Ma
Also called Ma of Comana.
The Great Mother of Cappadocia, probably the Hittite mother goddess, whose armed priestesses may lie behind the Greek legend of the Amazons.
At a glance
- Tradition
- Hittite mythology
- Region
- Hattusa (place of origin)
- Trait family
- The Ward-Holders
- Symbols
- MotherMother Goddess
Near this figure
Symbols
Judged against the description by a model. Meanings are our own paraphrase.
- Mother is Mother denotes the life principle, generational blood, destiny, wisdom, material nurture, water, womb, night, and the heart’s receptive side.
why
The Great Mother of Cappadocia, probably the Hittite mother goddess, whose …
- Mother Goddess is Mother Goddess signifies earth’s fecund maternal power, quickened by sunlight to produce divine, human, and animal life.
why
The Great Mother of Cappadocia, probably the Hittite mother goddess, whose …
Traits
Read from the figure's description, which a model wrote. Open "why" for the sentence a trait came from.
Defensive powers
- Guardianship
why
As Hittite power declined, and perhaps with the arrival of the Phrygians, the women who served her are said to have organised — first for the defence of their religion and later in independent action — developing into armed priestesses.
Roles
Judged from the works' own entries, not from the description. Carries: the figure holds the role. Meets: the role is in its stories, held by something it meets.
- Earth carries
2 citations
- Firdausi, translated by Arthur George Warner and Edmond Warner, The Sháhnáma, p. 67.
- Maria Leach, editor, Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, s.v. "Ma."
- Queen carries both readings
2 citations
- Firdausi, translated by Arthur George Warner and Edmond Warner, The Sháhnáma, p. 67.
- Maria Leach, editor, Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, s.v. "Ma."