#Georges Dumézil

[dipnotski]

Georges Dumézil – Mitra Varuna (2024)

Hint-Avrupa Uygarlığı ve mitoloji uzmanı Dumézil, ‘Mitra-Varuna’da yönetici tanrı ve kahramanların nasıl hep ikili sunulduklarına ışık tutuyor. Tüm Hint-Avrupa din ve sosyal sistemlerinin üç temel üzerine –egemenlik, savaş ve bereket–inşa edildiği teorisini öne süren Dumézil, ‘Mitra-Varuna’nın nasıl dini ve siyasi egemenliği temsil ettiğini okura sunuyor. Şafak vakti ve Güneş’le ilişkilendirilen…

[spaceintruderdetector]

Georges Dumezil The Destiny Of The Warrior, 1970 : Bologa : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

“A land that has no more legends,” says the poet, “is condemned to die of cold.” This may well be true. But a people without myths is already dead. The function of that particular class of legends known as myths is to express dramatically the ideology under which a society lives; not only to hold out to its conscience the values it recognizes and the ideals it pursues from generation to generation, but above all to express its very being and structure, the elements, the connections, the balances, the tensions that constitute it; to justify the rules and traditional practices without which everything within a society would disintegrate.

[sillysybilsden]

What are some good resources on Roman polytheism? Books, YouTube Channels, websites, etc. I’ve been feeling drawn to Roman polytheism specifically.

hey there! thank you for asking this question — I'm always happy to share resources on Roman polytheism.

first things first, I will go ahead and link my personal list of resources. there, you will find all of the books, papers and websites I've gone through and have found particularly useful when it comes to learning about Roman culture/polytheism.

I will nonetheless give you some recommendations on resources I would look into if I were to start my path over again!

DISCLAIMER: I am a revivalist. because of this, I will be recommending historical/academical resources. keep in mind that this is just the way I do things, though: every path is valid and you are more than welcome to follow another — no matter whether reconstructionist or modern.

1. "Roman Religion" by Valerie Warrior

this is a great book for those who are starting to approach cultus deorum. it gives you a wonderful introduction, after which you can focus on the aspects of Roman polytheism that intrigue you/draw your attention the most.

2. Nova Roma (Roman Religion section)

now, this website is the second resource I recommend to you. here, you will find plenty of informative articles on Roman polytheism — both the private and the public cults. even though many – including myself – don't endorse this organisation because of some past allegations, its members are very well-versed on Roman culture. keep in mind that they have a reconstructionist approach!

3. "The Dancing Lares and the Serpent in the Garden" by Harriet I. Flower

now, this book is exceptional especially if you're looking forward to delving into the private cult — which, in reconstructionist/revivalist approaches, mainly focuses on the domestic deities. you will find a lot of info on Penates, Lares and the like. my very humble and very personal advice is that of starting with this kind of worship, for one very simple reason: since domestic deities are within reach, many Roman polytheists agree on the fact that you do not need to perform a ritus Romanus — Roman ritual — in order to leave an offering/interact with them.

this book can be very dense — both because it is academical and because the font is very small. I personally recommend taking your time going through it. if you need to stop, do so.

4. "Ritus romanus: make an offering to your gods"

this pdf will be ever-so precious whenever/if you will feel ready to include ritus Romanus in your practice. also, it also gives you an introduction on domestic Roman practices — how to set up a shrine, which deities to worship, etc.

BONUS: "Archaic Roman Religion" by George Dumézil and TIMOTHEVS

"Archaic Roman Religion" is a wonderful book when it comes to the history of Roman polytheism. even though many of Dumézil's theories are outdated, it is still very useful when wanting to learn about the differences between Archaic Roman religion, Republican Roman religion and Imperial Roman religion.

TIMOTHEVS, on the other hand, is a YouTube channel that shows you the way the theory of other resources may work in someone's practice. if I'm not wrong, there should be a couple of videos of them leaving an offering to Lares. to those who find it useful to have a visual reference, like myself, such videos are sooooo precious.

and I think this is it! I hope that this recommendations are going to be useful to you! feel free to ask more questions if anything's unclear and I'll be happy to help 🙌🏻💗

EDIT: if you are just approaching Roman polytheism, you may want to look into the differences between this path and Hellenism. you can read more about this topic here.

[salixsociety]

Germanic Paganism Resource Masterlist

Notes: - Updates will be beyond infrequent. - Feel free to pop into my ask box requesting resource recommendations at any moment. - Resources do not reflect my personal beliefs or practice. I may include otherwise great resources that include theories and ideologies I do not support (such as the 'sign of the Hammer'), because I make extensive use of cross-referencing, reflection, etc to determine everything I incorporate into my craft. - I will never consciously add resources written by (Neo-)Nazis and the like. If you spot them, feel free to let me know. - You may notice there is a seemingly disproportionate amount of sources also or primarily talking about Scandinavia and Iceland, and even some primarily covering England. This is because continental Germanic paganism has only barely survived the ravages of time, and one can only learn about it if they supplement their knowledge with the more complete pictures of Anglo-Saxon paganism and Norse paganism.

Legend: [No language identifier means the source is English.] [D] - The resource is written (primarily) in Dutch. [G] - The resource is written (primarily) in German. [ON] - The resource is written (primarily) in Old Norse. [OD] - The resource is written (primarily) in Old Dutch. [OG] - The resource is written (primarily) in Old High German. [L] - The resource is written (primarily) in Latin. [F] - The resource is written (primarily) in French. * - I have not read the resource in its entirety. ** - Read with caution. !! - There is more of the resource available/this is one part of multiple.

