Thracian beliefs

The unique spiritual life of the ancient Thracians was adapted to the specific nature and development degree of their social and economic life. Thrace religion belongs to polytheism, worships all kinds of natural forces, endows people with appearance and personality, and embodies the common characteristics of similarity between god and man in ancient religions.

Thracians, like other Indo-European peoples, seem to worship Dios, the god of the sky, as evidenced by the names of people and tribes prefixed with Dios, Dios or Dios. The only inferior god they worship is Sbelsurdos or Zibelsurdos, which may be the god of thunder and lightning. Some Thracian tribes also worship a goddess similar to Hera in Greek mythology. Many Roman altar statues found in Thrace are Hera. In fact, Thracians have a long tradition of worshipping goddesses. P. Detoeuf mentioned earlier that many statues of pregnant women have been excavated. It is believed that this may be related to the worship of "great mother" (or great mother god) in ancient Mediterranean (maternal worship).

Thracians also offered sacrifices to the sun god, similar to the Greek god Helius. It is said that Helius rises from eastern Ran Ran every morning in a solar-powered car pulled by four fire-breathing horses, cruises in the sky, and disappears into western oceans and rivers at night. This god is associated with horses and vehicles, which highlights the cultural representation that Indo-Europeans used carriages from a long time ago. Sophocles, a master of Greek drama, once called Helius "the god of Thracians who loved horses". Bitini, who are of the same origin as Thracians, used to hold court trials in broad daylight. They face the sun so that God can directly observe the trial process from the side, so the sun god has the identity and function of presiding over a fair trial. After the Thracians worshipped Helius, they were absorbed by orpheus, where Helius was regarded as Dionysus. Orpheus is related to the Thracian tradition. It is said that this religion was founded by the son of the Muse, the hero of the bard and Thrace, the king of orpheus. It is a esoteric religion that appeared in the 8th-6th century BC. According to legend, orpheus was finally killed at the ceremony of offering sacrifices to Dionysus, and his body was torn to pieces. Orpheus placed great emphasis on karma and soul metempsychosis after physical death. In its mysterious ceremony, animals are often used to represent the image of God. Believers tear up animals and eat them alive, which shows that God's body is absorbed into itself, thus gaining divinity. On the other hand, orpheus advocated abstinence from alcohol, meat and sex, which improved the rude worship of Dionysus to some extent.

The main object of Dionysus worship is Dionysus, namely Bacchus in Rome. Dionysus is one of the most famous gods in ancient Greece. His image is in the hands of Hermes, the god of animal husbandry and business travel, either a handsome boy or a baby boy. However, he is often confused with Sabazios. Actually, tracing back to the source, Dionysus and Sabazios originally came from the god of Thrace-Phrygia, and both belonged to the name of Thracian. At first, the worship of Dionysus was probably only in Mount Hemos, Mount Rodopi and Mount Pirin, and then it gradually expanded. In the past, it was thought that Dionysian worship had been introduced to Greece in the early period of 1000 BC, and its specific transmission route was probably through the Greek residential areas in Asia Minor. Later studies show that the Greeks may have accepted Dionysian worship much earlier. It seems that the Greeks accepted his worship after fierce opposition. It is said that it was after learning the Oracle of Delphi that Athens incorporated its sacrificial ceremony into the orthodox ceremony of the city-state. Dionysus, like many ancient gods, has multiple attributes. At first, he was a plant god and a fertility god, and later he became famous as the patron saint of grape cultivation and wine making. According to legend, Dionysus, the son of Zeus, was raised by the goddess of Mount Nisa. One of his manifestations is ivy, which is often used by Thracians to wrap weapons. Sometimes Dionysus is given the image of an animal, especially a bull. According to legend, he was killed and chopped when he was transformed into a bull to avoid the attack of the Titan gods. Dionysian worship is a kind of sacrifice with male genital worship as the main content and praying for high yield. During the ceremony, participants (many women) often wear ivy crowns or masks, some even wear horns to imitate their own images, holding Dionysus' staff and penis models in their hands, wearing animal skins, singing and dancing, playing harsh music with flutes, marching all the way, shouting God's name, noisy and wild, and some later tearing and swallowing live cattle as sacrifices. They believe that only through this ceremony can they gain divine power and feel that they are combined with God. This wild ceremony is even related to the ancient custom of human sacrifice. According to Greek legend, Poerxiusi, king of Thebes, and Raquel Gass, king of Edonia in Thrace, were killed by their crazy followers because they opposed the sacrifice of Dionysus, and their bodies were torn to pieces and scattered into fertile fields according to custom, in order to obtain a bumper harvest from Dionysus. It seems that ancient tribal chiefs or kings often played the role of this strange god, and then they were often executed and dismembered into gods and symbols, and then sacrificed to the gods again, which is not lacking in ancient myths of many nationalities. The worship of Dionysus was quite popular in the eastern Mediterranean, and its remains can be easily found in Thrace, Greece and Asia Minor. The reason why this ancient religion can spread so widely is that it is "attractive to most people who love mystery and naturally tend to return to nature". In addition, it may also lie in its distinctive color of being informal and daring to compete with the autocracy and orthodoxy of the Greek god system of Olympus.

