Name ▲▼ | Origin ▲▼ | Description ▲▼ |
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Goddess name "NINURTA (lord plough)" | Mesopotamian / Sumerian / Babylonian - Akkadian / Iraq | God of thunderstorms and the plough. Ninurta is the Sumerian god of farmers and is identified with the plough. He is also the god of thunder and the hero of the Sumerian pantheon, closely linked with the confrontation battles between forces of good and evil that characterize much of Mesopotamian literature. He is one of several challengers of the malignant dragon or serpent Kur said to inhabit the empty space between the earth's crust and the primeval sea beneath. Ninurta is the son of Enlil and Ninhursaga a, alternatively Ninlil, and is the consort of Gula, goddess of healing. He is attributed with the creation of the mountains which he is said to have built from giant stones with which he had fought against the demon Asag. He wears the horned helmet and tiered skirt and carries a weapon Sarur which becomes personified in the texts, having its own intelligence and being the chief adversary, in the hands of Ninurta, of Kur. He carries the double-edged scimitar-mace embellished with lions' heads and, according to some authors, is depicted in nonhuman form as the thunderbird lmdugud (sling stone), which bears the head of a lion and may represent the hailstones of the god. His sanctuary is the E-padun-tila. Ninurta is perceived as a youthful warrior and probably equates with the Babylonian heroic god Marduk. His cult involved a journey to Eridu from both Nippur and Girsu. He may be compared with Iskur, who was worshiped primarily by herdsmen as a storm god.... |
Goddess name "Naeeeegaaei (slayer of alien gods)" | Navaho / USA | God of war. The most powerful of the Navaho war gods. The son of the Sun god TSOHANOAI and the fertility goddess ESTSANATLEHI. According to tradition, he vanquished a race of giants who had nearly destroyed the human race. He is a benevolent god, ready to help mankind in times of trouble. He also cures diseases brought about through witchcraft. Said to live at the junction of two rivers in the San Juan valley, he is invoked by warriors preparing for battle. His priest wears a buckskin bag mask, painted black and adorned with five zigzag lightning streaks, the eye and mouth holes covered with white sea shells. He also wears a fox skin collar, a crimson cloth around the hips and a leather belt with silver ornamentation, but is otherwise naked. No depictions are made of this deity.... |
God name "Naigameya" | Hindu | God. Either the son or the brother of the god SKANDA. Generally depicted with the head of a goat.... |
God name "Nandi(n) (rejoicing)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Bull god. Generally åśśociated with S IVA as a bull-vehicle and an embodiment of fertility. Color: white. The image usually stands in an anteroom of the temple guarding the place where the statue of S iva is located. A S iva devotee touches the image's testicles on entry to a shrine. In anthropomorphic form he may be known as Nandisa.... |
God name "Nang Lha" | Tibetan | house god. A personal family guardian depicted with the head of a pig. He is propitiated with libations.... |
Goddess name "Nantosuelta (winding river)" | Celtic / Gallic | Goddess of water. Identified as a possible consort of the god SUCELLOS. She frequently holds a pole surmounted by a dove-cote. In addition she carries the cornucopia of a fertility or mother goddess, but is also a domestic guardian deity and is often depicted with ravens, which may suggest further links with the underworld.... |
God name "Nara" | Hindu / Puranic / Epic | Minor incarnation of the god of Visnu |
God name "Nara (man)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Minor incarnation(s) of the god VISNU. Some authorities place these as separate avataras, but they are usually linked.... |
God name "Naraaana" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Creator god. More or less synonymous with VIS'NU, but specifically describing the embodiment of the abode of man. He is said to have sucked his toe while sailing the primeval ocean on a banana leaf, until his own inspiration created the world. Often depicted supported by the bird god GARUDA.See also NARA.... |
Deity name "Narada (giver of advice)" | Hindu / Vedic, Epic / Puranic | Minor but popular deity. Narada is depicted as a sage who is also a messenger and teacher. Born from the head, or throat, of BRAHMA, and alternatively a minor incarnation of V IS'NU. In various roles he is a guardian deity of women, a musician and a wanderer. Narada, often bearded, is generally depicted standing with the musical instrument which is his invention, the vina (lute). By contrast to his benign nature he is also described as a maker of strife and as vile. Also Kali-karaka; Pisuna.... |
Goddess name "Narasinha (man-lion)" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Incarnation of the god Vis'nu. The fourth avatara of the god is depicted as a man-lion hybrid. According to legend, the demonic king Hiranyakasipu had taken on a dangerous invulnerability. To thwart this, VIS'NU took the form of Narasinha and hid inside a pillar of the king's palace whence he sprang, capturing Hiranyakasipu and tearing out his entrails. IconographicalIy, the scene is portrayed with the victim thrown across Narasinha's lap and the god's claws plunged into his body. Narasinha may also appear seated in a yoga position with the goddess LAKSMI on his knee.... |
Goddess name "Narasinhi" | Hindu / Epic / Puranic | Mother goddess. A SAKTI of NARASINHA who is one of a group of ASTAMATARA mothers. In another grouping, one of nine NAVASAKTIS who, in southern India, rank higher than the SAPTAMATARAS. Also CANDIKA.... |
Goddess name "Narasinhi/ Chandika" | Hindu / Puranic / Epic | A mother goddess |
God name "Narayana" | Hindu / Puranic / Epic | A creator god thought to be synonymous with business |
Demon name "Nataraja (lord of the dance)" | Hindu / Puranic | Form of the god SI IVA. Emerging from AD 1200 onward, this form depicts SI iva as lord of the dance ringed by fire and with one foot on a demon in the form of a black dwarf. Nataraja arguably epitomizes the moving power in the cosmos. Largely seen in southern Indian bronzes which display the dance-form anandatandava.... |
Goddess name "Naueet" | Egypt | Primordial goddess. One of the eight deities of the OGDOAD representing chaos, she is coupled with the god NUN and appears in anthropomorphic form but with the head of a snake. The pair epitomize the primordial abyss. She is also depicted greeting the rising Sun in the guise of a baboon.... |
Goddess name "Neharennia" | Roman / Celtic | Goddess of seafarers. Worshiped extensively between the second and thirteenth centuries AD, particularly in the Netherlands with sanctuaries at Domberg at the mouth of the Rhine and Colijnsplaat on the Scheldt. Probably began as a tribal deity of the Morini tribe. She is generally depicted with the attributes of fertilitya basket of fruit or cornucopia. She may also often have a small lapdog. Alternatively, she stands with one foot on the prow of a boat and grasps an oar or the rope.... |
Goddess name "Nekhbet" | Egypt / Upper | Local mother goddess. Known from Nekhab (el-Kab), she is generally depicted in the form of a vulture with one or both wings spread and holding the symbols of eternity in her talons. Nekhbet is known from at least 3000 BC and is mentioned in the Pyramid Texts as the great white cowa familiar epithet in respect of Egyptian mother or creator goddesses.... |