Dictionary Of God And Godedesses

Avatea 39LITERARY SOURCES Pyramid Texts; coffin texts;Book of the Dead, etc.Atum is one of several interpretations of themajor creator god of Egypt whose company isthe product of a fragmented pre-Dynastic tribalhistory. Atum shared Heliopolis with another sungod, RE and eventually became joined with him asAtum-Re or Re-Atum. The god was self-createdfrom the primeval ocean and by masturbating heproduced the next two great deities of the Egyptiancosmos, ŠU and TEFNUT, who also constitutethe beginnings of the pantheon of nine Heliopolisdeities, the ENNEAD. Atum is generally representedin human form and often wears a crownwhich combines those of Upper and LowerEgypt. He is represented as various animalsincluding the bull, lion, snake and lizard. Atumwas regarded as the progenitor of the Egyptianpharaohs.Both Atum and Re are represented by a divineblack bull, Mnevis or Mer-wer, wearing the sundisc and uraeus or snake between its horns. It actsas an intercessor between the sun god and hispriests in Heliopolis.AtunisGod. Etruscan. Known from circa 350 BC onwardin local inscriptions.See also ADONIS.AufaniaeCollective name for a group of mother goddesses.Celtic (Continental European). Known only fromvotive inscriptions and largely restricted to theRhineland.AuroraGoddess of the dawn. Roman. Derived from theGreek deity EOS.Auseklis (morning star)Minor astral god. Pre-Christian Latvian. Anattendant of the sun god, linked with fertility andinvolved in the activity of the heavenly bath house.AVALOKITESVARA (merciful lord)ORIGIN Buddhist [India]. Bodhisattva or buddhadesignate.KNOWN PERIOD OF WORSHIP circa 500 BC topresent.SYNONYMS nineteen other forms listed.CENTER(S) OF CULT pan-Asiatic.ART REFERENCESmetal and stone sculptures,paintings.LITERARY SOURCES Sadhanamala and Tantric ritualtexts.One of the most important deities of the Mahayanasect of Buddhism. In Lamaism he is the tutelarygod of Tibet. He equates with VIŠNU in Hinduismand bears links with PADMAPANI. In cosmic mythologyhe is a creator deity. His SAKTI is PANDARA andhis attendant animal is a lion. Many forms of Avalokitesvaraexist which may include varieties with upto eleven heads, sometimes arranged in a pyramid.Color: white or red. Attributes: blue lotus, image ofAmitabha (topmost pyramidal head), lotus, rosary,sword and water jar.NOTE: in Chinese Buddhism he is representedby the goddess Kuan-Tin, and in Japanese byKWANNON.AvateaMoon god. Polynesian [Hervey Islands]. Thefirstborn offspring of the great mother VARI-MA-TE-TAKERE and the elder sibling of TINIRAU.According to tradition, Vari-Ma-Te-Takereplucked a piece from her right side to engenderAvatea, who is half man, half fish. He is dividedvertically with his left side fishy and his right sidehuman. He is the father of gods and humankind,