Arabian Mythology
Written by Sean Michael Smith
Aglibol: He
is a moon god from Palmyra of northern Arabia. He was depicted with a
sickle moon either on his forehead or on his shoulders. His name is
sometimes said to mean "Bull of Bol,” suggesting that the sickle was
originally intended to represent the bull's horns.
Al-Lat: A
pre-Islamic goddess of central and northern Arabia. Her following was
particularly pronounced at Ta'if near Mecca, where she was worshipped
in the form of a block of white granite. Women in particular would
circle the stone in Al-Lat's honor, perhaps because she was regarded as
a type of mother goddess. Al-Lat represented the earth and was said to
be one of the three daughters of Allah, the supreme god. She is also
believed to have been associated with the sun, moon, and planet Venus.
Al-Uzza: She
was an Arabian goddess of pre-Islamic times who was regarded by the
Bedouin tribes of central Arabia as the youngest daughter of Allah, the
supreme deity. She was worshiped in the form of a black stone, on the
surface of which lay a mark or indentation called the Omphalos or
Impression of Aphrodite. Al-Uzza was said to live in a tree and was
identified with the morning star. She formed the center of a
sacrificial cult, and archaeologists have discovered recent evidence
that human sacrifice was offered to her. The tribe to which the Prophet
Muhammad belonged showed particular reverence for the goddess. The
prophet himself was said to have taken the sacred Black Stone of Islam
and placed it in the Kaaba, the shrine in Mecca, Islam's holiest city.
The cult of Al-Uzza was served by priestesses and even after the
arrival of Islam, the kaabas guardians still continued to be called
“Sons of the Old Woman.” According to the Quran, the sacred book of
Islam, Al-Uzza worked together with Arabia's other principle goddesses,
Al-Lat and Manat. In northern Arabia, Al-Uzza was known as Han-Uzzai.
Allah: Allah
was the supreme, though not sole, deity in Arabia before the arrival of
Islam. He lived, together with the other deties in the heavens, and was
said to have created the earth and bestowed water on it. In pre-Islamic
times, animism was prevalent throughout Arabia: trees and springs were
worshipped and certain stones were believed to contain sacred power.
However, the Prophet Muhammad (570-632 A.D.) adopted Allah as the one
true god, to whom total submission was due, and proclaimed it
blasphemous to worship any other deity. According to the Quran,
polytheism is the greatest sin. Allah is said to be supreme and
transcendent; he is regarded as the creator of all life, the controller
of all nature, the bestower of bounty and the judge of humankind in the
last days. Although Allah can be terrifying, he is none the less
righteous, just and merciful. Because Allah is believed to be
completely different from everything he has created, it is forbidden
for anyone to try to attempt to portray him. In the Quran he is given
99 Names. The hundredth and greatest name is known to no mortal.
Anbay: This
was a pre-Islamic god of southern Arabia who was known as the "Lord of
Justice." Famed for his oracle, he spoke on behalf of the moon god Amm,
who ranked above him in the extensive pantheon.
Attar: He
was a god of war worshipped in pre-islamic times in Southern Arabia. He
is called “he who is bold in battle” and one of his symbols was the
spear point. The antelope was his sacred animal and he had power over
Venus, the morning star and was believed to give humanity water.
Basamum: He
was a pre-Islamic god from Southern Arabia. His name comes from the
Arabic word for balsam bush, suggesting that he was a god of healing.
One ancient text tells how the god cured two wild goats.
Djinn: This
was the name for the Genie of Arabic and Islamic belief. Usually they
are ugly and nearly demonic with supernatural powers. The Djinn who
took up Islam were transformed by Allah into their highest possible
natures as the wish fulfilling, beautiful Genies as in the Arabian
Nights stories such as Aladdin. In pre-Islamic belief, the
Djinn were nature spirits who were said to be capable of driving people
mad. They roamed the wild and lonely desert places and, although
usually invisible, they were able to take on any shape whether animal
or human. In Islamic lore, the djinn were modified. They were an
intermediate creation, coming between humankind and the angels. All
Djinn are made of luminous fire rather than pure light, such as angels
or flesh, like humans, and have a tendency toward the diabolical as
Satan is also made of fire in Islamic lore. The believers amongst the
Djinn became beatific and powerful elementals, able to grant wishes and
protections to the righteous. King Solomon (Amenhotep III) was said to
have tamed numerous Djinn and to have become their ruler with the help
of his magic ring. He allegedly carried them in a vessel of capture in
a bag on his back when he traveled and ordered them to build the Temple
of Jerusalem, as well as beautiful gardens and palaces. There were
several kinds of Djinn, each with different degrees of power. The
ghouls were female spirits who lived in the wilderness and manifested
as mutant animals. Iblis or Satan, is often regarded as the chief
Djinee. Djinn are born from smokeless fire. They are often said to live
with other supernatural beings in the Kaf, a mythical chain of
mountains that circle the earth.
Gadd: This
was the name of many beneficent deities in pre-Islamic northern Arabia.
It is sometimes thought to be only a personification of good luck.
Gulses: She was a Hittite goddesses who acted as fates for men and women, dispensing the rigors of destiny.
Hafaza: According
to Islamic mythology, these are types of guardian angels who look after
people, protecting them from demons and evil Djinn. Everybody is said
to have four Hafaza: two to watch at day and two to guard by night. The
Hafaza recorded each individuals good and bad deeds. People are said to
be most vulnerable at sunset and dawn since, at those times, the hafaza
are changing guard.
Hubal: He
was a god worshipped in Arabia in pre-Islamic times. His image made
from red carnelian, still stands in the sacred Kaaba in Mecca, Islam's
holiest city. It is believed that the Black Stone of the Kaaba might be
connected with the god in some way. Hubal was particularly famed for
his oracles.
