Osiris, the supreme god of the underworld, has many names and images, and is in charge of the agriculture of ancient Egypt. He is the god of death and technically infertile (after Osiris was dismembered by Seth, Isis retrieved fragments of his body but did not find his genitals), but it is not difficult to understand his relationship with agriculture when one considers the inherent death and regeneration of grain in the agricultural cycles of cultivation and harvesting.
Mummies wrapped in Nile mud (Royal Ontario Museum)
Every harvest of ancient Egyptian agriculture, like a god being symbolically killed, his body shattered on a threshing ground. But after the flood, life will return to the land and crops will grow again. In the Osiris secret ritual, there is a scene of grain being planted and growing and sprouting from his body, symbolizing the resurrection of "Osiris".
Osiris was originally the god of plants
Similarly, the ancient Egyptians made small mummies of "Osiris" from a mixture of clay, sand, and grain. These corn mummies of grain are wrapped in bandages and placed in small coffins in the form of the eagle god "Sokar/Seker".
Osiris Grain Mummy (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Grain mummies and coffins (private collection)
Sokal Coffin (Metropolitan Museum)
In Memphis, "Sokal" is the local falcon god who protects tombs and is also the patron saint of tomb builders. Together with the god of creation, Puta, he was absorbed by Osiris as the reborn god Ptah-Sokar-Osiris.
God Sokal (left, Temple of Seti I)
Statue of Puta-Sokal-Osiris (National Archaeological Museum of Naples)
Statue of Puta-Sokal-Osiris (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
In addition to "Osiris" and "Ra" and their combined gods, the gods who are often mentioned in the world of "Duat" also have all the family members of "Osiris". Among them, his mother, the goddess of the sky, "Nutt", is described in the Book of the Dead as the mother of the dead, protecting and embracing the undead as they travel through Hades and ascend to heaven.
The Goddess Of Nutt in the Coffin (Louvre)
Noult, Goddess of the Sky (Martin von Wagner Museum)
Nut hugs the dead (part 2, Royal Scottish Museum)
In post-Egyptian and Ptolemaic periods, she was often carved on the inner lid or bottom of a coffin to show protection for the dead; the mausoleum ceiling, painted dark blue and painted with many stars, was also a symbol of "Nutt". Chapter 59 of the Book of the Dead describes the image of the "Nutt" fig tree, providing the dead with the air and water they need in Hades.
Nutter as a protective letter (Milwaukee Museum of Art, Wisconsin)
Nutt sarcophagus lid (National Museum of Egypt)
Nutt and Sokal-Osiris in the coffin (Museum of Fine Arts, Lyon)
Book of the Dead Chapter 59 Provides Air and Water for the Undead (British Museum)
Water and food for table-carved Noot (British Museum)
In the underworld, gods often appear in groups. A group of 3 is the most common form, and another 7 groups are often mentioned. It is said that the sun god has 7 "ba", and other gods are also believed to have seven different forms, the most famous of which is the "seven Hathors".
3 common groups of gods in the mansion (British Museum)
Seven Hathor and Sky Bulls (National Egyptian Museum)
Seven Hathor and sky bulls (QV66)
Beginning in the New Kingdom, the funeral role of "Hathor" became increasingly important. In The Book of the Dead, she appears repeatedly as a cow, while "Seven Hatols" are depicted as sky cows, associated with fate and predicting the future, knowing the length of children's lives from the day they are born and torturing their souls on their way to Hades.
Seven Hathor (British Museum)
Seven Hatol (Institute of Oriental Studies, University of Chicago)
In the third intermediate period, the Egyptians began to add the name "Hator" to the name of the deceased woman in place of "Osiris". In some cases, women are called "Osiris Hator," indicating that they can receive the resurrection power of two gods. From the end of Ptolemy to the reign of Rome, Hathor even became the consort of "Osiris", ruling the afterlife like him.
Stone monument to the sacrifice of Hathor and Osiris (Louvre)
Groups of 12 gods in Egyptian religious thought may represent 12 hours of day and night. The 12 hours of the day are all associated with the sun in some way, a figurative representation of the ship that the sun god rides during the day. The 12 goddesses of the night represent the 12 regions of Hades, which play a special role in the underworld. All the goddesses have somehow enhanced the power of the sun gods, and they have been given the power to control the lifespan of all living things.
24 Gods of Time (Ramses III, Louvre)
The Twelve Goddesses of the Night (KV16)
The goddesses of time are not often depicted, but they appear in typical anthropomorphic forms in some of the New Kingdom period funerary texts, The Book of Doors and the Book of Hades. For example, in the burial chamber of the tomb of Ramses IV in the Valley of the Kings, twelve goddesses are depicted in the 4th hour of the Book of Doors, dressed in costumes of different colors, against the great serpent in the middle.
