Subjects: Water Deities - The Underworld - Dying and Rising Gods - Milky Way Center
List of Water Deities
“A water deity is a
deity in
mythology associated with
water or various
bodies of water. Water deities are common in mythology and were usually more important among civilizations in which the sea or ocean, or a great river was more important. Another important focus of worship of water deities has been springs or
holy wells.
As a form of
animal worship,
whales and
snakes (hence
dragons) have been regarded as godly deities throughout the world (other animals are such as
turtles, fish, crabs, and
sharks). In Asian lore, whales and dragons sometimes have connections.
Serpents are also common as a symbol or
as serpentine deities, sharing many similarities with dragons”.
Me: As already mentioned in the
Primordial Cosmic Ocean link, water in all kind of ways plays a huge role in the cultural myths, right from the description of the very creation itself to the cultural idea of describing the Milky Way contours as “the celestial River” and "water" is also associated with the mythical concept of
The Underworld.
The Mythical Worlds
"Worlds" in ancient creation myths describe of course the Earth, the dayly and nocturnal celestial objects and motions and a "world under the horizon", into where the Sun, the Moon and planets and SOME star constellations "descends under the horizon into the underworld" i.e. to the Earth´ southern hemisphere and all it´s celestial scenario of stars, constellations and the southern crescent contours of the Milky Way. (In Norse Mythogy Midgaard = Earth, Asgaard = the Sky and Utgaard = The Southern Sky)
Myth of the Dying and Rising God
The Earth is orbiting the Sun and because of the Earth axis tilt of 23.5 degree, different lower star constellations seem to ascend over and descent below the Earth´horizon, thus making the astronomical/mythical explanation of the
Dying and Rising Deity.
Edit: One of the most known "dying and rising deities" is the
star constellation of Orion: "Orion was likely the son of the sea-god
Poseidon and Euryale, daughter of
Minos, King of Crete. Orion could walk on the waves . . .". This telling confirms that the Orion constellation ascends and decends over and under (Underworld) the Earth´s watery horizon.
The Milky Way Center
On the underworld southern Sky, the star constellation of Sagittarius points towards the Milky Way center which mythologically is mentioned as the cyclical Center of Life. i. e. birth, death and rebirth. This center is also mythically named the "
Cosmic Womb" which fits nicely to the
female looking Milky Way figure who is mythically called
The Mother Goddess in several cultures.
Links:
Underworld Deities
Death and Life Deities
Resume:
Of course different natural event are ascribed to "forces of deities" but when analyzing the mythical contexts, it is obvious that these deals with all kinds of celestial objects and scenarios whiich are described by its appearances and motions.
Very often a geographic location is mentioned together with a deity, as if this deity once lived on the Earth, which is nonsense. This just tells of WHERE humans worshipped this celestial deity.
- As mentioned several times before, scholars and authors are conflating lots of mythical issues, as for instants conflating the central Milky Way Light with the Sun; conflating the crescent Milky Way figure with the crescent Moon symbol and conflating the Earth axis Polar Wheel with a Solar Wheel and so on.
This list of conflation is huge because most scholars and authors have no ideas of the cosmological extend in the Mythological Stories.
Reelvant comments and questions are welcome
Regards
Native
