Aesir-Asura correspondence
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Aesir-Asura correspondence is the relation between æsir, an Old Norse word meaning "gods" (the plural of the singular word áss "god") and ásuraḥ, a Sanskrit word referring to certain warlike and aggressive demons. Also related is the Avestan word ahura, found as the title of the God Ahura Mazda.
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[edit] Linguistics
The Proto-Germanic form of Old Norse áss, deduced by comparison to other Germanic languages, living and dead, is *ansuz. The plural of this Proto-Germanic word was *ansiwiz, which by regular sound changes into æsir.
The word ásuraḥ can be postulated to come from Proto-Indo-Iranian *n̩suras, where *n̩su- is the zero-grade form equivalent to the Gemanic *ansu-, both from a Proto-Indo-European root *H2ensu-. In Sanskrit, ásuḥ (PIIr *n̩sus) means "vital spirit" or "life", and is presumably related, suggesting a common meaning "spirit".
[edit] Meaning
Both words describe a family of divine beings, the Æsir is the pantheon of the principal Norse gods, and Asuras are a group of Hindu demons. Each group is set up against another group of gods; the Æsir warred with the Vanir, whereas the Asuras oppose the devas. In Norse mythology the Æsir are generally approved of (and worshipped) while the asuras have a more negative reputation in the Indian religions. However, the use of ahura to refer to the greatest god of Zoroastrianism implies that the word once had more favorable connotations.
[edit] References
- Watkins, Calvert. 2000. The American Heritage Dictionary of Indo-European Roots. New York, Houghton Mifflin.
