Northwest Semitic God El (holy spirit?), part of the Israelites’ early religion, and is said to have fathered Yahweh (God of the Bible)

“Examples of kings of the gods in different cultures include:

• In the Mesopotamian Anunnaki, Enlil displaces Anu and is in turn replaced by Marduk.
• In the Ancient Egyptian religion, Amun was the official god of the Pharaoh and the people of Egypt.
• In the Canaanite pantheon, Baal (Hadad) displaces El.
• In the Hurrian/Hittite pantheon, Teshub or Tarḫunz or Arinna displaces Kumarbi.
• In the Armenian Ar, later – Aramazd.
• In Hinduism, the King of the Gods is Indra, The God of Thunder and lightning and the ruler of heaven.
• In the Ancient Greek system of Olympian Gods, Cronus displaces Uranus, and Zeus, in turn, displaces Cronus.
• In Norse mythology, Odin assumes the role of the Allfather or King of the Gods, but Norse mythology has multiple tribes of Gods, such as the Æsir and Vanir, and Odin starts off as only the leader of the former.
• Ancient Iranian Ahura Mazda of the Zoroastrians.
• Dravidian religions: The Supreme Being in Dravidian religion was usually Sivaperuman and had supreme gods and goddesses based on lands, including Murugan, Kadalon, Vendhan, Korravai, and Thirumal.” ref

“The leaders of the various pantheons include:

• God in Abrahamic religions
  • God in Judaism
  • God in Christianity
    • The Trinity in most Christian traditions
    • Jesus in some Christian traditions
  • Yahweh
  • Allah in Muslim belief: see God in Islam
  • Bahá in Bahá’í belief: see God in the Baháʼí Faith

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“7,000 years ago, the beginning of the spread of copper metallurgy in Eurasia from Turkey.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Several gods across different mythologies are associated with smithing and metalworking. Each has their unique roles and stories related to craftsmanship and the creation of powerful items.

*Jewish/Bible God “Yahweh” (volcano/metallurgy god) Originated in Canaanite Vulcan
*Mesopotamia: god Ninagal (Sumerian) and god Gibil (Akkadian)
*Egyptian: god Ptah
*Arabian: god Qaynan
*Caucasus: god Tlepsh and god Kurdalægon
*Greek: goddess Athena and god Hephaestus
*Celtic: goddess Brigid, god Gobannus, god Gofannon, god Goibniu, and god Lugh
*Germanic/Norse: god-like Wayland
*Hindu: god Ribhus and god Vishvakarman
*Chinese: god Zhurong and god Ru Shou
*Roman: Vulcan
*Ugaritic: god Kothar-wa-Khasis
*Slavic: god Svarog
*Baltic: god Kalvis
*Hungarian: god Hadúr
*Finnish: god Ilmarinen
*Igbo: god Ikenga
*Yoruba: god Ogun
*Tibeto-Burman: god Pisatao
*Japanese: god Ame-no-Mahitotsu and god Kagu-tsuchi
*Vietnam: goddess Bà Kim and god Tổ nghề Khổng Lồ

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Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.

• By day the “Bible God” was in a cloud pillar.
• By night the “Bible God” was in a fire pillar.

Volcano deity

“A volcano deity is a deification of a volcano, including:

• Vulcan, in ancient Roman religion and myth, the god of fire including the fire of volcanoes, deserts, metalworking, and the forge.
• Volos, Slavic god of earth, waters, and the underworld.
• Rūaumoko, in Māori mythology, god of earthquakes, volcanoes, and seasons.
• Pele, in the Hawaiian religion, goddess of volcanoes and fire and the creator of the Hawaiian Islands.
• Lalahon, in Philippine mythology, Goddess of fire, volcanoes, and harvest.
• Kan-Laon, Visayan god of time associated with the volcano Kanlaon
• Hephaestus, Greek god of blacksmiths, metalworking, carpenters, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metallurgy, fire, and volcanoes.
• Gugurang, in Philippine mythology, Bicolano god of fire and volcanoes who lives inside Mayon Volcano which erupts whenever he’s enraged
• Guayota, Guanche, malignant deity which lived inside the Teide volcano.
• Aganjú, Yoruban deity, Orisha of volcanoes, the wilderness, and rivers.
• Aganju, in Cuba, is a volcano deity for the practitioners of the Lucumi, Santeria religion.” ref

Volcano Gods?

VOLCANO GODS……and their commonalities…..

BROUGHT PEOPLE OUT OF BONDAGE?

Pagan Volcano Gods

Anganju‘s significance in Cuba in the past is most probably due in part to the fact that he was said to have delivered people out of bondage and helped one to carry the heaviest of burdens.” ref

Abrahamic Volcano God ‘Yahweh’

Exodus 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.” ref

OFFERINGS / SACRIFICES / APPEASEMENT

Pagan Volcano Gods

“When the gods seem restless, believers make offerings of vegetables, money, chickens, and even goats to appease them as well as to bring prosperity. Oldoinyo Lengai is also a holy mountain for the Maasai people, just like Namibia’s Ovahimba people believe in their holy fire. He said the Maasai people use the mountain as a site to conduct rituals such as sacrifices and prayers.” ref

“The (Inca) children were sacrificed as part of a religious ritual, known as capacocha. They walked hundreds of miles to and from ceremonies in Cuzco and were then taken to the summit of Llullaillaco (yoo-yeye-YAH-co), given chicha (maize beer), and, once they were asleep, placed in underground niches, where they froze to death. Only beautiful, healthy, physically perfect children were sacrificed, and it was an honor to be chosen. According to Inca beliefs, the children did not die, but joined their ancestors and watched over their villages from the mountaintops like angels.” ref

“The name “Fuji” most likely derives from an Ainu word meaning “fire” or “deity of fire”. The Japanese believed that the god was very powerful, so it needed to be placated. A shrine was built at the foot of the volcano in AD 806 in order to keep the mountain from erupting. Masaya (Mayan volcano god). The Chorotega people used to sacrifice virgins by throwing them into the volcano, hoping that the Goddess would provide divine oracles in return for the sacrifice.” ref

Abrahamic Volcano God ‘Yahweh’

If the offering to the LORD is a burnt offering of birds, he is to offer a dove or a young pigeon. Leviticus 1:14″ ref

Cannabis and Religion

“Cannabis, commonly known as marijuana, weed, pot, and ganja, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the Cannabis plant. Cannabis is indigenous to Central or South Asia, and its uses for fabric and rope date back to the Neolithic age in China and Japan. Cannabis has an ancient history of ritual use and has been used by religions around the world. One of the earliest evidence of cannabis smoking has been found in the 2,500-year-old tombs of Jirzankal Cemetery in the Pamir Mountains in Western China, where cannabis residue was found in burners with charred pebbles, possibly used during funeral rituals. Cannabis has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various traditional medicines for centuries. Cannabis is a Scythian word. The ancient Greeks learned of the use of cannabis by observing Scythian funerals, during which cannabis was consumed. In Akkadian, cannabis was known as qunubu (𐎯𐎫𐎠𐎭𐏂). The word was adopted into the Hebrew as qaneh bosem (קָנֶה בֹּשׂם). Cannabis has held sacred status in several religions and has served as an entheogen – a chemical substance used in religious, shamanic, or spiritual contexts – in the Indian subcontinent since the Vedic period. The earliest known reports regarding the sacred status of cannabis in the Indian subcontinent come from the Atharva Veda. The Hindu god Shiva is described as a cannabis user, known as the “Lord of bhang.” ref

“It is unclear when cannabis first became known for its psychoactive properties. The oldest archeological evidence for the burning of cannabis was found in Romanian kurgans dated 3,500 BCE, and scholars suggest that the drug was first used in ritual ceremonies by Proto-Indo-European tribes living in the Pontic-Caspian steppe during the Chalcolithic period, a custom they eventually spread throughout Western Eurasia during the Indo-European migrations. Some research suggests that the ancient Indo-Iranian drug soma, mentioned in the Vedas, sometimes contained cannabis. This is based on the discovery of a basin containing cannabis in a shrine of the second millennium BCE in Turkmenistan. Cannabis was known to the ancient Assyrians, who discovered its psychoactive properties through the Iranians. Using it in some religious ceremonies, they called it qunubu (meaning “way to produce smoke”), a probable origin of the modern word cannabis. The Iranians also introduced cannabis to the Scythians, Thracians, and Dacians, whose shamans (the kapnobatai – “those who walk on smoke/clouds”) burned cannabis infructescences to induce trance. The plant was used in China before 2800 BCE, and found therapeutic use in India by 1000 BCE, where it was used in food and drink, including bhang.” ref

“Different religions have varying stances on the use of cannabis, historically and presently. In ancient history, some religions used cannabis as an entheogen, particularly in the Indian subcontinent, where the tradition continues on a more limited basis. In Ancient India The earliest known reports regarding the sacred status of cannabis in the Indian subcontinent come from the Atharva Veda, estimated to have been written sometime around 2000–1400 BCE, which mentions cannabis as one of the “five sacred plants… which release us from anxiety” and that a guardian angel resides in its leaves. The Vedas also refer to it as a “source of happiness,” “joy-giver” and “liberator,” and in the Raja Valabba, the gods send hemp to the human race so that they might attain delight, lose fear and have sexual desires- It is most often with the God Shiva known as the “Lord of Bhang“. In Ancient Egypt there is a written record of the medicinal use of hemp. Thus the Ebers papyrus (written 1500 BCE) mentions the use of oil from hempseed to treat vaginal inflammation. Cannabis pollen was recovered from the tomb of Ramses II, who governed for sixty-seven years during the 19th dynasty, and several mummies contain trace cannabinoids. The Assyrians, Egyptians, and Hebrews, among other Semitic cultures of the Middle East, mostly acquired cannabis from Aryan cultures and have burned it as an incense as early as 1000 BCE. Cannabis oil was likely used throughout the Middle East for centuries before and after the birth of Jesus.” ref 

“Cannabis has been used by shamanic and pagan cultures to ponder deeply religious and philosophical subjects related to their tribe or society, to achieve a form of enlightenment, to unravel unknown facts and realms of the human mind and subconscious, and also as an aphrodisiac during rituals or orgies. There are several references in Greek mythology to a powerful drug that eliminated anguish and sorrow. Herodotus wrote about early ceremonial practices by the Scythians, thought to have occurred from the 5th to 2nd century BCE. In addition, according to Herodotus, the Dacians and Scythians had a tradition where a fire was made in an enclosed space and cannabis seeds were burned and the resulting smoke ingested. In ancient Germanic paganism, cannabis was possibly associated with the Norse love goddess, Freya. Linguistics offers further evidence of prehistoric use of cannabis by Germanic peoples: The word hemp derives from Old English hænep, from Proto-Germanic *hanapiz. While *hanapiz has an unknown origin, some scholars believe it is a unreconstructed loanword of Scythian origin. The Greek word κάνναβις, which that cannabis derives from, is also thought to be a loanword of the same Scythian origin. While a loanword, *hanapiz was borrowed early enough to be affected by Grimm’s Law, by which Proto-Indo-European initial *k- becomes *h- in Germanic. The shift of *k→h indicates it was a loanword into the Germanic parent language at a time depth no later than the separation of Common Germanic from Proto-Indo-European, about 500 BCE or 2,500 years ago.” ref 

Funerary cannabis rituals in ancient China

“Marijuana chemical residue has been found in incense burners apparently used during funerary rites at a mountainous site in western China in about 500 BCE or 2,500 years ago. The evidence was found on 10 wooden braziers containing stones with burn marks that were discovered in eight tombs at the Jirzankal Cemetery site in the Pamir Mountains in China’s Xinjiang region, scientists said on Wednesday. The tombs also bore human skeletons and artifacts including a type of angular harp used in ancient funerals and sacrificial ceremonies. They found a higher level of THC, the plant’s main psychoactive constituent, than the low levels typically seen in wild cannabis plants, indicating it was chosen for its mind-altering qualities.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Proto-Indo Europeans and Indo-European Cannabis Cult

“There is a belief that proto-Indo-europeans were ritually using cannabis — a technique of worship that continued for thousands of years and spread throughout the ancient world, leading to its continued use in various religions. Proto-Indo-Europeans likely lived during the late Neolithic, or roughly the 4th millennium BCE. Mainstream scholarship places them in the Pontic–Caspian steppe zone in Eastern Europe (present-day Ukraine and southern Russia). It is in these same regions that we find the earliest evidence of the ritual use of cannabis, dating back to this same period. This was a technique of religious ecstasy still found at Indo-European sites thousands of years later at diverse locations. 5,000-Year-Old Cannabis Trade: Eurasian Steppe Nomads; from a multi-authored academic Paper, Cannabis in Eurasia: origin of human use and Bronze Age trans-continental connections. Proto-Indo-European Yamnaya culture brought cannabis into Europe. Ritual use of cannabis in funerary rites in the region inhabited by the Yamnaya goes back at least 5,000 years, as evidenced by a find of skeletal remains and burnt cannabis seeds recovered at a burial mound.” ref

“Similar evidence that Proto-Indo Europeans burned cannabis in a cave in Ukraine 5,500 years ago was suggested by the late British archaeologist Andrew Sherratt, who has also suggested that the corded ware culture was evidence of a cannabis beverage in use during the Neolithic period. The Corded Ware culture spanned a broad archaeological horizon in Europe between approximately 3100 BCE and circa 2350 BCE, concluding in the early Bronze Age. Sherratt suggested that, like poppy-shaped vessels used to hold opium preparations, corded ware had hemp cords pressed into the clay, not only for a design but to indicate the contents, and a cannabis based beverage was widely in use throughout Europe. The use of tripod bowls, which he suggested were used to burn cannabis in the Ukraine region from 3,500 BCE, as evidenced by carbonized seeds. The authors of The Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture note that “Hemp has not only been recovered from sites in Romania but also from a Yamma burial at Gurbanesti (Maldova) where traces were found in a ‘censer’ (a shallow footed bowl believed to have been used in the burning of some aromatic substance).” ref

“It has been found in a similar context from an early Bronze Age burial in the north Caucasus…. Ceramics were more elaborate than those of the Yamma culture and included, especially in female burials, low-footed vessels interpreted as ‘censers’, presumed to be used in rituals involving some narcotic substance such as hemp”. “It seems, therefore, that the practice of burning cannabis as a narcotic is a tradition which goes back in this area some five or six thousand years and was the focus of the social and religious rituals of the pastoral peoples of central Eurasia in prehistoric and early historic times. The cannabis burning braziers referred to above eventually went to the wayside and were replaced by a beverage, although he believes that cannabis use continued through this cultural shift. The “disappearance of ceramic braziers in northern and western Europe” was followed by the appearance… of prominent forms of pottery drinking vessels. Corded-ware beakers and early bell-beakers are ornamented with impressions of twisted cord: if these are hemp fibres, then the decoration may indicate that their contents were connected with cannabis.” A view shared by other researchers: “As cannabis can also be infused, i.e., served as a component in a drink, it has also been suggested that the spread of cord-(hemp?) decorated pottery from the steppe westward may also have been part of this same complex.” ref

“Evidence of cannabis in a grave where the body was laid over flowers has been discovered in Hattemerbroek in Gelderland, Amsterdam, at a tomb that showed characteristics of Corded Ware culture. Drinking cups were also found at the site, which dated to 2459 – 2203 BCE. There are… at least three chronological horizons to which the spread of hemp might be ascribed: the early distribution of hemp across Europe; during the Neolithic around 5000 BCE or earlier; a later spread of hemp for presumably narcotic purposes around 3000 BCE; a still later spread, or, at least, re-emergence of hemp in the context of textiles during the first millennium BCE, in regard to an association with burial rites. Celtic use of cannabis has also been identified through pollen analysis of a bowl from a rich woman’s grave of the late Hallstatt Period at Niedererlbach, Bavaria. Likewise, “hemp has… been discovered in an Iron Age context in western Europe, e.g., a Hallstatt burial, presumably Celtic, at Hochdorf in Germany, and cannabis was also found in later Viking burial sites.” ref 

“It was this sort of high mobility that led to the spread of cannabis throughout the ancient world, and in fact, the development of hemp rope has been attributed to the harnessing and domestication of the horse. It is unclear that archeologist Sergei Malyutin, was basing his research on the work of Prof. Victor Sarianidi at BMAC,  where claimed 4,000 year old archeological evidence of cannabis and ephedra, and in some case opium poppies, at a t temple site were suggested to indicate the plants were used in the preparation of soma/haoma. Or he may have came to his theories about the drink of the Indo-Iranians, based on another group known for both burning and drinking cannabis preparations, that came out of the Russian steppes, and spread across much of the ancient world, Western Europe, Persian, Israel, Egypt, India and even deep into central China, a series of Indo European tribes, now known to us collectively as the Scythians. Cannabis was also part of the earliest trade routes we know of as well, as noted in ‘Cannabis in Eurasia: origin of human use and Bronze Age trans-continental connections’, indicating it would have been part and parcel of any “Indo-Iranians” migration.” ref

“A marked increase in cannabis achene records from East Asia between ca. 5,000 and 4,000 years ago might be associated with the establishment of a trans-Eurasian exchange/migration network”. (Eurasia is the largest continent on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia). Descendants of the cannabis burners in the Ukraine region, the Scythians, would later spread the cultic use of cannabis, both burned as an incense and drank, and the root word kana, throughout much of the ancient world. One of the names of the Scythians was “Haomavarga” the Haoma gatherers, and ancient texts indicate they also burnt the haoma as well as drank it. A Scythian wineskin that had evidence of cannabis infusion, as well as gold cups, described by the Russian archeologists involved with the find as ritual vessels for drinking “haoma,” has also been discovered, and these contained residues of both cannabis and opium. Indo-Europeans in China, known as Gushi, likewise burnt cannabis in funerary rites similar to the Scythians 2,800 years ago, a ritual act that can be traced back to the Proto-Indo-European homeland in Romania 5,000 years ago.” ref

Ancient Israelite Altar Burned Cannabis (VIDEO)

“Evidence shows that the mind-altering substance Cannabis was part of religious life in the ancient kingdom of Judah. Tel Arad contains the remains of a Canaanite city from the third millennium BCE, as well as Israelite fortresses from between the 10th and 6th centuries BCE. Excavations in the 1960s identified a pair of citadels that guarded the southern border of the kingdom of Judah during that time, as well as a well-preserved shrine dated to roughly 760-715 BCE. It was within this shrine that the two stone altars were discovered with the remains of what appeared to be burnt plant material. The stone altars were found at the entrance of the shrine’s inner sanctum, known as the “holy of holies.” The chemical analysis conducted by researchers helps provide a window into the rituals and spiritual life of the Judahites. This is the first time that cannabis has been identified in Israel; its use in the shrine must have played a central role in the cultic rituals performed there,” says Eran Arie, an archaeologist with the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.” ref

