The God with Many Names in the Greek Magical Papyri
Introduction
One of the most striking features of the Greek Magical Papyri (PGM), composed between the 2nd
and 4th centuries CE, is the fluid and composite way in which divinity is invoked. Instead of strict
boundaries between gods, we often encounter prayers and hymns that address a single deity under a
multitude of names, titles, and cultural associations. This phenomenon is sometimes called the God
with Many Names (θεὸς πολυώνυμος), and it reflects both the syncretism of late antiquity and the
magical principle that invoking more names increases spiritual authority and efficacy.
The “many-named god” in the papyri is not a single, fixed deity, but rather a composite, universal
divine presence who encompasses the powers of many gods at once. This theological fluidity
mirrors the cultural reality of Roman Egypt, where Greek, Egyptian, Jewish, and emerging
Christian traditions intermingled.
The Many Names Formula
In the papyri, practitioners often call upon a deity by stringing together an extensive list of names:
Greek gods: Zeus, Helios, Dionysos, Hades.
Egyptian gods: Osiris, Isis, Anubis, Thoth.
Jewish/Christian divine names: Iao, Sabaoth, Adonai.
Mystical or “barbarian” words (voces magicae).
By doing so, the magician does not commit to a single god but invokes the divine as an all-
encompassing power. This suggests that the effectiveness of magic is linked to the ability to gather
and control divine names, each of which carries specific potency.
The many-names formula also reflects a magical logic: by knowing and pronouncing more names,
the practitioner demonstrates mastery over the deity and compels its presence. In antiquity,
knowledge of a god’s “true” or “hidden” names was considered a source of immense power.
Syncretism and Universality
The “god with many names” represents the blending of religious traditions. For example, in some
papyri Helios is addressed as “Zeus, Hades, Helios, Serapis, Iao” – uniting the chief Olympian god,
the ruler of the underworld, the sun god, the Alexandrian savior god, and the Jewish divine name.
This universality shows that:
1.Religions were porous – boundaries between Greek, Egyptian, and Jewish traditions were
fluid.
2.Magicians were pragmatic – the goal was not doctrinal purity but effectiveness.
3.One god could contain all gods – anticipating later philosophical ideas of a supreme, all-
encompassing deity.
In this sense, the “many-named god” is a forerunner of both Neoplatonic and Gnostic conceptions
of the divine, as well as monotheistic tendencies within late antiquity.
Examples from the PGM
PGM IV (the “Great Magical Papyrus of Paris”) contains hymns that invoke a god as “Iao,
Sabaoth, Adonai, Osoronnophris, Helios, Mithras, Phanes.” Here, Jewish names stand beside
Egyptian Osiris (Osoronnophris), Greek Helios, Persian Mithras, and Orphic Phanes.
PGM VII addresses a deity as “the one with countless names, ruler of the cosmos, hidden
and manifest.”
PGM XIII includes a long prayer where the practitioner recites name after name, ranging
from Greek to Egyptian and beyond, culminating in a request for divine revelation.
These examples show how the magician built up a crescendo of divine names, layering traditions to
create a universal invocation.
The Power of Names
In magical thought, names are not mere labels but carry the essence of the beings they designate. To
pronounce a divine name is to summon part of that god’s power. The accumulation of names in
PGM texts is thus a deliberate act of empowerment.
Protective power: more names mean stronger defenses against evil.
Persuasive power: the deity cannot ignore an invocation that touches on all its aspects.
Transformative power: the practitioner aligns themselves with the totality of divine reality.
The “god with many names” therefore embodies the magical worldview: reality is fluid, and by
mastering language, the magician can cross boundaries and access hidden forces.
Philosophical Dimensions
Beyond magic, the many-named deity resonates with philosophical theology in late antiquity. Stoic
and Neoplatonic thinkers also spoke of a single divine principle expressed under different names:
Zeus, Logos, or the One. Similarly, the Orphic tradition honored gods like Dionysos or Phanes as
universal beings with countless epithets.
In this context, the papyri reflect not only magical practice but also broader religious-philosophical
ideas. The many-named god bridges polytheism and monotheism: while many names are invoked,
they point toward a single, unified divine power.
Cultural and Religious Implications
The presence of the “god with many names” in the papyri illustrates:
Religious pluralism – Greek, Egyptian, Jewish, and Christian elements coexisted in the
same rituals.
Magical syncretism – practitioners freely combined names and powers without concern for
orthodoxy.
Transition toward monotheism – the concept foreshadows later religious movements that
emphasized one supreme god above all others.
For the magician, however, the goal was practical: by invoking all possible divine identities, they
ensured that their spell would not fail.
Conclusion
The “god with many names” in the Greek Magical Papyri is not just a literary device but a window
into the spiritual mindset of late antiquity. It reveals a world where boundaries between gods,
cultures, and religions were porous, and where divine power was accessed through the mastery of
names.
In this figure we see the union of polytheism and monotheism, the merging of magic and
philosophy, and the pragmatic spirit of ancient practitioners who sought to harness every possible
aspect of the divine. The “god with many names” thus embodies both the universality of divine
power and the ingenuity of human attempts to approach it.