Historic Texts and References

Tacitus' Agricola and Germania

Tacitus' Annals

The Prose Edda

The Poetic Edda

The First Nine Books of the Danish History of Saxo Grammaticus

Contemporary Books, Essays, Other Media

Myths and symbols in pagan Europe : early Scandinavian and Celtic religions - H.R. Ellis Davidson

Kleinere Altniederdeutsche Denkmälen - Heyne [G]*

Religion and Philosophy in Germany : a Fragment - Heine *

Deutsche Volkskunde - Adolf Bach [G]*

Teutonic Mythology - Grimm

Swedish Legends and Folk Tales - John Lindow

Scandinavian Mythology : an Annotated Bibliography - John Lindow *

Trolls : an Unnatural History - John Lindow

Myths of the Norsemen from the Eddas and Sagas - H.A. Guerber

Northern mythology : comprising the principal popular traditions and superstitions of Scandinavia, North Germany, and The Netherlands - Benjamin Thorpe | VOL 1, VOL 2, VOL 3

From Myth to Fiction : the Saga of Hadingus - Georges Dumézil *

The Stakes of the Warrior - Georges Dumézil **

Gods of the Ancient Norsemen - Georges Dumézil **

Zum Tamfana-Rätsel - Edmund Weber [G]*

De Tijdstippen van de Cultische Jaarfeesten - Boppo Grimmsma [D]**

Nederlansche Volksoverleveringen en Godenleer - Van den Bergh [D, OD]*

Tales and Legends of Tyrol *

Germanic Spirituality - Bil Linzie

Handwörterbuch des Deutschen Auberglaubens - Baechtold-Staubl, Hoffman-Krayer

Goden van de Lage Landen - Gunivortus Goos [D]**

Runic and Heroic Poems of the Old Teutonic Peoples - Dickins *

Gods and Myths of Northern Europe - H.R. Ellis Davidson

Old Norse - Icelandic Literature : a Critical Guide - John Lindow

Vikings : a Very Short Introduction - Richards *

Norse Mythology : a Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals and Beliefs - John Lindow

Antwoord op de Vraag, door het Zeeuwse Genootschap de Wetenschappen - te Water [D]*

Verhandelingen over het Westland, ter opheldering der Loo-en, Woerden en Hoven, benevens de natuurdienst der Batavieren en Friezen - Buddingh [D]*

De Goden der Germanen - de Vries [D]*

Norse Revival: Transformations of Germanic Neopaganism - Stefanie von Schnurbein (in the series Studies in Critical Research on Religion which I highly recommend)

Digital Libraries, Dictionaries and the Like

Digitale Bibliotheek voor Nederlandse Letteren [D]*

Digitised Collection of Historic Sources of the WWU in Münster [G, D, OD, OG]*

Oudnederlands Woordenboek [D, OD]*

Ons volksleven : tijdschrift voor taal-, volks- en oudheidkunde. Jaargang 2-12 [D]*

Het Rad - Digitale Bibliotheek voor Germaans Heidendom, Runen, Seidr [D]*

Volkskunde (search results on Delpher) [D]*

Goden van Eigen Bodem - Digitale bibliotheek voor heidens erfgoed van de lage landen [D]*

Godinnen van Nederland en België [D]**!!

Forgotten Gods - Reginheim **

The Rune Poems *

Kronieken van de Westhoek (Flemish Folk History) [D]*

Brabantse Folklore, bulletin van de provinciale dienst voor geschiedkundige en folkloristische opzoekingen [D]*

Project Gutenberg has a wealth of resources about pre-christian Germanic religion*

Mimisbrunnr.info has a wealth of information including starter guides.

Author Recommendations

J.R.W. Sinninghe [D]

John Lindow

Benjamin Thorpe

H.R. Ellis Davidson

The Grimm Brothers

J. Haver [D]

To be continued.

[margridarnauds]

Don't be cynical. If your fave is being trash tbe way Pen had been by all the tag lf anti Pen you would jumo to defend her. I wish i can stay in the thibgs i love but i can't knowing a character i thibk everyone should love and root for is being harrass . Any bridgerton chractdr have face the hate Pen had. You try to say it is not about body and but it is. The way you judge her actions won't be the same if she was skinny and pretty to your eyes ( she is for mines but i know anyone likes a fat woman)

Cath Maige Tuired is a ninth century text which has been long considered by scholars to be the pinnacle of the collection of medieval and Early Modern Irish texts popularly known as the "Mythological Cycle!" While it was a cornerstone of structuralist approaches to medieval Irish literature, particularly following the popularity of Georges Dumézil's theory that Indo-European society was divided into what he called "The Three Functions" -- War, Religion, and Agriculture, and that traces of that stratification were passed on to its daughter cultures, making particular use of Norse, Irish, Greek, and Hindu beliefs as a means of proving his point. This approach, while fundamentally flawed (and potentially ethically unsound, given the Dumézilian approach's association with fascist nationalistic movements of the 20th century) made its way into many analyses of the text. Thus, while the text was canonized, it was also often little understood in its medieval Irish context and even less understood as a sophisticated work of literature.

The text revolves around the so-called God Peoples of Ireland, the Tuatha Dé Danann, who correspond roughly if not completely (and extremely controversially) to the pre-Christian gods of Ireland, as they fight to maintain their hold over Ireland as another group, the Fomoire, seek to seize control of it. We open with the conception and birth of the character of Bres, who occupies a rare position of a villain protagonist in the text. He is born of a brief liaison between the woman of the Tuatha Dé, Ériu, and Elatha, the king of the Fomoire. His father leaves his mother pregnant, telling her that no name should be given to the baby but Eochu Bres, aka "Eochu the Beautiful" (though, to my knowledge, the usage of the term "Bres" to mean "beautiful" is exclusive to CMT and its related traditions, and the term is more likely to refer to a braggart, an tumult, or, on occasion, a hero), and that he shall become the standard that all beauty in the land shall be judged against, whether it should be a candle, a plain, woman, man, or horse. The young Bres grows at an unnatural rate, at twice the expected size of a young man his age, until he reaches the size of a fourteen year old at the age of seven years.

At some point, the King of the Tuatha Dé, Nuada, becomes wounded in the battle to take Ireland back from the Fir Bolg, and he loses his hand in combat with the champion of the Fir Bolg, Sreng mac Sengainn. Bres is elected by thewomen to take Nuada's place, but proves that he cannot fulfill the role of king via a series of disastrous decisions, including forcing the nobility to work and judging one of the chief nobles of the Tuatha Dé to be guilty of a murder. Finally, Míach, son of the Tuatha Dé's physician, Dían Cecht, successfully heals Nuada's hand, making him eligible for the kingship again (though Dían Cecht, displeased with his son's cure, proceeds to murder him.) Bres is forced to take refuge with his father's family.

In the meantime, though, the Fomorian raids against the Tuatha Dé continue, until, one day, twenty years after Nuada resuming the throne, a young man comes to Tara, having attained entry by possessing all of the skills that a member of the skilled elite of medieval Ireland could be expected to have, and, after defeating Nuada in a fidchell match (which roughly though imperfectly correponds to the modern game of chess, to the extent that "fidchell" is the word for chess in the modern language), Nuada steps down and allows the young man, Lugh, to take the kingship, in the hopes that he will be the one to free their people from the Fomoire.

