Shango
Shango statuette This depiction of Shango on horseback has been attributed to the workshop of the renowned Yoruba carver Toibo, of the town of Erin. It was probably carved in the 1920s or 1930s for the timi (king) of Ede (one of the historic Yoruba kingdoms), who kept it in a shrine dedicated to the orisha (god) Shango. Equestrian figures are potent symbols of power in many parts of Africa where ownership of horses was long restricted to warriors and political leaders. In Yoruba mythology, Shango was both a king and the orisha associated with thunder and lightning. Figure of a Devotee of Shango Holding an Oshe Shango, Brooklyn Museum In the Yorùbá religion, Ṣàngó (also spelled, Sango, Shango, often known as Xangô or Changó in Latin America and the Caribbean, and also known as Jakuta[1]) (from '=shan, 'to strike') is perhaps one of the most popular Orisha; also known as the god of fire, lightning and thunder. Historical Sango[edit] Veneration of Shango[edit] In the Americas[edit]
Babylonian religion
Babylonian religion is the religious practice of Babylonia. Babylonian mythology was greatly influenced by their Sumerian counterparts, and was written on clay tablets inscribed with the cuneiform script derived from Sumerian cuneiform. The myths were usually either written in Sumerian or Akkadian. Some Babylonian texts were translations into Akkadian from the Sumerian language of earlier texts, although the names of some deities were changed in Babylonian texts. Many of the stories of the Tanakh are believed to have been based on, influenced by, or inspired by the legendary mythological past of the Near East.[1] Mythology and cosmology[edit] Babylonian mythology is a set of stories depicting the activities of Babylonian deities, heroes, and mythological creatures. Babylonian mythology was greatly influenced by their Sumerian counterparts, and was written on clay tablets inscribed with the cuneiform script derived from sumerian cuneiform. Religious festivals[edit] Importance of idols[edit]
Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh (/ˈɡɪl.ɡə.mɛʃ/; Akkadian cuneiform: 𒄑𒂆𒈦 [𒄑𒂆𒈦], Gilgameš, often given the epithet of the King, also known as Bilgamesh in the Sumerian texts)[1] was the fifth king of Uruk, modern day Iraq (Early Dynastic II, first dynasty of Uruk), placing his reign ca. 2500 BC. According to the Sumerian King List he reigned for 126 years. In the Tummal Inscription,[2] Gilgamesh, and his son Urlugal, rebuilt the sanctuary of the goddess Ninlil, in Tummal, a sacred quarter in her city of Nippur. Gilgamesh is the central character in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the greatest surviving work of early Mesopotamian literature. Cuneiform references[edit] In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh is credited with the building of the legendary walls of Uruk. Fragments of an epic text found in Me-Turan (modern Tell Haddad) relate that at the end of his life Gilgamesh was buried under the river bed. Later (non-cuneiform) references[edit] Theodore Bar Konai (ca. See also[edit] Notes and references[edit]
Set (mythology)
Set /sɛt/ or Seth (/sɛθ/; also spelled Setesh, Sutekh,[1] Setekh, or Suty) is a god of the desert, storms, disorder, violence and foreigners in ancient Egyptian religion.[2] In Ancient Greek, the god's name is given as Sēth (Σήθ). Set is not, however, a god to be ignored or avoided; he has a positive role where he is employed by Ra on his solar boat to repel the serpent of Chaos Apep.[2] Set had a vital role as a reconciled combatant.[2] He was lord of the red (desert) land where he was the balance to Horus' role as lord of the black (soil) land.[2] In Egyptian mythology, Set is portrayed as the usurper who killed and mutilated his own brother Osiris. Family Set's siblings are Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys. Origin The meaning of the name Seth is unknown, thought to have been originally pronounced *Sūtaḫ based on the occurrence of his name in Egyptian hieroglyphs (swtḫ), and his later mention in the Coptic documents with the name Sēt.[4] Set animal Conflict between Horus and Set Protector of Ra
Zu (mythology)
In Sumerian and Akkadian mythology, Anzû is a divine storm-bird and the personification of the southern wind and the thunder clouds. This demon—half man and half bird—stole the "Tablets of Destiny" from Enlil and hid them on a mountaintop. Anu ordered the other gods to retrieve the tablets, even though they all feared the demon. According to one text, Marduk killed the bird; in another, it died through the arrows of the god Ninurta. In Babylonian myth, Anzû is a deity associated with cosmogeny. Jump up ^ Greek Myths and Mesopotamia: Parallels and Influence in the Homeric Hymns and Hesiod
Mesopotamian religion
The god Marduk and his dragon Mušḫuššu Mesopotamian religion refers to the religious beliefs and practices followed by the Sumerian and East Semitic Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian and later migrant Arameans and Chaldeans, living in Mesopotamia (a region encompassing modern Iraq, Kuwait, southeast Turkey and northeast Syria) that dominated the region for a period of 4200 years from the fourth millennium BCE throughout Mesopotamia to approximately the 10th century CE in Assyria.[1] Mesopotamian polytheism was the only religion in ancient Mesopotamia for thousands of years before entering a period of gradual decline beginning between the 1st and 3rd centuries CE. Reconstruction[edit] As with most dead religions, many aspects of the common practices and intricacies of the doctrine have been lost and forgotten over time. History[edit] Overview map of ancient Mesopotamia. Akkadian names first appear in king lists of these states circa 2800 BCE. Religion in the Neo-Assyrian Empire[edit] "Enlil!
Tonatiuh
In Aztec mythology, Tonatiuh (Nahuatl: Ōllin Tōnatiuh [oːlːin toːˈnatiʍ] "Movement of the Sun") was the sun god.[1] The Aztec people considered him the leader of Tollan, heaven. He was also known as the fifth sun, because the Aztecs believed that he was the sun that took over when the fourth sun was expelled from the sky. Description[edit] Aztec theology held that each sun was a god with its own cosmic era, the Aztecs believed they were still in Tonatiuh's era. According to the Aztec creation myth, the god demanded human sacrifice as tribute and without it would refuse to move through the sky. In the Aztec calendar, Tonatiuh is the lord of the thirteen days from 1 Death to 13 Flint. See also[edit] Aztec sun stone References[edit] External links[edit] Windows to The Universe page on Tonatiuh
Cedar Forest
A Cedar Forest in Lebanon The Cedar Forest is the glorious realm of the gods of Mesopotamian mythology. It is guarded by the demigod Humbaba and was once entered by the hero Gilgamesh who dared cut down trees from its virgin stands during his quest for immortality. The Cedar Forest is described in Tablets 4-6 of the great Epic of Gilgamesh. Early translators of the Epic have assumed that the "Ceder Forest" refers to the Lebanon Ceders. Tablet 4[edit] Tablet four tells the story of the journey to the cedar forest. The skies roared with thunder and the earth heaved, Then came darkness and a stillness like death. Lightning smashed the ground and fires blazed out; Death flooded from the skies. When the heat died and the fires went out, The plains had turned to ash. Enkidu's interpretation is missing here, but as with the other dreams, it is assumed he puts a positive spin on the volcanic dream. Tablet 5[edit] Tablet 6[edit] Father, let me have the Bull of Heaven To kill Gilgamesh and his city.
