Abuk (mythology)

Abuk is the first woman in the myths of the Dinka people of South Sudan and the Nuer of South Sudan and Ethiopia, who call her Buk [1] or Acol. [2] She is the only well-known female deity of the Dinka.[3] She is also the patron goddess of women as well as gardens. Her emblem or symbols are, a small snake, the moon and sheep. [2] She is the mother of the god of rain and fertility (Danka). The story from her birth to marriage and child-birth is:[2]

“ She was born very small, when placed in a pot, she swelled like a bean. ”
“ Abuk and her mate, called Garang, were given one corn each to eat per day, by the creator god. This happenned at the time when Abuk had finished growing. ”
“ The whole of all human people would have become famished if not for the fact Abuk went to steal the food the people needed. ”
“ The rain god, called Deng, was joined to Abuk in order that there might be an abundance in the land. ”
“ A daughter (Ai-yak) and two sons were born to them. ”

References

  1. ↑ Beswick, Stephanie (2004). Sudan's Blood Memory: The Legacy of War, Ethnicity, and Slavery in South Sudan. Boydell & Brewer. p. 128. ISBN 1-58046-151-4.
  2. 1 2 3 Patricia Monaghan, PhD. Encyclopedia of Goddesses and Heroines. New World Library, 1 Apr 2014 (revised) ISBN 1608682188 (448 pages). Retrieved 2015-05-17.
  3. ↑ Lienhardt, Godfrey (1987). Divinity and Experience: The Religion of the Dinka. Oxford University Press. p. 89. ISBN 0-19-823405-8.
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