Opening of the Horizons

This is a name of a festival that occurs May 2nd (Sort of, we will have to discuss calenders at some point.). This day is sacred to Aker, the dual lion god who guards the Eastern and Western horizons. On this day he comes forth to be with the people in celebration of the continued rising of the sun. In Ancient Egyptian the day is sometimes called Up-re-Aahkhu-t, the opening of the horizon. 

It was believed on this day Aker (Sef- yesterday in the west and Tuau - Today in the East) would come forth among the people to celebrate the strength of the sun as well as the ability of the sun to bring strength and life to all other things. Secondary in the festival is a day of thanks to Aker for continuing to protect the horizon and watching to ensure only those beings that should pass the bounds of the horizon.

Limestone carving showing a 4th dynasty offering
table - British Museum

Aside from beer and bread, honey cakes were also used in this festival as a sacred/offering food. Beer and wine were honeyed as well according to some records that are assumed to refer to this celebration. Honey was sacred to the sun. The Egyptians believed honey was the tears of the sun because of the way honeycombs drip honey when exposed to the midday heat of the sun. 

I thought I would share a recipe for a likely candidate for the traditional Ancient Egyptian honey cake.

Ingredients:

For the cake:

.5 cups softened, unsalted butter

6 oz caster or super fine sugar

2 eggs

.5 cups milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 lbs semolina flour

1.5 tsp baking powder

1 oz flaked or sliced almonds

1Tbsp honey

For the syrup:

5 oz caster or super fine sugar

juice of half a lemon

2 Tbsp honey

.5 cups water

To make cake:

*Beat butter and sugar until smooth

* add eggs one at a time beating after each addition

*Stir in milk, vanilla, honey

* Then stir in semolina and baking powder. Ensure it is well mixed.

*Grease a 8x8 baking pan and pour in batter. Sprinkle with almonds.

*Bake at 350 F for 25-30 minutes until firm and lightly browned.

*Remove from oven and move to serving dish (I find giving it a few moments to set is helpful.)

To make syrup:

*Mix sugar and water in a pan simmering gently until sugar is completely dissolved.

* Add lemon juice and honey, stirring constantly.

* While syrup is still hot, pour slowly over cake allowing it to soak into the cake. 

*Serve with fresh or dried fruit traditionally though it is good with ice cream as well.

While I have listed this cake for this festival it was used in many offerings and festivals. It was the all purpose offering cake/sweet in many tomb scenes as well. 

Confessions 21-25

Confession 21. O He-Who-Sees-What-He-Has-Brought who came forth from the House of Min, I have not (wrongly) copulated.
The god here is Khnum. He is a companion of the god Min in creation of life and fertility. Khnum is also often worshiped in temples dedicated to Min. The title refers to his formation of human bodies on his potter's wheel. He is the first to see what comes into being.The confession itself is most likely rape. Though with the Egyptian codes being settled in full disclosure and honesty it could also be read as not coercing anyone into sexual activity as well.

Confession 22. O Looker who comes forth from Per-Amsu, I have not polluted myself.
 Again we are talking about the Temple of Min (Per-Amsu). The looker is probably Min himself. I have not polluted myself  references a Egyptian thought on behavior and conduct. When a person acts in a manner that is against Ma'at those actions mar the heart forever. This is the pollution of self most likely referred to in this confession.

Confession 23. O He-Who-is-Over-the-Great-Ones who came forth from Amemt, I have not struck terror.
Amemt is a reference to Ammit or the place in which she lives. He who came forth from Ammit would be Anubis who in some myths cares for or is a companion to Ammit. Who is Over the Great Ones is Anubis' ability to resurrect through mummification.  I have not struck terror is fairly obvious. It means not terrorizing, bullying, harassing or otherwise using fear against others. 

Tomb depictions of the goddess Wadjet (Uadjet)
not to be confused with the Wadjet Eye of Ra/Horus.

Confession 24. O Demolisher who came forth from Kesiu, I have not committed offense.
Kensiu may be the city Per-Wadjet or a city close by. This was the area sacred to Wadjet. She was the serpent goddess who recorded history and decorated the pharaonic crown. Committing offense here is more about forgetting one's manners or etiquette. It is important to remember this is purposeful disregard. Accidentally using the wrong spoon in a formal dinner is not an offense unless of course it was done on purpose.

