History Main / AGodIAmNot

* Rudy Tabootie in ''WesternAnimation/ChalkZone'' invokes this. Although he possesses magic chalk capable of creating anything, only limited by his imagination and skills, he only really uses it [[Franchise/DoctorWho akin to how the Doctor uses his Cosmic Screwdriver]]. Rudy went so far as to swear to NEVER make a living being with the chalk unless it is under the most dire of circumstances.

** UsefulNotes/{{TheProphetMuhammad}} stated that he was a mortal human and that he never wanted to be worshipped as a God or a Demigod. This is why he and other prophets are not visually depicted in mainstream Islam. [[https://hamariweb.com/islam/hadith/sahih-bukhari-6517/ He also stated that he wasn't the best of all when a Muslim said that he was superior to everyone]].

** UsefulNotes/{{Muhammad}} stated that he was a mortal human and that he never wanted to be worshipped as a God or a Demigod. This is why he and other prophets are not visually depicted in mainstream Islam. [[https://hamariweb.com/islam/hadith/sahih-bukhari-6517/ He also stated that he wasn't the best of all when a Muslim said that he was superior to everyone]].

** Muhammad stated that he was a mortal human and that he never wanted to be worshipped as a God or a Demigod. This is why he and other prophets are not visually depicted in mainstream Islam. [[https://hamariweb.com/islam/hadith/sahih-bukhari-6517/ He also stated that he wasn't the best of all when a Muslim said that he was superior to everyone]].

* In contrast to the Christian New Teatament; in ''Literature/TheQuran'', Jesus ''does'' do this, claiming that he's merely a prophet and not God.

* ''VideoGame/GalaxyAngelII'': In the climax of ''Eigou Kaiki no Toki'', [[TheHero Kazuya]] is empowered by the six Gatekeepers from the universes of EDEN, NEUE, PHOS, RUIN, ALTE and SKIA, becoming a match for the Will. They directly ask in shock if he's the true god of the universe, which he denies, stating that he's "just Kazuya Shiranami, nothing less, nothing more".

** Whereas in ''Literature/TheQuran'', Jesus ''does'' do this, claiming that he's merely a prophet and not God.

* Rudy Tabootie in ''WesternAnimation/ChalkZone'' invokes this. Although he possesses magic chalk capable of creating anything his imagination and skills can create, he only really uses it [[Franchise/DoctorWho akin to how the Doctor uses his Cosmic Screwdriver]]. Rudy went so far as to swear to NEVER make another living being with the chalk unless it is under the most dire of circumstances.

** Rudy Tabootie in ''WesternAnimation/ChalkZone'' invokes this. Although he possesses magic chalk capable of creating anything his imagination and skills can create, he only really uses it [[Franchise/DoctorWho akin to how the Doctor uses his Cosmic Screwdriver]]. Rudy went so far as to swear to NEVER make another living being with the chalk unless it is under the most dire of circumstances.

* ''LightNovel/GonnaBeTheTwinTail'': Souji ([[GenderBender as Tail Red]]) is accused by Isuna that with all the merchandise and the worship he gets because of his divine twintails, s[=/=]he might as well be a god. Souji denies this and only thinks of himself as a protector of twintails. All of it is PlayedForLaughs.

* Haile Selassie had this reaction to his meetings with Rastafarians, who believed him to be the Second Coming of Christ. Selassie, who was a devout member of the Coptic church, spent significiant amounts of time discouraging people from worshipping him.

* ''Fanfic/{{Fractured}}'': The representative of the Trans-Galactic Republic insists neither he (as the personification of the Trans-Galactic Republic) nor the government itself are gods/godlike, a presumption thrust upon them due to vast technological superiority ([[CurbStompBattle Destroying the Reapers]] tends to win applause.)

* ''LightNovel/GonnaBeTheTwinTail'': Souji ([[GenderBender as Tail Red]]) is accused by Isuna that with all the merchandise and the worship he gets because of his divine twintails, s[=/=]he might as well be a god. Souji denies this and only thinks of himself as a protector of twintails. [[WidgetSeries Yes, it's that kind of series]] and all of it is PlayedForLaughs.

* ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4353554/1/In-Denial-We-Trust In Denial We Trust]]'', a ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' fanfic, shows what happens when a [[MemeticBadass suspicious]] copper gets caught between his cynicism, [[NayTheist the people he taught to be suspicious,]] and the Disc's [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve tendency to create new gods]] [[GodNeedsPrayerBadly if enough people is believing,]] even if it's in the cover-up...

* ''Fanfic/RitesOfAscension'': Celestia and Luna are extremely insistent on not being worshipped and deny being physical gods. History has [[DrunkOnTheDarkSide provided them with]] some fairly convincing [[DivineConflict reasons]] [[AGodAmI as]] [[CivilWar to]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E1MareInTheMoon why]].

** In ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'', we learn about the origin of the Avatar Cycle, and [[spoiler:see Raava, the spirit of light and peace, who fused with Wan to become the first Avatar, and she's a major case of GoodIsNotNice, showing significant FantasticRacism towards humans, only warming up to Wan after they learn they need to work together to stop the UnseenEvil of the Avatar-verse, Vaatu, who escaped because Raava dismissed Wan. They eventually [[FusionDance fuse together]] during Harmonic Convergence, and work together to defeat Vaatu and turn him into SealedEvilInACan. Thus, the idea that the Avatar must know a human life, to prevent such an event from recurring]].

* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles1'' has three "gods," each with their own opinion of their godhood. [[spoiler:Zanza]] not only embraces his power, but it [[AGodAmI completely goes]] [[GodIsEvil to his head]] and [[ItsAllAboutMe he sees all lifeforms as his food, and to have the gall to want to leave him is blasphemy]]. [[spoiler:Meyneth]], while accepting her role as a god, does not flaunt it, and [[GodIsGood is beloved by her people]] due to empathizing with them and treating them as friends (which [[spoiler:Zanza]] finds ridiculous). [[spoiler:Shulk]], the straightest (or only, if you don't count [[spoiler:Meyneth]]) example, outright rejects his gift of godhood, instead [[spoiler:relinquishing his power and wishing for a world without the need for gods]].
** Its sequel ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' plays with this. [[spoiler:Zanza's]] AlternateSelf [[spoiler:Klaus/the Architect]] likewise created all life on Alrest and is revered as such by those who believe he exists, but he seems to regard himself as only a man, albeit a man who has overseen life on an entire world for millennia. Furthermore, he has remained completely removed from the world since its creation rather than having active designs like [[spoiler:Zanza]] or [[spoiler:Meyneth]]. Notably he believes that he himself is a subject of divine retribution, viewing his broken state as punishment for his sin of misusing the Conduit (which he likewise considers to be of divine or near-divine origin).

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': The [[GodEmperor Emperor of mankind]] refused to identify as a god and tried to put a ban on worshipping him; despite this, many of his subjects [[UnwantedFalseFaith started a cult worshiping him]]. While it was just a fringe faith at first, it started to grow in popularity during the events that lead up to the Literature/HorusHeresy, until it was eventually officially adopted, and the church around it became one of the most powerful institutions within the Imperium. The Emperor, upon his "ascension" to the Golden Throne, [[SubvertedTrope may have accepted this role]], partly out of necessity and partly because [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve reality can be warped by lots of people believing in something]]. Although if one were to ask him today, [[AndIMustScream he would make no comments on the subject]]. More specifically, he tried to construct the Imperium on complete atheism, despite the fact that [[{{Naytheist}} he knew full well about Chaos]]. A more cynical take on this trope which Website/FourChan proposed is that while the Emperor has no problem accepting the adoration of trillions, he specifically bans people praying to him. Ie, he enjoys the perks of godhood and not the responsibilities.

* In ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'', this is a defining character trait for Harry. As the son of Thor, he is a demigod and is constantly growing in power to the point of potentially being one of the most powerful gods of all (and even if plenty of others will have more raw power, he's got a wider range of abilities). However, even he is disturbed at how powerful he already is, and spends a long time in denial about just what his new situation means. Even once he comes to accept it, he's still uncomfortable with the thought of being worshiped. This is best shown during the climax of the first book's FinalBattle, when [[spoiler: [[EldritchAbomination Chthon]]]] attempts to pull a GrandTheftMe on him, offering him enough power to reshape reality to his whim. Harry responds by [[ShutUpHannibal telling him to stuff it]], and [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu banishing him from reality]].

* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' episode "Who Watches the Watchers", a misunderstanding leads to the Captain being mistaken for a god, called "the Picard", by primitive aliens. Their worshipful behavior deeply disturbs him and he goes to great lengths to correct it, up to and including a direct violation of the Prime Directive (which in this case has already been violated by the accidental exposure) by bringing the aliens' local leader up to the ''Enterprise'' for a guided tour. He makes a valiant attempt to explain that humans are more like {{Sufficiently Advanced Alien}}s (and far from omnipotent or perfect). The leader finally accepts it after seeing them try and fail to save the life of an injured crewman. Later, Picard was willing to have his first believer shoot him with an arrow to finally dissuade him.

[[folder:Anime & Manga ]]
* Eris from ''Literature/CatPlanetCuties'' finds herself being worshipped by the cult The Underside of the Kitten's Paw (a group of people who just really adore cats), due to her real cat ears and tail. Her two commands as their "Divine Embodiment" are to stop worshipping her and to live their own lives.
* ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'':
** Anthy is the Rose Bride: the [[spoiler: immortal or possibly undying]] holder of the all-powerful Sword of Dios. She just wants to be a normal girl and is generally depressed about being the Rose Bride. [[spoiler:In truth, her pain runs far deeper than that. And it's up to Utena to ''actually'' help her get free... and ultimately succeeds.]]
** Inverted by her [[AGodAmI power-mad]] [[spoiler:and also immortal or possibly undying]] brother Akio, who wants the power of Dios for himself [[spoiler:after he fell in despair and selfishness, abandoned the people whom he used to protect, and became the [[BigBad villain]] and the person behind poor Anthy's painful, cruel situation]].
* Medaka from ''Manga/MedakaBox''. Numerous characters including her siblings remark on her being the pinnacle of perfection. Yet she sees herself as just another flawed being (which admittedly is true) though this may be through a desire to convince herself of that rather than anyone else. This gets played with when, due to her continuously escalating power set due to her AllYourPowersCombined ability, she begins to be more and more isolated from everyone else, and begins to deal with everything herself. Then her best friend and LoveInterest has to convince her that this is dumb and no one wants her to be some perfect inhuman helper because they all love her for her.
* [[ZigZaggedTrope Zig-zagged]] in ''Manga/BlackJack''. On the one hand, people often refer to Black Jack as 'the surgeon with the hands of God'; but on the other many of this series' stories revolve around how doctors ''can't'' fix everything, and that even the most brilliant surgeon in the world can occasionally lose patients to [[DeusAngstMachina arbitrary causes.]]
* Yurie from ''Anime/{{Kamichu}}'' is completely unassuming and seems vaguely uncomfortable about the obligations of her new divine status.
* The ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' franchise has the [[CloneJesus clone]] of the [[CrystalDragonJesus last Sankt Kaiser]], [[spoiler:Vivio Takamachi]], who is quite insistent about being a normal little girl despite her origins (or at least, as normal as a girl in a setting where EveryoneIsASuper could be). For their part, the [[SaintlyChurch Saint Church]] officially treats her as the descendant of their Christ figure and not the Christ figure herself, though some don't see it that way.
* Downplayed in ''Anime/AngelBeats''; Tenshi/Angel says she's not an angel. [[spoiler:It's true; Kanade Tachibana is a human just like the protagonists.]]
* The Silver King, Adolf K. Weismann, in ''Anime/{{K}}'' never wanted to be the most powerful and only immortal, and is uncomfortable with being revered as such. Several of the Kings have this to some extent, but he fits the most, as he is the only one that some people think of as a god.

