EGYPTIAN MYTHOLOGY

THE GODS AND GODDESSES

1) Nun: The Primeval God – Associated with a Deep Watery Mass

Nun was often represented as a bearded man with blue or green skin (thus
suggesting his connection with the watery mass of Nile and fertility). On
occasions, he was also depicted as a frog or a frog-headed man (as part of
the Ogdoad system practiced at Khmunu or Hermopolis) or even a
hermaphrodite with discernable breasts.

2) Amun, Ra, and Amun-Ra: The Ancient Egyptian gods of Sun and Wind

 Amun was the divine entity who represented the air and the sun. Sometimes
portrayed as the king of gods, Amun was also the patron deity of Thebes, the
royal capital during the impressive New Kingdom era of Egypt. mun was a
minor god, and as such played second fiddle to ‘war gods’ like Montu.
However, the New Kingdom period brought forth the ascendancy of the deity,
who was venerated as the ‘Self-Created One’.

Ra, on the other hand, was considered as one of the powerful ancient Egyptian
gods who was associated with the Pharoah. He was also associated with the
earlier sun god Atum of Heliopolis. And over time, especially during the New
Kingdom, the thriving Amun cult merged the two entities Amun and Ra into a
composite god known as Amun-Ra, who was hailed as the “Lord of truth,
father of the gods, maker of men, creator of all animals, Lord of things that
are, creator of the staff of life.” According to many scholars, Amun-Ra sort of
symbolized the combination of the invisible force (of wind) with the visible
majesty (of the life-giving sun), thus establishing an all-encompassing deity
who covered most aspects of creation.

3) Mut: The Mother Goddess – Venerated as the Queen of Gods

Venerated as the Mother Goddess of Thebes (or Waset, pertaining to present-

day Luxor), Mut (also called Maut or Mwt) was often regarded as the wife and
consort of Amun during the Middle Kingdom phase of ancient Egypt. Mut, as
the Queen of Gods, was depicted as a woman with wings wearing the royal
headdress (or sometimes vulture headdress). 

4) Khonsu: The Youthful God – Venerated as the Deity of Moon 

Khonsu was regarded as the adopted son of Amun and Mut – and their triad

gained prominence at Thebes, the capital of Egypt during various epochs.
Khonsu, the protector, was possibly also venerated as a deity of love, fertility,
menstrual cycles, and lifespans. Khonsu was described as a ‘bloodthirsty deity’
(as mentioned in the Pyramid Texts)  and ‘Khonsu who lives on hearts’, with
one mythical narrative suggesting how he, helped by dead kings, feasted on
the hearts of other gods. Khonsu was depicted as a young man (mostly in a
mummy pose) with a sidelock (or braid) and a curved beard.

5) Hathor: The Cow Goddess – Venerated as the Motherly Deity

The ancient Egyptian goddess of joy, feminine love, and

motherhood; Hathor (meaning – ‘Domain of Horus’) was closely associated (or
was the successor) to Mehet-Weret, the primeval divine cow entity/goddess
who was perceived as being responsible for bringing the floods to the Nile,
thus in the process fertilizing the land. Continuing with this possibly pre-
dynastic concept, Hathor was also regarded as the mother of the sun god Ra.

6) Bastet/Sekhmet: The Feline Goddesses – Venerated as Deities of Love and War

The ancient Egyptians certainly shared a proclivity for domesticating cats, and
this cultural affinity was mirrored by the native Egyptian mythology and
religion that popularized the worship of Bastet (or Bast), at least since the
Second Dynasty period (post 29th century BC). A goddess of the home, love,
fertility, joy, dance, women and secrets, Bastet with her cat-like head and
woman’s body was considered as a benevolent deity.

7) Maat: The Goddess of Order – Venerated as the Deity of Truth and Justice

The ancient Egyptian goddess of truth, justice, and, the cosmic order (alluding
to the Egyptian concept of ma’at), Maat (or ma-yet) was responsible for
regulating both the stars and the seasons. Maat was often depicted as a
winged woman with an ostrich feather on her head. Venerated as an important
deity during the Old Kingdom period (circa 27th century – 22nd century BC),
she was considered as the daughter of Atum (or Ra), and as such implied the
superiority of order, justice, and even harmony.

8) Ptah: The Creator God – Venerated as the Deity of Life and Crafts

ne of the Egyptian gods who formed the triad of Memphis (along with his
spouse Sekhmet and daughter Nefertum), Ptah was the personification of
creation. Ptah was often depicted as a mummified bearded man with green
skin. His arms were kept free to hold a scepter, and his overall profile
contained the three powerful symbols of ancient Egyptian religion: 
the Was scepter, the sign of life, Ankh, and the Djed pillar. These motifs
suggested the combined essence of his creative prowess, – the power, life-
giving ability, and stability.

9) Nut: The ‘Starry’ Goddess – Venerated as The Deity of the Sky

The daughter of Shu (God of Air) and Tefnut (Goddess of Moisture and
Rain), Nut embodied the sky, stars, and the larger cosmos. She was initially
regarded as the goddess of the nighttime sky but later morphed into the
embodiment of the entire ‘heavenly’ sky. Nut was often depicted wearing a
water-pot headdress with the water-pot sign (nw) signifying her very name.

10) Isis: The Egyptian Goddess Associated with Royalty and Magic

The most famous of all Egyptian goddesses, Isis was initially associated

with Hathor, thus being heralded as the personification of many of the
‘motherly’ qualities. Over time, Isis was given various epithets like Weret-
Kekau (‘the Great Magic’) and even Mut-Netjer (‘the Mother of the Gods’).

