[Glorantha] Belief, Deities and their Worship.

[Malk Williams]

There is quite a common theme in a certain sort of book, to espouse as
fact, the idea that gods are created by the belief of their worshippers,
and moulded into what their worshippers believe them to be.

It seems to me that the deities of Glorantha are rather too integral
with the world and its people to really fit that mould, at least fully,
though I'm sure an argument could be put otherwise if someone really
wanted to do so.  Nevertheless, the fact remains that gods are perceived
and worshipped in vastly different ways in different places, and I was
wondering to what extent that effects the True Nature of the deity in
question.

I think that the nature of heroquesting is such - if I understand
correctly - that the nature of a thing, even a god, can be changed by
it, but when there is no direct conflict, no deliberate attempt to
forcibly alter something, are deities still changed by the perceptions
of their worshippers?

The deity I was considering when I first thought about this was Waha the
Butcher.  In Prax, he is the Khan of Khans, and accomplished so many
diverse feats to enable the nomads to survive in the Greatlands that it
is hard to see him otherwise.  But in elsewhere, (Peloria?) he is
worshipped merely as the god of slaughterhouses.  Now it seems to me,
that if I were Waha, I would be less than happy with this state of
affairs, even downright insulted - assuming that I was an entity with an
independent sense of self.  Granted, as a god who is bound by the Great
Compromise, his ability to actively do anything about it is limited, but
even so, unless the gods of Glorantha are just so much divine putty, to
be moulded into whatever shape their worshippers want, surely they have
some say in the manner of their worship?  Or is it just that a fairly
localised god like Waha is grateful for whatever worship and sacrifice
he can get, and isn't about to turn people away just because they don't
call him by his favourite name?

I expect that I'm not the only one here to have read Neil Gaiman's
"American Gods", and it puts me in mind of the scene at the end, where
the protagonist goes to Iceland and meets Odin, and talks to him about
"Mr Wednesday", the rather diminished version of Odin as he existed in
America.  Odin's answer was that Mr Wednesday was indeed a part of him,
but that he was not part of Mr Wednesday.  Would this apply?  Would
there be an almost complete separation between Waha the Khan of Khans,
and Waha the god of the Slaughterhouse?  Or would they be the same,
indivisible entity, simply worshipped in different aspects?

I can think of other examples, but this one stuck out, because it does
seem to be a hell of a drop in status for a deity to be happy with.
Does anyone have any insights on this?  Because I just find it puzzling.

Cheers -

Malk.