The thunder god is a pagan deity of the ancient peoples

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

The common thing for the peoples of antiquity, who often did not have a written language, was the god of thunder. The commonality was that he undoubtedly commanded thunder and lightning, and among many peoples defeated snakes and dragons. Further biographies of higher powers diverged.

Tellings of antiquity deep

First, you need to pay attention to India as a source of languages and gods that spread throughout, as the Hellenes said, Oikumene. Indra is the ancient god of thunder and rain. He is powerful, fierce, generous and thousand-eyed. God holds martial power and is especially revered by the Kshatriya warrior caste. Indra's special feat was to defeat the serpent Vritra, the demon of chaos. The giant serpent frightened even the gods, and they were afraid that he would swallow the whole world. And they turned to Indra for help.

Brahma inspired him to fight, Shiva gave him impenetrable armor, the god-craftsman forged a diamond-hard "vajra" weapon for him, and Vishnu gave him inexhaustible strength. With one stroke, the thunder god cut the head of the dragon-demon. But the roar of the dying monster was so terrible that everyone hid, and only when a little time passed, Indra went to investigate and saw the defeated enemy.

Far North

The thunder god Thor was the son of Odin, the supreme deity of the Scandinavians. The weapon of this red-bearded hero was a hammer, which undoubtedly had a sacred meaning: the forging of reality and victory over space.

But in his final battle, Thor dies after destroying the world serpent.

Peloponnese and the banks of the Tiber

On the land of Hellas, the mighty Zeus ruled the gods and people. In a sense, albeit very conditionally, this is the same thunder god, for in his hands is a formidable weapon - lightning. Having defeated the titans, Zeus no longer fights. He is a judge, both people and gods turn to him, as the last resort, for a fair trial. Among the Romans, it fully corresponds to the supreme deity Jupiter. And originally it was the god of thunder (sky, rain and thunder).

In Mesopotamia

The Sumerians are a mysterious people. It is not known where they came from five thousand years ago, how they began to possess the most incredible knowledge. They came up with everything themselves. They created writing and wrote down their legends. They got irrigation. By building canals and diverting water from the Tigris and Euphrates to the fields, the Sumerians received a Garden of Eden on earth. In addition, this is how they fought floods. They domesticated almost every animal known to us. The potter's wheel, counting (decimal and sexagesimal), brewing, wheel and bricks are also their inventions. They erected huge palaces and towers - ziggurats, which were built to meet the gods. And their main city (Babylon, or Bab-El) was called the Gates of God. Here on their towers built beforeheaven, they also met Ishkur. It was the Sumerian thunder god. Initially, the people of the northern drylands revered the power that helped grains and crops grow. And it was rain and a thunderstorm with a cloud, which the Sumerians represented in the form of a huge bird. And the thunder evoked associations with the roar of a lion. And so Ishkur appeared in the beliefs.

He was, according to British sources, the son of the god of the moon and was depicted as a large bull. If he was visualized in human form, then in his hands he held his symbols: a lightning bolt and a fork. He harnessed the seven winds, and lightning flew ahead, terrifying all living things. He was worshiped throughout Babylonia, but his main city was Karkar. At the same time, livestock breeding, agriculture, hunting and military campaigns were under his patronage. After the Sumerians, the Akkadian god Adad appeared, performing the same functions as Ishkur. He is better known to historians. The bull was his symbol. This god is bearded and holds lightning bolts in his hands. An even later name is Baal or Baal.

Slavic god

On a high hill under a sacred oak sits a gray-haired, wise and formidable husband - Perun. The god of the Slavs – is the lord over all things, he creates lightning, he is offered sacrifices in the form of bulls. In Ukrainian, Belarusian and Polish, the word "perun" meant lightning and thunder. Therefore, the god of thunder among the Slavs is Perun. While cultivating the land, the Slavs found fossilized mollusks, stone arrowheads and spears in it, and believed that they appeared during a lightning strike on the ground, and they were very much appreciated as amulets given by a deity.

The guardian of the prince and his squad was Perun. The god of the Slavs owned an ax, and upon entering the squad, the soldiers were given hatchets. These were prestigious amulets and a sign of belonging to the elite. The shield and sword that the combatants received were also symbols of Perun. The first written references to it are found in The Tale of Bygone Years. The idol installed by Vladimir had a silver head and a golden mustache.

Perun was born in winter, but came to earth with the first thunderstorms and warm days. Sending rain to the earth, he became a fertilizer.

With him nature was awakened to life. And on warm summer days, stadiums dedicated to the formidable, punishing god were arranged, and feasts were held for the soldiers who fell in battles. They ate fried bulls, drank intoxicating strong mead and kvass. Dedicating at this time the young to the warriors, the Russians conducted tests, and only after that they were given weapons.

Perun's Day was Thursday, which was considered masculine and successful for all undertakings. During the period of dual faith, this day began to be dedicated to Elijah the prophet, the Christian saint Elijah. It was believed that summer ends on Ilyin's day. Dual faith was entrenched in the popular mind, and Elijah the prophet became the lord of lightning, thunder, rain, harvest and fertility. This is how the connection between the pagan thunderer and the Christian saint was manifested.

Scientists believe that Perun was undoubtedly associated with the ancient Indian Thunderer Indra and the Scandinavian Thor, mentioned above. They are all anthropomorphic, commanding the forces of nature and living in the sky.