Apollo and Norse mythology. In Greek mythology Artemis was the leader (, "hegemon") of the nymphs, who had similar functions with the Nordic Elves. The "elf-shot" originally indicated disease or death attributed to the elves, but it was later attested denoting stone arrow-heads which were used by witches to harm people, and also for healing rituals. The Vedic Rudra has some similar functions with Apollo. The terrible god is called "The Archer", and the bow is also an attribute of Shiva. Rudra could bring diseases with his arrows, but he was able to free people of them, and his alternative Shiba
Apollo the sun. The role of Apollo as god of plague is evident in the invocation of Apollo Smintheus ("mouse Apollo") by Chryses, the Trojan priest of Apollo, with the purpose of sending a plague against the Greeks (the reasoning behind a god of the plague becoming a god of healing is apotropaic, meaning that the god responsible for bringing the plague must be appeased in order to remove the plague). The Hittite testimony reflects an early form "", which may also be surmised from comparison of Cypriot with Doric . The name of the Lydian god "Qλdãns" /kʷʎðãns/ may reflect