Gods, Goddesses & Mythology
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org,
please feel free to visit the school website)
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology
Introduction
Hindu Mythology
Egyptian Mythology
Norse Mythology
Celtic Mythology
Roman Mythology
Greek Mythology
Taoist Mythology
Incan Mythology
African Mythology
Arabian Mythology
Babylonian Mythology
Iranian Mythology
Hebrew Mythology
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
Mythology is an intrinsic part of human psychology. Every archetype is found in mythology, from the Hero to the Warrior to the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone. All the Gods and Goddesses are characters in each of us, and the stories are representative of the drama within every person. Whether or not these myths have actually happened is irrelevant, although some of them may have been based on real events and real characters.
The most important thing to realize is that all cultures and societies have some version of each of the stories. The characters might be called by a different name, but the stories are all very similar. For instance, almost every culture has a story about a flood and the character named Noah in the Bible. Each has a "top god" who is father of them all. Each has a battle between the gods that humankind has been a pawn in. There are many similarities from culture to culture, and these myths came about without them knowing about each other. This means that mythology and the characters in the stories are much deeper in our psyche than any one culture. These stories and characters are a part of ourselves on the individual and mass level.
You will notice that some gods and goddesses were "borrowed" from culture to culture, or morphed into another name, but the energy of the god or goddess was the same. For instance, Mars, god of war in Roman mythology, morphed into Aries in Greek mythology. This happened time and time again with many societies, especially when one society was conquered by another, or a ruler decided that a particular god should take precedence over another and enforced it by law. This happened often during the time when Christianity was being enforced as the only accepted religion, and the gods and goddesses were somehow absorbed but still reflected by the characters in the Bible. However, this course will, for the most part, look at mythology in its pre-Christian forms.
This course in no way is able to cover every single god, goddess, or myth in every culture. This would be an endeavor that could take a lifetime and a compilation that would be a very large encyclopedia. However, we will cover enough to give you an idea of how there are similarities between all the creation stories, the heroes, the villains, and the myths in general. These are stories that every human is born with somewhere in the deep recesses of memory.
It took several writers to complete the material for this course. Their names are noted at the beginning of each section that they wrote. The mythology systems that will be covered in this course are:
| Hindu Mythology | Egyptian Mythology | Norse Mythology |
| Celtic Mythology | Roman Mythology | Greek Mythology |
| Taoist Mythology | Incan Mythology | African Mythology |
| Arabian Mythology | Babylonian Mythology | Iranian Mythology |
| Hebrew Mythology |
An interesting exercise, if you believe that you have had past lives, is to observe as you read these stories if there is some part of you that "remembers" believing in these systems of thought. Most likely you have had a lifetime or two in each of these cultures! Let's begin with the mythology of India.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Hindu Mythology
The immense Indian subcontinent encompasses an astonishing diversity of geographical regions. In the north lie the rugged Himalayan Mountains. Further south lay the vast agricultural plains of the river Ganges. There are high plateaus and low-lying coastal regions, vast rainforests and deserts. The climate is extreme, with scorching heat followed by drenching monsoons. This tremendously varied and unpredictable land has given rise to a rich mythology, many of whose deities have spread elsewhere, for example to Tibet and Sri Lanka. A significant feature of Indian belief is the desire to transcend the chaos and unpredictability of the world in order to find the truth, nirvana (spiritual ecstasy) or enlightenment. The mythology of Hinduism is quite varied and complex due to its arising from many subcultures over a long period of time in the large country of India. The myths of literally millions of deities are interwoven, and in many cases understood best by comparison to each other, having evolved from localized religious cults in "parallel" movements.
From the earliest times, evidence suggests that people believed that they might achieve this goal through meditation. For example, modern excavations have uncovered evidence that the people of the Indus valley civilization, which flourished around the middle of the third millennium B.C. in the region of modern Pakistan worshipped a deity associated with meditation. In 2000 B.C., the remarkable Indus Valley civilization collapsed under the constant incursions of the Aryan invaders, a group of Bronze Age tribes. The Aryans, or "Noble People," believed in many gods, spirits, and demons. Among their most important deities were Indra, a weather and warrior god; Varuna, a maintainer of order and morality; Agni, a fire god; Surya, the sun god; and Yama, Lord of Death. Many of the gods of the Aryan invaders are venerated in India to this day. Historically, Aryan people from the north came into the northwestern part of India at approximately 1500 B.C., absorbing the existing cultures in the Indus valley, and later spreading to the Ganges River area. Their gods were from traditions scattered throughout Asia. They came to reflect the social structure of the warrior-ruling nature as Indo-Aryans settled, and absorbed existing deities from agrarian tribes whose gods were related to nature and fertility cycles.
Nonetheless, some of the beliefs attributed to the people of the Indus Valley civilization were to resurface. For example, the great Hindu god Shiva is believed to have taken on most of the aspects of the Indus Valley's fertility god. Indeed, this ancient figure is sometimes called "Proto-Shiva." The god also demonstrates something of the continuity of Indian beliefs, the willingness of the people to adopt and assimilate deities into their own world view. In the Rig Veda, a collection of sacred hymns composed between the 14th and 10th centuries B.C., Shiva is only a minor deity known as Rudra. However, he later rose to become one of the three major gods of Hinduism, the main belief system that developed from India's earlier religious traditions.
Followers of Buddhism and Jainism, two religions which arose in India in the sixth century B.C., were also dedicated to the use of meditative techniques as a means of release from the cycle of death and rebirth. For Jains, the path to liberation demanded that stringent austerities, including self-mortifications, be practiced, while Buddhists emphasized the inward struggle. Although Buddhism and Jainism both deny the existence of a creator god, they both have a rich mythology. Jainism focuses on the Tirthankaras, the great teachers who show the way to achieve liberation. Buddhism, on the other hand, gave rise to the Mahayana cult of bodhisattvas and Buddhas who helped people along the path to enlightenment. Veneration of numerous Buddhas smoothed the way for people who were accustomed to deity worship. Morever, the adoption of many deities from Hinduism, as well as other religions, helped Buddhism spread and flourish. At the same time, such a policy produced a vast and often bewildering pantheon.
In the third century B.C., Mahinda, a close relative to the great Indian Emperor Ashoka, introduced Buddhism to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka was converted and Buddhism became the country's dominant religion up until today. In the fifth through seventh centuries A.D. missionaries and great adepts traveled to Nepal and Tibet. Although the new beliefs faced opposition from followers of the indigenous Bon religion, by the 12th century A.D. tantric Buddhism was firmly established. The Bon religion was characterized by a belief in two creator deities, the principles of good and evil, as well as a host of lesser gods and goddesses, and shared many similarities with Mongolian shamanism.
The Indian cosmology differs whether one is Hindu, Buddhist, or Jain. The common feature in all these cosmologies is the concept of the world mountain, Meru, at the center of the universe. It is composed of the elements of existence and provides homes for the gods, and demi-gods in the center of the world. From there one can attain many deity existences and access to Pure Lands, which are hidden to normal perception.
This writing will deal with a broad overview of major religious developmental trends in India, including some major deities and influences. The mythology itself is difficult to present, as several gods play many roles, assuming many different names, forms and incarnations, sometimes even morphing into each other, depending on the myth, geographical location, and historical period. Paradoxically, Hinduism is also based on the concept of the One Absolute creative principle, or Brahman, which encompasses all. It is characterized by the sacred syllable, Om, the eternal essence permeating the universal first cause.
The Vedas
Over a period of centuries from about 1200 B.C. to 500 B.C., ancient sacred texts of four collections of hymns called the Vedas (veda meaning "knowledge") came into being. The Vedas were divinely revealed through the medium of sacred sound to the mythical race of Indian Rishis. These scriptures, as they evolved into written "hymns," were the basis for all the religious mythology leading forward to the Classical Age of Hinduism, which peaked in the first millennium AD. It is in the Vedic writings that the doctrine of rebirth, reincarnation, or "transmigration of souls," first appears.
In the Vedas, the doctrine of "karma" as a universal principle of cause and effect-life actions with consequences-determines the cycles of life, death and rebirth. If one was ethically motivated, he would be promised a "better" rebirth, but human desires were really the cause for attachment to this cycle. "The round of birth and death-with some rebirths better because of good deeds and some worse because of bad deeds-is called "samsara." (Religions Of The World, 1969:383)
During the Vedic epoch, a class system of "varnas" developed, which was a system of social divisions into which an individual was born and died. The highest, most privileged class was the one composed of Brahmans (or Brahmins), who studied and taught Vedic learning. Within the Brahmin class were the powerful, learned and honored priests who could alone propitiate the gods in sacrificial rituals involving plants and animals in the sacred fire. As well, they were venerated by the other classes with presents.
Over time, the rise of Brahmanism from the Vedic Age led to the development of spiritual centers that were essentially great temple-cities in regional kingdoms, supporting the sovereignty of the current dynasty. These continued to be influential throughout the evolution of Hinduism, which began its flowering into the "Golden Age" in the centuries following the birth of Christ. As a continuation of the Vedic tradition, classical Hinduism, as it came to be known, held sacred the four Vedas and the pantheon of gods. However, a new emphasis was on inner wisdom and devotional worship of the deity of choice with flowers and fruit, both in the temple and in the home.
The transition came about through one of the later additions to the Vedic compositions, emerging between 800 B.C. and 500 B.C., called the Upanishads. The content of the writing (which was fully developed Sanskrit by then) contained the development of a new scholasticism through the consideration of abstract spiritual concepts. This marked a shift in the religion toward the idea that the gods were only symbolic, and the process of inner contemplation was most necessary for spiritual understanding.
In regards to this evolution, it could be said that a seeker was able, through worship of the gods, to reach awareness of the Ultimate Reality, called Brahman. In the un-manifested state, the scriptures say "Brahman is truth, the world is illusion....The appearance of universes and their disappearance are therefore....cyclic events." (Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology, 1968:206). For the search for this awareness to be comprehensible to humans, the concept of Atman (spark of God within) was revealed as one-Self; it "designates what is manifested in the fact of consciousness as being the thinking principle." This ultimate non-dualism is known as Advaita, which later became the most famous school of Indian philosophy in the 8th century-the one of Advaita Vedanta.
As the Vedic Age came to a close with these vaster perspectives in scriptural recordings, three aspects of the impersonal Brahman could now be conceptualized as "God Made Manifest" through the "Trimurti" or the Three-fold God. Represented as a group of three faces on one head, these are Brahma, the Creator of Life; Vishnu, the Preserver of Life; and Shiva, the Destroyer of Life. All other gods could be seen to essentially revolve around these vast principles in human incarnation. Vedic sacrificial ritual, in general orthodoxy, was therefore replaced with "loving devotion to Shaivite [followers of Shiva] or Vaishnavite [followers of Vishnu] deities (Religions Of The World, 1969:391)." However, at the popular levels in villages, there continued to exist in some areas sacrificial cults worshipping the destructive aspects of Shiva and Kali from many centuries before.
The Hindu Gods & Goddesses
Indra
One of the major deities of the conquering Indo-Aryans included Indra, god of warriors and nature, the Lord of Heaven to which cows were sacrificed. His cosmic twin, a hero of strength and actually a cult in his own right, was the god Agni, god of the sacred fire in which sacrifices were made. Aditi was a female deity that symbolized boundlessness, and was associated with sky and air. Soma was characterized by hallucinogenic plants, prepared as a nectar of and for the gods, and was seen as the "source of inspiration and principle of life." (New Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology, 1968:326). Varuna, associated with the sky and the still depths of the ocean, was the keeper of law and order. Yama was the gloomy god of death and presided over hell, while Kali and Durga were fearsome "she-monsters" that were in place from the existing Dravidian culture, and were associated with the cycles of Nature.
It is interesting to see how the destructive aspect of Kali, who wears a necklace of skulls, earrings of corpses, and a skirt of human arms, appears in later myths as a guise that is taken by another goddess to conquer demons. Her fierceness was powerful and venerated by the popular masses in legends of battles between the Devas ("good" gods) and Asuras (demons). These gods were to be feared, admired, and propitiated with sacrifice (hence the traditional sacredness of cows in India).
Krishna
The popular mythology that defined the evolution of Vedism (or Brahmanism) into classical Hinduism was embodied in the form of poetic narratives called Epic writings. Two notable collections that achieved their final forms between 200 B.C. and 200 A.D. were called the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. The importance of these two scriptures lies in the popularization of the hero-gods Krishna and Rama, both incarnations of Vishnu. Their legends inspire and teach the essence of Hindu philosophy. As such, it is important to describe their function in Hinduism today.
Krishna was an avatar incarnation of the god Vishnu. He came to earth when divine intervention was needed. Krishna actually appears in a smaller poem that was incorporated into the great war epic, Mahabharata. This poem is the well-known Bhagavad-Gita, probably written between 100 B.C. and 100 A.D. The Bhagavad-Gita is "often called the New Testament of Hinduism...there is no greater work in the religion of Hinduism today; the Upanishads are the only other Hindu works that compare with it in importance for modern leaders of religion and philosophy." (Religions Of The World, 1969:404) Its contents consist of dialogues between Krishna and his cousin Arjuna at the eve of a great battle between warring families.
The depiction of Krishna in the Bhagavad-Gita is one of an accomplished teacher of philosophy, and a great yogi. His advice to Arjuna reveals great knowledge about the nature of man and God, and the four margas that lead to "moksha." It is here that "egoless action-renunciation of the fruits of work-makes moksha possible... the earliest reference in Sanskrit literature to karma-marga [or yoga]." (Religions Of The World, 1969:406). As well, the relationship of this concept to the "dharma," which is defined as the overarching harmony and order of the universe, is defined by "right action" and social duty to one's class.
Thus Krishna deigns that it is Arjuna's dharma to go into battle. It is his duty as a member of the social order whose task it is to defend righteous causes with military force if necessary, knowing that only bodies can be killed but never the immortal soul. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Krishna also expounds on the need for deep meditation in order to experience union with the non-material aspect of the universe. This is contrasted to the path of knowledge, jnana-marga, which deals with the world of matter (which is in turn subdivided into three aspects: sattva, characterized by an etheric aspect of existence; rajas by dynamic passion, and tamas by inertia or heaviness).
By far, the favorite path of salvation illustrated in the Bhagavad-Gita is the personal one of bhakti-marga, in which Krishna asks Arjuna for full, unconditional devotion. Through this single-minded homage it is promised that karma can be nullified by total surrender to the Lord, who, by the grace that is traditionally ascribed to Vishnu, offers absolution from the need for rebirth.
The legendary hero Krishna is many-faceted. In some myths, quite possibly stemming from old legends of a similar god, he appears in the guise of a warrior, and also a simple cow-herd of mysterious birth, pointing to his divine origins. In subsequent writings known as the Puranas dating from the 9th Century A.D., there are comprehensive descriptions of Krishna's battles with demons, dragons and a tyrant king, whom he eventually supplants as a local prince.
Yet Krishna as the youthful, high-spirited (but never mean) prankster is most well-known and is depicted artistically in his flirtations with the Gopis, the legendary milk-maids who adore him. The high-point of his relationship with them is when he manifests in a multiple form for them, so each one is happy as they dance in the enchanted forest by night in the great circle dance called the Ras Mandala. In this respect, he embodies the spirit of love and abundance, for Krishna had many roles to play as a savior to the ordinary "cow folk" that he lived with, representing the intervention of the Divine that is balanced with an earth-loving aspect.
Krishna is a mighty hero who seems playful and mischievous, albeit loving. But from the inspiration of the lyrical love poets of the Gita Govinda, Krishna's epic, is told, an erotic love affair with the esteemed and loyal village girl Radha, whom he charmed into the forest at night with his flute playing. This aspect of Krishna appeals to the Hindu cult of sacred Tantra, or finding union with the Divine through sexual union. The literature is both rapturously poetic in its love of life and is also highly sensuous regarding Krishna's abilities to charm the opposite sex. As Nigel Frith rightly declares, "The standing of Krishna today in India is a blend...almost every sect of Hinduism, and Hinduism out of all religions is the most free and comprehensive, gives Krishna some veneration." (The Legend of Krishna, 1976:13)
Rama
Rama, also known as Rama-chandra, is a noble, heroic figure in the mythology of India. It is written that "in almost every Indian tongue there is a vast epic, the Ramayana, which recounts his exploits, and any storyteller can make a crowd sob by saying or chanting his name." (New Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology, 1968:217) The Ramayana is an epic poem also containing later additions, and most likely crystallized just before the birth of Christ.
In the Ramayana, Rama is another incarnation of Vishnu. He appears as a prince who is heir to the throne and is married to the lovely Sita, who is an incarnation of the wise and beautiful goddess Lakshmi, wife of Vishnu. Rama exemplifies "flowing with the dharma" by voluntarily exiling himself from the kingdom because of family politics. This occurred when his step-mother, the current queen, interfered with the succession to the throne by installing her own son, based on a boon once promised her by the king. The son assumes the title of regent only, for Rama's sake, but Rama righteously withdraws to a forest hermitage with his beloved wife Sita and Rama's brother.
In demonstrating the continuing struggle between good and evil, Rama must fight many demons in the forest. The King of Demons, Ravana, finally avenges himself and abducts Sita, the model Hindu wife, to live in his kingdom. Rama is horrified and searches everywhere, finally enlisting the aid of the great monkey king's general, the god Hanuman, who is shown with a monkey head on a human body. Because of his brave help, Hanuman is considered a "much-loved deity in Hinduism and all monkeys are held sacred." (Religions Of The World, 1969:410)
Together, Rama and Hanuman fight Ravana in his kingdom of Lanka, and when Rama shoots him with a poison arrow, Sita is released from the palace where she has been captive. While there, Ravana made advances to her but she loyally refused them, thus gaining his respect. However, because she lived in another man's palace, Sita must now prove her innocence with a public trial. She builds a funeral pyre and steps into the flames declaring her love for Rama and imploring the protection of the fire god Agni. He does not burn her, but rather is seen to rise radiantly with her on his lap, to the delight of her husband, who believed in her virtue all along.
Interestingly, the last book of the Ramayana, which was probably added later, ends differently. Rama has to sorrowfully banish Sita in his duty to please the people, who do not believe in Sita's purity. Ultimately, after many trials, she is redeemed when she asks her Mother, Earth, to consume her. Rama dies soon after to take up once again his form as the all-encompassing Vishnu.
The ultimate significance of the tale of Rama and Sita lies in the importance of right living, or karma-yoga. Rama is a model prince, and Sita is the model Hindu wife, loyally serving her husband to the point of surrendering her life. In the Ramayana, "Dharma (moral duty, righteousness), as a major goal in life, overrides Artha (pursuit of wealth, honor and fame) and Kama (pursuit of pleasure)...Rama and Sita are divine exemplars of Dharma." (Religions Of The World, p. 412)
Brahma, The Trimurti (or Trinity)
It is important in a discussion of mythology to present the iconography of the Trimurti, for it reflects the essence of Hindu philosophy. The three concepts of creation, preservation, and destruction are inseparable from one another: They represent the cycles of life, and also of liberation from the world of illusion by "death of the ego"-the wondrous attainment that is called "moksha." The following brief descriptions of the gods and their roles will be helpful in understanding this.
Brahma represents the creative powers of the universe, creator of the worlds. He sets each great cycle of time in motion. In some depictions, he has four faces and arms, holding the four sacred Vedas or other sacred objects. As "the father of gods and men," he was born in a golden egg. With his four faces, he pursued and won for his wife the female that he birthed from his own "immaculate substance." (New Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology, 1968:344) She is popularly known as Sarasvati, among other names, and is venerated as the goddess of music, wisdom and knowledge.
In artistic depictions, Brahma can ride either on a swan or a peacock, but in many representations he is seen sitting in meditation on a lotus that grows from the navel of Vishnu. In this aspect he represents austerity and the inward search of self-inquiry, as he was advised to engage in by Vishnu himself.
Given the interesting image of this relationship to Vishnu, it has been observed that Brahma is the "lord of wisdom from whose head the four Vedas are said to have sprung...[and] worshipped as the first member in the Hindu trinity. Though in earlier times the supreme god, in the later mythology he frequently occupied a position inferior to that of Vishnu and Shiva." The emergence of the two strands of popular worship, the Vaishnavite and the Shaivite traditions, seems to reflect this.
Vishnu
Vishnu has qualities of being both transcendent and personal. As the transcendent god, he protects the worlds as the "the unconquerable preserver...and it is this quality of preservation that becomes his major attribute." (Religions Of The World, 1969:419) As the un-manifest aspect of Brahman, the Ultimate Reality, Vishnu protects the Universe from his place in paradise. He is shown lying slumbering on the great serpent Ananta, symbolizing eternity, and they are floating on an ocean of milk, or on the static state of absolute, uniform totality.
As the personal god, Vishnu multiplies: first, he emanates his manifestation as the divine feminine through his wife Lakshmi, who is goddess of abundance, beauty and harmony. Ultimately he manifests in many shapes, as "avatar incarnations" on earth, to help humans. To intervene in the affairs of men when the burden of sorrow was too great to bear is a topic of many myths. Vishnu is also formidable in his multiple god-forms. The gods Rama and Krishna are two of Vishnu's more notable incarnations represented in the Epic writings known as the Ramayana and the Bhagavad-Gita. Lakshmi, in turn, has incarnations that are consorts to those incarnations of Vishnu. For example, as the goddess Sita, she is consort to Rama.
Vishnu is most often shown as a blue-colored and kingly god with a crown and four arms. His hands are shown bearing the conch shell of creation; the mace of sovereignty; the lotus of creative unfoldment; and a disk, or wheel, that represents both the sun and a weapon. Sometimes he is shown with a sword, representing wisdom. A jewel in the center of his chest symbolizes the pure, undefiled aspect of the world, which he protects. The color of his skin can represent the deepness of space that separates god from man, and reflects his infinity. Krishna, one of his incarnations, is also blue. Another interpretation is that "dark blue or black is the color of ether, the all-pervading element in the universe, and thus a symbol of the all-pervading god." (Religions Of The World, 1969:421)
Shiva
Shiva is a very old god in the Hindu pantheon, and is known as the Great Destroyer. However, Shaivites worship him as being all three aspects as well as "non-dual," thus giving him the title of Mahadeva (Great God). In his ancient origins from the Indus Valley he was associated with a bull, and other symbols of fertility, as well as with a terrifying god of death called Rudra. However, in regards to Shiva it is written that "his name means 'the favorable' or 'the benevolent' and was meant to propitiate a dangerous deity who breathes pestilence and death." (New Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology, 1968:342)
As the Destroyer, Shiva rules over the state of death. In depictions he is seen sometimes wearing a necklace of skulls as the overseer of demons. However, in the transcendent state, this death symbolizes the cremation of the ego of the spiritual seeker. Shiva is also "the prince of ascetics, and his worshipers follow an essentially ascetic discipline...[for when] he remains in eternal meditation-the motionless center of movement.'' (New Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology, 1968:221) In this guise one can see the third eye on his forehead and the matted hair of the ascetic, of which its many strands represent the sacred Ganges River, where devout Hindus bathe themselves ritually.
In the oldest traditions, Shiva renews after destroying, and he is worshipped as the principle of continuity in the ancient form of the "lingam," which is a smooth, phallic-formed rock. The symbol of the yoni (the vaginal opening) is associated in Mahadevi-the one great Mother Goddess from ancient goddess cults in India. Among one of her names is Parvati, wife of Shiva and goddess of love and procreation. Parvati is also the mother of the popular, benevolent god, the elephant-headed Ganesha.
In many popular images, Shiva is portrayed as the Mahadeva with all the attributes of the Trimurti. He is the Dancing Shiva, "dancing within a circle (or ellipse) bordered with flames, which signify the illusory, transitory nature of the world." (Religions Of The World, 1969:423) He has four arms and hands, and stands on one foot. In the left hand is a flame, signifying the temporal nature of life, death and change. The other left hand points to the raised left leg and signifies grace in attaining "moksha" and "release from the world of time and change, of karma and samsara." In one of the right hands of the dancing Shiva is a drum. This represents his creation of the illusory world which "has its source in the rhythmic pattern of Shiva's drum and dance." (Religions Of The World, 1969:425) The other right hand is an upraised palm, a gesture of reassurance inviting the lack of fear resulting from not identifying with the world of the senses but rather the Ultimate Reality. The Dancing Shiva stands on the body of a demon dwarf Muyalaka, who symbolizes time and illusion, so that he both crushes evil and ignorance while raising his left leg in liberation from its power.
Shakti
Another popular sect in Hinduism, besides the Vaishnavite and Shaivite, is known as the Shakta Movement. Its followers worship Devi, the Great Goddess, personified as the Shakti (divine feminine) of the god Shiva. The system of belief is based on early writings called Tantras, which consist of divine dialogues between the Shiva and Devi.
The Shakta philosophy is complicated in its steps toward attainment of salvation, but its basic approach is one of non-duality, in which the One is the combination of Shiva as inert consciousness and Shakti as creative force. The One manifests in the universe through the power of Shakti, and Devi, under many names (such as Kali, Durga and local goddesses) and is the absolute-creator, preserver and destroyer-the mother of the universe. Shaktas use kundalini yoga as a practice, in which "Kundalini (Shakti) is coaxed upward through six psychic centers of the body [chakras] until she reaches the thousand-petaled lotus at the crown of the head." (Religions Of The World, 1969:465)
The very redeeming feature of this sect is that it accepts women, as well as all classes and foreigners, to attain the path of high knowledge. It is written that "women can become spiritual directors (gurus), and it is considered a special honor to be initiated into the mysteries of the cult by a woman." The Shaktas strongly oppose sacrifice of female animals, and forbid any harm to women and girls.
The Four Ashramas
Although there are numerous rites and practices of worship in the history of Hinduism, in terms of religious influences on lifestyle, it is important to highlight the following foundational tenets, now enjoying much popularity in the western world. With the development of new philosophical thought in the Upanishads, specific devotional paths and a "philosophy of life" crystallized. The concept of seeking "moksha" by living an ideal life-one of ultimate renunciation-was designed in what was called the doctrine of the "ashramas." The specific paths to this liberation were called "margas."
In the doctrine Four Ashramas, it is encouraged that a boy first participate in a rite that establishes him in his class of society. This happens between the age of 8 and 12, following which he lives with his "guru," or spiritual teacher, for 12 years. As a Brahmacharin, or student, he studies the Vedas and learns to obey and serve the guru (women have not been allowed to read the Vedas, traditionally). Then he can marry and establish a household, known as the Householder stage, in which he lives an honorable and devout life. He graduates from this to the Forest Dweller, after his first grandson is born or his hair grays. At this time, his wife may accompany him to a forest hermitage where he will meditate and reflect on philosophical ideas and religious symbols. The final stage is one of the Wandering Ascetic, in which he totally renounces the world and becomes a mendicant, seeking only Brahman and self-realization. When "moksha," or Union with the Divine, is attained, "never again will the spirit be entangled in the bonds of karma and samsara...[He] is called a 'jivanmukta,' a soul that is liberated while still alive." ( Religions Of The World,1969:393) A man at this point in his life lives only until his residual karma is worked out.
These are the Four Ashramas: Brahmacharya, Householder, Forest Dweller and Wandering Ascetic. While most men have been content to remain in the stage of the Householder, in modern India there are often rooms or small places within the home where the ideals of the last two stages can be followed. As well, modern ascetics belong to religious orders, rather than being the products of the sequence of these life stages. They may become great teachers with followings in their residences or schools known as ashrams. While women were never allowed to actually study religion, they were free to worship and therefore could be recognized and venerated as saints and teachers if their lives displayed great natural wisdom and healing powers.
The Yogas
There have existed throughout time in Hinduism various paths to enlightenment, called "margas." They can be suited, respectively, to individuals with differing social and personality factors. They are also known as yogas. A yogi (or yogini) is one who seeks liberation by any of these approaches or by other less traditional methods. A yogi may also refer to a person who has attained super-sensory powers, usually through austere ascetic practices.
In describing the four traditional paths, first there is the marga of knowledge, known as Jnana-Marga (Jnana Yoga), denoting a path of study and contemplation of the scriptures. The path includes giving up the gratifications of the senses in the desire to attain moksha and the search for inner peace. This path has been historically followed by men of the higher classes such as the Brahmin, and also by men in the next class in the sequence of varnas, the Kshatriya (whose members were traditionally the public protectors, soldiers and governmental administrators).
The way of work, Karma-Marga (Karma Yoga), became known in the Classical Age, since it was previously believed that renunciation was the only way to enlightenment. The post-Vedic scripture called the Bhagavad-Gita posited that giving up work in the world was not essential, if it was performed with ego-less intention. This philosophy teaches that attachment to recognition and ambitions in work are the causes of karma and rebirth. Therefore, surrendering this ego attachment and unselfishly devoting the fruits of one's work to the greater good can bring liberation, as exemplified by the great modern Indian leader Gandhi. This path could be suited to the Kshatriyas or to the Sudras, the social class who perform as menial workers, domestic servants and simple farmers.
