Goddess of Justice

Themis or Temis, the Titanide in the mythology of Ancient Greece - the goddess of justice, the second wife of the god Zeus. The word "femis" means "establishment by custom", it can be found in the names of some areas known from the heyday of the Mycenaean culture. From the union with Zeus, she was born three Moira: Lachesis (Fate), Cloth (Spinner), Atropos (Inevitable) and the three Ora: Dike (Justice), Eirena (World) and Eunomia (Blessing). According to Aeschylus, the goddess of justice Themis is the mother of Prometheus. It even appears to be one deity, but under different names. Possessing a prophetic gift, the goddess of justice Themis, opens a mystery to Prometheus that from the marriage of Zeus and Thetis, a son will be born who will overthrow Zeus himself. From Gaia she receives as a gift the Delphic oracle, where she gives predictions to her sister Febe, who in turn passes them to her grandson Apollo. Themis summons to the council of the gods. Helps Zeus to begin the Trojan War.

The goddess of justice taught the Greeks sacrifices, divinations and divine rites, she came up with a heroic hexameter. Her main altar was at Stomion in Olympia next to the altar of the goddess Gaia and the god Zeus. In the Olympic mythology, it is no longer identical with the earth, but originated by it and is the basis of law and order as the wife of Zeus. Themis, the goddess of justice, ruled a thirteen-month year, which in turn was divided into winter and summer solstices for two seasons. Personified these seasons in the Athenian tradition of Karpo and Tallo - the deities of the "mature fruit" and "flowering". The seventy-ninth Orphic hymn is dedicated to Themis.

The goddess of justice was always depicted blindfolded. The bandage on her eyes means impartiality, and the scales are an ancient symbol of justice and measures. These weights weigh all the deeds of mortals committed by them in life, all good and all evil. The fate of people after their death depended on which of these bowls would outweigh. The goddess of justice also holds in her hands the cornucopia - a symbol of retribution to the one who appears before her court.

Themis allegorically means now the law, its scales - symbolize justice, and the priests or servants of Themis are judges. In the Roman tradition, the goddess of justice passed from the Greeks, but instead of the horn of plenty, Justice has a sword in hand. Themis is a recognized worldwide symbol of justice, its image on the emblems of the courts, and its statues - in courtrooms. The name of Themis became a household word, now, if they say, for example, the "Russian Themis", they mean the Russian court.

But the scales and the sword are attributes so fundamental and ancient that it is impossible to attribute their discovery, as symbols of justice, to the ancient Greeks. After all, in almost all ancient mythologies, the lord of the afterlife measured the evil and good deeds of each person. The scales are in the left hand of the goddess, since it is the left half of the body that is considered the perceiver. The sword represents spiritual strength and retribution. In the hands of the goddess of justice, he symbolizes retribution. Since the sword is pointing upwards, it points to a higher justice, "the will of the heavens," and, in addition, to a constant willingness to use it. It is double-edged because it not only punishes, but also warns. It is held by his goddess in his right hand, which means the side of the action of "right work" and strength.

Of course, in the composition plan, the figure wins more when the sword is dropped, but the lowered sword is a symbol of the end of the struggle, victory and return to peaceful life. And justice in our corrupt state will come, probably, still not soon, therefore it's too early for Themis to lower its sword. The main thing is that the sword of the Russian Themis falls only on the heads of really criminals and passes the innocent and good.