The god Thoth: The God of Wisdom and Knowledge in Ancient Egypt
According to the ancient Egyptians, Thoth (or "Gehuti") was one of the most eminent and worshipped gods of Egyptian mythology: a deity connected with wisdom and writing, mathematics and law, language and magic, and even organizing time and calculating days and years. They regarded him essentially as the cosmic mind that organizes the chaos and structures meaning in this universe.
Thoth featured as the central divinity in ancient Egyptian religion and thought, and various manifestations of his worship existed in the land, particularly in Ashmunin (Hermopolis Magna).
Origin and Legend
Egyptian sources state Thoth was born from Ra, the sun-god, or Hathor, according to some accounts, while other sources sometimes assert that he was a self-generated product, meaning that he was considered to exist on his own. Thoth is sometimes said to have emerged from the mouth of Ra or, in some traditions, was created from his heart, somehow implying that wisdom comes from both thought and word.
Thoth's importance in Egyptology lies in the fact that he was seen as a mediator between good and evil and between the gods and humans, so he was the pen that recorded the vision of the gods and ordered human lives. Besides these qualities, Thoth was credited with a couple of famous myths, such as the myth of Isis and Osiris, where he helped Isis revive Osiris and taught her the right magical charms.
Symbolism and artistic imagery
The ibis and monkey served as vital sacred symbols holding meaning related to intelligence and insight for him.
His depiction writing on papyrus documents emphasizes his role as the deity of scripting and intellectual knowledge. Time guardianship and season organization were attributed to Thoth because he controlled lunar movement.
Thoth and his role in language and writing
Thoth established himself as the author of divine knowledge and the chronologer who documented complete earthly and spiritual events. Writers of ancient Egypt honoured him most deeply, so they began their written work by dedicating their first words to him as the creative force behind their ideas.
According to belief, he founded both scientific research and mathematical principles while teaching people their calendar system and religious practices and fulfilling the role of supreme expert in all fields of knowledge.
His role in the Court of Osiris
Thoth served as a central figure in the ancient Egyptian “Court of Osiris,” which required dead people to prove their worth through godly standards. During the heart-weighing process, Thoth inscribed the judgment results after the heart was balanced against the feather of Maat, which symbolized truth combined with justice. Denoting equal weight between heart and feather enables the deceased to reach eternal life, while unequal weight results in Ammamut's consumption of the deceased. During this stage, Thoth establishes his position as upholder of justice together with the moral standard.
His worship and religious sites
The main centre of worship of Thoth was in the city of Ashmunin (Hermopolis), where he was worshipped as the god of wisdom and the first legislator. There are also temples and shrines throughout Egypt, including temples in Luxor and Aswan.
Thoth was also worshipped alongside other gods such as Maat (goddess of justice) and Khonsu (moon god), reflecting his status as a multifunctional deity, capable of being both a mediator and a ruler.
Thoth in later cultures
As the Greek and Roman era entered Egypt, Thoth did not disappear but was merged with similar gods in Greek culture, such as Hermes, to appear as Thoth-Hermes or Hermes Trismegistus, who later became one of the pillars of what is known as Hermeticism, a Gnostic philosophy that merged Egyptian and Greek thought and considered Thoth a teacher of eternal wisdom and divine mystery.
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