Lugh leads the Tuatha Dé to a bittersweet victory over the Fomoire, with many combatants on both sides, including Nuada, killed. Bres is spared under the condition that he give the Tuatha Dé the secrets of agriculture, and Ireland is free for as long as Lugh reigns. Still, there is a hint of danger, even in their victory, as the Morrígan, a figure associated with war and death, prophecizes a dark age where incest and bloodshed will become common, the social order cast to the ground.

The current interpretation of the text by most professional Celticists, judging from the repeated references to the Fomoire as coming from "Lochlann", with onomastic features that correspond to modern Scotland under Scandinavian control, is that the text, rather than reflecting an ancient myth, might indeed be functioning as a reflection of medieval Irish anxieties over the Viking agencies, as well as an injunction for the Irish to band together to confront a common enemy, though certain features, such as Lugh fighting his grandfather in the battle, might indeed have an ancient provenance.

[aboutanancientenquiry]

Les Origines de la pensée grecque- The Origins of Greek Thought

Jean-Pierre Vernant - Les Origines de la Pensée Grecque, Presses Universitaires de France (PUF) 1962, republished several times since then. 

" L'ambition [de cet essai] n'était pas de clore le débat par une étude exhaustive mais de le relancer... j'ai tenté de retracer les grandes lignes d'une évolution qui, de la royauté mycénienne à la cité démocratique, et marqué le déclin du mythe et l'avènement de savoirs rationnels. " En quoi consiste le miracle grec ? Quelles sont les innovations ayant marqué ce que nous appelons la pensée grecque et pourquoi se sont-elles produites dans ce monde grec ? Le mérite de Jean-Pierre Vernant est de réaliser une synthèse personnelle et accessible sur un sujet controversé où s'affrontent de nombreux hellénistes. Publié en 1962 dans la collection Mythes et religions, dirigée par Georges Dumézil, l'auteur a lui-même, à l'occasion d'une réédition parue vingt-cinq ans plus tard, réactualisé dans une longue préface certaines de ses interprétations (from the edition of 2013).

Jean-Pierre Vernant's concise, brilliant essay on the origins of Greek thought relates the cultural achievement of the ancient Greeks to their physical and social environment and shows that what they believed in was inseparable from the way they lived. The emergence of rational thought, Vernant claims, is closely linked to the advent of the open-air politics that characterized life in the Greek polis. Vernant points out that when the focus of Mycenaean society gave way to the agora, the change had profound social and cultural implications. "Social experience could become the object of pragmatic thought for the Greeks," he writes, "because in the city-state it lent itself to public debate. The decline of myth dates from the day the first sages brought human order under discussion and sought to define it.... Thus evolved a strictly political thought, separate from religion, with its own vocabulary, concepts, principles, and theoretical aims."

Jean-Pierre Vernant The Origins of Greek Thought, Cornell University Press, 1984

Jean-Pierre Vernant (1914-2007), known with the pseudonym Colonel Berthier as commander of units of the French resistance during WWII, was a French historian and anthropologist specialized in ancient Greece.

[vyragosa]

“Several etymologies have been suggested, including "the Swallower”, but without meeting with consensus. Georges Dumézil considers that Κρόνος / Krónos derives from the same Indo-European root as chran in Russian ("whale" or "Leviathan") and, indeed, in Greek mythology, Cronos devours his children (all except Zeus), "as the whale is known to swallow its prey in its enormous mouth. "

ain’t that sounding like DEEPTHROAT?

like gray fox?

[jgmail]

EN LA MUERTE DE JEAN HAUDRY: LOS ESTUDIOS INDOEUROPEOS ESTÁN DE LUTO

Alain de Benoist

Los estudios indoeuropeos están de luto. Nuestro amigo Jean Haudry falleció el 23 de mayo, la víspera de su 89 cumpleaños, a consecuencia de una larga y penosa enfermedad a la que se enfrentaba desde hacía varios años, sin dejar nunca de trabajar hasta el último momento.

Nacido el 28 de mayo de 1934 en Le Perreux-sur-Marne, antiguo alumno de la École Normale Supérieure, agrégé de grammaire (especialidad de 1959) y Doctor en Letras, Jean Haudry se especializó muy pronto en el estudio del sánscrito y otras lenguas indoeuropeas. Profesor de lingüística y sánscrito en la Universidad de Lyon III desde 1966, fue después director de estudios de gramática comparada de las lenguas indoeuropeas en la IV sección de la Escuela Práctica de Altos Estudios (EPHE). En 1982, creó un Instituto de Estudios Indoeuropeos, junto con una revista titulada Études indo-européennes, que continuó sus actividades hasta 1998.

Colaborador de varias publicaciones científicas, como el Bulletin de la Société de linguistique de París, fue autor de varias obras importantes que, en diversos aspectos, renovaron por completo el campo de los estudios dedicados a los indoeuropeos. Además de sus dos Que sais-je? (1979) y Les Indo-Européens (1981), dirigidas al gran público culto, cabe citar sobre todo L’emploi des cas en védique (1977), La religion cosmique des Indo-Européens (1987), Judo Moneta: aux sources de la monnaie (2002), La triade pensée, parole, action dans la tradition indo-européenne (2009), Le feu dans la tradition indo-européenne (2016) y Sur les pas des Indo-Européens (2022). Otros textos están pendientes de publicación.

Contra los ataques de algunos periodistas incultos

Como todos los espíritus libres, Jean Haudry tuvo que soportar los ataques de algunos periodistas incultos y comentaristas perezosos a los que no les gustaba hablar de los indoeuropeos, deseando que los europeos de hoy sigan ignorando sus orígenes, y a los que molestaba la seriedad de su obra y su reputación internacional. Como discípulo de Georges Dumézil, Haudry era consciente de que su maestro también había tenido que sufrir los juicios de intenciones de los aduladores. Pero prefirió divertirse con ellos.

Nota: Cortesía de Revue Éléments

Fuente: Adáraga

[faith-of-the-wheel]

Part 4: Worunos, King of the Night Sky

Meaning, "He Who Covers" or "The Lord of Covering", referring to the all-covering night itself, it is taken from the name of the Vedic deity Varuna, who is commonly believed to be of primarily Indo-European origin, but has no known cognates outside of an essentially unattested but probable Iranic cognate that are widely recognized today, on linguistic grounds at least.

Varuna does have one important function in PIE theology, however. And that is the concept of Mitra-Varuna, a proposed dyad of deities. First proposed by Georges Dumézil, he considered it to have been composed of two distinct elements – Mitra and Varuna – this divine pair represented different aspects of sovereignty, with Mitra embodying reason, order, and benevolence, and Varuna symbolizing violence, darkness, and inspiration.

How is this relevant to Rudlos? Well, we have previously shown many times that he is connected to the primary and ruling deity, Dyeus, and usurps his cult and position on several occasions. Apollon may have been perceived as a "Sky Father" deity in Anatolia, and was likely a ruling deity of some sort. Rudra is called the sovereign of the world several times in the Vedas, though he is not a the primary god. Odin, however, is the chief deity to all Germanic peoples, as was reconstructed to Gaulish U̯ātonos. Rugiaevit was worshiped by the leaders of Rügen, and seems to be a chief deity in function.

When he isn't a chief deity, he is often in close association with him.

But what about Mitra? Who is he? He is Dyeus. The Senowera document reconstructs him as the epithet Mitros, although I think a more accurate reconstruction could be something closer to Meytra or Meytras. It comes from the Proto-Indo-European root mey-, which means "to bind", and the "tool suffix" -tra-, which means "causing to". So Mitra literally means "that which binds".

This tracks because Mitra is Dyeus in his role as the god of Covenants and Oaths. He is associated with the rule of law and justice. His cognates include Vedic Mitra, Iranian Mithra, Germanic Tyr, Tiw, and Ziu.

The reconstruction is linked to his Trifunctional hypothesis, with each one representing the different sides of his concept of sovereignty.

Varuna's name is often connected to

Varuna is seen as a binder and Mitra as an unbinder. Dumezil proposes an analogy with yin and yang provides a useful framework for understanding the dialectic of Mitra-Varuna. Mitra may be seen as light and Varuna as dark.

Varuna is frenzied and aggressive, a "terrible sovereign" which comes first, and Mitra is a slow, majestic sovereign. Mitra represents a sovereign under his reasoning aspect, luminous, ordered, calm, benevolent, and priestly. Varuna, on the other hand, represents a sovereign under his attacking aspect, dark, inspired, violent, terrible, and warlike.

Some expressions that assimilate "this world" to Mitra and "the other world" to Varuna have been the subject of much commentary and can be understood in this context. This may connect them to the primordial twins, Monu and Yemo. There are other coupled ideas associated with them, Mitra with the right, Varuna the left. Mitra the day, Varuna the night.

Another important aspect of Varuna's character is his association with human sacrifice, both ritually and mythically. This aspect of his character has been the subject of much scholarly debate, with some scholars arguing that it reflects the violent and brutal nature of early Indo-Iranian societies, while others see it as a symbolic representation of the cosmic order.

Mitra is associated with a proposed "binding" myth, where in he inserts his hand into the orifice of a demon, and loses/impairs it. Meanwhile, Varuna is associated with the loss of one of his eyes.

I suggest that the reader becomes a bit familiar with the relationships of Zeus and Jupiter with kings and sovereignty before continuing, as it will add a lot of context.

It has a few proposed cognates which we will look at.

Tyr and Odin

Tyr is often consider a reflex of Dyeus, who is a god of the daylight sky and has sometimes differentiated into a sun god. He is often called a war god, which he is, but his strongest associations are with the Things, which were essentially Germanic courts, and with oaths and contracts. He is perhaps most famous for his myth of binding Fenrir, in which he loses his hand after putting in his mouth. One should note that this myth in particular depicts a god of oaths swearing a false one to Fenrir, and then losing his hand for it, perhaps reinforcing the idea that the gods are limited by their nature(i.e. a god of justice cannot act unjustly, even if it may seem so to us mortals).

Odin is a ruler deity, who is cognate with Rudlos. He is associated with frenzy, madness, and the savage Ulfhednar/berserkers, and is openly warlike himself. He is famed for his quests for divine wisdom, and is often prayed to for such arcane knowledge. He is an infamously untrusting, manipulative, scheming king. His most distinctive characteristic may very well be his missing eye, which he is said to have sacrificed for arcane knowledge.

Mitra and Varuna

Vedic religion so bear with me if I miss something or make a mistake. Varuna is associated with the sky, oceans, and water, which we will come back to. In the Vedic scriptures, he is paired with the god Mitra and is the lord of Ṛta (justice) and Satya (truth). He is depicted as a youthful man, mounted on Makara (mythical beast/crocodile) and holding a Pasha (noose, rope loop, which he shares with Ganesha, and Yama) and a pitcher in his hands. In the earliest layer of the Rigveda, Varuna is the guardian of moral law, one who punishes those who sin without remorse, and who forgives those who err with remorse. He is king of the Asuras but later becomes a Deva after Indra restructures with cosmos.

He is often depicted as having one eye lost due to a story where he was tricked by a demon or mortal who managed to exploit his immense power and take one of his eyes as a symbol of his ultimate authority over the seen and unseen world and his knowledge of it; however, the exact details of this myth can vary depending on the specific interpretation and source. The variability of the myth may indicates with ancient and widespread origin.

He is associated with the sky in general, not just the night sky. However, consider that by this point, Dyaus has faded into the background, Mitra has split off as a contract deity without the sky aspect, and the king of the gods is Indra, who is associated with weather, but not the sky itself. It seems natural to me that dominion of the sky may have passed onto him. I think something similar may have happened to give him his water associations, namely the use of water/the sea as a metaphor for chaos, specifically the primordial kind.

According to Doris Srinivasan, a professor of Indology focusing on religion, Varuna-Mitra pair is an ambiguous deity just like Rudra-Shiva pair. Both have wrathful-gracious aspects, and are synonymous with "all comprehensive sight, knowledge". Both were the guardian deity of the north in the Vedas (Varuna later gets associated with west), both can be offered "injured, ill offerings", all of which suggests that Varuna may have been conceptually overlapping with Rudra. Further, the Rigvedic hymn 5.70 calls Mitra-Varuna pair as Rudra.

