Amun/Amen

Among the group of the most well known ancient Egyptians gods is Amun (also seen as Amen). He is the second largest god on record for the ancient Egyptians in his dual personality as Amun-Ra. Record of Amun is first seen in the early Pyramid Texts. Amun's attributes are sometimes in question, but are fairly understood to be the literal meaning of his name: The Essential and The Hidden. As a creator deity Amun was the champion of the poor and central to personal piety. Amun was self created and is not considered to be immanent within creation nor was creation seen as as an extension of himself. Amun's position as King of the Gods developed to the point of virtual monotheism were other gods became manifestations of him.

Amun is seen as the breath of life, a creative force, and co-creator of the Ba. However, Amun did not engender the world/creation. The pharaohs attributed all their successful enterprises to Amun and they lavished their wealth and captured spoil on the construction of temples dedicated to Amun. It is the worship of Amun that Akhenaten banned (among other gods) and attempted to destroy during his reign as he believed the priests and the worship to have become corrupt. The cult of Amun-Ra became so powerful that its priesthood grew very large and influential, so that at one point, priests of the deity did actually rule Egypt during the 21st Dynasty. Amun while suppose to be sexless but is seen as the male aspect of the persona while Amunet is the female aspect. His consort is seen at Mut.

Amun was most often combined with the god, Ra. Seen as the dual god, Amun-Ra, he was believed to represented one of ancient Egypt's most complex theologies. Amun-Ra became a hidden, secret god as the Egyptians called him "the hidden one" or "the secret one." This dual personality is also known as the Sun God, the main aspect of Ra. Amun-Ra's name and physical appearance were the unknown, thus his unknowable essence. While suppose to be seperate versions of the god, Amun and Amun-Ra have in many ways become interchangeable.

Hymns to Amun often read that he is "hidden to his children, "and "hidden to gods and men." In the later periods the name Amen appears to been connected with the root men - "to abide, to be permanent" - and one of the attributes applied to him was Eternal.

Amun is seen in five forms: 1) As a man, when he is seen seated on a throne, and holding in one hand the scepter, and in the other the symbol of "life." 2) As a man with the head of a frog, whilst his female counterpart Amunet has the head of a uraeus. 3) As a man with the head of a uraeus, whilst his female counterpart has the head of a cat. 4) As an ape. 5) As a lion couching upon a pedestal.

Ra

Ra (also spelled Re) dominates most of Egyptian religion as one of the primary deities throughout the span of the empire. Ra was the patron of the sun, heaven, Kingship of the pharaohs, power, and divine light. He is seen as one of the head gods as it is he who bestows power unto the pharaohs giving them the divine right to rule the Two Lands. Although not a contemporary view, E. A. Wallis Budge (1857-1934) claimed that Ra was the one god of Egyptian monotheism; from which all other deities were aspects, manifestations, phases, or forms.

Ra's physical appearance changed throughout the periods of ancient Egypt, however he is most often seen as a falcon headed pharaoh wearing the sun disk on his head. However, the easiest way to identify Ra is by the Sun disk over an item, generally speaking. Ra was worshiped as king of the gods (hence giving him the right to bestow Kingship) and the father of all creation. As the sun god, he commanded the chariot that rode across the sky during the day, with noon being of heightened importance. Like Osiris, Ra is the only other Egyptian god who is not on the earth. As an aging god, Ra is still powerful, yet too old to deal with his children any longer. This has caused him to go exclusively into the sky and watch over the world while his great-grandson, Horus, rules over the earth and the gods in his stead.

Acknowledged as the father of all, Ra had 4 children. However, as mythology changed so did Ra's wife or significant other. Early on Hathor was said to be Ra's wife, however, that changed into Hathor being Ra's daughter, then that Ra originally created Hathor as Sekhment (the fierce warrior lioness) as the Avenging Eye of Ra but then changed her into Hathor when his anger subsided. It is agreed that the following 4 are Ra's children: Nut (sky), - Shu, Tefnut, and Geb (Earth). Expanding the family, Nut and Geb created 4 children: Set, Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys. Isis and Osiris then had their only child Horus, who took over Ra's watch over earth. (Some accounts have Shu and Tefnut as Ra's only children, they in turn had Nut and Geb)

Over time Ra also became a composite deity with the Atum. Known as Ra-Atum or Atum-Ra they were a primordial creative force. In the form of Atum-Ra, Ra began to symbolized the setting sun and its journey through the underworld to its rising again in the east. He also is generally seen with the god Amun, creating Amun-Ra as the Hidden God/the Sun God.
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Here is an Egyptian legend concerning Ra:

The Legend of Ra and Isis

Now Isis was a woman who possessed words of power; her heart was wearied with the millions of men, and she chose the millions of the gods, but she esteemed more highly the millions of the khu's. And she meditated in her heart, saying, "Cannot I by means of the sacred name of God make myself mistress of the earth and become a goddess like unto Ra in heaven and upon earth?"

