Mars Gregorjanski – male
(Marspiter, Mamers, Marmar; often called Mavors by Latin poets) Roman god of war and protector of the fields and what grows in them. The third month is called after him. The Romans called themselves ‘sons of Mars’, as they regarded him as the father of Romulus and Remus. The holy shield of Mars (ancile) which was supposed to have fallen from heaven, was kept in the office of the pontifex maximus on the Forum, and was regarded as the pledge or guaran¬tee for the continued existence of the Roman Empire. The lance was also a symbol of the god, and his sacred crea¬tures were the woodpecker (→ Picus), the wolf and the bull. Every five years, the state performed a solemn sacrifice (dei suovetaurilia) in his honour. Because of the dance they performed during his rites, the priests of Mars were called salii – ‘the jumpers’. Augustus consecrated a temple to Mars Ultor (‘the avenger’). From the third century BC onwards, Mars was equated with the Greek → Arés. |
Mercurius Gregorjanski – male
Mercurius (Mercury) The Roman god of trade and industry, whose shrine in Rome was on the Circus Maximus. Originally he was one of the ancient gods of riches and profit (dei lucri) and it was not until he was equated with the Greek → Hérmes that he became the god of tradesmen and merchants. His name used to be derived from mercari to carry on a business, but it now seems that an Etruscan origin is possible. His opposite number in the Etruscan pantheon is → Turms. |
Mari Gregorjanska – female
Mari The supreme deity in Basque mythology. The name means simply ‘queen’. She appears as a richly bejewelled lady; often she flies through the air, exhaling fire, at other times she rides on a ram. She can also traverse the heavens in a chariot drawn by four horses. Finally, she can appear as a white cloud or as a rainbow. Her habitation is inside the earth; her husband is → Maju. Since the adoption of Christianity by the Basques, both Mari and Maju have sunk to the rank of spirits. But the belief that you can ward off lightning by placing a sickle (the symbol of Mari) in front of the house is still widespread. |
Maía Gregorjanska – female
Maía (Greek – little mother) Originally perhaps an earth-goddess known already in pre-Greek times. The myth makes her a mountain nymph who is one of the → Pleiades. Her marriage to → Zeus takes place on the Arcadian mountain Kyllene, and → Hérmes is born of their union. |
Medeia Gregorjanska – female
Medeia (Latin Medea) In Greek myth, the daughter, skilled in magic, of King Aietes of Colchis, and the grand-daughter of the sun-god → Hélios. When Jason arrives with the Argonauts, she helps him to steal the Golden Fleece. When Jason proves unfaithful to her, after their marriage, she punishes him by slaying her own children. It is likely that Medeia is a later version of an ancient Thessalian goddess reminiscent of → Hekáte. |
