Religion

Egyptian Religion The Egyptians had strong religious beliefs. Two important gods of the Egyptians were Osiris, god of the Nile, and Isis, god of fertility. The Egyptians believed in many gods. They believed that many things held power. They worshipped gods of the stars, stones, and water. Each city had its own god or goddess. The local gods were not worshipped. They were thought of as someone to bargain with for favors. If you wanted your crops to grow, or wanted to heal an illness, you would take food or clothing to the local temple. The priest would take the offering and pray in a special language to the gods. ||                  ||  Ammut - part-crocodile and part-lion - fierce goddess ||     ||  Amun-Re - most powerful god of Egypt in New Kingdom; bringer of life - sun ||   ||  Anubis - jackal-headed god; god of the dead person; guardian of tombs and pyramids ||  . Photo of Hathor taken at Dendera - Temple of Hathor || ||   ||  Horus - head of a falcon and carried an ankh in his right hand - son of Isis and Osiris who defeated his uncle Seth in battle and became ruler over Egypt; sky god, god of light and heaven (daughter of Osiris) Egyptians believed that after you died. Osiris and Maat would meet you to weigh your heart. The heart was placed on one side of a scale and Maat's Feather of Truth on the other side. Forty-two gods or goddesses would interview the heart. They questioned it about crimes it may have committed. If the heart was light with no hate, the person would gain eternal life. If the heart was heavy, the goddess Ammut would eat it. ||
 * || Bastet - daughter of Re; head of a cat; goddess of joy   ||
 * || Bes - jolly dwarf-god   ||
 * || Bes - jolly dwarf-god   ||
 * Hathor - cow-headed goddess - goddess of love, joy, women, childbirth, and music; protector of the dead
 * || Isis - symbol is a throne - Osiris's wife and mother of Horus" - goddess of maternal love   ||
 * || Khnum - body of a human and head of a ram; ruled over the dangerous Nile cataracts, or rapids   ||
 * || Maat - daughter of the sun god Re; goddess of justice and truth
 * || Maat - daughter of the sun god Re; goddess of justice and truth
 * || Osiris - wrapped as a mummy - god of vegetation and the underworld (death)   ||
 * || Ptah - creator god; invented the arts (local god of the capital Memphis)   ||
 * || Seth - god of the desert; brother and murderer of Osiris   ||
 * || Thoth - head of an ibis (small bird), carried writing tools - god of the moon; god of scribes of writing; god of wisdom   ||
 * || Tauert - wife of Bes; the hippopotamus goddess   ||
 * || Sekhmet -head of a lion - goddess of war   ||