Category Archives: Ancient Egypt

More Epithets of Isis

*Parsifal* by Jean Delville, but it definitely gives ‘mysteries’

Most of you reading this blog are well aware of the many epithets of Isis, Our Lady of 10,000 Names. In general, epithets are descriptions attached to the Goddess’ name that help us know more about Her. Very often, you’ll see people note that epithets are especially important in Deity invocations because they help us tune into the specific aspect of Their natures that we wish to connect with.

And that’s true.

Yet, I like to think of epithets as little Mysteries.

Each epithet of the Goddess has the possibility of revealing to us a Mystery—something about Isis we might not have known, or might not have known as deeply. In a post a couple weeks ago, one of the things we learned from the ancient Greek novel Aitheopika was that initiates of Her Mysteries called Isis the Earth and Osiris the Nile. I would not be at all surprised to learn that the revealing of additional epithets of the Goddess was a regular part of Her—and other Deities’—Mysteries. A Mystery initiation gave you insider knowledge about the Mystery Deity. Discovering new aspects of the Goddess through additional names and epithets would be some pretty solid insider information.

You’ll find epithets of Isis scattered throughout this blog. For instance, here are names and epithets honoring Isis from all over the Mediterranean world. Here are some of Her secret names from the magical papyri. There are about two hundred of Isis’ epithets listed in the appendix in Isis Magic. And Offering to Isis includes several epithets appropriate to each of the offerings—sacred symbols of the Goddess—as part of the invocation offerings.

Today, I’d like to share a few more epithets of Isis, some of which may be new to you. If you’d like to delve into the little Mysteries of these epithets for yourself, try this: Pick out a few that call to you. Open your shrine or temple in whatever manner you usually do. Invoke Isis using the epithet you chose. You can sing or chant the epithet as you call out to Her. When you sense Her presence, ask Her to reveal to you some of the Mysteries of that epithet. Then open your heart, open yourself, as you experience/intuit what She communicates to you. (Even better, jot down the things that come to your mind about that epithet for later reference. Visionary work sometimes fades rather quickly.)

In no particular order, here are some epithets of our Goddess from various parts of Egypt:

Isis, She Who Loves the Red Cloth; Iset Meret Ines—this epithet of Isis is found at Dendara. Interestingly enough, in representations of Isis, red is the most common color of Her clothing. The famous Knot of Isis is also usually made of red stone or painted red—and it may be meant to represent a knot tied in cloth. The ancient Egyptians associated red with fire, blood, and the sun. It could be a color of destructive power and associated with anger as well. We are used to Sakhmet being associated with red, but it turns out Isis is a Red Goddess, too.

Isis the Great Golden One; Iset Nebut Weret—while we are familiar with Isis being called, like Hathor, the Golden One, here She is the Great Golden One, an epithet She shares only with the Creator Goddess Neith. Gold is associated with the sun and Divinity. What does it mean that She is not only the Golden One, but the Great Golden One?

Isis, She of the Beautiful/Good/Perfect Face in the Barque of Eternity; Iset Noferet Hor em Wia Heh—the Barque of Eternity if the boat that travels into the Otherworld, both the underworld and the heavens. What does it mean that Isis is the beautiful-good-perfect face in that holy boat?

Isis the Lady of Awfulness; Iset Nebet Neru—this is the literal meaning of awful, as in “full of awe,” but also a designation of Her great, and sometimes scary, power. See more about this one here.

Isis the Great One in the Beginning; Iset Weret em Hat—this epithet is from Her temple at Philae and is another epithet Isis shares only with the Creator Goddess Neith. This is Isis as a Primeval Goddess, the First Goddess. Similarly, She is called the Great Goddess “of the coming into being” and is the Great Goddess “in the First Time,” the Zep Tepi. We also have inscriptions calling Isis Sha’et, “She Who Was First,” from a number of places, including Philae, Dendara, and Edfu.

Isis the Great in the Place of Her Heart; Iset Weret em Set Ib-Es—this one is from the Horus temple at Edfu. What do you think ‘the place of Her heart’ is?

Isis, Her Years are Eternity and Everlastingness; Iset, Renput-s Neheh Djet—learn more about Neheh and Djet here and here.

Isis the Perfect Musician; Iset Khunet Noferet—from Dendara. Isis is also called “the Musician of the Spoken Words” and the Shemayet, the “Chantress.” The Chantress was a high-ranking priestess in ancient Egypt. Read more about AE priestesses and the Chantress here.

Isis and the pharaoh raising the djed pillar

Isis, She Who Makes Shadow with Her Feathers; Iset Iret Shut em Shuut-Es—from a stele now in the Louvre. We know about Her wing symbolism, but what about the shadow of Her wings?

Isis the Djed Pillar; Iset Djedet—now isn’t this interesting? Osiris is usually associated with the djed pillar. But here we have Isis as the female djed pillar. The djed represents stability, so that is likely the meaning here: Isis is strong, stable, dependable.

On the other hand, She also personifies Her own symbol, and is called Isis the Excellent Isis Knot (Iset Tiet Menkhet)…for Isis is All Things and All Things are Isis.

There are so many more, but that’s enough for now.

If, in your connections with Isis, you discover any of the Mysteries of these epithets, I hope you’ll share them here, on Facebook, or on BlueSky.

Is Isis a Virgin Goddess?

Seen this about a million times? Yeah, me, too.

It’s that time of year when we (once again) see all those articles comparing the Divine Mother Mary with the Divine Mother Isis, followed by either outrage or approbation, depending on who’s doing the writing.

Not long ago, in relation to this, a friend of this blog asked a very excellent question. It had to do with Isis’ status as a Virgin Goddess. Basically, is She or isn’t She? She is often compared with the famously Virgin Mary, and the images of the two Goddesses, nursing Their holy babes, are strikingly similar. And then there’s all of this.

Well, as is often the way with Goddesses, the answer is both no and yes.

We’re all pretty familiar with the sexual relations between Isis and Osiris. All the way back to the Pyramid Texts we hear about it, rather explicitly we might add. Pyramid Text 366 says, “Your [Osiris] sister Isis comes to You rejoicing for love of You. You have placed Her on your phallus and Your seed issues into Her…” Plutarch, in the version of the story he recorded, tells us that Isis and Osiris were so in love with each other that They even made love while still within the womb of Their Great Mother Nuet. And, of course, we have the sacred story of how Isis collected the pieces of the body of murdered-and-dismembered Osiris, all except the phallus. Crafting a replacement of gold, the flesh of the Gods, She was able to arouse Her Beloved sufficient for the conception of Horus. The mourning songs of Isis and Nephthys have Her longing for His love. The priestess, in the Goddessform of Isis, sings that “fire is in Me for love of Thee” and She calls Him Lord of Love and Lord of Passion. She pleads, “Lie Thou with Thy sister Isis, remove Thou the pain that is in Her body.” (For more on the Songs or Lamentations, go here.)

So, is that all there is to it? Isis is not a virgin?

Well, not quite. Because Isis is a Goddess.

Isis is the Goddess of 10,000 Names and 10,000 Forms. Among those forms are the sexual Lover of Osiris and the Mother of Horus. Also among Her many Names are syncretisms with famously virginal Goddesses such as Artemis, Hekate, and Athena, as well as heroines such as Io, a virgin priestess of Hera (a Goddess Who Herself renews Her virginity on the regular). Isis is identified with both Demeter the Mother and Persephone the Kore, the Young Girl, Who were sometimes seen as a single unit, Mother-Daughter, containing All in Themselves. Goddesses can be many things, all at once, without any contradiction—or perhaps with every contradiction, which is one of the ways of Goddesses.

No text shows us these Divine Feminine contradictions/not-contradictions as clearly as “The Thunder, Perfect Mind,” a text found among the Nag Hammadi papyri. It is a long poem in the voice of a Feminine Divine Power that some scholars have linked to Isis; or at least they think that Her worship influenced the content of the text. Could be, but in my opinion, the Divine Speaker may be better understood as Sophia—with Whom Isis is also identified. The Coptic (late Egyptian) manuscript from which the text comes is dated to roughly 350 CE. Here’s a brief excerpt from this amazing work:

For I am the first and the last. I am the honored one and the scorned one. I am the whore and the holy one. I am the wife and the virgin. I am the mother and the daughter. I am the members of my mother. I am the barren one and many are her sons. I am she whose wedding is great, and I have not taken a husband.
The Thunder, Perfect Mind

Clearly, Isis is syncretized with Virgin Goddesses throughout the Mediterranean world. And it is not at all unusual for such Goddesses to be both virginal and associated with fertility. What about Egyptian sources?

The ancient Egyptians were not quite so concerned with virgins—by which I mean, in this case, a young person who has not yet had sex—as were the Greeks and some other Mediterranean peoples. For instance, there was no requirement that young women or young men be sexually inexperienced when they married. Many young women probably were—particularly those who were married very young to older husbands. But prior to marriage, young people might engage relatively freely with each other. After marriage, sexual exclusivity was demanded—especially for women. The penalties for non-compliance could be very harsh—especially for women.

This is not to say that Egyptian virginity was not valued or even required under certain circumstances. The text that included the lamentation songs of Isis and Nephthys noted above specifies that the priestesses taking the roles of Isis and Nephthys be “pure of body and virgin” and also that they are to have their body hair removed, wigs on their heads, tambourines in their hands, and the names of Isis and Nephthys inscribed on their arms.

This text, one of very few we have, is from the Ptolemaic period, when Egypt had been influenced by Greek rule. I wonder whether virginity would have been considered necessary earlier. Perhaps the priestesses would have only had to abstain from sex for a period of time before their ritual service. We know that people serving in Egyptian temples had to abstain from sex for a time (at least a day, often a number of days) as part of their purification. But they weren’t virgins.

The God’s Wife of Amun, the highest of high priestesses, usually a female relation of the king, was virgin for life. Beginning in the 2nd Intermediate Period, the lifetime position of the God’s Wife gained a great deal of power, eventually becoming second only to the king. Interestingly, it was an “Isis”—Iset, the virgin daughter of Rameses VI—who began the tradition of the God’s Wife being celibate. Later, in the Roman period, some Roman priestesses of Isis maintained lifelong virginity. And we know that the Roman Isiacs might maintain a 10-day period of pre-ritual chastity known as the Castimonium Isidis or Chastity of Isis.

Isis Herself is called the Great Virgin in one of the inscriptions from the Isis Chapel in Seti I’s mortuary temple at Abydos. In Egyptian, this is Hunet Weret. Hunet is the word for girl or maiden, weret is the feminine form of great. Hunet is also the Egyptian name for the pupil of the eye and is connected to the Hermetic treatise known as the Kore Kosmou, the “Virgin of the World.” You can read about those maidenly connections here. (And read about the Kore Kosmou here, here, and here. )Just like Greek parthenos, hunet could mean a virgin, a girl, a maiden, or just youthful. (A young boy or youth is hunu.) And all Egyptian Goddesses are forever young.

Parthenogenesis was not unknown in Egypt, either. The First Creators in many Egyptian myths, such as the God Atum and the Goddess Neith, created everything from Themselves alone. Some Egyptian queens, such as Ahmose, Hatshepsut’s mother, were said to have given birth to pharaohs after sexual union with a God. Just like Mary and the Holy Spirit of the Christian God.

So, is Isis a Virgin Goddess? Yes. Does She have sex with Her Divine Husband? Yes. She is, as so many Goddesses are, Both And. She is a patroness of marital sexual desire and bliss and She is an ever-renewing, ever-youthful Virgin Goddess. In this holy season and every day, may She bless you with the gifts you most desire.

Isis in the Aethiopika

The Aethiopika is an ancient Greek novel and the only known work by a writer named Heliodorus. It was written in the second or third centuries CE. It is a tale of love and adventure, and yes of course, Isis is involved. So I thought I’d summarize this tale today, focusing on the part Isis and Her cult play in the story.

The reason this came up was that I was looking at a book about the interactions between the Greek and Egyptian cultures and their influence on each other. It seems that the more researchers look into it, the more they come to the conclusion that, while the influence went both ways, the Egyptian culture seemed to have more weight behind it—if for no other reason than it was the older, more established, and richer culture.

Scholars have long suggested that the Greek “romances” owed at least some debt to Egyptian sources. And yes, these books are romance novels in the classic sense: lovers fall in love, are parted by circumstances, adventure ensues, lovers are finally reunited.

Scholars such as the Classics professor Reinhold Merkelbach suggested that all ancient Greek novels (there are only five complete ones extant, with references to about 20 more) were informed by myth—but most especially by the Isis-Osiris complex of myths. Interesting, no? At the time of the Aethiopika, the myths of Isis and Osiris certainly would have been the ones most well known to Hellenes. Merkelbach further suggested that such tales were meant for the initiates of the Greco-Roman Mysteries, who would have understood the deeper meaning behind all the hidden clues. This theory has not generally been accepted, however.

Yet, at the very least, we can easily see the overall structure of the classic romance novel in the story of Isis and Osiris: lovers are in love, are parted by murder, the adventure of picking up the pieces ensues, and lovers are finally reunited, though one of Them is transformed.

The story of the Aethiopika reached far beyond the borders and time of the ancient Hellenistic and Roman worlds. The tale was influential all the way into the 17th and 18th centuries. That’s why all the illustrations I found for this article do not look remotely ancient Greek, Egyptian, or Ethiopian.

The Aethiopika is the love story of Theagenes and Chariklea. We meet Chariklea at the very beginning of the tale as a gang of Egyptian thieves approaches the scene of a beached pirate ship, with its crew slain, while they were in the midst of a celebratory banquet. As the robbers approach to scavenge, they see the beautiful Chariklea among the living. In sorrow, she is looking at a handsome young man who is wounded and perhaps dying. They exchange words and she tells him that, should he die, she will kill herself with the knife she bears.

Chariklea looks upon the wounded Theogenes

She rises to go to him—and the brigands step back, afraid. They think she is a Goddess, either “Artemis or Isis, the divine patroness of Egypt.” Others think she may have caused the slaughter as a frenzied priestess. Finally, they gain the courage to approach. Chariklea sees them, but continues to tend to Theagenes. Then, more thieves arrive, chase off the first group, and capture Chariklea and Theagenes. The prisoners are taken to the house of Thyamis, the chief thief, and given another prisoner as Greek interpreter. The interpreter, Cnemon, begins to treat Theagenes’ wounds with a healing herb.

We learn that Chariklea believes that Apollo is punishing the two of them because she and Theagenes fell in love with each other during the Pythian Games at Delphi and ran away together (she had been promised to another man). Chariklea had been abandoned by her Ethiopian parents, but was raised by a priest of Apollo at Delphi, becoming a priestess of Artemis. The pair of lovers fled Delphi, assisted by Kalasiris, an Egyptian priest of Isis.

It’s complicated.

Anyway, during the night, Thyamis has a dream. He dreams he is in Egyptian Memphis, his home town, and there visits a temple of Isis. The Goddess entrusts the care of Chariklea to him, but Her commands come as a riddle, which he decides to interpret as telling him that he should take her as a wife.

But now a group of warriors come to attack the thieves. Chariklea is taken to a cave, while Theagenes must fight with the thieves. During battle, Thyamis realizes the true meaning of Isis’ dream message: that he will lose the battle and lose Chariklea. Pissed off at Isis, he goes to Chariklea’s cave to kill her—since he can’t have her; you know how it is—but in the dark mistakenly kills another woman.

Theagenes and Cnemon escape the battle, but believe that Chariklea is dead. Thyamis is captured alive, for it turns out this group of warriors was sent by Thyamis’ younger brother, who had earlier stolen his rightful priesthood from him. But Theagenes and Cnemon find Chariklea alive. The group decides to go south, further into Egypt, to find Thyamis and seek revenge for his killing of the other woman, who Cnemon knew.

When they get to Khemmis, they are reunited with Kalisiris, the priest of Isis who helped them escape Delphi. He had believed Theagenes and Chariklea were dead and is thrilled to find them alive. We learn that, as a pious priest, Kalisiris drinks only water and never neglects to pour libations to the Deities. He is also a vegetarian, eating only nuts and fruits. In the course of events, Kalisiris tells how he came to be in Delphi.

A Thracian woman named Rhodopis came to Egypt, settled in Memphis, and set up shop as a courtesan. She would visit the temple of Isis where Kalisiris was high priest, where she made abundant offerings to the Goddess, for her business was thriving. Though Kalisiris practiced all types of priestly austerities, he could not resist Rhodopis’ charms and he fell hard for her (apparently after merely seeing her). His answer to escaping Rhodopis’ fatal allure was to leave his priesthood and his native Egypt to wander.

We further learn that Kalisiris is skilled in divination and had divined that his two sons were destined to battle each other. (Can you guess yet who Kalisiris’ sons might be?) Having heard of Delphi as a refuge for wise men, Kalisiris traveled there, arriving just at the time that the Pythia was prophesying. He received an oracle from the God telling him to take heart for he will be able to return to Egypt, but in the meantime to be the friend of Apollo.

Chariklea awarding the prize to Theagenes at the Delphic Games

The status of “friend of Apollo” greatly enhanced Kalisiris’ reputation and he joined a group of philosophers who peppered him with questions about Egypt and its Deities. Through Chariklea’s foster-father, Kalisiris meets her and witnesses as she and Theagenes fall in love instantly. And so, he is determined to help them.

So now our lovers, their companion, and Kalisiris are back in Egypt. There, they are involved in a number of adventures in which one or the other of the lovers gets entangled with other characters. A Persian governor’s wife falls for Theagenes, so she makes showy offerings at the temple of Isis, all the while lusting for Theagenes. At the same time, Kalisiris is devoutly praying before Isis about his sons and his own future. Previously, he had been reunited with his elder son Thyamis, the former chief thief, and even better, the two warring brothers were reconciled. Kalisiris declares that the eldest son, Thyamis, should inherit his Isiac priesthood for Kalisiris’ senses his own death approaching. The governor’s wife tries to frame Chariklea for poisoning, so she can have Theagenes. This, of course, fails. More adventures eventually find both Chariklea and Theagenes captured by the Ethiopian king—who is Chariklea’s real father, but who does not yet know her.

As sexual virgins, Chariklea and Theagenes are perfect sacrifices and are about to be sacrificed to the Sun and Moon, Deities of the Ethiopians. But wait! Due to a necklace that Chariklea’s mother had placed about her neck when she abandoned Chariklea, the Ethiopian king finally recognizes his true daughter. All is well. Chariklea and Theagenes are married and live happily ever after.

To be honest, the Aethiopika is a bit of a tedious tale. Yet, the reason I was reading this story was for the Isis lore.

For example, we’ve learned about the pure-water-and-vegetarian diet of Kalisiris, a high priest of the Goddess. We know he is always pouring libations for the Goddess and any other Deities he encounters. We find that he is subject to visions and is a good diviner. We know that he must keep himself chaste—and so removes himself from Rhodopis’ disturbing presence.

From Thyamis’ dream, we see that Isis can send dreams, even in Loxian riddles, that can be misinterpreted by the dreamer. From the story of the Persian governor’s wife, we learn that not all rich offerings are sincere. In another part of the tale, we discover that offerings might be made to Isis if one has a bad dream. In yet another, the text tells us that initiates of the Mysteries call Isis the Earth and Osiris the Nile (but our speaker would reveal nothing more of those Mysteries). Oh, and we also learned that the love story of Isis and Osiris may well be the prototype for ancient Greek romances, and thus the roots of our modern romance novels, too.

Our Goddess can for found everywhere—for Isis is all things, and all things are Isis.

The Seshed Band of Isis

Isis leading Nefertari into the afterlife

I have a new Isis accoutrement for you.

I love it when I find out new things—or new things about an old thing. This one is sort of an expansion on a previous thing.

Many of you may already be familiar with what are known as “black Isis bands,” which are needed in a number of rites in the Greco-Egyptian Magical Papyri (aka Papyri Graecae Magicae or PGM).

We can’t be sure, but I’ve theorized that these were made from the black cloth that had previously been used to clothe the sacred images of Isis, once the older robes had been replaced. Since the fabric was black, it would have been from Hellenized images of the Goddess. Egyptians did use cloth, both as offerings and to adorn their sacred images, but black cloth was not among the colors they generally favored.

