Egyptian Religion
By Leah
Did you know that the Egyptians believed that their gods and goddesses were on earth with a human body and an animal head? Even though it was thousands of years ago, Egyptian religion was very advanced. They had many deities for every Egyptian city. They also had wonderful decorated tombs and they had a very sophisticated way of burial and mummifying.
The Egyptians believed in many deities, or gods and goddesses. They believed that there was a deity for every aspect of human and natural activity. First, the Egyptians relied on Re, the god of the sun, and the goddess Rennutet, for good harvests. In addition, one of the most important goddess was Isis. She represented the devoted mother and wife.
The Egyptians had temples and priests like we have, but the way of worship was a lot different. First, the temples did not offer regular services so most Egyptians prayed at home. Secondly, each temple was regarded as the home of certain gods or dedicated to a king. The priest's job was to serve the deity or king, who was represented by a statue in the temple. Finally, each Egyptian city had their own special god in addition to the many deities of human and nature activity.
Love and marriage in Egypt were very different. First, at the age of twelve, children were regarded as young adults who could marry. Also, relationships between siblings were acceptable especially among royalty. Finally, the goddess of Fertilty, Taweret, was the god that kept childbirth safe.
The tombs of Egypt were very important to many Egyptians. Some people thought that tombs were more important than houses. Ancient Egyptians also thought of tombs as houses of the dead spirits. Also, tombs were the ultimate status symbol for the wealthy.
Tombs of the wealthy were very ornate. The tombs of the wealthy were decorated inside with scenes of daily life, they believed that these activities would carry on to their afterlife. The old kingdom nobles were normally buried in mastsbas, (mud-brick buildings) built near the pyramid of their king or pharaoh. Also, the Egyptians that could not afford a tomb were simply buried in the sand.
The Egyptians believed that when they died a new life would begin. First they believed that they traveled to the afterlife by boaT. Also, they believed that when the person died, the ba and ka were released.
The ba and ka are spirits of the dead. Everyone had a ba, or a soul and a ka, an invisible twin of the person. The ba and ka were released from the body when the person died. The ba would keep contact with the living friends and family of the deceased person. The ka in bird form, traveled back and forth from the body to the underworld. If the corpse was not preserved or mummified, they would not live in the underworld. Also, if the sarcophagus was not decorated, the ka would not be able to return to it and it would not live in the underworld!
An Egyptian that could not afford to mummify would be buried in a crouch position in the sand. The ba and ka would still be released and they would have jars of food in the afterlife.
In conclusion, Egyptians had a very sophisticated religion. Egyptians were very intelligent people, they were smart enough that they built pyramids, huge buildings which took decades to make! Egyptians were very interesting people and they are interesting to research.
Click in the boxes to see pictures!!!
| Religion and Deities | Mummies | Tombs |
Sources
Books
A. Millard and J. Chisholm, Early Civilization
Aliki, Mummies Made in Egypt
Encyclopedias
The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt