Which came first, Satan, Michael or Garuda? Christian and Hindu Religious Art

Prepare to be amazed. Today I've been looking for pictures of Satan, and pictures of Garuda, for two separate art projects. What I'd never before realized, however, is that medieval depictions of The Devil are basically direct copies of much earlier (I presume) pictures of Garuda - the hindu flying Deity (half man, half eagle) that the God Vishnu flies around on. I'm guessing Garuda is first because A) Hinduism is older and B) they ...

Dionysus, Hades and Jesus: Marriage in Death to Lords of the Underworld

One of the literary threads I hope to investigate in the future is the tie between vampirism and the ancient tradition of linking death and marriage together; many religions deal with death as an intimate reunion or marriage with a god of the underworld such as Hades or Dionysus. Much of this symbolism was later preserved in Christianity. The following is a paper I wrote recently for a PhD course on Antigone (by Sophocles) Death, Marriage ...