Bhakti-Marga (Bhakti Yoga), the yoga of loving devotion to a personal god, was exemplified in the Bhagavad-Gita. The scriptures approved this path to liberation for Sudras and for women, and encouraged Divine Union through complete surrender to God. This is the main path for Vaishnavite devotees, who have at their basis of ritual many love songs and poems. Through the bhakti way of release, it is taught that all egoic and selfish desires will be consumed in the ecstasy of worship. The popular god-hero Krishna exemplifies this path of love in the Bhagavad-Gita.
In the classical path of Raja-Marga (Raja Yoga), which means the Royal Road, there exist three main disciplines. The discipline dealing with morality includes rules against violence of any kind, sexual intercourse, and material possessions beyond the strictest needs. As well, personal cleanliness, the study of God with awareness of God as the prime motive for living, and other austerities are observed. In the discipline of body control, yogic postures known as "asanas" and breath control are practiced rigorously. Finally, concentration of the mind dictates that the senses withdraw from external objects and turn inward in meditation. In order to achieve the intuitive realization of Brahman, the state of moksha, the tool of meditation is essential. It is described as "complete absorption, concentration of the mind on pure spirit in its true nature until the final stage of absorption, 'samadhi' (trance) is reached-the goal of the three kinds of discipline." (Religions Of The World, 1969:396)
The Yugas
It would be well to note here the cyclical regard for time in traditional Hindu thought. It was written in the Vishnu Purana that time is infinite and consists of endless repetitions of the four great ages, or "yugas." A brief overview follows:
The first yuga is the Satya, or Krita, Yuga. It is the Golden Age of the world, where there is harmony, no vices or disease, and happiness reigns. In the next one, the Treta Yuga, there is a decline of human ethics and Vedic sacrifices are needed to nullify selfishness and reward-seeking on the part of humans. The third epoch is the Dvapara Yuga, where there is further decline, with diseases and catastrophes occurring. Finally there is the Kali Yuga, where there is extreme human misery characterized by fear and anxiety, hunger and disease. Each age is less long than the last, with the Kali Yuga being about one quarter as long as the Golden Age, which then returns to begin the cycle again. It has been popularly calculated that our present time happens to fall within the last stages of a Kali Yuga.
Within such a philosophy, it is naturally assumed that, "The wise man is aghast at being caught on this relentless, repetitive wheel of time...his ardent desire is liberation from this circular time process into the plane of eternity." (Religions Of The World, 1969:413)
Some major influences contributing to "mainstream" Hinduism have been illustrated in the preceding paragraphs by the transition from the Vedic to the Epic and Classical Ages, culminating in the Golden Age of Indian culture. The Golden Age flourished under the Gupta dynasty, in power from the third century A.D. until invasions by central Asian peoples brought it into decline by 550 A.D.
During the first millennium A.D. when Hinduism was achieving full expression, artists rose to glory and learned Brahmins studied the Vedas as well as later writings, birthing philosophies of logic and the Dharma. The first major university was created, which became a famous center of Buddhist learning until it was destroyed by the Muslims at the end of the millennium.
Indeed, the Postclassical epoch (approximately 1100-1800 A.D.) "witnessed less innovative religious impulses than the preceding epoch of classical Hinduism or the succeeding one of neo-Hinduism." (Religions Of The World 1969:591) Certainly religious thought was influenced by the rise of Buddhism and the Muslim invasions, but many of the great Indian philosophers who followed would base their philosophies on the treatises of non-dualism growing out of the Vedas and the traditions honoring those principles.
Other Hindu Deities
AdiBuddha: This was the Primordial Buddha (Kungtu Zangpo, Samantabhadra) who rose to prominence in the 11th century as a result of an attempt to transform Mahayana Buddhism into a monothesitic religion in the far east, inspired by a line in the Prajanaparamita concerning a Buddha who existed before time began. In Nepal, AdiBuddha came to be seen as infinite, omniscient and the supreme mandala of creation. He gives rise to the five Tathagatas or Dhyani Buddhas. The Nyingma teachings of Tibet held all as primordially enlightened and spontaneously present in the Primordial Buddha's mandala. Adibuddha in this context is called Kungtu Zangpo who emanates Vajradhara, the Celestial Buddha. His shakti consort is Adidharma.
Aditi: She is a Hindu mother goddess, regarded as the personification of earth. Her breasts are its center. Her name means "Infinity" or Free of Bounds. She is symbolized by the immortal cow and is said to embody unlimited light, consciousness and unity. Aditi is usually depicted as the mother of the Great God Vishnu. As she appears in the Vedas, she is the consort of Brahma, the Creator. She is also the mother of the Adityas, the deities who protect the world from chaos and ignorance. She rules over the divine ordering of the world and is said to be able to free all those who believe in her from sickness and sin. Whereas Aditi corresponds to the universal and divine in humankind, her sister, Diti, corresponds to all that is individual, human, and divided.
Adityas: They were the offspring of Aditi, the Hindu mother goddess. They are usually said to number seven or eight deities, including Mitra and Varuna. However in later times, there were sometimes said to be 12 Adityas, each of whom was associated with the sun as a source of life, and each connected with a month of the year. The Adityas are believed to offer salvation from all ills. Martanda, the eighth son of Aditi, is sometimes regarded as the divine ancestor of humanity.
Agastya: He was a great Hindu sage who was said to have been conceived when the beautiful Urvasi, one of the Apsaras slept with both Mitra and Varuna together. Agastya caused any obstacle standing in the way of universal harmony to move. When a range of mountains threatened to grow so high they would block the sun, Agastya willed it to shrink down. On another occasion Agastya helped the hero Rama, an Avatar of Vishnu. He gave Rama a magical weapon in order to destroy a terrible monster, Ravana (also called Ravena). The magic weapon's point was made of sunlight and fire, and it weighed as much as Mt. Meru and Mandara put together. The arrow struck Ravana, killed him, and then magically returned to Rama.
Agni: Also known as Fire. He is one of the chief deities of the Rig Veda, the sacred Hymns of Hinduism. He is both the protective god of the hearth and the god of the sacrificial fire. In the latter role, he mediates between deities and human beings by taking sacrifices to the gods. Agni appears in the sky as lightning and is regarded as both cruel and kind. Although he dispels darkness, he consumed his parents as soon as he was born and comsumes the bodies on the cremation pyre. He is referred to as the son of heaven and earth, and is usually said to emerge from either the sun or from lightning. Other sources regard him as the son of Aditi and Kasyapa and he is sometimes said to have been born from stone or wood rubbing together. One of the guardian gods of the world, Agni can grant immortality and purify people after death. He looked after the monkey god Hanuman when the demon King of Lanka, Ravana set light to his tail. This god is portrayed as red in color, with two or three heads, several arms, a long beard and clothes of flames.
Airavata: This was the great white elephant ridden by Indra, the king of the gods. One myth tells how the goddess Paravati invited all the gods to a great party held to celebrate the birth of her son, Ganesha. Sani, the planet Saturn, at first refused the invitation, but Paravati insisted that he accept. When Sani looked at the child the baby's head was reduced to ashes; Vishnus went in search of another head for the child and returned with the head of the elephant Airavata. As the chariot of the sky god, the clouds are often said to be Airavata's body. The elephant is called the thunderer sometimes in relation to this myth.
Akshobya: He was one of the five dhyani Buddhas or "Great Buddhas of Wisdom who rules over the Pure Land Paradise Abhirati." His name means unmovable and he represents perfect body; he subjugates the passions, and as Vajrasattva, enjoys mirror like awareness and wisdom.
Amitabha: One of the five meditation Buddhas. They are Amogosiddhi, Aksobya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Vairocana, the enlightened Buddha family mandala.
Amoghasiddhi: One of the five meditation Buddha. They are Amogosiddhi, Aksobya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Vairocana, the enlightened Buddha family mandala.
Amrita: The soma or nectar of the gods conferring visions and immortality upon the drinker.
Bodhisattvas: Buddhas to be, enlightened warriors on the path to full enlightenment. Bodhisattvas are interconnected into the enlightened matrix of being.
Chacrasamvara: A popular tantric Deity of Tibetan Buddhism, meaning "Lord of the Bliss Wheels" that was brought from India to Tibet during the second dissemination of Buddhism by the Mahasiddhas, mainly by Naropa and Marpa. Chacrasamvara is the elaborate version of Samvara; he is in union with his consort Vajrayogini and has twelve hands holding twelve implements: a severed head of Brahma, a trivangha (ritual trident), a lasso, an axe, a vajra, a bell, an amrita pouch, a khatvanga (ritual staff), a damaru drum, a vajra cutter and his elephant skin garment.
Dharmapalas: Dharma protectors; guardian spirits of the dharma taken from indigenous religions such as Bon and Mongolian Shamanism and incorporated into the dharma as protectors.
Dhyani Buddhas: The five meditation Buddhas; dhyani meaning meditation. They are Amogosiddhi, Aksobya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Vairocana, the enlightened Buddha family mandala.
Dipankara: A sea monster which is part hippo and part crocidile; a decorative protector and water spirit.
Durga: She is the completely empowered form of Kali; Durga is a woman god with all attributes of all other deities in the Hindu pantheon. The myth is that she alone could destroy a terrible Buffalo Headed demon that was ravishing the land so all the devas and devis gave her their powers and weapons to use in battle.
Ganga: This was the holy river of Hinduism, running throughout India. The Ganga was a reflection of the Celestial River, the Milky Way in the sky. The Ganga's stars were the yogis who meditated on the river. The world was said to come from the river, its waterfalls running down the head of Shiva from his sunspot. The holy waters of the Ganga are said to heal and purify all obscurations of body and mind.
Garuda: This was a mythical bird that was spontaneously self-born and able to fly. The Garuda came to represent the yogi of Dzockchen, the Great Perfection in that it was a natural adept at flight and can go the highest of any bird, even out into the furthest reaches of the cosmos. The Garuda was the vehicle of Krishna when he went into battle and it is said only the Garuda can properly digest the serpent of hate in order to turn hatred into enlightenment purifying all negative afflictions.
Gautama Buddha: The historical Buddha who attained enlightenment under the bodhi tree. Also known as Siddhartha.
Maya: The beautific illusion of reality that is transcended by meditation and the dharma. Maya-Devi "illusion of the gods" is said to be the mother of Buddha. She passes away at his birth.
Meru: The mythical mountain of Hindu cosmology where all the gods and anit-gods would live.
Nagas: Serpent people who live under water and in rivers; they usually guard great treasures
Nandi: The sacred bull of Shiva, reminiscent of the cosmic bull of Sumeria.
Padmasambhava: The great Master Padmasambhava was invited and proved able to subjugate the demons, malicious spirits, enemies of Buddhism, including the Bon preists, making it possible to establish the first Buddhist monastery in Tibet at Samye (Bsam Yas) in 779 A.D. Padmasambhava was given one of the King's wives as a consort. She was named Yeshe Tsogyal, who also became a Buddha Dakini due to the tantric teachings of Padmasambhava. Padmasambhava firmly established the dharma in Tibet with 24 main disciples as well as thousands of minor ones. Tantric treasures were left all over Tibet for later generations to read and become empowered by. When discussing lineage, Padmasambhava, usually refered to as Guru Rinpoche, the Precious One, and Second Buddha, holds a monumental significance as the first disseminator of Tantra in Tibet. The stories of Padmasambhava's tantric defeat of the local spirits and demons of Tibet are pervasive and popular, and they figure prominently in the ontological myths of many pilgrimage sites across Tibet. Buddhism is famous for its ability to accomodate local deities into its pantheon. In the case of Tibet, most of the local deities became regarded as "mundane gods" ('jigs rten pa'i lha), that is, deities who are subject to the law of karma and cycle of rebirth, who after a lifetime as a particular god will take rebirth in some other form. The vast pantheon of deities imported from India included such gods, as well as "supramundane gods " ('jigs rten las das pa'i lha), that is, deities, who, although they appear in horrifying forms, such as the protector of the Dalai Lama, the goddess Pelden Lhamo, are in fact enlightened beings already liberated from the cycle of birth and death.
Pandavas: The family of protagonists in the epic Mahabarata who are victorious by the end of the story against their evil worshipping foes. Many magical beings and weapons are used by them.
Purusha: The cosmic first man who is sacrificed to the gods in the Vedas so that reality can come into being. Purusha is akin to Adam in the Garden of Eden.
Shiva: The "destroyer" god of Hindu mythology. "Ever gracious, ever blissful Lord whose compassion is like the ocean of nectar; whose body shines white as camphor and the jasmine flower; purest truth, robed in space, omnipresent; loving and beloved Lord of yogis, whose coiled and matted dread-locked hair is drenched from the spray of the celestial Ganga river; adorned with ashes, garlanded with snakes and human skulls; three eyed Lord of the triple world: trident in one hand, in the other, blessing; embodiment of Gnosis; giver of Nirvana; everlasting, pure, flawless; amiable, benefactor to all that lives, God of Gods." (verse 6-10 Mahanirvana Tantra, Brahmasamaj, Calcutta, 1876). So the tantric poet describes Shiva, consort and husband of the goddess. As Mahakala, the Great Energy, he dances for Her pleasure, he is also her Lord.
Vairochana: One of the five meditation Buddhas. They are Amogosiddhi, Aksobya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Vairocana, the enlightened Buddha family mandala.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Egyptian Mythology
Plutarch, a Greek historian, has written most of what we know about the story of Osiris. Osiris was one of the greatest gods in the Egyptian Pantheon. Most other stories from Egyptian legends and myths are lost, except for snippets and incomplete stories that managed to be remembered. Most of Egyptian myth was never set down in writing. Only the story of Osiris is the best preserved in the writings in Egyptian tombs.
Long before the first hieroglyphs, the people of the Nile valleys lived in tribes and each tribe had its own God. This god incarnated as an animal, bird or an inanimate fetish of some sort. Animal deities eventually gave way to human deities in human form, and nothing of animal worship is left except the animal's head being worn by a man or woman. These were the gods and goddesses.
At first these were lone gods, but then Egyptians saw fit to create a family of gods and goddesses, for they could not fathom the idea of how lonely it must be for a god not to have a wife and children. So, they created goddesses and children of these deities. Egyptians became farmers instead of hunters. However, each town, no longer a nomadic tribe, still had its own god which oversaw the affairs of that particular group of people. From the second dynasty on, this was the form of divinity until the end of paganism (religions containing multiple gods in charge of different affairs).
Egyptians also worshipped the divinities of nature, the sky, the earth, the sun, the moon, and of course the Nile River, believed to be the source that created Egypt. The sky was considered feminine and thus was a goddess who barely touched the earth with her fingers and toes. Sometimes they saw the sky goddess as a cow with all four feet planted firmly on the ground. Also they imagined that the night sky, with all its stars, was the belly of the goddess. Another image associated with the sky goddess is that of the head of a falcon who opened and closed its eyes alternately, thus the day and the night. This goddess was called Nut or Hathor.
The earth was considered masculine. It was portrayed as a man laying face down on the ground with vegetation growing up out of his back, supporting all of life. This god was called Geb.
The sun had a lot of names and had many varied interpretations. The sun was called Aten and was considered masculine. Depending on where the sun was in the sky, this god was called different names to denote different positions. These names were Khepre, Ra and Atum. Horus was another widespread name for the sun. Some interpretations say that the sun was a suckling child of the sky goddess, and was reborn every day. Other interpretations say that he was a golden egg laid daily by a great goose. Most often he was referred to as a giant scarab rolling the globe of the sun before him the way that a regular scarab rolls dung.
The moon also had many names. It was called Aah, Thoth, Khons and sometimes simply called the son of Nut, the sky goddess. He was thought of as the left eye of a great hawk whose right eye was the sun.
Beyond the gods, the creator of the gods themselves was believed to be Demiurge. Demiurge was supposed to have created the gods with his voice, when he spat, excreted waste, sweated, or cried. Another belief was that mankind and the animals had simply risen from the mud of the Nile. It was believed that Demiurge had created them on a potter's wheel out of the mud.
The tomb of Thuthmosis III denotes a list of seven hundred and forty gods, most of whom we only know the names of, and nothing else. It was quite clear from studies of the hieroglyphs that there were many gods, and that many things were explained by the existence of these gods. The Egyptians were fond of inventing gods, and seemed to invent one whenever something needed explaining.
The most popular and most documented gods are the ones from the Ennead of Heliopolis, a major metropolis and large civilization in Egypt. This is a much taught cosmological system taught by the priests of this city. Other large concentrations of population might have had completely different stories or names, but these are not well documented by the scribes of old, or the records have simply not been found.
Egyptian Gods & Goddesses
Nun (Nu): Nun is chaos, the soup in which lay the raw material of all things and all beings. This one is considered the father of all gods but remained a concept and had no temples or worshippers. He is represented as a man up to his waist in water holding up his arms with all the gods that had issued from him supported by his arms. He was the Egyptian personification of the watery abyss that existed at the beginning of time and which contained the potential for all life. According to one tradition, the sun god Atum rose from Nun in the form of a hill, a primeval mound, and gave birth to Shu, god of air and Tefnut, goddess of moisture.
Atum (Tum): this one is considered formless and the sum of all existence. This god is considered the spirit of Nun, living inside Nun with no form. He teamed up with Ra, and thus was born creation. In later text, he is portrayed as the setting sun and the moment before rising sun. Atum was considered the ancestor of the human race in particular. Atum was supposed to have borne the first divine couple without the aid of a wife. Only later he was given a spouse, in fact, two wives, who also bore gods of their own.
Ra (Re or Phra): He was the supreme manifestation of the solar logos. Ra was considered the creator god, the sovereign god of the sky. Originally worshipped in Heliopolis, Ra was a hugely important member of the Egyptian pantheon. He was said to have come into being on the primeval mound that rose out of Nun and proceeded to plan creation. Sometimes he was depicted as a divine child floating out of a lotus flower. The Egyptians believed that each day the sun god was reborn, perpetually governing by a day and battling Apep at night. The Pharaohs called themselves "Sons of Ra" because Ra was said to have created order out of chaos. Ra was usually depicted as a falcon or falcon headed man crowned by the bright red sun. Ra was omnipotent, his body containing the entire cosmos.
Ra first manifested himself as the central stone of the city Heliopolis, an obelisk called Benben. The temple around this stone was called Het Benben, "palace of the obelisk." The obelisk was considered a petrified sun's ray.
Ra bore Shu and Tefnut who then bore Geb and Nut (Earth and Sky) who in turn bore Osiris and Isis, Set and Nephthys. These are the eight great gods who with their chief god Ra Atum formed the Ennead Of Heliopolis.
Later Ra was given his spouse Rat, which is his own name in the feminine form. When Ra was young, he reigned over all gods and men. Later he was depicted as an old man with a drooling mouth. Isis plotted against him in his old age, and even men plotted against him. Ra retaliated against these men, but did not obliterate the entire human race. However, he developed a distaste for men and the world after this betrayal and withdrew beyond reach. He left earth for the heaven life. Thus, he became the sun.
Ra was reborn each morning as a child who grew until midday and declined into death at night. He was also portrayed as a bull named Merwer. Sometimes he was represented by the bird Bennu. Ra had many more names, in fact one tomb depicts seventy-five different names for this god. However, Ra, in all areas of Egypt, was considered the sovereign god, the creator and ruler of the world with whom all the other gods were identified. Even the Pharaohs called themselves the sons of Ra. It was believed that the god Ra entered the body of the husband of the queen in order to create the child who would be the next ruler.
Apep or Apophis: This was the eternal enemy of Ra, the primordial supreme being of the Egyptian pantheon. A terrifying serpent, Apep symbolized chaos and destruction. Each day, as the sun god, Ra, crossed the sky in his boat, Apep would viciously attack the vessel. Occasionally during a total eclipse, he was believed to have swallowed it whole. Despite his ferocity, Apep never gained victory over his enemy, yet neither was he ever completely conquered. However, the reddening of the sky at dusk was said to demonstrate that the serpent had been overcome by the sun's strength. According to one story, Apep was created when Neith, the mother goddess associated with war and hunting, spat into Nun, the primal watery chaos. In later times Apep was said to be kept in control by Seth in the underworld. Apophis is his Greek appellation.
Khepre (Khepera): This is the one considered the rising sun. Khepre was the god of transformations and life renewing itself. He is sometimes portrayed as a man with a scarab head or simply a scarab itself.
Shu: With Tefnut, his twin sister who was the goddesss of moisture, they became the first divine couple of the Ennead. Shu comes from the Egyptian verb "to raise" or "he who holds up." His name is sometimes translated as "emptiness." He is the equivalent of Atlas in Greek mythology but he holds up the sky. He slipped between the two children Geb (Earth) and Nut (Sky) and separated them. Shu was the god of air, or emptiness. He, however, had no temples or cult following. He is represented as a man who wears an ostrich feather. He succeeded Ra as king on earth, but like his father, experienced the betrayal of men. He vanquished his betrayers, but disease polluted him so that even his followers left him. Tired of reigning, he took to the skies after a tempest that lasted nine days.
Tefnut: This one was not considered a real person, but she was considered Shu's twin sister and wife. She may have been paired also with another god named Tefen, but nothing is known about this god except the name. She was the goddess of the dew and rain and she worshipped in the form of a lioness. She is depicted as a lesser copy of Shu and she helps him support the sky.
Anhur: He is a warlike personification of Ra, and is the equivalent of the Greek god Ares, god of war and was considered a protector. He was adorned with a headdress with four tall feathers covered by a long robe, brandishing a lance. Sometimes he is depicted with a cord, leading the sun across the sky. He was called the "saviour" or "the good warrior." He enjoyed a long term following. Eventually he received a wife named Mehit, a copy of Tefnut with a lion head.
Geb (Sed, Keb): With Nut, he and she were the second divine couple of the Ennead. He was the earth god, the foundation of the world, but he had no following. Once he was separated from Nut by Shu, he was unhappy and inconsolable. His cries could be heard night and day and his distress was said to cause earthquakes. He lies at the feet of Shu, against whom he struggled to defend his wife, Nut. He was considered the father of the gods however, bearing with his wife the Osirian gods. Occasionally he was accompanied by a goose or portrayed as a bull. Geb, the father of the gods and Nut, their mother, begat Osiris, Isis, Nepthys, and Seth. The kings of Egypt called themselves Heirs of Geb, Kings of the Earth.
He was usually regarded as a beneficent deity who provided humanity with crops for their fields and who healed the sick with medicinal herbs. However, it was also feared that he might trap the dead within his body and thereby prevent them from entering the underworld. The god is usually depicted as a bearded man, often lying under the feet of Shu. He was sometimes colored green to indicate that vegetation grew from his body.
He was Shu's successor to the throne, one of the first three kings of earth, but his reign was also intercepted, but not by men or betrayal. He opened the golden box of Ra in which Ra kept the Uraeus (his fiery crown that killed and burned his enemies) and a lock of his hair. When the box was opened, all of Geb's companions were killed and Geb himself was badly burned. Only the lock of Ra's hair could heal Geb by applying it to the wound. (When this lock of hair was later dipped in the lake of At Nub it turned into a crocodile.) This is why the crocodile is considered sacred in Egypt. Once Geb was healed, he handed his kingdom over to his eldest son, Osiris.
Nut: She was goddess of the sky. It is not certain whether or not she had a following or a cult. She was Geb's twin sister and married him secretly against the will of Ra. This is why Ra had the couple separated by Shu, the god of air and emptiness. The couple was not permitted to have children. However, Thoth had pity on them and created five extra days of the year for them (the Egyptian calendar only had 360 days) so that they could be together for that time. She had five children, Osiris, Haroeris (Horus), Set, Isis, and Nephthys.
One myth tells how Nut helped Ra to distance himself from human beings when he became disillusioned with their ways. Taking the form of a cow she raised the great god upward on her back. However, the higher Nut rose, the dizzier she became, until she had to summon four gods to steady her legs. These gods became the pillars of the sky.
The sky goddess was considered the daughter of Ra, yet at the same time she was considered the mother of Ra, supporting his birth and death cycle each day. She is often portrayed as a woman with a vase on her head. She is also considered the protectress of the dead and she is seen holding the deceased in her arms. Over the inside of the lid of the coffin, or sarcophagi, the stars of her belly are above the mummy watching over him. Nut is the universal night sky in starry radiance, the place where the gods were born.
Apis: He was the sacred bull of Egypt. He was worshipped at Memphis, where his temple lay opposite that of the great creator god Ptah. Apis, in the form of an actual black bull, was believed to be the reincarnation or "glorious soul of Ptah." Ptah was said to have inseminated a virgin cow in the form of fire, and to have been born again as a black bull. Each day, Apis was let loose in the courtyard of his temple and the priests would use his movements for divining the future. Usually, the Apis bull was allowed to die of old age, but if the bull reached age 25, they drowned it in a fountain. The bull was twice assassinated by Persians.
Ptah's priests recognized the next holy bull by discovering certain markings on the creature's body, including a white triangle on his forehead and a crescent moon on his right side. (This idea of special markings for identifying a reincarnation of an adept is also found in Tibetan Buddhism in the searches for the next Dalai Lama.) The extent of the reverence with which the sacred bulls were regarded can be gauged by the fact that their mummified bodies were buried with great ceremony in huge underground burial chambers. This reverence for bulls and cows is also found in Eastern Indian beliefs, particularly Hinduism.
Osiris: At first, Osiris was considered a nature god, the spirit of vegetation that is reborn after winter. Later he was worshipped as the god of the dead and reached the most important rank among gods because of this.
Osiris is the first son of Geb and Nut and was declared the "universal lord." Ra was happy that he was born, in spite of the curse he put on Geb and Nut, and proclaimed Osiris as heir to his throne. Osiris was handsome, taller than most men, and dark skinned. When Geb retired to the heavens, Osiris became the king of Egypt and took Isis, his sister, as his wife, declaring her queen. He abolished cannibalism and taught his still primitive subjects how to farm and create food from the earth. He also taught them how to make bread, wine and beer. He laid down just and fair laws. There were not many gods before this, and Osiris encouraged the idea of other gods. He also invented flutes, two in particular that were to be used in ceremony. He created the first temples and carved the first sculptures. He gave people laws and he was known as Onnophris "the good one."
He wished to do more than just civilize Egypt, and wanted to spread his ideas and rulership throughout the world. He left the local government to Isis and moved toward Asia. He took Thoth with him, and also Anubis and Upauaut. Osiris was against all violence and it was through gentleness that he conquered country after country, winning the inhabitants by songs and musical instruments. His success was largely due to the fact that everyone he encountered was immediately transfixed by his charisma. He returned to Egypt only after he had spread civilization throughout the whole world. When Osiris returned to Egypt, many festivals were held in his honor.
Upon his return, he found his kingdom in good shape for Isis had governed wisely. However, he soon became the victim of a plot organized by his brother Set, who was jealous of Osiris' influence and power to be covered shortly. In short, he was killed by his conspirators. However, his wife found him and took him back to Egypt. Through sorcery and the assistance of Thoth, Anubis and Horus, she restored her husband's body to life. Osiris then stood "trial" in the face of Set's accusations and vindicated himself.
He could have continued to reign, but he decided that he would rather retire to the Elysian Fields where he could welcome the souls of the "good" and reign over the dead. As a god of the dead, Osiris enjoyed his greatest following and popularity. He gave his devotees an eternally happy life in another world ruled by a just and good king. He became part of a trinity and was worshipped with the other parts of the trinity, his wife Isis and his son, Horus.
Osiris is depicted standing, sometimes seated on a throne, as a man in tight white mummy wrappings. His face was greenish and he had a high white miter with two ostrich feathers, which was called Atef, the crown of Upper Egypt. His hands, not in the mummy wrappings, hold a whip and a scepter in the form of a hook.
The names of Osiris are many. In the Book of the Dead, he has a hundred names. He also liked appearing in various incarnations. He appeared as various animals, the bull Onuphis, the sacred ram of Mendes, the bird Bennu, and also in a fetish called the Djed, which was his primitive form when he led his early followers into battle. The Djed was the trunk of a fir or some other conifer.
Osiris was usually depicted as a bearded man wrapped in mummy bandages and holding a hook and flail to symbolize his kingship. He demonstrates the regenerative powers of the natural world and the hidden or Otherworld (amentet).
Isis: Isis is represented by a woman who has a throne on her head. Later, her headdress is depicted by a disk set between cow's horns that are flanked by two feathers. Sometimes she is a woman with a cow's head. She is often seen standing beside Osiris who she helps and protects with her winged arms.
She is usually depicted with huge sheltering wings and is often regarded as the personification of the throne. The hieroglyph denoting Isis is a throne and her lap was seen as the cradle-delta of Egypt. She is the mother of the lesser Ennead, lead by Horus, her eldest son. Within her image as a winged throne is a secret reference to the merkaba, the throne that flies. Her wings are said to be rainbow hued in many texts and she is called the goddess of ten thousand names. Isis became so famous throughout Egypt, and absorbed the qualities of all the other goddesses. She was a mother goddess, a bird goddess, a patroness of magic and medicine, a goddess and guide to those in the underworld who could resurrect the dead. She was also a primordial goddess of the infinite primeval waters. This is the power of Isis transformed from goddess and embodiment of the astral realm into the infinite Gnostic expanse of the universal divine consciousness. This transformation was celebrated and taught as a mystery religion in Egypt, later Greece and the Roman Empire. Her cult and many of her images passed directly onto the figure of the Virgin Mary, especially the Gnostic Black Mary. The famous images of Virgin Mary with the child Jesus are directly taken from images of Isis suckling Horus as a young child. The predominant myth of her religion was the story of resurrecting Osiris, the god-principle and destroying Set, the diabolical principle.
She was originally a modest divinity of the Delta, a protective deity. She was said to have been the fourth born in the swamps of the Delta to Geb and Nut. Soon she was given as a wife to Osiris, the god of a nearby town. Her popularity grew with his. She helped him with the work of civilizing Egypt, teaching women to grind corn, spin flax and weave cloth. She also helped men learn how to cure disease and get used to domestic life.
Isis was devastated when she learned that Osiris was assassinated by her violent brother Set. She set in search of the coffin her husband was put in and which was cast into the Nile. It was carried out to the sea and came to rest, finally, at the base of a tamarisk tree. The tree grew so fast that the coffin was enclosed in its trunk. Malcandre, the king of Byblos, ordered that the tamarish be cut down in order to prop up the roof of his palace. When this was done the tree gave off such a beautiful scent, and the story was told so much that it reached Isis' ears. She knew what it meant and went to Phonecia and retrieved the coffin from the trunk of the tree and took it home to Egypt.
She hid the coffin in the swamps of Buto. Set found it though and ordered Osiris' body cut into fourteen pieces that he scattered far and wide. Isis searched for the fragments. She put all the fragments together again and performed specific rites that restored the murdered god to eternal life. She was assisted by her sister Nephthys, Anubis, Thoth and Horus, the son she conceived by union with her husband's corpse. Isis retired to the swamps of Buto in order to escape Set and raise her son Horus until the day he would be old enough to avenge his father.
Isis was a potent sorceress and even the gods were vulnerable to her magic. She persuaded the god Ra to tell her his secret name. She took advantage of the fact that Ra was now an old man with senility and a drooling mouth. She created a venomous snake that bit Ra, and he was incapable of curing himself of a wound he did not understand. Isis refused to take away the poison until Ra told her his true name. He told her this not through a word, but through an energy that passed from his heart to hers.
The cult following of Isis grew and grew until she absorbed all the qualities of almost all the other goddesses. Her following even crossed into the Graeco-Roman era and worship of Isis was found even as far as the banks of the Rhine River. She became a divinity of travelers, even well into the Christian era. It was not until her temples began turning into churches that she began to lose her following.
Set (Seth, Sutekh): The Greeks called him Typhon. He embodied the spirit of evil, which eternally opposes the spirit of good, his brother Osiris. He is also the son of Geb and Nut and he was prematurely born on the third day of the five days of freedom Geb and Nut had. He came forth from the womb violently and he was rough and wild, his skin white, his hair red, and was an abomination to the Egyptians. He was considered the darkness, the arid lifeless desert, and drought. All that was life-giving and blessing came from Osiris, and all that was destruction and perversity came from Set. He was the Egyptian god of storms and chaos who came to signify evil, although he was held in high esteem and worshiped in pre-historic times. Later, during the reign of the Rameses Pharaoh, he was worshipped again. Set was the son of the earth god Geb and sky goddess Nuit (Nut).
Originally, Set seems to have been the ruler of Upper Egypt but was overthrown by the worshippers of Osiris. However, more than one version of the story says that Set was jealous of Osiris and wanted the throne. In order to get it, he needed accomplices so he rounded up seventy-two of them, to be exact. He invited his brother to a banquet and had a coffin brought in. This coffin, he joked, belonged to whoever fitted it best. Osiris, not realizing that he was being duped, took his turn with the others and laid in the coffin without any suspicions that anything terrible was about to happen to him. At once, the conspirators closed the lid and nailed it shut. They threw it into the Nile. Later, he happened to find it again after Isis brought it back and this time ordered Osiris cut up into fourteen pieces. This way he could be sure of his possession of the throne.
Seth's wife, Nephthys, left him and joined the party of Osiris, as most of the other gods had done. She escaped from his cruelty by taking refuge in the bodies of various animals. When the right moment arrived, Horus, son of Isis and avenger of Osiris, went into battle against Seth and overcame him. After debate and reasoning amongst the gods Seth was officially deposed and Horus instated as Earth's Rightful Ruler. In one version Seth then leaves with Ra to live in the sky. It is unknown what creature is the head of Seth.
It was not until the twenty-second dynasty that Set, the assassin of Osiris, began to undergo punishment for his crime. His statues were broken and his features were smashed with hammers. He was banished from the Egyptian pantheon and was made "god of the unclean." He became a devil, an enemy of the gods. He and his cohorts sought refuge in the bodies of desert animals, like the scorpion, to escape the conquering Horus. Set is depicted as having the features of a terrible beast with a thin curved snout, square boar's ears, and a forked tail. It was called a Typhonian animal.
Nephthys: She is the second daughter of Geb and Nut. Her name means "beautiful mistress of the house or palace." The goddess was sometimes regarded as symbol of the desert edge; often barren, but occasionally, after a flood, fruitful. Set took her as his wife, but she had no children. She wanted a child by Osiris, her older brother. She got Osiris drunk and made love to him, bearing Anubis. When Set murdered Osiris, she left Set in horror and helped her sister Isis rejuvenate Osiris. She and her sister Isis are often called "the twins," and watch over the bodies of the dead together. They can be seen on coffin lids and the walls of tombs standing or kneeling with their winged arms in a posture of protection. She actually loved Osiris anyway and should really be regarded as Osiris' second wife, especially after his resurrection and placement as god of the Otherworld. Nephthys took up residence in the palace of Osiris in the Otherworld.
Horus: There is a little confusion in texts as to who Horus really was the son of. Some say he was the son of Geb and Nut, others say he was the son of Osiris and Isis, or that Isis had him with the help of Geb and Nut, for her husband was dead when she conceived him. There are twenty different concepts of who Horus was. Some depict him as Horus the Elder (Haroeris), some called him Hor Behdetite, Horus of Edfu, and Horus son of Isis who avenged his father.
Haroeris, Horus the Elder, was worshipped under the name Horkhenti Irti "Horus who rules the two eyes" (of the falcon whose two eyes are the sun and the moon). In pyramid texts, he is the son of Ra and brother of Set, with an eternal struggle between darkness and light. It is symbolized by the endless battle where Set tears out the eyes of Horus, while Horus hounds his implacable enemy. Later, a tribunal of the gods rules in favor of Horus, and Horus was called Hor Nubti "Horus the Vanquisher of Set."
Behdety (Hor Behdetite) "He of Behdet," is another name for Horus. He was worshipped at Behdet, a district of Edfu. Behdety is represented in the form of a winged solar disk, and his image is often above temple gates. He is often portrayed as a falcon headed god leading others into battle against Set.
Harakhtes is a Greek version of Harakhte, meaning "Horus of the Horizon." He was early confused with Ra and took all Ra's roles until later Ra became sovereign again over all of Egypt and became Ra-Harakhte.
Harsiesis is the Greek rendering of Hor-sa-iset, "Horus, the son of Isis." In this version of Horus' existence, he was conceived by Isis by magical means after her husband was already dead. Horus was brought up in seclusion in order to protect him from Set. He was weak because of premature birth and managed to survive only because of his mother's sorcery. As Horus grew, Osiris often appeared to him and instructed him in the use of weapons so that he could reclaim his inheritance and avenge his father.
The wars waged against Set are well documented on the walls of the temple at Edfu. The wars dragged on until finally a tribunal of the gods was summoned. Set said that Horus was not really the son of Osiris, that Horus was a bastard child, but Horus somehow proved the legitimacy of his birth. The gods condemned Set and restored Horus's kingdom, declaring him the ruler of the two Egypts, the upper and the lower Egypt.
Horus then re-established the authority of Osiris and erected temples in which he had his stories engraved. He reigned peacefully and became the father of every Pharaoh after him. Each Pharaoh took the title of "the Living Horus."
Horus was worshipped throughout Egypt, along with his father and mother. He was part of trinities of all sorts in many sanctuaries, either as chief, prince consort, or divine infant. His companion during his reign was Hathor, the mistress of Dendera. Later in the legend of Horus, he welcomes the deceased into the presence of this father Osiris "the Good One" and helps Osiris weigh the goodness of the incoming soul.
Hathor (Athyr): The Greeks identify this goddess with Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Hathor is depicted as a cow-headed goddess, her sacred animal. She is also embodied in a fetish, the sistrum, a musical instrument that drove away evil spirits. Hathor was the protectress of women. She was the goddess of joy and love. She was the mistress of merriment and dance, music and song. Her temple was a place for intoxication and enjoyment.
Later, she became another protector of the dead, welcoming them with bread and water. Her sanctuary was at Dendera where she was worshipped with Horus with her son Ahi jingling the sistrum at her side. New Year's Day, her birthday, was celebrated in Dendera with great enthusiasm. The priestesses of the temple would bring Hathor's image out on the patio to be exposed to the rising sun, and the rejoicing of the people was the beginning of the great festival that would follow, and the day would end in music and intoxication.
She was a goddess of the Hurrians who was referred to as the Queen of Heaven. She was the wife of the tempest god Teshub and was usually given equal status with her husband. She became the sun goddess of the Hittites where she is depicted standing upon a lion or on her throne.
Anubis: He is identified with the Greek Hermes as the Conductor of Souls. Anubis opens the roads to the other world for the dead. He is depicted as a black jackal with a bushy tail, or as a black skinned man with the head of a jackal or of a dog. Anubis presides over embalmment, and funeral prayers were directed toward him. According to some pyramid texts, he is the fourth son of Ra and his daughter was Kebehut. Later, he was adopted by the Osiris family, because Nephthys bore him through adultery with Osiris.
He was abandoned by Nephthys so Isis, not perturbed by Osiris' infidelity, raised him up from infancy. Some say that he was not abandoned but instead, when Anubis was born, Nepthys hid the child in the marshes of the Nile delta in order to protect him from her husband Seth. The infant god was discovered there by Isis, the mother goddess of magic, who subsequently brought him up.
When he grew up, he accompanied Osiris on his quest to civilize the world, and when Osiris was murdered, helped Isis and Nephthys bury him. This was when he invented funeral rites and wrapped Osiris in mummy wrappings to protect him from the elements. Osiris was the first mummy. He was known as "Lord Of The Mummy Wrappings." From then on he presided over funeral proceedings. He also made sure that offerings brought to the deceased actually reach him or her. He is often depicted as taking the hand of the deceased and leading him or her into the presence of the sovereign judges who weigh the souls of the dead.
His completely canine form was called Wepwawet, Lord of the Opening of the Ways who opened the gates to various parts of the Celestial and Other worlds. Anubis had a universal following as the god of the dead and eventually he was named Hermanubis by the Greeks because of his association with the Greek god Hermes, who was their version of the "conductor of souls."
Upuaut (Ophois Wepwawet): This character is sometimes confused with Anubis but is a wolf headed god known as "he who guides the way." He guides warriors into enemy territory. However, he also transformed into a god of the dead. He was an ally of Osiris and assisted in the civilizing of the world. See Anubis.
Thoth: He was worshipped throughout Egypt as a moon god, a patron of science and literature, wisdom and inventions, and was the spokesman of the gods and the keeper of records. Another name for him was Djehuti, which means "he of Djehut." He was "Lord of the Sacred Words." He was sometimes said to be the sun god Ra's eldest son. Thoth is usually regarded as the vizier and scribe of Osiris. Because he was associated with secret knowledge, Thoth was able to help at the burial of Osiris. He also helped to look after Horus when Isis was bringing him up.
He is portrayed as a man with the head of an ibis, a type of bird, with a crescent moon. Sometimes he was portrayed as a dog-headed ape, which leads to the possibility that he was derived from two different lunar deities who were blended together into what now is known as Thoth. One of these deities was a bird and the other was an ape.
In some pyramid text, he is portrayed as the oldest son of Ra, sometimes the child of Geb and Nut, the brother of Isis, Set and Nephthys, but he does not belong to the Osirian family and is only the advisor of Osiris. Thoth was usually depicted as an Ibis or a baboon. It was said that Thoth wrote a Book of Magic, known as the Book of Thoth said to give the reader power over the gods. This Book of Thoth is known as the Tarot today.
He remained faithful to Osiris, even after he was murdered, and helped to resurrect him. He then helped Horus prevail against Set. When Horus left his earthly kingdom, he bestowed his throne to Thoth. Thoth remained the peaceful ruler for 3,226 years.
Thoth invented the arts and sciences, arithmetic, surveying, geometry, astronomy, soothsaying, magic, medicine, surgery, music with wind instruments and strings, drawing, and writing. He was the inventor of hieroglyphics and was called "Lord of the Holy Words" He was said to have commanded the forces of nature and the gods themselves.
After his long reign on Earth, he went to the skies where he continued to be an innovator. He was the moon god. He was the one who figured out how to achieve five extra days for Geb and Nut so that they could be together and bear children. (How this fits in with the fact that he inherited the throne from the children that supposedly weren't born yet, well, this is unclear.) He was the divine regulative force with his calculations. He was the keeper of the divine records and the patron of history. He noted all events in history and served as a clerk of the gods. He was also called on to help judge the souls of the dead and record it.
Some texts show him partnering with Maat, the goddess of truth and justice. However, they are not found together in any temple. They did have children together, though, named Seshat and Nehmauit.
Seshat (Sesheta): She was Thoth's spouse and she was also the goddess of writing, history and was Thoth's double. She measured time and invented letters. She was called "mistress of the house of books" and "mistress of the house of architects." She was considered a secretary. She was a scribe to the kings and verified the amounts and quantities of their captured booty from enemies.
Nekhebet: She was the protectress of childbirth. She is sometimes portrayed as a vulture with a bald head and claws holding a whisk and a seal, and other times as a woman wearing the crown of Upper Egypt with the vulture image engraved in the crown. She was said to suckle the royal children, and even the Pharaohs themselves.
Amon (Amun, Ammon): He is called the king of the gods, and the Greeks identified him with Zeus. Amon appears as a bronzed human with a headdress of two tall parallel plumes. He is also represented with the head of a ram. He was often called "his mother's husband" and was the god of fertility. He was sometimes called Amon-Ra, for he became such a powerful and widespread ruler that he was seen as the father of all that is. He was extremely prosperous and was called on in prayer to assist one in gaining wealth. His wife was Mut.
He grew in importance to become the god who looked after the most splendid of the Pharaohs. . By the 18th dynasty, in the second millennium B.C. Amon had become the supreme god of the whole of Egypt and was identified with the primordial logos and sun god Ra as Amon-Ra, although Ra retained his own separate following. The Pharaohs Tutmosis III (the actual personage of King David spoken of in the Bible) and Amenhotep III (the actual King Solomon of the Bible) described themselves as "sons of Amon" and claimed that the god brought them victory over their enemies.
During the time of these Pharaohs, Egypt was extended far into Palestine, encompassing all of Jerusalem, and well into Africa and Arabia. During the reign of Amenhotep's son Akhnaten (the Biblical Moses), worship of Amon was forbidden while worship of Aten was declared as true. However, in 1361 B.C., the succeeding Pharaoh Tutankhamun reinstated Amon, calling himself Living Image of Amon. Worship of Amon spread beyond Egypt into Ethiopia and Libya.
Through Coptic Christianity, Amen becomes the suffix to prayers in the Christian church with the double meaning of Amon's aspects. As a seal to the prayer in the sight of God in the congregation, Amen means secret, hidden, and concealed, but also "so be it" or "may it happen" from the tradition of Amon-Ra, the hidden Logos as the creator of the universe, i.e. the cosmic Christ.
Aten: Aten was a sun god who came to pre-emminence in the 14th century B.C. under Amenhotep IV, a Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty. Aten was the vehicle of Ra, the energetic emanation of the solar disc rather than an anthropomorphic depiction of a god. Amenhotep built temples to Aten close to those of the supreme god Amon and, to the disgust of Amon's priests, piled Aten's temple high with gifts. Four years into his reign, the Pharaoh pronounced that the religion of Aten was the only official faith and that the god was to be worshipped as the exclusive creator of humankind. Worship of all other gods, epecially Amon, was forbidden. In an attempt to spread the religion of the Aten throughout the empire, Amon's temples were closed and his images defaced. The Pharaoh changed his name from Amenhotep meaning "Amon is Satisfied" to Akhenaten meaning "Glory to the Aten" or "He who is devoted to Aten." He also relocated his capital from Thebes to a city known today as el-Amarna, which he had built specially to glorify Aten. Aten is always depicted as an enormous red disc, from which rays of light emanate. The rays, ending in hands, were believed to extend the beauty of Aten to the ruler. When Akhenaten died, Amon and the other gods were reinstated by Tutankhamun, and Aten's rays were sliced through to prevent his beauty from reaching Akhenaten.
Mut: She was Amon-Ra's wife and was identified by the Greeks with Hera. She is called "Mother." She is vague and not much is known about her, however. Her reputation and popularity rose as Amon-Ra's did. She was sometimes portrayed as a cat, whose form she sometimes assumed.
Khons (Khensu): No one understands why the Greeks associated him with Hercules. He was considered by Egyptians to be the "Navigator." He was adopted by Amon and Mu and became part of their triad. He was known as an exorcist and healer. He healed the possessed and sick. He was also considered a moon god. One of the months of the year was named after him.
Sebek (Sobek): He is a crocodile divinity. He sometimes shared Set's evil reputation and is thought to have aided Set, the murderer of Osiris, by helping Set to hide in the body of a crocodile. He was the Egyptian crocodile god, represented either as the reptile itself or as a man with a crocodile's head. Sebek's following was greatest at Crocodilopolis, capital of the province of Fayum. A live crocodile called Petsuchos, said to be an incarnation of the god, was kept in a lake attached to Sebek's main sanctuary. Sebek's devotees sought protection by drinking water from the pool and by offering the crocodile delicacies. Sebek was a very popular god, worshipped alongside Horus and Ra.
Ptah: Ptah of Memphis, the old capital in northern Egypt where the Pharaohs were crowned, was the protector of artisans and artists. He united life, stability and omnipotence. He became the third god of importance, only being preceeded in importance by Ra and Amon, and his particular priests thought that he was the Demiurge, the creator of the world. His priests declared he created the world with the power of the Word, although he probably originated in a fertility cult. He is the inventor of the arts, and he was also a designer and smelter of metal and a builder. He was said to have molded the gods and kings from metals. He directed architects and masons. Some records depict him as "fair of face" but others say that he was a deformed dwarf with twisted legs. Ptah is usually depicted wearing a tightly fitting linen wrap and skull cap while holding the scepter of dominion.
Sekhmet: She was the dreaded goddess of war. Her name means "the Powerful." She hurled herself on the men who rebelled against Ra, taking the form of a lion, and vanquished them. Ra begged her to stop because he did not want her to obliterate the entire human race. She would not stop, so Ra had to figure out a way to stop her. He placed across the battlefield seven thousand jugs of beer and pomegranate juice. Mistaking it for blood, she drank it and became too drunk to continue her carnage. The human race was saved.
She was also called "the beloved of Ptah" and bore him a son, Nefertum. Also in her cult were bone setters who cured fractures.
Bast (Bastet): Bast was also called Bastet and was the local goddess of Bubastis, or House of Bastet, the capital of a province of Lower Egypt. She was usually regarded as the daughter of the sun god Ra, although she was sometimes said to be his sister and consort. Later, she became the wife of the creator god Ptah. According to some accounts it was Bastet, rather than Nepthys who was the mother of Anubis. Originally, she was a lioness goddess symbolizing both the warmth of the sun and the rage from the sun god's eye, around 1000 B.C. Bastet came to be represented as a cat, or cat headed woman. She is sometimes confused with Sekhmet because of her feline inclinations, and also because she was another wife of Ptah. Usually a benevolent goddess, Bastet protected humanity from diseases and evil spirits. Most importantly she was a goddess of fertility, sex and love
Like Hathor she was a goddess of pleasure, music and dance. She beat time with the sistrum decorated by the figure of a cat. In the 4th century B.C. fertility festivals were held in her honor at her temple at Bubastis. Cats were venerated as Bastet's sacred animals, and their mummified bodies were buried at her sanctuaries. She also protected men against contagious disease and evil spirits. People came from all over the region to celebrate in the annual festival at her temple in Bubastis. Cats became very sacred and venerated animals, and she was considered the cat goddess.
Hru: In Hebrew and Egyptian magic, Hru is the angel set over oracles and works of the sacred Tarot. Hru is the guardian of Heka and appears as the god's Ba soul in the astral realms. The Magus invokes Hru to oversee any works of divination or of esoteric research.
Imhotep: This means "he who comes in peace." He was the most celebrated of the ancient sages. He was one of the first men to become deified and considered a God. Imhotep was King Zoser's greatest architect and Zoser was the architect of the oldest of the pyramids, who ruled in the third millennium B.C. Imhotep designed the first pyramids, personally overseeing their construction. Imhotep's step pyramid at Saqqara was the first monumental stone building ever constructed. Imhotep wrote the "Book of Temple Foundations" and was very famous. The sage was also credited for ending a seven year famine by advising the king to make offerings to Khnum, the god who controlled the flood waters of the Nile. It was claimed that Imhotep was not born of human parents, but of Ptah himself. He was called "the son of Ptah" and displaced Nefertum. He is portrayed with a shaven head as a simple man usually reading from a roll of papyrus across his knees. He was a patron of the scribes and protector of those interested in the sciences and occult arts. He also became the patron of doctors. He was the demi-god of medicine to the ordinary people. Toward the end of paganism, he seemed to outrank his father Ptah and became the most venerated god of Memphis.
Admired in his lifetime, Imhotep gradually came to be celebrated as a god. According to some tales, he was the son of the god Ptah. The patron of the scribes, he is usually depicted as a priest with a shaven head. He was also the patron of doctors.
Sirius: One of several stars crucial to Egyptian religion, Sirius is one of the brightest stars in the sky and held great magical significance for the ancient world. Once representing Osiris, its helical rising and falling over the horizon corresponded to the Nile's yearly floods. The celebrations and commencement of the Osirian mysteries occurred at this time. There is also the implication that Osiris originally inhabited that star system or that it is his celestial abode, as Orion is the original place of Sati and Heka. When the Sirius cluster went under the horizon Isis was searching for Osiris in the Otherworld. The Egyptians set their calendars to Sirius. Due to this, the first days of summer were New Years Eve in Egypt. Sirius forecast the annual flooding of the Nile River. Sirius means "burning" in Greek due to its status as brightest star in the late spring sky. The saying "the dog days of summer" comes from the Roman observation that the hottest days of summer followed the helical rising of what they called the "Dog Star," their name for Sirius. Sirius was seen as a gateway to the Otherworld and as an abode of Osiris and many other gods. The temples on the funerary side of the Nile were built to align with Sirius' sidereal path.
Ba and Ka: Ba and Ka were believed by the ancient Egyptians to be the soul and spirit, or vital essences, of a dead person. The Ba was the astral soul, able to move through the hidden planes and worlds of existence. It was depicted as a bird with the head of the person it belongs to. The Ka was universal life force and was said to sometimes appear in the form of a blue phoenix and was believed to return to the tomb, where it ate food left by relatives and priests. So deeply entrenched was this belief that menus were sometimes inscribed on the walls of tombs.
Sphinx: This is an Egyptian magical creature which has the head of a god or Pharaoh and the body of a lion. It represents the akhu, the sense of "I" which is aware of divinity, yet still has functions and connections to the lower worlds. It also represents the divinity of this structure as well, serving as a guardian to the "Pyramid" apex of higher consciousness as self awareness becomes truly divine. The sphinx can have wings as well; yet always will have a god's head such as the goat head of Khnum or the face of a Pharaoh along with its lion body. The most famous Sphinx is the Guardian of the Giza Pyramid Complex.
Khnum: An Egyptian creator god, he was said to have fashioned the world on his potter's wheel. His name means Moulder. The god is usually depicted as a ram headed man sitting before his potting wheel looking at the human he has just created. Khnum made the gods and the people. He was said to control the annual inundation of the Nile.
Maat: She was the Egyptian goddess of truth, cosmic harmony, balance and justice. A daughter of the sun god Ra, she ruled over the judgment of the dead in the throne room of Osiris. At death, each person had to appear before the 42 Judges of the dead and declare their innocence or guilt in relation to 42 different crimes. The soul of the dead person would be weighed against the goddess on a pair of scales; on one scale the victim's heart and on the other a single Ostrich feather. The heart was checked against the weight of Maat's feather by Anubis, Lord of the Gates of the Dead and their verdict was recorded by Thoth, the consort of Maat. If the heart was heavier than the feather because of being weighed down by crimes, the terrifying female monster Ammut would devour the dead person. If the deceased lived in the Way of Maat in life, their heart would be light and free of injustice, light as a feather, and he or she was then transformed into a radiant spirit to live amongst the gods and battle with the celestial dragon serpent Apep (Apophis). Maat was depicted crowned by the single feather of Judgment. She was the "Breath of Life" and was often pictured ministering to Pharaohs by holding the Ankh, the original cross, a symbol of immortal life, to their noses. The Ten Commandments of the Old Testament were only ten of the 42 ways of Maat. The text the 42 ways of Maat says, "All human beings are intended to live by Maat, in Maat and for Maat." Her hieroglyph was simply her feather or an image of the goddess in profile.
Min: An ancient and popular Egyptian god. He was always depicted with an erect phallus and with a flail raised in his right hand. On his head he wore a crown decorated with two tall, straight plumes. It is thought that Min may originally have been worshipped as a creator deity, but in classical times he was the god of roads and travel through the desert. Min was also a god of fertility and growth, a protector of the crops.
Wadjet: The cobra goddess of lower Egypt, she was usually represented as a cobra about to strike, although occasionally she appears as a Lioness. Both Wadjet and Nekhbet were believed to protect the Pharoah. The Wadjet Eye was the Eye of Ra with the Cobra upon it, signifying the power of the Pharoah and the magic of the Egyptian Orders.
Neith: She was the Great Mother of the Egyptians, originally the local goddess of Sais, situated in the Nile Delta of Lower Egypt. She was also a warrior goddess and a protectress of homes. She was the mother of Sobek, the crocodile god, and was said to have created the terrible cosmic serpent Apep. Neith came to be regarded as the mother of all Egyptian Gods, in particular Ra, and was often shown as the celestial cow, Mehueret, who gave birth to the cosmic sky before life began.
Nekhbet: She was the vulture goddess of Upper Egypt. She was usually depicted with her wings outspread, holding the symbols of eternity in her claws. Nekhbet was widely regarded as a mother goddess who looked after the ruling Pharaoh, along with the Wadjet, the cobra goddess of Lower Egypt.
Tarot: In Egypt the earliest Tarot would be done with statuettes of the gods representing the major and minor keys painted in their elemental colors. Thoth transmitted this system into two different esoteric systems. The first was Egyptian Magical Chess, the game of the gods, and the second was the Book of Thoth. The Book Of Thoth translated the Tarot into Hieroglyphic Representations on 78 leaves and was perpetuated first in Egypt, then in Serapeum in Asia Minor at the temple of Hermes-Thoth Trismegistus, and then by the Gypsies all over the world. Thoth also left several key instructions on Merkaba, perhaps up to 30,000 texts from Atlantis and the Realms of the Gods. Of all the Egyptian pantheon Thoth still visits the Earth plane of Geb the most. Thoth was called Tahuti, his Coptic name, in Western Africa and Ethiopia when he and Ra, Anubis and Osiris established the half-god, half-human King Ori as King of all Aden-Sheba (which stretched the entirety of Southern Nubia, Ethiopia, and Arabia).
