Greek mythology comprehensive summary of Cicero's line of thought. In Ancient Roman times, a new Roman mythology was born through syncretization of numerous Greek and other foreign gods. This occurred because the Romans had little mythology of their own, and inheritance of the Greek mythological tradition caused the major Roman gods to adopt characteristics of their Greek equivalents. The gods Zeus and Jupiter are an example of this mythological overlap. In addition to the combination of the two mythological traditions, the association of the Romans with eastern religions led to further syncretizations. For instance, the cult of Sun was introduced in Rome
Deity for human beings who gain merit through an ethical life, where they become guardian deities and live blissfully in heaven, but are also subject to death when their merit is lost. The English language word "deity" derives from Old French "deité," the Latin "deitatem" or "divine nature", coined by Augustine of Hippo from "deus" ("god"). Deus is related through a common Proto-Indo-European (PIE) origin to "*deiwos". This root yields the ancient Indian word "Deva" meaning "to gleam, a shining one", from *div- "to shine", as well as Greek "dios" "divine" and Zeus; and Latin "deus" "god" (Old Latin "deivos"). Deva