The secret name of Ra

Ra, the Sole Creator was visible to the people of Eglat as the disc olthe sun, but they knew him in many other {orms. He could appear asa crowned man. a falcon or'a man with a falcon's head and, as thescarab beetle pushes a round ball of dung in front of it, the Egyptianspictured Ra as a scarab pushing the sun across the sky. In cavernsdeep below the earth were hidden another seventy-five forms ofRa;mysterious beings with mummiEed bodies and heads consisting ofbirds or snakes, feathers or flowers, The names of Ra were asnumerous as his forms; he was the Shining One, The Hidden One,The Renewer of the Earth, The lfind in the Souls, The Exalted One,but there was one name ofthe Sun God which had not been spokensince time began. To know this secret name ofRa was to have poweroverhim and over the world that he had created.

Isis longed for such apower. She had dreamed that one day she*.ould have a marvellous falcon-headed son called Horus and shewanted the throne of Ra to give to her child. Isis was the Mistress ofMagic, wiser than millions ofmen, but she Lrrew that nothing increation was powerful enough to harm its creator. Her only chancevr'as !o turn thepower of Ra against himself and atlast Isis thought ofa crlel and cunning plan. Every day the Sun God walked through hiskingdom, attended by a crowd ofspirits and lesser deities, but Ra wasgrowing old. His eyes were dim, his step no longer firm and he hadeven begun to drivel.

One morning Isis mingled with a group of minor goddesses andfollowed behind the King of the Gods. She watched the face ofRauntil she saw his saliva drip onto a clod o{ eanh. \0hen she was surethat no-one was taking any notice o{ her, she scooped up the earthand carried it awav. Isis mixed the earth with the saliva ofRa to formclay and modelled a wickedJooking serpent. Through the hours ofdarkness she whispered spells over the clay serpent as it lay lifeless inher hands. Then the cunning goddess carried it to a crossroads on theroute which the Sun God always took. She hid the serpent in the longgrass and returned to her palace,

The next day Ra came walking through his kingdom with thespirits and lesser deities crowding behind him. I/hen he approachedthe crossroads, the spells of Isis began to worL and the clay serpent

24

quivered into l i fe. A> rhe Sun Cod prssed. ir bithim in the ankle and crumbled back into earth.Ra gave a scream that was heard through allcreation.

His jaws chattered and his limbs shook as thepoison flooded through him like a risingNile.'l hafe beenwounded by something deadly,'whispered Ra. 'I know that in my heart, thoughmy eyes crnnot see it. vhatever it was, l, theLord of Creation, did not make it. I am sure thatnone ofyou would have done such e terriblething to me, but I have never felt such pain!How can this have happened to mel I am theSole Creator, the child ofthe watery abyss. I amthe god with a thousand names, but my secretname was only spoken once, before time began.Then itwas hidden in my body so that no-oneshould ever learn it and be able to work spellsagainst me. Yet as I'walked through mykingdom something struck at me and now myheart is on fire and my limbs shake. Send tor ttreEnnead! Send for my children! They are wrse rnmagic ;nd their knowledge pierces her. er

Messengers huried to the great gods and fromthe four pillars of the world came the Ennead:Shu and Tefenet, Geb and Nut, Seth andOsiris, Isis and Nephthys. Envoys travelled theland and the sky and the watery abyss tosummon all the deities created by Ra. From themarshes came frog headed Hehet, !{/adjet thecobra goddess and the fearsome god, crocodile-headed Sobek. From the deserts came 6erySelkis, the scorpion goddess, Anubis the jackal,the guardian ofthe dead and Nekhbet thevulture goddess. From the cities of the northcame warlike Neith, gentle cat-headed Bastet,fierce lion-headed Sekhmet and Ptah the god ofcrafts, From the cities of the south came Onuris,the divine huntsman and ram-headed Khn"''with AnuLis his wife and Satis his daughter.CunningThoth and wise Seshat, goddess ofwriting; virile Min and srake-headed Renenutet,goddess ofthe harvest, kindly Meskhenet andmonstrous Taweret, goddesses of birth-all ofthem were summoned to the side ofRa.