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Norse Mythology
Of all the systems of mythology, only the Norse mythic cosmology, along with its own pantheon and language, the Runes, doesn't claim its origin in an ancient super civilization. The Norsemen saw their religion as coming directly from their gods, primarily Odin. The Roman pagans and Druids of Gaul and Britain claimed their teachings, as well as those of Egypt and Sumeria, were from an earlier ancient culture. The Druids claimed to receive their teachings from Atlantis as did the Romans, claiming all their gods knew of or came from there. "Julius Caesar, when he overtook Gaul was greatly amazed when he saw the northern and remote Gauls worshipping Mercury, Apollo, Mars, and Jupiter in a manner similar to Latin countries. There has been shown many times the Druids had a large number of Roman deities in their pantheon which they claimed they received from Atlantis." (Thomas Maurice, Indian And Ancient Antiquities, year unknown) The Romans claimed through Plato, Proclus, Hermes Trismegistus and Asclepius that their teachings and those of Greece came from Atlantis, also called Poseidonis, and Ethiopia. Pythagoras was always said to have Egyptian and Ethiopian teachers who taught him the ancient wisdom of sacred geometry that originated in Atlantis and Egypt. In fact the myth of the day was that all teachings, including those from Thoth, originated in Atlantis, went to Ethiopia and Egypt, then all over the Earth.
In the Nordic Mythology, from the people of Iceland, we are introduced to a rich Pantheon of gods and goddesses, each taking on elemental roles and temperaments of a warrior's mentality. Every character seemingly embodies many of the vital characteristics that one might wish to have at one's side in battle; the approval from the god of war, the strength of the thunder god, or the graceful falcon flight of the fertility goddess. Along with these things to embody, there are deities and elements in the myths that could greatly assist in an understanding and coping with the unpredictability and chaos that can occur. Within the myths we see that it doesn't matter what side you're fighting on. Good and evil are portrayed as a balance that can sway back and forth, thus any one of them can come out on top.
Nordic Background: History, Geography, and Culture
The Nordic People originate from Scandinavia, which includes the countries now known as Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. During a period of Scandinavian expansion in the years 800-1100 A.D., due to the reduced availability of farmland, some of the Nordic people-known most commonly as Vikings-traveled long distances in their uniquely built long ships. These recognizable ships were built for long journeys and were able to navigate through shallow rivers and streams. This ability gave them great advantage over their neighboring countries who did not expect attack from the sea.
With their abilities to explore and move about the Northern Oceans of Europe, the Vikings traded and raided along the northern seas, founded Dublin in Ireland, conquered much of England, invaded France, and descended the rivers of eastern Europe as far as Kiev and Constantinople. Norse Vikings led by Leif Eriksson sailed west to Greenland, Iceland, and Vinland (probably present-day Newfoundland and Labrador) and made settlements there.
Sadly, little is known about the people themselves prior to their conversion to Christianity in the 1100s. Many of the records and history that remain of the early Vikings are contributed by archaeological and physical evidence, on their literary reconstructions of their myths, and on those who were frequently their enemies and victims (which leads to obvious bias). There are but two main texts that we draw these myths from, the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda, both written by Snori Sturluson in the 1200s B.C. From what we do know, the Nordic peoples were a warrior civilization heavily reliant on the sea. Their settlement was thinly scattered and they lived by farming, fishing and trade. Social structure was small, free farmers who owed loyalty (along with taxes) to the headmen or patriarch of the family, or to the head regional noble or warrior chief. The society also functioned on the use of slavery. When the chiefs went to battle, the farmers immediately took the role of both sailors and soldiers for their conquests. Because of the harsh climate and the many enterprises that took men away from home for extended periods, free-born women possibly enjoyed a base of power and responsibility for family and economic affairs not matched by women elsewhere in Western Europe.
The Norse Pre-Christian Religion
The pre-Christian religion of the Nordic people consisted of a number of important gods and goddesses collectively called the Aesir. The most prominent gods include: Odin, the god of war, poetry and leader of the Norse gods; Thor, the god of thunder, strongest of the gods; and Balder, the god of light, the most gentle and beautiful. To every god there was a goddess wife, who were all highly esteemed but were not central characters in many of the stories. In many cases they take on a role of loyalty and mothering.
Worth mentioning is the mortality of the Aesir, high creator gods. These deities understood that a time would come when they would meet their own death. This fatalistic mindset seems to resonate with the mentality of a race of people whom are greatly involved in war. One of the noblest things a Norseman could achieve was to die honorably in battle fighting against the world's evils, be those evils in the form of a rival clan, inclement weather, or a pack of wolves. To the Norse the world must have seemed full of evils. In their harsh landscape, seemingly all was against them. It's no question why the enemies of the gods would happen to be giants of frost. It was believed that if they died heroically they would be called to dwell with Odin in Valhalla, his palace in the realm of the gods. Since their religion emphasizes that all was impermanent, even the Aesir, one can imagine how this mentality manifested on the battlefield. They thought it only right to fight fiercely, and to their deaths.
Ritual and ceremony of the Norse were held in temples of the gods. They were attended by priests responsible for the reading of omens and other types of divination. They also guarded the sacred groves and objects. Their duties were frequently performed by the chief of a particular tribe. Festivals and religious ceremonies were held throughout the year, usually for the celebration of the harvest or of victory in battle. At festivals, animal (or sometimes human) sacrifices and libations were offered to the gods, and the dead were commemorated. The dead were believed to retain their faculties and to affect the fate of the living. Burial places were considered sacred, and sacrifices were made at the sites.
Odin
The Norse mysteries centered around the concepts of the Rune as Logos, Odin as the Divine Lord over the Gods and his Father, called All-Father. The date of the founding of the Mysteries of Odin is uncertain, however they are of ancient origin. Robert Macoy tells us that they could have been syncretised into a concrete system of initiation as late as the first century A.D., a completion of a system of knowledge that is at least as old as 200 B.C. Archeological evidence of proto-runes are found to match this early antiquity.
"It appears from the northern chronicles that in the first century of the Christian era, Sigge, the chief of the Aser, an Asiatic tribe, emigrated from the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus into Northern Europe. He directed his course northwesterly from the Black Sea to Russia, over which, according to tradition, he placed one of his sons as a ruler, as he is said to have done with the Saxons and the Franks. He then advanced through Cimbria to Denmark, which acknowledged his fifth son Skiold as its sovereign, and passed over to Sweden, where Gylf, who did homage to the wonderful stranger, and was initiated into his mysteries, then ruled. He soon made himself master there, built Sigtuna as the capital of his empire, promulgated a new code of laws, and established the sacred mysteries. He himself assumed the name Odin from the Eddas "god of magic," founded the priesthood of the twelve Drottars (Druids) who conducted worship and administration of justice." (Robert Macoy, History Of Freemasonry, 1993) The Scandanavian and Tuetonic Eddas, the book of lore of the Mysteries, served as the source text of magic and law for the Druidic priests of Odin.
After his death the historical Odin was apotheosized, his identity being merged into that of the mythological Odin, god of wisdom and magic, whose cult he promulgated. Odin based worship then spread with Druids and Vikti (Rune Magicians) over Northern Europe. Odin centered worship supplanted the worship of Thor, the thunderer, the supreme deity of the ancient Scandinavian pantheon. The mound where King Odin is buried can still be seen near the site of his great temple at Upsala.
The twelve Drottars (Druids) who presided over the Odinic Mysteries evidently personified the twelve holy and ineffable names of Odin. The rituals of the Odinic mysteries were similar to the Greeks, Persians, and Indians in that cycles of ritual and offering dedicated to the gods brought empowerment. The 12 Drottars, each for a section of the Zodiac, were the custodians of the arts and sciences, which they revealed to those who passed initiation. Like many other pagan cults Christian believers destroyed or absorbed the Odinic mysteries.
Briefly stated, the sacred drama and rune lore of the Odinic Mystery is as follows: The Supreme Invisible Creator of all things was called All Father. His regent in Nature was Odin, the one-eyed god. Odin was elevated to the level of the Supreme Deity by his initiation in the tree of Yggdrasil, in which he traded his eye for the knowledge of the primal Runes, and in this, the magic of All Father. According to the Drottars, the universe was fashioned from the body of Ymir, the hoarfrost giant. Ymir was formed from the clouds of mist that rose from Ginnungagap, the great cleft in Chaos into which the primordial frost giants and flame giants had hurled snow and fire.
Ymir was slain, and from him formed the cosmos of the Nine Worlds, which will be discussed shortly. From Ymir's various members, the different parts of Nature were fashioned. After Odin had established order, he created a wonderful palace and paradise called Asgard on top of a mountain. Here the twelve Aesir (gods) dwelt together, far above the limitations of mortal men (similar to Mt. Olympus where the Greek Gods dwelt. On this mountain was also Valhalla, the palace of the slain, where those who heroically fought and died feasted, day after day. Each night, their wounds were healed and the Boar whose flesh they ate renewed itself every morning. Among the Aesir, were Balder the Brave, the beautiful son of Odin, who dies and is resurrected, Hothor, who was the blind god of fate, and Thor, the thunderer and war god. They all lived at Asgard. Loki, the dark shaman, who was the antagonistic member of the Aesir, lived among the gods but was never fully given that status, for he was a trickster and manipulator of the other gods and men.
In one instance, Balder is killed by one of Hathor's arrows due to Loki's tricks. Crushed with grief, the other Aesir devised a method for resurrecting the spirit of beauty embodied by Balder, creating the Runic Mysteries of Odin and the Magic Ring, guarded by the Nibelung that revives all life and removes death. Odin was known as the god of magic (and the hanged god) because of the experience he had of trading his eye for the Rune wisdom of the All Father. The lore explains that Odin hanged himself from the branches of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, for nine nights. Because of all this, in later symbolism Odin was sometimes pictured on a gallows tree. It is through Odin, god of magic, that the gods and men are able to receive rune wisdom. At the same time he had pierced his own side with a sacred spear and traded his own eye. As a result of this great sacrifice, Odin, while suspended over Nifl-heim, received the meditation of the sacred Rune alphabets by which the people could command the elements by rune-gandr or the magical force of the runes. They could begin to command time by keeping record of their history.
Each night, hanging over another World of Yggdrasil, Odin received a new power. While suspended over Hel, the Death World, the runes were permanently inscribed into his being. Odin is the first being to be fully initiated into the runic mysteries; that is, he first extracted the rune wisdom directly from its source and formulated it within his being. This initiatory myth is represented in the Elder Poetic Edda in the song called Havamal, the sayings of the Highest One, Odin. Stanzas 138 and 139 of the song read: "I know that I hung/ on the windy tree/ all of nine nights/ wounded by spear/ and given to Odin/ myself to myself/ on that tree/ which no man knows/ from what roots it rises. They dealt me no bread/ nor drinking horn/ I looked down/ I took up the runes/ I took them screaming/ and fell back from there." The Adept of Norse culture would be given a shamanic type initiation in which the initiate passes through the nine worlds of the world tree to the realm of Hel (Death) and momentarily enters death's sphere. At that moment the initiate receives the entire body of rune wisdom, and it is etched into his being. In the next instant the initiate returns, like Odin to Midhgardhr, with his rune wisdom permanently encoded into him.
The Nine Worlds
The cosmology of the Norse mythology was composed of Nine Worlds growing on a single World Tree called Yggdrasil. The Nine Worlds were:
- Asgard, the divine world of the Aesir
- Alf-heim, the World of the Light and Beautiful Elves and Spirits
- Nifl-Heim, the world of cold and darkness in the north
- Jotun-heim, the world of the giants which is in the east
- Midgard, which is the middle earth of humans in the middle place of the World Tree
- Vana-heim, the world of the Vanes in the west
- Muspells-heim, the world of fire which is established in the south
- Svart-alfa-heim, the world of the dark elves, which is under the Earth
- Hel-heim, the death world at the lowest point in the multiverse.
Usually the other worlds beside Midgard are invisible to mortal man, but during initiation, the priests liberate the soul of the initiate and he or she is able to walk freely in these other worlds among their various inhabitants.
The Teutonic pagans' myriad gods of nature who manifested as geometric forces composed of inforlation, rather than a singular deific form, influenced the cosmology of nine worlds in the Odinic mysteries. This is very similar to initiation in the Eleusian mysteries of Greece in which the initiate is brought through nine planes of existence comprising reality.
The Norse adept simulated Odin and figures such as Gandalf, the Vikti and Wizard from the poetic Eddas. The adept in Norse culture was called Gobbi meaning High Priest and would serve as an intermediary of the Aesir. Bards were masters of the oral tradition, reciting the Eddas of the gods and warriors of the past. The Drottars or Druids were special elder priests who would have been Gobbi for many years. The Vikti was the Rune-magician; an adept who would use Odin as his primary example and could wield power with the use of runes. The Nordic Wizard was a composite master of all these principles of adeptship and would be considered to be an emanation, like avatars in Hinduism, of one of the Aesir. In the Eddas, Gandalf is recognized as a wizardly emanation of Odin and All Father.
Loki
The Norse mythology as a whole, as was stated earlier, seems to consist primarily of warrior archetypes. Loki is an obvious contrast to the other gods. His abilities lie not in strength and bravery but in wit and cunning, which time and time again is what saves the day. He is the trickster and transformer, with the ability to change shape and gender. Snorri Sturluson, the author of the two main literary pieces that these myths are drawn from, introduces him with the following in his book Edda (1987)
"Loki brings misfortune upon himself and the other Aesir with his clumsiness, haplessness, or malevolence, he always redeems himself by dint of his cunning, his magical capacities, or his eloquence."
Loki plays the role of both villain and hero in many of the tales. He is a chaotic trickster and saboteur, often causing great trouble to the kingdom of the Gods, known as Asgard. Loki was sometimes compared to Satan. By the same token though, he is quick to fix all that he has done, often leaving things better than they began.
Loki often changes into a woman as a guise to fool those seeking him. In one tale he changes into a mare to help save the Aesir (after he has of course put it in danger) and gives birth to the legendary eight-legged stallion Sleipnir, the fastest steed in the universe. At another point Loki and a giantess give birth to monstrous children: the Midgard serpent named Jormungand, the goddess of death Hel, and Fenrir the wolf. Eventually he leads these children into the battle against Aesir, which make his forces equal to them as a whole. So we see very different sides of Loki, a weak and timid prankster who is quick to surrender and volunteer to set things right, and also a most powerful being who can actually rival the entire forces of the gods.
The German Scholar Schjodt, in his book Om Loke Endnu Engang (1981), talks about how the Norse subscribed to a cyclical understanding of time characterized by the eternal return of stages beginning with a golden age, the creation of the world, its subsequent demise, and the emergence of a new golden age. It should be noted that Loki begins as a helper to the Aesir playing simple tricks here and there, and later he evolves to become a much darker enemy responsible for the murder of Balder and the battle of Ragnarok. This progression is seen in Schjodt's eyes to be indicative of the increasing malevolence and moral disintegration of the world that ultimately leads to its downfall. Loki eventually turns completely against the gods and leads the frost giants (enemies of the gods) and his own horrendous children to an attack on the Aesir known as the battle of Ragnarok. In the end, most of the gods and goddesses die including Odin, Thor, Balder, and Loki. From the destruction a new, peaceful world would emerge from the disaster and would give the opportunity for a new beginning.
To the Norse People there was little question as to why they would need a god such as Loki. He is indicative of all that is chaotic and unpredictable, as much in their world must have been. Interestingly enough, he seems to also show us that even when things go wrong there is often a better outcome for us. This is a most dreadful and difficult guise of divine to embrace in our lives at times. Loki as the thief helps us let go of the things that mean most to us. Lawrence Russ says it quite well in his article in "The Cosmic Bee" (1984) on Loki and thievery. "Loki forces us...to feel how the divine transcends our desires and our visions, how the suffering or destruction of the finite is sometimes required by the creative purposes of the infinite, however cruel it may seem to us...If nothing is so consistently true of Loki the thief as that he cannot allow any "rightful" boundary or separation to remain intact, it is because Loki is the active, "aggressive" agent of the Whole, the catalyst by whose action all that seems finite is dissolved in the Infinite...As for Loki's thefts and fearsomeness, all creativity and growth require the displacement of old forms to create new combinations, the destruction of old boundaries to create new syntheses. And it is certain that new creations often inspire fear and loathing in those who cling to old structures."
Events with the greatest gains in wisdom are often those that seem the most dreadful and puzzling at the time of their occurrence. Like the thief, Loki could also be called the saboteur, the unpredictable element of sabotage. He can no doubt be quite troublesome, always sending things in disarray. At the same time this character reveals that which needs to be examined, and tended to. With the saboteur's recurrence we can see sabotage before it happens and make things stronger than they ever could be.
Valkyrja: "Chooser of the fallen," a linking force between men and gods who collect the valiant dead and take them to Valhalla. They were usually women in warrior garb, especially designated to take fallen warriors to their heavenly destination which is a reward for their valiance in battle. (Also known as Valkyrie)
Valhalla: The Norse word for Heaven.
Vanir: This was the group of gods corresponding to the fertility function. The principle deities of this group are Freyja, Freyr, and Njodhr. After a long war with the Aesir, they all exchanged hostages and lived in peace. The vanir who came to the Aesir camp became assimilated with the Aesir, while retaining their own characteristics and powers. These are the female lineage of Norse goddesses.
Ve: Sacred enclosure, the place of working magic and the name of Odin's brother.
Yggdrasil: The cosmic World Tree of nine worlds or planes of the multiverse.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Celtic Mythology
Celtic tradition is found in well preserved books dating back to the 8th century AD. Most informative are those from Ireland: the Books of Leinster, Of the Dun Cow, of Bally Mote, and the Yellow Book of Lecan. Other books of importance come from the Welsh traditions.
Irish Gods
The Dagda: He is the "father of all," the "lord of perfect knowledge." He was not just seen as a creator of the gods, but the creator of everything, including mankind. He was the lord of life and death, for he could kill nine men with one end of his club, but with the other end of his club he could restore life. He is depicted as a coarse, potbellied, ugly man with a club so large he has to carry it around on wheels. His other symbol was the cauldron which was never empty and satisfied anyone who partook from it. This symbolized his role as nourisher and provider for his people. He was considered a god of fertility for the people and for the land. People would make offerings to him through holes and pits in the ground.
Lug: His functions were similar to the Dagda, but he was called "the long arm" or "many skilled." Lug possessed the ability to do almost anything and everything. Legend says that he arrived at a town and declared that he was a carpenter, but the town already had a carpenter. So then he said he was a blacksmith, but the town already had a blacksmith. Then he went on to list his other skills, including warrior, harper, poet, historian, hero, sorcerer and many others. All of these positions were filled, but he finally gained admittance by asking if there was any single person who was master of all these skills. This is what finally gave him his position. His symbols were a spear and sling and other weapons capable of accurate aim beyond the reach of a man's arm. In some instances, he seems to have replaced the Dagda, but in others he shares the same level of importance. He is not depicted as coarse and crude like the Dagda and also not as violent as the Dagda.
Other Gods: There is not much information and these gods are not as easily understood. Most of their functions duplicate the Dagda and Lug attributes. These other gods seemed to be more specialized in each skill, not having multi skills like the Dagda and Lug. Nuada was a chieftain type god who lost a hand in battle and replaced it with a silver hand. He possessed a sword that was so lethal that no enemy could survive it. Ogma was a champion of the people. Gobniu was the god of blacksmithing and beer brewing. Manannan was Lord of the Sea and the Celtic otherworld.
Irish Goddesses
The Celtic gods are often called the People of the Goddess Danu, but this does not mean that she gave birth to all of them. For instance, the Dagda is considered her father. She only had three children, Brian, Iuchar and Iucharba, a concept of trinity that was common in Celtic traditions. Sometimes Danu is confused with the goddess Brigit, who was a triple deity and survives as the Christian Saint Brigit (Bride). Brigit was a goddess of learning, teaching, culture and other skills.
Macha was a fertility Goddess, with close association with the soil. She died giving birth to twins and while she died she put a curse on the women of Ulster. Her curse caused them to experience terrible pangs of childbirth for five days and four nights. In another myth, she is a warrior queen, forcing her enemies to build her capital. It is not unusual for women to fight in battle in these cultures, so goddesses of war were a natural progression for the Celtic system of gods and goddesses. However, these women were most depicted as sorcerers and fighting battles by shape shifting and magic, using supernatural powers to win.
British (Welsh) Gods
It is believed that as the Irish migrated into Welsh territory in the late Roman period they brought with them their gods and goddesses and they were mutated into a Welsh or British version of these energies. The Children Of Don were very much like the People of the Goddess Danu. They all possessed similar skills to their Irish versions. For instance, one of the Children of Don was Govannan, god of smithing and brewing, very much the same incarnation as Gobniu in Irish traditions. Ludd or Nudd was the equivalent of Nuada, both having silver hands and a lethal sword as rulers. Gwydion was the more important god like Dagda and Lug. He was skilled in both war and peace, and even survived trials from hostile powers the way that Dagda was also tested with insurmountable obstacles. He also was skilled in poetry and grace, as well as possessing magical powers. He was worshipped in Wales.
Another Child Of Don was Arianrod, a goddess named after the Corona Borealis. The there was Llew, her child, who was similar the god Lug in Irish traditions. Many of the Children Of Don let their names be used for constellations like Cassiopeia (Llys Don), the Milky Way (Caer Gwydion), Corona Borealis (Caer Arianrod). This does not mean that they were part of the sky myth. This part is still unclear to historians.
The Children Of Lyre
Manannan was the most well known god moreso than his father, Llyr. Manannan was considered a god of fertility and craftsmanship. He had a fortress full of human bones, which alludes to the possibility that he was a receiver of human sacrifices. His brother was Bran the Blessed (Bendegeit Bran). Bran was enormous in size and possessed great strength. He also had a cauldron, like the Dagda, which could restore life to the dead, but the dead resurrected would not be able to speak. He was said to be able to wade across the sea, his body like a mountain and his eyes like lakes on both sides of a ridge, which was his nose. He would lay himself across a river and entire armies could cross over him. He was also a harpist and poet. In battle, he was wounded by a poison arrow so he ordered that his head be cut off and posted facing the continent where enemies would come from as protection of his people. He was depicted as a protector of his people, sacrificing himself for them. Some believe that the Children Of Llyr were from the underworld and the Children of Don were sky deities.
Other Deities Who Were Not Children Of Either Clan
Morrigan: She was a goddess who could shape shift in battle and change into horrible creatures.
Mabinogi: He was lord of the underworld. He changed places for a year with Arawn, prince of Annwn, the British Hades.
Rhiannon: She was a fertility goddess who bore the son, Pryderi, who later became the new lord of the Underworld.
Arthur: There is much derision between historians as to who Arthur really was. The Legend of King Arthur and his Knights seems to be an echo of various long forgotten and displaced deities, along with their battles with each other. It is believed by some historians that people who were trying to put together a coherent and readable story of their gods created the Legend Of Arthur in order to make it palatable as a story. The Holy Grail seems to be a thinly disguised version of the cauldron of plenty that the Dagda of the Irish and Bran of the Welsh traditions possessed.
Arthur has sometimes been called Ator in ancient literature. Ator was a bear god, a ploughman. He is also called Culhwch and Olwen in other texts. It is not certain if he was considered a legendary real person or a mythological aspect of a chieftain god with his consort Gwenhwyfar, who was most likely a fertility goddess. Despite the Christian influences on the Arthurian legend, the Celtic deities are quite recognizable in the story.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Roman Mythology
Roman mythology was not purely Roman. It was actually very influenced by Greek Mythology, and other various mythologies from the surrounding regions. Other influences on Roman mythology were coming from Etruscan, Alban, Sabine, Greece, Syrian, Persian and Egyptian beliefs. Roman mythology itself did not dominate the system, and in fact, the people took a little of something from every system of gods and goddesses. Roman mythology itself may seem rather bland when compared to the Greek, Oriental or Egyptian legends. Roman mythology could be seen as just another system that was added, or intertwined with the mythology of other systems. In fact, Romans often built temples to and adopted into their own system gods and goddesses of the very regions they conquered and defeated. These would become new protectors whose services could be utilized.
The Roman pantheon is not really specifically exclusive, and is not actually noted as a belief system. The Romans did not feel an overwhelming urge to love or adore the superhuman powers, but rather saw it as a business arrangement where they paid money for the services of these protectors. If the gods failed, their wages were actually withheld. The Roman pantheon is not a colorful array of personalities with their individual traits and quirks like the Greek or Egyptian pantheon of gods and goddesses. It was more abstract and utilitarian, a register of protectors who had special functions, which could be bought through money and specific rites. Interestingly, many of the Roman gods found their way into names of months.
The Roman gods were mostly divided into two categories: gods of state who protected the government, the cities, and the region, and the gods of family who protected the loved ones in one's home.
The Gods Of State
Janus: He was considered the god of gates, of doorways, and private doors. His symbols were the key and the stick. The stick was used to drive away unwanted visitors. He is often seen with two faces, one for watching the outside of the gate or door and one for watching the inside of the gate or door. He was naturally the god of coming and going, return and departure. He was also found under the name Portunus and was the god of harbors and was thought to have invented navigation. Janus does not appear on any statues or reliefs but he is found on coins and effigies, portrayed with a double face looking in both directions.
He started out as a solar god and was thought by some to be the god of beginnings, presiding over sunrises. He was often called upon when a new endeavor, business, journey, or other such applicable activity was undertaken. Because of this, the Romans thought of him as the creator god, the god of all gods, who started it all. In this role he was called Janus Pater. He was also called Chaos at the time when all the elements were still formless. When the elements became solid and separate, he was then called Janus.
Janus was first on the list of important gods. He was celebrated the first day of every month and the first day of every year. He came even before Jupiter. His temple was open during times of war, but closed during times of peace. His temple, however, was rarely closed, for at all times there seemed to be some kind of warring going on. There was a legend of how the place for his temple was chosen. A woman was bribed with jewels by an enemy to show him the way into the citadel. Janus, however, prevented him from getting through by causing a spurt of boiling water to come forth from the ground and stopped the enemy from passing through. This was where his main temple was erected.
Mars: Mars is considered the most Roman of these Gods in the Roman pantheon. He had a large following, even more than Jupiter. Mars was supposedly the son of Juno by union with a beautiful flower. Then Mars paired with Rhea and became the father of Romulus and Remus. In his early versions, he was the god of vegetation and fertility. He also presided over cattle. He was a being of the forest and the mountains. He protected agriculture. He protected crops from disease. His sacred animals were the woodpecker, the horse and the wolf. Also dedicated to him was the fig tree, the oak, the dogwood, the laurel and the bean.
His festivals happened in the spring, fitting with the fact that he was the god of agriculture. His warrior attributes came later, which replaced his reign over agriculture, as Rome became more of a conquering culture. He became the god of battle. There are numerous depictions of Mars in this guise, holding weapons, shields and wearing a helmet. He was likened and sometimes interchangeable with the Greek god of war, Ares.
Jupiter: Jupiter corresponds with celestial light, brilliance. He owned three thunderbolts. The first one could be thrown as a warning, but the second he had to have permission from the other twelve gods even though it was also a warning signal. The third thunderbolt was the one that would punish and kill. The third could only be thrown when permission was gained from the unseen, hidden, and superior gods. He was sometimes called the thunder god. He was often associated with Zeus and considered a supreme god.
First and foremost Jupiter was the god of light, sun and moon and of all celestial light. This made him important to the agricultural process. He soon, however, became less of a rural god presiding over lesser duties and became the protector of the city and the State. Before soldiers would set out for war, they would pay homage to Jupiter. Senators would discuss their plans for war under the visage of Jupiter. He was in charge of oaths, treaties and leagues.
Jupiter was depicted as a young, beardless man in most artwork, but sometimes he is seen as an older, wiser looking man with a beard and curly hair.
Juno: She was the sister of Jupiter. She was also called Lucina or Lucetia. She was sometimes associated with the Greek goddess Hera, and she was a very important Italian goddess. She was the feminine part of celestial light, whereas Jupiter was the masculine part of celestial light. She was a moon goddess in most depictions. She was also a goddess of childbirth for when children are born, they are brought out from the darkness of the womb into the light of the world. She was often invoked by women, who were barren, so that they may have children. She was considered the mother goddess, and watched over the multiplication of the human race. She was the goddess of fertility.
Juno is always depicted standing with a scepter, a patera, a veil and a peacock. Her more warlike likenesses, as the companion of Jupiter, were a spear and shield. Another likeness of her, she has a child in her arms and a flower in her hand to signify the way she was able to conceive the god Mars. Yet another likeness shows her holding a scroll as protectress of the State.
Vesta: Vesta was pure and beautiful, the most lovely of the Roman divinities. She was a virgin. Her priestesses were called Vestal Virgins. Vesta's symbol was flame, which represented her shining beauty. She was considered the goddess of fire, but not just any fire. Only the fire needed for domestic use and religious ceremonies. It was not uncommon to find a statue of Vesta on every hearth. She presided over the preparation of meals and a portion of every meal was given to her statue. Vesta was found on many coins with a veil over her face.
The Vestal Virgins took vows of celibacy. If they broke their vows, they were tortured to death. Only twenty broke their vows in eleven centuries. The Vestal Virgins kept a sacred flame going. If the flame went out, the virgin responsible was whipped close to death. Once a Vestal Virgin completed her thirty-year commitment, she was allowed to marry and have her own life. Rarely, however, did they leave their lofty positions as priestesses, and remained in their positions. Whenever they appeared in public, they wore veils. If a man who was condemned to death happened to be met by a Vestal Virgin, his life was spared.
