This is an old revision of this page, as edited by -Ril- (talk | contribs) at 19:10, 28 May 2005 (→Horus and Jesus). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 19:10, 28 May 2005 by -Ril- (talk | contribs) (→Horus and Jesus)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)- This page is about the Egyptian deity. For the fantasy character, see Horus (Warhammer 40,000).
 | This article is actively undergoing a major edit for a little while. To help avoid edit conflicts, please do not edit this page while this message is displayed. This page was last edited at 19:10, 28 May 2005 (UTC) (19 years ago) – this estimate is cached, update. Please remove this template if this page hasn't been edited for a significant time. If you are the editor who added this template, please be sure to remove it or replace it with {{Under construction}} between editing sessions. |
Horus (Greek, Egyptian names Hor, Heru-sa-Aset, Her'ur, Hrw, Hr, and Hor-Hekenu) is an ancient god of Egyptian mythology, whose cult survived so long that he evolved dramatically over time. The Eye of Horus became an important Egyptian symbol of power.
Mythology
Sky God
Originally, Horus was the god of the sky, and the son of Ra, the creator (whose own birth was thought due to the Ogdoad). His mother was originally said to have been Hathor, since Hathor was considered as a representation of the Milky way, which encirles the sky, specifically as the cow whose milk produced it, and so Hathor was thought of as Ra's wife. Since he was god of the sky, Horus became depicted as a falcon, or as a falcon-headed man, leading to Horus' name, (in Egyptian, Heru), which meant The distant one. Horus was also sometimes known as Nekheny (meaning falcon), although it has been proposed that Nekheny may have been another falcon-god, worshipped at Nekhen (city of the hawk), that became identified as Horus very early on.
As Horus was the son of Ra, and god of the sky, he became closely associated with the Pharoah of Upper Egypt (where Horus was worshipped), and became their patron. The association with the Pharoah brought with it the idea that he was married to Isis, in her original form, who was regarded as a deification of the Queen. Due to Egyptian beliefs about the soul, the bodies of the deceased royalty were mummified, and so, as the protector of the Pharoah, Horus was said to have had 4 sons (Duamutef, Imset, Hapi, and Kebechsenef) with Isis their mother, to protect the 4 canopic jars of each dead body.
Sun God
Since Horus was said to be the sky, it was natural that he was rapidly considered to also contain the sun and moon. It became said that the sun was one of his eyes and the moon the other, and that they traversed the sky when he, a falcon, flew across it. Thus he became known as Harmerty - Horus of two eyes. Later, the reason that the moon was not as bright as the sun was explained by a tale, known as the contestings of Horus and Set, originating as a metaphor for the conquest of Lower Egypt by Upper Egypt in about 3000BC. In this tale, it was said that Set, the patron of Lower Egypt, and Horus, the patron of Upper Egypt, had battled for Egypt brutally, with neither side victorious, until eventually the gods sided with Horus.
As Horus was the ultimate victor he became known as Haroersis (Heru-ur, and Har-Wer, in Egyptian), meaning Horus the Great, but more usually translated as Horus the Elder. Meanwhile, in the struggle, Set had lost a testicle, explaining why the desert, which Set represented is infertile. Horus' right eye had also been gouged out, which explained why the moon, which it represented, was so weak compared to the sun. It was also said that during a new-moon, Horus had become blinded and was titled Mekhenty-er-irty (he who has no eyes), while when the moon became visible again, he was re-titled Khenty-irty (he who has eyes). While blind, it was considered that Horus was quite dangerous, sometimes attacking his friends after mistaking them for enemies.
Ultimately, as another sun god, Horus became identified with Ra as Ra-Herakhty, literally Ra, who is Horus of the two horizons. However, this identification proved to be awkward, for it made Ra the son of Hathor, and therefore a created being rather than the creator. And, even worse, it made Ra into Horus, who was the son of Ra, i.e. it made Ra his own son and father, in a standard sexually-reproductive manner, an idea that would not be considered comprehendable until the hellenic era. Consequently Ra and Horus never completely merged into a single falcon-headed sun god. Nethertheless the idea of making the identification persisted, and Ra continued to be depicted as falcon-headed.
Conquerer of Set
During the overthrow of the hated Hyksos, foreign rulers over Egypt, Set became demonised by the nationalistic fervour, as he had been chosen by the Hyksos as their favourite god. The previous brief enmity between Set and Horus, in which Horus had ripped off one of Set's testicles, was revitalised as a tale representing the conquest over the Hyksos. Since by this time, Set was considered to have been gay, Set is depicted as trying to prove his dominance, by seducing Horus (with the line how lovely your backside is) and then having Intercrural intercourse with him, in which Set takes the top role. However, Horus places his hand between his thighs and catches Set's semen, then subsequently cut the hand off, throwing it in the river, so that he may not be said to have been inseminated by Set.
Subsequently, Horus secretly masterbates, and deliberately spreads his own semen on some lettuce, which was Set's favourite food (the Egyptians thought that lettuce was phallic, since Egyptian lettuce was hard, long, and released a milk substance when rubbed). After Set has eaten the lettuce, they go to the gods to try to settle the argument over the rule of Egypt. The gods first listen to Set's claim of dominance over Horus, and call his forth, but it answers from the river, invalidating his claim. Then, the gods listen to Horus' claim of having dominated Set, and call his semen forth, and it answers from inside Set. In consequence, Horus is declared the ruler of Egypt.
Horus and Jesus
A connection between Jesus and Horus-Osiris is frequently raised by critics of the historicity of Jesus. Superficially, the death and resurrection of Horus-Osiris, and Horus' nature as both the son of Osiris and Osiris himself, appear to be a template for the idea that this occurred in Jesus. However, there is much more to both deities than this, and so such basic comparisons are not terribly persuasive to most academics.
Deeper similarities between Horus and Jesus, which are not at all obvious to those who are not completely familiar with ancient egyptian mythology and linguistics, have been said by some to mean that certain elements of the story of Jesus were embellishments, which were copied from the Horus as syncretism. Indeed, according to a few more radical scholars, Jesus was copied from Horus wholesale, and made into a Jewish teacher. In particular, it is said that Horus is the basis for the elements assigned to the M Gospel (the bits in Matthew which are not in the Q Gospel or Mark) and the L Gospel (the bits in Luke which are not in the Q gospel or Mark), especially the infancy narratives.
The nativity sequence itself stands out for comparison with the nativity of Ra, whose mother became thought of as Neith.
 | This article or section is in a state of significant expansion or restructuring. You are welcome to assist in its construction by editing it as well. If this article or section has not been edited in several days, please remove this template. If you are the editor who added this template and you are actively editing, please be sure to replace this template with {{in use}} during the active editing session. Click on the link for template parameters to use.
This article was last edited by -Ril- (talk | contribs) 19 years ago. (Update timer) |
Miscellaneous
He was the son of Ausare (Osiris) and Aset (Isis), the river and land gods. Horus was an amalgamation of other, related deities, all of whom were sun gods and associated with the royal prerogative and the sky. Because Horus was a combination of other gods, it is rarely correct to refer to "Horus" as Horus was as much a family of related deities (though many had differing parentages) unified in one being.
Heru-ur (also called Harmerti) is the oldest version of Horus, and was a falcon creator-god who was known for restraining Apep. His eyes were the Sun and the Moon; during a new Moon, he was blind and was called Mekhenty-er-irty ("he who has no eyes") and upon the return of his sight, he was called Khenty-irty ("he who has eyes"). While blind, Horus was quite dangerous, sometimes attacking his friends after mistaking them for enemies. He was a son of Geb and Nut and was the patron god of Sekhem/Sokhmît/Letopolis.
As a child, Horus was called Har-pa-khered ("Horus the child" and called Harpocrates by the Greeks) and was a son of either Osiris and Isis or Banebdjed and Hatmehit. He was depicted as a naked boy with a finger in his mouth, sitting on a lotus with his mother. In this form, he was a fertility god and was depicted with a cornucopia. Har-pa-Khered became very popular during the time of the Roman Empire, when he was depicted riding a goose or ram (note Banebdjetet, his father, was a ram god).
