The Symbolism of the Lotus Flower in Ancient Egypt

The lotus was the only flowering plant in Egypt that bloomed continuously throughout the year. Because of this, the blue lotus became a natural solar symbol and was corresponded to the process of creation and the continuance of life. The gods and goddesses of Egypt were said to naturally exude divine scent from their bodies. So it followed in daily life that by being fragrant an individual emulated their deities. The lotus is symbolized in all Egytian temples tombs and artwork.

In many temples and tombs you will see ancient Egyptian kings offering the scent of the lotus to the gods.The Ancient Egyptians believed that a giant lotus blossom was the first expression of living form to emerge from the primordial waters of Nun. Then from this flower the sun-god  came forth. The Lotus was also considered as an aphrodisiac, a substance that increases sexual desire and sexual pleasure 

This is my photograph of the Goddess Sekhet bringing the Harvest of the fields to Dendera Temple, and it shows that her divine breath is that of flowers, she has a garland of Lotus flowers wrapped around her arm that she brings to the Temple

Among the treasures found in the tomb of Tutankhamun was a beautiful wooden carving of the head of the young king as a boy of about nine or ten years of age. 

This beautiful sculpture depicts Tutankhamun as the Reborn Child, or Sun God rising from the petals of the sacred blue lotus, and represents 'He who emerged from the lotus upon the High Mound, who illumines with his eyes, the Two Lands.'. When Tutenkhamun's sarcophagi was opened his mummy was covered in Lotus Blossoms.

In Egyptian banquets flower heads of the lotus were soaked in wine to prepare a special intoxicating and fragrant drink for banquets and festivals. In ancient Egypt the root of the lotus could be eaten raw or cooked to the consistency of egg yolk. Its seeds were ground into flour for bread. Their herbalists used a concoction of the lotus to increase libido. Lotus seeds and pods were used as antidotes to love spells, and any part of the lotus carried upon the person ensured divine blessing and good fortune. The scenes on tomb and temple walls where the recipient is offered a  blue lotus inhalation has been proven by research that the scent has an impact on the human brain which leads to a state of mental relaxation that enables a human being to reach what is known as 'enlightenment ' a moment expressed between sleep and vigilance.This is my photograph of Ramses 11 offering the Goddess Hathor the Blue Lotus at the Rammessium, his Mortuary Temple. 

The Eye of Horus & the Eye of Ra

The left eye is the  Eye of Horus, it is one of healing and regeneration, it promises divine intention and protection from the Gods. It represents the Moon. Horus was an Ancient Egyptian God and was usually shown with the head of a Falcon, he was associated with the heavens.

There is an ancient myth in which a battle between Horus and his brother the God Set, took place as to who would rule Egypt after the death of their father Osiris, during the battle Set gouged out Horus's left eye.When Horus's eye was recovered, he offered it to his father, Osiris, in hopes of restoring his life, and from then on the eye of Horus was often used to symbolize sacrifice, healing, restoration, and protection. During this battle, Set lost his testicles. Thoth, who is known as the Egyptian God of wisdom, restored Horus’eye. It was at this point, that it was given the name Wadjet. This myth also shows the relation to the waxing and waning cycles of the moon.. 

The right eye is the Eye of Ra, and is associated with the Sun. The Symbol is worn to protect from Evil spirits. is a symbol of protection erupting from power fury and violence, it is a source of great light and warmth and can also be equated with fire or with the magical appearance of a pink horizon over the land of Egypt.

Funerary amulets were often made in the shape of the Eye of Horus. The Symbol was intended to protect the pharaoh in the afterlife, and to ward off evil.

A Tour Guide from Luxor who can actually read the Hieroglyphic Text

I do not live in Luxor anymore, but I would like

to introduce you

to an Excellent Tour Guide who has 24 Years of Experience and a High Diploma of Tour Guidance, and who lives in Luxor, but who is able to take guests to Visit Any Part of Egypt that they would wish to see. 

