Anime features many gods from worldly beliefs and cultures. Japan has two major religions: Shinto and Buddhism. In Shinto, practically anything can contain the essence of a kami or spirit. Buddhism, in contrast, does not focus on gods and deities but rather on the potential enlightenment of human beings.

Western mythology and religion greatly influenced anime, frequently merging with traditional Japanese beliefs in creative ways – including using gods as characters. Different types of gods often appear in anime and manga. Several of them solidified their godliness with awesome shows of power and immense strength. Whether they appeared human-like or not, these characters were truly the most powerful anime gods.

Updated by Angelo Delos Trinos on December 29, 2023: Anime gods are incredibly common in the medium, but only a select few of them live up to the awe-inspiring and fearsome implications of their titles. Most anime gods are relatable characters who just so happen to have some powers, while others truly are the makers or breakers of worlds. This list was updated to expand these anime gods' analyses and information.

20 Zeus Was the Pantheon’s Champion for a Reason

Just like in Greek Mythology, Zeus was the king of the gods in Record of Ragnarok. Though he often appeared as an old man, his appearance belied his true, overwhelming power. Zeus delighted in crushing his enemies and utilized his many forms (most famously, a bulging muscular form) to gain the upper hand.

Zeus was hot-tempered and got incredibly upset whenever any of his fellow gods were defeated. He was prone to emotional outbursts in general, but was also acknowledged as the most powerful god in the pantheon. Zeus’s strength, speed, and self-assuredness made him one of the strongest anime gods ever.

19 Lord Death Was the Living Embodiment of Death Itself

Lord Death (or Shinigami-Sama) lived up to his name's grand implications. Not only was he in charge of reaping souls, but Lord Death appeared to be the ultimate being within the Soul Eater universe. He was the very concept of mortality's end made real. Meisters and Weapons alike worked tirelessly to one day become part of Lord Death’s armory.

Despite his name, Lord Death was rather goofy and showed great care to the students at the Death Weapon Meister Academy. Yet, he was also known for his devastating fighting style, and unforgiving brutality when wronged. Lord Death was a beloved but powerful anime god who did not harm the innocent, but never pulled his punches against enemies.

18 No-Face’s Mysterious Godhood Charmed & Scared Everyone

Despite his obvious power, no one knew exactly what No-Face was supposed to be the god of. Other characters in the afterlife-themed Spirited Away have clear domain over things ranging from rivers to radishes. Whatever purpose No-Face embodied or may have had is a mystery that has never been resolved.

What is known is that No-Face flat-out eats other gods. He was so charismatic that other gods even made offerings to him to receive his infinite quantities of gold. No-Face showed kindness to those who were selfless, and devoured those who acted upon greed. No-Face has a good side, but he can be a nightmare for anyone who becomes too selfish.

17 Sosuke Aizen Turned Himself Into a Physical God

In Bleach, the most powerful Shinigami was really Sosuke Aizen, the unfairly overpowered villain of Bleach's first half. Aizen was naturally stronger than everyone else, and he felt no empathy toward them. He then turned himself into an actual god by merging with the Hogyoku. Additionally, Aizen's Zanpakuto, Kyōka Suigetsu, was capable of hypnotizing anyone into doing his bidding.

Aizen was ultimately defeated by Ichigo Kurosaki. However, Aizen was such a powerful anime god that he couldn't be killed. The best the Shinigami could do was imprison him for eternity while only barely containing his powers. Ironically, Aizen's godhood and immortality condemned him to an eternity of imprisonment and stagnant existence.

16 Koenma’s Pacifier Turned Him Into a Powerful God

The '90s classic Yu Yu Hakusho was filled with extremely overpowered fighters. Koenma is not very powerful unless he had his Ma Fu Kan (his pacifier). His basic abilities included shape-shifting between the form of a baby and a teenager, and some basic shielding techniques. But with his pacifier, Koenma can even surpass the King of the Spirit World, Enma.

As long as Koenma kept sucking on his pacifier, he had more than enough spiritual energy to release the strongest defensive barrier in all of Yu Yu Hakusho that was also capable of imprisoning even the toughest S-Class demons. Koenma's energy can also raise the dead. The Ma Fu Kan made Koenma an incredibly powerful anime god.

15 Tenchi Masaki Could End Reality With His Godhood

Tenchi Masaki, the protagonist of the Tenchi Muyo franchise, is the strongest being in his universe. Once he was the Creator God, but now he was living as a human-alien hybrid without any memories of his past. Tenchi occasionally demonstrated some of his divine powers, but involuntarily in life-or-death situations.