Now, behold, each day Ra entered at the head of his holy mariners and established himself upon the throne of the two horizons. The holy one had grown old, he dribbled at the mouth, his spittle fell upon the earth, and his slobbering dropped upon the ground. And Isis kneaded it with earth in her hand, and formed thereof a sacred serpent in the form of a spear; she set it not upright before her face, but let it lie upon the ground in the path whereby the great god went forth, according to his heart's desire, into his double kingdom. Now the holy god arose, and the gods who followed him as though he were Pharaoh went with him; and he came forth according to his daily wont; and the sacred serpent bit him. The flame of life departed from him, and he who dwelt among the cedars was overcome. The holy god opened his mouth, and the cry of his majesty reached unto heaven. His company of gods said, "What hath happened?" and his gods exclaimed, "What is it?" But Ra could not answer, for his jaws trembled and all his members quaked; the poison spread swiftly through his flesh just as the Nile invadeth all his land.

When the great god had established his heart, he cried unto those who were in his train, saying, "Come unto me, O ye who have come into being from my body, ye gods who have come forth from me, make ye known unto Khepera that a dire calamity hath fallen upon me. My heart perceived it, but my eyes see it not; my hand hath not caused it, nor do I know who hath done this unto me. Never have I felt such pain, neither can sickness cause more woe than this. I am a prince, the son of a prince, a sacred essence which hath preceded from God. I am a great one, the son of a great one, and my father planned my name; I have multitudes of names and multitudes of forms, and my existence is in every god. I have been proclaimed by the heralds Tmu and Horus, and my father and my mother uttered my name; but it hath been hidden within me by him that begat me, who would not that the words of power of any seer should have dominion over me. I came forth to look upon that which I had made, I was passing through the world which I had created, when lo! something stung me, but what I know not. Is it fire? Is it water? My heart is on fire, my flesh quaketh, and trembling hath seized all my limbs. Let there be brought unto me the children of the gods with healing words and with lips that know, and with power which reacheth unto heaven." The children of every god came unto him in tears, Isis came with her healing words and with her mouth full of the breath of life, with her enchantments which destroy sickness, and with her words of power which make the dead to live. And she spake, saying, "What hath come to pass, O holy father? What hath happened? A serpent hath bitten thee, and a thing which thou hast created hath lifted up his head against thee. Verily it shall be cast forth by my healing words of power, and I will drive it away from before the sight of thy sunbeams."

The holy god opened his mouth and said, "I was passing along my path, and I was going through the two regions of my lands according to my heart's desire, to see that which I had created, when lo! I was bitten by a serpent which I saw not. Is it fire? Is it water? I am colder than water, I am hotter than fire. All my flesh sweateth, I quake, my eye hath no strength, I cannot see the sky, and the sweat rusheth to my face even as in the time of summer." Then said Isis unto Ra, "O tell me thy name, holy father, for whosoever shall be delivered by thy name shall live." [And Ra said], "I have made the heavens and the earth, I have ordered the mountains, I have created all that is above them, I have made the water, I have made to come into being the great and wide sea, I have made the 'Bull of his mother,' from whom spring the delights of love. I have made the heavens, I have stretched out the two horizons like a curtain, and I have placed the soul of the gods within them. I am he who, if he openeth his eyes, doth make the light, and, if he closeth them, darkness cometh into being. At his command the Nile riseth, and the gods know not his name. I have made the hours, I have created the days, I bring forward the festivals of the year, I create the Nile-flood. I make the fire of life, and I provide food in the houses. I am Khepera in the morning, I am Ra at noon, and I am Tmu at even." Meanwhile the poison was not taken away from his body, but it pierced deeper, and the great god could no longer walk.

Then said Isis unto Ra, "What thou hast said is not thy name. O tell it unto me, and the poison shall depart; for he shall live whose name shall be revealed." Now the poison burned like fire, and it was fiercer than the flame and the furnace, and the majesty of the god said, "I consent that Isis shall search into me, and that my name shall pass from me into her." Then the god hid himself from the gods, and his place in the boat of millions of years was empty. And when the time arrived for the heart of Ra to come forth, Isis spake unto her son Horus, saying, "The god hath bound himself by an oath to deliver up his two eyes" (i.e., the sun and moon). Thus was the name of the great god taken from him, and Isis, the lady of enchantments, said, "Depart, poison, go forth from Ra. O eye of Horus, go forth from the god, and shine outside his mouth. It is I who work, it is I who make to fall down upon the earth the vanquished poison; for the name of the great god hath been taken away from him. May Ra live! and may the poison die, may the poison die, and may Ra live!" These are the words of Isis, the great goddess, the queen of the gods, who knew Ra by his own name.