What I’d like to share with you today is a different type of Isis band, an entirely Egyptian one. This band was given to Isis as an offering (see Offering to Isis, “Black Isis Bands”), and it was also worn by Her as part of one of Her various crowns. The information I’m working from is a dissertation by Barbara Ann Richter on The Theology of Hathor of Dendera. At Dendera, Isis is almost as prominent as Hathor. (And you’ll recall that Isis’ sanctuary at Philae also has a Temple of Hathor. Sisters!)

Isis from Dendera with Double Crown and seshed (the black squiggle at the base of the crown)

On the walls at Dendera, we see scenes with Isis wearing this particular crown, which consists of the Egyptian red and white Double Crown, one or two ostrich feathers, and the “seshed” band, which is wrapped around the base of the red crown—or sometimes around the headdress of Isis.

We even have a 3D image of what this crown with its seshed band may have been like. Near the sacred lake at the Dendera temple, archeologists found a cache of ritual items including a cult statue of Isis with the double crown and seshed band—except in this case, the seshed is around the Goddess’ wig rather than around the base of the crown. (Although, in this picture, it looks to me like there is something—possibly multiple serpents?—around the base of the crown.) There are also two holes in the white crown, which Richter suggests may have been meant to hold real (or separate) ostrich feathers.

Isis with the Double Crown and seshed band with serpent, holes possibly held real or separate ostrich feathers

The crowns and headdresses that the Egyptians represented the Deities wearing have specific meanings. The Double Crown represents rulership over the Two Lands, that is, Lower and Upper Egypt. The ostrich feather is the shut, the symbol of Ma’et—that which is Right, True, and Just. The seshed band is entwined by a uraeus serpent that is both protective and unifying, like the Double Crown.

In the Temple of Birth at Dendera (which I think is the Temple of the Birth of Isis), the king presents this crown to Isis and says, “Take for Yourself the seshed band. It has encircled Your forehead. The uraeus is united with Your head. The red crown and the white crown—they join together on Your forehead, the two feathers united beside them.” This crown emphasizes the unification of the land of Egypt as well as the powerful protection of the uraeus serpent. Since the crown is united with the Goddess, She embodies these qualities. And, of course, the Goddess bestows these same powers on the king in return, so we find the king wearing the seshed band at times, too.

A picture of the whole statue of Isis with crown and seshed

The feathers “united beside them” allude to Isis’ description as “Lady of Ma’et, the uraeus on Her forehead, appearing with Ma’et every day.” In this inscription, however, the word translated as “uraeus” isn’t “uraeus.” It’s Mehenet, which is the feminine version of the protective serpent Mehen, meaning “the Coiled One.” Mehen protects the God Re by encircling Him as He travels through the underworld; He also protects Osiris. Since Isis is a Goddess, She is united with the feminine serpent Mehenet. As a fiery Uraeus Goddess Herself, Isis protects Re and She is also the foremost protectress of Her husband Osiris as well as Her son Horus (and thus, the king). Mehen and Mehenet are sometimes shown with Their tails in Their mouths, making Them the prototype of the ‘serpent biting its own tail’ and later known as the oroboros.

In some of the Coffin Texts spells, Mehen is closely connected to Re. Coffin Text 760 tells us that after Isis brings Mehen, the Coiled One, to Her son Horus, Horus becomes “the double of the Lord of All,” that is, the Sun God Re. The serpents Mehen and Mehenet are solar powers and Their coiling and encircling protects.

Osiris protected by the Coiled One biting His tail

There was a tradition at Dendera that Dendera is the birthplace of Isis. An inscription in the sanctuary there says that Isis’ “mother bore Her on earth in Iatdi [that is, the Temple of the Birth of Isis at Dendera; also another name for Dendera as a whole] the day of the night of the infant in His nest.* She is the Unique Uraeus . . . Sothis in the Sky, [female] Ruler of the Stars, Who Decrees Words in the Circuit of the Sun Disk.” Since Isis is also Sopdet/Sothis/Sirius, the heliacal rising of the Goddess in Her star, just before sunrise, is Her “birth.” Her birth precedes the rebirth of the falcon Re—”the infant in His nest”—as He rises in the sun on the first day of the New Year.

The birth of Isis is also connected with the seshed band. We learn that the “Ritual of Presenting the Seshed Band” takes place on “the Day of the Night of the Child in His Nest.” These seshed bands, presented to Isis for a happy New Year, included inscriptions like “A beautiful year—a million and a hundred-thousand times” and “A happy year, year of joy, year of health, eternal year, infinite year.” In addition to offering the seshed band on Isis’ birthday, it was also given on the first day of the New Year.

The seshed band must have been—at least originally—a fabric band, for it was tied around the head and knotted with the two long ends of the band hanging down in back. The knot at the back was surely intended to be magical, emphasizing the ability of magical knots to secure and protect, while the band itself surrounds and protects like Mehenet.

I don’t know whether this is actually a seshed, but the metal headband with streamers down the back looks like it may have been intended to mimic knotted fabric. This was on the head of Tutankhamun’s mummy.

The Pyramid Texts mention a powerful red headband with which the deceased identifies. Another Pyramid Text mentions a red and green headband that was woven from the Eye of Horus. While some Egyptologists connect these headbands with the seshed, I can’t be sure because I’m only looking at the English translation of the texts.

However, from Dendera, we do have an inscription that specifically describes a seshed band made of electrum. It is also possible that the fabric headbands had metal pieces, suitable for engraving with blessings, attached to them. It seems likely that the serpent that entwined the seshed would have been made of metal.

Egyptian Egyptologist Zeinab El-Kordy suggests that the word seshed is the active participle of shed, meaning “to draw or pull out” or “to cause to come.” She therefore connects it with drawing the Inundation out from its source and causing the flood to come. This could mean that the seshed band, especially when offered at the birth of Isis and the New Year, is a magical tool for helping to bring the much-desired Nile flood.

The seshed band protects and unifies. It is given as a talisman for New Year’s prosperity—which I think we can easily extend to good luck and blessings in general. And it is associated with rebirth and renewal. We also have scenes that connect it with birth as well as rebirth. They show the birthing mother, her midwives, and protective Birth Goddesses like Isis, Taweret, and Hathor, all wearing seshed bands.

Egyptian woman giving birth assisted by Hathoru; crowns, but no seshed bands

Given this, I would suggest that if we are working with Isis in any of these areas—protection, unification, birth, rebirth, renewal, and even good fortune and good outcomes in general—we would be eligible to wear the seshed as part of our ritual gear. Although a custom-made uraeus serpent is probably out of reach for most of us, a fabric band in red (power and protection) or green (growth, change, benevolence) with a piece of inexpensive serpent jewelry attached to it, would be a perfectly serviceable seshed band for our work with Isis.

* Sources such as the Cairo Calendar connect the Night of the Child in His Nest with the 5th epagomenal day and the birth of Nephthys, while Isis’ birth is on the 4th epagomenal day. But at Dendera, Isis must have been considered to have been born on the 5th and last epagomenal day, rising as Sothis just before the sun. When the sun rises, the 5th epagomenal day officially ends and the new day and New Year begins. As is so often the case with Egypt, the myths and traditions could vary from place to place.

Offering to Isis Now Available for Pre-Order

Dear friends and fellow Isians,

I’m very—very!—excited to let you know that Offering to Isis, Knowing the Goddess through Her Sacred Symbols is available for pre-order from Azoth Press at the Miskatonic Books website right now. If you’d like to go directly there, here’s the link.

I know a lot of you are familiar with Isis Magic, but maybe you haven’t yet come across Offering to Isis. I may be a tad bit partial, but I really like this book a lot, too.

Offering to Isis is about how we can connect with, honor, and grow our relationship with Isis through the ancient and eternal practice of making offering. Offering is one of the most important ways we human beings have always communicated with our Deities. It was vitally important in ancient Egypt and it’s just as important for those of us interested in or devoted to Isis today.

If you’ve ever wondered exactly what sort of things to offer to Isis, Offering to Isis includes in-depth explanations of 72 sacred symbols associated with Isis—symbols that make ideal offerings to Her.

We’ll also talk about the how and why of Egyptian offering practices, including the important and genuinely ancient Egyptian technique of “Invocation Offering.” There’s information on exactly how the ka energy inherent in every offering is given to and received by Isis—and what to do with offerings once they’ve been received. You’ll also find a selection of offering rituals, from simple to complex, for a variety of purposes. Most rites are for solitary devotees, so I think you’ll find one that works just right for you.

You can download a complete copy of the Table of Contents by clicking here.

If you’re curious and want to know exactly what’s in the book, you can download a PDF copy of the full Table of Contents by clicking on the caption under the “Contents” image.

The largest section of the book details the 72 sacred symbols of Isis. You’ll add to your knowledge of Isis and Her ancient worship by learning more about Her through Her important sacred symbols. You’ll see how each one is intimately connected with Her and how they may be used in offering rites for Her. Every entry also includes an Invocation Offering that you can use for your own offerings to Isis.

One of the things I especially like about this book is that you can just open it at random and you’ll likely find something you hadn’t known about Her, something that I hope will inspire you in your own devotions. For instance, how did the Knot of Isis come to be Her knot? What stones are associated with Her? What animals are connected with Her? Why are dreams especially important when it comes to Isis?

As it’s been a few years since this book was first published, the text has been thoroughly updated. All the hieroglyphs associated with the offerings have been re-illustrated and are much more accurate—and much more beautiful, if I may say so—in this new edition, too. There’s also a handy appendix in the back for quick reference in finding any offering you may need.

This is what a typical page in the sacred symbols section looks like.

This new Azoth Press edition can be purchased only through the Miskatonic Books website. (If you go to Amazon, you will be ordering a 20-year-old paperback edition published by Llewellyn in 2005, which people are trying to sell at very inflated prices.) Oh yes, and if you’d like, you can take advantage of Miskatonic’s installment plan that lets you pay over several months so it doesn’t take a big bite out of your budget. Plus, the new hardback edition is priced A LOT lower than those overpriced, out-of-print first editions that I’ve seen out there.

When you go to the Miskatonic site, you’ll see two different Azoth Press Offering to Isis editions. For the high rollers, there will be 36 copies in a gorgeous leather-bound and numbered collector’s edition. For the rest of us, there will be 650 numbered, limited edition copies in a cloth-bound hardcover. Both editions are two-color throughout, and more than 400 pages.

Thank you so much for letting me tell you about this new edition. And would you please do me a favor and share this information with anyone who you think might be interested? And please feel free to ask me any questions about Offering to Isis that you’d like.

I’m looking forward to getting my own copy of this beautiful, new edition of Offering to Isis. And while you might think it’s strange, even though I wrote the book, I still use it for reference when I’m making offering to Isis. I hope this new edition will serve you well, too.

Under Her Wings,

Isidora

Awakening Isis

As the teal-blue waters of the Nile swirl and eddy upon the rocky shores of Her island; as the daily rebirth of Re fills the horizon with colors of peach and purple and red; as Mother Night smiles at the glory of Her reborn child—every morning, in Her beautiful temple at Philae, the Great Goddess Isis was awakened in Her sacred image.

This morning, She was awakened in Her smaller temple, the shrine I have made for Her in my home, and the lamp I have set for Her in my heart.

My ritual is not the ritual in the ancient temples. But the intent is the same: to call in, renew, and reawaken Her ka, Her ba, and Her akh—at least the sparks of each that reside within Her sacred image on my altar—so that She may be present with me and I may be present with Her. I honor Her, awaken Her in peace, and place before Her the Offering of the Morning.

As I enter Her shrine, my hands crossed upon my breast, I bow to Her veiled image. I light the charcoal, prepare the incense, a special blend made for Her by artisans of sacred scent. I pour pure Nile water into the libation cup and ready the libation bowl.

And then I sing to Her. “Isis is the wisdom that is given in the Boat of the Morning. Isis is the wisdom that is given in the Boat of the Night. Isis is the wisdom that is given in the Boat of the Morning. Isis is the wisdom that is given in the Boat of the Night. Isis, Isis, Isis.” I continue to sing until the chant seems complete.

Now, I make the gesture of Opening the Shrine, flinging wide for Her the doors of Her shrine. I vibrate Her name, “Isis!” I unveil Her beautiful image and look upon it.

I kneel before Her, then sit.

I open my awareness. As I breathe deeply, the lamp in my heart grows brighter.

I open my awareness. I sense the ka of the Goddess’ living power like a bright tingle on the nape of my neck.

I open my awareness. I turn my face upward and envision Her ba—in the form of Her sacred raptor, the black kite—swoop down from above, fast and sure. It alights upon Her sacred image and nestles softly into Her lap. All the while, I am chanting Her name in my mind, in my heart, in my mouth.

I open my awareness again. Her spirit, Her akh is coming. It is like the welcome light of dawn after a long, dark night. It is like water to those who thirst. It is like a needed, deep breath that makes my chest shudder as I take it in.

I say aloud to Her: “A spark from Your Mysterious Heart, Isis, resides within this sacred image. I honor that spark as I honor You Yourself, Great Goddess.”

Quietly, and with my awareness opened to the ends of the earth, I vibrate Her name three more times. I feel Her ka. I see Her ba. I sense Her akh.

And I say aloud to Her, “Awaken, O Isis Within, to this beautiful day. Be welcomed into morning! Awaken, O Isis Within, to the joy of the day. Be welcomed into today!”

I take up the incense and place it upon the charcoal. The resins and herbs and flowers burn, releasing their scent. Taking up the censer, I elevate it toward Her image. “May Your eyes be opened to the beauty of the day,” I say. “May Your nostrils be opened to the sweet scent of this spice. May Your ears be opened always to the voices of Your children.”

I replace the censer and take up the libation cup of pure Nile water. I elevate it toward Her image, then pour it, very slowly, into the waiting libation bowl. “May Your lips be opened to the sweetness of this cool water,” I say. “May Your heart be opened to Your people this day. May Your body, O image of Isis, be opened to the beautiful energy of Isis the Goddess, Ever-Living.”

I am seated once more. I become aware of my heart. I breathe and let the lamp burn brighter. And brighter. I am aware of the sacred image of Isis before me. I feel Her presence. I sense Her heart. I breathe my fire into Her heart. She returns it to mine. I know Her image breathes. I breathe Her breath. I am illumined in Her dawning fire. I speak Her words for Her: “I am that Golden morning that arises and shines each day. Splendid are the ornaments upon My brilliant brow. I am the One Who glows in the Sun. I am the Eye of Awakening. I am the Greening of the Earth. I am the Joy of the Day.”

I let myself sit in Her Presence for a while, enfolded in Her wings. When I am ready, I stand and say to Her, “Awaken in joy, Isis, awaken in joy. Amma, Iset.”

Isis on the First Day

Do you remember the first time Isis made Herself—really important—in your life?

For me, it’s been a long time. In fact, I can tell you that I have been Her devotee for most of my life now. And I have been Her dedicated priestess for decades.

Of course, even before any formal declarations, I’d been dancing with Her for a while. I would often find myself reading about Her, looking at images of Her, wondering about Her.

And the crazy thing was that, at the time, I was actually looking for a Divine relationship; I was looking for my Goddess. But in my youthful rebelliousness, I thought a more obscure Goddess would be more appropriate for the uniqueness—okay, weirdness—that is me. Isis, I thought, was way too ordinary; everybody knows Isis. At least Her more mysterious Dark Sister Nephthys should be my Goddess. I must have closed the door in Isis’ face half a dozen different times. You’re cringing; so am I.

But Isis is a Goddess and I am only a thick-skulled human. My lack of commitment did not put Her off at all. She simply kept coming back and tapping on my shoulder (this is Her way; please see Isis the Ass-Kicker for more on that).

Alas, the story I’m telling now has no riveting suspense. Eventually, She just wore me down and I began preparing to dedicate myself to Her.

I did my research. I wrote my ritual. I made my purifications and prayers. On the appointed day, I began the rite. But about halfway through, I began to feel very faint. VERY faint. (You see, in those long ago days, this often happened to me in the presence of magical energy; I’d go very pale and start to pass out. Many is the time when my fellow ritualists had to stop mid-rite and prop me up for a while.)

Isis of Coptos, now in the Turin Egyptian Museum

Nonetheless, I was determined to finish the ritual and did so while sitting on the floor in front of the altar. Part of the rite involved formally asking the Goddess to accept me as Her priestess. The short answer I got was, “No.” But the longer answer was, “Go study and come back in a year.”

So, that’s exactly what I did. A year later, I reworked the same ritual, didn’t faint, and was accepted. Not long after that, I got a strange and wonderful confirmation of Her acceptance, too. A woman I barely knew came to me on a mission from the Goddess. I think she was as confused by it as I was. She’d had a dream of Isis that was so strong that she simply had to act on it. In the dream, Isis told her to come to me and give me a gift of earrings in the form of a Winged Isis. She did—and I knew that Isis had truly claimed me.

The path of devotion to Isis isn’t always what we expect. In fact, I don’t think it should always be what we expect. When things take an odd turn, I usually consider it a sign that I’m in contact with true Divine energy. If things go exactly as I thought they would, it can mean that I’m merely fulfilling my own expectations. While that’s not always true, it is indeed something to be aware of—a warning that we may be talking to ourselves rather than talking to Isis.

It is good to remember how it was on that First Day. To remember the circumstances again. To feel the feelings again. As you likely know, the idea of the First Day was extremely important to the ancient Egyptians. The renewal and re-creation of the First Day, the First Time, the First Occasion, the Zep Tepi in Egyptian, was the magic they were continually Working. Every temple was the place of the First Day, every day. Every ritual reenacted the First Day, every time.

I don’t know about you, but I am feeling the need for the renewal of that First Day right now. And so, I will do as the ancients did. I will tend the shrine. I will work the rituals. I will make offering. I will go back to the beginning and do the rites and meditations I did when I was first coming to know Her—the ones you will find in Isis Magic and Offering to Isis. I know they will different for me this time. And yet, I know they will still take me back to that First Day. And I will hope to be, like Osiris, renewed and reborn under the Wings of Isis. Amma, Iset. Grant that it be so.

Syncretism & Isis

The worship of Isis is one of the most important examples of religious syncretism in the world. Whenever the topic of syncretism arises, you will inevitably find a discussion of Isis included.

When it comes to religion, talking about syncretism often centers on whether it is a good thing or a bad thing.

But maybe, syncretism just is—unless a culture or religion is completely isolated. Because anytime peoples and cultures and religions encounter each other, there has always been—among at least some of those peoples and cultures and religions—some form of syncretism.

The Isis keystone on the Egyptian Museum in Cairo

And yes, of course, you’re right; it’s time for a definition. So, what is syncretism?

When we look at the various definitions, we see that it is usually said to be the combining, attempting to unify, assimilating, blending, fusing, reconciling, harmonizing, mixing, and other similar terms, the various aspects of two or more religions or Deities. Sometimes, religious syncretism is called theocrasia, Greek for “God-mixing.”

At the time of the rise in the popularity of the worship of Isis, interchanges between Egyptian, Greek, and Roman cultures— trade, technologies, philosophies, and yes, spiritualities—were also flourishing.

The influence of those cultures upon each other is often given as a primary example of syncretism on a broader scale. The ancient Egyptian city of Alexandria is an example of a highly syncretic—or we might say, multicultural or diverse—city. Christianity, also developing at about the same time as the spread of Isis’ worship, is another example of a syncretic worship, both in its origins and in its much later expressions, as it absorbed and transformed many of the Pagan traditions it encountered, forcibly or not.

Those who consider religious syncretism bad generally point to a “watering down” of the original tradition; there is also a legitimate concern with appropriation. Those who say religious syncretism is good generally associate it with positive innovation in religion rather than corruption. Others suggest that we retire the term entirely, because this kind of mixing is simply inevitable. Yet others prefer to retain the term since studying how it happens is valuable in researching the development of many of the world’s religions.

Interestingly, it may have been the Greek priest Plutarch—who wrote down a Greek narrative version of the Egyptian myth of Isis and Osiris—who coined the term syncretism. He used it to describe how the various Cretan tribes came together as one when faced with external threats. So, for him, it was positive mixing toward a greater good for Crete.

Isis of Coptos, wearing the Horns & Disk crown associated with Hathor

Syncretism was one of the ways Isis gained many of Her 10,000 names. Yet this all started within Egypt itself.

Those of you who have been following along with this blog already know how the Egyptian Deities are liable, at most any time, to morph into each other, to combine with each other, or to appear as each other. It is—as I have said so many times that you’re tired of reading it—one of my favorite things about the ancient Egyptian conception of the Divine. It is fluid. It can change. It can show Itself to us in myriad forms. For me, this fluidity is a genuine reflection of the Divine nature.

