Oesho

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coin of the Kushan king Kanishka II with, on the reverse, a supposed depiction of Shiva and the word Oesho in modified Greek script.

Oesho was a deity represented on ancient Kushan coins, and apparently one of the titular deity of the ancient Kushans. The deity is often though to be identical with Shiva (I'sha), and "Oesho" would just be the pronunciation of Shiva's name in the Bactrian language of the Kushans.

Recent studies though tend to indicate that Oesho was an Iranian god, derived from Herakles, with admittedly many of the attributes of Shiva (H.Humback, 1975, p.402-408. K.Tanabe, 1997, p.277, M.Carter, 1995, p.152. J.Cribb, 1997, p.40. References cited in "De l'Indus à l'Oxus".)

[edit] References

• Bopearachchi, Osmund (2003). De l'Indus à l'Oxus, Archéologie de l'Asie Centrale (in French). Lattes: Association imago-musée de Lattes. ISBN 2-9516679-2-2.