The Egyptian Gods their main centers of worship and some festival days

Please note - Festival days are not historically
correct but an estimation compiled from several sources.

Het-Hert/Hathor

Names Ancient Kemetic name: Het-Hert, Greek: Hathor. Her name means "House of Horus", or "Mansion of Horus". Het-Hert was known by many names; she was the 'Lady in the Sky' whose womb protected the hawk god, she was the 'Celestial Cow' or 'Lady of the Southern Sycamore'. The epiteth 'Eye of Re' she shares with several other goddesses, like Bast, Sekhmet, Aset and Mut. Another one was 'Lady to the Limit', by which is meant the then known universe. Earliest appearance: Originally a universal cow-goddess and symbolic mother of Pharaoh. Thereto she was the daughter of Ra. The ancient Egyptians often chose animals to symbolize a deity´s properties, and as the wild cow was very protective about its calves, it was therefore a perfect ideal for maternal protectiveness and so was used in depictions for Het-Hert and Bat. Cow-goddesses seem to have been prominent in Predynastic times, but since there were no hieroglyphs at tis early time, this cult could belong either to Het-Hert or to Bat, the cow-horned deity who is said to be depicted on the Narmer Palette (ca 3000 bc.). From the Early Dynastic Period, there is an ivory plaque showing either Het-Hert or Bat between two symbols of Min. Some relief blocks from the temple at Gebelein date probably to the reign of Khasekhemwy or from the 3rd Dynasty. The absence of hieroglyphs make it impossible to know for sure which deity is referred to. What we know is that the earliest representations of Het-Hert are dated to the 4th Dynasty but these do not show bovine forms. In the 4th Dynasty, Het-Hert was described in the Pyramid Texts as the Eye of the Sun (Utt. 405). By this Het-Hert became the foremost of goddesses, and the Divine Mother of the King. Depictions: Her forms were many, she was frequently shown with a woman's head and a cow's ears. This can be found on pillar heads, like at Denderah and her image, smiling and naked, is often found decorating mirrors. Another often seen depiction of her is with a sun-disc surrounded by cow's horns on her head but also with a cow's head or in full bovine form. Also as a lioness, a snake and a tree nymph among the branches of the Sycamore, her sacred tree, which she shared with Aset in later periods. During the Middle and New Kingdom, she and Aset shared many traits until they were merged as the same deity in the Late Period. Goddess for Women Her greatest influence was as a goddess especially for women, a patron of beauty, love, sexuality, joy, dance and music. At various periods she had a large female priesthood who acted as singers, musicians and dancers in temple rituals and processions. At Denderah Ihy, the personification of the jubilation associated with sistrum playing, is a child of Hathor and Horus. In her motherly aspect she protected pregnant women and children and at some of her temples people could get their dreams interpreted. Het-Hert in myth In myth her association with dance and love is apparent when in the myth 'Contendings of Horus and Set' she makes Re, her father, change his bad mood by dancing in front of him with raised clothes until he forgets his anger and starts laughing. In another myth, 'The Destruction of Mankind', Het-Hert´s other side comes to show as she changes into Sekhmet, who on the order of Re goes out to punish mankind for their transgressions against him. In her rage and bloodthirst she nearly wipes out all humans and the gods have to contrive to make her drink beer coloured red. She gets drunk, falls asleep and when she wakes up, she turns back to being Het-Hert. There is also the myth of 'The Distant Goddess', in which Het-Hert becomes angry with her father Re and decides to leave Egypt altogether. Re of course gets very sad because of losing his 'Eye' and wants her back. In the wilderness Het-Hert has now changed into a wild cat and totally unmanageable for gods or man, she kills those who tries to get near her. In the long run, Thoth disguises himself and manages to lure her back to Egypt, all the time telling her stories to keep her attention. Finally back, she bathes in the Nile which cools her rage and changes her back into Het-Hert, but not before the water has turned all red from her anger. (There is another version of this myth, where it is Tefnut who leaves Egypt and Shu who gets her back.) Mortuary Deity: In Thebes Het-Hert held some importance even as a mortuary deity, shown here in the form of a cow and thought to receive the deceased, just as she received the setting sun, preserving it from the powers of darkness. In fact, in the Book of Going Forth By Day, she is said to join Re as he disappears below the horizon. Thus she was sometimes called the 'Female Soul with Two Faces' or 'Lady of the West'. In the Underworld her outer garment, if worn by a person travelling through there, can provide safe passage. During the New Kingdom Het-Hert merged with Aset (Isis) into becoming the same deity, sharing the same headdress and depicted in the same way. Only by reading the accompanying hieroglyphs, one could safely say which deity was depicted. Het-Hert was however never shown with the throne above Her head as Aset was. Another difference is that Aset is depicted either wearing a dress with a feather (Rishi) pattern in several colors together with the horned disc, or the vulture headdress, which also is associated with Mut, the consort of Amun at Thebes. Temples: At Gebelein was found a limestone block with relief decorations from the temple of Het-Hert. It is dated to the Early Dynastic Period. When Schiaparelli excavated it in 1910, it was so poorly documented that no particulars could be observed later. Already in the Old Kingdom her cult center seems to have been in Dendera. Much later, during the Ptolemeian period, a great temple was built here, and dedicated to her. There were also other early cult centers for Het-Hert, though she is not directly attested until the 4th Dynasty. Queens already from this period onwards could be called 'Priestess of Het-Hert'.

