Chac: The god of rain. Benevolent god for the Mayans, who often sought his help for their crops. Chac was associated with creation and life. Chac was also considered to be divided into four equal entities. North, south, east, and west. Chac was also apparently associated with the wind god, Kukulcan. There is some debate whether or not Kukulcan was just a variation of Chac. Or could he have been the son of Enki, known as Ningishzidda?
Kinich Ahau: The Sun god. He was the patron god of the city Itzamal. He visited the city at noon every day. He would descend as a macaw and consume prepared offerings. Kinich Ahau is usually shown with jaguar-like features. Kinich Ahau also wears the symbol of Kin, a Mayan day. He was also known by the name Ah Xoc Kin, who was associated with poetry and music.
Yumil Kaxob: The maize god, representing ripe grain which was the base of the Mayan agriculture. In some parts of Mesoamerica, like Yucatan, the maize god is combined with the god of flora. He is shown with a headdress of maize and a curved streak on his cheek. He is distinguishable from other gods by his youth.
The maize god was powerless by himself. His fortunes and misfortunes were decided by the control of rain and drought. The Rain god would protect him but he suffered when the Death god exercised drought and famine.
Yum Cimil: The god of death. Also could be called Ah Puch, the god of the Underworld with a predominantly skeletal body. His adornments are also made of bones. Yum Cimil has also been represented with a body covered with black spots depicting decomposition. He also wears a collar with eyeless sockets. This adornment was the typical symbol for the Underworld. Could this have had something to do with the tradition of mining, the symbolisms surrounding it, the clothing and protective gear the miners might have worn?
Ixtab: Goddess of the dead – the suicide goddess. She receives their souls into paradise and is always represented with a rope around her neck. The Mayans believed that suicides would lead you to heaven. It was common for suicides to happen because of depression or for even more trivial reasons.
Ix Chel:The ‘Lady Rainbow’ was the old moon goddess. She was depicted as an old woman wearing a skirt with crossed bones holding a serpent in her hand. She had an assistant sky serpent, which they believed carried all of the waters of the heavens in its belly. She is often shown carrying a great jug filled with water, which she overturns to send floods and powerful rainstorms to Earth. Itzamna, her husband was the benevolent moon god. But Ix Chel had a kinder side and was worshipped as the protector of weavers and women in childbirth.
Other Mayan gods are:
Ah Kinchil: Another name for the Sun god.
Ah Puch: Another name for the god of death.
Ahau Chamahez: One of two gods of medicine.
Ahmakiq: God of agriculture. He locks up the wind so it does not destroy the crops.
Akhushtal: The goddess of childbirth.
Bacabs: The bacabs are the canopy gods, thought to be brothers, who, with upraised arms, supported the multilayered sky from their assigned positions at the four cardinal points of the compass. The Bacabs may also have been four manifestations of the same deity. The four brothers were possibly the offspring of Itzamna, the supreme deity, and Ixchel, the goddess of weaving, medicine, and childbirth.
Cit Bolon Tum: God of medicine.
Cizin (Kisin): ‘Stinking One’; Mayan Earthquake god and god of death, ruler of the subterranean land of the dead. He lives beneath the Earth in a purgatory where all souls except those of soldiers killed in battle and women who died in childbirth spend some time. Suicides are doomed to his realm for eternity.
Ekahau: God of travellers and merchants.
Kan-u-Uayeyab: The god who guarded cities.
Nacon: The god of war.
Tzultacaj (Tzuultaq'ah): The god of the mountains and valleys.
Yaxche: Is the Tree of Heaven under which good souls rejoice.
Egyptian gods.
