We all have heard about the huge impact Ancient Egypt has had on the evolution of humanity. The astonishing knowledge the Egyptians possessed included the fields of mathematics, architecture and physics. They invented geometry and defined the notion of time. Additionally, the Egyptian culture is renowned for its Pyramids, pharaohs and, of course, religion. The beliefs of one civilization are vital, as they provide insight into their daily life and rituals.
Ancient Egypt situated itself in the Northeast of Africa, along the river Nile, which overflowed periodically and consequently provided Egyptians with fertile and muddy soil. This heavily influenced their agricultural activity and helped them from an economic perspective. On account of this, Herodotus said that Egypt was “the gift of the Nile”.
Egyptians have won a part of their notoriety for having written on papyrus using hieroglyphics, also known as the sacred writing. They were later deciphered by Jean-Francois Champollion, who made out their meaning on the Rosetta Stone. We can find hieroglyphics in some important historical sources which include texts on the pyramids, sarcophagi and the Book of the dead, which consisted of magic spells and was often laid with the deceased inside the tomb.
One captivating thing about Ancient Egypt is the religion. This includes the deities, their funerary traditions and the beliefs of the people. Egyptians prayed to the sun, the moon, the Nile and believed in a multitude of gods; therefore, their religion was a polytheistic one. They considered animals sacred as most deities had the appearance of different creatures. Some examples are the god of the sun, Ra, who has the head of a falcon and Tefnut, goddess of moisture, who has the head of a lioness. Additionally, the king was considered to be a godlike figure, who communicated with the gods and the world of the dead.
Another notable aspect is that Egyptians believed in different cosmogonies (the science that studies how the Universe was created), which are named after prominent cities of the ancient Egyptian space: Hermopolis, Heliopolis, Memphis and Thebes. For example, the second cosmogony states the beginning of the world being Nun, which represented the vast waters of chaos. One day, a mountain named Ben Ben emerged from the water and Atum sat down on it. From his cough resulted Shu and Tefnut. Their children, Nut and Geb, gave birth to Osiris, god of fertility, Isis, Seth, the god of chaos, and Nephthys. These gods, along with many others, form the Egyptian Pantheon.
Coming to an end, the mysteries of Ancient Egypt are many and beautiful. Learning about them helps you understand their impact on other cultures and see how humanity has evolved as a whole. They are and will always be a part of our identity.
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