Faunus/Silvanus and Vedic Rudra:

an Indo-European god of cattle and his sexuality

Sexualit et procration: les dieux, les hros et les hommes

(Louvain-la-Neuve, 12-14 septembre 2013)
Kreimir Vukovi (University of Oxford)

-Indo-European pantheon: inconsistencies and overlaps?

Sky god IE *D(i)yus: Vedic D(i)yus - Iovis (gen.), etc.
-a clear case (functional and linguistic correspondence), the sky god retains his name
-a problem in the case of other divinities: names liable to taboo (Jakobson, Dumzil)
1 But for the most part the different pantheons have very little in common, at least in terms of
shared names. Sometimes a gods essence survived under a different name, or his functions
were taken over by another deity (134) we can look for common features distinctive
enough to suggest historical identity even in the absence of a shared name (West 2007: 142).
2 Faunus and Silvanus: separate divinities?
identification: K. Latte (1960: 83), G. Wissowa (1912: 213), G. Dumzil (1972: 350-2)
separation: Dorcey (1992: 33- 40)
2a Faunus <favere, with faustus, favorthe favour of the gods (Walde-Hoffmann 1938:
1.464 and Ernout-Meillet 2001: 220)
2b Silvanus<silva, woodland deity, the savage
Vulgar Latin silvaticus/salvaticus (OF salvage, Pr. salvatge, Sp. salvaje, It. selvaggio,
etc.) whence came the English word savage and French sauvage
Faunus
Silvanus

cult
public
private

space
inside the city
outside the city

name
favourable
savage

2c Many extant parallels between Vedic India and Rome such as

rituals: suovetaurilia, October Equus, Fordicidia, Vestalia, Lupercalia
social functions: rex-rjs, pontifex-pathikt, flamen-Brhmana (Brahmin)
deities: Neptunus-Apm Napt, Vulcanus/Vesta-Agni, Mars-Indra, Mater Matuta-Uas, etc.
3 Etymology of Rudra:
< IE *rud- Latin rudis (Mayrhofer 1992: II 452-453; Gonda 1964: 112; Dumzil 1972: 420421) wild, rude = Silvanus

3a Bhava and iva, Yajurveda: Vjasaneyi Sahit 16

41 nma ambavya ca mayobavya ca
nma akarya ca mayaskarya ca nma
iv y a ca ivtarya ca

41 Homage to the cause of happiness and to

the cause of well-being, homage to the maker
of happiness and to the maker of well-being,
homage to the auspicious (iva), homage
to the more auspicious.

49 a y te rudra iv tan iv vivh

beaj \

49a that form of yours, O Rudra, which is

auspicious, healing at all times,

b iv rutsya beaj ty no ma jvse\\

b be merciful to us with that (form),

auspicious, healing of illness, so that we
may live.

51a muama vatama iv na

sumn bava \

Most liberal, most auspicious, be

auspicious (iva), well-minded towards us.

54a sakyt sahsri y rudr dhi

bmym\
b tm sahasrayojan va dnvni tanmasi\\
55a asmn mahaty rav ntrike bav
di\
b tm sahasrayojan va dnvni tanmasi \\

54 Innumerable thousands are the Rudras

on the face of the earth:
Of those we unstring the bows at a thousand
leagues.
55 (Innumerable thousands are) the Bhavas
in this great agitated atmosphere,
Of those we unstring the bows at a thousand
leagues.

binary opposition: savage (Silvanus, Rudra) vs. favourable (Faunus, Bhava, iva)

4 savage nature and abode

Rudra: only three hymns in the Rig Veda: 1.114; 2.33; 7.46. (75 references altogether)

4a e.g. Rig Veda 1.114.6-8, 10

6. These words, sweeter than sweet, are

6 idm pitr martm ucyate vca
spoken to the Maruts' father, as a means of
svd svdyo rudrya vrdanam /
rsv ca no amrta martabjana tmne strengthening Rudra. And give us, o
immortal god, the food of mortals! Be
tokya tnayya mra //
gracious unto me, my child and my
grandchild!
7 m no mahntam ut m no arbakm
7. Slay not the great among us nor the small!
m na kantam ut m na ukitm /
Slay not the growing among us nor the
m no vad pitram mt mtram m grown! Slay not our father nor our mother!
na priys tanv rudra rria //
Harm not our dear selves, Rudra!
8. Harm us not in child and grandchild nor 'in
8 m nas tok tnaye m na ya m no
a living mortal, harm us not in cows nor in
horses! Slay not our heroes in anger, Rudra!
gu m no veu rria /
Provided with an oblation, we call upon you
vrn m no rudra bmit vadr
every day.
havmanta sdam t tv havmahe//
10 Far away let be your cow-killing and your
man-killing! O ruler of heroes, let your
10 r te gognm ut pruagn
benevolence be upon us! Be gracious unto us
kyadvra sumnm asm te astu /
and speak for us, O god! And so, doubly
h
mr ca no di ca brhi devd ca na
strong extend to us protection! (trans.
rma yaca dvibrh //
Maurer)

4b Varro, ritual against Silvanus, apud Augustinum De Civitate Dei 6.9

Horace (Carm. 3.18.1-4) with Porphyry ad loc.
Cicero Pro Caelio 26 (the Lupercalia)

5 god of cattle and fields: Paupati (lord of cattle) arvorum pecorisque deo (V. A. 8.601)
Catos ritual to Mars and Silvanus (De Agri Cultura 83): votum pro bubus, uti valeant
inscriptions set up by foresters (saltuarii): CIL 5.2383, 5548; 9.3421; 10.1409
Horace Carmina 3.18: a poem for the rural festival of Faunus, protector of cattle

6 healing and fertility

6a Rudra has a healing hand (bheajo jala RV 2.33.7) and a thousand remedies (7.46)

invoked to remove sickness and ensure health (RV 7.46.2; 1.114.1)

the greatest physician of physicians (bhiaktama tv bhiaj omi 2.33.4).

