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The name of the month January is associated with his name. Janus is one of the most ancient Roman indigenous gods, who, together with the goddess of the hearth Vesta, occupied a prominent place in Roman ritual.

He was depicted with two faces facing in opposite directions (towards the past and the future). One of his faces was the face of a young, beardless man looking into the future, the other was the face of a bearded old man, facing the past. The very name of the deity is related to the Latin word janua, which means “door”, as well as “beginning”. The name of the month “January” is derived from the same word. In a figurative sense, the expression “two-faced Janus”: an insincere, two-faced, hypocritical person (disapproved).

Ancient scholars proposed three etymologies for the name Janus, each of which was based on reasoning about the nature of God.

The first etymology is based on the definition of Chaos given by Paul the Deacon, which states: from the word hiantem, hiare, to be open, the name Janus is formed by the loss of vowels during the initial aspiration. In this etymology, the concept of Chaos defines the primordial nature of god.

Another etymology was proposed by Publius Figulus and is related to Macrobius: Janus- this is Apollo, and Diana is Yana, with addition D for euphony. This explanation was accepted by A. B. Cook and J. Frazer. It is consistent with all subsequent likenings of Janus to the sky, sun and moon. It also suggests that the name was formerly "Dianus", derived from "dia" - from the Indo-European root "dey", meaning radiance. In Latin this root is represented by the words dies("day"), Diovis and Iuppiter. However, the "Dianus" form designated by Figulus has not been confirmed.

The interpretation of Janus as the god of beginnings and passages is based on a third etymology given by Cicero, Ovid and Macrobius, who explain the name as Latin, derived from the verb ire(“pass, go”).

Modern researchers have suggested that the name Janus comes from an Indo-European root meaning transitional movement (cf. Sanskrit - “yana-”, Avestan “yah”, Latin “i-” and Greek “ei-”). In this case, Iānus is a designation for action, expressing the idea of ​​movement, passage, formed from the root *yā-< *y-eð2-, или от корня «ey» go, from which the words eō, ειμι come.

Other modern scholars accept an Indo-European etymology from either the name "Dianus" or the root "yā".

One of the oldest Greco-Roman gods, together with the goddess of the hearth Vesta, he occupied a prominent place in the Roman pantheon. Already in ancient times, various religious ideas about him and his essence were expressed. Thus, Cicero associated his name with the verb inire and saw in Janus the deity of entry and exit. Others believed that Janus personified chaos (Janus = Hianus), air or the firmament. Nigidius Figulus identified Janus with the sun god. Originally Janus is the divine gatekeeper, in the Salian hymn he was invoked under the names Clusius or Clusivius (Closing One) and Patulcius (Opening One).

Salii in his song called Janus "god of gods" and "good creator." It was also interpreted as “the world” - mundus, primeval chaos, from which an ordered cosmos then emerged, and from a shapeless ball it turned into a god and became the guardian of order, the world, rotating its axis.

Arch of Janus in the Forum Boar, flanking the church San Giorgio in Velabro.

Before the advent of the cult of Jupiter, he was the deity of the sky and sunlight, who opened the heavenly gates and released the sun into the sky, and closed these gates at night. Then he gave up his place to Jupiter, and he himself took the place of the ruler of all beginnings and beginnings in time. There was also a belief that Janus reigned on earth even before Saturn and taught people the calculation of time, crafts and agriculture.

Parents: Heaven and Hecate, Janus's wife was Juturn, his son was Font, his son-in-law was Vulturn. In Greek literature he is mentioned by Proclus, identifying him with Zeus. Some interpretations call him the son of Apollo and Creusa, who founded the city of Janiculum, lived on the Janiculum hill. Vendila bore him a daughter, Kanenta.

As attributes, Janus had a key with which he unlocked and locked the gates of heaven (see Apostle Peter). He used a staff as a gatekeeper's weapon to ward off uninvited guests. Later, probably under the influence of Greek religious art, Janus began to be depicted as two-faced (geminus).

Under the auspices of Janus were all the doors - a private house, a temple of the gods or the gates of city walls, and since he kept count of days, months and years, the number CCC (300) was inscribed on the fingers of his right hand, and LXV (65) on his left hand. ), in sum these numbers mean the number of days of the year. The beginning of the year is named after Janus, its first month is Januarius. At the same time, Janus protects every person from the moment of conception to birth, and stands at the head of the gods, under whose protection a person is.

