Sunday, November 11, 2012

Feminine Deities in Ancient Central Asia

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"ANAHITA.....In Susa, south of Iran, mother goddess was worshiped at least since early 4th millennium BC, with numerous statuettes of her found in the area. The tradition of worshiping the mother goddess spilled over to Mesopotamia, where it continued for thousands of years to come. ....Aredvi Sura Anahita is the Avestan language name of an (Indo-)Iranian cosmological figure, venerated as the divinity of 'the Waters' (Aban) and hence associated with fertility, healing and wisdom. Her name is Ardwisur Anahid or Nahid in Middle- and Modern Persian, Anahit in Armenian. The Greek and Roman historians of classical antiquity refer to her either as Anaitis or identified her with one of the divinities from their own pantheons. .....The ancient Persian water goddess, fertility goddess, and patroness of women, as well as a goddess of war. Her name means "the immaculate one". She is portrayed as a virgin, dressed in a golden cloak, and wearing a diamond tiara (sometimes also carrying a water pitcher). The dove and the peacock are her sacred animals.....Anahita was very popular and is one of the forms of the 'Great Goddess' which appears in many ancient eastern religions (such as the Syrian/Phoenician goddess Anath). She is associated with rivers and lakes, as the waters of birth. Anahita is sometimes regarded as the consort of Mithra."....http://goddess-files.livejournal.com/1467.html

Nana (Afghan goddess).....Goddess Nana, seated on a lion, Afghanistan, 5-6th century.....Nana was a goddess in the ancient area corresponding to Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and Northwest India.She can already be seen on seals of the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex, dating to 2500-1500 BCE. She was typically depicted as a seated martial goddess, escorted by a lion.She was apparently brought from the Near East, where she is known under her Sumerian name of Nanaya.....She was depicted on some of the coins of the Kushans. Depictions of her are known from Afghanistan as late as the 5-6th century CE....She is even worshipped today in Afghanistan under the name "Bibi Nanni" ("Lady Nana").

Above: Goddess Nana Afghanistan

Another source of spiritual home that made Bactria sacred was a great temple of the ancient Iranian goddess, Anahit (in Pahlavi or Middle-Persian) and Anahita (Ânâhitâ) in the Avesta hymns. ....The temple was so rich that often it attracted the needy Syrian kings who sat out to plunder it. In her name and honor, in Armenia, girls prostituted themselves. Anaitis was a Scythian goddess, but she is identified also as Assyrian Mylitta, the Arabian Alytta and the Greek Venus Urania. Artaxerxes Mnemon, one of the emperors of Achaemenid dynasty was among her devotees. She is also associated with the Persian Mithra. Her association with Zoroaster adds to her popularity.

"Unlike Buddhism, whose deities are generally genderless or male, the Shintō tradition has long revered the female element. The emperor of Japan, even today, claims direct decent from the Shintō Sun Goddess Amaterasu. In modern Japan, both Shintō and Buddhist practice among the common folk has taken on the air of "this-worldly benefits" (concrete rewards now; Jp. = 現世利益, Genze Riyaku). To many Japanese, Shintō and Buddhist faith is primarily involved with petitions and prayers for business profits, the safety of the household, success on school entrance exams, painless child birth, and other concrete rewards now, in this life. Shintō deities are called KAMI 神, SHIN 神, JIN 神, SAMA 様, TENJIN 天神, GONGEN 権現, and MYŌJIN 明神 to distinguish them from their Buddhist counterparts. The latter are known as BUTSU 佛 and 仏 and NYORAI 如来 (all mean Buddha or Tathagata), BOSATSU 菩薩 (meaning Bodhisattva), TEN 天 (meaning Deva), MYŌ-Ō 明王 (meaning Luminescent Kings)."........http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/shinto-deities.html

