12:38 Mar 31 2006
Times Read: 902
I am sure most of you have heard about Zeus, Jupiter, Venus, Geea, Hera, Demeter, Anubis, Amon, St. George, immortals... as you may also heard about egyptians, romans, greeks...
But I believe that few people have ever heard of Thracians, or Zamolxis or Gebeleizis, Bendis...
Who are they? And what is their connection with all the Gods and civilisations mentioned above?
If you have a little patience, I`ll explain in the next minutes.
The well known Greek historian, Herodotus, used to say the following about Thracians: "...after the Indians, the Thracian people constituted the largest ethnicity among all the rest of the world's races. Should they benefit from one ruling only and be spiritually united, they might acceed to become, in my opinion, absolutely undefeatable and to surpass, by far, the greatness of all the other Earth's proud races...".
To see how extended the thracian race used to be, Herodotus mentioned 19 tribes, while other historians mentioned 22!
The Thracian race was great throughout all the Antiquity, and famed because of their physical resistance and their overall skills regarding traditional medicine. A proof of the latter would be to quote Socrates, the great Greek philosopher, who was once confessing to have personally learned, straight from one of Zamolxis's apprentices, an incantation of those "ABLE TO MAKE HUMAN BEINGS IMMORTALS".
But about Zamolxis (or Zalmoxis) we`ll talk in another post. Now we`ll focus on some of the main divinities, which surprisingly remained the same at all tribes, despite their spread over a huge area of the european continent.
Gebeleizis, or Nebeleizis, was the Thracians's Supreme Divinity, lightning constituting only one of the "weapons" that he was said to have used. He was represented through the shape of a handsome sculptural male, occasionally wearing a beard. Gebeleizis provoked thunder and lightning. In some representations, he appears seated on a majestic throne, while in others on horseback, holding an arch in his left hand. A snake is seen coming down versus the horse's head. He is also accompanied, at times, by a one horned vulture. The vulture holds a fish in its beak symbolizing the named Divinity by itself, and also has a rabbit entrapped within its claws. This God embodies the Absolute Master upon Heaven and Earth, the Patron of military aristocracy. He might possess, though, some Uranian- Solar attributes. The Supreme God, the Great God Gebeleizis is also known under the nicknames of Derzelas, Derzis or the Thracian Knight (others consider "THE THRACIAN KNIGHT"as being a later apparition of some Hero, and not of a God). Other times, the God shows up in the hypostasis of a warrior horseman, accompanied by a faithful hound. He holds a spear as an insignia of power, which is ready to be thrown upon a wild boar from the horse's gallop. When not being shown under a warrior or hunter's appearance, he appears as a peaceful horseman, carrying either a torch or a cornu copia. Sometimes, he is presented as having three heads (Tricephalus), alike the accompanying hound, while other times as a blessing God, having his right hand's first three fingers risen or opened, the rest being tightened towards the upper palm.
We shall also encounter him later throughout the Antique world, at the Macedonians -"Macedonian Horseman", while Greek Mythology would similarly carry him under the supreme name of...Zeus!
From Thracia, Gebeleizis's cult had spread to penetrate inside Asia Minor during 7th century B.C., where it was promptly assimilated by Armenians up to becoming their National Divinity, namely Vahagn or the God of War, most famous for his courage in slaying dragons. Vahagn was associated with lightning and thunder, being represented like an imposing man with hair and beard carved out of flames, while "his eyes were scintillating like two Suns". Ultimately, Gebeleizis or "The Thracian Knight", who is to be found in other people's Mythologies as Zeus or Vahagn, has been logically assimilated by Christian nations to become... Saint George (or Gheorghe) killing the Dragon!
The God Gebeleizis
The Supreme male Divinity of Geto-Dacians Gebeleizis also goes by having a feminine alter ego, a double named Bendis, the Great Goddess. Ancient representations, recently discovered, show her to our eyes through the face of a full figured woman, with prominent cheek bones and curly hair either plaited into two tresses or spliced into two big curls surrounding her lovely looks.
The Great Goddess Bendis was mostly adored by Thracian women, for she was embodying the Goddess of Moon, Forests and... Magical charms!
The Goddess Bendis
Besides the Supreme God Gebeleizis and the Great Goddess Bendis, Thracians have also had a Divinity of Flames and Fireplace and Guardian of the House, respectively the Goddess Vesta (or Hestia, Histia), to the veneration of whom Thracian houses were built strictly in a rectangular form with stoned or wooden walls.
The Goddess Vesta
At the South of Danube River, Thracian civilization living around the area used to celebrate as well Dionysus, the Grape-Vine Divinity, Patron of the well known dizzying liquor, whose cult has again been taken over "en passant" by the Greeks who, by this time, were fair spirited enough in reminding the World that, shortly before Dionysus' coming back home in Thracia, he had initiated himself on Phrygian mysteries at the insistences of His grandmother! Besides the grape-vine, the ivy counted as well among this God's favorite plants.
The God Dionysus
Opposite to the Grape-Vine God's wanton celebration, lasting through centuries was the cult of The Thracian Priest, a relevant symbol for the beautiful, future life's acceptation, which was to be dedicated as well to human beings as to all other creatures' welfare. Thus, "THE SPHINX", a giant megalithic rock standing alone on the Bucegi Mountains' upper platform and having this peculiar shape, was representing, to all Getae people, no less than the solaced "NIGHT MASTER", an entity later acquired by the same ancient Greeks as ORPHEUS. On another hand, every ancient author has written that "the Orphical Mysteries" were indeed celebrated during night time. However, due to their esotherism, Getae Thracian Religion's elevated concepts were only acquainted to the Great Priests surrounded by a few initiated elite members. The Greek and Roman writers couldn't have left too much information about it, while being totally denied access within the Zamolxian mysteries.
The Carpathian Sfinx
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