Re: There was Three Smiths

Fristly, the THREE was the magic number on many things in IE
mythologies. The ancient Europeans were wont to see, it seems, most
things in terms of three. The names of the Cyclopes suggests some
relationship with the thunder god, though links between the thunder
god and smith-god are sparse in the IE mythologies. Except for the
Cyclopes relationship with Zeus and the Baltic thunder- and smith-
god affinity, most smith-gods seem more like chthonic gods than sky-
gods.

Still, it seems that the early IE peoples saw some connection: the
smith's hammer is an attribute of the thunder god, his hammering is
like thunder (I guess). The fire in his forge was sometimes
identified with a male spirit (as with the Balts and Slavs) as
opposed to the female spirit of the house hearth (as with Hestia and
Vesta, etc.). The third smith-god you adeptly cite may be from the
sparks that are made when the hammer beats the metal? Maybe he was a
magician that turned the ore into metal?

--- In cybalist@..., "João S. Lopes Filho" <jodan99@...> wrote:
> PIE Smith God: One or Three
>
> It's clear to me that PIE myth had a triad of Three Smith Gods
(perhaps originally carpenters).
> Let's see:
>
> The Three Cyclopes (Greece) : Brontes, Steropes, Arges
> The Three Rbhu (India) : Rbhuks.an, Vaja, Vibhu
> The Three (or Four) Elves, Ivaldir's sons (Scandinavia) : Alfrigr,
Grerr, Bergling ...or...Eitri, Brokk, Sindri
> The Three Irish Smiths : Goibniu, Luchtar and Creidne (or Cian,
Samain and Goibniu)
>
> And more:
> The Four/Three Telkhines? - Ormenos, Lykos, Akteus and
Megalesios ...or... Argyron, Khryson and Kalkhon
> The Three Builders of Thebas walls - Amphion, Zethos, Lokros
> The Three Builders of Trojan walls - Poseidon, Apollon and Aiakos
>
> My hypothesis is that there were Three Smith Gods, possibly three
men that was turned into gods to honour their great squills. Their
were:
> THUNDER - names
meaning "thunder", "thunderer", "strong", "noisy", "copper/bronze"
> LIGHTNING - names
meaning "quick", "violent", "penetrant", "hot", "burning", "gold"
> FLASH - names meaninh "shining", "white", "gleaming", "silver"
>
> I'd like to discuss it.
>
> Joao SL
> Rio de Janeiro