Ancient Egypt is one of the earliest civilizations in the world. Beginning with their Predynastic Period in circa 5000 BCE, the Egyptians began to cultivate their way of life. Independently ruling until the conquest of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE, the Egyptians continued to influence and be influenced by other cultures, like the Greeks and Romans. However, unlike the Greeks, the Egyptians incorporated their religious thinking into everyday life, believing that the sky was the heavens and the sun, moon, and stars were gods. During the thousands of years the ancient Egyptians lived, they developed calendars and constellations that inspired later calendars until the calendar that is used today was created. The ancient Egyptians used astronomy to create calendars, believing that the sun and the stars were their gods. The Egyptians did not believe that the sun and stars were bodies in space, instead believing that they were gods that lived in the sky during the day and died each time they left the sky. The sun, moon, and stars would travel through their afterlife, called the Duat, and be born again each time they reappeared (Parker, 55-56). They had the same constellations as the Greeks, except they believed them to be Egyptian gods (Chatley, 123-124). For example, the Sun was believed to be the god Ra, and Sirius was the goddess Sopdet or Sothis with her appearance coinciding with the rise and fall of the Nile (Parker, 52). The planets that are visible from Earth were
Re, also called Ra, was the ancient Egyptian sun god and one of the creator gods. This deity took a multitude of forms that varied depending on his location and function. Most frequently, Re was identified as the mid-day sun, travelling by boat high in the sky above. His influence permeated all strata of Egyptian society and culture, as his continual visible presence in the sky reinforced his preeminence in the ancient Egyptian pantheon of gods. Throughout Egyptian history, despite the rise and fall in prominence of other deities, Re’s influence in the sky, on the earth, and in the underworld remained intact.
Ancient Egypt was one of the strongest early civilizations. Unlike other civilizations the ancient Egyptians settled along the Nile river making their agriculture very successful. The ancient Egyptians are believed to have started in about 3100 B.C. They were a very strong and thriving civilization until 332 B.C. when Alexander the Great conquered them. The daily lives of the ancient Egyptians was all about agriculture and religion. Government was also a big part of the everyday lives of the Egyptians.
Every year the pharaoh made a ceremony to make sure the Nile flood would bring rich soil (good crops)
Written in hieroglyphics dating about 3100 B.C.E. Egyptian records have helped archaeologists gain dependable knowledge into their religion. The Ancient Egyptians saw the sun, earth, river, and sun sources of life, and in combination together transported fruits from the earth. Animals were seen as humans; as a result they often combined human and animal forms. The sun was the highest god, and was given different for different parts of the day. Symbolized by a falcon Horus was the king of the sun. Amon-Re also known as Amon whose symbol was the obelisk, became the highest god in 2000 B.C.E. when Thebes dominated all Egypt. Later in history Pharaoh Akhenaton declared Aton represented by a disc to be the only sun god. Gods and goddesses were shown in the human and animal form, for
Organized Religion, Exquisite Art, and a structured Government demonstrate that Ancient Egypt was a highly advanced culture. Religion in ancient Egypt was both organized and successful in ways of life and ceremonial occasions. Egyptian art was detailed, exquisite and represented how much art showed and was cared for. Government in Ancient Egypt depended on rulers and the form of democracy.
In ancient Egypt people believe that the sun king represented power and strength. The sun God for the ancient Egyptians represented life. The reasons that it represented life are that the sun had power, energy, light and warmth. At that time they worship the sun God Ra. People believe that he made the crops grow every season. A lot of ancient cultures marked the date as significant, since the sun is at its highest point and the concept of sun worship is as old as mankind. The dependence on the sun for life and sustenance in societies were primarily agricultural. That is why people believed in the Sun God.
Ancient egypt is a place full of wonders and full of ancient artifacts that have preserved many tales for centuries. In ancient times there were many different things that were common to egyptians than what we do today. For example many pharaohs (egyptian rulers) were expected to be embalmed and mummified when they have passed. In our time today it is not expected for people to be embalmed and mummified. Also people believe in many mythological stories about many egyptian gods creating many things that couldn’t be explained at the time. Now we have many explanations for many of the gods who egyptians used to explain the world around us.
The earliest religious belief for the Egyptians is the sun god Amon. Amon considered greater than any other deity in the Egyptian pantheon. This god role was called the sun god and creator of heaven and earth. The Egyptians believe that Amon gave sunlight and made it possible the cultivation of crops. The Egyptians viewed the sun’s daily ascent in the east as symbolic of the god’s rebirth”.
The Ancient Egyptian religion began about 3000 B.C. The Egyptians believed in Pharaohs, Kings, Gods and Goddess. They also believed in an afterlife, meaning when they die they will become a god themselves. The Egyptians worship many Gods.
The concept of the eternal life in traditional Egypt is associated with the sun that always rose up to give renewal and vigor on a daily basis. Ancient Egyptians considered the afterlife as an ideal dimension in its peace, delight, and bliss. There were no hardships, rivalry or any negative emotions in the spiritual realm. The dimension was referred to commonly as the Field of Offerings or the Field of Rushes. The heavenly place was complete with its own version of the river Nile and was composed of two fields. The Egyptians society saw it possible to attain the peace given in the afterlife if they led an earthly religious life. The next life was eternal in nature. Ancient Egyptians employed two religious criteria to structure their belief in the afterlife. The beliefs were centered on godly myths and the spiritual connection between the body and the soul.
The religion in Egypt is extremely complex, it had no end of gods. There gods were linked to natural phenomenons. The king of the gods was Ra who was also the god of the sun. The gods in ancient Egypt were supposed to be calm; they thought this since the Nile river was calm and they connected gods to the Nile river. The Egyptians believed that if they did what they were supposed to then the gods were supposed to fulfill what they want. They pleased the gods by worshiping them. They believed that the gods lived in the great pyramids.
Religion provided the Egyptians with a sense of security and timelessness. Theses religious ideas represented the Egyptians as an inseparable part of the entire world. Egyptians were polytheistic meaning that they believed in multiple gods instead of just one. There are two groups of gods that the Egyptians worshipped, the sun gods and the land gods. River gods were considered land gods. The sun was a source of life so it was worth worshipping. The gods had different names and forms based on their role that they played in Egyptian religion. For example, and Egyptian ruler had the title “Son of Ra”. Ra was an Egyptian sun god.
The story of Ancient Egypt began about 8000 years ago when people began to settle in the Nile Valley and started to raise their own crops and animals. (Ancient Egypt) From 3400BC to 1786BC, the Egyptians themselves ruled Egypt. Lower and Upper Egypt was united with the lands upstream to form one country under one king. The first period of Egyptian civilization -- The Old Kingdom, lasted from 2686BC to 2181BC. Soon after that, the Egyptians gained control of Nubia, and extended the land that was being farmed from 2050BC to 1786BC. From 1663BC to 332BC, the Egyptians were ruled by many different groups, such as the Hyksos (a group of Asian settlers who ruled for 100 years), the Thebans (who established the New Kingdom), and the Greeks. However, in 30BC, conquest was finally complete as Egypt fell under the control of the Roman Empire. (Illustrated Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt)
There are many cultures around the world, they are what make people diverse. While some are different than others, there still are some similarities between them such as having the same beliefs or ideas. The ancient Egyptians lived during 3100-2686 B.C. The Egyptians lived in north of the nile river at the time. They believed in a ruler that will lead them, this was called the pharaoh.
Egyptians believed gods had the magic power to communicate with them through their dreams when they were asleep. They believed dreams could tell the future and what might happen to them.