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 Posted: Sat Jun 05, 2010 2:36 pm
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[ Tuait'tekem ] -•-[ We Believe ]-•-[ Mythos & Religion ]-•-[ Customs ]-•-[ Landmarks ]-•-[ Rules ]
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.[Mythos].
While some of the Egyptian legends behind their religion are lost to them, the Tuait’tekem have managed to preserve many of the traditions their ancestors practised and both have stories passed down by word of mouth and those upon their temple walls to interpret.
While some stories are now lost to the pride, these, the most relevant stories of the holy family of their temple have been remembered and include some of the most important legends...
.[Part One: The Ordering of Chaos].
In the beginning of the world there was only a churning sea of water, a spiritual realm of nothingness and uncreation called Nun. It was from Nu that everything began when out of this primeval nothingness rose a giant lotus. From within the flower rose Ra, the mighty sun god, who gave light to the world and called everything into being. It is in honour of this first lotus that held Ra that the temple in the Tuait’tekem lands is named Het-Em-Seshen, “House of the Lotus”.
Ra had to begin three forms that depended on the position of the sun. At sunrise, he took the form of Khepri, represented by the scarab beetle. Just like Khepri rolls the sun across the sky, the scarabs roll their balls of dung across the desert. At sunset and during the night, Ra becomes Atum. During this time he is at his weakest, for as the day grows old so does he. When the sun's journey is complete he becomes Auf (also known as Euf-Ra) and the then travels through the underworld called Duat to be reborn in the morning as Khepri once more.
Ra first created Djehuty (Thoth) the god of learning and wisdom, Shu the god of air and dryness and Tefnut the goddess of water and moisture. Shu and Tefnut were married together were the parents of the goddess Nut of the sky and the god Geb of the earth. Ra, after this cosmic event, rested, while the new gods set about creating their brethren gods and goddesses… most of whose names have been lost. The Tuait’tekem do however remember Hethert (Hathor) the goddess of beauty, love, joy and motherhood and Ma'at the goddess of truth, order and justice who became the wife of Djehuty (Thoth).
Nut and Geb meanwhile were also married while Ra rested. When Ra awakened again, he ordered their father Shu, the air, to separate the earth and sky. However Nut was already pregnant and Ra in his anger ordered that she could not give birth on any day of the 360 days of the year. Ra was content with this plan and this done, took as his wife the beautiful Hethert (Hathor).
Together Ra and Hethert (Hathor) are two of the three main gods the Tuait’tekem worship and are the father-mother of the holy family of their temple. In the Tuait'tekem, Aker is considered their child. He is an earth-based god, the double lion god of the horizons and a guardian.
Djehuty (Thoth) however decided to help the pregnant Nut. He knew that Ra's curse must be fulfilled, but he had an idea. Djehuty (Thoth) engaged the moon god, Iah, in a wager. Before the wager Iah’s light of the moon almost rivaled the light of sun. But Djehuty (Thoth) with his wisdom was victorious and each time he won their wager he was rewarded with one seventh of Iah’s light. This is why the moon wanes each month. Djehuty (Thoth) took this light and using it added five days to the calendar, bringing the year from 360 days to 365.
This gave Nut five days on which she could have children, while at the same time obeying Ra's commandment. On the first of these days, Nut gave birth to Wesir (Osiris), on the second Horakhty, Set on the third, Aset (Isis) the fourth, and Nebt-het (Nephthys) on the fifth day.
Horakhty became a new form of Ra. During the day, at noon when the sun was at it's peak, he could now become Horakhty. The new form filled an important role as his noon shape between Khepri and Atum. It is also his most potent manifestation with his powers at their greatest when the sun is at its zenith at the middle of the day.
As Nut had not broken his ruling and had given birth to his new form, Horakhty, Ra was appeased.
.[Part Two: The Creation of Mortal Life].
The god Khnum was one of the gods created by Djehuty (Thoth), Shu and Tefnut. It was Khnum who makes sure that the rivers flood enough so that there is rich silt on which the plants could grow, especially important in a desert such as Ta Akhet, the Tuait’Tekem lands.