The gods and goddesses Bathered around theSun God, weeping and wailing, a{raid thathewas going to die. Isi: t tood among rhem beatingher breast and pretending to be as distressed and

bewildered as all the other frightened deitres.'Father o{ All,' she began, 'whatever is thematterl Has some snake bitten you? Has somewretched creature dared to strike at his Creator)Few of the gods can compare with me inwisdomand I am the Mistress of Magic. Ifyou will let mehelp you, I'm sure that I can cure you.'

Ra was grateful to Isis and told her all that hadhappened. 'Now I am coider than vrater andhotter than 6re,' complained the Sun God. 'Myeyes darken. I cannot see the sky and my body issoaked by the s\eeat offever.''Tel l me your ful l name. 'aid cunning Isis.'Then I can use it in my spells. \frithout thatknowledge the greatest of magicians cannot helpyou.'I am the maher of heaven and earth,' said Ra. 'Imrde Lhe heighrs and rhe deprhs, I 'er horizonsat east and west and established the gods in theirglory. Vhen I open my eyes it is light; when Iclose them it is dark. The mighry Nile floods atmy command. The gods do not know my truename but I am the maker of time, the giver offestivals. I spark the 6re oflife. At dawn I nse asKhepri, the scarab and sail across the sky in theBoat of Millions ofYears. At roor I blaze in theheavens as Ra and at evening I am Ra-atum, thesetting sun,''Ve know all that,' said Isis. 'If I amto 6nd aspell to drive out this poison, I will have to use

) our \ecret name, 5ay ) our name and l iue'My secret name was given to me so that I couldsit at ease,' moaned Ra, 'and fear no livingcreature. How can I give it awayl'

Isis said nothing and knelt beside the Sun Godwhile his pain mounted. en it becameunbearable, Ra ordered the other gods to standback while he whispered his secret name to Isis.'Now the power ofthe secretname has passedfrom my heart to your heart,' said Ra wearily.'In time you can give it to your son, but wamhim never to betray the secret!'

Isis nodded and began to chant a greet spellthat drove thepoison out of the limbs of ka anohe rose up stronger than before. The Sun Godreturned to the Boat of Millions ofYears and Isisshouted for joy at the success o{her plan. Sheknew now that one day Horus her sonwould siton the throne of Egypt and wield the power of Ra.

25

The Eye of the Sun

Hathor, the daughter ofRa had many forms. She could be a cowor a

cat and she came to newborn children to foretell their fate in the form

of seven beautiful women Hathor in human form was the most

qreciour rnd loylul of goddesses but when she took on the role oi the

i, e o{ rhe Sun. she could also be rhe f iercetund the cruellest She

was the protector of the gods but when she was angry even the gods

feared her. Temple insc.iptions and a story written in Egyptial as late

as the second century ao tell o{ a grim time when Hathor le{t her

countrv and chose to live in Nubia.The Eye of the Sun was jealous of the other gods and goddesses

-whom Ra had created. She quarrelled with her father and vrandered

south to roam the deserts of distantNubia The angry goddess

abandoned herlovely human form and appeared as a wildcat or a

raging lioness. She lived by hunting and butchered every creature

who crme near her.En pt was desolare, for q i thout beruti ful Hathor hughttr and love

*ith-ered awav end l i fe held no iov. The Sun Cod hid his face in

.orro* *d gioo. ,pread across the earth. No-one could console him

for the loss ofhis bioved daughter and worst of all without the

Dower of his Eye, Ra was in danger from his enemies Darkness

tiehtened its coils around Light and Chaos threatened Order'

'Vho will bring Hathor back to me?' asked Ra but the gods were

silent. The Eve ofthe Sun held the power of life or death over all

beines and in her {urious mood the gods were afraid to approachher'

