By the Gods!

Orcus

A god of the underworld in Etruscan and Roman mythology, Orcus was an intimidating fellow. He was known as the punisher of broken oaths, and while his appearance is never definitively agreed upon, he was almost certainly scary-lookin’, and is usually depicted as a hairy, bearded giant.  Orcus’ mother is Eris, the Greek goddess of Strife, also known as Discordia (her counter part was, quite fittingly, Harmonia). Sounds like the idea of pain/unpleasantness runs in the family, so it must not’ve been a surprise to Eris that her son turned out to be a bit of a tightwad/tyrannical daemon.

In many ways the Roman pantheon was transient, adopting different deities from different cultures (often freshly-conquered) and using syncretism to adopt new gods in an effort to pacify a newly-annexed population, and bring them under the Roman banner more peacefully. This went both ways, as some outside-gods became staples of Roman worship in certain areas. Chthonic deities (pertaining to the underworld) were often undergoing the switcheroo, but kept certain traits in common. Orcus has a great deal in common with the Roman Pluto, who in turn was partially derived from the Greek Hades. Dis Pater, an earlier chthonic deity, was subsumed by Pluto, though Pluto and Orcus seemed to feature in Roman culture simultaneously in different circles, and with different areas of focus. 

You’ve probably noted the “Orc” in “Orcus,” and you’re right on the money. “Orcus” was conflated with the aforementioned chthonic deities, but referred more specifically to the evil and punishing side of the underworld, which bridges nicely into daemons. His name came to be used for any number of daemons, and it is widely believed that the French “ogre” was derived from lo’ smelly-hell himself. J.R.R. Tolkien derived “Orc” from Anglo-Saxon, in which it meant simply “daemon,” for his fantasy works, though he personally believes that the root of this word does not lie with the Latin Orcus. Either way, from Tolkien’s “orc” is where we get the modern stock-fantasy-badguys that are so ubiquitous today.

Morrigan

Morrigan, (sometimes referred to as “The Morrigan,” as more of a title than a name) known as the “phantom queen,” is a figure in Irish Mythology featured primarily in the Ulster Cycle, a collection of Celtic Heroic tales, including the story of Cuchulain. She was a goddess of death on the battlefield, and fought on the side of the Tuatha De Danann (the old gods, seen as the “good guys” in Celtic myth) during their wars with invading gods and monsters like the Fomorii. 

She was closely associated with the other war deities Macha, Badb, and Nemain. The title of “The Morrigan” may refer to the trinity of these goddesses, sisters, as a whole, “the Morrigan” taking the form of one of them each time she appeared. 

Her favourite form was the crow, and as such she settled in triumph on the shoulder of Cuchulainn when he was finally killed in the war against Queen Medb. In battle she would fly above the field as a raven or crow, shrieking and lapping her wings to scare the enemy host, and to signify death for her foes. In battle she was fearsome and quick, while still beautiful to look upon. She is closely comparable as a war deity with the Germanic Valkyries. 

Jupiter

Jupiter was the Roman sky god, whose Greek equivalent was Zeus. Known as Jupiter Optimus Maximus, (“the best and greatest”) he was the number-one deity for the Romans, and the patron deity of Rome itself. The cult of Jupiter began in Rome under the Etruscan kings, who were kicked out of power way back in 507 BCE. Jupiter’s been “the guy” for quite some time in those parts. 

Early in his divine career Jupiter was associated with the elements, especially storms, thunder and lightning. He was so highly regarded, however, that he soon became the protector of the Roman people and was seen as their benevolent guide in war. The games held in the Roman Circus were dedicated to him (trust me, it was a big deal). Through his sister/wife, Juno, (the Roman cut of the Greek Hera) he bore a son, Mars (the Romanized Ares, essentially). Mars was, in turn, the father of Romulus and Remus, the mythical founders of Rome, and this means that lo’ Jupiter was their grandpappy. Most of Jupiter’s mythical relations are the same as Zeus’; his father is Saturn (Kronos) and his brothers are Pluto and Neptune (Hades and Poseidon). While it’s important to keep in mind that much of the Roman pantheon is significantly altered from its Greek source material, Jupiter is a fairly simple copy of Zeus, all things considered. 

Note: It sure is a trip linking to Zeus, the first article we put out here on BytheGods! Oh, how we’ve evolved since then…

Mars 

Mars is the Roman god of war. To those of you thinking “but I just read about him in the post about Ares!”: not so fast! Mars and Ares are similar, granted. The Roman Pantheon was derived from the Greek to a certain degree. However, Mars has a different level of importance to the Romans along with different stories and symbols.  Essentially, the Greek god Ares and the Roman god Mars are cousins, not clones. This is the case for most of the gods regarding their changes from Greek to Roman perspectives.

Mars is the Roman God of war, but initially he was the god of fertility and vegetation and the protector of cattle, field and boundaries. So if you’re stuck in Greek mode, Mars was originally more of a Demeter-meets-Hermes type god rather than an Ares.  The Romans began life as farmers (back in the days before Romulus and Remus) and Mars protected them from the invading hordes of pests that ate and ruined crops. When the overall Roman mentality switched to a more warlike tone, Mars followed suit. As Mars had protected crops from invading pests, he now protected the people from invading barbarians and became the god of war. Mars was also considered the most revered god in the Roman pantheon. Even though Jupiter (the Roman analogue for Zeus) was the king of the gods, Mars was deemed the most powerful. The Romans also claimed a hereditary attachment to Mars through Romulus and Remus, the progenitors of the truly defined, “new” Roman people at the birth of expansion and republic, as some saw it.

