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Jane Doe
Ms. Bunpermkoon
ENG II - Period 3
10 October 2014
Gods of Death
How is death viewed? Death is an idea that everyone has a view on. Religions have
attempted to understand death for centuries by trying to understand 'who' controls it, or 'who' it
is. Not all religions have come to the same conclusions about death, though some are similar.
Beliefs vary from Norse Mythology to Egyptian mythology to Greek and Scandinavian. Many
ancient and modern religions have attempted to understand death, leading to many different
views.
In an attempt to understand death, many religions have personified death for centuries.
The personification of death has led to the creation and belief in gods ("Personification of
Death"). Women, children, and men all view death differently ("Personification of Death").
Women view death as a gentle and/or soft figure, whereas men view death as a more aggressive
figure ("Personification of Death"). Children almost always show death as reaper, the 'Grim
Reaper' has sprouted from this personification ("Personification of Death"). In most religions
death is personified as a dark masculine figure, it is rare to find a feminine personification of
death. Though they can be found in some ancient myths ("Personification of Death").
In Egyptian mythology they came to an understanding of dying through multiple gods
association with death. Anubis is one of their gods of death. His roles changed as the dynasties of
Egypt changed, but in total he was credited with the roles of protector of tombs, embalmer,
weigher of hearts, and guider of souls (Ancient Egypt: the Mythology). Anubis is often depicted
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with a jackal head or as a jackal, his name in Hieroglyphics is also shown with a jackal
(Wikipedia). This is significant because in ancient Egypt the jackal was often associated with
cemeteries and burials (Princeton). The name 'Anubis' came from the Greek interpretation of the
hieroglyphics. Osiris is another Egyptian god associated with death. He was not generally
connected with Human death but rather the death of the land during the dry season (Ancient
Egypt: the Mythology). Osiris is believed to be Anubis' father (ancient Egypt: the Mythology).
Anubis guides the dead to Osiris in the underworld (Ancient Egypt: the Mythology).Anubis was
later merged with the Greek god Hermes. The god Hermanubis was created during the Roman
rule of Egypt (Babylon). Anubis and Hermes share the role of guide to the underworld (Tour
Egypt). The creation of the god Hermanubis shows that religions of about the same time period
share similar beliefs and views.
Greece also has multiple gods associated with death. Thanatos is the Greek
personification of death (Greek Mythology). He is believed to come from a villainous family of
gods, his siblings are all negative personifications, with the exception of one sibling who is the
personification of loving affection (Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of The Last
Tyrant). Thanatos’ believed heritage lends to the negative ideas and beliefs associated with
death, but also lends to the idea of still being loved after death. The other god associated with
death is more commonly known as Hades (Greek Mythology). Hades is the ruler of the
underworld and the name of the underworld in some Greek texts (Greek Mythology). He is
believed to be the brother of Zeus and Poseidon (Greek Mythology). Hades’ relationship to Zeus
and Poseidon shows that hades is a more powerful figure in Greek mythology, in contrast to
Thanatos.
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Roman mythology has only one god of death. He is directly related to Greek beliefs. The
Roman equivalent to Hades is Pluto ("Pluto [mythology]"). Roman mythology’s direct
relationship with Greek mythology supports the idea that religions of about the same time period
share similar or the same beliefs. He judges over the dead and rules the underworld much like
Hades ("Pluto"). He was viewed as merciless because if a mere mortal came to the underworld
he would not allow them to leave ("Pluto"). The Christian equivalent to Pluto and Hades is the
devil ("Christian Views"). This shows how three different religions have chosen to understand
death and the afterlife.
Celtic mythology also has a belief of death, the Celtic god of death is Donn ("Donn in
Celtic Mythology"). Donn's believed final resting place is called The House of Donn or Teach
Duinn (Celtic-Polytheism). The House Donn is believed to be the entrance to the underworld, it
can be found just off the coast of Ireland ("Donn in Celtic Mythology"). What is unique about
these beliefs is that they believe in an actual physical location they could go to before passing to
the afterlife. Teach Duinn is where the dead are believed to go until they passed to the
underworld ("Donn in Celtic Mythology"). Donn is also a translation of the word 'Dark' (Celtic
Polytheism).
Norse Mythology has a polytheistic view of death. The god Odin is charged with guiding
the dead to the land of the dead and then later back to the land of the living (Odin: Norse
Mythology for Smart People, Dan McCoy). He mainly guided human sacrifices (Odin: Norse
Mythology for Smart People). Odin was also the master of raising the dead (Odin: Norse
mythology for Smart People). Norse mythology is unique because it is the main source of death
goddess myths. The goddess Hel is the ruler of the Norse underworld, Heleim (Hel: Norse
Mythology for Smart People, Dan McCoy). Hel was viewed as ungrateful, but was not very
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prominent (Hel: Norse Mythology for Smart People). Hel’s personality supports that the Norse
also have a negative view of death. Freya is another Norse goddess associated with death, she
ruled a realm of the underworld called Folkvang (Freya: Norse Mythology for Smart People,
Dan McCoy). Freya was considered to be a witch because she practiced the Norse magic, Seidr
(Freya: Norse Mythology for Smart People).
Mara is a death related god or personification of death in multiple religions ("Omake:
Myth and Folklore"). Mara is believed in in Buddhism, Scandinavian mythology, and Hinduism.