Tenchi's most frequently used ability is energy manipulation. He can summon Light Hawk Wings and wield powerful energy blades. Tenchi's full god form, however, was unleashed only once. It was suppressed immediately to prevent the destruction of the universe. Even as a less experienced anime god, Tenchi has enough raw power to end reality itself.

14 Belldandy Held Back Her True Godlike Might

In Ah! My Goddess, gods and goddesses were programmers of the computer system Yggdrasil. Officially, Belldandy is not the highest-ranked divine being. Despite this, she was extremely powerful. Belldandy intentionally held back her full strength to keep the humans around her safe. In her unleashed state, Belldandy is ten million times more powerful than a typical anime god.

Even so, she never stopped accumulating new skills and knowledge to better utilize her power while staying humble. Her abilities included transformation, flight, healing, teleportation, understanding every language, and hand-to-hand combat (though she generally refuses to use violence). Her one weakness was that when she bottled up negative emotions, her powers started to act up.

13 Yato Was the Retired God of Calamity

Despite his lack of a decent fashion sense, Yato is undeniably the former God of Calamity. Though he was barely scraping by, Yato still proved to be a fearsome combatant and a powerful anime god. With Yukine, his loyal Blessed Regalia, Yato effortlessly struck down malicious spirits and fought to protect his new friend, Hiyori Iki.

Yato used to be a ruthless and brutal god, but he decided to change his ways. He may be scrambling for pocket change and no longer have the luxuries that came with goodhood, but he is currently regaining the strength he once had to use it for good instead of destruction.

12 The Narrator Was the Anime’s All-Seeing & All-Knowing Ruler

The Narrator of Space Dandy is a quirky presence in the highly eccentric and rewatchable show. Despite being a disembodied voice, the characters were aware of The Narrator and sometimes talked back at him. As it turns out, the omniscient Narrator wasn't just a very self-aware character, but Space Dandy's answer to god.

Unfortunately, The Narrator was also dying. His intense focus on Dandy was because he saw Dandy as his best hope for a successor when his universe ends, and a new one begins. The Narrator was such a powerful anime god because he could affect great change on the characters' lives and worlds without even having a body.

11 Madoka Kaname Wished to Become a Literal God for Others’ Sake

When Madoka finally makes her wish in Puella Magi Madoka Magica, it was so powerful that it rewrote the entire universe and elevated her to the status of an anime god. Becoming a goddess meant that Madoka lost her physical form, and any contact with those closest to her, except for her lover Homura and younger brother Tatsuya.

The controversial ending of the Madoka movie Rebellion had Homura pulling Madoka down to Earth and suppressing her godhood. Homura's obsession transformed her into the Satanic counterpart to Madoka. Although Madoka's might is currently locked away, she may reclaim her godhood in the upcoming movie Walpurgisnacht Rising.

10 Tet Was the One True God of Games

Tet is the playful and childlike God pf Play from No Game No Life. He loves games, and even uses chess to lure two unsuspecting but talented gamers – Shiro and Sora – into his world. Tet became the One True God after he successfully obtained the Suniaster, despite not getting involved in the ongoing war.

But since he was always up for a challenge, Tet tasked Sora and Shiro with obtaining all the pieces from the 16 races so that they might battle against Tet again. The step-siblings may be good at games, but Tet was a trickster who was almost always one step ahead of his opponents and mastered all kinds of games eons ago.

9 Lain Iwakura Became a Digital God in The Wired

Serial Experiments Lain is a disturbing and (at times) confusing anime. Lain Iwakura began as an enigma. Her powers blurred the boundaries between the "real world" and The Wired: a virtual reality representation of the internet. Such an existence was overwhelming and wound up being rather miserable. At first, Lain tries to use The Wired as a way to seek friendship.

But as Lain embraced her godhood, she alienated herself from the humanity with which she once sought a connection. To take control of her different personalities, save Alice, and return reality to normalcy, Lain exercised her ultimate power as an anime god to essentially erase herself from it. She lives on as an omnipotent goddess, but everything is reset.

8 Ryuk Was the Most Cunning & Mischievous Shinigami

Light Yagami, the focal anti-hero of the 2000s classic Death Note, positioned himself as a god when he acquired a Shinigami's notebook. With the power to decide who deserved to live and died, "Kira" abuse the Death Note for years on end. However, the true strength of the Death Note belongs to Ryuk, who only let Light play with it out of boredom and sheer amusement.

Ryuk warned Light of his inevitable death. Then, when Light hits his lowest point, Ryuk wrote his name in the Death Note to seal his fate and fulfill his promise. Unlike in the Netflix movie where Ryuk was explicitly an evil corrupting influence on Light, the anime god Ryuk was essentially morally neutral and only used his powers when it served him.

