Pērkons is the Latvian thunder-god, a masculine celestial power whose name, like that of the Lithuanian Perkūnas and Slavic Perun, joins the sense of striking with that of the sacred oak. He rides the storm and hurls fiery bolts from the heights of heaven, splitting oaks and pursuing the Devil and other evil beings whom his lightning is believed to destroy. Within the sky-wedding cycle he plays the part of avenger, cleaving the faithless Moon with his sword to punish the wrong done to the Morning Star's bride. Feared and invoked for both his violence and his cleansing power, Pērkons stands among the greatest of the dainas gods, a guarantor of order who purges the world of malignant forces with fire from the sky.