TYPE: Mother goddess of earth.
ORIGIN: Hindu (Vedic)
KNOWN PERIOD OF WORSHIP: circa 1500 BCE and probably earlier through to present day.
SYNONYMS: Bhudevi
ART REFERENCES: Sculptures in bronze and other metals, stone reliefs, etc.
LITERARY SOURCES: Rg Veda and other texts including the Atharva-Veda.
INFORMATION: In Vedic literature Prthivi is the female aspect of the creator god Dyaus Pitar. The two formed the once inseparable primordial cosmos until separated by the god Varuna. According to one illogical legend of Prthivi's genealogy, she was the daughter of Prithu who had granted the blessing of life on earth and who, in her turn, had emerged from the arm of hte corpse of King Vena.
Prthivi is a chthonic or earth goddess with whom the sky god Dyaus couples when he fertilizes her with rain. She is said to kiss the center of the world and she symbolizes the eternal patience and resilience of the earth, permitting herself to be abused without rancor. She is also a vegetation goddess, the source of all plant life. In some legends Prthivi is perceived as the consort of the rain god Indra, who protects her, and of lesser-known creation deities including Parjanya, Prajapait and Visvakarma. Visnu strides over her body. As the inseparable partner of Dyaus she is rarely addressed alone, though in the Atharva-veda Dyaus is not mentioned. Usually the pair aer referred to as Dyavaprthivi. Though the goddess was present in early Indian culture, she persists into late Hinduism and may be associated with Visnu as one of the personifications of his Sakti.
Many Hindus worship Prthivi as dawn and before plowing and sowing. In the Punjab, the first milk from a cow is offered to the goddess by allowing it to soak into the earth. With similar sentiment a dying man may be laid on the earth to be received by Prthivi.