Mehr

Late Sassanian depiction of a deity on a column capital now held in Taqe Bostan , which @persiaantiqua identified as Mehr (Mithra) based on the fact that he is surrounded by blooming lotuses...

Mithra was directly associated with lotus, to the point where on the most famous relief of Mithra, the one from Taqe Bostan, he is actually depicted standing on a lotus flower, radiating light, while witnessing Ahura Mazda giving ring of power to king Ardashir II...

I talked about this ring giving ceremony and it's meaning in my post "The ear ring of god" if anyone is interested...

Anyway, why Lotus? Mitra originates in India. Where he was, in the earliest times, directly associated with Varuna, the old Monsoon good whose Vahana was a crocodile, an animal calendar marker for the monsoon season in India....

Varuna, the old Monsoon god, rides on a crocodile/Makara...In India, crocodiles hatch during the monsoon season...I talked about this in my posts "Makara" "Yakshi" "Proto Durga" and "Maruts".

Mithra was so closely linked to Varuna, that the two of them were invoked together as Mitra/Varuna...Which would indicate that Indian Mitra was also in some way linked to the monsoon season in India. How?

I recently read this paper "Mit(h)ra(s) and the Myths of the Sun" by David H. Sick, in which he talks about the solar aspect of Mithra and proposes that Indian Mitra, the observer and enforcer of contracts between men and gods, was (linked to) the sun from the earliest times...

This is because sun sees and knows everything...Slavs called sun god Svetovid, meaning "The one who sees (everything in) the world", but also "The one who makes things visible in the world"...I talked about this in my post "Svetovid"...

Most people in the world thought the same about the sun.

Skull with amber discs on clay in eye-sockets. 

Dated to the 4th mill BC. Latvia. One of many amber "sun" disc (obverse (sun cross), reverse (sun rays) and cross-section) made by the same culture...

And Sumerian symbol for sun...

Sun + Eye = Sight

I talked about this in my post "Sun eyes"...

The Sun = The God of Justice...The one who sees everything...Like Utu/Shamash, Mesopotamian Sun God...

Akkadian seal, 2350-2100BC. From "Gods, demons and symbols of ancient Mesopotamia: an illustrated dictionary" by Jeremy Black and Anthony Green...Depicting the sun god Utu/Shamash...The god of justice...Being bribed...I talk about this in my post "Bribing Shamash"...

The Sun God Shamash whose symbol was a cross...

I talked about this in my post "The cross of Shamash"...

The symbol on this Solar Disc, the symbol of Shamash, is the Solar Cross, which combines a sun, a cross (solstices and equinoxes), and wavy lines representing sun (heat) rays...

The Sun God Shamash, who is the "Central light of the Menorah"...

I talked about this in many of my posts...

The Sun God Shamash, God of Justice, who is related to this "other" God of Justice" who also sees everything...

Christ as the sun-god Helios/Sol, 3rd c. AD, Vatican. Christ is born on Winter Solstice, (re)birth day of the sun (god), he enters Jerusalem on a donkey, "animal of the (sun) gods and kings", and gets put on a cross, symbol of the sun (god). Interesting...

I talked about this in my "Alexamenos graffito"...

Anyway, I talked extensively about Mithras/Mithra/Mitra, including about his solar aspect, in my post "Mithras"...

And in it I postulated that this god was, from it's earliest incarnation in India, directly linked to Jul/Aug...When Mithras kills bull...In Leo...

Lion (autumn, starts in Leo) killing Bull (summer, starts in Taurus) depicted on the wall of the Great Mosque of Diyarbakir the oldest mosque in Anatolia.

I talk about the meaning of this complex animal calendar marker in my posts "Mystery seal", "Angra Mainyu" "Bull leaping in Syria", "Lion killing bull under date palm", "Butt chewing" and many others....

Or to depict it in Indian way, when the lion of Parvati meets the bull of Shiva

Ardhanarishvara, the union of Shiva and Parvati, is a complex calendar marker for the peak of the monsoon season, Jul/Aug, where bull=summer=May/Jun/Jul  meets  lion=autumn=Aug/Sep/Oct 

Which produces (the tree of) life and the river Ganges. 

I talked about this in my post "Ardhanarishvara"...

More specifically Mithras/Mithra/Mitra was linked to the Sun in Jul/Aug...Interestingly, in India monsoon starts properly around summer solstice and peaks in Jul/Aug...So it is the Monsoon Sun, the ultimate Judge, that determines if people deserve Monsoon rain or not...

