*Trito is a significant figure inProto-Indo-European mythology, representing the first warrior and acting as aculture hero.[1] He is connected to other prominent characters, such asManu and Yemo,[1] and is recognized as the protagonist of the myth of the warrior function,[1] establishing the model for all later men of arms.[1] In the legend, Trito is offered cattle as a divine gift by celestial gods,[2] which is later stolen by a three-headed serpent named *H₂n̥gʷʰis ('serpent').[2][3][4] Despite initial defeat, Trito, fortified by an intoxicating drink and aided by theSky-Father,[2][4][5] or alternatively theStorm-God or*H₂nḗr, 'Man',[4][6] together they go to a cave or a mountain, and the hero overcomes the monster and returns the recovered cattle to a priest for it to be properly sacrificed.[2][4][5] He is now the first warrior, maintaining through his heroic deeds the cycle of mutual giving between gods and mortals.[1][4] Scholars have interpreted the story of Trito either as a cosmic conflict between the heavenly hero and the earthly serpent or as an Indo-European victory over non-Indo-European people, with the monster symbolizing the aboriginal thief or usurper.[7] Trito's character served as a model for later cattle-raiding epic myths and was seen as providing moral justification for cattle raiding.[1] The legend of Trito is generally accepted among scholars and is recognized as an essential part of Proto-Indo-European mythology, although not to the level of Manu and Yemo.[8]
Following a first paper on the cosmogonical legend of Manu and Yemo, published simultaneously withJaan Puhvel in 1975 (who pointed out the Roman reflex of the story),Bruce Lincoln assembled the initial part of the myth with the legend of the third man Trito in a single ancestral motif.[9][4][10]
Since the 1970s, the reconstructed motifs of Manu and Yemo, and to a lesser extent that of Trito, have been generally accepted among scholars.[8]
According to Lincoln the legend of Trito should be interpreted as "a myth of the warrior function, establishing the model for all later men of arms".[1] WhileManu and Yemo seem to be the protagonists of "a myth of the sovereign function, establishing the model for later priests and kings",[1] The myth indeed recalls theDuméziliantripartition of the cosmos between the priest (in both his magical and legal aspects), the warrior (the Third Man), and the herder (the cow).[4]
The story of Trito served as a model for latercattle raiding epic myths and most likely as a moral justification for the practice of raiding among Indo-European peoples. In the original legend, Trito is only taking back what rightfully belongs to his people, those who sacrifice properly to the gods.[1] The myth has been interpreted either as a cosmic conflict between the heavenly hero and the earthly serpent, or as an Indo-European victory over non-Indo-European people, the monster symbolizing the aboriginal thief or usurper.[7]
Cognates stemming from the First Warrior*Trito ('Third') include the VedicTrita, the hero who recovered the stolen cattle from the serpentVṛtrá; the AvestanThraētona ('son of Thrita'), who won back the abducted women from the serpentAži Dahāka; and the Norseþriði ('Third'), one of thenames of Óðinn.[11][12][5] Other cognates may appear in the Greek expressionstrítos sōtḗr (τρίτος σωτήρ; 'Third Saviour'), an epithet ofZeus, andtritogḗneia (τριτογήνεια; 'Third born' or 'born of Zeus'), an epithet ofAthena; and perhaps in the Slavic mythical heroTrojan [ru], found in Russian and Serbian legends alike.[12][a]
H₂n̥gʷʰis is a reconstructed noun meaning 'serpent'.[3][4] Descendent cognates can be found in the IranianAži, the name of the inimical serpent, and in the Indicáhi ('serpent'), a term used to designate the monstrous serpentVṛtrá,[12] both descending fromProto-Indo-Iranian*Háǰʰiš.[14]
| Tradition | First Warrior | Three-headed Serpent | Helper God | Stolen present |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proto-Indo-European | *Trito ('Third') | *H₂n̥gʷʰis | TheStorm-god or *H₂nḗr ('Man') | Cattle |
| Indian | Trita | Vṛtrá ('áhi') | Indra | Cows |
| Iranian | Thraētona ('son ofThrita') | Aži Dahāka | *Vr̥traghna | Women |
| Germanic | þriði,Hymir | Three serpents | Þórr | Goats (?) |
| Graeco-Roman | Herakles | Geryon,Cācus | Helios | Cattle |
| Part ofa Mythology series on |
| Chaoskampf orDrachenkampf |