“Scientists discover 2,700-year-old remains of cannabis on a Tel Arad incense altar, paralleling details of the reign of King Ahaz. But does the ritual cannabis use reflect standard worship practices at Jerusalem’s temple, as the researchers suggest?” ref

Asherah

“Asherah was a goddess in ancient Semitic religions. She also appears in Hittite writings as Ašerdu(š) or Ašertu(š) and as Athirat in Ugarit. Some scholars hold that Asherah was venerated as Yahweh‘s consort in ancient Israel and Judah, while other scholars oppose this. Asherah was an important Goddess recognized across Northwest Semitic cultures. However, particularly in the Hebrew Bible, the term asherah and sometimes asherot, came to be identified with cultic wooden objects, sometimes referred to as asherah poles. In this context, in regard to certain attestations of Asherah, there is controversy about whether the inscriptions referring to Asherah indicate the deity, a “cultic object“, or both (de Vaux). Winter says the goddess and her symbol should not be distinguished.” ref

“A variety of symbols have been associated with Asherah. The most common by far is that of the tree, an equivalence seen as early as Neolithic times. Cultic objects dedicated to Asherah frequently depict trees, and the terms asherim and asheroth, regularly invoked by the Hebrew Bible in the context of Asherah worship, are traditionally understood to refer to sacred trees called “Asherah poles“. An especially common Asherah tree in visual art is the date palm, a reliable producer of nutrition throughout the year. Some expect living trees, but Olyan sees a stylized, non-living palm or pole. The remains of a juniper tree discovered in a 7,500-year-old gravesite in Eilat have been considered an Asherah tree by some.” ref

“Asherah’s association with fertility was not limited to her association with trees; she was often depicted with pronounced sexual features. Idols of Asherah, often called ’Astarte figurines’, are representative of Asherah as a tree in that they have bodies which resemble tree trunks, while also further extenuating the goddess’ connection to fertility in line with her status as a “mother goddess”. The “Judean pillar figures” universally depict Asherah with protruding breasts. Likewise, the so-called Revadim Asherah is rife with potent, striking sexual imagery, depicting Asherah suckling two smaller figures and using both of her hands to fully expose her vagina. Many times, Asherah’s pubis area was marked by a concentration of dots, indicating pubic hair, though this figure is sometimes polysemically understood as a grape cluster. The womb was also sometimes used as a nutrix symbol, as animals are often shown feeding directly (if a bit abstractly) from the pubic triangle.” ref

“Remarking on the Lachish ewer, Hestrin noted that in a group of other pottery vessels found in situ, the usual depiction of the sacred tree flanked by ibexes or birds is in one goblet replaced by a pubic triangle flanked by ibexes. The interchange between the tree and the pubic triangle proves, according to Hestrin, that the tree symbolizes the fertility goddess Asherah. Hestrin draws parallels between this and representations of Hathor as the sycamore tree goddess in Egypt, and suggests that during the period of Egyptian rule in Palestine, the Hathor cult penetrated the region so extensively that Hathor became identified with Asherah. Other motifs in the ewer, such as a lion, fallow deer, and ibexes, seem to have a close relationship with the iconography associated with her. Asherah may also have been associated with the ancient pan-Near Eastern “Master of animals” motif, which depicted a person or deity betwixt two confronted animals.” ref

“According to Beaulieu, depictions of a divine “mistress of lions” motif are “almost undoubtedly depictions of the goddess Asherah.” The lioness made a ubiquitous symbol for goddesses of the ancient Middle East that was similar to the dove and the tree. Lionesses figure prominently in Asherah’s iconography, including the tenth-century BCE Ta’anach cult stand, which also includes the tree motif. A Hebrew arrowhead from the eleventh century BCE bears the inscription “Servant of the Lion Lady”. The symbols around Asherah are so many (8+ pointed star, caprids and the like, along with lunisolar, arboreal, florid, serpentine) that a listing would approach meaninglessness as it neared exhaustiveness. Frevel’s 1000-page dissertation ends enigmatically with the pronouncement “There is no genuine Asherah iconography”. There is significant debate on whether Asherah was worshipped in ancient Israelite religion. Some scholars argue that Asherah was venerated as Yahweh‘s consort, while others oppose this arguing that the relevant Hebrew epigraphic evidence actually refers to some cultic place or object rather than a goddess.” ref

“Possible evidence for her worship includes an iconography and inscriptions at two locations in use circa the 9th century. The first was in a cave at Khirbet el-Qom. The second was at Kuntillet Ajrud. In the latter, a jar shows bovid-anthropomorphic figures and several inscriptions that refer to “Yahweh of Samaria and his Asherah” and “Yahweh of Teman and his Asherah.” However, a number of scholars hold that the “asherah” mentioned in the inscriptions refers to some kind of cultic object or symbol, rather than a goddess. Some scholars have argued that since cognate forms of “asherah” are used with the meaning of “sanctuary” in Phoenician and Aramaic inscriptions from the same period, this may also be the meaning of the term in the two Hebrew inscriptions. Others argue that the term “asherah” may refer to a sacred tree used for the worship of Yahweh as this is the meaning that the Hebrew term has in the Hebrew Bible and in the Mishnah. In one potsherd there appear a large and small bovine. This “oral fixation” motif has diverse examples, see figs 413–419 in Winter. In fact, already Flinders Petrie in the 1930s was referring to Davies on the memorable stereotype. It’s such a common motif in Syrian and Phoenician ivories that the Arslan Tash horde had at least four.” ref

“There are references to the worship of numerous deities throughout the Books of Kings: Solomon builds temples to many deities and Josiah is reported as cutting down the statues of Asherah in the temple Solomon built for Yahweh (2 Kings 23:14). Josiah’s grandfather Manasseh had erected one such statue (2 Kings 21:7). The name Asherah appears forty times in the Hebrew Bible, but it is much reduced in English translations. The word ʾăšērâ is translated in Greek as Greek: ἄλσος (grove; plural: ἄλση) in every instance apart from Isaiah 17:8; 27:9 and 2 Chronicles 15:16; 24:18, with Greek: δένδρα (trees) being used for the former, and, peculiarly, Ἀστάρτη (Astarte) for the latter.” ref

“The Vulgate in Latin provided lucus or nemus, a grove or a wood. From the Vulgate, the King James translation of the Bible uses grove or groves instead of Asherah’s name. Non-scholarly English language readers of the Bible would not have read her name for more than 400 years afterward. The association of Asherah with trees in the Hebrew Bible is very strong. For example, she is found under trees (1 Kings 14:23; 2 Kings 17:10) and is made of wood by human beings (1 Kings 14:15, 2 Kings 16:3–4). The farther from the time of Josiah’s reforms, the broader the perception of an Asherah became. Trees described in later Jewish texts as being an asherah or part of an asherah include grapevines, pomegranates, walnuts, myrtles, and willows.” ref

“Eventually, monotheistic leaders would suppress the tree due to its association with Asherah. Deuteronomy 12 has Yahweh commanding the destruction of her shrines so as to maintain purity of his worship. Jezebel brought hundreds of prophets for Baal and Asherah with her into the Israelite court. William Dever’s book discusses female pillar figurines, the queen of heaven name, and the cakes. Dever also points to the temple at Tel Arad, the famous archaeological site with cannabinoids and massebot. Dever notes: “The only goddess whose name is well attested in the Hebrew Bible (or in ancient Israel generally) is Asherah.” ref

“Some scholars have found an early link between Asherah and Eve, based upon the coincidence of their common title as “the mother of all living” in Genesis 3:20 through the identification with the Hurrian mother goddess, Hebat. Olyan notes that Eve’s original Hebrew name, ḥawwā^h, is cognate to ḥawwat, an attested epithet of Tanit in the first millennium BCE, though other scholars dispute a connection between Tanit and Asherah, and between Asherah and Eve. A Phoenician deity, Ḥawwat, is attested in the Punica tabella defixionis. There is further speculation that the Shekhinah, as a feminine aspect of Yahweh, may be a cultural memory or devolution of Asherah. Another such aspect is seen in the feminine treatment (grammatically or otherwise) of the Holy Spirit or Sophia. This transference of feminine aspects and attributes, some argue, can also be seen to be applied to male figures like Jacob or Jesus.” ref

The Asherah Altar

“Asherah, untangling the threads of her complex story. We’ll explore her roles as mother goddess, fierce protector, and consort to the sky, revealing the fascinating world of Canaanite religion and its contribution to our understanding of the divine feminine.” ref

Her Epithets: Queenly Titles:

• Qrt hšmym: Queen of Heaven
• Elath: Goddess (feminine form of El, the chief god, and Yahweh god of the bible)
• Gbtrt tbnwt ʼlm: Mistress of All Lands
• **Gbtrt kl tpt: ** Mistress of All Ends (possibly referring to her influence over all aspects of life) ref

Motherly and Fertility Titles:

• **ʼm ʼlm: ** Mother of Gods
• **ʼmt špš: ** Mother of the Sun
• **ʼmt yrm: ** Mother of the Sea (connected to her association with Yam, the god of the sea)
• **qny t ilm: ** Creatress of Gods ref

Protective and Warrior Titles:

• **gbtrt hlmh: ** Mistress of War
• **ʼaṯirat gpn: ** Asherah of the Vine (representing both fertility and potential wrath)
• **ʼaṯirat yam: ** Asherah of the Sea (possibly highlighting her association with storms and power) ref

Other Interesting Titles:

• **qdš: ** Holiness (linking her to sacredness and purity)
• **rbt ʼṯrt ym: ** Lady Asherah of the Sea (a particularly potent epithet showcasing her dominion over the sea) ref

“Who was King Hezekiah? What was he cleaning up? When looking into the several passages of II Kings and II Chronicles, we find a young king who was ready to work to eradicate the changes his father had made in worship in the cities of Judah. King Ahaz, his father, had brought Baal and Asherah worship to the streets of Jerusalem, which included child sacrifice. From II Kings chapter 16— A sketch of the Baal and Asherah Altar was taken during a visit to the King of Damascus in the eighth century BCE by King Ahaz of Judah. Ahaz was the twelfth king of Judah, and fell into jealousy after seeing how well his neighbors were doing. He sent his sketch of the altar to his priest Uriah, with the command to create these new altars and install them on the street corners of Jerusalem. They would serve the people as the new form of worship, borrowed from the Canaanite religion of Baal worship, with his consort Asherah as the focus of praise, the burning of incense, and the sacrifice of children. Author Ronald Hendel argues the Asherah pole is a symbol of the goddess and is believed to be the mediator between the worshipper and Yahweh, where she becomes the “effective bestower of blessing.”

Canaanite Culture and Its Pantheon of Gods:

In the land of ancient Canaan between the Bronze and Iron Age, where the Canaanites and Israelites both worshiped a pantheon of gods and goddesses. The land of Canaan is an ancient designation for that area in the Levant that is currently occupied by: Lebanon, Israel, Syria, and Jordan. Despite what many people have assumed, the Israelites, too, worshiped many gods outright until Yahweh was transitioned into the role of “head” god in charge.” ref

“The Canaanites and Israelites believed the universe was ruled by gods and goddesses, and they worshiped them. The popular gods Baal, El, and Asherah, and a couple of other female goddesses. Baal was an important Canaanite god. We find him mentioned in the Old Testament. In Canaanite mythology, he is the son of the chief god El and his consort Asherah and the ruler of Heaven as well as a god of the sun, rain, thunder, fertility, and agriculture. Baal’s worship was prevalent in Canaan even prior to the Israelite exodus from Egypt. The God El was the name of the chief deity of the West Semites, including the Canaanites. In the ancient texts from ancient Ugarit (or now Ras Shamra) in Syria, El was described as the “titular head” of the pantheon, husband of Asherah, and father of all the other gods. The god El was viewed as the elder with gray hair and a gray beard. Despite his status as the supreme deity, he was not nearly as popular as the god, Baal. There is a figurine of a Canaanite fertility goddess that depicts the goddess from both the interior and the exterior perspectives, as she prepares herself for the delivery of twins. The twins, seen within her womb, clutch at her breasts. The figurine may represent Asherah, called the “sacred prostitute” or the “one of the womb.” According to myth, Asherah gave birth to the twin gods Shahar and Shalem. Symbols of Asherah, the sacred tree and ibex, appear on the goddess’s thighs. The figurine was probably an amulet for women in childbirth.” ref

“In the bible, scriptures provide a clear example of the believed result of worshiping other gods in II Chronicles 28:22:

In his time of trouble King Ahaz became even more unfaithful to the LORD. He offered sacrifices to the gods of Damascus, who had defeated him; for he thought, “Since the gods of the kings of Aram have helped them, I will sacrifice to them so they will help me,” But they were his downfall and the downfall of all Israel.” ref

“And Israel and Judah’s downfall did come through conquering armies that took over two hundred thousand into captivity, for seventy years, until Darius, King of Persia, was moved by God to release the people and rebuild God’s Temple in Jerusalem.” ref

“The goddess Asherah is a primordial mother goddess or creatress of the gods, and mother of 70 gods. She is considered the matriarch (Creatress), and El was the Patriarch (Creator). She was the female consort to the Hebrew God Yahweh and was widely worshiped by Israelites, Canaanites, and many others. There is archaeological and textual evidence that in the early history of Israel, she may have been seen not only as the consort of El but also as the wife of the Israelite God Yahweh. El was recognized by the Canaanites as the supreme deity and by the Israelites as synonymous with Yahweh. Asherah was mentioned as a wet nurse in the Ugaritic myth. She is also associated with serpents (representing healing), lions (representing power), and trees (representing fertility). The goddess Asherah is further mentioned in Hittite mythology, where she has 77 and 88 children. The goddesses Astarte and Anath were also great goddesses of the Canaanite pantheon, but they are considered separate goddesses.” ref

The Challenges in Reconstructing Asherah’s History

“Exactly how do we actually know about the goddess Asherah? We know this from not only the Old Testament, where Asherah is mentioned 40 times, and we will get to that shortly, but she is also mentioned in ancient Ugaritic texts (before 1200 BCE.. Let’s talk about the Ugaritic texts/tablets first, which she’s mentioned, given that they predate the Bible (Old Testament). In northwest Syria, an ancient tomb was accidentally discovered. The tomb was part of a cemetery located in the area of the ancient city of Ugarit. French excavators discovered the remains of two libraries of ancient clay tablets written mainly in alphabetic Ugaritic. Ugarit was a port at the entrance of the inland trade route to the Euphrates and Tigris lands. Ugarit is now known as Ras Sharma. It is near modern-day Cyprus, and it was the capital of a prominent city-state in modern-day Syria. Several texts were discovered once it was excavated, and these include the “Legend of Keret,” the “Aqhat Epic” (or “Legend of Danel”), the “Myth of Baal-Aliyan,” and the “Death of Baal”. Among the Ugaritic texts is a tablet that names the Ugaritic pantheon with Babylonian equivalents; El, Asherah of the Sea, and Baal were the main deities. In these texts, she is referenced as “ATRT” or “Athirat,” and “Ilit,” which simply means goddess. She is also referenced as the consort of the god, “El.” In Sumerian documents dating to 1750 BCE, she is referred to as Ashratum and the bride of Anu (Martin- Gardner 2020:9). In the Ugaritic texts, Asherah is known as the “creator of all the deities.” ref

“A number of potsherds that contained the following inscriptions: “I bless you to Yahweh of Samaria and to his Asherah,” and “I bless you to Yaweh of Teman and to his Asheah.” This does indicate that she was a partner to Yahweh. From another excavated site of Khirbet El-Qom, dating to the 700s BCE, reveals similar inscriptions “Uriyahu the Rich wrote it., Blessed be Uriyahu by Yahweh, for from his enemies by his Asherah he has saved him by Oniyahu, by his asherah and by his a[she]rah.” ref

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Asherah, at least a 7,500-year-old goddess?

THE FIRE SHALL BURN CONTINUALLY AT THE ALTAR

“Leviticus 6:12-13: 12 And the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be put out. And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order on it; and he shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings. 13 A fire shall always be burning on the altar; it shall never go out.

Why is it so important that we keep this fire burning?

“An altar represents a place of consecration, a place of sacrifice, a place upon which an offering is made. The instructions to the priest were – And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning. This was meant to be every morning stoking of the fire; the fire was to burn 365 days a year.” ref

Hebrews 1:7:  7 And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits, And His ministers a flame of fire.”

Leviticus 9:24: “Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.”

Exodus 24:17: And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the mountaintop in the eyes of the Israelites.