It is after all the sun that heats the ocean, evaporates the water and creates the summer wet monsoon...

I talked about this in my post "Vayu, about Vayu, the Hindu god of wind whose name literally means air/wind. But not just any wind. Summer monsoon wind...

And it is the sun that heats the earth, evaporates the water and creates the winter, dry monsoon. I talked about this dual effect (summer vs winter monsoon) of the sun on Indian subcontinent in my post "Surya's wives"...

This very happy looking dude, with two gorgeous babes sitting on his laps, is no other than the Vedic Sun God Surya. He is positively "beaming" with pride...And I guess pretty glad to have few extra hands...But what is really the narrative here?  

But Mitra is not Surya. The same way Apollo is not Helios...But they are still both linked to the sun in Jul/Aug, Leo...

If you are interested in how and why Apollo is linked to the sun in Jul/Aug, check these posts:

1. "Palil". About "Palil" a nickname of Nergal, the terrible, burning, destructive sun of Jul/Aug, Leo...And about the origin of the name Apollo and its meaning...

2. "Lord of the flies". About Nergal and Apollo as "The lords of the flies"...And about Jul/Aug, Leo, being the peak of the fly and fly born diseases season in Northern Hemisphere...

3. "Lions of Delos". About the Lions of Delos, the burning destructive sun in Jul/Aug, Leo, and the fact that both Nergal and Apollo are linked to lions. 

4. "Apollo and dolphins". About Jul/Aug, Leo being the "best time to sail in Eastern Mediterranean", and the link between dolphins and Lions...and Apollo...

5. "Marble throne of Apollo". About snakes (symbols of sun's heat), dragons (symbols of burning sun's heat) and terrible sun gods, Nergal and Apollo who are dragons themselves...

6. "Apollo and Python". About why Python followed Apollo after his birth? Cause snakes are solar animals...According to the Delphian tradition, Apollo was born on the 7th day of the month of Bysios (Jan/Feb)

7. "White raven". About the black and white raven legend which is found in both Nergal and Apollo mythology, Egyptian vultures and the twins that guard the gates of hell. And some other weird stuff...

8. "Threshing floor of Apollo". About the threshing floors as solar observatories/temples, about the threshing floor of Apollo from Delphi, about Jul/Aug, Leo, being the holy month of Apollo, and about solar bonfires...

9. "Apollo the great archer". About why Apollo was the terrible "far shooting" archer...About arrow and bow constellation from Mesopotamia, Ishtar, Sirius, and Jul/Aug, the season of Perseid meteor shower...

10. "Apollo Sminthius". About Apollo his arrows that cause plague and peak infectious diseases season, Jul/Aug

And if you are interested in how Mitra was linked to the sun in Jul/Aug, in Leo, read my post "Mithras"...

Ok...But what about lotus? Well, lotus peak flowering season in India is Jul-Aug (Leo), the peak monsoon season and the peak flood season...

I talked about it in my post "Modesty", in which I explain why is Lajjā Gaurī, a Hindu goddess associated with abundance, fertility and sexuality depicted with Lotus head... 

Now, we don't have any depictions of Mitra at all, so I have no proof that Indian Mitra was associated with lotus. But the god that replaced Mitra/Varuna, Indra, held lotus...Indra with lotus, late 7th–early 8th c. AD, Kālikā Mātā Temple. The pic is from this paper...

Indra holds lotus while riding on an elephant...

Indian elephants mate during Indian monsoon season...

Which is why Indra, the thunder and rain god, rides not just on any elephant, but on a white (cloud) elephant...

Articles about elephant calendar marker, India: "Musth", "Samantabhadra", "Modesty", "Ganesha"...

Oh, and btw, Indra, replacement for Indian Mitra also wielded Vajra (Sanskrit for club/mace)...Which is cognate with Vazra (Avestan for club/mace), main weapon of Iranian Mithra...

And this is important because Leo, Jul/Aug is also the peak Rudra season...When stone clubs/maces fall from the sky together with rain...I talked about it in my post "Rudra"...

I think that the fact that lotus, as plant calendar marker, makes a lot of sense being linked to Mitra in India, but very little sense being linked to Mitra in Iran, indicates that this is another proof that Iranian Mithra is actually imported Indian Mitra...