RE or RA:
Egyptian sun god and creator god. He was usually depicted in human form with a falcon head, crowned with the sun disc encircled by the uraeus which was a stylised representation of the sacred cobra. The sun itself was taken to be either his body or his eye. He was said to traverse the sky each day in a ‘boat of heaven’ and pass through the underworld each night on another ‘boat of heaven’ to reappear in the east each morning. His principal cult centre was at Heliopolis also known as ‘sun city’, near modern Cairo. Re was also considered to be an underworld god, closely associated in this respect with Osiris. In this capacity he was depicted as a ram-headed figure. By the third millennium BC, Re's prominence had already become such that the pharaohs took to styling themselves as the ‘sons of Re’. After death, all the Egyptian monarchs would ascend into the sky to join the entourage of the sun god. According to the Heliopolitan cosmology, Re was said to have created himself, either out of a primordial lotus blossom, or on the mound that emerged from the primeval waters. He then created Shu (air) and Tefnut (moisture), who in turn engendered the Earth god Geb and the sky goddess Nut. Re was said to have created Humankind from his own tears and the gods Hu (authority) and Sia (mind) from blood drawn from his own penis. Re was often combined with other deities to enhance the prestige of such deities, as in Re-Atum and Amun-Re. We can see the amazing similarity to Marduk and his activity according to the Sumerian tablets. It is written that he dictated the writing of the Book of the Dead which gave the pharaohs clear instructions on how to reach the afterlife.
OSIRIS or USIRE:
Egyptian god of the underworld and of vegetation. Son of Nut and Geb. His birthplace was said to be Rosetau in the necropolis west of Memphis. Brother of Nephthys and Seth, and the brother and husband of Isis. Isis gave birth to Horus after his death, having impregnated herself with semen from his corpse. Osiris was depicted in human form wrapped up as a mummy, holding the crook and flail. He was often depicted with green skin, alluding to his role as a god of vegetation. He wore a crown known as the ‘atef’, composed of the tall conical white crown of Upper Egypt with red plumes on each side. Osiris had many cult centres, but the most important were at Abydos (Ibdju) in Upper Egypt, where the god's legend was reenacted in an annual festival, and at Busiris (Djedu) in the Nile delta. One of the so-called “dying gods”, he was the focus of a famous legend in which he was killed by the rival god Seth. At a banquet of the gods, Seth fooled Osiris into stepping into a coffin, which he promptly slammed shut and cast into the Nile. The coffin was born by the Nile to the delta town of Byblos, where it became enclosed in a tamarisk tree. Isis, the wife of Osiris, discovered the coffin and brought it back. The story to this point is attested to only by the Greek writer Plutarch, although Seth was identified as his murderer as early as the Pyramid era of the Old Kingdom.
Seth took advantage of Isis's temporary absence on one occasion, cut the body to pieces, and cast it into the Nile. (In the Egyptian texts this incident accounts for the murder of Osiris.) Isis searched the land for the body parts of Osiris, and was eventually able to piece together his body, whole save for the penis, which had been swallowed by a crocodile (according to Plutarch) or a fish (according to Egyptian texts). In some Egyptian texts, the penis is buried at Memphis. Isis replaced the penis with a reasonable facsimile, and she was often portrayed in the form of a kite being impregnated by the ithyphallic corpse of Osiris. In some Egyptian texts, the scattering of the body parts is likened to the scattering of grain in the fields, a reference to Osiris's role as a vegetation god. ‘Osiris gardens’ – wood-framed barley seedbeds in the shape of the god, were sometimes placed in tombs – and the plants which sprouted from these beds symbolised the resurrection of life after death.
It was this legend that accounted for Osiris' role as a god of the dead and ruler of the Egyptian underworld. He was associated with funerary rituals, at first only with those of the Egyptian monarch, later with those of the populace in general. The pharaoh was believed to become Osiris after his death. Although he was regarded as a guarantor of continued existence in the afterlif
e, Osiris also had a darker, demonic aspect associated with the physiological processes of death and decay, and reflecting the fear Egyptians had of death in spite of their belief in an afterlife. Osiris was also a judge of the dead, referred to as the ‘lord of Maat’ (i.e. of divine law).
Legendary ruler of pre-dynastic Egypt and god of the underworld, Osiris, symbolised the creative forces of nature and the imperishability of life. Called the great benefactor of humanity, he brought to the people knowledge of agriculture and civilisation. The worship of Osiris, one of the great cults of ancient Egypt, gradually spread throughout the Mediterranean world and, with that of Isis and Horus, was especially vital during the Roman Empire.
