Egypt. Along with the Greek and Roman civilizations, it is probably the most renowned and most fascinating civilization of the ancient world that has developed within the territories surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.

Land of pharaohs and mummies, the Egyptian people enjoy a great variety of myths and legends of great antiquity that seek to explain the world view of the once powerful empire on the banks of the Nile. That is why throughout this article we will explore the idiosyncrasies of these people through a brief selection of Egyptian legends .

A dozen Egyptian legends

Below we offer you a series of ten beautiful stories from Egyptian civilization, which allow us to briefly visualize the symbolism, values and ways of approaching the reality of that people and culture.

1. The Myth of Creation

Like other cultures, Egyptian culture also has its own version of the creation of the universe and the world in which we live. In fact, there are three known versions depending on the city that generated it and the deities it worshipped. One of them is the Iunu, later known as Heliopolis, which is known for being the city where the cult of the god Ra as a primordial deity emerged and prevailed.

The legend says that in the beginning there was only an immense and infinite ocean called Nun, which remained motionless and totally asleep. Neither heaven nor earth, neither plants nor animals nor man existed. Only Nun, which contained all possible elements. But one day, the world became aware of itself and its situation, giving itself the name of Ra . This would be the first god, who in the beginning was alone in the middle of the ocean. But little by little he began to create: his breath would become the god Shu, the air, and his saliva the god of humidity Tefnut.

He then created an island or land to rest on, which he called Egypt, and at the birth of the water he decided to create the Nile to feed it. With the elements of the great ocean Ra he created the different living beings.

Shu and Tefnut, at another point in Nun, had children, the deity Geb of the Earth, and Nut, of Heaven . Both sons had relations and their father Shu, jealous, decided to separate them by holding the first one under his feet and the second one over his head. From the union of both gods would be born the stars and the rest of deities.

When his creation was over, the god Ra sent one of his eyes to look for his offspring, but this eye would be found to return that the god had grown a new one. In desperation, the eye began to cry, creating its tears to the first human beings. The god Ra, seeing his pain, placed it on his forehead: the Sun had been created.

2. The Legend of Sinuhé

Another of the legends of the Egyptian people is found in the legend of Sinuhé, in which we are told of the fear of judgment and suspicion and the desire to return home.

Legend has it that Pharaoh Amenemhet was killed by a plot of his servants, his firstborn and most likely successor being absent from the army when his death occurred. Upon the Pharaoh’s death, messengers were sent in search of him .

One of the Pharaoh’s trusted men was Sinuhé, who did not know about the plot that ended his master’s life until he heard one of the messengers tell the causes of death to one of the Amenemhat’s sons. Frightened and believing that despite having nothing to do with it he would be accused of being an accomplice, he made the decision to flee and leave the country.

Sinuhé left the country and went into the desert, where he spent days losing his energy to the point of fainting. When he woke up he found himself surrounded by Bedouins, who looked after him. The king of these, Amunenshi, offered to stay with them after explaining his situation. The king offered him the hand of his daughter, whom Sinuhé married and had children, as well as land . He achieved great wealth and fame, also reaching the rank of general and even leading a conflict with one of the best warriors in the area who challenged him, managing to defeat him thanks to his great cunning.

However, as Sinuhé grew older, he longed more and more for Egypt, often praying that he might return and die there. In his home country Seshostris I, the eldest son of the slain pharaoh, now reigned , after several years of hard struggle with his brothers to gain and maintain power. The new pharaoh was informed of the situation of his father’s former trusted man, and sent for him, indicating that he could return and that he knew of his innocence.

Happy and after dividing his goods among his offspring, Sinuhé returned to Egypt to be received by Pharaoh, who made him his advisor and gave him a house worthy of a prince, as well as a tomb among the members of the royal family. Sinuhé spent the rest of his life in his service, being able to fulfill his wish to die in his native country and with great honor.

3. The legend of Isis and the seven scorpions

Appreciation, hospitality, compassion and respect are elements that were also present in Egyptian culture and mythology, as we can see in the legend of Isis and the seven scorpions.

The legend says that the god Seth deeply envied his brother Osiris, who was married to the goddess Isis and would have a son with her, Horus. Seth, prey to hatred and indignation, tried to separate him , and captured and locked up Isis and Horus in order to harm his brother.

Seeing the situation, the god of wisdom Thot decided to help them, sending seven scorpions named Tefen, Befen, Mestat, Matet, Petet, Mestefef and Tetet in order to protect them. Isis and Horus escaped, followed by their protectors, and undertook a long flight until they reached the city of Per-sui . There they found Usert, a woman of good standing and great wealth to whom they asked for help and refuge. However, Usert, seeing the presence of the seven scorpions and fearing their attack, closed the door to the goddess and her son.

