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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:14 am
Khepera: Becomming (Greek: Xepera) Khepera is a form of the sun-god Re. Khepera was specifically the god of the rising sun. He was self-produced and usually depicted as a human with a beetle on his head, or sometimes with the beetle as his head. His name comes from the Egyptian word, kheprer or "to become". Dung beetle pushing a ball of dung
Khepera is the manifestation of the rising sun. Khepera would roll the sun along the sky, much as the dung beetle rolls a ball of dung in front of him (sometimes the Khepera was also shown pushing the moon through the sky). This ball of dung is what it lays its eggs in. The beetle larvae eat the ball of dung after they hatch. The Egyptians would see the beetle roll a ball of dung into a hole and leave. Later, when many dung beetles emerged from the hole, it would seem as though they created themselves. Khepera also had this attribute of self-generation and self-renewal.
The particular dung beetle the Egyptians identified with Khepera was the Scarabaeus sacer.
Offerings to Khepera would be the same as to Ra, Amun and Heru.
Tutankhamun enscribed a hymn to Khepera and the other sun Gods in this hymn:
Homage to thee, O Her-aakhuti, who art Khepera, the self-created!
When thou risest and sendest forth thy beams upon the lands of the South and the North, thou art beautiful, yea beautiful, and all the gods rejoice when they see thee, the King of Heaven.
Nebt-Unnut (a goddess) is on thy head, her serpents are on thy head, and she takes her place before thee. Thoth stands in the bows of thy boat to destroy thy foes.
The denizens of the Tuat (Underworld) come to meet thee, they bow before thee in homage at the sight of thy Beautiful Form.
I would come before thee daily to be with thee and to behold thy Beautiful Aten (Disk). Let me be neither prevented nor repulsed.
Grant that when I look upon thy beauties my members may be made young again, even as are the members of thy favoured ones.
I am one who worshipped thee on earth. Let me enter the Eternal Land in the Everlasting Country. O my Lord, I beseech thee to decree this for me.
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:17 am
Ma'at: The Way of Life (Greek: Mayet) Ma'at represents the concept and the Goddess associated with truth, order, justice and 'that which is right'. Kemetic society hinged completely on the furthurance of Ma'at, Who was considered to be the true first emination of the Self-Created One, and depicted as a teenage woman with wings or alternatively a teenage woman with Her symbol, a single white ostrich feather, bound to her head.
Ma'at in antiquity was the patroness of judges and all court officials; the phrase 'Priest of Ma'at' in inscriptions can geneally be understood as meaning a judge or magistrate. Ma'at's feather symbol is weighed agianst the ka (heart-soul) of the deceased in the Hall of Judgement after death, a place also known as the Hall of Ma'ati, Double Truth (double in Kemetic implying something more serious or intense as a single something, much like we use the terms 'extra' or 'advanced' in English)
Ma'at is more often given as an offering, rather than a Goddess to Whom offerings are made. The 'Offering of Ma'at' is a ritual dating from very ancient times, where Ma'at as a principle (ma'at) is given to the Gods, Who in turn return it to the universe as order. As an ideal that each devotee strives to achieve in his/her life, the doing of Ma'at can be considered a perpetual offering, and all create, sentient beings, are considered to be Her offspring and responsability.
When Ma'at is invoked as a Goddess rather than a concept, Her place as first daughter of the Created (here, The God Ra) is emphisized:
Praise Ma'at, Lady of the North Wind, Who makes the living breathe and gives air to Ra in His boat.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:18 am
Mertseger: She Who Loves Silence the Name of Netjer said to inhabit the peak of the highest mountain behind the Great Place at Uaset, (today known as Biban el-Muluk, or the Valley of the Kings, at Luxor). The peak itself is strikingly pyramid-shaped, and perhaps reminded the New Kingdom rulers of the great monuments Old Kingdom rulers had erected north at Giza and other locations. Mertseger was considered either to be a full lioness or a lion-headed woman (like Sekhmet and forms of Mut and Het-hert). Hymns honoring the "lion of the Peak," warning men to "Beware the Peak of the West!", along with prayers and appeals for Mertseger's mercy, have been found in the workmen's village at Deir-el-Medina, in the shadow of the Peak.
Offerings to Mertseger are similar to those of Hethert-Sekhmet, of Whom She can be said to be a localized or particular aspect associated with the Gurna peak of western Luxor.
