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faith-of-the-wheel · 13 days ago

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Rudlós part 5: Who is Welnos?

Many have put forth a proposed PIE Cattle deity, formed primarily from Slavic Veles, and his Baltic linguistic cognates(Lithuanian Velnias, and Latvian Velns). He often appears as a Proto-Odin figure and subsumes much of his character and position in the Senowera Document. I believe this to be false, and based on little evidence, with Rudlos being a much stronger candidate for much that which prescribed to Welnos. There may also be a connection to Norse Ullr/Ull/Wuldor.

Veles by BrotherBjorn

Veles, Enemy of Perun

Veles, Velnias, and Velns all protected cattle herds, and were associated with the underworld/underground, wealth, and trade. There are many theories on the etymology on the name, none are good but some more popular ones are connected to "wool", "hair", and *wulþuz. The willow tree is sacred to him.

Veles is one of few Slavic gods for which evidence of offerings can be found in all Slavic nations. The Primary Chronicle, a historical record of the early Kievan Rus, is the earliest and most important record, mentioning a god named Volos several times. Here, Volos is mentioned as god of cattle and peasants, who will punish oath-breakers with diseases, the opposite of Perun who is described as a ruling god of war who punishes by death in battle.

In the later half of the 10th century, Veles was one of seven gods whose statues Vladimir I of Kiev had erected in his city. It is very interesting that Veles' statue apparently did not stand next to others, on the hill where the prince's castle was, but lower in the city, in the marketplace. Not only does this indicate that Veles was connected with commerce, but it also shows that worship of Perun and Veles had to be kept separate: while it was proper for Perun's shrines to be built high, on the top of the hill, Veles' place was down, in the lowlands.

Veles most important function seems to be his form of a dragon, who acts as the archenemy of Perun. The battle is cyclical and eternal. The story is complicated but this I want to stress. I believe that his importance stems from Dualistic, Zoroastrian influence on Slavic religion. Before this, I think he was a deity of lesser importance. Associated with cattle herds/wealth , underground wealth, and trade. And maybe a myth putting him in conflict with Perun.

Ullr

Ullr, whose name is reflexive of Proto-Germanic *wulþuz, meaning 'glory', is a Norse god(only attested in Scandinavia proper, primarily in Sweden) associated with skiing, . *Wulþuz ultimately derive from the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) noun *wul-tus ('sight, gaze, appearance'), itself from the root *wel- ('to see').

He is a god of skiing, archery, hand-to-hand combat, and the willow tree is associated with him.

Philologist Jan de Vries suggests that the god of rage Óðr–Óðinn stood in opposition to the god of glorious majesty Ullr–Ullinn in a similar manner to the Vedic contrast between Varuna and Mitra.

Among the few scholarly theories that hold any water about Ullr, among which is one arguing him to be an aspect of the Sky Father.

Theory: Welnos as a (sorta)distinct deity

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A tutelary deity of cattle herds, caves, wealth, the underworld, and commerce. If you were to replace cattle with goats(or deer) in that list, you'd have most of the attributes of Paxuson. While his goat/deer connection is distinct, I'd wager it's possible that the horned god may also be connected with cattle, animals of central importance to the PIEs. One of the most commons theories about his name connects it to wool, which doesn't make much sense for a cattle deity, but would for a deity of sheep.

I have often wondered why Paxuson's cognates seem to be either goat-associated or deer-associated. Now, I'm theorizing that he was actually associated with all three, under different aspects. It's possible that these split off, appearing as a goat-god, a deer-god, and a cattle-god.

Veles is also a patron of traveling musicians, while Paxuson is a patron of travelers in general. The Volhov(Slavic pagan priests) derive their name from his, and both are associated with shapeshifitng and magic. Veles takes many forms, including a dragon, wolf, bear, snake, and owl.

If one accepts this connection to Paxuson, then it would be entirely up to the individual practitioner whether Welnos would be but an epithet of Paxuson or a separate but related deity(presumably part of a triad formed by goat god, deer god, and cattle god). Note the fact that one of the reasons goats are the symbol of Paxuson is because they, like him, are liminal. They can be wild or domesticated, and are often something in between, especially for the ancients. Deer are exclusively wild, and cattle are almost exclusively domesticated. Given the PIE's appreciation for 3 in religious contexts, especially deific triads, I feel this fits very well.

This theory would necessitate that much of Veles Slavic character was taken from the archetypal Wrtos, Vrtra-type snake/dragon demon, among other things, possibly with some Rudlos syncretism.

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Some have connected Welnos with Odin and Rudlos. He is often associated mythologically and symbolically with Odin. He sometimes wields a spear. His overlapping domains include music, magic, disease. He is a shapeshifter, known for taking the form of a wolf. Rudlos is also connected to the protection and shepherding of cattle.

While I think Veles likely supplanted Rudlos among the Slavs in a few ways, I do not think the argument for Veles being cognate of Rudlos is strong at all. What few genuine similarities they do have, I feel can be easily explained by Norse conquest and subsequent migration to the region.

I will write more about Welnos as an aspect of Paxuson later. If you are interested in Proto-Indo-European polytheism, check out my blog and the rest of this series about the reconstructed god Rudlos.

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faith-of-the-wheel · 2 months ago

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Ṛ́tkonā Part 2: Comparison of Cognates

Oh boy. This is gonna be long and not nearly as clean as the cognate comparison we did not that long ago for Rudlos. Most of the goddesses attested in later Indo-European mythologies come from pre-Indo-European deities eventually assimilated into the various pantheons following the migrations, like the Greek Athena, the Roman Juno, the Irish Medb, or the Iranian Anahita. Diversely personified, they were frequently seen as fulfilling multiple functions. Conversely, Proto-Indo-European goddesses shared a lack of personification and narrow functionalities as a general characteristic. However, I'd like you to keep in mind that adapting new goddesses into the archetypes of older ones is perhaps the oldest IE tradition regarding goddesses. The point being, the methodology for goddesses is significantly different, and adapting later, foreign goddesses is just part of the process.

Artemis, The free she-bear

The first deity I ever truly worshiped was Artemis, and I continue to worship her now. She is a goddess of so very many things, who has been syncretized with so very many of goddesses. Of the many potential cognates we will speak of here(with perhaps the exception of Parvati) , Artemis is easily the most well documented, complex, and multifaceted, ESPECIALLY when viewed from a modern lens.

Artemis is presented as a goddess who delights in hunting and punishes harshly those who cross her. Artemis' wrath is proverbial, and represents the hostility of wild nature to humans. She often functioned as a female counterpart, albeit one of undoubtedly equal standing and popularity, of her twin brother, Apollon. Many cult images relate her to, or depict her as, a bear. In several myths, she sends monstrous boars upon those incur her wrath. She was also associated with war, which was related to hunting.

Put as simply as I feel is possible, she is the goddess of wild animals(and dogs), hunting, archery, childbirth, and the embodiment of the Greek belief in liberty and personal freedom, of which her virginity is symbolic(A couple of cognates share this but I am not convinced it is integral to her character, and is undoubtedly a symbolic shorthand for her autonomy and the importance of femininity). Her virginity also possibly represents a concentration of fertility that can be spread among her followers, in the manner of earlier mother-goddess figures, who she is often syncretized with or portrayed as(see Ephesus).

She is a goddess of women and children, associated with the moon, the night, vegetation, and water. Her temples(and myths) were often centered around marshes, rivers, streams, ponds, and lakes. The Dorians also associated with very strongly with mountains, as did a few other places. She was also called Britomartis on Crete, who was a mountain goddess of hunting. She was also called Diktynna, and may have been related to a Minoan goddess.

She is the archetypal Potnia Theron("Mistress of the Animals"), Being especially associated with deer, bears, boars, wolves/dogs, and myriad birds(most famously guinea fowl). She has an often understated erotic aspect, particularly in the masked, orgiastic dances of the Dorians, whose religion is often said to be notably conservative for Greece, as well as in her connection to wedding rites, and her well known beauty.

Also keep in mind the Greek meaning of virgin is often closer in meaning "maiden" - unwed rather than untouched, so her simply having sworn of marriage and not sex is arguable. However, it is pretty notable that Artemis is very even vaguely described as being intimate with another, which the poets who write the myths rarely shy away from revealing.

She is also associated with stars, and is famous for creating multiple constellations. This may simply be an outgrowth of her nocturnal associations but no other cognate we have shows explicitly. Albeit, Artemis is never(to my knowledge) worshiped as Goddess of the Stars and the info we have on most of the other cognates is pretty limited at times.

I also want to note the story of Orion, whose candidacy as a reflex, not necessarily of Rudlos per se(although I feel I have made a strong argument for it), but rather his relationship with Rtkona, is significant. You can read more about him here, his section is towards the end of the post.

Artio, The lost bear

We know almost nothing about this goddess. All we have of her in the figure above, recovered from Gaul, and the fact her name means "bear". Yep. That's it. A Celtic Bear goddess existed. That's all we got. Okay, let's move on.

Arduinna/Ardbenna, Huntress of the Mountains

The eponymous tutelary goddess of the Ardennes who the romans identified(like Artemis) with Diana, she is represented as a huntress riding a boar. Her name derives from the Gaulish "arduo-", meaning height(cognate with Latin "Ardua-", steep). It is also found in several placenames, such as the Ardennes Woods (Arduenna silva) and the Forest of Arden in England, in personal names Arduunus and Arda(from the Treveri), and Arde(Galatian).

Olmstead offers up an etymology derived from Ardbenna, “She of the High Peak”. The goddess Ahuardua (Hadrian’s wall) may be a linguistic cognate.

Two statues have been found bearing in the Ardennes of a knife-wielding huntress astride a massive boar(pictured above). These have commonly been ascribed to her, but there is no hard evidence.

As best we reconstruct, she was a goddess of the mountains, which lines up with the archaic Dorian view of Artemis.

Sadhbh(Sive)

An Irish figure, who is characteristically obscured by lack of proper documentation by Christians, as most Irish myth is. However I believe her connection to Fionn Mac Cumhaill, who I believe to be a strong cognate of Rudlos, is itself a good indicator.

The legend goes that Sadhbh was enchanted to take the form of a doe for refusing the love of Bob Doireach (or Fear Doirche, depending on the version), the dark druid of the Tuatha Dé Danann. She held this form for three years, until a serving man of the Dark Druid took pity on her and told her that if she set foot in the fort of the Fianna of Ireland, the druid would no longer have any power over her. She then traveled straight to Almhuin (Fionn's house) and was found by Fionn while he was out hunting. Since Sadhbh was a human in animal form, she was not harmed by Fionn's hounds Bran and Sceolan, as they too had been transformed from their original human shape. On their return to Almhuin, Sadhbh became a beautiful girl once more and soon she and Fionn were married. Fionn loved her so much that he gave up hunting and all other pleasures but her, and she quickly became pregnant.

It was while Fionn was in battle against the invading Vikings that Sadhbh was taken from him. A false image of Fionn and of Bran and Sceolan appeared outside the fort and Sadhbh ran out to her husband, unaware of the danger. As soon as she reached the false image it changed to reveal the Fear Doirche, who took out a wand made of hazel and struck her, thus she became a deer once more.

Fionn spent seven years searching for Sadhbh, but to no avail. At the end of these seven long years, a wild boy was found in the forest while the Fianna hunted. Immediately, Fionn recognized in the boy's face some of Sadhbh's features and realized he was looking at their son. He was named Oisín and over time he became as famous as his father is in Irish mythology.

Sadhbh is derived from Proto-Celtic *swādwā, meaning '(the) sweet and lovely (lady)', the name is cognate with the initial elements in the attested Gallic names Suadu-gena and Suadu-rix, and with Sanskrit svādú-, Ancient Greek hedýs, Latin suāvis (compare Suada), Tocharian B swāre and Modern English sweet.

