Deus Arimanius (the Lion-Headed God)
Roman Mithraic Mysteries · deity · roman imperial mithraism · deity
The leontocephaline (lion-headed god), attested on altars as 'deus Arimanius', is the most debated Mithraic figure: a being of time and cosmic dominion, variously identified by scholars with Aion, Kronos-Saturn, or a principle of ordered power within the mysteries.
Domains
- time and cosmic order
Powers
- to hold the keys and sceptre of the cosmic order
Sources
- M. J. Vermaseren, Corpus Inscriptionum et Monumentorum Religionis Mithriacae (CIMRM), 2 vols. (The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1956-1960).
- Roger Beck, The Religion of the Mithras Cult in the Roman Empire (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006).