Moon Gods And Goddesses

[*~*Chary*~*]

Ok i was originally going to post this later on, maybe in a week or something, but MistofTheSea brought up Thoth so i just HAVE to post this now. As with the thread on Sun Deities this is for ones associated with the moon.

My choice (again Egyptian if you hadn't guessed) is Djeheuty (or thoth in Greek)

Djeheuty is the Moon-god presiding over scribes and knowledge.
He can be represented in two forms:

The sacred Ibis
The ibis that becomes associated with Djeheuty appears perched on a standard on slate palettes of the late predynastic period. Certainly by the old kingdom the association between the bird and Djeheuty had been made: in the next life the wing of djeheuty will carry the king over thecelestial river if the ferryman is reluctant. Further, the king can transform into a bird whose wing feathers are those of Djeheuty 'mightiest of the gods'. The Ibis symbol also appears early on in courtiers' tomb inscriptions in reference to offerings being reguarly left for the deceased on the festival of Djeheuty.

And also

The baboon
By the first dynasty the baboon in its formal aquatting position, which was to become the symbol of Djeheuty, had made its appearance in glazed composition figurines from Abydos

Djeheuty can be depicted as the ibis or baboon; appear in nature or, in the case of the ibis, anthropormorphic with the bird's head super-imposed on his shoulders. In each instance the God wears a crown representing the crescent moon supporting the full moon disk. Both his sacred creatures can be interpreted in terms of lunar symbolism. Djeheuty as a moon God could manifest himself as the sacred ibis whose curved beak hints at the crescent new moon and whose balack and white feathering could be seen as indicating the waxing and waning of the moon. Baboons make agitated chattering sounds at dawn and consequently this could be understood as a greeting to the rising sun by creatures of the moon-god.Certainly thre baboon is shown in Egyptian art in such an attitude of deferential greeting, e.g. in the viginette accompanying the hymn to the sun god at the beginning of the Book of the dead, baboons stand on their hind legs with their front paws raised in honour of Re, or, above the colossal statues of Ramesses II at Abu Simbel ( i think thats right i'll need to double check), a frieze of baboons is carved to face the rising sun.


SIMILAR THREADS:
Sun God's And Goddesses (http://www.mysticwicks.com/showthread.php?threadid=18504)

[Melysande]

Khons (or Chons) would be another Egyptian deity that is called a moon god.

Khonsu (Chons) - "Traveller" Originally simply identified as the son of Amen and Mut of Uaset (Thebes), Khonsu is depicted as a youth standing on a plinth and mummified (very like Ptah), and having the princely side-lock, a beard, and a crescent moon headdress. Khonsu is especially associated with the moon (hence possibly the origins of His name), as His father Amen is with the sun. In later times, Khonsu became identified closely with Heru-sa-Aset and Heru-pa-khered as the "divine son" of the "King of Netjeru." In the 19th Dynasty, Ramses II sent a statue of Khonsu with great fame for miraculous healing powers to the kingdom of the Bactrians (Bekhten in Kemetic) to heal the Bekhteny king's daughter of a supposed demon possession - the story of this healing and the statue's part in it can be read in anthologies of ancient texts.

(According to www.kemet.org)

[*~*Chary*~*]

Khonsu was the moon-god especially prominent at Thebes.
The name Konsu, "wandere", reflects the path of the moon across the sky. Most frequently shown as human-headed, Khonsu as a sky-deity can have a hawks head. The god's body is depicted in human form enveloped in a tightly-fitting garment which does not permit his limbs to be differentiated. On his head is the crescent of the new moon in which the circle of the full moon rests. Around his neck is a loosely hanging necklace with the counterpoise on his back shoulders represented in profile. In his role of the divine child in a triad of deities he wears the 'lock of youth'. As a moon-god his sacred animal is the baboon, considered a lunar creature by the egyptians as mentioned in my previous post on Djeheuty.

The nature of Khonsu in the Pyramid age is totally different from his charachter at Thebes in the New Kingdom. In the spell which aims to give the King power to hunt and eat certain deities, thereby absorbing their strength, Khonsu is a bloodthirsty God who helps to catch and slay these victims.

At Thebes Khonsu is regarded as the child of the union of Amun and Mut, appearing with them to complete the "nuclear family" image in the temples on the eastern bank of the Nile. However, at Karnak he is given his own precinct to the south of the first court of the great temple of Amun. The pylon of Khonsu's temple known as 'Benent' represented the starting point of the processional avenue south to the Luxor Temple. In the new year festival at Thebes his statue was transported on his sacred boat, with a falcon's head at the prow and the stern, to join his parents for the celebration at the temple of Luxor.