Sherab Chamma.......Chamma (Byams ma) "the Loving Lady", ist he chief manifestation of Satrig Ersang. Her name derives from cham (byams), "to love tenderly", to which is added the feminine suffixe ma."......In the Bon pantheon, Chamma is considered as one of the "four principal sugatas," also known as the four peacefull deitys, who stimulate and superintend the spiritual evolution of the human race. They are:
Sherab Chamma, the Perfection of Wisdom
Shenlha Okar, the sambhogakaya Buddha
Sangpo Bumtri, the creator deity
Shenrab Miwoche, the nirmanakaya or teacher.....(Zit. Nach Per Kvaerne, The Bon Religion of Tibet, p. 28)

Hausōs .....One of the most important goddesses of reconstructed Proto-Indo-European religion is the personification of dawn as a beautiful young woman. Her name is reconstructed as (PIE *h₂ewsṓs- or *h2ausōs-, an s-stem), besides numerous epithets.....The name *h₂ewsṓs is derived from a root *h₂wes / *au̯es "to shine", thus translating to "the shining one". Both the English word east and the Latin auster "south" are from a root cognate adjective *aws-t(e)ro-. Also cognate is aurum "gold", from *awso-. The name for "spring season", *wes-r- is also from the same root. The dawn goddess was also the goddess of spring, involved in the mythology of the Indo-European new year, where the dawn goddess is liberated from imprisonment by a god (reflected in the Rigveda as Indra, in Greek mythology as Dionysus and Cronus)......The abduction and imprisonment of the dawn goddess, and her liberation by a heroic god slaying the dragon who imprisons her, is a central myth of Indo-European religion, reflected in numerous traditions. Most notably, it is the central myth of the Rigveda, a collection of hymns surrounding the Soma rituals dedicated to Indra in the new year celebrations of the early Indo-Aryans.

H2eus(os), is believed to have been the goddess of dawn, continued in Greek mythology as Eos, in Rome as Aurora, in Vedic as Ushas, in Lithuanian mythology as Aušra 'dawn' or Auštaras (Auštra) 'the god (goddess) of the northeast wind', Latvian Auseklis, the morning star (Lithuanian Aušrinė, 'morning star'); Ausera, and Ausrina, goddesses of dawn or of the planet Venus; Hittite, assu 'lord, god'; Gallic Esus, a god of hearths; Slavic, Iaro, a god of summer. The form Arap Ushas appears in Albanian folklore, but is a name of the Moon. See also the names for the Sun which follow. An extension of the name may have been *H2eust(e)ro, but see also the form *as-t-r, with intrusive -t- [between s and r] in northern dialects". Anatolian dialects: Estan, Istanus, Istara; Greek, Hestia, goddess of the hearth; Latin Vesta, goddess of the hearth; in Armenian as Astghik, a star goddess; possibly also in Germanic mythology as Eostre or Ostara; and Baltic, Austija.

"The Tibetans have very complicated linkages and overlappings among the protector gods of the person, the protector gods of lineages (male, female, maternal uncle) and the different masters of the place or territory." (Blondeau: 1996..pg ix)...

"The idea that sky divinities were male and earth divinities female is in general acord with Indo-European cosmologies." (Campbell: 1968..pg 155)

"The inner dralas are divided into the mother and father lineages. The mother lineage represents gentleness." (Trungpa:1984..pg 175)...

"The rituals and traditions of Po (Northwest Tibet) reflect very cleary the ways in which deities were confused with one another, and adapted in meaning, but not in name fo fit the belief systems met at certain geographical points." (June Campbell: "Traveller in Space: In Search of Feminine Identity in Tibetan Buddhism...1996)...

