#egyptian polytheism | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ascendingaeons · 30 days

Text

Hymn to Sekhmet

by Joey Rivers (ascendingaeons)

O Sekhmet, Great Eye of Ra, the First and the Last Healer and Destroyer, Mother and Daughter You Who accepted the Command of Ra, Your Father To cleanse the Two Lands of Isfet But Your nature was too mighty, Great of Strength as You Are Wanton and unrestrained, You ravaged Earth as a purifying flame And as Ra looked on and saw His Eye, He was stricken with pause By the Will of the Sun, Your Rage was quieted by a crimson brew And into transformative slumber You fell, Great Goddess And from Your great Rage, Het-Heru rose A new Eye was christened, of eros sublime And you, Great Mother, knew the sadness of regret

You, Great Goddess, know the measure of rage unbound And so You Stand, Great Mother of War, in defense and duty Of the Principles and Consequences of Ma’at Your Children are many, Great Lady of Life Diverse in their multitudes, empowered by their tribulation

Yours is the soldier, Your Mighty Sekhem made flesh and bone Entrenched in a maelstrom of fire and blood Returning home to a nation that does not understand him

Yours is the survivor, a living branch of Your burning Will triumphant Endeavoring to rise above the quagmire of loss and agony Through You their struggle is transmuted into the golden light of ka ascendant

Yours is the mother, she who knows sacrifice and sleepless nights A font unyielding of love and pride, of smiles and laughter perfected They who bear the weight of the world so a child can know childhood

Yours is the healer, an alchemist of the ontological persuasion He who is humbled by the frailty beholden to human experience He who ushers Your Sekhem through the riptide of transformative loss

Yours is the artist, through whose passions course Your Divine Fire Who walks the scales of inspiration and madness, knowing Creation unfiltered An alchemist versed in the milieus of perception

For You, Great Goddess, are the very Force of Change You are that which makes men tremble so Such an unnecessary fear, of wisdom and experience untouched Were I You, I would feel such sadness But how You smile, Great One! How You laugh! How You fight! You are not “she who cowers before Apep!” NO! You are the Great Lioness Who rends Chaos asunder! You fight and rage and bite and tear Passion and emotion alive and unrestrained!

You are Love, Great Goddess You are Fear, Great Goddess You are Devotion, Great Goddess You are Loss, Great Goddess You are Health, Great Goddess You are Sickness, Great Goddess This is why I call You the Mother of Life Your Ka is the very essence of experience! Your Sekhem is the very wind of change!

When I first called upon You, timid and unsure, I beheld Your Gaze, a window of fire open before my face And as quickly as You Saw me, You left And again when I called to You with offering of water and bread Exhausted by grief and devotion, tirelessly sung from a caregiver’s heart You came to me and my eyes were opened to You! As I lay without sleep, You stood at my bedside Stroking my back with strong hands of fire Whispering strength and courage into my ear As a sentinel You walked with me, a Mother Lioness guarding Her cub Such loyalty and tenderness You showed And my eyes were forever opened to Your nature

You are the very Force of Creation, the Monad of Being From which stems those primordial principalities Love and Fear, Physis and Logos, Known and Unknown Order and Disorder, Life and Death, Dynamism and Stasis

I offer henu to You, Great Goddess of Creation The endless potentiality and movement of the living cosmos The Fires Divine that Become living sinews and living earth

I offer henu to Your Husband Ptah, the Cosmic Smith Patron of artisans, of those who tirelessly toil In the pursuit of Bringing Into Being but a shard of the Sacred Unmanifest

I offer henu to Your Son, the Beautiful Nefertem The Ageless Lotus that rose from the Benben Stone The First Splendid Light to Shine in the churning Waters of Nun

It was You Who held my right hand as I accepted the mark of a healer And embraced me as a Mother would Her graduating son I offer You my pain, Great Goddess So that You may transmute it into Strength I offer You my fear, Great Goddess So that You may transmute it into Courage I offer You my uncertainty, Great Goddess So that You may transmute it into Wisdom

Into Your Belly I give of myself to unleash my greatest potential To burst from Your Bosom, shining and emboldened For there is nothing that is beyond Your Reach, Great Mother It is for me, now, to See that nothing is beyond my own

Dua Sekhmet! Dua Sekhmet! Dua Sekhmet!

