Egyptian Mythology

## Major Gods

* Ra - Heliopolis
	+ Major Egyptian god who created the sun, sky, earth and underworld
	+ Was the god of the sun, sky, order, and kings
	+ Ra also created all life, and in one myth it is said his tears and sweat became the first human, which is why some Egpytians referred to themselves as the Cattle of Ra
	+ Was portrayed often has having a falcon head, and human body
	+ In the New Kingdom was merged with the god Amun, who was rising in popularity, to become Amun-Ra
	+ Was important part of daily life, as he traveled across the sky in his bark during the day, and through the underworld at night. In the underworld everyday he had to defeat the serpent Apep/Apopis in order to be reborn and emerge again. It was said the world would end the day Apopis defeated Ra.
	+ Came into existence when he emerged from the sea of chaos
	+ Maat, the personification of truth, order, and justice, was one of his daughters
	+ Egyptian rulers were often called the Sons of Ra
* Isis
	+ Isis is derived from the Greek form of the Egyptian word for throne
	+ She had the role of mourner, healer, and mother, allowing her to be a role model for many, especially women
	+ She was a goddess of magic, healing, weaving, motherhood, and many other things, she was a very diverse goddess.
	+ She was adopted into the Roman religious tradition, which allowed the worship of her to spread far and wide. This was the case with many Egyptian gods and goddesses, but Isis was the most widely worshipped outside of Egypt
	+ She was a later goddess compared to others, and initially was not a very significant goddess but gradually became more important as time went on
	+ Was the daughter of Gab the Earth god, and Nut the sky goddess, along with her siblings Osiris, Set, and Nephthys
	+ She was wife to Osiris, who was king of Egypt. He was sealed in a lead coffin and tossed into a river by Set, who then became ruler. Isis then located the chest, but upon learning this Set chopped up his body and spread the pieces.
	+ Isis transformed into a bird and recruited Nephthys' help, and with time was able to piece back together Osiris. He was then resurrected by Isis and became a mummy, and then proceeded to retreat to the underworld and become king of the dead.
	+ Isis then raised their son Horus in secret until he could avenge his father and battle Set, which he eventually succeeded in doing so.
* Set
	+ He Was the son of Gab the Earth god, and Nut the sky goddess, along with his siblings Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys
	+ Was the god of deserts, foreign lands, earthquakes, thunderstorms, eclipses, and sometimes even war. He was also a guide to the dead and patron god of pharaohs, especially Ramses the Great
	+ His most famous story is his attempt to usurp power from Osiris and his eventual defeat by Horus
	+ After his defeat he joined Ra on his barge, helping protect him from Apep/Apopis in the underworld
	+ He is usually depicted as a dog like animal with a forked tail, but could take on many animal forms
	+ He was father of Anubis in some accounts, who he fathered with Nephthys
* Anubis
	+ Was the god of the afterlife and mummification
	+ Was a guide to the dead, and was a patron god of lost souls and the helpless as well
	+ Is one of the oldest gods in Egypt, being worshipped before even the first dynasty of Egypt, which last in the centuries surround 3000 BCE
	+ Depicted as a jackal-human hybrid
	+ His parents differ by myth, but the most popular ended up being Osiris and Nephthys when Osiris started taking up the role being the primary god of the afterlife
	+ Was the earliest god to be featured on tomb walls
	+ His daughter is Qebhet/Kabechet, a god who brought cool water to the souls of the dead and comforted the newly deceased
	+ Despite his immense popularity he really plays no role in myths, he is often depicted as attending the scale weighing in the afterlife
* Bast
	+ A lioness goddess closely associated with another lioness goddess, Sekhmet, who was a more ferocious and extreme Bast more or less
	+ Was a goddess of protection, and was also goddess of cats, arts, crafts, fertility, pregnancy, and music among other things
	+ Usually depicted carrying the ancient musical instrument, the sistrum.
	+ Early on in Egyptian mythology Bast was more ferocious, much like Sekhmet. But when the cat was domesticated around 1500 BCE, she became more gentle, and Sekhment absorbed her more ferocious qualities
	+ Often said to be a wife to Ptah
* Ptah
	+ Was credited with the creation of the world through speech, and was also a god of metal and craftsmanship
	+ Is depicted as being a husband of Bast and/or Sekhmet, and the great Egyptian scientist and engineer Imhotep was said to be a child of his
	+ The Ankh was an important symbol of his
* Sekhmet
	+ Was a warrior, protector, and healer goddess who was said to be a daughter of Ra and more rarely Hathor
	+ Is closely associated with Bast and to a degree Hathor as well, being a more aggressive and extreme form of them both
	+ Like Bast was a lioness goddess, and also like Bast was said to a wife to Ptah
	+ Was closely associated with the solar disk as well
	+ Was nicknamed the Eye of Ra, though this was not exclusive to her. This is because it was often said Ra's eye became Sekhmet and came to Earth to destroy the wicked enemies of Ra
* Hathor
	+ Was usually in the form of a cow-woman, and like Sekhmet was said to be a child of Ra, or at least came into being from his eye, gaining her the name "Eye of Ra,"
	+ Like the other Eyes of Ra, such as Sekhmet and Bast, she was a goddess of protection and vengeance as well
	+ Was an early goddess, and later became to primary patroness of the dead. Was one of the more popular gods in Egypt
	+ Was goddess of love, beauty, dancing, pleasure, and women to a large degree, as mainly women worshipped her. This led to the Greeks associating her with Aphrodite
	+ Her role in Egyptian mythology diminished in the later centuries of Egyptian mythology, as Isis largely usurped many of her roles
* Nephthys
	+ Was goddess of the air, temple service, mourning, and was an afterlife goddess. She was associated with funerary rites and mummification.
	+ Was the daughter of Geb and Nut, and thus siblings with Isis, Osiris, and Set. Was Set's consort in most myths, but was also bore Anubis with Osiris, whom she seduced.
	+ She was also associated with motherhood and the role of women in the home
	+ Usually depicted as human. and not animal in appearance, sometimes with mummy wrappings
* Osiris
	+ Was ruler of the dead, resurrection and the underworld, as well as a god of kings and pharaohs
	+ Eldest son of Geb and Nut, and sibling of Nephthys, Isis, and Set, with Isis being his wife and mother of his son Horus, and Nephthys was mother to his son Anubis
	+ Was generally depicted with mummy wrappings
	+ The crook and the flail are important symbols of his, which is is usually depicted holding in his crossed arms across his chest
	+ The story of his murder by Set, and resurrection later by Isis, was one of the most popular in Egypt
	+ Was also associated with the annual flooding of the Nile, and this fertility
	+ Some Greco-Roman authors associated him with Dionysus in some ways
* Thoth
	+ Was usually depicted with the head of an Ibis, and was the god of wisdom, scribes/writing, magic, and the moon
	+ He was also closely associated with judgement, specifically the judgement of the dead where he was often depicted in hieroglyphics. He was also often said to be the husband of Ma'at
	+ He was also a representative/messenger for the gods, earning him association with Hermes
	+ In Osiris' myth was said in some accounts to have protected Isis during her pregnancy and to have healed Horus of his wounds following his battles with Set
* Horus
	+ Was the son of Isis and Osiris and adversary to his uncle Set
	+ Usually had the appearance of a human-falcon hybrid, which earned him close associated with Ra at times
	+ Was a god of kingship and the sky, as well as vengeance
	+ He, like Zeus, was a merging of many different Falcon cults that were prevalent in predynastic Egypt
	+ Hathor is usually depicted as his wife, and rarely his mother
	+ The eye of Horus was an important symbol of his, and today remains the most widely recognized symbol of ancient Egypt
	+ Was the first national god of Egypt
	+ The story of his avenging of his father's death at the hands of Set, and his subsequent rise to become pharaoh of Egypt, is one of the most famous myths from Egypt
	+ Was closely associated with Apollo by the Greeks, and Egyptians even referred to Apollo as Horus in their own language
	+ Often depicted wearing the double crown of Egypt
	+ It was said Horus' right eye was the sun, and his left the moon

## Greco-Egyptian God Associations

* Ra - Helios, Zeus
* Isis - Isis (Isis cults were quite prevalent in Rome and a lesser degree Greece)
	+ Hera could also be argued
* Set - Ares (due to what aspects he ruled over), Typhoon (due to role in mythology)
* Anubis - Thanatos, Pluto, Charon
* Bast - Artemis, Enyo
* Ptah - Hephaestus, Prometheus
* Sekhmet - Athena, Enyo
* Nephythys - Hestia, Persephone
* Hathor - Aphrodite
* Osiris - Hades, Dionysus
* Thoth - Hermes
* Horus - Apollo