![Relief libation Louvre AO276](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Relief_libation_Louvre_AO276.jpg)
A vegetation deity is a
nature deity whose disappearance and reappearance, or
life, death and rebirth, embodies the growth cycle of plants. In
nature worship, the
deity can be a
god
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
or
goddess with the ability to
regenerate itself. A vegetation deity is often a
fertility deity
A fertility deity is a god or goddess associated with fertility, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, and crops. In some cases these deities are directly associated with these experiences; in others they are more abstract symbols. Fertility rites may acc ...
. The deity typically undergoes dismemberment (see ''
sparagmos
''Sparagmos'' ( grc, σπαραγμός, from σπαράσσω ''sparasso'', "tear, rend, pull to pieces") is an act of rending, tearing apart, or mangling, usually in a Dionysian context.
In Dionysian rite as represented in myth and literature, ...
''), scattering, and reintegration, as narrated in a
myth or reenacted by a religious
ritual
A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...
. The cyclical pattern is given theological significance on themes such as
immortality
Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality.
Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immorta ...
,
resurrection
Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, whic ...
, and
reincarnation
Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is ...
. Vegetation myths have
structural
A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such ...
resemblances to certain
creation myths in which parts of a
primordial being's body generate aspects of the
cosmos
The cosmos (, ) is another name for the Universe. Using the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity.
The cosmos, and understandings of the reasons for its existence and significance, are studied in ...
, such as the
Norse myth
Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...
of
Ymir
In Norse mythology, Ymir (, ), also called Aurgelmir, Brimir, or Bláinn, is the ancestor of all jötnar. Ymir is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material, in the ''Prose Edda'', writ ...
.
In
mythography of the 19th and early 20th century, as for example in ''
The Golden Bough'' of
J.G. Frazer, the figure is related to the "corn spirit", "corn" in this sense meaning grain in general. That triviality is giving the concept its tendency to turn into a meaningless generality, as
Walter Friedrich Otto
Walter Friedrich Gustav Hermann Otto (22 June 1874, in Hechingen – 23 September 1958, in Tübingen) was a German classical philologist particularly known for his work on the meaning and legacy of Greek religion and mythology, especially as rep ...
remarked of trying to use a "name as futile and yet pretentious as 'Vegetation deity'".
Examples of vegetation myths
![MotherGoddessFertility](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/MotherGoddessFertility.JPG)
In the
Mesopotamian tradition, during the journey of
Inanna or
Ishtar
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Su ...
to the underworld, the earth becomes sterile, and neither humans nor animals are able to procreate. After confronting
Ereshkigal, her sister and ruler of the underworld, Inanna is killed, but an emissary from the gods administers potions to restore her to life. She is allowed to return to the upper world only if someone else will take her place. Her husband, the vegetation god
Dumuzi, agrees to spend half the year in the underworld, during which time vegetation dies off. His return brings regrowth.
[Stookey, ''Thematic Guide to World Mythology'', p. 99.]
In
ancient Egyptian religion, the cultural achievements of
Osiris
Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wsjr'', cop, ⲟⲩⲥⲓⲣⲉ , ; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎𐤓, romanized: ʾsr) is the god of fertility, agriculture, the afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He wa ...
among the peoples of the earth provokes the envy of his brother
Set
Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to:
Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics
*Set (mathematics), a collection of elements
*Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively
Electro ...
, who kills and dismembers him. Osiris's wife
Isis
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kin ...
makes a journey to gather his fourteen scattered body parts. In some versions, she buries each part where she finds it, causing the desert to put forth vegetation. In other versions, she reassembles his body and resurrects him, and he then becomes the ruler of the
afterlife.
In
European folklore
European folklore or Western folklore refers to the folklore of the Western world, especially when discussed comparatively.
The history of Christendom during the Early Modern period has resulted in a number of traditions that are shared in many ...
, a woman's fertility has an influence on farming. Vegetation goddess figurines from the
Cucuteni-Trypillian culture have a
lozenge
Lozenge or losange may refer to:
* Lozenge (shape), a type of rhombus
*Throat lozenge, a tablet intended to be dissolved slowly in the mouth to suppress throat ailments
*Lozenge (heraldry), a diamond-shaped object that can be placed on the field of ...
and dot pattern that represents a
sown
Sowing is the process of planting seeds. An area or object that has had seeds planted in it will be described as a sowed or sown area.
Plants which are usually sown
Among the major field crops, oats, wheat, and rye are sown, grasses and le ...
field
Field may refer to:
Expanses of open ground
* Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes
* Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport
* Battlefield
* Lawn, an area of mowed grass
* Meadow, a grass ...
and female fertility. The death of vegetation is also associated with the travel to the underworld of
Ningishzida
Ningishzida ( Sumerian: DNIN-G̃IŠ-ZID-DA, possible meaning "Lord f theGood Tree") was a Mesopotamian deity of vegetation, the underworld and sometimes war. He was commonly associated with snakes. Like Dumuzi, he was believed to spend a part ...
.
In Christianity
In the
parables of Jesus
The parables of Jesus are found in the Synoptic Gospels and some of the non-canonical gospels. They form approximately one third of his recorded teachings. Christians place great emphasis on these parables, which they generally regard as the wo ...
, such as the
Parable of the Sower, "the sower soweth the word" where the
seed
A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...
is the word of God. The parables of
the mustard seed and
the growing seed explain the
Kingdom of God where growth is due to God, not man,
[Richard N. Longenecker, ]
The Challenge of Jesus' Parables
', Eerdmans, 2000, , p. 97. and follows its own timetable.
[James R. Edwards, ]
The Gospel According to Mark
', Eerdmans, 2002, , pp. 142-144.
In the
John 12
John 12 is the twelfth chapter of the Gospel of John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It narrates an anointing of Jesus' feet, attributed to Mary of Bethany, as well as an account of the triumphal entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. ...
:24, the
death and resurrection of Jesus
The resurrection of Jesus ( grc-x-biblical, ἀνάστασις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ) is the Christian belief that God raised Jesus on the third day after his crucifixion, starting – or restoring – his exalted life as Christ and Lord ...
is compared to a kernel that falls in the ground and dies, and then produces many seeds. In many
Christian traditions,
Easter
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
sunrise service
Sunrise service is a worship service on Easter Sunday practiced by some Christian denominations, such as the Moravian Church.
The sunrise service takes place outdoors, sometimes in a park, and the attendees are seated on outdoor chairs or bench ...
or ''Resurrection Service'' is held in
God's Acre where the bodies of the dead are "sown as seed." The
sowing of seeds also refers to scattering of people away from their ancestral homeland.
List of vegetation deities
Other examples of vegetation deities include:
[Unless otherwise noted, examples in this list are from Stookey, ''Thematic Guide to World Mythology'', p. 99.]
See also
References
Further reading
* Hatt, Gudmund. "The Corn Mother in America and in Indonesia." Anthropos 46, no. 5/6 (1951): 853–914. Accessed July 8, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/40449544.
{{List of mythological figures by region
Comparative mythology
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