77 notes · View notes

hermo-dactylus · 11 months

Text

WIP Bast statue!

She's in sort of rough shape still but I'm smoothing the rough edges!!

#ignore my dinged up walls my room used to be a playroom for kids lol #polytheism #polytheist #kemetic paganism #kemetic polytheism #paganism #kemeticism #kemetic #bastet #bast #egyptian polytheism #egyptian pantheon #egyptian paganism

128 notes · View notes

khensaptah · 7 months

Text

So we moved at the start of the month, which means it's time to establish a new shrine.

It's bare bones right now, and that's okay. They would rather me work with what I have than perfection. No words spoken beyond the simple incense and flame prayer. None needed. Instead I feel Their love washing over me, a forceful hug from my divine Fathers.

I love Them, and They love me.

#ptah #wepwawet #kemetic #kemetic fandom #kemeticism #kemetic paganism #kemetic polytheism #egyptian paganism #egyptian polytheism #paganblr #pagan #paganism #personal practice #shrines and altars #food #alcohol

99 notes · View notes

diana-thyme · 1 year

Text

Worshipping With Limited Space/Materials/Time/Etc.

One of my close friends has been asking me how to worship deities with limited space/privacy/materials/etc, so here it is. A guide on worshipping without space.

See @catnip-reed for my religious blog if you want.

Altars

There are many ways to have a small/discreet altar. Some people (including me) even make them online.

Travel Altars: a small altar (usually in a small box or tin can) made for traveling; usually includes a tealight candle, crystals, herbs, coins, and photos.

Discreet Altars: a collection of objects that doesn’t look like an altar but functions as one; usually includes decorations, colors, etc. that don’t directly point to it being an altar but still hold symbols of the deity (i.e. coquette decor for Aphrodite, cat-focused decor for Bastet, etc.)

Candles: literally just a candle; used to focus energy, sometimes contains herbs or crystals inside

Shoebox Altars: a shoebox filled with permanent offerings, statues or photos, candles, and other things commonly placed on an altar; usually stored away until needed

A Binder: a binder filled with art, poems, prayers, information, etc; can also be a notebook or deity journal (see my post about deity journals here)

Bags: bags or satchels of things related to the deity (i.e. coins, herbs, photos, etc.); can be emptied to set up a temporary altar or held when praying/offering/etc.

Books: a collection of books devoted to them; can be books related to their domains or books that remind you of them; used as an offering (reading) or communication (annotation)

Temporary Altars: altars that can be set up and taken down with ease; most commonly includes a small offering plate, a small cup, and sometimes candles, statues, or photos

Photos: a photo collage online or physical containing photos of the Gods and/or their domains; my favorite way to display these is as phone/computer backgrounds or on bulletin boards (similar to a vision board)

Pinterest: pinterest boards; a collage of pins of the Gods, their domains, and things that remind you of them

Tumblr: tumblr sideblogs; reblogging or posting things like quotes, photos, ideas, etc. that remind you of them

All in all, altars really are just a way for you to focus on your deity. In some religions, altars are a designated space for offerings. Depending on how you view them, you can make anything into an altar.

Divination

Some people like to use communication methods like tarot, runes, etc. to talk with their deities. For those who can’t openly own/use them or can’t afford them, here are some alternatives.

Lenormand Cards Website

Labyrinthos Tarot App

The Fool’s Dog Tarot App

Golden Thread Tarot App

The Classic 1910 Tarot App

A List of Oracle Card Apps

Cartomancy: using playing cards to divine

Astragalomancy: using dice to divine

Coins: flipping a coin to get a yes/no answer; there are other coin divination methods but many are closed

Bibliomancy: using books to divine; either a book falls on a specific page and you choose a random sentence or you choose a book, flip to a random page, and find a random sentence

Aeromancy: using weather to divine

Pyromancy: using flames from a candle/bonfire/etc. to divine

Capnomancy: using smoke to divine

Offerings

Offerings! One of my favorite things about my worship. Offerings are basically bribes so that your deities like you more /s. But seriously, offerings bring you closer to your deity.

Water: a simple cup of water; can be drank or left out for them

Food: either portions of your meal or food made for them; can be eaten or left out for them

Other Drinks: cups of other drinks; can be drank or left out for them; most commonly milk, alcohol, coffee, or tea

Candles & Incense: candles or incense devoted to them; can be lit or just kept in honor of them

Flowers: bouquets or single flowers; can be bought from stores or found outside (i.e. dandelions)

Honey: doesn’t have to be ethically sourced; can be added to teas and other drinks

Art: your own art or the art of others; includes music, playlists, digital art, poetry, drawings, paintings, instruments, etc.

Coins: many deities enjoy coins as offerings; can be offered to wealth/luck deities or can be offered to a deity because of the image (i.e. a coin with a sun on it can be offered to Apollon)

Devotional Acts

The only thing I love more than offerings. Also used to get closer to deities. Offerings of actions instead of physical things.

Donating: donating to organizations related to your deity (i.e. health organizations for Apollon)

Volunteering: volunteering at places related to your deity (i.e. dog shelters for Ares)

Practicing Good Hygiene: showering, washing your face, brushing your teeth and/or hair, etc.

Self-Care: ritual baths, face masks, relaxing, doing a hobby, etc; anything that makes you happy can be dedicated to a deity

Going Outside: taking a walk or sitting outside; some people make outside altars for some nature deities

Sunbathing/Cloudwatching/Starwatching: sunbathing for deities associated with the sun, cloudwatching for deities associated with the sky/weather, and starwatching for deities associated with the night/stars/planets; if the deity does not have a domain in one of these do whichever makes you happy

Cleaning: keeping your space and any altar/religious space you have clean and free of dust

Research: learning new things about your deity

Browsing Social Media: browsing a tag/account/etc. dedicated to your deity

Sharing: telling people about your deity

Learning Language: learning the language of your pantheon (i.e. greek for hellenism, italian for roman polytheism, etc.)

Conclusion

You do not need big, elaborate altars to worship. You do not need scheduled offerings, or even any offerings at all. You do not need to use tarot or runes to communicate with your deities. The only requirements for worshipping a deity is wanting to worship them and stating that you are worshipping them. To build from there, you begin building a relationship with them. Offerings and altars may help you do that, but they are not required. The Gods will understand if you do not have the space/time/materials/etc. to worship them how you would like or how others do. The Gods will understand if you do not want an elaborate practice. They will understand.

#deities #hellenism #helpol #hellenic #hellenic polytheism #hellenic community #hellenic pagan #hellenic polytheist #hellenic deities #roman polytheism #norse polytheism #norse paganism #slavic paganism #slavic polytheism #celtic paganism #celtic polytheism #egyptian polytheism #egyptian paganism

107 notes · View notes

the-netjeru-are-in-festival · 20 days

Text

Hymn to Min

I worship Min, I extol arm raising Horus.

Hail to you, Min in his procession!

Tall plumed, son of Osiris, Born of divine Isis,

Great in Senut, mighty in Ipu.

You of Cuptus, Horus strong-armed, Lord of awe who silences pride,

Sovereign of all the gods!

Fragrance laden when he comes from Medja-land,

Awe inspiring in Nubia, You of Utent, hail and praise!

Dua Min!

From "Ancient Egyptian Literature: Old and Middle Kingdoms" by Miriam Lichtheim

#min #pesdjentiu #kemetism #kemeticism #egyptian mythology #egyptianart #egyptian #paganism #pagan #egyptian polytheism #polytheism #polytheist #neopaganism #neopagan

17 notes · View notes

thelittlestscribe · 1 year

Text

Happy Set's Day, especially you lovely Set devotees! We hope everyone has a good day!

We are not devoted to Set, but we always happily offer to Him in celebration. Chocolate, bread, honey, water, and His favourite Weenie Crystal (because yes, it is in the shape of a phallus naturally!)

#mine #sutekh #kemetic #kemeticism #kemetism #egyptian paganism #egyptian polytheism #pagan #polytheism

96 notes · View notes

jessgoulder · 3 months

Text

7 notes · View notes

avenetjer · 1 year

Text

May Nut stills you inside of Her starry belly. May the wings of Aset encircle you as you sleep.

— [kemetic writings | kemetic blessings]

32 notes · View notes

asinusrufus · 9 months

Text

| Lord of the Oasis (WiP) | In my personal theology, I interpret the epithet nb wH3t, Lord of the Oasis, as an expression of both creative and generative powers of Set as solar demiurge. To me, the oases aren't only the actual ones (they're a metaphor of Set's self-sufficiency as well), but a parallelism with Creation since it could be regarded as an isolated oasis in the middle of a desert of stars. The incessant activity of Set's Mind, His limitless vigor and voracious like fire sexual activity aren't but an expression of His overwhelming, vast generative, creative powers, that prevent Existence/Creation to fade into non-existence because of the attacks of the S/n/a/k/e through constant creation and renovation.

#dua set!#dua set-ra!#pls don't stole #nor repost #sutekh #sēt #polytheism #egyptian polytheism #devotional art #set #my art #kemetic art #netjer #netjeru

69 notes · View notes

ascendingaeons · 24 days

Text

The Story Behind My "Hymn to Sekhmet"

I was very surprised with how much traction my Hymn to Sekhmet has gotten… so I decided to share the story behind it. This might be quite long, but I think a lot of you would appreciate it.

I have been an eclectic pagan for most of my life. Heathenry was my focus in that sense that I worked with the Vanir and studied runology since I was fifteen. Kemeticism was my passion since childhood, but I was never formally a devotee. I pretty much worked exclusively with Set for most of my life. Our relationship is somewhere between father and son and student and guide. In the summer of 2020, I decided to finally set up a Kemetic altar.

It comprised of three statues and three candles on a small, very old nightstand and was otherwise unadorned. One statue was to Set, another to Bast, and the third to Sekhmet. I focused exclusively on Set and Bast for a while. I was afraid of Sekhmet. I read every book I could find about Her and they nearly all had one thing in common about a Sekhmet-based practice: if you cannot do it yourself, do not ask Her about it. That really intimidated me to the point I took Her statue down several times before it earned a permanent place.

One day in September of 2020 I finally prayed to Sekhmet with an offering of cold water. I felt a circular window of fire about 16 inches in diameter open up in front of my face just above my altar. It felt hot, like the heat of a campfire. I felt that She was looking at me. After a few seconds, the window disappeared. I didn’t interact with Her for a while after that.

In November of 2020, my dad was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He was given six months to live and chemotherapy was prescribed. I was immediately thrust into the role of caregiver. I drove my dad to and from chemotherapy, gave him his meds and food, helped him to the bathroom, cleaned him up, and anything else I could do. I was awake for about 22 hours a day for six months, even with the help of a hospice company.

One night, when my dad was on respite (what hospice companies call when a patient is sent to a nursing home for a few days so the caregiver can recover), I felt… really bad. I felt alone, afraid, numb, and lost. Without any offering or formality, I prayed to Bast. I asked Her to just stay with me. I suddenly felt myself wrapped up in a blanket of what felt like bubblegum-pink energy. It felt like stuffed animals, cotton candy, a fuzzy quilt, and just… pure love. I later learned that this describes the higher heart chakra’s energy but to me, it was just Bast. She hugged me like that for about an hour until She decided I was okay, and then, very much like a cat, She left.

The days went on with barely any sleep, a lot of emergencies and scares, until one day my dad was finally asleep. It was around four in the afternoon. I was thinking a lot about Sehkmet at this point and Her domain of healing. It was very near and dear to my heart. At the time I was thinking of going back to school to finish my psychology degree and become a counselor. I took the time to get cold water in a nice glass and some fresh bread I had delivered that morning. I put it all on a golden plate I ordered for my altar.

I prayed to Sekhmet, solemnly and respectfully, naming Her Epithets and offering praise in addition to water and bread. I asked… that She let everything be okay and help me to be a better caregiver to my dad. The sad thing is, I was very hard on myself. I felt like I was not doing enough but I later found out that every nurse and social worker from the hospice company had, individually and separately, reported to the company’s administrator in high praise of me. I didn’t know then that some caregivers are really horrible to the point of neglect and abuse. I was doing the best I could in a situation that was out of my control and was given a level of praise that floored me.