A number of hymns to placate Mertseger were penned by the inhabitants of Deir-al-Medina, such as Amunnakht's below:
Praise your ka, Mertseger, Mistress of the West, in peace! May I glorify You to others. Be gracious and have mercy upon me!
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:20 am
Min: Fertility Personified Originally probably a fertility-Name worshipped at Qubt even in Predynastic times, Min became associated with nearby Amun of Uaset and eventually an alternate depiction of the King of the Netjeru in all manner of temples and monuments. Min's image caused consternation both among the early Coptic Christians (who routinely defaced His monuments in temples they co-opted) and Victorian Egyptologists, who would take waist-up photographs of Min, or otherwise find ways to cover His protruding manhood (Min is always depicted ithyphallic, or with erect and uncovered phallus). Min's cult celebrated the fertility of the land with special festivals. The long-leaf lettuce which was Min's favorite food was also (probably not coincidentally) considered a powerful aphrodisiac. As this same lettuce is in later mythological cycles said to be the favorite food of Set, there may be a connection between the two Names as yet undiscovered.
Min's cult honored the fertility of the land in special festivals held particularly during Kemetic growing seasons. The long-leaf lettuce that is Min's favorite offering was as a result considered a powerful aphrodesiac in antiquity.
Min is also associated with Heru-sa-Aset as the principle of rebirth through one's children, as in the prayer given below:
Adoring Min, praising Heru of the Upright Arm! Praise to You, Min, as You appear! You, tall of plumes, son of Wesir, born of Aset. Great One in the Senut temple, mighty in Ipu, You of Qubt! Heru lifting His Arm, Lord of worship Who makes power silent. King of the Gods, rich in perfume, comming from Medjay-land.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:21 am
Mut: Mother (Greek name: Termuthis) Wife of Amun of Uaset, Mut is depicted as a woman wearing the Double-Crown of Kemet's rulers. She was also sometimes given the head of a lioness and associated with both Sekhmet and Mertseger. At Karnak, Mut's great temple (now known as the Temple of Luxor, but in antiquity called Ipet-isut, or "the southern harem,") housed the great statues and sacred processional boat which went out once per year to make the trek up the canal to the Great Temple of Amun at Karnak, and would also receive Amun's statue and boat once per year during the Opet festival, celebrated to coincide with the Kemetic New Year. Mut's name can also mean "death" or "vulture," and so She was also given some of the attributes of Mertseger (the lion/vulture Netjer of the Valley of the Kings) and of Nekhbet (the vulture-Netjer protectress of Upper Kemet, of which Uaset was the capital). Beyond Her associations with Amen, Mut is not a very well-known Name but often is given similar attributes to Het-hert as patroness of women (especially mothers, as Her name implies), or of Sekhmet as a protectress of the innocent and a righter of wrongs.
Offerings to Mut include meats and vegeables, milk, honey and beer.
A special hymn to Mut at Karnak temple praises Her twice, in an acrostic which reads the same way either across or down in its original heiroglyphic form:
Hail, Lady of the Two Lands, living forever, Who makes life and spits out the Inundation, Great and perfect due to Her. The sacred lake's blossoms are Her sweetness.
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:25 am
Nebt-het: Mistress of the House (Greek: Nephthys) Nebt-het, the "Friend of the Dead," is first seen in Old Kingdom funerary literature riding the "night boat" of the underworld, meeting the deceased king's spirit and accompanying him into "Lightland." Her hair is metaphorically compared to the strips of cloth which shroud the bodies of the dead. Nebt-het was associated with funerary rituals throughout Kemetic history and today is venerated not as Death itself, but as the companion who gives guidance to the newly deceased, and as a Lady With Wings who comforts the deceased's living relatives. She is in most myths the youngest daughter of Nut, sister of Aset and Wesir and the sister-consort of Set. In later periods Nebt-het is also considered the mother of Yinepu, a primordial form of the lord of the dead who later became subservient to Wesir in the cultic myth. To our current knowledge, Nebt-het did not have her own cult or temples in Kemet until the Ptolmaic-Roman period; however, as Her name is merely a title (the same title given to the eldest woman in any Kemetic household), it is possible that Nebt-het may be a specialized form of another Name; probable candidates in House of Netjer and other Egyptological research include Bat (as she is called the "Lady of Het," or "Nebt-het") and Nit (with whom Nebt-het is paired in the canopic shrine quadrants, as Aset is with Serqet, Who is sometimes seen to be an aspect of Aset).
Nebt-het accepts a number of offerings, including mirrors, smooth rocks, and dark jewels, particularly garnets. In a similarity to Her other aspects, She likes books and weapons, and is notable among Kemetic Gods that in visions or dreams, She speaks only in a whisper, and Her voice is never physically heard on the rare occassion She manifests to possess a devotee during a ritual.
This early prayer from the Coffin Texts invokes Her to bless a dead person:
O [name of deceased person], Heru protects you. He causes Nebt-het to hold you together, To create you in Her Name of Seshat. She is a great Lady, great of life in the Night-boat, Who raises Heru up.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:27 am
Nit: One Who Is (Greek:Neith) A Name of unclear origin, sometimes attributed to the northwestern desert or Libya, Nit is attributed from predynastic times with a warlike nature; some Egyptologists believe She was the main Netjer of Lower Kemet before unification and subsequently the Red Crown of reeds, also named Nit, became Lower Kemet's symbol and contribution to the Double Crown. Nit's symbol of two arrows crossed over a shield is shown in Predynastic pottery as a herald and on the roof of boats and buildings; later, Nit would also be given a weaver's shuttle as a symbol for Her head. Nit is sometimes titled "She Who Saw Tem's Birth" and so is sometimes equated with Nunet (a feminine Nun) as the potential womb of creation; in very late times she would be seen as the Great Dark Mother of Greeks and Romans and also the motherless virgin warrior embodied in their Athene and Diana. At all times, Nit was understood to be mysterious and abstract; in the late story called "The Contendings of Heru and Set," the other Names defer to "Nit the Great's" wisdom in resolving the conflict. Nit's city, Saw, became a cosmopolitan center and capital of Kemet during the Late Period and during the Third Intermediate Period when Saite kings ruled, Nit's role as national Netjer flourished. In these times and into Ptolmaic-Roman times She is considered to be the wife of Khnum, a creator-Name from extreme southern Kemet, and the temple of Khnum and Nit at Esna contains many depictions of Nit along with the lates-fish sacred to Her cult.
No suggested offerings have been found yet in my searchings.
This prayer was writen by our Nisut(AUS) for the Feast of Nit, procession of Sobek:
As part of the Great Burning, Nit the Matrix, great red Lady of flames, and Sobek Who is embodied in the mighty crocodile are feasted along with Heru.
Three strong ones, three protectors, give Their blessings upon this day. Breathe in Their holy essence and feel the fire within yourself, making a warmth like never before.
I pray in the name of Nit Who Made All, and Sobek Who Protects All, for each of you.
Dua Heru! Dua Nit! Dua Sobek! Nekhtet!
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:28 am
Nut: Sky Both the concept and Netjer of the starry heavens, Nut is personified sky and especially the starry sky of nighttime which all people can look up into and see eternity. Nut is often depicted as a tall or long woman bending over the body of Her consort/husband/brother Geb, colored dark blue and spangled with five-pointed golden stars. Daily the sun is said to be born of Nut's womb and return to Her body via Her mouth at evening. Metaphorically, the earliest forms of funerary literature speak of the deceased rising to become one with Nut in the heavens, to be "an immortal star in Her bosom," and Nut's star-studded body is often painted on the inside of coffins and sarcophagi with outstretched arms, so that she may "embrace the deceased." As Hethert is usually the Netjer of the daytime sky, Nut is Netjer of the nighttime sky and the two share many symbols and titles.
Offerings to Nut are similar to those offered to Hethert: fruits and flowers as well as liquids including water, milk and beer.
