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Monday, July 27, 2020

Is the Hydra An Allegory For Summer?

"[T] the mythical theme of a hero (god) slaying 7 headed dragon keeps popping up again and again in different cultures in Eurasia...

For instance the Ugaritic monster Lotan (meaning "coiled"), also called "the mighty one with seven heads", was a serpent of the sea god Yam. Or Yam himself as he was also called "the serpent". This monster was defeated by the storm god Hadad-Baʿal in the Ugaritic Baal Cycle...

Hadad defeating Lotan, Yahweh defeating Leviathan, Marduk defeating Tiamat, Zeus slaying Typhon, Heracles slaying Hidra, Perun killing Veles, Thor fighting Jörmungandr...Different versions of the same myth which originated most likely in the Fertile Crescent among the Neolithic farmers[.]"

The myth of a great warrior slaying a seven headed beast is an ancient and widespread one. Where did it come from? 

The author of the Old European culture blog makes the case that it is an allegory for the climate trends of the seasons, with the seven heads representing the seven months of the Fertile Crescent's summer.

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