After concluding my prayer, I lay down in my bed next to my altar. I was lying on my side when suddenly Sekhmet’s etheric body manifested beside me. I could feel it and somewhat see it with my third eye. She started to rub my back as I lay there. Her hand felt like the sun’s heat reflected off of water, a sensation I knew well from fishing in summer. It felt almost like fire but one that would never burn me. As She rubbed my back, I felt Her head come next to mine. I felt Her face, soft and bristly, next to my left ear as She began to speak words I couldn’t hear. I could even feel the heat from Her breath.

Unlike Bast, Sekhmet stuck around. She followed me everywhere for the next two days. It hadn’t really sunk in yet but I had received what, for me, was irrefutable proof of the Gods’ love. Set was with me my entire life, my teacher and friend. Bast and Sekhmet creaked open the door to theurgy a little bit more. It wasn’t until my Reiki Attunement ceremony that the door was blown clean off its hinges when over a dozen Netjeru physically manifested. During my Attunement, Bast held my left hand and Sekhmet held my right. By the end of the ceremony, the two were hugging me as I lay on my teacher’s table.

As I began working with the Netjeru in my shamanic practice, Sekhmet communicated something to me. She asked me to offer Her my pain and fear. And so I wrote that hymn on what was proving to be a very hard day.

I can never go back to a world where the Gods do not exist or do not love us completely, irrevocably, and unconditionally. My relationship with the Netjeru is one of mutual loyalty, love, admiration, and service. For all intents and purposes, I am a new Kemetic. I have studied Egyptology since I was seven years old and regarded Kemet as a far-flung home, a feeling that has never left my heart since it ignited there when I was a toddler. But that is a story for another day.

Well… that is my story. I hope it finds you well!

Dua Sekhmet! Dua Netjeru!

Image is “Sekhmet Devotional” by Valoreanthes. A Mother Lioness and Her cub, a side of Sekhmet far too often overlooked.

18 notes · View notes

a-stori-book · 6 months

Text

!!seeking advice/opinions from POC-voices only!!

As I have expressed before, my partner is having trouble finding his own religious path, so I am posting on his behalf.

He has always felt drawn to the Egyptian deities, but is worried that to worship them would be inappropriate.

For context, his familial background is Magyar and German. But he feels no connection to the Eastern European deities.

Any insight would be appreciated 💕

#polytheism #egyptian polytheism #ancient egypt #Egyptian gods #Osiris #Anubis #Hathor #Horus #Bastet #neith #Serapis #Ptah #Thoth #Amun #min

10 notes · View notes

khensaptah · 3 months

Text

Mystic Egyptian Polytheism Resource List

Because I wanted to do a little more digging into the philosophy elements explored in Mahmoud's book, I took the time tonight to pull together the recommended reading he listed toward the end of each chapter. The notes included are his own.

MEP discusses Pharaonic Egypt and Hellenistic Egypt, and thus some of these sources are relevant to Hellenic polytheists (hence me intruding in those tags)!

Note: extremely long text post under this read more.

What Are The Gods And The Myths?

ψ Jeremy Naydler’s Temple of the Cosmos: The Ancient Egyptian Experience of the Sacred is my top text recommendation for further exploration of this topic. It dives deep into how the ancients envisioned the gods and proposes how the various Egyptian cosmologies can be reconciled. ψ Jan Assmann’s Egyptian Solar Religion in the New Kingdom: Re, Amun and the Crisis of Polytheism focuses on New Kingdom theology by analyzing and comparing religious literature. Assmann fleshes out a kind of “monistic polytheism,” as well as a robust culture of personal piety that is reflected most prominently in the religious literature of this period. He shows how New Kingdom religious thought was an antecedent to concepts in Hermeticism and Neoplatonism. ψ Moustafa Gadalla’s Egyptian Divinities: The All Who Are The One provides a modern Egyptian analysis of the gods, including reviews of the most significant deities. Although Gadalla is not an academic, his insights and contributions as a native Egyptian Muslim with sympathies towards the ancient religion are valuable.

