Egypt, the moment we hear about it, the visual imagery that strikes our mind is that of the great Pyramids of Giza
and the fear instilling mummies preserved and hidden inside them
In a way similar to how these mummies were long hidden,
few historians tried to hide and misinterpret many facts and these remain unknown to commoners
One such lesser known fact is that the ancient Egyptian mythology shares a lot of noticeable similarities with the Hindu legends, itihasas and puranas
According to the Puranas, Daksha Prajapati during his yagna, insults his daughter, Sati Devi.
Unable to bear the insult, Sati devi jumps into the sacrificial fire and immolates Herself
Shiva, unable to digest Sati's death, carried Her corpse on his shoulder and wandered around the world
Maha Vishnu attempted to pacify Shiva by severing Sati's body into multiple pieces with his Sudarshana Chakra, a divine discus.
Sati's severed body parts fell in various places in and around the Indian subcontinent
and these places came to be known as Shakti Peethas and are higly revered among Hindus.
Coming to the Egyptian equivalent, Osiris, who is the Lord of Agriculture,
Afterlife and fertility is one of the most important deity in the ancient Egyptian religion
Osiris suceeds Ra, the sun deity and ascends the throne of Egypt.
According to the Egyptian pyramid texts, it is said that Osiris was the one who passed down the knowledge of farming
and agriculture to the Egyptians and established the first civilization.
Seth, the jealous brother of Osiris, envied him and desired the throne for himself.
He conspired a sinister plan and somehow managed to make Osiris lay down in a golden coffin and later, seals the coffin.
Seth eventually slays Osiris and his dead body was severed into multiple parts.
Later, these dismembered body parts were thrown at various places in Egypt and in the river Nile
Isis, the wife of Osiris embarks on a journey to find all the severed body parts of Her murdered husband and wanders around for years together.
After a great difficulty, She recovers all of the severed body parts and joins them as a whole and resurrects Her husband
Aren't these two legends somewhat similar. If not strikingly similar, they are atleast slightly similar, isn't it?
Ardhanarishwara and Wedj Wer
Ardhanarishvara symbolises the synthesis of masculine and feminine energies of the universe
and illustrates how Shakti is inseparable from Shiva
This form indicates how the masculine and feminine aspects are inseparable.
Similarly, in the ancient Egyptian religion, a God named Wedj-wer is depicted as half male and half female.
Wedj Wer is also sometimes shown as a pregnant woman creating the world within Him.
He is also connected with rivers and lakes
and as we all know Shiva is often depicted with the river Ganges flowing down from His matted hair.
Vayu dev and Shu
In Hinduism, Vayu dev is the deity of wind and air.
Similarly, in the Egyptian mythology, Shu is the deity of air, wind and dryness.
In both the cultures, the respective Gods are believed to be the breath of life.
Coming to the next divinites, Hanuman and Babi.
Hanuman, the divine vanara is one of the most revered deity in Hinduism.
Babi, also Baba is the monkey god and in the ancient Egyptian language Babi means chief of the monkeys or baboons.
In the book, The gods of the Egyptians, it is mentioned that Babi dances joyfully on hearing auspicious music and bestows His blessings on the Egyptians.
Similarly, Hanuman, an ardent Bhakta of Shree Rama, joyfully dances while chanting Jai Shree Ram.
Brahma and Ptah
The equivalent divinity of Brahma dev in the ancient Egyptian religion was ‘Ptah’.
The word Ptah traces its origin to the Sanskritic word Pitah meaning father.
Brahma dev is also referred to as Pitamaha(forefather) and Pitah(father) of the universe.
Brahma is always depicted as being seated on a lotus flower and
similarly Ptah is sometimes depicted as standing on a lotus flower.
According to the puranas, Brahma dev is the creator god of the universe and similarly, Ptah is also considered as a creator God.
Narasimha and Sekhet
Narsihma is mentioned in ancient Egyptian religion as Sekhet, the Goddess of lions, war and fire.
Sekhet is often described as a ferocious god and the ancient Egyptians feared Her.
In the Hindu iconography, Narasimha is always depicted with a ferocious lion head whereas Sekhet is depicted with a lioness head.
Garuda and Horus
In Hinduism, Garuda, the mount of Sree Maha Vishnu is a divine eagle like bird and is described as the king of birds.
It is said that the knowledge of the text, Garuda Purana deals with funeral rites and afterlife
Similarly, in the Egyptian mythology, a bird like deity named Horus, is depicted with the head of a peregrine falcon in the Egyptian iconography.
He is described as the God of Sky. Horus is associated with Egyptian book of the dead.
The next divinities, Daksha Prajapati and Khnum
When the news of Sati Devi's demise reached Mahashiva, he was enraged and there were no bounds to his wrath.
He plucked a lock of his hair, from which Veerabhadra emerged. Veerabhadra decapitated Daksha and his head was thrown into the sacricial fire.
Later, Shiva overcame His anger and pardoned Daksha and resurrected him and replaced his severed head with that of a goat's head.
Similarly, in the ancient Egyptian mythology, the iconography of a deity named Khnum is similar to that of Daksha.
Khnum is depicted with a head of a ram with horizontally twisting horns whereas Daksha is depicted with a ibex like head with spiral horns .
Daksha is the father of several devatas including the godddess Svaha, Aditi, Khyati, et cetara and his sons were Haryasvas and Sabalasvas.
Khnum is believed to be the creator of human children and is often depicted creating humans on his potter's wheel.
Apart from the deities discussed, The influence of Sanatana Dharma is felt well beyond the borders of modern India
and various cultures worldwide were influenced and Sanatana Dharma left long lasting impression on the cultural ethos of several nations.
A majority of Indians are unaware of these similarities between Hindu civilization and the ancient Egyptian civilization.
We hope this video is shared so that it reaches a wider audience.