Difference between revisions of "Anubis" - New World Encyclopedia
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{{Hiero|Anubis|<hiero>i-n:p-w-E16</hiero>|align=right|era=egypt}} | {{Hiero|Anubis|<hiero>i-n:p-w-E16</hiero>|align=right|era=egypt}} | ||
| − | '''Anubis''' is the [[Greek language|Greek]] name for the ancient [[jackal]]-headed [[god]] of the dead in [[Egyptian mythology]] whose [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|hieroglyph]]ic version is more accurately spelled '''Anpu''' (also '''Anupu''', '''Anbu''', '''Wip''', '''Ienpw''', '''Inepu''', '''Yinepu''', '''Inpu''', or '''Inpw'''). He is also known as '''Sekhem Em Pet'''. Prayers to Anubis have been found carved on the most ancient tombs in Egypt; indeed, the [[Unas]] text (line 70) associates him with the [[Eye of Horus]]. He serves as both a guide of the recently departed and a guardian of the dead. | + | '''Anubis''' is the [[Greek language|Greek]] name for the ancient [[jackal]]-headed [[god]] of the dead in [[Egyptian mythology]] whose [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|hieroglyph]]ic version is more accurately spelled '''Anpu''' (also '''Anupu''', '''Anbu''', '''Wip''', '''Ienpw''', '''Inepu''', '''Yinepu''', '''Inpu''', or '''Inpw'''). He is also known as '''Sekhem Em Pet'''. Prayers to Anubis have been found carved on the most ancient tombs in Egypt; indeed, the [[Unas]] text (line 70) associates him with the [[Eye of Horus]]. He serves as both a guide of the recently departed and a guardian of the dead, though his primary role is as the patron of embalmers and mummification. |
| − | ==God of the dead== | + | ==Anubis in an Egyptian Context== |
| + | {{main|Egyptian Religion}} | ||
| + | {{seealso|Egyptian Mythology}} | ||
| + | As an Egyptian deity, Anubis belonged to a complex religious, mythological and cosmological belief system developed in the [[Nile]] river basin from earliest prehistory to 525 B.C.E.<ref>This particular "cut-off" date has been chosen because it corresponds to the Persian conquest of the kingdom, which marks the end of its existence as a discrete and (relatively) circumscribed cultural sphere. Indeed, as this period also saw an influx of immigrants from Greece, it was also at this point that the Hellenization of Egyptian religion began. While some scholars suggest that even when "these beliefs became remodeled by contact with Greece, in essentials they remained what they had always been" (Erman, 203), it still seems reasonable to address these traditions, as far as is possible, within their own cultural milieu.</ref> Indeed, it was during this relatively late period in Egyptian cultural development, a time when they first felt their beliefs threatened by foreigners, that many of their myths, legends and religious beliefs were first recorded.<ref>The numerous inscriptions, stelae and papyri that resulted from this sudden stress on historical posterity provide much of the evidence used by modern archeologists and Egyptologists to approach the ancient Egyptian tradition (Pinch, 31-32).</ref> The cults within this framework, whose beliefs comprise the myths we have before us, were generally fairly localized phenomena, with different deities having the place of honor in different communities.<ref>These local groupings often contained a particular number of deities and were often constructed around the incontestably primary character of a creator god (Meeks and Meeks-Favard, 34-37).</ref> Despite this apparently unlimited diversity, however, the gods (unlike those in many other pantheons) were relatively ill-defined. As Frankfort notes, “the Egyptian gods are imperfect as individuals. If we compare two of them … we find, not two personages, but two sets of functions and emblems. … The hymns and prayers addressed to these gods differ only in the epithets and attributes used. There is no hint that the hymns were addressed to individuals differing in character.”<ref>Frankfort, 25-26.</ref> One reason for this was the undeniable fact that the Egyptian gods were seen as utterly [[immanent|immanental]]—they represented (and were continuous with) particular, discrete elements of the natural world.<ref>Zivie-Coche, 40-41; Frankfort, 23, 28-29.</ref> Thus, those who did develop characters and mythologies were generally quite portable, as they could retain their discrete forms without interfering with the various cults already in practice elsewhere. Also, this flexibility was what permitted the development of multipartite cults (i.e. the cult of [[Amun-Re]], which unified the domains of [[Amun]] and [[Re]]), as the spheres of influence of these various deities were often complimentary.<ref>Frankfort, 20-21.</ref> | ||
| + | |||