Dionysus and her mother, the goddess Salem, or Phrygia, the goddess of the earth in ancient Thrace, were introduced into Greece from Thrace. The combination of Semele and Zeus gave birth to Dionysus, which may just be a replica of the popular marriage mode of Thracian God and Mother Earth in Indo-European mythology.

Themis, the famous moon god and hunting god in Greek mythology, is also regarded as an important goddess from Thrace. Herodotus has already mentioned her relationship with the Thracians, and said that the Thracians and Pioria women used to offer her tributes wrapped in wheat straw. Therefore, Artemis also has the obvious meaning of fertility goddess. At the same time, she is also the goddess of hunting and the protector of animals. The typical Al Simis is a girl in a hunting suit with an bazooka and a red deer beside her. Naturally, she is regarded as a "female protector", a god related to motherhood and all other behaviors such as protecting life and promoting land fertility. Did Al Simis have any other Thrace names when he was originally in Thrace? There is no record. Herodotus' extensive knowledge and erudite writing should be mentioned in his works. However, Miss Alsi is indeed worshipped in many places and has various aliases, such as Otigia, Celia and Cynthia. That is to say, her image may be a combination of many local tyrants. It seems that since a long time ago, Simis has been mixed up with the Thracian goddess of war and hunting, or Bendis, the moon god of Phrygia, and Hecate, the ancient goddess of magic and charm. Hekate's spirit beast is a dog, which is located in a cave in Zesia, Samothrace Island, along the coast opposite Thrace Island. The name of this island is Samothrace, which means "the high island of Thracians", because the island has the highest peak in the Aegean Sea and the coast has been inhabited by Thracians since ancient times (see Samothrace, page 373, edited by Shao Xiantu, etc.). ).

It is very popular to sacrifice dogs to her. At least in Pericles' time, the custom of offering sacrifices to Bendis spread to Athens, Greece. Plato mentioned the first festival of Bendis Temple in Piraeus Port (it is said that it was held on Sagri Month 19 in 429 BC), from which we can see the sacrifices, competitions and torch races attended by Athenian citizens, especially Thracians who settled in Piraeus. In Greek bas-reliefs, Bendis is depicted as a Thracian costume. It is said that she is also worshipped by North Darcy. In fact, some characteristics of Bendis will make people associate her with the Greek goddess Hestia. Another Thracian goddess who is closely related to Bendis or Simis is Curtis (or Cotito, Ti Tuo), who is also the goddess of Thracian Edonia. The worship of Curtis was probably introduced to Greece along the road of merchants, and this secret ceremony was very popular in Athens and Corinth. When secret ceremonies are held, they are often accompanied by wild dancing and lewd music. Men are dressed in women's clothes, full of wanton and dissolute colors, and their carnival atmosphere can be compared with the bacchanalia celebration in worship of Dionysus.

According to strabo's account, the sacrifice to Cortes in the secret carnival is similar to the sacrifice to Sibelli, the mother of Phrygia in Athens, that is, it has the nature of offering sacrifices to the mother of gods and the goddess of fertility. In fact, the worship of Sybil in Phrygia was once very popular in people's lives in the ancient Mediterranean region. From a very early age, it was mixed with the Roman worship of Rhea and hops, the goddess of sowing and fertility. This worship of Sybil is probably culturally related to the ancient custom of "maternal worship" which is widely popular among Thracians.

Thracians have been good at music, dance and poetry since ancient times, and Greek culture has been deeply influenced by them. In Greek mythology, Muses are a group of goddesses who specialize in art, poetry and science. They are beautiful in appearance and widely used. It is believed that the worship of the Muse in Greece began in Pielia at the foot of Mount Olympus, where the earliest temple of worship was built, and its early followers originated from some Thracian singers.