Vulcan: He was the god of fires and could call upon fire to ravage and kill if he so chose. He was also called on for life-giving warmth. Like Vesta, he was also a divinity of the hearth. He also had warlike attributes and may have been the god of battle before Mars was. In earlier history, he was called Volcanus, and later, as his popularity as a warlike god dwindled, he was known as Vulcan. Human sacrifices were offered to Vulcan early in his reign. He is often depicted as a bearded man with slight facial deformities, wearing a tunic that left his right arm and shoulder bare, and around him were a hammer, tongs and an anvil.
Saturn: This was another agricultural divinity of the same rank as Janus and Jupiter. He was the god of abundance. He oversaw the maturation of the crops. Festivals were celebrated in honor of him close to harvest time, and interestingly, masters served the slaves, and for a week, the slaves were allowed to do and say anything they wanted to.
Minerva: She was a goddess of the thunderbolt with Jupiter. She was also the protectress of commerce, industry, and schools. Homage was paid to her by doctors, artisans, flute players and teachers. She was also considered the goddess of handicrafts, learning and the arts. Artisan guilds would pay homage to her. Later she became a warrior goddess, wearing a breastplate and throwing a spear or thunderbolt. This may have come about because of the Greek influence of the goddess Athene who held the position of warrior, but also a goddess of wisdom and learning. It is understandable why Minerva played both these roles just as Athene did in Greek systems. Minerva was the least of all the gods and goddesses with the smallest following, but that following did cover the entire Roman empire.
Mercury: He was the god of merchants, his name coming from the root merx (merchandise) and mercari (to deal, trade). He was called on by business entrepreneurs and traders. He often is depicted holding a purse with money in it. He was also considered a messenger of the gods, a god of communication. In the visages that portrayed him in this role, he had winged shoes.
Gods Of The Family
Genius: The Genius was the creative force that evolved the individual. Genius was with the individual from birth to death and formed the personality and tutored the child through life. If it was a boy, Genius was his tutor. If it was a girl, Juno was her teacher. Genius and Juno did not work alone. Nundina took care of the child's purification. Vaticanus made the child come to life and make its first sound. Educa and Potina taught the child how to eat. Cuba kept the child quiet when it was time for the child to sleep in its cradle. Abeona and Adeona taught the art of walking. Sentinus awakened the child's intellect.
On the day of the child's birth, wine and flowers were offered to Genius, who was in essence, the child's double, the child's spirit source.
The Penates: The Penates oversaw the preservation of food and drink. The Penates were always a pair. Their altar was shared with Vesta on the hearth and they were placed among several statues that would be there. For instance, they would be combined with Vulcan on the hearth in the house of a blacksmith, with Mercury in the house of a merchant, and with other gods depending on what the focus of the household was.
The Lar: The Lar were protectors of the household and were often placed at the entrance of a farmhouse or home and sometimes they shared the hearth with the Penates and Vesta. There was only one Lar per family, unlike the pair that the Penates were. The Lar symbolized the house. He was invoked on all important events in the house, including weddings, departures for a journey and funerals. The Lar was depicted as a dancing youth with no beard, pouring wine.
Arachne: She was a mythical woman who was a spinner and weaver. She challenged Minerva, Roman goddess of handicrafts, and won a contest between them. Minerva was angry and turned Arachne into a spider so that now she could only weave webs. Spiders are considered dream weavers in many cultures. The web of the spider was meant to catch the good and let the bad pass through without entanglement in human affairs. This was for dreamtime and in real life. Dreamcatchers come from this legend, hung over beds to catch good dreams. In the Pacific Islands, it was believed that Areop-Enap, a spider, existed at beginning of time with only the sea. Then Areop-Enap wove a web of everything in the world as the creation. Ghana's religion hosts a character named Anansi, the spider who was a trickster of humans and gods.
Orbona: protected orphans
Viriplaca: soothed quarrels between husband and wife
Deverra: ruled the broom
Intercidona: ruled the axe
Pilumnus: ruled the mortar
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Greek Mythology
Ancient Greeks faced many natural forces that shaped their lives, and they created some fantastic stories to memorialize their relationship with the natural world. These myths were spread by travelers, and included tales of gods, goddesses, and creatures of the sea, forests, heavens, and earth. They include characters such as half humans, half animals, monsters, giants, and heroes.
The tales were memorialized in epic poems, such as Homers Iliad and Odyssey, as well as the poetry of Hesiod. In reading these stories, we should take into account that they are part metaphor, part religion, part history, and part fantasy. "When the stories were being shaped, we are given to understand, little distinction had yet been made between the real and the unreal. The imagination was vividly alive and not checked by the reason, so that anyone in the woods might see through the trees a fleeing nymph, or bending over a clear pool to drink, behold in the depths a naiads face."
Black-winged Night
Into the bosom of Erebus dark and deep
Laid a wind-born egg, and as the seasons rolled
Forth sprang Love, the longed-for, shining, with
wings of gold. Earth, the beautiful, rose up,
Broad bosomed, she that is the steadfast base
Of all things. And fair Earth first bore
The starry Heaven, equal to herself,
To cover her on all sides and to be
A home forever for the blessed gods.
Greek Gods & Goddesses
Chaos: The name comes from the Greek root meaning "to gape," and originally described the void, the open space or nothingness from which was born all things. Later it was used to describe "the confused and unorganized mass of elements scattered through space," according to the New Larousse Encyclopedia Of Mythology (1968), yet Chaos originally described the pure cosmic principal without any further characteristics (agape).
Gaea/Gaia: This is the ancient Greek Great Mother Goddess, incarnate as the Earth, "the deep breasted," source of all life, the one who nourishes all that is, and who blesses all creatures with healthy children and nourishing fruits and foods, the supreme goddess acknowledged not only by humans but by the gods as well. It was Gaia who the gods themselves invoked, and to whom they pledged, as in the Iliad, when Hera proclaims "I swear by Gaea and the vast sky above her," when answering to accusations from Zeus. In the creation of the Greek Pantheon, She is credited to have given birth to Typhon, Enceladus, and Ouranus (the starlit sky), and with her son, Ouranus, given birth to the great race of gods, the Titans. From Homer: "I shall sing of Gaea, Universal Mother, firmly founded, the oldest of divinities."
Eros: He is the God of love, and symbolizes the divine principle itself, which quickened creation. He is credited with bringing the principles of Gaea, the feminine, and Ouranus, the masculine, together to manifest all things. He is also known as Cupid in popular culture, but that is a simplified and stereotypical version of the true nature of Eros. He is known for his bow, with which he shoots golden arrows of desire.
The Titans: born from Gaea and her son Ouranus (Uranus), they were the original divine race of beings, and are described below.
Oceanus: A Titan brother, he was the god of the ocean, which was considered a great river that forever circled the world.
Tethys: A Titan sister, she became the mate to Oceanus, and mother of 3000 sons, the Rivers, 3000 daughters, the Water Nymphs, Metis (wisdom), Tyche (fortune), and Styx (the infernal river)
Hyperion: A Titan brother, and the first sun-god of Greek origin.
Theia: A Titan sister, she became the mate to Hyperion, and she birthed Helios (the sun), Selene (the moon), Eos (the dawn), and Astraeus.
Cronus: A Titan brother, credited with overthrowing his father.
Rhea: A Titan sister, and an Earth Mother goddess, identical to Gaea and Cybele. She is mate to Cronus, and she birthed three daughters; Hestia, Demeter and Hera, and three sons; Zeus, Poseiden, and Hades.
Iapetus: A Titan brother, mate of the Nymph Clymene, father to Prometheus, Epimetheus, Atlas, and Menoetius.
Crius: A Titan brother, mate of the Nymph Eurybia, and father to Astraeus, Pallas, and Perses.
Coeus: A Titan brother
Phoebe: A Titan sister, she symbolizes the moon, and mate of Coeus, she birthed Leto and Asteria.
Themis: A Titan sister, she is justice.
Mnemosyne: A Titan sister, she is memory.
Cyclops: 3 giants, born of Gaea and Ouranus, each with a single eye in the middle of their foreheads. They are associated with storms, and are named Brontes (thunder), Steropes (lightning), and Arges (thunderbolt).
Hecatoncheires or Centimanes: 3 monsters, also born of Gaea and Ouranus, whose name means hundred handed giants, they each had 100 powerful arms and 50 heads. They were Cottus the furious, Briareus the vigorous, and Gyges the big-limbed.
Ouranus' Defeat: Ouranus was not pleased with his children, and he shut them up in the depths of the Earth. Gaea first was saddened, and then began to plan a way to free her children. All were afraid of their father, except Cronus, who agreed to help his mother. Gaea provided the steel blade for a Sickle, and hid Cronus from his father. Cronus, while his father was sleeping, castrated him and cast his genitals into the sea. As the blood dripped upon the Earth, the Furies were born, as well as monstrous giants. From the foam of the remains in the sea, the goddess Aphrodite was born.
Cronus and Rhea: Cronus and Rhea have the same story as Ouranus and Gaea, as they are essentially the same Divinities. Rhea is an earth goddess, and is seen as the Earth personified, like Gaea, her mother. Both Cronus and Ouranus have the same issue with a child who is to become more powerful than they are, whom they try to destroy, and who end up destroying them in the end. This Divine couple have six children, three female and three male, together.
Hestia: Daughter of Cronus and Rhea, Hestia is the goddess of the hearth, and her name itself means hearth in Greek. The hearth was the center of the home, and the fire kept within was considered a powerful spiritual and family connection. When a child married and moved to another home, he or she took a bit of fire from the parent's hearth to take to the new home and hearth. While Hephaestus symbolizes the raw creative power of fire as it manifests in the Earth and the heavens, Hestia symbolizes domesticated fire, as we use it for warmth, light, and cooking, and as a source of nurturing and protection. Each city had a public hearth sacred to Hestia, where the fire was never allowed to go out.
Demeter: Daughter of Cronus and Rhea, Demeter is an earth goddess like her mother, yet she symbolizes the fertile Earth, the soil, the crops, and the fruits. She is a corn-goddess, and she ruled the seasons, agriculture, and the harvest. The first loaf of bread from the harvest is sacrificed to her. She is the mother of Persephone, and she is responsible for founding the Eleusinian mysteries, of which very little is known, as it was a secret celebration, having to do with the cycles of birth, growth and death. She is depicted as holding the sheaves of corn, symbolizing fertility; poppies, symbolizing divinity; and snakes symbolizing the Earth.
Hera: Daughter of Cronus and Rhea, she was originally a sky goddess, or Queen of the Heavens. In the classical Greek pantheon she is the goddess of marriage and motherhood. She is married to her brother Zeus, and her story is one of a faithful, loving wife and mother who is frequently betrayed by her husband. She is always a beautiful virgin, for she recovers her beauty and maidenhood every year by bathing in a spring called Canathus in Argolis. There are many tales of her jealousy and revenge against Zeus' consorts and children, especially her treatment of Hercules, son of Zeus and a mortal woman named Alceme. She put two serpents in his cradle when he was a small baby, trying to kill him. When his mother found him later, he was playing with the dead bodies of two strangled snakes. She continued to harass him, throughout his epic hero's journey. Hera's sacred animals are the cow and the peacock.
Zeus: Youngest son of Cronus and Rhea, he is saved by his grandmother from the fate of his brothers and sisters, and, after successfully overthrowing his father, becomes the ruler of the gods. He was originally a thunder god, and retains his power over the weather, the winds, and the lightning and thunder.
Poseidon: Son of Cronus and Rhea, he is depicted as a powerful Divine being, like his brother. He is god of the sea, and he marries Amphitrite, who was herself the feminine personification of the sea, (related to Aphrodite) and is granddaughter of Oceanus. He is also the source of earthquakes using his trident to shake the Earth, and can shatter any object as well. He has many children with different goddesses, including the giant Antaeus with Gaea, and the goddess Aethusa, whose mother is Alcyone of the Pleiades. He is associated with horses, and it is said that he created the first horse to impress Demeter. His contests for other gods and goddesses for possession of certain islands and cities is symbolic of places where the ocean has risen or receded.
Hades: Son of Cronus and Rhea, he is god of the underworld, who was a dark and mysterious entity. His helmet made him invisible. He is the abductor husband of Persephone, and was primarily a loyal and devoted husband. He was in charge of assigning souls to The Elysian Fields (heaven) or Tartarus (hell) based on the good or bad acts each soul performed in life.
The Defeat Of The Titans, And The Rise Of Zeus And The Olympians: After Cronus had freed his brothers and sisters, with the exception of the Cyclops and the Hecatoncheires, and became ruler of the Titans. He married his sister Rhea, and they had six children, who were Hestia, Demeter, and Hera, Hades, Poseiden, and Zeus. An oracle had foretold to Cronus that one of his children would overthrow him, and so, as his children were born, he swallowed them whole. Rhea was consumed with grief, and she asked her mother, Gaea, to help her save her sixth child. Gaea took her grandson Zeus to Mount Ida, where he was hidden away and cared for by the Nymphs Adrasteia and Ida. The Curetes, Earth-spirits who were sworn to protect the child, would dance around him and beat bronze shields with swords so Cronus would not hear him cry. He was nursed by the invincible goat Amaltheia, and one of her horns later became the horn of plenty (cornucopia), as it would refill itself of whatever food or drink was wished for.
As soon as Zeus came to manhood, he began to plan a punishment for his father, and a way to free his brothers and sisters. He called on the help of Metis, daughter of Oceanus, and she made a special drink which she gave to Cronus. As soon as he drank it, he vomited up his children, and was immediately cast out of the sky into the underworld by his son Zeus. The stone which came up along with the children was placed at Delphi, within the walls of the tomb of Neoptolemus.
After Zeus overthrew Cronus, he divided the universe between the three sons, Zeus becoming god of the heavens, Poseiden becoming god of the sea, and Hades becoming god of the underworld.
Following Cronus' overthrow, the other Titan children resented the new gods, who resided on Mount Olympus. Battle ensued between the Titans and The Olympians, and Zeus released the Cyclops and the Hecatoncheires and made them his allies. They lent him the thunderbolt, and their many invincible arms. With these they threw great boulders and crushed the Titans, while from the heights of Mount Olympus, Zeus threw thunderbolts repeatedly.
The fiery destruction of the battle covered the Earth. Forests caught fire and rivers boiled. The Titans were defeated, and the Olympians began their reign. Following this battle, the Olympians still had to defend themselves against the giants. They had been born from the blood of Ouranus, and soon they rose up in arms to attack the Olympians. Trees and mountains fell before them, and to reach the summit of Mount Olympus they piled other smaller mountains one on top of the other. An Oracle foretold that only a human could defeat the monsters, and this is where Hercules comes in. With the help of Dionysus and Athena, he brought the great creatures down. The giants were buried under islands and mountains, and to this day, when the earth shakes, it is said that the giants are turning over.
Zeus's final challenge came when Gaea, unhappy about the defeat of her children, sent the monster of monsters to challenge him. He was Typhoeus. He was taller than the tallest mountain, with 100 Dragons' heads on his shoulders each spouting flame, and hundreds of vipers emerging from his thighs. At the sight of him, all the gods fled to Egypt, except Zeus, who stood firm to face him. Typhoeus ensnared him in the snake's coils, and, cutting the tendons in his wrists and ankles, imprisoned him in his lair. Hermes rescued him, and Zeus was then able to overcome Typhoeus with a rain of his thunderbolts. After this, Zeus remained uncontested as the leader of the gods. (In Roman mythology Zeus is called Jupiter, and Cronus is called Saturn.)
Zeus: He is the god of the sky, the air, the winds, of clouds, rain, lightning, and thunder. He resides at high altitudes, and was often worshipped on mountaintops. To the Greek, he became "the supreme god who united in himself all the attributes of Divinity" (New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology, 1968). He was considered a wise, compassionate god who ruled according to the law of fate. He was a god of family, friendship, and gatherings, as well as the protector-god of Greece.
Zeus' Children: Zeus had children with his sister, Hera, goddess of marriage, as well as others, including the goddesses Metis, goddess of wisdom, Leto, Demeter, goddess of fertility and motherhood, and Maia, as well as the Titanesses, Mnemosyne and Themis.
Zeus and Metis: Metis helped Zeus in saving his brothers and sisters, and she became his first consort. Hesiod says that Metis, goddess of wisdom, "knew more things than all the gods and men put together."
Athena: daughter of Metis and Zeus, she is a warrior goddess, who sprang fully formed from her father's head. Zeus had been warned by Gaea and Uranus that the second child born to he and Metis would be more powerful than him, and would dethrone him. He promptly swallowed the pregnant Metis, so that she would have only one child. Soon his head began to ache terribly, and he asked Hephaestus to split his head open with an axe. Athena emerged as a fully grown goddess, dressed in armor. Because Zeus had incorporated wisdom and prudence, as well as embracing his own feminine side by swallowing Metis, he became a more balanced leader, and broke the cycle of violence and hatred that had been passed down from generation to generation. Therefore, Athena did not challenge her father, but rather became his favorite, and was very loyal to him. She was a powerful and independent Virgin goddess, and she is the goddess of wisdom and practicality, taking on her mother's qualities, as well as the qualities of craft and creativity, cleverness and ingenuity. Her tree is the olive tree, and the owl is her bird.
Zeus and Themis: Zeus next joined with the Themis, goddess of natural law. She is Mother Nature, as well as the goddess of conscience and morality.
The Horae: Daughters of Zeus and Themis, they are goddesses of time and the seasons. They govern the order of nature, bringing rain to the Earth, and they are responsible for the ripening of fruits and the flowering of plants. To the Athenians, they were Thallo, who brought the flowers, and Carpo, who brought the fruits. According to Hesiod, they were Eunomia, Dike, and Eirene, and they governed natural order, being associated with wise legislation, justice, and peace.
The Moerea (The Three Fates): They are also daughters of Zeus and Themis, they are the Fates. According to Hesiod, they are: Clotho, the Spinner, governing the thread of life; Lachesis, who governed chance and luck; and Atropos, who governed unalterable fate. These three were also called the daughters of night.
Zeus and Mnemosyne: Zeus joined Mnemosyne, goddess of memory, for nine nights in order to bring forth divine beings who would honor life and inspire creativity and joy, and who could help celebrate the victory of the Olympians.
The Muses: From this union of Zeus and Mnemosyne, came the Muses, who dwelt in pure springs as well as in mist, and were inspiration to poets, painters, singers, sculptors, and other artists and creative people. Their magical voices were often heard singing at Mount Olympus, where they joined in the feasts of the immortals. There were nine, and they were: Clio, Muse of history; Euterpe, Muse of the flute; Thalia, Muse of comedy, laughter, and bucolic poetry; Melpomene, Muse of tragedy; Terpsichore, Muse of poetry and dance; Erato, Muse of love poetry; Polyhymnia, Muse of mimicry; Urania, Muse of astronomy; and Calliope, Muse of epic poetry and eloquence.
Zeus and Demeter: Both were children of the Rhea and Cronus. Demeter is the goddess of fertility, birth, the cycles of the seasons, and the crops. Zeus desired Demeter, but she did not return his affection. He came to her as a bull, and forced himself on her.
Persephone: Daughter of the rape of Demeter by Zeus, she is a maiden goddess, embodying innocence, beauty, and youth. She is also called Kore, the archetypal maiden. She was loved by all, especially her mother. One day, while picking flowers in a field, Hades, god of the underworld, visited her. He had been watching her and had chosen her to be his queen. He took her with him on his chariot into the world of the dead. Demeter was consumed with grief, and she searched the world for her precious lost child. During this time she neglected the land, as well as her duty as bringer of fertility and abundant harvest. The crops failed, and no children were born to humans or beasts. The land became cold and harsh, and the people starved and suffered greatly. Because of the loss of her child, and because she suffered, the whole world suffered as well, and began to die. Zeus was desperate to save his kingdom, and he, who had seen all, sent the messenger god, Hermes, to tell Demeter the story of what had happened to her daughter. Hermes promised to Demeter that if she attended to the Earth once again, and brought forth new life and abundant crops, that he would guarantee to bring her daughter home, that is, as long as she had not eaten of the foods of the underworld. It came about that Persephone had eaten three pomegranate seeds, and so a compromise was reached between Zeus and Hades, in which they agreed that Persephone would remain with Hades for three months of the year, one year for each pomegranate seed she had eaten. The remaining time she could be free to join her mother and gather flowers once again. It follows that during the months that Persephone resides with Hades, the Earth lies infertile, and when Persephone returns, she brings the spring and new life. Some myths say that Persephone spent six months in Hades and six months in the land of the living with her mother.
Zeus and Eurynome: A Water Nymph, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, Eurynome was one of several nymphs who had children with Zeus.
The Graces: From the union of Zeus and Eurynome came the Three Graces, or Charities. They are joyful, smiling maidens who bring happiness wherever they dwell. They are Aglaia, the brilliant one; Euphrosyne, she who rejoices the heart; and Thalia, she who brings flowers. They are closely associated with nature spirits, the Nymphs, and they presided over the budding of plants and the ripening of fruits. They often accompany Aphrodite, making her more beautiful and irresistible, as well as Apollo, as they were associated with the suns rays and their effect on the Earth.
Zeus and Hera: Hera became Zeus' reigning queen. She became the goddess of marriage and family, though she was originally Queen of the sky, and a Celestial goddess. With Zeus she bore five children, and joined him, reigning side-by-side with him on Mount Olympus. She was a brilliant beauty, and was attractive to many. She was an exemplary wife, strong, wise, faithful, loving, and generous. The same was not true of her husband, and this caused her grief and suffering. Their marriage includes tales of enduring love, as well as jealousy, infidelity, violence, and revenge.
Hebe: Daughter of Zeus and Hera, she is the goddess of youth, having the gift of eternal youth. She was helpful as an eldest daughter, assisting her mother in caring for her brother Ares, preparing her mother's chariot for travel, and serving nectar and ambrosia to the gods during feasts.
Ilythia: Daughter of Zeus and Hera, she is the goddess of birthing, especially the rhythmic contractions which aid the child's emergence.
Ares: Son of Zeus and Hera, he is the god of war, arrayed in armor, and riding on a chariot drawn by racing horses. He is known for his thirst for blood, and his brutality and lust for violence. In this way he differed from Athena, who embodies cool, intelligent courage. The two were always at odds, and battled many times. Once when Ares flew into a rage and struck her aegis, the invincible breastplate made by Hephaestus, Athena drew back, picked up an enormous black boulder, and, summoning her powerful strength, launched it at Ares. Her aim was true, and when he fell, his body covered 7 acres. He was covered in dust, and thoroughly mortified. Standing tall, Athena called out to him "Vain fool! Hast thou not yet learned how superior my strength is to thine?"
Eris: Daughter of Hera and Zeus, she is the goddess of discord, and is closely related to her brother Ares, whom she frequently accompanies in battle, along with her son Strife.
Hephaestus: Son of Zeus and Hera, he is the god of the forge, the divine blacksmith, who is associated with fire, especially volcanic, but also associated with lighting. He built the Palaces of Olympus, Zeus' golden throne, sceptre, and thunderbolts, the Aegis or breastplate of Athena, the winged chariot of Helios, the arrows of Apollo and Artemis, Demeter's sickle, the armor of Achilles, Ariadne's diadem, Agamemnon's scepter, and the Golden goblet which Zeus offered to Aphrodite. Unlike the other gods and goddesses, he was not perfect in form, but was lame in both legs and had twisted feet. He walked with a severe limp. He was frequently laughed at by the other immortals, but his great skill in working with metals and fire to create useful and beautiful things made him a master craftsman who was sought after for his services often. He married Aphrodite, yet she was often unfaithful to him, having a long affair with Ares.
Aphrodite: Though probably of Phoenician origin, according to popular Greek tradition, Aphrodite was born from seafoam that rose from the ocean after Cronus, son of Gaea and Ouranus, murdered his father, and severing his genitals, threw them into the sea. Aphrodite then rose from foam floating in the sea along the coast of Cythera, and came ashore at Cyprus. The gods all adored her, and she was adorned with precious jewels and welcomed into their midst. It is said that beside her walked Love and Desire, and that she was the essence of feminine beauty. Everything about her was pure, and she emanated charm and grace. She is often pictured with a scepter or a mirror. In addition to her natural gifts she has a magical girdle that compels anyone she wishes to desire her. The myrtle is her tree. The dove, the swan, and the sparrow are her birds.
Aphrodite became the uncontested goddess of love and beauty, though she had to win this right. When Eris was overlooked for an invitation to the wedding of Thetis and Peleus, she tossed a golden apple out into the hall embossed with the words for the fairest. Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite all three claimed the apple, and to settle the argument, Zeus ordered the son of King Priam of Troy, named Paris, to judge the women. The three were brought before him as he tended flocks on the slopes of Mount Ida. Hera came before him and told him she would make him Lord over all of Asia. Athena promised to see that he would always be victorious in battle. Aphrodite, who did not have the powers to offer such things, loosened her tunic and unknotted her girdle, revealing her feminine charms; then promised to give Paris the most beautiful of all mortal women. Paris chose to award the golden apple to Aphrodite, and won the breathtaking mortal, Helen. Thereafter, Aphrodite was sought in matters of love, and even the King of the gods was not immune to her charms. It was said of her, "She distracts the mind of Zeus, deceives his prudent soul, and sends him chasing after mortal women." She marries Hephaestus, but later falls in love with Ares. In some traditions, she is the mother of Eros, god of love, and she is often accompanied by the Three Graces.
Zeus and Leto: According to some, Zeus and Leto were married before Zeus and Hera, though there is a popular story about how Hera jealously tried to prevent Leto from giving birth. She is the daughter of the Titans Phoebe and Coeus, and is a moon goddess like her mother.
Apollo: Apollo is the son of Zeus and Leto, and twin brother to Artemis. He is a sun-god, who made the fruits of the Earth ripen, and at Delos and Delphi, the first crops were consecrated to him. He is protector of the fields, and drives away rodents and insects, as well as a shepherd-god, protecting shepherds and their flocks. As with the action of the rays of the sun, he is an archer-god, who shoots his arrows from afar, as well as a healer, who drives away illness, and a speaker of truth, who cannot tell a lie. He is a musician-god, a god of song and of the lyre, and also of building and architecture. He is the god of divination and prophecy, and many oracles spoke in his name. The Oracle at Delphi was the most famous of these, situated deep in a cavern from which issued forth mysterious vapors, over which the priestess, or "Pythia" sat. There she would fall into trance, and possessed by Apollo, would begin to speak seemingly nonsensical phrases and obscure words, which would be interpreted by the priests of Delphi. In Roman mythology Apollo is called by the same name. His tree is the Laurel; the crow is his bird; and the dolphin his animal.
Artemis: Daughter of Zeus and Leto, Artemis became the goddess of midwifery, when she helped her mother give birth to her brother just minutes after she herself was born. She is strong and decisive, a Huntress and lover of all things wild and natural. On her third birthday, her father asked her what she would like as a gift. She told him that there were six things that she wanted and they were: to be allowed to live without having to be distracted by love or marriage; to be able to dress as she wanted; to have an arrow and a bow, and the clothing of a hunter; 60 young nymphs to be her companions and help to care for her hunting dogs; all the mountains on earth to live on; and to be able to bring light to the Earth. Artemis' father laughed at her precocious directness, and was happy to grant the little goddess her wishes. She grew up maintaining her untamed spirit, her love of nature, mountains, forests, wild places, and wild creatures, and she became well known for her hunting skills, as she was fearless, with sharp focus and near perfect aim. She became a protectress of vulnerable creatures, including all children. She is also a healing goddess, compassionate and nurturing. She is called on to bring courage and the ability to face fears and find inner strength. The Cyprus is her tree and all wild animals are sacred to her, especially the deer. She is similar to Diana, the Huntress.
Zeus and Maia: Maia is the daughter of Atlas and Pleione. Her union with Zeus was kept from Hera, as she spent her pregnancy dwelling deep within a cave in Mount Cyllene.
Hermes: Son of Zeus and Maia, he became his father's messenger, a mediator between the ruler of the gods and humans. He is the god of traveling, and his image was often placed at crossroads. According to Barbara Walker, in her book, The Woman's Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (1983), Hermes was the consort to the Great Mother Goddess Aphrodite, and as She was the Lady of Life, He was the Lord of Death, and Conductor of Souls. He is known for his winged hat and winged sandals, which symbolize his connection to the winds. His son is Pan, who is the god of goatherder and shepherds. Pan is mostly human in appearance but had goat horns and goat feet. He was a talented musician and played the many piped "pan-flute." He was child-like, happy and playful, frequently seen dancing with woodland nymphs. He was at home in any wild place but his favorite was Arcady, where he was born. He loved to pursue the nymphs, but they reject him because he is ugly.
Zeus and Semele: Semele was a mortal woman whom Zeus fell in love with. Zeus came to Semele in the night, invisible, felt only as a divine presence. Semele was pleased to be a lover of a god even though she did not know which one. Word soon got around and Hera quickly assumed who was responsible. Hera went to Semele in disguise and told her that her lover should reveal himself to her. When Zeus next came to her she asked him to grant her one wish. She made him swear on the River Styx that he would grant her request. Zeus was very much in love and agreed. She then asked him to show her his true form. Zeus knew what would happen and was very reluctant, but having sworn, he had no choice. He appeared in his true form and Semele was instantly annihilated by the sight of his glory. Zeus was able to save the child she carried by stitching him into his thigh and holding him there till he was ready to be born.
Dionysus: The son of the unfortunate union of Zeus and Semele, he was very celebrated and loved by common people. He was the eternal boy, an adventurer who loved the natural world. He was a god of wild places, and a free-spirit. He was the god of the vine, and he invented wine and the art of tending grapes. Dionysus wandered the world, gathering followers who wanted to celebrate life with him. He was accompanied by the Maenads, who were wild women, imbibing wine, shoulders draped with a fawn skin, carrying rods tipped with pine cones. While other gods had temples, the followers of Dionysus worshipped him in the woods. Dionysus became one of the most important gods in everyday life. He became associated with several key concepts. One was rebirth after death. The other was the idea that under the influence of wine, one could feel possessed by a greater power. Unlike the other gods, Dionysus was not only outside his believers, but also within them. The festival for Dionysus was in the spring when the leaves began to reappear on the vine. It became one of the most important events of the year, and was celebrated in theater. Most of the great Greek plays were initially written to be performed at the feast of Dionysus.
Other Divine Unions In Greek Mythology
Asteria and Perses: Asteria was the daughter of the Titans Coeus and Phoebe, and sister of Leto. Perses was the son of the Titan Crius and the Nymph Eurybia. Asteria and Perses were god and goddess of shining light.
Hecate: Daughter of Asteria and Perses, she was a triple moon goddess, as well as a goddess of the underworld. She was a wisdom goddess, and also the goddess of prosperity, magic, charms, and enchantment. As goddess of the underworld she was accompanied by a pack of hounds. She was also goddess of safe travel, and a deliverer of souls, who, like Hermes, had her image placed at crossroads in the form of a column with three faces, called a triple Hecate.
Hyperion and Theia: Hyperion was the Titan god of the sun. These Titan siblings had four children together.
Helios: He was the son of Hyperion and Theia. Though Apollo was god of the light, Helios personified the sun. He was an ancient Greek sun god. Later in the classical period he would ride his Golden chariot across the sky, led by winged horses of dazzling white.
Astraeus: Son of Hyperion and Theia, he was the starry night sky.
Selene: She was a daughter of Hyperion and Theia. A moon goddess, Selene is the full moon, rising from her daily bath in the ocean, spreading her broad wings, and lighting the night sky.
Eos: Daughter of Hyperion and Theia, she was the colorful Dawn, often appearing as a winged goddess, tilting an urn from which fell the morning dew. With her brother Astraeus as father, she gave birth to the Four Winds, the East wind Eurus, the south wind Notus, the west wind Zephyrus, and the North wind Boreas.
Adonis: He was a Phonecian Deity that later appeared in the Greek pantheon, symbolizing vegetation's renewal. According to the Greek legend, he was born from a myrtle or myrrh tree. Soon after Adonis was born, Aphrodite, the goddess of love, discovered the young deity. She hid him in a chest which she gave for safekeeping to Persephone, the goddess of the Underworld. However, Persephone opened the chest and was so struck with the beauty of the child she decided to keep him. Aphrodite appealed to Zeus, who decided Adonis should spend a third of each year with himself on Olympus, a third with Persephone and a third with the Goddess of Love. When Adonis grew up, Aphrodite fell passionately in love with him. Out hunting one day, Adonis was killed by a boar. It is at this point, in some versions of the myth, that Aphrodite managed to secure his release from the Underworld for half of each year.
Arachne: She was a mythical woman who was a spinner and weaver. She challenged Athena, Greek goddess of handicrafts, and won a contest between them. Athena was angry and turned Arachne into a spider so that now she could only weave webs.
Cybele: She was the great mother goddess of Phyrigian mythology, whom the Greeks knew as a Rhea. She probably originated as a mountain goddess and was sometimes referred to as the "Lady of Ida," a mountain in western Anatolia. She inhabited the wild and dangerous regions of the earth and ruled over the fiercest of wild animals. Cybele's origins have sometimes been tracked back as far as Catal Hoyuk, a large Neolithic site in southern Anatolia. There, archeologists unearthed a terracotta figure believed to be the mother goddess in the act of giving birth. Cybele was primarily associated with the earth, and in particular with a black stone enshrined at Pergamum. Other cities where worship of the great mother was particularly fervent were Troy and Pessinus. In Phrygia, Cybele may have been known as Kubaba, or "Lady of the Cube." She is sometimes associated with an ancient goddess of that name who was worshipped at Carchemish in the Hittite Empire. The shrines of both goddesses were situated in caves or near rocks. The cult of Cybele eventually spread from Asia Minor to Greece. In the 5th century B.C., a magnificent statue of the goddess, flanked by lions, was placed in her temple in Athens. In 204 B.C. the black stone sacred to Cybele was brought from Phyrigia to Rome. An oracle had foretold that if the Phryigian mother were brought from Pergamum, she would aid the Romans in their war against the Carthaginians.
At Cybele's annual celebrations, held in spring, a chariot harnessed to lions would be drawn through the streets of Rome. According to the historian Lucretius (99-55 B.C.): "Born from her sacred precinct in her cart she drove a yoke of lions; her head they wreathed with a battlemented crown, because embattled on glorious heights she sustains towns; and dowered with this emblem even now the image of the divine mother is carried in awesome state through great countries. On her the diverse nations in the ancient rite of worship call as the mother of Ida, and they give her Phrygian bands to bear her company, because from those lands first they say corn began to be produced throughout the whole world." The public rites of Cybele were orgiastic and ecstatic. Her priests, the Galli or Galloi, would beat and castrate themselves in mad frenzies of passion, using whips decorated with knuckle bones. The celebrations were accompanied by the sacrifice of a bull or ram, during which the initiate, or high priest or priestess of Cybele, stood beneath a platform and was drenched in the blood of the sacrificial animal. Cybele's followers believed that her mysteries would lead them to be reborn after death in a new life. Cybele's attributes are a mirror, a pomegranate, and a key.
The great myth attached to the goddess is that in which she takes vengeance on Attis for his infidelity and causes him to go mad, to castrate himself and to die. Eventually, however she gives him back his life. According to another story, Cybele and Gordius, the king of Phrygia, had a son whom they called Midas. This was the Midas who, after wishing that everything he touched might turn to gold, found himself unable to eat or drink until the god Dionysos took pity on him.
Attis: He was the consort of Cybele, the great mother goddess of Phrygia in Asia Minor. He was originally a Phonecian god. A vegetation god, he was sometimes known as "Papas" or father. The best known story of Attis is one in which his desperate love for Cybele drove him insane, leading him to castrate himself under a pine tree. Flowers and trees grew up from his blood. Although he died, the god was reborn and united with Cybele. The cult of Cybele spread to Greece and Rome, and with it, that of Attis. Cybele was said to have fallen in love with Attis, who was regarded as a handsome young shepherd. She chose him as her priest and imposed a vow of chastity on him. However, Attis fell in love with a river nymph, so Cybele caused him to suffer a fit of madness during which he mutilated himself. When the god recovered, he was about to kill himself when Cybele changed him into a fir tree.
Korybantes: They are the companions of the great mother, Cybele, of Phrygian mythology. They performed frenzied dances, took part in orgiastic revelries and were believed to have the power to induce and heal madness. According to one tradition they were the offspring of Zeus, who impregnated earth by falling on it as rain; in another lineage they are cited as the offspring of the solar logos Apollo, equivalent to Amon-Ra of Egypt and Thalia, muse and sensual, nature goddess of joy and love.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Taoist Mythology
Another pantheon of deities and mythology found in Chinese and Japanese Taoism is very ancient, and influenced the culture of humanity through the silk route. It was culturally enriched by Shinto and oriental shamanic influences. Taoism is similar to the Egyptian magical systems in its great antiquity. Shamanic Taoism teaches several methods very similar to those of Egypt. Both systems have roots so old their origins and founders are mythic in themselves, said to be immortals and gods, but really, they were humans just like us. The Celestial Jade Emperor, the Pole Star God, Shou Lao, Taoist God of Longevity, and Spiritual Logos of Lao Tzu are later said to have helped establish Taoism as well. They had all gained eternal life through seeking the Taoist Way and each set an example of ideal behavior that could be followed by ordinary people to gain enlightenment. Though they were not gods, their immortality gave them superhuman powers: they practiced magic and could fly through the air at great speed. They had many adventures while pursuing their mission to banish evil from the world. Many were cheerfully addicted to wine and cannabis, so they were sometimes called Jiu-zhong Ba Xian - the eight drunken immortals. The Eight Immortals hold a superior status to the gods and elementals. Taoism is said to be started by the Eight Taoist Immortals, beings who lived during prehistory.
Li Teguai was the first immortal. His body was prematurely cremated while his soul was visiting a mountain. As his own body was no longer available to him, his soul had to inhabit that of a beggar, and he used an iron crutch to support himself. Li later revived his disciple's dead mother with a vial of magic medicine, and came to be regarded as the patron of pharmacists.
He Xiangu was the patron of unmarried girls. She was a young woman herself who acquired immortality when a spirit appeared to her on a mountain where she lived. The spirit instructed her to grind and eat a mother of pearl stone. The stone made her weightless and able to fly over mountains. She is usually shown carrying a peach or lotus blossom.
Cao Guojiu carried a golden tablet which allowed him admission to the imperial court, because he was the brother of the empress. He left the court to seek the Way of the Tao but, when he found he had no money to pay a ferryman, he tried to impress him with his court credentials. The ferryman, who was Lu Donghin, another of the immortals, in disguise, pointed out his folly, and Cao threw the tablet into the river. As an immortal, Cao Guojiu was the patron of the nobility.
Han Xiang, Lu Donghin's disciple, was said to be the great nephew of a Taoist philosopher. He was a wandering minstrel who played the flute. During the sea voyage of the Eight Immortals, Ao Bing, son of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea, tried to steal the flute and take Han Xiang prisoner. There was great battle to rescue Han Xiang, in which the immortals were, naturally, victorious.
Lu Dongbin's blessing on parents was believed to bestow intelligent children. Therefore, Chinese scholars regarded him especially highly, and he was the guardian of ink makers. When the Eight Immortals decided to cross the primal sea, they each threw down an object on which to ride. Each turned into a sea monster. Lu Donghin used his magic sword and crossed over.
Lan Caihe was a woman. She was the patron of the poor, because she gained her immortality by her kindenss in attending to the needs of a filthy beggar, whose wounds she washed and dressed. The beggar turned out to be Li Tieguai, the first of the Eight Immortals. Lan Caihe was sometimes shown with a basket of flowers, because of her skill in growing marvelous blooms from a small pot of earth.
Zhang Guolao rode on a white mule, sometimes sitting facing the animal's tail. He was a great necromancer, and his mule had extraordinary powers. It could travel over vast distances, but when no longer required, it could be folded up like a sheet of paper and kept in a bag. Zhang Gualoa is often depicted with the bag containing his mule or hitting a bamboo drum. He granted a happy marriage and the gift of children.
Zhong-Li Quan learned the Way from Li Tieguai, then disappeared into the clouds on acheiving immortality and became the messenger of heaven. Bald, with a long beard, he carried a feather fan and was the patron of soldiers. Zhong Li Quan was sometimes also shown holding a peach of immortality. The peaches of XI Wang Mu, the Queen Mother of the West, ripened every 3000 years. The immortals ate them to renew their immortality.
Shou Lao, the Taoist god of longevity, was often visited by the Eight Immortals. Originally a stellar deity, the old man of the south pole, he had evolved into an old man who carried a gourd containing the water of life.
The Taoist cosmos is wrought with pure land paradises and parallel worlds, abodes of celestial dragons and aquatic dragons. The Buddhist Pure Lands and complete animism of all elements of nature are among the abodes of the blessed the Eight Immortals visit. The seas possess retinues of spirits and gods as does fire, wind, air, space, the mountains, buildings, and social institutions. As in Shinto, everything possesses a spirit and consciousness of its own life. In Taoist Feng-Shui, unpleasant geological and aesthetic environmental features are said to be inhabited by negative energy gnomes, trolls, and elemental demons. The whole Toaist universe was alive with beings in service to the Tao.
To be considered a Taoist Adept, one would have mastered the Book of Changes and the many meditation manuals for longevity and immortality meditations. One would have mastery over the elements, be able to perform the spiritual powers such as flight, seeing from afar, healing, extension of life, the youthful body in which the physical body ages more slowly. The Taoist Adept was also a master herbalist for his or her geographical location in the tradition of Sheng Nung, the great shaman king and founder of Chinese herbalism. Ultimately the Taoist master attains a light body called a diamond body and cannot perish. Taoism teaches many advanced practices for "circulating the light" and attainment of immortality, as well many integrative practices for attaining balance in nature and with oneself.
A beneficial Taoist practice that works with the breath to circulate the light through the body is done by first simply relaxing. Seated comfortably, visualize the gate at the base of the spine as an area of golden light at the sacrum. Breathe slow, full continuous breaths, visualizing the air brought into the lungs as luminous and life giving. A subtle energy current within the air flows into the body through the nostrils, down the spine sparking a fire at the base of the spine, then continues to circulate up the front of the body and back out the nostrils. The body is felt as a hollow alchemical vase with only the light circulating within it. After a short time the energy will spiral on its own, free of the breath. The subtle gates will gradually open and one slowly attains immortality.
To practice the full meditation of this type the reader is referred to the text Secret Of The Golden Flower (1991). Anyone interested in Taoism should read the Tao Te Ching, I-Ching, and for those just beginning, the Shambhala Guide To Taoism (1996) by Wong.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Incan Mythology
Amidst the rugged and beautiful Andes mountains in western South America lived a deeply religious society that called themselves the Incas. The height of Incan culture lasted only one hundred years until the mid 1500's. During this time they created an elaborate mythological system that described the workings of the universe. Included in this was a pantheon of Goddesses and Gods who each had a specific function. Pachamama, Goddess of the Earth, is a deity of great importance in this mythology. Much of Incan life is related to this Goddess, such as during worship and rituals. Pachamama is a living spiritual force that the Incas, as well as several other spiritual traditions, have revered for millenia. Today, high atop the Andes Mountains, two groups of people known as the Quechua and Aymara, who claim to be descendents of the Inca, still practice the worship of Pachamama. She is still alive among them.
The Andes Mountains were formed by the Pacific Plate crashing into the continental plate. This collision created one of the most majestic and fierce mountain ranges in the world. It stretches almost entirely across western South America. People who have lived here call this the land of fire and ice. Numerous volcanoes destroy and rebuild the landscape, gigantic mountain tops house glaciers that stream rivers all throughout the land, and earthquakes and tornadoes rise out of the earth and influence the powerless humans on the surface. It was immersed in this rugged land that the Incas built their society and mythology.
Tracking the history of the Incas has been an arduous task for scholars because they didn't keep any written records. To maintain order and understanding in their society they had an elaborate and detailed oral tradition that was presented to the children at a young age and continued all the way until death. They also kept records of their history and mythology on knotted strings called quipu. The study of the quipus has been extremely valuable for our modern understanding of the Incas.
The major period of Inca religion and dynasty was from 1438, when Pachacuti Inca became the first emperor, to 1572 when the Spanish conquest came through and nearly wiped out all the Incas. For the Incas mythology and religion were living realities that enlivened their lives and gave meaning to life and death. Nearly all functions within the society had a religious context. One of the most important aspects of the society was the divine status of their emperors. Through myths and rituals the emperors would prove their divine status by speaking to the Gods and Goddesses and relaying the information to the people. Of the several books I read, it was clear that modern understanding does not have one definitive Inca myth. The common thread between all the different stories however, was the story of Viracocha, the creator God, who birthed the universe, made humans out of the earth, and blew divine breath into beings, giving them life. He then ordered humans to create civilizations. Viracocha also created all the Gods and Goddesses, which are his children. To each God and Goddess he gave a specific function in the universe. Once this was done Viracocha withdrew from the universe and let it go on as it may.
In Incan religion, humans have a very important role to play. They must channel the wisdom of the deities and bring it to earth. The major deity was the sun God Inti, yet close behind was Pachamama, the Goddess of the Earth representing fertility. Being that humans were immersed in the energy of Pachamama on earth, she became a focal point for their worship and rituals. Pachamama is the mother of the Incas. She birthed the humans and nurtures them with her spiritual and material force. In the Incan stories, they tell of how from her subterranean depths all the animals and beings rose and took form. All life is revered by the Incas because they realize that all life has come from the same source, the mother. Pachamama is also known as the Goddess of planting and harvesting, again representing fertility. She revealed this sacred knowledge to the humans so that they could thrive and be sustained. The Incas see her as a very generous deity who is constantly giving of herself to sustain life. Through prayers and supplications, Pachamama can be called upon and she will respond to sincere wishes. The sense here is that she is a living cosmic being that can be talked to, felt, and who wishes to live in harmony with her children.
Pachamama's surface was a harsh world of shifting natural forces. This seems to have been very humbling to the Incas because they felt powerless against the supernatural power of Pachamama. This power was one of the driving factors in shaping their mythology and helping them believe in the spiritual forces of the universe. The Incas had deep respect for their mother earth because to them it was a living spiritual force that gave humans nourishment, a home, and profound wisdom. Also in their mythology it was believed that Viracocha made humans out of the clay of the earth. So, in a sense, humans were the earth. They were infused with her energy. This reverence for the earth can be seen throughout the stories of the Incas.
Many practices were done in Incan society to honor and receive knowledge from Pachamama. Worship and rituals were performed by all members of the society, men, women, and children. The Incas were clearly a partnership society. Not only were Gods and Goddesses given equal importance, but within the society there were priestesses and priests. Both males and females contributed to the functioning of their religion. The Incas valued the different ways that the sexes could relate to the world and spirits and combined this into their way of life. One of the major factors that related to worship and ritual was the idea of sacred places known as huacas. Pachamama revealed to the humans places on her surface that held potent spiritual force. These huacas became the focal points of religious activity, including rituals and worship.
Many rituals were practiced in relation to Pachamama. One of the most important rituals is honoring Pachamama as the fertility Goddess. Her fertile soil produced all the food and energy needed to build and sustain their society. On all major agricultural occasions, such as during the spring equinox, which was precisely recorded by Incan astronomers, the whole society would gather in honor of Pachamama and thank her for providing their food, and ask for a successful crop. Another ritual was that of sacrifice of animals. The Incas believed that since they were constantly taking the lives of animals as food for themselves, they should also give the life energy of an animal to Pachamama. In this way a sacred relationship was formed where there was taking and giving. Pachamama told the humans that she would like them to sacrifice llamas for her. Elaborate rituals were performed by the Incas and in so doing they felt the Goddess thanking them for their willingness to maintain a relationship with her. This relationship was extremely important for the Incas.
Because the Incas had such deep love and respect for their mother, many forms of worship were developed to show the Goddess how thankful they were for her presence. One of the main forms of worship has to do with offerings. The Incas felt that the earth gave so much of herself to them, that they wanted to show they were willing to give as well. Offerings to the Goddess included coca leaf and chicha beer. These offerings would be laid in an alter like fashion at the huacas, and then the chicha beer would be poured on top. Another form of worship was creating little stone mounds all throughout the land in remembrance of Pachamama. The main form of worship in my opinion, however, was the worship that took place within the individual's heart, body, and mind. The Incas seemed to have felt Pachamama living intimately within and without them. Their lives may have been a constant prayer to the beauty and majesty of life, which Pachamama created and was a part of. Those prayers continue on today.
The modern day Quechua and Aymara are fascinating groups of people who continue the tradition of the Incas. Their practice has evolved and changed since the time of the Incas yet the basic structure seems to be the same. In my studies, the most important aspect of these peoples spirituality is Pachamama. Through the Goddess of the Earth these people have found strength, wisdom, and hope for a better future. Many of the ancient practices are still performed in the same way by these people, such as the offerings of coca leaf and chicha beer, as well the planting and harvest rituals.
These groups consider themselves shamans. They have used the way of their ancestors to connect with Pachamama as well as created new ways to connect with her. One such way is by going into trance and having their spirit body descend into the earth. Once there, they meet with the spirit of the earth and receive teachings from her. The Quechua and Aymara both found that Pachamama had something very important to reveal to them and that they should relay this message to the rest of the world. Juan Carmego is a living Quechua Peruvian shaman who wishes to share the wisdom he has learned from Pachamama to the world, "The Earth Mother is a living, Cosmic Being and has a physical, astral and spiritual body. All matter as we know it comes from her and returns to her. Pachamama is much more than our nurturer, she is our true spiritual Mother and holds all the secrets of the Universe within her. With the help of her Tutelary Gods, or guardian spirits, she can point the spiritual seeker toward the truth. As a living Being, the Earth needs us to look after her, feed and love her with our hearts open to her. We are living in dangerous times as we seem to have forgotten how to contact her." (www.sacredhoop.demom.co.uk/hoop-03/PACHAMAM.html)
Juan Carmego then goes on to describe how each one of us can connect with Pachamama by opening our hearts to her and creating a sacred relationship. These modern descendents of the Inca are saying that if we don't take time to listen to our mother we are going to destroy ourselves. The earth will live on, but humans are in a very desperate time. Whether you are a scientist, atheist, or spiritualist a plain fact is that if we destroy the natural resources of the earth we destroy ourselves. We live off the earth, we are inherent parts of it. These shamans, as well as the Incas, knew very well that the earth needed to be cared for and nurtured, not destroyed for greed. I think it would be well for humans to start listening to what people like these have to say. We obviously have lost much of our connection to the earth, yet it is always there. A simple shift back into a life of caring for the earth and establishing sacred relatedness is right at our fingertips. Mythologies such as that of the Incas might not fit today's people. However, they do remind us of a special connection that can be made between ourselves and our surroundings.
Pachamama is our home, our nurturer and sustainer, and our future. The Incas built a religious system around it that all members of society could participate in. The Incas also were not the only ones. Several traditions throughout time have worshipped the earth as a Goddess or spiritual force. The Greeks and Gaea, the Pagans and their Earth Goddess, the Celts, Hindus, even modern physics is beginning to classify the earth as a living being. The list could go on and on. For the Incas and their modern descendents the earth was alive, just as any human were alive, even more so. She responded to them and taught them how to live in harmony with themselves and their surroundings. In this world today, so full of chaos, confusion, and destruction, it seems necessary for humans to re-evaluate how they are affecting themselves and the earth and try to establish a new way of being. It seems our ancestors have valuable insights into how we could do this.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
African Mythology
African mythology developed over a long period of time of a million years in a vast continent of diverse landscapes and peoples. There existed minor trading contact with Southern Europe and West Asia yet the massive African continent remained remote and isolated especially in the interior and southern tip. There was no written African language until Islam spread westward in the 8th and 9th centuries and brought with it the Qu'ran. European Christian missionaries and trading agencies also brought with them the Holy Bible during the 15th and 16th centuries. However, these were of little influence compared with the strong and resilient oral tradition of story telling, which evolved and survived over generations. Story telling was a common past time and form of entertainment at the homestead and in the village. It gave the elders of the community an important role of educating the younger generation.
Most tribes acknowledged the existence of a supreme being and a variety of minor deities, gods, goddesses and spirits that link the supreme God in heaven with humankind on earth. Many stories were influenced largely by the different landscapes this continent has to offer. Tribes were ultimately dependant on the land for their survival and well being. Their myths reflect this strong connection and deep understanding of various natural landscapes such as deserts, jungles, hills, or flatlands. Myths also tell about origins of the people, natural cycles, animals, human condition, rulership, and historical events.
Creation myths give an understanding of how humans came into being. Many tribes believe they are direct descendants from the Gods. They feel this deep connection to their ancient ancestors. The creation myth of the Dogon tribe of Eastern Africa says that every human placenta is a replica of the placenta of the womb of Amma-the female Supreme Being who conceived the Universe. The egg within her represented heaven and divided into a double placenta that contained a pair of twins called Nommo. Each had male and female attributes with one being more dominant than the other. The male Nommo, named Ogo, forced his way out of the egg and traveled through space clutching a piece of the male placenta which became the earth. This separation created imbalance and impurity and Ogo realized he could not rule without his female twin. He has yet to find her and still he searches.
There are several myths about the creation of the cycle between night and day. The Kono people of Sierra Leone in Western Africa, say the creator deity provided light from the sun during the day and twilight from the moon at night so it would never be dark or cold. This deity asked a bat one night to take a basket of darkness to the moon. On its way, the bat grew tired and put down the basket to rest. Some animals discovered the basket and opened it, allowing the darkness to escape. Since then, bats sleep during the day to awaken at night to search for the darkness and continue this journey to the moon.
One story from Eastern Africa, a region of flatland where the skies are vast, explains about the sky god. In this region, seasonal patterns are powerful, oscillating between rainy river flood lands and the severe drying of the land. Songs and poems that give praise to this ancestral god-king are offered at sacred spots such as forked branches, rocks, small mud constructed altars and in pots. These pastoral Nilotic people believe the earth and sky were joined by a rope that dangled just low enough so man could reach and grab it. The first humans could move between the two, accessing the sky god himself.
People who live near major water courses, lakes and the sea have important stories regarding water spirits. Life comes from water and these narratives are often about birth and fertility. Women gather at these waterways to drink and bathe. They seek advice and consolation from the beautiful goddess priestess, Ogbuide, who resides beneath the water and is rarely ever seen. In all regions, marriage and motherhood is the realization of identity for women. To be childless in marriage is a grave problem. Offerings are given so these water spirits ensure the family lineage continues. Women sing songs of praise and joy for childbearing or sadness for a barren woman. There are rituals and myths for each stage of a women's life. Initiation rites at puberty educate young girls about the responsibilities of womanhood.
Death also has its own explanation through mythological stories. The Creator sent two messengers, a chameleon and a lizard, each with an opposite message. The chameleon carried the message that humans would live eternally. However, the lizard arrived first, bringing the message of death as the fate of humankind. The concept of death can also be explained by the natural cycle of the waxing and waning of the moon or by how the snake casts his skin. In Liberia the Creator, "Sno-Nyosa," sent four sons to earth. When he ordered their return they refused to obey. Even the earth wanted them to stay, thus began a quarrel. Death did not exist before this quarrel occurred.
Myths involving animals often depict moral tales and are often about the faults, weaknesses, and strengths of people. They also tell the heroic and empowering stories of the people who capture them. Just as different landscapes determine which gods exist for people of a particular region, different animals are prone to living in certain environments. The chameleon and lizard are popular characters in many areas. The snake is also a common metaphorical subject. When the snake appears in dreams it brings spiritual guidance. By accepting it, the recipient is blessed with good fortune. The elephant is so enormous that it can only be defeated by magic. Elephants represent human chiefs from the past, so when one is found dead, it is given a proper burial.
Most tribes are headed by divine kingship representing the power of the Supreme Being. These divine kings embody mystical powers and are greatly revered, awed and feared. These powers can give stability to social structures, as the king shares the same origin as the people themselves.
From the Zulu tribe of South Africa, the son of a deity was exiled from heaven for stealing his father's favorite white cow. He was lowered from heaven through a hole in the sky by an umbilical cord. He was later sent a wife by his father and thus started the Zulu nation. The Ankole people from Uganda teach the importance of cows and protecting the milk pots. The Supreme Being, "Ruhanga" descended to rule the land and bore three sons. He needed to test them to determine the future heir of the society. The sons were required to leave untouched their pot of milk for an entire night. One son spilt his pot and the brothers helped to refill it. Another fell asleep and knocked his pot over losing all its contents. This trial determined the divisions of the people in this society, giving birth to the servants, the herdsman, and the future heir of the kingdom.
Heroic stories blend mythology with factual events in history. South Africa experienced two hundred years of struggle over land and resources. These stories tell about the suffering, defeats, gaining victories, and massive migrations of the people. The powerful Zulu hero and military leader, "Shaka," triumphed over the British in 1879 and enlarged the Zulu Kingdom.
Social and secular circumstances give play to trickster stories that can be entertaining and humorous. Human character and weakness is revealed. They can demonstrate social interactions, the misuse of power and unfortunate tragedies. They are also admired for their unconventional behavior.