Thei Ra summorred Thoth, the wisest of deities, and ordered him to

so ro Nubie and persuade Hathor to rerum to Egypt Thoth obeyed

ihe King of rhe iods with a heary heart He *rs sure thar if Hathor

.."osniled him she "rould

kill him be{ore he had a chance to speak

\Tith"this in mind, Thoth transformed himself into a humble baboon'

Then he crept through the Nubian desert, following the bloodytrail

ol rhe eoddess.Ii'lren he found he., Hathor was in her wildcat form, sitting on a

rock licking her tawny fur. Thoth crawled forq'ard, knocking his

head on the ground:'Hail . druehter ol the Suni hesaidhumbll

Hathorlrched and spat but when she saw that i t was onll r baboon

she paused and did not spring on him at once.'Gracious goddess,' faltered Thoth, 'may ahumble ape dare to speak to you?''Speak and die,' growled the wildcat as sheunsheathed her claws. The baboon cringed andkissed th.p ground, murmuring, 'O, powerfulone, ifyou choose to kill me, I cannot stop youbut remember the story of the motherv'ultureand the mother cat. . . .''\i4rat story?' demanded Hathor.'Listen my lady,' said wiley Thoth, 'and I r.illtell you.'

The wildcat sat down and began to washhersel{ again. She seemed to take no furthernotice ofthe baboon butThoth knew that ifhetried to run away he would feel her claws withinseconds. He began his story.

There was once a {emale vulture, who made anest in apalm tree and sat on her eggs until fourfine chicks were hatched. As soon as they brokethrough their shells the chicks demanded food,but the vulture was rfraid to leave her nestbecause ofa wildcatwho lived on a nearbyhillside. Now the wildcat had given birth to fourkittens and she was just as afraid to leave them,because of the vulture.

The chick' and rhe kittens n ere soon cryirgwith hunger so the two mothers came togetherand arranged a truce, The vulture and the wildcatboth swore a mighty oath by Ra thatneither ofthem would attack the other's children. Then thewlturefelt safe to f ly offand looL forcerrionand the wildcat felt safe to go hunting.

For some weeks everything went well and thechickr and the l i tren" rhrived. f ie youngvultures were soon trying out their wings andthe kittens began to play all over the hillside.One morning while the vulture was circling overthe desert, the boldest ofher chicks flew out ofthe nest. His wings were not yet strong and aftera short flight he landed on the hillside where thekirten' were plal ing and snatched away a pieceof their food.

Quicker than thought, the wildcat struck atthe youngvulture and woundedhim badly.'Find your own food,'growled the wildcat. Theyoung vulture feebly flapped his wings but hefound thathe could not fly.'Now I shall never return to my nes!' he gasped,

'but you have brokenyour oath and Ra vzillavenge me.'

\0hen the mothervulture arrived at the nestwith a beak full o{ carrion f'lesh, she found thatone of her chicks was missing and saw him lyingdead on the hillside,'So the cat has broLen her oath,' thought thert l ture. I shan\ wair long to have m1 rerenge '

The next time that the wildcat went o{ftohunt, the vulture swooped down on the kittens.She killed every one of them and carried themback to her nest to feed her chicks.

lVhen the cat returned with her catch, thekittens vrere nowhere to be seen. She searchedthe whole hillside mewing desperately but all shefound vrere a few bloodstained tufts offur. Thenshe knew that the vulture had killed herkittensand she cried to Ra for vengeance:'O great godwho judges between the just and the wicked, the'v.ulture has broken herholy oath and murderedmy childrenl Hear me Ra and punish the oath-breaker!'

The Sun God listened to herprayer and wasangry that an oath sworn in his name had beenbroken. Because the v'ulture had taken her ownvengeance and killed all the kittens, Ra ordered adivine messengerto arrange her punishment.

