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GODS

"GODS" is a plural of: god.

Date "GODS" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1050. (references)

 

Specialty Definition: GODS

DomainDefinition

Fine Arts

The upper gallery or balcony. Source: European Union. (references)

Literature

Gods
BRITONS. The gods of the ancient Britons. Taramis (the father of the gods and master of thunder), Teutates (patron of commerce and inventor of letters), Esus (god of war), Belinus (= Apollo), Ardena (goddess of forests), Belisarna (the queen of heaven and the moon.)
CARTHAGINIAN GODS. Urania and Moloch. The former was implored when rain was required.
"Ista ipsa virgo [Urania] cœlestis pluviarum
Pollicitatrix." - Tertullian.
Moloch was the Latin Saturn, to whom human sacrifices were offered. Hence Saturn was said to devour his own children.
CHALDEANS. The seven gods of the Chaldeans. The gods of the seven planets called in the Latin language Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Apollo [i.e. the Sun], Mercury, Venus, and Diana [i.e. the Moon].
EGYPTIAN GODS. The two chief deities were Osiris and Isis (supposed to be sun and moon). Of inferior gods, storks, apes, cats, the hawk, and some 20,000 other things had their temples, or at least received religious honours. Thebes worshipped a ram, Memphis the ox [Apis], Bubastis a cat, Momemphis a cow, the Mendesians a he-goat, the Hermopolitans a fish called "Latus," the Paprimas the hippopotamus, the Lycopolitans the wolf. The ibis was deified because it fed on serpents, the crocodile out of terror, the ichneumon because it fed on crocodiles' eggs.
ETRUSCANS. Their nine gods. Juno, Minerva, and Tinia (the three chief); to which add Vulcan, Mars, Saturn, Hercules, Summanus, and Vedius. (See Aesir.)
"Lars Porsena of Clusium,
By the nine gods he swore
That the great house of Tarquin
Should suffer wrong no more,
By the nine gods he swore it,
And named a trysting day.
Macaulay: Horatisu, Stanza 1.
GAUL. The gods of the Gauls were Esus and Teutates (called in Latin Mars and Mercury). Lucan adds a third named Taranes (Jupiter). Caesar says they worshipped Mercury, Apollo, Mars, Jupiter, and Minerva. The last was the inventor of all the arts, and presided over roads and commerce.
GREEK AND ROMAN GODS were divided into Dii Majores and Dii Minores. The Dii Majores were twelve in number, thus summed by Ennius -
Juno, Vesta, Minerva, Ceres, Diana, Venus, Mars, Mercurius, Joyi, Neptunus, Vulcanus, Apollo.
Their blood was ichor, their food was ambrosia, their drink nectar. They married and had children, lived on Olympus in Thessaly, in brazen houses built by Vulcan, and wore golden shoes which enabled them to tread on air or water.
The twelve great deities, according to Ennius were (six male and six female):
LATIN.
GREEK.
JUPITER (King)
ZEUS (1 syl.).
Apollo (the sun)
Apollon.
Mars (war)
Ares.
Mercury (messenger)
Hermes.
Neptune (ocean)
Poseidon (3 syl.).
Vulcan (smith)
Hephaistos (3 sy)
JUNO (Queen)
HERA.
Ceres (tillage)
Demeter.
Diana (moon, hunting)
Artemis.
Minerva (wisdom.)
Athena.
Venus (love and beauty)
Aphrodite.
Vesta (home-life)
Hestia.
Juno was the wife of Jupiter, Hera of Zeus; Venus was the wife of Vulcan, Aphrodite of Hephaistos.
Four other deities are often referred to:
Bacchus (wine)
Dionysos.
Cupid (the lad Love)
Eros.
Pluto (of the Inferno)
Pluton.
Saturn (time)
Kronos.
Of these, Proserpine (Latin) and Persephone (Greek) was the wife of Pluto, Cybele was the wife of Saturn, and Rhea of Kronos.
In Hesiod's time the number of gods was thirty thousand, and that none might be omitted the Greeks observed a feast called ???????? or Feast of the Unknown Gods. We have an All Saints' day.
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Hesiod i. 250
"Some thirty thousand gods on earth we find
Subjects of Zeus, and guardians of mankind."
PERSIAN GODS. The chief god was Mithra. Inferior to him were the two gods Oromasdes and Tremanius. The former was supposed to be the author of all the evils of the earth.
SAXON GODS. Odin or Woden (the father of the gods), to whom Wednes-day is consecrated; Frea (the mother of the gods), to whom Fri-day is consecrated; Hertha (the earth); Tuesco, to whom Tues-day is consecrated; Thor, to whom Thurs-day is consecrated.
SCANDINAVIAN GODS. The supreme gods of the Scandinavians were the Mysterious Three, called HAR (the mighty), the LIKE MIGHTY, and the THIRD PERSON, who sat on three thrones above the Rainbow. Then came the Æsir, of which Odin was the chief, who lived in Asgard, on the heavenly hills, between the Earth and the Rainbow. Next came the Vanir', or genii of water, air, and clouds, of which Niord was chief.
GODS AND GODDESSES. (See Deities, Fairies.)
Gods Among the gods. In the uppermost gallery of a theatre, which is near the ceiling, generally painted to resemble the sky. The French call this celestial region paradis.
Dead gods. The sepulchre of Jupiter is in Candia. Esculapius was killed with an arrow. The ashes of Venus are shown in Paphos. Hercules was burnt to death. (Ignatius.)
Triple gods. (See Trinity.). Source: Brewer's Dictionary.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Specialty Definition: God

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The noun God is used in English to refer to an immortal, supernatural being, usually said to rule, alone or in company with other gods, over the destinies of humankind and the universe. When spelled with a capital "G" it is a proper noun, the name given in English to the one supreme being as postulated by the three major monotheistic religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism. When spelled with a small "g" it is a common noun, referring to a postulated supernatural being of any religious system, as for example the gods of the Greek and Roman religions.

