Looking into the inner Horus chapel, 2nd Hypostyle Hall, Abedjou.
Photo: author.
There are many names in combination with the name of Horus, or Her/Har. Among the names we meet are (in ancient Egyptian and Greek:):
Heru-sa-Aset - Gr: Harseisis (Heru son of Aset)
Har-pa-khered/Heru-pa-khered - Gr: Harpocrates (Heru the Child)
Heru-nedj-itef - Gr: Harendotes (Heru Saviour of His Father)
Heru-Wer - Gr: Haroeris (Horus the Elder)
Ra-Heru-Akhety - Ra-Horakhty/Horakhty (Ra-Heru of Two Horizons
Heru-Behdety - Gr: Haidith (Heru of the city of Behdet)
Heru-sema-Tawy (Horus Uniter of the Two Lands)
Har-em-akhet/Heru-em-akhet - Gr: Harmachis (Horus in the Horizon [the Great Sphinx])
The Living Horus - The ruling King.
Horus was worshipped all over Egypt in many different forms, as sky god, sun god, god of kingship and as son of Isis. Letīs differ first between Horus the Elder and Horus son of Isis. To this comes also the Living Horus, the title of the ruling King of Egypt.
Heru-Wer - Horus the Elder
Horus the Elder or the falcon or hawk, soaring with outstretched wings was already in Predynastic times seen as the sky-god, his eyes were called the sun and the moon. He is depicted on Predynastic pottery and in the royal serekh, marking the kingīs name from this period. In ancient Kemetic the word Her or Heru means 'The One on High' or 'The Distant One', referring to the falcon soaring in the sky. The sky, the sun and the falcon were at this time equaled with the king and out of this came the symbol of the winged disc which was one of the many forms of Heru/Horus. This became the royal insignia, used on lintels over doors of temples and royal buildings, as well as in many other places. This is the form which refer to him as "Horus the Elder", or 'Heru-Wer'. In Kom-Ombo he was identified as the son of Re and it is likely that the ancient falcon god of Nekhen (Gr: Hierakonpolis), 'City of the Hawk', from Predynastic times, is the same as Horus.
Horus gives life to Seti.
Outside the Ptah-Sokar-Nefertem Hall.
Photo: author.
Heru-sa-Aset - Horus son of the goddess Isis
or Harseisis in Greek. This is the son of Isis and Osiris from the myth cycle which tells about the treason of Set and the conception of Heru. In the tale of the 'Contendings of Horus and Set' it is told about his fight against his uncle Set, who had slain his father Osiris and how he finally gained his fatherīs throne back from Set. To this aspect of Heru, the name 'Heru-pa-khered' (Gr: Harpokrates) is associated, by which is denoted the young child with a lock-of-youth, sitting in the lap of Aset and being suckled by her. From the Late Period, there are so called 'cippi', objects inscribed with the image of Her-pa-khered and used as amulets protecting against bites of snakes, scorpions and crocodiles.
The Living Horus - God of Kingship
This is the form which embodies the ruling King, or rather his spirit or 'ka'. When a king died, it was the duty of his son or in many instances, his heir, to perform the 'Opening of the Mouth Ceremony' on the mummy, in order for it to be revived and to become Osiris, king of the Afterlife. Through this, the new king stepped into the place of the deceased king as Horus, his son and heir, all according to the myth. To this aspect of the god, the name 'Heru-Yun-Mutef' can be associated, by which is meant 'Horus, pillar of his mother'; the son who showed the result of Isisī striving to bring him up in secret in Chemmis so that he would regain the throne of his father.
What makes it so confusing is that these two main forms are also given local names, at the various numerous places of worship. But in reality they all come from the two different ones, Horus the Elder and Horus son of Isis. The Living Horus is all tied in with the concept of the Divine Kingship so that is a bit different. Some of the names tied to places are:
Heru-Behdety - Horus of Behdet
It is uncertain how far back Horus was worshiped at Behdet in the Delta. His form here is the sundisc surrounded by falcon wings, the motif which is frequently seen in temple ceilings and on lintels. This is tied in with the myth where Behdety fights against Set and the outcome is so even that Re transforms Behdety into the winged sun-disc, which flies up and blinds the foes, thus securing the victory.
Heru-Khenty-Irty - Kehty-Khem
This is Khem,the Greek Letopolis, modern Ausim, where the falcon-god was worshiped already in the 4th Dynasty. Here are hardly any remains to be seen however.
Horus of Mesen
Mesen is modern Edfu, where Horus was worshiped since the Old Kingdom if not earlier. In the Ptolemeian Period, Horus, his spouse Hathor and their son Harsomtus (who is a form of Horus the Elder, yes very confusing!) were worshiped here. The sacred drama depicted on the walls of the Edfu temple shows Horus spearing Set in the form of a hippopotamus. In ancient times, each year a falcon was chosen to represent the King, and the 'Coronation of the Sacred Falcon' was performed here, in which the ancient falcon deity was merged with Horus as the son of Osiris and the Living King.
Horus of Nekhen
This is the modern site of Kom-el-Ahmar. In the early dynastic period, Horus probably assimilated an earlier falcon deity, the 'Nekheny', here, and the place remained a cult center for Horus into the Greco-Roman Period when it was known as Hierakonpolis.
The Wedjat Eye - The Eye of Horus
In the 'Contendings of Horus and Set', the myth which tells about the fight between these two gods for the rulership of Egypt, Set injures the eyes of Horus. They are healed by Hathor who uses gazelleīs milk on them. The healed eyes became the symbol for perfection, called the 'Wedjat' or 'Udjat' Eye and are spoken of in singular. Amulets in the form of eyes were used as a sign of protection and were worn around the neck or placed in mummy wrappings. Besides protection, they can stand for various things: the strength of the King, for kingship, for protection against Set, and others.
Main center of worship: Iunu/Heliopolis/Cairo 13th Nome, Lower Egypt:
Other temple sites:
Nebet/Ombi/Kom Ombo 1st Nome, Upper Egypt:
Djeba/Apollinopolis Magna/Edfu 2nd Nome, Upper Egypt
Nekhen/Hierakonpolis 2nd Nome, Upper Egypt
Gesy/Apollinopolis Parva/Qus 5th Nome,Upper Egypt
Iunet/Tentyris/Dendera 6th Nome, Upper Egypt
Menīat-khufu/el-Minya 16th Nome, Upper Egypt
(Horus the Elder)
Khem/Letopolis/Ausim 2nd Nome, Lower Egypt
(Kehnty-irty, a form of Horus)
Hut-Heryib/Athribis 10th Nome,Lower Egypt
(Khenty-Khety, a form of Horus)
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