Have you ever wondered what the Hieroglyphics in the Temples say ? Then Look no further as Shahhat has the Answers for you. 

Unlike many Tour Guides he can actually read the Gods Word's written in the Tombs and Temples bringing thousands of years of silence to life again.

Shahhat Wannan  speaks perfect English and has an English Literature Degree, A High Diploma of Archaeology,  And a Master studying of Archaeology, he is a very educated well spoken and has a lovely sense of humor and a real passion for the history of Ancient Egypt.

This is Shahhat in KV 6 - the Tomb of Ramses 1X

I do Hope that you have a wonderful time Exploring all the Amazing Temples & Tombs in Luxor with Shahhat Wannan,  a very intellectual expressive Guide, with a Passion for Ancient Egypt, these are just a few of the Temples and tombs that he will guide you through in Luxor alone, If you have a place that you would like to see the most, you have only to ask,  and remember if you want to ask any questions about a text, he will translate the hieroglyphics for you. Enjoy your experiences in Egypt - Best Wishes from Lorraine Buczel

The EAST BANK  - Where the sun rises every morning it is the side of the Living and the Earthly Homes of the Gods : 

KARNACK TEMPLE & the OPEN AIR MUSEUM  - the Earthly Home of the Major God of Ancient Egypt, Amun Ra. 

Most tours just take you around Karnack Temple where you will experience the most amazing Hypostyle hall in the center of Karnack Temple, it is the reception area of the gods, its awesome lotus columns represent the plants that came into being on the mound of creation. The lotus columns are a symbolism of Horus who was born on the waters of creation, the lotus plant represents the first sunrise on the day of creation. Each evening the lotus submerges beneath the waters, and at dawn it rises symbolically to worship the sun again, it encompasses all the forces of nature and lives in all the four elements, its roots are bound to the earth and its stem rises through water, it flourishes in the air and blooms in the sunlight.

Karnack Temple is one of the largest Religious Complexes in the world, many Kings have helped to create it over a period of 2,000 years.

Normally tour companies do not include the Open Air Museum

in their tours, so we will probably have peace to enjoy this unexplored corner of Karnack Temple to ourselves. In this little corner you will find Barque Chapels that have been rebuilt from pieces that were found inside the third pylon after an earthquake, I think the Gods wanted to share these amazing works of art with us. You will find the Exquisite White Chapel of Sensuret 1, It has twelve pillars, one for each month, an inscription on the north corner pillar reads : 'Come in peace, O sensuret, that thou mayest see thy farther Amun Ra who loves thee, and that he may give thee kingship of the two lands '

Hatshepsut created a very impressive unusual Red Barque Chapel for Amun Ra, and we will also find two beautiful Alabaster Barque chapels inside the Open Air Museum

Luxor Temple - Created to Celebrate the Opet Festival and is a 

unique Temple as it is not the Earthly home of a God, it was created to symbolically celebrate the Re-birth of the King and Egypt every year at the Opet festival, where the God Amun Ra, his wife Mut, and their Son Khonsu would be carried from Karnack Temple escorted by the King, down the Avenue of Sphinx to Celebrate the Opet Festival in the Festival Hall created by Amenophis 111, where the King and Egypt would be Symbolically Reborn Every Year

THE WEST BANK - where the Sun Sets each evening, here the Kings created their Mortuary Temples and their Tombs. Here you can explore the famous Valley of the Kings, Howard Carter House and recreated tomb of Tutenkhamun in his garden. The Tombs of the Nobles are exquisite and have varied themes expressing the Nobles lives, some are Vibrant, some are sombre, and we can also experience the most famous piece of Armarna Art in the Tomb of Ramose

Just A few of the Temples that you might choose to Visit on the West Bank :

MEDINET HABU - The Mortuary Temple of Ramses 111, one of the last great Rulers of Ancient Egypt. 

