Pantheon (gods)

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A pantheon (from Greek Πάνθειον [1] - pantheion, literally "a temple of all gods", neut. of πανθείος - pantheios, "of or common to all gods", from πᾶν - pan, "all" + θείος - theios, "of or for the gods", from θεός - theos, "god") is a set of all the gods of a particular polytheistic religion or mythology.

Max Weber's 1922 opus, Economy and Society discusses the link between a pantheon of gods and the development of monotheism.

Pantheon can also refer to a temple or sacred building dedicated to all the gods of a particular religion. The most famous such structure is the Pantheon of Rome, built in the year 27 BC to honor the Roman gods. It was later renovated for use as a Christian church after the fall of the Roman empire.

[edit] Specific pantheons

Further information: List of deities

• Egyptian pantheon
• Sumerian pantheon
• Greek pantheon
• Roman pantheon
• Germanic pantheon
  • Norse pantheon
• Celtic pantheon
• Slavic pantheon
• Hindu pantheon
  • Rigvedic pantheon
• Japanese pantheon
• Aztec pantheon
• Native American pantheon
• African pantheon

[edit] Figurative use

Since the 16th century the word has also been used in a secular sense, meaning a set of exalted people. This meaning, in modern parlance, is often used to describe the rise of a person into that exalted group, e.g., "Mick Jagger has joined the pantheon of rock megastars."

[edit] Popular culture

The term has more recently been used in fictional universes, such as H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos, the Marvel universe and DC universe, and in numerous role-playing games, particularly the Dungeons & Dragons multiverse. In each, different pantheons of gods from classical literature and religious systems co-exist alongside more recent fictional creations of game writers. Such a system was the basis of the AD&D tome, Deities & Demigods. In the Cosmology of Warcraft, in the first chapter "the Pantheon" is a group of metallic like gods who begin creating order, life and crafting the worlds.[2]

In the Kingdom Come comic series by Mark Waid and Alex Ross Pantheon Gods are seen discussing the fate of mankind while Spectre, Norman Mccay and Deadman intervene.