Egyptian combinations of Deities could demonstrate similarity: Isis-Hathor. Another might enable a Deity to express power in a specific way: Isis-Sakhmet. Mostly, in Egypt, Goddesses could flow only into other Goddesses, Gods into other Gods. Isis is unusual in that She could combine with Gods as well. We find an Isis-Anubis in the later mythological texts, as well as an Isis-Horus.

An image of Demeter, but with the tiny horns of Isis-Io upon Her forehead

In this way, Isis could be almost any other Egyptian Goddess as well as some Gods. We discover many of Her names in the Oxyrhynchus hymn, which gives us Her names and epithets, first within Egypt, then throughout the Mediterranean.

Outside of Egypt, one of the first important Deities Isis is syncretized with is the Greek Great Goddess Demeter. This went as far back as the 5th century BCE when the historian Herodotus declared that Isis IS Demeter and that Isis and Osiris were the only Deities worshiped throughout all of Egypt. (This wasn’t strictly true, but that was his impression.)

The Isis myth, as recorded and interpreted by Plutarch, gives us the perfect example of a syncretic myth.

As Plutarch tells it, the wanderings of Isis include episodes similar to those in Demeter’s story of wandering in search of Persephone. Like Demeter, Isis (in disguise as a human woman) weeps at a spring (in Demeter’s case, a well) and is invited into the royal house to be the nurse of a royal infant. At night, She tempers the child in a fire, making him immortal.

One night, the queen sees this process and, quite understandably, screams bloody murder, thus interrupting the magic and prohibiting her child from gaining immortality.

But let’s go one step further into this particular syncretism. Some Egyptologists believe that this “burning baby” episode may actually have originated in Egypt—with what they call the “burning Horus” formula—and from there it was imported into Demeter’s myth. So, in this case, both cultures were inspired by the other and each added a detail from the other Great Goddess’ myth to their own story.

There are numerous images that show Isis combined with Goddesses other than Demeter from throughout the Mediterranean region. We find Isis-Aphrodite, Isis-Astarte, Isis-Selene, Isis-Sophia, Isis-Artemis, Isis-Rhea, Isis-Fortuna, and many more. Just as She had within Egypt, now Isis flowed into Goddesses far beyond Egypt. So much so that She eventually became THE Goddess to many people, both within and without Her native land.

The human pathos of Isis’ story, Her fierceness in defending both Her husband and Her child, Her powers of resurrection and rebirth, and the magic that always clings to Isis like a potent perfume—all contributed to the spread of Her religion in the Greco-Roman world. People saw Her in their own Goddesses and they saw their own Goddesses in Her, eventually adopting Her as their own. Syncretism.

For today, I’d like to leave you with a syncretic hymn to Isis. It is one of four written in Greek and carved on the temple of Isis-Hermouthis (Hermouthis is a Hellenized form of the Cobra Goddess Renenutet) in the Egyptian Faiyum, where She was paired with the Crocodile God Sobek. The hymn was written by a man named Isidorus; judging by his name, he was at least a devotee. He may have been a native Egyptian who was either given or adopted a Greek name. Some researchers even think he could have been a priest of Isis, but we just don’t know.

Here is one of his four Faiyum hymns to Isis:

O wealth-giver, Queen of the Gods, Hermouthis, Lady,
Omnipotent Agathē Tychē [“Good Fortune”], greatly renowned Isis,
Dēo, highest Discoverer [generally, this means “creator”] of All Life,
Manifold miracles were Your care that You might bring livelihood to mankind and morality to all.

You taught customs that justice might in some measure prevail;
You gave skills that men’s life might be comfortable,
And You discovered the blossoms that produce edible vegetation.
Because of You, heaven and the whole earth have their being; and the gusts of the winds and the sun with its sweet light.

By Your power the channels of Nile are filled, every one,
At the harvest season and its most turbulent water is poured
On the whole land that produce may be unfailing.
All mortals who live on the boundless earth,
Thracians, Greeks, and Barbarians,
Express Your fair Name, a Name greatly honored among all, but
Each speaks in his own language, in his own land.

The Syrians call You: Astarte, Artemis, Nanaia [Mesopotamian Love Goddess closely associated with Inanna];
The Lycian tribes call You: Leto, the Lady;
The Thracians also name You as Mother of the Gods;
And the Greeks call You Hera of the Great Throne, Aphrodite,
Hestia the Goodly, Rheia and Demeter.
But the Egyptians call You Thiouis [from Egyptian Ta Uaet, “the Only One”] because they know that You, being One, are all other Goddesses Invoked by the races of men.

Mighty One, I shall not cease to sing of Your great Power.
Deathless Savior, many-named, mightiest Isis,
Saving from war cities and all their citizens: men, their wives, possessions, and children.
As many as are bound fast in prison, in the power of death;
As many as are in pain through long, anguished, sleepless nights,
All who are wanderers in a foreign land,
And as many as sail on the Great Sea in winter
When men may be destroyed and their ships wrecked and sunk,
All these are saved if they pray that You be present to help.

Hear my prayers, O One whose Name has great Power; prove Yourself merciful to me and free me from all distress. —Isidorus wrote it*

If you would like to hear a poetic and profound piece on syncretic Deities, I invite you to listen to this episode of the wonderful podcast The Emerald: Let Us Sing of Syncretic Gods, of Outcasts and Wanderers. Yes, of course, Isis is mentioned.

*Translation from Vera Vanderlip, The Four Greek Hymns of Isidorus & the Cult of Isis.

Is Isis a Moon Goddess?

Last night, we held our All-Hallows Eve rite (a bit early, I know). As we welcomed our Honored Dead in the presence of the Dark Ones, many of us were very aware of the bright moon shining above, just two days past a full Hunters’ Moon.

The moon, the moon, the moon. And I am thinking now of the moon and Our Lady Isis.

When we first encounter Isis, we often first discover Her as a lunar Goddess, a Goddess of the Moon. But is She?

A lovely lunar Isis; you can purchase a copy of your own here

Well, that really kind of depends on when you ask.

If we’re asking for today, for now, then yes, She is. And She has been for more than a millennium. But She took a rather circuitous route to get there. So let’s follow that trail a bit and see how it happened.

Early in Egyptian history, Isis was firmly associated with the heavens—with the star Sirius in particular, and with the sun, too—but She was not considered a Moon Goddess.

Moon Gods were the norm for Egypt—Iah, Thoth, Khonsu, and Osiris are among the most prominent and the moon’s phases were quite important to the ancient Egyptians. Scholars generally agree that the first Egyptian calendars, like those of so many ancient people, were lunar based. The temples marked the moon’s changes and especially celebrated its waxing and full phases. But the face the Egyptians saw in the moon was masculine rather than feminine.

For example, the waning and waxing of the moon could be associated with the wounding and healing of the Eye of Horus. So, perhaps we can think of Isis as the Mother of the Moon. Indeed, She was called “Isis, Who Creates the Moon Eye of Horus by Her Heart.” In some myths, Isis is the one Who heals Horus’ Eye, in others, it is Thoth or Hathor and we see this reflected in Isis’ epithet as She “Who Heals the Left Eye.”

By the time of the New Kingdom, the beloved of Isis, Osiris, becomes prominent as a lunar God. We have a number of examples of statuettes of Osiris-Iah—Osiris assimilated with Iah, a Moon God—or simply as Osiris the Moon. So in this case, Isis is married to the Moon. But She’s not really a Moon Goddess Herself.

On the other hand, the Greeks and the Romans were all about the Moon Goddess. In fact, the moon itself was simply called “the Goddess.” People spoke of doing something “when the Goddess rises.” They would kiss their hands, extending them toward the rising moon, “to greet the Goddess.” Magical texts give instructions for performing a certain ritual “on the first of the Goddess,” meaning at the new moon. When they saw Isis with Her horns-and-disk crown, they saw a Moon Goddess.

And because we have so much information about Isis from these Moon Goddess-loving people, today when many people think of Isis, the moon is one of the first things they associate with Her. Yet, interestingly, it seems to have been a third century BCE Egyptian priest named Manetho who first connected Isis with the moon. By the following century, when Plutarch recorded the most complete version of the Isis-Osiris myth we have, the tradition of Isis as a Goddess of the Moon was firmly established—even in Egypt.

Of course, it was easy to associate the fertility-bringing moon with the fertile Mother Isis. The ancient world also associated love affairs with the moon (the romance of moonlight, you know) and, in Her passion for Osiris, Isis was a famous lover.

Of course, the moon and the obscuring darkness of night were connected with magic, too—and Isis was one of Egypt’s Mightiest Magicians from the beginning. She was called Lady of the Night. One Egyptian story told how a particular magical scroll—which the tale calls a “mystery of the Goddess Isis”—was discovered when a moonbeam fell upon its hiding place, enabling a lector priest in Isis’ temple to find it.

Today, we also connect the moon with emotions, the deep, the waters, the feminine (taking our cue from the ancient Greeks and Romans), the home, Mystery, and change (to name but a few). And Isis can definitely be associated with all of these things—from the emotional passion of Her myths to Her ancient Mysteries and Her enduring role as the Goddess of Regeneration and Transformation.

This beautiful lunar Isis is by Reinhard Schmid. You can see his work here

So is Isis a Moon Goddess? She certainly has been for a very, very long time. Whether we choose to honor Her in this form has more to do with us than with Her. Many contemporary Pagans will probably be quite comfortable working with Isis as a Moon Goddess; a strict Kemetic Reconstructionist, not so much. But Isis is a Great Goddess; She is All, and so, for me, She is unquestionably to be found in the deep and holy Mysteries of the Moon.

And yet, and just for myself, while I do find Her in the moon, I resonate most strongly with Isis of the Stars and Isis of the Eternities of Space and Isis the Radiant Sun Goddess. Nevertheless, I still feel the call to explore Her important lunar aspects. What about you?

Isis and…Samhain? Really?

We gazed at the waning light of the moon last night.

Its cool, pale light was beautiful, and yet sad. That’s often how this time of year feels. Beautiful. And sad. For at this time of year, many of us remember our Beloved and Honored Dead.

Some of us might celebrate the solemn rites of Samhain—from a quite different culture than that of ancient Egypt. (In my community, we’ll celebrate our rites next weekend.)

Now, of course you’re quite right that the ancient Egyptians did not celebrate Samhain. Yet we know they honored their dead. Indeed, their dead could be very, very present for them, as transfigured spirits, akhu, who could help them in their day-to-day lives—or cause them trouble.

But for Isis devotees seeking a more Egyptian way to mark this time of year, I’d like to introduce you to the Isia.

A festival called the Isia is found in a calendar from 354 CE that was commissioned by a wealthy Roman Christian named Valentinus from a prominent, also-Christian scribe named Philocalus. The Calendar of Philocalus is famous because it contains the first known reference to the Christian holiday of Christmas as an annual festival of the birth of the Christ on December 25th. (There are earlier references to that date, but not as an annual festival.)

An illustration of November from Philocalus’ 354 CE calendar; note the sistrum and Anubis head

But for Isiacs, the calendar is important for its inclusion of a different festival: the Isia. Philocalus records the dates of the Isia as October 28th-November 1st. Some scholars also include the days until November 3rd as part of the Isia. That’s because Philocalus’ calendar has what was known as an “Egyptian Day” on November 2nd and a Hilaria on November 3rd, both of which may have been included in the Isia.

Let me explain: to the Romans, an “Egyptian Day” was a bad luck day. There were three in January and two in every other month. The first Egyptian Day in November fell right after the Isia, on November 2nd. These days were inappropriate for public festivals, sacrifices, and were generally stay-in-your-house-and-do-nothing days. The bad luck of the Egyptian Days continued on into medieval Christian calendars.

Why were they called “Egyptian” days? No one knows for certain. However, Egyptian calendars (for example, the famous New Kingdom Cairo Calendar) often list festivals along with auspicious and inauspicious days. So it may well be that Romans simply picked up these genuinely Egyptian bad luck days and put them into their own calendar. (This tells you how influential the worship of The Egyptian Gods—mostly Isis and Sarapis—were.) Later on, the name was taken to refer to the ten biblical plagues of Egypt to better harmonize these pagan-y days with scripture.

From Pompeii: Making offering before the sarcophagus of Osiris

As for the Hilaria, there are two shown on Philocalus’ calendar, one on March 25th, at the end of a lengthy festival of Magna Mater/Kybele in which the death of Attis is mourned. The preceding day (the 24th) was the Day of Blood, on which flagellation and self-castration might take place, and it was also an Egyptian Day. The Hilaria was what it sounds like: a day of joy. People played games and feasted. Some scholars think that the spring Hilaria could be the origin of our April Fool’s Day.

So clearly, it was not absolutely unheard of to have a festival on an Egyptian Day…of course in the case of the Kybele festival, it was the (yikes!) Day of Blood. There is nothing else listed in Philocalus’ calendar for the Egyptian Day following the Isia. The November Hilaria is shown as the day after that, on the 3rd.

Yet in both cases, we have a Great Goddess with a partner to be mourned, followed by a Day of Joy. This makes very good sense from a psychological standpoint; we need relief after mourning. So it may be that we should include the Egyptian Day and the Hilaria following the Isia as part of the Isia festival after all. Which would mean that (here in the northern hemisphere) we’re approaching the festival right now. So there’s time to prepare should you choose to celebrate your own Isia.

Artist’s depiction of ceremonies at the Temple of Isis, Pompeii. Click to see it larger.

We know little else about the Roman Isia. On one hand, this frees us to create our own Isia. Given the time of year, we might choose to connect the Isia with the modern festival of Halloween. Isis is, after all, a Goddess of the Dead par excellence. There is much we could do with an Isia in which we remembered our own Honored Dead, for example by speaking their names and making offering in the ancient Egyptian tradition.

On the other hand, there is an appropriate Egyptian option for the celebration of the Isia and—and given the timing and the resonant subject matter—it is a likely candidate for the basis of the Roman Isia.

Though perhaps it should more rightly be called the Osiria. For at about this same time of year, in the Egyptian month of Khoiak, the ancients held a festival for Osiris that remembered His conflict with His brother Set, His death, and His resurrection through the holy magic of Isis. We know of this festival from the period of the Middle Kingdom and have a decent record of it from the great Osirian sanctuary of Abydos. We also know of it from the Osiris chapel in Hathor’s Ptolemaic sanctuary at Denderah.

The festival re-enacted the central Isis-Osiris myth (I won’t recount it here; you all know the story.) The Egyptians molded images of Osiris from Nile mud, special spices, talismanic stones, and seeds. The images were watered so that the grain sprouted, a fitting symbol of new life. (We should also know that this was about the time of year when the Nile flood was receding so that the fields could be planted with new crops.) The festival ended with the raising of the Djed pillar, symbol of the resurrection of the God Himself as Lord of the Otherworld.

If you are so inclined, now is a perfect time to re-enact that core Isiac myth—if on a smaller and more personal scale. And should you do so from Isis’ point of view, it would be a true Isia, indeed.

Watering the grain in the sacred image of Osiris

I have done my own private Isia like this: I shuffle and deal out 14 Tarot cards, representing the 14 parts of the body of Osiris. I place or “hide” the cards in a circle around my temple. Then, during the several days of the festival, I ritually circle the temple, “finding” some of the cards until I have “found” them all. Then I assemble them into a roughly human-shaped, stick-figure Osiris. (This is a fairly large spread, so I place it in the middle of the floor of my temple.) On the last day of the festival, I turn over the cards, revealing them, and read them as an omen for the coming season and coming year. Naturally—to expand the rite and get myself in the proper magical frame of time, I use temple openings and closings of my choice from Isis Magic. (The Opening of the Ways works quite well; if you haven’t got your own copy of Isis Magic, you’ll find the ritual here.)

Should you decide to honor the Isia this year—in this way or some other—I would love to know about your experience. Whether you choose to connect your Isia with the ancient Khoiak festivals of Isis and Osiris, create a Day-of-the-Dead-type Isia, or celebrate some other way entirely, I wish you much depth and beauty in this darkening season of sad, sweet remembrance. May She embrace you always.

Isis and the pharaoh raise the Djed pillar, the symbol of the resurrection of Osiris

Happy Autumnal Equinox 2024!

Turquoise and carnelian—perfect Egyptian colors for fall.

Here at the 45th parallel on the west coast of the US, we are perfectly situated to experience the turning of the seasons in a nearly archetypal form. Very often, the first day of autumn or winter or spring or summer turns out to be a ideal expression of the forthcoming season. Today, the first day of fall, is sunny, warmish but not hot, and the air shines with the gold that only autumn can bring. And it’s harvest time.

The crops are a bit late this year due to our weather; nonetheless, winter squash are in the farmer’s market and we’re just a few weeks away from our annual Dionysian Grape Stomp and Bacchanal, when we harvest the grapes in our own vineyard, dance them to juice, then feast and trance the night away.

Yet here, halfway from the equator to the top of the world, the seasons bear no relation to the seasons in ancient Egypt. For them, this would have been the second month of Inundation, when the Nile rose to cover the land, bringing its rich silt to Egyptian fields. Harvest time wasn’t until early Spring.

What’s an Isiac to do?

The Two Sisters, here with symbols of the Two Lands

For me, the answer is simple: when it comes to seasonal things, I celebrate locally. I am not trying to recreate the worship of Isis as it was in ancient Egypt; instead, I am inspired by those ancient roots of Her worship and yet feel perfectly free to grow from those beautiful, deep, and ancient roots new living plants. The seasons of the ancient Egyptians are not my seasons. And though this Egyptian Goddess is my Goddess, I cannot help but experience Her through my own modern cultural—and seasonal—lenses.

Thus, while the rite I will be participating in tonight, on this equinoctial evening, is not an ancient Egyptian rite, it honors one of the most important themes in ancient Egyptian life and spirit: duality. For tonight I shall make offering to the Two Sisters. Bright Isis and Dark Nephthys Who, when joined hand in hand, are an expression of the sacred magic of the equinox—the harmonious balance of light and dark, day and night.

Isis & Nephthys as sisters. See more illustrations of this artist’s work here.

The two Goddesses compliment each other in the light and dark children They bear to the same God. Osiris fathered the bright God, Horus, with Isis while with Nephthys, He fathered the dark God, Anubis. The Two Goddesses also manifest their Divine power differently. While Isis guides and sheds light on the hidden paths of the Otherworld, the Coffin Texts tell us that Nephthys speaks and they are obscured: “Hidden are the ways for those who pass by; light is perished and darkness comes into being, so says Nephthys.” While Isis summons the Barque of the Day, Nephthys is “a possessor of life in the Night-barque.”

And yet, Isis and Nephthys are also and importantly twins. They are the Two Ladies, the Two Women, the Two Goddesses of the Hall of Truth, the Two Long-Haired Ones, the Two Uraeus Serpents, the Two Spirits, the Two Nurses, the Two Weavers, the Two Feathers, the Two Birds, the Two Cows, the Two Kites, the Two Divine Mothers, the Two Eyes of God, the Two Women, the Two Wise Ones, the Two Weepers, the Two Great, Great Ones, and ultimately, the Two Uniters. The essential balance and unity of Isis and Nephthys is expressed in the Graeco-Egyptian magical papyri by the name Isenephthys or Isis-Nephthys.

And so, in this time of perfect balance, I dance between the equal poles of night and day, teetering on the scales of Libra, and I honor the Two Ladies.

Blessed be the Ladies. Amma, Isenephthys.

Isis in All Her Names

In ancient Egyptian, there was a phrase that expressed the all-encompassing nature of Isis: Iset em Renus Nebu, “Isis in All Her Names.” By later periods of Her worship—within Egypt as well as throughout the Mediterranean world—Isis was understood as an All-Goddess Who could be seen in many other Goddesses. Her multi-faceted nature was expressed in a vast array of epithets attesting to Her Divine powers.

When we enter into a relationship with a Deity, that Deity will inevitably expand for us as we learn more about Them and develop our understanding of Them. Perhaps we first greet Isis as protectress of Osiris and mother of Horus. But then we discover that Her power to do those things is because She is, first and foremost, Great of Magic. As we grow our relationship, She reveals more of Herself to us, She opens more doors to Her Divinity for us.

The same thing happened in ancient times. As She revealed ever more of Her Divinity to Her devotees, She became known, in Greek, as Myrionymos, “Myriad Named,” an almost precise echo of Her earlier Egyptian epithet.