25. O Proclaimer of Speech who came forth from Weryt, I have not been hot.
Weryt means "The great lady". The Proclaimer of Speech who came forth from the great lady could be any number of gods or goddesses. Though, the title Weryt with the spelling given in glyphs is a name of Hathor. If we define coming forth as birthed by it limits the choices. This narrows down our choices to Ity, god of music or Hat Mehit, goddess/wife of diplomacy. Given that this Confession is about controlling one's temper, to me, Hat Mehit makes the most sense as the goddess who would be the "Proclaimer of Speech" and related to controlling one's temper.

What Sounds Like a Pterodactyl and Symbolizes the Sun?

A heron. Specifically, Ardea bennuides a heron from Egypt and the Arabian peninsula that is now extinct. Descriptions of the bird, including Egyptian drawings, show the bird to look much like the Great Blue Heron of the Americas. (see picture) The bird, like most herons dwelled in shallow waters and water laden plant beds hunting for fish, frogs and other small animals. It is also believed, that like modern herons that inhabit areas where humans fish, these birds followed fisherman and may even have been tamed by them. (If you're curious about the pterodactyl comment check out the call of the Great Blue Heron on What Bird.com.) 

 So what does this all have to do with Ancient Egypt? 

The Benu Bird was a heron (Ardea Bennuides, hence the scientific name containing Bennu) that the Egyptians associated with the sun. It wasn't just the sun but it was the closest thing the Ancient Egyptian mythology has to what we might call a phoenix. Benu served many purposes in the religion. He was the bird whose screaming call started time. He was the bird who set Ra on fire to blaze in the sky. Benu was a symbol of rebirth and rejuvenation. In the later periods he was merged with the idea of the Arabian phoenix. He also accompanied Ra in the boat through the Duat. In some myths he lights the way for the boat and in others he is referred to as the Ba (soul) of Ra.

One of the most important myths associated with the Benu Bird is related to creation. This myth is most often recorded in Helopolis (modern Ain Shams .."Eye of the Sun" just north of Cairo) Even Herodotus wrote about the Benu Bird. It is from his retelling that we get the association between Benu and the phoenix.

At the beginning of time (sometimes before Ra exists) Benu rises from the waters of Nun. He brings and creates light to drive away the chaos. Benu, meaning "Brilliant Rising" or "Rising Light" is the name Nun and/or Ra bestow upon him. Benu then cries out and time starts. The bird then leaves Egypt but it is never quite told where he goes. Herodotus claims in his version that he flew off to Arabia. In his version after 500,000 years the Benu returns. Ra does not recognize the bird because he did not create him. The bird informs Ra that it is the child of the first Benu and in a bundle carries the remains of its father. The Benu wishes to bury its father in the mound of creation where he first rose from chaos. Benu then flies off and is supposed to return when Osiris becomes pharoah.

Other examples of the story of the Benu Bird exist in the Book of the Dead (ie the Book of Coming Forth by Day) and some of the various coffin texts. Here he serves the purpose of guiding the gods through the Duat. It was believed since Benu appeared from the darkness as the first light he was best suited to navigating the darkness of the Duat.

Benu's name is related to the Egyptian verb "webenu" (wbn) which means "to shine" or "to radiate light". Some of the titles associated with him were "Lord of Time", "He Who Brought Himself into Being", "The Shining One", "Dispeller of Chaos", and "He Who Keeps Time". Benu is sometimes associated with Thoth because Thoth recorded history and Benu kept track of time.

From the Tomb of Inherkha

Benu was worshiped for many reasons. He was believed to be associated with safe travel, both in the Duat and at night. Benu was a sign of luck and rejuvenation. Many texts associate Benu with the rising of the Nile which might have to do with the heron species migrating to Egypt when the Nile is rising and there is plenty of floodplain to hunt in while raising chicks. 

