Religion
Ma'at, goddess of all balance in Egypt
Along with worshipping the founders of Deir el-Medina, Ahmose I and his mother Ahmose-Nefertari, the villagers in Deir el-Medina also worshipped a variety of other deities. The workers would build temples, statues and shrines dedicated to their deities, and would even hold an array of festivals to celebrate them. Along with the normal Egyptian gods worshipped, the Egyptians living in Deir el-Medina also worshipped gods from other continents and areas in the world, such as Asia due to the trade links they had.
Some of the main deities that were worshipped in Deir el-Medina included Bes, the goddess of Childbirth, Hathor, the goddess of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy, Meretseger, the goddess in charge of protection in the whole of necropolis, who would punish those who robbed tombs of the royal, and punished people who committed crimes.
The main deity that the villagers worshipped however, was Ra, the sun god and believed by the Egyptians to be the greatest of all the gods. They believed that it was Ra that made the world fair for them, and that he made it so that they could share his love on Earth. They also believed that along with Ra came another evil world full of demons that was opposite to Ra's world, and that this other dimension was constantly trying to oppose Ra's creations. This stood against everything that the Egyptians believed. They thought that in order to keep the world in balance and create harmony that they had to work as one with the gods, and that they had to assist the gods in their fight against the underworld.
It was the Pharaohs duty to build many elaborate temples and shrines in order to keep their gods happy because in the opinion of the Egyptians, if they kept up a strong connection with their gods, it would mean that they would have protection.
Opposite to Ra in religion was Osiris. Osiris is the god of the underworld in the opinion of the Egyptians and appears to be a green skinned man in form of a mummified pharaoh. Osiris is the son of Ra and used to be the leader of all the gods that were on Earth. This changed when he was believed to be killed by Set, the god of wind and storms. It is said that Set changed his ways and became evil, in turn killing his brother Osiris in order to become leader of all the gods on Earth. After he killed Osiris, he sent him down to be the leader of the underworld. Osiris was however resurrected by his sister Isis, who was seen as the best mother, and was worshipped by the Egyptians as motherhood and fertility were greatly desired. When Isis brought Osiris back from the dead, she did it with the ritual of life which was later given to all the Egyptians so that they could ensure that their deceased could have eternal life. This was then collected into the book of going forth by day, or otherwise known as the Book of the Dead. Egyptians believe that in the underworld Osiris sits on a throne where he is then praised by the souls of the just. He then decides if those souls are worthy enough to enter The Blessed Land by passing a series of tests that determine whether or not the soul's heart is clean enough to enter. The Blessed Land is a part of the Underworld that is very similar to the Land of the Living, (Earth) but does not include any sorrow or pain.
During these Judgment periods, the Egyptians believe that Ma'at is present. Ma'at is depicted as a woman wearing a crown standing on a base that symbolizes the stable base on which all order in Egypt is built. She has ostrich feathers attached to her arms, and these play a key part in judgment. (See picture on top of page). She is known as the patron of truth, law and universal order. Ma'at was thought to be present when a judgment took place in order to ensure that the judgment would be ruled correctly and impartially. Judgment was weighed upon the scaled of justice. When it was time for judgment, it is said that Anubis, the original god of the underworld weighed the heart of the deceased against the ostrich feather that Ma'at stood upon. If it turned out that the heart was heavy with wicked deeds that were deemed unacceptable, then the heart would outweigh the feather. This would end by the soul being eaten by Ammit, who sat underneath the scales of justice waiting to destroy the unworthy souls. Ammit was depicted as a crocodile. If however, the scaled were balanced indicating a good life by the soul, he/she would be welcome into the Blessed Land. Ma'at was always deferred to, in all Egyptian worlds.
Temples were built for the cults of the gods. The temples that were built were not for use by the public, but they were rather there for the use of the gods. They Egyptians believed that their temples were used by the gods as houses. The two types of temples that emerge most often are cult temples that were dedicated to the gods, and mortuary temples that were dedicated for the use of the cults of the dead Pharaohs. These temples were also often the venues of various religious festivals. Each temple had a storage room that was used to keep wages and rations for the workers. All of the temples had their own officials, workers, lands, herds, trading ships, extensive storehouses and even mining concessions. They even had a sanctuary that was used to keep a cult statue of a god inside it.
It was thought that the Pharaoh was also a god in Deir el-Medina. This was the idea of Divine Kingship. The idea was that when a Pharaoh was first crowned, he or she would turn into a living god.
"What is the king of Upper Egypt?
what is the king of Lower Egypt?
