 Sekhmet .  Samael | Title | Lady of the Palace of the Beginning of Time goddess of War The Eye of Ra |
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| Cult Center | - Sekhmet is the triad goddess of Memphis with Ptah, and Nefertum. | |
| Gender | Female | |
| Father | Ra The King of gods | |
| Consort | Ptah | |
| Sons and Daughters | Imhotep Nefertum | |
| Patron - Dominion | - Sekhmet personifies the aggressive aspects of the female forms in contrast with Hathor
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| Dedicated Shrines | more than 700 statues of the goddess in all Egypt - daily rituals | |
| Appearance | - woman with the head of a lioness surmounted by the solar disk and the Uraeus
- Her body was draped in red, Sekhmet faces West, her sister Bastet in green faces east | |
| Historical Development | - Old Kingdom Pyramid Texts recount that at the origin of time, men conspired against their Creator Ra. After considering the matter, Ra decided to
send his Eye in the form of a lioness, Sekhmet to chastise the insurgents. Sekhmet wrought havoc and would have devoured all humanity had not Ra, stricken with regret, then had
the ground covered with red-dyed beer in place of blood, so that Sekhmet, deceived by the color, drank up the liquid, became drunk and fell asleep, thus sparing mankind.
- Until the beginning of the New Kingdom, Sekhmet possessed a full range of powers, and acted independently, without consulting further gods, and at many times had to be appeased from Ra himself - However during the New Kingdom, the Theban Triad was made up of Amun, Mut, and Khonsu, Sekhmet's attributes were absorbed into that of Mut ( Amun's wife). In that historical stage, the number of gods and goddesses were drastically reduced, and their attributes melted into the imperial triad - Later during the development of the monotheistic Hebrew religion, Sekhmet was reduced into an angel called Samael The Messenger of Death, instead of a full goddess the new angel supports the role of the unique god He does no longer takes or spares lifes according to his own will, but rather becomes a servant of the Lord, and acts according to his instructions The new angel Samael retained Sekhmet's power as a warrior angel, defending the cosmos and humans, by fighting against evil spirits who attempt to wreak chaos Still Samael has a crown of a snake and can take the form of a snake and bite his enemies, just as Sekhmet his predecessor Unfortunately Samael is masculine unlike Sekhmet, since in the emerging monotheistic religions, there was less room for female characters |
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| Greek equivalent | Athena Medusa |
Video: Egyptian Goddess - Sekhmet by Katy Noura Butler
Introduction to the Illuminated Lioness Sekhmet, by Katy Noura Butler, author of the Egyptian Path of Love. For more information please visit www.sacredegypt......