Egyptian mythology is a huge, most interesting layer in the history of the development of the whole culture as a whole, which has not yet been thoroughly studied. Scientists constantly find more and more details of the development of Egyptian civilization, make discoveries and replenish the pantheon of gods with new "characters". However, all researchers have long known the main, main gods, among them the Egyptian goddess Hathor, or Hathor. She should be told in more detail, as she is quite an interesting goddess of Ancient Egypt.
Goddess Hathor
Goddess of the sky, the sun, beauty, femininity, and also fun - all this is Hathor. She was considered the daughter of the supreme god Ra and the wife of Horus, who gave birth to the Sun from him. However, it is interesting, if the goddess Hathor is the daughter of the sun god Ra, how then did she give birth to the Sun, if it existed even before her appearance in the divine "light"? There is a lot of controversy about this, as a result, the researchers came to the conclusion that she may not be the mother of Ra, but his wife. True or not, we, alas, will never know.
Since ancient people tried to findexplanations, even the most ridiculous, for any natural phenomena, as well as objects that exist in this world, they explained the presence of the Milky Way with the milk of Hathor, who often appeared in the form of a heavenly cow. Why a cow? In Egypt, since ancient times, this animal was sacred, it symbolized the beginning of a new life, nature itself and even beauty.
What does the name of the goddess mean?
The name of the goddess from the Egyptian means either "houses" or "Horus" (the god of the sun), but still historians are inclined to believe that "Hator" is the house of Horus. Evidence of this are the drawings found during the excavations. They depicted a mountain, and on its top a house in which the falcon Horus lives. It was from this moment that scientists began to think about whether the goddess Hathor was the wife of the god Ra and whether the sun god Horus was her son? It probably was, because then everything falls into place again.
According to other sources, the name of the deity means "sky", this fact is confirmed by the connection of the goddess with the sky, the Sun and the Milky Way. In general, the ancient Egyptians often associated all the incomprehensible processes taking place in the sky with the goddess Hathor.
Appearance of Hathor
The most beautiful among the Egyptian goddesses has always been the goddess Hathor. The description tells us that she was depicted as a beautiful slender woman with horns on her head, later they transformed into a crown, between the two parts of which there was a circle, for sure it symbolized the solar disk. From time to time, Hathor appeared in drawings and frescoes with the ears and horns of a cow,in the works of some authors, she generally had the appearance of an ordinary average cow.
It often happened that a deity in the form of a woman with horns was depicted next to a cow, but these are late frescoes. Interestingly, the Egyptians did not envy the Greeks and their faith, because they had their own Aphrodite - the goddess Hathor. The photos will not convey what the believers felt for Hathor, but it is still clear that comparisons with Aphrodite are not groundless.
It is not surprising that sometimes she was depicted as a lioness, since there is one legend about Hathor Sekhmet. It says that initially Ra lived among people, but grew old and let slip that all this time he was afraid of people and is still afraid. People, without thinking twice, went to war against their master.
No matter how Ra tried to incinerate them, it was impossible to cope with the angry mob. Then Geb suggested that Hathor turn into Sekhmet - the lioness goddess and exterminate people. The goddess enjoyed killing so much that she no longer wanted to reincarnate back. Then Ra went to the trick. He turned off the Sun, Sekhmet fell asleep, and the gods prepared beer for her and added a blood-colored dye to it. The lioness woke up and drank the beer, mistaking it for blood. Drunk, she turned back into Hathor.
Symbol of Hathor
The main attribute of the goddess is sistr. This musical instrument was a protection from evil spirits, which is why its images were used as amulets. Why exactly a musical instrument is unknown, it is only known that her son was the god of music Ihi. Yes, and in someareas of Ancient Egypt, the goddess Hathor herself was considered the patroness of musicians.
In later times, a special pillar with two cow heads at the end was considered a cult symbol of Hathor, since the goddess was considered the personification of the dual female soul.
