Myths featuring Tefnut

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Hathor Transforming into the Bloodthirsty Lioness Sekhmet

🏺 Egyptian MythologyMemphis (Mit Rahina), EgyptRa • Hathor • Sekhmet

When the sun god Ra becomes aged and human subjects plot against his rule, he sends his daughter Hathor to punish them. Transforming into the terrifying lioness Sekhmet, she begins a slaughter so vast it threatens to extinguish all life, forcing Ra to use a clever trick involving dyed beer to pacify her.

Ra Plucking Out His Eye and Sending It as Hathor to Punish Humanity

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis (Cairo), EgyptRa • Hathor • Sekhmet

As the sun god Ra grew old, humanity began to plot against him, leading Ra to send his Eye in the form of a goddess to punish them. The Eye's destructive rage nearly wiped out all of mankind until Ra devised a clever plan to pacify her with red-dyed beer. This myth explains the dual nature of the goddess as both a fierce protectress and a lady of joy, as well as the origins of the Nile's...

Ra Growing Old and Humans Rebelling Against His Rule

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis (Cairo), EgyptRa • Atum • Sekhmet

As the sun god Ra grew physically frail with age, his human subjects plotted a rebellion against his divine authority in the deserts. Ra responded by unleashing the terrifying lioness Sekhmet to punish them, but he eventually used a clever ruse involving red-dyed beer to save humanity from total extinction.

Ra Taking Pity on Humanity and Ordering a Lake of Beer Dyed Red with Ochre

🏺 Egyptian MythologyElephantine (Aswan), EgyptRa • Sekhmet • Hathor

When the sun god Ra grew old and faced a human rebellion, he sent the goddess Sekhmet to punish the conspirators. However, her bloodlust became uncontrollable, threatening to wipe out all of mankind until Ra intervened with a clever ruse involving thousands of jars of beer dyed red. By tricking the goddess into drinking the beer, which she mistook for blood, Ra saved humanity and transformed...

Atum Creating Himself from the Primordial Waters of Nun

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis (Cairo), EgyptAtum • Nun • Shu

In the beginning, there was only the dark and infinite abyss of the primordial waters known as Nun. Within this chaotic void, the god Atum willed himself into existence through his own consciousness, becoming the first being. He emerged upon the primordial mound, the Benben, at Heliopolis to begin the long process of creating the sky, the earth, and all living things.

Shu and the Eight Heh Gods Supporting the Belly of the Great Celestial Cow

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis (Cairo), EgyptShu • Nut • Geb

In the ancient Egyptian cosmogony of Heliopolis, the god of air, Shu, was commanded to separate his children, the earth god Geb and the sky goddess Nut, who remained in a constant embrace. By lifting Nut high above the world in the form of a Great Celestial Cow, Shu created the space necessary for life to exist, supported by eight Heh gods representing the infinite nature of the cosmos. This...

Horus Coming of Age and Challenging Set Before the Ennead

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis, CairoHorus • Set • Isis

After reaching adulthood, Horus, the son of Osiris, challenged his uncle Set for the throne of Egypt before the divine tribunal known as the Ennead. For eighty years, the two gods engaged in magical contests and legal battles while the gods of Heliopolis debated the rightful heir. Ultimately, with the intervention of Osiris from the underworld and the wisdom of Isis, Horus was crowned king,...

Sekhmet Slaughtering Humans in the Desert and Drinking Their Blood

🏺 Egyptian MythologyWestern Desert, EgyptRa • Sekhmet • Hathor

When the sun god Ra grew old, he discovered that humans were plotting against his divine rule. He sent his daughter Sekhmet, the lioness-headed goddess of destruction, to punish them in the harsh Western Desert. Her bloodlust became so great that she nearly destroyed all of humanity, until Ra intervened with a clever trick involving red-dyed beer.

Ra's Tears of Joy Turning into the First Humans

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis (Cairo), EgyptRa • Atum • Shu

In the primordial age of the universe, the sun god Ra, also known as Atum, emerged from the chaotic waters of Nun to begin the work of creation. When his first children, Shu and Tefnut, became lost in the vast darkness, Ra sent his divine Eye to find them. Upon their joyous return, the creator was moved to tears, and as these droplets of divine sorrow and relief fell upon the earth, they...

Shu Separating Nut (Sky) and Geb (Earth) to Form the World

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis, Cairo, EgyptShu • Nut • Geb

In the primordial era of Egyptian mythology, the air god Shu was commanded to separate his children, the earth god Geb and the sky goddess Nut, who were locked in an eternal embrace. By lifting Nut high above his head and standing upon Geb, Shu created the atmosphere and the space necessary for life to exist on Earth. This pivotal act defined the structure of the cosmos and allowed the sun...