Beast King GoLion was created in 1981.

Not intentionally. However, the similarities are obvious when you think about it. Ialdabaoth challenged his mother, the goddess Sophia, by saying that he was the only god in all of Creation. She responded (in one story) by revealing the true majesty of the unknowable God unto him and then casting him into the Abyss. In GoLion, the robot GoLion channenges the Goddess of the Universe and she responds by chastising him and then casting him into space... splitting him into five lions in the process. Both Ialdabaoth and GoLion were lion deities. In fact, GoLion is actually enshrined as the guardian deity of a whole planet at the end of the GoLion anime series. And Sophia would actually be the Goddess of the Universe from a Gnostic point of view. Maybe the Japanese enjoy putting in little nods to western religions in some of their anime? In the manga Peacock King there was even something to do with the Holy Grail being the skull of Jesus. So you never know. It is entirely possible.

The first Voltron cartoon was based on the Japanese anime Beast King GoLion and was made in 1984. A second iteration followed based on Armored Fleet Dairugger XV. Combined they lasted from the fall of 1984 to the fall of 1985. Other Voltron appearances include a 1986 special, a 1998 series, a 2011 series, and a 2016 reboot on Netflix. There have also been some Voltron comic books produced in 1985 and 2008.

Voltron is a Japanese Animation cartoon that was originally called "Beast King GoLion." The footage was taken and used to make "Voltron." Voltron is a robot that is compiled of (5) lions. The lions have different colors and form to complete "Voltron." The colors of the lions are: Black, Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow.

The cartoon aired in the 1980's but is coming back for a "new cartoon" called "Votron: Lion Force" in Spring 2011.

Source: http://www.voltrons.com