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Governments can also be classified by mode of succession; for example, ascension to governmental leadership may follow the rules of hereditary succession, or it may be determined through elections or by force. Governments also vary in terms of the laws and rules of conduct that each political entity follows.","image":{"id":0,"url":"/22/99622-050-E70BCD0A/Parthenon-Athens.jpg","altText":"Politics, Law & Government","fullUrl":"https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/22/99622-050-E70BCD0A/Parthenon-Athens.jpg"}},{"id":1000,"title":"Science","urlTitle":"Science","description":"How can the sky be blue one day and stormy the next? Why do heavy objects tend to fall downwards when dropped? How are birds able to fly (and why can’t I do the same?)? Human beings have long been curious about the world in which we live, striving to identify connections among the phenomenons we witness and to understand how it all works. The field of science has developed over many centuries as a way of studying and understanding the world, beginning with the primitive stage of simply noting important regularities in nature and continuing through the rise of modern science. The modern-day sciences cover a vast range of fields, including biology, chemistry, meteorology, astronomy, physics, and much more.","image":{"id":0,"url":"/86/193986-050-7B2DBB6A/ball-and-stick-model-structure-atoms.jpg","altText":"Science","fullUrl":"https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/86/193986-050-7B2DBB6A/ball-and-stick-model-structure-atoms.jpg"}},{"id":4000,"title":"Sports & Recreation","urlTitle":"Sports-Recreation","description":"Physical contests and recreational games have long played a part in human society. In both team and solo sports, the human body has been pushed to its limits in the name of improving athletic performance and to break record upon record. 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Thanks to human curiosity and technological research, many significant inventions have been made throughout history that in turn made a difference in our daily lives.","image":{"id":0,"url":"/84/203584-131-357FBE7D/speed-internet-technology-background.jpg","altText":"Technology","fullUrl":"https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/84/203584-131-357FBE7D/speed-internet-technology-background.jpg"}},{"id":11000,"title":"Visual Arts","urlTitle":"Visual-Arts","description":"These are the arts that meet the eye and evoke an emotion through an expression of skill and imagination. They include the most ancient forms, such as painting and drawing, and the arts that were born thanks to the development of technology, like sculpture, printmaking, photography, and installation art, the latter a combination of multiple creative expressions. Though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, different eras in art history have had their own principles to define beauty, from the richly ornamented taste of the Baroque to the simple, utilitarian style of the Prairie School.","image":{"id":0,"url":"/45/24345-050-78FAA104.jpg","altText":"Visual Arts","fullUrl":"https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/45/24345-050-78FAA104.jpg"}},{"id":6000,"title":"World History","urlTitle":"World-History","description":"Does history really repeat itself, or can we learn from the mistakes of those who came before us? History provides a chronological, statistical, and cultural record of the events, people, and movements that have made an impact on humankind and the world at large throughout the ages. 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<main> <div class="md-page-wrapper"> <div id="content" class="md-content"> <div class="md-article-container template-desktop infinite-pagination"> <article class="article-content content md-expanded" data-topic-id="469156"> <div class="pl728 toolbar-ad"></div> <div class="family-bar topic-toolbar sticky-toolbar border-bottom d-flex align-items-center font-14 bg-white shadow"> <a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism" class="title d-none d-lg-block label px-20 text-truncate text-black link-blue lh-lg">Polytheism</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 tabs"> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container text-nowrap overflow-hidden d-flex "> <span class="tab active">Article</span> <a class="tab" href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/images-videos">Media</a> <a class="tab" href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/additional-info">Additional Info</a> </div> <button disabled class="prev-button js-prev-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-sm btn-unstyled mx-10 shadow bg-white text-blue"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></span> </button> <button disabled class="next-button js-next-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-sm btn-unstyled mx-10 shadow bg-white text-blue"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></span> </button> </div> </div> <div class="grid gx-0"> <div class="col-auto"> <div class="md-article-drawer position-relative d-flex border-right bg-gray-50 open"> <div class="drawer py-25 open"> <div class="label mb-10">Article Contents</div> <ul class="list-unstyled