Polytheism is the belief in or worship of more than one deity, a type of theism; it contrasts with monotheism, the belief in only one deity that is, in most cases, transcendent. The term was coined by Jewish writer Philo of Alexandria as a compound of the Greek words πολύ (lit: "many") and θεός (lit: "god") to argue with the Greeks, though was in modern times re-popularised by Jean Bodin in the 16th century and then by Samuel Purchas in 1614.
Oftentimes, polytheistic religions reflect belief in a pantheon of deities that may themselves have religious sects and rituals dedicated to them. These deities can also be representations of natural forces or ancestral principles; they can be viewed either as autonomous, or as emanations of a greater deity or transcendental absolute being (such as in monistic theology), in either case manifesting immanently in nature (such as in panentheistic and pantheistic theology).Ulrich Libbrecht. Within the Four Seas...: Introduction to Comparative Philosophy. Peeters Publishers, 2007. . p. 42.
Polytheists do not exclusively worship all deities equally. Another position, identified as monolatry, kathenotheism, or henotheism (though the last one is controversial), recognises the existence of multiple deities while focusing worship to one deity or a specific group of deities, perhaps at certain times or in specific contexts. Moreover, according to Oxford Reference, "it is not easy to count gods, and so not always obvious whether an apparently polytheistic religion is really so, or whether the apparent different objects of worship are to be thought of as manifestations [of a singular divinity]."
Polytheism was common in the time and place of the Abrahamic religions, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The Quran, central to Islam, quite explicitly denounces polytheism, though there is certainly evidence to suggest that the Hebrew Bible, which Judaism and Christianity are established upon, may have originally been polytheistic to some extent.
Otherwise, there are still some dualistic aspects, such as Satan, and polytheistic aspects, such as saints. Saint Brigid is in fact Brigit, the main goddess of Celtic Ireland. It is well documented throughout history, from prehistory and the earliest records of ancient Egyptian religion and ancient Mesopotamian religion to the religions prevalent during classical antiquity, such as ancient Greek religion and ancient Roman religion, and in ethnic religions such as Germanic, Slavic, and Baltic paganism and Native American religions.
Notable polytheistic religions practiced today include Taoism, Chinese folk religion, Shinto, Santería, most Traditional African religions, and various neopagan faiths such as Wicca and Hellenism.
Hinduism, while popularly held as polytheistic by many scholars, cannot be exclusively categorised as such. Some Hindus consider their beliefs to be monotheistic, henotheistic, panentheistic, pantheistic or monistic. There is no single book representative of a standardised "Hindu" belief; "Hinduism" is better described as an umbrella term for a collection of ideologies found within several Hindu texts.
Vedanta, the most dominant school of Hinduism, offers a combination of pantheism/panentheism and polytheism, holding that Brahman is the sole, ultimate reality of the universe, yet unity with it can be reached by worshipping the innumerable deities that represent the Supreme Absolute Truth. Hindus who practice Bhakti ultimately believe in one deity, known by many titles, such as Paramatman, Parabrahman, Bhagavan, Ishvara, and so on, who transcends all categories (e.g. both of form and formless), with those unaware of these concepts worshipping their own deities each as the ultimate god.
Soft polytheism vs. hard polytheism
A major division in modern polytheistic practices is between so-called "soft" polytheism and "hard" polytheism.
"Soft" polytheism is the belief that different gods may either be psychological archetypes, personifications of natural forces, or as being one essential god interpreted through the lenses of different cultures (e.g. Odin, Zeus, and Indra all being the same god as interpreted by Germanic, Greek, and Indic peoples respectively) – known as omnitheism. In this way, gods may be interchangeable for one another across cultures.
"Hard" polytheism is the belief that gods are distinct, separate, real divine beings, rather than psychological archetypes or personifications of natural forces. Hard polytheists reject the idea that "all gods are one essential god" and may also reject the existence of gods outside their own pantheon altogether.
Gods and divinity The deities of polytheism are often portrayed as complex personages of greater or lesser status, with individual skills, needs, desires and histories, in many ways similar to humans (anthropomorphic) in their personality traits, but with additional individual powers, abilities, knowledge or perceptions. Polytheism cannot be cleanly separated from the animist beliefs prevalent in most folk religions. The gods of polytheism are in many cases the highest order of a continuum of supernatural beings or spirits, which may include ancestors, demons, wights, and others. In some cases, these spirits are divided into celestial or chthonic classes, and belief in the existence of all these beings does not imply that all are worshipped.