Just another take on Khonsu to back up and expand on Melysandes post :):):)

[Mnemosyne]

Great information, Melysande and Chary! :thumbsup: When I think of Egyptian deities, I immediately think of their connection with the sun, particularly since Egypt is such a hot, sunny land. Obviously, the Egyptian pantheon has such powerful moon deities as well.

After following the Greek pantheon all these years, I have become accustomed to call Djeheuty by his Greek name "Thoth." Many people do not realize that Thoth is very similar to the Greek god Hermes. Even though he is not thought of as a moon god, Hermes does have connection to the moon. Besides having connections to the moon, Thoth and Hermes have other commonalities. For example, both are connected to medicine, delivering messeges, divination, and the underworld/afterlife. So next time you think about Hermes, you can also remember that he can be associated with the moon and he is simply not to be thought of simply as a messenger god.

Here is an interesting link that I found that briefly discusses the similarities of Thoth and Hermes.
http://www.thecore.nus.edu.sg/writing/ccwp10/jeannie/HermesandThoth.html

[Melysande]

Here's some food for thought:

http://www.biblebelievers.org.au/moongod.htm

That site says that the Islamic Allah might have originally been a moon god.

I don't know how true it is, but there were several other sites that came up listing Allah as a moon god, too, so I figured it was at least worth letting people see.

[Mnemosyne]

The site really makes a good argument, Melysande. I tried to look for other sites that suggest that Allah was originally, and I didn't find anything too convincing. For some reason, I can see how Allah was once worshipped in a polytheistic setting.

Well, I looked up Allah in my Encyclopedia of Mythology book and just found out information how he was a supreme god. However, on the previous page, I found out some info on Allat. Allat was a pre-Islamic goddess. As a goddess, she was associated with the sun and moon. And guess what? That's right; she was supposedly the daughter of Allah.

[Mnemosyne]

Ok, when I think about Greek moon goddesses, Artemis immediately springs to mind. I just read that she is the goddess of the waxing crescent moon. Even though she is also a goddess of the hunting, she also has a bow, because the bow is the shape of the moon that she represents. I don't know if other people believe this. I just thought that she was a moon goddess, regardless of the phases of the moon. Are there pantheons that have certain deities for certain phases of the moon? Do you work with certain deities during certain moon phases?

[*~*Chary*~*]

Well i am not sure about the moon but i know that there are different gods in the egyptian pantheon that represent different solar phases ... i will check up on it for you

[Mnemosyne]

Fabulous! I hope that you find some exciting info for us, Chary. :) I never thought about having certain deities for particular solar phases.

Well, I am sure that many of you relate to the Triple Goddess to certain moon phases. When the moon is new and waxing towards full, the moon is seen as the Maiden aspect of the Triple Goddess. When the moon is full, it is the Mother aspect of the Triple goddess. And so the Crone aspect is seen when the moon is waning.

[Wicce]

Artemis is not just Goddess of the waxing crescent, she was the Greek goddess of all the moon. She was, though, most commonly associated with the waxing crescent. She had a silver bow and a quiver of silver arrows. In the Roman pantheon, her name was converted to Diana, and she was revered as the moon Goddess. Which is why Dianic Wiccans call themselves such. She also supposedly gave birth to Aradia.

[Mnemosyne]

Glad to see you posting here, Wicce! :) Yeah, I believe that Artemis is the goddess of all phases of the moon. I was just wondering if perhaps certain goddesses were associated with certain phases of the moon, because there are several moon goddesses. For example, in the Greek pantheon, Artemis, Hecate, and Selene immediately spring to mind.

Hhmm. I didn't think that Diana had a child. I always considered her to be chaste.

[Wicce]

Glad to be here.. :)

Diana was a virgin Goddess, however, in those days, virgin merely meant pure...some people believe that Diana had a consort, Lucifer, the Morning Star, and they had a child, Aradia, who walked the Earth. This is the premise for Charles Leland's book Aradia: Gospel of the Witches.

There are other Goddesses who represent a part of the Triple Moon - Epona, Arianrhod and the Morrigan in the Celtic pantheon, for instance.

[Mnemosyne]

Yeah, I was just looking at Leland's book, Wicce; you're right about the Diana and Aradia story. I don't know much about the book. Does the book take place in fourteenth century Italy? I also believe that Silver Ravenwolf discusses the many sides to Diana. Personally, I believe that deities strike our interest because we all have our own unique way of perceiving them.