The word "God" comes from the Old English/German/Norse language family and is (in Western culture ) equivalent to the derivatives of the Latin word "Deus". Many major current monotheistic concepts of a "God" descend from the Abrahamic tradition of YHVH ("I am that I am", "I am the One Who Is," "He who cannot be named").

Conflicting interpretations arise regarding the name of "God", and what the name actually means -- often the infinite God concept is mixed with non-infinite personifications of "God" (i.e. God as an old man, a Zeus or Odin.) A belief in a "God" or gods is found in all cultures, although followers of a particular God or gods may consider other gods to be inferior. Likewise many people hold non-literal, sometimes even secular interpretations of God -- few of which may actually contradict the pure concept of an "infinite God," despite any contradictions these may have with any particular religious tradition.

Names for God in Monotheistic Religions

The generic term God is often used as a proper name by most adherents of most monotheistic faiths. Different names for God have arisen from both language differences and from religious traditions. Both kinds of branches have generated evolutions in the name of "God."

See also the entry on Names given to the divine

Arguments Regarding the Existence of God

Throughout history, many arguments have been made both for and against the existence of God. For example, it has been argued that, without postulating the existence of one, eternal God, the origin of the universe appears inexplicable, since it is not logically possible for something to come from nothing. Conversely, it has been argued that such an origin may be an inevitable consequence of the paradox of nothingness, and that the inexplicable existence of God is no explanation at all. Due to the seemingly inconclusive nature of all such arguments, many have maintained that belief in God depends on faith, not upon any argument or proof.

Beliefs about the Nature of God

Theology is the study of the nature of the divine. In some cases, theologians attempt to explicate (and in some cases systematize) the assumptions that underlie specific, organized, religions; in other cases, theologians seek to transform a personal experience of the divine into some philosophical system. All theologies begin with a notion of "god;" different theologies have been grouped and classified according to their views on two fundamental issues:

  1. is God singular or plural?
  2. is God transcendent or immanent, or both?
Answers to these questions reflect, and imply, different positions concerning the relationship between god(s) and the world, and between god(s) and humankind.

A few people use the word "monotheism" to refer to the belief in a single god and use "theism" to refer to any belief in god(s), i.e., monotheism or polytheism. Some theists believe in the existence of other less powerful immortal beings, but give them other names such as angels or demons.

Many people find the concept of God meaningless or unnecessary:

God as Unity or Trinity

Jews, Muslims, and a small percent of Christians are unitarian monotheists. The vast majority of Christians have been and still are Trinitarian monotheists.

Unitarian monotheists hold that there is only one "person" (so to speak), or one basic substance, in God. Some consider Trinitarianism to be a form of polytheism. In contrast, Trinitarian monotheists believe in one god that exists as three distinct persons who share the same substance/essence; this belief is called the Trinity: compare with the Hindu Trimurti.

Mormons hold that God is one of three divine personages collectively referred to as the Godhead. One of these personages is a spirit without a body referred to as the Holy Ghost. The other two personages are spirits with perfected or glorified (often called celestial) bodies referred to as Heavenly Father (or less commonly Eloheim) and His Son, Jesus Christ. Mormons hold that God is a Holy Man, or sanctified human who advanced to his divine status through a repeatable process of progression, and that by following the precepts of their faith, humans can literally (eventually) become gods (sometimes phrased as "become like Heavenly Father") at some point after death and resurrection. This belief is mainly held in the largest Mormon branch, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This belief system implies, if not explicitly claims, polytheism as opposed to the monotheistic views of mainstream Christianity.

Monotheistic Conceptions of God

Judaism, Christianity and Islam see God as a single being who rules over the universe. These three Western faiths uphold an ancient monotheistic tradition that, according to their belief, is the original faith of mankind (or alternatively, for some believers, began with their first Prophet, Abraham). In this view one God, the creator of the world, exists. A number of additional attributes generally link to God, including Omnipotence (being all-powerful), Omniscience (being all-knowing), and Omnibenevolence (being all-loving).

These usually conceive of God as a personal God, with a will and personality. However, many important medieval rationalist philosophers of these three religions taught that an intelligent person should not view God as personal at all, and that all these teachings were actually meant as metaphors only. Some intellectuals of these three faiths in the West still accept these views as valid, although many of the laity today do not have a wide awareness of them.

In Eastern Christianity, it remains essential that God be personal; hence it speaks of the three persons of the Trinity. It also emphasizes that God has a will, and that God the Son has two wills, divine and human, though these are never in conflict. The personhood of God and of all human people is essential to the concept of theosis or divinization.

A number of arguments for the existence of God have been offered; one argument for the thesis that God does not exist is the problem of evil, with the project of Theodicy as a response.