“An Asherah pole is a sacred tree (stone pillar, ceramic altar) or pole that stood near Canaanite religious locations to honor the goddess Asherah. The relation of the literary references to an asherah and archaeological finds of Judaean pillar-figurines has engendered a literature of debate. The asherim were also cult objects related to the worship of Asherah, the consort of either Ba’al or, as inscriptions from Kuntillet ‘Ajrud and Khirbet el-Qom attest, Yahweh, and thus objects of contention among competing cults. Most English translations of the Hebrew Bible translate the Hebrew words asherim (אֲשֵׁרִים‎ ’ăšērīm) or asheroth (אֲשֵׁרוֹת‎ ’ăšērōṯ) to “Asherah poles.” ref

“Asherim are mentioned in the Hebrew Bible in the books of Exodus, Deuteronomy, Judges, the Books of Kings, the second Book of Chronicles, and the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Micah. The term often appears as merely אשרה‎, (Asherah) referred to as “groves” in the King James Version, which follows the Septuagint rendering as ἄλσος (alsos), pl. ἄλση (alsē) and the Vulgate lucus, and “poles” in the New Revised Standard Version; no word that may be translated as “poles” appears in the text. Scholars have indicated, however, that the plural use of the term (English “Asherahs”, translating Hebrew Asherim or Asherot) provides ample evidence that reference is being made to objects of worship rather than a transcendent figure. Asherah’s association with fertility was not limited to her association with trees; she was often depicted with pronounced sexual features. Idols of Asherah, often called ’Astarte figurines’, are representative of Asherah as a tree in that they have bodies which resemble tree trunks, while also further extenuating the goddess’ connection to fertility in line with her status as a “mother goddess”. The “Judean pillar figures” universally depict Asherah with protruding breasts. Likewise, the so-called Revadim Asherah is rife with potent, striking sexual imagery, depicting Asherah suckling two smaller figures and using both of her hands to fully expose her vagina. Many times, Asherah’s pubis area was marked by a concentration of dots, indicating pubic hair, though this figure is sometimes polysemically understood as a grape cluster. The womb was also sometimes used as a nutrix symbol, as animals are often shown feeding directly (if a bit abstractly) from the pubic triangle.” ref, ref

“The Hebrew Bible suggests that the poles were made of wood. In the sixth chapter of the Book of Judges, God is recorded as instructing the Israelite judge Gideon to cut down an Asherah pole that was next to an altar to Baal. The wood was to be used for a burnt offering. Deuteronomy 16:21 states that YHWH (rendered as “the LORD“) hated Asherim whether rendered as poles: “Do not set up any [wooden] Asherah [pole] beside the altar you build to the LORD your God” or as living trees: “You shall not plant any tree as an Asherah beside the altar of the Lord your God which you shall make”. That Asherahs were not always living trees is shown in 1 Kings 14:23: “their asherim, beside every luxuriant tree”. However, the record indicates that the Jewish people often departed from this ideal. For example, King Manasseh placed an Asherah pole in the Holy Temple (2 Kings 21:7). King Josiah’s reforms in the late 7th century BC included the destruction of many Asherah poles (2 Kings 23:14). Exodus 34:13 states: “Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherim [Asherah poles].” ref

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The Ibex as an Iconographic Symbol in the Ancient Near East

Körtik Tepe

“Körtiktepe or Körtik Tepe is the oldest known Neolithic archaeological site in Turkey. Together with Tell Mureybet and Tell Abu Hureyra in northern Syria, Körtiktepe is one of the only three securely dated Younger Dryas sedentary sites in Upper Mesopotamia. The habitation of the site began in the first half of the 11th millennium BCE, approximately 10700 BCE (12,700 years ago), and persisted with consistent density until approximately 10400 BCE. Analyses of human tooth enamel indicate that the inhabitants of the Younger Dryas occupations at Körtiktepe were born and grew up in or near the site. Although a potential minor flooding event transpired during the transition from the Younger Dryas to the Early Holocene, the site endured without evident abandonment, at least not for a prolonged interval. Occupation continued and thrived during the Early Holocene. The architectural tradition of constructing round plans established around 10400 BCE and continued without any fundamental alterations until the eventual desertion of the site. The site reached its peak in terms of occupation density around 9300 BCE. Subsequently, it experienced an unexplained abandonment, possibly attributed to natural disturbances such as flooding induced by the Holocene climate changes. Incised bone pendants and stone vessels with art somewhat similar to Iran with curved horned animals that may represent wild Goat or Sheep.” ref

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The Ibex as an Iconographic Symbol in the Ancient Near East

“The study of pottery design on hundreds of extant examples from the ancient Near East reveals the early popularity of one particular animal—the ibex. The treatment that this animal received on pottery from a wide number of Near Eastern sites, over a span of a thousand years, gives a clear picture of its reverential status, as well as providing us with possible clues toward a cosmology for the people of the ancient Near East. A brief review of the ibex’s appearance on Palaeolithic bone carvings demonstrates the longevity of this animal’s role as a cultural symbol, and, finally, the ibex’s demise in the fourth millennium B.C. marks a turning point in the cultural life of Near Eastern society.” ref

“Almost 90 percent of Iran’s rock art consists of the ibex motif. The ibex for the prehistoric inhabitants of what is now known as Iran appears to have received the same apotheosis as the eland for the San in what is now known as South Africa. Rock art is one of the oldest legacies of humankind. One could argue that rock art is the basis of a writing system, conveying cultural messages, beliefs and myths.  The ibex would have been a source of meat and secondary products such as horn and hide. Archaeological evidence shows that it was hunted in Iran from the Middle Paleolithic period onwards, at the Warwasi and Yāfte Cave (38,000-29,000 BCE) sites where it was the dominant species represented. Studies of horn cores from the early Neolithic sites of Tappe ʿAli Koš and Tappe Sabz indicate that ibex were being hunted in the late 8th and 7th millennia BCE. The ibex motif went on to be incorporated into decorative friezes on painted pottery in pre-Islamic Iran. The elegantly stylized ibex appears as a decorative motif on Chalcolithic pottery – in Luristan at Čeḡā Sabz, Se Gābi and Tappe Giān – with long, curving horns and a characteristic beard. Long-horned caprids, many of whom may be ibex, appear on pre-Islamic stamp and cylinder seals all over Iran. An ibex-headed figure – possibly a human wearing the horns of an ibex – appears in the guise of the ‘master of animals’ on stamp seal impressions from Susa dating to ca. 4000 B.C.E. Middle Elamite, Neo-Assyrian, provincial Neo-Assyrian, and Neo-Elamite cylinder seals from Čeḡā Sabz and Sorḵ Dom-e Lori in Luristan illustrate hunters with bow and arrow shooting leaping caprids. The symbolic and/or religious significance of the ibex in pre-Islamic Iran is unclear, although some argue that it was integral to a pre-Islamic creation narrative. According to the Zoroastrian – ‘Zarathusti’ in Persian – cosmogony, ‘Mashya and Mashyana’, or ‘mašyā and mašyānē’, were the first man and woman whose procreation gave rise to the human race. According to Mohammad Naserifard [pictured], it was the ibex that was chosen as the symbol of divine assistance. With the ibex carvings in the rock art sites of ancient Persia, this may have represented an over-riding belief in, and request for, the provision of water, the guarantee of fertility and birth, and a Divine – ‘hu’ – blessing and protection.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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The tree of life is closely related to the concept of “sacred trees” and a widespread myth or archetype in many of the world’s mythologies, religions, or traditions. Here are some sacred trees explained. The “sacred” tree of knowledge thought to connect heaven/Upper world and the underworld. The “sacred” tree of life, thought to connect all forms of creation, are both forms of the world tree or cosmic tree, and are portrayed in various religions and philosophies seemly as the same tree. ref

“Various trees of life are recounted in folklore, culture, and fiction, often relating to immortality or fertility. They had their origin in religious symbolism. Trees are significant in many of the world’s mythologies, and have been given deep and sacred meanings throughout the ages. Human beings, observing the growth and death of trees, and the annual death and revival of their foliage, have often seen them as powerful symbols of growth, death, and rebirth. Evergreen trees, which largely stay green throughout these cycles, are sometimes considered symbols of the eternal, immortality, or fertility. The image of the Tree of life or world tree occurs in many mythologies. Examples include the banyan and the sacred fig (Ficus religiosa) in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil of Judaism and Christianity. In folk religion and folklore, trees are often said to be the homes of tree spirits. Germanic mythology as well as Celtic polytheism both appear to have involved cultic practice in sacred groves, especially grove of oak. The term druid itself possibly derives from the Celtic word for oak. The Egyptian Book of the Dead mentions sycamores as part of the scenery where the soul of the deceased finds blissful repose. The presence of trees in myth sometimes occurs in connection to the concept of the sacred tree and the sacred grove. Trees are an attribute of the archetypical locus amoenus.” ref, ref

Around 5,000-year-old Shared Idea of the “Tree of Life” Ritual Motif

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Menorah “Tree of Life” (Asherah goddess related) symbol with 7 or 9 branches?

Jewish sources: Etz Chaim and Biblical tree of life

“Etz Chaim (Hebrew: עץ חיים), Hebrew for “tree of life,” appears in the Book of Genesis and is part of the story of the creation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Thus the term is a common term used in Judaism. The expression, found in the Book of Proverbs, is figuratively applied to the Torah itself. Etz Chaim is also a common name for yeshivas and synagogues as well as for works of Rabbinic literature. It is also used to describe each of the wooden poles to which the parchment of a Sefer Torah is attached. The tree of life is mentioned in the Book of Genesis; it is distinct from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. After Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they were driven out of the Garden of Eden. Remaining in the garden, however, was the tree of life. To prevent their access to this tree in the future, Cherubim with a flaming sword were placed at the east of the garden. In the Book of Proverbs, the tree of life is associated with wisdom: “[Wisdom] is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her, and happy [is every one] that retaineth her.” In Proverbs 15:4, the tree of life is associated with calmness: “A soothing tongue is a tree of life; but perverseness therein is a wound to the spirit.” In the Ashkenazic liturgy, the Eitz Chayim is a piyyut commonly sung as the Sefer Torah is returned to the Torah ark. The Book of Enoch, generally considered non-canonical, states that in the time of the great judgment, God will give all those whose names are in the Book of Life fruit to eat from the tree of life.” ref

“The menorah is a prominent symbol in the Jewish faith and plays a central role in the celebration of Hanukkah. Likewise, the “Tree of Life” carries different meanings across faiths but holds special meaning in Judaism for its connection to the Torah, the Jewish people’s most sacred text. Genesis, the first book of the Torah, locates the “Tree of Life” at the heart of the Garden of Eden (2.4–3:24), and Proverbs 3:18 teaches: “[The Torah] is a tree of life to those who hold her close.” For many, the tree represents growth, stability, and fertility as well as hope for and connection to future generations. The extensive roots and intertwined branches illustrate family connections.” ref

Kabbalah: Tree of life (Kabbalah)

Jewish mysticism depicts the tree of life in the form of ten interconnected nodes, as the central symbol of the Kabbalah. It comprises the ten Sefirot powers in the divine realm. The panentheistic and anthropomorphic emphasis of this emanationist theology interpreted the Torah, Jewish observance, and the purpose of Creation as the symbolic esoteric drama of unification in the sefirot, restoring harmony to Creation. From the Renaissance onwards, Kabbalah became incorporated as tradition in Christian Western esotericism as Hermetic Qabalah.

Northern America

“In a myth passed down among the Iroquois, The World on the Turtle’s Back, explains the origin of the land in which a tree of life is described. According to the myth, it is found in the heavens, where the first humans lived, until a pregnant woman fell and landed in an endless sea. Saved by a giant turtle from drowning, she formed the world on its back by planting bark taken from the tree. The tree of life motif is present in the traditional Ojibwe cosmology and traditions. It is sometimes described as Grandmother Cedar, or Nookomis Giizhig in Anishinaabemowin. In the book Black Elk Speaks, Black Elk, an Oglala Lakota (Sioux) wičháša wakȟáŋ (medicine man and holy man), describes his vision in which after dancing around a dying tree that has never bloomed he is transported to the other world (spirit world) where he meets wise elders, 12 men and 12 women. The elders tell Black Elk that they will bring him to meet “Our Father, the two-legged chief” and bring him to the center of a hoop where he sees the tree in full leaf and bloom and the “chief” standing against the tree. Coming out of his trance he hopes to see that the earthly tree has bloomed, but it is dead. The Oneidas tell that supernatural beings lived in the Skyworld above the waters which covered the earth. This tree was covered with fruits which gave them their light, and they were instructed that no one should cut into the tree otherwise a great punishment would be given. As the woman had pregnancy cravings, she sent her husband to get bark, but he accidentally dug a hole to the other world. After falling through, she came to rest on the turtle’s back, and four animals were sent out to find land, which the muskrat finally did.” ref

Mesoamerica: Mesoamerican world tree

The concept of world trees is a prevalent motif in the Mesoamerican cosmovision and iconography, appearing in the pre-Columbian era. World trees embody the four cardinal directions, which represented also the fourfold nature of a central world tree, a symbolic axis mundi connecting the planes of the Underworld and the sky with that of the terrestrial world. Depictions of world trees, both in their directional and central aspects, are found in the art and mythological traditions of cultures such as the Maya, Aztec, Izapan, Mixtec, Olmec, and others, dating to at least the Mid/Late Formative periods of the Mesoamerican chronology. The tomb of Kʼinich Janaabʼ Pakal of the Maya city-state of Palenque, who became its ajaw or leader when he was twelve years old, has tree of life inscriptions within the walls of his burial place, showing just how important it was. Among the Maya, the central world tree was conceived as or represented by a Ceiba pentandra and is known variously as a wacah chan or yax imix che in different Mayan languages. The trunk of the tree could also be represented by an upright caiman, whose skin evokes the tree’s spiny trunk. Directional world trees are also associated with the four Year Bearers in Mesoamerican calendars and associated with the directional colors and deities. Mesoamerican codices which have this association outlined include the Dresden, Borgia and Fejérváry-Mayer codices. It is supposed that Mesoamerican sites and ceremonial centers frequently had actual trees planted at each of the four cardinal directions, representing the quadripartite concept. World trees are frequently depicted with birds in their branches, and their roots extending into earth or water, sometimes atop a “water-monster,” symbolic of the underworld. The central world tree has also been interpreted as a representation of the band of the Milky Way.” ref

Egypt

“In Egyptian mythology, the Tree of Life is said to have been kept in an open courtyard on full display in the Sun temple of Ra in Heliopolis. It is believed to have been kept with the Ben-Ben Stone, which was a capstone in the shape of a pyramid that sat atop a sacred Obelisk. The Great Cat was a personification of the deity Ra, which is believed to have guarded the Tree of Life. In Egyptian mythology, the secretary of the sun god Ra and scribe of the underworld, Thoth, inscribed Ra’s name and the length of his reign on the leaves and fruit of the Tree of Life. The purpose of this was to protect Ra and preserve his name. Ancient Egyptians believed that eating the fruit of the sacred Ished Tree of Life that had been offered by the gods was a guarantee of eternal life. In Egyptian mythology, the Tree of Life was thought to have held the Knowledge of the Divine Plan. This was essentially a plan or timeline of all creation, starting at the very beginning of time. The Tree of Life in Ancient Egypt was home to the Phoenix, also known as the Bennu Bird. As such, it held strong links with resurrection and represented the rising sun. Egyptian mythology details instances in which the Sun god, Ra, would split the Ished Tree of Life in the morning after he was victorious over his enemies. The Tree of Life plays a key role in the creation story in Ancient Egyptian mythology. The myth goes that the Tree of Life rose from the Sacred Mound. Once it had risen, the tree’s branches reached up and out into the sky and supported the various stars and planets. Its branches also reached down into the watery abyss of the underworld. The trunk of the Tree of Life is also of individual significance. The trunk is believed to have represented the World Pillar around which the heavens would revolve. The World Pillar was the centre of the entire universe. At the foot of the Tree of Life were four river sources. The sources of these rivers would provide water to the world. The orientation of these four rivers was important, as they all correlated with a cardinal point of the compass. Each point of the compass, and its corresponding river, was associated with a specific element. For example, water was associated with the North Point, fire was associated with the South Point, air was associated with the East Point, and earth was associated with the West Point.” ref

The Baobab Tree: Africa’s Iconic “Tree of Life”

“Adansonia trees are known as baobabs. The eight species of Adansonia are native to Africa, Australia, and Madagascar, but have also been introduced to other regions of the world, including Barbados, where several of the baobabs there are suspected to have originated from Africa. Baobab trees hold cultural and spiritual significance in many African societies. They are often the sites of communal gatherings, storytelling, and rituals. An unusual baobab was the namesake of Kukawa, formerly the capital of the Bornu Empire, southwest of Lake Chad in Central Africa. In West Africa, the South Asian Moringa oleifera tree is regarded as a “tree of life” or “miracle tree” by some because it is arguably the most nutritious source of plant-derived food discovered on the planet.” ref, ref

“Native to the African savannah, where the climate is extremely dry and arid, it is a symbol of life and positivity in a landscape where little else can thrive. Over time, the Baobab has adapted to its environment. It is a succulent, which means that during the rainy season it absorbs and stores water in its vast trunk, enabling it to produce a nutrient-dense fruit in the dry season when all around is dry and arid. This is how it became known as “The Tree of Life”. Baobab trees grow in 32 African countries. They can live for up to 5,000 years, reach up to 30 metres high, and up to an enormous 50 metres in circumference. Baobab trees can provide shelter, food, and water for animals and humans, which is why many savannah communities have made their homes near Baobab trees. Every part of the baobab tree is valuable – the bark can be turned into rope and clothing, the seeds can be used to make cosmetic oils, the leaves are edible, the trunks can store water, and the fruit is extraordinarily rich in nutrients and antioxidants. Women in Africa have turned to the baobab fruit as a natural source of health and beauty for centuries. Baobab is the only fruit in the world that dries naturally on its branch. Instead of dropping and spoiling, it stays on the branch and bakes in the sun for 6 months, transforming its green velvety coating into a hard coconut-like shell.” ref

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World Tree

“The world tree is a motif present in several religions and mythologies, particularly Indo-European, Siberian, and Native American religions. The central world tree has also been interpreted as a representation of the band of the Milky Way.” ref

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Asherah is related to the “Tree of Life” (Axis mundi: Snake/pole/piller/stele/world Tree/World Mountain/World Turtle/Mound of Creation: also related to the Milky Way: path/river/milk/smoke-fire/blood; all going to heaven/ancestors, “who are stars”).