The first temple of Janus was erected, according to legend, by the king Numa Pompilius. When the decision was made to declare war, the king or consul unlocked the heavy double oak doors of the temple, decorated with gold and ivory, with a key, and in front of the faces of Janus, under the arches, armed soldiers and young men who were going to war for the first time passed through the arches. Throughout the war, the gates of the temple stood open; when peace was concluded, the returning troops again passed in front of the statue of the god and the temple was again locked with a key.

Janus was also the patron of roads and travelers, and was revered among Italian sailors, who believed that it was he who taught people how to build the first ships.

Wine, fruits and honey pies were sacrificed to Janus, and at the beginning of the year - a white bull.

• In the story by the Strugatsky brothers “Monday Begins on Saturday,” Janus turned into the mysterious figure of Janus Poluektovich Nevstruev, the director of the institute, one in two persons. Janus Poluektovich is one person, but in one person he lives, like all other people, from the past to the future, and the “second person” arose after in the future he staged a successful experiment to achieve counter-emotions and began to live from the future to the past.
• !!!In the book by Edward Radzinsky “Alexander II. Life and Death,” the author calls Tsar Alexander I a two-faced Janus because of his penchant for both reforms and cruel autocratic methods of rule, so characteristic of his father Paul I.

• Ellie Griffiths' novel The Janus Stone revolves around mystical sacrifices to the god Janus made by an English boy obsessed with Roman history.

What kind of gods did people imagine! But the most important thing was usually two qualities: immortality and limitless possibilities. In one of them, which arose on Earth, Hinduism, a many-faced god appeared. At first he was alone - the creator of all things, Brahma. Then Vishnu and Shiva joined him, forming a divine triad.

In the image above, all the gods of the upper pantheon are depicted with their wives (from left to right): Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati.

What was Brahma like?

In general, Indian affairs are quite difficult to understand, because in India they think differently from in Europe. All their categories are different. But let’s not go deeper into them, but let’s try to look at the supreme deity - Brahma. Oddly enough, it is far from the most revered. In India there are few temples dedicated to Brahma, few who worship him. Even for Indians it is quite incomprehensible. Perhaps only people from the Brahman caste are interested in him. They respect and know him.

What is Brahma doing?

Brahma, the many-faced god, heads the trimurti - a triad of deities, the other two being Shiva and Vishnu. There are no tales or legends told about Brahma, so it is difficult for a simple heart to love him. He is an abstract concept that is incomprehensible to the simple-minded, illiterate Indian. Brahma, the many-faced god, is somewhere in unknown distances and is always in a dream. And this is good. Because once he created the world as a single whole entity, and then he took and broke his creation into the smallest fragments, and we got the world that we have now. He created plurality from unity. And all Indian sages who practice tapaz strive to merge with the holistic absolute. Brahma is difficult to imagine, but nevertheless in Indian iconography he is shown as shown in the picture with the image of the trimurti.

He has four faces. He once fell in love with a woman and wanted to see her wherever she was. Therefore, the many-faced god has four faces to watch over his chosen one in all parts of the world.

Guardian Vishnu

Here is Vishnu - a god who has a biography that everyone understands. And why it is needed is also clear to everyone. He must protect the world that Brahma created. Who is he protecting from? Of course, from demons. But he overcame them and lives calmly in the heavenly distances, in his kingdom. The Ganges flows there, but not the earthly one, but the heavenly one, there are five lakes in which lotuses grow, and golden shining palaces rise. Vishnu sits on a snow-white lotus, which is placed on a golden throne.

At his feet, his wife always sits obediently next to him - the beautiful, forever young Lakshmi. She is a symbol of motherhood, wealth and beauty.

And in general, dark-skinned Vishnu and Lakshmi are an example of harmony in the family for all Indians. Wherever Vishnu goes, even if he descends to earth, Lakshmi is always his faithful companion.

Vishnu is not a many-faced god. This can be seen in the image of him with his wife.

Acts of Vishnu on earth

Vishnu descended to earth nine times to defeat evil. The first time was before the flood. He turned into a fish and saved a pious man, from whom the human race later descended.