Biblical definition of God

The book of Exodus in the Tanach (Hebrew Bible, Old Testament) characterizes God by these attributes: "The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation."

The Tanach (Hebrew Bible, Old Testament) contains no systematic theology: No attempt is made to give a philosophical or rigorous definition of God, nor of how God acts in the world. The Tanach does not explicitly describe God's nature, exemplified by God's assertion in Exodus that "you cannot see my face; for man shall not see me and live." The Tanach does, however, provide a poetic depiction of God and His relationship with people. According to the biblical historian Yehezkal Kaufmann, the essential innovation of Biblical theology was to posit a God that cares about people, and that cares about whether people care about Him. Most people believe that the Bible should be viewed as humanity's view of God, but theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel described the Biblical God as "anthropopathic," and said that we should read the Bible as God's view of humanity.

Similarly, the New Testament also contains no systematic theology: no attempt is made to give a philosophical or rigorous definition of God, nor of how God acts in the world. The New Testament does, however, provide an implicit theology as it teaches that God became human while remaining fully God, in the person of Jesus Christ. In this view, God becomes someone that can be seen and touched, and may speak and act in a manner easily perceived by humans, while also remaining transcendant and invisible. This appears to be a radical departure from the concepts of God found in the Hebrew Bible and in the Qur'an. The New Testament's statements regarding the nature of God were eventually developed into the doctrine of the Trinity.

Aristotelian view of God

A separate article exists on the Aristotelian view of God. Much of this article discusses Aristotle's book on first philosophy, the Metaphysics, in which Aristotle discusses the meaning of "being as being". In brief, Aristotle holds that "being" primarily refers to the Unmoved Movers, and assigned one of these to each movement in the heavens. Each Unmoved Mover continuously contemplates its own contemplation, and everything that fits the second meaning of "being" by having its source of motion in itself, moves because the knowledge of its Mover causes it to emulate this Mover (or should).

Many medieval philosophers made use of the idea of approaching a knowledge of God through negative attributes. For example, we should not say that God exists in the usual sense of the term; all we can safely say is that God is not nonexistent. We should not say that God is wise, but we can say that God is not ignorant, i.e. in some way God has some properties of knowledge. We should not say that God is One, but we can state that there is no multiplicity in God's being. See apophatic theology. This article also discusses Aristotle discussion of Platonic theory, according to which ideas are the ultimate principles of Being.

Aristotelian view of God

Kabbalistic definition of God

Kabbalah (Jewish esoteric mysticism) teaches that God is neither matter nor spirit. Rather God is the creator of both, but is Himself neither. But if God is so different than His creation, how can there be any interaction between the Creator and the created? This question prompted Kabbalists to discuss two aspects of God, (a) God Himself, who in the end is unknowable, and (b) the revealed aspect of God who created the universe, preserves the universe, and interacts with mankind. Kabbalists believe that these two aspects are not contradictory but complement one another.

Some Kabbalistic Jews, such as Moses Cordovero and Lubavitch (Chabad) Hasidism, hold that the first aspect of God is actually all that there really is. Nothing exists except for God, and all else is an illusion. (Depending on how this is explained, such a view can be considered panentheism, or pantheism.) Most other Kabbalists hold that there is an aspect of God that is revealed to the world.

Kabbalists speak of the first aspect of God as 'En Sof'; this is translated as "the infinite," or "that which has no limits". In this view, nothing can be said about this aspect of God. This aspect of God is impersonal. Kabbalists speak of the second aspect of God as being seen by the universe as ten emanations from God; these emanations are called 'sefirot'.

The 'sefirot' mediate the interaction of the ultimate unknowable God with the physical and spiritual world. Some explain the sefirot as stages of the creative process whereby God, from His own infinite being, created the progression of realms which culminated in our finite and physical universe. Others suggest that the sefirot may be thought of as analogous to the fundamental laws of physics. Just as gravity, electro-magnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force allow for interactions between matter and energy, the ten sefirot allow for interaction between God and the Universe.

A difficulty with this view is that the Kabbalah teaches that the Sefirot are not distinct from the Ein-Sof, but are somehow within it. The idea that there are ten divine sefirot could evolve over time into the idea that "God is One being, yet in that One being there are Ten". This would be almost the same as the Christian belief in the Trinity, which states that while God is "One", in that One there are three persons. This interpretation of Kabbalah in fact did occur among a small number of Jews in the 17th century. Rabbi Leon Modena, a 17th century Venetian critic of kabbalah, wrote that if we were to accept the Kabbalah, then the Christian trinity would indeed be compatible with Judaism, as the Trinity closely resembles the Kabbalistic doctrine of sefirot. This critique was in response to the fact that some Jews went so far as to address individual sefirot individually in some of their prayers. Kabbalah had many other opponents, notably Rabbi Yitzchak ben Sheshet Perfet (The Rivash); he stated that Kabbalah was "worse than Christianity", as it made God into 10, not just into three. The critique, however, was unfair. Most followers of Kabbalah never believed this interpretation of Kabbalah. The Christian Trinity concept posits that there are three persons existing within the Godhead, one of whom literally became a human being. In contrast, the mainstream understanding of the Kabbalistic sefirot holds that they have no mind or intelligence; further, they are not addressed in prayer, and they can not become a human being. They are conduits for interaction - not persons or beings.