In Iran, due to the climate being the opposite to Indian climate, imported Indian deities lost a lot of their original symbolic meaning. A lot of symbols were kept, like lotus, but the meaning was lost...

I talked about this in my post "Daevas vs Devas". 

Zoroaster said that "daevas" were "wrong" or "false" gods that should be rejected...Were Iranian "daevas" actually Indian "devas"? And if so, what could have turned devas (good guys) into daevas (bad guys)??? Well, the opposite climate of course...

In India, Jul/Aug is the wettest time of the year, the time of flood, while in Iran, Jul/Aug is the driest time of the year, the time of drought. Yet, Iranians still celebrate lotus festival, linked to Anahita, goddess of water, in Jul.

I will talk about Anahita and lotus soon...

But this link between lotus and Iranian water goddess and Jul/Aug, just confirms that my interpretation of the link between lotus and Iranian Mithra was correct...I think...🙂

What do you think?

That's it. To read more about ancient animal and plant calendar markers, start here…Then check my twitter threads I still didn't convert to blog post...I am way way behind...

Kuseh Gardani

Oh this is amazing. This image depicts a traditional Iranian "Kuseh Gardani" ritual, which is performed by men in times of drought or low rainfall...This image is from this site...

One man, chosen as the "Kuseh" (devil of drought), has his face blackened, wears horns (positioned in such a way to resemble ibex goat horns) and bells, and leads a procession through the village...

He stops at every house and collects some flour. After visiting all the houses, a large bread is baked from the collected flour and is shared between the villagers...

The ceremony is a symbolic performance of overcoming drought and seeking rain...

Unreal...Here is why:

Climate in Iran is divided (roughly) into hot, dry half (Apr/May - Oct/Nov) and cool, wet part (Oct/Nov - Apr/May)...

And the start of the wet season coincides with the start of the mating season of the ibex goats, mating season characterised by wild male goat fights for females...

Which is why ibex goat became associated with rain, and became "goat of rain", an animal calendar marker for the start of the rain season: When ibex goats start fighting the rain will start falling...

And which why ibex goat became the most depicted animal in Iran since Early Neolithic...

I talked about this in my post "Goat petroglyphs from Iran"...

Eventually, with the start of grain agriculture, when having rain at exact time at exact quantity became super important, people turned "goat of rain" into "god of rain with goat horns". It's easier to pray to gods than goats...

And so, local priests started wearing goat horns and playing the role of the goat rain god...

It is most likely that it was in Iran in the 9th mill BC when the goat of rain got anthropomorphised and turned into the god of rain with goat horns...

I talked about this in my post "Zavi Chemi Shanidar"...

"Kuseh Gardani" is a very very very very....distant echo of this...

And this:

Stamp seals, Tepe Giyan, Iran, 5000-4000 BC...Anthropomorphised rain goat (god) dominating sun snake (dragon)...

I talked about this in my post "Master of the animals from Tepe Giyan"...

And this:

Elamite figurine from around 3000BC, depicting a man with goat horns (or a goat horns helmet, cap) and a goaty 🙂 How goat of rain became god of rain...

I talked about this in my post "Strider"

And this:

Article about this Bronze top for a standard. ca. 8th–7th century BC. Luristan, Iran...Two human figures with male Ibex goat ears and horns holding hands...Why? Same thing I guess...

I talked about this in my post "Dancing goat men from Luristan"... 

The rain brought by the goat of rain is what supports (the tree of) life in Iran. Which is why we see prancing ibex goats flanking the tree of life...

I talk about this in my post "Sassanian goats with the tree of life" where I analyse these two Sassanian wall relief slabs dated to the 5th-6th c. AD, depicting rampant ibex goats flanking "the tree of life"...

This again is an ancient symbol found in all the areas where ibex mating season overlaps with rain season...

As we can see, Iranian people still kind of remember that "ibex is linked to rain". But with the arrival of Islam, the (goat) "god of rain", became "devil of drought"...The one who (still) brings rain (and bread) if he is asked politely...

How cool is this? 

If you are interested in reading more about ancient animal and plant calendar markers, which are at the root of all our mythologies, start here…Then check my twitter threads I still didn't convert to blog post...I am way way behind...

Sassanian goats with tree of life

Two Sassanian wall relief slabs dated to the 5th-6th c. AD, depicting rampant ibex goats flanking "the tree of life"...