Hupasiyas: The
lover of Inaras, the Hittite goddess, duties seem to have been those of
protecting gods and tradesmen. A mortal being, Hupasiyas, bound the
monstrous dragon or snake Illuyankas with a rope after Inaras had
trapped the creature at a feast. The weather god Taru then killed
Illuyankas. Inaras rewarded Hupasiyas for his help by building him a
house. She warned him that he must never look out of the windows of his
new home in case he saw his mortal wife and children. When he
disobeyed, the jealous goddess killed him.
Iblis: This
is the name for the devil in Islam. He is the rebel against God and
tempts humanity to evil. Originally he was the angel Arazil or Samael.
When Allah created the first man, Adam, out of clay, Arazil refused to
bow before him. When Allah summoned the angels to praise his creation,
Arazil refused to attend. As a result, Arazil was thrown out of
paradise and from then on he encouraged the Djinn and ancient demons to
make war on Allah. He brought about Adam and Eve's fall from the Garden
of Eden by tempting them to sin as a serpent. On the great Day of
Judgment, Iblis and his evil hosts will be consigned to the fires of
hell. It is disputed whether Iblis was an angel or djinn, since he
behaved as a fallen was said to be made of smokeless fire like a djinn.
Iskur: He
was a Hittite weather god who controlled the rain and thunderstorms.
The king of heaven, he assisted earthly kings in battle and was
depicted as sitting on two mountain gods or riding on a chariot drawn
by bulls, his sacred animals. His attributes were a club and shafts of
lightning. His sacred number was 10.
Kaaba: This
is the Islamic Square House, an oblong stone building draped with black
silk that contains the sacred black stone of Islam. Situated within the
mosque at Mecca, Islam's holiest city, the Kaaba symbolizes the meeting
of heaven and earth, and was an important shrine well before Prophet
Muhammad (570-632 A.D.). It contained many images of gods and goddesses
from the Arabian pantheon. According to the Quran, the Kaaba was
rebuilt by Abraham for the worship of Allah, but over time the Arabians
enshrined many idols, the daughters of Allah, within it. Muhammed
cleansed the Kaaba of those idols and called all prayer directed toward
it as a symbol of the unity of the one true god, Allah. The annual four
month truce between the Arabian tribes became the annual pilgrimage or
Hajj to the Kaaba in post Islamic culture. Today, it is the sacred duty
of all Muslims to try and make at least one pilgrimage to Mecca to
circumambulate the sacred Kaaba. This Hajj is one of the five pillars
of Islam. Its rites include seven circumambulations of the Kaaba and if
possible, kissing the black stone. Within Islam, the Black Stone was
traditionally the place where Hagar conceived Ishmael, the tribal
ancestor of all Arabian people.
Apocryphal and
Sufi stories abound as to the Stone's origins. In van Eschenbach, the
medieval Templar Knight's stories, the Black Stone and the Holy grail
are one. The Grail was described as a kind of black meteoric material.
One tale tells how the Stone was once the most trustworthy of angels.
God placed the angel in Eden, so that he could remind Adam of his
promise and duty. However, with the Fall, Adam forgot his promise and
true identity, so God turned the angel into a white pearl. The pearl
rolled toward Adam and miraculously turned into an Angel once again.
The angel reminded Adam of his promise and Adam kissed it. God then
turned the angel into the Black Stone, to symbolize a world in which
evil has entered. Adam carried the Stone southeast from the Ethiopian
corner of Eden to Mecca where Gabriel commanded Adam to build the Kaaba
and to house the stone within. A Sufi story says the Black Stone
originated with Allah and fell from heaven as a kind of Logos. It is
filled with information and wisdom of the universe from Allah; when a
Believer kisses the Black Stone the information is channeled into the
Believer, who gains an expanded consciousness nearer to Allah.
Manat: She
was a goddess of pre-Islamic Arabia who was worshipped at Mecca and
Medina. She was one of the three daughters of Allah in control over
human destiny.
Mandah: They
were a group of pre-Islamic gods of Arabia who were concerned with
irrigation as well as being protective deities. They were absorbed into
the 99 Names of Allah of Sufi and Quran literature.
Nasr: This
was an idol created by the descendants of Cain worshipped in
pre-Islamic times. It is mentioned in the Quran as evil and having been
destroyed by the sands of time.
99 Names of Allah: In
the Quran, Allah is said to have 99 attributes or names. In Sufism,
recitation of these names became part of a visualization and
transformation practice for students. The names are chanted to invoke
those divine qualities in assistance of the adept. The hundreth name is
known by Allah alone. Allah was going to reveal the name to Jibril
(Gabriel), but the angel was nearly consumed by holy fire just in
hearing the first letter so Allah directed the angel to the nur-al-muhammahdi,
the light of Muhammad. Muhammad was the Logos as expressed in the form
the Prophet. Gabriel was sent to him in order to receive a lesson in
humility before saying any more of the all powerful secret hundredth
name. The other 99 Names are written in the Book and vibrationally
encoded into the Black Stone of the Kaaba.
Ruda: Meaning
"Gracious," Ruda was a pre-Islamic deity in northern Arabia. The deity
is sometimes male, sometimes female. Usually associated with the
evening star, Ruda was also called Arsu, the Star.
Santas: He
was an ancient gift giving god of western Asia minor. He was often
associated with the mother goddess Kubaba and was sometimes referred to
as King Santas. Sometimes he appeared as the Babylonian god Marduk. He
was assimilated into the Greek pantheon as the god Sandon.