A number of very ancient hymns to Nut are included in the pyramid texts, such as this one:
O Great One, Sky, You made power and strength, and filled every place with Your beauty. All land belongs to You. You hold Geb and all of creation in Your embrace.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:30 am
Ptah: Creator Great Name of Netjer of Mennefer, the capital of the dual Kemetic state for most of its history, Ptah is depicted as a mummified man wearing a skullcap and bearing the symbols of life, power and stability (ankh, was, djed) in his unfettered arms, standing on the plinth which is part of Ma'at's hieroglyphic name and was used as a straightedge by stonemasons and architects. Ptah is sometimes seen as an abstract form of the Self-Created One, Who effected creation through the actions of His heart (identified with Her-wer) and His tongue (identified with Djehuty), and Who "set all the Netjeru in their places and gave all things the breath of life." As a creator (and more directly involved with the physical act of creating than either Ra or Tem), Ptah is intimately connected with the plastic arts and especially with architecture and stonemasonry, and is patron of sculptors, painters, builders and carpenters, as well as anyone who creates with his or her hands. The transit which was the stock tool of masons, and the title of Ptah's High Priest, "Master Builder," would centuries later be picked up by a pseudo-Egyptian Western fraternal organization known to the world simply as Masonry.
Offerings to Ptah include anything created by one's own hands as well as tools used for such craftsmanship. Ptah is particularly fond of architecture, carpentry and sculture, and especially artistic work with the hands such as beading or work with precious metals, gems or glasswork.
A prayer to Ptah as all Gods given below uses many plays on words to equate Ptah with other Eminations of the Self-Created One. The gods represented by the puns in the hymn are given in brackets immediately following the words that are being punned:
Come in peace, Great One, Ptah-tatenen, Father of Gods, Eldest One of Zep Tepi, Who created Gods and men, [Atum] Who became [Khepera] the first God and all Who came after; Who made the Sky [Nut] by His Heart's [Heru] wish, raised it high like a feather [Shu]; Who made the Earth [Geb] His own, circling it with ocean[Mehet-weret], making it green. [Wadjet] Who made the unseen world [Duat], provided Ra to sail to the dead to warm them, as King of Eternity, Lord of Forever [Wesir]. Lord of Life Who makes throats breathe [Serqet], Who gives noses air, Whose grace lets us live, Time, fate and fortune [Nit, nebt-het, Seshat] are His to command, and we live by the words [Heka] of His mouth [Djehuty]. He created all God's offerings in His Name of Nun, Primeval Waters. Lord of Eternity, Protector of Forever, breathing life into all
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:33 am
Ra: Everything Under the Sun (Greek: Re) Embodied in the golden sun which is His Symbol, Ra is Netjer of light, life, and heat, and the power inherent in the sun which warms our planet. In several forms, Ra has been venerated as the central Name of Netjer of the Kemetic faith through its entire history, considered both Father and the King of All Netjeru, the Great One Who both creates and destroys. Ra rose to prominence as the early dynasties of the Old Kingdom, who venerated Him as their family patron, began to call themselves "sons of Ra" in official titularies and constructed sun-temples and pyramids (a special symbol of Ra via their connection to the Ben-ben, a pyramidal-shaped stone from which Ra as a Bennu (a white heron, called "Phoenix" by the Greeks) rose from Nun and sang the song of creation) in His honor. Ra's popularity, as immanent as sunlight itself, continued throughout Kemetic history; even great Names as Amen and Ptah had to "share the spotlight" with Ra, and in Amen's case, a composite Name, Amun-Ra, King of Netjeru, was created to avoid slighting either cult, which by New Kingdom times had power and wealth to rival even the royal house. Ra "lives" within the actual physical disk of sun, mythologically described as the "Boat of Millions of Years" which rises and sets each day, riding from horizon to horizon on the back (or belly) of Nut, and traversing during the hours of darkness the netherworlds where the enemies of Ma'at reside. Even in modern Egypt, the sun is often referred to as Ra, especially on bright summer days.
Offerings to ra are similar to those offered to Amun, Khepera and Heru.
Hymn to Ra:
Homage to thee, O thou glorious Being, thou who art dowered [with all sovereignty]. O Tem-Heru-Khuti, when thou risest in the horizon of heaven a cry of joy goeth forth to thee from all people. O thou beautiful Being, thou dost renew thyself in thy season in the form of the Disk, within thy mother Hethert. Therefore in every place every heart swelleth with joy at thy rising for ever. The regions of the South and the North come to thee with homage, and send forth acclamations at thy rising on the horizon of heaven, and thou illuminest the Two Lands with rays of turquoise-[coloured] light. O Ra, who art Heru-Khuti, the divine man-child, the heir of eternity, self-begotten and self-born, king of the earth, prince of the Duat, governor of Aukert, thou didst come from the Water-god, thou didst spring from the Sky-god Nut, who doth cherish thee and order thy members. O thou god of life, thou lord of love, all men live when thou shinest; thou art crowned king of the gods. The goddess Nut embraceth thee, and the goddess Mut enfoldeth thee at all seasons. Those who are in thy following sing unto thee with joy, and they bow down their foreheads to the earth when they meet thee, the lord of heaven, the lord of the earth, the King of Truth, the lord of eternity, the prince of everlastingness, thou sovereign of all the gods, thou god of life, thou creator of eternity, thou maker of heaven wherin thou art firmly stablished.
