In Greek myth, particularly Orphic thought, Phanes is the golden winged primordial being who was hatched from the shining cosmic egg that was the source of the universe. Called Protogonos (First- Born) and Eros (Love) - being the seed of gods and men - Phanes means "Manifestor" or "Revealer," and is related to the Greek words "light" and "to shine forth" as well as the Latin "Lucifer".
“Lucifer represents the individual intellect and will which rebels against the domination of Nature and attempts to maintain itself contrary to natural impulse. Lucifer, in the form of Venus, is the morning star spoken of in Revelation, which is to be given to those who overcome the world.”
"The serpent entwined around the egg, was a symbol common to the Indians, the Egyptians, and the Druids. It referred to the creation of the Universe."
"In the ritual of Zoroaster, it was a symbol of the Universe... In China, the ring between 2 Serpents was the symbol of the world governed by the power and wisdom of the Creator... Hence the Serpent entwined round an [Orphic] Egg referred to the creation of the Universe."
"In the esoteric doctrines the supreme individual achievement is the breaking of the Orphic egg, which is equivalent to the return of the spirit to the Nirvana--the absolute condition--of the Oriental mystics."
~ Manly P. Hall; The Secret Teachings of All Ages
“The shell of the cosmic egg is the world frame of space, while the fertile seed-power within typifies the inexhaustible life-dynamism of nature.”
Cosmic eggs are a common mythological motif in creation myths. The egg has been adopted as a sacred cosmological symbol among many cultures and is always defined as primordial and associated with the beginning of the universe and creation. Creation associated with the egg often portrays an ex nihilo creation, emergence creation, chaos creation or creation through primordial waters.
The egg is an androgynous birth image, in that it is both a masculine and feminine symbol. The egg is feminine in that it is the product of a seed fertilized and contains an embryo. The egg is a masculine symbol in that the male testes contain seed.
“He is in the Solar egg, the egg to which is given life among the gods”…“I am the creative soul of the celestial abyss. None sees my nest, none can break my egg, I am the Lord!” (Book of the Dead, xvii., 50)
In Egyptian mythology the cosmic egg is associated with the sun god and father of creation Ra. One version of the legend states that in the beginning before creation Ra was contained within an egg laid upon a mound by a celestial bird. In early versions of this myth, the bird is a goose. Whereas after the rise of the cult of Thoth, the egg was believed to have been laid by an ibis and gifted to humanity by Thoth.
Greek Mythology: The Orphic Egg
In Greek mythology the egg and snake represent the cosmos encircled by the creative spirit. The Orphic Egg is named after Orpheus, who was a musician, poet, and prophet in Greek mythology. This image stems from the teachings of Orpheus that the universe originated from a silver egg. The legend goes that Chronos, the personification of time, created the silver egg which was warmed by a snake. From the silver egg hatched the primordial deity Phanes or Protogonus (“first-born”). Phanes is an androgynous deity of procreation and life. As the egg splits, the upper portion becomes the heavens and the lower portion becomes the earth.
Chinese Mythology: Pangu & The Egg of Chaos
“In the beginning all was water. From the water emerged a cosmic snake with a horned head. The snake (or the bull or the giant) created the cosmic egg…”
The Japanese creation myth begins with a world of chaos and formless mass. The chaos took form in the shape of a giant egg. This egg was said to have balanced the elements of yin and yang. From this balance, Pangu, a god of duality, was created. Pangu, the first man of all beings, arose from this egg. Once he emerged from the egg, the lighter pieces of the egg floated and became the sky and the heavier parts sank and became the earth.
Pangu, worried that the egg would merge back together,committed to holding up the sky himself. He aims to never allow it to reunite with the earth as it would result in returning to a state of primordial chaos. As time passed and Pangu grew, so did the distance between the sky and the earth. Pangu, pleased with their position finally was able to lay down to rest.
As he lay to rest he dozed off into a peaceful death. With his death came the wind and clouds, through his last breath. Thunder comes from his voice, his left eye became the sun, his right, the moon, his blood the seas and his hair became the stars, the grass, the plants, and the trees. One version of this creation myth says that humans were created from the lice on his hair.
Hindu Mythology: The Golden Egg
Within the Golden Egg, the god Vishnu reclines on the fluid coils of the primordial sea, his breath the flowing in, flowing out of endless creations. Painting on paper, ca. 1760 C.E., India.
In the Hindu culture, the egg is symbolized with fertility and birth. According to worshipers of Vishnu, the cosmic egg or “golden womb” emerges from the primordial world ocean that exists at the beginning of the ever-recurring cycle of creation. The creator god Brahma emerged from this egg and created the world.
The Satapatha Brahmana of India contains the story of the desire of the original maternal waters’ desire to reproduce. Through a series of prolonged rituals, the waters became so hot that they gave birth to a golden egg. Eventually, the creator, Prajapati, emerged from the egg and creation took place.
In East Africa, like Kenya and Tanzania, chicken eggs are often used for magical purposes, witchcraft, healing, and holistic practices.
In Dogon mythology, creation of the universe comes from a world egg that is divided into two. The Dogon are an ethnic group indigenous to the region of Mali, in West Africa. In this creation myth, when the egg is divided into two, it becomes two birth sacs containing a set of twins. The egg in Dogon mythology is a symbol of new life.
According to Bantu mythology, the upper half of the shell became the havens and the associated male and masculine god. While the lower half of the shell became the earth and known as the primordial mother. From both halves, the sun, stars, trees, and wildlife developed.