The Kabbalah's idea of emanations could also be compared to the distinction made by fourteenth century Christian theologian Gregory Palamas. Palamas drew a distinction between God's essence and energies, affirming that God was unknowable in His essence, but knowable in His energies. Palamas never enumerated God's energies, but described them simply as ways that God could be seen acting in the Universe, and particularly on people, from the light shining from the face of Moses after Moses descended Mt. Sinai, to the light surrounding Moses, Elijah and Jesus Christ on Mt. Tabor during the transfiguration of Jesus. For Palamas, God's energies were not some other thing separate from God, but were God; however the idea of energies was kept very distinct from the idea of the three persons of the Trinity.

Today all Hasidic Orthodox Jews are Kabbalistic; some non-Hasidic Orthodox Jews are kabbalisticly inclined, while some are rationalists. Most Reform and Conservative Jews are rationalists.

Process theology and process philosophy definition of God

See the entries on Process theology and panentheism.

Neopagan Concept of God and/or gods

Neopaganism allows for diverse personal beliefs about the nature of God. There is little specific dogma. Most Neopagans hold a polytheistic, pantheistic or panentheistic belief, often with some elements of animism. Among Neopagans, and especially Wiccans, God is commonly expressed through the duality of the Goddess and the Horned God. However, there are those Pagans who align themselves with the Left Hand Path or LHP. These LHP Pagans are generally autotheists.

While on the surface Neopagans worship many gods, many practice a kind of monotheism, believing the many gods to be aspects of the One God. Many others practice duotheism, for example in many forms of Wicca all gods are considered aspects of the Lord, and all goddesses aspects of the Lady.

Most Heathens consider themselves strict polytheists.

The Ultimate

Arguably, Eastern conceptions of The Ultimate (this, too, has many different names) are not conceptions of a personal divinity, though certain Western conceptions of what is at least called "God" (e.g., Spinoza's pantheistic conception and various kinds of mysticism) resemble Eastern conceptions of The Ultimate.

The mathematician Georg Cantor identified God with the mathematical concept of the Absolute Infinite.

Gender of God

In Judaism it is a fundamental heresy to believe that God has a gender. Grammatically, most of the Hebrew names for God are masculine; a few are grammatically feminine; This is not held to have literal significance. In regards to translating Hebrew names of God into English, most Orthodox and many Conservative Jews argue that it would be wrong to apply English female pronouns to God, not because God is of the male gender, but because doing so tends to draw attention to God as having gender, and also because the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) usually uses names that are grammatically masculine.

In Christianity, one person of God, the Son, is believed to have become incarnate as a human male; however, the other two persons of God are without gender, since they are not at all physical. (Mormonism is an exception; it teaches that God the Father also has a perfect body of flesh and bones, while agreeing that the Holy Spirit is bodiless.) The other two persons (the Father and the Holy Spirit) have traditionally been referred to using male pronouns and have primarily been associated with male imagery; but some Christians today, especially those inspired by feminism, do not consider this tradition to be binding. Other commentators point out that Hebrew tradition sees the Spirit as female.

Most Neopagan traditions, such as Wicca, believe in both male and female Deities. A few (especially Dianic Wicca) see the Divine as entirely feminine, and call her the Goddess.

For a more detailed look at this issue, see the article on God and gender.

Revelation: How God Communicates With Mankind

Many religions hold that God can communicate his will to mankind; in Judaism, Christianity and Islam this process is called revelation. Some religions believe that revelation is only available to certain individuals, dubbed prophets. Others believe that revelation is channeled through divinely sanctioned religious institutions, and still other, more mystically oriented religions, believe that revelation is generally available to all people. The books of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible; aka Old Testament) are held to be the product of revelation by Jews. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament are held to be the product of divine revelation by Christians. Muslims consider the Tanakh and the New Testament to be deliberately corrupted and falsified works; instead they affirm that the Koran alone represents divine revelation. How revelation works, and what precisely one means when one says that a book is "divine" remains a matter of some dispute.

Neopaganists teach that communication from the gods is usually direct and experiential, and do not have the concepts of "scripture", "prophet" or "revelation" in the sense used by the Abrahamic religions. Divine messages are believed to usually be given directly to the person or persons for whom they are meant. In some traditions, a ritual sometimes considered revelatory is called Drawing Down the Moon, in which a high priestess (or sometimes High Priest) invokes the Goddess and speaks by Divine inspiration to an assembled coven. This ritual occurs most commonly in the Wiccan traditions.

Omnipotence and Omniscience

Discussions about God between people of different faiths, or indeed even between people of the same faith, often prove unproductive, in no small amount due to people using the same words but assigning them different meanings. This situation occurs when some monotheists within Christianity, Judaism, and Islam state that God is omnipotent. In practice one finds that the term "omnipotent" has been used to connote a number of different positions. See the articles on Omnipotence, Omnipresence and Predestination.

Many monotheists reject altogether the view that God is omnipotent. In Unitarian-Universalism, much of Conservative Judaism and Reform Judaism, and some liberal wings of Protestant Christianity, God is said to act in the world through persuasion, and not by coercion. God makes Himself manifest in the world through inspiration and the creation of possibility, but not by miracles or violations of the laws of nature. The most popular works espousing this point come from Rabbi Harold Kushner (in Judaism). This is the view that also was developed independently by Alfred North Whitehead and Charles Hartshorne, in the theological system known as process theology.