Akhenaten the "Heretic Pharaoh"

Born Amenhotep IV, meaning Amun is Satisfied, Akhenaten changed his name early on in his reign as pharaoh of Egypt. Meaning effective spirit of Aten Akhenaten is infamously known as the pharaoh who pushed Egyptians to become monothiestic. Reigning during the 18th dynasty Akhenaten created the worship of Aten. Akhenaten's strange appearance and mysterious behavior, as well as his connection with Nefertiti and with the ill-fated "boy king" Tutankhamen, have made him the subject of much passion and controversy in the last century or so.

Family

Akhenaten was born to Amenhotep III and his Chief Queen Tiye and was their younger son. It was not until the death of his brother, Crowned Prince Thutmose, that Akhenaten became designated as the successor to the throne. Upon Amenhotep III's death after a 38-year reign Akhenaten became pharaoh of Upper and Lower Egypt. Akhenaten's chief wife was Nefertiti who was made world-famous by her exquisitely molded and painted bust, now displayed in the Altes Museum of Berlin.

Akhenaten made a habit out of marrying his daughters-around year 12 of his reign Mekytaten, daiughter of Akhenatena and Neferteti, is shown in a relief in the royal tomb with her grief-stricken parents beside her dead body and a nurse standing nearby holding a baby. He is also known to have married two other daughters, Merytaten and Akhesenpaaten who later became Tutankhamun's wife.

Nefertit, made famous by her bust, has several curious aspects of her representations. In the early years of Akhenaten's reign, for instance, Nefertiti was an unusually prominent figure in art as she dominated the scenes carved on blocks of the temple to the Aten at Karnak. One block shows her in the warlike posture of pharaoh grasping captives by the hair and smiting them with a mace hardly the epitome of the peaceful queen and mother of six daughters. From that we can see that Nefertiti evidently played a far more prominent part role during her husband's rule than was normal.

Akhenaten is also believed to have been the father of Tutankhaten/Tutankhamen by his lesser wife Kiya.

Impacts

Akhenaten impacted Egyptian culture for many reasons and in many forms. Changes in the ancient Egyptian art style which presented himself in a very different manner from any of his predecessors was one of the main impacts.

Under Akhenaten people were portrayed as they actually were. Unlike previous Egyptian art Pharaohs and gods were portrayed as perfect looking individuals. But Akhenaten instead portrayed himself less god and perfect like and more human. However, the new style of art was portraying people how they were in their everyday lifestyles. Akhenaten is showed to be disfigured with an elongation of the head, large breasts, swollen stomach, and diminutive splayed legs. In fact, he looked more feminine than masculine. Surroundings also were now painted in detail. The vegetation and wild life around the Nile River was recorded in detail along with the pharaoh and his family. Previous Egyptian art had the pharaohs taller than subjects and with none but the gods as equals, Akhenaten had his surroundings as equals and scenes of him kissing his daughters and sitting with his family.

Religion is another major sect where Akhenaten had his influence. While in the end the result was not pretty and Egypt tried to erase their memory of Akhenaten, it is still interesting to see what he did during his lifetime. While the idea of the god, Aten, was not a new one Akhenaten's idea of a single god was to the Egyptians. The Aten is portrayed as a solar disc whose protective rays split in hands holding the ankh hieroglyph for life. According to Akhenaten the Aten was accessible only to him, which terminated the need for an intermediate priesthood.

At first, Akhenaten had a temple built to Aten outside the east gate of the temple of Amun at Karnak but clearly the coexistence of the two cults would not last. When Akhenaten realized this he proscribed the cult of Amun, closed the god's temples, and took over the revenues. Here is where the Egyptian populace arose up against Akhenaten, his actions where defying the gods of old! After a few more insidents involving other temples and Akhenaten trying to killing the worship of other gods, he decided to make a complete break. So in year 6 of his reign, Akheanten and his family left Thebes behind and moved to a new capital, Akhetaten-The Horizon of the Aten, known today as el-Amarna. It was here at Akhenten/el-Amarna that only worship of the Aten was permitted and forced.

Death

During the 12^th year of Akhenaten's reign, his mother Queen Tiye joined him in his city. Here we see that Nefertiti was no longer a favorite to Akhenaten and she disappeared from records. Nothing is known as so why she left and where she went, but her daughter quickly took her place. Akhenaten's daughter was then replaced with Ankhesenpaaten. The 18th year of his reign Akhenaten died and everything was destroyed and demolished after his death. The city of Aten was laid to ruins and Akhenaten, the heretic pharaoh's mummy never found.