Egyptian Gods

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Egyptian Gods
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Introduction

• What is now known as Egyptian mythology was the
  religion of Ancient Egypt (3300-30 BC)
• The Egyptian gods were represented with human
  torsos and human or animal heads
• The ka, a duplicate of the body, accompanied the
  body throughout life and, after death, departed
  from the body to take its place in the kingdom of
  the dead
• The ka, however, could not exist without the
  body the corpse had to be preserved. Bodies were
  embalmed and mummified
• After arriving in the kingdom of the dead, the ka
  was judged by Anubis/Osiris, the king of the dead
  (feather test).

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Part I. Egyptian mythology

• The Egyptians believed that in the beginning, the
  universe was filled with the dark waters of chaos
  
• The first god, Ra (The Sun God), appeared from
  the water as the land of Egypt appears every year
  out of the flood waters of the Nile
• Ra spat and out of the spittle came out the gods
  Shu (air) and Tefnut (moisture)
• The world was created when Shu Tefnut gave
  birth to 2 children Nut (sky) Geb (the Earth)

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• Osiris was the son of Geb and Nut and king of
  Egypt. His brother Seth represented evil in the
  universe
• He murdered Osiris and himself became the king.
  After killing Osiris, Seth tore his body into
  pieces, but Isis (The wife of Osiris) rescued
  most of the pieces for burial beneath the temple
• Seth made himself king but was challenged by
  Osiris's son-Horus. Seth lost and was sent to the
  desert. He became the God of terrible storms.
• Osiris was mummified by Anubis and became God of
  the dead. Horus became the King and from him
  descended the pharaohs.

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Eye of Horus
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Part I. Egyptian mythology

• Egypt had a highly developed view of the
  afterlife with elaborate rituals for preparing
  the body and soul for a peaceful life after death
  
• Beliefs about the soul and afterlife focused
  heavily on preservation of the body, or ba (the
  soul was known as the ka). This meant that
  embalming and mummification were practiced, in
  order to preserve the individual's identity in
  the afterlife
• The intestines, lungs, liver and the stomach were
  preserved separately and stored in canopic jars
  protected by the Four sons of Horus

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• Isis Egyptian Mother Goddess wife of Osiris
• Osiris Egyptian God of the dead and the
  underworld
• One of the four children of the earth (Geb) and
  the sky (Nut)
• Horus the Eye of Horus is an important Egyptian
  symbol of power
• God of the sky, Horus became depicted as a
  falcon, or as a falcon-headed man
• Son of Isis and Osiris

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Isis
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Other Gods

• Bast Egyptian cat goddess of the home and of the
  domestic cat daughter of the sun god Ra
• Sobek Egyptian crocodile god aids in the
  destruction of Seth
• Anubis Egyptian god of the dead/embalming,
  represented as a black jackal or dog
• Apophis God of Evil, Chaos

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Other Gods

• Bes Protector of Households (Mothers and
  Children, Childbirth)
• Nekhbet Goddess of Upper Egypt
• Nephthys Goddess of Night, Tomb, Mourning
• Thoth God of the Moon, Writing, Knowledge

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Part IV. Animals

• Many creatures were also mummified, sometimes
  thought to be pets of Egyptian families, but more
  likely they were the representations of the Gods.
  The ibis, crocodile, cats, nile perch and baboon
  can be found in perfect mummified forms