Don't Fear the Reaper

Holy Watermelon

Gods of the underworld are not the same as gods of death, nor are the guides the same--not even the Grim Reaper.

Hades is the minder of the subterrestrial realm, just as Zeus and Poseidon are the minders of the Mountain (... and the sky) and the Sea (tough to argue for pluralizing those realms). Pluto is the same figure, adopted by the Romans AFTER he got his new stage-name.

Osiris is the keeper of the dead in Kemetic (Egyptian) lore, and one of the judges at the table.

Hel is the Norse keeper of the dead, though she was a giant, and not a typical god.

The Grim Reaper is a psychopomp: a guide for the recently deceased. The Valkyrie, and the Shinigami are old variants on this idea.

Yama was the first to meet death, and after finding heaven, has made it his mission to guide others.

Anubis, anciently a simple jackal, has morphed into the commanding protector of the dead in Egypt.

Xolotl is the Aztec guardian of the freshly entombed, symbolizing the dog to guide people into the afterlife.

Mercury is the Roman response to the Greek Hermes, and he is said to guide the dead to the docks where they should find Karon, the ferryman. The Etruscan version of Karon is perhaps a little less friendly. Vanth is a more benevolent guide to the Etruscans, though you might not guess it from her appearance.

Personifications of death--the true gods of death, if there can be any--are simply named "death" in the various tongues of the ancient world: Thanatos, Mors, Mot, etc. They may be among the most anciently feared gods in human history.

All this and more....

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