pb-100" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism">Introduction</a></li><li data-target="#ref38132"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism#ref38132">The nature of polytheism</a></li><li data-target="#ref38133"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Forms-of-polytheistic-powers-gods-and-demons">Forms of polytheistic powers, gods, and demons</a><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38134"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Forms-of-polytheistic-powers-gods-and-demons#ref38134">Natural forces and objects</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38135"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Forms-of-polytheistic-powers-gods-and-demons#ref38135">Vegetation</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38136"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Animal-and-human-forms">Animal and human forms</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38137"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Animal-and-human-forms#ref38137">Functional deities</a></li></ul></li><li data-target="#ref38138"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Types-of-polytheism">Types of polytheism</a><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38139"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Types-of-polytheism#ref38139">Greco-Roman religion</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38140"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Types-of-polytheism#ref38140">Germanic, Scandinavian, Celtic, and Slavic mythologies</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38141"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Types-of-polytheism#ref38141">Egypt and the Middle East</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38142"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Types-of-polytheism#ref38142">Early Indo-Iranian religions</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38143"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Types-of-polytheism#ref38143">Classical and modern Hinduism</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38144"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Buddhism">Buddhism</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38145"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Buddhism#ref38145">East Asian religions</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38146"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Buddhism#ref38146">Religions of ancient Mesoamerica</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref38147"><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism/Buddhism#ref38147">Modern ethnic religions in Africa and elsewhere</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div> <button class="drawerToggle btn position-sticky btn-blue btn-circle " type="button" aria-label="Toggle Drawer"> <em class="material-icons " data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></em> </button> </div> </div> <div class="col"> <div class="infinite-pagination-button grid gx-0"> <div class="col"> <div class="d-flex justify-content-center"> <button class="js-load-previous btn btn-blue d-flex flex-column text-uppercase pt-0 mt-30"> <em class="material-icons md-36" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_up"></em> Load Previous Page </button> <em class="material-icons js-loading-spinner ui-spin d-flex align-items-center align-self-center justify-content-center text-blue font-36 d-none mt-30" data-icon="brightness_low"></em> </div> </div> <div class="col-lg-da-300"></div> </div> <div class="infinite-pagination-container container pt-40 p-sm-40"> <div class="grid"> <script class="topic-json" type="application/json"> { "469156": { "url": "/topic/polytheism", "shareUrl": "https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/polytheism", "title": "Polytheism - Types of polytheism", "documentGroup": "TOPIC PAGINATED LARGE" } } </script> <div class="topic-content col-sm pr-lg-60"> <span class="marker before-article"></span><span class="marker h4"></span><section id="ref38138" data-level="1"> <h1 class="h1">Types of polytheism</h1> <section id="ref38139" data-level="2"> <h2 class="h2">Greco-<span id="ref420583"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Roman-religion" class="md-crosslink">Roman religion</a></h2> <p class="topic-paragraph">By the time of the establishment of the Roman Empire, the <span id="ref420584"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Greek-religion" class="md-crosslink">Greek</a> tradition was already exerting considerable influence on the Roman, to the extent that once relatively independent traditions became somewhat fused. Equations between gods were freely made: <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Zeus" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Zeus</a> became <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Jupiter-Roman-god" class="md-crosslink">Jupiter</a>, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Aphrodite-Greek-mythology" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Aphrodite</a> became <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Venus-goddess" class="md-crosslink">Venus</a>, and so on. Originally, Roman <em>pietas</em> (sense of duty to the gods) was a good deal less