Perkons Thunder Wielder Latvian God of Storms
Name:
Perkons
Thunder
Wielder
Classification:
Patron God
Culture: Prussian Lithuanian
Latvian Indo-European
Region: Baltic
Sacred
Color; Red
Sacred
Number: 33
Element:
Iron
Literature:
Latvian Folk Myth
Symbol
the Thunderbolt
God
of thunder, and the second most important deity in the Baltic pantheon after Devas.
In both Lithuanian and Latvian mythology, he is documented as the god of sky,
thunder, lightning, storms, rain, fire, war, law, order, fertility, mountains,
and oak trees.
Perkons
is venerated at the bringer of rain and thus fertility. He is honored with wine,
season meats and nuts.
In
myth he appears as the Smith of Heaven armed with his many weapons, which he
has forged, and uses to fight the devil for mankind.
Perkūnas is the god of lightning
and thunder and storms. In a triad of gods Perkūnas symbolizes the creative
forces (including vegetative), courage, success, the top of the world, the sky,
rain, thunder, heavenly fire (lightning) and celestial elements, while
Potrimpo, is involved with the seas, ground, crops, and cereals and
Velnias/Patulas, with hell, and death.
Perkūnas pursues an opponent in
the sky on a chariot, made from stone and fire Sometimes the chariot is made
from red iron. It is harnessed by a pair (less often four or three) of red and
white (or black and white) horses (sometimes goats
Perkūnas possesses many weapons.
They include an axe or sledgehammer, stones, a sword, lightning bolts, a bow
and arrows, a club, and an iron or fiery knife. Perkūnas is the creator of the
weapons "the stone smith") or he is helped by the heavenly smith
Televelis (Kalvelis).
