- Cult Center: A
temple is dedicated to her on the Island of Philae, near
the first cataract. She is revered throughout Egypt.
- Attributes:
Isis is one of the earliest and most important goddess in ancient
Egypt. She was regarded as the feminine counterpart to Osiris, a
role she probably occupied before the dawn of dynastic Egypt. No other
Egyptian deity has stood the test of time as well as Isis. Her cult was
not extinguished with the other Egyptian gods, but was embraced by the
Greeks and Romans, her worship has even lasted into the present day.
She was revered by the Egyptian people as
the great mother-goddess and represents the maternal spirit in its most
intimate form. She is often seen suckling a young Horus. In the Osiris legend
she is seen as a dutiful wife, a grieving widow and as a protector of
the dead.
As a winged goddess she may represent the
wind. In the Osiris legend there are references to Isis wailing and
moaning like the wind. She is also continually travelling up and down
the land in search of her lost husband. Upon finding Osiris' body, she
takes the shape of one of the swiftest birds, a kite. Flapping and
darting above his dead body she wails in mourning. She restores life to
Osiris by flapping her wings and filling his mouth and nose with air.
Isis was a great enchantress, the goddess
of magic. Together with Thoth, she taught mankind the secrets of medicine. She was the
embalmer and gaurdian of Osiris. She is often rendered on the foot
of coffins with long wings spread to protect the deceased.
- Representation: A woman wearing on her head the hieroglyphic symbol of her
name, which represents a throne or seat. Often seen wearing horns and a
solar disk on her head. Sometimes she is pictured with wings, It is
noteworthy that she is one of only a few deities that we find with
wings in ancient Egyptian mythology.
- Relations:
Daughter of Nut and Geb. Sister of Osiris, Nephthys, and Seth. Wife of Osiris. Mother of Horus.
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