Breakaway Destination Guides (International)

There were over 2,000 Gods and Goddesses in ancient Egypt. However, an Egyptian did not worship all of these Gods. Each locality retained loyalty to it's own set of Gods. Each locality thought it's own set of Gods were the superior.

Helliopolis : Ra was the supreme deity, but eight other Gods were worshipped there. Memphis : Home to the God Ptah. Hermopolis : Eight Gods in total were worshipped here. Thebes : The head deity was Amon.

Worshippers would come to the Temple gates with offerings where they would ask questions. Scribes would copy down their questions and pass them to the Temple Priests. The general public were almost never allowed inside the Temples. The Priests would interpret Gods response through an Oracle. On feast days the God statue was carried out of the Temple on a sacred Barque.

The Egyptian King claimed descent through the Gods from the God Ra. The King was the intermediary between the people and their deities. He was regarded as the head of the God centres. People prayed to statues of the King in the hope he would influence the Gods on their behalf. In fact the King was thought too Godly to be called by name.

Anubis is considered the patron of embalming and protector of the tombs and mummification. The statue of god Anubis in a form of a jackal was placed in the entrance facing the burial chamber of the pharaoh to protect the king in the after life. Anubis protects the deceased and guides him to the tribunal of judges, where the last judgment is performed and the deceased’s heart is weighted against the feather to determine his acceptance into the new life.

Bes was the Egyptian God of childbirth, music and art. This scary, dwarf like God was one of the most popular in Egypt. His image was usually hung around the house to ward off evil. He was also a warrior God who ripped out the hearts of the evil in death.

Anubis

Bast was an Egyptian Cat headed Goddess. She was the daughter of Isis. Bast was worship at Bubastis in the Nile Delta. She was regarded as a Goddess of Fertility. She was also Ra's protector. Each dawn she would kill the serpent Apep, who continually attacked Ra. Apep represented the forces of chaos, so Bastet's daily bravery ensured that order continued to reign in the world.

Bastet was a lunar goddess associated with love, music, dance, and other pleasures. Egyptians honoured her by protecting cats and mummifying them after their deaths to ensure their eternal life. Bast is popular with modern Witchcraft.

The cat headed god - Bastet

Geb was the God of Earth. Geb was one of the primordial Gods of Heliopolis. Geb was the partner of Nut. Later when they were separated his tears filled the rivers and oceans of the Earth. Geb is often depicted with a Goose on his head.

Hathor was the Goddess of heaven in Egyptology. Her sanctuary was located at Dendera. She was shown as a type of cow with the sun disc between her horns. She also represented love, joy and beauty.

Hapi was the God of the Nile. He appeared as a man with woman's breasts. He had both strength and nurturing qualities. However, he had a destructive side and represented the Nile's flooding. His status was that of among the creature Gods. Hapi was depicted as crowned with papyrus plants for the northern Nile and lotus plants for the southern Nile.

Horus was one of the Gods of Heliopolis. He eventually came to be identified with the ruling Pharaoh. He fought in the form of a sun disk with outstretched wings. Horus was a sky God. He was represented as a man with a Hawk's head.

The God Horus and The Gods Isis and Maat

Isis was the Goddess of magic in Egyptian Mythology. She was the wife of Osiris and mother of Horus. Isis used her magic powers to put back together the body of Osiris after he was killed be Set. Isis was also a fertility Goddess.

Khepri would appear on the eastern horizon as a Scarab beetle pushing the Sun. Khepri was a creator God.

Osiris was a deity in ancient Egypt. He was associated with fertility and the vegetation. He was also the principle of spiritual rebirth. Osiris was the son of Geb and Nut. His brother Set was very jealous of Orisis. One day Set was able to trick Osiris to get into a chest which was then thrown into the Nile. The body was retrieved but when Set found out he tore it into 14 pieces and spread it around all the Kingdom. All the pieces except one where recovered by the wife of Osiris, Isis. Using magic she embalmed Osiris and restored him to life.

Osiris Being Worshipped from the Kha Funerary Papyrus

Ptah was the supreme creator God of Memphis. Ptah was a God of crafts and patron of the artists. He was the architect of the universe and the creator of everything in it.

Set was a God of the night sky, storms and earthquakes. He was strongly worshipped in upper Egypt and the Delta. His birthday was celebrated at the end of the year. There are several reasons put forth as to why Set fell out of favour with the Egyptians, most of these are political in nature. Set was portrayed as a man with the head of an indeterminate animal.

Thoth was God of the Moon, Learning, Wisdom, Speech and Time. He was also the inventor and writer of scribes to the Gods. Thoth was also a skilled magician and ruled the underworld. He was the recorder of souls who delivered the final judgement and was said to have written the Book of the Dead. He could also grant longer life.

Maat was the Goddess of truth in ancient Egyptian mythology. Her symbol was a feather. In the Osirian Judgment Hall the heart of a deceased was weighed in the scales against a feather. The persons fate would then be decided by the outcome. Those who were then judged to be true of voice were then allowed to enter the Kingdom of Osiris.

The sky goddess - Nuit

Nuit was the sky Goddess of the ancient Egyptians. Her brother was Geb. Nuit was portrayed often as a women whose elongated body arched across the sky.

Nephthys was the Goddess of death in Egyptian mythology. She had magical powers that enabled her to turn people into animals. Nephthys was also able to give life back to the dead. She also protected the dead in the Osirian Judgment Hall.

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