Thunderbolt

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A thunderbolt or lightning bolt is a symbolic representation of lightning when accompanied by a loud thunderclap. In Indo-European mythology, the thunderbolt was identified with the 'Sky Father'; this association is also found in later Hellenic representations of Zeus and Vedic descriptions of the vajra wielded by the god Indra. It may have been a symbol of cosmic order, as expressed in the fragment from Heraclitus describing "the Thunderbolt that steers the course of all things".^[1]

In its original usage the word may also have been a description of the consequences of a close approach between two planetary cosmic bodies, as

In religion and mythology

• in the
  Deuteronomy 32:42, Psalm 64:7, Job
  6:4, etc.
• In Christianity, One of its most significant verses is Deuteronomy 6:4, Verses 6:4–5 were also quoted by Jesus in Mark 12:28–34 as the Great Commandment. The Second Coming of Jesus is compared to lightning (Matthew 24: 27, Luke 17: 24). With the establishment of Christianity, it passed into popular belief that lightning is the fire that leaves behind the chariot of the Prophet Elijah as it runs through the sky, while thunder is the rattle of the feet of the horses that drag his chariot. According to another tradition, lightning and thunder are more island-like are the cannons fired by the Archangel Michael against Satan.^[4]
• In
  Hurrian) mythology, a triple thunderbolt was one symbol of Teshub
  (Tarhunt).
• Vedic religion (and later Hindu mythology) the god Indra is the god of lightning. His main weapon is the thunderbolt (Vajra).
• In
  Jupiter by the Cyclopes, and is thus one of the emblems of Jupiter, often depicted on Greek and Roman coins and elsewhere as an eagle holding in its claws a thunderbolt which resembles in form a bundle of crossed sticks.^[5]
• In Celtic mythology, Taranis is the god of thunder, in Irish, Tuireann.
• In
  Mjolnir
• In Slavic mythology, Perun is the god of the sky, controlling storms, thunder and lightning and wields the Axe of Perun.
• In Finnish mythology, Ukko is the god of thunder and lightning, wielding Ukonvasara.
• In
  Bayülgen
  creates the thunderbolts.
• In Maya mythology, Huracan is sometimes represented as three thunderbolts.
• In
  Guaraní mythology, Tupã
  is the embodiment of thunder and has power over lightning.
• In Cherokee mythology, the Ani Hyuntikwalaski ("thunder beings") cause lightning fire in a hollow sycamore tree.
• In
  Ojibway mythology, thunder is created by the Thunderbirds
  (Nimkiig or Binesiiwag), which can be both benevolent and malevolent to human beings.
• In
  Igbo mythology, the thunderbolt is the weapon of Amadioha
  /Amadiora.
• In
  Yoruba mythology, the thunderbolt is the weapon of Shango
  .
• In Tibetan Buddhism, the Vajra or thunderbolt is symbol of Vajrayana branch.
• In Paleo-Balkan mythology, Zibelthiurdos (also "Zbelsurdos", "Zibelthurdos"): a god recognized as similar to the Greek Zeus as a wielder of lightning and thunderbolts.
• In
  Navajo mythology
  , the hero twins, Naʼídígishí and Naayééʼ Neizghání, have bows that shoot thunderbolts as arrows.
• In
  Dian Mu
  , creates the accompanying lightning flashes with her mirror.

Thunderstones

The name "thunderbolt" or "thunderstone" has also been traditionally applied to the fossilised

The thunderbolt or lightning bolt continues into the modern world as a prominent symbol; it has entered modern heraldry and military iconography.

In iconography

• The thunderbolt is used as an electrical symbol.^[7]
• A thunderbolt is used in the logo of the Australian hard rock band AC/DC.
• A thunderbolt is used in the logo of the German car manufacturer Opel.
• The
  logo of the People's Action Party in Singapore
  .
• The thunderbolt used by
  squatters
  as their insignia.
• Numerous
  fascist organizations such as the Schutzstaffel, the British Union of Fascists, and the Union of Bulgarian National Legions
  (SBNL) have historically used thunderbolts as their symbols.

• In the
  Shazam, the Flash, Lightning Lad, Lightning Lass, Black Lightning, and Static
  .
• In the
  Speed Demon, Ms. Marvel, and is also the name of a superhero team
  .
• The thunderbolt is used in the logo of the Power Rangers franchise.
• In the Harry Potter franchise, the scar on Harry's forehead is in the shape of a thunderbolt.
  • The letter "P" in the Harry Potter logo is also stylized in the shape of a thunderbolt.
• In the novel The Godfather, "being hit with the thunderbolt" is an Italian expression (colpo di fulmine) referring to a man being spellbound at the sight of a beautiful woman (like the so-called love at first sight). The novel's emerging main character is affected in this fashion and eventually marries a woman whose appearance initially affects him in this way.

Gallery

See also

• Mjölnir
• Thunderstone (folklore)
• Vajra

References

1. ^ DK B64.
2. ISBN 9781421893945
   . Retrieved August 3, 2012.
3. ISBN 9780876633793
   .
4. ^ "Lightning Bolt- Symbol And Meaning". My Myth Stories. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
5. ^ Dictionary of Roman Coins
6. ^ Vendetti, Jan (2006). "The Cephalopoda: Squids, octopuses, nautilus, and ammonites". UC Berkeley. Retrieved 2013-06-07.
7. ^ Geoffrey Peckham. "On Graphical Symbols". Compliance Engineering. Archived from the original on December 16, 2011. Retrieved August 3, 2012.

External links

Look up thunderbolt in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Thunderbolt.

• Quasi-realtime thunderbolt information in Japan (Japanese)