The old pagan gods—those legendary figures out of Norse, Greek, Roman, and many more belief systems—are fascinating subjects. These gods had all of the emotional fallibility of human beings, yet the all the power of the gods they were, and in their stories, they proved capable of shocking levels of pettiness, jealously, and downright cruelty. They were also, however, capable of great kindness, heroism, and justice, making for a set of truly interesting characters. They were us, but moreso.

It’s no wonder, then, that many of these gods that featured in stories thousands of years ago are still prominent in our contemporary fiction. We see them in our superheroes and action stars, who can be thought of as the great grandchildren of the original pagan gods.

But those gods that have survived the millennia with their names and stories intact are the ones we love the most—something about their personalities, their struggles, or their stories intrigues us. They’re the most compelling of them all, so let’s explore them by taking a look at 7 ancient pagan gods we still love today.

Click here to read about the following Gods and Goddesses

Loki

Zeus

Hercules

Odin

Thor

Shinigami

Hel

The Immortality of Entertainment

The fact that we’re still telling stories about these gods and goddesses thousands of years after their heyday is amazing, and these particular 7 beings have a special appeal that goes beyond the norm.

Maybe it’s because they’re powerful. Or perhaps it is because we wish we could affect the world like they do. But likeliest of all is that their larger-than-life personalities and stories simply allow us a glimpse of the extremes of life that few of us ever get to experience.

And that is why the gods will never die.

Celtic Goddess Medb – Legendary Queen of Ireland

The story of Queen Medb is one of Ireland’s greatest legends. This goddess in the flesh was fierce, seductive, beautiful, and most importantly powerful. No man could be king of Ireland’s ancient sites of Tara or Cruachan without first becoming her husband.

Table of Contents

Celtic God – Belenos The Shining God

A Celtic Deity, also known as Belen, Belenus, Belinus, Bellinus, Bélénos, Belennos, Belenos, Bel, Bilé: The Shining God

Belenos is unusual in Celtic belief, as this deity (under the various version of his name) is known throughout the Celtic world. He is also remembered in place names and personal names throughout the Celtic lands. His symbols are the horse an wheel and his name means ‘The Shining God’. He is one of the Celtic high gods, and is probably a solar deity.

Possibly one of the most widespread of all the Celtic deities he is known from Italy (Cis-Alpine Gaul), Gaul, Britain and Ireland.

In Britain the personal name Bellinus occurs at Binchester (Vinovia), County Durham a name derived from the god-form Belenus, the native Brythonic form of which would be Belenus. Traces of this name having been found at Maryport. To the continental Brython the Cult of Belenus possessed a particular status in that it is mentioned in a number of Classical Literary sources. Ausonius was a poet from Bordeaux, writing in the later 4th century AD and alludes to sanctuaries to Belenus in Aquitania. Tertullian talks of the cult of Belenus in the Norican Alps (Apologeticus 24,7); and Herodian mentions Belenus’ worship at Aquileia in North Italy (History of the Empire after Marcus,8,3.6). In Ireland Beli is known as Bilé and is referred to as ‘The Father of Gods and Men’.

The Celtic fire festival on the first of May, known as Beltane, (the fires of Bel) is probably derived from the name of this deity. Beltane fires were lit to encourage the sun’s warmth. These fires also had restorative properties and cattle were herded between them before being loosed on the new spring pastures. From this it is likely that Beli was a fire deity, a patron of flame and the sun’s restorative powers (which explains his classical association with Apollo). Originally he may have been a pastoral deity and in Cymric myth is associated with cattle, sheep and cropt. Though this may be because Beltane was the time that herds were moved to the high pastures.

His symbols were the horse (as shown, for example, by the clay horse figurine offerings at Belenos’ Sainte-Sabine shrine in Burgundy), and also the Wheel (as illustrated on the famous Gundestrup Cauldron).

The Irish Bilé is a god of death and husband to Dana. In the tale of Lludd and Llefelys, the folk memory of Beli represents him as Belen o Lŷn, son of Manogan and father to Lludd and Llefelys. Both Beli and Lludd lend their names to sites in London; Billingsgate and Ludgate, respecitvely. Beli’s name is also found in the name of one of the most notable Brythonic chieftains before the Roman invasion, Cunobelinos (or, in Brythonic, Cunobel), the hound of Bel.

In Gaulish mythology Belenus’ consort was the goddess Belisama.

It is unlikely, as some have suggested, that the Cymric deity Beli Mawr is etymologically related to Belenos, as though the migration of Brython to old and middle Cymric this is far more likely to yield the name Belen or Belyn. Indeed, this is the name which we see in the Cymric form (Cynfelen) of the Catuvellauni leader during the Claudian invasion of Britain, Cunobelinos (the hound of Belinos). Inded, the tribe name Catuvellauni itself means ‘The Host of Belinos’ and their most well-known leader Cassivellaunos’ name means ‘The Devotee of Belenos’. There is also the figure of ‘Belen o Leyn’ who figures in triad 62 0f the Trioedd Ynys Prydain and is preserved today in the place-name Tyddyn Belyn near Tudweilog on the Llŷn Peninsula ELlSG. Rather, Beli Mawr is more likely derived from the name of the Gaulish deity Bolgios.