This means that even reoccurring gods or ideas can be interpreted differently depending on the
religion. In Sanskrit, an Indic language, Mara means 'Evil or Death' ("Omake: Myth and
Folklore"). In Buddhism Mara is the personification of death ("Omake: Myth and Folklore"). He
is believed to have attempted to keep Buddha from reaching enlightenment ("Omake: Myth and
Folklore"). In Buddhism Mara is also seen as the 'master of darkness, 'god of death,' and 'god of
temptation' ("Omake: Myth and Folklore"). Scandinavian mythology also has an interpretation of
Mara, some parts of Scandinavia view Mara as a vampire like figure ("Omake: Myth and
Folklore"). In Dutch Mara means female vampire ("Omake: Myth and Folklore"). In other parts
of Scandinavia Mara is believed to be a goblin, which they view as evil and/or gnome like
("Omake: Myth and Folklore"). Though there are multiple views of Mara in Scandinavian
mythology is always viewed as demonic ("Omake: Myth and Folklore").
The repetition of beliefs in close proximity is again seen in the Central American
mythology of the Mayans, Incans, and Aztecs. The Aztecs have the god Mictlantechuhtli, whom
they believe is the ruler of the underworld (Codex Borgia). The Mayans have the death god Au
Puch, who is also known as Cizin or Kisin (Austin Cine). Au Puch is depicted with a skeletal
body with an owl head (Cline). Kisin is seen as masculine, evil and a monster like in many other
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religions (Cline). After the Spanish conquered the area, Cizin was merged with the devil ("Cizin
[Mayan God]"). Supay is the Incan equivalent to the devil, but what was most frightening about
Supay was his fascination with babies. ("Supay: Incan God of Death [Incan Mythology]").
These ancient Central American beliefs all came from polytheistic religions, much like almost all
views on death. The Christianity is one of the most well-known monotheistic religions with
beliefs in death or a ruler of the dead and evil.
The Babylonians have multiple figures of death, one of them being a goddess. Ereshkigal
is the Babylonian goddess of the underworld ("Ereshkigal: Mesopotamian Goddess of the
Underworld [Mesopotamian Mythology]"). She was known to be easily angered
("Ereshkigal..."). Nergal is the other god of the underworld, he is believed to have forced
Ereshkigal to marry him ("Nergal [Mesopotamian Deity]"). This is like the Greek myth of hades
and Persephone; Hades is believed to have kidnapped Persephone and declared her his wife.
Their marriage gave Nergal partial power over the underworld ("Nergal...").
Hinduism has a slightly different view of death and the god of death. Yama is the Hindu
lord of death. He is believed to have set the path of life for the Hindu which ultimately ends in
death ("Yama [Hindu God]"). Yama is referred to as the guardian of the south, which is what the
Hindu call the underworld or afterlife ("Yama..."). He is not viewed as evil as in most religions,
but rather as a happy king who welcomes the ancestors ("Yama..."). Yamadutas are also figures
of death in Hinduism ("Yamaduta"). They are believed to inform the newly dead that they are in
fact dead, they also guide the dead to the afterlife ("Yamadutas"). Yamadutas are similar to
Anubis, Hermes, and the combination god Hermanubis, because they all guide the dead.
Understanding different religions and cultures views on death help lead to a better
understanding of people and their views on living and life. Man’s attempts to understand death
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over the centuries has led to the creation of many figures. Understanding these figures connects
people to the past and helps people have a better understanding of how the world was viewed in
ancient and more modern times. Gods of death impacted ancient society and impact modern
society they change how people view life, and their values of life. The multiple views of death
and gods of death has made it possible to have modern beliefs on life and living.
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Works Cited Page
Ancient Egypt: The Mythology. Ancient Egypt: The Mythology - Anubis. Ancient Egypt: the
Mythology-Anubis, 17 Aug. 2014. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
"Anubis." Princeton University. Princeton University. Web. 3 Oct. 2014.
"Au Puch." Maya Mythology. God Checker. Com, 23 Mar. 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
Borgia, Codex. "Mictlantecuhtli." , Lord of the Land of the Death. Aztec Calendar.com. Web. 1
Oct. 2014.
Cline, Austin. "Ah Puch: Ah Puch, God of Death in Mayan Religion, Mythology." About. Web.
29 Sept. 2014.
"Donn in Celtic Mythology". Mythography. Mythography, 26 Sept. 2014. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
"Hades." Greek Mythology. Greek Mythology. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
"Hermanubis." Babylon. Babylon. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
McCoy, Dan. " Norse Mythology for Smart People." Norse Mythology for Smart People. Norse
Mythology for Smart People. Web. 1 Oct. 2014.
"Omake: Myth and Folklore." Working Girl [A Shrine to the Demon Mara]. Working Girl [A
Shrine to the Demon Mara]. Web. 1 Oct. 2014.
Personifications of Death. Death and Dying. Encyclopedia of Death and Dying. Web. 28 Sept.
2014.
"Pluto (mythology)." Princeton University. Princeton University. Web. 29 Sept. 2014.
Pluto. Pluto. Encyclopedia Mythica, 14 Apr. 1999. Web. 30 Sept. 2014.
Saunders, Chas, and Peter J. Allen, eds. "Ereshkigal: Mesopotamian Goddess of the Underworld
(Mesopotamian mythology)." Godchecker. Godchecker/CID, 15 Oct. 2013. Web. 30
September 2014.
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Thanatos tha Na TOOS. Thanatos * The Immortals * Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the
Fall of the Last Tyrant. 15 Nov. 2005. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. "Cizin (Mayan God)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 30 Sept. 2014.
Tour Egypt: The Gods of Ancient Egypt -- Anubis. The Gods of Ancient Egypt. Tour Egypt.
Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
What Do You Know about Donn (the Dark One)? I Read That He Is Either the Father or the
Chief of the Milesians. Also I Wonder How He Gets along with the Tuatha De Danaan.
Celtic Polytheism: Celtic Polytheism: 27 Dec. 2012. Web. 30 Sept. 2014.