Gods of Ancient Greece - list and description. Goddess of the moon in different mythologies Hindu goddess of the moon

The goddess of the moon in the beliefs of different peoples is a reflection of the ancient lunar cult related to fertility. The worship of the moon goddess was intended to ensure a good harvest, the birth of a healthy child. Women of various ethnic groups turned to the moon to perform magical rites and practices that went down in history under the name of lunar mysteries.

Greek goddess of the moon

The daughter of the famous titans Theia and Hyperion, the goddess of the moon in Greek mythology - Selena, personified the moonlight among the Greeks. All natural phenomena are cyclical. At the change of day, in the face of the goddess Hemera, the vault of heaven was illuminated by the quiet, thoughtful light of Selena, riding out on her silver chariot drawn by horses. Beautiful, but pale and sad face of Selena. The Greeks worshiped her as the goddess of the tides, fertility. Selena is associated with - ancient Greek priestesses called to her through dreams for advice on important issues.

In the Hellenic (Greek) tradition, there were deities that migrated from other cultures. One of these figures is the goddess of the moon, her name is Hekate, gloomy and mysterious. She had three bodies and controlled the past, present and future, Zeus himself endowed her with this power. Faces of the Moon Goddess:

1. Daytime Hekate is the image of a mature, wise woman who patronizes people in judicial research, military operations, and obtaining various knowledge.
2. Night Hecate - brews love potions and poisons. Manages the night hunt. The goddess of the dark moon is depicted with a pack of red-eyed dogs running among the graves, in the hair of her snake, and her face is beautiful and terrible at the same time. Patronizes murderers, swindlers and lovers.
3. Heavenly Hekate is the personification of spirituality, the image of an immaculate young maiden. In this hypostasis, he helps philosophers and scientists. Accompanies the souls of the dead on the way to the light.

Roman goddess of the moon

The lunar cult of ancient Rome was similar to the Greek one, and at the initial stage of worship, the Roman goddess of the Moon was called the Moon. Later, the Romans began to call her Diana, and in some provinces Trivia. On the surviving frescoes, Diana is depicted in a moon-colored tunic, with beautiful flowing hair, in her hands a spear or a bow. The goddess of the moon Diana in the representation of people performed the following functions:

• protection and patronage of nature;
• obstetrics;
• goddess of the moon and the hunt;
• patronage of slaves and the poor;
• mistress of crossroads and roads.

Interesting Facts:

• in honor of the goddess of the Moon, the satellite of the planet Earth - the Moon is named;
• Diana - asteroid 78 is named after the brilliant goddess of the Romans.

Goddess of the Moon among the Slavs

The mother of all living things was considered the Slavic goddess of the moon - Divia, who personified the light in the night. It was created by the supreme god Rod, in order to illuminate the path for people at night, when, according to the beliefs of the Slavs, evil spirits, dark forces roam. Divya was depicted with a golden shining crown on her head, which appeared in the sky in the form of the moon. The goddess protected people during sleep, and sent bright ones. Divia's husband was Dyy (Div) - together they personified the daily cycle: day and night.

Egyptian moon goddess

The cult of the moon gods among the Egyptians was considered paramount; in their view, the moon influenced the fertility of the earth more than the sun. The moon was worshiped in the face, Nut, Hathor, but the most majestic was the Egyptian goddess of the moon - Isis, who lives on the star Sirius. The ancient magical cult of this goddess existed for a very long time and migrated to the esoteric circles of medieval Europe. Attributes of Isis:

• a curl of hair in a hairstyle is a symbol of the moon that affects plants;
• a ball on the head, lying on a wreath of flowers - the universe;
• snakes - the magical power of the moon and its path through the sky;
• ears of wheat in hair - a gift to mankind of the first grains and knowledge about the cultivation of fields;
• a bucket in the left hand - the flood of the Nile;
• musical instrument sistrum in the right hand - creates vibrations to scare away evil forces;
• a mantle embroidered with stars and a tunic shimmering with lunar hues - a symbol of the sky;
• the crescent in the region of the womb spreads the rays to the earth for fertility.

Functions inherent in Isis:

• protection of pregnant women and women in childbirth;
• patronage of travelers and sailors;
• discoverer and priestess of magical practices;
• protects all living things.

Hindu goddess of the moon

The moon goddesses of different peoples have a similar appearance and are endowed with the same powers. In some countries, the deity of the moon has a male hypostasis. India is a country with a huge pantheon of gods and various entities. Soma is the ancient moon god in Hinduism. By his middle name he is known as Chandra. He controls time, the minds of people and the whole universe. Soma - the source of the life force of all beings, patronizes the northeast. In the images, Chandra appears as a copper-skinned deity sitting in a lotus flower on a chariot drawn by white horses or antelopes.