See a list of Deities from various religions. See also Goddess.

Some of the Hindu Gods include Brahman, Devi, Vishnu, and Siva. See the entry on Hinduism for a discussion of this faith's theology, which is fairly complicated: most of its adherents are polytheists, but a few are monotheists.

God as a computer, alien, etc.

Some comparatively new belief systems and books portray God as an alien. Many of these theories hold that intelligent aliens from another world have been visiting Earth for many thousands of years, and have influenced the development of our religions. Some of these books posit that prophets or messiahs were sent to the human race in order to teach humanity morality, and to encourage our civilization to grow and develop.

Some people have posited that perhaps God is really an intelligence that at some point in the past become sufficiently advanced that it uploaded itself to the very fabric of the cosmos. In this view, this god-intelligence now looks over the Earth.

Similar to this theory is the belief or aspiration that humans will create a God entity, emerging from an artificial intelligence. Arthur C. Clarke, a science fiction writer (and futurist of sorts), said in an interview that: It may be that our role on this planet is not to worship God, but to create him.

Another variant on this hypothesis is that humanity or a segment of humanity will, through self-evolution, create a posthuman God from itself.

See also: Satan, The Devil, The relationship between religion and science -- The nature of God -- God and gender

References

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Greek mythology

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Greek mythology is the set of legends which come from the religion of ancient Hellenic civilization. These stories were familiar to all ancient Greekss and, although some thinkers professed skepticism, they provided the people with both rituals and history.

See also: Greek religion, Roman mythology, Roman religion, paganism

In Greek mythology, the gods in the Greek pantheon are given human form, but are first and foremost personifications of the forces of the universe. As such they are more or less unchanging, and while they sometimes seem to have a sense of justice, they are often petty or vengeful. The gods' favors are won by sacrifices and piety, but this does not guarantee them, for the gods are known to be prone to frequent changes of mind. Their anger is harsh and their love can be just as dangerous.

The world of Greek mythology is quite complex. It is full of monsters, wars, intrigue, and meddling gods. And there are heroes to help overcome these problems. Men and women were much greater in those days, of course, though the Greeks did not see any wide gulf between their history and their religion (see, for example, The Iliad and The Odyssey). Such beliefs can be compared to the way in which, for instance, some Christian creationists today equate the Bible literally with their history. The Greeks saw themselves as the direct descendants of the mythological heroes and their culture. In addition to the continuing use of and allusion to mythology in literature, Greek mythology today makes for some wonderful stories that remain enjoyable.

Greek mythology continues to be an important cultural reference long after the Greek religion with which it was entwined ceased to be practiced. There was, to be sure, a Christian move to deface or destroy idols and other images that reflected the public cult of the gods when Christianity replaced paganism as the official faith of the Roman Empire. Literature posed a harder problem to the Christians; it would be impossible to erase the influence of Greek mythology there without casting aside the Iliad and the other works of Homer, Theocritus, Vergil, Ovid, and hundreds of other authors that none but a few zealots were willing to cast aside. Greek mythology thus has persisted for more than a millennium after Greek religion became extinct. Even the most Christian literature is often filled with allusions to Greek and Roman mythology, as a glimpse at Milton's Paradise Lost makes plain:

By younger Saturn, he from mightier Jove
His own and Rhea's Son like measure found;
So Jove usurping reign'd: these first in Crete
And Ida known, thence on the Snowy top
Of cold Olympus rul'd the middle Air
Thir highest Heav'n; or on the Delphian Cliff,
Or in Dodona, and through all the bounds
Of Doric Land; or who with Saturn old
Fled over Adria to th' Hesperian Fields,
And ore the Celtic roam'd the utmost Isles.
--Paradise Lost, book I

List of Greek mythological characters

Some important mythical places:

Sources: Ovid, The Metamorphoses -- Apuleius, The Golden Ass -- Homer, The Iliad and The Odyssey -- Hesiod, The Theogony

External link

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List of deities

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

This List of deities aims at giving information about ancient and actual deities in the different religions, cultures and mythologies of the world. It is sorted alphabetically.

See also: deva (=demigod), God, Goddess, mythology, religion, scripture.

Abenaki

Deities in the Abrahamic religions

Jews, Christians, and Muslims believe in the same God, but Muslims, and to some degree Jews (see below), visualize God in strictly monotheistic terms, whereas most Christians believe that God exists as a Trinity.

Judaism

Yahweh is the Biblical name for God used by ancient Jews. Adonai, Eloheynu and Hashem are some of the names of God used in modern day Judaism. The Hebrew word "elohim" is also used to refer to God in the Torah (and the Old Testament), and this refers to a plural nature of God. However, Jews hold to a slightly more monotheistic view of God than Christians. They reject Jesus Christ as a false messiah, and do not assign any deity to him. However, the English word "God" (spelled "G-d" in deference to the taboo against pronouncing the Tetragrammation) is commonly accepted among Jews to denote God (or G-d), as well.