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The Mountain Goat; Symbol of Rain In Iranian Pottery

“The designs drawn by the Iranians, especially drawings of Iran’s national animal, the mountain goat, have been infused with the spirit of simplicity and precision. These designs are unique in all of Asia. The prehistoric man lived in constant fear and anxiety. He feared the satanic force, and needed a stimulant to help him defend himself from this wicked force. That is the reason why he resorted to talismans, charms, and totems to the point of worshipping them. Studying prehistoric man’s creations, helps us discover his interest in exhibiting what they considered as the manifestations of the gods that they worshipped. For example, drawings of the sun, and the animals related to the sun, such as the eagle, lion, cow, deer, and the mountain goat, can be seen on pottery dating back to the 4th millennium BCE People wore necklaces with pendants of mountain goats, especially among Cassy tribes in Lorestan. These people needed a defender because they believed that, since time immemorial, hurricanes, floods, wild animals, etc. had threatened man, his home, livestock, and crops. Because they wanted to be safe, they began worshipping the gods and goddesses, or objects and animals which they presumed the gods and goddesses liked. Sometimes only one of the animal’s limbs or organs was drawn on pottery. For example, in the pottery made during the period between 3,000 to 4,000 BCE, there are drawings of the horns of cows, deer, and mountain goats, or the wings and claws of birds, together with geometrical designs. Each ancient tribe considered the mountain goat to be the symbol of one of the natural, beneficial elements. For example, in Lorestan, it symbolized the sun. Sometimes it symbolized the rain because in ancient times the moon was related to the rain, and the sun was related to the heat and dryness. There was also a relationship between the mountain goat’s twisted horns and the crescent – shaped moon.” ref

“That is why it was believed that the mountain goat’s twisted horns could bring about rainfall. In ancient Susa and Elam, the mountain goat was the symbol of prosperity and the god of vegetation. In Mesopotamia, the mountain goat symbolized the “Great god’s” bestial nature (The Great god appeared in the role of the god of plants, holding a tee branch in his hand, while the mountain goat ate its leaves). Prehistoric men had an astonishing skill in making pottery. They made the best types of pottery by hand, and by using the potter’s wheel. In these artifacts, they have demonstrated all aspects of their lives, such as their religion, mores and art. By studying these creations, we come to know the relationship between different civilizations. These ancient people, had great skill in depicting horned animals. Maybe the transformation of gods into different drawings of animals, is one of the reasons why animals were considered sacred, and why they became an interesting topic for the works of ancient artists and potters. Most of the prehistoric pottery were first designed with geometrical and decorative designs. Drawings of animals became common after some time, and after that, geometric shapes became widespread once again. This transformation is seen in most of the prehistoric Persian civilizations. The mountain goat motif emerges in different historical periods. In excavations of many hills, archeologists have discovered vessels bearing the same motif. Here, we shall refer to some of these instances: The Sialk Hill Civilization, in Kashan, lasted from the fifth millennium to the first millennium BCE The hill has six ancient layers, each layer containing distinct types of pottery and other artifacts. Flowers and trees such as the sunflower, and the ‘Tree of Life’ (The Sacred Tree), drawn in between the goat’s horns, are very interesting. The sunflower symbolized the sun, and was considered to be sacred.” ref

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Rain Bull

“Capturing the Rain Animal: an important mythological and symbolic aspect of the rock art of the San in the Drakensberg Mountains in southern Africa. With more than 500,000 rock art sites, Africa is the world’s greatest repository of ancient rock art. Of Africa’s many rock art traditions, the San – or Bushman – rock art of the Drakensberg Mountains in southern Africa is one of the finest. Some of its images have details only the width of a hair, and its delicately shaded colours fade seamlessly from white through pink to dark red. For decades, researchers believed that San rock paintings were simply a record of daily life or a primitive form of hunting magic. But by linking specific San beliefs to recurrent features in the art, researchers such as Patricia Vinnicombe and David Lewis-Williams managed to crack the fundamental codes underlying San rock art, revealing a complex and sophisticated form of symbolic art. One aspect of this is capturing the rain animal.” ref 

Rain-making was one of the San shamans’ most important tasks. The southern San thought of the rain as an animal. A male rain-animal, or rain-bull, was associated with the frightening thunderstorm that bellowed, stirred up the dust, and sometimes killed people with its lightning. The female rain animal was associated with soft, soaking rains. For the San, rain was life. When it fell, tubers that had lain hidden beneath the parched land sprang up, and the veld was renewed. Then antelopes were attracted to the new grass and bushes. Columns of falling rain were called the rain’s legs, while wisps of cloud were known as the rain’s hair; mist was said to be rain’s breath. When the San did a rain dance, they would go into a trance to capture one of these animals. In their trance, they would kill it, and its blood and milk became the rain.” ref  

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“Mehet-Weret or Mehturt (Ancient Egyptian: mḥt-wrt) is an ancient Egyptian deity of the sky in ancient Egyptian religion. Her name means “Great Flood”. She was mentioned in the Pyramid Texts. In ancient Egyptian creation myths, she gives birth to the sun at the beginning of time. In spell 17 of the Book of the Dead, the god Ra is born from her buttocks. In art, she is portrayed as a cow with a sun disk between her horns. She is associated with the goddesses Neith, Hathor, and Isis, all of whom have similar characteristics, and like them, she could be called the “Eye of Ra”. In some instances, she is simply an epithet for those goddesses. Her own titles included ‘mound’ and ‘island’ (mound of creation). Geraldine Pinch suggests that Mehet-Weret was also ‘probably’ the Milky Way in the night sky, to correspond with her identification as the celestial waters travelled by the solar barque.” ref

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Pastoralists’ indigenous religious practices: capturing the “rain-bull”

“Ritual Cemeteries—For Cows and Then Humans—Plot Pastoralist Expansion Across Africa. As early herders spread across northern and then eastern Africa, the communities erected monumental graves which may have served as social gathering points. Testing religious beliefs Pastoralists’ indigenous religious practices: found that appeasing spirits (82%), sacrifice (89%), divination (76%), and communal ceremonies (94%) were practiced in the study areas. These systems have highly contributed to personal reproduction (55%), farming practices (45%), conflict resolution (60%), forecasting events (48%), healing (60%), social cohesion (70%), and local governing (50%) among the pastoralists.” ref

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Mesopotamian Gods and the Bull

“In Mesopotamia, gods were associated with the bull from at least the Early Dynastic Period until the Neo-Babylonian or Chaldean Period. This relationship took on many forms; the bull could serve as the god’s divine animal, the god could be likened to the bull, or he could actually take on the form of the beast. In this paper, the various gods identified with or related to the bull will be identified and studied in order to identify which specific types of gods were most commonly and especially associated with the bull. The relationships between the gods and the bull are evident in textual as well as iconographic sources, although fewer instances of this connection are found in iconography. Examples of the portrayal of the association between the various gods and the bull in texts and iconography can be compared and contrasted in order to reveal differences and similarities in these portrayals.” ref

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Sacred Cattle in Egyptian Mythology

“Bat is a cow goddess in Egyptian mythology who was depicted as a human face with cow ears and horns or as a woman. Other feminine bovine deities include Sekhat-Hor, Mehet-Weryt, Shedyt, Hathor, Hesat, and Celestial Cow “Sky goddess” Nut. Their masculine counterparts include Apis, Mnevis, Buchis, Sema-wer, Ageb-wer. Cattle are prominent in some religions and mythologies. As such, numerous people throughout the world have at one point in time honored bulls as sacred. In the Sumerian religion, Marduk is the “bull of Utu”. In Hinduism, Shiva’s steed is Nandi, the Bull. The sacred bull survives in the constellation Taurus. The bull, whether lunar as in Mesopotamia or solar as in India, is the subject of various other cultural and religious incarnations.” ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref

 Sumerian religion, Marduk is the “Bull of Utu” 

“Taurus (Latin, ‘Bull‘) is one of the constellations of the zodiac and is located in the northern celestial hemisphere. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the Northern Hemisphere‘s winter sky. It is one of the oldest constellations, dating back to the Early Bronze Age at least, when it marked the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. Its importance to the agricultural calendar influenced various bull figures in the mythologies of Ancient Sumer, Akkad, Assyria, Babylon, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Its old astronomical symbol is  (♉︎), which resembles a bull’s head. We cannot recreate a specific context for the bull skulls with horns (bucrania) preserved in an 8th millennium BCE sanctuary at Çatalhöyük in Central Anatolia. The sacred bull of the Hattians, whose elaborate standards were found at Alaca Höyük alongside those of the sacred stag, survived in Hurrian and Hittite mythology as Seri and Hurri (“Day” and “Night”), the bulls who carried the weather god Teshub on their backs or in his chariot and grazed on the ruins of cities.” ref

“The identification of the constellation of Taurus with a bull is very old, certainly dating to the Chalcolithic, and perhaps even to the Upper Paleolithic. Michael Rappenglück of the University of Munich believes that Taurus is represented in a cave painting at the Hall of the Bulls in the caves at Lascaux (dated to roughly 15,000 BCE), which he believes is accompanied by a depiction of the Pleiades. The name “seven sisters” has been used for the Pleiades in the languages of many cultures, including indigenous groups of Australia, North America and Siberia. This suggests that the name may have a common ancient origin. Taurus marked the point of vernal (spring) equinox in the Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze Age, from about 4000 to 1700 BCE, after which it moved into the neighboring constellation Aries. The Pleiades were closest to the Sun at vernal equinox around the 23rd century BCE. In Babylonian astronomy, the constellation was listed in the MUL.APIN as GU₄.AN.NA, “The Bull of Heaven“. Although it has been claimed that “when the Babylonians first set up their zodiac, the vernal equinox lay in Taurus,” there is a claim that the MUL.APIN tablets indicate that the vernal equinox was marked by the Babylonian constellation known as “the hired man” (the modern Aries).” ref

“In the Old Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, the goddess Ishtar sends Taurus, the Bull of Heaven, to kill Gilgamesh for spurning her advances. Enkidu tears off the bull’s hind part and hurls the quarters into the sky where they become the stars we know as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. Some locate Gilgamesh as the neighboring constellation of Orion, facing Taurus as if in combat, while others identify him with the sun whose rising on the equinox vanquishes the constellation. In early Mesopotamian art, the Bull of Heaven was closely associated with Inanna, the Sumerian goddess of sexual love, fertility, and warfare. One of the oldest depictions shows the bull standing before the goddess’ standard; since it has 3 stars depicted on its back (the cuneiform sign for “star-constellation”), there is good reason to regard this as the constellation later known as Taurus. The same iconic representation of the Heavenly Bull was depicted in the Dendera zodiac, an Egyptian bas-relief carving in a ceiling that depicted the celestial hemisphere using a planisphere. In these ancient cultures, the orientation of the horns was portrayed as upward or backward. This differed from the later Greek depiction where the horns pointed forward. To the Egyptians, the constellation Taurus was a sacred bull that was associated with the renewal of life in spring. When the spring equinox entered Taurus, the constellation would become covered by the Sun in the western sky as spring began. This “sacrifice” led to the renewal of the land. To the early Hebrews, Taurus was the first constellation in their zodiac and consequently it was represented by the first letter in their alphabet, Aleph.” ref

“In Greek mythology, Taurus was identified with Zeus, who assumed the form of a magnificent white bull to abduct Europa, a legendary Phoenician princess. In illustrations of Greek mythology, only the front portion of this constellation is depicted; this was sometimes explained as Taurus being partly submerged as he carried Europa out to sea. A second Greek myth portrays Taurus as Io, a mistress of Zeus. To hide his lover from his wife Hera, Zeus changed Io into the form of a heifer. Greek mythographer Acusilaus marks the bull Taurus as the same that formed the myth of the Cretan Bull, one of The Twelve Labors of Heracles. Taurus became an important object of worship among the Druids. Their Tauric religious festival was held while the Sun passed through the constellation. Among the arctic people known as the Inuit, the constellation is called Sakiattiat and the Hyades is Nanurjuk, with the latter representing the spirit of the polar bear. Aldebaran represents the bear, with the remainder of the stars in the Hyades being dogs that are holding the beast at bay.” ref

“In Buddhism, legends hold that Gautama Buddha was born when the full moon was in Vaisakha, or Taurus. Buddha’s birthday is celebrated with the Wesak Festival, or Vesākha, which occurs on the first or second full moon when the Sun is in Taurus. In 1990, due to the precession of the equinoxes, the position of the Sun on the first day of summer (June 21) crossed the IAU boundary of Gemini into Taurus. The Sun will slowly move through Taurus at a rate of 1° east every 72 years until approximately 2600, at which point it will be in Aries on the first day of summer.” ref

“The Sumerian guardian deity called lamassu was depicted as hybrids with bodies of either winged bulls or lions and heads of human males. The motif of a winged animal with a human head is common to the Near East, first recorded in Ebla around 3000 BCE. The first distinct lamassu motif appeared in Assyria during the reign of Tiglath-Pileser II as a symbol of power. “The human-headed winged bulls protective genies called shedu or lamassu, … were placed as guardians at certain gates or doorways of the city and the palace. Symbols combining man, bull, and bird, they offered protection against enemies.” ref

“The bull was also associated with the storm and rain god Adad, Hadad or Iškur. The bull was his symbolic animal. He appeared bearded, often holding a club and thunderbolt while wearing a bull-horned headdress. Hadad was equated with the Greek god Zeus; the Roman god Jupiter, as Jupiter Dolichenus; the Indo-European Nasite Hittite storm-god Teshub; the Egyptian god Amun. When Enki distributed the destinies, he made Iškur inspector of the cosmos. In one litany, Iškur is proclaimed again and again as “great radiant bull, your name is heaven” and also called son of Anu, lord of Karkara; twin-brother of Enki, lord of abundance, lord who rides the storm, lion of heaven.” ref

“The Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh depicts the horrors of the rage-fueled deployment of the Bull of Heaven by Ishtar and its slaughter by Gilgamesh and Enkidu as an act of defiance that seals their fates:

Ishtar opened her mouth and said again, “My father, give me the Bull of Heaven to destroy Gilgamesh. Fill Gilgamesh, I say, with arrogance to his destruction; but if you refuse to give me the Bull of Heaven I will break in the doors of hell and smash the bolts; there will be a confusion of people, those above with those from the lower depths. I shall bring up the dead to eat food like the living; and the hosts of the dead will outnumber the living.” Anu said to great Ishtar, “If I do what you desire there will be seven years of drought throughout Uruk when corn will be seedless husks. Have you saved grain enough for the people and grass for the cattle?” Ishtar replied “I have saved grain for the people, grass for the cattle.”…When Anu heard what Ishtar had said he gave her the Bull of Heaven to lead by the halter down to Uruk. When they reached the gates of Uruk the Bull of Heaven went to the river; with his first snort cracks opened in the earth and a hundred young men fell down to death.” ref

“With his second snort cracks opened and two hundred fell down to death. With his third snort cracks opened, Enkidu doubled over but instantly recovered, he dodged aside and leapt onto the Bull and seized it by the horns. The Bull of Heaven foamed in his face, it brushed him with the thick of its tail. Enkidu cried to Gilgamesh, “My friend we boasted that we would leave enduring names behind us. Now thrust your sword between the nape and the horns.” So Gilgamesh followed the Bull, he seized the thick of its tail, he thrust the sword between the nape and the horns and slew the Bull. When they had killed the Bull of Heaven they cut out its heart and gave it to Shamash, and the brothers rested.” ref

“In Ancient Egypt multiple sacred bulls were worshiped. A long succession of ritually perfect bulls were identified by the god’s priests, housed in the temple for their lifetime, then embalmed and buried. The mother-cows of these animals were also revered, and buried in separate locations.

• In the Memphite region, the Apis was seen as the embodiment of Ptah and later of Osiris. Some of the Apis bulls were buried in large sarcophagi in the underground vaults of the Serapeum of Saqqara, which was rediscovered by Auguste Mariette in 1851.
• Mnevis of Heliopolis was the embodiment of Atum–Ra.
• Buchis of Hermonthis was linked with the gods Ra and Montu. The catacombs for these bulls are now known as the Bucheum. Multiple Buchis mummies were found in situ during excavations in the 1930s. Some of their sarcophagi are similar to those in the Serapeum, others are polylithic (made from multiple stones).” ref

“Ka, in Egyptian, is both a religious concept of life-force/power and the word for bull. Andrew Gordon, an Egyptologist, and Calvin Schwabe, a veterinarian, argue that the origin of the ankh is related to two other signs of uncertain origin that often appear alongside it: the was-sceptre, representing “power” or “dominion”, and the djed pillar, representing “stability”. According to this hypothesis, the form of each sign is drawn from a part of the anatomy of a bull, like some other hieroglyphic signs that are known to be based on body parts of animals. In Egyptian belief semen was connected with life and, to some extent, with “power” or “dominion”, and some texts indicate the Egyptians believed semen originated in the bones. Therefore, Calvin and Schwabe suggest the signs are based on parts of the bull’s anatomy through which semen was thought to pass: the ankh is a thoracic vertebra, the djed is the sacrum and lumbar vertebrae, and the was is the dried penis of the bull.” ref

“In Cyprus, bull masks made from real skulls were worn in rites. Bull-masked terracotta figurines and Neolithic bull-horned stone altars have been found in Cyprus. Bulls were a central theme in the Minoan civilization, with bull heads and bull horns used as symbols in the Knossos palace. Minoan frescos and ceramics depict bull-leaping, in which participants of both sexes vaulted over bulls by grasping their horns.” ref

“The Iranian language texts and traditions of Zoroastrianism have several different mythological bovine creatures. One of these is Gavaevodata, which is the Avestan name of a hermaphroditic “uniquely created (-aevo.data) cow (gav-)”, one of Ahura Mazda‘s six primordial material creations that becomes the mythological progenitor of all beneficent animal life. Another Zoroastrian mythological bovine is Hadhayans, a gigantic bull so large that it could straddle the mountains and seas that divide the seven regions of the earth, and on whose back men could travel from one region to another.” ref

“In medieval times, Hadhayans also came to be known as Srīsōk (Avestan *Thrisaok, “three burning places”), which derives from a legend in which three “Great Fires” were collected on the creature’s back. Yet another mythological bovine is that of the unnamed creature in the Cow’s Lament, an allegorical hymn attributed to Zoroaster himself, in which the soul of a bovine (geush urvan) despairs over her lack of protection from an adequate herdsman. In the allegory, the cow represents humanity’s lack of moral guidance, but in later Zoroastrianism, Geush Urvan became a yazata representing cattle. The 14th day of the month is named after her and is under her protection.” ref

“Bulls appear on seals from the Indus Valley civilisation. In The Rig Veda, the earliest collection of Vedic hymns (c. 1500-1000 BCE), Indra is often praised as a Bull (Vṛṣabha – vrsa (he) plus bha (being) or as uksan, a bull aged five to nine years, which is still growing or just reached its full growth). The bull is an icon of power and virile strength in Aryan literature and other Indo-European traditions. Vrsha means “to shower or to spray”, in this context Indra showers strength and virility. Vṛṣabha is also an astrological sign in Indian horoscope systems, corresponding to Taurus.” ref

“The storm god Rudra is called a bull as are the Maruts or storm deities referred to as bulls under the command of Indra, thus Indra is called “bull with bulls.” The following excerpts from The Rig Veda demonstrate these attributes:

“As a bull I call to you, the bull with the thunderbolt, with various aids, O Indra, bull with bulls, greatest killer of Vrtra.” — Atri and the Last Sun” ref

“He the mighty bull who with his seven reins let loose the seven rivers to flow, who with his thunderbolt in his hand hurled down Ruhina as he was climbing up to the sky, he my people is Indra.” — Who is Indra?

“I send praise to the high bull, tawny and white. I bow low to the radiant one. We praise the dreaded name of Rudra.” — Rudra, father of the Maruts” ref.