Isis and Horus went on their way, exhausted, until they finally found a poor woman who, despite the presence of the scorpions, received the deities and sought their help and hospitality. With their protégée safe, the scorpions decided to take revenge on Usert for having refused Isis his help. During the night, the seven joined their poisons in the tail of Tefen . He entered the woman’s house and stung her son, causing him to become seriously ill from the poison. In addition, he caused a fire

Usert sought help, in desperation at the state of his little boy. His pleas reached Isis, who, seeing that the child was not at fault and feeling sorry for Usert’s situation, came to his aid. With the help of her powerful magic, the sky opened and a rain fell, which extinguished the flames, and later ordered the poison to leave the child’s body. Usert’s son healed and recovered . The woman, ashamed and deeply grateful, gave her fortune to the goddess and the poor woman who had helped her.

4. The Lost Army of Cambises II

Some of the Egyptian legends refer to the disappearance of enemy armies that dared to attack the lands of the empire. One of them tells us specifically about the lost army of Cambises II, which truly existed and which also in real life ended up vanishing (disappearance that remains a mystery, although there is speculation about different causes).

Legend has it that the Persian King Cambises II intended to conquer Egypt. However, the oracle of the Siwa region predicted that if the king tried to conquer this territory he would be condemned, something that made the Persian take the decision to march for it through the White Desert to conquer and destroy the oracle and invade the Siwa oasis . King Cambises sent a total of fifty thousand men for this task.

However, the army never reached its destination, vanishing along its path through the desert . One version of this legend tells us that the desert djinns turned them into the strange rock formations that can be seen in the White Desert, while other sources indicate that a great sandstorm caused their disappearance.

5. Pharaoh Dyoser and the Flooding of the Nile

The Nile was always the main source of water and life in the territory of the Egyptian Empire, providing most of the region’s fresh water. That is why any disturbance that caused a lack of water would be a great danger, and on the other hand the river’s floods were received as a blessing. That is why the following legend exists.

Legend has it that the people of Egypt had fallen into great misfortune and suffered severe hardship because the Nile did not have enough water to irrigate the fields, resulting in the progressive appearance of hunger and despair. Pharaoh Dyoser, deeply concerned, consulted his advisor the great Imhotep regarding a possible solution to the water problem and asked him to help him find a solution.

The counselor and magician then went to the temple of the god of wisdom, Thot, investigating the sacred books, and after that he went again to the pharaoh. He told him that the source of the river was located between two caves on the island of Elephantine , where the light that gave rise to the living beings of the world also appeared. Both caves were guarded by the god Jnum, who retained the water of the Nile with his feet, created all beings and made the wheat and minerals grow.

The pharaoh went to the island and prayed and implored the god, without getting any answer, until finally he fell asleep. During his sleep, the god appeared to him and asked him the reason for his affliction. The pharaoh indicated his fear for his people and the lack of water and food, to which the god indicated he was angry due to the lack of construction and repair of temples despite the many gifts and materials he provided. After saying this the god Jnum decided to open the door to the waters of the river , which slept in the form of a snake under his sandals. The pharaoh promised to build him a temple on the same island. Finally the god released the serpent, and with it came a great flooding of the river.

Upon awakening, the pharaoh could observe that the waters of the river had greatly increased his cause, in addition to the fact that at his feet rested a tablet with a prayer to the god Jnum that would later be engraved in the temple that, as he promised, he would later build.

6. The secret name of Ra

One of the relevant characteristics of the Egyptian culture was the great relevance given to the name, which according to the beliefs of that people gave great power over the person and allows to understand the interior of that being. In fact, at birth a person was given up to three names, only one of which was shared at a public level. One of the legends is aimed precisely at speaking about the secret name of one of the main Egyptian gods: Ra .

Legend has it that on one occasion when an old god Ra began to lose power and faculties, the other gods began to crave his power. The god had multiple names, but there was one that was not known by anyone and from which he extracted most of his power. The goddess Isis wanted to know that name, because she wanted the throne and Ra’s gifts for her future son Horus.

In her wisdom the goddess devised a plan to achieve knowledge of that name, the secret and true name of the deity. She began to collect the salivary effluvium of Ra and by mixing it with earth the goddess gave birth to the first of the cobras, to later throw it in the path of her father.

The cobra bit and poisoned Ra, before which Isis offered to cure him in exchange for him telling her what his true and secret name was (hidden even from the gods themselves). The god accepted on the condition that Isis swore not to reveal it to anyone but Horus, something to which he agreed and after which he made the poison come out of the god and that he recovered. Ra shared her true name with her and her son, thus giving them great power and the future throne of Egypt.

7. The Seven Hathors

It is named after Hathor, one of the most famous deities of the Egyptian pantheon, who is considered the deity of love and joy as well as music and dance. And one of the Egyptian legends that we are going to comment has to do with his seven daughters, who guess and warn of the destiny of newborn babies and who are the protagonists of a story in which we can observe the belief of the Egyptians in the strength of a pre-established destiny that cannot be changed in spite of their own actions.

Legend has it that there was once a Pharaoh and his partner who had been waiting for a long time to conceive a child, without any success. After many years of praying and trying, the deities decided to give them a child. When the child was born the seven hathores came quickly to tell their parents the future that awaited the baby . However, they predicted that the child would die during his youth at the hands of a terrible beast: a dog, a crocodile or a snake.

