River god

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

River deities are worshiped in many cultures. They are particularly well documented in the Indo-European language area, such as the Indian Ganga or Yamuna , the Greek Acheloos , the Roman Tiberinus and in Central Europe the Rhenus or Danuvius . In most cases these are revered rivers, but sometimes these deities are purely mythical, such as the Indian Sarasvati , the Iranian Anahita or the Greek Styx .

Antiquity

In Greece and Italy, many rivers were worshiped in local cults, some also found supra-regional worship, such as the Acheloos in all of Greece. River gods had their own temples, such as the Tiberis Pater in Rome or the Pamisos in Messenia, and their own priests, such as the Scamandros . Curls of hair, animals and especially bulls, which had a close cultic relationship with the rivers, were sacrificed to them. The scamandros roared like a bull and the Achelous was depicted as a man with a bull's head, while the Sicilian rivers were depicted on coins as youths with horns. When crossing foreign rivers, they were sacrificed. Many rivers lead the ancestral lines of the local princes, the Romans often named their river gods with the addition of Father "Father". The rivers are considered immortal and take part in the meetings of the gods.

The river gods of Greek mythology are sons of Oceanus and Tethys - after Hesiod a Titans represent -Ehepaar, the countless river gods and three thousand nymphs Oceanides begat; According to the Orphics , the followers of the poet and singer Orpheus , the two are those creatures of the night , the first gods, who were also the first couple to submit to the will of Eros .

Outside Greece and the Roman Empire

The Persians, according to Herodotus, showed the rivers the greatest reverence and were not allowed to urinate or spit in them. On the other hand, Cyrus punished the river Gyndes in anger and let its water drain into innumerable canals. If the Maiandros overflowed , he was punished by the Phrygians .

Several river deities are documented in writing for the Celts . In contrast to Greek and Roman river deities, who are mostly male, they can appear male or female among the Celts. The gods of the Rhine ( Rhenus Pater ) and the Danube ( Danuvius ) were male gods who were sworn by. In contrast, the Marne ( Matrona "Great Mother") and the Seine ( dea Sequana ) were worshiped as mother goddesses. The latter was consecrated an important sanctuary in the headwaters.

For the Teutons, the worship of river gods is also attested. So brought the Alemanni , as they crossed the Po in Italy in 553, this human sacrifice. Finds prove that the Neckar jewelry and coins were sacrificed.

On the coat of arms, Samedan shows a river god who is not emblazoned by name with an oar and water vessel.

Web links