In the ancient near East, divine twin brothers Shakhar (Shahar) and Shalim are the Ugaritic Gods of Dawn and Dusk. As markers of the beginning of the day and the edge of night, Shahar and Shalim represent the fundamental structure of daytime.
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In most cases Shakhar and Shalim are masculine. Shakhar represents Morning or Dawn as well as planet Venus in her morning star phase. In some stories the God Attar takes that role. Shalim represents Evening or Dusk, and Venus in her evening star phase.
Divine Twins appear in the mythology of various cultures, such as the Hurrian bulls Seri and Hurri, who pull the cart of Teshub the Weather God; and the Twins of Creation Manu and Yemo, who form the world through sacrifice.
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The Divine Twin Horse Brothers are a benevolent pair from Proto-Indo-European mythology who help people. Goddesses also appear as twins, duos or sisters. Twins may look alike or manifest as opposites, for instance a warrior and a healer.
Twins appear in myth for various reasons. They might be created that way, or one god may become a duo with another for purposes of empire unification in the mortal world. Triads are also common. Although Shakhar and Shalim are usually depicted as masculine, Shakhar is female in the Hebrew Bible.
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She has 'beautiful eyelids' and sometimes wings. She or they create the morning dew, which is called the 'womb's offspring'. In one origin version the Twins are born of a human woman (or women) hungry for love from the God El.
He obliges and the woman/women give birth to Shakhar and Shalim. In this version Goddess of Fertility Asherah nurses the twins, who have enormous appetites.
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In other versions, Asherah (Athirat, Aširat) or Lady Asherah of the Sea, is the mother of the Twins. For this liaison her partner is the God El. She has over seventy children with major Gods of various religions.
Shalim is also mentioned separately in the Ugaritic god lists. Forms of his name appear in personal names of the time. Many scholars suggest that the name Shalim is immortalized in the name of the city Jerusalem.
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