Discover who is the GODDESS of ANIMALS in the main MYTHOLOGIES
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One of the main elements that have been related to religion and mythology Over the years they have been animals, the deities that transform into these creatures or that are half human and half animal are very repetitive. To meet the main goddesses related to animals in this lesson from a PROFESSOR we are going to talk about who is the goddess of animals.
When creating the myths and legends human beings have always used their environment, relating their deities with the different facts that surround them, and looking for an explanation for those things they did not understand. Centuries ago the world was very different from today, being much wilder, and therefore there is a greater closeness between the world animal and human beings, making the ancient settlers related to those creatures that populated their forests and jungles with the important deities to whom they attributed great deeds.
The great relevance of animals It is very different depending on the mythology we are talking about, this being the reason why we must talk about some of the
features about animals and mythology that we find in certain myths. Some of these characteristics are the following:- In the vast majority of mythologies, believers sacrifice animals to obtain benefits from the gods.
- Many gods have one or two representative animals, these creatures being the ones that usually appear next to them in artistic representations.
- Some gods tend to turn into animals in certain myths, being a clear example the transformations of Zeus in the well-known abductions of him.
- In cultures closer to the wild world, some animals come to be considered as gods, the clearest example being that of the jaguar in Mesoamerican culture.
- Some mythologies, such as the Egyptian, have gods that are half animals and half gods, having their origin in the different creatures that live in the environment of these cultures.
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To continue with this lesson on who is the goddess of animals, we must talk about the main female deities related to these creatures, talking about very different mythologies to see the great difference between them.
We must bear in mind that the case of deities related to animals is very different from other cases such as love or home, these elements being that They are usually represented by goddesses, while in the case of animals we see both gods and goddesses, although in this case we will focus only on the deities female.
Sagebrush
Artemis or Artemis was one of the 12 Olympians, that is, one of the main goddesses of Greek mythology she who even lived on Mount Olympus. She was the goddess of animals, births and hunting, she was generally represented with a bow and arrows, since she was the way she hunted mythological animals. The animal that was closest to this goddess was the deer, there being many representations of her with this animal, and being the most hunted creature in her honor. She was the daughter of Zeus, being the twin of Apollo and forming with her the most famous case of brother gods in Ancient Greece.
Artume
Artume was the Etruscan goddess based on Artemis, being she the goddess of animal lovers, of the political assemblies of human beings and of hunting, although in this case she was only the goddess of hunting from the Neolithic versions of this discipline. She was the middle ground between Artemis and Diana, possessing elements of both.
Aranyani
In the Hinduism Aranyani is the goddess of the forests and the animals that live in them. She is considered one of the most distant goddesses of civilization, and she has several religious texts where she seeks an understanding of her life in the forest, away from people. She is considered a very special goddess, as it is said that she helps both humans and animals, making no distinction between them.
Diana
Diana is the Roman version of the goddesses Artume and Artemis, she being a virgin goddess who represents hunting, the Moon and everything that inhabits nature, one of these things being animals. The evolution of the goddess must be taken into account, starting as a deity closely related to animals and gradually becoming more and more united to the Moon.
Neith
Neit or Neith was the Ancient Egyptian goddess of animals, of hunting, of war, she of wisdom, inventions, life beyond death and creator of human beings. Her relationship with animals is so great that she has been represented in many ways, some examples being the beetle, cow or lion.
Jaguar
The case of the jaguar in the Mesoamerican mythology it is a separate case with respect to the rest of the elements discussed in this section, since in certain cultures it was thought that Jaguars were gods that could turn into human form, thus being able to be both male and female deities. female. These gods were related to both animals and nature in general, so they can be included in this section.
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