Ancient Egypt! I simply love anything to do with that time period.
I have been told that I was once a Priestess to Bast and before I was told that I dreamed about a room that was dominated by a huge statue of Bast. I was dressed in white and was assisting the High Priestess. I also dreamed about being in my home in Ancient Egypt with a bust of Bast in the room.
They have the reputation of being obsessed with death. Wrong they were obsessed with life that is why they had the bodies mummified to preserve the body for the afterlife. After
life being the main thing.
Their Gods were part of everyday life and as such they were worshiped in every home.
God of fertility Amun is the King of the gods and can take on any form. Not to be confused with Aten who was popular with Akhenaten and was seen as a false God. When Tutenkahmun came to the throne the Aten was removed and the ending of his name was changed from 'aten' to 'amun'. He had little say in this as he was a child at the time and was King in name only for a time.
Isis is the Goddess of Magic, a Mother Goddess, a wife and protector.
Bast Goddess of the sun warmth and bounty. She was worshiped in the home.
www.nemo.nu/ibisportal/0egyptintro/1egypt/index.htmEgyptian art is very complex and is part of their faith the way they depict things is often seen as strange but there was a reason for it.
www.shira.net/ancient-scenes.htmwww.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/Egypt/egyptian_art.htmlMany paintings of the Pharaoh look strange as his face is not allowed to have anything in front of it so when he is holding a bow and arrow for example it looks odd for that reason.
Pyramids.
Now they are really fascinating. Huge structures that were carefully planned and accurate to an amazing degree.
They were not built by slaves but by Egyptians some who were employed as permanent builders. They had villages that had everything they needed from bread to health care. They have even found evidence of people who had been cared for with broken limbs.
www.nationalgeographic.com/pyramids/pyramids.htmlDo I like Ancient Egypt? no I love it.
If you look at the deities you can see many comparisons to the deities that are in many other countries.
Freya is one who is also known as Isis.
Look into the names and their attributes and you will find many who are known by other names.
I have adapted a prayer that I knew to suit the Goddess Freya.
Here is the original prayer to Bast:
'Beloved Bast Mistress of Happiness and Bounty
Twin to the Sun God Ra
Slay the evil from our minds as you slew the serpent Apep
Deliver us from those who would harm the children of light and stay their hand.
Beloved Bast protect us in the dark and lonely places we must walk'.
Adapted version to Freya:
Beloved Freya Mistress of the Home and Beauty
Twin to the God Frey
Deliver us from those who cause us harm and stay their hand.
Protect us in the dark and lonely places we must walk
As we come to you in love may your love reside with us.