Belenos’ name is derived from the reconstructed proto-Celtic elements *belo- (bright/shining), the deicific particle -n- and the masculine ending -os. Thus Belenos is ‘The Shining God’.

Greek Titans – Rhea, goddess of fertility and motherhood

Rhea (Rheia, Opis, Ops) was a Titan goddess of fertility and motherhood. She was very gentle and comfortable. Her name actually means “ease” as “at ease” and therefore this was probably the reason she was interpreted and worshiped as a goddess of comfort and ease. According to some authors, she is also described as the supreme mother goddess, just like her mother Gaea was and what later her daughter Hera became, but in Orphic hymn Rhea was even described as the supreme goddess, mother of all gods and men and it is said that even Uranus and Gaea derived from her. And as if there were not enough confusion yet, according to various authors, Rhea is also described as Cybelean goddess whose home was in Phyrgia which means that they are equating her with Cybelle, Anatolian earth goddess, but to return back to mainstream belief, backed by most authors, Rhea was a daughter of Uranus and Gaea and, because she was married to her brother Cronus, she was also a queen of the Cosmos. Together they represented “eternal flow” as they gave birth to a new generation of gods who then took control of the world, just like they and other titans had done it in the past. Therefore, she was also identified as a goddess of generations.

Birth of Olympians and plot against Cronus

Rhea was very much like her mother and loved her children unconditionally but unfortunately Cronus was like his father, jealous of his children’s powers and in fear of being overthrown. She became mad when Cronus forced her to give him their children to swallow upon birth. She started plotting against him and by the time he had swallowed Hestia, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, and Demeter, Rhea decided that enough is enough. She gave birth to her last childZeusin secrecy and gave Cronus a rock, wrapped in a blanket, to swallow instead. Cronus was pleased, not knowing that Zeus was still out there, and thought he was safe from the prophecy. In Hesiod’s Theogony, it is said that Rhea brought infant Zeus to Crete and gave it to Gaea to look after him. Gaea then guided him to the secret cave beneath Mount Aegeum or Mount Dicte. Zeus was raised there and, when grown up, came to Mount Othrys as a cupbearer and mixed a potion into Cronus’ drink which made him vomit all of his children. Later, in a ten-year war, Zeus and Olympians defeated Cronus and the Titans. They became the next rulers, just like Cronus and his brothers had done in the past, when overthrowing Uranus. In the end, Rhea was the main reason that history repeated itself.

According to Diodorus Siculus, it is said that Poseidon too had escaped the cannibalism of his father and that it was Rhea who had given him to the Telchines to look after him. However, according Pausanias, Rhea had hidden Poseidon among a flock of lambs when he was next to be swallowed.

The desire of motherhood

Like mentioned in Ovid’s Fasti, Rhea was mad and angry because she was often pregnant but never truly a mother of her children due to cannibalism of Cronus who ate most of them while Zeus and, variously, Poseidon on the other hand had to be hidden away from Cronus. She was mentioned to be often in company of lions which she nursed and took care of. The goddess is also said to have helped nurturing the young Dionysus when he was brought to her by Hermes, on Zeus’ orders who had to hide him from jealous and angry Hera. She was also, according to Homeric hymn to Apollo, involved in the birth of Apollo on the island of Delos. Upon the god’s birth, she, along her sisters Tethys and Theia, washed him with pure clean water and placed him in a white garment and took care of him until Leto recovered.

Other myths

Rhea was also involved in the return of Demeter to Mount Olympus. Demeter, in grief and sorrow, withdrew herself from the rest of the gods when Persephone was abducted. When the two were reunited, Demeter, still in anger of Persephone being bound to the underworld, declined to return. However, Rhea came to Demeter and convinced her that her place is among her brothers and sisters on Mount Olympus. In Nonnus’ Dionysiaca, Rhea is also said to had given an Amethyst to Dionysus that protected him from the tyranny of madness when drinking wine.

Greek Titan – Hyperion, god of light and sunlight

Hyperion was a Titan god of light or sunlight and was associated with watching and observation from above. He was also known as a Pillar of east. Together with his other three brothers, Crius, Coeus and Iapetus, they presided as the Pillars of holding Heaven and Earth apart. He was one of six sons of Uranus and Gaea and is mentioned by Apollodorus as one of the five brothers, all but Oceanus, who participated in rebellion against Uranus and later attacked him. When they overcame him, the four brothers probably held him down while Cronus castrated him. While most of the authors are identifying Hyperion as a unique character, Homer is equating Helios and Hyperion as one and the same character and it can be seen in both of his epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey.

Establishing a rhythm of days and months

Due to his diligent observation, he was first to understand the movements of the sun and the moon, as well as the other stars and seasons. He was believed to have ordered the cycles of the sun, the moon and the dawn. During his time, he married her sister Theia with whom he had three children who presided over these cycles. Helios presided over sun, Selene over the moon and Eos presided over the dawn.

If you want to learn a bit more about Selene, check the page of Theia or Sky deities.

Titanomachy

Although there are notes of Hyperion participating in Titanomachy, there is no reference of his role in the war. It is only known that he sided with his brothers and fellow Titans against younger Olympians. And that he was in the end, after losing the war, imprisoned in Tartarus with his brothers and relatives. However, according to Aeschylus’ lost play , he was later released byZeus from Tartarus with the rest of the titans.