Gods and Gods

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Greek deities varied locally, but many shared panhellenic themes, celebrated similar festivals, rites, and ritual grammar. Besides the Olympians, the Greeks also worshipped various local deities. The dark powers of the underworld were represented by the Erinyes or Furies , said to pursue those guilty of crimes against blood-relatives.

The Greek deities, like those in many other Indo-European traditions, were anthropomorphic. Walter Burkert describes them as "persons, not abstractions, ideas or concepts". Another group of deities found in Norse mythology are termed as Vanir , and are associated with fertility. Temples hosting images of Nordic deities such as Thor , Odin and Freyr , as well as pagan worship rituals, continued in Nordic countries through the 12th century, according to historical records.

This shocked Christian missionaries, and over time Christian equivalents were substituted for the Nordic deities to help suppress paganism. The Roman pantheon had numerous deities, both Greek and non-Greek. These include the six gods and six goddesses: The Roman deities, in a manner similar to the ancient Greeks, inspired community festivals, rituals and sacrifices led by flamines priests, pontifs , but priestesses Vestal Virgins were also held in high esteem for maintaining sacred fire used in the votive rituals for deities.

Greek Gods

Ancient Roman scholars such as Varro and Cicero wrote treatises on the nature of gods of their times. The Inca culture has believed in Viracocha also called Pachacutec as the creator deity. Oh creator and Sun and Thunder, be forever copious, do not make us old, let all things be at peace, multiply the people, and let there be food, and let all things be fruitful. Inca people have revered many male and female deities.

In Maya culture , Kukulkan has been the supreme creator deity , also revered as the god of reincarnation , water, fertility and wind. A deity with aspects similar to Kulkulkan in the Aztec culture has been called Quetzalcoatl. What has been assumed is based on what was constructed by Christian missionaries. The deity concept was likely more complex than these historical records.

Unlike Hinduism and other cultures, Aztec deities were usually not anthropomorphic, and were instead zoomorphic or hybrid icons associated with spirits, natural phenomena or forces. The Polynesian people developed a theology centered on numerous deities, with clusters of islands having different names for the same idea. There are great deities found across the Pacific Ocean. Some deities are found widely, and there are many local deities whose worship is limited to one or a few islands or sometimes to isolated villages on the same island. The Polynesian deities have been part of a sophisticated theology, addressing questions of creation, the nature of existence, guardians in daily lives as well as during wars, natural phenomena, good and evil spirits, priestly rituals, as well as linked to the journey of the souls of the dead.

Christianity is a monotheistic religion in which most mainstream congregations and denominations accept the concept of the Holy Trinity. The theological examination of Jesus Christ, of divine grace in incarnation, his non-transferability and completeness has been a historic topic. For example, the Council of Chalcedon in CE declared that in "one person Jesus Christ, fullness of deity and fullness of humanity are united, the union of the natures being such that they can neither be divided nor confused".

The term Allah is used by Muslims for God. The Persian word Khuda Persian: The classical presentation of Judaism has been as a monotheistic faith that rejected deities and related idolatry. According to Aryeh Kaplan, God is always referred to as "He" in Judaism, "not to imply that the concept of sex or gender applies to God", but because "there is no neuter in the Hebrew language, and the Hebrew word for God is a masculine noun" as he "is an active rather than a passive creative force".

Buddhists do not believe in a creator deity. The concept of God varies in Hinduism , it being a diverse system of thought with beliefs spanning henotheism , monotheism , polytheism , panentheism , pantheism and monism among others. In the ancient Vedic texts of Hinduism, a deity is often referred to as Deva god or Devi goddess. In the earliest Vedic literature, all supernatural beings are called Asuras.

Devas or deities in Hindu texts differ from Greek or Roman theodicy , states Ray Billington, because many Hindu traditions believe that a human being has the potential to be reborn as a deva or devi , by living an ethical life and building up saintly karma. Thus deities are henotheistic manifestations, embodiments and consequence of the virtuous, the noble, the saint-like living in many Hindu traditions.

Like many ancient Indian traditions, Jainism does not believe in a creator, omnipotent, omniscient, eternal God; however, the cosmology of Jainism incorporates a meaningful causality -driven reality, and includes four realms of existence gati , and one of them for deva celestial beings, gods. Jain texts reject a trans-cosmic God, one who stands outside of the universe and lords over it, but they state that the world is full of devas who are in human-image with sensory organs, with the power of reason, conscious, compassionate and with finite life.