The second time he took the form of a turtle and helped the gods, with the help of asuras (demons), obtain a drink of immortality from the ocean. Then the dazzlingly beautiful Lakshmi appeared from the bosom of the waters, whom Vishnu took as his wife. But the demons took possession of the drink of immortality. Then Vishnu transformed into a girl of unprecedented beauty, who had to determine which of the demons would be the first to drink this liquid. And, having received the vessel with it, Vishnu disappeared without a trace. He returned to the gods. The deceived demons rushed into battle, but died in their thousands, and the gods, who had gained immortality, defeated them. Vishnu descended to earth more than once, but the last, tenth, his coming should destroy the kingdom of evil on earth, and then everyone will live happily.

Triple Deity

The divine triad, as Carl Jung believed, is an archetype in the history of religion. The number "three" has a long history of mythical associations.

In classical antiquity, a striking example is Aphrodite, who was represented as Urania (heavenly) and Pandemos (national). And also the muses (Aonidas - song, Meleta - practice, Mnemosyne - memory). This is a very ancient, original idea. Later there were nine of them.

During the Roman period, the moon goddess was associated by the ancients with the moon shedding light in the sky, with Diana representing purity on earth, and Hecate or Proserpina, who were associated with witchcraft and placed in Hell.

During the Capitoline period, the Roman triad consisted of Jupiter, Juno and Minerva, forming a powerful family.

The Fates in Greco-Roman mythology were represented by three moirai: Clotho, Lachesis and Anthropos.

In Norse mythology, the mother goddess appeared in three forms - Freya, Frigg and Skadi.

There are many more examples that can be given, but let’s finish with the last two from Slavic and Greek mythology. The god Triglav in Slovenia, Serbia and Croatia was depicted as a three-headed man or as a man with three goat heads. During the Christian period, all his images were destroyed. It was a three-faced deity. Just like the three-faced Hecate, whose image has survived to this day. Apparently this was one of her oldest cults.

Well, and the very last thing - this is no longer a god, but a well-known mythical creature - the monstrous dog Cerberus, who was depicted with three heads and guarded Hades.

Roman deity

God Janus - one of which preceded his appearance in the pantheon. He was depicted with two faces. One of them was young, the other was old. Or one of the faces was male, and the second was female. His temple was built in a square in the center of Ancient Rome, and inside the structure stood a bronze statue of Janus. The doors of the temple were open during war and closed when peace came. During the existence of the Roman Empire they were closed only nine times.

God Janus, before the appearance of Jupiter, opened the heavenly gates and released the sun, and in the evening he closed them. Its attribute was a key. He patronized all doors and also counted the days of the year. On one of his palms was the number “three hundred,” and on the other, “sixty-five.” Janus was the god of any undertaking, and his two-facedness symbolized his caution, necessary for every new undertaking. Only centuries later did this come to mean a negative quality - hypocrisy.

The pantheon of ancient gods is symbolic and diverse. Each era introduced customs, traditions and beliefs into the culture of our ancestors, which reached people of the 21st century in the form of myths and legends. Greek mythology is different from Roman mythology. Roman deities have counterparts in Greek legends. God Janus duplicates the functions of several representatives of Olympus. What was unusual about Janus, what abilities did he have?

History of appearance

The many-faced Janus is a hero of Roman mythology. The character was the ruler of Latium, located on the territory of ancient Italy, where Rome stands today. The myth says that the god lived in a palace on a hill called Janicule, on the right bank of the Tiber River. Janus was displaced by Jupiter, whose powers in Roman mythology are similar to those of the Greek god.

According to legend, Saturn lost his throne and traveled to Latium by ship. Janus greeted him warmly and friendly, managing to please the uninvited guest. Almighty Saturn endowed the ward with a gift that allowed God to direct his gaze simultaneously to the future and the past.

Sculpture "Janus"

The legendary character was considered the patron of time, the ruler of all kinds of entrances and exits, and, accordingly, the beginning and the end. One interpretation of the name Janus is the god of Chaos. The concept of Chaos in this version of etymology reveals the original nature of God.

The Roman god was not famous for his exploits or special deeds, but he had time and the daytime solstice in his power. The name Janus is translated from Latin as “door.” The mythical character was often depicted as a key holder holding a key in his hand that unlocks the doors.

Two-faced god

Janus is depicted with two faces, which are directed in opposite directions. The people called the two-faced god two-faced, many-faced. The face looking towards the future was young, and the one looking back at the past was adult. Janus unites, in addition to the past and the future, two other principles: bad and good, so the image of two faces is suitable for characterizing the image in several directions.