personalized than the relationship to the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/anthropomorphic" class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off" data-term="anthropomorphic">anthropomorphic</a> gods of the Homeric pantheon and was directed at spirits called numina. In addition, the various philosophical systems, such as <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Epicureanism" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Epicureanism</a> and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Stoicism" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Stoicism</a>, provided a more systematic cosmology and sense of human destiny than traditional polytheism. Influential in the Hellenistic period were <span id="ref420585"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/mystery-religion" class="md-crosslink">mystery</a> cults—such as those of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Isis-Egyptian-goddess" class="md-crosslink">Isis</a>, Cybele, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mithra" class="md-crosslink">Mithra</a>, and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Demeter" class="md-crosslink">Demeter</a>—which catered more to personal concerns with salvation than did the official and civic cults. Under the mid-4th-century emperor <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Julian-Roman-emperor" class="md-crosslink">Julian</a>, a last vigorous attempt was made to revive paganism and to restore the cult of the gods over against the widespread grip of Christianity.</p><span class="marker p1"></span><div class="assemblies"><figure class="md-assembly print-false" data-assembly-id="146661"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper" data-type="image"><div class="image-wrapper mg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/28/135228-004-2F759BF5/Tin-glazed-earthenware-plate-birth-Francesco-Xanto-Avelli.jpg" class="media-overlay-link" data-href="/media/1/469156/146661"><img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/28/135228-004-2F759BF5/Tin-glazed-earthenware-plate-birth-Francesco-Xanto-Avelli.jpg" alt="majolica plate" data-width="451" data-height="450"></a></div></div><figcaption><strong class="md-assembly-title">majolica plate</strong><div class="md-assembly-caption">Tin-glazed earthenware (majolica) footed plate depicting the birth of Venus, by Francesco Xanto Avelli of Rovigo, 1533; in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.</div><cite class="d-block mb-10">Photograph by Joel Parham. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, William Randolph Hearst Collection, 50.9.17</cite></figcaption></figure></div><span class="marker AM1 am-inline"></span><a href="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/dualism-religion/Themes-of-religious-dualism#ref420813" class="info-module read-more-module p-5 d-block border m-sm-50"> <div class="wrapper p-30"> <div class="grid"> <div class="col-md-auto col-100 mb-15 mb-sm-0"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:225x225/96/93396-050-732C1205/deities-Egyptian-Osiris-Isis.jpg" alt="The Egyptian deities Osiris (left) and Isis."/> </div> <div class="col-md col-100"> <div class="label text-black font-13 font-weight-bold text-uppercase">Read More on This Topic</div> <div class="title font-18 font-weight-bold lh-base mb-5">dualism: Polytheistic themes</div> <div class="question font-14 text-muted lh-base">Among the instances of dualistic structure in polytheistic religions are those that oppose celestial and terrestrial, male and female, actual...</div> </div> </div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span> </section> <section id="ref38140" data-level="2"> <h2 class="h2">Germanic, Scandinavian, Celtic, and Slavic <span id="ref420586"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/myth" class="md-crosslink">mythologies</a></h2> <p class="topic-paragraph">The sources for a reconstruction of northern European religion are far better than those for the south <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Germanic-peoples" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Germanic peoples</a>, but there were evidently similarities between the religions. The three main <span id="ref420587"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/place/Scandinavia" class="md-crosslink">Scandinavian</a> gods were <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Odin-Norse-deity" class="md-crosslink">Odin</a>, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Thor-Germanic-deity" class="md-crosslink">Thor</a>, and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Freyr" class="md-crosslink">Freyr</a>: Odin (or Wodan) had great magical power and wisdom and was called All-father; Thor (or Donar) was the warrior god; and Freyr was the god of fertility. It is possible that these gods are a reflection of the tripartite division of Indo-European society—priest, warrior, and cultivator. Among other deities, Balder, the dying god who was killed by a mistletoe branch, had a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poignant" class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off" data-term="poignant">poignant</a> charm. Nordic mythology also carries with it a sense of final doom of the gods, looking to the point when the world will be burned up, before its eventual re-creation.