Demi-gods

Goddess2u

Member
Is Greek mythology the only one that has Demi-Gods? Half human and half Gods such as Persius and even Hercules are Demi-Gods. I have always found them interesting.
 

LegendofJoe

Active Member
I know in Indian mythology they exist but I don't know if they use the term demigod.
For example, in The Mahabharata (which houses the Baghavad-Gita), the five heroes have a mortal mother but divine fathers.
Arjuna, the greatest of the heroes has for his father Indra. These heroes are not immortal but do exhibit superhuman abilities.

In Celtic mythology, Cuchulainn has a mortal mother and divine father(Lugh).
Like the Greek heroes, he displays almost godlike abilities on the battlefield, but is not seen as a divinity.

So the short answer is yes, there are demigods in other mythologies. But we have to be careful in limiting the term demigod.
Dionysius has a mortal mother, Semele, but is not a demigod. He is not only a full fledged god, but eventually becomes one of the 12 Olympians.
 

Wotan

Member
My father who is Christian told me it was the wrong term, but I stand by the statment... if I am not mistaken Jesus was a demi god. he was born from god into a mortal women... is that not the definition?
 

Libros

Member
Jesus is a demigod if you strictly define him by the mortal mom godly dad status, from a comparative religious standpoint.

The problem is, Christianity does not acknowledge any other gods to compare to. Jesus is not the son of a god, but the only God, and the most powerful being in existence at that. There have also been centuries of debate surrounding the interpretation of whether Jesus and God are separate beings, whether Jesus is God, if he's something completely different from human and god, etc. None of these concepts relate to the pagan notion of a demigod, which largely defined the person by physical birth, not spiritual power.

Calling Jesus a demigod is grafting a non-Christian concept onto the Christian figure, which is why many Christians take offense to the label.
 

Ladyhawk

New Member
This is a good question. I'm 90% sure that there are 'Demi-Gods' in Native American Mythology as well as Asian Mythology but they aren't given that type of term. I can't recall any specific names of them, but I know that there are at least two myths I've heard of that revolve around a god stealing away a mortal woman to be his wife. I would just reckon that she would bare a child eventually out of the contact.
 

DLegend

Member
I'm also a Christian and if definition is to be followed alone then Jesus is a demi-god per se. As Libros said, Christians can't accept that fact because Jesus is considered to be only god but in a human form. The problem with Christianity is that there are many beliefs even though there is only one Jesus.

As for other religions, I think Buddhism incorporates demi-gods in their religion as well.
 

Libros

Member
Certain schools of Buddhism, but not all, have a cosmology that follows multiple realms, such as Tibetan Buddhism. Among these realms are the asuras, but the word asura is very difficult to translate into English. The most popular words are titan, demigod, and antigod. These choices were made from scholars relating the Buddhist figures to ones from Classical mythology, but the connection is definitely not accurate. It's one of the problems with comparative religion, finding a way to express in one language something untranslatable from another.

The asuras are warlike beings, war and fury being the vice that keeps them from enlightenment. The oppose the devas, another realm of beings whose vice is pride in their decadence, sometimes called gods. The asuras and devas are often depicted at war with each other, which alludes to the Titans battling the Olympians in Greek myth. But that's it.

Neither the asuras nor the devas are immortal like the Greek gods, and the asuras are not half-mortal children with godly powers like Hercules. The devas have great magical power but they do not rule over people and are not worshipped by anyone. All of them will die and continue the cycle of life until they reach enlightenment, most likely from the human realm.
 

Rhonda Tharp

Active Member
The asuras are warlike beings, war and fury being the vice that keeps them from enlightenment. The oppose the devas, another realm of beings whose vice is pride in their decadence, sometimes called gods. The asuras and devas are often depicted at war with each other, which alludes to the Titans battling the Olympians in Greek myth. But that's it.

Neither the asuras nor the devas are immortal like the Greek gods, and the asuras are not half-mortal children with godly powers like Hercules. The devas have great magical power but they do not rule over people and are not worshipped by anyone. All of them will die and continue the cycle of life until they reach enlightenment, most likely from the human realm.
Was it the asuras that defeated Rudra in the Hindu creation myth? It's been awhile since I've read it...
 

Libros

Member
In one tale of the Mahabharata the gods were defeated initially by the asuras but Rudra's son Skanda eventually conquered them.
 

LegendofJoe

Active Member
Interesting take on Asuras and Devas.
From the Rig Veda, the old gods such as Varuna are called Asuras. But they were challenged by a group of upstart gods called Devas, headed by Indra.
In later literature the Devas are the gods and the Asuras are the demons.
The Persian tradition kept the original use of Asura (their Ahura), and the Devas are seen as demons.
To this day, Zoroastrians call God Ahura Mazda (wise lord).
 

Libros

Member
Yay for comparative linguistics.

The Asuras made it even further east into Japan where they are the Ashura, represented as the monstrous enemies of Buddhism who, conquered by Buddha's triumph, now fight to defend the faith.

Still not demigods though :(
 
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