The blending and mutual reference of the images and functions of gods in ancient religions of different nationalities reveals that they once had similar myths and legends and historical memories, at least reflecting a long-standing cultural exchange relationship. In addition to goddesses with different names, there are some other male gods worthy of attention. Ares in Greek mythology often corresponds to Mars in Roman mythology. In the sculptures of ancient artists, he often appears as a strong young man. He is also considered to have originated in Thrace, and some scholars simply call him "the God of Thrace". Ares played a certain role in the tribal genealogy of Edonia and Bersars Tiya. It is not clear what the real name of the god of war worshipped by the Thracians themselves is. It is speculated that presto, the god of Arceneaux mentioned by Herodotus, may be the god of war of this tribe. The god of war in Si Tong is called Candaon. There is probably no doubt that Ares was introduced into Greece. It is generally believed that he was introduced at least in Homer's time and became one of the gods of Olympus. It should be mentioned that Ares is not very popular in Greece, and the worship of him is not popular. The reason seems to lie not only in the fact that the God of War was originally the embodiment of cruelty and violence, but also in the fact that Ares described in Homer's epic helped the Trojans to fight in the war and was once the enemy of the Greeks. However, as mentioned above, it just reflects the policy orientation of Thrace ministries in the Trojan War and confirms the Thracian relics left on Ares' back.

Sal Mosis, the ghost of Gaeta, is quite distinctive among Thracian gods who devoted themselves to strong religious feelings. Later generations' understanding of it mainly benefited from Herodotus' vivid description. Gaeta people think they are immortal, and all the dead just go to Zalmoxis. Every four years, they will draw lots to choose a person as an emissary, and send them to see Sal Mosis, through whom they can state their needs to God. The specific dispatching method is to lift the messenger and throw it into the air, while others catch it below with sharp spears. If the messenger is stabbed to death by the erect spear when he falls, it means that he has been accepted by God. If he is lucky enough not to die, he is regarded as a bad person who is not accepted by God and must be replaced by another person. Obviously, this bloody custom of sending messengers to God is essentially nothing more than the remnants of an ancient custom of sacrificing the living. At first, this human sacrifice ceremony was probably held every year, and then the interval was gradually extended. There was a primitive custom in ancient society to kill the so-called plant elves regularly in order to obtain high yield of the land. In this sense, Zalmoxis seems to be regarded as the plant god of the Gaeta people. On the other hand, Zalmoxis naturally assumes the role of a ghost who is in charge of the affairs of the underworld, especially the god who is considered to issue predictions and revelations to people or the god of the blue sky (the god of the sky), whose alias may also be called Gebele &; Letsis(&:iuml； Zis). There have been many rumors about this Zalmoxis life experience. It is said that born bearskin (ζ α λ μ ο), hence the name. Herodotus also mentioned that Zar Mosis was originally a slave of the Greeks, but after he was released and gained wealth and knowledge, he returned to Thrace to preach and promised to give people eternal life and happiness, which was deeply respected by the Thracians. The worship of Zalmoxis is not only influential among Thracians, but also is said to remain in the traditions of other European countries.

If it is difficult to find a mature religious organization in the primitive beliefs of Thrace ministries, then the worship of Zal Mosis by Gaeta people seems to have formed something systematic. Dacia-Gaeta has priests who are both diviners and doctors. As usual, they must live a simple life and eat some food. The priests have also formulated a set of laws based on abstinence for themselves to follow. Above the ordinary priests headed by the high priest, he is almost like God to people, so he must obey his will. The high priest usually lives in a cave on the steep Kogayonon Mountain (about Gu Shan at the junction of Banat, Transylvania and Oltai), and the top of the mountain is generally considered as the closest place to heaven. Rituals usually include prayers, rituals and chanting. Sacrifice to Zalmoxis is usually held on a rectangular or circular altar. The rectangular altar found in Salmizejetusa today consists of a series of stone pillars or logs; The circular altar consists of stone pillars arranged in a circle. In addition, there is an andesite altar symbolizing the sun, which is centered on a round stone slab and surrounded by ten stone slabs symbolizing light. In primitive religion, its organization and ceremony are somewhat similar to Celtic Druidism, and it is also quite stylized.

