Mithra

Mithra
God of light and oath
Late 4th-century Sasanian relief of Mithra
Other namesMehr, Mitra
Equivalents
HinduMitra
RomanMithras

Mithra (Avestan: 𐬨𐬌𐬚𐬭𐬀 Miθra; Old Persian: 𐎷𐎰𐎼 Miθraʰ) is an ancient Iranian deity (yazata) of covenants, light, oaths, justice, the Sun,[1] contracts, and friendship.[2] In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of Truth (Asha), and the guardian of cattle, the harvest, and the Waters.

The Romans attributed their Mithraic mysteries to Zoroastrian Persian sources relating to Mithra. Since the early 1970s, the dominant scholarship has noted dissimilarities between the Persian and Roman traditions, making it, at most, the result of Roman perceptions of Zoroastrian ideas.[3]

  1. ^ "Mithraism | Definition, History, Mythology, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  2. ^ Storm, Rachel (2011). Sudell, Helen (ed.). Myths & Legends of India, Egypt, China & Japan (2nd ed.). Wigston, Leicestershire: Lorenz Books. pp. 12, 52.
  3. ^ Beck, Roger (2002-07-20). "Mithraism". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Online Edition. Retrieved 2012-09-07.

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