| + | The worldview engendered by ancient Egyptian religion was uniquely appropriate to (and defined by) the geographical and calendrical realities of its believer’s lives. Unlike the beliefs of the [[Hebrews]], [[Mesopotamians]] and others within their cultural sphere, the Egyptians viewed both history and cosmology as being well ordered, cyclical and dependable. As a result, all changes were interpreted as either inconsequential deviations from the cosmic plan or cyclical transformations required by it.<ref>Assmann, 73-80; Zivie-Coche, 65-67; Breasted argues that one source of this cyclical timeline was the dependable yearly fluctuations of the Nile (8, 22-24).</ref> The major result of this perspective, in terms of the religious imagination, was to reduce the relevance of the present, as the entirety of history (when conceived of cyclically) was ultimately defined during the creation of the cosmos. The only other aporia in such an understanding is death, which seems to present a radical break with continuity. To maintain the integrity of this worldview, an intricate system of practices and beliefs (including the extensive mythic geographies of the afterlife, texts providing moral guidance (for this life and the next) and rituals designed to facilitate the transportation into the afterlife) was developed, whose primary purpose was to emphasize the unending continuation of existence.<ref>Frankfort, 117-124; Zivie-Coche, 154-166.</ref> Given these two cultural foci, it is understandable that the tales recorded within this mythological corpus tend to be either creation accounts or depictions of the world of the dead and of the gods place within it. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Because of his role in the process of embalming and mummification, Anubis played an extensive role in Egyptian religious thought and practice. Further, he is one of the more popular deities in artistic representations. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Mythic Accounts== | ||
| + | ===God of the dead=== | ||
[[Image:Anubis standing.jpg|thumb|left|140px|Anubis]] | [[Image:Anubis standing.jpg|thumb|left|140px|Anubis]] | ||
Originally, in the [[Ogdoad]] system, he was god of the [[duat|underworld]]. He was said to have a wife, '''Anput''' (who was really just his female aspect, her name being his with an additional feminine [[Affix|suffix]]: the ''t''), who was depicted exactly the same, though feminine. He is also listed to have taken to wife the feminine form of Neheb Kau, Nehebka, and [[Kebechet|Kebauet]]. Kebauet, the Goddess of cold water, is also listed as his daughter in some places. His father was originally Ra in many papyrus records which were found in pyramids.(Anubis is fourth son of Ra.) But in after ages, his father was said to be [[Osiris]], as he was the god of the dead, and his mother was said to be [[Nephthys]]. Anubis was identified as the father of [[Kebechet]], the goddess of the purification of body organs due to be placed in [[canopic jar]]s during [[Mummy|mummification]]. | Originally, in the [[Ogdoad]] system, he was god of the [[duat|underworld]]. He was said to have a wife, '''Anput''' (who was really just his female aspect, her name being his with an additional feminine [[Affix|suffix]]: the ''t''), who was depicted exactly the same, though feminine. He is also listed to have taken to wife the feminine form of Neheb Kau, Nehebka, and [[Kebechet|Kebauet]]. Kebauet, the Goddess of cold water, is also listed as his daughter in some places. His father was originally Ra in many papyrus records which were found in pyramids.(Anubis is fourth son of Ra.) But in after ages, his father was said to be [[Osiris]], as he was the god of the dead, and his mother was said to be [[Nephthys]]. Anubis was identified as the father of [[Kebechet]], the goddess of the purification of body organs due to be placed in [[canopic jar]]s during [[Mummy|mummification]]. | ||
| − | == | + | ===Patron of Embalmers=== |
[[Image:Anubis statuette 2.jpg|thumb|Statuette of Anubis]] | [[Image:Anubis statuette 2.jpg|thumb|Statuette of Anubis]] | ||
Anubis was the guardian of the dead, who greeted the souls in the Underworld and protected them on their journey. It was he who deemed the deceased worthy of becoming a star. Ancient Egyptian texts say that Anubis silently walked through the shadows of life and death and lurked in dark places. He was watchful by day as well as by night. He also weighed the heart of the dead against the feather symbol of [[Ma'at]], the goddess of truth. One of the reasons that the ancient Egyptians took such care to preserve their dead with sweet-smelling herbs was that it was believed Anubis would check each person with his keen canine nose. Only if they smelled pure would he allow them to enter the Kingdom of the Dead. | Anubis was the guardian of the dead, who greeted the souls in the Underworld and protected them on their journey. It was he who deemed the deceased worthy of becoming a star. Ancient Egyptian texts say that Anubis silently walked through the shadows of life and death and lurked in dark places. He was watchful by day as well as by night. He also weighed the heart of the dead against the feather symbol of [[Ma'at]], the goddess of truth. One of the reasons that the ancient Egyptians took such care to preserve their dead with sweet-smelling herbs was that it was believed Anubis would check each person with his keen canine nose. Only if they smelled pure would he allow them to enter the Kingdom of the Dead. | ||
| − | |||
| − | |||
Following the merging of the [[Ennead]] and Ogdoad belief systems, as a result of the identification of [[Atum]] with Ra, and their compatibility, Anubis became considered a lesser god in the underworld, giving way to the more popular [[Osiris]]. Indeed, when the [[Legend of Osiris and Isis]] emerged, it was said that when Osiris had died, Osiris' organs were given to Anubis as a gift. | Following the merging of the [[Ennead]] and Ogdoad belief systems, as a result of the identification of [[Atum]] with Ra, and their compatibility, Anubis became considered a lesser god in the underworld, giving way to the more popular [[Osiris]]. Indeed, when the [[Legend of Osiris and Isis]] emerged, it was said that when Osiris had died, Osiris' organs were given to Anubis as a gift. | ||
| Line 24: | Line 32: | ||
However, as lesser of the two gods of the underworld, he gradually became considered the son of Osiris, but Osiris' wife, Isis, was not considered his mother, since she too inappropriately was associated with life. Instead, his mother became considered to be [[Nephthys]], who had become strongly associated with funerary practice, indeed had in some ways become the personification of [[mourning]], and was said to supply bandages to the deceased. Subsequently, this apparent infidelity of Osiris was explained in myth, in which it was said that a [[Sexual frustration|sexually frustrated]] Nephthys had disguised herself as Isis in order to appeal to her husband, Set, but he did not notice her as he was [[infertility|infertile]] (some modern versions depict Set as a homosexual, but these have little bearing on the original myth). However, Isis' husband Osiris mistook Nephthys for his wife, which resulted in Anubis' birth. Other versions of the myth depict Set as the father, and it remains unclear as to whether Set was truly infertile or not. | However, as lesser of the two gods of the underworld, he gradually became considered the son of Osiris, but Osiris' wife, Isis, was not considered his mother, since she too inappropriately was associated with life. Instead, his mother became considered to be [[Nephthys]], who had become strongly associated with funerary practice, indeed had in some ways become the personification of [[mourning]], and was said to supply bandages to the deceased. Subsequently, this apparent infidelity of Osiris was explained in myth, in which it was said that a [[Sexual frustration|sexually frustrated]] Nephthys had disguised herself as Isis in order to appeal to her husband, Set, but he did not notice her as he was [[infertility|infertile]] (some modern versions depict Set as a homosexual, but these have little bearing on the original myth). However, Isis' husband Osiris mistook Nephthys for his wife, which resulted in Anubis' birth. Other versions of the myth depict Set as the father, and it remains unclear as to whether Set was truly infertile or not. | ||
| + | ==Later Religious Evaluations== | ||
In later times, during the [[Ptolemaic dynasty|Ptolemaic]] period, as their functions were similar, Anubis was identified as the [[Greek mythology|Greek]] god [[Hermes]], becoming [[Hermanubis]]. The centre of this [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] was in ''uten-ha''/''Sa-ka''/ [[Cynopolis]], a place whose Greek name simply means "city of dogs". In Book XI of "[[The Golden Ass]]" by [[Apuleius]], we find evidence that the worship of this god was maintained in Rome at least up to the 2nd century. Indeed, Hermanubis also appears in the [[alchemy|alchemical]] and [[Hermeticism|hermetical]] literature of the [[Middle Ages]] and the [[Renaissance]]. | In later times, during the [[Ptolemaic dynasty|Ptolemaic]] period, as their functions were similar, Anubis was identified as the [[Greek mythology|Greek]] god [[Hermes]], becoming [[Hermanubis]]. The centre of this [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] was in ''uten-ha''/''Sa-ka''/ [[Cynopolis]], a place whose Greek name simply means "city of dogs". In Book XI of "[[The Golden Ass]]" by [[Apuleius]], we find evidence that the worship of this god was maintained in Rome at least up to the 2nd century. Indeed, Hermanubis also appears in the [[alchemy|alchemical]] and [[Hermeticism|hermetical]] literature of the [[Middle Ages]] and the [[Renaissance]]. | ||
