*Manu and *Yemo


Manu and Yemo are thought to have been a duo in Proto-Indo-European mythology. In the creation myth, Manu kills Yemo as a foundational part of the origin of the universe. Yemo is sometimes also interpreted as a primordial hermaphrodite.
The comparative analysis of different Indo-European tales has led scholars to reconstruct an original Proto-Indo-European creation myth involving twin brothers, Mónus and YémHos, as the progenitors of the world and mankind, and a hero named Trito who ensured the continuity of the original sacrifice.
Although some thematic parallels can be made with Ancient Near East, and even Polynesian or South American legends, the linguistic correspondences found in descendant cognates of Manu and Yemo- make it very likely that the myth discussed here has a Proto-Indo-European origin.
Following a first paper on the cosmogonical legend of Manu and Yemo, published simultaneously with Jaan Puhvel in 1975, Bruce Lincoln assembled the initial part of the myth with the legend of the third man Trito in a single ancestral motif.
Since the 1970s, the reconstructed motifs of Manu and Yemo, and to a lesser extent that of Trito, have been generally accepted among scholars.

Overview

Reconstruction

There is no scholarly consensus as to which of the variants is the most accurate reconstruction of the Proto-Indo-European cosmogonic myth. Bruce Lincoln's reconstruction of the Proto-Indo-European motif known as "Twin and Man" is supported by a number of scholars such as Jaan Puhvel, J. P. Mallory, Douglas Q. Adams, David W. Anthony, and, in part, Martin L. West. Although some thematic parallels can be made with traditions of the Ancient Near East, and even Polynesian or South American legends, Lincoln argues that the linguistic correspondences found in descendant cognates of Manu and Yemo make it very likely that the myth has a Proto-Indo-European origin.
According to Edgar C. Polomé, "some elements of the are distinctively Indo-European", but the reconstruction proposed by Lincoln "makes too unprovable assumptions to account for the fundamental changes implied by the Scandinavian version".

Creation myth

Lincoln reconstructs a creation myth involving twin brothers, Manu- and Yemo-, as the progenitors of the world and humankind, and a hero named Trito who ensured the continuity of the original sacrifice. Regarding the primordial state that may have preceded the creation process, West notes that the Vedic, Norse and, at least partially, the Greek traditions give evidence of an era when the cosmological elements were absent, with similar formula insisting on their non-existence: "neither non-being was nor being was at that time; there was not the air, nor the heaven beyond it ...", "... there was not sand nor sea nor the cool waves; earth was nowhere nor heaven above; Ginnungagap there was, but grass nowhere ...", "... there was Chasm and Night and dark Erebos at first, and broad Tartarus, but earth nor air nor heaven there was ...".

First Warrior

To the third man Trito, the celestial gods offer cattle as a divine gift, which is stolen by a three-headed serpent named Ngwhi.
Trito first suffers at his hands, but fortified by an intoxicating drink and aided by a helper-god, together they go to a cave or a mountain, and the hero finally manages to overcome the monster. Trito then gives the recovered cattle back to a priest for it to be properly sacrificed. He is now the first warrior, maintaining through his heroic deeds the cycle of mutual giving between gods and mortals.

Three functions

According to Lincoln, Manu and Yemo seem to be the protagonists of "a myth of the sovereign function, establishing the model for later priests and kings", while the legend of Trito should be seen as "a myth of the warrior function, establishing the model for all later men of arms". He has thus interpreted the narrative as an expression of the priests' and kings' attempt to justify their role as indispensable for the preservation of the cosmos, and therefore as essential for the organization of society. The motif indeed recalls the Dumézilian tripartition of the cosmos between the priest, the warrior, and the herder.

Primeval hermaphrodite

Hermann Güntert, stressing philological parallels between the Germanic and Indo-Iranian texts, argued in 1923 for an inherited Indo-European motif of the creation of the world from the sacrifice and dismemberment of a primordial androgyne.
Some scholars have proposed that the primeval being Yemo was depicted as a two-folded hermaphrodite rather than a twin brother of Manu, both forming indeed a pair of complementary beings entwined together. The Germanic names Ymir and Tuisto were understood as 'twin', 'bisexual', or 'hermaphrodite', and some myths give a sister to the Vedic Yama, called Yamī. The primordial being may therefore have self-sacrificed, or have been divided in two, a male half and a female half, embodying a prototypal separation of the sexes that continued the primordial union of the Sky Father with the Mother Earth.

Interpretations

The story of Trito served as a model for later epic myths about cattle raiding and most likely as a moral justification for the practice of raiding among Indo-European peoples. In the original legend, Trito is only taking back what rightfully belongs to his people, those who sacrifice properly to the gods. The myth has been interpreted either as a cosmic conflict between the heavenly hero and the earthly serpent, or as an Indo-European victory over non-Indo-European people, the monster symbolizing the aboriginal thief or usurper.

Legacy

Many Indo-European beliefs explain the origin of natural elements as the result of the original dismemberment of Yemo: his flesh usually becomes the earth, his hair grass, his bone yields stone, his blood water, his eyes the sun, his mind the moon, his brain the clouds, his breath the wind, and his head the heavens. The traditions of sacrificing an animal to disperse its parts according to socially established patterns, a custom found in Ancient Rome and India, has been interpreted as an attempt to restore the balance of the cosmos ruled by the original sacrifice.
The motif of Manu and Yemo has been influential throughout Eurasia following the Indo-European migrations. The Greek, Old Russian, and Jewish versions depend on the Iranian, and a Chinese version of the myth has been introduced from Ancient India. The Armenian version of the myth of the First Warrior Trito depends on the Iranian, and the Roman reflexes were influenced by earlier Greek versions.

Linguistic evidence

Manu and Yemo

s deriving from the Proto-Indo-European First Priest Manu include the Indic Mánu, legendary first man in Hinduism, and Manāvī, his sacrificed wife; the Germanic Mannus, mythical ancestor of the West Germanic tribes; and the Persian Manūščihr, Zoroastrian high priest of the 9th century AD.
From the name of the sacrificed First King *Yemo derive the Indic Yama, god of death and the underworld; the Avestan Yima, king of the Golden Age and guardian of the Otherworld; the Norse Ymir, ancestor of the giants ; and most likely Remus, killed in the Roman foundation myth by his twin brother Romulus. Latvian jumis, Latin geminus and Middle Irish emuin are also linguistically related.
TraditionFirst PriestFirst KingFirst mammalHeavenly gods
Proto-Indo-EuropeanManu Yemo Primordial cowSky Father, Storm-god, Divine Twins
IndianMánu, PuruṣaYama, Manu's bullThe Vedic gods
IranianSpityura, ManuchehrJamshid, KeyumarsPrimordial ox –
GermanicMannusYmir, TuistoPrimordial cow Óðinn and his brothers
RomanRomulusYemos She-wolfThe senators

Trito and Ngwhi

s stemming from the First Warrior Trito include the Vedic Trita, the hero who recovered the stolen cattle from the serpent Vritra; the Avestan Thrita and Thraētona, who won back the abducted women from the serpent Zahhak; and the Norse Þriði, one of the names of Óðinn. Other cognates may appear in the Greek expressions trítos sōtḗr, an epithet of Zeus, and tritogḗneia, an epithet of Athena; and perhaps in the Slavic mythical hero Troyan, found in Russian and Serbian legends alike.
TraditionFirst warriorThree-headed serpentHelper godStolen present
Proto-Indo-EuropeanTrito NgwhiThe Storm-god or Hanēr Cattle
IndianTritaVritra IndraCows
IranianFereydun Zahhak*VerethragnaWomen
GermanicÞriði, HymirThree serpentsThorGoats
Graeco-RomanHeraclesGeryon, CacusHeliosCattle

Comparative mythology

Many Indo-European beliefs explain aspects of human anatomy from the results of the original dismemberment of Yemo: his flesh usually becomes the earth, his hair grass, his bone yields stone, his blood water, his eyes the sun, his mind the moon, his brain the clouds, his breath the wind, and his head the heavens. The traditions of sacrificing an animal before dispersing its parts following socially established patterns, a custom found in Ancient Rome and India, has been interpreted as an attempt to restore the balance of the cosmos ruled by the original sacrifice.
In the Indo-Iranian version of the myth, his brother Manu also sacrifices the cow, and from the parts of the dead animal are born the other living species and vegetables. In the European reflexes, however, the cow serves only as a provider of milk and care for the twins before the creation. This divergence may be explained by the cultural differences between the Indo-Iranian and European branches of the Indo-European family, with the former still strongly influenced by pastoralism, and the latter much more agricultural, perceiving the cow mainly as a source of milk. According to Lincoln, the Indo-Iranian version best preserves the ancestral motif, since they lived closer to the original Proto-Indo-European pastoral way of life.