ISIS:
Egyptian mother goddess, one of the great members of the pantheon. Greeks and Romans called her ‘star of the sea’ represented by the north star. Mother of the God kings, offspring of Geb and Nut. Older sister and consort of Osiris. We see how the half-sibling procreation continues among the gods to keep the bloodline pure. Her other siblings are Seth and Nephthys. Depicted with a crown in the shape of a throne or cow's horns. She revived Osiris to life. Once after Seth threw his body into the Nile; and secondly, after Seth had dismembered the body. She impregnated herself from his corpse and gave birth to Horus, who struggled to lay claim to the throne against Seth. She is identical in action and description to the Sumerian goddess Inanna.
GEB:
Egyptian Earth god. Son of Shu and Tefnut. Brother and consort of the sky god Nut. Father of Osiris, Seth, Isis, and Nephthys. Geb was generally depicted lying on his back, often wearing the crown of Lower Egypt, with the naked body of Nut arched above him. In this context, he was often shown with an erect penis pointing upward toward Nut. Sometimes, the air god Shu was shown standing on the body of Geb, supporting Nut and perhaps separating her from Geb. His skin was often green, indicative of his role as a god of fertility and vegetation. The goose was his sacred animal and his symbol in Egyptian hieroglyphics. Geb was also said to imprison the souls of the dead, preventing them from passing on to the afterlife. The laughter of Geb was said to cause Earthquakes.
SETH:
God of chaos and adversity. Son of Geb and Nut and the sibling of Isis, Osiris and Nephthys. He tore himself violently from his mother's womb and is depicted with a head of an animal resembling an aardvark, with erect ears and long snout. He is also linked to the Semitic goddess of war Anat and Astarte. In about 2500 BC the kings of Egypt suddenly deserted Seth and sided with Horus, the ‘Falcon god’. Tuthmosis III called himself ‘The beloved of Seth’. Seth was jealous of his brother Osiris and fought an 80-year-war against him. He defended Ra against the hostile serpent god of the ‘Underworld’. We should remember that the god of the underworld or ‘Lower World’ was Enki, who was depicted as a serpent often with wings, and Ra or Marduk, who was proclaiming himself as ‘god above all’ in Egypt.
HORUS:
Sky god. Also known as: Har, Har-pa-khered, Harpokrates, Harsiese, Harendotes, Harsomtus, Har-em-akhet, Harmachis and more. Horus is one of the most important gods of the Egyptian pantheon, attested from the earliest recorded period. He is a universally worshipped god of Egypt and latter civilisations. Represented by a full hawk or human body with a falcon's head. Also recognised by the ‘eye’ symbol. Son of Osiris and Isis. The first ruler of Egypt after an 80-year struggle against his brother and rival Seth. His mother hid him in the papyrus bushes of the Nile to prevent him from being found by his enemies. This led to many stories like the one of Moses in latter times. Sometimes depicted as a sun disk with wings. ‘Horus of the horizon.’
MIN or MENU:
Egyptian god of fertility but also ‘virility’. One of the important members of the pantheon of gods. Sometimes shown as the son of Isis or consort of Isis, and sometimes with Horus as his offspring from Isis. He is generally depicted as holding a flail in his raised right hand and wearing a crown with two tall plumes. Min was mainly a god of male sexuality, and in the New Kingdom (1567-1085 BC) he was honoured in the coronation rites of the pharaohs to ensure their sexual vigour and the production of a male heir. He was also depicted in human form with an erect penis. The "White Bull" appears to have been sacred to him, as was a type of lettuce which bore a resemblance to an erect penis and had a white sap that resembled semen. He was also the guardian deity of mines. His most important sanctuaries were at Koptos (Qift) and Akhmim (Panoplis) which were gold mining locations. He was also worshipped as a god of desert roads and of travellers. In addition to his role in coronation rites, Min was honoured in harvest festivals during which offerings of lettuce and sheaves of wheat were made.
AMUN:
The sun god, lord of the sky, the primeval deity present in creation and chaos. Probably the same god as RA. In latter times he became known as Amun-Ra. Probably the same god as Marduk, who proclaimed himself as ‘god above all’ according to Sumerian texts. Sometimes portrayed as a pharaoh with blue skin and a turban (modius). He is surmounted by two tall feathered plumes, showing his dominance over both upper and lower Egypt. His main place of worship is the temple of Amun at Karnak and Luxor. Other deities described him as “hidden of aspect, mysterious of form”. He earned the title ‘King of the gods’ and was regarded as the father of all pharaohs. At Thebes he was revered as a snake deity with connotations to immortality and renewal. This would fit the Sumerian description of the entwined serpent being the symbol of creation and knowledge of science, used in the creation of ‘Adamu’. The temple of queen Hatsepsut at Deir el-Bahari bears a relief of her mother impregnated by Amun. Once again this fits the link to Marduk, Ra and Amun, all being the same god, and insisting that all kings and queens were descendants of the gods. This mean that sometimes Amun would do the procreating himself. It also supports the belief among the pharaohs that they were descendants of the gods.