Bönpo cosmogony describes groups of deities of Light and Darkness. ...The highest ranking deities are:
- Kuntu Zangpo (Kun-tu bZang-po) he is the Bön sku - Bönku - Dharmakaya)
- Shenlha Ökar / gShen-lha 'od-dkar (Dzogku - rDzogs-sku - Sambhogakaya -Perfect Sphere)
- Tönpa Shenrab - Tulku (sprul-sku)- Nirmanakaya - who is the Teacher (sTön-pa) of this present world age.
The most important female deity is Jamma (Byams-ma), the “Loving Mother”, also known as Satrig Ersang (Sa-trig Er-sangs).
Among the guardian deities, known as the Dharma`s Protectors (bKa`-skyong), the most important are:
- Sidpai Gyalmo (Srid-pa`i Gyal-mo: “Queen of Existence”, the female guardian of the Bönpo teachings)
- Midud or Midud Jampa Traggo (Mi-bdud `bYams-pa Khrag-mgo: the male guardian of Menri monastery)
- Tsengo Hurpa (bTsan-rgod Hur-pa).

The Four Queens of the Seasons were bodied forth by the first of the Nine Young Warriors who created the world and ordered it, the nine great artificers who fashioned existence out of non-existence....The Queen of Winter was called Crystal Palace; the Queen of Spring was Tigress; teh Queen of Summer, Torch of Flowers, and the Queen of Autumn was called White Moon of Joy.....The four Queens of the Seasons chanted a song in the symbolic words accompanied by a bamboo flute.....

The Queen of the Sea....Her gown was of seamless watersilk. She played a tamboura. Her music was like the dance of swans and her beauty competed with the reflections of the sea.....

The fifth warrior, The Supernal Golden Maiden, arose from her peacefulnes like steam arising from a lake. She looked up and saw the unchanging light of wisdom. She looked forward and saw the unceasing play of luminosity. She looked down and saw the spontaneous display of the fascinating world, and the mirage of existing non-existence. She saw the nature of this as a magical play of appearances. Her lips were like flower petals, slightly smiling; her eyes shone like pearls, gazing peacefully. She sang a song of the cosmic AH, highpitched but melodic. She was bedizened with jewels, and over the jewels silk cloth bearing designs of golden rings. Her hair was wouund up around a primordial flower. She moved gently like a bamboo grove stirred by gentle breezes. Wisps of cloud emanated from her body, which became turquoise lakes. Thus she created the lakes.....Everywhere arose a cry celebrating the triumph of God.......

AHURANI...corresponding to the Vedic Varunani. She impersonates the Ahurian waters. She is invoked in company with the sea Vourukasha and other waters.

AMATERASU Omi Kami is the main goddess or drala of the Japanese. She represents the sun. She is the giver of life. (Omi=limitless, way beyond...kami=god.....Amaterasu means heaven, space....terasu is shining, beams of light......Shining beams of light in limitless space)." (Yamamoto Negi of the Tsubaki Grand Shrine at RMSC in 1992)..."Amatu-no-kami is the Kami of Heaven. The Kami of Heaven are found at old, prestigious shrines..(Picken: 1994..pg 95)..."Came from the left eye of the first god. Mother of the Japanese royal family just as Re was father of the Egyptian Pharaoh and Inti of the Sapa Incans." (Hawkes: 1962..pg 209)...

ANAHITA...Persian goddess of heavenly waters..."Aphrodite-Astarte was the goddess of the Aqua-Vitae. Both a divinity of the sky and the earth waters. (Campbell: 1968..pg 332)......"Most beautiful woman in the Avesta. Anahita: Undefiled, immaculate. The river goddess. Of noble lineage and well formed." (Acta: 1985..pg 665)...Iranian version of Astarte (June Campbell: pg 38)..."non-Iranian Anahita" (Dhalla 1963 pg 125)..."undefiled, is the name of a mythical river as well as that of a female divinity of the waters. She resides in the starry regions. Classical writers speak of her sanctuaries founded aat Pasargadae, Ecbatana, Kangavar and other places. She is assimilated into Artemis, Aphrodite, Athene-Minerva, Hera, Magna Mater, Ishtar, and Nanaia. She overleaps barriers of Mt Alburz where her cult becomes obscene rites. She is celebrated in some of the longest Yashts and in the 65th chapter of the Yasna...Eighth month of the year and tenth day of the month are named after the waters of the Ardvi Sura...Pliny says that a temple of solid gold was set up in the temple of Anaitis"=." (Dhalla...pg 226)..."non-Iranian Anahita" (Dhalla: 1963..pg 125)...

