Most interesting gods

[diegis]

^Excellent info, thanks a lot

Btw why is the English (and Dacian?) term 'Zalmoxis' when the ancient Greek (and medieval Byzantine Suida) seem to name that person as Zamolxis?

You're welcome

Both variants are used (and seen in ancient writings), Zal-moxis and Za-molxis, but historians consider the variant Zal-moxis as probably the correct one, based on an inscription about a Getae-Dacian king from today Dobrogea area (aka Scythia Minor at some point) called there as Zalmodegikos.
So is considered that names with root Zal were used and this is the correct variant.

Possible Zamolxis to exist too, who knows, surely Greeks adapted foreign names to their writing and pronounciation and is not sure how correct they were.

[diegis]

It mentions on wikipedia that Zalmoxis didn't become the "official" cult until Deceneus "formalized" it as the dominant religion in the 1st century BC

From what I read Deceneus reorganized the cult, it more then probably existed all along since way before Herodotus and Pythagora.
The main change is visible from archeology discoverings of burial sites, if before it was a mix of incineration (majority of findings, with the ashes put in urns) and inhumation, apparently since II century BC (if I rememebr correct) most of findings disapear, there are just few here and there.
Archaelogists believe that the ritual was such changed too, and after the incineration the ashes were spread on the top of mountains, running waters or fields, stuff like that.
Or they really becomed immortals and so nobody needed to get buried anymore

I read some opinions too that the cult becomed more bloody too (still a debate if was about same Zamolxis or a sort of war good or actually another side of Zalmoxis that becamed prevalent), and now werent just a messenger send to him to talk about what they want, but they sacrificed too the enemies captured in battle, because the god required blood sacrifices too, and hanged their bodies on trees, stufs like that (Jordanes said something about this in Getica, I am not sure if other chronicars too, I read that piece of article long ago).
This may be related with the wolf cult as well (with roots as far as neolithic), Mircea Eliade talk a little about that and about the secret warrior brotherhoods of that period (based on findings of little statues of wolves and people with wolf heads/wearing wolf masks) and related with the wolf in Dacian period (Dacian draco flag that was a big serpent with a wolf head, the presumed name of Dacians that means "wolves") etc.
Zalmoxis immortality cult started too apparently from being taught to few, a secret elite invited by Zalmoxis in his house as Herodotus said, and from there was spread to everyone over the time, culminating with Deceneus reorganizing and imposing the cult everywhere in Dacia

[Roma_Victrix]

Ixtab, the Mayan goddess of suicide.

Erlang Shen, a Chinese god who possessed a third eye in the middle of his forehead that saw the truth.

Zaqar, an ancient Mesopotamian messenger of sin who relayed communication through dreams and nightmares.

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

Odin Lord of the Aesir gods, a ruler, a loner, a warrior and a magician. Can be both an honourable helper or a horrible prankster. What I find most interesting about this guy is he breaks all the rules of the system and yet he is the system, you know being ruler of the Aesir gods and quite easily the most powerful of all the Norse gods but not just in the sense that he's a good fighter (he might well be the strongest magician alongside Freija and his parents although technically his parents are not really magicians).

Tyr the Norse god. Quite easily the counterpart to Odin, where as Odin is somewhat of a misfit and does as he pleases, Tyr abides by a strict warriors code and you could say he has a heart of gold. Unlike the scheming of Odin Tyr is fully honest and just. He once put his arm in the mouth of the wolf that eats the sun and the moon, Fenrir, in exchange for allowing the gods to chain Fenrir. Of course Fenrir did not think he would be chained up and when he could not escape he tore off Tyr's arm clean off. More interesting is that among the Norse Tyr may have been the main deity before Odin, the word Tyr comes from "Tadwaz" or "Tywaz" which comes from the older Indo-European "Deus" so I guess that makes Tyr the same as God then. How exactly did Odin a guy that does not embody the societies key traits even get elevated to main deity status? Was Tyr not enough for some reason?

Vishnu the Preserver of the Universe, keeps coming down to Earth in a different body and like Odin he too is an honourable helper of mankind but is also a master trickster. It is suggested that his true power has never even been fathomed and because of him the Lord of the Universe Brahma is able to keep order in the universe. Like Odin this idea of order is a paradox because it is unlike his nature as a trickster god but also has him protecting royals, warriors and peasants (strangely enough the warriors usually have the most problems with his deeds; such as when Parashurama attempted to destroy the Kshatriya caste or when he went all pacifist on their asses when Krishna decided to put an ethical code to war) but it also signifies the order of the universe. One of his more interesting traits is his want to protect and at the same time his laid back attitude, sometimes he acts like he just don't give a and usually ends up tricking someone else to do the job for him, sends one of his followers to do it or he shows up at the end just in the nick of time to solve the problem.
His most interesting story has to be when he battled the Asura Demon Hiranyakashipu after having attained his wishes from Brahman:

Grant me that I not die within any residence or outside any residence, during the daytime or at night, nor on the ground or in the sky. Grant me that my death not be brought about by any weapon, nor by any human being or animal.

