Egyptian Mythology: The Creation Myth of the Ancient Egyptians

Egyptian Mythology is a collection of mythology that have its origins in ancient Egypt, which existed from at least 4000 BC to 30 BC. The end came with Cleopatra VII, the last Ptolemaic Egyptian Queen. As it appears to be a precursor to some of the developments Egypt underwent in the years that followed. Myths appear frequently in Egyptian literature and art, especially in short stories and in religious works like ritual texts, hymns, burial texts, and dramatic plays also performed at temple decorations.

Now that you mention it, do you want to know if ancient Egyptians witnessed plays being performed? I’ll answer that this is without a doubt true. The most convincing evidence you will discover in the temple decorations and painted sceneries on the walls is that the ancient Egyptians mostly told tales and myths. There is nothing wrong with producing literary works like stories and plays. But there isn’t much debate over those old plays, especially among scholars.

Humanity’s existence was only seen as a little portion of the path leading to eternity by the Egyptians. The appearance before the court of Osiris is only one of the many phases that the deceased goes through. Over the course of such trips, supernatural agencies and the deities, angels, and saints represented by the name “Nethr /Netr” coordinated and ruled.

In Egyptian religious beliefs, eternity represented the goal and destiny of all human life—a stage of existence in which mortals could achieve everlasting bliss. An individual’s existence in this world serves as both a gateway to something better and a stop along the path to endless life. The Egyptians believed in an afterlife that was a reflection of life on earth, especially in Egypt. It’s interesting to learn that the phrase “as on earth as it is in sky/ heaven” was first used by the ancient Egyptians. One had to live their life right if one wanted to enjoy the rest of their everlasting journey.

The Creation of the World According to the Ancient Egyptians:

It is crucial to understand right away that the ancient Egyptians’ thoughts on the Nile River’s path, it's flooding, and the subsidence of its waters had a significant influence on their philosophy and their beliefs regarding the start and genesis of the creation of the world.

At the beginning of that adventure, the cosmos and the planet emerged from the swirling uncertainty and obscurity, in the middle of the eternal ocean, [Nun.] There was once nothing but endless, dark water, without shape or function. From this chaos, Ben-Ben (the eternal hill) emerged; Atum resided atop this hill [Atum is the oldest name, sometimes called Ptah, in other narrations.]

Atum became aware of his loneliness as he looked at the void. In the middle of the mayhem, Atum experienced loneliness. He also became aware of his extraordinary skills, which created havoc. He made the decision to have two children or produce offspring, Tefnut [the goddess of moisture, whom Atum spit it out,] and Shu [god of air, whom Atum sneezed it out]. Tefnut gave forth the rules of the order, and Shu gave out the rules of living.

The siblings were born and set forth to build the world, leaving their father aboard the Ben-Ben. As his kids took their time getting home, Atum’s anxiety eventually took control. One of his eyeballs was dispatched to search for them. Shu and Tefnut finally arrived, and despite the fact that Atum had lost one eye, he was ecstatic to see them. Seeing them again brought him relief.

Atum’s tears fell upon the rich, dark soil of Ben-Ben, and so were born women and men. Because of this, a man was declared unqualified to be an immortal creature.

I’ve thus offered one of the most succinct summaries of the ancient Egyptian origin myth for the world and humanity in this short post. Some of the Myth of the ancient Egyptians will be discussed in more detail in a subsequent essay.