Guide to the Gods 1.0
Ca... to Cg...
God C
Maya god of unknown name connected with the first day of creation (Chuen). Possibly an astral deity.
Cabeiri
See Kabeiroi.
Caca
Roman goddess of the hearth, in which capacity she was later succeeded by Vesta. She was the daughter of Vulcan and Medusa, and the sister of Cacus.
Cacoch
(Kacoch)
Mayan creator god.
Cacus
Originated as a pre-Roman god of fire who later became a fire-breathing demon. He was said to live in a cave on the Palatine hill in Rome. It was Cacus who stole the cattle of Geryon, and he was killed by Herakles, whose labours included the recovery of the cattle of Geryon.
Caelestis
Carthaginian (North African) moon goddess. She was the Romanized form of the native Carthaginian goddess Tanit. Her cult was introduced to Rome where she was represented by a block of stone.
Cagn
(I Kaggen)
Supreme god and creator of the Kalahari Bushmen of southern Africa.
Cailleach Beara
(Cailleach Bheur)
Celtic (Ireland) goddess represented as an old hag. She was said to turn to stone every April 30 (Beltine) and to be reborn every October 31 (Samhain).
Cain
In Gnosticism, a good spirit worthy of worship.
Cai-Shen
Chinese god of riches. Said to ride on a black tiger.
Cakra
See Chakra.
Cakravartin
See Chakravartin.
Cakresvari
See Chakresvari.
Calliope
(Kalliope)
Greek muse of epic or heroic poetry, and chief of the nine Muses. Daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne. In various accounts she was the mother of Orpheus and Linus by Apollo or Oeagrus, and of Hymen and Ialemus by Apollo. It was she who, on behalf of Zeus, judged the dispute between Aphrodite and Persephone over Adonis.
Callisto
(Kallisto)
A local Greek goddess of Arcadia. She was transformed by the gods into the Great Bear constellation.
Calypso
(Kalypso)
Greek immortal nymph. Queen of the island of Ogygia, she kept Odysseus there for seven years and bore him two sons.
Cama
See Chama.
Camaxtli
(Mixcoatl-Camaxtli)
Aztec god of hunting and of fate. Also a Chichimec tribal god.
Camazotz
Maya bat-god.
Camenae
(Kamenae)
Roman oracular goddesses, patrons of the sacred spring that supplied water for the Vestal Virgins. They were identified with the Greek muses.
Camulos
War god of Celtic Britain. He gave his name to the Roman town of Camulodunum (Colchester).
Camunda
See Chamunda.
Canda
See Chanda.
Candali
See Chandali.
Candamius
Old Hispanic god, interpreted variously as a mountain god or an astral god. Known from northern and central Spain, equated by the Romans with Jupiter.
Candaniyaka
See Chandinayaka.
Candarosana
See Chandarosina.
Candelifera
Roman goddess of birth, associated with the goddesses Lucina and Carmentes.
Candi
See Chandi.
Candika
See Chandika.
Candogra
See Chandogra.
Candra
See Chandra.
Candrasekhara
See Chandrasekhara.
Cankillikkaruppan
See Chandalikkaruppan.
Cao Dai
(Chinese Gao-Tai)
Supreme god of Vietnamese Caodaism.
Cao Guo-jiu
One of the Chinese 'Eight Immortals' (Ba Xian), patron of actors.
Caragabi
Creator deity of Choco people of Colombia.
Carancho
Toba hero-god.
Carcika
See Charcika.
Cardea
Roman goddess of thresholds and door-pivots, popularly believed to ward off evil spirits. She was associated with the god Janus, although she remained a virgin goddess.
Caridwen
See Ceridwen.
Cariociecus
Old Hispanic war god. Equated by the Romans with their god Mars.
Carman
Irish goddess whose three sons (Calma, Dubh, and Olc) ravaged Ireland before being defeated by the Tuatha De Danann.
Carmenta
(Carmentes)
Roman goddess of fate or fortune, one of the Camenae (qv). Also a goddess of childbirth, associated with Lucina and Candelifera. Her Greek equivalent was Themis.
