Ancient Egyptian Gods I thru O
- Ihy
-
Young God personifying the jubilation emanating from the sacred rattle.
In the temple complex the birth house or "mammisi" was a sanctuary where the mystery of the conception and birth of the divine child Ihy was celebrated. His name is rarely found outside the confines of Dendera temple. - Imhotep
- Imhotep, or "he who cometh in peace," was born in Ankhtowe, a
suburb of Memphis, Egypt. He was an Egyptian polymath, who served
under the Third Dynasty king, Djoser, with titles such as Chancellor
of the King of Egypt, Doctor, First in line after the King of Upper
Egypt, Administrator of the Great Palace, Hereditary nobleman, high
priest of the sun god Ra at Heliopolis and he controlled the
departments of the Judiciary (court system), Treasury, War,
Agriculture, and the General Executive. Two thousand years after his
death, his status was raised to that of a deity.
Imhotep was known perhaps best of all as the architect of the Step Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara, near Memphis. The Step Pyramid was the first structure created by human hands to be built entirely from stone.
Imhotep is one of the few Egyptian gods (other than the pharaohs) who was actually a real person. He was the vizier of Djoser, a pharaoh of the third dynasty. He was skilled in all areas of administration and royal enterprises. Imhotep was also a priest, writer, a doctor and a founder of the Egyptian studies of astronomy and architecture. - Isis
- The mother of Horus, sister and wife of Osiris, the goddess Isis
was the first daughter of Geb, god of the Earth, and Nut, the
goddess of the Overarching Sky, and was born on the fourth
intercalary day. As the Goddess of motherhood, magic and fertility,
she was worshiped as the ideal mother and wife.
Isis is also known as the goddess of simplicity, protector of the dead and goddess of children from whom all beginnings arose. In later myths, the Ancient Egyptians believed that the Nile River flooded every year because of her tears of sorrow for her dead husband, Osiris.
Temples to Isis were built in Iraq, Greece and Rome, with a well preserved example discovered in Pompeii. - Iusaas
- Iusaas was a goddess of Heliopolis whose name means, "she comes who
is great". Wearing a scarab beetle on her head she can easily be seen as
a counterpart to the sun god Atum, and like Nebethetepet plays a crucial
role as the feminine principle in the creation of the world.
Iusaas is depicted in human form with a scarab beetle on her head, and also wears the sun disk and horns of Hathor, with whom she was later assimilated. Her name is also seen as Jusas and Juesaes. Iusaas was a goddess of Heliopolis whose name means, "she comes who is great". Wearing a scarab beetle on her head she can easily be seen as a counterpart to the sun god Atum, and like Nebethetepet plays a crucial role as the feminine principle in the creation of the world. - Khepri
- In Egyptian mythology, Khepri (also spelled Khepera, Kheper (dung beetle), Chepri, Khepra) is the name of a major god. Since the scarab beetle lays its eggs in the bodies of various dead animals, including other scarabs, and in dung, from which they emerge having been born, the ancient Egyptians believed that scarab beetles were created from dead matter. Because of this, they also associated the Khepri with rebirth, renewal, and resurrection. Indeed, his name means "to come into being".
- Kherty
- Kherty (or Cherti meaning "Lower one") was an ancient Egyptian earth god and a god of the underworld who sailed the boat which carried the decased on their last journey. He was associated with Aken, and may have been seen as an aspect of that god at one time. He was particultarly prominent during the Old Kingdom when he was thought to share the rule of the underworld with Osiris. Like Osiris he could be dangerous to man and was feared, but was also invoked as a protective deity.