It is a god by whose guidance you live
the Father and the Mother of all humans
Alone by himself
The one who is unique
(Said by Rekhmire, noble and official of the 18th dynasty that served as Governor of the Town under the leadership of Thutmose III.)
List of all the gods
Back to main page
Some of the main deities that were worshipped in Deir el-Medina included Bes, the goddess of Childbirth, Hathor, the goddess of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy, Meretseger, the goddess in charge of protection in the whole of necropolis, who would punish those who robbed tombs of the royal, and punished people who committed crimes.
The main deity that the villagers worshipped however, was Ra, the sun god and believed by the Egyptians to be the greatest of all the gods. They believed that it was Ra that made the world fair for them, and that he made it so that they could share his love on Earth. They also believed that along with Ra came another evil world full of demons that was opposite to Ra's world, and that this other dimension was constantly trying to oppose Ra's creations. This stood against everything that the Egyptians believed. They thought that in order to keep the world in balance and create harmony that they had to work as one with the gods, and that they had to assist the gods in their fight against the underworld.
It was the Pharaohs duty to build many elaborate temples and shrines in order to keep their gods happy because in the opinion of the Egyptians, if they kept up a strong connection with their gods, it would mean that they would have protection.
Opposite to Ra in religion was Osiris. Osiris is the god of the underworld in the opinion of the Egyptians and appears to be a green skinned man in form of a mummified pharaoh. Osiris is the son of Ra and used to be the leader of all the gods that were on Earth. This changed when he was believed to be killed by Set, the god of wind and storms. It is said that Set changed his ways and became evil, in turn killing his brother Osiris in order to become leader of all the gods on Earth. After he killed Osiris, he sent him down to be the leader of the underworld. Osiris was however resurrected by his sister Isis, who was seen as the best mother, and was worshipped by the Egyptians as motherhood and fertility were greatly desired. When Isis brought Osiris back from the dead, she did it with the ritual of life which was later given to all the Egyptians so that they could ensure that their deceased could have eternal life. This was then collected into the book of going forth by day, or otherwise known as the Book of the Dead. Egyptians believe that in the underworld Osiris sits on a throne where he is then praised by the souls of the just. He then decides if those souls are worthy enough to enter The Blessed Land by passing a series of tests that determine whether or not the soul's heart is clean enough to enter. The Blessed Land is a part of the Underworld that is very similar to the Land of the Living, (Earth) but does not include any sorrow or pain.
During these Judgment periods, the Egyptians believe that Ma'at is present. Ma'at is depicted as a woman wearing a crown standing on a base that symbolizes the stable base on which all order in Egypt is built. She has ostrich feathers attached to her arms, and these play a key part in judgment. (See picture on top of page). She is known as the patron of truth, law and universal order. Ma'at was thought to be present when a judgment took place in order to ensure that the judgment would be ruled correctly and impartially. Judgment was weighed upon the scaled of justice. When it was time for judgment, it is said that Anubis, the original god of the underworld weighed the heart of the deceased against the ostrich feather that Ma'at stood upon. If it turned out that the heart was heavy with wicked deeds that were deemed unacceptable, then the heart would outweigh the feather. This would end by the soul being eaten by Ammit, who sat underneath the scales of justice waiting to destroy the unworthy souls. Ammit was depicted as a crocodile. If however, the scaled were balanced indicating a good life by the soul, he/she would be welcome into the Blessed Land. Ma'at was always deferred to, in all Egyptian worlds.
Temples were built for the cults of the gods. The temples that were built were not for use by the public, but they were rather there for the use of the gods. They Egyptians believed that their temples were used by the gods as houses. The two types of temples that emerge most often are cult temples that were dedicated to the gods, and mortuary temples that were dedicated for the use of the cults of the dead Pharaohs. These temples were also often the venues of various religious festivals. Each temple had a storage room that was used to keep wages and rations for the workers. All of the temples had their own officials, workers, lands, herds, trading ships, extensive storehouses and even mining concessions. They even had a sanctuary that was used to keep a cult statue of a god inside it.
It was thought that the Pharaoh was also a god in Deir el-Medina. This was the idea of Divine Kingship. The idea was that when a Pharaoh was first crowned, he or she would turn into a living god.
"What is the king of Upper Egypt?
what is the king of Lower Egypt?
It is a god by whose guidance you live
the Father and the Mother of all humans
Alone by himself
The one who is unique
(Said by Rekhmire, noble and official of the 18th dynasty that served as Governor of the Town under the leadership of Thutmose III.)
List of all the gods
Back to main page
