Encyclopaedia of Gods and Goddesses (In 30 Volumes)

Encyclopaedia of Gods and Goddesses is a vast collection and compilation of authoritative information on Gods and Goddesses worshipped in all religions of the world. The concept of Gods and Goddesses have developed in different ways in different settings of society. In human religious experience, hierophanies (manifestations of sacred power) provide centres of meaning, order, worship, and ethics. Humans have always felt that real life is in close contact with sacred power as encountered in the form of divine beings. Ideas and experiences of these Goddesses and Gods thus are not so much intellectual reflections as existential concerns, revolving around the fundamental human question of how to live authentically in this world. Gods and Goddesses fit most aptly into what have been called polytheistic cultures, where the divine reality has not been unified into monistic or monotheistic systems. In looking at the history and morphology of divine beings, several considerations must be kept in mind. First of all, even though the Goddesses and Gods of a particular society necessarily reflect the values and traditions of that society, it is misleading to attempt to set up direct correspondences between the divine world and human society. Second there has been much discussion of the "original" function of certain Goddesses and Gods, in contrast to added or accumulated functions. Typologies of Gods and Goddesses must span both the historical-cultural data and the morphological possibilities of these divine beings. Some societies may have very few of the possible types, while other societies may have a very full representation of the various forms of divinities. It is useful to adopt two different perspectives on Gods and Goddesses: a cosmic typology and a social typology. A classification of Gods and Goddesses can be as follows: Cosmic Gods and Goddesses, The Sky Gods and Goddesses, Meteorological Gods and Goddesses, God and Goddesses of social functions, Creators and guardians of society and order, Gods and Goddesses of protection and war, Gods and Goddesses of esoteric knowledge and magic. This continuing series is for the benefit of the students, teachers and researchers as well as laymen who wish to know about the origin and existence of all the Gods and Goddesses of world religions.