Religious and Mythological References in Battlestar Galactica - Common To Both

Common To Both

Some of the elements of the two Battlestar Galactica science-fiction television series created by Glen A. Larson seem to be derived from Mormon or Latter-day Saint (LDS) beliefs. For example, in both series the planet Kobol is the ancient and distant homeworld of the human race. According to Jana Riess, author of What Would Buffy Do?, Kobol as an anagram of Kolob is only one of many plot points borrowed from Mormonism by Larson. In Mormonism, Kolob is the star or planet nearest to the throne of God. Another Mormon reference in the show is the Colonial governing body the Quorum of Twelve, analogous to the similarly named Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the LDS Church.

It has also been suggested that the basic plot is a retelling of Virgil's Aeneid, a Roman epic poem describing how Aeneas, after the Fall of Troy, leads the survivors on a journey and eventually founds Rome.

The "Lords of Kobol" are sacred figures in both series. They are treated as elders or patriarchs in the original series, while in the new series they are versions of the Twelve Olympians. In both series, Humankind is polytheistic, believing in multiple gods similar to those in Greek mythology. Humans are the descendants of the gods called the Lords of Kobol. The twelve colonies are named after the astrological signs of the Greek zodiac; for example, Scorpia (Scorpio), Caprica (Capricorn), and Aquaria (Aquarius). Several of the characters in the series have names or call signs corresponding to significant characters in Greek mythology, including Apollo, Athena, and Cassiopeia.

It is also speculated that the "twelve planets" with their analogous astrological signs derive from biblical references to the 12 tribes of Israel and the lost 13th tribe that will eventually be found, a belief important to Mormons and in other Christian faiths. The history of the expulsion of the tribes from their home worlds parallels the time of the tribes of Israel in the Sinai desert: in search of a new promised land. However, although the music from the series created by Bear McCreary draws deeply from Middle Eastern and North African musical styles and instruments, and so would seem to support the above, it may also be argued that the music draws on the caravan cultures of that same region (e.g. Bedouins, &c.), and has little or no relation to Israel's 12 tribes.