Later Horus became absolutely aligned as a son of the dead body of Osiris and Isis (alternatively: he emerged from Saosis' acacia tree). This is very often cited as "the" Horus in many scholarly works. In truth, this Horus was called Har-sa-iset or Harsiesis.
As Har-nedj-itef (Harendotes in Greek), Horus was Osiris' bodyguard in the underworld, called the Duat.
As Behedti, also Bebti, Beb, Baba, Babu, Horus was the patron deity of Behdet (now named Edfu), where he was strongly associated with the falcon.
As Chenti-irti, Horus was a falcon-god of law and order.
Later still he became associated with the sun god Ra where they combined especially at Iunu (Heliopolis) and became Ra-Herekhty (also Ra-Heru-akhety, Her-akhety ("Horus of the two horizons"), Har-em-akhet ("Horus upon the horizon"), Horakhety, Harmachis (Greek)), god of the morning sun. As Ra-Herekhty, he was married to Ausaas.
Anhur was Horus as a union with Shu.
In the 3rd millennium BC, Set became the patron god of the pharaohs (replacing Horus in the form of Har-mau or Harsomtus) after overthrowing Horus in the form of Har-wer or Haroeris. Later a story became popular that Set had killed Horus' father Osiris, and Set was thought of more and more as an evil god. So Har-mau was again made the pharaohs' patron in this myth: A war between Set and Horus ensued, lasting for eighty years. Har-mau tore off one leg and the testicles of Set, who in turn took out Har-mau's left eye (hence he is referred to as "the one-eyed god"). His eye was later returned to him. Horus won the war (with the support of Neith) and became the ruler of Lower and Upper Egypt. Seth was castrated or killed or moved in with Ra and became the voice of thunder.
Horus was the father of the four gods associated with the canopic jars of Egyptian funerary beliefs: Imset, Hapi, Duamutef, and Kebechsenef.
List of forms of Horus not incorporated
Horus the Elder
- Harmerti - "Horus of two eyes" - one the sun (Ra) the other the moon (Thoth)
- Harmachis - Horus as a solar deity
- Ra-Herekhty - assimilation of Ra (who by then was Atum-Ra)
- Bebti (also Har-Bedhuty) - Horus as defender of Ra against Set
- Heru-sema-tawy / Harsomtus - "Horus, uniter of two lands" -son of Hathor, AND Horus - very modern deity - ptolomeic
Horus as the son of Isis & Osiris
- Harsiesis - "Horus, son of Isis"
- Harpocrates - Horus as a child (literally "horus the child")
- Har-nedj-itef - Horus as the "saviour of his father", particularly as Osiris' avenger
- Arensnuphis - assimilation of Anhur (who by then had assimilated Shu as Anhur-Shu)
Important Dates
Earliest appearance of
- Harsiesis (Horus, son of Isis) :
- Ra-Herakhty :
- Atum-Ra :
- Amun-Ra :
General
- Hathor -> Isis : Horus-son-of-Hathor -> Horus-son-of-Isis
- Ra -> Horus : Horus-son-of-Ra -> Horus-son-of-Horus (Harsomtus)
- Ra -> Atum-Ra : Horus -> Horus-Bedhety (Bebti)
Sequence
- Harmachis -> Haroersis -> Heru-sema-tawy -> Bebti ->
- Ra-Herakhty -> Harmerti ->
- Harsiesis = Harpocrates + Har-nedj-itef ->Arensnuphis ->
- Horus-Osiris
Reasons
Harmakis
Where does harmakis fit in.
Later Version of Conqueror of Set
In later versions of the tale, when the cult of Thoth tried to assimilate the other gods into their mythology, it was Thoth whose magic made the semen respond, and Set was said to have been made pregnant by Horus, resulting in the moon disc which Thoth claimed as a headdress.
Haroersis -> Heru-sema-tawy
??????????????
Heru-sema-tawy -> Bebti
??????????????
Bebti -> Ra-Herakhty
??????????????
Harmerti -> Harsiesis
??????????????
Harsiesis = Harpocrates + Har-nedj-itef
??????????????
Harsiesis -> Arensnuphis
??????????????
Arensnuphis -> Horus-Osiris
??????????????
Categories: