#theinfinitebattle

[alicedollhouse]

theinfinitebattle replied to your post:

you’re so pretty m’dear —Lizard

And you are very handsome.

[thetwistedrope]

Hey!! I'm being called over from the Norse pantheon to the Kemetic! I'm currently doing some research, but one of the things is that there are several different animals I was shown/interacted with regarding the netjer and one of them was that of the ram. So I was wondering which deities were represented/related to it? The ram I saw had curved horns if that helps.

I went and asked one of my other friends who is big into the Ram deities of AE. Here is what she said:

The ram-featured Gods and spirits of Ancient Egypt are many. The ram has since early in recorded history been an important symbol of life, rebirth, masculinity, protection, and aggressive power for the Ancient Egyptians. To write detailed descriptions of Them all would easily make up a textbook, but They can at least be listed. These include but are not limited to: Banebdjedet of Djedet/Mendes, Tatenen of Men-nefer/Memphis, Osiris (mainly through the assimilation of other Gods: Their appearances, names, functions, and symbols), Amun of Waset/Thebes (Who may or may not be the same deity as the earlier-attested Amun of Khmun/Hermopolis), Kherty of Taremu/Leontopolis, Herishef of Henen-Nesu/Herakleopolis Magna, and most recognizably to Moderns and with Whom all other Ram Gods are frequently misidentified, Khnum of Yebu/Elephantine.Indeed, the Sun God Ra has His own ram-forms. As Afu-Ra -- "Flesh," the "Corpse of Ra," the "dead" form of Ra -- He traverses the Underworld, traveling from cavern to cavern in the Nocturnal Barque, receiving the acclamations of the dead as He sheds His life-giving light upon them. (Ions, 42 - 6) This is a particularly perilous journey. He is shown with a "naked" solar disc headdress, His entire form encircled by His serpent-protector, Mehen, Who guards Afu-Ra from these perils (refer to these links regarding KV-17, Seti I's tomb: http://www.joanannlansberry.com/other/kv17khnum.jpg and http://www.thebanmappingproject.com/.../browse_tomb_831.html). The magico-religious text known as the "Book of Earth" or the "Book of Aker" describes this journey, and the role the deceased individual plays in it. Most notably, the "Book of Earth/Aker" is illustrated on the walls of the burial chamber of Ramses VI's tomb. (Silotti, 65) At the end of the nocturnal leg of the sun's journey, Afu-Ra hands off the "dead sun" to Khepri, Who raises aloft the sun reborn, re-initiating the endless solar cycle. Additionally, in the Litany of Re, Osiris and Ra together become a "Twin Soul" ram-headed ba bird. This transformation, as described in Chapter 17 of the Book of the Dead, is said to have taken place in Djedet, the place of the Ram God Banebdjedet, and Ra and Osiris are said to be among the "Souls" of Banebdjedet. Banebdjedet's Ram came to be called "The Soul of Ra" and "The Living One of Ra," in addition to being one of the manifestations of Osiris. They all converged into a single Godhead. All of this is elaborated upon here.In addition to these and other Gods not here listed, the elemental spirits North Wind and East Wind are represented with the features of rams. (Naydler, 165 - 7)As for iconographic representations of different rams:It was largely a New Kingdom Period convention (18th, 19th, and 20th Dynasties), and most Ram Gods were in some context or another shown with curved horns in addition to the traditional long, horizontal, curly horns of Ovis longipes. The short, curled horns of Ovis platrya were especially and particularly given to the features of Amun in iconographic representation. Ovis platrya was/is "Amun's ram."In post-12th Dynasty Egypt (not including the intervening Amarna Heresy of the 18th Dynasty), the Henotheism of the "Amun Supremacy" came to dominate. Gradually, Amun became associated with a great many Gods, including and especially Ram Gods, due in large part to Their primordial and solar functions, but not limited to these. That is explained in greater detail here. The long, horizontal, curly horns of the Ovis longipes ram, and the Ovis longipes ram itself, didn't totally go out of fashion in any way, of course. We see plenty of Ovis longipes rams in the temples, texts, and tombs of the 18th, 19th, and 20th Dynasties (such as Seti I's, where Tatenen is shown as four different Ovis longipes rams with four different crowns in the Eighth Hour of the "Book of That Which is in the Underworld"). We also see some depictions of Amun with either or both sets of horns, not just the other Ram Gods. (Wilkinson, 60 - 1)WORKS CITED:

Ions, Veronica. Egyptian Mythology. London : Hamlyn Publishing Group, Ltd, 1968.

Naydler, Jeremy. Temple of the Cosmos - The Ancient Egyptian Experience of the Sacred. Rochester : Inner Traditions International, 1996.

Silotti, Alberto. Guide to the Valley of the Kings. New York : Barnes and Noble Books, 1997.

Wilkinson, Richard H. Reading Egyptian Art – A Hieroglyphic Guide to Ancient Egyptian Painting and Sculpture. London : Thames and Hudson, Ltd., 1992.

[thorsvinur]

I found this linked from a post by theinfinitebattle in the Heathen tag and I like it a lot. Though I haven't researched much on the whole 'godspouse' thing, it really backs up why for how much I favor Odin as a patron deity and such, I would definitely not consider actually oathing or devoting myself to him or any god at this point, if ever. I've certainly heard this critique with the modern 'neo-shamanism' movement which claims to be able to take years of devotion and study and condense them down into a weekend workshop, and that's not even considering the problems with the "shamanism" umbrella term.