Worship of Hindu Gods in Ancient Egypt

PART 1

5000 years ago the world was not divided by the territories which we see today. There were no conflicts and distinctions of religion, scriptures, beliefs and cultures. The world was ruled by one king and the capital of the world was Hastinapura, New Dehli. After the great world war of Mahabharata, there was anarchy all over the world. During this unstable period, the throne was being ruled by the King Parikshita. During his rule, Kaliyuga, the age of darkness arrived which influenced the minds of people outside the India as it was not able to work on this land of gods and pilgrims, Bharata. Thus after the rule of Parikshita, the world started being divided into many parts and their veidic culture was modified by the people who were ruled by personality of Kali.

This post is an effort to revive the veidic culture of ancient Egypt and analyze it through the light of Sanatana Dharma. Egypt is the second oldest civilization and the modified version veidic culture which helped in building great miracles. The archeology, philosophy, theology, traditions, monuments and all facts related to Egypt prove the presence of veidic essence within it. Max Muller had also observed that the mythology of Egyptians (and also that of the Greeks and Assyrians) is wholly founded on Vedic traditions. Eusebius, a Greek writer, has also recorded that the early Ethiopians emigrated from the river Indus and first settled in the vicinity of Egypt.  

Worship of Lord Krishna and Radha

As the chief deity of the Egyptian Empire, Amun came to be worshipped inside of Egypt, according to the testimony of ancient Greek historiographers in Libya and Nubia. Amun is often described as the primeval Lord in pyramid texts and accepted as the creator and a symbol for creative force.

In Egypt, Lord Amum is written as ‘Ymn’, which is pronounced as ‘Yamunu’ or ‘Yamun’. Thus it can be easily concluded that, the word is distorted version of Yamuna (A river always associated with Lord Krishna and His abode Goloka or Gokula). Thus the word Amum or Yamun actually means ‘The Lord of Yamuna, Krishna’.

The wife of Amun is Amunet meaning the mother goddess. Amunet came from the chest of Lord Amun. She is the creator of strong women and beautiful girls. Amunet is Egyptial version of Shrimati Radha. As we know, the Supreme Goddess Radha who is wife of Krishna is the energy originated through His chest (Heart). She is the creator of Durga who represent strength and goddess Lakshmi who represent beauty.

It is described, from the sandals of Amun came the water of oceans, lakes, rivers and the seas. As we know, Lord Krishna expands as Lord Vishnu from whom water of the universal ocean came into existence. From the lotus feet of Vishnu came the sacred river Ganga. The supreme deity Amun is often associated with the eagle headed god who is the Egyptian version of Garuda, the mount or vehicle or Vahana of Lord Vishnu.

Amun was always depicted in funerary art and temple inscriptions with a ‘blue skin colour’ and having two feathers in his headdress. As we know, Krishna’s complexion is dark blue and His helmet is always decorated with some peacock feathers.

Therefore, such magnificent similarities cannot be just a coincidence. If anyone visits India and describes Amun, He will be mistaken for the details which amazingly describe Lord Krishna and His form. Undoubtably, The supreme Lord Krishna is Amun, the distorted version in ancient Egyptian civilization.

The philosophical passages in “The Burden of Egypt” say,

“Amon-Re, who hears the prayer, who comes at the cry of the poor and distressed. Beware of him!”
Krishna says, in Bhagvad Geeta, “All of them, As they surrender unto Me, I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pritha” 

In Bhagvatam (8.3.32), the poor elephant whose feet was trapped in the mouth of a crocodile, says, “They (my relatives) cannot do anything. It is by the will of providence that I have been attacked by this crocodile, and therefore I shall seek shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Krishna, who is always the shelter of everyone, even of great personalities.”

“Repeat him to son and daughter, to great and small; relate him to generations of generations who have not yet come into being; relate him to fishes in the deep, to birds in heaven; repeat him to him who does not know him and to him who knows him.”
In Bhagvatam (6.2.14) it is said, “One who chants (repeats) the holy name of the Lord is immediately freed from the reactions of unlimited sins, even if he chants indirectly [to indicate something else], jokingly, for musical entertainment, or even neglectfully. This is accepted by all the learned scholars of the scriptures.”

