Ogdoad

June 23, 2022

Ogdoad / noun / og·​do·​ad

Ogdoad is a noun that represents "the cardinal number that is the sum of one and seven." It is also called the number eight. In a second sense, ogdoad also describes the religious beliefs and practices of ancient Gnosticism and early Egyptian mythology. Both the early Christians and early Egyptians believed in the existence of eight deity-like beings. Ogdoad represents ancient religious beliefs that focus on building a connection with eight divine beings or "eons" as the pathway for the redemption of the human spirit.

In a Sentence

Early Christians believed in and worshiped intangible deities known as the ogdoad.

Believers in gnostic philosophy strive for a deeper connection with the ogdoad.

The gnostics designed their temple as a place of worship and communication with the ogdoad.

Etymology

Etymologists say early Christians and Pre-Christians coined the term to represent a unified connection with the divine. Ancient Greeks use the prefix derived from the words ogdoos to represent the number eight. When combined with the suffix -ad or -as, the word expands its meaning to represent a feminine connection with the divine. Early believers in ogdoad deities include 1st and 2nd century Christians, Pre-Christians, and early Egyptians.

Synonyms

Octad, Eight

Antonyms

Ordinal, Subtract

1 Comment

  1. Virginia

    The definition of words are not displayed long enough to read them. A retry yields same result. Several attempts on different words. Love the idea however

    Reply

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