| Line 30: | Line 39: | ||
Early Christians were also repulsed by Anubis; the writer Tertillian claimed that the Egyptians practiced a "despicable religion" in which the worshiper is "led like a slave by the greedy throat and filthy habits of a dog." Although it is true that his two emblematic creatures, the jackal and the dog, were in the ancient world notorious scavengers, one of the main functions of Anubis was to release the human body at death from the uncleanness that possessed it. He washed the body, embalmed it, perfumed it with myrrh, wrapped it with clean linen and received it at the door of the tomb – to the Egyptians he was "Lord of the Cleansing Room." As the Greeks and Christians did not embalm the bodies of their dead (and death itself was considered to be a terrifying thing), they associated the holy Anubis with disease and decay. | Early Christians were also repulsed by Anubis; the writer Tertillian claimed that the Egyptians practiced a "despicable religion" in which the worshiper is "led like a slave by the greedy throat and filthy habits of a dog." Although it is true that his two emblematic creatures, the jackal and the dog, were in the ancient world notorious scavengers, one of the main functions of Anubis was to release the human body at death from the uncleanness that possessed it. He washed the body, embalmed it, perfumed it with myrrh, wrapped it with clean linen and received it at the door of the tomb – to the Egyptians he was "Lord of the Cleansing Room." As the Greeks and Christians did not embalm the bodies of their dead (and death itself was considered to be a terrifying thing), they associated the holy Anubis with disease and decay. | ||
| + | ==Representations== | ||
| + | Anubis was portrayed as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum in the crook of its arm. Some think that he was not pictured as a jackal but as a dog, fox, wolf, or hybrid instead. Very rarely is he ever shown fully human. Anubis was always shown as a black jackal or dog, even though real jackals are typically tan or a light brown. To the Egyptians black was the color of regeneration, death, and the night. It was also the color that the body turned during mummification. The reason for Anubis' animal being canine is based on what the ancient Egyptians themselves observed of the creature - dogs and jackals often haunted the edges of the desert, especially near the cemeteries where the dead were buried. In fact, it is thought that the Egyptians began the practice of making elaborate graves and tombs to protect the dead from desecration by jackals. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Notes== | ||
| + | <references /> | ||
| + | ==References== | ||
| + | * Assmann, Jan. ''In search for God in ancient Egypt''. Translated by David Lorton. Ithica: Cornell University Press, 2001. ISBN 0801487293. | ||
| + | * Breasted, James Henry. ''Development of religion and thought in ancient Egypt''. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1986. ISBN 0812210454. | ||
| + | * Budge, E. A. Wallis (translator). ''The Egyptian Book of the Dead''. 1895. Accessed at [http://www.sacred-texts.com/egy/ebod/index.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Budge, E. A. Wallis (translator). ''The Egyptian Heaven and Hell''. 1905. Accessed at [www.sacred-texts.com/egy/ehh.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Budge, E. A. Wallis. ''The gods of the Egyptians; or, Studies in Egyptian mythology''. A Study in Two Volumes. New York: Dover Publications, 1969. | ||
| + | * Budge, E. A. Wallis (translator). ''Legends of the Gods: The Egyptian texts''. 1912. Accessed at [http://www.sacred-texts.com/egy/leg/index.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Budge, E. A. Wallis (translator). ''The Rosetta Stone''. 1893, 1905. Accessed at [http://www.sacred-texts.com/egy/trs/index.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Dennis, James Teackle (translator). ''The Burden of Isis''. 1910. Accessed at [http://www.sacred-texts.com/egy/boi/index.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Dunand, Françoise and Zivie-Coche, Christiane. ''Gods and men in Egypt: 3000 B.C.E. to 395 C.E.''. Translated from the French by David Lorton. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2004. ISBN 080144165X. | ||
| + | * Erman, Adolf. ''A handbook of Egyptian religion''. Translated by A. S. Griffith. London: Archibald Constable, 1907. | ||
| + | * Frankfort, Henri. ''Ancient Egyptian Religion''. New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1961. ISBN 0061300772. | ||