Though it may be that the servant is normal in doing wrong, yet the Lord is normal in being merciful ! As thy Ka endures! thou wilt be merciful!"
As Chaitanya Charitamrita mentions, All glories to Śrī Lord Krishna , who is all-merciful! All glories to Lord Krishna Chaitanya, who is an ocean of mercy!

Lord Jagannatha(Krishna), Subhadra and Baldeva

Subhadra, Jagannatha and Balarama is the tried which is worshiped from thousands of years by the devotees in Udisa(India). They are well known for their merciful nature and they all captured the hearts of millions of people for over 5000 years. How could Egyptians kept themselves away from Their causeless mercy !

Amun (Lord Jagannath)

Lord Jagannatha is Krishna Himself and He is mentioned as Amun as it is already explained.

‘The Description by Balaq Papyrus’ describes,

“He (Amun) is the Lord of the world (Lord Jagannatha), He exists in everything. He is the supreme creator and everything happens because of Him. Therefore, He is protector of devotees.”
These words themselves are copied from Bhagvad-Geeta, as Geeta says,“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this perfectly engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.”

Mut (Subhadra) 

 Mut is described as Queen of the Goddesses, Lady of Heaven, Mother of the Gods, and She Who Gives Birth. She is a female deity represents auspiciousness and fortune. Just like Mut, the word ‘Subhadra’ also means something auspicious, splendid or fortunate. She often wears a menat necklace which is a symbol of power and revolution as She is worshipped as the protector from evil spirits. Subhadra also observes the dreadful form of Durga which protects from demonic and evil character. Mut is depicted as having crook and flail (nekhakha) in Her hand which originally represents Trishula and Parashu in the hands of Durga. The texts of Terbique describe Her as the Goddess of war. As we know, Kali (The expansion of Durga) is the Goddess of war who assumes very frightening form to fear the demons.

Khonsu (Balarama) 

 Khonsu is the originator of moon and represents solace and satisfaction. His complexion is white and fair just like the moon. Balarama is also shown as white as the summer cloud. Khonsu is depicted with heka in His hands which represents a plough. He caused women to be conceived, cattle to become fertile, and all nostrils and every throat to be filled with fresh air. He once fought with Anuke who is the Goddess of the river Nile. As we know, Lord Balarama was also engaged in a fight with the river Yamuna and bestowed mercy and boons on her after she was surrendered unto Him.

Celebration of Rath-Yatra

Opet Festival was an Ancient Egyptian festival celebrated annually in Thebes (Luxor), during the New Kingdom and in later periods. The statues of the deities of the triad Amun (Jagannath), Mut (Subhadra) and Khonsu (Balarama) were escorted in a joyous procession, in sight in a sacred barque, from the temple of Amun in Karnak, to the temple of Luxor, a journey of more than 1 mile (2 km). The idols reside in Kornak temple. At Karnak, the idols of the triad are first ceremoniously washed before taking them for a ride and magnificently dressed with colorful linen and precious jewellery and are placed on three sacred barques. After the washing ceremony, the idols are kept away from public vision. The pharaoh(king) then offer his obeisance to each of the barques. Once the idols reach Luxor Temple, the coronation rites of the king are repeated in a sacred ritual, which effectively transfer the power of divine rulership from Amun (Jagnnatha) to the pharaoh. The idols rest in Luxor for six days and subsequently come back to Karnak, in another procession along the river Nile. Although the Opet festival was initially celebrated over only 11 days, later it was extended to nearly 24 to 27 days. 

In Jagannath Rath Yatra, The deities are carried from Puri temple to Gundicha temple in huge chariots called Ratha. In Puri temple, the deities are bathed. This Snana Yatra or Snana Purnima (Bathing Festival) takes place on the full moon day in the month of May - June. On this day, the three deities are bathed in 108 pitchers of water. After this elaborate Snana Yatra festival, the three deities stay away from public view and this is known as 'Anasara'.They do no return to sanctum sanctorum of the temple for 15 days. The deities are decorated with beautiful clothes, jwelleries made from gold and beautified by lustrous stones. New coat of paint increase the glory of their appearance. After the week-long stay in Gundicha temple, the three deities return to Puri temple and the journey is known as Bahuda Yatra. The deities reach the Puri Jagannath Temple in the evening and wait outside for the day. On the next day, the deities are attired in new costumes and this new form of the idols is known as ‘Suna Vesa.’ The following day, the deities move into the sanctum sanctorum of the temple and the Rath Yatra festival comes to an end.