According to Samuel Macey(and others), Varuna had been the more ancient Indo-Aryan deity in 2nd millennium BCE, who gave way to Rudra in the later pantheon. This is huge because it directly connects Varuna to one of the fundamental cognates of Rudlos. Varuna is also called the patron deity of physicians, one who has "a hundred, a thousand remedies" and "all comprehensive knowledge", just like Rudra is.

there are some less secure ones that have been proposed, which I will now cover, but take these with an additional pound of salt, not because I have evidence against them per se, but because they're simply not very strong connections, and thus their status as a cognate with very much open to interpretation, and may even require one holding to other theories, controversial ones at that, in order to make the connection work. We also do not know to what extent these may have affected by contact with other peoples, or simply certain aspects of the relevant cults.

Gaius Mucius Scaevola and Horatius Cocles

Neither of these are strong, and they are not much stronger paired together in my opinion. That said, such as connection has been proposed by men far more learned then I, so I will cover these, possibly euhemerized, legendary Romans.

As I'm sure you know, dear reader, the Romans disposed of their myths early on in the memory of the culture, turning it into false history. This has, of course, obscured their myths greatly and made them extremely difficult to parse and understand, and many have been entirely lost.

These two particular stories are set at roughly the same time, during the war between Rome and Clusium. The Clusian Lars(king) Porsena laid siege to Rome. Gaius Mucius Cordus, with the approval of the Roman Senate, in order to assassinate Porsena. Since it was the soldiers' pay day, there were two similarly dressed people, one of whom was the king, on a raised platform speaking.

This caused Mucius to misidentify his target, and he killed Porsena's scribe by mistake. After being captured, he famously declared to Porsena:

"I am a Roman citizen, men call me Gaius Mucius. I came here as an enemy to kill my enemy, and I am as ready to die as I am to kill. We Romans act bravely and, when adversity strikes, we suffer bravely." He also declared that he was the first of three hundred young Romans to volunteer for the task of assassinating Porsena.

He then says "Watch so that you know how cheap the body is to men who have their eye on great glory".

He then thrust his right hand into a fire(which was lit for the purpose of sacrifice) and held it there without giving any indication of pain, thereby earning the cognomen Scaevola, meaning "left-handed". Porsena was shocked at the his bravery, and set him free to return to Rome, saying "Go back, since you do more harm to yourself than me". At the same time, the king also sent ambassadors to Rome to offer peace.

Mucius was later granted farming land on the right-hand bank of the Tiber, which later became known as the Mucia Prata (Mucian Meadows)

Now let's take a look at what we have here. We have a person, committed to a vow, whose failure to fulfill said vow is related to his having been captured by an enemy figure. And while in said enemy's capture, loses his right hand, is released immediately after. Not all that dissimilar to the myth of Fenrir and Tyr.

And then we have Publius Horatius Cocles. His agnomen means "one-eyed'(Varro suggested that "Cocles" was derived from the Latin "oculus"; others have suggested a Greek loan-word, from the same root as "cyclops".) and we will get to why he earned it.

One year after the story of Scaevola, Lars Porsena would end up marching on Rome, in a continuation of their previous war.

I could retell the background of the battle, but I'm just gonna quote wikipedia here for my own sake:

"Concentrating his forces on the Etruscan (west) side of the Tiber, Porsena assaulted Janiculum hill and seized it and all its materiel from the terrified Roman guard. Porsena left an Etruscan garrison to hold it, then proceeded towards the Pons Sublicius, the only regional bridge across the Tiber. The Romans awaited in the Naevian Meadow between Porsena and the bridge. The Tarquins commanded the Etruscan left wing facing the Roman troops of Spurius Larcius and Titus Herminius. Octavius Mamilius commanded the Etruscan right wing consisting of rebel Latins; they faced Romans under Marcus Valerius Volusus and Titus Lucretius Tricipitinus. Porsena commanded the center, facing the two Roman consuls. Porsena had the Romans outnumbered and intended to intimidate them into retreat. Battle ensued. The Etruscan right wing was successful in wounding Valerius and Lucretius, the commanders of the Roman left wing. After both were carried off the field, the Romans began to panic and ran for the bridge. The enemy pursued.

Three Romans now defended the Pons Sublicius; the right wing's commanders Spurius Larcius and Titus Herminius Aquilinus, plus Publius Horatius Cocles, a junior officer "on guard at the bridge when he saw the Janiculum taken by a sudden assault and the enemy rushing down from it to the river ....". The three defenders withstood sword and missile attacks until the Roman troops had all crossed.

Livy's briefer and more skeptical account tells of no battle, only that Horatius' "own men, a panic-struck mob, were deserting their posts and throwing away their arms"; however, Horatius' courage manages to shame the two veteran commanders, Herminius and Lartius, to assist him momentarily with his defense of the bridge.

Dionysius' account explains, "Herminius and Lartius, their defensive arms being now rendered useless by the continual blows they received, began to retreat gradually." They order Horatius to retreat with them, but he stood his ground. Understanding the threat to Rome if the enemy were to cross the river, he ordered his men to destroy the bridge. The enemy was shocked not only by Horatius' suicidal last stand, but also by his decision to use a pile of bodies as a shield wall. Horatius was struck by enemy missiles many times including a spear in the buttocks. Hearing word from his men they'd torn up the bridge, he "leaped fully armed into the river and swimming across ... he emerged upon the shore without having lost any of his weapons."

Livy's version has him uttering this prayer to Father Tiber: "Tiberinus, holy father, I pray thee to receive into thy propitious stream these arms and this thy warrior."

Horatius was awarded a crown for his valor (akin to a modern military decoration) and conducted into the city by a singing crowd joined by a grateful city. Horatius was now disabled and so could no longer serve in the army or hold public office, but he was provided "as much of the public land as he himself could plow around in one day with a yoke of oxen," and each citizen of Rome was obligated to give him one day's ration of food. He would also be honored with a bronze statue in the comitium.

Polybius' account uses Horatius as an example of the men who have "devoted themselves to inevitable death...to save the lives of other citizens....[H]e threw himself into the river with his armor, and there lost his life as he had designed." "

This one is obvious less concrete, with the thematic summary being that of a warrior of legendary loses an eye(and is later referred to by an agnomen indicating this) in the protection of his city and soldiers at a bridge, before leaping into the water and emerging without the loss of his many weapons.