Scientists have wondered why Janus is depicted with only two faces, since the third category - the present - remains unnoticed. Over time, researchers came to the conclusion that the current moment at a specific second cannot be captured. It is impossible to convey it visually, so the third face of Janus is not visible.

God patronized the Romans in several areas. He helped the soldiers, so in honor of Janus a temple was built on the territory of present-day Rome, accessible to visitors only during the war. The Roman Empire was constantly engaged in some kind of military action, so the gates of the temple happened to be closed three times in the history of its existence. Janus contributed to his wards in shipbuilding, favored farmers, agrarians and those who were engaged in calculations. In addition, God had a penchant for clairvoyance, which was relevant due to his relationship with the matter of time.

An attentive person, getting acquainted with the image of the god Janus, will notice that on his right hand the inscription 300 is depicted in Roman numerals, and on his left - 65. It is believed that these are numbers related to the calculation of time. Janus is closely related to the chronology we use today. The month of January is named in his honor, in Latin - Januarius. On January 9th, the Romans celebrated the Feast of the Agony, dedicated to their beloved deity.

The character did not have the specific qualities inherent in the gods. He was not distinguished by beauty or special powers. His power is incomparable to the abilities of the supreme gods of the pantheon. Respect among people helped the deity gain the ability to control natural phenomena. In the mornings, Janus opened the gates of heaven, releasing the sun onto the horizon, and in the evenings he closed it, turning the light back and leaving the sky at the disposal of the stars and the moon.

• Today, “two-faced Janus” is a phraseological unit that is used to describe a hypocritical person who demonstrates duplicity and insincerity. In Roman mythology, the characteristics of God did not have a negative connotation, but people perceived the image literally and built an associative series. Janus combined two principles in one personality: good and bad, present and past. The opposites determined the perception of descendants.

• Mythology has always inspired sculptors and artists. Statues embodying the appearance of Janus are located in the Vatican, in the Forum Boarium in Rome. Paintings describing ancient scenes were painted by Nicolas Poussin and other painters.
• When he ordered the Russian calendar to be changed and moved the New Year celebration to January 1, the boyars' discontent was provoked not by the innovation, but by the fact that the holiday symbolized a celebration in honor of the pagan deity.
• The Titan Epimetheus, who took a wife sent to him by Zeus, does not overlap with Janus in myths. But these mythological characters met in astronomy - two satellites of the planet Saturn, located just 50 kilometers from each other, were named after them.

Janus, Roman deity of doors; as such, it had two faces, since the door is both an entrance and an exit, it leads both inside and outside the house. In addition, he was the god of contracts and alliances. Janus commanded the beginnings, his place in space is the entrance doors and gates, his place in time is the beginning of the year, the beginning of events.

Before the advent of the cult of Jupiter, Janus was the deity of the sky and sunlight, who opened the heavenly gates and released the sun into the sky, and closed these gates at night. There was also a belief that Janus reigned on earth even before Saturn and taught people the calculation of time, crafts and agriculture. He is associated with the Golden Age, as he was considered the first ruler of Latium, a civilization traditionally defined as "Promethean" because its existence was initiated by his gifts to humanity: fire, crafts and the calendar.

According to legend, the first temple of Janus was erected by King Numa Pompilius. The Temple of Janus consisted of two large arches connected by transverse walls, with two gates facing each other. Inside there was a statue of a god who had two faces facing in opposite directions; one - to the past, the other - to the future. Janus had a key in his hand, with which he unlocked and locked the gates of heaven. Since Janus was the god of time, counting days, months and years, the number 300 was inscribed on his right hand, and 65 on his left, which meant the number of days in a year. The Romans associated Janus with fate, time and war; The Italians turned to Janus when declaring war.

In Ovid, the two-faced Janus, as the embodiment of the beginning and the end, is identified with the chaos from which the ordered world arose; during this process, Janus himself turned from a shapeless block-ball into a god who, according to Ovid, rotates the axis of the world. He may have originally acted as the supreme deity; his name was mentioned first when addressing the gods. His epithet Gemin means Double; the image of Janus can be considered as an expression of the unity of opposites and the personification of all-inclusiveness, power over all spheres of existence. This image embodies the idea that technological progress entails irreversible and often negative changes in the human way of life; it is a symbol of the careless and improvident use of natural forces and the achievements of civilization.

Janus was also the patron saint of travelers and the guardian of roads, and was revered among Italian sailors, who believed that it was he who taught people how to build the first ships. Wine, fruits and honey pies were sacrificed to Janus, and at the beginning of the year, a white bull.

