Osiris

One of the major Egyptian gods, Osiris was the god of the Afterlife, underworld, or the dead. He is one of the oldest gods on record, with his name appearing on Palermo Stone c. 2500 B.C. The mythology of Osiris comes from the allusions contained in the Pyramid Text and later texts including the New Kingdom documents such as the Shabaka Stone and some Greek writings.

Osiris is one of the most fascinating gods of Egyptian culture. He was not only a merciful judge of the dead in the afterlife, but also the ruler of an underworld agency that granted all life, including sprouting vegetation and the fertile flooding of the Nile River. He is described as the "Lord of love", "He Who is Permanently Benign and Youthful" and the "Lord of Silence." Upon death, the Kings of Egypt were associated with Osiris as when Osiris rose from the dead they would, in union with him, inherit eternal life. This distinction held by pharaohs only lasted until about the New Kingdom, when all people of Egypt came to be associated with Osiris at death if they could afford the costly assimilation rituals.

Osiris' family places him as the oldest son of the Earth god, Geb (also debated to be Ra or Re, also known as Amun Ra), and the sky goddess, Nut. He was conceived with the earth and sky met. He is the brother and husband of Isis and the brother of Set. Horus, is his posthumously begotten son. Osiris later in Egyptian history was associated with the name Khenti-Amentiu, (Foremost of the Westerners) a reference to his kingship in the land of the dead. He occasionally appears green or blue-green to represent his character as the god of Life in the cycle of rebirth.

Due to Osiris' story and his battle with his brother, Set, he became associated with the cycles observed in nature, in particular vegetation and the annual flooding of the Nile. Below is the story of Osiris. Not one account in existence is complete. This one is taken from Plutarch the Greek writer with the Greek names changed to make it easier reading and edited by Jim Loy. Enjoy!
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The Legend of Osiris

When Ra reigned as king of Egypt, Thoth (Djehuty) prophesied that Ra's wife Nut would have a son who would reign as king. Ra cursed Nut and said, "Nut will give birth to no son on any day of any year, nor at night time either." Ra's curse could not be broken, but Thoth had a clever plan. He went to the moon god Khonsu and offered to play him a game of Senet. Khonsu was a great gambler, and bet some of his own moonlight. Thoth defeated Khonsu over and over, until he had won five days from Khonsu. Thoth fit those five days between the end of the old year, and the beginning of the new year, the year having 360 days. And so here were five days that were not part of any year. Nut gave birth to five children on those five days, Osiris on the first day, Harmachis on the second day, Set on the third, Isis on the fourth, and Nephthys on the fifth.

When Osiris was born, a man of Thebes named Pamyles heard a voice telling him to spread the word that Osiris the good and great king, and savior of mankind, had been born. And so Pamyles spread the word, and Nut entrusted the baby Osiris to Pamyles, to raise and educate, with the help of Thoth. The five children grew up, and Osiris married Isis, and Set married Nephthys.

Eventually, Ra ascended into the heavens to sail across the sky every day, and Osiris sat on the throne, and ruled Egypt as a good and wise king, and Egypt flourished under his rule, and the people (who had previously lived like wild animals) became civilized (learning to use the inundation to replenish the land). And the people worshipped Osiris.

Osiris left Egypt, to teach the people of other lands, and Isis ruled in his place. Set plotted to steal Osiris' throne, but Isis prevented this. Set became the leader of 72 wicked men, along with Aso the evil queen of Ethiopia. He secretly learned the measurements of the body of Osiris, and had a beautiful wooden chest made that was exactly the right size to hold Osiris. Then he invited Osiris to a great feast. Everyone at the feast admired the wooden chest, and desired to own it. Set said that the chest would belong to whoever it fit best. Each person at the feast lay down in the chest, but it fit none of them. When Osiris lay down in the chest, Set and his conspirators, closed the lid, nailed it shut, poured molten lead over it to seal the cracks, and threw it into the Nile. And so Osiris died in the 28th year of his reign.

The chest floated into the Great Green, the sea north of Egypt, and came ashore at Byblos, in Syria. There it was flung by the waves into a tamarisk bush. The bush quickly grew into a mighty tree which enclosed the wooden chest. The king of Syria marveled at the tree, and had it cut down and made into a pillar which supported the roof of his palace.

Meanwhile, Set ruled as king of Egypt; it was a time of great trouble in Egypt. Isis was stricken with grief, and put on the apparel of mourning, and cut off a lock of her hair. Then she went in search of her husband's body, as he had to be buried so that Osiris could go to the Duat, the land of the dead. Eventually, some children told Isis that they had seen the chest floating in the Nile. But Isis was delayed while she gave birth to Horus, the son of Osiris, in Buto on the island of Chemmis. Set learned of the birth of Horus, and plotted to kill him. Isis hid the island, making it move from place to place, and went in search of Osiris' body.

Isis tracked the chest to Byblos. At Byblos, she talked to the queen's maid servants, and braided their hair. The queen was delighted by the wonderful braided hair which smelled of sweet perfume, and invited Isis to the palace. She took care of a baby prince, although she did not suckle the child, but allowed him to suck her thumb. She placed the child in a fire. The queen seeing this, ran to her child and pulled him from the fire, thereby denying him immortality. Isis revealed who she was, and asked the king for the pillar which contained the wooden chest. The pillar was split open and Isis took the wooden chest which contained the body of Osiris. The remainder of the pillar was placed in a temple, and for many ages travelers came to Byblos to see it.

