Egyptian mythology refers to the theological system and religion believed by ancient Egyptians before the spread of Christianity and Islam.Its belief was born around 3000 BC, and there were many great changesMYTHOSThe biggest difference is that most of the gods in Egyptian mythology are human and animal heads.The belief genus of ancient EgyptiansPolytheismAnd most of them can use animals as their symbols.The ancient Egyptians believed that they would go to the underworld after death.He also believes that the body is the container of the soul. The soul will leave its body every night and come back in the morning.They also believed that the soul would revive after death, and must keep the body so that the soul could have its own residence, so they invented antisepsis and manufacturingmummy。
Egyptian civilizationThe core ofAncient EgyptReligion, not studying ancientEgyptian religionIt is hard to say that the people of Egypt have a real understanding of Egyptian civilization.The three themes of ancient Egyptian religion areNature worship, pharaoh worship and dead spirit worship.Animal and plant worship belongs to nature worship and plays an important role in nature worship.The study of the causes, manifestations and influences of animal and plant worship is an important part of the study of Egyptian civilization.However, due to the late start of the study of Egyptian civilization in China, there is a gap in the study of animal and plant worship in ancient Egypt.This article intends to make some discussions in these aspects. On the one hand, it can promote our understanding of Egyptian civilization, and on the other hand, it hopes toEgyptologyOfDiscipline constructionHelpful.
2. Ancient Egyptian flora and fauna
Animal and plant worship lives inThe Nile Valley The Egyptians, in the geography andcultural environmentThe product of the lower oasis cultural complex.Because of symbolicPrimitive thinking, admiration for the tenacious vitality of animals and plants, and harmonious symbiosisNatural conceptThe Egyptians' reverence for animals and plants came into being.
3、Oasis Cultural Complex
To understand the cause of animal and plant worship in ancient Egypt, we must understand Egypt as its backgroundAgricultural civilizationThe Oasis Culture.Ancient Egypt was actually a closed countryAgricultural country, surrounded by sea and desert.Because of the desert environment and the lack of water, people's survival is threatened, and they have a deep dependence on plants and oases, so they yearn for green and oases, and their worship of plants arises spontaneously.So the oasis cultural complex isEgyptian religionFully reflected in.stayAncient Egyptian CultureIn, the gods and mortals do not live in two different worlds. The activities between gods and people affect each other, and everything in nature is endowed with sacred colors.There are all kinds of creatures and gods in the Nile, fertile fields, animals and plants in the desert, the starry sky, the vast desert, and the vast ocean, which convey eternal mysterious messages to the ancient Egyptians.First of all, the reason why the ancient Egyptians worshipped animals and plants was that they had a badnatural environmentFear.An EgyptianscribeIn a letter to another person, he said: You can't step on the road of Meger, where the sky is always dark and full of pine trees rushing into the clouds.Running in the forestlion、leopardandThe hyenaWhen you get there, you will keep shaking. Your hair will stand up because of great fear. You have been scared out of your wits.Your road is full of stones of different sizes. In fact, there is no passable road at all, because the ground is full ofreedAnd thorns, full of footprints of wolves.Secondly, the ancient Egyptians worshipped various animals and plants because theyDesert environmentThe tenacious vitality shown below.So it is not so much that the ancient Egyptians worshipped animals and plants as that they loved life and worshipped vitality.In view of the strong vitality of desert animals and plants, which is admired by Egyptians and the basis of Egypt's life, Egyptians naturally worship animals and plants.Among the many gods, the god of medicine, Sakamete（Sekhmet）Occupies an important position. Her name isEgyptianIt means powerful.She has a sun ring on her head and a sun godPULLThe lion like face is also the symbol of the sun god RacobraThese modeling elements represent that she has the dual power of nurturing and destroying the earth like the sun.The second is the God of Harvest and AbundanceOsiris（Osiris）。In the underworld, Osiris is the guardian god of the dead, who can make them get eternal life after death.Every member of a wealthy family in ancient Egypt hoped to visit the Osiris Temple in Abydos at least once in his life.
