Egyptian creation stories tell of several variations of how the
world was composed. According to one variation, the ocean was the only thing
in existence. Then the sun, Ra, came out of an egg (or a flower in some
versions) that appeared on the surface of the water. Ra created four
children. They were the gods Shu and Geb and the goddesses Tefnut and Nut.
Shu and Tefnut became the air, who stood on Geb, the earth, and held up Nut,
who became the sky. Ra ruled over all.
It was not uncommon for siblings to have children in ancient Egypt,
and Geb and Nut had two sons, Set and Osiris, and two daughters, Isis and
Nephthys. Osiris succeeded Ra as the king of the earth, helped by Isis.
However, Set hated his brother out of jealousy and killed him. Isis embalmed
Osiris' body with the aid of the god Anubis, who then became the god of
embalming. Isis then resurrected Osiris, and he became the god of the
afterlife and the land of the dead. Horus, the son of Osiris and Isis, later
defeated Set in an immense battle and became king of the earth.
Another version tells that Ra emerged from primeval waters. From him came
Shu, the god of air and Tefnut, the goddess of moisture. From their union
. . .
From this belief came the ritual of
embalming. This symbol appeared above
his head.
Maat - the goddess of truth and justice.
To mark the event, Horus gave Osiris the eye he had lost and wore a serpent
on his head as his second eye. His contained the stomach of the deceased. A statue of the god stood in the center of these temples. His wife,
Isis, taught her subjects to ground flour, weave, and cure illnesses. Th ...