So what I have for you today is an invocation of Isis in some of those myriad names and epithets. It is from one of the Oxyrhynchus papyri, which date roughly to the beginning of the 2nd century CE. For those who might like to look it up, this specific invocation is in Oxyrhynchus Papyrus XI.1380.

But first, let me tell you a bit about the papyri found in Oxyrhynchus, an ancient Egyptian city about ten days journey by water or five by land south of Memphis. The city was once quite beautiful, with colonnaded streets, temples, docks, and irrigated land out into the countryside. Outside of town were the city dumps. In the dumps, an enormous cache of ancient papyri was discovered. And because it never rains in this part of Egypt, everything that was above ground-water level was preserved, long after the city itself had crumbled to dust or been dismantled and reused as building materials. You’ll find more on the papyri here.

The town of Oxyrhynchus in Egypt in ruins

The garbage dumps of Oxyrhynchus, where the papyri were found

In these papyri, we have everything from tax documents to personal letters to books to magical workings and invocations. Blessedly, we have an amazing Invocation of Isis in which She is invoked by Her names and epithets, first in the nomes and cities of Egypt, and then in other parts of the Mediterranean world. The Invocation goes on to offer praises to the Goddess. Scholars think it was written by an initiate of Isis, possibly a priest at Memphis. It was composed in Greek and it ranks as one of the most important Isiac documents ever found. And, of course, a great deal of it is missing. Sigh.

To make it easier to read, I’m going to leave out most of the triple dots (. . .) that indicate places where the papyrus was too damaged to read (except where that doesn’t make sense or is just too intriguing to leave out). Also, I’ll italicize the name or epithet, while leaving the place names un-italicized and break it into paragraphs, something the original does not do. The original was written in Greek, the lingua franca of the time.

The Oxyrhynchus Invocation of Isis the Many-Named Goddess

I invoke Thee, Who at Aphroditopolis art called One; Who art called Bubastis; at Letopolis Magna, One; at Aphroditopolis in the Prosopite Nome, Fleet-Commanding, Many-Shaped, Aphrodite; at Delta, Giver of Favors; at Calamisis, Gentle; at Carene, Affectionate; at Niciu, Immortal, Giver; at Momemphis, Ruler, at Psochemis, Bringer To Harbor; at Mylon, Ruler; at Hermopolis, Of Beautiful Form, Sacred; at Naucratis, Fatherless, Joy, Savior, Almighty, Most Great; at Nithine in the Gynaecopolite Nome, Aphrodite; at Pephremis, Isis, Ruler, Hestia, Lady of Every Country; at Es, Hera, Divine; at Buto, Skilled in Calculation; at Thonis, Love; in the Saite Nome, Victorious, Athena, Nymph; at Caene, Joy; at Sais, Hera, Ruler, Perfect; at Iseum, Isis; at Sebennytus, Inventiveness, Mistress, Hera, Holy…

At Hermopolis, Aphrodite, Queen, Holy; at Diospolis Parva, Ruler; at Bubastus of Old, at Heliopolis, Aphrodite, at Aithribis, Maia, Supporter; at Hiera in the Phthemphuthite Nome, Lotus-Bearing; at Teouchis, Sacred, Mistress; among the Bucoli, Maia; at Xois of Old, Oracular; at Apis, Understanding; at Leuce Acte, Aphrodite, Mouchis [probably “She of Mouchis;” Mouchis was near Aphroditopolis], Eseremphis [Greek version of Egyptian name meaning “Isis the Year”]; at Choatine, Victorious; at …, Skilled in Writing; at Cynopolis in the Busirite Nome, Praxidice [a justice-bringing Goddess]; at Busiris, Fortune, Good; at Hermopolis in the Mendesian Nome, Leader; at Pharbaethus, Of Beautiful Form; at Isidium in the Sethroite Nome, Saviour of Men; at Heracleopolis in the Sethroite Nome, Mistress…

A beautiful image by the artist Zingaia. You can find her on Deviant Art.

At Phernouphis, Ruler of Cities; at Leontopolis, Serpent, Good; at Tanis, Of Gracious Form, Hera; at Schedia, Inventiveness; at Heracleum, Lady of the Sea; at Canopus, Leader of the Muses; at Menouthis, Truth; at Meniouis, Seated Before Io in Whose Honor . . . Is Founded; at M…Enestium, Most Great, Vulture-Sharped, Aphrodite; at Taposiris, Thauestis [unsure, but may be related to a popular Egyptian name, Thaues or Thauesis, meaning “Of Isis”] Hera, Giver; in the Island, Swiftly Victorious; at Peucestis, Pilot; at Melais, Many-Formed; at Menouphis, Warlike; in the Metelite Nome, Kore; at Charax, Athena; at Plinthine, Hestia; at Pelusium, Bringer To Harbor; in the Casian District Tachnepsis; at the Outlet, Isis, Preserver;

In Arabia, Great Goddess; in the Island, Giver of Victory in Sacred Games; in Lycia, Leto; at Myra in Lycia, Sage, Freedom; at Cnidus, Dispeller of Attack, Discoverer; at Cyrene, Isis; in Crete, Dictynnis; at Chalcedon, Themis; at Rome, Warlike; in the Cyclades Islands, Of Threefold Nature, Artemis; at Patmos, Young; at Paphos, Hallowed, Divine, Gentle; in Chios, Marching; in Salamis, Observer; in Cyprus, All-Bounteous; in Chalcidice, Holy; in Pieria, Youthful; in Asia, Worshipped at the Three Ways; at Petra, Savior; at Hypsele, Most Great; at Rhinocolura, All-Seeing; at Dora, Friendship; at Stratonos Pyrgos Hellas, Good; at Ascalon, Mightiest; at Sinope, Many-Named; at Raphis, Mistress; at Tripolis, Supporter; at Gaza, Abundant…

Sacred image of Isis from Brexiza, Greece, near Marathon

At Delphi, Best, Fairest; at Bambyce, Atargatis; among the Thracians and in Delos, Many-Named; among the Amazons, Warlike; among the Indians, Maia; among the Thessalians, Moon; among the Persians, Latina; among the Magi, Kore, Thapseusis [this name is hard to make out; possibly a specifically Persian name, possibly a magical name]; at Susa, Nania [possibly a syncretic Isis-Innana]; in Syrophoenicia, Goddess; in Samothrace, Bull-Faced; at Pergamum, Mistress; in Pontus, Immaculate; in Italy, Love of the Gods; in Samos, Sacred; at the Hellespont, Mystic; at Myndus, Divine; in Bithynia, Helen; in Tenedos, Name of the Sun; in Caria, Hekate; in the Troad and at Dindyma, Palentra [also unknown], Unapproachable, Isis; at Berytus, Maia; at Sidon, Astarte; at Ptolemais, Understanding; at Susa in the District of the Red Sea, Sarkounis [unknown]…

Thou Who interpretest first of all by the Fifteen Commandments [the word used in Greek is thesmoi, laws; I really want to know what these 15 Commandments or Laws of Isis are—so far, no one does know], Ruler of the World; Guardian and Guide, and Lady of the Mouths and Rivers and of Seas; Skilled in Writing and Calculations, Understanding; Who Also Bringest Back the Nile Over Every Country; the Beautiful Animal [probably, the Cow] of All the Gods; the Glad Face in Lethe; the Leader of the Muses; the Many-Eyed; the Comely Goddess in Olympus; Ornament of the Female Sex and Affectionate; Providing Sweetness in Assemblies; the “Lock of Hair” in Festivals; the Prosperity of Observers of Lucky Days; Harpocratis [possibly an expression meaning something like the “darling”] of the Gods; All-Ruling in the Procession of the Gods, Emnity-Hating, True Jewel of the Wind and Diadem of Life; By Whose Command Images and Animals of All the Gods, Having … of Thy Name, are Worshiped; O Lady Isis, Greatest of the Gods, First of Names, Io Sothis…

Roman Isis, from the 2nd century CE, in the Farnese Collection in Naples

Thou rulest over the Mid-Air and the Immeasurable; Thou devisest the weaving of . . . ; it is also Thy will that women in health come to anchor with men; all the elders sacrifice; all the maidens at Heracleopolis turn to Thee and dedicated the country to Thee; Thou art seen by those who invoke Thee faithfully; from Whom … in virtue of the 365 combined days; gentle and placable is the favor of Thy Two Ordinances [like the Commandments, I want to know!]; Thou bringest the Sun from rising unto setting, and all the Gods are glad; at the rising of the stars the people of the country worship Thee unceasingly and the other sacred animals in the sanctuary of Osiris; they become joyful when they name Thee; the spirits become Thy subjects; [the next few lines are very fragmentary] and Thou bringest decay on what Thou wilt and to the destroyed bringest increase, and Thou purifiest all things; every day Thou didst appoint for joy; Thou … having discovered all the … of wine providest it first in the Festivals of the Gods.

Thou becamest the discoverer of all things wet and dry and cold and hot, of which all things are composed; Thou broughtest back alone Thy Brother, piloting Him safely and burying Him fittingly; Leader of Diadems; Lady of Increase and Decay, Thou didst establish shrines of Isis in all cities for all time; and didst deliver to all human beings observances and a perfect year; and to all human beings in every place, Thou didst show . . . in order that all might know that Thou . . .

Thou didst establish Thy son Horus Apollon everywhere, the youthful Lord of the Whole World and for all time; Thou didst make the power of women equal to that of men; and in the sanctuary Thou didst . . . ; Thou, Lady of the Land, bringest the flood of rivers—in Egypt, the Nile, in Tripolis, the Eleutherus, in India, the Ganges; owing to Whom the whole exists through all rain, every spring, all dew, and snow and all the land and sea; Thou art also the Mistress of All Things Forever; Thou madest the . . . of the Dioscuri; Thou hast dominion over winds and thunders and lightnings and snows; Thou, the Lady of War and Rule, easily destroyest tyrants by trusty counsels; Thou madest great Osiris immortal and delivered to every country religious observances; likewise Thou madest immortal Horus who showed Himself a benefactor and good; Thou art the Lady of Light and Flames… [then the Invocation moves to a praise of Horus, and then it breaks off]

There is much to meditate on here. Perhaps you will be inspired, as I am, to call upon Her in some of these many names—and maybe even add your own to the list. “In Portland, Great of Magic, Queen Isis, Mysterious One…”

“Isis & Nephthys work magic for You with knotted cords”

I think I mentioned that Isis took, as an offering from me, a silver Knot of Isis when I visited Her Philae temple earlier this year. I had it on a chain around my neck when we took the boat over to the temple…and it was simply gone when we came back. It made me smile.

The Knot of Isis is often of red material, but here’s a green one, the color of all good things in ancient Egypt

Knots are important symbols for Isis and of Her. Most of us are very familiar with the Knot of Isis, the knot amulet that resembles an ankh, but with the “arms” folded down. Learn more about it here. But there’s another reason Isis is connected with knots. And that’s because She is the Goddess of Magic—heka, in Egyptian—and very often, heka was and still is worked by the tying of knots.

Ancient Egyptian texts often describe working heka as weaving or knitting, which is just another form of knotting. The deceased person is said to be “knit together in the egg” prior to rebirth. Some texts say that the head of the deceased is “knit on.” The concept of weaving, knitting, or knotting magic—bringing the strands of magic together to create or preserve or repel—makes complete and utter sense to me. There is a delicacy and precision that the many types of knotting require that speaks to me as a very viable way to work magic.

Note the knots in the straps of the Goddess' garment as well as the little loop between Her breasts. — Note the knots in the straps of the Goddess’ garment as well as the little loop between Her breasts.

The basic idea is simple enough: tied knots bind and untied knots release. Beyond that, knots can unite opposites and—since a knot secures things—protect.

Knot magic was well known in Egypt from an early period; an inscription in one of the pyramids says that Isis and Nephthys work magic for Osiris “with knotted cords.”

The Book of Coming Forth by Day (aka Book of the Dead) also gives several examples of the magical power of the knot. In one, knots are tied around the deceased to help them come into the presence of the Deities: “The four knots are tied about me by the guardian of the sky [. . .] the knot was tied about me by Nuet, when I first saw Ma’et, when the gods and the sacred images had not yet been born. I am heaven born, I am in the presence of the Great Gods.”

A *tjes* knot as part of a necklace and the Goddess Bat or Hathor; surely this beautiful piece of jewelry was also protective

In addition to these four knots, another text talks about seven knots, or tesut, that were tied about the deceased to protect them.

The power of the magical knot is in its ability to both unite and “surround” things. The tied knot is a symbol of the coming together of two things in perfect wholeness, a condition that promotes a positive outcome.

A passage in the Coffin Texts says that when the hair of Isis is knotted to the hair of Nephthys, the Two River Banks (that is, the land of the living and the land of the dead) are united. Tying a knot could also refer to sexuality; the perfect coming together of two people in an act of creation. We still “tie the knot” when we get married.

Hapi using a knot to unite the Two Lands — Hapi “tying the knot” to unite the Two Lands

Furthermore, because the two ends of the cord used in tying a magical knot symbolically go all the way around something, they “surround” that thing. Thus knot magic could be used to surround” or bind an enemy—or even tie a curse to them.

In Spell 42 in Budge’s translation of the Book of the Dead, the knot appears as a kind of seed. The deceased is said to be “the knot within the tamarisk tree, beautiful of splendor more than yesterday.” This surely refers to Osiris within the tree prior to His resurrection.

And, of course, as you already know, the famous Knot of Isis is a very magical knot. In most cases, it is protective and associated with renewal and resurrection. As time passed, it became a must-have amulet for all mummies and was usually placed on the upper torso.

If you’d like to work some protective knot magic for yourself, here’s a ritual, slightly adapted, from my Isis Magic (new edition coming in spring of 2026 from REDFeather Publishing!! Yay!) that you can use to do so.

In this rite, we are using the knots to surround with protection. We call upon Isis primarily, but also Nephthys, Neith, and Selket as the four Goddesses often found guarding the four corners of a shrine as well as the four Sons of Horus, Who in turn protect the canopic jars.

The Rite of the Tiet (the Knot of Isis)

About the Rite: In this ritual, you will magically tie a protective knot around yourself, or around anything or anyone you wish to protect. The ritual draws upon sources in the Book of Coming Forth by Day and is, in part, adapted from an ancient rite for consecrating the Tiet amulet.

Temple Arrangement: Altar at center; all tools on altar.

Ritual Tools: Nile water in Lotus Cup; flower petals from lotus, lily, or rose; Isis incense in censer; six pieces of fairly substantial red cord, each approximately one foot long (if you can’t find red cord that is thick enough, use white rope).

Opening

Purify and consecrate the temple and yourself according to the formulae of the House of Isis or any method you prefer. Return to the altar, take up the lotus (lily or rose) petals and elevate them.

Ritualist: O, you Souls of Life, Lotus Dwellers, Breathers, you of the Pure Air from the Wings of Isis, I have come for you. By the Blood, by the Power, by the Magic of Isis, establish yourselves within these petals. (Vibrating onto petals) ISET NEF!

Place some of the petals in the chalice.

Ritualist: (Addressing petals) I know you, you shining flowers. Your name is “Life Is In It”. Your name is “Protection”. Your name is “Peace Bringer”.

Place the pieces of cord upon the altar and anoint each of them with the Nile water with flower petals in it.

Ritualist: (Touching each piece of cord) Isis protects!

Invocation of the Powers of Isis

Next, invoke the Goddess, raising your arms in Adoration.

Ritualist: I call the power of my Mighty Mother Isis. I call Her strength to me. I call upon the Power and the Peace of Isis, for I shall knot the cord, the Knot of Isis.

O Isis, my Mother, I call You!

I call You with the breath of my body (breathing out).

I call You with the beat of my heart (touching your chest).

I call You with the pulse of my life (touching your wrists).

I call You with the words of my mouth (touching your mouth).

I call You with the thoughts of my mind (touching your forehead).

I call You Power. I call You Life. I call You Protection.

I call You, Isis!

Tying the Knots

Take up one of the pieces of red cord and move to the southeast corner of your ritual space. Holding the two ends of the cord in your hands, say:

Ritualist: You have Your Blood, O Isis. You have Your Power, O Isis. You have Your Magic, O Isis. The Blood of Isis and the Strength of Isis and the Words of Power of Isis shall be mighty to (state what you wish to protect) against all that would cause harm.

With strength and intention, tie a knot in the cord and set it in the southeast corner of the ritual space.

Ritualist: By the Power of Isis, I have knotted the cord.

Repeat this same procedure in the southwest, northwest, and northeast of the temple, above your head (leaving the cord on top of the altar), and upon the ground (leave the cord at the foot of the altar).

Stand west of the altar, facing east. Make the Sign of the Wings of Isis (raise and open your arms like wings).

Ritualist: O Isis and all You mighty Goddesses of Protection, I call upon You to guard (state what you wish to protect) as You did guard Osiris Himself, as You did guard Horus the Child.

An exceptionally beautiful gold and amethyst necklace, secured by a clasp in the form of a knot

Isis, Mighty Magician; Nephthys, Lady of Life; Neith, Primal Mother; Selket, Powerful One—tie the Knot of Isis against all harm. Keep it away! Restrain it! Let it not come near! O, Isis and all You Goddesses of Protection, grant Your peace and protection.

If you wish to meditate or do other work, this is an excellent time to do so.

Closing

If this is a ritual for protection from some outside threat, leave the tied knots in your ritual space for as long as desired or needed and conclude the rite by making the Sign of the Wings of Isis at the altar and speaking the last line.

If this rite is worked simply to create peace for meditation, you may untie the knots when you are finished by simply going to each knot in the order you tied it and untying it, then returning each one to the altar.

Use a simple, overhand knot in this ritual

Ritualist: I have untied the knot. Be in peace, O You Blood and Power and Magic of Isis. Be in peace.

At the altar, make Sign of the Wings of Isis.

Ritualist: I thank You, Isis, in all Thy names of Protection. Hold me ever near You, bound by Your protective knots.

The rite is complete.

In Praise of Group Ritual

Many of us are working solitary these days

Come, Hathoru, You Seven Hathors, You Egyptian Muses—come and help me to sing in praise of working rituals with groups of actual living humans.

These days, many of us are doing our rituals, spells, and meditations solitary. I’m reading an academic study of this particular phenomenon right now. (Yes, there are scholars who actually study us—though not that many.) Solitary ritual was a trend before the pandemic. But afterwards, it’s something of a landslide.

Why?

Sometimes, where we live doesn’t give us easy access to a like-minded community. Sometimes people have had a bad (sometimes very bad) experience with a group and are, as a result, “group-shy.” Sometimes, it’s just a lot of trouble to coordinate a get-together. If it’s formal ritual, then there’s rehearsal, too. But, even if it’s very informal ritual, you still need to have a certain level of comfort with each other—that is, you have to know each other at least a little to do ritual effectively. And that never comes automatically.

When Egypt re-opened the Avenue of the Sphinxes at Luxor, they did group ritual—a boat procession. (Okay, Egyptian media were very careful to say the participants were “actors.”)

These are all reasonable reasons.

And yet.

If you’ve ever been in a group ritual that really worked, you will know that there is nothing like it. When the stars align and the group is focused; when the Ways are open and all hearts are open; when the Goddess ARRIVES and the entire group ignites with Her energy—then, then, then the result is unlike what we can achieve in a solitary rite. There are times, during and after ritual, when I look at everyone in the circle with me and I deeply know how incredibly beautiful each and every one of them is. I see them through Her eyes for we have been together with Her, enfolded in Her wings, nourished by Her magic. Together.

Having been connected and in communication with Isis, we become connected and in communication with each other as well. (And this is one of the keys for when conflicts arise in groups, as they do. We have developed paths of communication and connection with each other, which we can then use to resolve issues. I’m not saying it’s easy; it’s not. But I am saying it’s possible. And I am saying it’s worth it. I’ve been in groups in which members went though a divorce and still managed to have the group remain stable, offering support to both members.)

In solitary ritual, our ritual actions tend to be more informal. Perhaps we light a candle, chant Isis’ name, and meditate or offer a prayer to Her. Often, this works beautifully and profoundly. It is the greater part of my own spiritual work.

