PR in Mythology An electronic encyclopedia edited by D. F. N. E. A. Osipova
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PR in the mythology of Ancient Egypt
Korotkova Anastasia Frankovskaya Maria
Bastet (Bast)
Summary of the myth
Bronze statue of Bastet Ouajit
Bastet or Bast is one of the most feminine and graceful goddesses of ancient Egypt.
She was the personification of the moon and sunlight.
The goddess symbolized the hearth and was revered as the defender of the home, family and children, and also embodied such qualities as beauty, affection and grace.
Bastet is known all over the world as the patron goddess of cats.
Bast was depicted as a cat or a woman with a cat's head.
Some myths say that in the early dynasties she was depicted as a lioness.
She was revered as the daughter of the sun god Ra, was considered all seeing and even took a place in his guard.
Her husband was sometimes called Ptah - one of the oldest gods of the ancient Egyptian pantheon, the god of arts and crafts.
In some cases, she was identified with Mut and Tefnut, and in ancient Greece with Artemis.
It is often mentioned that Bast has two incarnations — a woman with a cat's head (a kind essence) and a lion's (aggressive).
There are several legends about Bastet, completely different and interesting.
In the myth in which the god Ra punished humanity for its sins, she accepted her other half and turned into a lioness who once almost destroyed all of humanity.
It was possible to subdue it only with the help of a trick — beer was spilled on the ground, tinted with mineral dyes in red.
The lioness mistook this liquid for blood, got drunk and fell asleep.
The statue of the goddess Bastet is Bronze.
XXVI dean.
London, British Museum
There is another myth that tells the story of a butterfly.
The goddess Bastet one evening in her palace lit a fire in the hearth and sat down to the fire, thinking about something of her own, divine.
At this moment, a butterfly flew in, began to circle around the fire, moving away and again approaching the flames.
Bastet got angry, because she was thinking about serious things and decided that she had come to stop her.
The butterfly continued to circle around the fire.
Bast tried to drive away the uninvited guest, but she was afraid of getting burned, and therefore she could not do anything.
She called Horus, the god of dying and regenerating nature.
The goddess said that she was thinking about the eternal, about her divine nature, and a butterfly flew in and began to distract.
Then Bastet asked me to send her away.
But Horus, instead of chasing the butterfly away, thought about it.
He was silent for a long time, and then, looking at the goddess boiling with indignation, he asked her to tell if the butterfly was beautiful?
To which Bastet, confused, replied that she was just a butterfly.
But Horus didnot say anything, he just looked at the cat, waiting for an answer.
Finally, Bastet turned to the fire and examined a butterfly beating dangerously close to the flame.
Her wings were already singed, but she was still striving for the fire that was killing her.
Bast said that she was much more beautiful than this butterfly.
Because she is a goddess.
And the butterfly, even if it does not burn today, will die tomorrow.
Her life is just a moment, she is nothing, beautiful, but nothing.
Horus looked thoughtfully at the goddess and said that he could not find out the truth about the butterfly without her answer.
Then he closed his eyes and thought even harder.
He wanted to understand the truth about the butterfly.
Bastet, looking at him, also closed her eyes and thought.
She realized that she did not seek to comprehend the truth, although, being a goddess, she should have done so.
When Bastet opened her eyes, Horus was watching her.
The goddess was ashamed: she could not find out the truth about the butterfly, because she thought about herself, about her divine nature.
She asked Horus if he could find out the truth, and he replied that he could.
Then she asked him again – what is she like?
Horus, instead of answering, got up and went to the exit.
Bastet watched him go, then ran after him and started telling him that he couldnot leave without giving her an answer.
Horus stopped and, without turning around, asked why?
She answered because she would be unhappy because she could not solve the problem!
Horus turned to the raging Bastet, smiled at her and said that she had learned the truth about the butterfly.
This was her peace.
At that moment, the butterfly, with a last flutter of its wings, fell into the fire.
A small handful of sparks rose above the flame and fell.
Images and symbols of the myth
Statue of the goddess Bastet in the form of a cat
Bastet was called the mother of all cats.
Myths about Bast create an image of an affectionate, elegant and caring defender.
Since the power of Bastet extended to a wide variety of phenomena, her cult was accompanied by multiple symbols.
One of the important symbols was the four kittens that were depicted in her legs, they just showed her fertility, patronage of children, mothers and cats.
A special gift of the goddess was intuition, which helped her in many ways.
Most often, Bast was depicted in two poses standing and sitting.
Moreover, she was sitting, only in the image of a cat, having no other kind.
The hands of the standing Bast were not empty: she held a scepter or aegis in her right hand, a sistrum in her left hand, and a basket hung on her elbow.
Each of these symbols is full of meaning and speaks about the character of the goddess.
The sistrum is an ancient Egyptian temple rattle.
It consists of a frame with a handle, through which 3-4 free rods with curved ends passed, the rods jingled when shaken.
The handles of the systers were usually made in the form of a cat with a human face.
The sistrum is a symbol of fun, celebration, joy, happiness.