Jains also believe that the spiritual nobleness of perfected souls Jina and devas make them worship-worthy beings, with powers of guardianship and guidance to better karma. In Jain temples or festivals, the Jinas and Devas are revered. Attempts to rationally explain belief in deities extend all the way back to ancient Greece. A tendency to believe in deities and other supernatural beings may be an integral part of the human consciousness.

Stories of encounters with supernatural beings are especially likely to be retold, passed on, and embellished due to their descriptions of standard ontological categories person, artifact, animal, plant, natural object with counterintuitive properties humans that are invisible, houses that remember what happened in them, etc.

Sociologists of religion have proposed that the personality and characteristics of deities may reflect a culture's sense of self-esteem and that a culture projects its revered values into deities and in spiritual terms. The cherished, desired or sought human personality is congruent with the personality it defines to be gods.

According to Matt Rossano, God concepts may be a means of enforcing morality and building more cooperative community groups. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. For the monotheistic concept of a supreme creator being, see God. For the word, see God word. For other uses, see Gods disambiguation. Examples of representations of deities in different cultures. Clockwise from upper left: Dyeus , Deus , God word , and Deva Hinduism. Religions of the ancient Near East. Ancient Egyptian deities , Egyptian mythology , and Ancient Egyptian religion.

Akkadian cylinder seal impression showing Inanna , the Sumerian goddess of love, sex, and war []: List of Mesopotamian deities , Ancient Mesopotamian religion , and Sumerian religion. Zeus , the king of the gods in ancient Greek religion , shown on a gold stater from Lampsacus c. Corinthian black-figure plaque of Poseidon , the Greek god of the seas c.

Attic white-ground red-figured kylix of Aphrodite , the Greek goddess of love, riding a swan c. Bust of Athena , the Greek goddess of wisdom, copy after a votive statue of Kresilas in Athens c. Inti Raymi, a winter solstice festival of the Inca people, reveres Inti — the sun deity. Offerings include round bread and maize beer. Inca Sun deity festival Oh creator and Sun and Thunder, be forever copious, do not make us old, let all things be at peace, multiply the people, and let there be food, and let all things be fruitful.

List of Maya gods and supernatural beings , Maya religion , List of Aztec gods and supernatural beings , and Aztec mythology.

A Chinese deity adopted into Buddhism. Ganesha deity of Hinduism, Right: Saraswati , Hindu goddess of knowledge and music. God in Jainism and Deva Jainism. Evolutionary origin of religions , Evolutionary psychology of religion , and Neurotheology. Religion portal Culture portal. Encyclopedia of Gender and Society. Retrieved June 28, Oxford Dictionary of English 3rd ed. Gods, Goddesses, and Mythology. The Christian tradition is, in imitation of Judaism, a monotheistic religion. This implies that believers accept the existence of only one God.

The Boundaries of Monotheism: The Routledge Companion to Theism. Ross; Perry, Edmund F. The Central Spiritual Reality of Humankind. A Very Short Introduction New ed. Retrieved June 22, The Oxford Handbook of Atheism. A Dictionary of Philosophy of Religion. Walking With The Gods. A Comparative Study 1st ed. Must God Remain Greek?: Afro Cultures and God-talk. African people may describe their deities as strong, but not omnipotent; wise but not omniscient; old but not eternal; great but not omnipresent Containing Lists of the Tracts in Each Language.

We [monotheists] find by reason and revelation that God is omniscient, omnipotent, most holy, etc, but the Hindu deities possess none of those attributes. It is mentioned in their Shastras that their deities were all vanquished by the Asurs, while they fought in the heavens, and for fear of whom they left their abodes.

This plainly shows that they are not omnipotent. Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge. Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Gender Studies. Oxford University Press, Incorporated. Roman and European Mythologies. University of Chicago Press. Constructing the Identities of the Hindu Great Goddess. To Be Cared For: University of California Press.

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An Introduction to Ancient Iranian Religion: Readings from the Avesta and the Achaemenid Inscriptions. University of Minnesota Press. Philosophy of Religion 1st ed. The Material Foundations st ed. Retrieved 22 January Not to be confused with Cronos, god of time. Guardian god of the ancient city Lamark, where wounded heroes could find comfort and heal after battle.

