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] ]]
The Persian ]s, ]es and ]s:
Several important religions and religious movements originated in the cultural continent of ]. The deities (in the context of ], the supreme being) of these religions are listed below.


For divinities (but not necessarily deities) in pre-] Iranian religions, see ]s and ]s, groups of 'good' and 'evil' divinities respectively that already figured in proto-Indo-Iranian religions. ], which initially was an attribute applied to any divinity or divine concept, was later an epithet applied to the 'angels' incorporated into Archaemenid-era Zoroastrianism and came to be synonymous with ]. For an overview of the divinities of the religions practiced in present-day ], see ], ].
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<p>&nbsp;</p>
=== A ===
<big><b>Deities of the religions of the Greater Persian cultural continent</b><big>


* ], a mid-] monotheistic religion that was a predecessor of the ]:
*], One of the ], Aesma Daeva ("madness") is the demon of lust and anger, wrath and revenge.
** God, manifest in ].
*], A Persian demoness of illness.
*] ("Lord Wisdom") is the Persian supreme god.
*], is a water goddess
*] is one of the Daevas. He is the personification of sensual desire.
*], One of the Amesha Spentas, Ameretat ("not dying", "living") is the personification of immortality.
*], The name of the seven divine beings who belong to the retinue of the highest god, Ahura Mazda.
*], The ancient Persian water goddess.
*], God of darkness,
*], 'God found in the water'
*], A demon who brings drought and aridity.
*], ("beneficent devotion") is one of the Amesha Spentas.
*] ("excellent order") is the personification of the 'best truth'
*], God of the Sky.
*], The Persian demon of death
*], The Persian god of all fire
*] An ancient Persian god of death and demon of deceit and mendacity. He loves destroying life. Dahaka is usually depicted with three heads, while scorpions and lizards crawl all over his body.


* ], an emerging monotheistic religion founded by ], a 19th century Persian exile:
=== B ===
** The ] refers to God using the local word for God in whatever language is being spoken. In the Bahá'í Writings in Arabic, Allah is used. Bahá'ís share some naming traditions with Islam, but see "Bahá" (Glory or Splendour) as The ] of God.


* ], a ] monotheism of the 1st century CE:
*] A Persian god of prosperity and wealth.
** ] - "Knowledge of Life"
*] The Persian god of the planets and victory.
*] A war god of the Iranian Kassites.
*] In Zoroastrian mythology, the yellow demon of lethargy and sloth. He is the evil genius which causes men to oversleep and to neglect their religious duties.
*] An ancient Persian demon of laziness who tries to prevent people from working. He is one of the Daevas.


* ], 3rd century ditheistic ] that may have been influenced by ]:
=== D ===
** "Father of Greatness" (Aramaic: {{Unicode|Abbā dəRabbūṯā}}, Persian: ''pīd ī wuzurgīh''), the highest deity (of light)
** ] - a good spiritual God.
** ] - an evil material God.


* ], a traditional interpretation of existence, life and love with Perso-Islamic ] monotheism as its practical aspect:
*] The goddess who personifies religion in Persian mythology. Her name means "that which was revealed". Daena is considered to be the daughter of Ahura Mazda and Armaiti. She is one of the Yazatas.
** direct perception of spiritual truth (God), through mystic practices based on divine love.
*]s In ancient Persian mythology they are demons who cause plagues and diseases and who fight every form of religion. They are the male servants (or followers) of Angra Mainyu, also known as Ahriman. The female servants are called the Drugs. Together they fight Ahuru Mazda (Ormazd) and his Amesha Spentas.
*] A Persian goddess. She is the daughter of Ahura Mazda.
*] In Persian mythology, a demon of enormous power, a ruthless and immoral god of war.
*Drug An ancient Iranian female demon, the representation of the lie. She causes much evil. She is the eternal opponent of Asha vahishta.
*] The ancient Persian goddess who protects cattle, children, and friendship. The fourteenth day of the month is dedicated to her.


* ], a religious order of ], believed to have been founded in the 16th century:
=== F ===
** God manifests one primary and 5 secondary avatars to form with God the Holy Seven.