This is an ancient symbol found throughout Iran, Mesopotamia, Central Asia, Levant, Crete. The reason for that is that in all these regions, year is divided into two halves: 

hot, dry half, roughly Apr/May - Oct/Nov

wet, cool half, roughly Oct/Nov - Apr/May

And the wet, cool (rainy, snowy) half, which makes life possible in these arid areas, begins when ibex goats start their mating fights...see, "flanking"...

I talked about this and gave examples of goats flanking tree of life from all these regions in my post "Bactrian bronze age menorah"...

Example: Goats flanking the tree of life. Ritual vessels from Gonur-depe, the administrative and ritual center of Ancient Margina, the Northern regions of the Oxus civilization, dated to 2300˗1600 BC. 

What is interesting about these two Sassanian slabs is the fruit depicted growing on these two trees of life:

L: grapes

R: pomegranates

In the traditional Iranian fruit growing regions, like Shiraz, both the grape and  pomegranate harvest seasons start in Sep/Oct. This is also when grape and pomegranate festivals are held...

Right after that in Oct/Nov, the ibex goats start mating and the rains, which support the (tree of) life in this region arrive...

For those interested in Sassanian art with animal and plant calendar markers (which hint at Indian influence) check this post, "Rainbows and peacocks", out about this Sassanian dish, 400-600AD, Iran, Currently in Al Thani collection...What is exactly depicted here? Some would say just an exotic dancer. I think that this is a depiction of the goddess Anahita, Zoroastrian goddess of water and fertility...

And this post, "Ram with royal ribbon", about this 400–699 AD Sassanian silver plate originally from Iran, currently in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA...

What is actually depicted on this plate? Definitely not just a lost lamb...

And this post, "King killing bull", about this very strange 5th c. AD Sassanian silver dish, depicting a warrior with a spear sitting on a bull, about to stab another bull...

If you are interested in reading more about ancient animal and plant calendar markers, which are at the root of all our mythologies, start here…Then check my twitter threads I still didn't convert to blog post...I am way way behind...

Come rain

Male peafowls defend their territory from rival males during the mating season. 

Peafowl mating season peaks between Jun and Aug, the monsoon season. Hence peacock as an animal calendar marker for the monsoon season...

It is during the mating season that peacocks (male peafowl) dance (parade around with their tails spread) showing off in front of the females...

Peacock pics are from the article "All About The Indian Peafowl".

Which is why in Ritusamhara we read that:

"For this bird, the rainy season serves as a period of jubilant activity, when it extends its tail (feathers) and indulges in the dance. The rains serve as an inducement to this bird for indulging in its exalted dance..."

"The beauty of mountains streaked everywhere with waterfalls, while their high rocks were kissed by the stooping clouds, and their sides presented a gorgeous chaos of peacocks."

oldeuropeanculture

The author of the Mayoora Doota exclaims:

"When the showers rain, you dance with delight. Even the gods take pleasure in observing your dance without twinkling their eyelids..."

Even the peacock mating call sounds like Hindu for "Come rain!!!"...

Because this overlap between peafowl mating season and the monsoons season, Makara, the mount of the old monsoon god Varuna, but really a complex animal calendar marker for the monsoon season, sometimes has peacock tail...Talked about it in my post "Makara"...

Peacocks as animal calendar marker are also present in Iran. A Sassanian dish, 400-600AD, Iran, Currently in Al Thani collection...I talk about it in my post "Rainbows and peacocks" about rain, rainbows and peacocks and the goddess Anahita, Zoroastrian goddess of water and fertility...

Peafowl mating season is Mar-Sep with peak Jun-Aug...Look at the snowmelt diagram for Iranian rivers...Hence the link between Anahita and peacocks...

Just like in India the monsoon rain and floods bring rebirth of nature, in Iran spring rain and floods bring rebirth of nature.

Both are linked to mating (dancing and fighting) peacocks...

Ever wondered why two peacocks drinking water surrounded with greenery are Christian symbol of resurrection, rebirth? 🙂

PS: Peacock, symbol of the resurrection of Christ makes a lot more sense if...

If Christ is life, living nature, then his immaculate conception and virgin birth become easy to understand...From my post "Living nature" about the nature of Christ...

That's it. To read more about ancient animal and plant calendar markers, start here…Then check my twitter threads I still didn't convert to blog post...I am way way behind...