Types of deities
Types of deities often found in polytheism may include: Creator deity Culture hero Death deity (chthonic) Life-death-rebirth deity Love deity Mother goddess Political deity (such as a king or emperor) Sky deity (celestial) Solar deity Trickster deity Water deity Lunar deity Deities of music, arts, science, farming, or other endeavors
Religion and mythology
In the Classical era, 4th century CE Neoplatonist Sallustius categorized mythology into five types:Sallustius, On the Gods and the World, 4 Theological: myths that contemplate the essence of the gods, such as Cronus swallowing his children, which Sallustius regarded as expressing in allegory the essence of divinity Physical: expressing the activities of gods in the world Psychological: myths as allegories of the activities of the soul itself or the soul's acts of thought Material: regarding material objects as gods, for example: to call the earth Gaia, the ocean Okeanos, or heat Typhon Mixed
The beliefs of many historical polytheistic religions are commonly referred to as "mythology",Eugenie C. Scott, Evolution Vs. Creationism: An Introduction (2009), p. 58. though the stories cultures tell about their gods should be distinguished from their worship or religious practice. For instance, deities portrayed in conflict in mythology were often nonetheless worshipped side by side, illustrating the distinction within the religion between belief and practice. Scholars such as Jaan Puhvel, J. P. Mallory, and Douglas Q. Adams have reconstructed aspects of the ancient Proto-Indo-European religion from which the religions of the various Indo-European peoples are thought to derive, which is believed to have been an essentially naturalist numenistic religion. An example of a religious notion from this shared past is the concept of *dyēws, which is attested in several Indo-European religious systems.
Ancient and historical religions
Well-known historical polytheistic pantheons include the Sumerian gods, the Egyptian gods, the pantheon attested in classical antiquity (in ancient Greek and Roman religion), the Norse Æsir and Vanir, the Yoruba Orisha, and the Aztec gods.
In many civilizations, pantheons tended to grow over time. Deities first worshipped as the patrons of cities or other places came to be collected together as empires extended over larger territories. Conquests could lead to the subordination of a culture's pantheon to that of the invaders, as in the Greek Titanomachia, and possibly also the Æsir–Vanir War in the Norse mythos. Cultural exchange could lead to "the same" deity being revered in two places under different names, as seen with the Greeks, Etruscans, and Romans, and also to the cultural transmission of elements of an extraneous religion, as with the ancient Egyptian deity Osiris, who was later worshipped in ancient Greece.
Most ancient belief systems held that gods influenced human lives. However, the Greek philosopher Epicurus held that the gods were incorruptible but material, blissful beings who inhabited the empty spaces between worlds and did not trouble themselves with the affairs of mortals, but could be perceived by the mind, especially during sleep.
Ancient Greece
The classical scheme in Ancient Greece of the Twelve Olympians (the Canonical Twelve of art and poetry) were: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, Ares, Demeter, Apollo, Artemis, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Hermes, and Hestia. Though it is suggested that Hestia stepped down when Dionysus was invited to Mount Olympus, this is a matter of controversy. Robert Graves' The Greek Myths cites two sources that obviously do not suggest Hestia surrendered her seat, though he suggests she did. Hades was often excluded because he dwelt in the underworld. All of the gods had a power. There was, however, a great deal of fluidity as to who was counted among their number in antiquity. Different cities often worshipped the same deities, sometimes with epithets that distinguished them and specified their local nature.
Hellenic Polytheism extended beyond mainland Greece, to the islands and coasts of Ionia in Asia Minor, to Magna Graecia (Sicily and southern Italy), and to scattered Greek colonies in the Western Mediterranean, such as Massalia (Marseille). Greek religion tempered Etruscan cult and belief to form much of the later Roman religion. During the Hellenistic Era, philosophical schools like Epicureanism developed distinct theologies. Hellenism is, in practice, primarily centered around polytheistic and animistic worship.
Folk religions
The majority of so-called "folk religions" in the world today (distinguished from traditional ethnic religions) are found in the Asia-Pacific region. This fact conforms to the trend of the majority of polytheist religions being found outside the western world.
Folk religions are often closely tied to animism. Animistic beliefs are found in historical and modern cultures. Folk beliefs are often labeled superstitions when they are present in monotheistic societies. Folk religions often do not have organized authorities, also known as priesthoods, or any formal sacred texts. They often coincide with other religions as well. Abrahamic monotheistic religions, which dominate the western world, typically do not approve of practicing parts of multiple religions, but folk religions often overlap with others. Followers of polytheistic religions do not often problematize following practices and beliefs from multiple religions.
Modern religions
Buddhism
Depending on the tradition practiced, Buddhism may be seen as polytheistic as it at least acknowledges the existence of multiple gods. The Buddha is a leader figure but is not meant to be worshipped as a god. Devas, a Sanskrit word for gods, are also not meant to be worshipped. They are not immortal and have limited powers. A deva may have been human with positive karma in previous lives and was reborn as a deva. A common Buddhist practice is tantra: the use of rituals to achieve enlightenment. Tantra focuses on seeing oneself as a deity and the use of deities as symbols rather than supernatural agents. Buddhism is most closely aligned with polytheism when it is linked with other religions, often folk religions. For example, the Japanese Shinto religion, in which deities called kami are worshipped, is sometimes syncretized with Buddhism.
Christianity