According to legends, the harmonious and mysterious sound of the sistra had amazing magical properties: it awakened a person to life, treated and calmed the soul and body, returned hope and joy, gave love, inspiration and happiness.
The basket is not otherwise than for the harvested crop, which would be impossible without love, sunlight, warmth and energy.
The Aegis or papyrus scepter is a symbol of eternal youth and happiness that await everyone in the afterlife.
Monuments to the goddess were most often created from stone or bronze.
Also, the symbols of Bast were images of cats, figurines and " cat " amulets, which were supposed to bring their owner success in love and protect him from evil and dark forces.
Communicative means of creating images and symbols
Map of the Tell Basta archaeological Zone
First of all, the references to the city of Tel Basta or Bubastis contributed to the formation of the attitude to Bastet.
It was once one of the largest cities of the Nile delta and was famous for the veneration of sacred cats, over which the local
the goddess Bastet.
The city occupied an important strategic position: trading expeditions left it for Sinai for copper and turquoise; Egyptian military expeditions also went from here to conquer Asia.
The peak of the political significance of the city fell during the reign of the XXII dynasty.
A large amount of information was obtained when the temple of the goddess was found.
The entire sanctuary, with the exception of the entrance, lay on an island.
The temple was located in the center of the city and was visible from all sides.
Since this city is raised by an embankment, and the sanctuary remains in its former place, therefore it is accessible to view from all sides.
The temple is surrounded by a wall decorated with reliefs, and inside it there is a grove with mighty trees, which are planted with a high temple building with a statue of the goddess.
From the entrance, a stone paved road led through the city's market square to the east.
There were sky high trees on both sides of the road.
The gate is 18 meters high and is decorated with figures carved on stone.
In the shade of trees, two channels, each 30 meters wide and shaded by trees, approached the Temple building from the Nile River.
Panorama of the Bastet temple with fallen columns of the XIX XXII din.
The holding of an annual holiday contributed to the strengthening of the cult.
In ancient Egypt, the feast of the goddess Bast was celebrated on April 15.
In honor of Bastet, a huge fair was held annually in Egypt, and thousands of fans of her cult traveled along the Nile to the sounds of flutes and rattles.
On this day, the goddess was asked for a blessing for domestic cats.
The famous ancient historian – Herodotus wrote about Bastet.
He left us a vivid description of the annual festival in honor of Bastet, during which " more grape wine is drunk than in the whole year.
According to local residents, up to 700,000 people of both sexes, not counting children, gather here."
He also described the magnificent portico of the temple of the goddess, which was located in the lowlands, in the center of the city and was visible from everywhere, wherever the viewer was.
A block with the choral name of King Khufu From the excavations of E. Naville in Bubastis.
IV dean.
London, British Museum
The role of the cult of Bastet is also shown by references to cat cemeteries.
In the 1890s, a whole cemetery of cats was found near Bubastis.
Among the numerous cat remains, the researchers found several mummies that were significantly different from the rest.
They were mummified with special care and buried in solid stone or wooden sarcophagi.
They did not go to the afterlife light, but loaded with jewelry, amulets and other expensive gifts.
Archaeologists also came across several false mummies empty or incomplete cocoons, in which there were a couple of bones and some kind of inorganic filler.
Apparently, the priests sold them at a cheap price to poor pilgrims.
Having bought such a mummy, the Egyptian, nevertheless, had the opportunity to make a request to the merciful Bastet.
In addition to information from the city of Tel Basta, we were able to learn about other cities where the great Bastet was worshipped.
A significant settlement existed already at the end of the pre Dynastic period; later the city was famous and prosperous until the Roman time, when the star of the city of the goddess Bastet set, and a new shopping center, the city of Bilbeis, grew nearby, attracting residents of the old capital.
His houses and palaces were built from the stones of the ancient sanctuaries of Bubastis.
The social significance of the myth
Statuette of the goddess Bastet in the image of a cat Cairo, Egyptian Museum
In other countries, there were patronesses of cats, but the most famous and revered is still the Egyptian goddess Bastet.
Entire cities were built in her honor.
Even in Alexandria, a temple dedicated to Bast was found..
It was the goddess who became a symbol of caring for cats.
Almost every Egyptian had a cat, which was looked after as the most expensive creature.
Bastet has a very dualistic nature, she can be belligerent, brave, but also gentle, caring and soft.
She is the personification of the feminine principle.
After all, this goddess was revered as the protector of all women, children and cats.
You could turn to her with any request, and her role is very great as a keeper of the hearth.
That is why Bastet has become so important as a multifaceted image for the whole of Ancient Egypt.
There were a lot of people at the holidays in honor of Bast and it was always very fun.
The holidays were accompanied by the sounds of music and dancing.
But they also did not forget about religious rituals.
On such days, Bastet was asked to cure domestic cats.
During the annual festivals, the statue of the goddess was taken out of the temple and solemnly transported along the banks of the Nile.
Bastet represents greatness, feminine beauty, grace, kindness, joy, fun and love.
At the same time, she is a defender and can show great strength.
It was the combination of these qualities that could put Bastet among the most majestic Egyptian Gods.
This image is very attractive, especially for women.
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