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| The pre-Islamic Arabic Goddesses al-Lāt, al-'Uzzá, and Manāt |
The mother Goddess al-Lāt was actually the consort of the Pagan God Allah, who was the high God who created heaven and Earth. She is the mother of the God Dhu'Shara, and indeed she has many children. As for al-Lāt, She was the chief Goddess of the Banu Thaqif. She has the power to create life and give birth, and the Kaaba (cubic sanctuary) is sacred to her as the creator of the deities. She is the Queen of Heaven for the Arabs, and in ancient times was worshiped by many people, including the Thaqif, Lihyan, Quraysh, Nabataeans, and Tadmorites. The Thaqif had the main idol and sanctuary for Her in the city of Ta'if, and an edifice was built over the idol. Allat's idols are in the shape of a cubic white rock, and offerings of barley porridge (sawiq) are prepared for her. She has a lot in common with other goddesses like the Canaanite Goddess Asherah (called Elat), the Roman Goddess Minerva, the Greek Goddess Athena, and the Carthaginian Goddess Allatu. The moon and crescent that Muslims use still today is the symbol of al-Lāt, and was so way before Islam started.
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| The original symbol of the Goddess al-Lāt, which was later co-opted by the emerging Islamic relgion |
The Goddess al-'Uzzá was the Goddess of love, war, and beauty, as well as of the morning and evening star. She is the daughter of Allah. She has two daughters and her consort is Dhu'Shara. In ancient times, al-'Uzzá was first a Sabaean and southern Arabian goddess, but Her cult spread to the Nabataeans in the north. Many people worshiped Her, including the Quraysh, Sulaym, Ghanim, Khuza'ah, Kinanah, Nabataeans, and Sabaeans. Her idol stood in a sanctuary called Buss, which contained an altar called al-Ghabghab and was used for sacrifices and prayers. Nearby to the temple stood three acacia trees in the Valley of Nakhlat al-Sha'miyah, near Makkah. She is similar to the Roman Goddess Venus, the Greek Goddess Aphrodite, the Canaanites Goddesses Ashtart and Anat, the Babylonian Goddess Ishtar, and the Sumerian Goddess Inanna.
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| al-Lāt and Her lion |
The Goddess Manāt is the wife of the God Hubal, daughter of Ruda, and the Goddess of Fate. Manāt was worshiped by many different tribes, including the Khazraj, the Aws, the Nabataeans, the Hudhayl, and the Khuza'ah. She is the most ancient of the three Goddesses discussed. She is the Goddess of time, destiny, fate, divination, and She leads heroes to the grave. At the end of the required pilgrimage, the Arabs would visit Manāt's shrine and shave their heads.
