Dyaus (Vedic Sanskrit: à ¤¦à ¥Âà ¤¯à ¥Âà ¤¸à ¥Â, ) or Dyauspitr (Vedic Sanskrit: à ¤¦à ¥Âà ¤¯à ¥Âà ¤·à ¥Âà ¤ªà ¤¿à ¤¤à ¥Â, ) is the Rigvedic sky deity. His consort is Prithvi, the earth goddess, and together they are the archetypal parents in the Rigveda.
stems from Proto-Indo-Iranian , from the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) daylight-sky god , and is cognate with the Greek â Zeus PatÃÂr, or Dei-pátrous, and Latin Jupiter (from Old Latin Dies piter ), stemming from the PIE ("Daylight-sky Father").'
The noun (when used without the 'father') refers to the daylight sky, and occurs frequently in the Rigveda, as an entity. The sky in Vedic writing was described as rising in three tiers: , , and or .
Dyáuá¹£ Pitá¹Âàappears in hymns with Prithvi Mata, 'Mother Earth' in the ancient Vedic scriptures of Hinduism.
In the á¹Âg÷veda, Dyáuá¹£ Pitá¹Âàappears in verses 1.89.4, 1.90.7, 1.164.33, 1.191.6, 4.1.10. and 4.17.4 He is also referred to under different theonyms: Dyavaprithvi, for example, is a dvandva compound combining 'heaven' and 'earth' as Dyauá¹£ and Prithvi.
Dyauá¹£'s most defining trait is his paternal role. His daughter, Uá¹£as, personifies dawn. The gods, especially Sà «rya, are stated to be the children of Dyauá¹£ and Prithvi. Dyauá¹£'s other sons include Agni, Parjanya, the ÃÂdityas, the Maruts, and the Angirases. The Ashvins are called "divó nápÃÂt", meaning offspring/progeny/grandsons of Dyauá¹£. Dyauá¹£ is often visualized as a roaring animal, often a bull, who fertilizes the earth. Dyauá¹£ is also known for the rape of his own daughter, which Jamison and Brereton (2014) state is "obliquely but vividly" mentioned in the Rigveda.
Dyauá¹£ is also stated to be like a black stallion studded with pearls in a simile with the night sky.
Indra's separation of Dyauá¹£ and Prithvi is celebrated in the Rigveda as an important creation myth.
In the Mahabharata Bhishma is the human incarnation of Dyaus after the Vasus got cursed to living a human life on earth for stealing from Vasishtha out of pride and desire. 7 of the Vasus got forgiven quickly but Dyaus the one who lead the act by physically stealing from Vasistha was singled out to remain on earth for a long duration, while the others were liberated shortly after birth. Dyaus incarnated as Devavrata, who later became known as Bhishma..