When we are doing group ritual, however, we are usually doing a rite with a more formal structure: cast-the-circle, call-the-quarters, invoke-the-Goddess, for instance. And that’s good because group ritual is about communication, human to Divine, Divine to human—and when it is group ritual—human to human and individual to group. By being a form with which everyone is familiar, the understanding and communication between all group members helps us easily build a sacred container for the group experience. In turn, that lets everyone relax into the form, enabling them to become more open, in both body and spirit. And this lets the magic flow, helping us more easily open to our perceptions of Her and connection with Her.

What’s more, the energy in group ritual is often more than the sum of its parts. Each individual brings their own innate magic to the rite. But combined, something happens. There is an alchemical blossoming of power and magic that makes it easier to connect with Deity—and/or accomplish the purpose of the rite. More than once, I’ve entered into a group ritual feeling low energy and maybe even grumpy for having to be there. But never once have I left feeling anything other than spiritually uplifted and grateful for having participated. Group energy can not only help carry a member through the rite, but can also replenish someone—who, like me—may be feeling depleted.

More celebration of the opening of the Avenue of the Sphinxes

Ritual like this helps us gain other benefits, too. Researchers have studied the effects of the basic components of ritual, such as chanting, drumming, and invocation, and found them to be beneficial to us both physically and mentally. I would add spiritually as well. Read more about why I think ritual itself is important here.

I have been fortunate throughout my entire magical life to have been able to find people with whom to work magic, with whom to do group ritual. Some of us have been friends for a very long time and I love them all dearly. But some of us are new friends and I’m just getting to know them. For instance, some of my friends, new and old, are working together on a festival—the Return of the Wandering Goddess (Hathor! Sakhmet!)—for next summer solstice. And I can’t wait to do more group ritual with them all.

Modern Egyptians put wheels on their sacred boats!

Who is the Goddess Neotera?

The Ptolemaic Queen Berenike II as Isis-Aphrodite

Starting in the late-Ptolemaic period, we begin to hear of a Goddess called Neotera or Thea Neotera, the “Younger One” or the “Younger Goddess.” She’s a bit enigmatic because researchers aren’t sure exactly Who (or even who) She (or she) is.

Egyptologists have made a number of suggestions as to Her identity. Some identify Her as a Goddess, while others say she is a deified queen. (Hence my earlier capitalization ambiguity.)

Let’s look at the deified queen part first. Because that deified queen was most likely to have been Kleopatra VII; yes, THAT Kleopatra, the last of the Ptolemies, last ruler of an independent Egypt.

The Ptolemaic queens were into identification with Goddesses, Isis and Aphrodite being their top picks. Kleopatra, as mother of baby pharaoh Ceasarion, claimed for herself the title Nea Isis, “the New Isis.” What’s more, there actually were coins of the time bearing her image and the title of Thea Neotera. These were made by Kleopatra and Marcus Antonius for places outside of Egypt and meant to bolster her image in the greater world.

Isis-Kore-Persephone with Hades and His hound Kerberos/Cerberus

In Egypt, as you know, it was not unusual for there to be funerary cult maintained for rulers after their death and so we learn of a “great Kleopatreion” surviving at Rosetta (40 miles east of Alexandria, where the Rosetta Stone was found) into the 4th or 5th century CE. Alexandria was particularly resistant to Roman rule and it seems likely that, as Egypt’s last ruler, Kleopatra would have become popular with the people and her cult kept for long after her death. So Neotera certainly was Kleopatra VII in some instances.

But that is by no means the end of this quest.

Let’s move over to the Goddess side of the ledger. When Demeter and Persephone (also called Kore, “the Girl”) are named together, Kore is sometimes given the title Thea Neotera. She is the Younger Goddess in comparison with Her mother Demeter. Alexandria had a very famous festival of Kore, duly groused about by the Christian polemicist Ephiphanius. You can read his grouse here; you’ll need to scroll down. At Her temple at Denderah, the Great Goddess Hathor is called Aphrodite Thea Neotera (recall that this is a mostly Ptolemaic temple).

Isis Tyche with Isis knot, rudder, and cornucopia

Yet we also find all these Goddesses as separate Beings. In one of the many papyri found preserved in the trash dump in the Egyptian city of Oxyrhynchus, we have a document that records the return of certain temple properties in which we learn that Oxyrhynchus had separate temples to Kore and to Neotera. Among the Neotera temple goods was a bronze statuette of Neotera as well as a rudder that was one of Her symbols.

So that’s a bit of a clue about Neotera’s nature. The rudder makes Her a guiding Goddess. We also have a small gemstone with an inscription on both sides. On the obverse, the inscription refers to Sarapis. On the reverse, the inscription is “Great Fortune of the Invincible Neotera.” And so Neotera is also associated with good fortune. Since Fate and Fortune were considered to be “invincible” powers, our Goddess Neotera must be even more invincibly powerful as the one Who rules them.

Now, since the gem also has Sarapis on it, Isis would be a good candidate for Neotera; Sarapis is Her consort in this period. And one of Isis’ sacred symbols is indeed the rudder. Plus, as Isis-Tyche and Agathetyche, She is well known as the Lady of Fate and Good Fortune. But, Isis is not usually considered the younger one. In the Egyptian myth, She is, in fact, the older sister.

From Gerasa, modern Jordan, we have an inscription that accompanies an image of Zeus-Helios-Great Sarapis, Isis, and Neotera. The article I’m reading wonders whether Neotera here is Hathor-Aphrodite or Nephthys, but then rejects both options. Yet, it seems to me that Nephthys is a good option here. The combined God Zeus-Helios-Sarapis is common at that time and the God Sarapis is a later development from Osiris. It would be natural to have Isis and Neotera-Nephthys with Him.

A later grousing Christian, Athanasius, complains that Isis, Kore, and Neotera were human women who became deified “among the Egyptians.” So, for Athanasius at least, Neotera is known to be Egyptian, though Her name/epithet is Greek. And She is separate from Isis and Kore. An Italian Egyptologist, L. Moretti, (and some others, but I’m still looking for those) has indeed suggested that Neotera was a Greek interpretation of Nephthys. And while I like the idea that Gerasa’s Neotera might be Nephthys, it would have been quite unusual for Nephthys to be among the exported “Egyptian Gods” at that time. When people outside of Egypt referred to the Egyptian Gods then, they meant specifically Isis, Sarapis, Anubis, and Harpokrates.

Isis, Nephthys, and the Osiris (the dead person)

A scholar of Hebrew texts notes that a cult of Neotera-Isis was practiced in Roman Palestine—and the people there would also have been exposed to the prior Kleopatra Thea Neotera coins. He further notes that the worship of Isis was to be found in Israel at Raphia, Gaza, and Ashkelon. According to a rabbinical text, however, if you should happen to find evidence of that worship—such as an image of a breastfeeding woman, a ring with a moon or Sarapis on it—you were supposed to take it and toss it into the Dead Sea. (Let’s excavate!)

So, now I must come to the disappointing conclusion that, except where we see the epithet Neotera with another name—Kore Neotera or Kleopatra Thea Neotera, for example—we have no definitive answer as to Who the Goddess Neotera is. I thought I was going to be able to identify Her with Isis’ Younger Goddess sister. But so far, there’s just not enough evidence. Some scholars have suggested that, over time, the epithet Neotera got separated from (perhaps) Kleopatra’s Thea Neotera epithet and eventually became a separate Goddess; an egregore Goddess, we might say?

Yet our best clue as to Her nature still comes from the rudder symbol and the gemstone naming Her as Fortune. Thus, we can invoke Neotera for Good Fortune and for steering our lives in the right direction with Her wise rudder.

But, of course, we already have a Goddess Who just happens to also cover those areas: Isis, She of the Rudder, Giver of Good Fortune, Ruler of Fate.

She Who Rises at the Opening of the Year

Look down from Orion’s belt; the bright star near the horizon is Sopdet.

I’ve written a lot on this blog about the heliacal (“before the sun”) rising of the Star of Isis—Sirius in Latin, Sothis in Greek, Sopdet in ancient Egyptian—which marked the beginning of the Egyptian New Year and the return of the life-giving Inundation flood. (You’ll find the basic information on Isis and Her holy star here. For more, just search “Sirius” on this blog.)

When Sirius rises in your area depends on your latitude. For me, in 2024, Her rising is August 22, in the hour before dawn. Thanks to the wonders of modern online astronomical calculators, we can know pretty precisely when the Fair Star of the Waters will rise before the sun. (To use the linked calculator and find out when Sirius rises in your area, just enter your email and the password: softtests. You will need to know the latitude and altitude of wherever you are observing Her rise. This info is easily google-able.)

But for the ancient Egyptians, and for those of us who honor the Ancient Egyptian Deities today, something else happens prior to the rising of Our Lady’s star: the “Five Days Upon the Year” or the epagomenal days. These were five days outside of time that marked the transition from the Old Year to the New Year. These five days, added to the Egyptian 360-day year, brought them up to the requisite 365 (or almost; they were short a quarter-day).

Sakhemet shooting Her arrows, by Wolchenka. See more art here.

On these five days, the birthdays of Osiris, Horus (or Horus the Elder), Set, Isis, and Nephthys were celebrated. But this time wasn’t just a happy birthday party for the Deities. This time-outside-of-time, this liminal period, was also a period of great danger. This was the period before the coming of the yearly flood that fertilized Egypt’s fields along the Nile. It was the time of the lowest water; in some places, boats could no longer navigate. All along the Nile banks, everything was drying out. The food stores from last year’s harvests were running low. People were beginning to anticipate—and be anxious about—how high the waters would rise this year. Would there be famine or feast?

To those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, this may feel quite familiar in August. The foliage that used to be lush green has started to look dried out and dusty. Heat sits heavy upon the land. In some places, people are bracing for the possibility of their own high waters from hurricanes. And though my local farmers’ markets are brimming with harvest produce, my social feeds are filling up with people canning and preserving—for we still feel the need to conserve today’s harvest against the coming darker months.

Our epagomenal Deities, plus (I presume) young Anubis with Nephthys

For the ancient Egyptians, the epagomenal days were also the time that Sakhmet sent out Her plague demons to infect the people. Known as the Messengers, Slaughterers, or Arrows of Sakhmet, these frightful Beings struck people down, sickening or evening killing them. There is new research showing that the infamous bubonic plague or Black Death may have originated in Egypt—and indeed that it, or something like it, had been plaguing Egypt for centuries. The Ebers medical papyrus, dated to about 1500 BCE, lists a disease that includes the description of a bubo, an infected lymph node that was characteristic of the bubonic plague.

An example of the protective amulet with 12 destructive Arrows of Sakhmet shown.

All this is to say that Sakhmet’s Arrows were not to be taken lightly. And people did not. The king and the temples worked to protect Egypt during this time with the rituals of Sehotep Sakhmet, “pacifying” or “satisfying” Sakhmet, for She Who could bring plague could also protect against it. The people themselves wore special amulets and used particular spells to avert the plague, or other calamity, at this time of year.

One amulet listed 12 of Sakhmet’s Messengers “who bring slaughtering about, who create uproar, who hurry though the land.” To make the amulet, you draw Them on a piece of linen, knot it 12 times, and wear it around your neck (one of our most vulnerable spots). Then you repeat a particular prayer regularly from the time you put it on until the New Year. You were also to make offerings of bread, beer, and incense as part of activating the amulet. Archeologists have even found some examples of these linen amulets.

As a great Magician Goddess, Isis is particularly associated with magical knots, especially in relation to protective magic. When an ancient Egyptian referred to a “knot amulet,” what they usually meant was the famous Knot of Isis, one of the amulets that protected the dead. Isis and Nephthys are said to work protective magic for Osiris with knotted cords. Knot magic continues to be a popular form of spellwork today.

A linen strip with the image of Isis drawn on it. It’s pretty faded, so a sketch of the image is included in the lower left corner.

In addition to this overall protection, there were particular spells and amulets associated with each of the five epagomenal days. Linen amulets, similar to the one already mentioned, featured the image of the Deity Whose birthday was celebrated that particular day. We also have a few examples of these, but not a complete set. On the right is a picture of the one we have for Isis’ birthday; the other two existing ones are for Nephthys and Osiris.

Another reason that the epagomenals were an apprehensive time of year was that normal cyclical time, neheh-time—the yearly changes and renewals, came to a stop. The old year had ended and the new one had not yet begun. Djet-time, perfected unchanging time, took over. Now, you might think perfected time would be good. And it is. Eventually. But not for life on earth. Life here needs the changes of the seasons and the development of the years to survive. For more about neheh and djet time, go here and here.

For me, with the rising of the Star of Isis on the 22nd, the epagomenal days begin on the 17th of August. I plan to honor each of these Great Deities on Their birthdays, perhaps with similar amulets and prayers, and certainly with bread, beer, and incense.

This year, I am definitely feeling the unsettled liminality of the approaching epagomenal days. It has much to do with the political situation here. I have renewed hope that with the rising of the Star of Isis later this month—and with Her even more brilliant position in the night sky in…oh, let’s say, November…that Ma’et will prevail. But we don’t yet know how high the river will rise. And so we work toward Ma’et, we do our civic duty—perhaps do some protective magic with Isis as well—and we wait.

The Night Isis Accepted Me

This week got away from me.

I’ve been working on some new material for the new edition of Isis Magic (yay!). But that means I didn’t get to the post I was planning for today—some juicy tidbits about Isis in Rome (She’s still there, of course).

Instead I’m reposting the story of when I knew Isis had accepted me. I’d love to hear you story, too. Please do share in the comments, if you’d like.

I am terrible with memories. I don’t mean my memory is bad. I mean I don’t honor ‘things past’ enough. I don’t take many pictures (and certainly not of myself). I tend not to care for traditional souvenirs. And I definitely have the “get rid of it” gene (which my beloved does not). In my defense, I don’t generally dwell on past wrongs either.

Earlier this week, this post was going to be on an entirely different topic. But then I came across an old magical journal. And there were memories in it.

I do keep magical journals. I don’t record everything all the time (good Goddess, the paper trail would never end!). Usually, I keep them during periods when I’m doing a lot of magical work. This particular journal, as I have said, is old. I mean really old. Like “before the fire” old. Yes, of course, you don’t know what I mean.

Before we moved to the Pacific Northwest, we lived in an apartment in Tennessee. One night the complex caught on fire. Neighbors knocked on neighbors’ doors, telling them to get up and get out. We grabbed the cat and the insurance papers and got out. The next day, with the fire quenched, we were able to go back to survey the damage. It had been a weird fire. Things like our stereo system were completely and utterly incinerated. Things like our irreplaceable magical papers (papers!) were saved. This journal was among them. I can tell from the singed edges.

So I thought I’d sit down and read it. There was lots of visionary work pertaining to a magical system I was training in. But every now and then, there were entries about Isis. This was before I knew very much about Her, before I became Her priestess, and way before Isis Magic. Yet I clearly had been working with Her (or She was working with me).

One entry reads, “I have had a very strong Isis connection since my dream the other night.” That dream was not recorded, but a vision was. I was working on love and acceptance. For the vision, I called on Isis to touch me and help me let Her love of humanity come through me. I sensed Her great, but gentle hand descend from above. She placed it on top of my head. Waves of Her not-quite-orgasmic love passed though me and out into the world. I describe that flow of energy, then write, “I again saw the bright, bright, blue glowing lotus.” It had been so bright that I couldn’t tell one petal from another; eventually, the lotus-light enveloped me. I conclude, “I am feeling very worshipful of Great Isis.”

I see myself falling in love with Her through this journal.

Another entry says, “A most wondrous dream! A prayer answered!” Apparently, my beloved was snoring, so I took my bedding and went into our temple room to sleep. I was overcome with a desire to know, truly know, that Isis was with me. I write that it was “a demanding, revealing need” for Her presence. I prayed to Her “more emotionally than ever before” to send a dream to let me know She was with me. I chanted Her name for a while, then slept.

This art was inspired by a dream the artist had of the Temple of Isis in Pompeii. See what her dream was and more of her work here.

“A few hours later,” I write, “I came from a full, deep sleep to awake with loud sobbing from happiness and amazement.” (My sobbing.) Due to the abrupt awakening, I lost part of the dream. But the actual content of the dream wasn’t the point. The point was that, in the dream, the resolution to a dream-problem happened by a miracle. By Her miracle. And it made me so happy that I woke up crying with joy. And I again saw the blue lotus flower.

I remember this event. The details are a bit fuzzy now, but I vividly remember the visionary blue lotus. I could see it anytime I closed my eyes with crystal clarity instead of the vague dreaminess that vision often has. “I must look up lotus symbolism and I must make a blue lotus talisman,” I wrote. See how much I didn’t know then? Another entry says simply, “I love Her.” And now you know why the Isis temple in my backyard is called the Lotus Temple.

Next, I found an entry that I had marked IMPORTANT with a drawing of a star, a lotus, and a sickle on top. I wrote, “In the dark month of February, on the 15th of the month, with the moon waning in Capricorn, I have taken and been taken by Isis in Her Black Aspect as my Lady, my personal Goddess.” But this wasn’t when I became Her priestess; that was long in the future then. This was my forming a true bond with Her, a bond that will last my entire life. She became “my” Goddess, I became Her devotee. This is when I really began learning about Her.

A priestess by Winged Isis; see more work here.

There is, of course, more in this journal. I see my own inner struggles, doubts, fears, angers, and depression. But this particular record is incomplete. These are loose-leaf pages without a binder…and it seems that some are missing. After we moved to Portland, I began buying blank-but-bound books for my journals. The next one—which I am still writing in—starts with the time when I actually did become Isis’ priestess. In this journal, I can see that I am working out the magic part for what will eventually become Isis Magic.

But I think I have regaled you with quite enough of my journal entries for now. And I have learned my lesson that I should better value memories and keepsakes. Perhaps you will do some magical work with Isis yourself today? After all, your story will be a much better tale—because it will be yours. Just don’t forget to write in your journal.

Nuet, Mother of Isis, Mother of Stars

Right now, I am in a state of anticipation.

As I look to the night sky, I cannot see the star of Isis, Sirius, for She remains hidden now. Yet I anticipate Her rising late next month. But in the meantime, I contemplate the vastnesses of Her mother, Nuet, the Sky Goddess, Who is filled with the Indestructible Stars that Are in Her, and within Whom Her daughter now rests.

Nut, Nuet, Nuit, Sky Goddess — A most beautiful Nuet

I am not Nuet’s priestess, but O, the Secret One draws me. I am awed by Her Eternity, Her Depth, Her Beauty, and I want to lose myself in Her. And right now, in the northern hemisphere at least, Our Lady Isis is Herself lost within the beautiful body of Her mother Nuet.

Right now, the star of Isis, Sirius, is hidden. Here in Portland, Oregon, She will not be seen again until pre-dawn in late August. Astronomically, that’s because the star is in conjunction with the sun. As the sun rises, its greater light makes the light of Sirius invisible to us. By late August, Sirius and the sun will move further away from each other so that, just before dawn, we can once more see the brilliance of the star in the twilight sky.

But that’s just astronomically. Mythically, Isis sojourns within the body of Her powerful mother Nuet. She Who is called the Mistress of All and the One Who bears the Gods and Goddesses. She is the Splendid and Mighty One in the House of Her Creation. She is the Great One in Heaven and the Indestructible Stars, that is, the circumpolar stars that are always visible, are within Her, just as Her mighty daughter Isis is within Her.

Nuet embraces the deceased king and each of us “in Her name of Sarcophagus” and “in Her name of Tomb.” She is the Mistress of the Secret Duat (the Otherworld). She is the Glowing One (perhaps as the Milky Way) and in Her we are joined to our stars, Becoming Divine. She is the one Who gives birth to us and Who welcomes us back into Her starry body at our deaths. She is Heaven and She is the Otherworld. She gives birth to the Sun God Re each day and receives him back into Her body, by swallowing, each night. She is the one Who is “Amid the Iset Temple in Dendera” for She is over Her daughter and Her daughter is in Her.

But now, while Isis is in Her mother’s body, She is also in the Underworld—for Nuet is the Lady of the Duat and Her body is both the Heavens and the Underworld. So now in the heat of the year, our Goddess is in the cool depths of Eternity. Perhaps this is the time for us, as Her devotees, to enter the Otherworld as well.

Goddess Nuet overarches all things — Nuet, the Circle of Eternity, encompassing All

The Star of Isis — Sopdet (Sirius), the Star of Isis

We usually think of symbolically going into the Underworld during the dark part of the year rather than the light part. Yet now, in the light of summer, it may be a particularly safe time to take that Underworld journey, for now we have the support of Isis Who awaits us there.