7 Kaguya Otsutsuki Was the Ninja World’s God & Ancestor

Kaguya Otsutsuki was the overall villain of Naruto, and the ninja world's original god. Though she was sent to the Earth as a sacrifice, she chose to betray her people and become the first chakra user. As time went on, Kaguya became an even stronger god, drunk on power, and always thirsting for more.

At the time she was introduced, Kaguya was an emotional husk, full of rage and raw force. She cared for nothing and only sought to destroy her enemies and gain more power. Kaguya’s wrathful nature has made her a devastating anime god who never thought twice about the despicable actions she committed.

6 The Great Forest Spirit Was Nature’s Kindness & Wrath Made Flesh

Princess Mononoke details a war between the gods of the forest and humanity's encroaching industrialization. The most powerful yokai in the classic Studio Ghibli movie was The Great Forest Spirit (or Shishigami): the master of life and death who took the form of a deer in the day, and that of a gelatinous Night-Walker by moonlight.

Other anime gods fell in battle, but The Great Forest Spirit did not go down easily. Lady Eboshi shot off the Forest Spirit's head, but he did not die without enacting revenge. The Forest Spirit poisoned everything, destroying both the human and natural worlds alike. It was only when Ashitaka and San offered him his head back did everything return to peace. His physical form vanished, but evidence of his existence remains.

5 The Truth Was the Embodiment of Equivalent Exchange

The Truth is a more abstract and cruel vision of "God" in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. The Truth does not control the world so much as they are the world, and they enforce their laws without sympathy. The Truth's unimpeachable enforcement of natural laws makes it one of the most powerful anime gods.

Father temporarily took on The Truth's power in his attempt to become a god himself, but this naturally did not end well for him. People can plead with The Truth to get back what it stole from them, but the Law of Equivalent Exchange means they will have to sacrifice something of equal value in return. Father learned this the hard way, while Edward Elric impressed The Truth with his epiphany.

4 Zeno Was the Undisputed God of 12 Universes

Dragon Ball Super, the most recent Dragon Ball anime, finally answered the question of who was the strongest in the 12 universes. Surprisingly, it wasn't Goku. It was the anime god, Zeno. Though he was once the strongest being in 18 universes, Zeno once got angry and destroyed six of them in a truly apocalyptic outburst.

Most of the characters in Dragon Ball show off their powers in battle. The truest sign of Zeno's status was that nobody dared fight him. Zeno could destroy any foe with a blink, so he was content to merely organize tournaments and watch others fight. In a multiverse filled with imposing gods, Zeno looks unsuspecting, but he is the ultimate divine being.

3 Arceus Was the Original Pokémon & Maker of the Universe

Arceus was basically the creator of the entire Pokémon universe. Their most useful ability and biggest advantage was that he can basically control time itself. Even if they encountered a foe with a time machine, Arceus could stop the machine's movement in spacetime through Space-Time Distortion.

However, someone could defeat Arceus if they could convince the Pokémon to give up their plates, a scenario which can result in Arceus losing its immortality. Even so, Arceus is not only a powerful Pokémon, but one who knows the value of protection. Arceus isn't just a Legendary Pokémon, but the Pokémon equivalent to god as well.

2 Haruhi Suzumiya Was Oblivious to Her Reality-Altering Powers

Haruhi Suzumiya created the whole universe out of sheer boredom. Every subconscious wish of hers came true on a whim. Paradoxically, she can't know of the wonders she has created. If she was aware of her goodhood, she could cause even more chaos. It was the SOS Brigade's responsibility to keep her entertained and in the dark.

Haruhi is a scary anime god. Her antics were often funny, but how she (unknowingly) used her powers was chilling. She had no respect for social conventions, and demanded that everything go her way. The SOS Brigade willingly put up with her selfishness and abuses because they knew that if she lost her temper, the world was doomed.

1 Shinji Ikari Remade & Destroyed Worlds Through Eva Unit-01

The real might of Eva Unit-01 was that it was the lynchpin to both the apocalypse and the creation of a new world. That being said, only Shinji Ikari could harness Unit-01's godlike potential. Shinji never wanted to be an anime god, but it was a burden unfairly foisted upon him. He predictably caved into the pressure and impulsively ended the world.

Later in the Rebuild of Evangelion movies, Shinji accidentally caused two near-apocalypses with his godhood. It's worth noting that in the Rebuild continuity, Shinji tapped into even stronger godly powers. He later atoned for his past by finally accepting his godly responsibilities, and using his power to create a new and better world without Evangelions.