The Company of the Gods rejoice at thy rising, the earth is glad when it beholdeth thy rays; the people who have been long dead come forth with cries of joy to behold thy beauties every day. Thou goest forth each day over heaven and earth, and thou art made strong each day be thy mother Nut. Thou passest over the heights of heaven, thy heart swelleth with joy; and the Lake of Testes is content thereat. The Serpent-fiend Apep hath fallen, his arms are hewn off, the Knife hath severed his joints. Ra liveth by Ma'at, the beautiful! The Sektet Boat advanceth and cometh into port. The South and the North, and the West and East, turn to praise thee. O thou First, Great God, who didst come into being of thine own accord, Aset and Nebt-het salute thee, they sing unto thee songs of joy at thy rising in the boat, they stretch out their hands unto thee. The Souls of the East follow thee, and the Souls of the West praise thee. Thou art the Ruler of all the Gods.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:40 am
Sekhmet: Lady of the Red Garment (Greek:Sachmis) (Now we get to my favorite of all. i am going to go in great depth here, listing both research and personal experience as She is my spiritual Mother and the One I love most.) This goddess’ name literally translated means “Mighty One,” or “Powerful One.” Her name is derived from the Egyptian word “sekhem,” which means “power” or “might.” Some of Sekhmet’s titles were “Powerful of Heart,” “The Scarlet Lady,” “Avenger of Wrongs,” “Lady of Flame,” “The One Before Whom Evil Trembles,” “Eye of Ra,” and “Lady of Slaughter.”
Sekhmet is a goddess of many things: Healing, plague, power and protection. Since she is the Goddess who can cause plague, she can also cure it, much like vaccinations in thee days, where a patient is treated by injecting a small amount of the virus in question into the patient so that the patient 's immune system will build a defense to it. Although well-known for Her wrath, Her wrath was mostly directed towards what the Kemetic beieved were evil spirits that caused sickness and disease, an many, if not all, of Sekhmet's preists and preistesses were doctors, and they were at the highest calibur of thier trade at the time. Sekhmet s also known as the power of the sun as you will see in the next paragraph. Sekhmet is known also as the protector of the just and deliverer of divine retribution, or as we know it today, karma. Everything one does, one recieves back ten fold from this Goddess. It is also said that She personally protected the Pharoahs. Hot desert winds were believed to be this goddess’s breath, and her body was said to take on the bright glare of the midday sun. A very important goddess, it has been estimated that over seven hundred statues of Sekhmet once stood in the funerary temple of Amenhotep III, on the west bank of the Nile. Each statue was dedicated to a particular day of the year. During the Festival of Sekhmet, men and women “freed themselves of all unpleasant feelings, resentment, and repressed, angry passion” by drinking great quantities of wine. The white wine of Lower Egypt was the Wine of Bast; the more potent blood-red wine of Upper Egypt was called the Wine of Sekhmet. Similar festivals of Sekhmet were celebrated at the end of battle, in order to pacify the Goddess of War, so that there would be no more destruction. On such occasions, people danced and played music to soothe the wildness of the Goddess. The center of Her cult was in Memphis, and it is the lioness that is a sacred symbol to Her, as they are the representation of power.
One myth deals specifically with one of the major turning points in history and is the most well-known about Sekhmet. Humans had become too full of themselves, thinking themselves etter than the very Gods and Goddesses that created them. This troubled Ra greatly, but He held off His anger until He could tlerate no more. He called forth His daughter, Sekhmet, and charged Her to wipe out only the rebellious sects of humans. Sekhmet did as She was told but began to develope a bloodlustand began hunting down all humans. Ra was greatly troubled by this and set a plan in motion. Near where Sekhmet was hunting, Ra poured red beer dyed with pomogranite juice to make it the color of blood. In Her crazed state, She did mistake the beer for blood and began consumng it until she became too drunk. Her rage left Her along with Her bloodlust, but She knew She had been duped. Angry, Sekhmet left the world. After She had departed, the sun began to lose it's strength. Ra went to Tehuti to ask for help, and Tehuti went under a guise to Sekhmet, wining her over with wordsof praise and flattery. Eventually, Sekhmet returned and became a power to protect the just and smite isfet.