If we have scary things to face in our own personal Underworlds, now is a more supportive time to do so. The light of dawn comes more quickly now and the sunlight of Isis the Radiant One is more readily available to us after we have faced those inner darknesses that we must face in order to grow.

This may also be a good time to explore our relationships with our mothers. A strong priestess of my acquaintance, who was serving as a Priestess of Nuet at a festival a while ago, told me an interesting thing about how she perceived the relationship between Nuet and Isis. It was her distinct impression that Nuet did not get along with Her daughter. Of course, in the human realm, this is far from an uncommon thing. Mothers and daughters (and mothers and all their children, for that matter) can have issues. Now—in the light of summer and with the help of the Goddesses available to us—now might be a time to shed some light on those issues.

Sarcophagus lid with Nuet opening Her protective wings over the deceased

But even if we don’t have mom stresses, this can be a time to honor and remember our mothers, both human and Divine—perhaps under a star-filled sky. Since my own mother has already been enfolded in the wings of Isis, I shall plan to honor my Divine Mother Nuet and Her Starry Daughter Isis as I look up into the next clear and star-filled night.

The Great Mother & Her Mother & Her Mother’s Mother

Lately, I am thinking about the stars.

With our hot weather, the night skies are clear now, so when I look up, I can see the body of beautiful, star-filled Nuet, the mother of Isis. A little while ago, a friend of this blog asked a very interesting question about Her…and Her. “How we can reconcile the idea that Isis is both Mother of All with the idea that Isis has a mother Herself,” they asked.

Isis the Mother and Her Holy Child Horus — Isis the Mother

It’s a very interesting question because it has to do with our conception of the nature of the Divine and Divine Beings in general.

So how do we start to look at this?

For me, history is always a good place to begin. It gives us a useful foothold to know what our ancestors thought about these things; after all, when it comes to Divinity and Divine Beings, we human beings have been thinking about this for a very long time indeed.

Erik Hornung’s Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt, the One and the Many is one key text for understanding the nature of the Divine in terms of ancient Egypt. Hornung writes that the Egyptians had a multiplicity of approaches to the Divine and only when taken together can we see the whole picture. For them, he says, everything came from One because the non-existent is One, Undifferentiated Thing. Once something becomes existent, it also becomes multiple.

Atum arises from the Nun, the primordial waters of No-Thing-Ness

We see this in the Heliopolitan myth in which Atum comes forth from the Nun, the non-existent, the inert, and immediately begins generating other Deities through an act of masturbation: first Shu and Tefnut, Who beget Nuet and Geb, Who beget Isis, Osiris, Set, and Nephthys.

And so we meet Isis, Her mother Nuet, and Her mother’s mother Tefnut. And there may even be a great grandmother present, for when Atum came into existence, He was both masculine and feminine; His “shadow” or “hand” (the one He used to masturbate) is the Goddess Iusaaset or Iusâas. She is usually represented anthropomorphically, through, and not as a disembodied hand, and She is said to be the Grandmother of All the Gods.

Another important characteristic of the Divine in ancient Egypt is Its fluidity. Hornung says of the Egyptian Deities, “They are formulas rather than forms, and in their world, one is sometimes as if displaced into the world of elementary particles.” Deities may be combined with one another or split off from one another; one Deity can be the ba—soul or manifestation—of another; They can even be assimilated with foreign Deities without losing Their essence. “But wherever one turns to the divine in worship, addresses it and tends to it in cult” Hornung writes, “it appears as a single, well-defined figure that can for a moment unite all divinity within itself and does not share it with any other god.”

The primordiality and uniqueness of Isis is attested on the Great Pylon of Her graceful temple at Philæ. The Ptolemaic passage states that Isis “is the one who was in the beginning; the one who first came into existence on earth.” In the Coffin Texts, Isis is invoked with a group of Deities considered to be the most ancient: “O Re, Atum, Nu, Old One, Isis the Divine…” (Formula 1140). She is called Great Goddess Existing from the Beginning, Great One Who Initiated Existence, and Great One Who Is From the Beginning. Her very name, Iset or Throne , speaks to Her ancient nature.

By the time of the New Kingdom, Isis is routinely called Mother of All the Gods. Then, with Her worship spreading throughout the Mediterranean and beyond, Apuleius can write that Isis “brings the sweet love of a mother to the trials of the unfortunate,” while a Latin dedicatory inscription sums up Her all-encompassing nature: Tibi, Una Quae es Omnia, Dea Isis, “Thou, Being One, Art All, Goddess Isis.”

So now we have ancient attestations both of Isis’ ancient and original one-ness and of Her generation from Her parents, grandparents, and great grandparents. How do we resolve it?

If we are among those who are uncomfortable with paradox, I’m afraid there may be no satisfying reconciliation between these two ideas. If it has been deeply ingrained that there can only be one right answer—especially when it comes to spiritual questions—then it may seem impossible for both these things to be true. After all, they contradict each other. At the very least, we should be able to pick one as the “right” answer. At the very most, we may decide the contradiction means both things must be false.

And yet we have already seen that, at least to the ancient worshipers of Isis, both things were indeed true.

This is what paradox is; and religion is absolutely rife with it. Why? Because most religions, or spiritualities, involve Mystery. Mystery is at the very core of the Divine and paradox is one of Its favorite languages. Yet this is not to say we should simply throw up our hands up and say, “Goddess works in mysterious ways” and quit thinking about it.

Quite the opposite in fact. Paradox invites thought. It is intended to teach. So what can we learn from our paradox: Isis is Mother of All, yet She Herself has a mother…and a mother’s mother…and?

Originally an illustration for a book of pseudo-Indian love poetry called *The Garden of Kama*, this lovely illustration by Byam Shaw, 1914, captures something of Nuet caring for one of Her Holy Children

Let’s look at it through that ancient Egyptian lens that shows us a multiplicity of approaches to the Divine.

One way we can approach is through the Heliopolitan myth does: Isis is part of a Divine family. By being so, perhaps She is better able to understand human beings when we come to Her with our own familial problems. Her family relations make Her more suited to be a Soteira, a Savior Goddess, as She was known throughout the Mediterranean world.

We can also learn some important things about Isis through Her family relations. Isis is the daughter of Heaven (Nuet) and Earth (Geb). She is married to the Underworld God, Osiris, and is Herself a Goddess of the Underworld. Thus Isis is intimately connected to All That Is; She walks in all the Worlds.

Another approach to our paradox is through the fluidity of the Egyptian Deities that we talked about. If They can combine or split at will, or if one can become the ba of another, why can’t Isis be at once a Great Mother Herself and the daughter of a Great Mother?

Yet another approach is to open our hearts toward Isis in worship and experience Her for ourselves. Then, as Erik Hornung explained, Isis “appears as a single, well-defined figure that can for a moment unite all divinity” within Herself; She is the One Who is All, and She is the Mother of All.

By combining these approaches, and tolerating a little paradox, we learn more about Isis than we ever would have by restricting ourselves to a single position alone and Isis reveals Herself ever more as the Great Goddess She is.

Isis is all things and all things are Isis

Touching Your Isis Star

It’s hot here, as it is in so much of the US and across the middle latitudes. But in the often-cloudy pacific northwest, there is a benefit. It’s the night. O, in the night, the sky is clear and we can finally see the brightly shining stars. And so today, whether you can see the stars at night or not, I offer you this meditation on your own unique star, the Star of Your Soul, the Star of Your Self. If you want to know more about the background of this star, have a look at this post.

The Rite of Touching Your Star

Contemplate the image of the stars above or remember how the night sky looked the last time you stargazed. Purify and consecrate yourself using the formulae of the House of Isis, or use any method that you usually use to prepare yourself for ritual.

Facing east, raise your arms in the Sign of the Wings of Isis and say:

Ritualist: Iset Sopdet, Daughter of the Stars, Queen of Souls, I have come to You that You may help me to find and to touch the light of my own Beautiful Star, my own Divine Light. Amma, Iset, let it be so.

Continuing to face east, be seated comfortably, close your eyes, and breathe deeply and slowly for several minutes. When you are ready, visualize the following:

Imagine that you stand before the great pylon gates of an ancient Egyptian temple of Isis. It is late evening. The sky is a luminous indigo color and the stars are beginning to show themselves. As you stand there, the doors of the temple swing open and you enter. It is quiet and no one else seems to be here, though someone has clearly lit the torches that illuminate the interior of the temple.

If you look to your right, you see that stone stairs have been carved into the wall of the temple and a torch burns near the first step. You approach the steps and begin to climb. If you look at the walls beside you, you will see many Egyptian five-pointed stars carved into the walls, with hieroglyphs in neat columns beside them.

Continue climbing and you will soon emerge on the roof of the temple. Here, it is completely dark. No torches illuminate this place—only the light of the millions and millions of stars that fill the night sky above you. Walk to the very center of the roof and you will find that someone has made a place for you. Soft rugs and cushions have been placed there for you. Take your seat there and make yourself comfortable.

The voice of the Goddess speaks in your mind and says, “Gaze at the beautiful belly of My Mother, Nuet. Narrow your eyes slightly and scan the sky, to the right, to the left, above, below, and behind you. Continue to scan the sky until one star catches your attention.”

Let this take as long as it takes. Continue to look at the sky until one star seems to jump out at you. When you have found this star, kiss your hand and extend it toward the star and say:

Ritualist: I greet You, O Star of my Soul. I welcome You. Come to me, come to me, O Star of my Self. Come to me that I may be joined to your light.

And indeed, the Beautiful Star does come. It moves gently through the sky until it is just before and above you in the night.

As you watch, the star flashes and a beam of starlight extends from the star to touch the top of your head. You feel a tingling and a warmth there. You will now draw the light of your star into the shenu, or energy centers, of your body.

Breathe in and the starlight fills your mind. Take note of any image that arises as the starlight is in your head.

Breathe in and draw the starlight into the shen at your throat. Once more take note of any image or thought that comes to you.

Breathe in and bring the starlight into your heart. Knowing the importance the Egyptians placed on the heart as a center of the self, let the light linger there a bit longer.

Breathe in and bring the starlight into the shen at your genitals and note your feelings, thoughts, and any images.

Breathe in and let the starlight fill the area between your knees. Once more, make mental note of your experience.

Breathe in and bring the starlight all the way through your body, into the area just beneath your body.

Become aware of the channel of starlight that flows from the star above you and all the way through your body. Then open yourself even more. Breathe deeply once more and open yourself yet more. Breathe and feel the light of the star breathing with you, moving through and within your body.

Do this until you feel complete, at least for the time being. When you are ready, stand, and thank your star by making the Sign of the Wings of Isis.

Ritualist: I thank You, O Star of my Soul. I thank you. May your light continue to guide me until I come to you again. In the name of my mother Isis, may it be so. Amma, Iset.

Watch as your star withdraws and returns to its normal place in the beautiful night belly of Nuet. Kiss your hand and extend it toward the star in thanks. When you are ready, walk back down the steps and out the temple doors.

Let your consciousness return to the here and now. Thank Isis in your own words. The rite is ended.

This meditative rite should be done many, many times over the course of your lifetime. Different things will happen at different points in your life and you will discover new things each time. The more you do it, the more you will weave the connection between yourself and your star, a connection that can serve as a guide in this world…and the next.

NASA says this is a nebula. It looks to me like the astral hand of the soul reaching for its star.

Standing at the Feet of Isis

Several posts ago, I mentioned a particular type of graffiti found at Isis temples in Egypt and in other locations throughout the Mediterranean. These are the images of a foot or feet or footprints that were sometimes scratched on or near Her temple or shrine. Similar feet have also been found carved on separate stone slabs and placed within temples. In Egypt, we find these feet images associated with Isis in Abydos and Philae. Outside of Egypt, we find them in Delos, Chaeronea, Thessaloniki, Maroneia, Rome, and more.

A knot of Isis like the one She took as offering

If you’ve ever traveled to a sacred place, you may have been tempted to leave behind an offering or token of some kind to mark your journey. On my own recent pilgrimage to Isis’ temple at Philae in Egypt, it seems I left such a token—if inadvertently. On the boat ride to Her temple island, I was wearing two pieces of jewelry: a knot of Isis and a tiny sistrum. I paid no attention to them at all while we explored Her sacred temple. But on the boat ride back, I had only the tiny sistrum. The knot of Isis must have fallen off sometime during our visit.

Yet the loss made me happy. Why? Because I had had a premonition that something would happen while I was there. I believe that what happened was that Isis accepted the offering that I had unconsciously brought Her. I have since wondered if the Goddess re-gifted it to some other visiting priestess and absolutely made her day, week, and month. I hope so; that’s my fantasy, anyway.

A votive footprint from a temple in the Egyptian Faiyum

Of course, I would never have etched my footprints or left graffiti on Her temple as some ancient visitors before me had done. I mean, what were they thinking!?! And, in fact, that’s exactly what I’d like to explore today: what were they thinking, and what are those footprints about anyway?

In a general sense, footprints are tangible proof that someone was here; right here—and substantial enough to leave a print. Remember the Ice Age footprints discovered in New Mexico several years ago? They are of a woman and child and they’re the longest continual track of fossilized footprints found to date; they continue for almost a mile. Because of the pace of the footprints and the changing depth of the imprints, researchers can tell something about what may have been happening to those people at that time. Or remember how affecting seeing Buzz Aldrin’s human footprint in the dust of the moon was? Or perhaps you’ve been intrigued by the celebrity footprints (and handprints) outside Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood? Like a fingerprint, a footprint uniquely represents the one who made it.

Etched footprints of (probably) priests of Khonsu on the roof of His temple at Karnak

Footprints can often have a spiritual significance, too. Across the world, people have always pointed out what they say are footprints of Deities, heroes, and supernatural beings. Some are natural footprint-shaped indentations in rock, while others are human-created, like the giant God-footprints in Syria’s ‘Ain Dara temple. Such physical evidence is meant to clearly demonstrate the Deity’s Presence. These God-sized footprints may be meant to commemorate a human being’s experience of Divine epiphany. Or their permanence, especially in a temple, may be meant to say, “the Deity is always here.” However we interpret them, there is magic in them.

The “walking” footprints from Isis’ Baelo Claudia temple; you can see Her name in Latin in the upper left of the photo

Isis is, of course, one of the Deities Who left such evidence of Her Divine Presence in Her temples. We have a limestone slab from Alexandria, Egypt that shows a single, large footprint that has been conveniently labeled for us in Greek: Isidos Podas, “Foot of Isis.” Separate stone slabs like this, incised with a Divine foot or feet, seem to have been an Egyptian thing and is attested for Egypt from at least the 5th century BCE. Similar carved slabs are also found throughout the Mediterranean, and often in temples of “The Egyptian Deities.” During the Hellenistic and Roman periods, “the Egyptian Deities” meant specifically Isis, Serapis, Harpokrates, and Anubis. Sometimes, other symbols related to the Deity are carved along with the foot or feet, or the dedication informs us that it was given to fulfill a vow or “by order of” the Deity.

We sometimes also find votive footprints carved in stone that would then be set into the floor of the temple. In the Isis temple in Baelo Claudia, Spain, the footprints are offset, as if in movement, and seem to lead toward the altar. (I love this.) In this case, the footprints have been interpreted as the path walked by Isis’ priests as they served Her or as the steps of the Goddess Herself as She attends the ceremonies at Her temple. Another small Isis sanctuary near Seville shows similar treatment with the footprints approaching the sanctuary entrance.

Votive “footsteps” dedicated to Isis Dykaiosyne from the sacred island of Delos

From the sacred island of Delos in Greece, we have a pair of footprints, labeled as “footsteps” and dedicated to Isis Dikaiosyne, “Isis of Justice,” by “order of the Goddess.” Another set of Goddess-sized footprints from Delos were dedicated to Isis and Anubis by at least three women. From Chaeronea, we have sandalled feet dedicated “following the command of Isis.” We have similar dedicated footprints from the acropolis in Athens and from Thessalonike.

While oversized footprints usually represent Deities, smaller, human-sized ones represent Their human worshipers. The footprint demonstrates the worshiper’s presence before the Deity at Their temple. Some of the earliest examples come from Egypt. We find them not only in temple complexes, but also in hilltop locations, perhaps putting the human closer to the Divine in this elevated position. In Egypt, there are hundreds of examples and they date from as far back as the Old Kingdom. Some were made by visitors to the temples, but many were made in areas—such as the roof—that were inaccessible to anyone but the clergy. Thus it seems to have been a privilege of the priests to be able to put themselves in continual proximity to the Deity of the temple. In fact, the four instances of footprint graffiti found at Isis’ Philae temple come from a single family that served there as priests of Isis. (Researchers also note that some of the footprints from Egypt are found in secular contexts, often made by soldiers, and simply say, “I was here.” Because. Humans.)

Footprints of the Goddess and Her devotee from the Temple of Isis Locheia in Dion, Greece

Sometimes we find a larger footprint beside a smaller one, perhaps to represent the Deity and Their worshiper. An example of a set of footprints like these comes from the Temple of Isis Locheia in Dion, Greece. They may be meant to show that the devotee is walking beside her Goddess. Since Isis Locheia is a protector of women in childbirth and of children, we can surmise that the footprints represent a pregnant woman asking protection from her Goddess.

We also find a number of these footprint dedications given by now-free, formerly enslaved people. Both Isis and Serapis were known to help manumit slaves through a fictitious “sale” to the Goddess and God.

Later, during the Roman Imperial period, a new kind of “foot” comes into vogue. It is a gigantic 3D sculpture of a Divine foot. A famous example is the Piè di Marmo (“Marble Foot”) that now resides on Via del Piè di Marmo in Rome and which is believed to be a large foot of Isis (or possibly Serapis) from the temple of Isis Campense or the Serapium. These feet are free-standing and not part of a large, lost statue. In other words, the whole Deity is represented by the foot. Scholars believe that this trend, too, first developed in Egypt and was exported to other sanctuaries in the Mediterranean.

The concept of representing ourselves or our Deities by footprints—by the traces left behind by our presence or Their Presence—is found worldwide. People everywhere do it and have done so for thousands of years. The many “footprints of Buddha” are just one example from outside the Mediterranean region. They are, I believe, similar in meaning to the prehistoric handprints found in caves from Indonesia to France.

In Egypt, we have Old Kingdom evidence of the idea that “my footprint means I was here” in both secular and sacred contexts. By the New Kingdom, oversized Divine footprints begin to appear. But instead of being etched into temple walls or roofs, they are often carved on separate slabs of stone and dedicated in temples. We begin to see this trend outside of Egypt, too, especially in temples of Isis and Serapis, but also in temples of other Deities in sanctuaries throughout the Mediterranean. Remember the ones at Hekate’s temple in Karia?

For the Isis shrine in my backyard, we purchased two slabs of rock that we intend to have sandblasted with a pair of votive feet, right foot on one, left on the other. This is a project yet to be done, but after looking into this interesting little chapter in the worship of Isis, I’m gonna have to get on that. She needs some footsteps of Her votary—me—leading into Her temple.

Isis Magic & Offering to Isis (will be) Back!

Hello, Isiacs!

I am thrilled to let you know that both Isis Magic and Offering to Isis WILL be back.

Offering to Isis: Knowing the Goddess Through Her Sacred Symbols is being published with updated text and new illustrations of the offerings later this year (2024). It is from Azoth Press and will be available from Miskatonic Books. I’ll share more information as soon as I have it.

Isis Magic: Cultivating a Relationship with the Goddess of 10,000 Names, 25th Anniversary Edition will be available in spring of 2026. It will be published by REDFeather, Mind, Body, Spirit, which is known for its beautiful oracle decks and other topics in personal transformation and empowerment.

Oh, you saw that “25th Anniversary Edition” thing, too? Woof. I can’t believe it’s been that long. On the other hand, when I think of the tiny Mac computer with the floppy disks that I first started writing Isis Magic on while seated at our kitchen table, I actually can believe it.

As those of you who have been following along with this blog know, I don’t talk much about myself here. I prefer to keep the focus on Her. She’s the reason you’re here. She’s the reason I’m here. And She’s the reason both of these books are here. But I thought I’d break my rule just a little bit to share with you something about me and how these books came to be…

The earliest I can remember writing stories was in the sixth grade. Influenced by the spy TV shows that were popular at the time, I wrote about secret agent cats and their clandestine organization, P.U.R.R. Yeah, you don’t want to know what that stood for.

Next, I graduated to monster and horror stories inspired by the Creepy and Eerie graphic novels (we called them comic books then, but they were graphic novels).

I never really thought of myself as a capital-w Writer, though I made my living from marketing writing. During this time, I learned how to research. I found The Goddess and connected with my local Pagan communities. I studied magic and psychism, both on my own and through training in a Hermetic magical tradition. And of course—I’m sure I share this with many of you—I never lost my deep interest in ancient Egypt.

With all that in the background, it isn’t really surprising that, when I did find Isis—or She found me—that the task She wanted me to do was to write books for Her.

As I worked on that little Mac on the kitchen table, I researched to discover everything about Isis that I could find in order to bring it all together in one book. (There was no Google when I began. I know; shocking.) The devotions, meditations, and rituals in both books were inspired by what I learned about ancient Egypt and by Her. In fact, She used many of them to train me as Her priestess. One piece of UPG (unverified personal gnosis) that She gave me during the writing of these books, is that these books would bring seven important devotees to Her service. They would be leaders and would help more people come to know Her.

I hope this has already happened. I hope you’re one of them.

So. Those are the bare bones of the story of Isis Magic and Offering to Isis. I’ll keep you up to date on when the new editions will be available and share with you any new information as it comes along. Thank you all for your devotion to—and if you’re new here, interest in—Isis. She is the most wonderful and magical of Goddesses. She is Divine Magic, Divine Wisdom, Divine Power, and Divine Love. And She IS.

The House of Isis is open unto you. It always has been. Come.

Isis & Hekate Part 2

Last time, we wondered how it was that the ancient Egyptians and Greeks could see a harmony, or even an equivalence, between Isis and Hekate. So, as promised, let’s look at some of the correspondences between these two Goddesses so we can understand a bit better what they were thinking.

A Roman image of Isis from Hadrian’s villa

Goddesses of Magic

Let’s start with the most obvious one: magic. Isis is arguably the most powerful Egyptian Goddess of Magic, or heka in Egyptian (later, hik in Coptic). In Egypt, heka is the power that underlies and empowers all of Creation. So naturally, all the Egyptian Deities have the power of heka. Yet, as time went on, it was Isis and Thoth Who stood out as Goddess and God of Magic, both for the strength of Their magical powers and the depth of Their magical knowledge.

Hekate is the Hellenic Goddess of magic and witchcraft. Sometimes, Hekate’s magic has a bit of a darker flavor than that of Isis for She is often associated with pharmaka, magical arts and spells, but which can also be drugs, both beneficial and poisonous.

Both Goddesses are also known to teach the magical arts to Their devotees.

While traveling the wilds of the internet, you may have seen some people saying that Hekate’s name may be derived from a.) the Egyptian Frog Goddess of Fertility Heqet or Heket, or b.) from the Egyptian word for magic, heka. For the connection with Heqet, we have this speculation from Martin Bernal (author of the Black Athena series):

“The crone goddess Hekate [note: Hekate was never a crone] was central to the Eleusinian Mysteries, whose name, like that of nearly all Greek divinities, has no Indo-European etymology. Her name almost certainly derives from the Egyptian frog goddess Hkt or Hqt. Both were versed in magic—ḥk3 in Egyptian—and fertility. There is, to my knowledge, only one connection drawn between Hekate and frogs. This comes in Aristophanes’ parody of the Eleusinian initiation, “The Frogs,” where the chorus condemns those who defile Hekate’s shrine. The chorus of frogs appears while the travellers are crossing to Hades on Kharon’s ferry. In the Egyptian Coffin Texts of the Middle Kingdom, Sokar’s ferry to the Underworld is reported to have “her bailers . . . [as] the frog goddess Hqt at the mouth of her lake.” (Martin Bernal, “Egyptians in the Hellenistic Woodpile” in Ptolemy Philadelphus II and His World)

While Bernal has been heavily criticized for making these kinds of leaps (e.g. “almost certainly”), I do find his work very valuable in helping trace connections between the you-simply-couldn’t-ignore-it ancient Egyptian civilization and that of the ancient Greeks. Nevertheless, this one looks like quite the stretch to me. The frog connection is pretty tenuous and Heqet was never well known enough outside of Egypt to be that influential. A better correspondence might be between Isis’ title of Hekaiet, “Magician,” and Hekate, but I can’t offer further speculation on that as I’m no linguist.

Universal Goddesses

Both Goddesses are powerful in every sphere of life, on every level of reality. Isis is said to be queen of earth, heaven, and underworld. Hesiod, in the Theogony tells us that Hekate has power in earth, sea, and sky. And while Hesiod doesn’t specifically list the underworld as one of Hekate’s realms, it is clear that Her connections with the dead make Her an underworld Goddess, too. Both Isis and Hekate serve as psychopomps. Hekate guides Persephone back to the land of the living and Isis initiates the newly dead into their new lives.

Green Isis spreads Her wings over the deceased

Protective Goddesses

With Her widespread wings, Isis is the protective Goddess par excellence. She not only protects Her child Horus, Her husband Osiris, and the land of Egypt, but each of Her devotees as well. With Her magical power, Hekate is also a protective Goddess, Her image placed before each household to keep its inhabitants safe.

Child Nurturing Goddesses

Both Isis and Hekate bear the Greek epithet Kourotrophos, “Child Nurturing.” Of course we see Isis nurturing Her own child, Horus, but human children were often placed under Her protection as were young people in general. People often made offering to Hekate asking Her to protect their young as well.

Goddesses of Many Names

With Isis’ astonishing number of syncretizations with Goddesses (and some Gods) both inside and outside of Egypt, as well as Her power in every area of life, She truly earned the title of Myriad-Named. Yet Hekate is also many named and connected with many other Goddesses. I’m going to give Isis the edge in this category, however, because the extent to which this happened with Her was and is simply unprecedented.

Fiery Goddesses

Hekate is strongly associated with burning torches while Isis is a fire-spitting Uraeus Goddess and burning Eye of the Sun.

Goddesses of the Moon

In this category, I’ll give Hekate the edge. With Her prominent triplicity, Hekate has an easy connection with the triple visible phases of the moon, as well as Her association with the mysteries of the dark moon and the offerings of Hekate’s suppers. But Isis is not without Her lunar connections. In fact, many modern people first think of Isis as a Moon Goddess. In later periods of Her worship, She was indeed associated with the moon, particularly when Egypt came under Greek rule. For the whole story on Isis as a Moon Goddess, go here.

Savior Goddesses

Both Isis and Hekate are specifically called Savior (Soteira in Greek). Isis was called Soteira as She became universalized in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Hekate became Soteira through Her role in the Chaldean Oracles as the World Soul. Many of us are used to thinking of “salvation” in Christian terms—believe, and the Deity will forgive your sins, saving your soul for eternal life. But the ancients had a broader definition. Savior Deities could save you from earthly troubles as well as caring for your soul in the afterlife. The Savior Deities also saved people from their fear of death. By being initiated into knowledge of the afterlife and being assured of the favor of their Goddess, people could face their end of life in peace.

Scary Goddesses

A very scary, demon-like Hecate from the TV show “Charmed”

With Her connection to the dead, especially the restless and unhappy dead who can accompany Her, Hekate can be a frightening Goddess. She might be called upon in necromantic rites—raising the dead for information—which is naturally unsettling. Frightening aspects of the Goddess are called upon in some of the magical spells we have left to us. The Goddess Herself might appear in a frightening form with rattling chains and animalistic moans and roars. But Isis is never scary, is She? Welp. Yes, She can be. Isis’ own connections with Mysteries, death, and the underworld could make Her a Dread Goddess, too. After all, if She can create, She can destroy. The Pyramid Texts include a passage that says, “If Isis comes to you in Her evil coming, do not open your arms to Her.” Other tales tell of Isis killing a prince with an angry glance and that a rash man who tried to sneak into Her sanctuary without an invitation expired on the spot.

Animals of the Goddesses

The Goddesses also share some connections though the animals that are sacred to both. For instance, both are associated with dogs. Hekate has Her accompanying hounds, whose howls proceed Her arrival. Isis is closely connected with canine Anubis, sometimes even as His foster mother. She is also associated with “the dog star,” Sirius. In one of Her aretalogies, Isis says of Herself, “I am She who rises in the Dog Star.” Both Goddesses are connected with snakes. Hekatean imagery often includes serpents, while Isis Herself is a Cobra Goddess.

Hekate is connected with bulls and cows, which were/are considered lunar animals due to the crescent-like horns they bear. Hekate Herself sometimes has the head of a bull as one of Her three animal-form heads. In later periods, Isis shares the crescent-horns-moon association, but She is also a Cow Goddess in Her own right, from very early on. She also is assimilated with Hathor, the most prominent Egyptian Cow Goddess. Like many Asia Minor Goddesses, Hekate is often associated with lions. Sometimes, one of Her animal-form heads is that of a lioness. Isis IS a Lioness Goddess. As the Eye of the Sun, She also takes the form of a fierce lioness and we have a number of portrayals of Isis with the head of a lion, looking quite a bit like Sakhmet. And yes, you guessed it, She is often syncretized with Lioness Sakhmet.

Temple Footprints for the Goddesses

There is one last correspondence I want to mention, but not dwell on. That’s because it’s interesting enough to deserve it’s own blog post. One of the things pilgrims traveling to temples might do is leave a certain type of graffito scratched into the stones of the temple. The graffito was a foot or pair of feet, often along with a written dedication. They were meant to symbolize the person permanently standing at the temple. We find these pilgrim feet at a number of Isis temples and shrines as well as at Hekate’s temple at Lagina in modern Turkey. Click for info on the sacred graffiti at Isis’ temple at Philae.

Pilgrim feet from Hekate’s Lagina temple

No doubt there are other connections that can be made between these two Great Goddesses. But I think this is sufficient for us to understand why the ancient Egyptians and Greeks might have been inclined to associate Them.

So, are Isis and Hekate “the same?” No, not exactly. But are They connected? Yes, They are indeed.

Isis & Hekate

I love this Hekate by Talia Took. Buy her artwork here. She is an amazing artist. I am the delighted owner of several pieces by her.

Enough people have asked me about the connection between Isis and Hekate that I guess it’s time to do some pondering about that. So let’s.

I’ve had the privilege of meeting both these Goddesses in ritual over the years. As you know, I have been a devotee of Isis for, well by now I can round up to “forever.” Hekate has always been in my Dark Goddess mix, but I had an opportunity to serve as Hekate’s oracle at our last community fall equinox celebration—which meant that I spent a lot of time invoking and experiencing Her over an extended period of time in preparation for the rite.

The question before us is often asked as to whether Isis “is the same as” Hekate—as She is so decidedly said to be in several ancient texts that we have left to us. (Specifically, Apuleius’ Golden Ass and the aretalogy of Isis in Oxyrhynchus papyrus 1380, to name two.)

I have this beautiful Isis from Thalia. I also have a Hekate, interestingly enough.

As is so often the case, for me, the answer is both yes and no.

Let’s look at the “no” side of the answer first.

From my personal experience, I can say that the two Goddesses feel quite different. That said, for the festival rite above, I was working very hard to psychically tune into Hekate specifically. I needed to separate myself from my easy connection with Isis and come to a place where I could “hear,” then speak aloud, the words of Hekate. For our ritual, we were invoking both the “witchy” Hekate that so many people are familiar with today, as well as the Theurgic Hekate of the Chaldean Oracles and from Whom at least some of the Oracles were channeled.

How you might answer this question for yourself depends in part on your own experiences and what variety of Pagan (I am using “Pagan” in its broadest, modern sense) you consider yourself to be. If you’re a ‘hard’ polytheist, then your answer is likely to be that They are two quite separate Goddesses and never the twain shall meet. They come from different lands, are part of different pantheons, and are separate personalities with Their own individual needs, wants, and agendas. (All of this is true, of course.)

In this case, the answer to our question is a simple no; Hekate is not the same as Isis nor vice versa. The two Goddesses are quite distinct.

The “yes” side of the answer is, well, a bit more complicated.

And it again depends on what you think about the structure of the Divine Reality and how it works. Here are two posts on some of the various ways we could think about that Divine Reality and how Isis might look through those various lenses: Isis, the One & the Many; and Isis, the One & the Many More.

Isis the Magician, with 3 faces. Photo by Merja Attia; see her Flickr here.

Your answer might also depend on what you think about syncretism or theocrasia, the mixing of Deities, in this case, Isis-Hekate. This is not a modern invention; the ancients did it all the time. It was common throughout the Hellenic and Roman worlds. But it was especially true in Egypt. Egyptian Deities can become one another, take up each other’s traits, or be the ba, or manifestation, of each other. Isis-Hathor is a very Egyptian example.

Isis and Hathor also feel different to me on Their own, and yet They are intimately connected, each residing in the other’s temples and having harmonious attributes and powers. When syncretism was done cross-culturally, I’ve always believed it was a way for people to understand each other’s Deities. “Oh, you’ll like Isis, She’s sorta like Demeter, but different and Egyptian.”

The image you see to the right is identified by the National Archeological Museum of Athens as “Isis the Magician.” She is portrayed like most Hellenistic Isis images: Isis knot between the breasts, Egyptian wig, uraeus crown-base on Her head (the rest of the headdress may be missing). The missing arm probably held a sistrum or a serpent. But She has three faces. This is a very unusual portrayal of Isis. Some Egyptian Deities are shown with multiple heads, but it is usually two or four (the Two Lands frequently prefer even numbers), though triplicities were important in Egyptian symbolism, too.

Hekate plaque, now in Prague’s Kinsky Palace museum

However, triple faces/heads/bodies are not at all unusual for Hekate. So, are we looking at a syncretic Isis-Hekate in the statuette now in Athens? Is that why the museum has identified the image as “Isis the Magician”? I think so. In Sorita d’Este’s book, Circle for Hekate, she notes another Isis-Hekate on Roman-period coins from Memphis, Egypt. It shows a triple-faced Goddess standing next to the Apis bull, which was considered the ba of Osiris in Memphis. The Apis’ connection with Osiris would argue for the triple-faced Goddess’ identity as Isis, Isis the Magician, or even Isis-Hekate.

Now, I’d like to return to the texts mentioned above, the ones that equate Isis and Hekate—just so you know what they say. The first one is from Apuleius’ ostensibly fictional tale of initiation into the Mysteries of Isis. It is from the speech that the Goddess Herself makes when She comes to rescue the protagonist, Lucius, from having been magically turned into an ass. She lists all the many different names that She is called by people throughout the Mediterranean. She says that She is called Venus and Diana and Ceres and Proserpine (Apuleius is writing in Latin, so the Goddesses are the Roman ones) and Juno and Bellona and Hekate and Rhamnusia (aka Nemesis), but that Her true name is Queen Isis.

An interesting AI Isis, though the algoes never get the jewelry or crowns right; Her headdress reminds me of my beloved Egyptian Rocket Goddess by Audrey Flack.

The second one is found in one of the papyri from Oxyrhynchus, Egypt. The text gives the names by which Isis is known in cities throughout Egypt and the Mediterranean. It tells us that in Caria (in Asia Minor), Isis is called Hekate. Some of you may know of Hekate’s great temple at Lagina, Caria. Surely, the author is thinking of this Hekate and naming Her as Isis. Hekate also had a shrine at the temple of Artemis of Ephesus, also in Caria. Who else did? Yep, it was Isis. You can read the whole Oxyrhynchus aretalogy of Isis here.

Why was it so easy for these authors, writing in about the second century CE, to identify Isis with Hekate? Well, once you start looking into it, turns out that there are quite a few rather solid connections between the two Goddesses. But since this post has already gotten fairly long already, we’ll detail those next time in Part 2.

Isis & the Magic of Myrrh

A hymn to Isis at Her temple in Philae says,

O Isis, giver of life, who dwells in the Pure Island, take to yourself the myrrh which comes from Punt, the lotus-fragrance which issues from your body, that your heart may be glad through it, and that your heart may rejoice every day.

Myrrh trees being planted in an Egyptian garden

Myrrh (commiphora myrrha) was one of the most sacred herbal substances of ancient Egypt and was a precious offering given to all the Deities. It was used in two primary forms: essential oil and gum resin. Myrrh oil was considered one of the Seven Sacred Oils of Egypt and the gum resin was frequently burned as incense. Both oil and resin were used in a wide variety of perfumes and medicines.

If you are not familiar with it, myrrh produces a strange and interesting scent. I wouldn’t exactly call it a “lotus fragrance” as the Isis hymn says. In fact, “bitter” is a word you could use of it, but it’s bitter in a good way, like bitter herbs that serve as a catalyst to bring out the flavors of certain foods. When the resin first hits the coal, there is a brief sweet note, but it quickly gives way to a darker burnt-wood scent. I use it as an underworld fragrance, but often mix it with amber to sweeten the scent.

Myrrh resin or "tears" weeping from the tree trunk — Myrrh resin or “tears” weeping from the tree trunk

Myrrh resin is exuded by several species of trees native to Arabia and eastern Africa. The Egyptians imported myrrh from Punt, in modern Somalia; and much of the world’s myrrh still comes from that area. In appearance, myrrh trees are small and shrub-like with gnarled branches, triple leaves, and small white flowers. The resin weeps naturally from the trunk and may be easily collected. However, small cuts are often made in the trunk to increase the flow. Thus the resin can be said to result from the wounding and weeping of the tree.

In addition to myrrh’s bitterness, this is perhaps another reason for its association with sorrow, mourning, and death. Myrrh oil was one of the most important used in mummification—so much so that some of Egypt’s ancient mummies still smell of myrrh. “Death is before me today, like the fragrance of myrrh,” says an ancient text known as “The Debate of a Man with His Ba” in which the man is considering suicide. Thus myrrh was sometimes said to have originated in the underworld.

Myrrh is sacred to Isis in Her role as Goddess of Death and Mourning. Myrrh’s bitterness may easily be associated with Isis’ bitter task of searching for the scattered pieces of Her beloved husband’s body. In the magical papyri, myrrh is called the Guide of Isis for it was thought to assist Her in this sorrowful task. While the papyri don’t say specifically how Isis employed Her “guide,” we can speculate that She may have burned it as incense—perhaps as part of a visionary rite—or made it into ink with which to inscribe amulets to aid Her search. A recipe for one such magical ink included myrrh, along with dried figs, date pits, and wormwood. The ritual instructions tell us that this ink was the one Isis used to record Her magical words as She fit together the members of Osiris. Myrrh was also sometimes called the Tears of Horus, perhaps in connection with His own mourning for His father.

Even though the Egyptians closely associated myrrh with death, they also connected it with pleasure and power. Myrrh was one of the many fragrances favored by the Lady of Joy, Hathor, and it was an ingredient in many, many of the most famous Egyptian perfumes. In perfume, the slight bitterness of myrrh adds depth to many lighter, sweeter fragrances. In the funerary texts, the deceased was expected to spend pleasant hours living and eating beneath myrrh trees in the otherworld. In one interesting formula, the deceased claims that his putrefaction—the fluid from his decaying body—is actually myrrh and that his Divine Mother Hathor anoints Herself with it. Myrrh was also the incense burned in temples of Re at noon, the time of His greatest power. The strong scent of myrrh reflected the noontime power of the Sun.

"Offering to Isis" by Sir Edward john Poynter, 1866; perhaps she has myrrh in that little container? — “Offering to Isis” by Sir Edward John Poynter, 1866; perhaps she has myrrh in that little container?

Magically, myrrh is used to purify, bless, and protect. It is said to increase the power of any incense with which it is burned. The dark scent of myrrh aids meditation and may be used to awaken our awareness of the spiritual realities behind the everyday world. Thus it is an excellent scent for use not only in meditation, but also before and during magical rites. Because of its association with death, myrrh is often connected with the planets Saturn and Mars, considered planets of ill fortune in ancient astrology. Today’s astrologers take a more balanced view of these two planets—attributing to them stability, strength, and energy. This view is clearly in step with myrrh’s ancient associations with power and protection.

On the practical side, myrrh is slightly antiseptic so the powdered resin may be dusted on sores as a local disinfectant. It is an astringent, a digestive aid, and an anti-gas tonic. Used as a mouthwash, it relieves sore teeth and gums. Taken internally, it cures bad breath and tightens loose teeth. It may be taken for coughs, asthma, and other chest problems. The ancient Egyptians used myrrh for all these purposes and more. From personal experience, I can also add that the essential oil works like a freaky catnip for my cat.

