If I were to hop into a time machine in modern day Romania and go back in time 2000 years, I’d end up in Dacia, a country made up of many smaller states all inhabited by Geto-dacians. Many surviving sources on their religion are from an outsider’s perspective, making it hard to put together a clear image of what it was actually like which has caused debates among historians. Many children are taught in school that Dacians were monotheists (believed only in one God), but this theory is widely regarded as incorrect by historians.
Theories
The monotheism theory is supported by Vasile Pârvan who quotes the writings of Herodot as proof.
They believe they are immortal forever living in the following sense: they think they do not die and that the one who dies joins Zalmoxis, a divine being; some call this same divine being Gebeleizis. Every four years, they send a messenger to Zalmoxis, who is chosen by chance. They ask him to tell Zalmoxis what they want on that occasion. The mission is performed in the following way: men standing there for that purpose hold three spears; other people take the one who is sent to Zalmoxis by his hands and feet and fling him in the air on the spears. If he dies pierced, they think that the divinity is going to help them; if he does not die, it is he who is accused and they declare that he is a bad person. And, after he has been charged, they send another one. The messenger is told the requests while he is still alive. The same Thracians, on other occasions, when he thunders and lightens, shoot with arrows up in the air against the sky and menace the divinity because they think there is no god other than their own.
Herodot
The polytheism theory is supported by I.I Russu, I.H. Crişan, H. Daicoviciu, who point out that, according to archeological discoveries and surviving texts, the Dacians couldn’t have been anything but polytheists.
Keeping in mind these two theories, let’s explore what we know about Dacian gods.
There are many overlaps between the Dacian and Thracian pantheons. Because of the lack of surviving sources, the lines between the two pantheons are blurred. Depending on where you look, you may find different or conflicting information. In this short piece of writing we included the Gods that most agree were likely to have been part of the Dacian pantheon.
As you may notice during the following part, there really aren’t many surviving depictions (statues, pottery, etc.) of the Dacian gods. Despite the fact that Sarmizegetusa Regia (the capial of Dacia before roman conquest) had plenty of altars, there were no statues or other depictions found so there’s a possibility of the Dacians not creating any.
Gods
Zalmoxis – considered the supreme deity of the Dacian pantheon by historians, he is the god that both theories agree was part of the Dacian religion. He was the god of the underworld, the living and the dead and of life after death.
Bendis – goddess of forests, the moon, magic, the night, and, according to some sources, hunting, maternity and love. She wasn’t a deity that only appeared in Dacia as she can be found in the Thracian pantheon. Remnants of her cult can be found in Athens, Asia Minor and near Ptolemais (now part of Libya). She is the only god on this list with surviving depictions of her. She is often associated with Artemis, her surviving depictions being modeled after the Greek goddess as can be seen in the image bellow.
Bendis is depicted wearing a short chiton and an animal skin and is holding a spear like Artemis, but she also has a snug-sleeved undergarment, a hooded Thracian mantle fastened with a brooch and high boots highlighting the fact that she was adopted by the Greeks from the Thracians.
Gebelezis – considered by some as another name for Zalmoxis (Herodot), was god of thunder, lightning and the rain. He was depicted as a handsome man who sometimes had a beard.
Derzelas – the god of health. He is another example of a god that also appeared in the Thracian pantheon.
Kotys – the mother goddess and the personification of fertility. She not only appears in the Thracian pantheon, but there are sources that prove her cult had spread as far as current day Sicily.
Pleistoros – the god of war. According to Iosephus Flavius the tribes worshipping him brought him human sacrifices and his priests were selected from the nobility, many of them being warriors.
Dionysos – the god of wine, vegetation, pomiculture and ecstasy. His surviving depictions are all Greek so we don’t know what he actually looked like for the Dacians.
Dabatopienos – god of metalwork
Sabazios – hailed by the Thracians as the “vanquisher”of the cold season, the solar patron of horses.
Despite the fact that we don’t have a very clear understanding of what the Dacian religion was actually like we can piece together an image that guides us closer to finding out more about our ancestor’s way of life.
We hope you enjoyed reading this.
Blessed be,
Fascinating!