</p><span class="marker p2"></span><div class="assemblies"><figure class="md-assembly print-false" data-assembly-id="229715"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper" data-type="image"><div class="image-wrapper mg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/27/160227-050-A51B0A0B/Thor.jpg" class="media-overlay-link" data-href="/media/1/469156/229715"><img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/27/160227-050-A51B0A0B/Thor.jpg" alt="Thor" data-width="991" data-height="1600"></a></div></div><figcaption><strong class="md-assembly-title">Thor</strong><div class="md-assembly-caption">Thor.</div><cite class="d-block mb-10">B. E. Fogelberg/Myths of the Norsemen by H. A. Guerber</cite></figcaption></figure></div><span class="marker AM2 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span> <p class="topic-paragraph">The pattern of <span id="ref420588"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Celtic-religion" class="md-crosslink">Celtic</a> cults is not easy to decipher, because of lack of written records; but the stag-headed god Cernunnos was highly significant in iconography. There was also a variety of ancestral gods and goddesses, including a “great mother” of the type found in fertility cults of the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/place/ancient-Middle-East" class="md-crosslink autoxref">ancient Middle East</a>. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Celtic-religion" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Celtic religion</a> had a special reverence for water in such forms as pools and rivers.</p><span class="marker p3"></span><span class="marker AM3 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span> <p class="topic-paragraph">The <span id="ref420589"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Slavic-religion" class="md-crosslink">Slavic religions</a> of eastern Europe and Russia are likewise imperfectly known, but they involved <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/worship" class="md-crosslink autoxref">worship</a> of a high god who is both a creator and an atmospheric force. Another important figure in Slavic mythology was the war god <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Svantovit" class="md-crosslink">Svantovit</a>. Finno-Ugrian pre-Christian religion bears some resemblance to the Scandinavian, possibly indicating some mutual influences, while Baltic cults are of Indo-European type.</p><span class="marker p4"></span><span class="marker AM4 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span> </section> <section id="ref38141" data-level="2"> <h2 class="h2">Egypt and the Middle East</h2> <p class="topic-paragraph">The <span id="ref420590"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/ancient-Egyptian-religion" class="md-crosslink">Egyptian</a> pantheon evolved into a complex form; many deities were theriomorphic but were presided over by such great gods as <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Re" class="md-crosslink">Re</a>, the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/sun-worship" class="md-crosslink autoxref">sun god</a>, and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Nut-Egyptian-goddess" class="md-crosslink">Nut</a>, the sky goddess. Re’s transformation as <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Horus" class="md-crosslink">Horus</a>, with a hawk’s head, was connected with the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Osiris-Egyptian-god" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Osiris</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legend" class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off" data-term="legend">legend</a>. The pharaoh was identified with him as the “living Horus.” Despite the attempt of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Akhenaten" class="md-crosslink">Akhenaton</a>, pharaoh in the 14th century <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>, to exalt <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Aton" class="md-crosslink">Aton</a> as the single god, the Egyptian cult remained essentially polytheistic but highly <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/articulated" class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off" data-term="articulated">articulated</a>. With the domination of Egypt by the Ptolemies about 10 centuries later, the worship of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Serapis" class="md-crosslink">Serapis</a>, a hybrid Greco-Egyptian deity, was instituted as a means of binding together the two groups.