THE
ARCANE
ARCHIVE

a cache of usenet and other text files pertaining
to occult, mystical, and spiritual subjects.


TOP | INTERDISCIPLINARY

Triads and Trinities of Gods and Goddesses

To: alt.archaeology,sci.anthropology,sci.archaeology,soc.history.ancient
From: "Charles Lincoln" 
Subject: Triads and Trinities of Gods and Goddesses 
Date: Sat, 04 Jan 2003 01:18:54 GMT

The key names in discussing triads are
(1)     Georges Dumezil---if you're interested in trifunctionalism, he
didn't just write the book, he wrote about two dozen books "Archaic Roman
Religion" (University of Chicago Press) is the best available in English,
most of the rest are in French, although several other titles have been
translated;
(2)    Georges Duby "The Three Orders"---and other works, related to Dumezil
but not imitative;
(3)    Dumezilian followers such as Jaan Puhvel "Comparative Mythology"
(Johns Hopkins U. Press, 1989)
(4)    F. Scott Littleton "The New Comparative Mythology"
(5)    Charles Edward Lincoln, "Ethnicity and Social Organization at Chichen
Itza, Yucatan", Ann Arbor: University Microfilms, Ph.D. Dissertation (1990).
        The Natchez of Mississippi, through their final destruction in 1729,
also had an interesting trifunctional social structure composed of the
"Suns" (=Maya "Ahaus"), the "Noble Persons," or the Warriors (under the
leadership of someone with the intriguing French Name of "Serpent Pique"
("Tatooed" or "Ruffled" Serpent), and the "Honored Persons" (who were
commoners who attained "honorific" status through sacrificial offerings of
children and crops....All of these were above the lowly "puants" or
"stinkards"----John L. Swanton is still the main source on these folks.
        Hawaiian society as described by Marshall Sahlins ("Islands of
History") and Valerio Valeri ("Kingship and Sacrifice in Hawaii") was
tri-functional/tripartite (as to the elite, anyhow).
        Trifunctionalism, it seems to me, is universal, even though Dumezil,
who started the studies, originally believed it to be characteristically
Indo-European.  The American Constitution consists of a Dumezilian Triad of
"Judge-Kings" (Article III, the Judiciary, with life-appointments),
"Warrior-Kings" (Article II, the Executive "Commander-in-Chief" on down
through the ranks), and the "Producers" (Article I, Congress, in charge of
money, at least as "originally intended....").
        Of course, the French "Ancien Regime" of Three-Estates: "Lords
Spiritual" (the Clergy), "Lords Temporal" (the fighting, ordinary nobility
who led armies), and the "Third Estate" or "Bourgeois" who led the
Revolution of '89---is another trifunctional "constitution"---and the
Revolutionary Flag or "Tricolour" embodies the three ancient Indo-European
symbolic colors representing the three estates.....
        So there you have it....
"Saint David and the Angels"  wrote in message
news:3E14E8D3.ED2D16BD@hotmail.com...
> Hello,
>
> I am compiling a list of triads, or trinities of gods,
> and goddesses in various pantheons, for an article
> I am writing.
>
> I am looking for something along the lines of the
> Hindu Trimurti, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.
>
> Could you provide another example, along with
> a book recommendation, and website?
>
> Signed,
>
> Saint David



The Arcane Archive is copyright by the authors cited.
Send comments to the Arcane Archivist: tyaginator@arcane-archive.org.

Did you like what you read here? Find it useful?
Then please click on the Paypal Secure Server logo and make a small
donation to the site maintainer for the creation and upkeep of this site.

The ARCANE ARCHIVE is a large domain,
organized into a number of sub-directories,
each dealing with a different branch of
religion, mysticism, occultism, or esoteric knowledge.
Here are the major ARCANE ARCHIVE directories you can visit:
interdisciplinary: geometry, natural proportion, ratio, archaeoastronomy
mysticism: enlightenment, self-realization, trance, meditation, consciousness
occultism: divination, hermeticism, amulets, sigils, magick, witchcraft, spells
religion: buddhism, christianity, hinduism, islam, judaism, taoism, wicca, voodoo
societies and fraternal orders: freemasonry, golden dawn, rosicrucians, etc.

SEARCH THE ARCANE ARCHIVE

There are thousands of web pages at the ARCANE ARCHIVE. You can use ATOMZ.COM
to search for a single word (like witchcraft, hoodoo, pagan, or magic) or an
exact phrase (like Kwan Yin, golden ratio, or book of shadows):

Search For:
Match:  Any word All words Exact phrase

OTHER ESOTERIC AND OCCULT SITES OF INTEREST

Southern Spirits: 19th and 20th century accounts of hoodoo, including slave narratives & interviews
Hoodoo in Theory and Practice by cat yronwode: an introduction to African-American rootwork
Lucky W Amulet Archive by cat yronwode: an online museum of worldwide talismans and charms
Sacred Sex: essays and articles on tantra yoga, neo-tantra, karezza, sex magic, and sex worship
Sacred Landscape: essays and articles on archaeoastronomy, sacred architecture, and sacred geometry
Lucky Mojo Forum: practitioners answer queries on conjure; sponsored by the Lucky Mojo Curio Co.
Herb Magic: illustrated descriptions of magic herbs with free spells, recipes, and an ordering option
Association of Independent Readers and Rootworkers: ethical diviners and hoodoo spell-casters
Freemasonry for Women by cat yronwode: a history of mixed-gender Freemasonic lodges
Missionary Independent Spiritual Church: spirit-led, inter-faith, the Smallest Church in the World
Satan Service Org: an archive presenting the theory, practice, and history of Satanism and Satanists
Gospel of Satan: the story of Jesus and the angels, from the perspective of the God of this World
Lucky Mojo Usenet FAQ Archive: FAQs and REFs for occult and magical usenet newsgroups
Candles and Curios: essays and articles on traditional African American conjure and folk magic
Aleister Crowley Text Archive: a multitude of texts by an early 20th century ceremonial occultist
Spiritual Spells: lessons in folk magic and spell casting from an eclectic Wiccan perspective
The Mystic Tea Room: divination by reading tea-leaves, with a museum of antique fortune telling cups
Yronwode Institution for the Preservation and Popularization of Indigenous Ethnomagicology
Yronwode Home: personal pages of catherine yronwode and nagasiva yronwode, magical archivists
Lucky Mojo Magic Spells Archives: love spells, money spells, luck spells, protection spells, etc.
      Free Love Spell Archive: love spells, attraction spells, sex magick, romance spells, and lust spells
      Free Money Spell Archive: money spells, prosperity spells, and wealth spells for job and business
      Free Protection Spell Archive: protection spells against witchcraft, jinxes, hexes, and the evil eye
      Free Gambling Luck Spell Archive: lucky gambling spells for the lottery, casinos, and races