11) Osiris: The Dead God – Venerated as a Deity of the Underworld

 Osiris – the husband of Isis, the father of Horus, and the brother of Set, was
often perceived as the king of the underworld. A part of the later-
formed Abydos Triad (comprising him, his wife, and his son), Osiris was
possibly the only Egyptian deity who was directly referred to simply as a ‘god’,
thus alluding to his immense prominence among the ancient Egyptian
worshippers (many of whom considered Osiris as the first king of Egypt). In
addition to his role as the lord of the underworld. The god was often depicted
as a mummified bearded king with green or black skin – to represent both
death and resurrection. And as a living god, Osiris was represented rather
ostentatiously as a handsome man in the royal attire wearing the crown of
Upper Egypt (a headdress known as the atef), while carrying the crook and
flail, both symbols of kingship.

12) Horus: The Falcon God – Venerated as a Deity of War and Kingship

The most well-known of all ‘avian’ Egyptian gods. Completing the Abydos

Triad, Horus was regarded as a powerful sky god who was designated as the
divine protector of the pharaohs. Horus, especially when combined with the
sun god Ra to form Ra-Harahkhte, was usually depicted as a falcon-headed
man wearing the pschent, the symbol of kingship over unified Egypt. On the
other hand, his restored eye, personified as the Eye of Horus, was the ancient
Egyptian symbol for protection and sacrifice. Quite intriguingly, the Ptolemaic
dynasty favored another form of Horus known as Harpocrates (or ‘Horus the
Child’), who was depicted as a winged child with a finger on his lips –
suggesting the virtue of silence and keeping secrets.

13) Set: The Antagonist God – Regarded as the Deity of Chaos

 Set was portrayed as the antagonist among the Egyptian gods responsible for
murdering his brother Osiris. Egyptian period (post 664 BC) artists tended to
depict Set exclusively with a donkey head. The future native Egyptians who
saw Set as an agent of evil.
14) Min: ‘The Lord of the Eastern Desert’ – Venerated as the Deity of Fertility

Min (also known as Menew and Amsu) was among the oldest of the deities

worshiped by the ancient Egyptians. Min was regarded as the deity of Orion
constellation and was often associated with both thunder and rain. The
Pyramid Texts also refer to Min as a patron of traveling caravans, traders, and
miners, thereby making him the protector and Lord of the Eastern Desert. By
the Middle Kingdom era (circa 20th – 17th century BC), Min was increasingly
perceived as a deity of fertility and male sexuality.

15) Anubis: The Jackal God – Venerated as the Guide of Souls

 Anubis (or rather Anpu or Inpu in Egyptian language) was represented as a

jackal-headed entity associated with the rites of embalming the deceased and
the related afterlife. Anubis was perceived as a protector of graves – possibly
to endow a positive aspect to the propensity of jackals who tended to dig up
shallow graves.

16) Thoth: The Ibis God – Venerated as the Deity of Writing and Wisdom

Thoth was an important deity of writing, magic, wisdom, and the moon. He

was also closely associated with the principles of balance and equilibrium,
which was often symbolized by his title ‘Lord of Ma’at’. Thoth was
often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or sometimes even a seated
baboon (in his A’an aspect). And considering his academic
qualities, Thoth was widely perceived as the patron deity of scribes,
astronomers, priests and some rulers (like Thutmose meaning ‘Born of
Thoth’). He was also credited as the inventor of the alphabet, mathematics,
surveying, geometry and even botany.

17) Sobek: The Crocodile God – Venerated as the Deity of the Nile

Sobek (also known as Sebek and Sobeq) represented the antithetical nature of

Nile – its life-giving fertile scope and the dangerous reptiles that resided
within the river. Sobek was regarded as one of the creator Egyptian gods who
rose from the obscure ‘Dark Water’ of Nun (discussed earlier) to create the
Nile from his very sweats. Another myth notes how he laid eggs in the
primordial waters of Nun to create the very world Egyptians lived
in. Sobek was often represented as a man with the head of a crocodile that was
further adorned with a plumed headdress and the Atef crown. 

18) Taweret: The Hippo Goddess – Regarded as the Deity of Protection

The ancient Egyptian goddess of childbirth, Taweret (meaning ‘she who is

great’) was regarded as the divine protector of women and children.
Taweret was also worshipped as an apotropaic god who had the power to ward
off evil influences. With her veneration possibly stemming from the
observance of hippopotamus behavior in Egypt, the physical attributes
of Taweret also followed suit, with the Egyptian goddess often portrayed as a
bipedal pregnant hippopotamus who carried the protective sa sign. However,
her limbs were strikingly feline in nature, while her rear end resembled a Nile
crocodile.

19) Aten: The ‘Controversial’ God – Regarded as the Personification of the Sun

 Aten personified the disc of the sun as visible from the earth. And like other
aspects following the likeness of the main deities, Aten was usually
worshipped as a falcon-headed god, thus mirroring the image of Ra. On
occasions, Aten was also hailed as the silver disc, thus suggesting its aspect of
the moon.

20) Khepri: The Beetle God – Associated with the Morning Sun

Khepri was one of the rare Egyptian gods who was usually depicted as a man
with a beetle head in Ancient Egyptian funerary papyri. Khepri was also
considered as being subordinate to the more exalted sun god Ra, which on
occasion also translated to Khepri being one of the aspects of Ra. For
example, Khepri was perceived as the personification of the morning sun,
while Ra was seen as the more effulgent midday sun. The people also
regarded Khepri as one of the Egyptian gods of rebirth, possibly since the
Egyptians believed beetles appeared out of nowhere and yet were able to
procreate.