The fact that they are both set at the same time, fighting the same war, against the same enemy is very interesting though. I once again ask the you to think of the origin story of Rome, which is widely believed to be a cognate myth of that of Manu and Yemo and the origin of the universe.

Janus

It has also been proposed that Janus, the two faced Roman god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings, may be reflexive of a combined deity representing both Meytras and Worunos, like Vedic Mitravaruna.

He is also though to been influenced by the Etruscan deity Culśanś, and there is indeed a great amount of overlap. However, the Etruscan religion itself is notably influenced by Indo-European religion, so it is not impossible for Janus to be both. I'd go so far as to say it would be strangely fitting.

The name of the god Iānus, meaning in Latin 'arched passage, doorway', stems from Proto-Italic *iānu ('door'), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ieh₂nu ('passage'). It is cognate with Sanskrit yāti ('to go, travel'), Lithuanian jóti ('to go, ride'), Irish áth ('ford') or Serbo-Croatian jàhati ('to ride').

Janus presided over the beginning and ending of conflict, and hence war and peace. The gates of a building in Rome named after him (not a temple, as it is often called, but an open enclosure with gates at each end) were opened in time of war, and closed to mark the arrival of peace.

Plutarch in his Parallel Lives mention that Numa Pompilius made January the first month in the calendar instead of March by the next reason: "he wished in every case that martial influences should yield precedence to civil and political. For this Janus, in remote antiquity, whether he was a demi-god or a king, was a patron of civil and social order, and is said to have lifted human life out of its bestial and savage state. For this reason he is represented with two faces, implying that he brought men's lives out of one sort and condition into another.

He was undoubtedly one of the most important gods to the Romans, especially early on, and was often invoked with Jupiter.

Nuada and Lugh

I'd like to say one thing first, I believe that what we are seeing with both of these deities, if we assume they are indeed reflexes of Meytras and Worunos, is their intermixing and mutually influencing each, as I find that both of these gods have that would attributed to each other's suppossed origin. Combine that with the euhemerization and meddling christian influence, and the picture we have it rough.

Nuada, known by the epithet Airgetlám (Airgeadlámh, meaning "silver hand/arm"), was the first king of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the name of the main family of Irish gods.

He is also called Nechtan, Nuadu Necht and Elcmar, and is the husband of Boann. He is mostly known from the tale in which he loses his arm or hand in battle, and thus his kingship, but regains it after being magically healed by Dian Cécht. Nuada is thought to have been a god and is related to the Brittanic/Gaulish god Nodens, who is associated with hunting and fishing. His Welsh equivalent is Nudd or Lludd Llaw Eraint.

He is also the grandfather of Rudlos' cognate, Fionn Mac Cumhail.

The name Nuada may derive from a Celtic stem *noudont- or *noudent-, which J. R. R. Tolkien suggested was related to a Germanic root meaning "acquire, have the use of", earlier "to catch, entrap (as a hunter)". Making the connection with Nuada and Lludd's hand, he detected "an echo of the ancient fame of the magic hand of Nodens the Catcher". Similarly, Julius Pokorny derives the name from a Proto-Indo-European root *neu-d- meaning "acquire, utilise, go fishing".

Nuada lost his hand in a battle with the Fir Bolg, was saved by The Dagda and his troops, before winning the battle. His arm was severed by the Fir Bolg champion , Sreng, who himself sustained a mortal wound.

Having lost his arm, Nuada was no longer eligible for kingship because of the Tuatha Dé tradition that their king must be physically perfect, and he was replaced as king by Bres, a half-Fomorian prince renowned for his beauty and intellect(Fomorians were mythological enemies of the people of Ireland, often equated with the mythological "opposing force" such as the Greek Titans), and during Bres's reign they imposed great tribute on the Tuatha Dé, who became disgruntled with their new king's oppressive rule and lack of hospitality. By this time Nuada had his lost arm replaced by a working silver one by the physician Dian Cecht and the wright Creidhne (and later with a new arm of flesh and blood by Dian Cecht's son Miach). Bres was removed from the kingship, having ruled for seven years, and Nuada was restored.

Bres, aided by the Fomorian Balor of the Evil Eye, attempted to retake the kingship by force, and war and continued oppression followed. When the youthful and vigorous Lugh joined Nuada's court, the king realised the multi-talented youth could lead the Tuatha Dé against the Fomorians, and stood down in his favour. The second Battle of Mag Tuired followed. Nuada was killed and beheaded in battle by Balor, but Lugh avenged him by killing Balor and led the Tuatha Dé to victory.

Nuada's great sword was one of the Four Treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann, brought from one of their four great cities. In The Fate of the Children of Tuireann, Nuada is described as having a one-eyed door-keeper, whose eye is replaced by the brother healers Miach and Oirmiach with that of a cat.

----- sidebar about the deities associated with Nuada-----

Nechtan, is an Irish god of water, associated with the spring at the origin of the River Boyne, the goddess Boann is patron of. He also commonly thought to be cognate with Nodens, a Romano-Brittanic-Gaulish deity associated with dogs and healing. He was equated on most inscriptions with the Roman god Mars (as a healer rather than as a warrior) and associated in a curse with Silvanus (a hunting-god).

Boann is Nuada/Elcmar's husband, but is famously the lover of The Dagda. She is associated with the archetypal Cow Goddess, Gouwinda, who is intern associated with an archetypal consort deity for Dyeus, Diwona. Boann's name means "White Cow", and is associated with Brigid.

Dian Cécht, is a god of healing, and his name is thought to mean "swift power" or "swift healing".

-----sidebar over-----

Lugh is the Irish god of Justice, war, kingship, craftsmen, skills, trade and harvests. He is associated the continental Celtic god Lugus, and is perhaps a cognate of Rudlos, although I find the evidence to be limited and easily explained by the cultural intermizing of Germanic and Celtic continental cultures, making an accurate earlier reading of his character difficult.

His most common epithets are Lámfada ("long hand" or "long arm", possibly for his skill with a spear or his ability as a ruler) and Samildánach ("equally skilled in many arts"). He is also called Lonnansclech ("fierce / strong, combative"), Lonnbéimnech ("fierce striker"), Macnia ("young warrior / hero"), Conmac ("dog-youth / lad of hounds"). He wields a famously unstoppable, fiery spear, and has a hound named Failinis.