The next day when the vulture was {lying overthe desert searching forfood she saw a lonehuntsman cooking a haunch ofmeat over hiscampfre. The vulture swooped down, seized themeat in her claws,nd carried it triumphantlybackto her nest. There she dropped it amongsther greedy chicks but a few glowing embers stillclung to the underside ofthe meat. As soon asthe embers touched the dry twigs and grass ofthe nest it burst into flames. The three chichss'ere burned to cinders while their mothercircled helplessly overhead, The wildcat ran tothe foot ofthe blazing tree and called up to thevulture, 'By Ra, you killed my kittens but nowyourchicks are dead and I am avenged!''So my lady,' concluded Thoth, 'both themothers had broken their oaths and both werepunished. Ra hears and sees everything andpunishes every crime. Praise to Ra who gives lifeto all things and whose shining face brings thewhole earthjoy. The Nile rises to make him acloak. The north wind and the south wind blow

27

at his command when he crosses the sky aboveand the sky below. He rules from the heights ofheaven to the deptLs of the ocean. Praise to the

Sun God and praise to Hathor his daughter.'The goddess sat thinking over the story and

remembering her iust and pon ertul farher'Thoth saw his opportunity and crept closer'

'My lady, I bringyou divine {ood from thepalace ofthe Sun God. Wonderful herbs thatgive health and joy to whoever tastes them '

He held out the bunch of herbs in one paw

and their sweet scent tempted the wildcat to

nibble atthem, As she swallowed the divinefood, Hathor's mood changed. AII her angermelted away and she listened meekly to Thoth'These herbs were grown in Egypt,' said Thoth,' the land rhar rose from rhe r ater' o{ \ un. rheplace shaped for gods and men by the Creator,the home of Ra, your beloved father and Shuyour dear brother. Is there a single livingcreature who does not long for the country oltheir birth?'asked Thoth. 'Even rocks and plantscling to their native soil. Animals live close to the

burrows where they were bom and as formankind, Fate alloq's his favourites to live anddie and be buried in the place o{ their birt}r.'What more could anyone desire and how cananyone l ive happily or re\t in Perce ;n a foreignland?'

Ifhile she raged in the desen, Hathor hadforgotten her home and her family but the wordsof Thoth brought back her memory. Shethought ofher {ather and her brother andremembered all the temPles where men hadhonoured her as the grertest of godde!\es.Suddenly Hathorwas overwhelmed by a longingfor Eglpt and her tears srere lii(e e cloudburst

Thoth watched her cry {or a while and thensaid softly, 'O my lady, nowyou are grieving loryourhome but think ofthe flood oftears that

Egypthas shed for you. \fithoutyou, thetemples are empty and silent. Vithoutyou thereis no music or dancing, no laughter ordrunkenness. Ifithout you, young and olddespair but ifyou come back with me nowharpsand tembourines, lutes and cymbals will soundagain. Egyptwill dance, Egyptwill sing, theTwo Lands will rejoice as never before Comewith m€, come home and I will tell you another

28

story as we trrvel north. once upon atime ahawL, a vulture and a cuchoo all mettogether . . .'

Thorh bounded iorward, confidenr rhrLHathor would {ollow, but the goddess suddenlyrealized that all along the baboon had beentrying to lure her back to Egypt. She was furiousthat he had made her weep and with a terribleroar she turned herselfinto a huge lioness. Herpeltwas the colour ofblood and crackled and

smoked l i le r l iving f l .rme. Het frce \honebrighter than the disc ofthe sun and her fieryglance terrified Thoth, He iumped like agrasshopper, he shivered like a frog, he salutedher as ifshe was the glorious sun itself.'O, powerful one have mercy! I beg you in thename o{ Ra to spare mel Gracious goddess,before you strike listen to the story of the twovultures !'

Hathor's anger cooled a little and she wascurious to hear the story, so she changed backinto a wildcat. Thoth began hastily tq speak

Two r.ultures once lived amongst the deserthills, One day the 6rst vulture boasted, 'My eyesare sharper than yours and my sight is keener.No other winged creature has a gift like mine.''And what is this gi{t?'asked the second vulture'By day or by night I can see to the ends ofthe

earth,'anssered the first bird. 'High in the skyor deep in the ocean, I can see everything thathappens.'It may be true thatyour eyes are sharper thanmine and that your sight is keener,' agreed theothervulture, 'but my ears are sharper thanyours and my hearing is keener. I can listen toevery sound from land end sky and se3. I caneven hear the voice of Ra as he decrees the fate ofall creatures on earth.'

