At first, there was only Nun. Nun was the dark waters of chaos
One day, a hill rose up out of the waters. This hill was called Ben-Ben.
On this hill stood Atum, the first God.
Atum coughed and spat out Shu, the god of the air, and Tefnut, the Goddess of Moisture.
Shu and Tefnut had two children. First, there was Geb, the God of the Earth. Then, there was Nut, the Goddess of the Sky.
Shu lifted Nut up so that she became a canopy over Geb.
Nut and Geb had four children named Osiris, Isis, Seth and Nephthys.
Osiris was the king of the earth and Isis was the queen. Osiris was a good king, and he ruled over the earth for many years. However, everything was not
well. Seth was jealous of Osiris because he wanted to be the ruler of the earth. He grew angrier and angrier until one day he killed Osiris.
Osiris went down into the underworld and Seth remained on earth and became king.
Osiris and Isis had one son called Horus. Horus battled against Seth and regained the throne.
After that, Horus was the king of the Earth and Osiris was the king of the Underworld.
The End
Nun
The ancient Egyptians believed in many different Gods and Goddesses. Each one with their own role to play in maintaining peace and harmony across the land.
Some gods and Goddesses took part in creation, some brought the flood every year, some offered protection, and some took care of people after they died.
Others were either local gods who represented towns, or minor gods who represented plants or animals.
The ancient Egyptians believed that it was important to recognize and worship these gods and goddesses so that life continued smoothly.
Meet the Egyptian Gods and Goddess :
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- Atum
Atum
'The All' or 'Perfection'
Appearance: Man with the double crown
Atum was a creator God.
The ancient Egyptians believed that Atum was the first god to exist on earth.
- Shu
Shu
'He Who Rises Up'
Appearance: Man wearing a headdress with feathers or A lion
Shu was the god of the air.
Shu held up the figure of Nut so that the earth and the sky were separated.
- Tefnut
Tefnut
Appearance: Woman with the head of a lioness
Tefnut was the goddess of moisture.
She was the wife of Shu and the mother of Nut (the sky) and Geb (the earth).
- Geb & Nut
Geb & nut
Geb appearance:
* Man lying down below the arch of the sky goddess Nut
* Man with a goose on his head
Geb was the husband and brother of the sky goddess Nut. He was also the father of Osiris, Isis, Nepthys and Seth.
When Seth and Horus fought for the throne of Egypt, Geb made Horus the ruler of the living.
The ancient Egyptians believed that earthquakes were Geb's laughter.
Nut Appearance:
* Woman whose body arches across the sky, wearing a dress decorated with stars.
Nut was the sky-goddess, whose body created a vault or canopy over the earth.
Nut was the sister/wife of Geb, the god of the earth. She was also the mother of Isis, Osiris, Nepthys and Seth.
The ancient Egyptians believed that at the end of the day, Nut swallowed the sun-god, Ra, and gave birth to him again the next morning.
- Isis
Appearance:
Isis
* Woman with headdress in the shape of a throne
* A pair of cow horns with a sun disk
Isis was a protective goddess. She used powerful magic spells to help people in need.
Isis was the wife of Osiris and the mother of Horus.
Since each pharaoh was considered the 'living Horus', Isis was very important.
Isis is often shown holding Horus on her lap. Isis is associated with thrones because her lap was the first 'throne' that Horus sat upon.
This amulet is called the 'Isis knot' and is a symbol of protection.
A temple was built to honor Isis at Philae. It is still standing today.
- Osiris
Osiris
Appearance: A mummified man wearing a white cone-like headdress with feathers
Osiris was the god of the dead, and ruler of the underworld.
Osiris was the brother/husband of Isis, and the brother of Nepthys and Seth. He was also the father of Horus.
As well as being a god of the dead, Osiris was a god of resurrection and fertility. In fact, the ancient Egyptians believed that Osiris gave them the gift of
barley, one of their most important crops.
A large temple was built to honour Osiris at Abydos.
- Horus
Appearance:
Horus
* Man with the head of a hawk
* A hawk
Horus was a god of the sky.
He is probably most well-known as the protector of the ruler of Egypt.
The Egyptians believed that the pharaoh was the 'living Horus'.
The ancient Egyptians had many different beliefs about the god Horus. One of the most common beliefs was that Horus was the son of Isis and Osiris.
After Osiris was murdered by his brother Seth, Horus fought with Seth for the throne of Egypt.
In this battle, Horus lost one of his eyes. The eye was restored to him and it became a symbol of protection for the ancient Egyptians. After this battle,
Horus was chosen to be the ruler of the world of the living.
* Eye of Horus (Protection)
One of the best-preserved temples in Egypt today was dedicated to Horus. It is located in Upper Egypt at a town called Edfu.
Eye of Horus
- Seth
Seth
Appearance: Man with the head of a 'Seth animal'
Seth was the god of chaos.
Seth represented everything that threatened harmony in Egypt.
He was the brother of Osiris and Isis, as well as the brother/husband of Nepthys. He murdered his brother Osiris, then battled with his nephew Horus to be
the ruler of the living.
- Nephthys 'Lady of the Mansion'
Nephthys
Appearance: Woman with headdress showing her name in hieroglyphs
Nephthys was a protective goddess of the dead.
Nephthys was the sister of Isis and Osiris, and the sister/wife of Seth. Nephthys was also the mother of Anubis.
She is often shown on coffins, or in funerary scenes.
- Bastet
Bastet
Appearance: Woman with the head of a cat
Bastet was a protective goddess.
Bastet was usually seen as a gentle protective goddess. However, she sometimes appeared with the head of a lioness to protect the king in battle.
The cat was a symbol of Bastet. The ancient Egyptians made many statues of cats like this one to honour Bastet.
Bastet was one of the daughters of the sun god, Ra. A great temple was built in her honor at Bubastis in the Delta.
- Sekhmet 'The Powerful One'
Appearance: Woman with the head of a lioness
Sekhmet
Sekhmet was the goddess of war.
- Ra 'Sun'
Ra
Appearance: Man with hawk head and headdress with a sun disk
Ra was the sun god. He was the most important god of the ancient Egyptians.
The ancient Egyptians believed that Ra was swallowed every night by the sky goddess Nut, and was reborn every morning.
The ancient Egyptians also believed that he traveled through the underworld at night. In the underworld, Ra appeared as a man with the head of a ram.
- Anubis
Anubis
Appearance:
* Man with a jackal head
* A jackal
Anubis was the god of embalming and the dead.
Since jackals were often seen in cemeteries, the ancient Egyptians believed that Anubis watched over the dead.
Anubis was the god who helped to embalm Osiris after he was killed by Seth. Thus, Anubis was the god who watched over the process of mummifying people when
they died.
Priests often wore a mask of Anubis during mummification ceremonies.
- Hapy
Haby
Appearance:
Man with a pot belly, shown with water plants
Hapy was the god of the inundation.
Hapy was especially important to the ancient Egyptians because he brought the flood every year.
The flood deposited rich silt on the banks of the Nile, allowing the Egyptians to grow crops.
- Bes
Bes
Appearance:
* Dwarf with lion and human features
* Dwarf wearing the skin of a lion
Bes was the protector of pregnant women, newborn babies and the family.
The ancient Egyptians also believed that Bes protected against snake and scorpion bites.
Amulets of Bes were popular at all levels of Egyptian society.
- Hathor
Hathor
Appearance:
* Woman with the ears of a cow
* A cow
* Woman with a headdress of horns and a sun disk
Hathor was a protective goddess. She was also the goddess of love and joy.
Hathor was the wife of Horus, and was sometimes thought of as the mother of the pharaoh.
Hathor was connected with foreign places and materials. For instance, Hathor was the goddess of the desert and the turquoise mines in the Sinai.
A large temple was built to honour Hathor at Dendera.
- Khnum
Khnum
Appearance: an with the head of a curly-horned ram
Khnum was a creator god, and a god of the innundation.
Khnum was a creator-god, moulding people on a potter's wheel. Since potters used Nile mud, Khnum was also connected with the innundation
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