Skaði, Winter's hunting shadow

Norse jotunn Skaði is a goddess of hunting, archery, skiing, and nature, especially mountains. She is most strongly connected to bears through her second husband, Odin(who, along with Thor, is VERY strongly associated with them), after her separation from the Vanir sea-god Njordr. Note that the pairing of Skaði and Odin lines up nicely with Artemis and Apollon for my theory that Rtkona and Rudlos are siblings and/or spouses. Her connection to Ullr may also be a reflex of this, although it would make more sense for him and his cult to have formed later if that were the case, which it very well could be.

I suspect that this bear connection running through Odin instead of being part of her cult may be due to the cult of Odin absorbing this aspect of her, perhaps indicating their historic proximity to each other in the region.

Her name is connected to Germanic nouns meaning "shadow" and "harm". The shadow connection is older, so we will focus on that, but don't forget "harm" when we talk about Kotys later on. She is very strongly correlated with the environment of Scandinavia and some have speculated that the word itself means "Skaði's island". Dumezil has argued that Scandinavia has a connected meaning of "darkness" and that Skaði's name comes from it, rather than the other way around. Regardless, Skaði's name is closely connected to the region of which she is patron, not at all unlike Arduinna. She also has an interesting cognate across the North Sea.

Scathach, The Scottish Amazon

Her name shares the same origin as Skaði's, as well as several interesting features. She is a legendary Scottish warrior woman and martial arts teacher(and according to some sources, Queen of the Island of Skye) who trains the legendary Ulster Cycle hero Cú Chulainn(who we have connected to Rudlos) in the arts of combat, and hunting, and gives him his legendary spear, Gáe Bulg(from a Proto-Celtic compound *balu-gaisos meaning "spear of mortal pain/death spear". Metal.). Texts describe her homeland as Scotland; she is especially associated with the Isle of Skye, where she resides in Dún Scáith ("Fortress of Shadows"). She is called "The Shadow" and "Warrior Maid" and is the rival and sister of Aífe. Cú Chulainn later becomes her daughter's lover after accidentally breaking her finger, and then dueling her previous lover, but Scathach is on board with it by the end. He also duels, defeats, and impregnates(it's complicated) Aife when she comes threatening Scathach's domain.

It my one personal theory that she may be of some relation to Liath Luachra("Grey One of Luachair"), the foster mother of Rudlos' cognate, Fionn mac Cumhaill, who hides him from his enemies for a time and teaches him "the art of war and hunting". Her name's meaning of 'Grey One' aligns with Scathach's 'Shadow'.

While we have no evidence of any cult dedicated to her, it's safe to say the Ulster Cycle is no work of Homer when it comes to myth and pagan religion documentation. Still, a fair bit of common character has the potential to shine through.

Unfortunately for us, there is a potential explanation for that. The Isle of Skye was visited by Nordic people, who heavily integrated into the culture and tribes there. So Skaði may have had some serious influence on Scathach, if she isn't an outright cultural calque, although I find that unlikely. Still, she is worth mentioning as a potential Irish Celtic cognate.

If so, she may represent an evolution of Rtkona from a nature/hunting deity with war associations, to a deity who is primarily characterized as a warrior and mother figure. Artemis and Skaði were both worshiped as war goddesses at times, and Arduinna would certainly have been worshiped when the Ardennes was under attack.

From Skadi and Scathach's names I have reconstructed the epithet Sḱeh₃onā (from *(s)ḱeh₃- "shadow"), written Skehona from here forward. I am not a linguistic, so this reconstruction might be terrible. But the epithet "She of the Shadows" seems likely to me.

Medeina/Žvorūna, The Great She-wolf

The Lithuanian goddess Medeina/Medeinė (from medis "tree", or medė "forest"), who often treated as synonymous to Žvorūnė/Žvorūna (derived from žvėris – "beast". Note the connotation of power and danger here). She is a goddess of forests, hunting, and animals, especially wolves and hares, which are sacred to her. She is also associated with bears, sometimes depicted riding one in the nude. As part of the official pantheon in Lithuania before christization, Medeina represented military interest of warriors and later was replaced by Žemyna(žemė "earth", she is a cognate of Dʰéǵʰōm Méh₂tēr), goddess of the earth representing the agricultural interests of the peasants.

In the 15th century, Polish missionary Jan Długosz compared Medeina with Roman goddess Diana.

