Mēness

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Mēness ( lett . Mēness , lit . Menulis, Menuo ; apr . Menins . M "Moon") is in the Baltic mythology the moon god.

Latvians

In Latvian mythology, Mēness is one of the main Latvian deities alongside Dievs , Saule and Pērkons . He is described in the Dainas as a warrior and the stars are his army and it is also said that he counts the stars, sometimes missing one, namely Auseklis , the morning star, who is also his servant. The morning and evening stars are also described as the horses of Mēness, with which he drives over the Himmelberg. But the idea that he is going across the sky in a boat can also be found in the Dainas. Similar to other main Latvian deities, the Dainas also assign several sons to the moon god, but they have no function or meaning, but rather serve as poetic decoration.

As the god of war, Mēness is sacrificed at the beginning of a battle and the war flag is consecrated to him.

Lithuanians

According to Lithuanian mythology , Mėnuo or Mėnulis marries the sun goddess Saulė . She always got up early, in contrast to Mėnulis, who therefore wandered across the sky alone. When he fell in love with Aušrinė , a marital row broke out. After the divorce, Saulė and Mėnulis argued over their daughter, Žemyna . The thunder god Perkūnas then decided that Saulė could see the daughter during the day and Mėnulis at night.

Menulis also kidnapped with the Dievo sūneliai engaged Saulyte in his boat. Another girl he kidnapped is still visible in the moon with her bucket of water.

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