the front of Inanna's temple from Uruk Origins[edit] Etymology[edit] Inanna's name derives from Lady of Heaven (Sumerian: nin-an-ak). Worship[edit] One version of the star symbol of Inanna/Ishtar Iconography[edit] Inanna's symbol is an eight-pointed star or a rosette.[10] She was associated with lions – even then a symbol of power – and was frequently depicted standing on the backs of two lionesses. Inanna as the star, Venus[edit] Inanna was associated with the celestial planet Venus. Inanna's Descent to the Underworld explains how Inanna is able to, unlike any other deity, descend into the netherworld and return to the heavens. Character[edit] Inanna is the goddess of love – but not marriage. Myths[edit] Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta[edit]
Dharma Dharma ([dʱəɾmə]; Sanskrit: धर्म dharma, listen ; Pali: धम्म dhamma) is a key concept with multiple meanings in the Indian religions Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism.[8] There is no single word translation for dharma in western languages.[9] The Classical Sanskrit noun dharma is a derivation from the root dhṛ, which has a meaning of "to hold, maintain, keep". Etymology[edit] The Classical Sanskrit noun dharma is a derivation from the root dhṛ, which means "to hold, maintain, keep",[note 3] and takes a meaning of "what is established or firm", and hence "law".[13] It is derived from an older Vedic Sanskrit n-stem dharman-, with a literal meaning of "bearer, supporter", in a religious sense conceived as an aspect of Rta. In the Rigveda, the word appears as an n-stem, dhárman-, with a range of meanings encompassing "something established or firm" (in the literal sense of prods or poles). Definition[edit] Dharma root is "dhri", which means ‘to support, hold, or bear’. History[edit]
Synecdoche A synecdoche (/sɪˈnɛkdəkiː/, si-NEK-də-kee; from Greek synekdoche (συνεκδοχή), meaning "simultaneous understanding") is a figure of speech[1][2] in which a term for a part of something refers to the whole of something, or vice-versa.[3][4] An example is referring to workers as hired hands.[5][6] Similar figures of speech[edit] Synecdoche is a rhetorical trope and a type of figurative speech[7] similar to metonymy—a figure of speech in which a term that denotes one thing is used to refer to a related thing.[1] Indeed, synecdoche is sometimes considered a subclass of metonymy. It is more distantly related to other figures of speech, such as metaphor.[8] More rigorously, metonymy and synecdoche can be considered sub-species of metaphor, intending metaphor as a type of conceptual substitution (as Quintilian does in Institutio oratoria Book VIII). Etymology[edit] Use[edit] Synecdoche is often used as a type of personification, by attaching a human aspect to a non-human thing. Examples[edit]
Ishtar Ishtar (English pronunciation /ˈɪʃtɑːr/; Transliteration: DIŠTAR; Akkadian: 𒀭𒈹 ; Sumerian 𒀭𒌋𒁯) is the East Semitic Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of fertility, love, war, and sex.[1] She is the counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna, and is the cognate for the Northwest Semitic Aramean goddess Astarte. Characteristics[edit] Ishtar was the goddess of love, war, fertility, and sexuality. Ishtar was the daughter of Ninurta.[2] She was particularly worshipped in northern Mesopotamia, at the Assyrian cities of Nineveh, Ashur and Arbela (Erbil).[2] Besides the lions on her gate, her symbol is an eight-pointed star.[3] One type of depiction of Ishtar/Inanna Ishtar had many lovers; however, as Guirand notes, Descent into the underworld[edit] One of the most famous myths[5] about Ishtar describes her descent to the underworld. If thou openest not the gate to let me enter, I will break the door, I will wrench the lock, I will smash the door-posts, I will force the doors. In other media[edit]
Adapa Adapa, the first of the Mesopotamian seven sages, was a mythical figure who unknowingly refused the gift of immortality. The story is first attested in the Kassite period (14th century BCE), in fragmentary tablets from Tell el-Amarna, and from Assur, of the late second millennium BCE. Mesopotamian myth tells of seven antediluvian sages, who were sent by Ea, the wise god of Eridu, to bring the arts of civilisation to humankind. Roles[edit] Vague parallels can be drawn to the story of Genesis, where Adam and Eve are expelled from the Garden of Eden by Yahweh, after they ate from the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thus gaining death.[2] Parallels are also apparent (to an even greater degree) with the story of Persephone visiting Hades, who was warned to take nothing from that kingdom. Adapa is often identified as advisor to the mythical first (antediluvian) king of Eridu, Alulim. As Oannes[edit] References[edit] Bibliography[edit]
The Quetzalcoatl "Trinity" Jim Tuck It is entirely correct to think of the Aztec legend Quetzalcoatl in three contexts -- as historical personality, as divinity and as literary subject. In the first incarnation he is a 10th century priest-king; in the second a deity associated with progress and humanity; in the third an object of intense interest to both ancient Aztec and more contemporary European scholars. The historical Quetzalcoatl was probably born around AD 947. His father, Mixcoatl, was ruler of the Toltecs. Reared by his grandparents, Ce Acatl Topitzin was sent to the religious school at Xochicalco. Quetzalcoatl proved to be a wise and progressive ruler. Quetzalcoatl also abolished human sacrifice and decreed that henceforth sacrificial objects be limited to snakes, flowers and small birds. Deciding on a ruse, Texcatlipoca crept into Quetzalcoatl's sanctuary with two minor gods, also evil, and frightened him by demonstrating a new invention: the mirror.