According to research by Algirdas Julius Greimas, Medeina is single, unwilling to get married, though described as a voluptuous and beautiful huntress. She is depicted as a young woman and a she-wolf (cf.vilkmergė) with an escort of wolves. According to the author, Medeina can be described as a goddess with both divine and demonic traits. He also claims her duty is not to help the hunters, but to protect the forest, and that when a hare is spotted during the course of a hunt, it must be ended to avert her wrath. Lithuanian Archeologist Vykintas Vaitkevičius identified five Hare Churches (sacred stones, hills, forests) and ten Wolf-footprints (stones with hollows that resemble a footprint) in Eastern Lithuania that were related to the cult of Medeina.

Devana, The untamed daughter

The goddess Devana(or Zevanna), associated with wild nature, forests, hunting and the moon, was worshiped by the western slavs. She is associated with war, and with spring rituals, and Boginki, female nature spirits not dissimilar to the nymphs of Artemis, who are associated with archery and the moon. She is closely associated with the verbascum flower.There are several interpretations of Devana's name. The most obvious etymology are words such as dziewa, dziewka, "girl, young woman, maiden", and dziewica, "virgin", a word derived from the dziewa. This evokes very Artemisian imagery. Another word, from which the name of the goddess may come from, may be the old Polish dziwy, "wild". It has also been argued that Devana comes from Dyeus, making her cognate with Diana.

Sidebar: Many use Diana as supporting evidence for PIE goddess called Diwona, who is the wife of Dyeus and a trifunctional goddess. I have thoughts on this that we will get into another time, but suffice it to say I do not believe the reconstructed Diwona(specifically as a consort of Dyeus) would be cognate with Rtkona. That said, I believe I have stated it before that I believe Rtkona to be the sister and wife of Rudlos. Rudlos' identification with Dyeus in later cultures could possibly account for this confusion.

There is a folkloric myth of her rebellious character angering her father(either Perun or Svarog, depending on the tribe), she acts with hubris towards the other gods and their power, claims she should rule all three realms. Her father fights her, and she ultimately loses after putting up a good fight. She is then wed to her father's enemy and rival, Veles.

Her role in the ushering in of spring and fertility is opposed and counterpart to that of Morana/Marzanna, goddess of winter and death, cognate of PIE Kolya.

I believe both of these roles contain elements of slavic dualism(likely gained from Zoroastrian influence). Veles is not cognate with Rudlos(though he may have influenced by him in many ways, and is sometimes thought to be a cognate of the PIE god Welnos), Just as Perun is not cognate with Dyeus(although he is cognate with Perkwunos). But I believe the cults of both to have been influenced by them.

Bendis/Kotys, The nocturnal huntress

A Thracian goddess, heavily syncretized with Artemis when her cult was imported to Attica. A goddess of hunting, the moon, nature, and maybe motherhood . Her name is thought to derive from a Proto-Indo-European stem *bʰendʰ-, meaning 'to bind, unite, combine'.

She was often depicted in Thracian style dress, with boots, a fox-skin or phrygian cap. She is accompanied by satyrs and maenads. Her festivals were primarily nocturnal.

They may have blended her with another Thracian Goddess, Kotys/Kotytto. Her name is believed to have meant "war, slaughter", akin to Old Norse Höðr "war, slaughter". Worship of Kotys was apparently adopted publicly in Corinth, and perhaps privately in Athens about the same time, and was connected, like that of Dionysus, with licentious frivolity. It also included a baptismal ceremony. Kotys was often worshiped during nocturnal ceremonies, which were associated with rampant insobriety and obscene behavior.

Her worship may have spread as far as Italy and Dorian Sicily. Later art from Thrace showed her as a huntress-goddess similar to Artemis, but in literature she was instead compared with the Oriental-Greek-Roman Cybele (Great Mother of the Gods).

Those who celebrated her festival were called Baptes, which means "bathers," from the purifications which were originally connected with the solemnity: the pre-worship purification ceremony involved an elaborate bathing ritual. Notably to me, this evokes the water connection and the death of Actaeon/bathing myth of Artemis.