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| Comparative mythology ofsea serpents,dragons anddragonslayers. |
Myths
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One common myth found in nearly all Indo-European mythologies is a battle ending with ahero orgod slaying aserpent ordragon of some sort.[16][17][18] Although the details of the story often vary widely, several features remain remarkably the same in all iterations. The protagonist of the story is usually athunder-god, or a hero somehow associated with thunder.[19] His enemy the serpent is generally associated with water and depicted as multi-headed, or else "multiple" in some other way.[18] Indo-European myths often describe the creature as a "blocker of waters", and his many heads get eventually smashed up by the thunder-god in an epic battle, releasing torrents of water that had previously been pent up.[20] The original legend may have symbolized theChaoskampf, a clash between forces of order and chaos.[21] The dragon or serpent loses in every version of the story, although in some mythologies, such as theNorseRagnarök myth, the hero or the god dies with his enemy during the confrontation.[22] HistorianBruce Lincoln has proposed that the dragon-slaying tale and the creation myth of*Trito killing the serpent *H₂n̥gʷʰis may actually belong to the same original story.[23][6]Reflexes of the Proto-Indo-European dragon-slaying myth appear in most Indo-European poetic traditions, where the myth has left traces of the formulaic sentence*(h₁e) gʷʰent h₁ógʷʰim, meaning "[he] slew the serpent".[24]
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InHittite mythology, the storm godTarhunt slays the giant serpentIlluyanka,[25] as does the Vedic godIndra the multi-headed serpentVritra, which has been causing a drought by trapping the waters in his mountain lair.[20]
[26] Several variations of the story are also found inGreek mythology.[27] The original motif appears inherited in the legend ofZeus slaying the hundred-headedTyphon, as related byHesiod in theTheogony,[17][28] and possibly in the myth ofHeracles slaying the nine-headedLernaean Hydra and in the legend ofApollo slaying the earth-dragonPython.[17][29] The story ofHeracles's theft of the cattle ofGeryon is probably also related.[17] Although he is not usually thought of as a storm deity in the conventional sense, Heracles bears many attributes held by other Indo-European storm deities, including physical strength and a knack for violence and gluttony.[17][30]
The original motif is also reflected inGermanic mythology.[31] TheNorse god of thunderThor slays the giant serpentJörmungandr, which lived in the waters surrounding the realm ofMidgard.[32][33] In theVölsunga saga,Sigurd slays the dragonFafnir and, inBeowulf, the eponymous hero slaysa different dragon.[34] The depiction of dragons hoarding a treasure (symbolizing the wealth of the community) in Germanic legends may also be a reflex of the original myth of the serpent holding waters.[24]
InZoroastrianism and inPersian mythology,Fereydun (and laterGarshasp) slays the serpentZahhak. InAlbanian mythology, thedrangue, semi-human divine figures associated with thunders, slay thekulshedra, huge multi-headed fire-spitting serpents associated with water and storms. TheSlavic god of stormsPerun slays his enemy the dragon-godVeles, as does thebogatyr heroDobrynya Nikitich to the three-headed dragonZmey.[32] A similar execution is performed by theArmenian god of thundersVahagn to the dragonVishap,[35] by theRomanian knight heroFăt-Frumos to the fire-spitting monsterZmeu, and by theCeltic god of healingDian Cecht to the serpent Meichi.[21]
InShinto, where Indo-European influences throughVedic religion can be seen in mythology, the storm godSusanoo slays the eight-headed serpentYamata no Orochi.[36]
TheGenesis narrative ofJudaism andChristianity, as well as the dragon appearing inRevelation 12 can be interpreted[by whom?] as a retelling of the serpent-slaying myth. The Deep orAbyss from or on top of whichGod is said to make the world is translated from theBiblical HebrewTehom (Hebrew: תְּהוֹם). Tehom is acognate of theAkkadian wordtamtu andUgaritict-h-m which have similar meaning. As such it was equated with the earlier Babylonian serpentTiamat.[37]
FolkloristAndrew Lang suggests that the serpent-slaying myth morphed into a folktale motif of a frog or toad blocking the flow of waters.[38]
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