Isis (Egyptian)

Isis

Originally, the goddess Isis was portrayed as a woman, wearing a headress shaped like a throne.

Goddess of motherhood, magic and fertility

Major cult center	Philae, Abydos
Symbol	the throne, the sun disk with cow's horn, the sycamore tree
Parents	Geb and Nut
Siblings	Osiris, Set and Nephthys
Consort	Osiris

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Isis (Ancient Greek: Ἶσις) was a goddess in Ancient Egyptian religious beliefs, whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. She was worshiped as the ideal mother and wife as well as the matron of nature and magic. She was the friend of slaves, sinners, artisans, the downtrodden, as well as listening to the prayers of the wealthy, maidens, aristocrats and rulers. Isis is the Goddess of motherhood, magic and fertility.
The goddess Isis (the mother of Horus) was the first daughter of Geb, god of the Earth, and Nut, the goddess of the Overarching Sky, and was born on the fourth intercalary day. At some time Isis and Hathor had the same headdress. In later myths about Isis, she had a brother, Osiris, who became her husband, and she then was said to have conceived Horus. Isis was instrumental in the resurrection of Osiris when he was murdered by Set. Her magical skills restored his body to life after she gathered the body parts that had been strewn about the earth by Set. This myth became very important in later Egyptian religious beliefs.

Isis is also known as the goddess of simplicity, protector of the dead and goddess of children from whom all beginnings arose. In later myths, the Ancient Egyptians believed that the Nile River flooded every year because of her tears of sorrow for her dead husband, Osiris. This occurrence of his death and rebirth was relived each year through rituals. The worship of Isis eventually spread throughout the Greco-Roman world, continuing until the suppression of paganism in the Christian era.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis

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Egyptian goddesses | Fertility goddesses | Agricultural goddesses | Life-death-rebirth goddesses | Magic goddesses | Mystery religions | Hellenistic Egyptian deities

Iris (Greek)

Iris

In Greek mythology, Iris (Ἴρις) is the personification of the rainbow and Hera's personal messenger. As the sun unites Earth and heaven, Iris links the gods to humanity. She travels with the speed of wind from one end of the world to the other, and into the depths of the sea and the underworld.

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In myths

According to Hesiod's Theogony, Iris is the daughter of Thaumas and the air nymph Electra. Her sisters are the Harpies, Aello, Celaeno and Ocypetes.

Iris is frequently mentioned as a divine messenger in the Iliad which is attributed to Homer, but does not appear in his Odyssey, where Hermes fills that role. Like Hermes, Iris carries a caduceus or winged staff. By command of Zeus, the king of the gods, she carries a ewer of water from the Styx, with which she puts to sleep all who perjure themselves. Goddess of sea and sky, she is also represented as supplying the clouds with the water needed to deluge the world, consistent with her identification with the rainbow.

According to Apollonius Rhodius, Iris turned back the Argonauts Zetes and Calais who had pursued the Harpies (her sister-beings) to the Strophades ('Islands of Turning'). (This eventful 'turning' may have resulted in the islands' name.) The brothers had driven off the monsters from their torment of the prophet Phineas, but did not kill them upon the request of Iris, who promised that Phineas would not be bothered by the Harpies again.

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Iris is married to Zephyrus, who is the god of the west wind. Their son is Pothos (Nonnus, Dionysiaca). According to the Dionysiaca of Nonnos, Iris' brother is Hydaspes (book XXVI, lines 355-365).

In Euripides' play Heracles, Iris appears alongside Madness, cursing Heracles with the fit of madness in which he kills his three sons and his wife Megara.

In some records she is a sororal twin to the Titaness Arkhe (arch), who flew out of the company of Olympian gods to join the Titans as their messenger goddess during the Titanomachy, making the two sisters enemy messenger goddesses. Iris was said to have golden wings, whereas Arkhe had iridescent ones. She is also said to travel on the rainbow while carrying messages from the gods to mortals. During the Titan War, Zeus tore Arkhe's iridescent wings from her and gave them as a gift to the Nereid Thetis at her wedding, who in turn gave them to her son, Achilles, who wore them on his feet. Achilles was sometimes known as podarkhes, or "wing-footed with Arkhe's wings". Not much is written about Iris' twin sister.

Epithets

Iris had numerous poetic titles and epithets, including Chrysopteron (Golden Winged), Podas ôkea (swift footed) or Podênemos ôkea (wind-swift footed), and Thaumantias or Thaumantos (Daughter of Thaumas, Wondrous One). Under the epithet Aellopus (Αελλόπους) she was described as swift-footed like a storm-wind. She also watered the clouds with her pitcher, obtaining the water from the sea.

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Representation

Iris is represented either as a rainbow, or as a young maiden with wings on her shoulders. As a goddess, Iris is associated with communication, messages, the rainbow and new endeavors. She is the goddess of the rainbow.

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Deities in the Iliad | Greek goddesses | Messenger goddesses | Greek mythology

Indian deities

Indian gods & goddesses

Brahma - god of the Triniity

Durga - goddess beyond reach; also known as Shakti (Life Energy) and Parvati (Family Unity)

Ganesha - god who Removes Obstacles, god of Knowledge

Gauri - goddess of Purity and Austerity

Hanuman - Monkey god, provider of Courage, Hope, Knowledge, Intellect and Devotion

Kali - goddess of Destruction

Krishna - god of Power and Bravery

Lakshmi - goddess of Prosperity, Purity, Chastity, and Generosity

Rama - Hero god, Preserver of Families, Destroyer of Evil

Sarasvati - a goddess of speech, wisdom and learning

Shiva - god of Giving and Happiness, Creator

Vishnu - god of Courage, Knowledge and Power; Also known as Hari the Remover