Questions tagged [egyptian]
For questions on the myths, legends, and religious beliefs of the people of Ancient Egypt.
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What is the difference between Ra and Horus?
I'm wondering what the difference is between Ra and Horus. I know there are both the gods of the sun/sky.
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Most gods in Egyptian pantheons are with animal faces? [duplicate]
Why there are gods with animal faces but human bodies in Egyptian pantheons? Are they out-numbered the human-faced ones? From biological perspective human is weak in physical (body) but strong in ...
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What is Sobek's place in the Egyptian pantheon?
What is Sobek's place in the Egyptian pantheon?
In some places, the Son of Nit/Neith), is Sobek primordial, existing alongside within the dark waters of Nun/Naunet?
Or was his original cult entirely ...
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What's the purpose of seminal fluid in mythology?
An excerpt from TV tropes:
People are fairly familiar with the story of how Set murdered Osiris
to get his throne only to be thwarted by Osiris' son Horus, but most
people don't know how it was ...
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How are Taweret and Nephthys related?
When I compare the two Egyptian goddesses Nephthys and Taweret, I see a number of parallels, but I also see distinct differences. Consider:
Both are associated with childbirth, but whereas Nephthys ...
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How are Ra's three forms different from each other?
In an attempt to distract Isis from learning his true name, Ra reveals that he takes different forms during the day:
I am the Creator of living flame. I am Khepera in the morning, Ra at noontide, and ...
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Sekhmet with the crown of Hathor?
In the astronomical ceiling of the tomb of Seti (KV17) one of the columns is denoted by the figure of Sekhmet wearing the crown of Hathor as below:
What does this signify? Although Sekhmet is ...
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Odin's Counterpart
I have always wondered are:
Odin,
Mercury,
Hermes,
Thoth
the same person?
If so, why they are celebrated by different cultures and praised by different myths?
I am in love with these deities...
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Are there any instances where the Egyptian gods are promiscuous?
As we all probably know, the Greco-Roman and the Norse gods were, to put it in a mild manner, "lustful". They had extramarital affairs, took on numerous lovers without before marriage and even raped ...
user1385
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Why are the "Fields of Reeds" the Egyptian paradise?
Aaru, the Field of Reeds was the Egyptian idea of paradise. Food was unlimited, and menial funeral statues could gather it for you.
However, it is described as a “mirror image of one's life on earth”....
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Has Setne anything to do with Set?
So I found this person named Khaemsweset or Setne, son of Ramsseses II.
Does he have anything to do with Set? Because Setne sounds a lot like Set, the god of evil.
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Who are the parents of Taweret?
Taweret is arguably one of the most popular goddesses of the Egyptian pantheon. Although much about her consorts is known, nothing is said about the Hippo Goddess' parentage and I would like to find ...
user1385
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Is there a myth that explains Senet's origins?
Fey Ray's answer to the question What is the oldest traditional children's game? is Senet, a game like checkers.
Does the game appear in Egyptian mythology? Is there a myth that explains where and ...
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Was Helen of Troy in Egypt during the war?
In the myth of Helen of Troy, there has been noted a story from Egyptian mythology of Helen coming to Egypt and staying there, her double being sent on to be imprisoned and have a war fought over. ...
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What is the connection of Egyptian mythology to Atlantis?
As writing an answer to my own question, I came across this,
Plutarch, Life of Solon 26. 1 (trans. Perrin) (Greek historian C1st - C2nd A.D.) :
"He [Solon] also spent some time in studies with ...
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What are the different creation stories of ancient egypt?
I would prefer to have a date estimating what time period the particular creation story was created.
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Is there a Western (Greek, Roman, Egyptian, or Norse) god of the cosmos?
I have heard of the Greek god, Chaos (the manifestation of the void), and of the Greek god Aither, (the manifestation of the upper air that gods breathe most often), but I can't find reference to any ...
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Why were baboons famous in Egypt?
Why were baboons famous in Egypt? They were sometimes kept as pets, had a god named for them, but did they have any significance?
ANOTHER EXAMPLE--Sun-worshipping baboons rise early to catch the ...
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Star islands in Egyptian cosmology
Among the phenomena they describe is the Milky Way, which the Egyptians called "the beaten path of stars". Like other parts of the sky, it could be navigated by boat, and was apparently viewed as a ...
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Are there any depictions of Horus being crucified and resurrected
In my internet adventures I've stumbled upon the idea that the story of Jesus was heavily inspired by the ancient Egyptian god Horus. See, for example, some positing it here—by its major modern ...
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Are people who drown/die in the Nile deified (or divinized in some way)?
Many blogs and websites say that people who die on the Nile by drowning or being eaten by a crocodile are deified. They are chosen by Osiris and are somehow involved in the flooding of the Nile or ...
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Did ancient Egyptian gods have weapons like the Greek gods?
Did ancient Egyptian gods have weapons, like the Greek gods (Zeus's thunderbolt or Poseidon's trident, for example)? If so, who made them? I've never read anywhere where they had weapons.
user28
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Was Hermes Trismegistus a historical figure?
I am aware that Hermes Trismegistus is a combination of the greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. But he is credited as the writer of a few books with Asclepius and the Corpus Hermeticum. So in ...
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What were the five parts of the Egyptian soul?
This is an offshoot of a question asked about the Ba and Ka.
What were the other 3 parts of the Egyptian soul and what did they represent?
user28
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What is the significance of this part in the myth of the resurrection of Osiris?
After Osiris is tricked and killed by Seth he is dismembered, and it is up to his wife Isis to recover all the pieces and bring him back to life. There is something that always caught my attention ...
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Do Egyptian myths provide explanations for the shape of the pyramid?
Pyramids are iconic structures from Ancient Egypt. But why did the ancient Egyptians shape their pyramids in a, well, pyramidal shape? These are not exactly intuitively shaped tombs. Some research ...
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In ancient Egypt what did the Ba and the Ka represent?
In ancient Egypt what did the Ba and the Ka represent? They were parts of the soul but why two parts?
user28
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Why are cats so important in Ancient Egypt?
Cats were worshipped in ancient Egypt. This can be clearly seen by the large amount of cat statues, mummified cats, ... that have been found. There is even a God specific for cats (Bastet).
But why ...
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What was the more prominent of Ra's origins stories?
I was browsing Wikipedia and came upon three different variations for Ra's origins:
In the former version, a mound arises from the waters. An egg was laid upon this mound by a celestial bird. The egg ...
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How does merging of two gods actually work?
The only two examples I can remember at the moment are:
Ra merging with Horus
In later Egyptian dynastic times, Ra was merged with the god Horus, as Ra-Horakhty ("Ra, who is Horus of the Two ...
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How were eclipses explained in Egyptian mythology?
Eclipses were probably one of the phenomena that puzzled the ancient people. How was it explained in Egyptian mythology, and were there any gods connected with it (like thunder is connected to Zeus)?
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