Deity

For the Cthulhu Mythos concept of deity and deity classification is particularly confusing and contentious, even among those with a large knowledge of the Cthulhu Mythos. However, a deity within the Mythos can be generally defined as any being, entity, or intelligence that wields power and influence beyond what humans can perceive or comprehend. One thing all deities of the Mythos share is that one or more group or cult offer the entity worship or veneration, whether in an active sense associated with an organized religion, or in a general sense of respect for an enormously powerful creature.
==Cthulhu Mythos Deities==
In general, Cthulhu Mythos deities differ substantially from notions of deity in real world religious and spiritual traditions.
As with the rest of the Mythos, the deities are generally based in a materialist philosophy. This is to say, that the "gods" of the Mythos are not essentially supernatural. Rather, they are physical beings that hold to the natural laws of the entirety of the Mythos, what Lovecraft called the "cosmos-at-large". (: Selected Letters 2.284)
However, many of these laws are strange and unknown to humankind. These laws, as they apply to the gods of the Mythos, include psychic communication, inter-dimensional travel, the existence of parallel universes, pocket universes, extra-universal realms, and transcendent realities.
All of these aspects of the nature of the Mythos, and the presence of the deities themselves, add to the over-all concept of cosmic horror. To the deities of the Mythos humanity is insignificant, ignorant of the true nature of reality, and barely worthy of notice. Humans are often used as proxies to impact global events, undermine the plans of competing deities, or as playthings to torment for their own amusement.
==Deity Classification==
From story to story, there is a great deal of inconsistency in terms of the classification of the various entities termed "gods" of the Mythos.
However, over the course of Lovecraft's writings and the subsequent additions to the Mythos by August Derleth, a certain order has been asserted.
The deities have been generally placed into four basic categories: Outer Gods/Other Gods, Elder Gods, Great Old Ones, and Great Ones.
==Outer Gods==
Within the Mythos, the Outer Gods are seemingly older, perhaps predating the universe or the creators of the universe itself. They are often referred to as "ruling gods", and seem to transcend the boundaries of time and space. They are vastly more powerful and have influence on a much larger cosmic scale.
The Outer Gods are generally portrayed as being without real personality or intelligence, called "mindless blasphemies," with the exception of Nyarlathotep. Nyarlathotep is portrayed as acting as an intermediary between the Outer Gods while apparently despising them, and descends to direct his malign intellect to serve the will of the Great Old Ones and actively meddle in the lives of mortals.
The Outer Gods bear a striking resemblance to the real world, Christian Gnostic "Demiurge", a malignant creator being acting in an unconscious and corrupted parody of the "Divine Will" sometimes referred to as "Yaldabaoth".
The terms "Other Gods" and "Outer Gods" are sometimes used interchangeably, "Other Gods" being the name that Lovecraft ascribed to Azathoth's kin. According to Lovecraft's stories, the "Other Gods" protect the Gods of Earth, a.k.a. the Great Ones, which are radically less powerful and limited in their scope (: "The Other Gods", The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath).
Some authors, such as Derleth, don't use the terms "Outer Gods" or "Other Gods", and just refer to Azathoth, Nyarlathotep and co. as being Great Old Ones.
==Elder Gods==
The Elder Gods are extremely ambiguous in the Cthulhu Mythos, and have been approached in different ways by different authors.
Lovecraft named only one "Elder God", Nodens, and does not portray Nodens as differing significantly in nature from the other deities, although he did portray him as a primal entity, and an enemy of Nyarlathotep. Later, August Derleth expanded on the role and nature of the Elder Gods.
Derleth places the Elder Gods in opposition to the Outer Gods, acting against their interests in the cosmos. Derleth portrays them as forces of good, which is some ways belies Lovecraft's original vision of the Mythos. The Elder Gods have given mortals the Elder Sign, a symbol that can repel and thwart the Outer Gods and Great Old Ones.
The Elder Gods are otherwise portrayed as being relatively distant and (in general) uninterested in the affairs of humans.
Confusingly, despite the two being enemies, some Derleth stories refer to the Elder Gods as the "Great Old Ones" and vice-versa. Other authors likewise have been known to use the term "Elder Gods" to refer to the creatures that are usually known as the Great Old Ones.
==Great Old Ones==
In the Cthulhu Mythos, the Great Old Ones have seemed to take the greatest interest and action on Earth. While their natures and abilities vary widely, they are generally depicted as vastly powerful and unconcerned or disdainful of humanity, merely using them as pawns or fodder.
The Great Old Ones are differentiated from the Outer Gods and Elder Gods by being native to the universe. While there is much made of their Outer God parentage, it seems clear that they were brought forth as limited entities in the material universe and to a greater or lesser extent are limited by the laws therein.
It is also of note that Lovecraft makes the distinction not to call them "Gods". This implies that while vastly powerful and unknowable by human minds, their power is likely limited and their nature does not transcend our universe. They are creatures, created or evolved, that appear only as gods to the mortals of Earth.
Lovecraft only used the term "Great Old Ones" in two stories: in "The Call of Cthulhu" to refer to Cthulhu's kin, and in At the Mountains of Madness to refer to the Elder Things, which are not considered deities, but rather mortal creatures, and enemies of Cthulhu.
==Gods of Earth/Great Ones==
The Gods of Earth, or Great Ones are secondary deities whose sphere of influence seems limited to The Dreamlands dimension. Called the "weak gods of earth", they remain under the protection of Nyarlathotep.
==References==
Category:Real World