Egyptian mythology information

Egyptian mythology is the collection of myths from ancient Egypt, which describe the actions of the Egyptian gods as a means of understanding the world around them. The beliefs that these myths express are an important part of ancient Egyptian religion. Myths appear frequently in Egyptian writings and art, particularly in short stories and in religious material such as hymns, ritual texts, funerary texts, and temple decoration. These sources rarely contain a complete account of a myth and often describe only brief fragments.

Inspired by the cycles of nature, the Egyptians saw time in the present as a series of recurring patterns, whereas the earliest periods of time were linear. Myths are set in these earliest times, and myth sets the pattern for the cycles of the present. Present events repeat the events of myth, and in doing so renew maat, the fundamental order of the universe. Amongst the most important episodes from the mythic past are the creation myths, in which the gods form the universe out of primordial chaos; the stories of the reign of the sun god Ra upon the earth; and the Osiris myth, concerning the struggles of the gods Osiris, Isis, and Horus against the disruptive god Set. Events from the present that might be regarded as myths include Ra's daily journey through the world and its otherworldly counterpart, the Duat. Recurring themes in these mythic episodes include the conflict between the upholders of maat and the forces of disorder, the importance of the pharaoh in maintaining maat, and the continual death and regeneration of the gods.

The details of these sacred events differ greatly from one text to another and often seem contradictory. Egyptian myths are primarily metaphorical, translating the essence and behavior of deities into terms that humans can understand. Each variant of a myth represents a different symbolic perspective, enriching the Egyptians' understanding of the gods and the world.

Mythology profoundly influenced Egyptian culture. It inspired or influenced many religious rituals and provided the ideological basis for kingship. Scenes and symbols from myth appeared in art in tombs, temples, and amulets. In literature, myths or elements of them were used in stories that range from humor to allegory, demonstrating that the Egyptians adapted mythology to serve a wide variety of purposes.

Egyptian mythology information

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Egyptian mythology

Numbers in Egyptian mythology

Index of Egyptian mythology articles

Ancient Egyptian religion

List of mythologies

Cosmic ocean

List of earth deities

Ra

Ancient Egyptian conception of the soul

Cosmic egg

List of nature deities

List of knowledge deities

List of mythological objects

List of coupled siblings

Comparative mythology

Mythology of Stargate

Age of Mythology

Bastet

Duat

Mythology
Mythologies Albanian Arabian Armenian Aboriginal Australian Berber Baltic (Latvian - Lithuanian - Prussian) Basque Bantu Brazilian Buddhist Catalan Cantabrian Celtic Breton Cornish Irish Scottish Welsh Chinese Efik Egyptian English Estonian Etruscan Finnish French Georgian Germanic Frankish Continental Germanic Norse Anglo-Saxon Gothic Greek Guanche Hindu Hittite Hungarian Indonesian Italian Japanese Kongo Korean Lugbara Lusitanian Maasai Malagasy Māori Mbuti Meitei Melanesian Mesopotamian Micronesian Mongol Native American Algonquian Abenaki Blackfoot Lenape Aztec Californian Miwok Ohlone Chaná Chilote Choctaw Creek Guarani Haida Inca Inuit Iroquois Maya Muisca Pacific Northwest Kwakwakaʼwakw Plains Indians Ho-Chunk Lakota Pawnee Puebloan Hopi Zuni Selk'nam Talamancan Ossetian Papuan Persian Philippine Polynesian Proto-Indo-European Proto-Uralic Roman Romanian Sámi Slavic Somali Talysh Tai Thai Tibetan Turkic Vietnamese West African Yoruba
Types Creation Flood National Origin
Lists Creations Creatures Deities Feral children Floods Heroes Culture Folk Objects Pairs Places Sources
Related concepts Deity Legendary creature Type Legendary progenitor Twins Culture hero Folk hero
See also Comparative mythology Comparative religion Euhemerism Folklore Epics Lower mythology Pseudo-mythology Religion and mythology Symbolism Theology
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