By Nick Hypki

The Egyptian Religion

Ra (Re)

• Ra is the god of the sun• Although there are many

aspects of the sun that are represented by different deities and their composites, Ra is the primary sun-god

• Thought to be the King of the Gods

The Great Ennead of Heliopolis

Atum

Osiris

Shu

Geb Nut

Tefnut

SetIsisNephthys

Atum

• Atum was the primeval sun god who created himself from the waters of Nun (primordial waters of chaos), and then created all else

• After creating himself from Nun, he spat out Shu and Tefnut

Shu

• Shu was the god of air

• Consort of Tefnut• The feather in his

headdress symbolized truth

• Shu and Tefnut gave birth to Geb and Nut. However, Geb and Nut were inseparable, so Atum ordered Shu to separate them

Tefnut

• Tefnut was the goddess of moisture

• Tefnut was the mother of Geb and Nut

• Consort of Shu

Nut• Nut was the goddess of the sky

• Consort of Geb• Together, Geb and Nut had four children:

Osiris, Set, Isis, Nephthys

Geb (Geib)

• Geb was the god of earth• Consort of Nut• Geb gave Nut four children

before they were separated by Shu

Shu separating Geb and Nut

Osiris

• Osiris was the king of the underworld

• Associated with the Ma’at, or the weighing of the soul

• Osiris was also the god of agriculture and rebirth

• Brother and husband of Isis• Father of Horus

Isis• Isis had many roles; She was

considered to be a goddess of fertility, and protector of the dead

• Sister and wife of Osiris• Mother of Horus– After Set had killed Osiris, Isis

had to hide in the swamps of the Nile River to raise their son, Horus.

Set (Seth)

• Set was the god of chaos and the desert, which also entailed infertility

• Brother and husband of Nephthys• Enemy of both Osiris (for infidelity),

and Horus (his opponent in the battle for the sky and all of Egypt)

• Set was not always depicted as evil, in other variants he helped the sun-god defeat Apep every night

Nephthys

• Nephthys was a goddess of death and mourning, but was also considered to be the female counterpart of Set

• Nephthys also helped represent the air

• Sister and wife of Set• It was Nephthys’ infidelity with

Osiris that caused Set to chop Osiris into pieces and scatter him across the Nile River

Apep (Apophis)• Apep was the spirit of evil, darkness, and

destruction; He was diametrically opposed to the sun-god, Ra

• Every night, as the sun-god Ra traversed the underworld, he would be assaulted by the great serpent, Apep.

Ma’at (Maat)

• Ma’at was more of an aspect, than a deity. What the Egyptians called Ma’at, was morality, or the weight of one’s soul

• But, Ma’at the deity, was the goddess of harmony, justice, and truth

Horus• Horus is the son of Osiris and

Isis, and one of the many aspects of the sun

• After Set chopped Osiris to pieces for sleeping with his wife (Nephthys), Isis gathered the pieces of Osiris and used them to create Horus – Horus later battled with Set to

try and avenge his father, Osiris.

Egyptian Religion

Deities are Personifications

• "[Man] understands his gods as personifications of the principles of Nature; life and death, generation and production, all these forces become the deities who rule the universe. And, as we have seen, the gods of Egypt were no exception to the rule, but provide ample demonstration of it." (Shorter 127)

Struggle Between Sun-God and Osiris

• “[T]he whole history of the Egyptian religion may be summarised as a struggle for supremacy between two great elements of Nature, the Sun (Ra, Atum, Horus, [Amun]) and the god of the soil, vegetation, and the Nile (Osiris)." (Shorter 127)

Fixation on the Afterlife

• "[T]he majority of an ancient Egyptian's aspirations were directed not to this life but to the world beyond the grave. It is true that the Egyptians wished for the usual amenities of life, the pleasure, freedom from care, and length of days which all mankind desire, but the bulk of their religious activities were expended on preparation for the day of burial, and for eternity after that." (Shorter 128)

Book of the Dead• According to the Egyptians, after death, the dead

had to travel through the underworld to reach Osiris and be judged

• This journey could not be completed without a set of powerful spells to help them travel through the gates, and defeat the monsters. This book was known as the Book of the Dead, or as the Book of Gates

• These spells were often written on the walls of the tombs of the dead

Post-Mortem Process

• When a pharaoh, or other important person died, they would be mummified.

