Goddesses and Female Spirits

Egyptian Mythology has always held a facination with me, but especially the Goddesses, because they were so strong in character. So I've created this page to highlight the goddesses of Egyptian Mythology.

Below is a list and small description of the goddesses. Some have their own pages, some don't.

Aset/Auset (Greek: Isis)

Supreme goddess of magic and wisdom, mother of Heru, associated with the vulture, a protector spirit, and the cobra, the only creature in all creation made by someone other than Amun. She retrieved and remade Ausar's mutilated body with the help of Anpw and her sister Nebt-het, so that his soul, and all who came after, could enjoy the afterlife.

Bast (Greek: Bastet)

Daughter of Ra, the cat-goddess of the delta, often a deity of affection, hearth and home. Cats were respected and often portrayed as the slayers of evil serpents. She was sometimes fused with the more dangerous Sekhmet.

Het-Heru (Greek: Hathor)

An ancient cow-goddess, at various times taking on the role of Great Mother and consort of Ra [read:Gaia], protector of Heru (hence her name, "House of Heru), and goddess of love. Her head formed the handle of the powerful ancient rattle known as the sistrum, used to frighten away evil spirits.

Ma'at

Wife of Tehuti, her name is an important concept meaning "truth, balance, harmony, justice". A tall woman whose symbol is an ostrich plume, the hearts of the dead had to be weighed against her feather. All laws were dictated by Ma'at, and a blue bead inscribed with her name was worn by judges

Meretseger

"She who loves Silence". This Egyptian cobra goddess protected the tombs west of Thebes. She dwelled on a pyramid-shaped mountain overlooking the Valley of Kings. She blinded or poisoned criminals, especially graverobbers. Her cult mysteriously died out in the XXI dynasty

Mut

"Mother". Consort of Khons, she was the great nurturing Vulture goddess and mother of everything. Closest equivalent to Gaia.

Neit (Greek: Neith)

Virgin huntress, goddess of war and domestic arts, quite obviously identified with Athena and Artemis by the Greeks. Her symbol was a shield bearing crossed arrows. She was the mother of Sobek

Nebt-het (Greek: Nepthys)

"Lady of the house," mother of Anpw. Originally Set's wife and sister, she left him to help Aset raise Heru after the murder of Ausar. She was often depicted as a kite hovering over the corpse in the funerary rites where she and Auset served as protectors

Nuit (Nut)

Well-known Egyptian sky goddess, daughter of Shu and Tefnut, depicted arching over the world with her belly painted with stars.

Sekhmet

Often fused with Bast and Het-heru, the great lioness goddess and wife of Ptah was the bloodthirsty embodiment of the fire of Ra. She was the agent of vengeance and swift justice. In one legend, Ra created her to destroy mankind after it turned away from morality and the gods, but later relented and changed her to the only slightly less destructive guise of Het-heru, love.

Selket

The scorpion-goddess who stung the wicked and prayed for the lives of innocents stung by scorpions to be spared. She aided in childbirth and bound demons and monsters of Set sent to harm her friends.

Sepdet (Greek: Sothis)

The goddess of the dog-star, Sirius, sometimes fused with Auset. She was the symbol of prosperity and renewal, since her rising just before dawn around August 1, after a 72-day absence from the sky, heralded the annual life-giving flood of the Nile and the start of the new year. Her symbol is the crown and the star.

Taweret

"The Great One", hippopotamus goddess of pregnancy, a powerful spirit with the legs and paws of a lion, the tail of a crocodile, human breasts, and a swollen belly. She held the protective amulet "Sa", a circle with a bar at one end, and drove off evil spirits, often assisted by Bes.

Tefnut

"The spitter", goddess of moisture, clouds, pure water, and the rare magic known as rain, she was daughter of Ra, wife of Shu, and mother of earth and sky

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