Post by bluefedish on Oct 28, 2007 11:55:54 GMT -5
In Irish mythology, Danu or Dana was the mother goddess of the Tuatha Dé Danann (peoples of the goddess Danu). However, little is recorded about her as an individual. Some scholars believe Danu and Anu (also Ana) are the same deity, while others state that the two are separate individuals. Danu's Welsh equivalent is Dôn.
The name dhanu seems to have originally meant "swift". The original stem of Danann didn't survive intact in any of the Celtic languages. The reconstructed lexis of the Proto-Celtic language, as collated by the University of Wales, suggests that the name is likely to be ultimately derived from the Proto-Celtic Danoā. This Proto-Celtic word connotes the semantics of ‘Giving,’ ‘Bountiful’ and ‘Flow.’ This apparent semantic connotation has led Dr. John Koch at the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies to propose that the original nature of this deity may well have been a personification of ‘overflowing abundance’. If this theory is correct, it would account for the deity’s associations with a motherly ideal, the fertility of the earth and with rivers whose overflowing water surpluses may have been seen as a materialization of her presence. Equally, this would imply that she is not identical to Anann, but bears greater resemblance to the Irish river goddess Boann, or to the Roman Ops, the Greek Rhea and the Anatolian Cybele, all of whom are great mother goddesses symbolising abundance.
In Hindu, Danu (Asura), a primordial goddess, is mentioned in the Rigveda, mother of the Danavas. The word Danu described the primeval waters which this deity perhaps embodied. She is called the mother of Vrtra, the demonic serpent slain by Indra. In later Hinduism, she becomes the daughter of Daksha and the consort of Kasyapa.
As a word for "rain" or "liquid", danu is compared to Avestan danu "river", and further to river names like Don, Danube etc. The "liquid" word is mostly neuter, but appears as feminine.
As a Hindu goddess, Dānu has 2 temples in Bali Indonesia: Pura Ulun Danu Temple on Lake Bratan, Bali and Ulun Danu Batur, near Penelokan.
Selected Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danu_%28Irish_goddess%29
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danu_%28Hindu_goddess%29
The name dhanu seems to have originally meant "swift". The original stem of Danann didn't survive intact in any of the Celtic languages. The reconstructed lexis of the Proto-Celtic language, as collated by the University of Wales, suggests that the name is likely to be ultimately derived from the Proto-Celtic Danoā. This Proto-Celtic word connotes the semantics of ‘Giving,’ ‘Bountiful’ and ‘Flow.’ This apparent semantic connotation has led Dr. John Koch at the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies to propose that the original nature of this deity may well have been a personification of ‘overflowing abundance’. If this theory is correct, it would account for the deity’s associations with a motherly ideal, the fertility of the earth and with rivers whose overflowing water surpluses may have been seen as a materialization of her presence. Equally, this would imply that she is not identical to Anann, but bears greater resemblance to the Irish river goddess Boann, or to the Roman Ops, the Greek Rhea and the Anatolian Cybele, all of whom are great mother goddesses symbolising abundance.
In Hindu, Danu (Asura), a primordial goddess, is mentioned in the Rigveda, mother of the Danavas. The word Danu described the primeval waters which this deity perhaps embodied. She is called the mother of Vrtra, the demonic serpent slain by Indra. In later Hinduism, she becomes the daughter of Daksha and the consort of Kasyapa.
As a word for "rain" or "liquid", danu is compared to Avestan danu "river", and further to river names like Don, Danube etc. The "liquid" word is mostly neuter, but appears as feminine.
As a Hindu goddess, Dānu has 2 temples in Bali Indonesia: Pura Ulun Danu Temple on Lake Bratan, Bali and Ulun Danu Batur, near Penelokan.
Selected Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danu_%28Irish_goddess%29
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danu_%28Hindu_goddess%29
