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Sanasar, the founder of the dynasty of heroes of the epic "Daredevils of Sasun," is the epicized version of the thunder god, who has many common characteristics with the Indian and Hurrian thunder gods. On the other hand, Sanasar's predecessor Aram, one of the ethnarchs of the Armenian ethnogonic myth, represents the Armenian counterpart of the Indian Rāma, an epicized version of Indra. Mšak, Aram's governor of Cappadocia, is considered the eponym of the Phrygians. In Armenian and Indian tradition some traces of the Phrygian and Hurrian associations may be found, which may be considered in the historical context.
Thunder god and twins
Manuk Abeghian, considering Sanasar, the hero of the first branch (part) of the epic of Sasun as the epic counterpart of the thunder god, compared him with the Indian Indra (Abeghian 1966: 414 ff.). Truly, Sanasar, the first owner of the "Lightning sword" and dragon slayer, would represent the epicized figure of the god of lightning and thunder, the dragon slayer. Sanasar's mother, the progenitress of the heroes' race is called Covinar, which means 'lightning' in dialects. In folklore texts, she appears as a thunder goddess, a woman with fiery eyes sometimes disguised as a man. She "plays (= dances) in the clouds" on horseback during thunderstorms, and the thunder is the clatter of her fiery horse's hoofs (Abeghian 1899: 83-86). Sanasar has a twin brother, Bałdasar, similar to Indra, who also has a twin brother (the fire god Agni).
Thus, Indra-Agni, verily your greatness merits loftiest praise, Sprung from one common father, brothers, twins are ye... (Rig-Veda VI.59.2, see Griffith 1992: 322).
Fiery horse in the water
The horse and horse related deities have an important function in Indo-European mythology. The twins are connected with horses (e.g., Ind. Aśvins; Anglo-Sax. Hengist and Horsa, etc.). In the "Daredevils of Sasun," Sanasar's hrełen 'fiery' horse becomes the military assistant of his offsprings, heroes of all generations. Sanasar finds it in the depths of a lake with the "Lighting sword" and other weaponry. In one episode, Sanasar and Bałdasar crush their enemies "as the horse crushes its barley" (incorrectly translated in DS: 53-54 /wheat instead of barley/), and, in several variants, they are engaged as the grooms of the king...