Goddess of Time (KV17)
The Twelve Goddesses of the Night (KV2)
In the trial hall of Osiris, there are also 42 members of the jury who assisted Pluto in the final judgment of the dead, known as the "Assessors of Maat" (Assessors of Maat). Chapter 125 of the Book of the Dead lists the names, provenances, and crimes of these 42 gods.
Jury in the Final Trial (British Museum)
42 Names of Gods and Crimes in Charge (British Museum)
The 42 Gods Above the Judgment (Temple of Del Medina Hathor)
The deceased needed to declare to them that they had not committed any of the 42 sins that were contrary to justice and truth, and recite before these 42 gods the 42 declarations of innocence known as "Negative Confessions" or "Declarations of Innocence" to avoid being cursed for specific sins.
42 jurors and final trial (Museum of Art and History, Geneva)
"Negative Confessions" text, illustrations (Institute of Oriental Studies, University of Chicago)
In addition to the gods, funeral texts often mention two types of gods, one is the god of the cave involved in punishing sinners, and the other is the god of the guardian of the gates of hell. The cave is the place where the enemies of the god "Pull" are punished and executed, and the god of the cave is responsible for disposing of cursed souls by beheading and devouring.
Cave God in book of the dead (British Museum)
The text of the Spell of the Twelve Caves describes in detail the 12 caves and the cave gods. The first 7 caves contain three mummified shapes and three anthropomorphic deities, each with two males and one female. Caves 8 to 12 contain different numbers of deities, and the 9th cave is even as many as 20. Their names and quantities are listed along with the offerings offered to them and, in some cases, the ability to move freely and receive light and food to the deceased who performed the acts of good.
Patron saint of the cave (frescoes of the tomb of Sadocilis)
God Punishes the Enemy (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Caves and the gods that inhabit them are described in the Valley of the Kings murals The Book of caves and the Book of the Dead. For example, the first cave is inhabited by 9 jackal-headed gods who feed on decaying things and serpentine guardians of the Silent Place.
Serpentine Guardian In caves (TT33)
Jackal Head Guardian God in cave (TT33)
Caves and gates are closely related to specific times in Hades, especially the god of the janitors. The funeral texts provide many different descriptions of the gates of hell, and sometimes more than 1,000 guardian gods are listed. Each door is guarded by a small god, and only souls who can say the secret name of the guardian god are allowed to enter.
Patron saint of Hell's Gate (Cleveland Museum of Art)
The Book of Doors describes the 12 gates of the underworld, which are usually the names of goddesses. According to the murals of the Valley of the Kings Mausoleum, each door consists of three elements: a fire-breathing snake in front of the door and the gods in the corridor, the door itself, and the patron saint of the door. That is, there is a guard in the shape of a mummy (or jackal's head) at the entrance and exit of the corridor, 9 bearded gods and fire-breathing snakes between the corridors, and a giant snake behind the door.
The Components of a Door in the Book of Doors (KV9)
For example, at gate 5, the door is called "she of duration", the fire-breathing snake is called "flame-eyed", and the doorman is called "true of heart".
Book of Doors, Gate 5 (KV9)
Chapter 144 of the Book of the Dead also mentions the concept of the gates of hell and describes 7 of them, each with its own gods, guardians, and informants. In the text of chapter 146, there are also 21 gates of "secret portals of the mansion of Osiris in the field of reeds". These gates have many names and are guarded by beasts-headed men and large swords-wielding gods.
The 3 Gate Gods of the 2nd Gate (QV66)
The Book of the Dead's Description of the Gate God (Louvre)
Book of the Dead (British Museum)
These two types of small gods are used by Egyptologists to refer to the English "demon", they are subordinate to the main god and perform specific tasks as needed; Often associated with caves, earth pits and tombs, as well as bodies of water, all of which are considered entrances to the underground, most of the minor gods are also considered to be permanent inhabitants of the underworld.
Hell's Ghost In the Tomb of the Pharaoh (British Museum)
As the most terrible punishment for the cursed and the enemy, the hell ghost god is not hostile to everyone, but is regarded as the guardian deity of the eternal world, guarding the gates or areas of the underworld, some of which are specifically responsible for protecting the king and the blessed soul.
The Ghost God Who Gives Protection to the Soul (Louvre)
Hell ghosts and gods may also be related to the world of the living, both in the good and benevolent categories and in the form of evil. The latter include small gods associated with "Sykemet" or other aggressive main gods, while more benevolent ghost gods are often summoned to protect people from these harms. Some minor deities are also considered to be the culprits of many diseases.
The 3 Guardian Gods of the 6th Gate in the Book of the Dead (British Museum)