HegelHe believes that living things are higher than inorganic external things, because living thingsorganic compoundThere is an internal thing pointed out by the external shape, which is hidden or mysterious because it is internal.So thisAnimal worshipIt should be understood as a reflection of the hidden inner aspect, which, as life, is a force higher than the simple external things.He also believes that Egypt uses animal images in a symbolic way.At this time, the animal image is not used solely for its own sake, but to express a universal meaning.The animal image of the ancient Egyptian god obviously does not represent itself, but implies a universal meaning related to it.For example, the lion's head represents royalty and power, and the baboon represents wisdom.In this sense, Egypt'sHieroglyphicsMost of them are symbolic.
The symbolic thinking of Egyptians is concentrated on the image of God.The common gods enshrined in the temple and in daily life, or animal heads plus human bodies, or human heads plus animal bodies, such as crocodilesfishThe bodies or heads of frogs and many kinds of birds appear on the steles along the Nile, especially the god of wordsTote(Thoth) Favored GodStork。LionDung beetle、scorpion、King CobraThese fierce animals in the desert have become sacred objects that Egyptians revere, eagles andvultureIs dedicated to protecting the pharaoh and queenbird, while the bullantelopeThe longhorn buffalo, which symbolizes Hathor, the mother god, represents the Egyptians' blessing for the prosperity of the family.The ancient Egyptians believed thattrunkThe energy of life is also hidden in the branches, leaves, flowers and fruits, and the gods who bless the fresh water and air live in the branches,SedgeFlowers and lotus represent the fertile land in the Nile basin.King unificationUpper and Lower EgyptThe picture of "" often appears on both sides of the throne, representingUpper EgyptandLower EgyptOfLotusCombined with reeds, it symbolizes the unity of Egypt.At the end of the lotus and reed stems are bound Nubians and West Asians, implying that the unification of Egypt is complementary to the subjugation and enslavement of foreigners.SeedypomegranateIt was a symbol of fertility in ancient Egypt.In the temple, the Egyptians left corresponding space for the animals and plants representing the gods.
An important concept in ancient Egyptian religion is the concept of harmonious coexistence of man, God and nature.
To sum up, we can see that the main reason for the worship of animals and plants in ancient Egypt was the Egyptian oasis plot in the Nile environment and the admiration for the tenacious vitality of animals and plants in the desert environment.The plot of the Egyptian oasis, the mystery and attraction of the exuberant vitality of animals and plants, made the Egyptians establish a harmonious relationship between man and nature, man and animals and plants.This became an important feature of Egyptian civilization;
EgyptianCreation Myth The main gods in religion are closely related to animals and plants.The veneration of sex organs, which is popular in Egypt, is undoubtedly an extension of the worship of animals and plants.This worship made EgyptThe relationship between man and natureIt added a layer of mystery and made Egyptians respectnatural law, harmoniously handling the relationship between man and nature and other national customs;
The worship of animals and plants in ancient Egypt penetrated into the EgyptiansPhilosophical thought, folk aestheticsarchitectural culture Even in the field of literature and art, animal and plant worship has injected fresh blood into Egyptian civilization through religion.The magnificence of Egyptian civilization is inseparable from the injection of the civilization gene of animal and plant worship.Finally, through the study of the worship of animals and plants in ancient Egypt and its influence, it may help us to deal with the relationship between man and nature in a harmonious way, respect the laws of nature, and make rational use and developmentnatural resourcesBring some enlightenment.
historical origin
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Egyptian gods
The ancient Egyptians believed that they would go to the afterworld after death.They believe that the body is the container of the soul, and the soul will leave its body every night and come back in the morning.They also believed that the soul would revive after death, and must keep the body so that the soul could have its own residence, so they invented antisepsis and manufacturingmummy。They think that when people die,OsirisWill weigh his heart to judge his good and evil, and then decide whether the soul is resurrected or destroyed.After thinking that the soul (Ka "ka") and consciousness (ba "ba") of the dead can only be preserved after the corpse is preservedThe Fourth Dynasty of EgyptAt that time, antisepsis was invented.The belief genus of ancient EgyptiansPolytheismMost of them can be symbolized by animals.