Janus - in Roman mythology - the two-faced god of doors, entrances, exits, various passages, as well as the beginning and end, as well as the god of time. The two-faced Janus was always depicted with two faces - usually young and old, looking in opposite directions.

Two-faced Janus was the deity of the sky and sunlight, who opened the heavenly gates and released the sun into the sky, and closed these gates at night. Under the auspices of Janus were all the doors - a private house, a temple of the gods or the gates of city walls, and since he counted the days, months and years, the number CCC was inscribed on the fingers of his right hand, and LXV on the left, the total of these the numbers indicate the number of days of the year. The beginning of the year is named after Janus; its first month is Januarius.

Today, Two-Faced Janus is a symbol of duplicity, hypocrisy and lies, in my opinion, completely undeservedly - the ancient Romans did not at all associate these qualities with the deity of Janus, the directions for which he was responsible were very honorable, vitally important and had a philosophical meaning.

Apparently, people simply associate the presence of two persons in one deity with opposite qualities, according to the good-bad principle, and they belong to the same creature.

Sources: aforizmu.com, godsbay.ru, esperanto-plus.ru, dic.academic.ru, talusha.3bb.ru

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Two-faced Janus is one of the many gods whose legends we owe to ancient Roman mythology. More specifically, this legendary character at one time was perhaps the first king in Latium (presumably, this is the ancestral home of the heart of modern Italy and Rome itself). In those distant times, this god lived in a palace located on the Janiculum hill, on the right bank of the Tiber. From here Janus ruled the lands subordinate to him. True, he did not rule for long - soon a much more active and powerful king ascended the throne - Jupiter, who was identified with Zeus, the most important god of

Why is Janus a two-faced god? It is believed that from his divine “colleague” Saturn, the king of Latium received a special talent, which was to clearly see the entire past and future. It is for this reason that Janus in all images is presented with two faces - young and old, which are facing in opposite directions (to the future and, accordingly, to the past).

By the way, the name “Janus” itself was not chosen by chance. This word, if translated from Latin (“janya”), means “door”. Over time, this “door” became not only a symbolic feature separating yesterday from tomorrow, but also in general a symbol of every end and beginning. Well, then somehow it became common to believe that the two-faced Janus combines such two categories as “bad” and “good” in one, as they say, bottle.

In addition to two faces, Janus was also depicted with keys in the ancient period, because he was also called the “locking” and “unlocking” god. The fact is that he patronized all military endeavors and had his own temple, the doors of which were tightly closed in peacetime, and opened only during hostilities. And over the long centuries of the existence of the ancient Roman Empire, these gates were closed, alas, only three times. You can imagine how tense the situation was at that time.

The two-faced Janus also made a significant practical contribution to the development of the ancient Romans. In addition to his “paranormal” clairvoyant abilities, God taught people such things as shipbuilding, cultivation of land, growing vegetables, as well as the basics of calculus. It was for the latter purpose that the Roman numeral “CCS” was depicted on his right hand, i.e. 300, on the left - “LXV”, i.e. 65.

The Romans even dedicated a special day to their beloved and most important - the feast of agony, which was celebrated on January 9th. By the way, few people probably know, but it was the two-faced Janus who gave the name to the first month of the year - Januarius, or January in our language.

But in principle, the two-faced ancient Roman god did not perform any special feats for his kingdom. He was not handsome, did not have unlimited power and special strength. However, according to legend, he knew how to “manage” natural phenomena. So, before the cult of Jupiter appeared, it was Janus who opened the gates of heaven in the morning, releasing the sun into the sky, and in the evenings he closed them so that the light disappeared and night came. The Romans also believed that the two-faced Janus was the god of all endeavors, so before starting to do anything, people called on him for help and asked for protection.

And not so long ago, scientists suggested that Janus had not two, but three faces, personifying both the past and the future, as well as the present. Simply due to the fact that the last temporary category is considered a momentary invisible line between the other two, the third face of God is invisible.

Janus two-faced: phraseological unit

Today, hardly anyone would remember the god Janus and all his virtues, if not for our article. In modern speech, indeed, there is such a phraseological unit, which for some reason is usually used in relation to the insincere, hypocritical, that is, and although the two-faced Janus did not perform any outstanding feats in his time, one must think that he would have been greatly offended by such impartial comparison.