African gods.
Of all the global cultures and civilisations, African mythology is the most colourful and diverse. And yet there is an underlying common thread of creation, descending supreme deities who were in charge, followed by other gods of lesser importance who ruled the world and controlled all aspects of early human life on Earth. One often forgets that Egyptian mythology is part of African myth too. There are literally thousands of gods that have been woven into the tales of African mythology. They range from the very simple to the practical, from the ignorant to the wise and prophetic. Many of the northern Mediterranean myths are closely linked to the Egyptian gods, while the southern tales talk about gods who descend to Earth from their heavenly abode to make man, to teach them all they need, like agriculture and intelligence. Tales about supreme gods who made all the other gods and created the Earth from water and chaos. Gods who created the first man are a common ingredient in African myth. There are many references to a ‘flying serpent’ which seems a bit too coincidental once again to be a figment of their imagination. Lots of tales of two gods, one benevolent and one violent, who lived in the underworld and rose to the sky. Gods of thunder, gods of the sun, hunters, giants, bulls, and a variety of animals. A supreme god who commands two lesser gods, who ruled after the creation was completed, who is identical to the Sumerian stories. It points to the simple fact, that no matter how far apart the global civilisations may have been in the distant past, their tales of flying, powerful, benevolent and violent gods are all the same. But the diversity of African mythology also fits the historic accounts of the Sumerian tablets, that it was in southern Africa where the slave species was first put to work in the mines. It is truly incredible that many of the tales from these parts echo such sentiment. And just like the gods from other parts of the prehistoric world, the gods are related, with a hierarchy of responsibility. It makes perfect sense that the simplest stories with very basic imagery should come from Africa, since it was here that the original humans existed, who were for all intents and purposes the ‘infants’ of Humankind. As they left the secure mining compounds and established their own settlements and cultures, they would have reg
ular contact from the many gods involved in the mining operations and the control thereof. And yet as we discovered in the chapter on gold, there were very few if any temples and shrines built in Africa by those very early humans. They had no need to do so, and their relationship with the gods was not at a worship stage yet. The worshipping of gods was only imposed on humanity by the gods many years later when the slave species made its appearance in the Near East. But the true enforcement of worship only really occurred after the Great Flood, some 13,000 years ago. There are so many wonderful examples that it is difficult to choose only a few for these pages. But even through the diversity of African mythology, there is an uncanny underlying similarity which points to the character and activity of the Sumerian gods. The titles which Africans have given god are wondrous in their variety. A few of these are: Creator; Moulder; Giver of Rain and Sunshine; He Who Brings the Seasons; He Who Thunders; Ancient of Days; the First; the Limitless; the One Who Bends Even Kings; the One You Meet Everywhere; the Firelighter; Great Mother; Greatest of Friends; the Kindly One; the Providence Who Watches All Like the Sun; the Great Pool Contemporary of Everything; the Great Spider; the One Beyond All Thanks; the Bow in the Sky; the Angry One; the Inexplicable.
The following list is a brief and random example of African gods from a few stories of ancient times:
AGIPIE (Tanzania): A benevolent god who lives in the sky. He fights with the evil god who has lightning and destroys people.
BUKU (Various West African peoples): A sky god sometimes worshipped as a goddess. Buku created everything, even the other gods.
AKONGO (DRC): Supreme everlasting being, has good relations with humans. Has human characteristics with an intense interest in all their activities and their wellbeing. He had a quarrel with other gods and disappeared.
ALOUKO NIAMI KADIO ( Cote d'Ivoire): Created all other gods as well as man. After creating the world, he descended on a Saturday from his heavenly dwelling. He taught humans all they need to know to live and also what must remain a secret.
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