| Name ▲▼ | Origin ▲▼ | Description ▲▼ |
|---|---|---|
| God name "Virabhadra (great hero)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | war god. Considered to be a form of SIVA, and occasionally of VISNU, Virabhadra acts as a martial aspect of Siva against the god DAKSA, who according to some accounts abused Siva's wife SATI and drove her to angry suicide by self-immolation to avenge the slight. He is depicted bearing four arms. Attributes: arrow, bow, shield and sword. He sometimes wears a necklace of skulls. Three-eyed and three-headed.... |
"Vishnu" | Hindu | The All-Pervading essence of all beings, the master of and beyond the past, present and future, the creator and destroyer of all existences, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within. Hindu |
| God name "Visvaksena (tbe all-conquering)" | Hindu / Puranic | Minor god. The bodyguard and gatekeeper of VISNU. Tradition maintains that Visvaksena was slain by SIVA when he refused the latter an audience with Vis'nu. For this reason he is generally depicted in the form of a skeleton impaled on the trident weapon carried by Siva in his aspect of KANKALAMURTI. His attributes include a wheel, club and conch shell.... |
| God name "Vitthali" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | God. A lesser known incarnation of the god VISNU (or KRSNA). The cult of Vitthali is centered mainly on Panharpur, near Bombay, where he is the object of devotion by the Varkari sect. Generally depicted standing on a brick, wearing a fez-like hat and with hands on hips. Also Vithoba; Panduranga.... |
| King name "Vivien" | Britain | Lady of the lake. Vivien, mistress of Merlin, the enchanter, who lived in the midst of an imaginary lake, surrounded by knights and damsels. Tennyson, in the Idylls of the king, tells the story of Vivien and Merlin. Britain |
| God name "Vosegus" | Roman / Celtic | mountain god. A local deity from the Vosges known only from inscriptions.... |
| Goddess name "Vrtra" | Hindu / Vedic | demonic god of chaos. A primordial being who existed before the formation of the cosmos and who was slain by the mother goddess SARASVATI.... |
"Väinämöinen" | Finland | The old and wise man, who possessed a potent, magical voice. The central character in Finnish folklore and he is the main character in the Kalevala. |
| Goddess name "Wadjet" | Egypt | Goddess of royal authority. Wadjet takes the form of a fire-breathing cobra and, as the uraeus symbol worn on the headdress of the ruler, she epitomizes the power of sovereignty. She is a goddess of Lower Egypt equating to NEKHBET in Upper Egypt, with her main cult center at Buto (Tell el-Farain) in the Nile delta. She forms an integral part of the symbolism of the Sun god RE, coiling around the Sun disc to symbolize Re's powers of destruction. According to mythology, she created the papyrus swamps of the delta. She is described as a wet nurse to the god HORUS and is the mother of the god of the primeval lotus blossom, NEFERTUM.... |
"Wailan wangko" | esiaIndo | Said Wailan Wangko to Wangi, "Remain on earth while I climb up the tree." Said Wangi to Wailan Wangko, "Good." But then a thought occurred to Wangi and he climbed up the tree to ask Wailan Wangko why he, Wangi, should remain down there all alone. Said Wailan Wangko to Wangi, "Return and take earth and make two images, a man and a woman." Minahåśśa |
| God name "Wak" | Ethiopia | The Father of the Universe, the omniscient sky god who is åśśociated with Rains and thunder. Ethiopia |
| King name "Waking a Witch" | Britain | If a witch was obdurate, the most effectual way of obtaining a confession was by what was termed "waking her." For this purpose an iron bridle or hoop was bound across her face with four prongs thrust into her mouth. The "bridle" was fastened behind to the wall by a chain in such a manner that the victim was unable to lie down; and in this position she was kept sometimes for several days, while men were constantly by to keep her awake. Britain |
| God name "Whanin" | Korea | The creator god whose son, Whanung, was sent to earth accompanied by three celestial helpers of wind, cloud and Rain. Whanung descended from heaven to Mt. Taebaksan and named it the City of God. Korea |
| Deities name "Whiro" | Polynesian / Maori | God of death. Regarded as an errant son of the creator deities, RANGINUI and PAPATUANUKU, Whiro stands as the chief antagonist of TANEMAHUTA, the creator god of light. He is, therefore, the personification of darkness and evil. During the time of creation from chaos, Whiro is said to have fought an epic battle against Tanemahuta in the newly formed heavens. He was vanquished and forced to descend into the underworld where he became ruler over the dead and chief among the lesser underworld deities who are responsible for various forms of disease and sickness. In the temporal world the lizard, a symbol of death, embodies him, and various creatures of the night, including the owl and the bat, are earthly representatives from his kingdom, as are such malignant insect pests as the mosquito. This deity is not to be confused with the legendary human voyager and adventurer of the same name whose traditions have, in the past, often been muddled with those of the god.... |
"Wild Huntsman" | German | The German tradition is that a spectral hunter with dogs frequents the Black Forest to chase the wild animals. The English name is "Herne the Hunter," who was once a keeper in windsor Forest. In Winter time, at midnight, he walks about Herne's Oak, and blasts trees and cattle. He wears horns, and rattles a chain in a "most hideous manner". Another legend is that a certain Jew would not suffer Jesus to drink out of a horse-trough, but pointed to some water in a hoof-print as good enough for "such an enemy of Moses," and that this man is the "Wild Huntsman." Various |
| Spirit name "Will-o'-the-wisps" | Europe | In the mediaeval ages, the will-o'-the-wisps were known as elf lights, for these tiny sprites were supposed to mislead travelers; and popular superstition claimed that the Jack-o'-lanterns were the restless spirits of murderers forced against their will to return to the scene of their crimes. Northern Europe |
"Winifred" | s | Patron saint of virgins, because she was beheaded by Prince Caradoc for refusing to marry him. She was Welsh by birth, and the legend says that her head falling on the ground originated the famous healing well of St. Winifred in Flintshire. She is usually drawn like St. Denis, carrying her head in her hand. Holywell, in Wales, is St. Winifred's Well, celebrated for its "miraculous" virtues. |
"Wokey" | Britain | Wicked as the Witch of Wokey. Wookey-hole is a noted cavern in Somersetshire, which has given birth to as many weird stories as the Sibyls' Cave in Italy. The Witch of Wokey was metamorphosed into stone by a "lerned wight" from Gaston, but left her curse behind, so that the fair damsels of Wokey rarely find "a gallant." Britain |
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