History of EgyptAt the beginning, Egyptians worshipped their country's animals:crocodile, Bull, Cat,Baboon, snake,beetlewait.Later, they created their gods in the form of human beings, but they still kept the heads of animals and connected the human body below, such as the main god of EgyptAmun·Pull（Helios）, sometimes with peony and sheep's head as a symbol;Nurturing GoddessHathor With the head of a cow;FerociousGoddess of WarSekmet has a lion's head;God of ScienceToteIt is white crane head.
According to the ancient Egyptians, at the beginning of heaven and earth, the sun god was born from the lotus in the original waterAmon-Ra , his children Hugh and TiffNootNute, the god of the sky, and Kaibu, the god of the earth were born, and the two were combined to give birthOsirisandIsisThen Osiris and Isis also married.Nut and Keb also gave birthSethandNefertisThey are also married.
Because of the Egyptians' belief in gods, their belief in immortality and their emphasis on funerals, Egypt has left many shrines and burial arts.Since ancient times, Egyptians have believed that many things have divinity, not only given names to gods, but also believed in them.For example, gods who believe in animal images（Therion ）It's just a feature.Some gods are only intact animal images, some gods have an animal head placed on the human body, some gods have a symbol of God placed on the head, and some gods are all human images, with the symbol of God in their hands.
From the First Dynasty toThe Fourth Dynasty, are very religioushorus God, we all believe that Pharaoh is the descendant of Horus God and the representative of Horus God on the earth.Horus is the god of light, appearing in the form of an eagle, and the sacred beast of Horus is also an eagle.The pharaoh usually has an eagle on his name.
Fifth, after the Six Dynasties, the god worshipped by Egypt gradually changed into the sun god "La".In the era of the new empire, belief will shift toAmunGod (amon), Amun became EgyptianNational deity。
Every god in Egypt has his power range. Every different place has the same requirements for different gods, and different gods may have the same function. As for the character of each god, it is difficult to master.
Mythological system
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Original water
The belief in the original water is a common point of view among the three systems, but has different interpretations.
There are eight meanings about Hermopolis, which are also eight gods. These eight gods are expressed by men and women who hold the four characteristics of the original water. The male god Nawu and the goddess Nawunaide represent "abyss";The male god Fufu and the goddess Ha Wu Hai De represent "infinite";The male god Cook and the goddess Kakevede mean "darkness";The male god Amu and the goddess Amaud mean "invisible".
Among the eight gods, the male god is the head of the frog, and the goddess is the head of the snake. It is said that these gods swam in the original water and laid the original eggs here. However, there is another saying that these eggs were born by giant ducks or geese. In addition, in the inheritance of the throne, it is said that lotus flowers emerged from the original water,From the lotus, a lovely child will fly out, and he will create the world;And this child means that the sun in the morning will merge with the lotus at night.
In the myth of Hermopolis, the Lord of the Universe once said: I made gods with my sweat and human beings with my tears.stayAncient EgyptIn his painting, human beings are called Rumet, which can be interpreted as tears.
stayHeliopolisAccording to the legend ofAtum It has created the power of various gods in the world. There is also a saying that Atum is the original water-Nuen's son, saidbig floodOn the high hillock or ground created after, Atum stood on the rockShuAnd GoddessTefnutSpit it out of the mouth, Shuhe Goddess TaifuNootThe combination gave birth to male godsCover cloth, Nut;When they were about to marry, they were pulled away by their father, Shula, and put the cloth on the ground to send Nute up to the sky, but later they got married and gave birthOsiris、Isis、Sete、Nefertis, the god of four pillars.
