Nebet-hut, goddess of darkness and mourning
If there’s one goddess who feels like she’s drawn the short stick in the bunch, it’s Nebet-hut. While she’s undoubtedly part of a quartet of siblings that play some of the biggest roles in Kemet’s divine sphere, Nebet-hut is often left feeling like an afterthought tacked on to balance Sutekh. If he didn’t exist, would she, when she was the last one born and everyone comes in balanced pairs?
Her relationship with her sister, Aset, has always been complicated. She loves her sister, but can’t help but feel like everyone—from their parents to their worshippers—consider her like an extension of Aset. Aset is more important, more powerful, the queen. What is Nebet-hut but a shadow of her sister? How does a goddess make an identity for herself when she’s always envisioned as a double to Aset? Nebet-hut is forever entangled in trying to figure out what she wants out of her existence, independent of what Aset or their brother Usire needs.
And then there’s Sutekh. Good grief, she did not want to be married to him. Not only is Nebet-hut not attracted to him, but she resents the fact that yet another aspect of her independence and identity has been ripped from her. If she’s not Aset’s Sister, then she’s Sutekh’s Wife. Why can’t she be herself? To make matters worse, Nebet-hut has figured out one thing she wants out of life—she wants to be a mother—and Sutekh is infertile and cannot even give her that. It adds yet another layer of frustration and anger on top of everything else.
Nebet-hut already feels like goddesses play second sistrum to gods. She sees the pain and struggle that Aset goes through, trying to earn respect for her position as queen despite what feels like the world working against her. And Nebet-hut will always support her in that endeavor. But Aset doesn’t seem to comprehend how truly invisible Nebet-hut is to the world when not linked to one of her siblings, and Nebet-hut honestly wishes she would.
Highlights of her life include:
- Nebet-hut has generally tried to play the role she was forced into without complaint, as she was socialized to do so, but when Sutekh couldn’t make her a mother she took matters into her own hands. Nebet-hut, though she feels bad about stepping outside her marriage to try to conceive children, has figured out that no one is going to give her what she wants or needs out of life; only she can do that for herself.
- She has a strong relationship with her mother, Nut, stronger than Aset has, which is one of the few things Nebet-hut has over Aset. And it’s sad that she has to silently compete over something like that to boost her self-esteem, but it is what it is.
- In her efforts to achieve her own independence and shape her life independently of her siblings, she has actually found herself to be quite fond of Sokar. The two have a good affinity with each other. Her relationships with the Duat gods in general is far healthier than her other siblings, and she cares deeply for the deceased mortals that pass through Duat itself. It does seem that if ever there was a time that Kemet considered a Queen of the Underworld like Sumer has, she would be the best option. A Kemetic Ereškigal, anyone? Maybe? Perhaps? It would be nice…
Lines commissioned from Argenemartwork