Symbols: Sistrum and Menat The sistrum is perhaps the most frequently associated of Het-Hert´s symbols. This is a metal rattle which was used to be shaken in front of statues of deities (also other than Het-Hert) in invocation. The menat is a necklace thick with beads. It was not worn but shaken by priestesses of Het-Hert during rituals. The Seven Hathors The Seven Hathors were goddesses of fate. Their rôle was to determine the destiny of a child and in tombs (Nefertari´s) and in the Book of Going Forth By Day they were shown in cow form. Th reason for such a grouping is probably because the number seven was considered symbolic in ancient Egypt and therefore associated with different groupings of deities. For example was Re said to have seven 'baus' (souls). The Seven Hathors are a grouping of various aspects of Het-Hert. Perhaps this is more due to the symbolical properties of the number seven than the character of the aspects. Other groups of Hathors existed besides. There is nothing specific found about these individual names, they appeared in their groupings and the names of these aspects varied. G. Hart mentions: 1. Lady of the universe 2. Sky-storm 3. You from the land of silence 4. You from Khemmis 5. Red-hair 6. Bright red 7. Your name flourishes through skill. In mythological papyrii there were varying names: 1. Lady of the house of jubilation 2,3. Mistresses of the west 4,5. Mistresses of th east 6,7. Ladies of the sacred land Wilkinson mentions names like: Mansion of Ka´s Silent One She Who Protects Much Beloved There is much, much more to know about this remarkable Netjer. This is a great site with lots of well-researched info! Main center of worship: Iunet/Tentyris/Dendera 6th Nome,Upper Egypt Other Temple sites: Iunu/Heliopolis/Cairo 3rd Nome, Lower Egypt Mennefer/Memphis 1st Nome, Lower Egypt Aphroditopolis/Atfih, 22th Nome, Upper Egypt Quis/Cusae/el-Qusiya, 14th Nome,Upper Egypt Per-Hathor/Pathyris/Gebelein, 4th Nome, Upper Egypt P-aaleq/Philae 1st Nome, Upper Egypt Festivals:(dates not historically verified) 21 June - 21 Shomu - Festival of the Beautiful Reunion (Hathor Going Forth from Dendera to marry Horus at Edfu once a year) 29 August - 12th Paopi - Birthday of Het-Hert (Hathor) 17th September - 1st Hethara - Feast of Het-hert (Hathor) 21st September - 5th Hethara - Autum Equinox; Honors to Het-hert (Hathor) 4th October - 18th Hethara - Festival of Het-Hert (Hathor) 21st October - 5th Koiak - Het-Hert Goes Forth to Her people 29th October - 13th Koiak - Day of Going Forth of Het-Hert and the Ennead 2dn November - 17th Koiak - Festival of Het-Hert. 28th November - 13th Tybi - Feast of Het-Hert and Sekhmet 23rd December - 8th Mechir - Festival of the Great Heat; Feast Day of Het-Hert 23rd January - 9th Pamenot - Day of Het-Hert (Hathor) 1st April - 17th Pachons - Day of Het-Hert (Hathor) 15th May - 1st Epipi - Festivals of Het-Hert and Bast 19th May - 5th Epipi - Het-Hert(Hathor) returns to Punt; the Netjers are saddened 21st May - 7th Epipi - Sailing of the netjers after Het-Hert(Hathor) 16th June - 3rd Mesore - Feast of Raet, Feast of Het-Hert as Sirius

All the Egyptian Deities A - W: A   B   D   G   H   I   K   M   N   O   P   R   S   T   U   W   Y

Or go direct to some of them: Amun, Anubis, Aset - Bast -Djehuty - Hathor, Horus - Isis - Khepri - Ma'at - Nephtys - Osiris - Ptah - Re - Sekhmet, Seth - Thoth - Wadjet, Wesir

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