Worship of the dead
The ancient Egyptians believed that life consists of the living world and the underworld.The Egyptians paid attention to the underworld, built tombs andPyramid。In order to keep the corpse from rotting, they mademummy。After the worshipped animals died, their bodies were specially treated, smeared with grease and bandages, and then mummified and buried in a special cemetery.Because of animal and humanIntimacyThey not only carved huge animal statues in front of the pyramids, but also hoped that the dead would be protected by animal gods in another world. They hoped that there would still be plenty of grain in the underworld and enjoy the material supplies provided by plants.So the ancient Egyptians regarded death as an important place in life, and regarded it as an important way to enter another worldperiod of transition。During this period, the body of the dead needs to be carefully treated so that the power given by God can continue to live in the underworld.Because of this, the work of mummification is particularly important.After stripping all internal organs except the heart, the body is washed, dehydrated and perfumedLinenWrap it up.Every step of mummy making will get Hu LangshenAnubisProtection of,amuletandCoffinsThe gods painted on the painting also bless the dead.The murals in the tomb reproduce the daily life of the dead, and various articles, especiallyHousewear & FurnishingsFood and clothing were also placed around the body so that the deceased could continue to enjoy the same life on earth in the spiritual world.It is with the help of these large cultural relics preserved by Egyptian burial customs that modern people can reappear thousands of years laterthe NileDaily life scenes on both sides of the Taiwan Straits at that time.In front of the pyramidSphinxSome scholars interpreted it from the perspective of philosophy: human head symbolizes spirit, animal body symbolizesMaterial power；The combination of human head and animal body symbolizes that the spirit has to get rid of material power on the one hand, and that the spirit has not completely got rid of material power on the other hand, so it has not yet reached freedom.
Deity form
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Generally, Egyptian gods can be divided into three types: (1) animal type;（2） Human form;（3） Abstract type.
In addition, there are three systems by region:
（1） The craftsman god of memphis is also the world's godGod of Creation-Buta。He existed before the world happened. The way he created the world was through his thoughts and words. What he thought in his heart and said in his mouth, everything in the world, including other gods, was created by him.
（2） OnOld KingdomHas been developed toHeliopolisThe system centered on heliopolis believes that before the world was created, there was a great godAtum (atum), Atum self fertilizes and produces air（Shu）And moisture（Tefnut）；The combination of air and moisture gave birth to heaven（Noot, nut) and ground（Cover cloth, geb); the combination of heaven and earth is born againOsiris、Isis、Sete、NefertisFour children, these four are the creators of everything in the world.
（3） FromUpper EgyptIn the southern city of Hermopolis, the process of creation is also quite abstract. When the world is chaotic, there are four pairs of gods, which belong to four natures, namely, "dark, deep, invisible, and boundless." These eight gods created the world, and they representAgnosticThe era of, or unknowable local characteristics.
Apis (Apis): Bull god, responsible for fertility and production.
Other gods
Bes: God of Music.
HapoquidisHarpocrates/Hor pa kraat; Golden Dawn, Hoor par kraat.
Imhotep（Imhotep/Imouthis): the patron saint of medicine and towers.
Myth Story
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OsirisIt was originally the god of watervillage godAnd the god of reproduction and fertility. He brings benefits to human beings. He is in charge ofthe NileThe growth of water, land and plants has created bountiful food for the people of the Nile.
Later Osiris was brotherSeteHe died of persecution and was taken over by the godsHadesThe king, so he is more regarded as the god of Hades.In ancient Egypt, people also worshipped Osiris very much. Later, his position was almost equal to that of the sun god.On the one hand, Egypt held a memorial ceremony every year when the Nile water fell to mourn the death of Osiris. They killed the god of death symbolically, and then celebrated his resurrection. The purpose of this was to hope that the plants in the next year would harvest well and avoid disasters.
