A dying god, also known as a death-rebirth, dying-and-rising, or resurrection deity, is a god who dies and is resurrected or reborn, in either a literal or symbolic sense. Male examples include the ancient Near Eastern, Greek, and Norse deities Baal, Melqart, Adonis, Eshmun, Attis Tammuz, Ra the Sun god with its fusion with Osiris/Orion, Jesus, Zalmoxis, Asclepius, Orpheus, Dionysus, and Odin. Female examples include Inanna/Ishtar, Persephone, and Bari.
Read more about Dying God: History, Jesus, Criticism, List of Life-death-rebirth Deities
Famous quotes containing the words dying and/or god:
“For them it’s out-of-date and outmoded to perform miracles; teaching the people is too like hard work, interpreting the holy scriptures is for schoolmen and praying is a waste of time; to shed tears is weak and womanish, to be needy is degrading; to suffer defeat is a disgrace and hardly fitting for one who scarcely permits the greatest of kings to kiss the toes of his sacred feet; and finally, death is an unattractive prospect, and dying on a cross would be an ignominious end.”
—Desiderius Erasmus (c. 1466–1536)
“We say God and the imagination are one . . .
How high that highest candle lights the dark.”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)