* ] (Mazdaen ]), an ancient monotheistic faith:
*] In ancient Persian (Zoroastrian) religion, the Fravashis (singular: Fravartin) are guardian angels or protecting spirits. They guide the souls of the deceased to heaven. Each family or clan has its own spirit, which guards and looks after only them. The Fravashis assisted Ahura Mazda in the creation of the world and, as riders armed with spears, are the defenders of heaven.
** ] – the uncreated Creator of all (God).


* ] (Zurvanite ]), a ] ] popular during the ] era (3rd - 7th century CE):
=== G ===
** ] – the primordial First Principle that created ] and ], who in turn respectively created the good and evil aspects of the physical universe.


==See also==
*] A Persian water-demon who continually tries to devour the good things of creation.
* ]
*] In ancient Persian myth, Geus-Tasan is the divine creator of cattle.
* List of ]
*] The old-Iranian guardian of cattle. His name means "soul of the ox". He is the servant of Vohu Manah.
* Divinities in Persian religions and as supernatural beings in later Persian mythology:
*: ]s and ]s; ]s and ]s.
* Divinities in post-] Iranian religions:
*: ], ]


]
=== H ===
]

<!--
*] A deified plant in Persian mythology whose sap, which has anaesthetic qualities, was drunk during sacrifices. This deity ruled over all medicinal herbs and grants immortality. It is associated with the purification of fire, and believed to have the power of providing husbands for unmarried women.
please don't add this article to any other categories. Add the deities themselves where appropriate (by philosophy/religion) to avoid cross-cultural replication.
*] Haurvatat ("wholeness") is one of the seven Amesha Spentas. She is the personification of perfection and is associated with life after death. She brings prosperity and health. The third month is dedicated to her. Her eternal opponent is the archdemon of hunger, Tawrich.
-->
*] A Persian sun-god. He belongs to the Yazatas, a group of good spirits.
*] In Persian mythology, the many-horsed sun-god.

=== I ===

*] The old Iranian god of warfare, courage and bravery.
*] Indra is one of the seven Daevas and the personification of apostasy. His eternal opponent is Asha vahishta.
*] "Offering". The Indo-Iranian goddess of the sacrifice.

=== K ===

*] One of the Amesha Spentas, Khshathra vairya ("desirable dominion") is the personification of desirable dominion and is associated with metal. He is the protector of the poor even though he would rather defend royalty. He enforces peace by using his weapons. His attributes are the helmet, the shield and the spear. The sixth month is dedicated to him. His eternal opponent is the archdemon Saurva.

=== M ===

*] An ancient Persian god of the moon, one of the Yazatas. He is associated with the cow, which plays an important part in old-Iranian mythology, and presides over time and tide. He is mentioned as an assistant of Vohu Manah. The seventh day of the month is dedicated to Mah.
*], The Persian god of light/love
*] A Persian moon god.
*] An old-Iranian god of light, contracts and friendship. He also maintains the cosmic order. Sometimes mentioned as the son of Ahura Mazda, he assists him in his struggle against the forces of evil, represented by Angra Mainyu.

=== N ===

*] The god of fire and messenger between gods and men in Persian mythology.
*Nanghaithya One of the Daevas, and archfiend. Nanghaithya is the personification of discontentment. Her eternal opponent is Armaiti.
*] Messenger-god in ancient Persia.
*Peris Persian spirits of great beauty who guide mortals on their way to the Land of the Blessed. They also battle the Daevas.

=== R ===

*] The ancient Persian god of midday, the protecting deity of the south and of summer.
*] The Persian divine angel of justice and last judgement and the personification of righteousness. Along with Mithra and Sraosa he judges the souls of the dead. Rashnu guards the Chinvat bridge leading to heaven. He carries the golden scales with which he weighs the souls at Judgement. Rashnu is one of the Yazatas.

=== S ===

*] Saurva is one of the seven main Daevas. His eternal opponent is Khshathra vairya.
*] In ancient Persian mythology, Spenta Mainyu ("holy spirit") is the god of life and the personification of the good and the light. He is the twin brother of Angra Mainyu (Ahriman), the god of darkness, with whom he fights an eternal battle.
*] Sraosa is a member of the Amesha Spentas. He is the personification of obedience and the messenger of the great god Ahura Mazda. He also guides the souls of the deceased to find their way to the after live. His symbolic animal is the cock, whose crowing will call the pious to their religious duties. The seventeenth day of the month is dedicated to him. His eternal opponent is the archdemon Aesma Daeva.
*] In Middle Persian myths the messenger of the gods. He was sent down from heaven to announce to a king that his last hour had struck.