Myrrh is a balm of healing, protection, and care for the dead. It is a scent of spiritual power and energy. As Goddess of Death and Mourning, Lady of Healing, and one of Egypt’s most powerful Goddesses, Isis is the Lady of Myrrh.

Who is Aperet-Iset?

The last few weeks have led me to several new connections with Isis that I hadn’t known about previously. I’m sharing the second one with you today. Admittedly, the associations do get a bit obscure, but that’s okay with me. I love teasing out those threads of connection to and for Her.

Today we meet a Goddess named Aperetiset, Aperet-Iset, or Aperet-Isis. She is, apparently, a local Goddess from Akhmim, aka Khemmis, aka Panopolis, in Upper Egypt. There, Her consort is the God of the Upright Phallus, Min, and Their child is Horus the Child. She is also in evidence in Osiris’ cult center of Abydos and at Athribis in Upper Egypt near the edge of the western desert. Great Isis was worshiped with Min at Koptos, not too far from both Upper Egyptian locations. Aperet-Isis is known as far back as the New Kingdom, and then we find Her more frequently throughout the Ptolemaic and later periods.

We have maybe a couple dozen references to Her, and the ones we do have seem rather colorless. She is called the Lady of Akhmim, Mother of the God, Lady of the Two Lands, and The Great—fairly common epithets. But there are two other, more interesting, epithets that I’ll get to in a moment.

This map shows all the locations we’re discussing

First, let’s see if we can color outside the lines a bit and bring some additional tinting to our Lady Aperet-Isis.

Aperet Iset

First of all, Her name. The word “aper” means “to equip.” Aper-et is just “aper” with the feminine ending appropriate for a Goddess or a woman. And so, in the article I’m reading, it is translated as “She Who Equips the Throne,” (remembering that Iset means Throne). With what does She equip the throne? We don’t know. The article doesn’t speculate on that.

Perhaps with sovereignty? Sovereignty is always part of the discussion when it comes to the name of Isis Herself. If Isis IS the Goddess Throne, then to rightly rule, the king must sit in Her lap, on the throne, as Her child. That’s okay, as far as it goes. But Isis is far too expansive a Goddess to be confined to such a limited role. And, as all of you who have been reading along with this blog well know, She never was so confined. In fact, She eventually became The Goddess, the Encompassing All-Goddess, for so many, many of Her worshipers.

The king offering to Horus the Child, Min, and Aperet-Iset

I happen to be studying something right now that I believe can shed some light on Aperet-Isis.

You might be familiar with some of the forms of the human being, especially prominent after death, such as the ka and the ba. There’s another one called the akh. The dead “become akh” when they have successfully passed through the weighing of the heart during the Judgment of Osiris. You might see them described as “transfigured spirits.” When you’re akh, you have, in essence, become divine. You have all your powers and may travel between the worlds—heaven, earth, or underworld—at will, dwelling with the Goddesses and Gods. Naturally, the Deities are Akh, too, and have even more akh-power than humans who are akh.

There are two adjectives that are almost always used to describe akhs: iqer and aper. In the briefest of definitions, iqer is “effective” and aper is “equipped.”

The king offering to Min, Aperet-Iset, and Repyt

And with what are the divine akhs equipped? This we do know specifically. They are equipped with magical knowledge and power. Because they are aper—equipped—they are also iqer—effective—in doing whatever it is they wish to accomplish.

So, I think Aperet-Iset is not “She Who Equips the Throne,” but is instead the “Equipped Throne” or—taking Iset as a name rather than an object—”Equipped Isis.” To confirm that, some scholars have indeed understood Aperet-Isis as a form of Great Isis. As we know, being equipped with powerful magic is entirely within the natural purview of the Great Magician Goddess Isis. As Great of Magic, Our Goddess is incredibly competent and fully equipped with all Her magic. In tombs, we sometimes see human akhs describe themselves as “a lector priest who knows his spells.” And we know that Isis the Magician is perfect in casting Her spells, never hesitating or stumbling over a word. So I think we can take Aperet-Isis as a form of Isis that focuses particularly on Her magical strengths.

Equipped Isis may use Her magic in service to “the throne,” that is, the kingship. Under Her epithet of Lady of the Two Lands, this makes sense. And Great Isis was always concerned with maintaining the legitimate rule of Her son Horus over Egypt.

While usually shown in woman-form with horns-and-disk crown, vulture headdress, and sometimes two plumes, Aperet-Isis is also occasionally shown as a lioness-headed Goddess. She is usually in the company of other Deities, such as Min, Osiris, Horus, Isis, and Nephthys. In the mammisi, or birthhouse, at Edfu, She is shown with 13 other Goddesses, including two Isises and three Hathors. In Egyptian theology, it is no contradiction to have duplicates of the same Deities shown together, nor is it a contradiction to have a minor form of Isis, Aperet-Isis, shown with other forms of Isis.

We also find Aperet-Isis at Abydos, where Her powerful magic would be needed to resurrect and maintain Osiris. In the area around Akhmim, Her name is listed on funerary stelae, as well as being included in the offering formulae for tombs. This again connects Equipped Isis with the afterlife, where Her magic is required for renewal. And this is where the first of those more interesting epithets come in. One says, “Aperet-Isis, Her Face Coming Forth from the Land of God.” The Land of God, in this case, is the otherworld, the land of the dead, as well as the land of the Deities. As She emerges from this place, She is able to assist the dead in their transition to the next life. It is very valuable to have a Goddess Who is equipped with magic and knowledge available to help us in that great change.

The second of our more interesting epithets is “Aperet-Isis in the Temple of the Moon.” This is through Her connection to Min, Who is considered a Moon God. He is called Defender of the Moon and He Who Dwells in the Temple of the Moon. Generally, His sanctuaries were known as the Hwt I’ah, the House or Temple of the Moon—and this included Akhmim. As the Lady of Akhmim then, Aperet-Isis is also a Moon Goddess. So if you’re looking for a particularly lunar (and magical) form of Isis, Aperet-Isis may be the one for you. (More on Isis as a Moon Goddess here.)

At Athribis and Akhmim, Aperet-Isis is connected with the Goddess Repyt, known to the Greeks as Triphis (which sounds like an epithet of Hekate, but isn’t). More likely, this Greek rendition comes from combining the Egyptian feminine article, ta, with the Egyptian term rpyt, meaning “lady” and adding the Greek grammatical ending. So, the Goddess Repyt is simply The Lady. Repyt is often lioness-headed, too, and is paired with Min as consort. All three Deities, Min, Aperet-Isis, and Repyt, might be represented together. If Repyt is The Lady and Aperet-Isis is The Lady of Akhmim—and both are mothers of a Child God, Horus or Kolanthes (the Greek version of a little-known Child God)—we begin to see how the Goddesses come together. Ah, the glorious mess that is Egyptian Deities and how They refuse to have impermeable borders!

But now, I think we have at least a bit more color for our Goddess, “Equipped Isis.” She is a magically powerful Mother Goddess, a Queenly Goddess of the Two Lands, a Goddess of Magical Renewal, and a mystic Goddess of the Moon. She is most known from the New Kingdom onward, which is the same period when the worship of Great Isis was growing and spreading throughout the Mediterranean and further. It was, no doubt, inevitable that these two Goddesses would meet and unite.

Isis & the Fish Goddess

I am always delighted when I find out something new about Isis. Yes, even after all this time, I still occasionally find new things. This new thing is small, but interesting enough to share with you. It’s about one of Isis’ syncretisms that I hadn’t previously known about.

Living on or near the Nile, ancient Egyptians naturally ate a lot of fish. The varieties are beautifully and naturalistically depicted in tombs and on stelae. Tilapia, catfish, eel, mullet, and Nile perch were often on the menu and we find their bones in archeological digs. Fish were grilled, salted, and dried. Fishy extracts might also be used in medicines. A modern Egyptian spring celebratory dish consists of mullet, packed whole in salt for 45 days, then consumed raw with lime and bread. Many modern Egyptians believe this tradition is inherited from ancient times.

The oxyrhynchus fish with solar disk and horns crown

When it comes to Isis’ story, we have a bit of a fish problem. The oxyrhynchus fish, a Nile freshwater fish and a species of elephantfish, is usually identified as the fish that ate Osiris’ phallus after it got tossed in the Nile after His dismemberment. (Though sometimes, the Nile carp or the lepidotes fish is named as the culprit.) Due to this loss, Isis had to fashion a new phallus for Osiris’ mummification and resurrection. He had to be whole.

It may have been this myth that led to Egyptian priests not being allowed to eat fish during their service, a taboo recorded by the Greek historian Herodotus. Plutarch, in his rendition of the Isis-Osiris tale, calls the fishes who ate the phallus of Osiris “impious” and says they were cursed ever after, and that Egyptians wouldn’t eat fish because of it. (Which, of course, we know is not true; they ate plenty of fish.) What’s more, the oxyrhynchus fish wasn’t cursed everywhere. It fact, it was sacred in the town of Oxyrhynchus. Learn more about Oxyrhynchus here. Though Fish Deities were rare in Egypt, there were a few other fish that were considered sacred in different areas, and so were not eaten. And there may have been other occasional taboos on eating certain fish at certain times.

In addition to having this particular complication with the phallus-eating fish, our Goddess Isis has another interesting connection with the fishes.

From the New Kingdom on, Isis was assimilated with a Fish Goddess named Hatmehyt, meaning “Foremost of the Fishes.”(Or perhaps we should say that the Fish Goddess was assimilated with Her.) Hatmehyt was the chief Goddess of the delta city of Djedet (Mendes to the Greeks) where the Ram God Banebdjedet was Her consort. Banebdjedet means “Ram Lord of Djedet” or “Ba of the Lord of Djedet.” Banebdjedet came to be associated with Osiris. In the Book of the Heavenly Cow (the one that has the story of Sakhmet’s near destruction of humankind), it says specifically that the Ram of Mendes is the Ba (soul or manifestation) of Osiris.

If Banebdjedet is associated with Osiris, then Hatmehyt must be associated with Isis. Although we find a few traces of Her much earlier, Hatmehyt was most prominent during the New Kingdom and the later periods. It was because of Her growing prominence that we begin to see Her connected to more dominant Deities like Isis. Hatmehyt is usually shown as a woman with a fish emblem on Her head. Sometimes, She is fully a fish. Her fish-form is commonly identified as the schilbe, which is a kind of catfish native to Egypt. But some researchers have identified Her fish as the Nile carp, the tilapia, or even the dolphin, which were known to travel up the Nile. As Foremost of the Fishes, it may be that She can change Her fish-form at will.

Edward Butler of Henadology notes that “mehyt,” meaning “fish” can also mean “drowned,” which is how Osiris is killed in some texts. On a Ptolemaic stele from the city of Djedet/Mendes, we find the king and queen making offering to the Deities of Djedet. Banebdjedet, in full ram-form, is there. Next to Him is a ram-headed God identified as “Ba, life of, Ba life of Wsir (?).” The question mark is a scholarly note because the name is too damaged to fully read. However, the reconstruction of the name as Usir/Osiris is based on the very clear identification of the Goddess Who stands behind Him.

She is Iset Weret Hatmehyt or “Isis the Great-Hatmehyt.” So, here is our syncretic Goddess Iset-Hatmehyt. She is Isis, Foremost of the Fishes. From an inscription on the Temple of Denderah, we learn that Hatmehyt is She Who “searches [for the members of] Her brother upon the flow.”

A Turkana, Kenyan woman carrying a fish on her head and looking similar to some depictions of Hatmehyt

Perhaps as a Fish Goddess, She is particularly adept at finding His body parts in the waters or “upon the flow.” In fact, Denderah records a handful of such references to Hatmehyt searching for Osiris’ members, protecting Him in His sarcophagus, and even being His sister—just like Isis. What’s more, the son of Hatmehyt and Banebdjedet is Horus the Child. Each mythological strand weaves the connection between the two Goddesses closer.

While I never really thought about Isis as a Fish Goddess, I do recall a shapeshifting exercise with Nephthys wherein I am a fish. So perhaps, I have some meditation to do with Iset-Hatmehyt. I’m thinking there may be some wet and watery connections between the Fish Goddess and the lost-in-the-waters phallus of Osiris. The Egyptians, surrounded by desert, always thought of the waters as kinda sexy. Heqet, the fertile Frog Goddess, was no doubt rather moist and slippery, just like our perhaps-equally-moist-and-slippery Fish Goddess, Iset-Hatmehyt.

A Day of Rest

I’m recovering today from a bit of surgery, so I will leave you with this photo of some Isis statuettes we were privileged to see at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Isis, Isis everywhere!

She Will Hear You

So many folks I know are going through something right now. I’m not talking about The State of the World. (That’s a whole other difficult story.) I’m talking about personal things that loom large in our own lives. Health. Family. Huge decisions. Scary changes.

Maybe it’s just spring?

Because as beautiful and as welcome as each spring is, there’s also something unsettling about it. Everything is roaring to get going. But we’re not quite there yet. And we can’t quite move yet. Do you feel it, too? I know I do.

So you may be wondering, “Where is Isis in all this?”

She is here.

As She has always been.

An Egyptian votive stela asking for the Deity to hear.

And She is listening.

Isis is one of the Deities particularly known to hear our human cries, to hear our prayers. She is called the One Who Listens. In ancient texts and on temple walls, Isis is She Who Hears Petitions; Who Hears the Petitions of Millions. She is particularly known to come at the invocation of Her devotees: Isis is She Who Comes to the Calling; people Call to Her in Every Place. A graffito from Thebes says, “O you of all lands, call to Isis, the Great Goddess, She listens at every moment!”

Why then does She not snap Her magical fingers and make it all go away? Because that’s not how it works. Whatever we are going through, these are our problems to solve. And we will solve them—with a little help from our friends.

Isis reminds us that we are each a feather in Her Wings, the blood in Her veins, an extension of the magic in Her heart and in Her hands.

This is a time not to neglect our connection with Her. Meditate, make offerings, chant. She invites us to let our souls fly to Her and be enfolded in Her Wings. “Bring your heart to Me,” She says. “Speak pain. Speak truth.” She will take us as we are right now.

For She listens. And She hears.

Ahwere and the Magic Book, Part 2

We can pretend this is Ahwere, who tells the tale in Part 1

I went down a rabbit hole yesterday morning that—after some exciting twists and turns—led me back to an older blog post here on Isiopolis. And I realized that I hadn’t finished the story of Ahwere, Naneferkaptah, and their child, Merib.

This story has been called the pinnacle of ancient Egyptian literature (though we don’t have that much ancient Egyptian literature). It was written down in the Ptolemaic period and is usually called Setne and the Magic Book. It’s a classic type of ancient tale and involves Isis, Thoth, and dead Egyptians having effect in the living world. In it, the son of Rameses the Great, Setne Kaemweset, learns that a previous prince, Naneferkaptah, had acquired vast magical knowledge and an amazing magical book locked inside a series of chests and sunk in the bottom of the river. Now, the son of Rameses, also a glutton for magical knowledge, wants it for himself. (The real Kaemweset became a Sem-Priest of Ptah at Memphis and was responsible for new buildings at the temple of Ptah as well as restorations of ancient tombs and pyramids. He became a kind of folk hero with fantastical tales attached to his name.)

If you don’t remember it, you might want to reread the first part of the tale here before going into this next part. Now on with the tale..

I’m going to back up a just a bit to tell you a little more about the contests between Setne and Naneferkaptah over the magic book. Remember, Setne wants its magical power and Naneferkaptah, who is deceased, wants to keep it hidden because of the great tragedies that befall anyone who uses the book.

So Ahwere and Naneferkaptah, wife and husband, are in Naneferkaptah’s tomb warning Setne not to lust after this dangerous book. Setne threatens to take it by force if they don’t hand it over to him. So Naneferkaptah says he can only get the book by being able to best Naneferkaptah at a game a droughts (perhaps the game of Senet, the equipment for which was found in a number of tombs). Setne is up for the challenge. But Naneferkaptah wins the first game. By his magic, Naneferkaptah sinks Setne into the earth up to his lower legs. After losing the second game, Setne is sunk to his crotch, and on losing the third, he is sunk to his ears. Setne was down, but not out. He gives Naneferkaptah a whack and sends the spirit of his deceased brother to Setne’s father, the pharaoh, to tell of everything that happened and ask for help. This the spirit does—and pharaoh sends some powerful magic to Setne.

A few formidable amulets later, Setne is out of the earth, has snatched the magical book from Ahwere and Naneferkaptah, and runs out of the tomb. As he goes, Ahwere laments that all power has left the tomb. But Naneferkaptah comforts her and vows to make him return the book.

Setne locks the tomb behind him and goes to his father. Dad advises Setne to be smart and put the dang book back, but Setne refuses. In fact, like an idiot, he proceeds to read the magic book to everyone. (The story doesn’t tell us how this came out.)

Now we have a change of scene. Sometime after Setne gets the book, he finds himself walking in the temple of Ptah and sees an incredibly beautiful and alluring woman there, too. He cannot take his eyes off her and has his servant go find out who she is. Turns out she is the daughter of the High Priest of Bastet and her name is Tabubu. Setne, prince that he is, somehow thinks it would be a good idea to send his servant to offer her 10 pieces of gold to spend a hour with him. Not only that, but his invitation includes a veiled threat demanding her compliance. She is insulted and highly pissed.

Tabubu, Bastet priestess, looking like Ozma of Oz

So, she sends word to Setne that if he wants to do as he wishes with her, he has to come to her house, she being of priestly rank. Setne was okay with that, but everyone around him thought it was a Very Bad Idea.

So off to Bubastis he goes and he finds that Tabubu lives in a very rich house upon very rich grounds. Tabubu greets him and has him come inside with her. She serves him food and drink and they fool around for a while. Finally, Setne is ready to do the deed. Ah no, says Tabubu. She is of priestly rank and if he wants her he must sign over all his possessions. Somehow, Setne thinks this is a good idea and has a legal paper drawn up and signs it. Then Tabubu tells him that his children are here. Setne says to bring them to him. As Tabubu stands to go get the children, the transparent gown she is wearing makes Setne ever hotter and he begs to have sex with her. Nope, she says, not until your children sign off on the paperwork you just signed. Which they do. He begs again. Nope. Not until your children are killed. Setne—clearly madder than a hatter by this time—agrees. Their bodies are thrown out the window to be devoured by cats and dogs. Yeesh.

Finally, Tabubu leads him to a couch. They lay down together and just as he reaches out to touch her…

He wakes up with a huge erection and nothing to do with it.

Then he realizes that it was Naneferkaptah who sent him this evil dream (perhaps to show him how much of a monster could be?). When Setne goes out into the street, still naked, he comes upon the pharaoh. I am imagining the pharaoh rolling his eyes to the heavens as he advises his wayward son to go to Memphis and see his children, who are indeed alive. Pharaoh again advises Setne to get rid of the book. This time Setne listens and takes the book back to the tomb of Naneferkaptah where Naneferkaptah and the ka of Ahwere remain. Now remember that Ahwere and their child Merib are buried in Koptos in the vicinity of the temple of Isis and Harpokrates. She is in Naneferkaptah’s tomb just in ka-form. In order make amends, Naneferkaptah tells Setne go find the tombs of Ahwere and Merib and bring their bodies back to be buried in Memphis with him.

So prince Setne takes pharaoh’s boat and goes to Koptos. He makes offering to Isis and Harpokrates when he arrives. Then Setne and the priests of Isis spend three days searching for Ahwere and Merib, with no success. Meanwhile, Naneferkaptah had been keeping tabs on Setne and has seen his lack of success. So he changes himself into the likeness of an old priest. When Setne sees him, he thinks that such an old man just might remember where they were buried. As the old man was really Naneferkaptah, he most certainly did and told Setne they were under part of the small town of Pehemato (another translation says under the house of the chief of police). Digging there, Ahwere and Merib were found. And the now-reformed prince restores everything that had been destroyed during their digging just as it had been.

Ahwere and Merib’s bodies were taken to Memphis and buried with Naneferkaptah. The family was reunited and Setne learned his lesson. And so our the story is complete and you have now heard one of ancient Egypt’s greatest tales.

And on another note, a blessed and happy Easter to all who celebrate.

The Goddess of Willendorf

In Search of the Feminine Divine