Also notable is her named festival, the Cotyttia, an orgiastic, nocturnal rite, calling to mind the orgiastic masked dances the Dorians performed for Artemis. It originated with the Thracian tribe called the Edones, reportedly as a celebration of the rape of Persephone. Throughout Thrace it was celebrated secretly in the hills at night, and was notorious for its obscenity and insobriety.

Through influence of trade and commerce, the Edonian form of the festival spread to Athens, Corinth, and Chios, where its mark became so pronounced that "companion of Cotytto" apparently became synonymous with "slut".

In Sicily the rites of Cotyttia were much more mundane, celebrating the waxing aspect of Persephone.

Freyja, The Lady of the Slain

Before we get to our two eastern cognates, I want to look at a more out there goddess of the nordic pantheon. While she may not be directly cognate, and may even be originally from another, non-IE culture, now lost to time, I believe she may very well have been influenced by Rtkona. I believe one of the best arguments for a potential connection is fact that she is so tied to her husband, Óðr, who is a well known hypostasis of Odin.

Freyja(literally "The Lady") is a goddess of many things, love, beauty, fertility, sex, war, gold, and seiðr (magic for seeing and influencing the future). She rides a chariot pulled by cats, owns a falcon feather cloak that allows her to transform into the bird, and is associated with boars. Her father is Njörðr, the first husband of Skaði.

Freyja assists other deities by allowing them to use her feathered cloak, is frequently invoked in matters of fertility and love, and is frequently sought after by powerful jötnar who wish to make her their wife. She also gets first pick of the war dead, taking them to her hall, before Odin gets to take his pick of the lot for Valhalla.

Scholars have debated whether Freyja and the goddess Frigg, who is also called the highest goddess and also the wife of Odin, and is a goddess of motherhood, marriage, and fertility, ultimately stem from a single goddess common among the Germanic peoples. They have connected her to the valkyries, female battlefield choosers of the slain, and analyzed her relation to other goddesses and figures in Germanic religion, including the thrice-burnt and thrice-reborn Gullveig/Heiðr, the goddesses Gefjon, Skaði, Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr and Irpa, Menglöð, and the 1st century CE "Isis" of the Suebi.

Outside of theories connecting Freyja with the goddess Frigg, some scholars, such as Hilda Ellis Davidson and Britt-Mari Näsström, have theorized that other goddesses in Norse religion, such as Gefjon, Gerðr, and Skaði, may be forms of Freyja in different roles or ages.

I am not personally convinced of Freyja being a cognate proper, but I believe her connections to other goddesses, namely Skaði and Frigg, and her sharing some notable symbols and connections to Odin, may indicate her either having been formed from a offshoot of Rtkona or was simply influenced by her cult after her adoption by the Indo-European germanic peoples.

Eastern(Indo-Iranian/Anatolian) cognates:

I have struggled to find a solid Indo-Iranian(or Anatolian) cognate for Rtkona, and have come to the conclusion that her cult was not as widespread among the peoples that became the Indo-Iranians, or she simply hadn't formed into the reconstructable Rtkona, who must have solidified much of character later by the time the Indo-Iranians split off.

I have seen it hypothesized that Artemis formed in Anatolia, with Apollon, and emigrated to Greece with him from Lycia. If this were the case, Ephesia would likely represent an older form of her cult, giving a strong mother/fertility aspect in place of a virgin one. If this were the case, than we can put together a short evolution of her cult.

She her most archaic form would have a strong motherly fertility aspect to her, which may or may not have included references to her being a "virgin", in marital or sexual sense. She lost aspect in favor of slightly younger, virginal one, but retained authority over childbirth and fertility.

Lycia itself, the religion before its adoption of Luwian deities, could have looked like, Apollon(the chief deity), his sister/wife Artemis, and some worship of their mother + other lesser deities. It definitely would have been altered heavily by the other Anatolian cultures and the other peoples of the ANE. We'll get into this later in the third part of the series.

