What is the history of how gods ruled over humanity

In many world faiths, humanity is ruled by an all knowing and powerful god or sometimes gods. This understanding has a long history and surprisingly many faiths have taken it as given that god(s) rule over mortal humankind. Stories and myths around some of the ancient religions that created or had developed this understanding are evident in a variety of locations and periods.

Examples in the Old World

In many myths, how gods ruled over humanity is often tied in the creation myths that those religions have. However, it is also more complex than this, as often the power structure and hierarchy of the gods varies across time. In other words, which gods rule over humans has often changed and the relationship that humans have created with their gods reflects how people saw their world. Take for example in Egypt, where in the New Kingdom period, in the late 2nd millennium BCE, the combined god Amun-Ra was seen as the chief of the pantheon of gods. Egypt, like many Mediterranean and Old World societies, saw that gods, like human societies, had hierarchies. Thus, gods ruled not only humans, because they created humans, but that there was a hierarchy of power among gods. This is also true in ancient Mesopotamia. The gods created humans, in this case, but according to the Enuma Elish or at least the later version of the story, it is the god Marduk who heroically comes to the defense of humans and the gods who achieves power over people. In the war between gods, the victorious gods chose Marduk to rule them all and, by extension, humanity who serves the gods. Similar stories exist, but with other gods inserted as the victorious god, including from Ashur, in northern Mesopotamia or modern northern Iraq. In both the Egyptian and Mesopotamian beliefs, humans directly serve gods in a clear, hierarchical pattern. The main purpose of humanity is to serve the gods through sacrifice and works. People can ask for gods to intercede or to help them but human fate is ultimately controlled by different gods, including one's personal gods or gods associated with given people.

Different forms of Hinduism have different lead gods. In Shaivism, Shiva, the destroy god, leads the pantheon. In Shaktism, Devi is a goddess who is at the top of the hierarchy. In classical or current traditional Hinduism, there are four key meanings to life that give human purpose. These include Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha. Dharma is moral and ethical actions that guide one's life. Artha is the pursuit of wealth and prosperity. Kama is attaining enjoyment and fulfilment from life. Moksha is attaining enlightenment and is considered as the fourth key goal of life. These ideals derive from the Bhagavad Gita, which is part of the Mahabharata, that has a series of poems between a warrior and Lord Krishna. In Shinto Japanese, Amaterasu emerged as the most powerful deity, who is a sun goddess and became, among her sibling gods, the goddess in charge of keeping balance and harmony on Earth. Her chief priestess became the unmarried woman from the Emperor's household. Thus, authority and power were given to her to keep peace and harmony on Earth. Harmony and purity are considered the high ideals of Shintoism and are the purposes of humanity. The most ancient Chinese religious belief system known to us emphasized the god Shangti, who was the supreme being that controlled war, weather, success in life, and other aspects within Earth from the time of the Shang Dynasty. However, the god was powerful and could not be accessible to normal humans. This justifies having the Chinese emperors, who are intermediaries and pray or request things from Shagti, such as rain for the harvest. Later, this god evolves into the concept of Heaven, with Heaven itself ruling over all other beings. Later Taoism developed the concept of harmony through Ying and Yang, which are male and female qualities that balance life. Much of the qualities, even if modified in form, were worshiped and carried on by the Taoist philosophers.

In Norse cosmology, the worlds and realms are divided into nine worlds. Humans occupy the world known as Midgard, while many of the gods are in Asgard, where Odin rules and is the most powerful. In Norse beliefs, several gods occupy the top realm, which are Odin, Frigg, Thor, Loki, Balder, Hod, Heimdall and Tyr, who represent the Æsir clan. Gods rule as they please but humans sacrifice to them to receive favour, including gods interceding or helping during life. However, gods, similar to many ancient Old World beliefs, can be almost whimsical, doing as they please. Fate of people are determined by the Norns, three female beings, who weave the fate of humans and gods alike. Thus, ones life is determined by fate. The purpose of life was to be remembered by one's ancestors and people. One's works in life help determine this memory. Thus, song and poetry in Norse beliefs are important to tell the tales of heroic deeds or actions as a way to share memory.

Examples in the New World

In the New World, Aztec belief also put sacrifice, similar to many Old World beliefs, as a key concept in how humans related to the gods. In this case, though, sacrifice was simply to keep the gods happy, as they owed them a blood debt, otherwise the anger of the gods could turn day into night and destroy even light. Human sacrifice was thus intended to be the ultimate sacrifice given to the gods to repay this debt and keep them happy. The ancient Maya did worship Hunab-Ku, who is a type of all knowing and powerful god. Purpose in life was similarly to make the gods happy through sacrifice, although the Maya also believed their lives could be tied to the fate of their calendar that would expire in the cycle of destruction and recreation experienced at the end of each Earth. In at least one known set of Inca beliefs, Viracocha was the supreme creator god, who is symbolized by the sun and storms. This god gives and makes life possible. However, humans were only a second attempt, as the first beings on Earth were giants. Nevertheless, humanity owes its existence to Viracocha and, in cases, this sacrifice demanded human sacrifice. In a similar manner, humanity was ruled by the hierarhcy of gods with Viracocha at the top, with humanity also owing gods a type of blood debt.

In the Algonquin tradition, Gitche Manitou was a spirit being who created life. All things had balance with other life, in the concept of Manitou, which is similar to beliefs such as Shintoism. In this case, beings are not in a type of hierarchy of power with their creator but there is a balance in life that attempts to maintain harmony in the world through different forms of life, with humans being one of these forms. This lack of clear hierarchy of power distinguishes it from Old World beliefs that generally emphasized a hierarchy of power among gods and beings. Hopi mythology also emphasizes balance and harmony. Tawa is the creator spirit, but things, including humans, are created to be in harmony with each other. The Kachina dancers and masks that Hopi wore were intended to help maintain harmony in the world, preventing chaos from reigning, which may initiate the end of the world. In general, North American native communities displayed far less hierarchy in the relationship between spirits/gods and humanities, emphasizing connective relationships that keeps a type of balance or harmoney.

Wider Significance

In ancient Europe and Middle East, hierarchy of the gods and power relationships between the gods and humanity established how people saw their place in the world. Purpose and meaning of life were justified following the relationship of humanity with gods.