The two birds spent many days arguing overwhose gift was the more preciousi but onemorning as they sat together on the branch of adead tree the second vulture began to iaugL.'Ifhat are you laughing at?'demanded hiscompanion,'I am laughing at the way the hunter can soquickly become the hunted,' said the secondvulture. A bird on the other side of rhe !ky istelling me what he's just seen. yo, would neverbe able to hear him at such a distance. He saw:fly caught and eaten by a lizard. A momentlaterthe lizard was seized and swallowed by a snakeand the moment after that the snake wassnatched up by a hungry falcon. It proved tooheavy and the falcon and the snake have bothfallen into the sea. Ifyour sight is so good, tellme what's happened to them.'

The first vulture lifted his bald head andlooked beyond the desert to the shores ofthedistant sea. The {alcon hr. been ,waJJowed by a

fish with the snake still caught in its claws Nowthe first 6sh is being eaten by a larger 6sh.' Thevulture was silent for a mintrte end then spokeagain. 'Now the big fish has swum too close tothe shore and a lion has scooped it ou! v{ith hispaw. He's making a meal of the 6sh. Ah!'

The firstvulture ruffled his feathers and sidledalong the branch in excitement. 'A grif6n!Agriffrn has just swept down and carried off the

Iion to its nest!''Are you surel Can it really be true?'asked thesecond bird.'Ifyou don't believe me, fly with me to thegri{fin's nest,'said the 6rstvulture, 'and see for

yourself!'So the two vultures took off from the branch

and flew across the desert hills till they wereclose to the lair ofthe griffin.'See,'whispered the 6rst vulture, 'his head is like

a {alcon's and his eyes like those of a man Hehas the body of a lion and his ears are like thefins of a 6sh and his tail like a serpent.'The two

bird' watched rhe gri i f in tearing rhe latt ' tr ip'offlesh from the lion's bones and then flew away

to a safer place.'Everything that we have seen shows the power

of Ra at worL in the world,' began the 6rstvulture. 'Even the death of a fly is noticed by the

Sun God and those who kili will be killed,violence is repaid by violence. Yet, strangely,nothing has happened to the grif6n, although he

ate the lion.''That must be because the griffn is themessenger of Ra,' answered the second vulture'The Sun God has given him the power oflife or

death over all creatures. There is nothingstronger then the griffin except the justice of Ra.'

'So my lady, it is your father who repays goodwith good and evil with evil,' concluded Thoth'Ard he has filled you with his power' You are

the Eye of the Sun, his avenger.'The heart ofHathorbeat with a fiercejoy and

shevr'xs proud again to be the daughter of t}'e

Sun God.'Stop trembling. I won't kill you now,'promrsedthe wildcat. 'Your vrords have bewitched me,

29

) .t I l(now that Iou mean e no hxrm. You hevedl ivel rw:y ny gt icf and anger. ''My lady, i f yor.

'v i l l fo l low me, ' began Thoth

timicilr, 't will lead you back to !-gypt. It isn rmany Cal s joumcy across thesc hi l ls. ''Then lct us set out nt oncc, aa cnce,' grolL'led

Hathor, 'aml no rnore chrtrcdng.'The baboon began to valh torvards lgypt

with the wi l , lcat: few paces bchind him. ThoLhx'as still a{raid ri}at she might changc Lcr nird,or Iose her remper again so he began atodrcr