He was the son of Aphrodite. An Olympian god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness, religious ecstasy and theatre. One of the wind god known as Anemoi and god of the unlucky east wind. A fisherman who became immortal upon eating a magical herb, an Argonaut who may have built and piloted the Argo, and became a god of the sea. God of fire, metalworking, stone masonry, forges and the art of sculpture.

Created weapons for the gods and married to Aphrodite.

Twelve Olympians

The greatest of the Greek heroes, he became god of heroes, sports, athletes, health, agriculture, fertility, trade, oracles and divine protector of mankind. Known as the strongest man on Earth. God of trade, thieves, travelers, sports, athletes, and border crossings, guide to the Underworld and messenger of the gods. The Evening Star — the planet Venus in the evening. God of beginnings, choices and doorways Jay-nus Distinguishing features: Kind of hard to miss Janus, since he has two faces. He can be a pain, since he can never make up his mind and tends to argue with himself.

Meet the Greek Gods – Rick Riordan

On the bright side, he can sing a solo in two-part harmony. Janus likes to dress as a New York City doorman. He shows up just when heroes have an important choice to make, usually offering them two doors to choose from. At least one of the doors typically leads to a nasty death. He can open many doors and he stands for new beginnings, but think carefully before making choices.

Janus was one of the most important Roman gods. January, the beginning month of the year, was named after him. Janus he has no Greek name. Goddess of Revenge Nim-uh-sis Distinguishing features: The evil look in her eyes should tell you that this lady is not here to give you victory. She also carries a wheel sometimes, symbolizing how fate can turn on you. Notice above she is trampling some poor fool underfoot.

She just loves doing that. Nemesis usually hangs around the classroom the day major projects are due. All those who put off working until the last minute are likely to feel her lash. If it seems like somebody is out to get you, she is. Nemesis was feared more than she was worshipped. Watch your step and stay humble! Goddess of the rainbow, messenger of the gods Eye-ris Distinguishing features: Iris appears as a beautiful maiden with wings rainbow-colored, naturally carrying the symbolic staff of a herald like Hermes.

Iris is constantly in demand to deliver Iris-messages for demigods. While this brings her a lot of supplemental income, she does wish Zeus would let her upgrade her network to 4G, since her coverage is spotty in many metropolitan areas. Iris was mostly the handmaiden to Hera. She never got much attention in the old myths, but everyone was always happy to see her. Much like a rainbow, she would show up where you least expected her and then disappear quietly.

The colorful part of the eye, the Iris, is named after her. Not much of a tribute, but better than nothing, I guess. Hecate is usually dressed in dark robes, holding twin torches all the better to see you and burn you with, my dear.

She is accompanied by a she-dog and a polecat, which used to be her enemies before she morphed them into animals. In later times, Hecate was pictured as a woman with three heads, or three entirely different forms for morning, noon and night. Talk about split personalities… Now: Magic is her territory, and her followers include Circe and Medea, who were not exactly girl scouts.

You can find Hecate in foggy graveyards, or at abandoned crossroads at night. If you see a woman with two torches, be nice to her, unless you want to become one of her animal familiars.

Hecate was a goddess to be feared. She was the goddess of dark and unknown forces, and the fact that she had three different forms meant you never knew whether she would be a good cop or a bad cop. It was best just to steer clear! Tike-ee Goddess of good luck and fortune Distinguishing features: Sometimes good luck can look like bad luck, and vice versa! Tyche usually holds a cornucopia, the horn of plenty, which is filled with nuts, berries, fruitcakes, bonbons, and all kinds of goodies representing the fortunes she bestows on mankind.

The horn of plenty has become a symbol of Thanksgiving in America thanks to Tyche. Tyche is a hard goddess to find. People are always looking for her at the racetrack, the casino and the lottery ticket dealer, but she hardly ever hangs out there. She mostly likes to give good luck to those who worked hard to get it. Nevertheless, sometimes Tyche gets random. Next time you find a bag of cash in the street, you know whom to thank. Back in the day, Greeks and Romans prayed for Tyche's favor at gambling, contests, and competitions.

Funny thing about Tyche, though. She hardly ever shows up when you call. She prefers to surprise you.

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