</p><span class="marker p5"></span><div class="assemblies"><figure class="md-assembly print-false" data-assembly-id="209668"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper" data-type="image"><div class="image-wrapper mg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/51/189751-050-AB5FB3B0/Ramses-II-offering-Abu-Simbel-Horus-Aswan.jpg" class="media-overlay-link" data-href="/media/1/469156/209668"><img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/51/189751-050-AB5FB3B0/Ramses-II-offering-Abu-Simbel-Horus-Aswan.jpg" alt="Ramses II making an offering to Horus" data-width="1600" data-height="1200"></a></div></div><figcaption><strong class="md-assembly-title">Ramses II making an offering to Horus</strong><div class="md-assembly-caption">Ramses II making an offering to Horus, at Abu Simbel, now located in Aswān <em>muḥāfaẓah</em> (governorate), southern Egypt. </div><cite class="d-block mb-10">Dennis Jarvis (CC-BY-2.0) (<a class="external" target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/http://corporate.britannica.com/the-nexus-media-edition/">A Britannica Publishing Partner</a>)</cite></figcaption></figure></div><span class="marker AM5 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span> <p class="topic-paragraph">Though in Egypt the cause of the rise and fall of gods was partially the political struggles between the major city-states, the Sumerian religion was much less affected by such “earthly” considerations. An, the god of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/heaven" class="md-crosslink autoxref">heaven</a>, remained supreme, and such deities as the water god Enki and the air god Enlil were prominent. In Babylon, partly the successor state of Sumer, the most vital god was <span id="ref420591"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Marduk" class="md-crosslink">Marduk</a>, creator of the world and of humankind, and victor over the primeval Tiamat, or <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chaos" class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off" data-term="chaos">chaos</a>, who all but absorbed the older surrounding gods. His story is recounted in the epic <em>Enuma elish</em> (“When on High”). In Assyrian religion, Marduk was in effect replaced by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ashur-Mesopotamian-deity" class="md-crosslink">Ashur</a>; <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ishtar-Mesopotamian-goddess" class="md-crosslink">Ishtar</a>, the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/mother-goddess" class="md-crosslink autoxref">mother goddess</a>, was also important. In general, it can be said that <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Middle-Eastern-religion" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Middle Eastern religion</a> stemmed from early Sumerian and Egyptian sources and that the latter eventually had some effect on <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hellenistic-religion" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Hellenistic religion</a>.</p><span class="marker p6"></span><div class="assemblies"><figure class="md-assembly print-false" data-assembly-id="160662"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper" data-type="image"><div class="image-wrapper mg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/73/95273-050-B3D5CD31/Marduk-Babylon.jpg" class="media-overlay-link" data-href="/media/1/469156/160662"><img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/73/95273-050-B3D5CD31/Marduk-Babylon.jpg" alt="Marduk" data-width="1213" data-height="1600"></a></div></div><figcaption><strong class="md-assembly-title">Marduk</strong><div class="md-assembly-caption">Marduk.</div><cite class="d-block mb-10">© Juulijs/Fotolia</cite></figcaption></figure></div><span class="marker AM6 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span> </section> <section id="ref38142" data-level="2"> <h2 class="h2">Early Indo-<span id="ref420592"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/ancient-Iranian-religion" class="md-crosslink">Iranian religions</a></h2> <p class="topic-paragraph">For almost a millennium close relations existed between the Vedic and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/ancient-Iranian-religion" class="md-crosslink">ancient Iranian religions</a>—from before the time of the Iranian prophet <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Zarathustra" class="md-crosslink">Zarathustra</a>, who reformed the ancient religion sometime before the early 6th century <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>, back to the time of the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vedic-religion" class="md-crosslink autoxref">Vedic religion</a> of the people who migrated to India about 1500 <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>. Zarathustra, in his reforms, succeeded in excising the many gods, some of whom were subsumed as qualities of the supreme Ahura Mazdā. The rich pantheon of the Vedic hymns developed into the world of classical Hindu mythology, which was fed by streams other than the Indo-Iranian.</p><span class="marker p7"></span><div class="assemblies"><figure class="md-assembly print-false" data-assembly-id="4123"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper" data-type="image"><div class="image-wrapper mg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/03/13603-004-841512F2/Ahura-Mazda-symbol-hall-doorway-Persepolis-Iran.jpg" class="media-overlay-link" data-href="/media/1/469156/4123"><img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/03/13603-004-841512F2/Ahura-Mazda-symbol-hall-doorway-Persepolis-Iran.jpg" alt="Ahura Mazdā" data-width="416" data-height="300"></a></div></div><figcaption><strong class="md-assembly-title">Ahura Mazdā</strong><div class="md-assembly-caption">Ahura Mazdā, symbol from a doorway of the main hall of the Council Hall, Persepolis, Iran.