It is said that this is because the people of the Nile regard this god, a symbol of fertility, lush plants, and developed everything, as the reason for the change of the seasons.If God is hurt or dies, the river will dry up, the land will be deserted, and the plants will wither;When God comes back to life, the Nile will have sufficient water power, fertile land and all living things.This ceremony shows the ancient Egyptians' naive understanding of the mysterious natural society, and it reflects the ancient human's eagerness to conquer nature.On the other hand, Osiris is also very important as a god of Hades, which is similar to the ancient Egyptians'religious beliefofThe Egyptians believed that all things have spirits, and they were especially concerned about people's survival.Different from other ethnic groups, Egyptians believe that people still have life after death, and life after death is as important as life before death. Only when people complete the continuation of life before and after death can they get the final peace and life is complete.
Therefore, Egypt has many myths and legends about Hades.As the Hades ruled all the dead, that is, the people of the underworld, Osiris, as the Hades, had a sacred position.Whether pharaoh,Princes and nobilityThey are also lower class civilians. Egyptians hope to get the favor of the Hades after their death, so there will be big pyramids, refined mummies and other things for the dead to read《Book of the Dead》Wait.
However, whether as the god of fertility or the god of Hades, Osiris and his wife Isis are partners and go together.Isis is also a fertility god and a famous witch in Egypt. She and Osiris are a pair of important agricultural fertility gods.After Osiris became the keeper of the underworld, she also lived in the underworld with her husband and became the queen of the underworld.The story about this couple is the followingPULLThe most vivid and interesting myth after the legend of God, Osiris is even regarded as the successor of Ra God.It is said that when Osiris was born, there was a voice from heaven saying that he would become the Lord of all things.When Ra Shen was old, he really took the earthDominionHe gave it to Osiris, but he ascended to heaven.
Osiris sat on the throne of Egypt and became its ruler.At the time of his accession to the throne, Egypt was still very backward, and human beings were also in a barbaric state. They mainly hunted. Tribes often fought and killed each other.Osiris began to govern the country. It is said that he formulated laws to settle tribal disputes and improve the living conditions of the people, so Egypt became a peaceful and unified country.
Isis as OsirisqueenAware of human needs, he collected wild wheat and gave it to his husband,
Osiris taught people to cultivate land, sow food, and plant fruit trees to make plants grow in the wasteland.With these things done, the Egyptian people will no longer fight, and they will begin to live a happy life.When Egypt was prosperous, Osiris wanted to travel around the world. While he was away, he handed over the throne to his wifeIsis。But Osiris had not gone long before his brother Seth came to the palace.Seth was a famous evil god. He was very dissatisfied with his brother's outstanding achievements, so he instigated rebellion and provoked hostility in China. But Isis was higher than Seth after all, and she soon defeated his plot.So Seth took seventy-two followers and began to plan to persecute Osiris. These seventy-two followers wereEthiopiaA scheming queen's assistant.
Osiris was killed several times before, but all of them were revived by the mysterious Isis goddess.This time he came up with a plan. When he came back from abroad by Osiris, he invited his brother to his residence. He would hold a grand welcome banquet for Osiris.Originally Isis would not let her husband attend, but Osiris insisted on going when he saw that his brother was very sincere.Shortly after the banquet, Seth took out a beautiful box and said that whoever was lying in it would give it to whoever.People at the banquet were so happy about this that they all wanted to get this beautiful box, so everyone lay down to have a try, but no one just lay down.