In addition, there was a prominent member of the Thracian gods, who was called a "hero" by the Thracians during the Hellenistic period. It may be the "knight" of the Thracians that later generations learned from the ruins of the Roman Empire. Its stone statues and bronze statues can only be found in Bulgaria. He has the nature of the god of the underworld, and he is also the giver of plant gods and all natural products, so that in Odysseus' coins in the second century BC, he was depicted as a horn ornament symbolizing abundance. The Thracian name of this god in the inscription may be Dezeras. In the Greek city-states along the Black Sea, such as Tommy, Esteros and Karatis, this Thracian god is generally regarded as a Greek ghost. He is also regarded as the patron saint who gives people health, ensures the safety of their houses and travel, and avoids disasters. He often appears as the god of hunting. It is speculated that among the Thracians, there may have been a medical god similar to Asclepius in Greece, a goddess of spring water corresponding to the water fairy in the Greek mountains, and so on. Due to the passage of time, the Thracian religion gradually disappeared in the torrent of history, and the image of its god was vague, and many elements were finally accommodated by Greek religion. Therefore, exploring the spiritual life of Thracians is inseparable from the in-depth excavation of ancient Greek religions.

As for the way the Thracians interacted with God, it actually had a very obvious primitive color. According to Herodotus, the Gaeta people have a strange habit of shooting arrows into the air during a thunderstorm to intimidate the hostile god who brought lightning. They look forward to the clear blue sky, but they don't want to face the terrible sight of thunder and lightning and try to stop it. They have to blame the unpredictable God, which reflects their fear of nature but they are unwilling to submit. Does expressing their wishes by threats or warnings mean that there is some communication barrier between them and God, which cannot be achieved through sacrifice? When primitive people's consciousness is full of ubiquitous "evil spirits" and they are troubled, as Fraser summarized, they often take various incredible and even absurd "powerful exorcism forms". At the moment, they may not care about their real utility, but pay more attention to the form itself.

This primitiveness in thought and behavior is not difficult to see from the records that Thracians still maintain the custom of human sacrifice. Herodotus described the terrible ceremony provided by the Gaetans to Sal Mosis. In addition, he also listed that during the Persian War, the Apsin people offered Persian prisoners of war as sacrifices to their gods. In fact, almost all nationalities in the world have experienced this popular stage of human sacrifice in their childhood religious life. In Voltaire's words, at that time, human sacrifices "almost stained the whole earth with blood."

Accompanied by the phenomenon of human sacrifice at the expense of human life, there is also the bloodthirsty custom of human sacrifice. According to Herodotus' records, among the Thracians who practiced polygamy, there was still the custom of killing the deceased's pet wife to be buried next to the tomb, which even caused a debate among many wives of the deceased about who was the most favored by their husbands, and other wives who were not selected for burial were ashamed of it. This almost unreasonable disregard for life can be said to be related to the popular concept of immortality of the soul and the concept that people can live forever. Out of the same belief, Trauso's attitude towards life and death is also quite interesting. When the child is born, relatives sit around and lament, counting all kinds of disasters that the child will encounter in his future life; However, when they buried the dead, they were relaxed and happy, because in their view, the dead finally got rid of all the misfortunes in life and reached a perfect and happy state. For them, death is not the end of life, but the transition to a new stage in life.

Herodotus' description of the funeral customs of the upper class of Thracians probably reflects a similar concept. Generally speaking, Chen Fang, the body of the deceased, was left outside to mourn for three days, followed by animal sacrifices and banquets. The remains are either cremated or buried directly in the ground without cremation. After the mound is built, a competition similar to funeral games will be held, and the most difficult thing is to award the highest prize. Archaeological excavations in Bulgaria in the last century confirmed that a considerable number of Thracian graves were cremated, while the rest were buried in the soil. Many tombs have funerary objects, including ordinary utensils and weapons, as well as horses buried with the deceased, which are quite similar to the burial customs of their neighbors in the grasslands of southern Russia.

As an ancient Indo-European ethnic group in the Balkans, Thracians have their own distinctive national character, language, customs and historical traditions, and have formed a generally unified material culture and spiritual culture. Although in terms of overall development level, the ancient Thracians did not break away from the category of primitive civilization, and it was difficult to compare with Greece and Rome, but they still had a unique position in the environment of numerous civilizations, mutual integration and competition in the Mediterranean world, which also had a valuable impact on the cultures of neighboring nationalities, especially the Greeks.