* Downplayed in ''Manga/RosarioPlusVampire''. Tsukune Aono has been beaten to a pulp multiple times, injected with enough vampire blood to make Alucard cry, [[spoiler: chained with a holy lock post-ghouldom]], stabbed in the vitals three times, trained by Inner Moka until even ''Koko'' admits his kata is getting good, [[spoiler: ''partially vampirized'', infused with InstantRunes, and sent to attack Fairy Tale]]. Physical feats include shielding his friends from monstrel appendages of various sizes (ranging from elastic human to ''draconian''), holding back an Inner-Moka doppelganger with his bare hands, grabbing a ''phoenix'' by the beak, and [[spoiler:ordering a yoko "Out of my way, Kuyo. [[BadassBoast Or I'll slay you where you stand.]]"]] And yet he refuses to call himself a vampire. He is ''human'', and he will ''always acknowledge himself as human''. [[spoiler:Ultimately subverted when his roller-coaster ride ends with him at the pinnacle of monsterhood: a ''[[OurVampiresAreDifferent/AnimeAndManga shinso]]''. Thankfully, his experience (both his own and those of his friends and the {{Reasonable Authority Figure}}s in the school) tempers his power and gives him something important: perspective. He joins the school's cause to bridge the human[=/=]monster divide.]]
* During the final battle of ''Manga/SoulEater'', [[BigBad Asura]] ([[PunyEarthlings who considers humans weak insignificant scum]]) comments on Black☆Star's incredible strength, saying he could well be considered a 'warrior god'. Black☆Star, however, refuses the god title, saying that he is a human that surpasses gods. Kid comes to this conclusion and sides with humanity out of a desire to compromise with mortals rather than rule over/terrorise/otherwise abuse them as several of his [[EldritchAbomination fellows]] [[AnthropomorphicPersonification had]] [[MadGod done]].
* In ''Literature/HaruhiSuzumiya'', Haruhi herself is theorized to be God and the creator of the universe by at least one of the espers she empowered. That's not the trope ([[LockedOutOfTheLoop she's completely unaware of her powers]]), that's the context. This trope comes up when another esper thinks a completely different person ([[spoiler:Kyon's old friend Sasaki]]) is God. Unlike Haruhi, this person is perfectly aware of how others see her but doesn't see herself as particularly divine. She's very easy-going though, so she doesn't make a fuss about it one way or another.
* Solomon from ''Manga/MagiLabyrinthOfMagic'' wielded such awe-inspiring power that the non-human species he liberated from his father King David started to worship him as their god. [[StopWorshippingMe Solomon did not approve (to the point of smashing the statues they build in his name)]].
* Souji ([[GenderBender as Tail Red]]) in ''LightNovel/GonnaBeTheTwinTail'' is accused by Isuna that with all the merchandise and the worship he gets because of his divine twintails, s[=/=]he might as well be a god. Souji denies this and only thinks of himself as a protector of twintails. [[WidgetSeries Yes, it's that kind of series]] and all of it is PlayedForLaughs.
* Holo from ''Literature/SpiceAndWolf'' is a PhysicalGoddess in [[LittleBitBeastly "mostly"]] human form (her true form being that of a [[CanisMajor wolf the size of a bus]]). She keeps insisting that she's no god though as she dislikes the way she's treated by those who fear or worship her, and she would much prefer to be treated the same as anyone else.
* Discussed at the end of ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'', at which point Simon has gained so much Spiral Power he could certainly be considered god-like in some respects. Gimmy suggests Simon use his Spiral Power to [[spoiler:resurrect Nia]], but the idea is shot down because, powerful though he may be, Simon is not a god and should not go around trying to act like one. Simon insists on living a humble life as an anonymous wanderer, helping people out with their little day-to-day problems wherever he goes.
* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', Mr. 2 Bon Clay describes Emporio Ivankov as a miracle worker who's saved the lives of people who were on the brink of death and even whole countries. When they meet in person, Ivankov flat out denies being any sort of divine being, and that the lives he saved were just those who could force their bodies to recuperate thanks to his healing hormones.
* At the end of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'', Madoka tells Kyubey her wish to [[spoiler:rewrite every Witch out of existence, including those in the past and the future so there can be no more suffering anymore. After Kyubey warns her that this wish will rewrite reality and the time-space continuum]], it asks her if she's trying to become a god, where Madoka responds that she doesn't care what she's called.

* ''Film/{{Airplane}}'': PlayedForLaughs in the LA Spanish dub as a {{Woolseyism}} adapted from the famous "don't call me Shirley" quote.
-->'''Ted''': God, you can't be serious!\\
'''Rumack''': I am serious, and I am not God.