"The Bon deity, Sherab Chamma, also called "Thugje Chamma" in Tibetan or the Loving Mother of Compassion is considered to be the mother of all buddhas … she represents the “perfection of wisdom” … in Tazig language, Sherab Chamma was known as the ancient Iranian (Aryan) goddess Anahita … Tazig Language is "New Persian" post-9th c. as designated by Iranian Sogdians in Central Asia (in comparison to Middle Persian or Pahlavi spoken pre-9th c. ...…… Sherab Chamma (Anahita) holds a gold swastika (Indo-European & Aryan symbol for wheel of life ... and a golden vase along with a lotus (fleur-de-lis as seen among ancient Iranian symbols since beginning of history) … Sherab Chamma (Anahita) is a meditational divinity and a protector … she roots out “the three poisons of greed, anger and delusion” .. … flames of fire representing wisdom surround the goddess (hence, ancient Iranians revered fire as a tool in seeing the Truth … they were not fire-worshipers as often misrepresented again by the Semitic point of view."....The Official Site of Sheda Vasseghi....The Official Site of Sheda Vasseghi....May 5, 2013

APHRODITE, whose bull was a demiourges of Genesis, was a naked goddess, between a solar and lunar god seated on a bull....

APIA..."Saka goddess of the earth was the goddess of fertility, equivalent to the Medo-Persian Anahita." (Rudenko: 1970..pg 290)...

ARAMAITI...the Iranian Earth Goddess. Aramaic Alphabet named after her. Brought by Bon into Tibet in 500 BC (June Campbell: pg 37)...

ARDVI SURA...'Anahita: undefiled"...name of a mythical river as well as the female divinity of the waters. Resides in the starry regions.

ARTEMIS (Greece) was the many breasted great mother (twin sister of Apollo) of Asia, whom the Greeks encountered in Ephesus in 1000 BC.....Aphrodite's origins were also Asian....Both were adopted by the Greeks...."the Cretan goddess of hunting"...

ARTIMPASA..."Saka female deity of the moon was also worshipped by the ancient Iranians." (Rudenko: 1970..pg 290)...

ASHERAH..."the mother goddess Asherah had roots in many of the cultures of the Ancient Near East. Especially in the literature of ancient Ugarit. Adopted by the Hebrews, she was known as the consort of Yahweh in about 1000 BC.' (Petty: 1990)...

ASHI...(Asi)..."Ashi is a goddess of "Good Reward", both Gathic and Young Avestan. She is the daughter of Ahura Mazda and Spenta Armaiti. Sister of Sraosha. Human sexuality. Offerings of Haoma mixed with milk. Yasht 17." (Malandra: 1983...pg 132)..."Those who sacrifice with libations to Asi sacrifice with libations to Mithra." (Piras: 1996...pg 11)...

ASTARTE...one of the most ancient forms of the universal great goddess, worshipped by the Iranians in her form as Anahita. Her image found in Sumeria in 2300 BC. (June Campbell: pg 38)..."It seems very likely that Astarte, as the main female of ancient Persia whose name appears in Bon texts, and who was thought to rule the stars, would indeed be the object of Padmasambhava's suppressive missionary zeal." (June Campbell: pg 41)...