Books to check out:

**Cry of the Benu Bird: An Egyptian Creation Myth by Shana Greger 

**Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt  by Geraldine Pinch

**The Egyptian Book of the Dead. (There are many, many, many versions of this book. I personally prefer the version by Faulkner because it is easy to understand and has nice pictures of the complete text.)

Whose Eye is this anyway?

The Egyptian eye is probably one of the most widely recognized Egyptian symbols. From the fancy make-up and tattoos to the amulets in the museum the icon has become a widespread image. Sometimes we see it called the Eye of Ra and others, the Eye of Horus.

Like most people, for years I was confused about what this symbol actually was. It was so often that both illustrations looked exactly the same and heads or tails couldn't be made for when to tell them apart. In fact, if you do a google search the exact same images will come up for the "Eye of Ra" and the "Eye of Horus". It took me many years, almost 20 now, to get to the bottom of this mess about which one is which. Just this past year I found a text, both a translation and images of the original Papyrus of Turin, that told me once and for all what the difference was.

Before we get into how to resolve this problem of determining what is and is not whose eye we can start by talking about those things we do know. There are times in mythology and writing where one of these eyes is referred to and not the other.

The Eye of Ra
The Eye of Ra is defined universally as several things that are never given the name Eye of Horus. These include the goddesses. Sekhmet, Hathor and Bastet are often given the name Eye of Ra and associated with the symbol. When we see these goddesses and the eye symbol we can be certain that this is in fact the Eye of Ra. The Eye of Ra is also a common theme in creation myths to light up the water of Nun. The eye of Ra can be shown alone or as a pair.

The Eye of Horus
Horus, and that is Horus the Elder brother of Set and not Horus the Child, had his eye ripped out by Set in the first battle that Set waged against his family. This eye was then healed by Thoth or sometimes Isis depending on the version of the myth you are actually reading.
........But wait, there is actually a second Eye of Horus. Set must have a tendency for eye removal as some myths state that he also removes the eye of Horus the Child just before the other gods tell them enough fighting and force them to go to trial. The eye of Horus, no matter the Horus, is almost always a single eye and usually a right one.

..........AND then the Egyptian make it exceedingly complicated.
A god named Re-Horakhty or Ra-Horakhty, if you like, comes on the scene. This god is a merger of Ra and Horus, the child in this case. Now whose eye is it? Is it the Eye of Horus? The Eye of Ra? Do we have a third Eye of Ra-Horakhty? How do we figure out what to call the eye associated with this god?

There is an explanation!
Until just last year I would have been sitting there scratching my head just as most people do when faced with this conundrum of eyes. I told you that I had found a myth from a papyrus that clears this up once and for all. The myth is a common one telling the story of how Isis used magic and trickery to force Ra to divulge his true and secret name. Most of the versions of this myth Isis only asks for Ra's name. However, in some versions, such as the 20th dynasty one in the Papyrus of Turin, Isis adds another stipulation that Ra give Horus his eyes as well or die in agony. The writer of this myth even states that there after the Eyes of Ra are called the Eyes of Horus by men. EUREKA! There seems to be an answer, that though we call it the Eye of Horus all of the eyes are actually Ra's.

There is one loose end though. What about the eye of Horus the Elder? This eye is named in a few myths but the Eye of Horus the Elder is rarely, exceedingly rarely, used outside of the mythology of his battle with Set. Usually, we are looking at amulets, artwork or tattoos designed for protection. The Eye of Horus the Elder is never given the attributes of protection so we can usually rule that name out for items that are designed to give protection. If we are picking up an eye to use as a religious item it has to be either Ra or Horus the Child whom that eye belongs to.

The question remains do we call it the Eye of Horus or the Eye of Ra? Honestly, it can be either. The Eye of Ra is the original form, the owner of the eyes and reference to either Bastet and/or Sekhmet/Hathor. We could use the Eye of Horus as well but it comes with the mythology of these eyes truly being the stolen property of Ra. Though, occasionally we can use the Eye of Horus as the one Set removes but having your eye plucked out hardly sounds like an image of protection to me. It is an interesting set of mythology.



If you want to read a translation of this myth check out Legends of Ancient Egypt by M.A. Murray.