Persephone Persephone as a vegetation goddess and her mother Demeter were the central figures of the Eleusinian mysteries that predated the Olympian pantheon and promised the initiated a more enjoyable prospect after death. Persephone is further said to have become by Zeus the mother of Dionysus, Iacchus, or Zagreus, usually in orphic tradition. The origins of her cult are uncertain, but it was based on very old agrarian cults of agricultural communities. Name[edit] Etymology[edit] Persephone or "the deceased woman" holding a pomegranate. Persephatta (Περσεφάττα) is considered to mean "female thresher of corn," going by "perso-" relating to Sanskrit "parsa", "sheaf of corn" and the second constituent of the name originating in Proto-Indo European *-gʷʰn-t-ih, from the root *gʷʰen "to strike".[8] An alternative etymology is from φέρειν φόνον, pherein phonon, "to bring (or cause) death".[9] John Chadwick speculatively relates the name of Persephone with the name of Perse, daughter of Oceanus.[12] Italy.
Unicorn Of the Unicorn In European folklore, the unicorn is often depicted as a white horselike or goatlike animal with a long horn and cloven hooves (sometimes a goat's beard). In the Middle Ages and Renaissance, it was commonly described as an extremely wild woodland creature, a symbol of purity and grace, which could only be captured by a virgin. In the encyclopedias its horn was said to have the power to render poisoned water potable and to heal sickness. In medieval and Renaissance times, the horn of the narwhal was sometimes sold as unicorn horn. History Unicorns in antiquity Cosmas Indicopleustes, a merchant of Alexandria who lived in the 6th century, made a voyage to India and subsequently wrote works on cosmography. Middle Ages and Renaissance Virgin Mary holding the unicorn (c. 1480), detail of the Annunciation with the Unicorn Polyptych, National Museum, Warsaw The Throne Chair of Denmark is made of "unicorn horns" – almost certainly narwhal tusks. Alicorn The hunt of the unicorn Heraldry
Akasha Meaning in different philosophies[edit] Hinduism[edit] In Hinduism, Akasha means the basis and essence of all things in the material world; the first material element created from the astral world, (Akasha (Ether), Earth,Water,Fire,Air,) in sequence). It is one of the Panchamahabhuta, or "five elements"; its main characteristic is Shabda (sound). In Sanskrit the word means "space", the first element in creation. In Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati, and many other Indian languages, the meaning of Akasha has been accepted as sky.[1] The Nyaya and Vaisheshika schools of Hindu philosophy state that Akasha or aether is the fifth physical substance, which is the substratum of the quality of sound. According to the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy, Akasha is one of the five Mahābhūtas (grand physical elements) having the specific property of sound.[3] Jainism[edit] Akasha is space in the Jain conception of the cosmos. Buddhism[edit] Cārvākism[edit] Theosophy[edit] Modern Paganism[edit] See also[edit]
Rhea (mythology) Rhea (or Cybele), after a marble, 1888. Then she hid Zeus in a cave on Mount Ida in Crete. According to varying versions of the story: Rhea only appears in Greek art from the fourth century BC, when her iconography draws on that of Cybele; the two therefore, often are indistinguishable;[10] both can be shown on a throne flanked by lions, riding a lion, or on a chariot drawn by two lions. In Roman religion, her counterpart Cybele was Magna Mater deorum Idaea, who was brought to Rome and was identified in Roman mythology as an ancestral Trojan deity. On a functional level, Rhea was thought equivalent to Roman Ops or Opis. Most often Rhea's symbol is a pair of lions, the ones that pulled her celestial chariot and were seen often, rampant, one on either side of the gateways through the walls to many cities in the ancient world. In Homer, Rhea is the mother of the gods, although not a universal mother like Cybele, the Phrygian Great Mother, with whom she was later identified.