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Faiths of Man : A Cyclopædia of Religions · 1906 · p. 256
uncouth images of this lame stunted god were placed in houses, beside the sacred fire, among Greeks. Héphaistos wedded Aphrodité, the dawn, who was false to him when Ares—the storm cloud—wooed her. But he himself was fickle in his loves, and hates, pleasing and offending both gods and men. He is represented with the conical hat—the cone being a fire emblem. Her. Herr. A Teutonic root, to be distinguished from har “bright” (see Ar), and connected with the Armenian Ayr, and Latin Vir, as meaning a “powerful” man. These two roots are much confused: Her-man in Teutonic speech is the “noble man”; but Her-man-sul is a sun deity. Héra. Héré. Greek. The sister and bride of Zeus, and, as such, the queen or consort of heaven. The origin of the name is disputed. [Probably the “earth” who is the great gode , and wife of heaven, in all other mythologies (see Earth). She watches heaven jealously, because of changing weather; and heaven sets Argus—the “shining” star sky to watch her at night, Argus being fitly represented by the dark-blue peacock’s tail, with its many bright eyes— Ep.] Heéré presides over marriage and birth, and other earthly matters, and punishes those who desecrate marriage, and forget their vows, and the fees payable to her priests at weddings. She is jealous and quarrelsome—a daughter of Kronos and Rhea (“time” and “earth”); and is said to have been swallowed by her father, but restored. The Arkadians said that Temenos, son of Pelasgos, nourished her in childhood. When she married Zeus, Gé (“earth”) gave her a tree with golden apples, guarded by the nymphs of the Hesperidés garden, and by Ladén the dragon (see Rivers of Life, i, p. 138, fig. 51). Héré herself was symbolised by a pear in Argos —a heart shaped fruit (see Heart). She is sometimes virgin, and childle ; but also the mother of Hébé (the young gra ), Héphaistos (the underground fire), and Ares (the storm); in statuary she appears robed, or veiled, with diadem, and sceptre, and the peacock beside her. Ixion tempted her, but embraced Nephelé, and was bound to the fiery wheel in hell. She has been called the night sky, being mistre of heaven; but was especially the mother and bride. Héraklés. Herculés. The Greek and Latin names of the sun-hero, As an Aryan name it may be rendered “the admirable man” (see Her), many Greek names ending in “klés” (see Greek Kallos, “fine,” “ beautiful,” “admirable,” and Kleos, “glory”). But po ibly it is a borrowed name, from the Akkadian Er-gal (“ big man”), since the hero, in his lion-skin, is found in Babylonia, and his myth is very similar to those of Gilgamas and Samson. The Turanian Etruskans had their Erklé (see Etruskans); and from them, rather than from the Greeks, the Latins may have taken their legends. According to Fisk (Myth., p. 117), Hercules was not a sun god, but “a peaceful domestic deity, watching over households, and enclosures, and nearly akin to Terminus.” He was the emblem of strength to Romans. ‘The Italian legends came from Asia Minor, and included a variant of that of Héraklés and Gerudnes. Cacus (supposed to be Kakos “bad,” or Cacus “ blind”) was son of Vulcan, and a three headed monster in a cave. He stole the cows of Hercules (as the Panis stole those of Indra) from their pasture in the Forum Boarium, or “cow market,” near the Porta Trigemina, and carried them to his cavern on the Aventine, dragging them backwards by their tails. 256
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