The Ratha Yatra festival has become a common sight in most major cities of the world since 1968 through ISKCON’s Hare Krishna movement. By the glory of Lord Krishna and Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad successfully transplanted the festival which now happens on an anual basis in places all over the world in over 108 cities. I humbly offer my kind obeisances utno this great institutional authority and wish that it will work forever.

Amun, Mut and Khonshu worshiped as triad

Veidic Gods in Egyptian Pyramids and Literature

The civilization of Egypt is not yet completely discovered. The scripts and texts available are not fully translated as most of the words in the scripts are unknown. Thus there is mixture of attributes used for deities and their meaning. Single deity is described with many self contradictory narrations.

Lord Shiva 

Atum has similar attributes like shiva. Atum carries a staff surmounted by human head wearing a disc. Shiva always wears garlands of skull around His neck and onto His trident. Just like Atum, He is also a destroyer demigod.  Atum is described as the setting sun of the evening. The setting sun is called Re-tmu. ‘Tmu’ resembles the ‘Tamas’ that is mode of ignorance which is ‘dark and descending’, and is associated with Lord Shiva as Shiva is the god of Tamas. Atum is represented by a bull. Shiva’s mount is a bull. It is described that, Atum originated from chaos. As we know, Shiva was born out of the anger of Lord Brahma. Atum is associated with Rebel bands and Shiva with Bhuta-Ganas.

Lord Brahma

Brahma is mentioned in ancient Egypt as god ‘Ptah’ transliterated from the Sanskrit word ‘Pitah’ meaning father. Brahma is described as ‘Pitamah’(forefather) and ‘Pitah’(father) of the universe. Ptah (according to some historians, Horos) is often depicted on the lotus flower. Brahma is also always shown on the lotus flower. He creates the universe and the beings within. He is the secondary creator and the highest within material universe. Ptah holds a scepter or staff that bears the combined ‘ankh-djed-was’ symbols. This symbolical structure is shown by four horizontal lines which represent four heads of Brahma. Ptah is the Lord of truth, master of justice and knowledge. The Vedas, source of all knowledge originated from Brahma. Ptah is depicted with long beard just like Brahma who is also depicted with beard to indicate his wisdom and knowledge. Egyptian god Ptah is always thinking while sitting on the lotus, he is shown in most of the sculptures as if he is thinking or meditating. When Brahma was born in the lotus, first he thought about his origin and he is always meditating.

Nefertem rose from the Lotus flower on the primodial waters through the nostril of Ra. Brahma rose from the Lotus flower through the navel of Vishnu on the primodial waters.

Pth is always thinking. When Brahma was born in the lotus, 

first he thought about his origin and he is always meditating.

Goddess Saraswati

Seshat was the ancient Egyptian idea of knowledge and speech personified as a goddess. She became the goddess of writing, music, astronomy, astrology, architecture, mathematics, art and imagination. Rarely, she is described with a divine Harp singing in such a melodious voice by which the god of earth also melts and underground water is created. Thus Seshat is equivalent to Goddess Saraswati who is Goddess of knowledge, speech, music and art. She is always depicted with Vina-vadya of which harp is modified version. Saraswati as well as seshat both are always depicted in white clothes which represent peace, purity, satisfaction and spiritual wisdom.

Lord Vivaswan (The Sun God)

Worship of the Sun in Egypt and Sanatana Dharma.

In Egyptian mythology, Ra was the god of the sun. He was also called Re and by various other names. He was the most important god in Ancient Egypt. Ra’s name came from Re and Amen. Amen is pronounced as ‘Aumen’ which originated from the sacred syllable ‘Aum’. Vivaswan, the sun god is always related to the vibration of ‘Aum’. Surya or the sun god is representation of the Supreme Lord Vishnu and often depicted as the eyes or sigh of Vishnu’s universal form. Ra is also connected with the sacred eye in Egyptian myths.