Myths and stories often give messages that are relevant to people of all times. Still to this day many African tribes remain isolated in rugged regions of the land where they barely notice any impact of modernization. These people maintain much of the traditional religion and mythology that continues the link to their ancient origins.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Arabian Mythology
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.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Babylonian Mythology
Adad: Akkadian-Babylonian god of the wind, rain, and thunder. He was called the Lord of Abundance for bringing much needed seasonal rains to the area. He was said to be the son of Anu, and he was one of the deities that cast a deluge on humanity. He was also able to see into the future. His usual image was sitting upon a bull holding thunderbolts and lightning in his hands, similar to the Greek God Zeus.
Adapa: A wise man of Babylonian mythology, he was created by the great god Ea in order to be his priest in the holy city of Eridu and to rule over the people. Ea gave Adapa numerous good qualities, including wisdom and prudence, but withheld immortality. Adapa spent much of his time fishing in the waters of the Persian gulf. One day, the south wind blew so strongly that it overturned his boat, sending him plunging into the depths. Adapa was furious and cursed the wind, causing it to cease blowing. Hearing what happened, the supreme god Anu grew troubled that a mere mortal should have so much power. He summoned Adapa to his court and planned to send him to the land of the dead by giving him the food of the death. Ea, however, heard of Anu's plan and warned Adapa to accept no food or drink from the supreme god. Ea also told Adapa how to placate both Anu and the other deities. Adapa followed Ea's advice so well, Anu offered the food of endless life, rather than of death. Adapa refused the food, losing his chance to be immortal. Adapa, like Thoth was credited with having invented speech and laying the foundations of civilized life.
Alalu: According to the Hittites Alalu was the first king of heaven who came from south of the Black Sea. One myth tells how Alalu sat upon his throne and the "mighty Anu," the first among the gods, stood before him, bowed down at his feet and handed him the cup to drink." After nine years, Alalu was deposed by Anu and fled to earth, possibly the underworld. Anu was in turn dethroned by Kumarbi, who was then overthrown by his son, Teshub, the weather god.
Astarte: She was the principal goddess of the Phoenicians and Canaanites. She was incorporated into Egyptian mythology as a daughter either of the sun god Ra or of Ptah and she was often depicted naked, bearing weapons and riding a horse. According to one story from Egyptian mythology, Ptah and the other great gods were forced to pay tributes to the sea. Gifts of silver, gold and precious stones were brought to the seashore, but the sea wanted more. The gods then told Astarte to take more offerings to the sea. When she arrived at the shore, Astarte mocked the sea, who responded by insisting she must be his gift. The great gods covered Astarte with jewels and sent her back to the shore, except this time Seth accompanied her in order to fight the sea. Although the end of the story is missing, it is usually presumed that Seth fought the sea and saved Astarte.
The name Astarte is translated as Womb, or that which issues from the womb, suggesting she was a goddess of fertility. Astarte was associated with passionate love and procreation, and her cult included the practice of temple prostitution among her devotees. In the Old testament of the Bible, she appears as Ashtoreth, and Solomon had a temple built in her honor in Jerusalem. Indeed the Israelites sometimes referred to the goddess as the queen of heaven and wife of Yahweh. The goddess Asherat or Ashera of the Sea, is thought to be identical to Astarte. She was called "mother of the gods" and was said to have had 70 children.
According to texts dating from the 14th century B.C., the supreme god El took two women, generally believed to be Asherat and Anat, as his consort. By them El fathered Shachar and Shalim, "Dawn" and "Dusk" and many other deities. It is still not certain whether Anat and Astarte were two separate goddesses or different aspects of the same goddess. Anat may have been the dark aspect of the goddess and Astarte the light, heavenly aspect. In one text they are both described as the daughters of Neith, an Egyptian mother goddess. Moreover, they were both known as "Lady of Heaven." Aphrodite is widely believed to have developed from Astarte.
Anat: She was a goddess of the Canaanites and Phoenicians, and was the sister, and sometimes the consort of Baal. Her name translates as Providence or Precaution. The goddess had a reputation for violence. According to one myth, she slaughterred Baal's worshippers and only ceased her attack when Baal promised to reveal the secret of lightning to her. Anat later asked the supreme god El to give Baal a house, but it was the great mother goddess Astarte who eventually persuaded him to do so. After moving into the splendid palace, Baal boasted that he was now omnipotent and challenged Mot, the god of death to a contest. However, it was Anat who eventually destroyed Mot, by thrashing and burning him. Anat was later assimilated into the Egyptian pantheon, where she was regarded as a goddess of war and a daughter of the sun god Ra. The Egyptians usually depicted her carrying a spear, axe, and sheild, wearing the a crown surrounded by two ostrich feathers.
Anshar: He was the male principle of Babylonian mythology. In the Babylonian epic Enuma Elish, "When on High," he and Kishar, the female principle, are described as the second pair of deities, following Lahmu and Lahamu, the first divine couple. Both these couples originated when Apsu, the primeval sweet water, mingled with the primeval salt water. It is generally beleived that the name Anshar means "Horizon of Heaven" and that the god represented the celestial worlds; Kishar on the other hand is thought to have been a terrestrial deity whose name means Horizon of Earth. Anshar and Kishar begat Anu, the sky God, and Ea, the god of fresh water and wisdom. They also begat the Igigi, the deities that inhabited the sky, and the Annunaki, the gods who lived on earth and in the underworld. From the ninth century B.C. onward, Assur, the national god of Assyria was associated with Anshar.
Anu: He was the son of Anshar and Kishar, the male and female principles of Babylonian Mythology. He formed one of a triad of creator gods which also included Ea, the god of sweet and fertilizing waters, and Enlil or Bel, Lord of the wind. The god of the sky, Anu was the supreme deity who reigned over the heavens. He was known as the father of the gods and had the power to judge those who committed misdeeds. He summoned them before his throne, in front of which were placed the scepter, the diadem, the crown and staff of command. The stars were Anu's soldiers, whom he had created in order to destroy the wicked. He never descended to earth and had little to do with human beings. Rather, he stayed in the heavens and busied himself with the fate of the universe. In Sumerian mythos, Anu was called An. He was sometimes represented by a crown on a throne. Anu was introduced into the Hittite pantheon from Mesopotamia by way of the Hurrians. In the story, the divine kingship, Alalu, the king of heaven, was served by Anu, the first among the gods. Alalu reigned for nine years until Anu deposed him. After another nine years Anu's minister Kumarbi seized the throne. Anu immediately flew up into the sky, but Kumarbi seized him by the foot and bit his penis off. However, Anu's semen impregnated Kumarbi and gave rise to three mighty gods, who are believed to be different aspects of the weather god Teshub.
Apsu: This was the watery abyss, or primordial fresh water ocean, that existed at the beginning of time and circled and supported the Earth. Apsu spread happiness and abundance over the earth and was the source of knowledge and wisdom. Eventually, the waters of Apsu merged with those of Tiamat, the primordial, salt water ocean, and gave rise to Mummu, the waves, and the primal couple Lahmu and Lahamu. Anshar and Kishar, the next divine couple to arise from the waves, were the male and female principles who bore the great gods Anu and Ea as well as the other divinities who peopled the sky, the earth and the underworld. In time, Apsu became troubled by the gods and plotted with Tiamat to destroy them. Tiamat was at first unwilling to take part in the battle, but when Apsu was slain by the god Ea, she was prompted to take revenge. Ea's son, the great god Marduk, who had been born in the waters of Apsu, was chosen to challenge Tiamat. The bloody battle that ensued gave rise to the creation of the world and the sky. According to one tradition in Sumerian mythology, the goddess Nammu formed the first men from clay dug out of the waters of Apsu. In the epic Gilgamesh, the hero, descended down into the waters of Apsu to find the plant of eternal life.
Azhi Dahaka: This was the monstrous dragon of Iranian myth was said to have three heads, six eyes, and three pairs of fangs. He was sometimes regarded as a mythical king of Babylon, Iran's enemy, or as the enemy of Yima, the great king. Originally, Azhi Dhaka was believed to kill cattle and men. One story tells how the hero Feridun cut the creature open with his sword and was horrified to find lizards and toads pouring out of its insides. In time, Azhi Dahaka came to be seen as the embodiment of falsehood and servant of Anga Mainyu, the evil one. Atar, the fire god, went into battle against the monster and harried him through land, sea, and air before finally catching him and chaining him to a mountain. It was believed that at the end of time Azhi Dahaka would succeed in breaking free from his chains and ravage the earth once again. Eventually, the hero Keresaspa would kill the monster.
Baal: This means Lord or Owner and was the name given by many Canaanite tribes to their chief god. When the Israelites entered the land of Canaan, they took up the word and used it to describe any alien god. It is as a general term for a "false god" that the name Baal is used in the Bible. The most renowned Baal of Canaanite mythology was the rain and fertility god associated with the storm god, Hadad. He lived on a mountain in the north of the region and was sometimes referred to as Lord of the North. One story tells how this Baal defeated Yam, the sea Deity. Yam asked the supreme god El to crown him king. El agreed but warned him that first of all he would have to defeat Baal. Learning of the forthcoming battle, Baal equiped himself with magic weapons made by the gods, and as a result, he succeeded in killing Yam and scattering his remains. Baal then proclaimed himself king, built a sumptuous dwelling place on Mount Saphon and took control of several cities. After this victory, Baal became so proud that he decided to challenge Mot, god of death. He forced Mot to live in the barren wastelands and barred him from all fertile regions. In response, Mot challenged Baal to come to his underground dwelling and eat mud, the food of the dead. Baal took up the challenge and died. All the gods mourned Baal's death. His wife, the ferocious Anat, descended into the underworld to retrieve his corpse. However, she was unable to retrieve Baal and so appealed to Mot for help. When Mot refused to come to her aid, Anat burst into a frenzy and slaughtered him, whereupon Baal returned to life. Baal is thus seen as a dying and rising god. He is often depicted wielding a thunderbolt, or a flash of lightning.
Dagan: He was the god of corn and fertility who was worshipped in both Canaan and Mesopotamia. This deity was often regarded as the father of Baal, the god of rain, and fertility. Several kings of Akkad and Babylonia declared themselves to be "sons of Dagan" including King Hammurabi and Ashurnasirpal II. In the Old Testament, Dagan is described as the chief god of the Philistines. Samson destroyed Dagan's temple at gaza by pulling down its two main pillars. This Dagan may have been a sea god, and he was represented with the tail of a fish.
Dumuzi: Husband of Inana, the goddess of love and queen of heaven. He is the Sumerian equivalent of the Babylonian god Tammuz. In the Babylonian version of the goddess's journey to the underworld, Ishtar descended into Erishkigal's kingdom in order to rescue Tammuz and awaken him from his sleep. However, in the Sumerian myth, Dumuzi was seized by the demons of the underworld as a substitute for Inana on the goddess' own orders. When Inana returned from the underworld to her city of Uruk, to find Dumuzi sitting happily on a throne rather than mourning her, she fastened the eye of death on him and elected that he should go to the underworld in her place. Dumuzi prayed to the sun god for help. The sun god turned Dumuzi into a snake and he escaped. When the demons approached once more, Dumuzi changed into a gazelle. However, the demons found Dumuzi and again attacked him. They succeeded in dragging him away. Dumuzi was mourned by Inana, his mother, and his sister Geshtinanna. Inana was so moved by Geshtinanna's grief that she agreed her husband should spend only half the year in the underworld, with Geshtinanna taking his place the other half.
Ea or Enki: He was a Babylonian deity, one of a trinity of Creator gods that also included the sky god Anu and the wind god Enlil. He corresponds to the Sumerian god Enki. Ea lived in Apsu, the primordial ocean that surrounded and supported the earth. He was the son of Anshar and Kishar, the male and female principles. A god of fresh waters, as well as wisdom and magic, Ea had the power of an oracle and would advise and reason with humans. When Apsu was plotting the destruction of the gods, Ea killed him, prompting Tiamat's fury. Later when the god Enlil decided to destroy humanity, the wise Ea warned humankind of the conspiracy and advised Enlil to temper his fury. On earth, Ea lived in the city of Eridu, on the southern edge of Sumer. His home was the Ezuab or "House of the Apsu." Ea is usually represented as a goat with a fish's tail or as part human, part fish. His consort was Ninki, the lady of the Earth. Ea was introduced into the Hittite pantheon by the Hurrians. In the story of the weather god, Teshub's battle with Ullikummi, Teshub seeks advice from Ea the wise. The gods are dismayed at Ullikummi's power, but Ea decides to visit Upellluri, on whose shoulders Ullikummi had been raised. Upelluri says, "when heaven and earth were built upon me I knew nothing of it, and when they came and cut heaven and earth asunder with a cutting tool, that also I knew not. Now something is hurting my shoulder, but I know not who that god is." The god was Ullikummi, who was made of diorite stone. Ea used the ancient saw that had been made to separate heaven and earth to cut the stone creature's feet, thereby destroying Ullikummi's power.
El: El was a Canaanite deity, referred to as the "Father of the Gods." He caused the rivers to flow, thus making the land fertile, and made his home near the seashore. Sometimes referred to as the creator of the earth, he was also known as Bull or Bull-El, to signify his strength and fertility. His name is usually translated as Mighty One or First One. In 1929, stories of El were found on clay tablets at Ras Shamra in Syria, the site of the ancient city of Ugarit. The tablets dated from the 14th century B.C. Although El was usually regarded as the consort of Asherat, one myth found at Ras Shamra tells how he had intercourse with two women, Asherat and Anat. The two women gave birth to the deities Shackar, "Dawn" and Shalim, "Dusk." According to the story recorded on the clay tablets, El walked along the shore, then plunged into the waves. His hands reached out like the waves, and he made his wives fruitful. He kissed their lips, which tasted as sweet as grapes, and in the kiss, and the conception and the embrace, Dawn and Dusk were born. El went on to father many more deties. He was depicted as an old man, sitting on a throne and wearing bull's horns.
Enlil: Originally worshipped in Sumer as Lord of the wind, Enlil was the god of hurricanes and represented the power of nature. He was believed to have absolute power over humans and was represented among men by the earthly kings. Long before humankind was created, Enlil was said to have supervised the gods in their task of digging out the beds of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. In time, the gods became exhausted by the ceaseless toil and decided to rebel. Enlil was devastated, but the god Enki came to his aid, suggesting that the goddess Nintur create humankind in order to take over the work for the gods. For hundreds of years, all went smoothly, but then the cities became so overpopulated that the clamor made by the men and women kept Enlil awake. Enlil decided to solve the problem by sending a plague down to earth. However, Enki warned the people of the impending disaster and they made efforts to keep quiet. In time, men and women forgot Enlil's threat and reverted to their noisy ways. This time Enlil threatened to send a drought to earth and then a famine. Again, Enki warned the people and they became quiet. Finally, when the men and women began to create another huge clamor, Enlil lost all patience and sent down a massive flood. However, Enki had advised a wise man to build a ship and to save himself and his family from the flood. He was called Attrahasis, also Ziusadra (Noah in the Bible). For seven days and nights the world was submerged by a giant flood. When the waters subsided, only Atrahasis, his family and livestock on the boat remained alive.
In another version of the flood myth which forms part of the Gilgamesh epic, the hero Utnapishtim survives the flood with his family. In earliest times Enlil's consort was believed to be Ninhursaga, the "Lady of the Great Mountain." Later, however, he was associated with the grain goddess Ninlil. The Babylonians often equated Enlil with the great god Marduk, calling him "Bel" or Lord. He was assimilated into the Hittite pantheon also. There he is featured in the story of the monstrous being Ullikummi.
Ereshkigal: She was the queen of the underworld in both Akkadian and Babylonian mythology. The underworld lay beneath the waters of Apsu, the primordial ocean. It was a dry and dark realm, sometimes referred to as a mountain, sometimes as enemy territory. According to the epic of Gilgamesh, Ereshkigal, rather than having chosen her kingdom, was given the underworld for her domain. Enthroned therein, she ate only clay and drank dirty water. The goddess had an insatiable sexual appetite and never let compassion stand in the way of her desires. According to one story, when the war god Nergal entered the underworld, Ereshkigal copulated with him for six days and nights. None the less, when he left she was still unsatisfied. In order that no one should return to the land of the living, the underworld was guarded by seven walls. At each of its seven gates, people had to take off an item of clothing, each representing one of their earthly attributes. When they finally reached the center, they were naked and imprisoned forever in eternal darkness. According to another tradition, Ereshkigal was the sole ruler of the underworld until Nergal invaded her territory, posting two demons at each gate. In order to achieve peace, Ereshkigal agreed to marry Nergal and give him authority over the underworld. Ereshkigal was the sister of the fertility goddess Ishtar, the counterpart of the Sumerian goddess Inana.
Etana: He was the 12th king of the city state of Kish after the great flood. He was miserable because he had no children and appealed to the sun god Shamash for help. Shamash told Etana to go to a particular mountain. There on the mountain, an eagle and a serpent had recently had a terrible quarrel. Each of the creatures had children, but the eagle had eaten all the serpent's offspring. The serpent complained to Shamash, who told him to trap the eagle and leave him to die. Etana found the dying eagle and asked him for a special herb that would enable him to have a son. The eagle promised Etana that he would bring the herb if he would cure him. For several months, Etana brought the eagle food and drink until finally the bird was fully recovered. Then the eagle told Etana to sit on his back so he could carry him up to the sky of Anu, the supreme god. The eagle flew up to the gods and continued flying upward toward the dwelling place of Ishtar, the fertility goddess. Ishtar gives the magic herb to Etana in most versions, however in some he and the eagle can't endure the height, and exhausted, they fall to the earth.
Gilgamesh: This famous Mesopotamian hero is believed to be based on a real person who was most probably a Sumerian king. The Epic of Gilgamesh, a poem recording the hero's exploits, was transcribed on tablets in the second millennium B.C. Gilgamesh was two-thirds god, one-third man. He was so active and such a womanizer that the people of his city appealed to the gods to help them handle him. The deities responded by creating another man Enkidu, who turned out to be a wild and savage man. Eventually the people had to get Gigamesh's help to tame the wild man and through the use of some lovely women, Enkidu was tamed. Enkidu subsequently became the friend and constant companion of Gilgamesh and the two lived a life of luxury together amidst many spoils and women. In time, Gilgamesh was commanded by the gods to destroy the terrible mutation and monster, Khumbaba, who lived some 20,000 marching hours away from Uruk City at Cedar Mountain. Enkidu and Gilgamesh set off on their quest and, after entering the cedar forest, eventually found Kumbaba's cave. Gilgamesh challenged the monster to battle, and after a fearsome struggle the two god-men overcame the beast; Enkidu's spear dealt the fatal blow. Soon afterwards the goddess Inana tried to seduce Gilgamesh. When he wasn't interested she persuaded An to send the bull of heaven after the hero. However, Enkidu caught the Bull and Gilgamesh stabbed it to death.
The gods, outraged that the bull had been slain, struck Enkidu down with illness and he died. Gilgamesh was devastated at the death of his friend, and became terrified at the thought of death. He decided to try and discover the secret of immortality and set out on a quest to find Utnapishtim. The hero, surviving a flood, was given the herb of immortality. When he reached Mount Mashu, Gilgamesh was encountered by the scorpion men that guarded its gates. However, they recognized that he was in part divine and let him pass by to proceed into the mountain. At length, Gilgamesh came to a beautiful garden beside a sea and saw before him the tree of the gods, laden with amazing fruits, the ground covered with jewels. There he met the goddess Siduri Saitu, who tried to deter the hero from his quest. At Gilgamesh's insistence the goddess eventually advised him to seek the help of Ushanabi, the Immortal Utnapishtim's ferryman, who takes the hero to see him. Gilgamesh fails in finding the herb of immortality. As he is about to grasp it, it is stolen by a serpent.
Illuyankas: He was the monstrous snake or dragon of Hittite mythology. He waged war against the gods, particularly the weather god, Taru. However the monster was slain by Taru, who was assisted in the assault by the goddess Inaras and her mortal lover, Hupasiyas. In another version of the tale, Illuyankas seized the heart and eyes of the weather god. Taru responded by offering his godlike son in marriage to the daughter of the monster, requesting the missing organs as a dowry. Taru then proceeded to slay the beast. The story was filtered into Canaanite myth as the struggle of the gods against Leviathan, the Hittite prototype for Typhon, the hundred headed beast of Greek and Egyptian myth. At New Year or Spring, the tale of the slaying of the monster was told signifying the new era.
Inana: The goddess of love, fertility and war, queen of heaven and earth, Inana was the most important god in the Sumerian pantheon. Her symbol was the reed bundle, and she was often portrayed with bright sunbeams radiating from her image. Inana's Babylonian equivalent was the goddess Ishtar. Like Ishtar, Inana descended to the underworld of Ereshkigal to witness the funeral of the bull of heaven, Gugalanna. At each of the gates of the underworld, Inana divested herself of one of her items of clothing, or earthly attributes, including her priestly office, her sexual powers and her royal powers. Finally, she was condemned to death and became part of the underworld kingdom. The goddess Ninshabur, Inana's handmaiden, mourned grievously for her mistress and eventually appealed to the other gods for help. The god Ea came to Inana's aid. From the dirt of his hands he created golem-like creatures that were sexless and hence exempt from the rules of the underworld in that they could come and go freely into the "land of infertility." These beings were mourners and comforters who were able to ease Ereshkigal's ceaseless misery in the underworld. In gratitude for their soothing help to the queen of the dead she asked them what they wanted for an award and they replied, "the life of Inana." Ereshkigal agreed and Inana was reborn. Before leaving, Inana was made to promise to find a suitable replacement for herself in the underworld. She was escorted home by a horrid group of demons.
In the world of the living, Inana found her handmaiden, and two sons mourning and praying for her resurrection. However her husband, Dumuzi was partying and having a great time in her absence. Enraged, Inana chose Dumuzi as her appointed substitute destined for the land of the dead. Although he attempted to hide he was eventually dragged off by demons to the underworld. Geshtinanna, Dumuzi's sister, was so distraught that she offered to share Dumuzi's fate with him. On the way to the underworld Inana granted eternal life and death to the two of them. For half the year Dumuzi stayed in the land of the dead and the sister Geshtinanna took his place for the other half of the year. When Dumuzi joined Inana in the land of the living, spring emerged, milk flowed, crops ripened and the fruit trees blossomed. During the barren months Dumuzi had to return to the land of the dead. In ancient Sumer, a ceremony took place each year in which the king of each city would impersonate Dumuzi and the chief priestess would play the role of Inana. The couple would unite in a marriage ritual which was believed to bring prosperity and fertility to the land and people. This myth is quite similar to the tale of Persephone and the agreement to live in both worlds, spring being the time when she reemerged into the land of the living.
Ishtar: This goddess of love and fertility was a fearsome, even violent deity, much like the Hindu Kali. She was sometimes known as the lady of battles. After she dies, Ea once had to save the deceased Ishtar so the earth could be fertile again. He used his powers as the water god to bring the fallen goddess back to life using magic incantations.
Kingu: An ancient demon of Mesopotamia, either the son or lover of Tiamat, the mother goddess and embodiment of chaos. He and his mother were eventually slain by the hero Marduk. In one tradition, clay mixed with Kingu's blood was the substance used to create the first humans by Marduk.
Kothar: He was the divine craftsman and blacksmith for the Phoenician gods. Lord of magic spells and incantations, he appears in myths dating from the 14th century B.C. found in the ancient city of Ugarit, Syria. Kothar created a marvelous bow for the hero Ahat. it was made from twisted horns and shaped like a serpent. The servant to the supreme god El, Kothar helped build a palace for Baal, in one myth.
Marduk: He was the chief god of Babylon, who was the oldest son of Ea, the water god. Born in the waters of Apsu, the primordial, fresh-water ocean, Marduk was originally regarded as a fertility or agricultural deity whose attribute was a gardening tool called a "mar." However, he also gained a reputation as a fearless warrior and was usually shown armed for battle. His name means calf of the sun god and he was associated with Jupiter. This most splendid of gods apparently had four eyes and ears, and fire blazed forth when his lips moved. Marduk destroyed the chaos being, Tiamat, and created the worlds out of her.
Mot: He was the Phoenician God of Death, drought and infertility. His agents were plagues and destruction.
Reshef: He was the Phoenician god of lighting and plagues. He was called Lord of Arrows because of how he shot disease all around him. The god was also invoked for healing the sick. He was sometimes regarded as the husband of the ferocious goddess Anat. The Egyptians absorbed Reshef into their pantheon as a god of war. Reshef was used to curse the enemies of battle with plagues similar to Moses' curse upon Pharaoh.
Shamash: He was the Babylonian god of the sun who saw all things and by association came to be regarded as a god of justice and divination. Known to the Sumerians as Utu, his light uncovered every misdeed and enabled him to see into the future. Each morning, the Scorpion Men opened a gate in the vast mountain of Mashu, and Shamash made his way out into the sky. Shamash was depicted seated upon a throne.
Sin: The Sumerian-Babylonian moon god was the father of Shamash, the sun, Inana, Venus, Nusku, and fire. He was conceived when the air god Enlil raped the grain goddess, Ninlil, and was born in the underworld. Sin's consort was Ninal, the "great Woman." Sin was usually depicted as an old man with a blue beard; he was called the Shining Boat of the Heavens. Sin was thought to be wise and was believed to measure time for humanity with his waxing and waning.
Tammuz: A Babylonian god of vegetation and harvest, this was a dying and resurrecting god in the pattern of Persephone, Adonis, Attis and the other Dying Gods of the old Aeon.
Utnapishtim: According to one version of the Mesopotamian flood myth, he was the wise man who alone survived the flood. The gods Anu, Enlil, Ninurta, and Ennugi decided to destroy humanity. However, Ea, the water god warned Utnapishtim of the conspiracy and told him to build an Ark and in it store all the seeds of life. He built a huge vessel 120 cubits high and loaded it with his family, animals, and his cattle along with numerous seed stocks. On the evening he finished the Ark, a dirty rain began to fall and everyone on earth was terror stricken. For six days and six nights the deluge continued until, at daybreak on the seventh day, it ceased and all that was left was a heap of mud. Utnapishtim, whose marvelous bat had come to rest on the summit of mount Nisir, cried out in grief. He let loose many birds until they finally indicated they found dry land. In gratitude to the gods, Utnapishtim placed offerings to them on the summit of the mountain. Enlil later conferred immortality on he and his wife. He was also given a sacred magical herb that confers immortality.
Zu: This was the demonic tempest bird of Mesopotamian mythology who lived in the underworld and stole the tablets of fate from Enlil, Lord of the Wind. The tablets gave whoever possessed them control of the universe. The supreme god Anu promised sovereignty over the gods to whoever recovered the tablets.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Iranian Mythology
Ahura Mazda: He was the supreme god of ancient Iran and Zoastrianism, the "Wise Lord." He was regarded as the all encompassing sky. Until the time of the great reformer Zoroaster, who lived around 1200 B.C., the Iranians worshipped numerous gods. Zoroaster denounced the old gods and Ahura Mazda came to be regarded as the one true creator god who was constantly beleagured by Angra Mainyu, or Ahriman, the principle of evil. After creating the Amesa Spentas and Yazatas, Ahura Mazda made people, cattle, fire, earth, sky, water, and plants. Zoroaster taught that Ahura Mazda made light visible, so the god was often depicted as the sun. Sometimes, however, the sun and moon are described as Ahura Mazda's eyes. Using the purifying quality of fire, Ahura Mazda was able to distingish between good and evil, and he bestowed fire, the symbol of truth, to his followers. Under the Achaemenians, who ruled from 558-330 B.C., Ahura Mazda was adopted as the patron of the royal house and was represented as a pair of vast wings. In the centuries following Zoroaster, a movement known as Zurvanism developed. Both Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu came to be regarded as descendants of Zurvan Akarana, or "Infinite Time." This helped to circumvent the problem of Ahura Mazda having created evil or, at least, having allowed it to exist. At the end of time, it was said that, "Ahura Mazda will reign and will do everything according to his pleasure."
Amesa Spentas: These were the holy imortals of Zoroastrainism. They probably belonged to the pantheon of ancient Iranian gods which existed before Zoroaster's time. It is possible that, although the religious reformer denounced the old gods, he assimilated the Amesa Spentas into his teachings as aspects of Ahura Mazda, the one and only true divine spirit set in opposition to Angra Mainyu, the spirit of evil. The Amesa Spentas were said to serve Ahura Mazda, the Supreme Lord. Otherwise known as Ameshas Spenta or Amshaspends, each of them ruled over a particular aspect of reality, such as a category of beings or a part of the year. Vohu Mano reigned over useful animals, including cattle. Asha-Vahista looked after cosmic fire; Khshathra-Vairya moved the sun and heavens and ruled over metals; Spenta Armati ruled over the earth; Haurvatat governed waters; and Ameretat governed plant life. Spenta Mainyu who rules over humanity is either numbered with the others or identified as a direct emanation of Ahura Mazda himself.