Grant me that I not meet death from any entity, living or nonliving created by you. Grant me, further, that I not be killed by any demigod or demon or by any great snake from the lower planets. Since no one can kill you in the battlefield, you have no competitor. Therefore, grant me the benediction that I too may have no rival. Give me sole lordship over all the living entities and presiding deities, and give me all the glories obtained by that position. Furthermore, give me all the mystic powers attained by long austerities and the practice of yoga, for these cannot be lost at any time.
Brahma said, "Tatha asthu" (be it so) and vanished. Hiranyakashipu was happy thinking that he had won over death.

Well damn son, apparently Vishnu found a way around that, turned into a lion-man and wasted this trouble maker.
In another story entirely Vishnu did battle with Indra, the King of the Devas (the gods), and wasted him too. I guess this makes Vishnu the god of gods and Brahma the god of gods of gods?

Another really interesting god/hero is the all famous Herakles. As opposed to our modern perception he wasn't the same as Superman. Nope, he ran around the world sacking cities, installing monarchies of his choosing where ever he saw fit, gaining the favour of some gods, disrespecting some others and having all sorts of immoral vices like going after every princess that catches his eye. He does not do favours often, since to him everything has a price, but when he does he will favour the crap out of you. He too is like Odin in the sense that he is an anti-social knave to some but the saviour of humanity, titans, gods and all sorts of other creatures to many others. If you look through some of the stuff they wrote in ancient Greece you'll even find people denouncing this guy and talking about how immoral he is. Yet what catches the attention of most is his power and his deeds (which arguably ended up doing more good than harm), many of which signify his kingship through meritocracy rather than kingship by correspondence (democracy anyone?) and not even the gods could escape this since he pounded them too if they wanted to get in his way. In the end he does the unthinkable, lights himself ablaze to escape life and ends up on Mount Olympus (what a twist!). Hero to most, villain to some, anti-hero in other stories, mentor to most heroes and at the end of the day a deity.

[Eugene of Savoy]

My vote goes to the hindu one with the elephant head, every time I see it in a picture, I ask "Why does it have an elephant head?"

[Cyclops]

My vote goes to the hindu one with the elephant head, every time I see it in a picture, I ask "Why does it have an elephant head?"

Ganesha or Ganiska? He's the God of Knowledge IIRC. forget what the elephant head represents, maybe wisdom?

Got to love a fat sweet eating God with a pet mouse.

[Copperknickers II]

My vote goes to the hindu one with the elephant head, every time I see it in a picture, I ask "Why does it have an elephant head?"

Ganesha. He has an elephant's head because his human head was chopped off by his father Shiva, shortly after he was created. Parvati ordered Ganesh to watch the door of her room while she was bathing, and to let noone enter. Shiva, returning from an outing, tried to enter, and was refused. Not knowing that it was his wife's son, he was furious and attacked him.

Then, when Parvati saw what happened and began crying, he realised his mistake, and ordered his servants to find a new head for the child. IIRC, they searched for some time but didn't have the heart to kill someone and take their head, so eventually they found a stillborn elephant calf and took its head instead.

The best goddess is clearly Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction, the consort of Shiva the Destroyer (i.e., the form Parvati took when she was pissed off at Shiva when he came home drunk from the pub, or forgot to go to the shop to buy rice, or murdered her son...)

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

Wasn't the story that Shiva and Parvati were attacked by some Kshatriya and struck down Shiva so Parvati was filled with rage and transformed into Kali, standing on Shiva's corpse to protect it she then proceeded to slay all of the enemy.

Reason number 227 why Vishnu/Parashuram should have cleansed the world of the Kshatriya. But some balance or other made him decide to spare the few that remained.

[Kyriakos]

On the subject of Zalmoxis/Zamolxis, Clement of Alexandria is the only source to claim that the messenger to Zalmoxis was chosen by being the best (supposedly in some sort of event) and those not chosen were in mourning? (despite the fate of the messenger being death, most likely, by the spears).

Also: If the messenger did not land on the spears and die, it was written that he was then considered to have been the reason Zalmoxis was angry ( ), so what exactly was his fate? Death or exile?

[sumskilz]

Zaqar, an ancient Mesopotamian messenger of sin who relayed communication through dreams and nightmares.

I assume you mean Sin not sin. Though this was a common way for messengers of deities to relay communication, like the mālʾakīm (messengers) in the Bible - a word which is usually translated as "angels" based on the Greek word for messenger.

Zakār would be a better transliteration of the name, from the Akkadian verb zakārum (to speak, to declare, to address, to invoke).

[Roma_Victrix]

I assume you mean Sin not sin. Though this was a common way for messengers of deities to relay communication, like the mālʾakīm (messengers) in the Bible - a word which is usually translated as "angels" based on the Greek word for messenger.

Zakār would be a better transliteration of the name, from the Akkadian verb zakārum (to speak, to declare, to address, to invoke).

Thanks for that explanation. Cheers.