The Goddess Anahit Armenian goddess of fertility, wisdom, healing and water

Armenian goddess of fertility, wisdom, healing and water

The Goddess Anahit

Anahit (Armenian: Անահիտ) is the Armenian goddess of fertility, wisdom, healing and water. 

According to the historian Agathangelos, the king of Armenia extolled her as the "great Lady Anahit, the glory of our nation and vivifier ...; mother of all chastity, and issue of the great and valiant Aramazd." 

The annual festivity of the month Navasard, held in honor of Anahit on August 11, was the occasion of great gatherings, attended with dance, music, recitals, competitions, etc. The sick went to the temples in pilgrimage, asking for recovery. The symbol of ancient Armenian medicine was the head of the bronze gilded statue of the goddess Anahit.

Anahit first emerged in the 5th century BC as one of Armenia's most popular deities, along with the chief god Aramazd.

She formed a triad with Aramazd, her father, and Vahagn, her brother. In Armenia, Anahit worship was established in Erez, Armavir, Artashat and Ashtishat. A mountain in Sophene district was known as Anahit's throne (Athor Anahta). The entire district of Erez, in the province of Akilisene (Ekeghiats), was called Anahtakan Gavar. The historian Berossus identifies Anahit with Aphrodite, while medieval Armenian scribes identify her with Artemis, and she is related to the Zoroastrian goddess Anahita, though she is distinct from her. There are theories that she has a connection with Diana as well because her name backwards, in the Western Armenian dialect, nearly matches (Dihana).

The Urartian goddess Arubani may have been an earlier form of her. Anahit was known as Golden Mother (voskemayr), and many of her statues were made of pure gold, or bronze.

Unfortunately with the Christianization of Armenia in 301 AD, all of her temples were destroyed, as were her statues.

Benjamin Freedman's 1961 Speech at the Willard Hotel (Complete)

卍 The True Meaning of Swastika 卐

Updated on Monday

卍 The True Meaning of Swastika 卐
by Venerable Luang Pu Buddha Isara

It can be said that the oldest symbol in this world is the symbol of Swastika. People in prehistory period used Swastika in the form + to symbolize the sun as the meaning of strength, power and light. The next age, people used it as the representative of the highest god such as in Hinduism. Later, when Buddhism arose and the Buddha’s teaching became famous, after the Nirvana of the Buddha, when people recall the Buddha, they usually used the symbol of Bodhi tree, when people recall the Dharma, they usually used the symbol of Swastika or Wheel of Dharma and when people recall the Sangha, they usually used the symbol of deer park. These symbols occurred in the time before the presence of image of Buddha. After that, when there was molding of image of Buddha, sometimes Swastika was put on a hand or the chest of an image of Buddha. Pagodas or stupas built in the period of Ashoka the Great at the original Buddha’s places are the most important evidence to support the long history of Swastika, his sculptors carved Swastika around the pagodas, if you go to India, you will see as I have said.

In Tibet, Tibetan usually put Swastika in front of their house to protect themselves from ghosts and black magic. Especially the belief of Tantric Buddhism in Tibet, the clockwise Swastika 卐 is the symbol represents the power of the Buddha and Bodhisattavas to conquer Satan and devils. And the counterclockwise Swastika 卍 is the symbol of the blessing from the Buddha and Bodhisattavas.

The Dharma meaning of Swastika is the “The Four Noble Truths” that are suffering, the start of suffering, the end of suffering and how to end suffering.

Moreover, the auspicious meaning of Swastika is happiness, luck, successfulness that is why Adolf Hisler also used it for his own symbol to gain more power and faith. Because of his wrong use, it has made the whole world misunderstand the true meaning of Swastika.

Luang Pu Buddha Isara

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