Lugh's son is the hero Cú Chulainn, who is believed to be an incarnation of Lugh. Cú Chulainn famously chops off the hand of Lugaid. Lugaid approaches him Cú after thinking he is dead, and cuts off his head, but as he does so the "hero-light" burns around Cú Chulainn and his sword falls from his hand and cuts Lugaid's hand off. The light disappears only after his right hand, his sword arm, is cut from his body.

While he do not have a myth of him losing an eye, who do have myths of his quests for wisdom and knowledge, like Odin, and he is said to close one eye when he meditates. His connections to Rudlos' cognates, namely Odin, has been explored previously.

Jupiter and Summanus/Suri

Jupiter is perhaps one of the most famous gods period. He is a reflex of the Sky Father, Dyeus Pter. He is the holy king of the universe, and Rome. The lawgiver, the god of justice and oaths. He himself has not myth of losing his hand, but I believe this is explained via the story of Scaevola.

Less well known, is a dark counterpart to Jupiter. The mysterious and nocturnal god, Summanus. Summanus is himself sometimes thought to be of Etruscan origin, and is sometimes regarded as a Romanified version/atmospheric aspect, of the Etruscan god Suri, who we will get into. I have a post on Suri that should be finally made available any day now.

Summanus is the god of nocturnal thunder, counterposed to Jupiter, the god of diurnal (daylight) thunder. His precise nature was unclear even to Ovid. Pliny thought he was of Etruscan origin himself.

The name Summanus is thought to be from Summus Manium "the greatest of the Manes",(Manes being Roman spirits representing the deceased) or sub-, "under" + manus, "hand".

Georges Dumézil has argued that Summanus would represent the uncanny, violent and awe-inspiring element of the gods of the first function, connected to heavenly sovereignty. The double aspect of heavenly sovereign power reflected in the dichotomy Mitra-Varuna in Vedic religion and in Rome in the dichotomy Summanus-Dius Fidius/Jupiter. The first gods of these pairs would incarnate the violent, nocturnal, mysterious aspect of sovereignty while the second ones would reflect its reassuring, daylight and legalistic aspect.

-----sidebar on Dius Fidius-----

Dius Fidius is a god of oaths, often invoked with Jupiter in the swearing of oaths. Fidius may be an earlier form for filius, "son", with the name Dius Fidius originally referring to Hercules as a son of Jupiter. He is also associated with lightning, and required an open roof in his temples like Jupiter, indicating he may simply be epithet of Jupiter given some external agency, or perhaps a genius of Jupiter. It is also possible he is cognate with Xaryomen, who I consider to be in the same, "Dyeus-or-not-Dyeus?" situation.

-----sidebar over-----

Summanus was sacrificed to with dark animals, like those given to cthonic deities, and with summanalia, wheel shaped cakes(solar symbol?) on June 20, the day before the summer solstice, in memory of his temple beind dedicated to him on this day.

Saint Augustine records that in earlier times, Summanus had been more exalted than Jupiter, but with the construction of a temple that was more magnificent than that of Summanus, Jupiter became more honored.

Cicero records that the statue of the god which stood on the roof of the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus was struck by lightning: its head was nowhere to be seen. The haruspices announced that it had been hurled into the Tiber, where it was found on the spot they indicated.

Mount Summano, located in the Alps near Vicenza (Veneto, Italy), is traditionally considered a site of the cults of Pluto, Jupiter Summanus, and the Manes. The area was one of the last strongholds of ancient Roman religion in Italy before its fall to christianity.

From wikipedia, the most trustworth of all sources:

"Archeological excavations have found a sanctuary space that dates to the first Iron Age (9th century BCE) and was continuously active until late antiquity (at least the 4th century CE). The local flora is very peculiar, because it was customary in ancient times for pilgrims to bring offerings of flowers from their own native lands.

The mountaintop is frequently struck by lightning. The mountain itself has a deep grotto named Bocca Lorenza, in which, according to local legend, a young shepherdess became lost and disappeared. The story might be an adaptation of the myth of Proserpina, who was abducted by Pluto."

Summanus is sometimes believed to be an aspect of, or in some way related to the Etruscan god Śuri(Latinized as Soranus), who was venerated throughout Italy by many of the Italic peoples.

He was variously depicted as: a crowned young man wielding a spear or bow and arrows; an enthroned black-bearded man with a wolf-skin cap or wolf-like appearance; or even a winged humanoid monster, usually wielding a sledgehammer or a sword. You may note that the first two of those sound pretty similar to the ways in which we might depict/think of Rudlos.

The Etruscan theonym Śuri (Etruscan: 𐌉𐌛𐌖𐌑, from 𐌛𐌖𐌑, śur, 'black') means both 'black' and 'from the black [place]', i.e. the underworld.

Śuri was essentially a chthonic solar deity: the volcanic fire god of light and darkness, lord of the sun and the underworld, with powers over health and plague as well. He was also an oracular god. His sacred animals were wolves and goats. I'll link his article here, once it is up.

His solar aspect is the god(and sometimes goddess) Usil, whose name is from Indo-European Sehul(the sun god/goddess). He was commonly syncretized with Apollon due to their many similarties and may have contributed to Apollon's solar associations.

Mentioned as son of the supreme sky god Tinia(analagous to Jupiter) and the earth goddess Semla, brother of Fufluns(analagous to Dionysos) and twin brother of Aritimi(analagous to, and syncretized with Artemis), he is primarily known for his powers over the sun, lightning, healing and plague, and divination, as well as for his volcanic and infernal characteristics.

So, Etruscan Cthonic Fire deity + Rudlos + Enji/Agni + Sehul = Śuri.

Given the heavily IE influence on Etruscan Religion, I don't think sort of syncretism is completely unreasonable, although it is certainly far fetched. Even if it were impossible, Śuri makes an incredible substitute for an IE Varuna figure.

Worunos is certainly associated with Rudlos, but they may not necessarily be one in the same. For this reason, we will use his influence sparingly in the next part of the series, where we finalize Rudlos's character a little, lay out his character, and his worship.

