Dictionary Of God And Godedesses

4 AdidharmaAdidharma (the primeval law)Primordial goddess. Buddhist-Lamaist [Tibet].Particularly worshiped in Lamaism, she is theSAKTI of ADIBUDDHA. Attributes: cup and knife.AdikiaGoddess of injustice. Greek. An ugly figure whois depicted on the Kypselos Chest being throttledby the goddess of justice DIKE.Adimurti (the primeval personification)Form or avatara of the god VIŠNU. Hindu (Epicand Puranic). Probably very similar to NARAYANA.Conventionally perceived as Višnu seated on thecoils of the serpent SESA (Adisesa) and attendedby two wives. Attributes: those of Višnu. Also Vaikunthanatha,Paramapathanatha.Aditi (the free one)Archaic mother goddess. Hindu (Vedic). Accordingto the Rg Veda Aditi is said to be the wife ofKASYAPA or of BRAHMA and mother of theADITYAS, a group of minor gods including MITRA,ARYAMAN, BHAGA, VARUNA, DAKSA and Anisa. Noother consort is mentioned in the literature. She isalso accounted as the mother of HARI. Other legendsaccount her as the mother of the rain godINDRA. No human physical features are drawn,though she is sometimes identified in the guise ofa cow. Aditi is also perceived as a guardian goddesswho brings prosperity and who can free her devoteesfrom problems and clear away obstacles. Shedisappears largely from later Hindu traditions.Aditya (descendant of Aditi)Collective name for sun gods. Hindu (Vedic andPuranic). These numbered six in Vedic times butlater increased to twelve. The sons of the primordialgoddess ADITI. Also an epithet for SURYA.Attributes: two or more lotuses.ADONIS (lord)ORIGIN Hellenic name adopted predominantlyin Phoenician and Syrian culture and based onan old western Semitic deity [Lebanon andSyria]. Fertility and vegetation god.KNOWN PERIOD OF WORSHIP circa 200 BC (Seleucidperiod) to circa AD 400.SYNONYMS Adon (lord, Semitic).CENTER(S) OF CULT mainly at Berytus and Aphaca.ART REFERENCES sculptures, plaques, votive stelae,glyptics, etc.LITERARY SOURCES various literary texts (fewinscriptions).Adonis is modeled on the Mesopotamian dyingvegetation god DUMUZI (Hebrew: Tammuz). Heappears as a youthful deity. The river Adonis[Nahr Ibrahim] is sacred to him largely because itswaters flow red after heavy winter rains, havingbecome saturated with ferrous oxide. In Hellenictradition he is the son of the mythical Cyprianking Cinyras and his mother is MYRRHA. Accordingto Hesiod he is also the son of Phoenix andAlphesiboea. He is the consort of APHRODITE.Tradition has it that he was killed by a boar duringa hunting expedition and is condemned to theunderworld for six months of each year, duringwhich the earth’s vegetation parches and diesunder the summer sun and drought. He was honoredin a spring festival when priests in effeminatecostume gashed themselves with knives. Frequentlydepicted nude and sometimes carrying alyre. Also ATTIS (Phrygian); ATUNIS (Etruscan).AdrasteaMountain goddess. Hellenized Phrygian [northwesternTurkey]. Probably derived from a local