Carna
"Flesh". Roman goddess of bodily organs, particularly of hearts. Her festival was held on June 1.
Carpo
(Karpo)
In some versions, one of the Greek Horae (qv), or Seasons. The Athenians recognized only two Horae: Carpo and Thallo. Carpo was associated with autumn and the harvest of fruit.
Caruincho
See Pariacaca.
Castor and Pollux
(Greek Kastor and Polydeukes)
Latin Dioscuri (Greek Dioskuroi), sons of Jupiter and Leda. See Kastor and Polydeukes.
Castur and Pultuce
Etruscan version of the Greek Dioskuroi.
Caswallawn
A Celtic war god of Britain.
Catequil
Inca god of thunder and lightning.
Cath
See Cautha.
Cathubodua
Irish and continental Celtic war goddess.
Caturmaharajas
See Chaturmaharajas.
Caturmurti
See Chaturmurti.
Cauac
One of the four Bacabs, Mayan gods associated with the four cardinal directions. Cauac was associated with the south and the colour red.
Cautes and Cautopates
Companions of the god Mithra. They play a role in the ritual slaying of a bull.
Cautha
(Cath)
Etruscan sun god, generally depicted as rising from the sea.
Ccoa
Cat-spirit of Kauri in Peru.
Ce Acatl
((1)Acatl)
A minor Aztec creator god.
Cecrops
(Kekrops)
Half-man half-snake ancestor of the Greeks.
Cenkalaniyammal
See Chenkalaniyammal.
Centeocihuatl (Centeotl)
Aztec maize goddess.
Centzonuitznaua
Aztec gods of the southern stars, rebel brothers of Huitzilopochtli.
Cer
See Ker.
Ceres
Roman corn goddess identified with the Greek Demeter. She is the daughter of Cronus and Rhea, and is one of the consorts of Jupiter. Like Demeter, Ceres belongs to the long line of 'great mother' goddesses dating back to the Sumerian Inana and the Babylonian Ishtar. She had a daughter by Jupiter, Proserpina, who was abducted by the underworld god Pluto in a myth which parallels that of Demeter and Persephone. Proserpina spends half of the year (winter) in the underworld with Pluto, during which Ceres neglects her duties and plant-life languishes. However, each spring Proserpina is restored to Ceres and plant life flourishes once more. Ceres' festival was the Cerealia, celebrated on April 19.
Ceres Africana (Ceres Punica)
North African goddess of the harvest mentioned by the Christian apologist Tertullian.
Ceridwen
(Caridwen)
A Welsh (Celtic) goddess who seems originally to have been a corn goddess, best known for her role in the story of the poet Taliesin's childhood. The consort of Tegid Foel, she had a daughter, Creirwy, and a son, Afagddu. In the Taliesin story, Ceridwen prepared a brew in a great cauldron which was to give her son Afagddu the gifts of inspiration and knowledge to compensate for his ugly appearance, and set the child Gwion to stirring it. However, Gwion tasted the brew and thus obtained its benefits. Ceridwen, realizing what had happened, pursued the boy, during which both she and Gwion transformed themselves into a variety of creatures. Finally, Ceridwen in the form of a hen, swallowed Gwion in the shape of a grain of corn. However, this only served to impregnate Ceridwen, and she later gave birth to the rejuvenated Gwion. She wrapped the infant up in a leather bag and threw him into the river. The child was rescued by a fisherman who, struck by the child's beauty, named him Taliesin ('radiant brow').
Cernunnos
"The horned one". Celtic horned god apparently connected with fertility and wealth. His cult was widespread, but centered on Gaul (France). He was later imported into Britain. Cernunnos is depicted as the 'horned god', with the antlers of a stag, most notably on the famous Gundestrup cauldron discovered in Denmark. He seems to have been a god of fertility and of wild animals.
Cghene
Supreme god and creator of the Isoko of southern Nigeria. He is considered remote to human affairs and thus is little celebrated, having no temples and no priests.
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