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Why
the name?
Atum
- Something from Nothing
A
little Egyptian history:
Atum
- A neter of primordial light worshipped in the city
of Heliopolis who was believed to have emerged from
the dark and watery abyss of Nun by an act of self-awareness.
Like the atom, Atum was considered the building
block of all physical matter and the father of fundamental
neteroo (or forces) known as the divine Ennead.
Atum
Other
Names: Temu, Tem.
Patron
of: the sun, creation, rulership of the gods.
Appearance:
rarely human, usually depicted as a crown or as one
of his many totem animals. He is sometimes depicted
as a black bull carrying the sun disk between his horns.
Description:
In the creation myths, Atum is the primal creator. He
created himself (or arose out of nothing) and created
the first gods, Shu and Tefnut, from his spittle. The
Memphite creation myth puts him as the first creation
of Ptah, who simply said his name and he came into being.
Atum
was revered not only as the father of the gods but also
as the father of the pharaohs. The title "Son of
Atum" was included in the many titles of the king,
even after the pharaohs styled themselves "Sons
of Ra."
Worship:
Worshipped widely throughout Egypt, with his cult center
at Heliopolis.
Variants:
Ra-Atum/Atum-Ra
A
composite deity with Ra. The primordial creative force
combined with the ruler of the gods. In this form, Atum
also symbolized the setting sun and its journey through
the underworld to its rising in the east.
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