Tivc j rcknls l ived in rhe clesert anclwerecLcvotcd tr icnds. They hunted as a pair mdalr,,ays erc and dr:.nk togeth€r xnd shxred thtsan,c patcb of shade. One dav as rhev resteobcncrrh thc brarchcs ofa deseri t ree they saw anr.nglr'lion bcur,ding torvarcls rhcm. The twojachals stc,crl cluitc stil! anei lct the lion reachrhem. l1e rl.as puzzlcrl bv this ancl roared out,'i!re 1-our lirnbs stiff r-ith agci Didn't you seeme corning? Why haven't you rur arvay?''Lorcl L ion, ' ansr,,.ererl the jaclals, 'Wc s:r.it' Ioucomlng in your fury and r ' re decidcd not to tur.You would have olertaken us any*'ay .rnr1 ivhv

should nc Lire ourselves orrt before being..rcr l l 'Since the powerluL are nor angrlr rvith tr,.rth,

rhc licn ivas anuscd by Lhis cool ansn'er antl hcict thc two jackals go.

.,; !,: ' ta:t. {

!

.:r; -

, : l

IaI7

'I have told you nothing but the truth,'saidThoth, 'and now thatyou have spared my life we

can travel to Egypt together and I will protect

you.'You protect ze? The Eye ofthe Sun needs noprotection from a baboon.';Th. ,,rong

""n.o-.times be saved by the

weak,' answered Thoth 'Remember the story of

the lion and the mouse.''\fhat story is that?'asked Hathor andThothtold it to her as they walked towards Egypt.

Once upon a time there was a lion vrho livedin the desert hills. He was so huge and strongand iierce that all the other animals {eared him

Now one day this lion came across a panther

who was lying on the ground more dead than

alive. The panther's fur had been torn out and he

l'as bleeding from deep cuts all over his body.

The lion was amazed, because he thought that

only he was strong enough to get the better of a

Panther.'Vhathappened?' he demanded'\fho h:* done

this to you?''It was Man,' sighed the panther' 'There ls no-

one more cunning than Man May you never fall

into his hands!'The lion had never heard of a beast called Man

buthe was angry that any creature should inflict

such cruel wounds merely for amusement He

decided to hunt down Man and set off in thedirection from vrhich the Panther had come At

the end ofan hour's walk the lion met a mule anda horse who were yoLed together, with metal

bits hurting their tender mouths.'Ifho has done this to you?'asked the lion'It was Man, our master,' said the hors€.'Then is Man stronger than both ofyou?''Lord Lion,' answered the mule, 'there is no-one

more cunning than Man, may you never fall into

his hands!'Then the lion was angry again and more

determined than ever to 6nd and kill this cruelcreature called Man. He q.alked on and soon met

an ox and a cow roped tog€ther' Their horns had

been rawn oif and metal r ings pierced rheirtender noses. When the lion asked who had donesuch a thinghe received the same answer:'ItwasMan, our ma'ter. There i\ no-one more cunning

than Man, may you never fall into his hands!'

The lion set offagain and the next thing he saw

was a huge bear lumbering towards him As he

came closer, the lion noticed that the claws andteeth ofthe bear were missing.'\flho has done this to you?' he asked 'Surely

Man cannot be stronger than you?''It is true,'groaned the bear, 'for Man is morecunning. I captured Man and made him serveme, but he said to me "Master, your claws are so

long it is diificultforyou to pick up food, andyour teeth are so long that it is difficult foryouto get the food into your mouth Let me trlmyour nails and your teeth and then you willbeable to eat twice as much food." I believed himand let him do as he asked buthe pulled out myclaws and filed away my teeth. Then he was noionger afraid of me. He threw sand in my eyesand ran away laughing.'

After hearing this the lion was angrier thanever and ran on undl he came across another lion

with its paw caught in the trunk of a palm-tree.'Vhat's happened here?'asked the f,rst lion'\0ho has done this to you?''It was Man,' growled the second lion. 'Beware

of him, never trust him!Man is evil l made Manmy servant and asked him what work he cotlddo, for he looLed such a feeble creature. He

claimed that he could make an amulet thatwouldgive rne immortallife. "Follow me," said Man,"and l will turn this tree into an amulet Doexacdy as I say and you will live foreverl" So I

went with Man to this palm-tree and he sawed a

slit in the trunk and wedged it open. He told me

to put my paw inside and I did The next thing I

knew, Manhad pulled out the wedge. The cleftclosed on my paw and I couldn't get it free Manthrew sand b my el es ard r.rn awal laughingand now I am trapped here till I starve to death.'