I learned of the Goddess from the Goddess Herself. She was the one who brought me into the Kemetic Orthodoxy. However, my learning did not stop with my personal experience with Her. I have read up on this lovely Goddess, though some books are grossly inacurate (The book "The Goddess Sekhmet" written by Robert Masters potrays Her as more of an evil deity with a throne of bones, flesh and blood. That would be more accurate to prior of the afore mentioned myth, but certainly not how She is today. Make no mistake though, She is frightening when She is angry, though I thankfully have never incurred her full wrath ^.^)
I admire many things about her. She can be as compassionate as Aset, yet she will not hesitate to put you back on course (mess up and She'll give you a wake-up call you won't forget). She is very beautiful and always willing to help those who call upon Her (I usually do so during my physical training (PT) She has yet to ever let me down ^.^). She is the Goddess I am closest to as She is my spiritual Mother. It is rather hard to type about her as nothing can truely do Her justice, as many might feel about a God or Goddess they are closest to
She is th Daughter of Ra, the wife of Ptah and mother of Nefertem.
The “Hymn of Sekhmet” says: “Mine is a heart of carnelian, crimson as murder on a holy day. / Mine is a heart of corneal, the gnarled roots of a dogwood and the bursting of flowers. / I am the broken wax seal on my lover's letters. / I am the phoenix, the fiery sun, consuming and resuming myself. / I will what I will. / Mine is a heart of carnelian, blood red as the crest of a phoenix.”
In all of my experiences with Sekhmet, She is very protective of those of us who seek Her protection and very caring of us. She will not hesitate to dicipline us, and any who seek to harm us She will turn her terrible wrath upon them.
The following hymn to Sekhmet is the second part of a hymn to Her consort, Ptah, and is one I use quite often:
Unending praise to Your beautiful face, Great Goddess of the House of Ptah, Sekhmet the Great, Lady of Heaven, Crown of Ra, Sacred Eye in the palace, Crown of Ra, Sacred Eye in the temple. His Wadjet in the palace, His crown in the nigth-boat, His companion in the day-boat. She throws back the rebels He thwarts, And goes agianst them, taking up a javalin; Great Sekhmet, Ptah's Beloved, Lady of Heaven, Mistress of the Two Lands! Grant me a long, perfect life without suffering, a body without isfet, clear vision, listening ears, and a long, long life, That I may be glorified as a great Akh, true of voice.
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:43 am
Serqet: She Who Breathes (Greek name: Selkis) Depicted as a woman with a scorpion on Her head, poised to strike, Serqet is one of the four protective Names of Netjeru seen in the canopic shrines along with Aset, Nit and Nebt-het; She is intimately connected with Aset as a protectress of Heru (and hence, metaphorically, of both children and the ruler), and was devoted in antiquity both to protect the innocent and children, and to ward against the sting of deadly scorpions, a pervasive threat in Kemet's climate. Serqet seems to be associated with protection and healing/recovery from poisons and threats of all sorts, and in modern times, Serqet has been invoked as a "goddess of detoxification" as well as a source of strength to those going through the detoxification process, especially recovering from illicit drug abuse. It is possible that Serqet is not Her own Name, but a specialized form of Aset, as Nebt-het may be a specialized form of Nit.
No suggested offerings or hymns can be found at this time.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:44 am
Seshat: the Female Scribe Seshat is patroness of libraries and all forms of writing and notation including census, accounting, and other record-keeping. Consort to Djehuty Who invented the written word, Seshat is depicted assisting the ruler in the "stretching of the cord" ceremonies which marked the foundation-starting of major building projects, as well as recording the lives and deeds of men on the leaves of the sacred persea tree. She also often offers palm branches (the hieroglyph for "many years") as a gift to a ruler, as other Names offer ankhs (life). Seshat is depicted as a woman dressed in the long skirt and leopard-skin of a Sem priest, with an obscure symbol on Her head comprised of a seven-pointed star or rosette crowned by either downturned horns or a bow.
