Cthulhu Mythos Deities - Great Old Ones

Great Old Ones

An ongoing theme in Lovecraft's work is the complete irrelevance of mankind in the face of the cosmic horrors that apparently exist in the universe, with Lovecraft constantly referring to the "Great Old Ones": a loose pantheon of ancient, powerful deities from space who once ruled the Earth and who have since fallen into a death-like sleep.

Lovecraft named several of these deities; Azathoth, Cthulhu, Ghatanothoa, Shub-Niggurath, Yog-Sothoth, Nyarlathotep and Yig. With the exception of Cthulhu, the remainder of this loose pantheon apparently dwelled in deep space. Worshipped by deranged human cults, these beings are currently imprisoned (beneath the sea, inside the Earth, and in distant planetary systems) and apparently eagerly await the time of their release. Although Lovecraft did establish this premise in his 1928 short story, The Call of Cthulhu with reference to the eponymous creature, it was Derleth who applied the notion to all of the Great Old Ones.