Anahita: This was the Iranian goddess of water and fertility, widely worshipped in Achamanian times (558-330 B.C.) and was often associated with the great god Mithra. In the fourth century B.C. the ruler Artaxerxes II ordered that images of Anahita should be erected in all the principal cities of the empire. Her following later spread throughout Asia Minor and the West. Anahita assisted Spenta Armati and was associated with Haoma, the god who conferred immortality. Occasionally identified with the planet Venus, she is said to have originated from Ishtar, the Babylonian fertility deity who is associated with the same planet. Her name means immaculate. Anahita was often represented dressed in gleaming gold with a crown and jewels. The dove and peacock were her sacred creatures, and sacred prostitution formed part of her cult.
Angra Mainyu: Also known as Ahriman, Angra Mainyu was the principle of darkness and evil in ancient Iranian mythology, the equivalent of Lucifer in Christian doctrines. He was set in opposition to Ahura Mazda, the principle of goodness and truth. Ahura Mazda planned to make Iran into an Earthly Paradise, but Angra Mainyu interfered, creating harsh weather conditions, smoke, darkness, sickness, disease and all manner of other evils. His was a world of death in which summer lasted for only two months and winter for ten. Where people had faith, Angra Mainyu sowed the seeds of doubt, and where there were riches, he created laziness and poverty. Such was the extent of his evil doing that he was often accused of killing the sacred cosmic bull. His symbol was the snake.
In later times during the reign of the Sassanian kings (226-652 A.D.) the idea of Zurkan Akarana, or Infinite Time, developed. Both Angra Mainyu and Ahura Mazda were regarded as the offspring of Zurvan Akarana, who had promised authority to the first born. As a result Angra Mainyu tore his way out of the womb before his brother and held the reigns of power for several thousand years. However, later Zoroastrians believe that there will come a day when Ahura Mazda will succeed to power and Angra Mainyu will be destroyed, sinking into eternal darkness.
Atar: "Fire" was said to be the son of the Iranian deity Ahura Mazda, although fire worship probably existed long before the naming of the supreme being. According to the teachings of Zoroastrianism, fire was one of Ahura Mazda's seven creations. Atar, fire, was said to bring men comfort and wisdom, and defend the world from evil. It represented the light of truth and the divine spark in humankind, which signified the presence of the supreme god. The monstrous dragon, Azhi Dahaka, sought to extinguish the divine fire in battle, which took place over land, sea and air. Eventually Atar caught the dragon and chained it to a mountain.
Baraq: This was a fabulous beast of Islamic mythology. Part human, part animal, the Prophet Muhammad was said to have ridden on its back on the night of his ascension to heaven. The creature's name means "Lightning."
Daevas: These were gods of the Indo-Aryan period of ancient Iran. The religious reformer Zoroaster initially regarded them as unimportant, but he later came to view them as enemies of the true religion. Whereas the Drujs were usually female, most daevas were male. Angra Mainyu, or Ahriman, the principle of evil was said to rule over the demons. They specialized in trickery and deceit, and in putting obstacles in the way of efforts of achieving the good. Many of the daevas stood in direct opposition to one of the Amesa Spentas or "Holy Immortals." One demon would lie in wait on the Chinvat Bridge, which souls had to cross in order to reach Ahura Mazda's paradise. If the creature caught them, he would throw them into the depths below. Another demon would attempt to persuade rulers to be tyrannical, and a third promoted pride and rebellion. Some demons brought about old age and senility, and others caused rage and devastation. In India however the daevas are regarded as devas, as gods and those beings living in many heavenly abodes.
Drujs: According to ancient Iranian mythology, Drujs were the enemies of the Asha, the universal law. The monstrous, demonic beings, usually female, made every effort to further the course of evil. The horrific dragon or snake Azhi Dahaka was one of their number, as was Nasu, who was said to settle on dead bodies in the form of a fly with the intention of hastening their decay. The Druj Jahi was a symbol of the evil within women. Angra Mainyu, the principle of evil, kissed Jahi and thus introduced menstruation in women.
Fatima: The prophet Muhammad's daughter is regarded by Ismaili Sufis as the "the Mother of the Holy Imams." The Imams are the semi-divine leaders of Shi'ia, one of the two main forms of Islam, of which the Ismailis form a sub-sect. Fatima is revered within esoteric Islam and is seen as symbolizing the "super celestial earth." She is considered the source of the Imam's wisdom because she is, according to the Quran, "the hidden tablet upon which God has written..."
Feridun: According to ancient Iranian mythology, Feridun was the hero destined to overthrow Zohak, the evil king sometimes regarded as the emanation of the terrifying monster Azhi Dahaka.
Fravashis: In the myths of ancient Iran they were the benevolent spirits, or guardian angels. They helped Ahura Mazda create the world and defended heaven from its enemies with their sharp spears while riding their fleet-footed steeds. They were believed to be the ancestral spirits of believers, a part of the human soul that Ahura Mazda had created before each individual's birth, and thus might be regarded as prototypes for living beings. Fravashi is usually translated as "She who was Chosen."
Gayomart: He was the primeval being of ancient Iranian mythology. His corpse, together with that of the primeval bull Geush Urvan, was said to have given rise to all life. According to tradition, Gayomart existed for 3000 years as a spirit until, in the second great epoch, he was made into a physical being by Ahura Mazda, the principle of goodness. He was killed by Angra Mainyu, the principle of evil. According to one myth, all the parts of the universe were created from his body; another tells how the the seed of Gayomart was buried in the ground for 40 years, until it gave rise to the first human couple, Mashya and Mashyoi, as well as the seven metals. Gayomart's name means "Mortal Life" or "Dying Life."
Geush Urvan: The primordial bull of ancient Iranian mythology was created, along with primal man Gayomart, by Ahura Mazda, the essence of good. Angra Mainyu also killed Geush Urvan either directly, or by using an assassin god. All kinds of plants and animals were said to emerge from his corpse. Widely regarded as guardian of cattle, his name means "soul of the cow." The sacrifice of a bull was an important part of Mithraic rituals.
Haoma: One of the helpers of Iranian mythology, and in Zoroastrainism, is comparable to the soma of India, a god and amrita sacrificed to the gods to receive empowerment, visions, and enlightenment. Haoma was able to heal all afflictions for the righteous believers in Ahura Mazda.
Houris: In Islamic, ancient Iranian and proto-Hebraic Kabiri culture, Houris are angelic women, similar to dakinis of Indian lore. They exist in the higher worlds, and in Islam all righteous people receive eternal sexual delight from 72 Houris in Paradise. They are beautiful with ever renewing virginity. In esoteric Islam the story of the 72 Houris is a secret way of conveying the older Hebrew teaching of the 72 Names of YHVH as well as encoding the 72 quinaries of the zodiacal wheel into the Qu'ran.
Hushedar: According to ancient Iranian mythology, he is a savior and a son of the Prophet Zoroaster. Hushedar would be succeeded every thousand years by other saviors, culminating in Saoshyant, who is expected to bring the universal judgment upon mankind. Eventually, after a final conflict between good and evil, the universe will be made pure again, and humanity will dwell in perfection with Ahura Mazda.
Keresaspa: From Iranian myth, he was a hero and killer of primeval monsters such as Gandarewa, a nasty water demon king who lived in streams and oceans. His hordes planned to populate the whole earth after eating the people and all good things. Keressaspa was the prophecied victor over the terrible dragon Azhi Dahaka. He battled and killed the great bird Kamak, whose wingspan would cover the sky.
Mithra: (Known in Indian mythology as Mitra). He was originally a god of contracts and friendships. In Iran he developed into the protector of truth. Before the time of Zoroaster, Mithra was equated with Ahura Mazda, the principle of good. Mithra was the light. He was believed to ride his golden chariot, the sun, across the sky, drawn by four white horses. He had 10,000 ears and eyes, possessed both strength and wisdom, and was renowned for his bravery in battle. He had the power to bless and make rain fall. Mithra had several Mystery Religions based upon his myth in which a bull would be sacrificed.
Rashnu: He was the personification of righteousness and judge over the dead in ancient Iranian mythology. When people died, he weighed their good and bad deeds with golden scales. The good went over the rainbow bridge to Ahura Mazda's Paradise to await the last judgment and battle between good and evil; however the wicked perceived the bridge as narrow and sharp, plunging headlong into demon infested depths in which they are perpetually torn apart until judgment day.
Saoshyant: This is the name of the final savior in Iranian mythology. His appearance will signal the arrival of the last days and the coming of frashkart, the final renewal. Saoshyant will be born of a pure woman, who will be impregnated by the preserved seed of Zoroaster while bathing in his sacred lake. According to one tradition, the cycle of the world is made up of four ages, each lasting 3000 years. The first 3000 year aeon was that of spiritual creation during which Ahura Mazda brought the good spirits and the Fravashis, the guardian angels, into being. In the second cycle of 3000 years, Ahura Mazda created the material world in which Angra Mainyu inroduced evil and destruction. The third cycle of 3000 years was that in which Good and Evil warred and struggled and many angels and demons came to earth. At the beginning of this age, the fourth cycle, Zoroaster appeared. This last age is that of Saoshyant, the savior who will appear in order to renew the world and resurrect the dead. A flood of molten metal will submerge and purify the whole planet, and Angra Mainyu will finally be destroyed. During the final renewal itself, the whole of humanity will be subjected to a burning torrent, which will cleanse them of all their evil ways and thus allow them to live in the presence of Ahura Mazda. Those who have lived blameless lives will feel the Holy Fire as a bath of warm medicinal milk while the wicked will be tormented. Saoshyant will sacrifice a bull and mix its fat with the magical elixir, Haoma, thereby creating a drink of immortality which he will give all humanity in its purified, perfected condition. Saoshyant was absorbed into the Shia Islam tradition of the ever returning Mahdi, the spiritual savior who comes at the end of each world Aeon.
Spenta Armaiti: She was one of the Amesa Spentas, or the Holy Immortals of ancient Iranian mythology. Like the Other Amesa Spentas, she is believed to have originated before the religious reforms of Zoroaster and to have been assimilated into the purified religion as an aspect of Ahura Mazda, the supreme being. Spenta Armaiti was the patroness of the earth, and symbolized submission and devotion. She was widely believed to be the spiritual mother of all human beings. People were taught to say, "My mother is Sendarmat, Archangel of the Earth and my father is Ohrmazd, the Lord Wisdom. Her name means wisdom and devotion and she is said to have created the first glorious humans from golden leaved plants."
Sraosha: He was known as the Ear of Ahura Mazda, the principle of good in ancient Iranian mythology. He was one of the Yazatas or spiritual beings. As the Ear of the God, he was the means whereby worshippers could get their prayers to Ahura Mazda. During the night he guarded the whole of creation from demons.
Vohu Mano: This was one of the Amesa Spentas or Holy Immortals of ancient Iranian mythology. These divine beings were believed to people the universe and look after humanity. They are thought to have been worshipped before the time of Zoroaster. Vohu Mano was the Good Thought of Ahura Mazda. This Amensa Spenta delivered Zoroaster's spirit directly to Ahura Mazda, instantly bringing him enlightenment.
Yazatas: "Beings Worthy of Worship," these were the protective spirits of Zoroastrianism. Most of them were ancient Iranian gods who were incorporated into Zoroaster's reformed religion as helpers of the supreme being, Ahura Mazda. Some of the Yazatas corresponded to the stars and planets, others to the elements, while many embodied abstract concepts. Sometimes the celestial Yazatas were said to be led by Ahura Mazda and the terrestrial Yazatas by Zoroaster. They included in their number Rashnu and Sraosha.
Zoroaster: also called Zarathustra, was a great religious reformer of ancient Iran. He lived during 1200 BC. The compelling figure of Zoroaster gave rise to many myths. It was said that his birth was foretold from the beginning of time. The moment he was born he burst out laughing and the whole universe rejoiced with him. Although the evil demons, the Drujs, tried to destroy the child, he was protected by Ahura Mazda, the principle of good. When he reached the age of thirty, Zoroaster was given numerous revelations from the Amesa Spentas or Holy Immortals. Once armed with those spiritual insights, Zoroaster was able to resist the temptations of Angra Mainyu, the principle of darkness. Zoroaster denounced the worship of numerous gods, which until then had been prevalent in Iran and instead taught a faith focused on the battle between good and evil. The pattern of his religion was a formula for much of later Judaism and Christianity as well as Gnostic Manicheism.
Zurvan Akarana: This came to prominence in Iranian mythology as the Transcendent Being who gave rise to Ahura Mazda, the principle of good or light and Angra Mianyu, the darkness. This is the Gnostic unity hidden within Zoroastrianism, Zurvan Akarana meaning "Infinite Time."
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Hebrew Mythology
Abraham: "Father of the multitude" is a major Old Testament figure and is referred to in the earliest sources as the "Hebrew." The founder of the Hebrew people, he is given credit for the Sefer Yetzirah, Hebrew Book Of Creation and rebuilding the Kaaba of Islam.
Adam: According to Genesis, Adam was the first human being. In the Qabbalah, Adam Kadmon is the principle of cosmic perfection embodied as a human. Everything in the paradisial Eden belonged to him except the fruit on the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. When Adam and Eve fell, the entire material creation came forth and the light of Adam's divine nature was broken up into countless minute sparks. These sparks are the lights that illuminate human souls and at the end of time they will be reunified into perfection once more.
Archangels: The Archangels in Judaism and Christianity come from the babylonian designation for the planets. The archangels are Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and Uriel, often including Uziel, Samael, and Reziel, sometimes an alternative name for Raphael. These are the angels that guard the Throne.
Ark of the Covenant: The ark was said to have powers that were used against the enemies of Israel. The Ark was the throne of God in his home in the Tabernacle. It resided in the Holy of Holies, a room in the Tabernacle. The high priest was the only person permitted to go in one day a year, the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). He was required to come in with the blood of a goat; it represented his sins and the sins of the people of Israel. It is a small box with two long bars, used for carrying, and made of acacia wood overlaid with gold.
Behemoth: This was a terrifying monster of Hebrew mythology, the dry-land equivalent of the monstrous sea serpent Leviathan. According to the Old Testament book of Job, Behemoth was associated with the hippopotamus. The monster is sometimes said to have developed from Tiamat, the fearsome Babylonian Goddess.
Daniel: Daniel was not a god, but he was a heroic character etched in history. In the Old Testament Daniel was taken prisoner in the sixth century B.C. by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. In 597 B.C., the king seized Jerusalem. A decade later, the city was sacked and the Hebrews were taken off to Babylon where they were held in captivity until the city fell. Daniel was one of these Hebrew exiles. He gained a reputation for interpreting dreams and visions, earning the title "Master of Magicians," and was made a provincial ruler. However, Nebuchadnezzar commanded all his subjects to worship an image of gold. Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego, Daniel's friends, refused to do so, insisting on remaining true to YHVH. The king threw the men into a fiery furnace, but astonishingly, they remained unharmed, protected by an angel of the Most High.
Nebuchadnezzar had many troubling dreams and called on Daniel to interpret them for him. According to Daniel, the dreams meant that Nebuchadnezzar would be banished from Babylon and become mad. The prophecy came true, and in his absence the king's son Belshazzar ruled the kingdom. One evening during a feast that Belshazzar was holding for a thousand regents and lords, mysterious writing appeared on the wall: "In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king's palace." Daniel took the message to mean that Babylon would be conquered by the Medes and Persians. In due course, Darius the Median did indeed take the kingdom from Belshazzar. Members of the new court became envious of Daniel's position and powers. They devised a plan whereby the king was forced to have Daniel thrown into a den of lions. Darius sealed the entrance of the den with a stone, but YHVH sent an angel to Daniel's aid, forcing the lions to close their mouths. "So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in God."
Elohim: These were the creator gods of Genesis in the Bible, the gods of creation and the destruction aspect of YHVH.
Eve: Eve is the popular name for Hawah, the first woman of Genesis, wife of the primordial human, Adam. In the Hebrew creation story she was said to have been formed from her husband Adam's rib. A serpent tempted Eve to eat the one fruit which God forbade the couple, and she persuaded Adam to join her. As a result, both Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise. Eve was seen as responsible for the Fall and for bringing Death, sin and sorrow in the world. Christians have often viewed Eve's sin as a sexual failing. However the fall also opened the way for growth and learning. Adam refers to Eve as Hawah, which means "Mother of All" or "She who gives Life."
Gabriel: Also called Jibril, he is known as the spirit of truth or "Angel of Revelations" in Islamic tradition. He stands at the apex of the angelic host and is said to have dictated the Quran to Prophet Muhammad. Gabriel is also believed to stand guard over the north-east corner of the Kaaba, Islam's most sacred shrine. In the Bible, Gabriel appears as the messenger of YHVH (YHVH is short for Yahweh, which is another name for God). He visited the Old Testament prophet Daniel twice, to announce the return of the Hebrews from captivity in Babylon and to explain the diversity of nations. In the New Testament, it is the archangel Gabriel who brings Mary the tidings that she is to conceive Jesus. Gabriel is also the trumpeter who will sound the Last Judgment. According to the ancient Hebrew apocalyptic tradition, Gabriel is the angel of retribution and death.
Leviathan: This was a ferocious monster of Phoenician mythology whose name means "Coiled." The figure of Leviathan drew upon the Canaanite Lotan, a seven headed monster killed by Anat, as well as the chaos monster Tiamat of Mesopotamian mythology. In the Old Testament, Leviathan is the chaos dragon who is overcome by Yahweh. He is refered to in Isaiah as the crooked serpent. In the Book of Job, God says, "His heart is as firm as a stone; yea as hard as a millstone." The lashings of his tail "make the deep to boil like a pot...upon earth there is not his like, who is made without fear. He beholds all things: he is king over all the children of pride." In apocalyptic writings, as well as in Christianity, the devil is said to manifest himself as the serpent Leviathan. In the apocryphal Book of Enoch, he appears as a vast creature, which inhabits the "abyss over the fountains of waters." Leviathan's jaws were sometimes depicted as the very gates of hell.
Lilith: According to Hebrew legend Lilith was the first woman to be created. She was portrayed as part snake, part woman and with wings. Yahweh blamed her for tempting Eve to reveal the mysteries of the Garden of Eden to Adam, having instigated the temptation of the serpent. In the Old Testament, she is the demon who disturbs the night. Her name means "Storm Goddess" or "She of the Night." The owl was her sacred creature. According to Talmudic legend, Lilith was created at the same time as Adam, by God, directly in the same way as Adam. She refused to lie down beneath Adam during sex, believing herself to be his equal and flew away to the desert. There she had orgies with demons and became the mother of many demons. She copulated so much she was having a hundred demon children a day. God sent three angels to bring Lilith back to Eden, but she refused. The angels threatened to drown her, but she said she would harm the world's human children if they attacked. She eventually made a truce with the angels, agreeing not to hurt children when "I see you or your names or your images on an amulet..." This myth was the basis of giving children amulets with Hebrew angelic names on them. Lilith wanders the world looking for unprotected children who are punished because of the sins of their fathers. She kills them by smiling at them. Lilith originated in Sumerian mythology as a goddess of desolation. She is also associated with the Babylonian demon Lilitu, who devoured men by seducing them, sucking out their vital juices through their penises, then eating their flesh.
Malaika: Malaika are angels. They are sometimes said to be made from light and are believed to be superior to ordinary humanity but inferior to prophets. The four chief angels are Jibril or Gabriel, the holy spirit; Mik'hail, the guardian of the Jews; Israfil, the angel who will sound the trumpet at resurrection; and Arazil, the Angel of Death.
Moloch: This is the name of an Ammonite god to whom human sacrifices were made. The Ammonites occupied the southern part of Jordan and were descended from Lot, nephew of Abraham. In the second Book of Kings, Moloch is described as "the abomination of the children of Ammon." Many Israelites are believed to have consecrated their children to Moloch by throwing them into the flames. Moloch may have simply been the name of such a bizarre ritual as sacrificing one's children. He is depicted as a fearsome demon in medieval and later literature. He is the awful soul devourer made of a billion infanticides.
Moses: A great Hebrew Prophet who led the Israelites to the establishment of their own nation around Zion in Jerusalem. In history, Moses and the Amarna Pharaoh Akhnaten are the same person. In the Biblical traditions, Moses was the agent of God in delivering the tribes of Israel from their bondage in Egypt, and he presented them with the Law of God's covenant with them. He is traditionally thought to have written key portions of the Penteuch, the first five books of the Bible. Moses was raised as an Egyptian nobleman and priest and during a period of exile an angel of God appeared to him in a flame of fire, which issued from a bush. Speaking from the center of the fire, the voice of God told Moses what to do, giving him vast powers over the elements. Later God told Moses his true identity, EHIE ASHR EHIE, that he was called "I am that I am," which in Hebrew is expressed by the four letters of YHVH, later pronounced as Yahweh.
Noah: He was the hero of the Old Testament story of the flood. According to the Book of Genesis, God saw that humankind and the Nefilim, the fallen angels, were committing all sorts of wickedness. God decreed, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man and beast, and the creeping things and the birds of the air; for I repent having made them." However, because Noah was righteous, good, and faithful, God decided to save him and his family. God instructed Noah to build an ark and to take into it two of every living thing. When the day of the flood arrived, water gushed from the ground, and the rain began to fall. For 40 days and 40 nights the torrent continued until the entire earth was submerged. After some time had passed, Noah sent out a dove to see if the flood had abated. Eventually, the dove returned with an olive leaf in its mouth. God promised never again to flood the earth, and offered the rainbow as a sign of good faith: "This is the token of covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my rainbow in the cloud." Flood myths are found throughout the ancient world, from Greece to India. The story of a flood destroying earth appears in the epic of Gilgamesh as well as in the myth of the Sumerian water god Enki.
Og: According to Hebrew mythology, Og was one of many giants that roamed the earth before the flood, and was the only giant to live through it. Og, like all giants, was a son of the Nefillim, the fallen angels. In the Old Testament he was said to be the long living king of Bashan: "Behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron...nine cubits was its length and four cubits its breadth." He was eventually killed by Moses when he tried to smash the Israelites. YHVH and Moses caused the mountain to fall on Og instead, cutting him down at the ankles and crushing his huge body beneath the rock.
Satan: His name means "Adversary." He plays a role in the Old Testament as the opponent of humanity, ordered by Yahweh to test Humanity's faith. At that time he was an Angel of Heaven dealing directly with Yahweh. In the Book of Job, YHVH instructs Satan, also known as Lucifer, to destroy Job's family and possessions and cover him with boils, with the intention of tempting him into cursing God. However, the patient Job declares, "What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips." Satan came to be viewed by the Hebrews as the supreme evil being under whom was ranged a hierarchy of demons. In opposition to the demons were the angels. Thus, the Hebrews came to see creation as a battle between the forces of good and evil, suggesting the influence of Persian thinking. One tale relates how Satan, the devil and "prince of this world" rebelled against Yahweh and was hurled by an angel into the Abyss. He is imagined in the form of a snake or dragon. In Christianity, Satan became the embodiment of evil. He was pictured as a handsome man with horns, a pointed tail and cloven hooves. In the apocryphal Book of John the Evangelist, Jesus describes Satan's transformation: "My Father changed his appearance because of his pride, and the light was taken from him, and his face became unto a heated iron, and his face became wholly like that of a man: and he drew with his tail the third part of the angels of God and was cast out from the seat of God, forever barred from the stewardship of the heavens." In Gnosticism, Satan is the pretender god, Saboath, who claims to be self-begotten in defiance of the Father and Sophia, Mother of Wisdom. As the evil Demiurge, he tries to deceive the earth with his Archons, false gods and his Watchers, the fallen ones amongst the third of the deluded angels.
Sephiroth: Literally meaning "figures" or "numerical ideation," the Sephira are the "fruit" of the Holy Tree of Life. There are ten traditional Sephira, each representing a quality of the ineffable Father. See Sefer Ayin for the full meanings of the Tree of Life's Sephira on microcosmic and macrocosmic scales.
Shem ha-Mephoresh: These are the 72 Names of YHVH; there are three sets of Shem ha-Mephoresh in the magical lexicon of Palestine. Two are the Hebrew 72 Names of YHVH and 72 Angelic Names encoded in the Old Testament of the Bible. The other is the Arabio-Assyrian and Egyptian Goetia (witchcraft) of Solomon, in which 72 night and day demons are listed by name and empowerment. The 72 Angelic names are Eial, Habuiah, Rochel, Iibamiah, Haiaiel, Mumiah, Vehuiah, Ieliel, Sitael, Elemiah, Mahashiah, Lelahel, Aehiah, Cahethel, Haziel, Aladiah, Lauiah, Hahiah, Ieiazel, Mebahel, Hariel, Hakamiah, Leviah, Caliel, Leuuiah, Pahliah, Nelchael, Ieiaiel, Melahel, Hahuaiah, Nithhaiah, Haaiah, Ieathel, Sahliah, Reiiel, Amael, Lecabel, Vasariah, Iehiah, Lehahiah, Chavakiah, Monadel, Aniel, Haamiah, Rehael, Ihizael, Hahahel, Michael, Vevaliah, Ielahiah, Saliah, Ariel, Asaliah, Mihael, Vehuel, Daniel, Heahaziah, Amammiah, Nanael, Nithael, Mebahiah, Poiel, Nemamiah, Ieilael, Harahel, Mizrael, Umabel, Iahhel, Annauel, Mekekiel, Damabiah, and Menial. The 72 Goetic or Demonic names are Buer, Bifrons, Gusion, Vual, Sitri, Haagenti, Beleth, Crocell, Leraie, Furcas, Eligos, Balam, Zepar, Alloces, Botis, Camio, Bathin, Murmur, Sallos, Orobas, Purson, Gremory, Marax, Os, Ipos, Amy, Aim, Orias, Naberius, Vapula, Glasya-Labolas, Zagan, Bun, Valac, Ronov, Andras, Berith, Haures, Astaroth, Andrealphus, Forneus, Cimeies, Foras, Amdusias, Asmoday, Belial, Gap, Decabria, Furfur, Seere, Marchosias, Dantalion, Stolas, Andromalius, Bael, Phenix, Agares, Halphas, Vassago, Malphas, Samigina, Rum, Marbas, Focalor, Valefor, Vepar, Amoin, Sabnock, Barbatos, Shax, Paimon, and Vin. Each is stationed at the different decants of the zodiacal wheel, each possessing different qualities and powers for use by the magus.
Solomon: This was the 10th century B.C. legendary Biblical name of Amenhotep III from the Old Testament. King Solomon was said to possess a glorious flying ship, had all mystical powers, could communicate with animals, held council with Angels and could control all manner of demons and elemental forces to do his bidding. Solomon used djinn and demons to help build the temple of Jerusalem at Zion. Solomon's Seal, a six pointed star, is the Merkaba field, as he was famous all over the middle east and Ethiopia for flying in a Merkabah. He was given it from his Biblical father David (in actuality his grandfather Tutmosis IV) and is also known as the Shield of David. According to Arabic mythology the real name of God was etched upon Solomon's ring, giving him power over all elemental and celestial beings. He married many wives, including Makeda, Queen of Sheba, and sired a son, Menelik (or Greater David) by her, who took the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia. As Amenhotep III, he sired Akhnaten, who is known as the Biblical Moses and was the religious reformer king of Egypt.
Yahweh (YHVH): Yahweh was regarded by the tribes of Israel as the Creator of all things and the supreme God and Judge over all nations. He probably originated as a mountain god and was identified with El. Yahweh intervened in earthly affairs, often through his Prophets. He demanded that his followers should worship no other deity and was a wrathful, jealous god. Though he dealt severely with anyone who strayed from his teachings, he was a god of righteousness and ultimately merciful. No physical likeness was ever attributed to Him. The formula of Tetragramaton YHVH can be explained in a million ways and should be studied in detail by anyone interested. YHVH is sometimes refereed to as Jehovah in English.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
Conclusion
As you can see, the stories of myths and legends are similar in different cultures. The characters are similar, the plots and the betrayals are the same, and the outcomes are often the same. This is part of the mass consciousness of humanity, the memory banks of the species. Mythology is an integral part of each of us, and shaped our heritage. Sometimes one might wonder if the gods and goddesses of the past are actually visiting aliens who might have been more technologically advanced, and therefore worshipped for their advanced nature. Some of the characters definitely seem like helpers from above, or fighting, jealous siblings with a need for humankind's admiration.
Now you know something about the origins of gods, goddesses and mythology. This is more helpful than you might know in understanding the nature of humanity. These stories and characters are a representation of the inner beliefs and thoughts of humanity that carry on even in the modern day. The names of these characters may have changed, the situations more modern, but all the archetypes and stories are still in play, even in this moment.
Gods, Goddesses & Mythology: Index >>
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