• The process of mummification meant:– Removing the organs(livers, stomach, lungs,

and intestines), and placing them in their proper canopic jars

– The body was embalmed, and then wrapped. – The mummy was finally placed inside the

casket, and put in its proper burial location.

Four Sons of Horus

The Four Canopic Jars

• The Four Sons of Horus were: Ismety, Hapy, Duamutef, and Qebehsenuef. These sons guarded the canopic jars of the deceased– Ismety was the human-headed protector of the

liver– Duamutef was the jackal-headed protector of

the stomach– Hapy was the baboon-headed protector of the

lungs– Qebehsenuef was the falcon-headed protector

of the intestines

Horus’ Four Sons

Anubis

• God of Embalming• It was also thought that Anubis was

one of the gods that helped protect the dead

• Along with Osiris, he was associated with the weighing of the Ma’at in the underworld

• Anubis is the offspring of the infidelity between Osiris and Nephthys that caused Set to murder Osiris

Ammit (Amemet)

• Ammit was the beast that devoured the souls of the unworthy

• Depicted as a beast with the head of crocodile, the mane and upper body of lion, and the lower body of a hippo

Weighing of the Soul

The soul was weighed against the Feather of Truth on the Scale of Ma’at by Anubis

Thoth

• God of writing, magic, and medicine• Recorded all results of the trials in

the Hall of Ma’at, where the dead were judged in front of Osiris

• Restored Horus’ left eye after it was lost in the battle with Set

Ptah

• Patron of sculptors, carpenters, masons, and other craftsmen

• Thought to have invented masonry

• In other stories of creation, it is said that Ptah was the one who created the world and all of the other gods

• Bes was the guardian of the household and children

• He was depicted as a dwarfed and disfigured man

BES

The Eye of Ra

• The Eye of Ra was thought to be many different goddesses, including Hathor, Bast, and Sekhmet– Hathor was also thought to have been transformed into a

leonine form (such as Bast or Sekhmet,) by Ra • Ra punished humanity for their sins by sending his

daughter to slaughter them all– When Ra finally realized what he had done, he called for his

leonine daughter to stop, but she was in a bloodlust rage– In order to make her stop, he flooded the fields with 7,000

jugs of beer and pomegranate juice. The Eye of Ra feasted upon this “blood” until she passed out, saving humanity

Hathor

• Hathor was the goddess of music, dance, joy, children, childbirth, and fertility

• Hathor was typically displayed as a cow-head woman

• Thought to have been transformed into the “Eye of Ra”

Bast (Bastet)

• Bast was the goddess of cats• She was also considered to be a

protector god, as cats often ate disease-carrying vermin

• A possible form of the “Eye of Ra”

Sekhmet

• Sekhmet was the lion-headed goddess of destruction, pestilence and war

• Was a fierce protector of the pharaoh

• A more conceivable aspect of the “Eye of Ra”

Symbols and Items

Items and Symbols

Eye of Horus

• During the battle with Set, Horus lost his left eye

• His left eye represented the moon, and his right represented the sun

• Thoth restored the Eye of Horus, thus giving Thoth an association with the moon

• The Eye of Horus later became a symbol for life, healing, and protection

AnkhThe Ankh was a symbol of life, and thus was called the “Key of Life”

This object is commonly carried by

Egyptian gods and goddesses

Djed (Ded)

• The Djed Pillar was a symbol of stability and durability

• May have represented the four pillars that help Shu support the sky

Was Scepter

• The Was Scepter was a symbol of power and dominion

• It was often wielded by the pharaohs and the gods of Egypt

Crook and Flail

• Ceremonial symbols of power wielded by pharaohs and gods• Crook (Heqa or Heka Scepter)• Flail (Nekhakha or Nekhata)

Crowns of Egypt

THE END

Questions?Comments?Concerns?