Greek Gods and Goddesses

Aphrodite: The Goddess of sexuality, love, and beauty. She is a beautiful and often naked young woman. Sometimes she is covered, or partially covered, in a cloth. She can be seen carrying a dove or stepping out of the sea.

Apollo: The God of healing and the arts. He is young and handsome. He carried a lyre, a bow, and arrows. He drives a golden chariot.

Artemis: The Goddess of the Moons, the hunt, and the women. A beautiful maiden, she carries a bow and quiver of arrows. Often birds, deer, or lions accompany her.

Athena: The Goddess of wisdom. She is a beautiful and serious young woman. A warrior she wears a breastplate and helmet and carries a lance and a shield. Sometimes she has an owl with her. She is associated with the city of Athens and with the olve tree.

Demeter: The Goddess of the harvest. She is an old woman and the mother of Persephone. She often weeps because she and Persephone have been separated.

Dionysus: The God of wine, the life force, and the wildness of instinct. A young man dressed in an animal skin, he carries a staff and sometimes is seen as a bull or a goat.

Eros: The Greek God of sexual attraction. He is a small and beautifully formed young man with wings. He often carries a lyre or a bow and a quiver of arrows.

Gaia: The Mother Earth. She sits on a throne and holds many fruits, grains, and vegetables often in a cornucopia. She is a mature woman and usually wears a robe. Gaia is often used in craft rituals.

Hades: The God of the underworld and of wealth. He is also king of the dead. A mature man, he wears a beard and a helmet and often is seen on a throne next to his young wife persephone.

Hecate: The Goddess of magic and the Moon. She often carries a torch and has snakes in her hair. She can have three heads - those of the maiden, mother, and crone. She can be found at the spot where three roads meet.

Hera: The Goddess of women. Marries to Zeus, she is the queen of the Gods. She wears a crown and carries a scepter. She is mature and beautiful.

Hermes: The God of communication, thought, and travel. A beautiful, athletic young man, he wears sandals with wings, a helmet with wings, and carries a caduceus.

Pan: The God of wild places and things and of shepherds. Pan plays a set of connected pipes called panpipes. He takes a form that is half man and half goat. His legs and feet are of the goat, while his chest and upper body are that of a hairy man. He usually has horns. He is frequently invoked in pagan rituals.

Persephone: The Goddess of the harvest, fertility, and spring. She often is seen sitting with Hades on a throne in the underworld, where she spends a number of months every year. Sometimes she carries a pomegranate. She is also called "Kore", the maiden.

Poseidon: The God of water and the seas. He always carries a trident and is associated with dolphins and horses.

Zeus: The God of the sky and the king of the Gods. He is associated with rain and clouds and often carries a thunderbolt. He is married to Hera, but often falls in love with other women. He is a bearded man of great wisdom and authority.
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Hindu Gods and Goddesses

Agni: The God of Fire. He has razor-like golden teeth, three arms and seven legs. He carries flames, a pot full of water, and a trident.

Brahma: The God of creation. He usually has four arms and four heads. He dresses in white and rides on a swan or a peacock. Sometimes he sits on a lotus blossom.

Durga: The great mother Goddess. She often rides a lion and has four arms in which she carries a drum, a sword, a trident, and a bowl filled with blood.

Ganesha: The elephant-headed God. He is the overcomer of obstacles. Besides his elephant-head, he has a potbelly. In his four arms, he carries roses, a piece of his broken tusk, a thorn, and a bowl. He often rides upon a very small rat.

Hanuman: The monkey God. His job is to tour the world singing the name of God. He has great strength and learning and is mischievous. Often he has wings. He can be a fierce warrior.

Indra: The God of war. Usually riding a horse, Indra takes the form of a golden or red man and carries a thunderbolt. Sometimes he rides a white elephant. His name means "strong".

Kali: The Goddess of Earth, Nature, and destruction. With wild dark hair, a blood-smeared body, and a protruding tongue, she wears a necklace of human skulls and often stands on her huband Shiva.

Krishna: The God of love. He takes the form of a man with glue skin. He often plays the flute.

Lakshmi: The Goddess of fortune and beauty. Always beautifully dressed, she is golden and sits on a lotus blossom.

Sarasvati: The Goddess of language and wisdom. She has six arms and three faces. She often rides a swan or sits on a lotus.

Siva or Shiva: The God of change, transformation, and destruction. He is the creator of yoga and a dancer. A man with a third eye between his eyebrows, he carries a trident and an axe.

Vishnu: The God of preservation. He is also seen as the liberator and the highest God. In his four arms he holds a club, a shell, a disk, and a lotus.
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