Does God X = God Y?, Problems with Religious Syncretism Options

Greetings,

I’ve seen several posts on Sacred Magick trying to determine if the deity of one tradition is the same as that of another. Rather than respond to each of these posts individually, lets address this issue at large.

There exists a clear logic to this form of religious syncretism (even outside the hermetic correspondence viewpoint). For one, conquering societies can simply convince their new subject population that they have been worshiping a lesser aspect of the same deity, thereby serving as a brilliant political liaison. It also plays a less sinister role by permitting the subject population to worship their traditional deities through new names. Such is the case with the Yoruba traditions continuing via the façade of saint names, i.e. Santeria. But despite a Santero may say he/she worships Santa Barbara, they are in fact calling upon Chango. The catholic name is a smoke-screen through which the original tradition could survive. Examples of this are found across all time periods and all over the world. So can we say that Chango = Santa Barbara?

Another example that comes to the top of my head is the famous Thoth = Hermes = Mercury. To analyze the validity of grouping these deities, let us first look at each one individually:

Thoth: The Greek name for the Egyptian deity Djeheuty. Thoth was the god of wisdom, inventor of writing, patron of scribes and the divine mediator/messenger. In Egypt, Thoth was a lunar deity and was associated with the Ibis bird, and Baboon.

Hermes: Originally Hermes was a phallic god, being attached to fertility and good fortune, and also a patron of roads and boundaries. He became better known as the messenger of the Olympian gods, and developed into the god of shepherds, land travel, merchants, weights and measures, oratory, literature, athletics and thieves, and cunning. It was also his duty to guide the souls of the dead down to the underworld. Hermes was the planet Mercury and was associated with the Cock and Tortoise.

Mercury: He was a major Roman god of trade, profit and commerce, but originally of the trade in corn. He seems to have derived from an earlier Etruscan deity and was in later periods connected to the Greek Hermes. Mercury was obviously associated to the planet Mercury and often depicted alongside a Cock, Goat or Ram, and also a Tortoise.

Clearly, these deities have many similarities. However, they are not the same. Thoth first and foremost was god of wisdom and writing. Hermes was originally a god of fertility and travel. Mercury’s preoccupations are almost entirely economic. Indeed, we can say that the Egyptian Thoth and the Roman Mercury quite literally have nothing in common except their tenuous association to Hermes. There are numerous Egyptian deities that could also be associated to Hermes; these include Anubis, Wepwawet, and one could even argue Osiris through his fecund associations.

The point I am trying to make is that these deities are culturally relevant. Within each tradition they had specific roles and powers that get diluted when taken out of their cultural context. Eventually, if you dig deep enough you will find parallels amongst all the deities of the ancient world.

We should be very careful when it comes to claiming one deity in one cultural tradition is the same as another in an entirely different tradition. True, we find similarities across beings and deities but each name is charged with specific aspects and functions. This should be taken into consideration during any Magickal working to ensure that you are calling upon the energies best suited for your task.

I am reminded of the importance placed by the ancient Egyptian in knowing the true name of someone or something. Such knowledge ensured the success of the magical operation. The analogy here is that it may be in your best interest to research the deities carefully and determine which one -in which cultural tradition- iis the “true name” of the energy you wish to invoke.

Just some food for thought, digest it how you Will.

F

I have been thinking about that, thanks for organizing it so nicely!

To me, they do not seem to be equal, but rather spiral out.

Thoth, one might say, is closer to the center.

God of Wisdom

Hermes, farther out.

Wisdom - center point of male creative force or
The male phalus sending out its DNA message

Mercury, expand

You get lots of people, what happens?
You start tradeing wisdom or rather the results thereof

Well the wisest answer is in you question!
Would you still be you if you were missing one leg? X=Y?
Mostly yeah but not exactly.... the remains of a primordial revelation of God unto man still are... but they are highlly alterated...
That is precissly why God YHVH interdected to the hebrews to make any images about HIM... just for avoiding this alteration that people are so good at..

Very good post.
This has been up among Reconstructive Pagans several times since they kind of get alergic to people viewing their Gods and Religions as "the same".

For instance Greek Roman and Egyptian Religions dont even have the same Paradigms as to what constitute a "God".

Quote:Mercury: He was a major Roman god of trade, profit and commerce, but originally of the trade in corn. He seems to have derived from an earlier Etruscan deity

The name of that Deity is Turms.
He is depicted in statues the same way that Mercury and Hermes are.