Water has many meanings. It is one of the 4 main elements to which emotion, intuition, and adaptability were traditionally attributed. It is also associated with femininity, passivity, and humidity.
In alchemy, the element is associated with the number 2 because it symbolizes the polarities in antithesis to the unity which Fire instead symbolizes.
It is also one of the 4 elements into which the Zodiac is divided which in fact includes water signs, air signs, fire signs, and earth signs. Its liquid state allows it to creep everywhere and take on the shapes of others, creating bridges between spirit and matter.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Water is a fundamental element essential for life, and numerous deities and gods are associated with it in various mythologies and religious traditions. Here are some deities commonly linked to the element of water:
- Poseidon (Greek Mythology): Poseidon is the Greek god of the sea, oceans, and earthquakes. He wields a trident and is often depicted riding a chariot pulled by sea creatures.
- Neptune (Roman Mythology): Neptune is the Roman counterpart to Poseidon, ruling over the seas and water. He is often associated with the planet Neptune.
- Varuna (Hinduism): Varuna is an ancient Hindu god of the celestial ocean and cosmic order. He is considered the guardian of moral laws and the enforcer of contracts.
- Yemaya (Yoruba Religion and Afro-Caribbean Traditions): Yemaya is a prominent goddess in Yoruba and Afro-Caribbean religions, associated with the ocean, motherhood, and fertility.
- Tiamat (Babylonian Mythology): Tiamat is a primordial goddess of saltwater in Babylonian mythology. She represents chaos and is often depicted as a monstrous sea serpent.
- Tlaloc (Aztec Mythology): Tlaloc is an Aztec god of rain, water, and fertility. He is often depicted with goggle-like eyes and is a significant deity in agriculture.
- Amphitrite (Greek Mythology): Amphitrite is the Greek sea goddess and the wife of Poseidon. She symbolizes the calm and tranquility of the sea.
- Ran (Norse Mythology): Ran is a Norse sea goddess associated with storms and drowning sailors. She collects the drowned in her net and takes them to her underwater realm.
- Chalchiuhtlicue (Aztec Mythology): Chalchiuhtlicue is an Aztec goddess of water, rivers, and lakes. She represents both the life-giving and destructive aspects of water.
- Mazu (Chinese Folk Religion): Mazu is a popular Chinese sea goddess who protects sailors and fishermen. She is revered for her benevolence and ability to calm turbulent waters.
These deities and gods associated with water highlight the essential role of water in the natural world and in the spiritual beliefs of various cultures. Water symbolizes life, purification, renewal, and the dynamic forces of nature.
Contents
4 Powerful Deities That are Associated with Water
Chalchiuhtlique and Tlaloc, gods of the rains
We start with Chalchiuhtlique. Having trouble pronouncing her name? Don’t worry, because this water goddess was also called Acuecucyoticohuati. An important deity for Aztec culture, she rules all waters, from small mountain streams to the vast oceans that cover the world.
Very revered, she is part of the group of gods of the Rain that populate the Aztec Olympus and indeed some texts describe her as the wife of the powerful Tlaloc, the supreme god of the Rain.
Not directly associated with the sea, she had control over the waters and that is why the Aztecs feared her. Terrible, she can cause floods and droughts and numerous human sacrifices were offered to appease her. A hateful sacrifice to Tlaloc was that of the children, who were drowned in his honor. They both have eerie appearances with hollow eyes, blue skin, and a large mouth from which two strong fangs protrude.
Unlike Tlaloc, the unpronounceable Chalchiuhtlique did not demand human sacrifices; instead, during the five annual festivals dedicated to her, the austere Aztec priests plunged into the waters of a lake and hopped like frogs, also making the verse. Why? To win the sympathy of the goddess, of course, and promote fertility. It would have been fun to see them.
Also read:
A List of 5 Deities Associated with the Moon [With Stories]
3 Powerful Deities for Fertility [& How to Ask for Their Favors]
Poseidon, God of Waters and the Sea
The ancient Greeks were great navigators and the most famous god of the sea in popular culture is certainly Poseidon. Yet, the origin of this god seems to have nothing to do with the sea. In fact, it seems that the first Greek populations lived in the hinterland and it is hypothesized that at that time Poseidon was simply God of the Waters.
This would also explain the bizarre association between Poseidon and two animals sacred to him that can hardly be imagined wallowing in the waves: the bull and the horse. With the colonization of the coasts, the God of the Waters finally became the God of the Sea, accompanied by a myriad of marine mythological figures.
The famous Triton is also a sort of mermaid, half-man, and half-fish.
Neptune and Nethuns
Like most of the Latin gods, Neptune is the Roman equivalent of the Greek Poseidon. The Ancient Romans managed to conquer all the coasts surrounding the Mediterranean, so much so that they called it Mare Nostrum, but the sea never represented an identifying element of the Roman people.
Unlike the Greeks and Phoenicians, the Latins rooted their culture to the earth. It was also for this reason that Neptune never had the same importance as the Hellenic Poseidon. However, there is a very intriguing aspect in him, capable of making him very fascinating: the name. Neptune, in fact, derives from the ancient and dark god of the mysterious Etruscans: Nethuns.
Even more than the Romans, the Etruscans were a people of Earth, and their Nethuns before becoming a god of the Seas was the divinity of the wells. Wells in many cultures represent a mystical place: dark and deep, they slip into the heart of the earth to bring water.
Important for life, they were part of the daily landscape of every house and village, but they also represented the mystery, the abyss, the unknown, darkness, and death.
Subsequently, Nethuns was associated with the sea and its iconography will become completely analogous to Poseidon: on a 200 BC coin found in Vetulonia, for example, there is his crowned profile (without beard) accompanied by two dolphins and the classic trident. The beauty of the Etruscan Nethuns, however, remains in the bottom of the wells, of which it still preserves the charm and mystery.
Yam, the god of the sea
The sea is disordered and destructive; in many cultures, the primordial chaos starts right from the water. This is why Yam, the god of the sea of the Phoenicians (and of the Canaanites in general), has many negative and evil aspects: to him, we owe the deadly storms and the destruction of the waves. God of Primordial Chaos, is associated in some way with the serpent Tiamat of the Babylonians.
Due to his destructive nature, the other gods drove him from Mount Sappan, the Olympus of the Canaanite deities, and Yam retired to a palace in the dark abyssal depths. The Phoenicians owed their fortune to the sea, so it is astonishing that the divinity of the Sea was associated with chaos and disaster.
But this is more understandable if we think of Yam’s great enemy: Baal. Lord of storms, he is the most important deity of the Canaanite religion. Ordinator and beneficiary, he fought against Yam for the title of Lord of the Gods. In short, the sea represented the disorder to be dominated.
How powerful and mysterious are the deities associated with water? If you are connected with the water elements and you would like to strengthen this connection, even more, using deities for special guidance, choose the deities you feel the most connected to and start from there for a wider, deeper journey of personal and spiritual growth.
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