How to Think like an Egyptian

ψ Jan Assmann’s The Mind of Egypt: History and Meaning in the Time of the Pharaohs is my top text recommendation for further exploration of this topic. It illuminates Egyptian theology by exploring their ideals, values, mentalities, belief systems, and aspirations from the Old Kingdom period to the Ptolemaic period. ψ Garth Fowden’s The Egyptian Hermes: A Historical Approach to the Late Pagan Mind identifies the Egyptian character of religion and wisdom in late antiquity and provides a cultural and historical context to the Hermetica, a collection of Greco-Egyptian religious texts. ψ Christian Bull’s The Tradition of Hermes Trismegistus: The Egyptian Priestly Figure as a Teacher of Hellenized Wisdom provides a rich assessment of the Egyptian religious landscape at the end of widespread polytheism in Egypt and how it came to interact with and be codified in Greek schools of thought and their writings.

How To Think Like A Neoplatonist

Radek Chlup’s Proclus: An Introduction is my top text recommendation for further exploration of this topic. It addresses the Neoplatonic system of Proclus but gives an excellent overview of Neoplatonism generally. It contains many valuable graphics and charts that help illustrate the main ideas within Neoplatonism. ψ John Opsopaus’ The Secret Texts of Hellenic Polytheism: A Practical Guide to the Restored Pagan Religion of George Gemistos Plethon succinctly addresses several concepts in Neoplatonism from the point of view of Gemistos Plethon, a crypto-polytheist who lived during the final years of the Byzantine Empire. It provides insight into the practical application of Neoplatonism to ritual and religion. ψ Algis Uzdavinys’ Philosophy as a Rite of Rebirth: From Ancient Egypt to Neoplatonism draws connections between theological concepts and practices in Ancient Egypt to those represented in the writings and practices of the Neoplatonists.

What Is “Theurgy,” And How Do You Make A Prayer “Theurgical?”

ψ Jeffrey Kupperman’s Living Theurgy: A Course in Iamblichus’ Philosophy, Theology and Theurgy is my top text recommendation for further exploration of this topic. It is a practical guide on theurgy, complete with straightforward explanations of theurgical concepts and contemplative exercises for practice. ψ Gregory Shaw’s Theurgy and the Soul: The Neoplatonism of Iamblichus demonstrates how Iamblichus used religious ritual as the primary tool of the soul’s ascent towards God. He lays out how Iamblichus proposed using rites to achieve henosis. ψ Algis Uzdavinys’ Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity explores the various ways theurgy operated in the prime of its widespread usage. He focuses mainly on temple rites and how theurgy helped translate them into personal piety rituals.

What Is “Demiurgy,” And How Do I Do Devotional, “Demiurgical” Acts?

ψ Shannon Grimes’ Becoming Gold: Zosimos of Panopolis and the Alchemical Arts in Roman Egypt is my top text recommendation for further exploration of this topic. It constitutes an in-depth look at Zosimos—an Egyptian Hermetic priest, scribe, metallurgist, and alchemist. It explores alchemy (ancient chemistry and metallurgy) as material rites of the soul’s ascent. She shows how Zosimos believed that partaking in these practical arts produced divine realities and spiritual advancements. ψ Alison M. Robert’s Hathor’s Alchemy: The Ancient Egyptian Roots of the Hermetic Art delves deep temple inscriptions and corresponding religious literature from the Pharaonic period and demonstrates them as premises for alchemy. These texts “alchemize” the “body” of the temple, offering a model for the “alchemizing” of the self. ψ A.J. Arberry’s translation of Farid al-Din Attar’s Muslim Saints and Mystics: Episodes from the Tadhkirat al-Auliya contains a chapter on the Egyptian Sufi saint Dhul-Nun al-Misri (sometimes rendered as Dho‘l-Nun al-Mesri). He is regarded as an alchemist, thaumaturge, and master of Egyptian hieroglyphics. It contains apocryphal stories of his ascetic and mystic life as a way of “living demiurgically.” It is an insightful glimpse into how the Ancient Egyptian arts continued into new religious paradigms long after polytheism was no longer widespread in Egypt.