ATHENA....In Greek religion and mythology, Athena or Athene (pron.: /əˈθiːnə/ or /əˈθiːniː/; Attic: Ἀθηνᾶ, Athēnā or Ἀθηναία, Athēnaia; Epic: Ἀθηναίη, Athēnaiē; Ionic: Ἀθήνη, Athēnē; Doric: Ἀθάνα, Athānā), also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene (pron.: /ˈpæləs/; Παλλὰς Ἀθηνᾶ; Παλλὰς Ἀθήνη), is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, law and justice, just warfare, mathematics, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, and skill...Athena as the goddess of philosophy became an aspect of the cult in Classical Greece during the late 5th century BC".....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athena

BYAMS MA....."Byams-ma (Loving Mother) as attributes she holds the "Five Heroic Syllables' and a mirror..(Kvaerne: 1985..pg 22)

BYUNG BA DUS KYI LHA MO..."Goddesses of the Elements and of Time...(byung ba dus kyi lha mo)"..(Norbu: 1995..pg 172)

CHUCHAM...goddess of water...

CHU ICAM (ICAGS) RGYAL MO....mothered the nine brothers and nine sisters....

CISTA...."The elongated ray that penetrates the cave and reaches the head of Mithra is the equivalent of the Avestan Cista, whose sharpness of vision was manifested in various animals, but particularly in the raven (varegan). Her sharpness of vision was an expression of visibility and she is said to be white, and her whiteness is in sharp contrast to the blackness of invisibility of the raven. (Campbell:1968)...A goddess of paths, both physical and spiritual...

DAENA...Persian feminine aspect of Den...."In the Avesta: At dawn on the fourth day after death, the departed passes over the Cinwad bridge and meets the personification of his deeds. If he is righteous, a beautiful maiden appears to him amidst the sweetly smelling breeze. (If wicked she is wretched). The girl is the manifestation of one's own daena (Pahlavi: Den). The beautiful maiden is one's own inner consciousness, the internal being." (Acta: 1985..pg 583)..."The rise of Mithra and the rise of Daena are both connected with the first light of dawn, 'birth' from darkness. The appearance of Daena in the early morning light coincides with the scented wind." (Piras: 1996...pg 10)..."In the Gathic texts, the daena, after the rise of Astunat Arata from Lake Kasaoya, will render the corporeal world imperishable with their salvific gaze." (Piras: 1996...pg 14)...

DAKINIS..."mkha' gro ma: literally she (ma) sho goes ('gro) in the sky (mkha')...she who moves in space." (Reynolds: 96..pg 345)..."the Dakinis have been looked upon by the Buddhist mystics as the protectors from forces of destruction and unscrupulous profanization. The dakinis are looked upon as advanced practitioners and the highest orders of dakinis are manifestations of the enlightened ones."..(Lhalungpa: 1986..pg 460)

DOLMA..."Principle goddess in the Lamaist pantheon. Goddess Tara of the Hindus." (David-Neel: 1981..pg 147)....

DGRA SHED...."dgra gshed: female deities linked with the astrological cycles of the years and of the five elements." (Norbu: 1995..pg 171)..

LADY DORJE KUNDRAK...(T: jo-mo-rdo-rje-kun-grags-ma)..One of the 12 tenma goddesses (bstan-ma-bcu-gnyis) subjugated by Padmakara...(Nalanda: 1980..pps 353 & 249-250)...

HOS-ZA-RGYAL-MYED (Hoza Gyelmed:wife of Shenrab Miwo): "hair like the petals of the Utpala flower, eyes like the fruit of the indigo, brow is of the greatest serenity and full like the moon, eyebrows of wide arch and like the letter o, cheeks are of clear color and like blood-red rubies in a cup of ivory, nose of good fashion, whose speaking mouth is like the mountains of gold encircling the Sumeru, teeth beautiful and smiling like the pinnacles of the mountains of the gods, speaking tongue is like the lightning in the atmosphere, whose body is like a precious vessel, clear and glorious as precious stone." (Francke:1950..pg 164)... Shenrab had six wives....Hoz bza rgyal med....dPo bza thang mo...gSas bza ngan ring...Phywa bza gung drug...Kong bza khri icam...and....rgya bza phrul bsgyur...(karmay: 1972..pg 3)...

ISHTAR...3000 BC...a major Akkadian goddess of war and love/fertility...Sumerian queen of heaven...winged goddess...mentioned in the Epic of Gilgamesh...same function as Asherah as legitimator of the throne...(Petty: 1990..pg 31)...