[valkyries-things]

PERCUNATELE // BALTIC GODDESS OF THUNDER

“She is in Baltic mythology the thunder goddess mother of Perkūnas, in Slavic mythology referred to as Percunatele mother of Perun, which is probably derived from the Balts. In the book of Georges Dumézil, it is described that Perkunatele was represented as an oak tree with a cleft, resembling the female genitals, where lightning hit. A fire could sometimes break out when the wood was not humid, bringing pain to her. This can be two things, passion that leads to the delivery of a child or a bad lover. If it was the first, laughter will come out of her uterus. If the former, Perkunatele would scream in agony. Its the classic myth of fertility that is present on many cultures, you have to satisfy your lover to bring harmony to the act of coitus.”

[dipnotski]

Didier Eribon – Dumézil ile Konuşmalar (2023)

Georges Dumézil, 20. yüzyılın en önemli Hint-Avrupa uygarlığı ve mitoloji uzmanlarındandır. ‘Dumézil’le Konuşmalar’, çalışmalarını nasıl ürettiğine ve geliştirdiğine dair okura ışık tutuyor. Anılarını anlatmaktan mümkün mertebe kaçınan Dumézil, sonunda kendi hikâyesini, kariyerini ve entelektüel yaşamını anlatıyor. Böylece 20. yüzyıl Fransası’nın düşünce yaşamına dair okura önemli veriler…

[stuartelden]

My publications in 2024

“Canguilhem, Dumézil, Hyppolite: Georges Canguilhem and his Contemporaries”, Revue Internationale de Philosophie, No 307, 2024, 27-48 – special issue on Georges Canguilhem beyond Epistemology and the History of Science, edited by Federico Testa. “Foucault and Dumézil on Antiquity”, Journal of the History of Ideas, Vol 85 No 3, July 2024, 571-600 (open access until end of January 2025). Georges…

[aurevoirmonty]

« Un pays qui n’a plus de légendes, dit le poète, est condamné à mourir de froid. C’est bien possible. Mais un peuple qui n’aurait pas de mythes serait déjà mort. La fonction de la classe particulière de récits que sont les mythes est en effet d’exprimer dramatiquement l’idéologie dont vit la société, de maintenir devant sa conscience non seulement les valeurs qu’elle reconnaît et les idéaux qu’elle poursuit de génération en génération, mais d’abord son être et sa structure mêmes, les éléments, les liaisons, les équilibres, les tensions qui la constituent, de justifier enfin les règles et les pratiques traditionnelles sans quoi tout en elle se disperserait. »

Georges Dumézil

[daniela--anna]

Why is #March called that?

The name March derives from the Latin Martius (mensis), derivative of Mars, Martis 'Mars', to whom it was dedicated.

Originally the Latin Mars indicated a divinity linked to agriculture, later identified with the Greek Ares, god of war.

Until 46 BC, when the Roman calendar was still in force in ancient Rome, the year began on March 1st.

In total it lasted 304 days, and there were no months of January and February.

"The calendar and sacred topography, literature and inscriptions, legend for the first centuries and history for the last, provide abundant evidence of the essential relationship between Mars and war. The cycle of the god's festivals is divided into two groups , one of which opens the year (March with some extensions) and the other closes (October) the war season: in spring the Ecurria (Equirria) celebrated with races in the Campus Martius (27 February and 14 March ), the lustration of the weapons at the Quinquatrus (19 March) and that of the trumpets at the Tubilustrium (23 March, 23 May). [...] Until the time of the foundations of Augustus in favor of Mars Ultor, avenger of Caesar and the insignia taken from the Parthians, the sanctuaries of Mars were subjected to an explicitly formulated rule: as a sort of sentinel, the god had his seat not inside the city, where peace was supposed to reign and access to troops was barred armed, but outside the walls, on the edge of Wildnis which was not, although the opposite has been said, its area, but rather the origin of the dangers, and above all of the armed enemy."

📚Georges Dumézil, "The archaic Roman religion"

📌 MAN ALIENATED FROM HIS CREATOR HAS ALWAYS BEEN PAGAN, VIOLENT AND WARFOUNDER.

Perché #marzo si chiama così?

Il nome marzo deriva dal latino Martius (mensis), derivato di Mars, Martis 'Marte', a cui era dedicato. In origine il latino Mars indicava una divinità legata all'agricoltura, identificata poi col greco Ares, dio della guerra.

Fino al 46 a.C., quando nell'antica Roma era ancora vigente il calendario romano, l'anno iniziava il primo marzo. In totale durava 304 giorni, e non c'erano i mesi di gennaio e febbraio.

"Il calendario e la topografia sacra, la letteratura e le iscrizioni, la leggenda per i primi secoli e la storia per gli ultimi, forniscono copiosissime prove del rapporto essenziale fra Marte e la guerra. Il ciclo delle feste del dio si divide in due gruppi, di cui uno apre l'anno (mese di Marzo con alcuni prolungamenti) e l'altro chiude (mese di Ottobre) la stagione guerresca: in primavera gli Ecurria (Equirria) celebrati con le corse nel Campo Marzio (27 Febbraio e 14 Marzo), la lustrazione delle armi ai Quinquatrus (19 Marzo) e quella delle trombe al Tubilustrium (23 Marzo, 23 Maggio). [...] Fino al tempo delle fondazioni di Augusto in favore di Marte Ultore, vendicatore di Cesare e delle insegne prese dai Parti, i santuari di Marte furono sottoposti a una regola, esplicitamente formulata: come una sorta di sentinella, il dio ebbe la sua sede non all'interno della città, in cui doveva regnare la pace ed era precluso l'accesso alle truppe armate, ma fuori della cinta, sul limitare della Wildnis che non era, sebbene sia stato detto il contrario, il suo ambito, bensì la provenienza dei pericoli, e innanzitutto del nemico in armi."

📚Georges Dumézil, "La religione romana arcaica"

📌 L'UOMO ALIENATO DAL SUO CREATORE, È DA SEMPRE PAGANO, VIOLENTO E GUERRAFONDAIO.

[big-takeshi]

Duguin los venera por igual. Acoge en el revoltijo de su panteón a Lenin, a Mussolini, a Hitler, a Leni Riefenstahl, a Maiakovski, a Julius Evola, a Jung, a Mishima, a Groddeck, a Jünger, al maestro Eckhart, a Andreas Baader, a Wagner, a Lao-Tsé, a Che Guevara, a Sri Aurobindo, a Rosa Luxemburgo, a Georges Dumézil y a Guy Debord.

Enmanuel Carrère. Limònov.