=== V ===

*] In Persian mythology, one of the four leaders of the stars which fight for Ahura Mazda; the guardian star of the west who conquers evil.
*] The ancient Persian god of the wind and one of the Yazatas. The twentieth day of the month is dedicated to him.
*] The Persian god of victory and the personification of aggressive triumph. God of Vrahran Fire, the most sacred of all fires. It is a combination of 16 fires, most of which belong to those in the metal-working trades. He punishes the evil done by man and demon. Verethragna appears in many shapes: bear, bird of prey, bull, camel, youth, warrior with a golden sword, wind, etc. His appearance as a bird and bear were especially popular. The twentieth day of the month is dedicated to him.
*] Vohu Manah ("good sense") is one of the Amesha Spentas, and the personification of wisdom. He is the protector of the animal world and is on earth represented by beneficial animals, especially the cow. He takes the souls of the just to Paradise. The eleventh month is dedicated to him. His eternal opponent is the archdemon Aka Manah.
*] The world ocean in Zoroastrian cosmology; it is also the sea deity. Also, the heavenly lake whose waters supply the world and in the middle of which grows the Tree of Life.

=== Y ===

*] In Zoroastrianism the Yazatas are the divinities to whom the hymns in the ] are addressed. They are also the guardians of the celestial bodies and the messengers of Ahura Mazda. The chief Yazata is Mithra and some of the others include Daena, Mah, Rashnu, Tistrya, and Zam.

=== Z ===

*] In old-Iranian (Avestan) mythology, Zam is the deified earth. He is one of the Yazata.
*] The Persian goddess of the earth.
*] Zarich is one of the female members of the Daevas and the personification of aging. Her eternal opponent is Ameretat.
*] The primordial god in Persian religion, and the god of infinite time and space. Zurvan is the father of the good god Ahura Mazda and the evil god Angra Mainyu. With children representing the two opposites, Zurvan himself is regarded as a neutral god; one for whom there is no distinction between good or evil. Zurvan is also the god of destiny, light and darkness.

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]
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Revision as of 12:40, 4 August 2006

File:Greater-Iran.jpg
The cultural continent of Greater Persia

Several important religions and religious movements originated in the cultural continent of Greater Persia. The deities (in the context of monotheistic faiths, the supreme being) of these religions are listed below.

For divinities (but not necessarily deities) in pre-Achaemenid era Iranian religions, see ahuras and daevas, groups of 'good' and 'evil' divinities respectively that already figured in proto-Indo-Iranian religions. Yazata, which initially was an attribute applied to any divinity or divine concept, was later an epithet applied to the 'angels' incorporated into Archaemenid-era Zoroastrianism and came to be synonymous with ahura. For an overview of the divinities of the religions practiced in present-day Greater Iran, see Angels in Islam, Angels in Zoroastrianism.

 

Deities of the religions of the Greater Persian cultural continent

  • Bahá'í Faith, an emerging monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh, a 19th century Persian exile:
    • The Bahá'í Faith refers to God using the local word for God in whatever language is being spoken. In the Bahá'í Writings in Arabic, Allah is used. Bahá'ís share some naming traditions with Islam, but see "Bahá" (Glory or Splendour) as The Greatest Name of God.
  • Manichaeism, 3rd century ditheistic gnosticism that may have been influenced by Mandaeanism:
    • "Father of Greatness" (Aramaic: Abbā dəRabbūṯā, Persian: pīd ī wuzurgīh), the highest deity (of light)
    • Aeon - a good spiritual God.
    • Archons - an evil material God.
  • Persian Mysticism, a traditional interpretation of existence, life and love with Perso-Islamic Sufi monotheism as its practical aspect:
    • direct perception of spiritual truth (God), through mystic practices based on divine love.
  • Yarsan, a religious order of Yazdanism, believed to have been founded in the 16th century:
    • God manifests one primary and 5 secondary avatars to form with God the Holy Seven.

See also

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