KALADUGMO...(mkhah.la.gdug.mo) 'fierce sky goddess' (ma namkha: mother sky)...

KARMO NYIDA...(dkar mo nyi zla)...Tibetan goddess. Holds Mt Meru in right hand. Garland with 999 suns and moons....

KARMO TUNG DA....Karmo Tung Da..Ocean Goddess

KROTISHAURIMA....."embraced by the mother, Buddha Krotishaurima"...(Clark: 1954..pg 325)...

LACHAM DRUGMO: the consort of Gesar...

LAKSHMI...Goddess of wealth and good fortune...Also known as: Laksmi, Sri, Padma, Kamala, Dharani, Sita....Candhamadana is the mountain of Lakshmi...Lakshmi...India...flys on the Garuda

LU...."The only female degye is Lu, who is associated with water, bringing rain and fertility. She wears a gown of seamless watersilk. She holds a crystal vase filled with gems." (Trungpa: 1978)

MA....The Phryians (1200 BC) were Indo-Europeans who occupied Central Anatolia. Their chief deity was called Ma, the Great Mother, riding in a chariot drawn by lions.(Langer: World History: 1940)...Mithra took as his consort the Anatolian Mother Goddess Ma...(June Campbell..pg 38)...

MAIA...Grandmother of Magic

MA LHA...Deity of Mothers...(Nebesky: 1956..pg 332).."Ma lha is adorned with jewels. The function of this dgra lha is to increase and guard the family." (Norbu: 1995..pg 332)...

MANENE...the mother lineage of Warrior Manene...."Manene means grandmother. More of a title than a deity. Dolma, the principle goddess in the Lamist pantheon. Tara of the Hindus. Gesar epic."(David-Neel: 1981..pg 147)...

MENMOS...33 momens (menmo?) of the Mukpo lineage....
"Khala Kangkar, the foremost Menmo (sman), and other female deities of the same family. Although the Menmo do not usually assume a fierce mien or cause disturbances, if they are irritated by an offence against them they immediately take on the guise of beautiful girls and by deception easily manage to provoke negativities." (Norbu: 1995...pg )...."(sman mo)..."White Menmo of the Sky".(gNam sman dKar mo)..(Norbu: 1995..pg 166)...

METSUNS...enchanting appearances...

MITRA...North Mesopotamia. 1400 BC....the sky goddess who became the male Indo-Iranian Sun God Mithra, who took as his consort the Anatolian Mother Goddess Ma. (June Campbell..1996...pg 38)...

MO LHA...deity of females is a young woman of exquisite beauty. With one face and two hands holding an arrow and a mirror. Wears blue silk." (5th Dalai Lama in Norbu: 1995: pg 66) (Nebesky: 1975..pg 328)...

NAMCHI KUNGYEL..."gNam phyi gung rgyal: the juniper (lha shing) is the creation of this great goddess" (Blondeau: 1996..pg 103)..."The first born of the Nine Female beings was gNam phyi gung rgyal, Goddess of Heavenly Space. She resides on Mt Tise (Kailasa)." (Tucci: 1980..pg 216)..."Namchi Kungyel (Queen Sky Ancestress) (gNam phyi gung rgyal) 'The nectarous mother let nectar rain from her mouth.' One of the foremost female deities of the Tibetan pantheon. She is the first born of the nine sisters who are the ancestors of mankind."..(Norbu: 1995..pg 261)...

