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ancient Egyptian gods "M"
Maat: Maat
was the concept of a structured world that brought order and
equilibrium, ethical values and justice, culture and creativity.
This goddess was the personification of cosmic harmony and
equilibrium. Maat was the opposite to everything that was
disordered, chaotic, destructive, and unjust. All Pharoahs and
kings had to bring order to their kingdom and world about them
and therefore it was important “Ma’at” was in place. This
goddess personified all that brought order and was regarded as
the daughter or companion of the sun-god. She was shown in human
form with an ostrich feather on her head and sometimes she was
shown with the wings of a divine being. Not until the New
Kingdom did she really begin to have a cult on her own. Then she
became part of the set of gods that were worshiped at Karnak and
Memphis. She held a mortuary role that evolved over time.
Meretseger, Meresger:
This goddess was seen as a nurturing god along with Renentutet.
She was depicted as the snake-headed or serpent-shaped goddess
of the western mountains of Thebes. She is also known as the
“Lady of Heaven” and the “Peak of the West” in Egyptian
religious texts. She was also known as the protector of the dead
and one who chastised the evildoer and also was sometimes
referred to as the “Lover of silence.” She was quite popular
throughout various times in ancient Egyptian history although
known as one of the lesser gods.
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Min:
This god was one of the first to have his name preserved as
a deity in Egyptian records. He is known to be a god of
fertility, a god of travel in the desert, and a god of
harvests. By the fourth century BC, huge statues were
already being erected in Coptus on his behalf. He is
depicted in human form with an erect phallus, wearing a
plumed crown with a streamer. Sometimes he is also shown as
a mummy with the plumed hat and carrying a flail. Eventually
he was incorporated in the Amun cult and was also worshiped
in some areas as Min-Horus. He was honored with festivals
and disorderly merriment. Along with Kamutef (bull of his
mother), he is regarded as a creator god.
Mnevis:
He is portrayed as a black bull with a solar disk between
his horns and was considered one of the sacred bulls in
ancient Egypt. He was the sun bull of Heliopolis. The large
genitals were a sign of the great procreative power that he
possessed. He is known to have strong links to Re and Atum.
Montu, Mont:
This god is depicted with a head of a falcon, a plumed
crown, and the solar disk and two uraeus (rearing cobra)
serpents over his forehead. He was also considered a sun
god. He appears in the Old Kingdom records and was worshiped
at Erment (Hermonthis) which is present day Armant At first
he is shown as a royal god, and it appears that his major
cult followers were centered at Hermonthis, Tod, Medamud,
and Thebes. He was also the god of war and fought against
the enemies of the gods. He stood at the kings’ side during
battles. At time progressed, in the Middle Kingdom, another
cult appeared depicting him as a bull. This was most likely
done to further depict and enhance his warlike qualities.
Mut:
This goddess is depicted in human form wearing a vulture
headdress and the Double Crown. Her worship was directly
dependent on the worship of Amun. Her cult took place from
the New Kingdom onward. She, Amun, and their son Khonsu
formed the Theban divine triad. Her maternal role is
emphasized by the written vulture hieroglyph which means
“mother.” Both Amun and Mut were regarded as the king’s
parents from the Eighteenth Dynasty onward. At Karnak, she
developed her own cult. Eventually, she was honored with a
temple and a lake at |
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Thebes. She was
also known as the “Lady of Asheru.” She also had close
associations with goddesses that were of the vulture and lion
nature such as Nekhbet, Uto, Sakhmet, and Bastet. In addition,
part of the mythology story indicates that she took on the role
as a sky goddess and turned into the form of a cow when Amun
emerged at Heliopolis.
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