The god Mihr represented fire, and was the son of Aramazd. [55] He guided heroes in battle, and was commemorated by a festival held in the beginning of spring. Fires were kindled in the open market place in his honor, and a lantern lit from one of these fires was kept burning in his temple throughout the year. [56] It is still a festival among the people, although it has a different significance, and will be described more in detail later on. This is practiced not only by the Armenians, but also by the Syrian Maronites who reside in the Lebanon. I have seen the mountainsides literally aglow with a thousand fires in celebration of a Christian festival that has its roots in the pagan ceremony in honor of Mihr. The practice of a continually burning lantern was also carried over by some branches of the Christian church. Both Persians and Armenians were worshippers of Mihr (fire-worship), although there was a very distinct difference between the two. The Armenian sacred fire was invisible, whereas the Persian was material and kept up throughout the whole year. It is for this reason that the Armenians called the Persians fire-worshippers. The only visible fire-god worshipped by the Armenians was the sun, to which temples were dedicated, and after which the Armenian calendar month "Areg" was named. [57] The "Children of the Sun" as they were called, offered the most persistent opposition to the introduction of Christianity, and a community of them continued their worship in the face of persecution after Christianity became the religion of the state. The phrase "let me die for your sun," and the oath "let the sun of my son be witness," are language survivals of this particular worship. The Greek worship, introduced first during the Seleucid dynasty, and emphasized and encouraged by the line of Arsacidae kings up to the introduction of Christianity, exercised an even stronger influence than the Persian. Many of the Greek divinities were rechristened and adopted by the people. Chief of these was Anahit, "Mother of Chastity," known also as the "Pure and Spotless Goddess," who was the daughter of Aramazd, and corresponded to the Greek Artemid and the Roman Diana. [58] She was also regarded as the benefactress of the people. Writes Agathangelus: "Through her (Anahit) the Armenian land exists; from her it draws its life, she is the glory of our nation and its protectress." [59] Images and shrines were dedicated to her name under the titles, "The Golden Mother," "The Being of Golden Birth." A summer festival was celebrated in her honor at which a dove and a rose were offered to her golden image. The day was called "Vartavar," meaning "the flaming of the rose." The temples of Anahit and the golden image were destroyed with the conversion of the people to Christianity, but the festival has continued as a regular church festival under the same name "Vartavar" though of course with a different meaning.