Time and fate deities

Time and fate deities are personifications of time, often in the sense of human lifetime and human fate, in polytheistic religions. In monotheism, Time can still be personified, as in Father Time in European folklore, or Zurvan in Persian (Zoroastrian) tradition. In the book of Ecclesiastes in the Hebrew Bible, the terms עדן `iddan "time" vs. זמן zĕman "season" express a contrast similar to that of Greek Chronos vs. Kairos.

Ancient Near East

Ancient Egyptian religion: Hemsut · Huh

Assyro-Babylonian religion: Ashima · Ishtar · Mamitu · Mammetun · Manah · Manu the Great · Meni

Classical Antiquity

Ancient Greek religion:

The Fates: Moirai — Atropos · Clotho · Lachesis

Ananke · Geras · Horae · Kairos · Khronos · Tyche · Moros

Ancient Roman religion:

The Fates: Parcae — Decima · Morta · Nona

Camenae: Antevorta/Porrima · Carmenta · Egeria · Postverta

Aeternitas · Anna Perenna · Caerus · Chronos · Fortuna · Vertumnus

Europe

Etruscan — Nortia · Tinia
Norse — Norns (Urðr · Verðandi · Skuld)

Day: (Dagr · Skinfaxi) · Night: (Nótt · Hrímfaxi) · Seasons: (Sumarr and Vetr) · Old age: Elli

Baltic — Dalia · Laima · Lauma
Polish — Sudz
Romanian — Fates: Ursitoare
Other European — Matres and Matrones · Father Time · Beten

Asia

Zoroastrian — Zurvan
Philippine — Kan-Laon

Hinduism and Buddhism- Mahakala

Time is thus described Vedas: "My Lord, I consider Your Lordship to be eternal time, the supreme controller, without beginning and end, the all-pervasive one. ... Eternal time is the witness of all our actions, good and bad, and thus resultant reactions are destined by Him. It is no use saying that we do not know why and for what we are suffering. We may forget the misdeed for which we may suffer at this present moment, but we must remember that Paramātmā is our constant companion, and therefore He knows everything, past, present and future. And because the Paramātmā feature of Lord Kṛṣṇa destines all actions and reactions, He is the supreme controller also. Without His sanction not a blade of grass can move. [1]

See also

• List of deities
• Time
• Time Cycles
• Wheel of time