Prof. Hock is of course quite right. However, perhaps one should add that although figure of Dyaus is already obviously going out of worship  even in the RV, his function as  sky/storm divinity has been largely transferred to Indra in particular, as the latter's worship becomes more central to the vedic religion.  But we must remember that, practically speaking, none of the vedic divinities actually disappears from the textual tradition, as witness e.g. the role of Dyaus in the Mahābhārata where he is cursed to be re-born as a mortal and thus becomes the critically important epic figure Pitāmaha Bhīṣma.

Bob Goldman

On May 30, 2022, at 9:50 AM, Hock, Hans Henrich via INDOLOGY <indology@list.indology.info> wrote:

Dear Dean,

Even in the RigVeda dyauṣ pitṛ appears only six times; dyauḥ by itself, of course, occurs frequently, but often in feminine gender. In addition, there is the compound dyāvāpṛthivī. 

So, while dyauṣ pitṛ (and his relation to pṛthivī mātṛ) may be important from the perspective of comparative Indo-European mythology, his role in the Vedic tradition is highly diminished from the beginning. Other deities (Agni, Indra, Mitra, Varuṇa, etc.) play a more important role, and in Vedic Prose, Viṣṇu, as personification of the sacrifice, becomes more important (as well as Rudra), and of course Prajāpati, the ‘lord of creatures’. 

I hope this at least partly answers your query.

All the best,

Hans Henrich



On 30 May2022, at 08:43, Dean Michael Anderson via INDOLOGY <indology@list.indology.info> wrote:

Dear Indology List,

Can anyone point me to any studies that discuss what happened to the Vedic Dyaus Pater who was important in the Rig Veda but who seems to have been supplanted in later times?

It's particularly interesting for Indo-European studies because Dyaus is related to the Greek Zeus and the Germanic Tyr/Tius and Dyaus Pater to the Roman Ju-piter.

Best,

Dean

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