Egyptian Astronomy - Mapping the Gods

The moon, full or crescent, has been the subject of poetry for millennia. The sun has been an object of worship for even longer.

In Egypt (as well as other Arab countries), when something is exceptionally beautiful we liken its beauty to the moon. This mostly applies to women, but it can be about men, nature and inanimate objects too.

The saying would go something like: helwa zay el ammar which literally translates to "beautiful like the moon" for a female.

It was no different in ancient Egypt, although the beginning of astronomy is actually thousands of years earlier than that. It is actually considered the oldest of the nature sciences...

...Even earlier than 10,000 years BC, cave art of the different phases of the moon has been discovered carved on bones and walls. Astronomy of Mesopotamia is the foundation of modern western astronomy today.

In ancient Egypt, astronomy came out of a need to understand the cycles of the Nile which the people depended on for their survival. This is how the ancient Egyptian calendar was born.

And of course, what goes hand in hand with astronomy? Astrology! The ancient Egyptians, as we know, connected everything to their Gods and myths - especially prophecies and symbolism.

Check out the ancient Egyptian Zodiac here.

Ancient Egyptian Astrology is the root of astrology today as they were the first people who judged a person's character according to his/her date of birth. However the Egyptian Zodiac Signs that they mapped out are obsolete and have been replaced by the ones we're familiar with now.

In any case, many modern occult traditions are greatly influenced by ancient Egyptian mythology and astronomy, especially Tarot cards!

In fact, until now we use ancient Egyptian astronomy, sciences and math in much of our own. It's really interesting to trace back the roots of these ancient structures, so enjoy :-)



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