A Kebnet (Court) was held here, where thirty members of the  Harem were put on trial in their attempt to kill the King. They were all found guilty and told to commit suicide in front of the court or their cells. After the hearing ten judges were found guilty of entertaining the accused during the trial and they had their ears and noses cut off. Medinet Habu also celebrates the Defeat of the Sea People by Ramses 111, the Sea people had invaded Egypt at the Delta following unrest in the Mediterranean

HATSHEPSUTS TEMPLE AT DIER EL BAHARI

let the experience of this really dramatic and impressive stage like temple with its gleaming white limestone colonnades seep into your bones. The Osiris statues of Hatshepsut smile down on the traveler in amused triumph holding the flail and whip, a symbol of power and fertility. It is incredible to stand and look at this hidden place of worship, admire it's breath taking simplicity of line and at the same time try and comprehend how such things could be accomplished thousands of years ago, a beautiful temple driven into and becoming part of the sheer pink and gold rock face that rises around it. This temple is the one thing above everything that testifies the strength and determination of a woman in a male dominated world.

The Valley of the Kings & Howard Carter House

We can start our journey having a look around Howard

Carters House, to get the feel of the man who discovered the Tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922.Inside the miniature museum are many personal belongings of Howard Carter, and it is interesting to experience this little house that the most famous archaeologist of all time lived in when he was working in the Valley of the Kings.

In the Garden of the Howard Carter house a replica of Tutenkhamun's tomb has been created, showing all the treasures exactly how they would have appeared to Howard Carter when he dug a small hole and by candle light peered through the hole, 'What can you see?' asked his patron Lord Carnarvon, 'Wonderful things!' exclaimed Howard Carter

The Valley of the Kings - Across the river Nile on the western shore of Thebes, there lays a desolate winding valley that hibernates within a barren and silent city for the dead, where no life can sustain on its parched desert rocks. In ancient days this was a secret place with only one way into the valley, its dusty road was only followed by the ritual funeral entourage of ancient times, and if you go into the valley you can only return by the road that you came. The sides of the valley twist and turn and contort into a mountain that forms a natural pyramid known as 'The Quorn', like the pyramids this is a ladder to the stars and eternal life. It encloses the subterranean tombs and final resting places of the once living Gods of Ancient Egypt,  the pharaohs of The New Kingdom. 

'I am yesterday Today and Tomorrow, and I have the power to be born a second time' - The Book of the Dead.

To Contact Shahhat Wannan :

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The Rammessium - the Mortuary Temple of Ramses the Great, and the Ozymandias

As I walked across the courtyard Of the Rammessium, the Mortuary Temple of Ramses the Great, a mortuary temple created by Ramses so that his name would live for millions of years, another set of Osiris statues

loomed towards me in solemn silence, I realized all their heads were missing, and yet with their arms crossed holding both the flail and scepter they still affected me with their majesty and presence. 

A singular large head carved from granite appears to have dropped into the courtyard beneath their feet, it sits slightly lob-sided, and I stopped to gaze on the beautiful face of Ramses, the whisper of a smile touches the corners of a perfectly formed mouth.  I decided that the poet Shelley was wrong when he wrote in his poem ‘Ozymandias’ that the face of Ramses portrayed a sneer of cold command, with a frown and wrinkled lip, the romance of the period he lived in had created an impression of a king that was nothing like the face that gazed back at me, there was no sneer of haughty command that his poem described, so I smiled back at Ramses and I felt he acknowledged my affection. Standing there I suddenly realized that I wasn’t alone, an elderly attendant  had come to stand beside me, he then walked towards  the head, he pointed and gestured to my camera,  his hands telling me what his words could not, he created an imaginary frame with his hands around the head, all the time pointing to my camera, a large grin  then escaped on his face and the laughter lines crinkled around his eyes, ‘Action!’ he suddenly declared,  I was so surprised I had to laugh, it seemed so comical to find my own film director, come action scene camera assistant within the grounds of a temple, and so having taken my photo I followed  him with good humor  to see all that he wanted to show me.