Mars’ symbols are the dog, sword, vulture and bloodshed. Unlike Ares, Mars had a wife: Bellona, a Roman war goddess. However, like Ares, Mars also had an affair with the love goddess, Venus. Sure, just go ahead and do what everyone’s expecting you to do. Together they had four children, Cupid, Deimos, Phobos and Hermonia.

The differences between Mars and Ares (with particular regard to their origins) outweigh the similarities. The next time someone suggests that the Roman and Greek gods were carbon copies, you can put on your Mythologian cap, and intellectually decimate them in the name of Mars.

Ra

The Egyptian sun god and one of the most important members of the pantheon was the one, the only, Ra. He came into being on the primeval mound that rose out of Nun, and proceeded to plan all of creation. He was a real go-getter like that. Every day Ra was born anew. He would have a bath and a quick breakfast (for real) and then begin his journey across the sky in his boat. He would spend one of the hours of the day inspecting each of his 12 provinces, and when the sun went down, he entered the underworld until the morning. While in there, he fought all night long with his enemy Apep, the terrible cosmic serpent of the underworld.

Ra is usually depicted as a falcon-headed man wearing the disc of the sun on his head. He gave birth to Shu, god of the air, and Tefnut, goddess of moisture. The pair of Ra’s children disappeared to destroy the universe, and Ra, horrified at the loss of his children, hunted them down. When he finally found them, he was so relieved he burst into tears. From these tears, the first human beings were formed. The Pharaohs of Egypt called themselves “Sons of Ra,” not only because he was held in great awe, but also because he was accredited with creating order out of chaos.

We can see a lot of similarities in this sun god’s daily journey with the Babylonian sun god, Shamash, and the Slavic sun god, Dazhbog. Seems like people around the world were in agreement that the sun was the perfect embodiment of the cycle of life, death, and rebirth.

Hermod

The messenger god of Germanic mythology was Hermod. Who was that other messenger god from Greek myth? Hermes? Hermod ‘n Hermes! I’m detecting a similarity. Besides serving a nearly identical purpose in their respective pantheons, both Hermod and his Greek counterpart Hermes were among the few who could travel to the land of the dead. 

Hermod was the son of Odin and Frigg, and brother of Baldr. When Baldr was killed, Hermod rode Odin’s steed, Sleipnir, down to Helheim to implore Hel to return his brother to the land of the living. Hel refused Hermod’s request, but allowed him to return the ring Draupnir to Odin, which had been cast on Baldr’s funeral pyre, and ended up in Helheim. Hermod made many journeys to the various worlds, often Midgard, the land of men, to deliver messages to mortals and run errands for Odin. 

Sphinx

The Sphinx is an unusual creature depicted across the ancient world, from Greece to India. While the Sphinx is mainly an Egyptian symbol, (and modern associations certainly point first to Egypt) the word ‘Sphinx’ comes from Greek, Σφίγξ, which means “to strangle,” as lionesses strangle their prey. In Egypt the Sphinxes are mysterious creatures; where did they come from and what do they mean? Some scholars believe them to be representations of either Sekhmet or Bast.

The Sphinx is almost always depicted as a feline with the head of a woman, and Greek representations usually include the breasts of the woman as well. However, the Sphinxes of Karnak have the head of a ram, and there is some evidence of bird headed Sphinxes, too. Persian Sphinxes were made in tribute to kings, featuring the head or bust of a particular king on the body of a cat, the best example of this being those at the Palace of Darius. Other Sphinxes can be seen in India and are called Purushamriga, though keep in mind the term “Sphinx” seems to be applied to any creature with a feline body.

In Greek myth the Sphinx was a bringer of bad luck and was the daughter of either Echidna and Orthrus or Echidna and Typhon, which would make her a sister of the Chimera, and incredibly badass. The Greek version of the Sphinx isn’t just a lady-cat, though. Usually they are depicted with eagle wings and a snake headed tail. The most well known story of the Sphinx in Greece is the story of Oedipus, who defeated the man-eating Sphinx by solving her riddle. Pity the Sphinx didn’t come out on top in that encounter; it would’ve spared the world some serious issues. Oedipus, you weirdo.

Owls

Many regional mythologies and folktales deal with owls, perhaps the best-known being Athena’s. Strictly speaking, the owl is not her pet, nor does it have a name (in ancient texts, anyway). The owl is more of an incarnation of Athena herself, and is thought to be representative of her wisdom; this facet of the owl’s depiction seems to have translated to more modern depictions of owls. In many childrens’ stories the owl is depicted as a learned loremaster or teacher. Remember those Tootsie-Pop commercials, or New Zoo Review?

In Welsh mythology a woman named Blodeuwedd (Bluh- Die-Weth) “flower face” was turned into an owl by her husband’s uncle, Gwydion. Gwydion made Blodeuwedd for his nephew, Lleu out of flowers from broom, meadowsweet and oak, but Blodeuwedd fell in love with another man, Gronw Pebr, and the couple plotted to kill Lleu. When Lleu is killed, Gwydion curses Blodeuwedd and turns her into an owl, saying “you are never to show your face in the light of day, other birds will be hostile to you and molest you, and you will lose your name but always be called Blodeuwedd.” And there you have it: the Welsh aetiological explanation for why owls hate daytime. I buy it.

Lilith, a demon of Judaeo-Christian myth, had the owl as her spirit animal. In Sumerian tradition she was the goddess of death and attended by owls. In Russia, hunters carry owl claws in case they die, so that their souls can climb their way to heaven.

Globally, owls seem to be associated strongly with death, the devil and witches, and in many cultures eating owl parts was thought to be a cure for many mysterious ailments. The idea of intelligence and wisdom in owls is more European, but it’s clear that there’s something about these birds that the whole world thought was fantastical.