6b Bona Dea, i.e. Fauna (Serv. A. 8.314; Arn. 1.36; 5.18)

pharmacy in her temple (Macr. 1.12.26)

votive inscriptions (Brouwer 1989: 346-7)

7 Multiplicity and gender

7a Ennius Annales, book 7 fragment 4

versibus quos olim Fauni vatesque canebant with verses which Fauns and poets once sang

7b Varro de Lingua Latina 7.36

Fauni dei Latinorum, ita ut Faunus et Fauna
sit; hos versibus quos vocant Saturnios in
silvestribus locis traditum est solitos fari
futura, quo fando Faunos dictos.

Fauns are the gods of Latins, as are Faunus

and Fauna. It is said that these used to
prophesy the future in woodland, in the
verses that are called Saturnians. From this
prophesying they were called Fauns.

8 Connection with the god of war

Indra-Maruts-Rudra

Mars-Luperci-Faunus

Indra and the Maruts (RV hymns 1.100; 1.101; 1.165; 8.65; 10.113, etc.)
Faunus: son of MarsDion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 1.31
: son of PicusVirgil Aeneid 7.45-9

Animals sacred to Mars: lupus (wolf) and picus (woodpecker) (Plut. Rom. 4, Q. R. 21; Ov. F.
3.37-8)
Ovid Fasti 3.291-392: Picus and Faunus summon Juppiter who gives Numa the ancile
(sacred shield), carried in the procession of the Salii (priests of Mars)
Lupercipriests of Faunus, Lupercalcave of Mars

9 Fordicidia apad a ritual parallel, Dumzil (1954: 11-25)

morte bovum tibi, rex, Tellus placanda duarum

det sacris animas una iuvenca duas.
(F. 4.665-6)

King, you will placate Tellus by the death

of oxen. Let one heifer give two souls in
sacrifice!

offered to Earth/Sky pair and Maruts (the Rudrs) in India (VS 8.29-32; B 4.5.2)

offered to only Tellus in Rome, but the ritual is revealed by Faunus (Ovid F. 4.641-72)

10 Sexuality

Fauna: Faunus wife: Arn. 1.36; Iust. 43.1.8; Lact. 1.22.11 or

daughter Serv. A. 8.314; Tert. Ad Nat. 2.9; Macrob. 1.12 incest
Servius (A. 6.775): Inuus ab inneundo passim cum omnibus animalibus
Macrobius (1.12) Faunus takes the form of a serpent
aetiology: wine, bundles of myrtle and snakes in Faunas temple
Prajpati has sex with his daughter in the form of an antelope (e.g. Aitareya Brhmaa 3.33)
gods create Rudra to punish him, piercing with an arrow
aetiology: Prajpati is the sacrifice, which has the nature of game and dkita (one who
prepares the sacrifice) wears a black antelope skin

Scheuer (1993)

sacrifice establishes order but Rudra represents and is able to contain its violent aspect
In Rome, Faunus makes a terrifying appearance in the exclusively female rites of Bona Dea.

Selected bibliography
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Brouwer, H. H. J. (1989) Bona Dea: The Sources and a Description of the Cult. (Leiden)
Das, R. P. (2000) Indra and iva/Rudra in P. Balcerowicz and M. Mejor (eds), On the
Understanding of Other Cultures: Proceedings of the International Conference on Sanskrit and
Related Studies (Warsaw), 105-25
Dorcey, P. F. (1992) The Cult of Silvanus: A Study in Roman Folk Religion. (New York)
Chakravarti, M. (1986) The Concept of Rudra-Shiva through the Ages. (Delhi)
Dumzil, G. (1954) Rituels indo-europens Rome (Paris)
Dumzil, G. (1970) Archaic Roman Religion. (Chicago)
Ernoult, A. and Meillet, A. (2001) Dictionaire tymologique de la langue latine. Fourth edition
(Paris)
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(1960) Rmische Religionsgeschichte. (Munchen)
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Mayrhofer, M. (1986) Etymologisches Wrterbuch des Altindoarischen. (Heidelberg). Neas
Hraste, D. and Vukovi, K. (2011) Rudra-Shiva and Silvanus-Faunus: Savage and
Propitious. Journal of Indo-European Studies 39.1&2: 100-15
Oldenberg, H. (1993) The Religion of the Veda. (Delhi)
Parker, H. C. (1993) Romani numen soli: Faunus in Ovids Fasti TAPA 123: 199-217
Scheuer, J. (1993) Rudra/iva and the Destruction of the Sacrifice in Y. Bonnefoy (ed.) Asian
Mythologies (Chicago), 39-43
Srinavasan, D. M. (1983) Vedic Rudra-iva Journal of the American Oriental Society 103.3:
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Walde, A. and Hoffmann, J. B. (1938) Lateinisches etymologisches Wrterbuch.
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West, M. (2007) Indo-European Poetry and Myth. (Oxford)
Wissowa, Georg (1912) Religion und Kultus der Rmer. (Munchen)
kresimir.vukovic@merton.ox.ac.uk