There are many variations of gods in the history of Egypt.
Therefore it is no possible to make a review of all of them. The
number of gods is also way to high.
The pantheon in Egypt has its own mixture between gods, humans
and animals. Before we go through some off the most important
gods in the history of Egypt, we have to go through, what the
Egyptians imagened about what would happen after death.
The old Egyptians believed, that a human was made of three
element: Body, KA and BA. BA is like the body unique from person
to person. BA can be translated to personality or character.
Like something not-physical, but still something that indicate a
human. After death BA is shown by a bird , often with a human
head.
KA, is the vitality there is alive in the living or dead human,
like a human soul or spirit. KA is made at the same time as the
physicall body. It is Khnum, the god with the Ram-head, that
makes the human KA with his potter´s wheel. Even if KA is not
physical, the gods bring food and other things to the deads cave
like a sacrifies for KA
When a human die, the performance of the ritual “opening the
mouth” is made. Her BA and KA leaves the body. In the day BA is
in the mummy. The dead person will live with BA and KA in the
realm of the dead. But because the body is a mummy is
cloth-bound, BA often has to guide KA to find the right body.
This is why there often is painted a picture of the dead on the
lid of the sarcophagus.
Embalming
If the dead body would be lost KA and BA would die. Therefore
the Egyptians began to embalming the dead. This was in the time
of 2400 B.C. The believed in the old kingdom, that only a
pharaoh could be immortal. But gradually this view changes, to
that anyone could live after death as long as the body was
intact.
Embalming is expensive, so it was only the wealthy families,
that could afford this. To the embalming they used soda witch is
both disinfectant and drying. They also used resin and different
kinds of incense. The guts was removed with a incision in the
left side of the tummy. The heart was not removed, because they
thought of is as the center of life. The lungs, stomach, liver
and bowels was placed in a urn. The lid of the urn was decorated
with a picture of the god that protects the substance.
The brain was removed through the nose. All the cavity in the
body was filled with soda, so all the fluids would´nt begin to
rot. Some time after this process, the body was washed and
wrapped in linen which was soaked in resin and ethereal oils.
All of this ritual shall be made before 70 days after the death.
This is because the mummy is carried to the cave on the 70. day.
Between the different surgical appliances they place different
kinds of charmes. The most important is the scarab, which will
protect the dead, when he or she stands with Osiris´s court. The
mummy lie in a sarcophagus, sometimes more than one body in the
sarcophagus dependent on the families financial circumstances.
All the ritual is performed by a priest, and he wear the
jackal-mask of Anubis.
The trip to the kingdom off the dead is full of danger. The
mummy travels through the underworld on a solar boat which is
filled with snakes, dragons and reptiles. When it arrives to the
valley of the gods (Duat), the boat must pass seven gates and by
each gate there must be recital a magical form. If the form is
right, the mummy arrives to Osiris´s hall, where Osiris and 42
spirits is, One for each province of Egypt. In this hall the
jackal-god Anubis perform a weighing of the heart to deside if
the humans earthly actions can give access to the eternal life.
The dead´s heart is placed on the one side of a weight, while
Maats feather is placed on the other. Maat is the godess of
truth an justice. If the heart is not more heavy than the
feather, the dead gets eternal life. The judgement is said by
Anubis, and the Thoth the god of wisdom and the art of writing
will mark the register. If the dead fail the test, the heart is
thrown to Ammut and he will eat the heart. If the dead pass the
test, he becomes one with the over-god Osiris and will travel
with him on the solar boat through the underworld to paradise
and the eternal life.
The egyptian books of death
In
the times, there is found several books of the death. In this book,
there is a sample of magic forms, that the dead have to use during
the trip through the underworld. There is more than 200 different
kinds of forms. The distinction
between the living world and the underworld is a river. So the mummy
have to be put in a solar boat. his believe is shown because
all cities and temples is on the eastcoast fof the river Nil, and
the pyramids, and the valley of the kings is on the westcoast of the
Nil.
The most important Gods in the Egyptian history
Amon His
name means the hidden, maybe because his origin is unknown. He is
the protector of the city Thebs. His holy animals is the ram and the
goose. According to the legend he is the creator of Thoth.
The temple of Karnak
is one of the most importen buildings in the egyptian history. Later
in the history he is united with Re, and the name is Amon-Re.
Re Reis the god of all the gods and the
egyptian sun-god. Re is sonetimes in the history put together with
Horus, and is sometimes shown with the head of Horus. Re is sailing
in the sunboat in the underworld.
According to the legend Re has made the universe, and the daily
cycle of sunrise and sunset is a symbol to the story of the creation.
Re is very close to the pharaoh of egypt. And becasuse of that, the
pharaoh is at some piont called the son of the son-god Re.
Re is reborn every day
as a scarabae. He is sailing over the sky with other gods in his
boat. At sunset Nut is swalloing him, and he is reborn again at
sunrise.
Some time in the
history Re is united with Amon. And the name became Amon-Re.
Aton The name Aton means sun.
Aton was the god of the sun in under Akhenaton. This god, that is
the ray of the sun, was a universel sungod. Inreliefs Aton is shown
with rays of light, that shines over the people under it.
Geb
Geb is the god of the earth and the brother and husband of Nut. They
have Osiris, Seth, Isis and Nephthys together. Hes holy animal is
the goose, and he is often pictures with a goosehead. According to
the legend Ged has layed the egg, that the sun hatches from. He is
shown with a skincolour green or black - the colour of life and the
Nil.