In order to try to avoid such an end, the pharaoh built a palace far away in which to keep his son during all his growth , something that as the little one grew up he saw as something similar to a prison. The prince asked his father to grant him the desire to have a dog, which despite some reluctance he ended up giving in to the idea that he could not pose any great danger.

But although dog and prince became attached and maintained a close emotional relationship, the young man needed to go out into the world and ended up running away from the palace with the animal. They went to an unknown city, where the prince met Princess Naharin. This princess was also locked up by her own father, who would only let her out if someone managed to get to her in one jump. The prince managed to do so, and in time he managed to marry this princess and tell her the prediction of the goddesses.

The princess dedicated herself from then on to caring for and protecting the prince from his fate. One day she managed to kill a snake that was trying to kill him, after which it was given to the dog as food. But soon after, the dog began to change and become aggressive, attacking its owner. The youngster jumped into the river waters to save himself.

I was there when a large crocodile appeared in the waters , but fortunately for the prince it was old and exhausted, accepting not to devour it if it helped him to defeat the waters. After that the young man came to the surface, being attacked again by the dog and having to kill him to defend himself. The prince, seeing the dog dead and the snake and crocodile having inhabited it, thought himself safe. However, while he was celebrating, the snake came out of the dog’s body and bit him, killing him with its venom as predicted.

8. The death of Osiris

Probably one of the best known myths of Ancient Egypt is the assassination of Osiris, his resurrection and the birth of Horus, which tell us about family problems and fratricide as an instrument to reach power, as well as the conflict between order and chaos.

The myth explains that Osiris was initially the governor of the territory of Egypt , being the eldest son of Nut and Geb. His brother Seth had great hatred and resentment against him, according to some versions for having had relations with his partner Nephthys, and decided to take his life. One day, at a party, Seth brought a coffin which would be kept by the person who fit into it, being only Osiris who could fit inside. After entering the sarcophagus, Seth locked him up and threw him into the river, where he died.

Osiris’ wife, Isis, set out to recover the body, to which Seth responded by dismembering it and separating its various parts. Seth, upon the death of his brother, took power . Isis, with the help of other deities, managed to gather all or almost all the parts of her husband’s body and after mummifying it later brought him back to life. She then copulated with her husband, a union that would lead to the birth of Horus. Osiris’ return to life would bring with it a change: he would go from being a god of life to being a deity linked to eternal life and the preservation and guidance of the dead in the afterlife.

Likewise, his son Horus and his brother Seth would also face each other for the throne for years, with multiple conflicts in which both are injured and resulting in victory of these Horus, who would obtain the legacy of his father.

9. The legend of the origin of the Egyptian calendar

The Egyptian civilization already had a calendar that consisted of a total of 365 days, which is the protagonist of another of the great Egyptian myths and legends that we are dealing with in this article.

Legend has it that the years originally consisted of only 360 days. At one stage of creation when Ra was ruling, it was predicted that his granddaughter Nut would have relations with Geb , which according to the prophecy would result in a son taking power away from her. The young woman was already pregnant, so in order to avoid this Ra placed a curse on Nut, so that she could not have children on any day of the year. The deity was desperate, but the god Thot came to her aid and devised a method to enable her to do so.

Thot went to the moon god Jonsu, with whom he proceeded to play betting time and moonlight. Thot won on multiple occasions , so that throughout the game he managed to buy enough time to create five days. These days, which were not part of the year, could be used by Nut to give birth to her children. And so the goddess was able to give birth to Osiris, Seth, Isis and Nephthys, of whom Osiris would take his father’s place.

10. The story of the eloquent farmer

There are also some legends or stories that tell us not about the deities and pharaohs but about the plain and peasant people. One of them is the story of the eloquent peasant, a story that arose at the time of the beginning of the Middle Empire .

Legend has it that once upon a time there was a poor, honest, hard-working peasant who lived with his family in the salt oasis. This peasant needed to travel often to sell different products, and on one of his trips to the market a local lieutenant warned her not to pass by his property. While the two men discuss the animals carrying the goods, they eat food from the lieutenant’s land, who uses it as an excuse to keep the animals and the goods they carry.

Faced with this, the peasant went to the city of Heliopolis, where the representative of the Pharaoh Rensi was settled at that time. There the peasant explained to him what had happened and protested energetically and with great eloquence against the corruption shown by the lieutenant. The lieutenant’s way of expressing himself caught the attention of Rensi and the pharaoh, the case being extended too far in order to obtain the maximum possible information from the man, as well as in view of the interest caused by his oratory.

Finally, it was decided that justice would be served by having his possessions returned to him, and that the lieutenant would become his slave, and his belongings would also become the property of the peasant.

Bibliographic references:

  • Albalat, D. (2006). Egyptian civilization. Myths and legends. Jornades de Foment de la Investigació. Universitat Jaume I.
  • Armour, R.A. (2004). Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt. Alianza Editorial, Madrid, Spain.