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Just need an answer about the two gods Mithra and Varuna, their situation actually.

I know that Mithra isn't worshiped at all, but I read and suspect personally that his name still remains in the "Indian subconscious", where it seems that he became a simple word related to friendship or something else like that (Mithram or Mithran?). So a confirmation of this survivalism is hoped.

For Varuna, I just want to learn more about him, if he was related to Justice, I remember that his worship is limited today, and that he is primarily associated with Water, Rivers, Sea... But I want also to know if he was associated with the Night, maybe he was the dichotomy of Mithra, that I associate with the Sun and the Light.

I'm focused particularly to these two gods, because I've read that a French anthropologist considered them as a "couple", Mithra associated with the notion of "Agreement" (Contrat in French) and Varuna with the "Oath" (Serment in French). This idea sounds a bit true for me, because with the little knowledge that I have in this subject, Mithra appeared to me as a god "Friend of the Human kind". Varuna, like I knew about him (a kind of poem/song which stant like a praise or more a complain about his cruelty, notably for the floods), appears as a terrifiant god.

All these questions for a student of secondary for his homework of Philosophy about Justice.

Sorry for my bad English (made with the help of Google Translate) and please only answers which are academically correct.

Thanks for your help :)

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  • There are contributors on this forum that know a great deal more about Mithraism than I, and have made the point that it influences the Christian conception of absolute good and evil. My understanding is that the nemesis is Ahriman, which is equivalent to the Ahura Mazda/Angra Mainyu dichotomy. I'm not qualified to write in much detail about Mitra–Varuna, but I will be quite interested in the formal answers. Welcome to Mythology!
    – DukeZhou
    May 3, 2018 at 18:10
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    Mitra-Varuna is a classic book by Georges Dumezil (easily found online). Please note that the Indian name is written Mitra while Mithra is the persian (the latin is Mithras); there is a recent book "Images of Mithra" (Oxf. 2017) which gives a broad perspective and provides a wealth of historical material (e.g. about Miiro in Bactria, Mihr in Iran).
    – sand1
    May 3, 2018 at 20:47
  • Full text of "Georges Dumézil Mitra Varuna An Essay On Two Indo European Representations Of Sovereignty (1990) But I'd still love to see some formal answers here on Stack!
    – DukeZhou
    May 3, 2018 at 20:56
  • "Mithra isn't worshiped at all" Really? Consider some attributes of the religion: — icons feature him sitting at a feast — catechism mentions "linen", "wrapped", "savior", "drink and food", … — ceremonies involve a cup and bread — temples were enclosed for private ceremonies (other religions used public displays) — initiates made their way through grades, up to "Father" — "Fathers" wore mitres, elaborate jeweled robes, and a ring — he was born in a cave, on December 25
    – Ray Butterworth
    Sep 27, 2020 at 14:04

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