It was Osiris' turn to try. He was not interested in the box, but everyone wanted to know whether he was fit and impatient. Osiris walked into the box. Strangely, his body was just down in the box, and everyone cheered. But when he was about to come out, Seth quickly closed the lid, nailed the box, and then welded it with lead,Osiris soon died inside.Then Seth ordered his attendants to carry the box away. According to Seth's will, they quietly threw the box into the Nile.When Isis learned that her husband had been killed, she was very sad.She vowed to find her husband's body. She cut off a bunch of her hair, put on mourning clothes and began the process of looking for her husband.She passed many places, but no one saw the box. Finally, she came to the seaside and saw a child. The child told her that he had seen the box float down the Nile to the sea.Taking advantage of Isis's search for a husband, Seth seized the throne. As soon as he came to power, the Egyptian people were oppressed. His cruel rule made life difficult for the people.
Isis became a thorn in Seth's side, and he ordered that no one should accept or protect her.So Isis was in a more difficult situation.At this time, she got the help of the magic seven scorpions, and Larsen sent the "passer-by" Anubis.Once, Isis came to a poor woman's house and saved her children, so that she could settle down.Soon Isis gave birth to another son, Horus.When Seth knew it, he tried every means to catch them, so that they had no place to hide.Later, Seth killed Horus, and the god Isisdra and the god of wisdom Tos helped to bring Aizi back to life.
When Osiris' coffin drifted toSyriaAt Biblos Beach, a sacred tree grew up from there. The king there saw that the tree grew very fast, thick and big, so he had it cut down to make the pillars of the palace.Inspired by God, Isis sought her husband to Syria. The queen saw that Isis was clever and lovely, and asked her to be the baby sitter.Isis liked the child very much, and wanted him to live forever, he ordered him to burn in the fire. The queen was very angry when she saw the queen. Isis had to revive the child, but he could not live forever.Later, Isis recovered to be a goddess and asked the king to give her the holy pillar. The king agreedHer request。
So she dug out the box from the column, wrapped the column with cloth, and painted“myrrh”Later, the king ordered his subordinates to build a temple for Isis and put this holy pillar in it. For many years, the people of Biblos have been worshipping in this temple.When Isis was about to leave Syria, the king gave her his son, so they went on their way together.On the way, Isis wanted to see his dead husband again, so he opened the box and kissed his cold husband warmly. Prince Biblos wanted to peek into the box and was stabbed to death by Isis's light.When Isis hid the box in the jungle to take it and put it in the son of Bhutto, Seth found the box, cut Osiris' body into fourteen pieces and threw it into the Nile.Isis is looking for her husbandCorpses, and has gone through a difficult journey.Finally, she found all the corpses and built a tomb where she found them.Later, people built temples on the tombs. For many years, people worshipped Osiris and Isis in these temples.
Myth also saidOsirisAnd Isis' sonhorus After growing up, in order to avenge his father, he fought with Seth for many times, but never wonDeityThe judge made Horus king of Egypt.There is also a myth that LaDivine separationSeth and Horus ruled Egypt together.According to another myth, when the body of Osiris was found by Isis, she was very sad and cried out. The cry was heard by the god Ra, so he sent the god Anubis down to earth to connect the body of Osis and wrap it with cloth, which is the origin of mummy.Then Isis used his magic to make Osiris energetic again. The gods took him to heaven and made him the king of Hades.
This myth vividly shows the story of Osiris, one of the main gods of Egypt, and his wife Isis. Through the constant struggle between the good represented by Osiris and the evil represented by Seth, it shows that the good will eventually overcome the evil, and the truth can not be extinguished by anyone, while Isis's spirit of fearing difficulties and dangers and seeking husband reflects the indomitable and persistent character of ancient Egyptians.The ancient Egyptian myth is one of the earliest myths in ancient times. It has a great influence and spread widely,ancient babylon 、HebrewAnd GreeceRoman mythAll have the shadow of Egyptian mythology. It is said that Osiris came into Greece after it was introduced into GreeceDionysusGod.Ancient RomeAt that time, Isis God was widely worshipped by the Romans, and it was even regarded as the ruler of the earth and the protector of women.Until now.Egyptian mythology still has great attraction and becomes an important material for future generations to understand the history, culture, religion and social customs of Egypt.