“Nandi later appears in the Puranas as the primary vahana (mount) and the principal gana (follower) of Shiva. Nandi figures depicted as a seated bull are present at Shiva temples throughout the world. Kao (bull), a supernatural divine bull, appears in ancient Meitei mythology and folklore of Ancient Manipur (Kangleipak). In the legend of the Khamba Thoibi epic, Nongban Kongyamba, a nobleman of ancient Moirang realm, pretended to be an oracle and falsely prophesied that the people of Moirang would lead to miserable lives, if the powerful Kao (bull) roaming freely in the Khuman kingdom, wasn’t offered to the god Thangjing (Old Manipuri: Thangching), the presiding deity of Moirang. Orphan Khuman prince Khamba was chosen to capture the bull, as he was known for his valor and faithfulness.” ref

“Since to capture the bull without killing it was not an easy task, Khamba’s motherly sister Khamnu disclosed to Khamba the secrets of the bull, by means of which the animal could be captured. Bull figurines are common finds on archaeological sites across the Levant; two examples are the 16th century BCE (Middle Bronze Age) bull calf from Ashkelon, and the 12th century BCE (Iron Age I) bull found at the so-called Bull Site in Samaria on the West Bank. Both Baʿal and El were associated with the bull in Ugaritic texts, as it symbolized both strength and fertility.” ref

Exodus 32:4 reads “He took this from their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt’.” ref

Nehemiah 9:18 reads “even when they made an idol shaped like a calf and said, ‘This is your god who brought you out of Egypt!’ They committed terrible blasphemies.” ref

“Calf-idols are referred to later in the Tanakh, such as in the Book of Hosea, which would seem accurate as they were a fixture of near-eastern cultures. Solomon‘s “Molten Sea” basin stood on twelve brazen bulls. Young bulls were set as frontier markers at Dan and Bethel, the frontiers of the Kingdom of Israel. Much later, in Abrahamic religions, the bull motif became a bull demon or the “horned devil” in contrast and conflict to earlier traditions. The bull is familiar in Judeo-Christian cultures from the Biblical episode wherein an idol of the golden calf (Hebrew: עֵגֶּל הַזָהָב) is made by Aaron and worshipped by the Hebrews in the wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula (Book of Exodus). The text of the Hebrew Bible can be understood to refer to the idol as representing a separate god, or as representing Yahweh himself, perhaps through an association or religious syncretism with Egyptian or Levantine bull gods, rather than a new deity in itself.” ref

“Among the Twelve Olympians, Hera‘s epithet Bo-opis is usually translated “ox-eyed” Hera, but the term could just as well apply if the goddess had the head of a cow, and thus the epithet reveals the presence of an earlier, though not necessarily more primitive, iconic view. (Heinrich Schlieman, 1976) Classical Greeks never otherwise referred to Hera simply as the cow, though her priestess Io was so literally a heifer that she was stung by a gadfly, and it was in the form of a heifer that Zeus coupled with her. Zeus took over the earlier roles, and, in the form of a bull that came forth from the sea, abducted the high-born Phoenician Europa and brought her, significantly, to Crete.” ref

“Dionysus was another god of resurrection who was strongly linked to the bull. In a worship hymn from Olympia, at a festival for Hera, Dionysus is also invited to come as a bull, “with bull-foot raging.” “Quite frequently he is portrayed with bull horns, and in Kyzikos he has a tauromorphic image,” Walter Burkert relates, and refers also to an archaic myth in which Dionysus is slaughtered as a bull calf and impiously eaten by the Titans.” ref

“For the Greeks, the bull was strongly linked to the Cretan Bull: Theseus of Athens had to capture the ancient sacred bull of Marathon (the “Marathonian bull”) before he faced the Minotaur (Greek for “Bull of Minos”), who the Greeks imagined as a man with the head of a bull at the center of the labyrinth. Minotaur was fabled to be born of the Queen and a bull, bringing the king to build the labyrinth to hide his family’s shame. Living in solitude made the boy wild and ferocious, unable to be tamed or beaten. Yet Walter Burkert‘s constant warning is, “It is hazardous to project Greek tradition directly into the Bronze Age.” Only one Minoan image of a bull-headed man has been found, a tiny Minoan sealstone currently held in the Archaeological Museum of Chania.” ref

“In the Classical period of Greece, the bull and other animals identified with deities were separated as their agalma, a kind of heraldic show-piece that concretely signified their numinous presence. The religious practices of the Roman Empire of the 2nd to 4th centuries included the taurobolium, in which a bull was sacrificed for the well-being of the people and the state. Around the mid-2nd century, the practice became identified with the worship of Magna Mater, but was not previously associated only with that cult (cultus). Public taurobolia, enlisting the benevolence of Magna Mater on behalf of the emperor, became common in Italy and Gaul, Hispania and Africa. The last public taurobolium for which there is an inscription was carried out at Mactar in Numidia at the close of the 3rd century. It was performed in honor of the emperors Diocletian and Maximian.” ref

“Another Roman mystery cult in which a sacrificial bull played a role was that of the 1st–4th century Mithraic Mysteries. In the so-called “tauroctony” artwork of that cult (cultus), and which appears in all its temples, the god Mithras is seen to slay a sacrificial bull. Although there has been a great deal of speculation on the subject, the myth (i.e. the “mystery”, the understanding of which was the basis of the cult) that the scene was intended to represent remains unknown. Because the scene is accompanied by a great number of astrological allusions, the bull is generally assumed to represent the constellation of Taurus. The basic elements of the tauroctony scene were originally associated with Nike, the Greek goddess of victory. Macrobius lists the bull as an animal sacred to the god Neto/Neito, possibly being sacrifices to the deity.” ref

“Tarvos Trigaranus (the “bull with three cranes”) is pictured on ancient Gaulish reliefs alongside images of gods, such as in the cathedrals at Trier and at Notre Dame de Paris. In Irish mythology, the Donn Cuailnge and the Finnbhennach are prized bulls that play a central role in the epic Táin Bó Cúailnge (“The Cattle Raid of Cooley”). Early medieval Irish texts also mention the tarbfeis (bull feast), a shamanistic ritual in which a bull would be sacrificed and a seer would sleep in the bull’s hide to have a vision of the future king. Pliny the Elder, writing in the first century CE, describes a religious ceremony in Gaul in which white-clad druids climbed a sacred oak, cut down the mistletoe growing on it, sacrificed two white bulls and used the mistletoe to cure infertility.” ref

“The druids—that is what they call their magicians—hold nothing more sacred than the mistletoe and a tree on which it is growing, provided it is Valonia oak. … Mistletoe is rare and when found it is gathered with great ceremony, and particularly on the sixth day of the moon….Hailing the moon in a native word that means ‘healing all things,’ they prepare a ritual sacrifice and banquet beneath a tree and bring up two white bulls, whose horns are bound for the first time on this occasion. A priest arrayed in white vestments climbs the tree and, with a golden sickle, cuts down the mistletoe, which is caught in a white cloak. Then finally they kill the victims, praying to a god to render his gift propitious to those on whom he has bestowed it. They believe that mistletoe given in drink will impart fertility to any animal that is barren and that it is an antidote to all poisons. Bull sacrifices at the time of the Lughnasa festival were recorded as late as the 18th century at Cois Fharraige in Ireland (where they were offered to Crom Dubh) and at Loch Maree in Scotland (where they were offered to Saint Máel Ruba).” ref

Cattle in religion and mythology

There are varying beliefs about cattle in societies and religions.

“Cattle are considered sacred in the Indian religions of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, as well as in some Chinese folk religion and in African paganism. Cattle played other major roles in many religions, including those of ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient Israel, and ancient Rome. In some regions, especially most states of India, the slaughter of cattle is prohibited and their meat (beef) may be taboo.” ref

“In ancient Egyptian religion, bulls symbolized strength and male sexuality and were linked with aggressive deities such as Montu and virile deities such as Min. Some Egyptian cities kept sacred bulls that were said to be incarnations of divine powers, including the Mnevis bull, Buchis bull, and the Apis bull, which was regarded as a manifestation of the god Ptah and was the most important sacred animal in Egypt. Cows were connected with fertility and motherhood. One of several ancient Egyptian creation myths said that a cow goddess, Mehet-Weret, who represented the primeval waters that existed before creation, gave birth to the sun at the beginning of time. The sky was sometimes envisioned as a goddess in the form of a cow, and several goddesses, including Hathor, Nut, and Neith, were equated with this celestial cow. The Egyptians did not regard cattle as uniformly positive. Wild bulls, regarded as symbols of the forces of chaos, could be hunted and ritually killed.” ref

“As cattle were a central part of the pastoralist economy of Ancient Nubia, Africa, they also played a prominent role in their culture and mythology, as evidenced by their inclusion in burials and rock art. Starting in the Neolithic period, cattle skulls, also known as bucrania, were often placed alongside human burials. Bucrania were a status symbol, and they were used frequently in adult male burials, occasionally in adult female burials, and rarely in child burials. In cemeteries at Kerma, there is a strong correlation between the number of bucrania and the quantity and lavishness of other grave goods. Dozens if not hundreds of cattle were often slaughtered as tribute for the burial of one individual; 400 bucrania were found at one tumulus alone at Kerma. The use of cattle skulls rather than those of sheep or goats reveals the importance of cattle in their pastoral economy, as well as the cultural associations of cattle with wealth, prosperity, and passage into the afterlife. Sometimes complete cattle were buried alongside their owner, symbolic of their relationship continuing into the afterlife.” ref

“Beginning in the third millennium BCE, cattle became the most popular motif in Nubian rock art. The bodies are usually depicted in profile, while the horns are facing forward. The length and shape of the horns and the pattern on the hide varied widely. Human silhouettes are often drawn alongside the cattle, symbolic of the important symbiotic relationship between cattle and humans. For pastoralists, drawing cattle may have also been a way to ensure the health of their herd. The role of cattle in Nubian mythology is more covert than in Egypt to the north, where several gods are often depicted as cattle; however, the significance of cattle in Nubian culture is evident in burial practices, understandings of the afterlife, and rock art.” ref

“Hinduism specifically considers the zebu (Bos indicus) to be sacred. Respect for the lives of animals including cattle, diet in Hinduism and vegetarianism in India are based on the Hindu ethics. The Hindu ethics are driven by the core concept of Ahimsa, i.e. non-violence towards all beings, as mentioned in the Chandogya Upanishad (~ 800 BCE). By mid 1st millennium BCE, all three major religions – Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism – were championing non-violence as an ethical value, and something that impacted one’s rebirth. By about 200 CE, food and feasting on animal slaughter were widely considered as a form of violence against life forms, and became a religious and social taboo. India, which has 79.80% Hindu population as of (2011 census), had the lowest rate of meat consumption in the world according to the 2007 UN FAO statistics, and India has more vegetarians than the rest of the world put together.” ref

“According to Ludwig Alsdorf, “Indian vegetarianism is unequivocally based on ahimsa (non-violence)” as evidenced by ancient smritis and other ancient texts of Hinduism.” He adds that the endearment and respect for cattle in Hinduism is more than a commitment to vegetarianism and has become integral to its theology. The respect for cattle is widespread but not universal. Animal sacrifices have been rare among the Hindus outside a few eastern states. To the majority of modern Indians, states Alsdorf, respect for cattle and disrespect for slaughter is a part of their ethos, and there is “no ahimsa without renunciation of meat consumption”. The cow in Hindu society is traditionally identified as a caretaker and a maternal figure, and Hindu society honors the cow as a symbol of unselfish giving, selfless sacrifice, gentleness, and tolerance.” ref

“Several scholars explain the veneration for cows among Hindus in economic terms, including the importance of dairy in the diet, the use of cow dung as fuel and fertilizer, and the importance that cattle have historically played in agriculture. Ancient texts such as Rig Veda, Puranas highlight the importance of cattle. The scope, extent, and status of cows throughout ancient India is a subject of debate. Cattle, including cows, were neither inviolable nor as revered in ancient times as they were later. A Gryhasutra recommends that beef be eaten by the mourners after a funeral ceremony as a ritual rite of passage. In contrast, the Vedic literature is contradictory, with some suggesting ritual slaughter and meat consumption, while others suggesting a taboo on meat eating. Many ancient and medieval Hindu texts debate the rationale for a voluntary stop to cow slaughter and the pursuit of vegetarianism as a part of a general abstention from violence against others and all killing of animals.” ref

“The interdiction of the meat of the bounteous cow as food was regarded as the first step to total vegetarianism. Dairy cows are called aghnya “that which may not be slaughtered” in the Rigveda. Yaska, the early commentator of the Rigveda, gives nine names for cow, the first being “aghnya”. The literature relating to cow veneration became common in 1st millennium CE, and by about 1000 CE vegetarianism, along with a taboo against beef, became a well accepted mainstream Hindu tradition. This practice was inspired by the beliefs in Hinduism that a soul is present in all living beings, life in all its forms is interconnected, and non-violence towards all creatures is the highest ethical value. The god Krishna and his Yadava kinsmen are associated with cows, adding to its endearment.” ref

“The cow veneration in ancient India during the Vedic era, the religious texts written during this period called for non-violence towards all bipeds and quadrupeds, and often equated killing of a cow with the killing of a human being specifically a Brahmin. The hymn 8.3.25 of the Hindu scripture Atharvaveda (~1200–1500 BCE) condemns all killings of men, cattle, and horses, and prays to god Agni to punish those who kill.” ref

“In the Puranas, which are part of the Hindu texts, the earth-goddess Prithvi was in the form of a cow, successively milked of beneficent substances for the benefit of humans, by deities starting with the first sovereign: Prithu milked the cow to generate crops for humans to end a famine. Kamadhenu, the miraculous “cow of plenty” and the “mother of cows” in certain versions of the Hindu mythology, is believed to represent the generic sacred cow, regarded as the source of all prosperity. In the 19th century, a form of Kamadhenu was depicted in poster-art that depicted all major gods and goddesses in it. Govatsa Dwadashi, which marks the first day of Diwali celebrations, is the main festival connected to the veneration and worship of cows as chief source of livelihood and religious sanctity in India, wherein the symbolism of motherhood is most apparent with the sacred cows Kamadhenu and her daughter Nandini.” ref

“Jainism is against violence to all living beings, including cattle. According to the Jaina sutras, humans must avoid all killing and slaughter because all living beings are fond of life, they suffer, they feel pain, they like to live, and long to live. All beings should help each other live and prosper, according to Jainism, not kill and slaughter each other. In the Jain religious tradition, neither monks nor laypersons should cause others or allow others to work in a slaughterhouse. Jains believe that vegetarian sources can provide adequate nutrition, without creating suffering for animals such as cattle. According to some Jain scholars, slaughtering cattle increases ecological burden from human food demands since the production of meat entails intensified grain demands, and reducing cattle slaughter by 50 percent would free up enough land and ecological resources to solve all malnutrition and hunger worldwide. The Jain community leaders, states Christopher Chapple, has actively campaigned to stop all forms of animal slaughter including cattle.” ref

“The texts of Buddhism state ahimsa to be one of five ethical precepts, which requires a practicing Buddhist to “refrain from killing living beings”. Slaughtering cow has been a taboo, with some texts suggesting that taking care of a cow is a means of taking care of “all living beings”. Cattle are seen in some Buddhist sects as a form of reborn human beings in the endless rebirth cycles in samsara, protecting animal life and being kind to cattle and other animals is good karma. Not only do some, mainly Mahayana, Buddhist texts state that killing or eating meat is wrong, it urges Buddhist laypersons to not operate slaughterhouses, nor trade in meat. Indian Buddhist texts encourage a plant-based diet.” ref

“According to Saddhatissa, in the Brahmanadhammika Sutta, the Buddha “describes the ideal mode of life of Brahmins in the Golden Age” before him as follows: Like mother (they thought), father, brother or any other kind of kin, cows are our kin most excellent from whom come many remedies. Givers of good and strength, of good complexion and the happiness of health, having seen the truth of this cattle, they never killed. Those Brahmins, then by Dharma, did what should be done, not what should not, and so aware they graceful were, well-built, fair-skinned, of high renown. While in the world, this lore was found, these people happily prospered. — Buddha, Brahmanadhammika Sutta 13.24, Sutta Nipāta” ref

“Saving animals from slaughter for meat, is believed in Buddhism to be a way to acquire merit for better rebirth. According to Richard Gombrich, there has been a gap between Buddhist precepts and practice. Vegetarianism is admired, states Gombrich, but often it is not practiced. Nevertheless, adds Gombrich, there is a general belief among Theravada Buddhists that eating beef is worse than other meat and the ownership of cattle slaughterhouses by Buddhists is relatively rare. Meat eating remains controversial within Buddhism, with most Theravada sects allowing it, reflecting early Buddhist practice, and most Mahayana sects forbidding it. Early suttas indicate that the Buddha himself ate meat and was clear that no rule should be introduced to forbid meat eating to monks. The consumption, however, appears to have been limited to pork, chicken and fish and may well have excluded cattle.” ref

“The term geush urva means “the spirit of the cow” and is interpreted as the soul of the earth. In the Ahunavaiti Gatha, Zoroaster accuses some of his co-religionists of abusing the cow while Ahura Mazda tells him to protect them. After fleeing to India, many Zoroastrians stopped eating beef out of respect for Hindus living there. The lands of Zoroaster and the Vedic priests were those of cattle breeders. The 9th chapter of the Vendidad of the Avesta expounds the purificatory power of cow urine. It is declared to be a panacea for all bodily and moral evils and features prominently in the 9-night purification ritual Barashnûm.” ref

“According to the Bible, the Israelites worshipped a cult image of a golden calf when the prophet Moses went up to Mount Sinai. Moses considered this a great sin against God. As a result of their abstention from the act, the Levite tribe attained a priestly role. A cult of golden calves appears later during the rule of Jeroboam. According to the Hebrew Bible, an unblemished red cow was an important part of ancient Jewish rituals. The cow was sacrificed and burned in a precise ritual, and the ashes were added to water used in the ritual purification of a person who had come in to contact with a human corpse. The ritual is described in the Book of Numbers in Chapter 19, verses 1–14.” ref

“Observant Jews study this passage every year as part of the weekly Torah portion called Chukat. A contemporary Jewish organization called the Temple Institute is trying to revive this ancient religious observance. Traditional Judaism considers beef kosher and permissible as food, as long as the cow is slaughtered in a religious ritual called shechita, and the meat is not served in a meal that includes any dairy foods. Some Jews committed to Jewish vegetarianism believe that Jews should refrain from slaughtering animals altogether and have condemned widespread cruelty towards cattle on factory farms. The red heifer or red cow is a particular kind of cow brought to priests for sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible. Jews and some Christian fundamentalists believe that once a red heifer is born they will be able to rebuild the Third Temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.” ref