Inara, Daughter of the Thunderer

Hittite goddess of the wild animals of the steppe and daughter of the Storm-god Teshub/Tarhunt. I want to draw some parallels here real quick. Artemis and Diana are the daughters of Zeus and Jupiter respectively. Devana is the daughter of Perun. If Diwona is a name of the reconstructed Rtkona, then it would specifically indicate her role as a daughter of Dyeus, not a consort figure, although this would be a bit strange linguistically.

Not a great connection, but the Anatolian connection is always difficult. Between poor attestation and the heavy ANE substrate, it's always difficult to sift through.

Aranyani, Queen of the forests

This one is a stretch, but worth mentioning in my opinion. The rigvedic goddess of forests and wild animals. Aranyani(literally "forest") has one of the most descriptive hymns in the Rigveda. The Aranyani Suktam (Hymn 146 in the 10th mandala of the Rigveda) describes her as being elusive, fond of quiet glades in the jungle, and fearless of remote places.

In the hymn, the supplicant entreats her to explain how she wanders so far from the fringe of civilization without becoming afraid or lonely. She wears anklets with bells, and though seldom seen, she can be heard by the tinkling of her anklets. She is also described as a dancer(as is Artemis in many instances, especially archaic traditions). Her ability to feed both man and animals though she 'tills no lands' is what the supplicant finds most marvelous. The hymn is repeated in Taittiriya Brahmana and interpreted by the commentator of that work.

Parvati, The Great Mother

The wife and divine consort of Rudra/Shiva. Parvata (पर्वत) is one of the Sanskrit words for "mountain"; "Parvati" derives her name from being incarnated as the daughter of king Himavan (also called Himavata, Parvata) and mother Menavati. King Parvata is considered lord of the mountains and the personification of the Himalayas; Parvati implies "she of the mountain". She also has many titles associating her with mountains. Her famous epithet Uma connects her with marriage, loyalty, and love.

She is also associated with and referred to as Durga and Mahakali. Mahakali wields a sword, wears a garland of severed heads, and protects her devotees and destroys all evil that plagues the world and its beings.

Durga is a major goddess in her own right, worshiped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Her name is translated as "Invincible" or "Fortress", however I believe one of the most accurate is is "Difficult to pass". She is well known for her demon-slaying and wielding a variety of weapons. She is also known a patron and protector of children, like Artemis.

The historian Ramaprasad Chanda stated in 1916 that Durga evolved over time in the Indian subcontinent. A primitive form of Durga, according to Chanda, was the result of "syncrtism of a mountain-goddess worshipped by the dwellers of the Himalaya and the Vindhyas", a deity of the Abhiras conceptualized as a war-goddess. Regardless, she is a well evidenced ancient goddess.

She is also called Ambika, who is described variously as sister and consort/wife of Rudra/Shiva, and has a myths that parallel the myths of Actaeon and Orion. Rolinson of Arya Akasha has an excellent article explaining this connection which I will link here. I will warn those of you who are familiar with my work on Rudlos, that Rolinson considers Rudlos and his cognates to be cognate with Dyeus. While I myself do not share this view, they were certainly associated with each other and this far from a bad take on their connection. That said, I personally remain unconvinced at this time our their being the same deity.

I myself connect her husband Rudra to Apollon(and both of them to the reconstructed Rudlos), both of whom share many features with Artemis and the other cognates listed above, especially in regards to hunting, animals, wild nature, and war. She herself is 'Mistress of Wild Animals" closely paralleling Artemis' role(and the other cognates for that matter) as goddess of animals and nature. She is closely associated with lions and tigers(Rudra wears a tiger loincloth), and Artemis in particular is noted for having been associated with cats in some earlier Potnia Theron depictions and via interpreatio graeca with Egyptian Bastet.

Most importantly to me, she shows us the motherly and consort aspects of Rtkona that the western cognates often seem to obscure, via her marriage and children with Shiva. They were even worshiped in a combined form, called Ardhanarishvara.

Outside of this, I have found parsing through any post-Vedic text for potential links to be both tedious and difficult to parse for a variety reasons.

In the next part of this series, we will put these pieces to together to form a better picture of Rtkona and the ways that we might worship her. I may update this most if I come across something that I feel is important enough to add to our pool of sources.

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