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| SOMA - THE MOON GOD |
Soma is the moon god also known as Chandra. Soma is identified with amrita (nectar).
He is represented as a copper colored man, trailing a red pennant behind his
three wheeled chariot, which is drawn either by an antelope or by ten white horses.
He has normally four hands, one carrying a mace, second carrying nectar or soma,
the third carrying a lotus and the last in protective mode. His lineage says
he was the son of Dharma or of Varuna, lord of oceans, from which the moon rises.
According to a legend, Surya nourishes the moon with the
water from the ocean when Soma is exhausted by the many beings that feed upon
his substance.
It is believed that during half the month, thirty six thousand divinities feed
on Soma and thus assure their immortality. This account neatly combines the two
aspects of Soma: as the nectar from which, the gods derive their strength and
as the moon that waxes and wanes.
The legend of the banishment of Soma by Brahma to the outer atmosphere can be
interpreted as yet another myth explaining how intoxicants came to be banned. |
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