Dictionary Of God And Godedesses

DYAUS PITAR 83(spoked disc) of KRSNA. These gifts extend to herthe power of the eight or ten gods. She may weara necklace of skulls. She is associated with theHimalaya and Vindhya mountains and is oftendepicted slaughtering the buffalo-demon MAHISAby thrusting her trident into his body.In a contrasting aspect in later Hindutraditions, Durga takes the role of a mothergoddess and consort of Šiva and becomes partlysyncretized with PARVATI. She is also linked withthe fertility of crops. In this capacity hermost important festival is the Durga Puja, celebratedat harvest time, during which devoteespersistently make obscene gestures and commentsto stimulate her fecundity. She isdepicted flanked by four other deities, LAKSMI,SARASVATI, GANESA and KARTTIKEYA, who aresaid to be her children.In general Durga is perceived in northern Indiaas the gentle bride epitomizing family unity, whilein southern India she is revered more in her warlikeand murderous aspect.Durjaya (unconquerable)Minor goddess. Buddhist (Mahayana). An attendantof the god BUDDHAKAPALA.Dušara (‘the one’ of šara)Local tutelary god. Western Semitic(Nabataean). Associated with vegetation and fertilityin the Hauran region from about 312 BCuntil circa AD 500. Regarded as a supreme deity,comparable to BAAL ŠAMIN, who never achievedDušara’s popularity among the nomadicNabataeans, for whom farming was precarious.He was represented by a black obelisk at Petra.Sacred animals are the eagle and panther. Attributesinclude a vine stem. In Hellenic times hewas the subject of inscriptions at Delos andMiletus and he was equated with DIONYSOS.Also Dušares; Dus-Šara.DuzhiLocal god of uncertain affinities. Kafir [Afghanistan].Known only from an altar stone whichwas generally erected beside that of the watergod BAGISHT. Sacrifice was in the form of a malegoat.DvipakumaraGod. Jain [India]. One of the groups under thegeneral title of BHAVANAVASI (dwelling in places).They are of youthful appearance and associatedwith rain and thunder.DYAUS PITAR (heaven father)ORIGIN Hindu (Vedic) [India]. Creator god.KNOWN PERIOD OF WORSHIP circa 1500 BC orearlier until present.SYNONYMS the Sanskrit dyaus is derived fromthe Indo-European root which also givesDeus (Roman); ZEUS (Greek); TYR (German),etc.CENTER(S) OF CULT none specific.ART REFERENCES none.LITERARY SOURCEStexts.Rg-veda and other VedicDyaus pitar is a creator god associated withthe goddess Prthivi; the primordial couple arenormally addressed as Dyavaprthivi. Betweenthem they created the rest of the Vedic pantheon,placed heaven and earth in conjunction with oneanother and generally preserved the cosmic order.Dyaus is overshadowed and superseded by therain god INDRA in later Hindu tradition, possiblybecause he was brought into India by the Aryan