Christianity

Historically, Christianity has professed belief in one deity, three divine persons (the Trinity), that make up one deity or Godhead, known as "God". (See Athanasian Creed.) Thus, most Christians are trinitarian monotheists, although there have been dissenters; see the articles Arianism, Unitarianism (History), Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Jehovah's Witnesses for examples. Most of these unitarian groups believe or believed that only God the Father is a deity; Latter-day Saints believe that the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit are three distinct deities. In some branches of Christianity, the Virgin Mary has a god-like position. Note also the saints.

Islam

Allah is the most traditional Muslim name for God. Islamic tradition also speaks of 99 Names of God.

Other

Two smaller faiths that don't neatly fit into any of the categories of Abrahamic religions. Rastafarianism worships Jah and the Baha'i Faith lso worships the same God as Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Akamba mythology

Akan mythology

Ashanti mythology

Australian Aboriginal mythology

Aztec mythology

Bushongo mythology

Celtic mythology

a more complete list can be found here.

Chinese mythology

Chippewa mythology

Creek mythology

Dacian mythology

Dahomey mythology

Dinka mythology

Efik mythology

Egyptian mythology

Egyptian deities are often portrayed as having animal heads in art; as an example, Anubis is often portrayed in statuary as having the body of a human, but the head of a canine. Many gods were portrayed with different animal heads, depending upon the situation. The Egyptians did NOT actually believe that their gods had animal heads; rather, they portrayed them that way as artistic symbolism. This may have been for the benefit of the illiterate.

See http://touregypt.net/godsofegypt/ for the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism's extensive information on Egyptian Deities.

Etruscan mythology

Old Finnish deities

There are very few written documents about old Finnish religions; also the names of deities and practices of worship changed from place to place. The following is a summary of the most important and most widely worshipped deities.

Ancient Greek mythology

See also Demigods, the Dryads, the Fates, the Erinyes, the Graces, the Horae, the Muses, the Nymphs, the Pleiades, the Titans

Guarani mythology

Haida mythology

Hinduism

Hopi mythology

See also kachina

Huron mythology

Ibo mythology

Incan mythology

Inuit mythology

Iroquois mythology

Isoko mythology

Japanese mythology

see also Kami

Khoikhoi mythology

Modern Western mythology ("Kitchen Gods")

In addition to the gods listed above, there are several minor mythological beings spoken of in current western culture and may be taken more or less seriously. These are commonly called Kitchen Gods.

Kwakiutl mythology

Lakota mythology

Lotuko mythology

Latvian mythology

Lugbara mythology

Maya mythology

Mesopotamian mythology

Navaho mythology

Norse mythology

Pawnee mythology

Polynesian mythology

see also Menehune

Old Prussian / Baltic deities

Pygmy mythology

Roman mythology

Salish mythology

Sardinian deities

Sardinian deities, mainly referred to in the age of Nuragici people, are partly derived from Phoenician ones.

Seneca mythology

Slavic mythology

Sumerian mythology

See also Annuna

Tumbuka mythology

Ugarit mythology

Note: Ugarit had a profound influence on Canaanite religion and some influence on the Abrahamic religions, as well.

Winnebago mythology

Yoruba mythology

Zulu mythology

Zuni mythology

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Pantheon

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Pantheon, in one sense, is a name for a temple or sacred building dedicated to all the gods of a particular religion. The word derives from the Greek words παν (pan, all) and θεος (theos, god). In another sense, it refers to all the gods of a particular religion or mythology, such as the gods of Hinduism, Greek mythology, Norse mythology. Since the 16th century the word has also been used in a secular sense, meaning a set of exalted people.

The word is today used mainly to describe three buildings:

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Synonym: GODS

Synonym: Deities. (additional references)

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Synonyms within Context: GODS

ContextSynonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus).

Abode

Home, fatherland; country; homestead, homestall; fireside; hearth, hearth stone; chimney corner, inglenook, ingle side; harem, seraglio, zenana; household gods, lares et penates, roof, household, housing, dulce domum, paternal domicile; native soil, native land.

Content

Verb: be content; Adjective: rest satisfied, rest and be thankful; take the good the gods provide, let well alone, let well enough alone, feel oneself at home, hug oneself, lay the flattering unction to one's soul.

Jupiter

Noun: god, goddess; heathen gods and goddesses; deva; Jupiter, Jove; pantheon.

Wonder

Interjection: lo, lo and behold! O! heyday! halloo! what! indeed! really! surely! humph! hem! good lack, good heavens, gad so! welladay! dear me! only think! lackadaisy! my stars, my goodness! gracious goodness! goodness gracious! mercy on us! heavens and earth! God bless me! bless us, bless my heart! odzookens! O gemini! adzooks! hoity-toity! strong! Heaven save the mark, bless the mark! can such things be! zounds! 'sdeath! what on earth, what in the world! who would have thought it!; (inexpectation); you don't say so! You're kidding!. No kidding? what do you say to that! nous verrons! how now! where am I?

Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus.