He took me up a flight of steps at the side of the Osiris Statues and pointed to the Back of a Granite seated statue, and carved into the cartouche of Ramses was the Name ' Belzoni 1816.' Giovanni Belzonni had taken this head that had fallen off the statue under instructions from a diplomat called Salt, who then sold the head to the British Museum where it is still on display today, the photograph above is the twin head taken from the statue that sits on the opposite side of the steps.

Sekhet the Goddess of the Fields & the Feast of the Beautiful Embrace

At Dendera Temple, many of the Reliefs had been vandalized

by early Christians to eradicate the powers of the Ancient Egyptian Gods, but fortunately for me I followed all the way around the exterior of the Temple where my enthusiasm increased as the relief’s were untouched, beautiful and unspoiled once more, and they portrayed the harvest festival, where  the beautiful goddess Sekhet, the goddess of the fields brings the produce of the land to the temple, Above her head are three sheafs of Wheat, to show that she is the Goddess of the Fields, she walks through the fields to the Temple with offerings of Papyrus and lotus, small geese fly from the ground whilst she follows a calf, her breath has the  scent of flowers and she is adorned with Lotus blossoms, a sacred flower of Ancient Egypt, and in her arms she carries Lotus geese fruits and wine.  

All temples survived on the produce of the land, and the produce of the harvest Festival at Dendera proceeded the most spectacular festival that was known as the Festival of The Beautiful embrace where once a year after the harvest, the Goddess Hathor’s barque was loaded with the produce of the fields in preparation for the visit she made to see her Husband the God Horus at his earthly home the Temple Of Edfu. In splendid celebration Hathor was carried from her sanctuary within Dendera and greeted by all important dignitaries and priests, the locals were allowed to join this celebration,  then   gently her splendid barque that was known as ‘Great of Love’ carried her upstream where she was joined by a flotilla of barques until she arrived at Karnack Temple, where she would stay for a few days to visit the Goddess Mut, the wife of Amun Ra, more barques joined her flotilla as she left Karnack to continue her journey, Her Husband Horus would leave his temple and head downstream to greet her and in glorious celebration he would escort his wife to his home of Edfu Temple to  begin  fourteen days of joyous celebration where their sacred marriage was enacted once more and their son Ihy was conceived.

Seti 1 Sed Festival and the Tree of Life in Karnack Temple

As I wandered through the columns in the Hypostyle Hall in Karnack Temple, I arrived at a side entrance in the hall, along this wall the Sed festival of Seti 1 is celebrated, from here Seti invites the gods into the house. 

Thoth the God of  the Moon, Magic, writing and wisdom stands behind

the king who kneels beneath the tree of Life, Thoth has a lean sturdy body but his head is that of an ibis bird whose long  beak curves like the crescent of the Moon, he is the scribe of the Gods who keeps all the records of the living and those in the underworld, with his reed pen he writes the kings name in a  fruit that he then passes to Seti who hangs it on onto the magical Tree of Life for the regeneration of his reign. Seti is wearing the Kepresh ceremonial crown and holding a hek scepter to symbolize that he is the Sheppard and guardian of his people. 

The Goddess Sekhmet stands the other side of the tree of life behind the king, her elegant body is overshadowed by her golden mane and  the warm  regal face of a lion;  her strength and ferociousness was that of a lion, causing fear amongst  both gods and men , in a rage  she would  punish or  annihilate all  wrongdoers,  she was the kings protector  in battle who ran before his chariot  slaughtering  his enemies, she preserved him from evil,  she stands behind him in this ceremony holding the palm of years from which a collection of Ankhs dangle that would jingle in the breeze,   this is a conduit for the divine power of life and permeates the universe.

To complete his ceremony Seti kneels before Amun holding the symbols of the Sed festival in his left hand, the God Amun reaches out to bless the king touching his Atef crown with uraei on disks all surrounding the horns of Khumn.

Seti had originally started creating the huge pylons and the Hypostyle Hall in Karnack Temple, and after his death his son Ramses the 11 (The Great) completed his works.