Lord Ardhanarishvara

Ardhanarishvar is the form assumed by Shiva in which He is half a man and His wife Shakti is half a woman. This form indicates how female is part of a man and a man is incomplete without feminine aspect. Wedj-wer is the god who is shown being part male and part female. He is also shown as a pregnant woman creating the world within him. He is connected to rivers and lakes. As we know, Shiva is always connected to the sacred river Ganges. Wedj-Wer holds an ankh as a masculine feature and loaf as a feminine.

Garuda

Garuda is younger brother of Aruna. Garuda associated with Garuda Purana, book that deals with soul after death. Horus is associated with Egyptian book of the dead. Just like Horus, Garuda often acts as a messenger between the gods and men and is called the ranger of the skies. Anzu steals the tablets of destiny. Anzu is the servant of chief sky god Enlil. Ninruta chases Anzu with his thunderbolts. Garuda steals the elixir of immortality. Garuda is the servant of chief god Vishnu. Indra chases Garuda with his thunderbolts.

Daksha

Khnum is referred to as father of the fathers and fathered many gods and goddesses. Daksha was one of the sons of Brahma and a main prajapati from whose line Devas and Asuras come from. Many goddesses like Aditi, Diti, Danu, Sati etc came from Daksha. Daksha was known as the bright one. Both of them are depicted with the head of a goat like creature. Daksha is believed to have started sexual reproduction. Heqet, wife of Khnum is associated with childbirth. Prasuti Tantra, the book of obstetrics is named after Prasuti, the wife of Daksha.

Matsyadev

Matsya, incarnation of Lord Vishnu is mentioned as Hatmehit, or Hatmehyt in Egyptian mythology. The name literally means Protector-chief of fish. Hatmehit is always related with Mehet-Weret, meaning great flood. When the world was consumed by the oceanic water, Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a fish and saved the species of animals, plants and humans. Hatmehit is depicted with a horn on His head and a snake tied to it. As we know, Matsya was a large golden fish with a horn to which a huge boat was tied by the king of serpents, Vasuki.

Lord Narsihma

Narsihma is mentioned in Egyptian literature as Sakhet, the God of lions, war and fire. Sekhet is often described with angry attitude in pyramid texts. Egyptians used to fear Sakhet and also saw Him as the very merciful God. It is described in “Book of the Last Day of the Year” that Sakhet used power destructively to protect and to create. Narsihma also incarnated to protect His devotee Prahlada and killed the demon king named Hiranyakashyapu. He is always shown in frightening and angry form.

Hanuman

Babi, also Baba, in ancient Egypt, was the monkey god literally means the chief of the monkeys or baboons. He fought with the sun god Ra. He stands near the lake of fire representing destruction. It is also mentioned in ‘The gods of the Egyptians: or, Studies in Egyptian mythology, Vol II’ Babi dances when he hears the auspicious music and bestows His mercy. Hanuman considering the sun as a ripened fruit, flue to eat it thus had fight with the sun God. He is the partial incarnation of Lord Shiva who is the God of destruction. He chants the name of God in very auspicious sound and dances joyfully.

Makara

Makara appears as the vahana (vehicle) of the river goddess Ganga and of the sea god Varuna. Makara are considered guardians of gateways and thresholds, protecting throne rooms as well as entryways to temples; it is the most commonly recurring creature in Hindu and Buddhist temple iconography, and also frequently appears as a Gargoyle or as a spout attached to a natural spring. Makara ornaments are a popular traditional wedding gift for the bride; these makara-shaped earrings called Makarakundalas are sometimes worn by the Hindu gods,

Sobek and from Latinh Suchus, was an ancient Egyptian deity with complex and fluid nature associated with the Nile crocodile and is either represented in its crocodile form or in the form of the crocodile. It has powers of firtility powers and militery powers. Makara is generally depicted as half terrestrial animal (crocodile) in the frontal part  and half aquatic animal in the hind part, usually a fish or a human legs modified as fins.