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Crosswords: GODS

English words defined with "GODS": Household gods ♦ lap of the gods ♦ Twilight of the Gods. (references)
Specialty definitions using "GODS": Akuman, Alfader, Altar, Anammelech, Asoka, Asyniur ♦ BACCHUS, Berenice, Briareos ♦ Cabiri, Chariot of the Gods, Choriambic Metre, crawling horror ♦ Dances ♦ Giants, Giants' War with Jove, Gjallar, Greek Gift ♦ Hercules' Choice, Hexameter Verse, Horns of the Altar ♦ ICHOR, Idomeneus, INFERIAE, I'ris, I'sis ♦ Jebusites, JUPITER ♦ Kiak-Kiak ♦ Maccabzaeus, MACROBIAN, Manucodiata, Marriage Plates, Melanuros, MERCURY, Mimer's Well, Mormon Creed, Mount of the congregation, Mummy ♦ Naglfar, Nephelo-coccygia, Nine Gods, Norna of the Fitful Head ♦ Olympian ♦ Pelops, Phlegra, Playing to the Gods, Polybotes, Proselytes ♦ Rascal Counters, Real Soon Now ♦ Salmoneus, Scobellum, Shihor-Libnath, Strangers Sacrificed, Svalin ♦ Tartak ♦ ugliness ♦ VENUS ♦ Warrior Queen, Whom the Gods Love Die Young, Wooden Horse of Troy ♦ Zeus. (references)
Etymologies containing "GODS": Religion. (references)
Non-English Usage: "GODS" is also a word in the following languages with English translations in parentheses.

Norwegian (estate), Swedish (country house, country seat, court, estate, freight, goods, manor, material, possessions, property, ware).

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Modern Usage: GODS

DomainUsage

Screenplays

You have been selected as its progenitors, like gods you offspring will return to Earth and shape it in their image (Moonraker; writing credit: Christopher Wood)

Anna's a goddess, you know what happens to mortals who get involved with gods. (Notting Hill; writing credit: Richard Curtis)

Gods, I like Gods (Mépris, Le; writing credit: Alberto Moravia)

Dear Lord, the gods have been good to me. As an offering, I present these milk and cookies (The Simpsons; writing credit: Artur Brauner; Paul Hengge)

Gods don't use transceivers (Doctor Who; writing credit: Basil Caplan; Martin Defalco)

Lyrics

To the gods and the angels (Like A Stone; performing artist: AUDIOSLAVE)

The hammer of the gods will drive our ships to new lands, (Immigrant song; performing artist: Led Zeppelin)

Clever

Man's way leads to a hopeless end! Gods way leads to an endless hope! (references; author: unknown)

Movie/TV Titles

Gods and Generals (2003)

Bamboo Gods and Iron Men (1974)

The Legend of Gods and Goddesses (1967)

Twilight for the Gods (1958)

Kinderen in gods hand (1958)

Song Titles

Standing Outside A Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand (performing artist: Primitive Radio Gods)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Commercial Usage: GODS

DomainTitle

Books

  

Periodicals

  

Theater & Movies

  • Gods and Monsters - Special Edition (reference)

  • Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 36, Episodes 71 & 72: Whom Gods Destroy/ The Mark of Gideon (reference)

  • Gods and Monsters (reference)

  • Star Trek - The Original Series, Episode 71: Whom Gods Destroy (reference)

    (more DVD examples; more video examples)

  

Music

  

High Tech

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Image Slideshow: GODS

Photos:
GODS

More pictures...

Illustrations:
GODS

More pictures...

Computer Images:
GODS

More pictures...

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Photo Album: GODS

ThumbnailDescription & CreditThumbnailDescription & Credit

Egyptian gods shaped as the word "LIFE" with scarab and bird. Credit: Library of Congress.

War bride -- 1945 -- the propagation of Hirohito's race of gods. Credit: Library of Congress.

"The Gods are angry" / Herblock. Credit: Library of Congress.

Scenes on the line of the Denver and Rio Grande Railway. Garden of the gods. Credit: Library of Congress.

Garden of the Gods, the Gateway, Colorado. Credit: Library of Congress.

Gateway, Garden of the Gods and Pike's Peak. Credit: Library of Congress.

Garden of the Gods. Credit: Library of Congress.

Gods handiwork. Credit: Library of Congress.

Steamboat and Balance Rock, Garden of the Gods, Col. Credit: Library of Congress.

Ute Indian Camp, Garden of the Gods, Shan Kive, 1913. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

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Digital Photo Gallery: GODS
 

"Temple" by Dennis Poulette
Commentary: "A picture of the faces of the gods on the temple at the pyramids in Teotihuacan, Mexico."

Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers.

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Familiar Quotations: GODS

AuthorQuotation

Aesop

The gods help them that help themselves.

Euripides

If gods do evil then they are not gods.

Horace

Leave all else to the gods.
O nights and suppers of the gods!

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

Live with the gods.

Menander

Whom the gods love dies young.

Oscar Wilde

Those whom the gods love grow young.

Ovid

The gods have their own rules.

Plato

Even the gods love jokes.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Use in Literature: GODS

TitleAuthorQuote

Les Miserables

Hugo, Victor

The Amphictyons had two sessions a year, one at Delphi, place of the gods, the other at Thermopylae, place of the heroes

Walden

Thoreau, Henry David

The gods must be proud, thought I, with such forked flashes to rout a poor unarmed fisherman

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

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Non-Fiction Usage: GODS

SubjectTopicQuote

Health

The disease was believed to be delivered upon the people by the displeasure of the gods, by other supernatural powers or, by heavenly disturbance. (references)

Business

The ancient Greeks had assigned responsibility for tourism to their most senior of Gods, Jupiter. (references)