| + | * Griffith, F. Ll. and Thompson, Herbert (translators). ''The Leyden Papyrus''. 1904. Accessed at [http://www.sacred-texts.com/egy/dmp/index.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Meeks, Dimitri and Meeks-Favard, Christine. ''Daily life of the Egyptian gods''. Translated from the French by G.M. Goshgarian. Ithaca, NY : Cornell University Press, 1996. ISBN 0801431158. | ||
| + | * Mercer, Samuel A. B. (translator). ''The Pyramid Texts''. 1952. Accessed online at [www.sacred-texts.com/egy/pyt/index.htm sacred-texts.com]. | ||
| + | * Pinch, Geraldine. ''Handbook of Egyptian mythology''. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2002. ISBN 1576072428. | ||
| + | * Shafer, Byron E. (editor). ''Temples of ancient Egypt''. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1997. ISBN 0801433991. | ||
| + | * Wilkinson, Richard H. ''The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt''. London: Thames and Hudson, 2003. ISBN 0500051208. | ||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
Revision as of 08:43, 25 June 2007
| Anubis in hieroglyphs | |||||
|
Anubis is the Greek name for the ancient jackal-headed god of the dead in Egyptian mythology whose hieroglyphic version is more accurately spelled Anpu (also Anupu, Anbu, Wip, Ienpw, Inepu, Yinepu, Inpu, or Inpw). He is also known as Sekhem Em Pet. Prayers to Anubis have been found carved on the most ancient tombs in Egypt; indeed, the Unas text (line 70) associates him with the Eye of Horus. He serves as both a guide of the recently departed and a guardian of the dead, though his primary role is as the patron of embalmers and mummification.
Anubis in an Egyptian Context
As an Egyptian deity, Anubis belonged to a complex religious, mythological and cosmological belief system developed in the Nile river basin from earliest prehistory to 525 B.C.E.[1] Indeed, it was during this relatively late period in Egyptian cultural development, a time when they first felt their beliefs threatened by foreigners, that many of their myths, legends and religious beliefs were first recorded.[2] The cults within this framework, whose beliefs comprise the myths we have before us, were generally fairly localized phenomena, with different deities having the place of honor in different communities.[3] Despite this apparently unlimited diversity, however, the gods (unlike those in many other pantheons) were relatively ill-defined. As Frankfort notes, “the Egyptian gods are imperfect as individuals. If we compare two of them … we find, not two personages, but two sets of functions and emblems. … The hymns and prayers addressed to these gods differ only in the epithets and attributes used. There is no hint that the hymns were addressed to individuals differing in character.”[4] One reason for this was the undeniable fact that the Egyptian gods were seen as utterly immanental—they represented (and were continuous with) particular, discrete elements of the natural world.[5] Thus, those who did develop characters and mythologies were generally quite portable, as they could retain their discrete forms without interfering with the various cults already in practice elsewhere. Also, this flexibility was what permitted the development of multipartite cults (i.e. the cult of Amun-Re, which unified the domains of Amun and Re), as the spheres of influence of these various deities were often complimentary.[6]
The worldview engendered by ancient Egyptian religion was uniquely appropriate to (and defined by) the geographical and calendrical realities of its believer’s lives. Unlike the beliefs of the Hebrews, Mesopotamians and others within their cultural sphere, the Egyptians viewed both history and cosmology as being well ordered, cyclical and dependable. As a result, all changes were interpreted as either inconsequential deviations from the cosmic plan or cyclical transformations required by it.[7] The major result of this perspective, in terms of the religious imagination, was to reduce the relevance of the present, as the entirety of history (when conceived of cyclically) was ultimately defined during the creation of the cosmos. The only other aporia in such an understanding is death, which seems to present a radical break with continuity. To maintain the integrity of this worldview, an intricate system of practices and beliefs (including the extensive mythic geographies of the afterlife, texts providing moral guidance (for this life and the next) and rituals designed to facilitate the transportation into the afterlife) was developed, whose primary purpose was to emphasize the unending continuation of existence.[8] Given these two cultural foci, it is understandable that the tales recorded within this mythological corpus tend to be either creation accounts or depictions of the world of the dead and of the gods place within it.