Nut
Nut is the godess of the sky and Gebs wife. She is the mother of
Osiris, Seth, Isis and Nephthys. Nut is often shown with blue skin
and covers in stars, standing on all four over her husband, like the
sky. According to a legend Re is going into her mouth every night,
and in the morning he is reborn by her.
Shu Shu is the father of Geb and Nut. These two ewanted to be
together, so Shu lifts Nut into the sky. And thereby the ray of the
sun is shown.
Osiris
Osiris is the god of the dead and the resurrection into the eternal
life. Osiris is the oldest child of Nut and Geb. He is married to
his sister Isis, and they have together the son Horus. According to
the legend he is the father of Anubis with Nephthys, because she
looked like Isis and she seducted him.
Osiris is sailing every morning with Re over the sky, and fights all
chaos like snakes that wants to kill Re. He is also the symbol of
fertility and wealth to the living.
He is often shown
with the crown of Upper-Egypt in white linen like a mummy. Hes skin
is normally red or green.
Osiris has a
brother Seth, that kills him out of jealousy. He cuts him into
pieces and spreads them all over Egypt. Isis collects all of the
pieces again and by the help from Anubis she makes him a mummy and
he can go to the underworld. When Horus is a grownup he is puting
Srth into the desert of Sahara, and takes over the thron.
Isis This godess is the most importen one in the egyptian history.
She symbolice the motherhood, the cure of sick people and the master
of magic. She is the universe biggest magician, because she knows
Re´s secret name.
She is married to her brother Osiris. She is the twinsister to
Nephthys and sister to Seth. She is the mother of Horus and the
protector of Horus son Imsety, that is the protector of the lever.
Nephthys
This godess is the youngest of Geb and Nuts children. She is sister
and wife to Seth. And sister to Osiris and Isis. One of her children
is Anubis. Acording to the legend she doesnt speak to Seth, when he
kills Osiris. After this she helps Isis taking care of Horus and
helps Osiris back to life. She is the protector of Hapi that takes
care of the lungs under the balming-process.
Seth
Seth is the original ruler of Lower-Egypt, and his brother Osiris
the ruler of Upper-Egypt. Because of jealousy that Upper-Egypt gets
the power over Lower-Egypt - Seth kills his brother Osiris. He is
the god of chaos and disorder. From the 19. dynasty the people sow
him mercy and lookes at him, as the good god he ones was. He becomes
the protector against strangers. Horus Horus is one of the most importen gods in the egyptian history.
He is the son og Isis and Osiris. When he is a grown man, he punish
the murder of his father and becomes the king himself. After he had
driven Seth into the desert he combined the two kingdoms -
Upper-Egypt and Lower-Egypt.
Anubis The
word Anubis means "young dog". He is the egyptian god of the
underworld and protector of the spirits.He is the son of Osiris and
Nephthys. Some believe he is the son of Nepåhthys and Seth instead.
He is the god that shows the dead the road to Osiris. Normally he is
shown as the picture like a man with the head of a black jackel.
Anubis is also the god of balming the dead and guard of the mummy.
Anubis awakes the deads spirit when it reaches the underworld and
takes the mummy out of the sarcophagus. Anubis is also the one, that
puts the heart of the dead on the weighing machine and makes sure it
is mesured correct. And he is telling the judge the sentence of the
dead, and Thoth is writing it in his book.
Ptah
3000 B.C. Ptah is the god of creation in Memphis. They believe that
he has created the universe. He is also the protector of all workmen,
the god of sunrise - Atun is the god of sunset..
His wife is Sekhmet. The legend tells that Ptah
becomes Osiris. At the center of cult in Memphis the sacred bull
Apis is shown. He is asymbol of fertility. Often this bull is shown
with a disc of the sun between his horns.
Sekhmet This liongoddess, was big especially in Memphis in the old
Egypt. According to the legend Re has created Sekhmet with the fire
in his eyes, as a godess to punish the mortal for there sins.
Hathor Hathor is often shown as a cow or a woman with the horns of the
cow. Between the horns, there is ofte shown a disc of the sun. The
legend says that she often is dancing for Re to cheer him up. Hathor
is Re´s daughter. And she is the protector of all Gods.
Thoth Thoth is the God of wisdom and he was the inventer of writing.
He was the master of the sciences astronomy, geometri and medicin,
but also the God of magic. They believed that he was the writer of
many religious books, and also the book of death.
Whenthe sentence is made over the dead, it is Thoths job to record
the sentenceinto his books. He is always illustrated as a ibis or a
man with a head from a ibis. And almost always with writing
materials in his hand. He also had three shapes. As a baboon, a ibis
or as the moon.
All illustrations are from the book "Politikens
bog om det gamle Egypten" of Torben Holm-Rasmussen. All with
permission.
Amon
Re
Aton
Geb
Osiris
Isis
Nephthys
Seth
Horus
The
word Anubis means "young dog". He is the egyptian god of the
underworld and protector of the spirits.He is the son of Osiris and
Nephthys. Some believe he is the son of Nepåhthys and Seth instead.
He is the god that shows the dead the road to Osiris. Normally he is
shown as the picture like a man with the head of a black jackel. 
Ptah
Sekhmet
Hathor
Thoth