For all ancient people, the world was filled with mystery. Much of what they experienced in the world around them was unknowable and frightening. The ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses began as representations of aspects of the Egyptians’ natural and “supernatural” surroundings and helped them understand its many aspects. Soon, the belief gave birth to actual beings that are worshiped today.
The supreme sun god often appears as a man with the head of a hawk, crowned with a solar disk and the sacred serpent. It is said that each day Ra traveled across the sky in the form of the sun, riding in his solar boat, and each night he journeyed through the underworld where he defeated the allies of chaos. He is reborn each morning in the form of the sunrise.
The Egyptian kings claimed to be descended from Ra, and called themselves “The Son of Ra.” His cult was very powerful during the period of the Old Kingdom,when Sun Temples were built in his honor. Many of these temples have been remade in recent years, including a the 'Great Sun Temple' of Cairo.
Anubis is shown as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal. His father is Seth and his mother Nephythys. His cult center was Cynopolis, now known as El Kes. He is closely associated with mummification and as protector of the dead. It is Anubis who conducted the deceased to the hall of judgment.
Horus is the son of Osiris and Isis and the enemy of the wicked God Seth. He is depicted as a hawk or as a man with the head of a hawk. Sometimes he is shown as a youth with a side lock, seated on his mother’s lap. He is the god of the sky and the divine protector of kings.
Horus is worshipped throughout Egypt and is particularly associated with Edfu, the site of the ancient city of Mesen, where his temple resides.
A very important figure in the ancient world, Isis is the wife of Osiris and mother of Horus. She is associated with funeral rites and said to have made the first mummy from the dismembered parts of Osiris. As the enchantress who resurrected Osiris and gave birth to Horus, she is also the giver of life, a healer and protector of kings.
Isis is represented with a throne on her head and sometimes shown breastfeeding the infant Horus. In this manifestation she is known as “Mother of God.” To the Egyptians she represented the ideal wife and mother; loving, devoted, and caring.
Her most famous temple is at Philae though her cult spread throughout the Medi-terranean world and, during the Roman period, extended as far as northern Europe. There was even a temple dedicated to her in London.
Geb is the father of Osiris, Isis, Seth, and Nephythys. As an Earth god he is associated with fertility and it is believed that earthquakes are the laughter of Geb. He is mentioned in the Pyramid Texts as imprisoning the buried dead within his body.
Sekhmet is a warrior goddess as well as goddess of healing. She is depicted as a lioness, the fiercest hunter known to the Egyptians. It was said that her breath forms the desert. She is seen as the protector of the pharaohs and led them in warfare.