NAM LHA KARMO....gNam lha dKar mo (White Goddess of the Sky) lives in the neighborhood of Mount Everest (Hoffman: 1979..pg 95)

"NINE primordial females (srid pa mo dgu): Ancestress Queen of the Sky, White Menmo of the Sky, Woman Who Does Not Talk, Female Tiger, She Who Develops and Strengthens, Sharp Flaming Point, She Who Rides a Deer, Queen of the Cha, White Goddess"..(Norbu: 1995..pg 166)..."The first of these sisters are known as the Nine females of the world....First of these is gnam-phyi-gung-rgyal. The second is gNam-sman-dkar-mo..(The aunt of Gesar)...The third sister is Mi-mkhan ma-mo. She had 8 offspring who are the original progenitors of man. The 5th sister is Shed-za na-ma. She is the goddess of life. She had four offspring, pho-lha, ma-lha, zhang-lha, and sGra-lha. The 7th sister is phyva-tshe rgyal-mo (Queen of Wealth). She is the mother of the gods, of horses, the door, and the hearth." (Karmay: 1975..pg 193)...

"PALDEN LHAMO... (dPal ldan lha mo) (sridevi)(Lhamo: god-woman)..... is an important female deity of fierce mien, connected with Remati and to the class of mamo." (Nebesky: 1956..pg 22)..."Belden Lhamo is the wrathful tantric goddess and the special protectoress of teh Tibetan state." (Lopez: 1997..pg 21)...

PETRA GENETRIX...Rock Mother...the Iranian Mithra was born from the Rock Mother..(June Campbell...pg 37)

PAIRIKA (Peri)...witches who live on Mount Ilo in Swat. (Tucci:1977....Boyce: 1975..pg 85)....

SA ERTI SANG....Sa trig er sangs...'the Mother of Space" (Hoffman: 1979..pg 105)...Sa Erti Sang: sa trig er ti sangs...

Semiramis......While the achievements of Semiramis are clearly mythical and metaphorical, there was a historical Assyrian queen Shammuramat (Semiramis), wife of Shamshi-Adad V of Assyria. After her husband's death, she served as regent from 810 - 806 BC for her son, Adad-nirari III. Semiramis would thus have been briefly in control of the vast Neo Assyrian Empire which ruled Babylonia, western Iran (Persia and Media), Israel, much of Asia Minor, the Caucasus and Arabia, Phoenicia, Cyprus and Syria among others. Georges Roux has speculated that the many later Greek and Indo-Iranian (Persian, Median and Urartian/Armenian) flavoured myths surrounding Semiramis stem from successful campaigns waged by her against these peoples, and the novelty of a woman ruling such an empire. Some have claimed that her legends were created so that she could be worshiped as a goddess to further solidify her reign and power, but this is not borne out by the Assyrian documents of the time.

SHAKTIS.... (nus ma)..."The goddesses surrounding Kalachakra in the mandala of great bliss are called Shaktis (nus ma)." (Geoffrey Hopkins: 1985..pg 485)....

SHALEBHANJIKA....:The attendants of the goddesses surrounding Kalachakra.".(G. Hopkins 1985..pg 485)...

SIDAG TSUNMO...Sidag Tsunmo (Queen Mistress of Existence)..wife of Yemon Gyelpo..."Sidag Tsunmo (srid bdag btsun mo) "mother of the 4 divine Lords of Lungta."..(Norbu: 1995..pg 70)...

SPENTA ARMAITIS...Avestan Goddess

SRING MO NA...."the sister of the eight Lam Lha is known as as Sring mo na chung gzi byin ma. She rides on a bee with a sharp stinger." (Nebesky: 1956..pg 335)...Sinmo...(srin.mo)..the mythical Tibetan demoness who had to be subdued in order for Buddhism tobe established in Tibet. See Janet Gyatso essay on patriarchal imperatives. (June Campbell..pg 45)


SANDRAMATA...Khotanese Goddess

TABITI..."The goddess of the hearth, of family well being, and her cult was linked to the worship of fire. An oath by the gods of the royal hearth, like the royal gods of the Persians, was regarded by the Sacae as the most sacred. This is the connection between the domestic hearth and the worship of ancestors. This divinity held such a high position among the ancient Persians." (Rudenko: 1970..pg 290)...

TARA...(T: sgrol-ma)...the female aspect of compassion and a very popular deity in Tibet.

TSOMEN.... are lake goddesses (mtsho sman)...