Then the first lion roared a challenge: 'Man! I

will huntyou down and makeyou suffer all thepain thatyou have inflicted on other creatures !'

He bounded on until he noticed a smdl mousein his path. He raised one paw to crush itbut the

mouse squeahed out,'O Lord Lion, don't'crushme! I'd hardly make you a mouth{ul, you

wouldn't even taste me. Give me the breath olli(e and one day I may be able to return the gift.

Spare me now and I will help you when you are

in trouble. '

The Jion laughed. 'Vhat could a tiny mouseever do to help the strongest of all beasts?Besides, no-one has the power to harm me ''Lord Lion, the weak can sometimes helP thestrong,'insisted the mouse and he swore a greatorth to be rhe l ion s fr iend. Tle l ion rhoughtthis very fonny but because it was true that themouse was not worth eating, he let it go.

Now Man had heard the lion roaring and settraps for him. He dug a pit, spread a strong netof leather thongs across the Pit and covered bothwith grass. That evening the lion came boundingalong, looking for Man and he fell in the pit andwas caught fast in the net. Forhours he struggledto free himsel{, but in vain. By midnight thegreat lion lay exhausted, waiting for dawn."dfor Man to come and kill him, Suddenly a vorceclose to his ear squeaked, 'Lord Lion, do youremember me? I am the mouse whose life youspared and now I have come to save you What ismore beautiful than a good deed repaid?'

The little mouse began to gnas'at the leatherthongs. For hour after hourhe worked to set thelion free and just before dawn he bit through thelast thong. The lion leaped up and shook himself{ree ofthe net, \fith the mouse clinging to hismane, the lion jllmped out of the pit and ranawal lrom Man. back ro rhe deserL hi l l ' . I rreh:d taught him that every power will one day

meet its master and that the weak can help the

swong,Hathor understood the moral ofThoth's story

and she followed the baboonwith new respect

but she seemed in no hurry to get back to Egypt.

\flhen they reached the edge of the desert she

lingered under the date-palms and the sycemore-6gs and the carob trees, praising their fruit The

baboon climbed the trees, hoping for a glimpse

of Egypt. He tried the fiuit and found it good,

buthe reminded the goddess that the {ruit ofthe

trees of EgJ,?t was even better, so they went on

together.\[hen they crossed the border the people of

Erypt flocked to honour the returning goddess.

Ai "i-K"b.h. "pp""..d

to them as a vulture and

in the next town as a gazelle but when they were

close to Thebes she tumed hersel{ back into a

wildcat. Before entering the city they iay down

to rest. Hathor fell asleep a.nd Thoth watched

The enemie. or Ra were angrl thar rhe Eye of

the Sun had retumed to Egypt. Under cover of

nighr a chao' "erpenr

crepr rowrrds the ' leepinggoddess, hoping to poison her and rob Ra ofhis

protector. VigilantThoth saw the serPentpoised to strike and wohe Hathor. The wildcat

ieaped oo the s".pent and broke its back. Shewrs grareiul ro the brboon lor hi ' , l rrning;ndremembered the story of the mouse who saved

the lion,The next morning they entered Thebes and the

cir l wem n i ld wirh ioy A grert least wrs given

in the temple of Mut, a feast thatwent on for

seven days with eatrng and drinking, music and

dancing and laughter, Hathor was so pleased

that she changed from a wildcat into a lovely andgende woman. Then she let the baboon lead her

north agam,At the holy ciry ofHelioPolis, Ra was

reunited with his daughter and when theyembraced the whole land leaped for joy A feast

was held in the House ofthe Sycarnore at

Memphis and all the gods and goddessescelebiated the return ofHathor. Then Thoth

changed bacL to his usuai form and Hathor

recognized him at last. He sat down beside her at

the feast and Ra gav€ thanks {or the cunning of

Thoth who had brought home the Eye of the Sun.

33