Saturday, May 20, 2017

Tefnut & Shu


Who was Tefnut?
Ancient Egyptian personification of feminine energy, Tefnut was important goddess of rain, moisture, water (and from that aspect of fertility of land). She was depicted with head of lioness and holding ankh, sitting on a throne. Her name translated would mean “She of moisture”. In most wall art Tefnut appears with a sun disc and uraeus (sacred cobra) above her head. She was depicted also sometimes with a “was” scepter- symbol of authority and power over all earthly life. She was connected also with Moon energies and represented the night sky.

Who was Shu?

God twin of Tefnut (Tefen), he was her brother and husband. The ancient cosmology linked the power of Shu with his father (Creator god Atum Re) and his right eye, symbol of Sun, while Tefnut represented his left eye –the Moon. In such way the Father and his children become part of God Trinity with many functions. Shu was god responsible for wind, air and weather. His name in ancient Egyptian meant “Feather” (shua) and also “light”, “Space”. In this way he was also personification of cosmic light and sun beams, that travel through the air. 

Symbolically Tefnut (rain, water) is connected with Shu, the cosmic air (wind) in sacred Union. They represent the higher atmosphere that spread from the power of their father Atum Re.

Shu was identified with feather symbol.
He was depicted with head of lion, ostrich feather above his head and holding an ankh. 

Shu and his twin sister lioness –Tefnut became the first Egyptian gods of dead and underworld. They created the foundations of the home, where the dead souls will dwell (called later “Gate of the pillars of Shu”). The god of wind also had the role of punishing the wicked souls in Duat, he was participant in the sacred “Hall of two truths”, where the heart was judged on the Maat` s scales.

Tefnut had important role to supply drinking water for the souls of deceased in Underworld. So she ruled also over the dead and afterlife. Other names she was famous were: “Lady of the Flame”, “Uraeus on the head of all Gods” – they give her strong qualities of protection. She takes part in the ceremony of justification of heart in the Duat and one of 42 judges for the soul. Her city of worship was on the Nile delta, it Egyptian name was Taremu, and Greek name – Leontopolis –city of Lion headed gods. Other famous solar and lion deities were: Bastet, Sekhmet.

Children of Shu and Tefnut were Nut (goddess of sky, stars and moon) and Geb (god of earth, land, soil).
Shu and Tefnut represented the feminine and masculine cosmic energies, united from power of Atum Re – Sun and Moon, left eye of Ra, the right eye of Ra, cosmic moisture (connected with primordial ocean) and cosmic wind, air (connected with primordial creation of air and light traveling through atmosphere). All the pantheon of first gods laid the foundations of and evolves in other gods and goddesses later.
These first primordial gods (Atum Re –Shu-Tefnut) exist in the magical creative power of Triangle – or transforming universal Fire. 

[ nina Lea-nura * ]
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