Dyaus Pita
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In the vedic religion, Dyaus Pitar is the Sky Father, husband of Prithvi and father of Agni and Indra (RV 4.17.4).
His origins can be traced to the Proto-Indo-European sky god *Dyeus, who is also reflected as Greek Zeus(accusative Día, genitive Díos; theos pater), Jupiter (from Latin Iovius pater, "father-god"; deus pater) in Roman mythology, Div in Slavic mythology and Tyr in Norse mythology in Albanian (Zoti).
Sharing a fate similar to nordic Tyr's, already in the Rig Veda, Dyaus Pitar is all but featureless, appearing in hymns 1.89, 1.90, 1.164, 1.191 and 4.1 in simple invocations.
In RV 1.89.4b, Pitar Dyaus "Father Sky" appears alongside Mata Prithvi "Mother Earth".
Details of the myth are sketchy, but Indra seems to have killed his father (RV 4.18.12). Thomas Oberlies tentatively identifies Asura and Dyaus in pre-vedic religion (both appear as Indra's father, but Asura is never associated with Prithvi, so there is a possibility of two conflicting myths).
In art, he appears in two different forms: as a red bull who bellows thunder, or as a black horse adorned with pearls, symbolizing the stars.
[edit] Literature
- Thomas Oberlies, Die Religion des Rgveda, Wien 1998.
| Hinduism | Hindu mythology | Itihasa | Image:Hindu swastika.svg |
|---|---|
| Female Deities: Gayatri | Saraswati | Lakshmi | Dakshayani | Parvati | Durga | Shakti | Kali | Sita | Devi | Radha | Mahavidya | more... | |
| Male Deities: Brahma | Vishnu | Shiva | Rama | Krishna | Ganesha | Kartikeya | Hanuman | Lakshmana | Indra | Surya | more... | |
| Texts: Vedas | Upanishads | Puranas | Ramayana | Mahabharata | |
