dreams and nightmares - no. 89

ra - the sun god

The ancient Egyptians believed the role of Ra, the sun god, was to sail across the heavens in his boat called the 'Barque of Millions of Years.'

In the morning when Ra emerged from the east, his boat was named, 'Madjet' which meant 'becoming strong.' By the end of the day the boat was called, 'Semektet' which meant 'becoming weak.'

Ra died each day and sailed on to the underworld, leaving the moon in his place to light up the world. Ra was reborn at dawn the very next day.

During his daily journey across the heavens Ra fought his main enemy, an evil serpent named Apep, the Lord of Chaos. In some stories, Ra, in the form of a cat named Mau, defeats the evil serpent, Apep. This is part of the reason why cats are so highly-revered in Egypt.