| Other Names / Variations: |
Tehuti, Djehuti, Thot, Thout,
Djhowtey, Tehuti, Zehuti |
| Meaning of Name: |
|
| Gender (if known): |
Male |
| Origin /
Tradition: |
Egyptian |
| Time Period: |
|
| Attributes /
Spheres of Influence: |
knowledge, secrets,
writing, scribes, measuring the passage of time, moon, magic |
| Major Site of
Worship: |
Hermopolis |
| Name of Major
Temple: |
|
| Symbols: |
writing palette &
reed; ankh & sceptre; crescent moon; Atef crown |
| Appropriate
Incense / Fragrances: |
|
| Appropriate
Offerings: |
|
| Animals
Associated with the Deity: |
Baboon, Ibis |
| Colors
Associated with the Deity: |
|
| Plants
Associated with the Deity: |
|
| Direction
Associated with the Deity: |
|
| Married to: |
Seshat & Ma'at |
| Children: |
|
| Miscellaneous: |
|
|
Basic Information / General Synopsis:
Egyptian moon god. Over time, he
developed as a god of wisdom, and came to be associated with magic, music,
medicine, astronomy, geometry, surveying, drawing and writing. Thoth was
generally depicted in human form with the head of an ibis, wearing a crown
consisting of a crescent moon topped by a moon disk. He could also be
depicted wholly as an ibis or a baboon. Both the ibis and the baboon were
sacred to him. His principal sanctuary was at Hermopolis (Khmunu) in the
Nile delta region.
Thoth served as an arbiter among the gods. In the Osirian legend, he
protected Isis during her pregnancy and healed her son Horus when Seth
tore out his left eye. Thoth was later identified with the Greek god
Hermes in the form of Hermes Trismegistos ("Hermes the thrice great"), in
which form he remained popular in medieval magic and alchemy. Thoth was
also a god of the underworld, where he served as a clerk who recorded the
judgments on the souls of the dead. Alternatively, it was Thoth himself
who weighed the hearts of the dead against the feather of Truth in the
Hall of the Two Truths. (1)
Patron of: knowledge, secrets, writing,
and scribes
Appearance: A man with the head of an ibis holding a scribe's palette and
stylus. He was also shown as a full ibis, or sometimes as baboon.
Description: Thoth is an unusual god. Though some stories place him as a
son of Ra, others say that Thoth created himself through the power of
language. He is the creator of magic, the inventor of writing, teacher of
man, the messenger of the gods (and thus identified by the Greeks with
Hermes) and the divine record-keeper and mediator.
Thoth's role as mediator is well-documented. It is he who questions the
souls of the dead about their deeds in life before their heart is weighed
against the feather of Maat. He was even sent by Ra to speak with Tefnut
and ask her to return when she abdicated her position and went to Nubia.
He is also the great counselor and the other gods frequently went to him
for advice.
Thoth is considered a lunar deity and is often depicted wearing the lunar
crescent on his head. There is a story told of how Thoth won a portion of
Khonsu's light, and this may be the reason. As a lunar deity his totem
animal is the baboon, a nocturnal animal that goes to sleep only after
greeting the new day.
Worship: Worshipped widely throughout all of Egypt, his cult center was
Hermopolis. (2)
Thoth, God of the Moon, Magic, and Writing
|
|
Hymns /
Prayers:
Give praise to
Thoth;
Make rejoicing
to Him every day.
He Who gives
breath to the weary-hearted one
and vindicates
you against your enemies.
-Book
of the Dead or Going Forth by Day
Utterance 18, T. G. Allen translation
The vizier Who
settles cases,
Who changes
turmoil to peace;
the scribe of
the mat Who keeps the book,
Who punishes
crime,
Who accepts the
submissive,
Who is sound of
arm,
wise among the
Ennead;
Who relates what
was forgotten.
-
from a statue of Pharaoh Horemheb, 18th Dynasty
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