“Oxen are one of the animals sacrificed by Greek Orthodox believers in some villages of Greece. It is especially associated with the feast of Saint Charalambos. This practice of kourbania has been repeatedly criticized by church authorities. The ox is the symbol of Luke the Evangelist. Among the Visigoths, the oxen pulling the wagon with the corpse of Saint Emilian lead to the correct burial site (San Millán de la Cogolla, La Rioja). In Greek mythology, the Cattle of Helios pastured on the island of Thrinacia, which is believed to be modern Sicily. Helios, the sun god, is said to have had seven herds of oxen and seven flocks of sheep, each numbering fifty head. A hecatomb was a sacrifice to the gods Apollo, Athena, and Hera, of 100 cattle (hekaton = one hundred).” ref

“The Greek gods also transformed themselves or others into cattle as a form of deception or punishment, such as in the myths of Io and Europa. In the myth of Pasiphaë, she falls in love with a bull as punishment by Poseidon. She gives birth to the Minotaur, a human-bull hybrid. In the ancient Anatolian civilization Hatti, the storm god was closely linked to a bull. Tarvos Trigaranus (the “bull with three cranes”) is pictured on ancient Gaulish reliefs alongside images of gods. There is evidence that ancient Celtic peoples sacrificed animals, which were almost always cattle or other livestock. Early medieval Irish texts mention the tarbfeis (bull feast), a shamanistic ritual in which a bull would be sacrificed and a seer would sleep in the bull’s hide to have a vision of the future king.” ref

“Cattle appear often in Irish mythology. The Glas Gaibhnenn is a mythical prized cow that could produce plentiful supplies of milk, while Donn Cuailnge and Finnbhennach are prized bulls that play a central role in the epic Táin Bó Cúailnge (“The Cattle Raid of Cooley”). The mythical lady Flidais, the main figure in the Táin Bó Flidhais, owns a herd of magical cattle.The name of the goddess of the River Boyne, Bóinn, comes from Archaic Irish *Bóu-vinda meaning the “bright or white cow”; while the name of the Corcu Loígde means “tribe of the calf goddess”. In Norse mythology, the primeval cow Auðumbla suckled Ymir, the ancestor of the frost giants, and licked Búri, Odin‘s grandfather and ancestor of the gods, out of the ice.” ref

“A beef taboo in ancient China was historically a dietary restriction, particularly among the Han Chinese, as oxen and buffalo (bovines) are useful in farming and are respected. During the Zhou dynasty, they were not often eaten, even by emperors. Some emperors banned killing cows. Beef is not recommended in Chinese medicine, as it is considered a hot food and is thought to disrupt the body’s internal balance. In written sources (including anecdotes and Daoist liturgical texts), this taboo first appeared in the 9th to 12th centuries (Tang–Song transition, with the advent of pork meat.)” ref

“By the 16th to 17th centuries, the beef taboo had become well accepted in the framework of Chinese morality and was found in morality books (善書), with several books dedicated exclusively to this taboo. The beef taboo came from a Chinese perspective that relates the respect for animal life and vegetarianism (ideas shared by Buddhism, Confucianism, and Daoism, and state protection for draught animals.) In Chinese society, only ethnic and religious groups not fully assimilated (such as the Muslim Huis and the Miao) and foreigners consumed this meat. This taboo, among Han Chinese, led Chinese Muslims to create a niche for themselves as butchers who specialized in slaughtering oxen and buffalo. Occasionally, some cows seen weeping before slaughter are often released to temples nearby.” ref 

“Islam allows the slaughter of cows and consumption of beef, as long as the cow is slaughtered in a religious ritual called dhabīḥah or zabiha similar to the Jewish shechita. Although slaughter of cattle plays a role in a major Muslim holiday, Eid al-Adha, many rulers of the Mughal Empire had imposed a ban on the slaughter of cows owing to the large Hindu and Jain populations living under their rule. The second and longest surah of the Quran is named Al-Baqara (“The Cow”). Out of the 286 verses of the surah, 7 mention cows (Al Baqarah 67–73). The name of the surah derives from this passage in which Moses orders his people to sacrifice a cow in order to resurrect a man murdered by an unknown person. Per the passage, the “Children of Israel” quibbled over what kind of cow was meant when the sacrifice was ordered.” ref

“While addressing to children of Israel, it was said:

And when We did appoint for Moses forty nights (of solitude), and then ye chose the calf, when he had gone from you, and were wrong-doers. Then, even after that, We pardoned you in order that ye might give thanks. And when We gave unto Moses the Scripture and the criterion (of right and wrong), that ye might be led aright. And when Moses said unto his people: O my people! Ye have wronged yourselves by your choosing of the calf (for worship) so turn in penitence to your Creator, and kill (the guilty) yourselves. That will be best for you with your Creator, and He will relent toward you. Lo! He is the Relenting, the Merciful. (Al-Quran 2:51–54)” ref

“And when Moses said unto his people: Lo! God commandeth you that ye sacrifice a cow, they said: Dost thou make game of us ? He answered: God forbid that I should be among the foolish! They said: Pray for us unto thy Lord that He make clear to us what (cow) she is. (Moses) answered: Lo! He saith, Verily she is a cow neither with calf nor immature; (she is) between the two conditions; so do that which ye are commanded. They said: Pray for us unto thy Lord that He make clear to us of what colour she is. (Moses) answered: Lo! He saith: Verily she is a yellow cow. Bright is her colour, gladdening beholders. They said: Pray for us unto thy Lord that He make clear to us what (cow) she is. Lo! cows are much alike to us; and Lo! if God wills, we may be led aright. (Moses) answered: Lo! He saith: Verily she is a cow unyoked; she plougheth not the soil nor watereth the tilth; whole and without mark. They said: Now thou bringest the truth. So they sacrificed her, though almost they did not. And (remember) when ye slew a man and disagreed concerning it, and God brought forth that which ye were hiding. And We said: Smite him with some of it. Thus God bringeth the dead to life and showeth you His portents so that ye may understand. (Al-Quran 2:67–73)” ref

“Classical Sunni and Shia commentators recount several variants of this tale. Per some of the commentators, though any cow would have been acceptable, but after they “created hardships for themselves” and the cow was finally specified, it was necessary to obtain it at any cost. Historically, there was a beef taboo in ancient Japan, as a means of protecting the livestock population and due to Buddhist influence. Meat-eating had long been taboo in Japan, beginning with a decree in 675 that banned the consumption of cattle, horses, dogs, monkeys, and chickens, influenced by the Buddhist prohibition of killing. In 1612, the shōgun declared a decree that specifically banned the killing of cattle.” ref

“This official prohibition was in place until 1872, when it was officially proclaimed that Emperor Meiji consumed beef and mutton, which transformed the country’s dietary considerations as a means of modernizing the country, particularly with regard to consumption of beef. With contact from Europeans, beef increasingly became popular, even though it had previously been considered barbaric. Several shrines and temples are decorated with cow figurines, which are believed to cure illnesses when stroked.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Bronze Age migrants, the Kura-Araxes cultural 5,520 to 4,470 years ago, their DNA from the Caucasus Mountains traces to the Canaanites and then lives on in modern Arabs and Jews. A Study found most Arab and Jewish groups in the region owe more than half of their DNA to Canaanites and other peoples of the ancient Near East—an area encompassing much of the modern Levant, Caucasus, Turkey, and Iran. Before the Kura-Araxes period of cultural traditions, horse bones were not found in Transcaucasia/South Caucasus a geographical region of the southern Caucasus Mountains on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. 

“The Kura–Araxes culture, also named Kur–Araz culture, or the Early Transcaucasian culture was a civilization that existed from about 4000 BCE until about 2000 BCE or around 6,020 to 4,020 years ago, which has traditionally been regarded as the date of its end; in some locations, it may have disappeared as early as 2600 or 2700 BCE or around 4,620 to 4,720 years ago. The earliest evidence for this culture is found on the Ararat plain; it spread northward in Caucasus by 3000 BCE or around 5,020 years ago). Altogether, the early Transcaucasian culture enveloped a vast area and mostly encompassed, on modern-day territories, the Southern Caucasus (except western Georgia), northwestern Iran, the northeastern Caucasus, eastern Turkey, and as far as Syria. The name of the culture is derived from the Kura and Araxes river valleys. Kura–Araxes culture is sometimes known as Shengavitian, Karaz (Erzurum), Pulur, and Yanik Tepe (Iranian Azerbaijan, near Lake Urmia) cultures. Furthermore, it gave rise to the later Khirbet Kerak-ware culture found in Syria and Canaan after the fall of the Akkadian Empire. While it is unknown what cultures and languages were present in Kura-Araxes, the two most widespread theories suggest a connection with Hurro-Urartian and/or Anatolian languages.” ref

“The Kura-Araxes cultural tradition existed in the highlands of the South Caucasus from 3500 to 2450 BCE or 5,520 to 4,470 years ago. This tradition represented an adaptive regime and a symbolically encoded common identity spread over a broad area of patchy mountain environments. By 3000 BCE or around 5,020 years ago, groups bearing this identity had migrated southwest across a wide area from the Taurus Mountains down into the southern Levant, southeast along the Zagros Mountains, and north across the Caucasus Mountains. In these new places, they became effectively ethnic groups amid already heterogeneous societies. This paper addresses the place of migrants among local populations as ethnicities and the reasons for their disappearance in the diaspora after 2450 BCE.” ref

“DNA from the Bible’s Canaanites lives on in modern Arabs and Jews: A new study of ancient DNA traces the surprising heritage of these mysterious Bronze Age people. Tel Megiddo was an important Canaanite city-state during the Bronze Age, approximately 3500 to 1200 B.CE or 5,520 to 3,220 years ago. DNA analysis reveals that the city’s population included migrants from the distant Caucasus Mountains. They are best known as the people who lived “in a land flowing with milk and honey” until they were vanquished by the ancient Israelites and disappeared from history. But a scientific report published today reveals that the genetic heritage of the Canaanites survives in many modern-day Jews and Arabs. The study in Cell also shows that migrants from the distant Caucasus Mountains combined with the indigenous population to forge the unique Canaanite culture that dominated the area between Egypt and Mesopotamia during the Bronze Age. The team extracted ancient DNA from the bones of 73 individuals buried over the course of 1,500 years at five Canaanite sites scattered across Israel and Jordan. They also factored in data from an additional 20 individuals from four sites previously reported. “Individuals from all sites are highly genetically similar,” says co-author and molecular evolutionist Liran Carmel of Jerusalem’s Hebrew University.” ref

“So while the Canaanites lived in far-flung city-states, and never coalesced into an empire, they shared genes as well as a common culture. The researchers also compared the ancient DNA with that of modern populations and found that most Arab and Jewish groups in the region owe more than half of their DNA to Canaanites and other peoples who inhabited the ancient Near East—an area encompassing much of the modern Levant, Caucasus, and Iran. The study—a collaborative effort between Carmel’s lab, the ancient DNA lab at Harvard University headed by geneticist David Reich, and other groups—was by far the largest of its type in the region. Its findings are the latest in a series of recent breakthroughs in our understanding of this mysterious people who left behind few written records. Marc Haber, a geneticist at the Wellcome Trust’s Sanger Institute in Hinxton, United Kingdom, co-led a 2017 study of five Canaanite individuals from the coastal town of Sidon. The results showed that modern Lebanese can trace more than 90 percent of their genetic ancestry to Canaanites.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

People don’t commonly teach religious history, even that of their own claimed religion. No, rather they teach a limited “pro their religion” history of their religion from a religious perspective favorable to the religion of choice. 

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Do you truly think “Religious Belief” is only a matter of some personal choice?

Do you not see how coercive one’s world of choice is limited to the obvious hereditary belief, in most religious choices available to the child of religious parents or caregivers? Religion is more commonly like a family, culture, society, etc. available belief that limits the belief choices of the child and that is when “Religious Belief” is not only a matter of some personal choice and when it becomes hereditary faith, not because of the quality of its alleged facts or proposed truths but because everyone else important to the child believes similarly so they do as well simply mimicking authority beliefs handed to them. Because children are raised in religion rather than being presented all possible choices but rather one limited dogmatic brand of “Religious Belief” where children only have a choice of following the belief as instructed, and then personally claim the faith hereditary belief seen in the confirming to the belief they have held themselves all their lives. This is obvious in statements asked and answered by children claiming a faith they barely understand but they do understand that their family believes “this or that” faith, so they feel obligated to believe it too. While I do agree that “Religious Belief” should only be a matter of some personal choice, it rarely is… End Hereditary Religion!

Opposition to Imposed Hereditary Religion

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

ref, ref, ref, ref

Animism: Respecting the Living World by Graham Harvey 

“How have human cultures engaged with and thought about animals, plants, rocks, clouds, and other elements in their natural surroundings? Do animals and other natural objects have a spirit or soul? What is their relationship to humans? In this new study, Graham Harvey explores current and past animistic beliefs and practices of Native Americans, Maori, Aboriginal Australians, and eco-pagans. He considers the varieties of animism found in these cultures as well as their shared desire to live respectfully within larger natural communities. Drawing on his extensive casework, Harvey also considers the linguistic, performative, ecological, and activist implications of these different animisms.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

We are like believing machines we vacuum up ideas, like Velcro sticks to almost everything. We accumulate beliefs that we allow to negatively influence our lives, often without realizing it. Our willingness must be to alter skewed beliefs that impend our balance or reason, which allows us to achieve new positive thinking and accurate outcomes.

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

My thoughts on Religion Evolution with external links for more info:

• (Pre-Animism Africa mainly, but also Europe, and Asia at least 300,000 years ago), (Pre-Animism – Oxford Dictionaries)
• (Animism Africa around 100,000 years ago), (Animism – Britannica.com)
• (Totemism Europe around 50,000 years ago), (Totemism – Anthropology)
• (Shamanism Siberia around 30,000 years ago), (Shamanism – Britannica.com)
• (Paganism Turkey around 12,000 years ago), (Paganism – BBC Religion)
• (Progressed Organized Religion “Institutional Religion” Egypt around 5,000 years ago), (Ancient Egyptian Religion – Britannica.com)
• (CURRENT “World” RELIGIONS after 4,000 years ago) (Origin of Major Religions – Sacred Texts)
• (Early Atheistic Doubting at least by 2,600 years ago) (History of Atheism – Wikipedia)

“Religion is an Evolved Product” and Yes, Religion is Like Fear Given Wings…

Atheists talk about gods and religions for the same reason doctors talk about cancer, they are looking for a cure, or a firefighter talks about fires because they burn people and they care to stop them. We atheists too often feel a need to help the victims of mental slavery, held in the bondage that is the false beliefs of gods and the conspiracy theories of reality found in religions.

“Understanding Religion Evolution: Animism, Totemism, Shamanism, Paganism & Progressed organized religion”

Understanding Religion Evolution:

• Pre-Animism (at least 300,000 years ago)
• Animism (Africa: 100,000 years ago)
• Totemism (Europe: 50,000 years ago)
• Shamanism (Siberia: 30,000 years ago)
• Paganism (Turkey: 12,000 years ago)
• Progressed organized religion (Egypt: 5,000 years ago), (Egypt, the First Dynasty 5,150 years ago)
• CURRENT “World” RELIGIONS (after 4,000 years ago)
• Early Atheistic Doubting (at least by 2,600 years ago)

“An Archaeological/Anthropological Understanding of Religion Evolution”

It seems ancient peoples had to survived amazing threats in a “dangerous universe (by superstition perceived as good and evil),” and human “immorality or imperfection of the soul” which was thought to affect the still living, leading to ancestor worship. This ancestor worship presumably led to the belief in supernatural beings, and then some of these were turned into the belief in gods. This feeble myth called gods were just a human conceived “made from nothing into something over and over, changing, again and again, taking on more as they evolve, all the while they are thought to be special,” but it is just supernatural animistic spirit-belief perceived as sacred. 

Quick Evolution of Religion?

Pre-Animism (at least 300,000 years ago) pre-religion is a beginning that evolves into later Animism. So, Religion as we think of it, to me, all starts in a general way with Animism (Africa: 100,000 years ago) (theoretical belief in supernatural powers/spirits), then this is physically expressed in or with Totemism (Europe: 50,000 years ago) (theoretical belief in mythical relationship with powers/spirits through a totem item), which then enlists a full-time specific person to do this worship and believed interacting Shamanism (Siberia/Russia: 30,000 years ago) (theoretical belief in access and influence with spirits through ritual), and then there is the further employment of myths and gods added to all the above giving you Paganism (Turkey: 12,000 years ago) (often a lot more nature-based than most current top world religions, thus hinting to their close link to more ancient religious thinking it stems from). My hypothesis is expressed with an explanation of the building of a theatrical house (modern religions development). Progressed organized religion (Egypt: 5,000 years ago)  with CURRENT “World” RELIGIONS (after 4,000 years ago).

Historically, in large city-state societies (such as Egypt or Iraq) starting around 5,000 years ago culminated to make religion something kind of new, a sociocultural-governmental-religious monarchy, where all or at least many of the people of such large city-state societies seem familiar with and committed to the existence of “religion” as the integrated life identity package of control dynamics with a fixed closed magical doctrine, but this juggernaut integrated religion identity package of Dogmatic-Propaganda certainly did not exist or if developed to an extent it was highly limited in most smaller prehistoric societies as they seem to lack most of the strong control dynamics with a fixed closed magical doctrine (magical beliefs could be at times be added or removed). Many people just want to see developed religious dynamics everywhere even if it is not. Instead, all that is found is largely fragments until the domestication of religion.

Religions, as we think of them today, are a new fad, even if they go back to around 6,000 years in the timeline of human existence, this amounts to almost nothing when seen in the long slow evolution of religion at least around 70,000 years ago with one of the oldest ritual worship. Stone Snake of South Africa: “first human worship” 70,000 years ago. This message of how religion and gods among them are clearly a man-made thing that was developed slowly as it was invented and then implemented peace by peace discrediting them all. Which seems to be a simple point some are just not grasping how devastating to any claims of truth when we can see the lie clearly in the archeological sites.

I wish people fought as hard for the actual values as they fight for the group/clan names political or otherwise they think support values. Every amount spent on war is theft to children in need of food or the homeless kept from shelter.