Because of his role in the process of embalming and mummification, Anubis played an extensive role in Egyptian religious thought and practice. Further, he is one of the more popular deities in artistic representations.
Mythic Accounts
God of the dead
Originally, in the Ogdoad system, he was god of the underworld. He was said to have a wife, Anput (who was really just his female aspect, her name being his with an additional feminine suffix: the t), who was depicted exactly the same, though feminine. He is also listed to have taken to wife the feminine form of Neheb Kau, Nehebka, and Kebauet. Kebauet, the Goddess of cold water, is also listed as his daughter in some places. His father was originally Ra in many papyrus records which were found in pyramids.(Anubis is fourth son of Ra.) But in after ages, his father was said to be Osiris, as he was the god of the dead, and his mother was said to be Nephthys. Anubis was identified as the father of Kebechet, the goddess of the purification of body organs due to be placed in canopic jars during mummification.
Patron of Embalmers
Anubis was the guardian of the dead, who greeted the souls in the Underworld and protected them on their journey. It was he who deemed the deceased worthy of becoming a star. Ancient Egyptian texts say that Anubis silently walked through the shadows of life and death and lurked in dark places. He was watchful by day as well as by night. He also weighed the heart of the dead against the feather symbol of Ma'at, the goddess of truth. One of the reasons that the ancient Egyptians took such care to preserve their dead with sweet-smelling herbs was that it was believed Anubis would check each person with his keen canine nose. Only if they smelled pure would he allow them to enter the Kingdom of the Dead.
Following the merging of the Ennead and Ogdoad belief systems, as a result of the identification of Atum with Ra, and their compatibility, Anubis became considered a lesser god in the underworld, giving way to the more popular Osiris. Indeed, when the Legend of Osiris and Isis emerged, it was said that when Osiris had died, Osiris' organs were given to Anubis as a gift. Since he had been more associated with beliefs about the weighing of the heart than had Osiris, Anubis retained this aspect, and became considered more the gatekeeper and ruler of the underworld, the "Guardian of the veil" (of "death"). As such, he was said to protect souls as they journeyed there, and thus be the patron of lost souls (and consequently orphans). Rather than god of death, he had become god of dying, and consequently funeral arrangements. It was as the god of dying that his identity merged with that of Wepwawet, a similar jackal-headed god, associated with funerary practice, who had been worshiped in Upper Egypt, whereas Anubis' cult had centered in Lower Egypt.
As one of the most important funerary rites in Egypt involved the process of embalming, so it was that Anubis became the god of embalming, in the process gaining titles such as "He who belongs to the mummy wrappings", and "He who is before the divine [embalming] booth". High priests often wore the Anubis mask to perform the ceremonial deeds of embalming. It also became said, frequently in the Book of the Dead, that it had been Anubis who embalmed the dead body of Osiris (which would make him the older sibling of Horus), with the assistance of the other main funerary deities involved - Nephthys and Isis. Having become god of embalming, Anubis became strongly associated with the (currently) mysterious and ancient imiut fetish, present during funerary rites, and Bast, who by this time was goddess of ointment, initially became thought of as his mother.
No public procession in Egypt would be conducted without an Anubis to march at the head, the "go-between" of gods and men. The ancient Egyptians swore "by the Dog" when making oaths they would not break.
