Baal

Baal name used throughout the Bible for the chief deity or for deities of Canaan. The term was originally an epithet applied to the storm god Hadad. Technically, Baal was subordinate to El. Baal is attested in the Ebla texts (first half of 2d millennium B.C.). By the time of the Ugarit tablets (14th cent. B.C.), Baal had become the ruler of the universe. The Ugarit tablets make him chief of the Canaanite pantheon. He is the source of life and fertility, the mightiest hero, the lord of war, and the defeater of the god Yam. There were many temples of Baal in Canaan, and the name Baal was often added to that of a locality, e.g., Baal-peor, Baal-hazor, Baal-hermon. The Baal cult penetrated Israel and at times led to syncretism. In the Psalms, Yahweh is depicted as Baal and his dwelling is on Mt. Zaphon (Zion), the locale of Baal in Canaanite mythology. The practice of sacred prostitution seems to have been associated with the worship of Baal in Palestine and the cult was vehemently denounced by the prophets, especially Hosea and Jeremiah. The abhorrence in which the cult was held probably explains the substitution of Ish-bosheth for Esh-baal, of Jerubbesheth for Jerubbaal (a name of Gideon), and of Mephibosheth for Merib-baal. The substituted term probably means “shame.” The same abhorrence is evident the use of the pejorative name Baal-zebub (see also Satan). The Baal of 1 Chronicles is probably the same as Ramah 2. As cognates of Baal in other Semitic languages there are Bel (in Babylonian religion) and the last elements in the Tyrian names Jezebel, Hasdrubal, and Hannibal.


Baal-berith

local god of Shechem mentioned in the Book of Judges. It has been suggested that the Israelites and local inhabitants of Shechem ratified a covenant there in the temple of Baal.


Baal-zebub

A deliberate Hebrew distortion of the name of the god of Ekron in 2 Kings. In the Gospels of Mark and Luke, Beelzebul, the Greek form of the epithet Baal-zebul [Baal the Prince], is encountered.


Bacchus

In Roman religion and mythology, god of wine; in Greek mythology, Dionysus. Dionysus was also the god of tillage and law giving. He was worshiped at Delphi and at the spring festival, the Great Dionysia. In Rome, the mysteries of his cult were closely guarded, and he was identified with an ancient god of wine, Liber Pater. Many legends connected with Dionysus were also used in the cult of Bacchus.


Bacchanalia

In Roman religion, festival in honor of Bacchus, god of wine. Originally a religious ceremony, like the Liberalia, it gradually became an occasion for drunken, licentious excesses and was finally forbidden by law (186 B.C.).


Balder

Balder, Norse god of light; son of Odin and Frigg. He was the most beautiful and gracious of the gods of Asgard. His mother extracted oaths from all things in nature not to harm her son, but neglected the mistletoe. According to one legend Loki gave a dart of mistletoe to the blind god Hoder and aimed it for him at Balder, who was killed by it. The gods grieved inconsolably over his death. It was prophesied, however, that after Ragnarok (the doom of the gods) Balder would return to heaven.



Bast

Ancient Egyptian cat goddess. At first a goddess of the home, she later became known as a goddess of war. The center of her cult was at Bubastis. Her name also appears as Ubast.


Belphegor

local divinity (the Baal) of Peor. According to the Book of Numbers, the Hebrews stayed at Shittim during the wilderness wanderings. While there, Hebrew men had sexual relationships with the local Moabite women. This led to worship of Baal, provoking an immediate outbreak of divine anger. Peor was also known as Beth-peor. Under the form Belphegor, the name became that of a devil in the Middle Ages, said to appear in the shape of a young woman.



Bona Dea

In Roman religion, ancient fertility goddess worshiped only by women; also called Fauna. She was said to be the daughter, sister, or wife of Faunus. No man could be present at her annual festival in May.


Book of the Dead

Book of the Dead, term used to describe Egyptian funerary literature. The texts consist of charms, spells, and formulas for use by the deceased in the afterworld and contain many of the basic ideas of Egyptian religion. At first inscribed on the stone sarcophagi, the texts were later written on papyrus and placed inside the mummy case. The earliest collection, known as the Heliopolitan Recension, dates from the XVIII dynasty (1580–1350 B.C.). It also contains selections from the two previous collections of Egyptian religious literature—the Coffin Texts of the Middle Kingdom (c.2000 B.C.) and the Pyramid Texts of the Old Kingdom (c.2600–2300 B.C.). The Theban Recension, a text that may be contemporary or slightly later, has a distinctive format. There are several noteworthy papyruses, valuable for their art. Among them are the Papyrus of Ani and The Book of the Dead of Hunefer. The two most celebrated English translations were made by Sir Peter le Page Renouf (1892–97) and Sir E. Wallis Budge (1895, repr. 1967).



Britomartis

in ancient religion and mythology, Cretan goddess, sometimes identified with Artemis. To escape the amorous pursuit of Minos, she jumped into the sea, but fishermen caught her in their nets and transported her to Aegina, where she was worshiped as Aphaea. According to another legend, she vanished in a grove sacred to Artemis and was deified as Dictynna.

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