History Main / GodInHumanForm

* Jesus in TheBible.

* This is one explanation for Haruhi's powers in ''TheMelancholyOfHaruhiSuzumiya''--one both suggested and rejected by [[ThePhilosopher Koizumi]].

Compare PhysicalGod, AFormYouAreComfortableWith, IAmWho, AngelUnaware, HigherPower.

* In BruceAlmighty, and the sequel, Morgan Freeman as God.

[[caption-width:300:[[BruceAlmighty You were expecting someone else?]]]]

[[caption-width:300: [[MorganFreeman You were expecting someone else?]]]]

[[caption-width:30: [[MorganFreeman You were expecting someone else?]]]]

[[{{BruceAlmighty}} http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brucealmight,0.jpg]]
[[caption-width:350: [[MorganFreeman You were expecting]] [[OhGod someone else?]]]]

[[caption-width:350: [[MorganFreeman You were expecting someone else?]]]]

* GeorgeBurns plays the Almighty in the ''Oh, God!'' movie series.

When some form of spiritual being, or deity, becomes encased in a mortal shell, usually causing them to have [[DePower no or limited access to their powers]]...sometimes [[WillfullyWeak of their own design]], sometimes forced upon them.

Compare PhysicalGod, AFormYouAreComfortableWith, IAmWho, AngelUnaware.

[[folder:Film]]
* God does this in the movie ''{{Dogma}}'' in order to play skeeball, which almost leads to the destruction of the universe.
* In the second ''EvilDead'', the way to get rid of the Evil was to make it flesh, then have it sucked into a portal.
* In PiratesOfTheCaribbean [[spoiler: Tia Dalma is the goddess Calypso.]] This particular case was decidedly ''involuntary''- [[spoiler: she]] was trapped that way by [[spoiler: Davy Jones, with a little help from the Brethren Court]], and spends the whole third movie trying to get [[spoiler: her]] full power back. [[spoiler: It works]].
* In BruceAlmighty, and the sequel, Morgan Freeman as God.
[[/folder]]

* Thoroughly averted in UsefulNotes/{{Islam}}. To believe that God would ever put himself in human form is not blasphemy or apostasy, it makes you non-Muslim by definition. Islam is very big on picturing God as a transcendent if benevolent being bordering on the [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch]], so it makes sense.

** Mormons believe believe that you started off as one (or a close approximate) too. The Veil simply keeps you from remembering properly and the human experience is seen as developmental and helpful rather than evil, as in Gnosticism (where [[GodIsEvil the Demiurge]] is keeping you down). For instance, Adam, the first human, was originally (and again once his human body died) the archangel Michael.

[[folder:Myth]]

** Jesus in Christianity.
** All human beings are seen this way in mystical religions such as Vedanta or Gnosticism.
*** Mormonism and Scientology believe roughly the same thing.
**** Mormons believe humans can (eventually) ''become'' gods, which is a different thing entirely.
**** No, they actually do believe that you started off as one (or a close approximate) too. The Veil simply keeps you from remembering properly and the human experience is seen as developmental and helpful rather than evil, as in Gnosticism (where [[GodIsEvil the Demiurge]] is keeping you down). For instance, Adam, the first human, was originally (and again once his human body died) the archangel Michael.
*** In Buddhism becoming God is actually seen as a trap that distracts the seeker of Enlightenment from the true Nirvana, which is above all deities.

** This is revealed to be the origin of the Marvel Universe's Thor, as inflicted upon him by Odin.

* Probably the {{Ur Example}} (not counting Jesus in the Bible, because that technically doesn't count), the gods and goddesses do this sometimes in ''The Odyssey''.

* In ''Discworld/SmallGods'', the Great God Om decides to visit the Disc in the body of a great bull. Instead, [[spoiler:he gets stuck in the body of a tortoise, and doesn't have enough godly mojo left to get out.]]

* Subverted in ''TheMelancholyOfHaruhiSuzumiya'': the titular Haruhi actually ''became'' a literal GodInHumanForm three years before the story starts. The catch is that she isn't aware of this, and given how much chaos her ''subconscious'' desires cause by leaking into reality, it's ''really'' best that she stays this way.
** Of course, she might not be a God either. There's speculation to her powers both in and out of show.

As such, their human forms may often have a very different personality, and on occasion even [[AmnesiacDissonance alignment]], from their true self. For example, a villain could very well live their human life as a pure and chaste paragon of heroism, but return to villainy upon awakening. And a benevolent deity could very easily be a thuggish JerkAss. Although overall, it is more common for benign gods to be good people, and malevolent deities to be bad people. Killing the human form of the god, if it's possible, [[FightingAShadow probably won't actually kill the god.]]

* In ''The WheelOfTime'', the [[SealedEvilInACan Dark One]] can manifest in the form of a [[TheEyeless Myrddraal]] called Shaidar Haran after the seals on his prison begin to weaken. He mainly uses this to spy on and terrorize [[QuirkyMinibossSquad the Forsaken]].