Chinese Moon Goddess

The original and more ancient name of the goddess of the moon in China is Changsi, which later changed to Chang E. The Chinese are very fond of telling the legend about this beautiful goddess. A very long time ago, when the Earth was under the scorching action of ten suns, vegetation began to die, rivers dry up, and people died of thirst and hunger. The survivors prayed and heard their prayers, the shooter Hou Yi. The great hero shot down 9 suns with arrows from a bow, but left one, ordering him to hide for the night. This is how day and night came about.

The Emperor of the Celestial Empire rewarded the shooter with the elixir of immortality. Hou Yi gave it to his beloved wife Chang E for safekeeping. In the absence of her husband, someone Peng Meng broke into the house and wanted to take the elixir, but Chang E drank the potion so that the robber would not get it. The wind picked up Chang E, who had become light, and carried her to the sky to the Moon Palace. Hou Yi was very sad, but one day he saw the face of his wife on the moon and realized that she had become a moon goddess. Interesting Facts:

1. The 15th day of the 8th lunar month is considered the day of Chang E. On this day, people bring gifts and put various fruits on the tables.
2. The symbol of the goddess is Yutu the hare. According to legend, the animal offered itself as a sacrifice, for which the Heavenly Sovereign settled the eared one in the Moon Palace with Chang E so that she would not be so lonely. A hare in a mortar crushes cinnamon for potions.

Servants of the moon goddess Changxi celebrate the moon mystery every autumn. Lunar myths tell that in the sands of the Great Desert there is a mountain of the Sun and the Moon, where, according to legend, they set and rise, each luminary in its turn. The goddess of the moon, Changsi, is the most ancient Chinese moon deity mentioned in mythological sources. Wang-shu (a character about whom little is known) carries Changsi across the sky in a chariot, lighting the way for travelers late in the night. The moon goddess often appears as a three-legged toad.

Japanese goddess of the moon

The servants of the moon goddess in Japan are Shintoists, who preach the Shinto religion, which has survived unchanged to this day. This is the "way of the gods" or kami - belief in the elements, the spirits of nature, various deities. One of these kami is the moon goddess in Japan, Tsukiyomo, who often appears in a male form and is called Tsukiyomi-no-kami (the spirit that calls the moon). Moon Goddess/God Functions:

• rules over the ebb and flow;
• knows the lunar calendar;
• patronizes sea travelers;

Scandinavian goddess of the moon

The gods and goddesses of the moon are very revered by different peoples. The moon has always attracted people with its mysterious and gentle light. Peering into the Scandinavian Moon, you can see the cart driven by the moon god Mani, in which he carries two children Bil (in a later period she began to indirectly personify the goddess of the moon and time) and Hyuk. The Scandinavians saw the reflection of the masculine principle in the Moon, and the feminine principle in the Sun.

The legend of the northern tradition tells of the appearance of the moon god. Odin created from the fire of Muspelhein the Sun and the Moon. The gods thought about who would carry the luminaries across the sky. One heard how, on earth, a man named Mundilfari boasts that his children, daughter Sol (Sun) and son Mani (Moon), surpassed in beauty the heavenly creations created by the gods. One punished the proud father and sent his children to heaven to serve the people. Since then, Mani has been carrying the Moon across the sky, and the wolf Hati is chasing him, who strives to swallow the luminary.

Gauls goddess of the moon

The ancient Gauls preached the cult of the Great Mother Goddess, found under various names. The Gaulish goddess of the moon is known as Corey, and temples were erected in her honor, in which only female priestesses could serve. Men worshiped solar gods. The moon goddess Kori patronized such phenomena as:

• a bountiful harvest;
• the birth of healthy children;
• doctoring women's and.

Aztec moon goddess

In the ancient beliefs of the Aztecs, the goddess of the Moon and the night, as well as the Milky Way, Coyolxauqui, is the daughter of the goddess Coatlicue and the sword from volcanic magma. According to legend, she tried to kill her mother when she became pregnant from hummingbird feathers, but Huitzilopochtli jumped out of the womb of Coatlicue in a frightening battle attire and killed Coyolxauqui by cutting off his head, which he threw high into the sky. Thus the moon goddess was born. The Aztecs believed that the Coyolxauci had the ability to:

• cause great harm to a person (damage his mind);
• control the star deities of Witznaun;
• help in military operations.

Celtic goddess of the moon

The ancient Celts noticed a similarity between the cycle of the moon: growth, fullness, decrease with the cycle of a woman's development. The Great Goddess, so revered by the Celts, was also the moon goddess in 3 forms: the Virgin, the Mother and the Crone. The fourth form of the goddess, the Enchantress, was known only to those initiated into the cult of the Moon. The Celtic goddess of the moon at different periods personified the lunar phases:

1. The New Moon is the time of the face of the Temptress. magical rites. A gift to people of the ability to clairvoyance.
2. Waxing Moon - Virgo. Symbolizes the beginning, growth, youth.
3. Full Moon - Mother. Maturity, strength, pregnancy, fertility,.
4. Waning Moon - Old Woman. Withering, peace, wisdom, death as the end of the cycle.

The names of most of the gods are arranged as hyperlinks, where you can go to a detailed article about each of them.

The main deities of Ancient Greece: 12 Olympic gods, their helpers and companions

The main gods in Ancient Hellas were those that belonged to the younger generation of celestials. Once upon a time, it took power over the world from the older generation, which personified the main universal forces and elements (see about this in the article The Origin of the Gods of Ancient Greece). The gods of the older generation are usually called titans. Having defeated the titans, the younger gods, led by Zeus, settled on Mount Olympus. The ancient Greeks honored 12 Olympian gods. Their list usually included Zeus, Hera, Athena, Hephaestus, Apollo, Artemis, Poseidon, Ares, Aphrodite, Demeter, Hermes, Hestia. Hades is also close to the Olympian gods, but he does not live on Olympus, but in his underworld.

Legends and myths of Ancient Greece. Cartoon

Goddess Artemis. Statue in the Louvre

Statue of Athena the Virgin in the Parthenon. Ancient Greek sculptor Phidias

Hermes with caduceus. Statue from the Vatican Museum

Venus (Aphrodite) de Milo. Statue ca. 130-100 BC

God Eros. Red-figure dish, ca. 340-320 BC e.

Hymen Companion of Aphrodite, god of marriage. According to his name, wedding hymns were also called hymens in ancient Greece.

Daughter of Demeter, kidnapped by the god Hades. The inconsolable mother, after a long search, found Persephone in the underworld. Hades, who made her his wife, agreed that she would spend part of the year on earth with her mother, and the other with him in the bowels of the earth. Persephone was the personification of the grain, which, being "dead" sown in the ground, then "comes to life" and comes out of it into the light.

The Abduction of Persephone. Antique jug, ca. 330-320 BC

Amphitrite Poseidon's wife, one of the Nereids

Proteus One of the Greek sea deities. The son of Poseidon, who had the gift to predict the future and change his appearance

Triton- the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, the messenger of the deep sea, trumpeting the shell. In appearance - a mixture of man, horse and fish. Close to the eastern god Dagon.

Eirene- the goddess of the world, standing at the throne of Zeus on Olympus. In ancient Rome, the goddess Pax.

Nika- goddess of victory. Constant companion of Zeus. In Roman mythology - Victoria

Dike- in ancient Greece - the personification of divine truth, a goddess hostile to deceit

Tyukhe- Goddess of good luck and luck. The Romans - Fortuna

Morpheus- the ancient Greek god of dreams, the son of the god of sleep Hypnos

Plutus- god of wealth

Phobos("Fear") - the son and companion of Ares

Deimos("Horror") - the son and companion of Ares

Enyo- among the ancient Greeks - the goddess of violent war, which causes rage in the fighters and brings confusion to the battle. In Ancient Rome - Bellona

Titans

The Titans are the second generation of the gods of Ancient Greece, born of the elements of nature. The first titans were six sons and six daughters, descended from the connection of Gaia-Earth with Uranus-Sky. Six sons: Kron (Time. for the Romans - Saturn), Ocean (father of all rivers), Hyperion, Kay, Crius, Iapetus. Six daughters: Tethys(Water), Theia(Shine), Rhea(Mother Mountain?), Themis (Justice), Mnemosyne(Memory), Phoebe.

Uranus and Gaia. Ancient Roman mosaic 200-250 A.D.

In addition to the titans, Gaia gave birth to Cyclopes and Hecatoncheirs from marriage with Uranus.

cyclops- three giants with a large, round, fiery eye in the middle of the forehead. In ancient times - the personification of the clouds, from which lightning sparkles

Hecatoncheires- "hundred-armed" giants, against whose terrible power nothing can resist. Embodiments of terrible earthquakes and floods.

The Cyclopes and Hecatoncheires were so strong that Uranus himself was horrified by their power. He tied them up and threw them into the depths of the earth, where they still rage, causing volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. The stay of these giants in the womb of the earth began to cause her terrible suffering. Gaia persuaded her youngest son, Kronos, to take revenge on her father, Uranus, by castrating him.

Kron made it with a sickle. From the drops of blood of Uranus shed at the same time, Gaia conceived and gave birth to three Erinyes - goddesses of vengeance with snakes on their heads instead of hair. Erinnia's names are Tisiphone (killing avenger), Alecto (tireless pursuer) and Megara (terrible). From that part of the seed and blood of castrated Uranus that fell not on the ground, but in the sea, the goddess of love Aphrodite was born.

Night-Nyukta, in anger at the lawlessness of Kron, gave birth to terrible creatures and deities of Tanata (Death), Eridu(Discord) Apatou(Deceit), goddesses of violent death Ker, Hypnos(Dream-Nightmare) Nemesis(Revenge), Gerasa(Old age), Charon(carrier of the dead to the underworld).

Power over the world has now passed from Uranus to the Titans. They divided the universe among themselves. Kron instead of the father became the supreme god. The ocean received power over a huge river, which, according to the ideas of the ancient Greeks, flows around the whole earth. Four other brothers Kronos reigned in the four cardinal directions: Hyperion - in the East, Crius - in the south, Iapetus - in the West, Kay - in the North.

Four of the six Elder Titans married their sisters. From them came the younger generation of titans and elemental deities. From the marriage of Oceanus with his sister Tethys (Water), all earthly rivers and water nymphs-Oceanids were born. The titan Hyperion - ("high-walking") took his sister Teia (Shine) as his wife. From them were born Helios (Sun), Selena(moon) and Eos(Dawn). From Eos were born the stars and the four gods of the winds: Boreas(North wind), Note(South wind), Zephyr(west wind) and Evre(Eastern wind). The titans Kay (Celestial Axis?) and Phoebe gave birth to Leto (Night Silence, mother of Apollo and Artemis) and Asteria (Starlight). Kron himself married Rhea (Mother Mountain, the personification of the productive forces of mountains and forests). Their children are the Olympic gods Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, Zeus.

The titan Crius married the daughter of Pontus Eurybia, and the titan Iapetus married the oceanid Clymene, who gave birth to the titans Atlanta (he holds the sky on his shoulders), the arrogant Menetius, the cunning Prometheus (“thinking before, foreseeing”) and the feeble-minded Epimetheus (“thinking after").

From these titans came others:

Hesperus- god of the evening and the evening star. His daughters from the night, Nyukta, are the nymphs of the Hesperides, who guard a garden with golden apples on the western edge of the earth, once presented by Gaia-Earth to the goddess Hera during her marriage to Zeus

Ory- goddesses of parts of the day, seasons and periods of human life.

Charites- the goddess of grace, fun and joy of life. There are three of them - Aglaya ("Glee"), Euphrosyne ("Joy") and Thalia ("Abundance"). A number of Greek writers have charites with other names. In ancient Rome, they corresponded graces

Ancient Greek moonlight goddess

First letter "g"

Second letter "e"

Third letter "k"

The last beech is the letter "a"

Answer for the clue "Ancient Greek moonlight goddess", 6 letters:
Hecate

Alternative questions in crossword puzzles for the word hecate

Ancient Greek goddess of night visions and sorcery

Greek sorceress goddess

In Greek mythology, the goddess of darkness, night visions, sorcery, the daughter of the Titanides Kay and Phoebe (Pers and Asteria)

One of the Greek goddesses

In Greek mythology, the goddess of night visions and sorcery, the patroness of night evil spirits, witchcraft

other Greek moonlight goddess

Goddess of witchcraft, magic

Goddess with a torch in her hands

Word definitions for hecate in dictionaries

Mythological dictionary The meaning of the word in the dictionary Mythological Dictionary
(Greek) - the daughter of the titan Perse and the titanide Asteria. According to other myths, the daughter of Zeus (option: Hades) and Hera or Zeus and Demeter. First, G. is a kind and powerful goddess, the mistress of the earth and the sea, who gives harvest and wealth, helps in childbearing and upbringing ...

Wikipedia The meaning of the word in the Wikipedia dictionary
Crateia (or Crateida), as the mother of Skilla, is either called the daughter of Hecate, or is identified with her. Crateia is the name of the Night Hekate; or the name of the moon. Alexis had the comedy Crateia, or the Drug Dealer. The asteroid (100) Hecate is named after Hekate,...

Examples of the use of the word hecate in the literature.

To my surprise, Hecate She also smiled and suddenly turned into a short, fragile woman.

asked Hecate, unceremoniously pointing in my direction with his index finger.

The notorious threshold was quickly left far behind, and Hecate enthusiastically carried me farther and farther into the fragrant darkness of a summer night.

But while I sucked in more air into my lungs to give her a good bark, Hecate amazingly transformed.

She suddenly became serious and whispered confidentially: Hecate bragging, but her affairs are very bad.