Dagon
Created | Updated Jul 15, 2004
DAGON
Chief god of the Philistines
The god, Dagon, was originally worshipped by the Canaanites before the Philistine invasion of Canaan.
Canaanites were a Semetic people who lived in Canaan from around 3000 bc until the time of the Israelites' conquest around 1000 bc.
The name Dagon is derived from the Semetic root, dag
and means, quite simply, little fish.
There was a deep rooted affection for Dagon by his many worshipers, and according to the Bible, he was primarily adored by his followers from the Babylonian temple of Azotus.
There are a number of Biblical references that relate to this peculiar fish-god, describing him as a fish in human form, or sometimes half man, half fish.
The drawings and sculptures that still remain today show a being that bears an uncanny resemblance to that of a merman (derived from the mythical sea-creature: the mermaid)
Finally, H.P. Lovecraft, in July 1917, used the images of this god-like entity, rising from the sea, to terrify the readers of a horror magazine known as The Vagrant when it finally was published in 1919 (Volume 11, 23-29).
Biblical References
When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the temple of Dagon and set it by Dagon. And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon and set it in its place again. And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only the torso of Dagon was left of it. Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon's house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.
1 Sam 5:2-5
Now the lords of the Philistines gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. And they said: "Our god has delivered into our hands Samson our enemy!" When the people saw him, they praised their god; for they said: "Our god has delivered into our hands our enemy, The destroyer of our land, And the one who multiplied our dead.
Judg 16:23-24
