osiris

Osiris was one of the most important deities for the religiosity of the Egyptians in Antiquity. He became known as the god of the dead and the afterlife.

Osiris he was an important deity in the mythology and religiosity of the Egyptians in the Ancient Age. He emerged as a god of fertility, but became the god of the dead, being the lord of the afterlife and responsible for judging the dead for their actions in life.

It is considered who taught all civilizing knowledge to the Egyptians, such as the domain of agriculture, laws and religious traditions. His power caused the envy of Set, his brother, who murdered him. However, he was resurrected by Isis, his wife, in a ritual. Osiris and Isis were the parents of the god Horus.

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Osiris Summary

He was one of the most traditional and important gods of religiosity in Ancient Egypt.
he Emerged as a god of fertility, but was converted into the god of the dead.
he was the lord of the afterlife and the one who judged the dead for their actions.
It is believed to have emerged in Egypt during the Pre-Dynastic period.
One of the Egyptian myths narrates the episode of Osiris' murder by Set and his resurrection through Isis.

Who is the god Osiris?

Osiris was an Egyptian deity, being one of the most important in the culture of this ancient people. His attributes have changed over time; initially he was a god of fertility, however later on he assumed the position of god of the dead and the afterlife.

The Egyptians considered him the lord of the underworld , and was also the one who judged all who died . Remembering that, in Egyptian mythology, judgment was given by means of a scale, which weighed the person's heart (representing their actions) against a feather (symbol of justice).

Osiris was commonly depicted with part of his mummified body, which reinforced his connection with the afterlife and the judgment of the dead. Also, he was considered to be the first pharaoh and had a series of elements that related it to the nobility, such as the atef , a kind of crown worn by the pharaohs.

The representations of Osiris portray him as someone with black or green skin, and this is understood as a reference to the mud of the Nile and the regenerative capacity of this river and, consequently, the Osiris himself. Finally, your name is the Latinized form of Usir , as the Egyptians referred to him. Usir can be translated as “mighty”.

Read more: Ancient Egyptian Mummification Process

What is the origin of the god Osiris?

Historians believe that the cult of Osiris probably started sometime in the Pre-Dynastic period (6000-3150 BC) and became popular from the Dynastic period (3150-3150 BC). 2613 BC), being quite influential in Egyptian religiosity until the period of the Ptolemaic Dynasty (323-30 BC).

One of the theories to explain its origin points out that he was probably some ruler d Egypt during the Pre-Dynastic period and was deified after his death. Osiris is also related to two traditional deities of the city of Abydos, located in Egypt.

In mythology, Osiris was son of Geb, god of the Earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky for the Egyptians. He was the brother of the following gods:Isis, Set, Nephthys and Horus (another variation of this god exists as a son of Osiris and Isis). Osiris married Isis , and Egyptian myths tell that his brother Set was jealous of him.

How does Osiris appear in Egyptian mythology?

In Egyptian mythology, Osiris was thelord of the Earth and the one who taught the civilized way of life for the Egyptians. It was through him that laws, culture, religious traditions, agricultural knowledge, among others, were established. This knowledge made Egypt a prosperous land.

Osiris' success aroused the envy of his brother Set , and this feeling turned to hatred after Osiris had sexual relations with Nephthys, wife of Set. This happened because Nephthys took the form of Isis, wife of Osiris, thus deceiving the god who ruled Egypt. Set became enraged and began plotting his brother's death.

Nephthys became pregnant with a child by Anubis, the god of the dead. There are conflicting versions of how Set assassin or Osiris . One says that he took the form of a wild animal to kill it, while another states that he threw Osiris into the Nile, after trapping him in a trap.

Osiris' body was carried by the waters to Byblos, Phoenicia, and there it was found by Isis, who had begun a search for her missing husband. She took his body back to Egypt, but Set found out about it and quarters or the body of his brother (the amount of parts varies in the myths).

So Isis started a search for parts of Osiris, launched by Set in different regions of Egypt. She found all the parts except the one corresponding to Osiris' penis. The goddess performed a ritual to resurrect her husband her . Upon being reborn, Osiris cast his seed on Isis, impregnating her with Horus.

Since a part of his body was missing, Osiris could not reign over the world of the living again and thus became lord of the afterlife and responsible for the judgment of all those who died.

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What was the cult of Osiris like?

Osiris was one of the main gods of Egyptian religiosity, and, as such, his cult was an important part of that faith. His cult was spread throughout Egypt , and ceremonies and rituals took place in his honor. Sacrifices and rituals were also offered to this god.

The city of Abydos centralized the cult of Osiris, and the Egyptians associated the floods of the Nile directly with him, as well as the dry season with his death, and the flood period with his resurrection by Isis.

The Egyptians built temples for him in different cities such as Heliopolis and Abydos, and in these temples the population left offerings and said prayers. It is important to remember that the cult of Osiris had a strong relationship with the afterlife, an extremely important element in the religiosity of the Egyptians at that time.