Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
Mention Egypt and one thinks of pyramids and Pharaohs. Egyptian gods and goddesses, however, were the base of the religion that gave rise to the great Egyptian empires.
Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
Of all of the pantheons in the world, Egypt has one of the most populous. With hundreds of gods and goddesses being worshiped at one time, Egyptian gods goddesses tended to vary depending on the area of the country that one lived in, and even depending on which pharaoh was in power. To truly understand Egyptian gods goddesses, you need to look at why they were worshiped.
It is estimated that there were around 2000 different gods and goddesses worshiped during the time of ancient Egypt, but some of these were “repeats”, gods and goddesses with similar characteristics and descriptions that appeared with different names in different parts of the country. This phenomenon is seen because at the time, there were around 40 different ruling tribes and areas (later known as provinces), and each of the areas had their own deities. The only common traits among these gods and goddesses were that they all manifested themselves on Earth as animals, and each of the deities had both male and female counterparts.
Male and female deities were always portrayed in similar fashions. Gods (male) were shown with their legs apart as if they were walking, and goddesses were shown with their legs together. Of course, this assumes that they were shown in human form. Often, Egyptian gods goddesses were shown in their animal guises, which could be as a combination of more than one animal or insect. When drawn or painted as humans, gods and goddesses all wore similar forms of dress, and these costumes corresponded to their human counterparts in higher society. As for headgear (such as crowns), the gods and goddesses wore whatever was in fashion for the pharaohs or priests of the area they were worshiped in – this gave more credence to the pharaohs assertion that they were godlike.
Of course, some of the most well known Egyptian gods goddesses are still known today. Gods and goddesses such as Osiris and Isis (god and goddess of the dead, as well as the mythical originators of Egypt) are still very much talked about in historical and mythical contexts. The idea of being judged by your deeds in the afterlife led many pharaohs and other upper class Egyptians to create large pyramids and become mummified, which is a large part of ancient Egypt's history. While most modern Egyptians do not subscribe to the polytheistic ways of ancient Egypt, these gods and goddesses are still a very important part of the culture of Egypt.