Economic History

Cambodia

The principal temple, Angkor Wat, was built between 1112 and 1150 by Suryavarman II. With walls nearly one-half mile on each side, Angkor Wat portrays the Hindu cosmology with the central towers representing Mount Meru, home of the gods; the outer walls, the mountains enclosing the world; and the moat, the oceans beyond.Angkor Thom, the capital city built after the Cham sack of 1177, is surrounded by a 300-foot wide moat. (references)

Lexicography

Devil's Dictionary

ALTAR, n. The place whereupon the priest formerly raveled out the small intestine of the sacrificial victim for purposes of divination and cooked its flesh for the gods. The word is now seldom used, except with reference to the sacrifice of their liberty and peace by a male and a female tool. They stood before the altar and supplied The fire themselves in which their fat was fried. In vain the sacrifice! -- no god will claim An offering burnt with an unholy flame. M.P. Nopput

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

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Usage Frequency: GODS

"GODS" is generally used as a noun (plural) -- approximately 86.06% of the time. "GODS" is used about 1,369 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted)
Parts of SpeechPercentUsage per
100 Million Words		Rank in English
Noun (plural)86.06%1,1786,555
Noun (proper)13.94%19122,216
                    Total100.00%1,369N/A

Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.

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Derived & Related Names: GODS

The following table summarizes names derived from the word "GODS".
 
NameGenderLanguageMeaning
BaalimN/ABiblical

False gods

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

 

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Expressions: GODS

Expressions using "GODS": beloved of the gods ♦ drink of the gods ♦ Gallery gods ♦ Genial gods ♦ gift of the gods ♦ gods will ♦ household gods ♦ it's in the lap of the gods ♦ lap of the gods ♦ Scourge of the Gods ♦ take the good the gods provide ♦ the gods ♦ tree of the gods ♦ twilight of the gods. Additional references.

Hyphenated Usage

Beginning with "GODS": gods-and-men.

Ending with "GODS": demi-gods, smith-gods.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Modern Translation: GODS

Language Translations for "GODS"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.

Arabic 

  

‏حب من الله (beloved of the gods). (various references)

   

Czech

  

galerie (gallery, the gods), bidýlko (the gods). (various references)

   

French

  

poulailler (Gallery Gods). (various references)

   

German

  

Götter. (various references)

   

Hungarian

  

csak az isten tudja (to be in the lap of the gods), a jövő titka (to be in the lap of the gods). (various references)

   

Indonesian

  

kayangan (heaven, world of gods). (various references)

   

Italian

  

dei (any, of the, some). (various references)

   

Japanese Kanji 

  

神神 , 神々 . (various references)

   

Japanese Katakana 

  

かみがみ. (various references)

   

Pig Latin

  

odsgay.(various references)

   

Romanian

  

zeii casei (household gods), spectatori de la galerie (the gods), penaţii (household gods). (various references)

   

Russian 

  

галерка (gallery, nigger heaven, paradise, the gods), публика галерки (the gods). (various references)

   

Spanish

  

gallinero (chickencoop, chick-run, coop, hencoop, henhouse, peanut gallery, pen, poultry house, roost), paraíso (heaven, paradise). (various references)

   

Swedish

  

gudar. (various references)

   

Turkish

  

tanrılarla devlerin savaşı (twilight of the gods). (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

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Bible Trace: GODS

LanguageDateSourceActs Chapter 21, Verse 25
Greek (transliterated)250 BCSeptuagintPeri de twn pepisteukotwn eqnwn hmeiV epesteilamen krinanteV mhden toiouton threin autouV ei mh fulassesqai autouV to te eidwloquton kai to aima kai pnikton kai porneian
Latin405VulgateDe his autem qui crediderunt ex gentibus nos scripsimus iudicantes ut abstineant se ab idolis immolato et sanguine et suffocato et fornicatione
Middle English1395WyclifBut of these that bileueden of hethene men, we writen, demynge that thei absteyne hem fro thing offrid to idols, and fro blood, and also fro stranglid thing, and fro fornicacioun.
Renaissance English1526TyndaleFor as touchinge the gentyls which beleve we have written and concluded yt they observe no soche thinges: but that they kepe them selves from thinges offred to ydoles from bloud fro strangled and fro fornicacion.
Jacobean English1611King JamesAs touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
Victorian English1833WebsterAs concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from lewdness.
Basic English1964OgdenBut as to the Gentiles who have the faith, we sent a letter, giving our decision that they were to keep themselves from offerings made to false gods, and from blood, and from the flesh of animals put to death in ways against the law, and from the evil desires of the body.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Matched Bible Translations: GODS

LanguageActs Chapter 21, Verse 25
AlbanianDhe sa për johebrenjtë që kanë besuar, ne u kemi shkruar atyre, mbasi vendosëm që ata nuk kanë ç'të respektojnë lidhur me këtë, por se të ruhen nga gjërat që u flijohen idhujve, nga gjaku, nga gjërat e mbytura dhe nga kurvëria''.
CebuanoApan bahin sa mga Gentil nga nanagpanoo, amo na silang gikasulatan sa among hukom nga kinahanglan ilang dumilian ang bisan unsa nga gikadulot ngadto sa mga diosdios, ug ang dugo, ug ang mga mananap nga naluok, ug ang pakighilawas."
CroatianA što se tièe pogana koji povjerovaše - poslali smo što odluèismo: da se klone mesa žrtvovana idolima, k