Offerings to Seshat are similar to those offered to her consort, Djehuty.
Hymn to Seshat:
We glorify Your Majesty, We give praise before Your Face. We exalt Your Power Over the Gods and the Goddesses. You are the Lady of Hymns, The Mistress of the Library, The Great Seshat At the head of the Mansion of Records.
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:46 am
Set: Before Whom the Sky Shakes (Greek: Seth) In the oldest mythologies, Set is "He Before Whom the Sky Shakes," a sky-Netjer like Heru, and specifically of the storm, with lightning and thunder His heralds. Eventually, because of His natural opposition to His brother/nephew Heru, and also because during the Second Intermediate Period, invading Hyksos forces identified their own chief god with Him, Set's reputation changed. Into the New Kingdom with the rise of the cult of Wesir, which posited Set (as lord of the desert which crept into the arable land at the end of every year) as the "murderer" of the Lord of the Black Land, Set was literally demonized, and in late periods was identified with Apep as a symbol of complete destruction and with later religions' concepts of "the Devil," including both Greek Typhon and Hebraic "Satan." It is important to note that both are non-Kemetic understandings - Set at all times, while not exactly a "nice guy," is a necessary force in the universe - that of strength and violent force - and in Kemetic myth, even Ra acknowledges this, by awarding the post of guardian of the Boat of Millions of Years to Set after the kingship is given to Heru, because Set "is the only one strong enough to do it." Set is symbolized by the a** and the hippopotamus and the pig, and sometimes the jackal (and at least theoretically the hyena); however, His main theophany is an unknown canid with square ears and a forked tail, often called simply the "Set-animal," whose species has been a mystery to Egyptologists. In late 1996, a large mammal with square ears and a forked tail allegedly was caught and killed in Upper Egypt. Called "salawa" by the locals, the animal has been theorized to be part of the family from which the South African Cape Hunting Dog comes; its extreme size and appearance lend credence to the folktales surrounding this newly-discovered desert mammal as "Set."
Offerings to Set include strong drink, strong or spicy foods, and weaponry. He is also fond of acts of great courage, strength orstamina preformed in His honor, as the Heru-Gods are also fond of such things, as well as acts of justice or extraordinary valor.
The Pert-em-Heru, or 'Chapters of Comming Forth in the Daytime', better known by their modern name, the 'Book of the Dead', contain a few lines honoring Set, including this hymn:
Hail Set, Son of Nut, Great in strength in the Boat of Millions of Years; Nut is above You, Geb is under Your feet. What You command comes to pass. Overthrower in the Boat of Millions of Years, grant me a happy life following your ka.
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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King Robert Silvermyst Captain
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Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 8:48 am
Shu: Dry One of the two first creations of the Self-Created One, Tem, Shu is twin to Tefnut and embodies the concept of air, wind or atmosphere (Tefnut embodies the concept of airborne moisture, clouds, dew, or rain). Shu was invoked in antiquity to give a good wind to boats and metaphorically to "lift up" the spirits of the deceased in order that they might rise to the afterlife, depicted in the Pyramid Texts of the Old Kingdom as "lightland" existing above a "ladder" which Shu (or alternately, Heru and Set or Wesir and Set) held up. Shu is generally shown as a man with a single ostrich feather (the hieroglyph of His name, "shu") on His head; He is sometimes shown as a lion along with His sister/twin Tefnut. Shu's action to divide Geb and Nut allowed the creation of earthly life to occur. And so, symbolically, the ancient myths explain why there is wind/atmosphere (Shu) between the earth (Geb) and sky (Nut).
Shu accepts similar offerings as are offered to Tefnut.
Hymn to Shu:
Hail to thee Child of Ra, First-born, Flesh of his Flesh. By Him hast thou been tried since thy birth. Valorous One, Lord of the Transformations, overthrowing the impious each day. At the Breath of Thy Mouth the Ship rejoices, the vessel is made glad: for they perceive Shu, Son of Ra, triumph over His enemies and strike the impure with His spear. Be pilots the Sun to the heights of the Heavens from the dawning of each day. Tefnut rests upon His head. She darts out Her flames against His enemies and behold they are not. Formed by Ra, endowed with greatness, inherit 'Or of His father's Throne, His Powers expand and are one with the Powers of Ra.
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