soma

soma
soma1
/soh"meuh/, n., pl. somata /-meuh teuh/, somas. Biol.
the body of an organism as contrasted with its germ cells.
[1830-40; < NL < Gk sôma body]
soma2
/soh"meuh/, n.
haoma (def. 1).
[1820-30; < Skt]

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In ancient Indian religion, an unidentified plant, the juice of which was an offering of the Vedic sacrifices.

Its stalks were pressed, and its juice, filtered through wool, was mixed with water and milk. After being offered as a libation to the gods, the remainder of the soma was consumed by the priests and the sacrificer. It was highly valued for its exhilarating, probably hallucinogenic, effect. The plant was believed to have been delivered to the earth from heaven by an eagle. The personified deity Soma was the master of plants, healer of disease, and bestower of riches. See also Vedic religion.

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      in ancient Indian cult worship, an unidentified plant, the juice of which was a fundamental offering of the Vedic (Vedic religion) sacrifices. The stalks of the plant were pressed between stones, and the juice was filtered through sheep's wool and then mixed with water and milk. After first being offered as a libation to the gods, the remainder of the soma was consumed by the priests and the sacrificer. It was highly valued for its exhilarating, probably hallucinogenic, effect. The personified deity Soma was the “master of plants,” the healer of disease, and the bestower of riches.

      The soma cult exhibits a number of similarities to the corresponding haoma cult of the ancient Iranians and is suggestive of shared beliefs among the ancient Indo-Europeans in a kind of elixir of the gods. Like haoma, the soma plant grows in the mountains, but its true origin is believed to be heaven, whence it was brought to earth by an eagle. The pressing of soma was associated with the fertilizing rain, which makes possible all life and growth. In the post-Vedic classical period, soma is identified with the moon, which wanes when soma is drunk by the gods but which is periodically reborn.

cell
      in biology, all the living matter of an animal or a plant except the reproductive, or germ, cells. The distinction between the soma and the germ cells was propounded by the 19th-century German biologist August Weismann in the “germ plasm” theory that emphasized the role of the immortal, heredity-carrying genes and chromosomes, which are transmitted through successive generations of each species and determine the character of each individual in the propagative chain.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • soma — soma …   Dictionnaire des rimes

  • Soma — (Sanskrit: ), or Haoma (Avestan), from Proto Indo Iranian * sauma , was a ritual drink of importance among the early Indo Iranians, and the later Vedic and greater Persian cultures. It is frequently mentioned in the Rigveda, which contains many… …   Wikipedia

  • SOMA — (von griechisch σῶμα soma „Körper“) bezeichnet in Biologie und Medizin: den Körper einer Zelle, siehe Soma (Zellbiologie) Körperzellen, die nicht zu den Keimzellen zählen, siehe Somatische Zelle den Leib oder Körper des Menschen im Gegensatz zu… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Soma — puede significar: En biología: soma: planta psicotrópica de India. soma: droga fantástica consumida por los personajes de la novela Un mundo feliz, de Aldous Huxley. soma: el cuerpo de una neurona. soma: totalidad de la materia corporal de un… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Soma — bezeichnet: in Biologie und Medizin (hier von griechisch σῶμα soma „Körper“): Soma (Zellbiologie), den Körper einer Zelle Somazellen, Körperzellen, die nicht zu den Keimzellen zählen; siehe Somatische Zelle den Leib oder Körper des Menschen im… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • soma — [ sɔma ] n. m. • 1892; gr. sôma « corps » ♦ Biol. 1 ♦ L ensemble des lignées cellulaires non sexuelles de l organisme (opposé à germen ). ⇒aussi hérédité. 2 ♦ Corps cellulaire du neurone. ● soma …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • SOMA — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Sōma — shi 相馬市 Geographische Lage in Japan …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Soma —    Soma was a divine, intoxicating drink favored by INDRA, king of the gods, according to the Vedas. It was made from a celestial plant taken to Earth by an eagle and was said to confer immortality on gods and humans. BRAHMIN priests in Vedic… …   Encyclopedia of Hinduism

  • soma (1) — {{hw}}{{soma (1)}{{/hw}}s. f. 1 Carico posto sulla groppa di un quadrupede | Bestia da –s, atta al trasporto di carichi; (fig.) chi si sottopone a un lavoro eccessivo e sfibrante. 2 (fig., lett.) Onere morale. 3 (fig., lett.) Oppressione, spec.… …   Enciclopedia di italiano

  • şoma — ŞOMÁ, şomez, vb. I. intranz. A nu avea, a nu găsi de lucru; a fi şomer. – Din fr. chômer. Trimis de LauraGellner, 01.05.2004. Sursa: DEX 98  şomá vb., ind. prez. 1 sg. şoméz, 3 sg. şi …   Dicționar Român

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