Nephthys

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Nephthys in hieroglyphs

In Egyptian mythology, Nephthys (spelled Nebet-het, and Nebt-het, in transliteration from Egyptian hieroglyphs) is one of the Ennead of Heliopolis, a daughter of Nut and Geb, and the sister/wife of Set.

Nephthys was known in ancient Egyptian temple theologies and cosmologies as "The Useful Goddess" or the "Excellent Goddess" because she represented divine assistance on a number of levels. Nephthys was also a ferocious, potentially dangerous divinity, capable of incinerating the enemies of the Pharaoh with her fiery breath. As the "nursing mother" of the god Horus, Nephthys was also considered to be the nurse of the Pharaoh himself. These protective qualities made her a goddess of great flexibility who did not, as is often stated, live constantly in the shadow of her sister, Isis. Moreover, Nephthys was one of the few goddesses especially associated with the sacred sistrum rattle because she was indeed the tutelary goddess of the seventh Nome of Upper Egypt. This nome and its city, Hwt, were considered (at least by Greco-Roman times)to be the particular "fiefdom of Nephthys."

[edit] Etymology

Nephthys is a goddess of undetermined origin, but contrary to many erroneous claims, her Egyptian name did not, in any way, mean "Lady of the House" as referring to the profane human domicile. As a goddess of ancient Egypt, Nephthys had little or nothing to do with the domestic dwelling. Rather, her name means, quite specifically, "Lady of the Temple Enclosure," which likely indicates the association of this goddess with one particular temple or some specific aspect of the Egyptian temple that is now partially lost to modern understanding. We do know, at least that (along with her sister Isis) Nephthys represented the temple pylon or the great flagstaff heralding the Divine Dwelling.

[edit] Function

By the time of the Dynasty V Pyramid Texts, Nephthys appears as a goddess of the Heliopolis cosmic family, the female companion of the war-like deity Set. She is likewise the counterpart of her sister Isis in her capacity as a protective goddess who symbolized the transitional death experience, just as Isis represented the transitional birth experience. In the funerary role, Nephthys was often depicted as a kite, a milan falcon, or as a woman with a falcon's wings, usually outstretched as a symbol of protection. She was almost without fail depicted as crowned by the hieroglyphics signifying her name, which were a combination of signs for the sacred temple enclosure (hwt), along with the sign for neb,or "mistress (Lady)," atop the enclosure.

Because Set represented the barren desert, he was generally viewed as a sterile deity. Therefore, Nepthys was, in some districts, seen as a childless entity as well. Her early association with the kite or the Egyptian hawk (and its piercing, mournful cries), reminded the ancients of the lamentations offered for the dead by wailing women, and thus Nephthys was associated with death and putrefaction from the earliest known epoch.

Indeed, in the Pyramid Texts her hair is compared to the strips of linen that enshroud the deceased Pharaoh, who is encouraged to "break free" from the tresses of Nephthys and ascend to the afterlife. In this sense, Nephthys was viewed as an ominous but crucial impediment; the Pharaoh becomes strong for his journey to the afterlife by breaking free from Nephthys. The same could be applied later to all of the dead, who considered Nephthys as a necessary companion. According to the Pyramid Texts, Nephthys, along with Isis, was a force before whom demons trembled in fear, and whose magical spells were necessary for navigating the various levels of Duat, or the afterlife. In a similar vein, Nephthys was not viewed as the polar opposite of Isis, but rather as a different reflection of the same reality: eternal life in transition. Thus, Nephthys was seen as occupying the night-bark on the journey of Ra, the sun god, particularly when he entered Duatat the transitional time of dusk, or twilight. Isis was his companion at the coming of dawn.

Nephthys plays an important role in the Osirian myth-cycle, for it is her magical power in conjunction with that of Isis that not only reconstitutes and resurrects the body of Osiris, but serves to fiercely protect and nurture the child Horus. In Egyptian temples, the magical powers that kept chaos at bay were intrinsically linked to the protection of the Osirian "mummy" residing in each temple. As part of the crucial protective dyad, Nephthys was essential to the maintenance of ma'at, or balance for the good of temple, town, kingdom, and royal household. Though Nephthys was normally depicted in myth as being estranged from Set and loyal to Osiris and Isis, she was nevertheless worshipped as Set's companion and, in many localities, she shared both his fearsome and his ribald attributes.