While Djehuty (Thoth) was still reordering the calendar with Iah so that Nut might give birth, Khnum looked at the clay by a river. Inspired, he decided to create something himself. He sculpted from the clay all the creatures, every animal that has ever existed. First he formed the bones then arranged the bloodstreams, then ordered skin to cover the body, then created the organs within.
He held them up when they were complete and the great sun god Ra shone his life-giving rays upon them. Animals, including lions and humans, afterwards walked the earth. Khnum the maker will be working at his task until the end of time, forming new life forms and modifying the old designs to improve them as he goes.
.[Part Three: The First Ruler of the Earth].
On the first day of the new days of the year as added by Djehuty (Thoth), as Wesir (Osiris) was born of Nut, the voice of Ra proclaimed; “The lord of all the earth is born!” and set him as the king of the mortals of Khnum with his sister-wife Aset (Isis) as his queen. Wesir (Osiris) was the god of hunting and of the herds, Aset (Isis) the goddess of magic. They were mighty rulers and set up their kingdom so that it would prosper.
At their side they placed their siblings, Set the god of the desert and Nebt-het (Nepthys) the twin goddess of Aset (Isis), who were married as Wesir (Osiris) and Aset (Isis) were. While they were honoured greatly, Set and Nebt-het (Nepthys) grew jealous of Wesir (Osiris) and Aset (Isis) – Set because he wished to rule and Nebt-het (Nepthys) because she could not bare children from her husband, for he was a barren, being a god of the desert.
Nebt-het (Nepthys) had a good heart but in her anguish decided that the only way she could be happy and have a child was to secretly seduce Wesir (Osiris). She disguised herself as Aset (Isis) and got the king-god drunk, taking him to her chambers. She bore the illegitimate son Yinepu (Anubis), protector god of the dead and of tombs, from this union. Set however knew that the adultery had been committed and began to plot the murder of Wesir (Osiris).
Set tricked his unsuspecting brother into going into a cave, which Set then closed with rocks from above, killed Wesir (Osiris) inside. Aset (Isis) dug and recovered his body. Using her magics both sought to raise Wesir (Osiris) from the dead and also made herself pregnant with his child lest she fail. When Set found out what was happening he attacked and tore Wesir (Osiris) body to shreds and scattered his remains. When Aset (Isis) learnt of this she wept and Nebt-Het (Nepthys), full of remorse, wept with her. The only comfort for them was that Aset (Isis) bore her late husband a son, Heru (Horus).
Together the sisters and the son travelled all over gathering the body parts of Wesir (Osiris). There are many stories, beautiful and sad, of their journey. Eventually however they managed to give Wesir (Osiris) a proper burial and Aset (Isis) did what she could. Wesir (Osiris) was resurrected – but as king of the underworld, Duat! He cannot leave the underworld until Set is sent there.
During the journey, the child Heru (Horus) grew up into a strong god, a god of leadership and of just ruling. He challenged his uncle Set, winning the throne Set stole from Wesir (Osiris) back from him. While he offers protection to the Pharaoh, he is unable to rule himself for under his mother's magic, Wesir (Osiris) cannot leave Duat without Set being sent their first. Victory is elusive and the battle sometimes favours one side, then to the other. It is said that some day, Heru (Horus) will be victorious and on that day, Wesir (Osiris) will be reborn and return to rule the mortals once more.
Set is not evil, however, it's generally believed that it would be justice for him to be sent to Duat and that afterwards Wesir (Osiris) and Set would both be brought back from the dead. The future rule of Wesir (Osiris) will be a glorious golden age.
In the meantime, Ra chose to anoint in his stead a mortal to be king of the land of Khenet, ruler of Ta Ahket. This was the first Pharaoh. Within that mortal dwelt a spark of the divine, Mai-Bennu (aka Jua), making the Pharaoh a god incarnate in mortal form. A god-king. When one Pharaoh dies or otherwise leaves the throne this spark moves to the next Pharaoh …and will until the day Wesir (Osiris) may rule again.
.[Part Four: Apep, Aker, and how Hethert became Sekhmet].
The chaos of Nu had been ordered and the physical world created and populated with many creatures. Apep, however, was displeased and angry.
Apep is a demon, not a god. Apep has set himself as the enemy of creation, the order and balance of Ma'at and of all things…and especially as the enemy of Ra in all his forms. He became the embodiment of evil and spread that evil as he could to the creations of Khnum. He wishes to end everything and turn all to nothingness.
Apep is a mighty enemy. During then night when Ra is in his weakest form of Auf (Efu-Ra), traveling trough the underworld Duat, Apep attacks. He also attacks at dawn to try to stop him being reborn into his stronger form Khepri and in the evenings when he is in his second weakest form of Atum.
The god Aker however, was ready to defend his father and lord Ra and all of creation from Apep’s attack. A double lion god of the horizons, whose two forms are named Sef (Yesterday) who dwells at the mountain Bakhu in the east and Tuau (Tomorrow) who dwells at the mountain Manu in the west, he is the one who opens the earth for Ra to pass into and out of Duat.
It is the noble and strong god Aker, lord of the horizons and defender of the sun the Tuait’tekem look to as one of their main gods and with Ra and Hethert (Hathor) completes the holy family of the temple. He is their patron and it is in his honourable form they model themselves.
Some of the earliest forms of life Khnum created were proud and encouraged by Apep’s evil whisperings, they figured themselves as powerful as the gods who came before and more deserving of their power. Under a successful Apep, they thought they would be the ones to rule. This group conspired against the gods, against Ra himself and when Ra emerged the morning after from his first battle with Aker against Apep, he was enraged to find such enemies amongst the mortals too.
Because of this rage and these dangers to himself Ra and all of creation, Ra sent Hethert (Hathor) to destroy those corrupted by Apep. This created Sekhmet, the warrior form of Hethert (Hathor). The cow-shaped goddess of beauty and love and the arts turned into Sekhmet, the solar lioness goddess of war, fire, purification and healing. She killed many and her battle lust over took her, and soon she did not separate insurgents from the innocent but slaughtered all in her rage.
His vengeance against the traitors taken and filled with regret for the deaths of the innocent, Ra acted swiftly. He commanded that certain berries, crushed and mixed with water, be spilled upon the sand. Sekhmet, seeing the red liquid, began to drink mistaking it for the blood of her enemies…and the potent berry wine put her to sleep.
She in her rest became Hethert (Hathor), once more.
She (as both forms) is a goddess the Tuait’tekem worship within their temple. Hethert (Hathor) is one of their triad god gods but Sekhmet is also worshipped. Her chapel is small and set apart – but kept filled with offerings for no one would ever wish for Sekhmet to walk amongst them and kill without judgment in her battle rage again.
.[Part Five: Nekhbet, Wadjet and Yinepu (Anubis)].
Lions alone do not populate the Tuait’tekem - and some of their fellows, the dog-like jackals, the snakes and the now banished vultures have their patron gods too. The lions look to Aker and the predatory birds to Horus of course but the snakes look to Wadjet, the vultures to Nekhbet and the dogs to Yinepu (Anubis).
Nekhbet and Wadjet are goddesses that protect areas of the lands of the Tuait’tekem.
Nekhbet the vulture goddess is the guardian of Upper Khenet, her symbol is the lotus flower and is the special guardian of females and the young. Nekhbet is thought of as a more passive and matronly deity than Wadjet, as vultures are not ones to hunt and used to nest above the Temple, watching over the court there. It is very common for a trio of vultures to be painted on the ‘roof’ of a door way and/or above it either side, protecting the ways.
Wadjet the snake goddess is the guardian of Lower Khenet, her symbol is the papyrus flower and is the special guardian of males and the elders. Wadjet is thought of as a fiercer and more aloof goddess than Nekhbet, her area being the wilds and snakes being cold blooded and thus in a way unlike all the other warm blooded creatures who make up the Tuait’tekem ranks. Snakes appear in many hieroglyphs and are another common sight upon the temple walls.
The story of Yinepu (Anubis) is told above. Like Set he is not evil or a feared god, he is very much respected. He is the son of Ra and Nebt-het (Nephthys), half-brother of Heru (Horus). Not only is he the patron of the canine species but is also a special patron of the Acolytes, the priests who deal with the dead, for Anubis. Jackals are naturally under him but maned wolves and even wild dogs are believed to be the jackals “cousins” and so are under him as well.
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