Here are several of my blog posts on history:

• To Find Truth You Must First Look
• Archaeology Knowledge Challenge?
• Beware of Pseudo-History like the Claims of a Hammer in a 400 Million-Year-Old Rock
• The Evolution of Fire Sacralizing and/or Worship 1.5 million to 300,000 years ago and beyond?
• Proto Religion: Superstition around 1 million years ago, to Pre-Animism 300,000 years ago, & then Animism Religion 100,000 years ago
• Stone Age Art: 500,000 – 233,000 Years Old
• Around 500,000 – 233,000 years ago, Oldest Anthropomorphic art (Pre-animism) is Related to Female
• 400,000 Years Old Sociocultural Evolution
• Burial-pits, Cave-tombs, and/or Shallow-graves begin with Homo
• The Emergence of Pre-Religion 300,000 years ago, with Pre-Animism?
• Pre-Animism: Portable Rock Art at least 300,000-year-old
• Pre-animism 300,000 years old and animism 100,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
• Prehistory: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” the division of labor, power, rights, and recourses.
• Homo Naledi and an Intentional Cemetery “Pre-Animism” dating to around 250,000 years ago?
• Neanderthals “Primal Religion (Pre-Animism/Animism?)” Mystery Cave Rings 175,000 Years Ago
• 130,000 years ago – Earliest evidence for burial and it’s Neanderthals…
• Did Neanderthals teach us “Primal Religion (Pre-Animism/Animism?)” 120,000 Years Ago?
• What about Neanderthals and Religion?
• Animism: an approximately 100,000-year-old belief system?
• Animism: a belief among some indigenous people, young children, or all religious people!
• The Origin of Language: Starts in Symbolism Around 100,000 years ago, to Early Proto-Writing 44,000-5,000 years ago with Unrealized Connections
• Rock crystal stone tools 75,000 Years Ago – (Spain) made by Neanderthals
• Prehistoric Child Burials Begin at Least Around 78,000 Years Ago
• Stone Snake of South Africa: “first human worship” 70,000 years ago
• Similarities and differences in Animism and Totemism
• Did Neanderthals Help Inspire Totemism? Because there is Art Dating to Around 65,000 Years Ago in Spain?
• History of Drug Use with Religion or Sacred Rituals possibly 58,000 years ago?
• Totemism: an approximately 50,000-year-old belief system?
• Totemism 50,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
• Australia & Aboriginal Religion at least around 50,000 years old
• Modern Humans start around 50,000 years ago Helped by Feminisation
• Out of Africa: “the evolution of religion seems tied to the movement of people”
• Totemism and Shamanism Dispersal Theory Expressed around 50,000 to 30,000 years ago
• Back-migrations to Africa, Starting with Eurasia to North Africa around 45,000 years ago
• Possible Religion Motivations in the First Cave Art at around 43,000 years ago?
• 43,000-33,000 years old Aurignacian Figurine Marks, like at the Swabian Jura caves in Germany
• 41,000-20,000-year-old Upper Paleolithic Tally sticks
• 40,000 years old Aurignacian Lion Figurine Early Totemism?
• 40,000-35,000 years ago “first seeming use of a Totem” ancestor, animal, and possible pre-goddess worship?
• Prehistoric Egypt 40,000 years ago to The First Dynasty 5,150 years ago
• 38,000 Years Old Engraving of an Aurochs with Seeming Totemism Expression?
• Aurignacian Period female ‘Venus’ carvings start at 35,000 years ago, then Transfer on to Other Cultures?
• Sacred Bulls, the Moon, and Fertility begins at least around 35,000 years ago?
• Women were the focus of religion, from at least around 35,000 years ago, until 2,000 years ago?
• Stars: Ancestors, Spirit Animals, and Deities (around 6,000 years ago, with connections to shamanism at 30,000 years ago and possibly further back to 40,000 years ago with totemism)
• Sacred Bulls, the Moon, and Fertility begins at least around 35,000 years ago?
• 34,000 years ago Lunar Calendar Cave art around the Time Shift From Totemism to Early Shamanism
• 34,000 years old Russan “Sungir” Early Totemistic-Shamanism
• 31,000-25,000 years old Dolni Vestonice, Czech Republic Totemistic-Shamanism
• Shamanism: an approximately 30,000-year-old belief system
• Could the Phallus Phenomena (A Bull Horn) and the Shamanism Phenomena beginning around 30,000 years ago
• Lenticular Cloud Formations may connect to Ancient “House of Gods” Mythology
• “Sky Burial” and its possible origins at least 12,000 years ago to likely 30,000 years ago or older.
• The Peopling of the Americas Pre-Paleoindians/Paleoamericans around 30,000 to 12,000 years ago
• Hunter-Gatherer/Indigenous Peoples Religiosity, Beliefs, and Practices
• Starting 30,000 Years Ago is the Sitting Venus Phenomena
• Shamanism 30,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
• Trinity Evolution Started over 30,000 years ago, Maybe?
• Paleolithic Totem Venuses become the later Goddesses of the Neolithic and beyond?
• The “Inner Asian Mountain Corridor” as well as the “Eurasian Steppe Corridor” and Repetitious Migrations
• Who were the Groups migrating and merging with the previous Groups of Europe?
• 27,000 to 25,000 Years ago Oldest Shaman was Female, Buried with the Oldest Portrait Carving
• Could a Gravettian carving around 25,000 years old relate to Later Goddess and the Bull cults like Catal Huyuk
• Gravettian burial of Caviglione Woman, (shaman?) dated to around 24,000 years ago
• The Gravettian culture (Europe) shared ritual ideas and The Ancient North Eurasian culture (Asia) 24,000 years ago
• 24,000 Years Old Sacred Burial of a Siberian Mal’ta Boy
• Mal’ta–Buret’ culture of Siberia and Basal Haplogroup R* or R-M207
• Groups partially derived from the Ancient North Eurasians
• Leda and the Swan: possibly relates back to 24,000–15,000 years old Mal’ta–Buret’ culture, Lake Baikal, Siberia?
• Similarities in Shamanism?
• Black, White, and Yellow Shamanism?
• Shamanistic rock art from central Aboriginal Siberians and Aboriginal drums in the Americas
• Horned female shamans and Pre-satanism Devil/horned-god Worship?
• Epipalaeolithic Near East 20,000 to 9,000 years ago and the Emergence of Advanced Culture as well as New Religion?
• Sifting through the relation of Bird spirits/deities of the sky (20,000 to 5,000 years ago)
• (Magdalenian/Iberomaurusian) Connections to the First Paganists of the early Neolithic Near East Dating from around 17,000 to 12,000 Years Ago
• 16,000 to 12,000 years ago Magdalenian Sacred Ritual and Symbols
• Are the Natufians of Israel around 15,000 to 11,500 years ago who you thought they were?
• Natufians: an Ancient People at the Origins of Agriculture and Sedentary Life
• Possible Clan Leader/Special “MALE” Ancestor Totem Poles At Least 13,500 years ago?
• Jewish People with DNA at least 13,200 years old, Judaism, and the Origins of Some of its Ideas
• Genetic studies on Jewish DNA is not 6,000 years old but has origin links to about 20,000 to 30,000 years ago?
• Baltic Reindeer Hunters: Swiderian, Lyngby, Ahrensburgian, and Krasnosillya cultures 12,020 to 11,020 years ago are evidence of powerful migratory waves during the last 13,000 years and a genetic link to Saami and the Finno-Ugric peoples.
• My Reasoned Speculations on the Early Migrations of Paganism 13,000 to 3,000 years ago, Cultural Transfer
• 13,000-12,000 years ago Culture Leading to New Oppression changed everything and it was not always this way.
• The Rise of Inequality: patriarchy and state hierarchy inequality
• Fertile Crescent 12,500 – 9,500 Years Ago: fertility and death cult belief system?
• 12,400 – 11,700 Years Ago – Kortik Tepe (Turkey) Pre/early-Agriculture Cultic Ritualism
• Paganism: spread of Haplogroup J and its Seeming connection of Bull Worship
• Pre-Pottery Neolithic (10000 – 6500 BCE) and Pottery Neolithic (7000–5000 BCE)
• 12,000-year-old Gobekli Tepe: “first human-made pagan temple”
• Gobekli Tepe is more like Shamanistic early Paganism, Not Adam, Eve, and Cain or Bible anything!
• Ritualistic Bird Symbolism at Gobekli Tepe and its “Ancestor Cult”
• Male-Homosexual (female-like) / Trans-woman (female) Seated Figurine from Gobekli Tepe
• Could a 12,000-year-old Bull Geoglyph at Göbekli Tepe relate to older Bull and Female Art 25,000 years ago and Later Goddess and the Bull cults like Catal Huyuk?
• Sedentism and the Creation of goddesses around 12,000 years ago as well as male gods after 7,000 years ago.
• Alcohol, where Agriculture and Religion Become one? Such as Gobekli Tepe’s Ritualistic use of Grain as Food and Ritual Drink
• Epigravettians Join the Religious Partying at Gobekli Tepe?
• Neolithic Ritual Sites with T-Pillars and other Cultic Pillars
• Paganism: Goddesses around 12,000 years ago then Male Gods after 7,000 years ago
• First Patriarchy: Split of Women’s Status around 12,000 years ago & First Hierarchy: fall of Women’s Status around 5,000 years ago.
• Natufians: an Ancient People at the Origins of Agriculture and Sedentary Life
• J DNA and the Spread of Agricultural Religion (paganism)
• Paganism: an approximately 12,000-year-old belief system
• Paganism 12,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Pre-Capitalism)
• Shaman burial in Israel 12,000 years ago and the Shamanism Phenomena
• Need to Mythicized: gods and goddesses
• 12,000 – 7,000 Years Ago – Paleo-Indian Culture (The Americas)
• Ancient Egypt: Epipaleolithic, Neolithic, and Predynastic from 12,000 to 5,000 years ago
• 12,000 – 2,000 Years Ago – Indigenous-Scandinavians (Nordic)
• Norse did not wear helmets with horns?
• Pre-Pottery Neolithic Skull Cult around 11,500 to 8,400 Years Ago?
• Masked Head Hunters of “Karahan Tepe” 11,400-year-old monumental site from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A to B
• 10,400 – 10,100 Years Ago, in Turkey the Nevail Cori Religious Settlement
• Evolution of human skin color, white-skin is really under 10,000 years old?
• Indo-European language Trees fit an Agricultural expansion from Anatolia beginning 8,000 – 9,500 years ago
• 9,000-6,500 Years Old Submerged Pre-Pottery/Pottery Neolithic Ritual Settlements off Israel’s Coast
• Catal Huyuk “first religious designed city” around 9,500 to 7,700 years ago (Turkey)
• Goddesses/Demigoddesses/Grandmother-Mother Ancestor Spirits from Catal Huyuk?
• Cultic Hunting at Catal Huyuk “first religious designed city”
• Special Items and Art as well as Special Elite Burials at Catal Huyuk
• New Rituals and Violence with the appearance of Pottery and People?
• Haplogroup N and its related Uralic Languages and Cultures
• Ainu people, Sámi people, Native Americans, the Ancient North Eurasians, and Paganistic-Shamanism with Totemism
• Ideas, Technology and People from Turkey, Europe, to China and Back again 9,000 to 5,000 years ago?
• First Pottery of Europe and the Related Cultures
• 9,000 years old Neolithic Artifacts Judean Desert and Hills Israel
• 9,000-7,000 years-old Sex and Death Rituals: Cult Sites in Israel, Jordan, and the Sinai
• 9,000-8500 year old Horned Female shaman Bad Dürrenberg Germany
• Neolithic Jewelry and the Spread of Farming in Europe Emerging out of West Turkey
• 8,600-year-old Tortoise Shells in Neolithic graves in central China have Early Writing and Shamanism
• Swing of the Mace: the rise of Elite, Forced Authority, and Inequality begin to Emerge 8,500 years ago?
• Migrations and Changing Europeans Beginning around 8,000 Years Ago
• My “Steppe-Anatolian-Kurgan hypothesis” 8,000/7,000 years ago
• Around 8,000-year-old Shared Idea of the Mistress of Animals, “Ritual” Motif
• Pre-Columbian Red-Paint (red ochre) Maritime Archaic Culture 8,000-3,000 years ago
• 7,522-6,522 years ago Linear Pottery culture which I think relates to Arcane Capitalism’s origins
• Arcane Capitalism: Primitive socialism, Primitive capital, Private ownership, Means of production, Market capitalism, Class discrimination, and Petite bourgeoisie (smaller capitalists)
• 7,500-4,750 years old Ritualistic Cucuteni-Trypillian culture of Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine
• Roots of a changing early society 7,200-6,700 years ago Jordan and Israel
• Agriculture religion (Paganism) with farming reached Britain between about 7,000 to 6,500 or so years ago and seemingly expressed in things like Western Europe’s Long Barrows
• My Thoughts on Possible Migrations of “R” DNA and Proto-Indo-European?
• “Millet” Spreading from China 7,022 years ago to Europe and related Language may have Spread with it leading to Proto-Indo-European
• Proto-Indo-European (PIE), ancestor of Indo-European languages: DNA, Society, Language, and Mythology
  
• The Dnieper–Donets culture and Asian varieties of Millet from China to the Black Sea region of Europe by 7,022 years ago
• Kurgan 6,000 years ago/dolmens 7,000 years ago: funeral, ritual, and other?
• 7,020 to 6,020-year-old Proto-Indo-European Homeland of Urheimat or proposed home of their Language and Religion
• Ancient Megaliths: Kurgan, Ziggurat, Pyramid, Menhir, Trilithon, Dolman, Kromlech, and Kromlech of Trilithons
• The Mytheme of Ancient North Eurasian Sacred-Dog belief and similar motifs are found in Indo-European, Native American, and Siberian comparative mythology
• Elite Power Accumulation: Ancient Trade, Tokens, Writing, Wealth, Merchants, and Priest-Kings
• Sacred Mounds, Mountains, Kurgans, and Pyramids may hold deep connections?
• Between 7,000-5,000 Years ago, rise of unequal hierarchy elite, leading to a “birth of the State” or worship of power, strong new sexism, oppression of non-elites, and the fall of Women’s equal status
• Paganism 7,000-5,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Capitalism) (World War 0) Elite & their slaves
• Hell and Underworld mythologies starting maybe as far back as 7,000 to 5,000 years ago with the Proto-Indo-Europeans?
• The First Expression of the Male God around 7,000 years ago?
• White (light complexion skin) Bigotry and Sexism started 7,000 years ago?
• Around 7,000-year-old Shared Idea of the Divine Bird (Tutelary and/or Trickster spirit/deity), “Ritual” Motif
• Nekhbet an Ancient Egyptian Vulture Goddess and Tutelary Deity
• 6,720 to 4,920 years old Ritualistic Hongshan Culture of Inner Mongolia with 5,000-year-old Pyramid Mounds and Temples
• First proto-king in the Balkans, Varna culture around 6,500 years ago?
• 6,500–5,800 years ago in Israel Late Chalcolithic (Copper Age) Period in the Southern Levant Seems to Express Northern Levant Migrations, Cultural and Religious Transfer
• KING OF BEASTS: Master of Animals “Ritual” Motif, around 6,000 years old or older…
• Around 6000-year-old Shared Idea of the Solid Wheel & the Spoked Wheel-Shaped Ritual Motif
• “The Ghassulian Star,” a mysterious 6,000-year-old mural from Jordan; a Proto-Star of Ishtar, Star of Inanna or Star of Venus?
• Religious/Ritual Ideas, including goddesses and gods as well as ritual mounds or pyramids from Northeastern Asia at least 6,000 years old, seemingly filtering to Iran, Iraq, the Mediterranean, Europe, Egypt, and the Americas?
• Maykop (5,720–5,020 years ago) Caucasus region Bronze Age culture-related to Copper Age farmers from the south, influenced by the Ubaid period and Leyla-Tepe culture, as well as influencing the Kura-Araxes culture
• 5-600-year-old Tomb, Mummy, and First Bearded Male Figurine in a Grave
• Kura-Araxes Cultural 5,520 to 4,470 years old DNA traces to the Canaanites, Arabs, and Jews
• Minoan/Cretan (Keftiu) Civilization and Religion around 5,520 to 3,120 years ago
• Evolution Of Science at least by 5,500 years ago
• 5,500 Years old birth of the State, the rise of Hierarchy, and the fall of Women’s status
• “Jiroft culture” 5,100 – 4,200 years ago and the History of Iran
• Stonehenge: Paganistic Burial and Astrological Ritual Complex, England (5,100-3,600 years ago)
• Around 5,000-year-old Shared Idea of the “Tree of Life” Ritual Motif
• Complex rituals for elite, seen from China to Egypt, at least by 5,000 years ago
• Around 5,000 years ago: “Birth of the State” where Religion gets Military Power and Influence
• The Center of the World “Axis Mundi” and/or “Sacred Mountains” Mythology Could Relate to the Altai Mountains, Heart of the Steppe
• Progressed organized religion starts, an approximately 5,000-year-old belief system
• China’s Civilization between 5,000-3,000 years ago, was a time of war and class struggle, violent transition from free clans to a Slave or Elite society
• Origin of Logics is Naturalistic Observation at least by around 5,000 years ago.
• Paganism 5,000 years old: progressed organized religion and the state: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Kings and the Rise of the State)
• Ziggurats (multi-platform temples: 4,900 years old) to Pyramids (multi-platform tombs: 4,700 years old)
• Did a 4,520–4,420-year-old Volcano In Turkey Inspire the Bible God?
• Finland’s Horned Shaman and Pre-Horned-God at least 4,500 years ago?
• 4,000-year-Old Dolmens in Israel: A Connected Dolmen Religious Phenomenon?
• Creation myths: From chaos, Ex nihilo, Earth-diver, Emergence, World egg, and World parent
• Bronze Age “Ritual” connections of the Bell Beaker culture with the Corded Ware/Single Grave culture, which were related to the Yamnaya culture and Proto-Indo-European Languages/Religions
• Low Gods (Earth/ Tutelary deity), High Gods (Sky/Supreme deity), and Moralistic Gods (Deity enforcement/divine order)
• The exchange of people, ideas, and material-culture including, to me, the new god (Sky Father) and goddess (Earth Mother) religion between the Cucuteni-Trypillians and others which is then spread far and wide
• Koryaks: Indigenous People of the Russian Far East and Big Raven myths also found in Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and other Indigenous People of North America
• 42 Principles Of Maat (Egyptian Goddess of the justice) around 4,400 years ago, 2000 Years Before Ten Commandments
• “Happy Easter” Well Happy Eostre/Ishter
• 4,320-3,820 years old “Shimao” (North China) site with Totemistic-Shamanistic Paganism and a Stepped Pyramid
• 4,250 to 3,400 Year old Stonehenge from Russia: Arkaim?
• 4,100-year-old beaker with medicinal & flowering plants in a grave of a woman in Scotland
• Early European Farmer ancestry, Kelif el Boroud people with the Cardial Ware culture, and the Bell Beaker culture Paganists too, spread into North Africa, then to the Canary Islands off West Africa
• Flood Accounts: Gilgamesh epic (4,100 years ago) Noah in Genesis (2,600 years ago)
• Paganism 4,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (First Moralistic gods, then the Origin time of Monotheism)
• When was the beginning: TIMELINE OF CURRENT RELIGIONS, which start around 4,000 years ago.
• Early Religions Thought to Express Proto-Monotheistic Systems around 4,000 years ago
• Kultepe? An archaeological site with a 4,000 years old women’s rights document.
• Single God Religions (Monotheism) = “Man-o-theism” started around 4,000 years ago with the Great Sky Spirit/God Tiān (天)?
• Confucianism’s Tiān (Shangdi god 4,000 years old): Supernaturalism, Pantheism or Theism?
• Yes, Your Male God is Ridiculous
• Mythology, a Lunar Deity is a Goddess or God of the Moon
• Sacred Land, Hills, and Mountains: Sami Mythology (Paganistic Shamanism)
• Horse Worship/Sacrifice: mythical union of Ruling Elite/Kingship and the Horse
• The Amorite/Amurru people’s God Amurru “Lord of the Steppe”, relates to the Origins of the Bible God?
• Bronze Age Exotic Trade Routes Spread Quite Far as well as Spread Religious Ideas with Them
• Sami and the Northern Indigenous Peoples Landscape, Language, and its Connection to Religion
• Prototype of Ancient Analemmatic Sundials around 3,900-3,150 years ago and a Possible Solar Connection to gods?
• Judaism is around 3,450 or 3,250 years old. (“Paleo-Hebrew” 3,000 years ago and Torah 2,500 years ago)
• The Weakening of Ancient Trade and the Strengthening of Religions around 3000 years ago?
• Are you aware that there are religions that worship women gods, explain now religion tears women down?
• Animistic, Totemistic, and Paganistic Superstition Origins of bible god and the bible’s Religion.
• Myths and Folklore: “Trickster gods and goddesses”
• Jews, Judaism, and the Origins of Some of its Ideas
• An Old Branch of Religion Still Giving Fruit: Sacred Trees
• Dating the BIBLE: naming names and telling times (written less than 3,000 years ago, provable to 2,200 years ago)
• Did a Volcano Inspire the bible god?
• Yamnaya culture or at least Proto-Indo-European Languages/Religions may actually relate back to North Asia?
• Dené–Yeniseian language, Old Copper Complex, and Pre-Columbian Mound Builders?
• No “dinosaurs and humans didn’t exist together just because some think they are in the bible itself”
• Sacred Shit and Sacred Animals?
• Everyone Killed in the Bible Flood? “Nephilim” (giants)?
• Hey, Damien dude, I have a question for you regarding “the bible” Exodus.
• Archaeology Disproves the Bible
• Bible Battle, Just More, Bible Babble
• The Jericho Conquest lie?
• Canaanites and Israelites?
• Accurate Account on how did Christianity Began?
• Let’s talk about Christianity.
• So the 10 commandments isn’t anything to go by either right?
• Misinformed christian
• Debunking Jesus?
• Paulism vs Jesus
• Ok, you seem confused so let’s talk about Buddhism.
• Unacknowledged Buddhism: Gods, Savior, Demons, Rebirth, Heavens, Hells, and Terrorism
• His Foolishness The Dalai Lama
• Yin and Yang is sexist with an ORIGIN around 2,300 years ago?
• I Believe Archaeology, not Myths & Why Not, as the Religious Myths Already Violate Reason!
• Archaeological, Scientific, & Philosophic evidence shows the god myth is man-made nonsense.
• Aquatic Ape Theory/Hypothesis? As Always, Just Pseudoscience.
• Ancient Aliens Conspiracy Theorists are Pseudohistorians
• The Pseudohistoric and Pseudoscientific claims about “Bakoni Ruins” of South Africa
• Why do people think Religion is much more than supernaturalism and superstitionism?
• Religion is an Evolved Product
• Was the Value of Ancient Women Different?
• 1000 to 1100 CE, human sacrifice Cahokia Mounds a pre-Columbian Native American site
• Feminist atheists as far back as the 1800s?
• Promoting Religion as Real is Mentally Harmful to a Flourishing Humanity
• Screw All Religions and Their Toxic lies, they are all fraud
• Forget Religions’ Unfounded Myths, I Have Substantiated “Archaeology Facts.”
• Religion Dispersal throughout the World
• I Hate Religion Just as I Hate all Pseudoscience
• Exposing Scientology, Eckankar, Wicca and Other Nonsense?
• Main deity or religious belief systems
• Quit Trying to Invent Your God From the Scraps of Science.
• Archaeological, Scientific, & Philosophic evidence shows the god myth is man-made nonsense.
• Ancient Alien Conspiracy Theorists: Misunderstanding, Rhetoric, Misinformation, Fabrications, and Lies
• Misinformation, Distortion, and Pseudoscience in Talking with a Christian Creationist
• Judging the Lack of Goodness in Gods, Even the Norse God Odin
• Challenging the Belief in God-like Aliens and Gods in General
• A Challenge to Christian use of Torture Devices?
• Yes, Hinduism is a Religion
• Trump is One of the Most Reactionary Forces of Far-right Christian Extremism
• Was the Bull Head a Symbol of God? Yes!
• Primate Death Rituals
• Christian – “God and Christianity are objectively true”
• Australopithecus afarensis Death Ritual?
• You Claim Global Warming is a Hoax?
• Doubter of Science and Defamer of Atheists?
• I think that sounds like the Bible?
• History of the Antifa (“anti-fascist”) Movements
• Indianapolis Anti-Blasphemy Laws #Free Soheil Rally
• Damien, you repeat the golden rule in so many forms then you say religion is dogmatic?
• Science is a Trustable Methodology whereas Faith is not Trustable at all!
• Was I ever a believer, before I was an atheist?
• Atheists rise in reason
• Mistrust of science?
• Open to Talking About the Definition of ‘God’? But first, we address Faith.
• ‘United Monarchy’ full of splendor and power – Saul, David, and Solomon? Most likely not.
• Is there EXODUS ARCHAEOLOGY? The short answer is “no.”
• Lacking Proof of Bigfoots, Unicorns, and Gods is Just a Lack of Research?
• Religion and Politics: Faith Beliefs vs. Rational Thinking
• Hammer of Truth that lying pig RELIGION: challenged by an archaeologist
• “The Hammer of Truth” -ontology question- What do You Mean by That?
• Navigation of a bad argument: Ad Hominem vs. Attack
• Why is it Often Claimed that Gods have a Gender?
• Why are basically all monotheistic religions ones that have a male god?
• Shifting through the Claims in support of Faith
• Dear Mr. AtHope, The 20th Century is an Indictment of Secularism and a Failed Atheist Century
• An Understanding of the Worldwide Statistics and Dynamics of Terrorist Incidents and Suicide Attacks
• Intoxication and Evolution? Addressing and Assessing the “Stoned Ape” or “Drunken Monkey” Theories as Catalysts in Human Evolution
• Sacred Menstrual cloth? Inanna’s knot, Isis knot, and maybe Ma’at’s feather?
• Damien, why don’t the Hebrews accept the bible stories?
• Dealing with a Troll and Arguing Over Word Meaning
• Knowledge without Belief? Justified beliefs or disbeliefs worthy of Knowledge?
• Afrocentrism and African Religions
• Crecganford @crecganford offers history & stories of the people, places, gods, & culture
• Empiricism-Denier?

I am not an academic. I am a revolutionary that teaches in public, in places like social media, and in the streets. I am not a leader by some title given but from my commanding leadership style of simply to start teaching everywhere to everyone, all manner of positive education.

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

To me, Animism starts in Southern Africa, then to West Europe, and becomes Totemism. Another split goes near the Russia and Siberia border becoming Shamanism, which heads into Central Europe meeting up with Totemism, which also had moved there, mixing the two which then heads to Lake Baikal in Siberia. From there this Shamanism-Totemism heads to Turkey where it becomes Paganism.

My thoughts on the Evolution of Religion: from Animism to Paganism

Philosophy to the Rescue: explaining Reason, Logic, Evidence, Truth, Certainty, Reality, and Science

Talking about “Religion and Deity Evolution” on Twitter (X) Questions and Answers

You can’t change people, by reason and evidence. WRONG, I do it all the time.

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Not all “Religions” or “Religious Persuasions” have a god(s) but

All can be said to believe in some imaginary beings or imaginary things like spirits, afterlives, etc.

Animism, Totemism, Shamanism, and Paganism

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Low Gods “Earth” or Tutelary deity and High Gods “Sky” or Supreme deity

“An Earth goddess is a deification of the Earth. Earth goddesses are often associated with the “chthonic” deities of the underworld. Ki and Ninhursag are Mesopotamian earth goddesses. In Greek mythology, the Earth is personified as Gaia, corresponding to Roman Terra, Indic Prithvi/Bhūmi, etc. traced to an “Earth Mother” complementary to the “Sky Father” in Proto-Indo-European religion. Egyptian mythology exceptionally has a sky goddess and an Earth god.” ref

“A mother goddess is a goddess who represents or is a personification of nature, motherhood, fertility, creation, destruction or who embodies the bounty of the Earth. When equated with the Earth or the natural world, such goddesses are sometimes referred to as Mother Earth or as the Earth Mother. In some religious traditions or movements, Heavenly Mother (also referred to as Mother in Heaven or Sky Mother) is the wife or feminine counterpart of the Sky father or God the Father.” ref

“Any masculine sky god is often also king of the gods, taking the position of patriarch within a pantheon. Such king gods are collectively categorized as “sky father” deities, with a polarity between sky and earth often being expressed by pairing a “sky father” god with an “earth mother” goddess (pairings of a sky mother with an earth father are less frequent). A main sky goddess is often the queen of the gods and may be an air/sky goddess in her own right, though she usually has other functions as well with “sky” not being her main. In antiquity, several sky goddesses in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Near East were called Queen of Heaven. Neopagans often apply it with impunity to sky goddesses from other regions who were never associated with the term historically. The sky often has important religious significance. Many religions, both polytheistic and monotheistic, have deities associated with the sky.” ref

“In comparative mythology, sky father is a term for a recurring concept in polytheistic religions of a sky god who is addressed as a “father”, often the father of a pantheon and is often either a reigning or former King of the Gods. The concept of “sky father” may also be taken to include Sun gods with similar characteristics, such as Ra. The concept is complementary to an “earth mother“. “Sky Father” is a direct translation of the Vedic Dyaus Pita, etymologically descended from the same Proto-Indo-European deity name as the Greek Zeûs Pater and Roman Jupiter and Germanic Týr, Tir or Tiwaz, all of which are reflexes of the same Proto-Indo-European deity’s name, *Dyēus Ph₂tḗr. While there are numerous parallels adduced from outside of Indo-European mythology, there are exceptions (e.g. In Egyptian mythology, Nut is the sky mother and Geb is the earth father).” ref

Tutelary deity

“A tutelary (also tutelar) is a deity or spirit who is a guardian, patron, or protector of a particular place, geographic feature, person, lineage, nation, culture, or occupation. The etymology of “tutelary” expresses the concept of safety and thus of guardianship. In late Greek and Roman religion, one type of tutelary deity, the genius, functions as the personal deity or daimon of an individual from birth to death. Another form of personal tutelary spirit is the familiar spirit of European folklore.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Korean shamanism, jangseung and sotdae were placed at the edge of villages to frighten off demons. They were also worshiped as deities. Seonangshin is the patron deity of the village in Korean tradition and was believed to embody the Seonangdang. In Philippine animism, Diwata or Lambana are deities or spirits that inhabit sacred places like mountains and mounds and serve as guardians. Such as: Maria Makiling is the deity who guards Mt. Makiling and Maria Cacao and Maria Sinukuan. In Shinto, the spirits, or kami, which give life to human bodies come from nature and return to it after death. Ancestors are therefore themselves tutelaries to be worshiped. And similarly, Native American beliefs such as Tonás, tutelary animal spirit among the Zapotec and Totems, familial or clan spirits among the Ojibwe, can be animals.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Austronesian beliefs such as: Atua (gods and spirits of the Polynesian peoples such as the Māori or the Hawaiians), Hanitu (Bunun of Taiwan‘s term for spirit), Hyang (Kawi, Sundanese, Javanese, and Balinese Supreme Being, in ancient Java and Bali mythology and this spiritual entity, can be either divine or ancestral), Kaitiaki (New Zealand Māori term used for the concept of guardianship, for the sky, the sea, and the land), Kawas (mythology) (divided into 6 groups: gods, ancestors, souls of the living, spirits of living things, spirits of lifeless objects, and ghosts), Tiki (Māori mythology, Tiki is the first man created by either Tūmatauenga or Tāne and represents deified ancestors found in most Polynesian cultures). ” ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref

Mesopotamian Tutelary Deities can be seen as ones related to City-States 

“Historical city-states included Sumerian cities such as Uruk and Ur; Ancient Egyptian city-states, such as Thebes and Memphis; the Phoenician cities (such as Tyre and Sidon); the five Philistine city-states; the Berber city-states of the Garamantes; the city-states of ancient Greece (the poleis such as Athens, Sparta, Thebes, and Corinth); the Roman Republic (which grew from a city-state into a vast empire); the Italian city-states from the Middle Ages to the early modern period, such as Florence, Siena, Ferrara, Milan (which as they grew in power began to dominate neighboring cities) and Genoa and Venice, which became powerful thalassocracies; the Mayan and other cultures of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica (including cities such as Chichen Itza, Tikal, Copán and Monte Albán); the central Asian cities along the Silk Road; the city-states of the Swahili coast; Ragusa; states of the medieval Russian lands such as Novgorod and Pskov; and many others.” ref

“The Uruk period (ca. 4000 to 3100 BCE; also known as Protoliterate period) of Mesopotamia, named after the Sumerian city of Uruk, this period saw the emergence of urban life in Mesopotamia and the Sumerian civilization. City-States like Uruk and others had a patron tutelary City Deity along with a Priest-King.” ref

“Chinese folk religion, both past, and present, includes myriad tutelary deities. Exceptional individuals, highly cultivated sages, and prominent ancestors can be deified and honored after death. Lord Guan is the patron of military personnel and police, while Mazu is the patron of fishermen and sailors. Such as Tu Di Gong (Earth Deity) is the tutelary deity of a locality, and each individual locality has its own Earth Deity and Cheng Huang Gong (City God) is the guardian deity of an individual city, worshipped by local officials and locals since imperial times.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Hinduism, personal tutelary deities are known as ishta-devata, while family tutelary deities are known as Kuladevata. Gramadevata are guardian deities of villages. Devas can also be seen as tutelary. Shiva is the patron of yogis and renunciants. City goddesses include: Mumbadevi (Mumbai), Sachchika (Osian); Kuladevis include: Ambika (Porwad), and Mahalakshmi. In NorthEast India Meitei mythology and religion (Sanamahism) of Manipur, there are various types of tutelary deities, among which Lam Lais are the most predominant ones. Tibetan Buddhism has Yidam as a tutelary deity. Dakini is the patron of those who seek knowledge.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) The Greeks also thought deities guarded specific places: for instance, Athena was the patron goddess of the city of Athens. Socrates spoke of hearing the voice of his personal spirit or daimonion:

You have often heard me speak of an oracle or sign which comes to me … . This sign I have had ever since I was a child. The sign is a voice which comes to me and always forbids me to do something which I am going to do, but never commands me to do anything, and this is what stands in the way of my being a politician.” ref

“Tutelary deities who guard and preserve a place or a person are fundamental to ancient Roman religion. The tutelary deity of a man was his Genius, that of a woman her Juno. In the Imperial era, the Genius of the Emperor was a focus of Imperial cult. An emperor might also adopt a major deity as his personal patron or tutelary, as Augustus did Apollo. Precedents for claiming the personal protection of a deity were established in the Republican era, when for instance the Roman dictator Sulla advertised the goddess Victory as his tutelary by holding public games (ludi) in her honor.” ref

“Each town or city had one or more tutelary deities, whose protection was considered particularly vital in time of war and siege. Rome itself was protected by a goddess whose name was to be kept ritually secret on pain of death (for a supposed case, see Quintus Valerius Soranus). The Capitoline Triad of Juno, Jupiter, and Minerva were also tutelaries of Rome. The Italic towns had their own tutelary deities. Juno often had this function, as at the Latin town of Lanuvium and the Etruscan city of Veii, and was often housed in an especially grand temple on the arx (citadel) or other prominent or central location. The tutelary deity of Praeneste was Fortuna, whose oracle was renowned.” ref

“The Roman ritual of evocatio was premised on the belief that a town could be made vulnerable to military defeat if the power of its tutelary deity were diverted outside the city, perhaps by the offer of superior cult at Rome. The depiction of some goddesses such as the Magna Mater (Great Mother, or Cybele) as “tower-crowned” represents their capacity to preserve the city. A town in the provinces might adopt a deity from within the Roman religious sphere to serve as its guardian, or syncretize its own tutelary with such; for instance, a community within the civitas of the Remi in Gaul adopted Apollo as its tutelary, and at the capital of the Remi (present-day Rheims), the tutelary was Mars Camulus.” ref

Household deity (a kind of or related to a Tutelary deity)

“A household deity is a deity or spirit that protects the home, looking after the entire household or certain key members. It has been a common belief in paganism as well as in folklore across many parts of the world. Household deities fit into two types; firstly, a specific deity – typically a goddess – often referred to as a hearth goddess or domestic goddess who is associated with the home and hearth, such as the ancient Greek Hestia.” ref

“The second type of household deities are those that are not one singular deity, but a type, or species of animistic deity, who usually have lesser powers than major deities. This type was common in the religions of antiquity, such as the Lares of ancient Roman religion, the Gashin of Korean shamanism, and Cofgodas of Anglo-Saxon paganism. These survived Christianisation as fairy-like creatures existing in folklore, such as the Anglo-Scottish Brownie and Slavic Domovoy.” ref

“Household deities were usually worshipped not in temples but in the home, where they would be represented by small idols (such as the teraphim of the Bible, often translated as “household gods” in Genesis 31:19 for example), amulets, paintings, or reliefs. They could also be found on domestic objects, such as cosmetic articles in the case of Tawaret. The more prosperous houses might have a small shrine to the household god(s); the lararium served this purpose in the case of the Romans. The gods would be treated as members of the family and invited to join in meals, or be given offerings of food and drink.” ref