Again, Nephthys was a goddess with far more flexibility than many researches have previously bothered to note. As a mortuary goddess, she was one of the four protectresses of the sacred Canopic Jars and of the genii Hapi, in particular. Hapii guarded the embalmed lungs, and as Mistress, Nephthys was a goddess capable of delivering the "breath of life" to the deceased via her wings. In the city of Memphis, Nephthys was honored with the title "Queen of the Embalmer's Shop," and elsewhere associated with the dog-headed god Anubis, who in some myths is considered to be her offspring via an illicit relationship with Osiris, when sister Isis wasn't watching. Other myth-cycles and inscriptions, however, describe Anubis as the offspring of the goddess Hesat, or of a union between Nephthys and Ra.

Nephthys' greatest role was clearly as the stalwart companion of Isis. Because of the power shared between the two sisters, the ancient Egyptians naturally had great recourse to Nephthys. She was quite often described in temple texts as a youthful, nubile, and beautiful young goddess, which would facilitate her later identification with Hathor. At the same time, Nephthys was a particularly festive deity whose temple rites and feasts included the liberal consumption of beer. In various texts, Nephthys is shown offering the Pharaoh beer "to make him happy" and using her magic to prevent any possibilty of "hangover." Elsewhere, Nephthys is a goddess who gives the Pharaoh power to see "that which is hidden by moonlight." This fits well with textual themes that consider Nephthys to be a goddess whose unique domain was darkness, or the edge of the desert.

[edit] The Cult of Nephthys

Contrary to the majority of commentators, Nephthys was not a neglected goddess in ancient Egypt who possessed no temple or worship of her own. Indeed, relatively recent archaeological excavations have shed new light upon this normally underrated divinity.

The Ramessid Pharaohs were particularly devoted to Set and Nephthys and, in the 19th Dynasty built or refurbished a temple of Nephthys in the town of Sepermeru, midway between Oxyrhynchos and Herakleopolis, near the Fayyum. Here, as Papyrus Wilbour notes, Nephthys boasted a hierarchical priesthood of her own; two prophets and a wa'ab priest are mentioned in taxation records for "Nepthys of Sepermeru." The foundations of her temple there were uncovered in the 1980s alongside the foundations of a temple to her spouse.

Nephthys was also, in Egyptian mythology and temple rites, considered the unique protectress of the Sacred Phoenix, or the Bennu Bird. In this capacity, she was given the name Nephthys-Kheresket, and a wealth of temple texts from Edfu, Dendara, Philae, El Qa'la, Esna, etc. refer to Nephthys as the supreme goddess of the 7th Nome and of the Temple of the Sistrum in the city of Hwt. There, Nephthys was the great protectress of the resident Osirian relic, the Bennu Bird, and of the local Horus manifestation. The sistrum was offered specifically to Nephthys as goddess of the city and district. A priest of "Nephthys of Hwt" Diospolis Parva is indeed mentioned in the Book of the Dead preserved at the Louvre in Paris. This Book of the Dead belonged to the mummy of this particular priest.

There is a temple of Nephthys at Komir in Upper Egypt, between Esna and El Kab. In this town, Nephthys was associated with the goddess Anukis. At Komir, Nephthys was honored especially for her role as the chief protectress of the Osirian relic at nearby Esna. The ruined sanctuary at Komir preserves two niches--one for Nephthys and one for Anukis, while the rear wall of the temple preserves an elaborate "Hymn to Nephthys" from the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius. In this hymn, the emperor notes that Nephthys is the "Mistress of many festivals...who loves the day of festival, the goddess for whom men and women play the tambourine."

There was also a cult of Nephthys at Qaw El Kebir or Antaeopolis, where the goddess was worshipped as the companion of the warrior deity Antiwey, a fusion of Horus and Set. A "prophet of Nephthys" is attested for this town by the Chicago Stelaand to this day a curious painting of Nephthys and Antaeus can be found etched into the cliffsides near the site.

At Edfu, Nephthys was one of the chief deities and owned her own Festival Day called "The Heart of Nephthys Rejoices." Nephthys was a dangerous goddess at Edfu, associated with Sekhmet and Mehyt, and her fiery breath is one of the forces that protect the sanctuary. She is also associated here with the goddess Seshat, Mistress of the Temple Library and Keeper of Royal Annals. Many scholars agree that Seshat is indeed a derivative or subordinate form of Nephthys.

Elsewhere, Nephthys was worshipped in temples at Kharga, Kellis, and Daklah Oasis dedicated to triads of Osiris, Isis and Nephthys, but likewise in temples of Set. Nephthys was indeed one of the "Lords (or "Mistresses") of the Oases." She was one of the four great deities (or "chiefs") of the temple at Busiris, and was likewise venerated at Dendera, El Qa'la, Philae, Su, Thebes, and Shenhur.