[mol]

A little more info:

http://sobek.colorado.edu/LAB/GODS/throth.html

[Mnemosyne]

Freyja posted this link in astrology. I found it really fascinating. It mentions the goddesses and their associations with particular stages of the moon. Hopefully, you will find this link of some interest too. :)

http://216.203.152.186/pni/pnn/2000/Mabon/Feature_Sample1.html

[Caelin]

Chary,
On a side note: don't the baboons also represent the hours?

[xblue420x]

Does anyone know of any other lunar goddesses? I've always been drawn to the moon...maybe a part of being a cancer? anywho Im interested in hecate, but not so many other moon deities spark any facination in me...wondered if anyone could send some names my way or any type of info about all of this

[SylverStar]

In the Greek pantheon it seems to be divided this way:
Selene in th sky, Artemis on Earth, and Hecate of the dark side of th moon.

[Theres]

actually Hekate was seen by the Greeks as Sky, Earth and Sea (the realms given to Her by Zeus, who adored Her above all others), and had no connection to the Moon until the Roman period (as Hecate).

nor did the Greeks ever consider Her as the 'Crone' (that's a much more modern concept). in fact She was never depicted as anything but a young woman by the Greeks until much later (post-Hellenic Roman colonisation).

there's ALOT of misconceptions about Hekate.

[SylverStar]

I just saw that in a couple different sites. They were talking of a later version of Hecate though. She is the one out of the three that I'm least familar with. I'm most familar with Artemis and somewhat familar with Selene. I guess I need to brush up my knowledge of Hecate. Maybe it's because she was revered as a Goddess later that I've never learned about her.

Maybe this is also more modern version of three Goddess. Selene did seem to be mostly a sky Goddess and Artemis was of the one most connected to the Earth, as far as Hecate I've also seen her as a darker Goddess (but that may just be a misconception).

[Theres]

... as far as Hecate I've also seen her as a darker Goddess (but that may just be a misconception).

no, not entirely. only within the context of the Greek pantheon.

by Roman times She was seen predominantly as a cthonic Goddess, mostly due to Her place in the Eleusinian Mysteries and Her association with Persephone.
but that whole 'Queen of the Hags' thing is pretty much Shakespeare's doing, he being influenced by over 1000 years of Christian literature regarding Hekate as evil, NOT the most reliable source!

and of course Hekate as the third aspect of the Maiden/Mother/Crone is a fairly modern association (which doesn't necessarily invalidate that view).

[SylverStar]

I've never actually viewed Hecate that way. I've always seen her as mysterious and wise. Never as a hag. I picture as kind of young in appearence but associated with the crone aspect because of her wisdom. But my opinion of her is based totally on feeling. I've actually considered taking on all three goddess as maiden/mother/crone aspects. But I really revere Artemis the most so I'm not sure it would work to well.

[Mau]

Glad to see you posting here, Wicce! :) Yeah, I believe that Artemis is the goddess of all phases of the moon. I was just wondering if perhaps certain goddesses were associated with certain phases of the moon, because there are several moon goddesses. For example, in the Greek pantheon, Artemis, Hecate, and Selene immediately spring to mind.

Hhmm. I didn't think that Diana had a child. I always considered her to be chaste.


If you do any reading into Stregheria, La vecchia Religione (Italian witchcraft, The old religion)
you will see that Diana is the Goddess they worship (along with Aradia). It's believed that Diana was Goddess of the moon..and her brother, Lucifer,God of the Sun. Diana was infatuated with the beauty of the Sun..and her brother. She took the form of a cat and laid in his bed while he slept...and Aradia was the result. Diana taught Aradia everything she knew of witchcraft, and sent her down earth to share this knowledge with humans..and to tell them it was from Diana..Queen of the witches.

[Mnemosyne]

If you do any reading into Stregheria, La vecchia Religione (Italian witchcraft, The old religion)
you will see that Diana is the Goddess they worship (along with Aradia). It's believed that Diana was Goddess of the moon..and her brother, Lucifer,God of the Sun. Diana was infatuated with the beauty of the Sun..and her brother. She took the form of a cat and laid in his bed while he slept...and Aradia was the result. Diana taught Aradia everything she knew of witchcraft, and sent her down earth to share this knowledge with humans..and to tell them it was from Diana..Queen of the witches.

Thanks, Mau. I really haven't done much reading into Stregheria. I think that I would really enjoy though.

Hey, Loki and everyone else. This thread has lots of info on moon deities.