TSUGNA RINCHEN...(gtsug-na-rin-chen)...crest jewel...Queen of the nagas, ruler of the world of water. (Nalanda: 1980..pps 371 & 218)...

TWELVE LOCAL GODDESSES....(T: bsta-ma-bcu-gnyis)...Local deities subjugated ('invited to come along') by Padmakara. They are associated with the months of the year, the realms, and the nidanas."(Nalanda:1980..pg 353)

UMA...Umai was embodied in Uma, the ancient female spirit, who as the Shakti of Shiva is the power of light that makes perception possible. Uma manifests as Kali in the Kalavada System and in the Kalachakra Tantra...(Kharatidi: 1996..pg 217)...

USHAS..."the goddess of dawn, who rises in the east clad in a garment of light, exhibiting her youthful graces." (James: 1963...pg 74)...

VERETHRAGHNA..."A close companion of Mithra. She was white and dressed in white. Her sparpness of vision was an expression of visibility itself."...(Campbell: 1968..pg 95)..."Verethraghna is the victorious (verethraghnem) and unconquered (invictus) power of Mithra in the vital drive and virility (damois upamano) of world generation. These are the recreative powers of Mithra mounted on horseback." (Campbell: 1968..pg 191)...

S. Karmay enumerates 9 primordial females (srid pa mo dgu) who are sisters:
Ancestress Queen of the Sky, White Menmo of the Sky, Woman Who Does Not Talk, Female Tiger, She Who Develops and Strengthens, Sharp Flaming Point, She Who Rides a Deer, Queen of the Cha, White Goddess.
In transliterated Tibetan, he names these Nine Females of the World:
The Sky Queen is gnam-phyi-gung-rgyal. The second is gNam-sman-dkar-mo, the aunt of Gesar of Ling. The third sister is Mi-mkhan ma-mo who had the 8 offspring that are the progenitors of mankind. The 5th sister is Shed-za na-ma, the goddess of life whose four offspring are: pho-lha, ma-lha, zhang-lha, and sGra-lha. The 7th sister is phyva-tshe rgyal-mo (Queen of Wealth) and the mother of the gods, of horses, the door, and the hearth.
As a form of "enlightening" energy, the dakini could also be viewed as Shakti. This activity-that-empowers appears even in mystical Judaism [kabala] where she is Sh[e]kina, the glory of the Deity, but she is also the blessing that is the Sabbath Bride.

"Dezh Dokhtar" A.K.A. (Ghal'eh Dokhtar) Persian: دژ دختر‎, also known as The Maiden Castle, is a castle made by Ardashir I, in present day Fars, Iran, in 209 AD. It is located on a mountain slope near the Firouzabad-Shiraz road......The name of the castle implies it was dedicated to the Goddess Anahita, to whom the term "Maiden" refers. After capturing Isfahan and Kerman from the Parthians, Ardashir (re)built the city of Gur near the castle in Firouzabad, making it his capital. After defeating Ardavan V ( Artabanus V ), the Parthian king in a great battle in 224 AD, he built the Palace of Ardashir nearby the Ghal'eh Dokhtar structure. Ardashir's grandfather was a prominent priest of the Goddess Anahita at the nearby temple of Darabgird, "City of Darius."

Mithra. the Iranian sun god. appears in some personal names such as Mitradata. who was chief of the Treasury in Babylon under ... He also built temples for Anai' tis (Anahita) in Ecbatana and other cities, and installed statues of the goddess.

"The notable female rishikas who contributed to the composition of the Vedic scriptures are: The Rig Veda mentions Romasha, Lopamudra, Apala, Kadru, Visvavara, Ghosha, Juhu, Vagambhrini, Paulomi, Yami, Indrani, Savitri, and Devajami. The Sama Veda adds Nodha, Akrishtabhasha, Sikatanivavari and Gaupayana.".....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rishi

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

John Hopkins.....Northern New Mexico….November 2012

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