</div><cite class="d-block mb-10">Courtesy of The Oriental Institute of The University of Chicago</cite></figcaption></figure></div><span class="marker AM7 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span> </section> <section id="ref38143" data-level="2"> <h2 class="h2">Classical and modern <span id="ref420594"></span><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hinduism" class="md-crosslink">Hinduism</a></h2> <p class="topic-paragraph">Certain gods of no great importance in the Vedic tradition came to dominate classical Hinduism, above all <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Shiva" class="md-crosslink">Shiva</a> and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vishnu" class="md-crosslink">Vishnu</a>. The latter was associated with belief in avatar, or incarnation. Most male gods in the Hindu pantheon also came to be represented with a female consort, symbolizing the <em>shakti</em>, or creative power of the deity. The increasing elaboration of Hindu cults as different groups were absorbed into a systematized social fabric has led to the estimate of as many as 33 million Hindu gods. It has been common practice for devotees to select the form under which the divine is worshipped, and such a deity is called the <em>istadevata</em>. Most Hindus are inclined to interpret the many gods as being symbols of the one divine reality.</p><span class="marker p8"></span><div class="assemblies"><figure class="md-assembly print-false" data-assembly-id="120242"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper" data-type="image"><div class="image-wrapper mg"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://cdn.britannica.com/36/126036-004-07DB76C7/Statue-Shiva-Bengaluru-Karnataka-India.jpg" class="media-overlay-link" data-href="/media/1/469156/120242"><img loading="lazy" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/36/126036-004-07DB76C7/Statue-Shiva-Bengaluru-Karnataka-India.jpg" alt="Bengaluru, India: Shiva statue" data-width="338" data-height="450"></a></div></div><figcaption><strong class="md-assembly-title">Bengaluru, India: Shiva statue</strong><div class="md-assembly-caption">Statue of Shiva in Bengaluru (Bangalore), Karnataka, India.</div><cite class="d-block mb-10">Deepak Gupta</cite></figcaption></figure></div><span class="marker AM8 am-inline"></span><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span> </section> </section><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <aside class="col-da-300" data-page="4"> <div class="rr-module rr-module-1"> <div class="marketing-RIGHT_RAIL_MODULE marketing-content" data-marketing-id="RIGHT_RAIL_MODULE"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=mendel&utm_medium=house&utm_campaign=ny-messaging-b" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> <img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438im_/https://cdn.britannica.com/safeimages/300x90_Kid.png" alt="Learn More!" class="mb-30"/> </a></div></div> </aside> </div> </div> <div class="infinite-pagination-button grid gx-0"> <div class="col-sm col-100"> <div class="js-load-next-container d-flex justify-content-center my-25"> <button class="js-load-next btn btn-blue d-flex flex-column text-uppercase pb-0"> Load Next Page <em class="material-icons md-36" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_down"></em> </button> <em class="material-icons js-loading-spinner ui-spin d-flex align-items-center align-self-center justify-content-center text-blue font-36 d-none" data-icon="brightness_low"></em> </div> </div> <div class="col-lg-da-300"></div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> <div class="infinite-end p-5 text-center bg-green text-white d-none"> <em class="material-icons" data-icon="check"></em> </div></div> </div> </main> <footer id="md-footer" class="footer-wrapper hide-on-edit"> <div class="footer-bck"> <div class="marketing-FOOTER_NEWSLETTER marketing-content" data-marketing-id="FOOTER_NEWSLETTER"><div class="md-footer-newsletter-form pt-10 mb-30 mx-15 mx-sm-120"> <div class="font-18"> <strong>Inspire your inbox –</strong> Sign up for daily fun facts about this day in history, updates, and special offers. </div> <div class="p-30"> <div class="newsletter-form-container"> <form class="newsletter-form" method="post" action="/web/20210120075438/https://www.britannica.com/newsletter-subscription/EB_ON_THIS_DAY"> <div class="form-group grid d-flex justify-content-center"> <div class="col-sm-50 col-100"> <label class="sr-only" for="enter-your-email">Enter your email</label> <input id="enter-your-email" type="email" name="email" class="form-control font-18 p-10" placeholder="Enter your email" pattern="[a-z0-9._%+-]+@[a-z0-9.-]+\.[a-z]{2,4}$" required> </div> <div class="col-sm-auto col-100 mt-5 mt-sm-0"> <button type="submit" class="btn btn-outline-white" style="width: 100%; height:100%;">Subscribe</button> </div> </div> <div class="text-white pt-30 text-opacity"> By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica.<br> Click here to view our <a class="link-white text-decoration-underline" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210120075438/https://corporate.britannica.com/privacy-policy" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">Privacy Notice</a>. 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