Isis The Eternal Goddess Of Egypt And Rome – Lesley Jackson

She can do this because she has completely absorbed Hathor’s aspects. In the myth of the Destruction of Mankind Ra sends Hathor to kill the rebellious humans and she does this by transforming into the dangerous Sekhmet. When Seth appears, Isis as Sekhmet sends a blast of fire at him. Seth recognises her as Isis, we are not told why but it is probably because Sekhmet has never attacked him before. Isis changes into a dog with a knife in her tail and outruns Seth. Finally she turns into a snake and bites and poisons Seth.[295] An echo of this shapeshifting occurs in The Golden Ass.

Whilst tinkering with magic Lucius manages to transform himself into a donkey. He is unable to reverse the process and only Isis can help him. The Magic of Knowledge “Isis was a wise woman…more smart than an infinite number of gods. She was more clever than an infinite number of spirits. There was nothing she was ignorant of in heaven or on the earth.”[296] There was no disconnection between science and religion for the Egyptians. All knowledge was deemed important as it was learning about creation and this knowledge could bring you closer to the deities.

It was also prized for its own sake. Knowledge is power and learning and wisdom was considered part of magic. Indeed to the illiterate and uneducated knowledge and writing were magical. Medical knowledge and treatment were seen as a specialised branch of magic. Isis was the “Magician with divine wisdom”[297] and she is happy to share her wisdom and give advice being the “Magician with excellent councils”.[298] Isis and the Magician Sometimes the magician narrates the spell, at other times they assume the role of Isis or Thoth.

Associating with such great magicians would, in theory, intimidate the forces they were attempting to control. Psychologically it would also strengthen their confidence in the power of their speech. A Greco-Roman document refers to a “sacred scribe” in Memphis who lived in a subterranean shrine for 23 years and gained his magical powers from Isis.[299] In the tale of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, written by the Roman Lucian (120-185 CE) the sorcerer Pancrates learns the art of magic from Isis.[300] Magical Numbers There is power and symbolism in many numbers but three and seven were particularly potent for the Egyptians.

Three is an expression of plurality; from the earliest hieroglyphic writing three strokes indicated many. Unlike European cultures who have four seasons, the Egyptians had three with each month divided into three ten-day periods.

First Published by Avalonia, December 2016 This Kindle edition January 2017 Typeset and design by Satori Cover image: Winged Isis, Brian Andrews © 2016 and Photo Lui, Tat Mun/Shutterstock.com Illustrations by Brian Andrews © 2016. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. This book is sold subject to the condition that no part of it may be reproduced or utilised in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, microfilm, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, or used in another book, without written permission from the author.

OceanofPDF.com DEDICATION This book is dedicated to the Two Sisters, Isis and Nephthys, and also to Sue and Mia. OceanofPDF.com BIOGRAPHY Lesley Jackson has always had an interest in, and a yearning for, the mysterious geographical, be it lost worlds, otherworlds or the sacred places of this world. A career in IT was merely a logical façade. Many years of involvement in the local archaeological society deepened her interest in ancient cultures and their religions.

Since being blessed with early retirement, Lesley has devoted much of her time to researching and writing about early religion and mythology. Ancient Egypt is an enduring passion, but other paths are always beckoning from around the misty hills. She is the author of Thoth: The History of the Ancient Egyptian God of Wisdom (Avalonia, 2011) and Hathor: A Reintroduction to an Ancient Egyptian Goddess (Avalonia, 2013). She lives in the remote East Riding with a tolerant husband and an ever increasing volume of books and rocks.

Any remaining spare time is spent travelling or baking and making chocolates. OceanofPDF.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS No study of Egyptian religion would be possible without access to their writings. I am indebted to all of those who have studied these ancient languages and have provided translations for the rest of us to use. I would like to thank the British Library, the Egyptian Exploration Society, and the University of Hull for the use of their libraries. Quotes are included with permission of the following: J F Borghouts Ancient Egyptian Magical Texts E J Brill 1978.

© Koninklijke Brill N.V. R O Faulkner The Ancient Egyptian Coffin Texts Aris & Phillips 2007. OceanofPDF.com CHAPTER 1 OceanofPDF.com INTRODUCING ISIS “‘Who are you?’ they say to me. ‘What is your name?’ they say to me.”[1] Defining the Indefinable Isis is one of the best known of the Egyptian goddesses and so is quite hard to introduce. How do you summarise an All-Goddess? I originally titled this chapter ‘Defining Isis’ but quickly realised that was somewhat optimistic.

There are a number of questions and themes running through this book but before we can attempt to understand Isis we need to get to know her in more depth.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

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