Isis took the wooden chest back to Egypt and hid it in a secret place. Then she returned to her son in Buto. One day Set, while out hunting by moonlight, discovered the chest, opened it, and cut Osiris' body into 14 pieces, which he scattered throughout the land. The crocodiles would not touch the pieces of Osiris, as they feared Isis. Isis, in a boat made of papyrus reeds, searched the land, and buried each piece of Osiris, and a temple was built by men at each place where a piece of Osiris was buried. And thirteen different cities claimed to be the burial place of Osiris. Isis found all but one piece, which had been eaten by a fish in the Nile. And this kind of fish has been accursed ever since. But Osiris entered the Duat, the netherworld, and he rules as its good and just king.

Set still ruled Egypt. As a child, Horus, the son of Osiris and Isis and rightful heir to the throne, was killed by Set in the form of a scorpion, but Thoth brought him back to life, as his destiny as ruler of Egypt, and avenger of the crime against his father, had not yet been fulfilled. Horus grew to be a strong and brave warrior. Osiris appeared to Horus in a vision, and urged him to overthrown Set.

The armies of Horus fought the armies of Set, and defeated them. Set was forced to flee. The final battle was fought at Edfu, where Horus lost an eye. But Horus killed Set and cut his body into pieces. And Horus ruled as the good and just king of Egypt.

Religion and Magic in Ancient Egypt

Religion and Magic in Ancient Egypt by Rosalie David

This is a very intense book and doesn't short you on any information.  However, it isn't written to entertain or please-it is straight facts.  So while it may not be a story line format you can't complain about the wealth of detail.  This is a great book that takes the divided periods of ancient Egyptian history and has a lengthy chapter on each that covers history, religion, developments, culture changes, and anything that could possible have helped or did shape the religion of the Egyptians.  There are also two large sections containing photos of some of the main people, artifacts, and buildings discussed within the text.  This book is a great read for people either already knowing their Egyptian history or for those who need some information just on a certain time period.  I suggest using this book as you go through the periods of Egyptian history, not just a straight read.  The reason I suggest both of these ways of using the book is because if you can't keep up you'll be lost within half a page.  If you have no previous knowledge that has good grounding you will not be able to just do a straight read.  But if you use it as sections it makes a great almost text-book!

Hatshepsut

Hatshepsut is one of the most well known female rulers of Egypt.  Ruler in the 18th dynasty, Hatshepsut, meaning Foremost of Noble Women, became pharaoh when her two brothers died leaving her as her father's heir.  To have a female pharaoh was unprecedented, and probably most definitely unheard of as well.   Hatshepsut managed to rule Egypt for about twenty years, just before disappearing from history which coincided with "her" son Thuthmose III becoming pharaoh in his own right.

Family

Hatshepsut was the daughter of pharaoh Tuthmose I and his chief wife Aahmes.  She was the favorite of their three children.  When Tuthmose I died, his son Tuthmose II ascended the throne, but for the few years of his reign, Hatshepsut seems to have held the reins.  Upon his death, Hatshepsut, his half sister and wife, had produced only a daughter, Neferura, and Tuthmose II had sired a son through the commoner Isis.  

Impacts

Upon Tuthmose II's death his son, Tuthmose III, was in line for the throne, but due to his young age Hatshepsut was allowed to reign as queen dowager.  The pair "ruled" together for years until Hatshepsut finally proclaimed herself Pharaoh (it is assumed that she did this when Thuthmose III was reaching manhood).  This was unheard of, even with the higher status of women in Egypt compared to women in other cultures at the time.  However, before Hatshepsut, there were queens who had ruled Egypt, but none were a female Pharaoh.

Hatshepsut had many obstacles to overcome. The threat of revolt was always present, especially as her bitter nephew came of age.  She had to use propaganda and keen political skills.  Hatshepsut dressed in the traditional garb of male rulers: the shendyt kilt, the nemes headdress with its uraeus and khat head cloth, and the false beard.  Hatshepsut fought no wars during her reign.  Instead, she ordered expeditions to the land of Punt (present-day Somalia) in search of the ivory, animals, spices, gold and aromatic trees that Egyptians coveted. Hatshepsut emphasized not only her relationship to Tuthmose I her father, but her favor as having, as she claimed, to have been handpicked by her father above her two brothers.  Her last effort to be recognized as a legitimate Pharaoh, Hatshepsut constructed a fabulous temple in the Valley of the Kings by a tall plateau at Deir-el-Bahri, across the Nile from Thebes.  To keep control of the Egyptian empire for nearly 20 years Hatshepsut indeed was a master politician and an elegant stateswoman with total charisma.  

As Tuthmose III grew Hatshepsut's sovereignty grew tenuous.  Whether Tuthmose III killed Hatshepsut and Senmut (Hatshepsut's consort) is questionable but likely. Since he paid little respect to her in death, it is quite possible he paid even less in life.  But no matter how she died, we do know that she just disappear from history.

Death

The death of Hatshepsut remains a mystery.  Hatshepsut died, either as she was approaching or just entering middle age, and no record of her cause of death has survived.  It is believed that the hatred for his stepmother pushed Tuthmose III to erase her memory, existence, and any depictions of Hatshepsut by destroying any monuments erected during her reign.  While her temple still stands, her tomb nor her mummy have been found.   One of Hatshepsut's canopic jars was found, the one containing her liver. 

The recent identification of mummy in KV60 shows through CT scans indicate that the mummy died of metastatic bone cancer in the 50s.  In March 2006, Dr. Zahi Hawass claimed that this mummy was Hatshepsut, which was mislaid on the third floor of the Cairo Museum.  But in 2007 it was announced that Egyptologists believe they have identified Hatshepsut's mummy in the Valley of the Kings.  The decisive evidence was a molar in a wooden box inscribed with Hatshepsut's name.  It was found in 1881 in a cache of royal mummies hidden away for safekeeping in a near-by temple.