Worship of Snakes (Nagas)

Ancient Egypians worshiped snakes and believed that they are sacred and holy. They are often shown on the head of the gods. Snakes are offered food and flowers with great respect. Egyptian also used to offer sacrifices to the snakes because of fear and desire of their mercy.

 Apis was the patron god of Upper Egypt, and was represented as a cobra with spread hood, or a cobra-headed man. He later became one of the protective deity of Egypt. Attributes and glorifications dedicated to him resembles with the serpent God Vasuki.

 The Book of The Dead also mentions Widjeset, the god of snakes being worshipped by Egyptian women, old and children for strength and potency. Winged snakes are depicted in Egyptian art and are found frequently in religious texts painted in the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. Wadjet was depicted as a winged snake. The Greek author Herodotus claimed to have seen skeletons of flying snakes when he visited Egypt.

 As early as the reign of Ramesses II, Apophis, the reat snake became the subject of a ritual, recorded in several magic books. During religious processions and lunar feasts, images of Apophis were fashioned from papyrus and wax and then subjected to various worships, representing the triumph of Re and Ma'at over the chaos symbolized. Deities associated with poisonous snakes were sometimes even considered beneficial.

The goddess Renenutet often appeared in the form of a hooded cobra. Her name is derived from an Egyptian word meaning, "to nurse," and she was closely associated with the fertility of fields, and consequently was considered the goddess of the granary.

Worship of Yakshas

Yaksha is the name of a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, who are caretakers of the natural treasures hidden in the earth and tree roots. In Indian art, male yakṣas are portrayed either as fearsome warriors or as portly, stout and dwarf-like. Female yakṣas, known as yakṣiṇīs, are portrayed as beautiful young women with happy round faces and full breasts and hips. Yakshas are mundane beings often live away from human civilizations in the forests, dry lakes and wells. They are considered as mundane beings as they strive for material enjoyment. Kubera is one of the famous yaksha who is the richest personality in the heaven within this material universe.

In Egyptian Mythology, Bes is an Ancient Egyptian dwarf deity worshipped as a protector of households, and in particular, of mothers and children and childbirth. Yakshas are also worshiped for wealth and protection.

Bhumi Puja (Worship before construction)

Hindus make offerings to Earth Goddess and other Gods before commencing any building work. We follow this custom until this day. Muslim invaders who invaded India knew that Hindu temples had such foundation deposits of most expensive gems and gold in the world and plundered the Hindu temples after demolishing them. The best known example is the 17 time invasion of Mohmed of Gazni against Somanathpur Shiva Temple in Gujarat. As the worship of land was done before building the pyramids, they should be build by Aryans. A few symbolic objects including certain sacrifices (so called foundation deposits) were usually laid in a hole in the foundation. These objects are rediscovered and identified as foundation deposits, which include the powdered gold, vessels and deities of clay and ceramic, flowers of clay and ornaments of silver.

What do Egyptians say ?

The Egyptians came, according to their own records, from a mysterious land...on the shore of the Indian Ocean, the sacred Punt; the original home of their gods..who followed thence after their people who had abandoned them to the valley of the Nile, led by Amun (Krishna), Horus (Garuda) and Hathor(Lakshmi). This region was the Egyptian 'Land of the Gods,' Pa-Nuter, in old Egyptian, or Holyland, and now proved beyond any doubt to have been quite a different place from the Holyland of Sinai. By the pictorial hieroglyphic inscription found on the walls of the temple of the Queen Haslitop at Der-el-babri, we see that this Punt can be no other than India. For many ages the Egyptians traded with their old homes, and the reference here made by them to the names of the Princes of Punt and its fauna and flora, especially the nonmenclature of various precious woods to be found but in India, leave us scarcely room for the smallest doubt that the old civilization of Egypt is the direct outcome of that the older (ancient) India."

(source: Theosophist for March 1881 p. 123).

Note from Auther's Desk 

To maintain sutaible size of the blog, the article is divided into two parts. Next part will be published as soon as possible. It deals with many other interesting facts like the Egyptian concept of soul and rebirth, The cosmic egg (Brahmanda), Connection with King Dashratha, Indian Geometry used to build the Pyramids and much more. Please be connected and know more, preach more to be more.