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Goddess Isis in Polytheistic Pantheon
Isis is an Egyptian goddess in their polytheistic pantheon. Isis was the goddess of rebirth in ancient Egypt. She is the most familiar goddess images and remains to be the absolute femininity. The name Iris meant throne. This is because the goddess was initially an incomprehensible goddess who had no devoted temples, but was embraced as the rule of law was practiced in ancient Egypt. Due to the familiarity of the goddess in the Egyptian spiritual past, this paper will explore the goddess Isis. The discussion on Isis will examine her description and the way she interacted with people. Moreover, the discussion will present three versions of the goddess Isis to understand more about how they compare with the original version of Isis.
Isis Place in the Pantheon
In the pantheon, Isis occupied a significant position in the Egyptian pantheon as a mother god. In the multiplicity of the gods of Egypt, she was the caring goddess, who was the mother of god Horus. According to Hart (2008), the goddess Isis was also a daughter of the god of the Earth, Geb, who was married to the goddess of the Overarching Sky called Nut. Apart from being the mother of god Horus, Isis was considered to be the god that took the motherly nature for the gods and also the universe (Mercantante, 2002). This perhaps creates the importance and the significance of the worship of Isis in the ancient Egyptian culture.
One major aspect that made Isis the goddess stand out in the pantheon is her features and significance she created in the ancient society. Isis was believed to be the god connecting the earth and the spiritual world represented by the sky (Hart, 2008). This is because she was born from the union of the god of the earth and the goddess of the sky. At the same time, it is believed so because she was thought to have been born on the first day in one of the early years of creation (Mercantante, 2002). This makes her place in the pantheon not only significant to the polytheistic deities, but also among the mortals.
At the same time, Isis takes a strong and influential role in all the other gods of Egypt that comes from her. This is evidenced by the fact that her characteristics are embodied in all the lesser gods that come after her. According to Witt (1997), Isis became the model that the gods that came after her followed across the generations. This influence of the model of other deities did not only reflect the Egyptian culture, but also in the other traditional religions. This explains the emergence of various versions of the goddess Isis in Roman and Greek cultures.
In description, Isis is a female goddess represented by an average statue of a mid-height shape of a goddess. She is considered to be the patroness of magic and nature as well as the guider of the natural causes. She is considered to be the god in the throne as her name Isis means “throne” to show that she patrons the throne (Mercantante, 2002). She takes the magical powers of making life, as she was responsible for the resurrection of Osiris, her brother god, whom she married and bore Horus with (Hart, 2008). This was created by the myth, which influenced the belief that the Nile flooded from the tears Isis cried when Osiris had been murdered. As a result, the myth of Isis as a caring goddess developed, which cemented her influence and interaction with the people.
How Isis interacted with humans
In the entire polytheistic pantheon, Isis is the most interactive with human beings and so, the most familiar. This is because she was the one who interacted more with the people than the other gods (Mercantante, 2002). First, she was considered to be not only the mother of the gods, but also a mother figure to the universe. As a mother, she used to teach the people how to farm and how to read (Forrest, 2001). In addition, she used to teach the wisdom of medicine and healing. This made her a favorite of the people and created her a lot of followers.
Another level of interaction with humans was her relation to women. Amongst other many goddesses was the only goddess that was more involved with her women’s day to day activities. She used to teach women’s activities like grinding corn, spinning of flax, weaving of clothes and even the art of making bread (Forrest, 2001). Her knowledge of these activities, and teaching them, made her gain the belief that she was the goddess of art. This goddess also had time to help the married women tame their husbands.
Another level of interaction was the friendship Isis formed by the less fortunate people in the society. Isis was a friend to the slaves, the sinners and even the artisans (Mercantante, 2002). She had a good heart to listen to the downtrodden as she felt more care for them. In addition, Isis interacted with the people when they were grief-stricken by the loss of their loved ones. According to Forrest (2001), this is because she is the mother of Horus, a deity who is believed to be the god of the dead. Horus became the god of the dead, because Isis hid him in the underworld after he was born. It is believed that she hid him in the Nile Delta marshes. This further connected Isis with the people of Egypt who relied on the Nile as the source of water.
While sis interacted and loved the less fortunate, she on the other hand, listened to the wealthy people in the society. She in fact interacted with the kings, as she is believed to be the mother of Horus, the deity that represents kingship (Mercantante, 2002). That rule of law was so important that it was spread to the Roman Empire and the cult subsequently became common (Forrest, 2001). That practice is still valued, although not practiced by pagans to this date. She is mostly respected by the people mourning the dead to date in those regions.
The Versions of Isis
One of the versions of Isis in the pantheon is the Greek version. This is the version that is closest to the original version of Isis as the mother goddess and the patron of the thrown. In Greek, her name was written with cryptograms of a throne and considered a royalty (Witt, 1997). This version involved the use of symbols such as a throne, bread loaf and an egg (Mercantante, 2002). In this version, she still maintained the throne sign on her head, which certainly represented kingship. This related to the belief that she was a mother who protected the king or ruler at the time. At the same time, the egg symbol also represented her fertility and motherhood. This showed her maternal role as a mother of the god Horus (Witt, 1997).
The second version was the one maintained by the Madonna Cult in the Greco-Roman empire. Isis became a goddess in the roman beliefs and practices. This version of Isis is represented by a woman suckling a child, who is believed to be Horus (Witt, 1997). The followers of this version of Isis called themselves “Pastophori” which is believed to the origin of the modern day pastor (Witt, 1997). The word meant “Servants of Isis” as they considered her as the goddess amidst the influence of Christianity (Mercantante, 2002). However, they believed Isis to be the goddess who was seen to be “Madonna and Child” an image showing her holding her child Horus.
The third version was maintained in the vast empire where Isis was called Ceres. Ceres was a goddess maintained in the Roman Empire as the original nurturing goddess (Hart, 2008). In fact, the name Ceres meant “original nurturing parent” because of the view that she was a caring god (Witt, 1997). Just like in the version of Isis followed by the Pastophori, Ceres was seen to be a god represented by the care she took of her son; in this case Horus. However, this was a far version of Isis as Ceres is believed to another different goddess.
Conclusion
The goddess Isis is one of the most significant gods in the Egyptian ancient pantheon and religion. Her position in the pantheon is cemented in the ole she played as the patron of the throne, the mother of the gods and the mother to the people. Her position was also cemented by the interaction she had with people. This influenced her perception by the people as seen in the different versions that exist of her as a goddess. More importantly, the position of Isis is seen in the way she influenced religion in ancient Egypt, Greek and Roman societies.
References
Forrest, M. (2001). Isis Magic: Cultivating a Relationship with the Goddess of 10,000 Names. Minesota: Llewellyn Publications
Hart, G. (2008). A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. New York: Routledge
Mercantante, A. S. (2002). Who’s What in Egyptian Mythology, 2nd edition. New York: MetroBooks
Witt, R.E. (1997). Isis in the Ancient World, New York: JHU Press