However, as lesser of the two gods of the underworld, he gradually became considered the son of Osiris, but Osiris' wife, Isis, was not considered his mother, since she too inappropriately was associated with life. Instead, his mother became considered to be Nephthys, who had become strongly associated with funerary practice, indeed had in some ways become the personification of mourning, and was said to supply bandages to the deceased. Subsequently, this apparent infidelity of Osiris was explained in myth, in which it was said that a sexually frustrated Nephthys had disguised herself as Isis in order to appeal to her husband, Set, but he did not notice her as he was infertile (some modern versions depict Set as a homosexual, but these have little bearing on the original myth). However, Isis' husband Osiris mistook Nephthys for his wife, which resulted in Anubis' birth. Other versions of the myth depict Set as the father, and it remains unclear as to whether Set was truly infertile or not.
Later Religious Evaluations
In later times, during the Ptolemaic period, as their functions were similar, Anubis was identified as the Greek god Hermes, becoming Hermanubis. The centre of this cult was in uten-ha/Sa-ka/ Cynopolis, a place whose Greek name simply means "city of dogs". In Book XI of "The Golden Ass" by Apuleius, we find evidence that the worship of this god was maintained in Rome at least up to the 2nd century. Indeed, Hermanubis also appears in the alchemical and hermetical literature of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
Although the Greeks and Romans typically scorned Egypt's animal-headed gods as bizarre and primitive (they mockingly called Anubis the "Barker"), Anubis was sometimes associated with Sirius in heaven, and Cerberus in hell.
Early Christians were also repulsed by Anubis; the writer Tertillian claimed that the Egyptians practiced a "despicable religion" in which the worshiper is "led like a slave by the greedy throat and filthy habits of a dog." Although it is true that his two emblematic creatures, the jackal and the dog, were in the ancient world notorious scavengers, one of the main functions of Anubis was to release the human body at death from the uncleanness that possessed it. He washed the body, embalmed it, perfumed it with myrrh, wrapped it with clean linen and received it at the door of the tomb – to the Egyptians he was "Lord of the Cleansing Room." As the Greeks and Christians did not embalm the bodies of their dead (and death itself was considered to be a terrifying thing), they associated the holy Anubis with disease and decay.
Representations
Anubis was portrayed as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum in the crook of its arm. Some think that he was not pictured as a jackal but as a dog, fox, wolf, or hybrid instead. Very rarely is he ever shown fully human. Anubis was always shown as a black jackal or dog, even though real jackals are typically tan or a light brown. To the Egyptians black was the color of regeneration, death, and the night. It was also the color that the body turned during mummification. The reason for Anubis' animal being canine is based on what the ancient Egyptians themselves observed of the creature - dogs and jackals often haunted the edges of the desert, especially near the cemeteries where the dead were buried. In fact, it is thought that the Egyptians began the practice of making elaborate graves and tombs to protect the dead from desecration by jackals.
Notes
- ↑ This particular "cut-off" date has been chosen because it corresponds to the Persian conquest of the kingdom, which marks the end of its existence as a discrete and (relatively) circumscribed cultural sphere. Indeed, as this period also saw an influx of immigrants from Greece, it was also at this point that the Hellenization of Egyptian religion began. While some scholars suggest that even when "these beliefs became remodeled by contact with Greece, in essentials they remained what they had always been" (Erman, 203), it still seems reasonable to address these traditions, as far as is possible, within their own cultural milieu.
- ↑ The numerous inscriptions, stelae and papyri that resulted from this sudden stress on historical posterity provide much of the evidence used by modern archeologists and Egyptologists to approach the ancient Egyptian tradition (Pinch, 31-32).
- ↑ These local groupings often contained a particular number of deities and were often constructed around the incontestably primary character of a creator god (Meeks and Meeks-Favard, 34-37).
- ↑ Frankfort, 25-26.
- ↑ Zivie-Coche, 40-41; Frankfort, 23, 28-29.
- ↑ Frankfort, 20-21.
- ↑ Assmann, 73-80; Zivie-Coche, 65-67; Breasted argues that one source of this cyclical timeline was the dependable yearly fluctuations of the Nile (8, 22-24).
- ↑ Frankfort, 117-124; Zivie-Coche, 154-166.
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
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External links
- Per-Yinepu: Per Yinepu, the temple of Anubis
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