The Children of Nut and Other Myths
Ancient Egyptian Tales
Cast list, in alphabetical order
Ammit—Part crocodile, part lioness, part hippo. Devours the hearts of sinners after the Judgment of the Dead. Nom nom, meow, grunt.
Amun—One of the eight gods (the “Ogdoad”) that the Hermopolis creation myth suggests created the universe.
Apep (Apophis)—Primordial Serpent Devil of Egyptian mythology. Lurks in Nun hoping to destroy Atum-Ra (and all of creation) during his daytime and nighttime journeys. Fails every time (!).
Atum—Created himself and the universe from the primordial waters/muds of Nun, according to the Heliopolis creation story. Merged with Ra to become Atum-Ra.
Baba—Baboon god. Has an embarrassing, and embarrassingly phallic, encounter with Thoth. Doesn’t end well.
Benben—Mound of mud in Nun, and Atum’s first form. Center of all creation according to the Heliopolis myth. So muddy they named it twice.
Dehuti (Thoth)—Atum-Ra’s right-hand mind. Lord of bureaucracy, inventor of writing, and all-round advisor to the gods. If anyone understands what’s going on with the ancient Egyptian pantheon, you better hope it’s Thoth.
Ese (Isis)—Sister and consort of Osiris. Goddess of motherhood, women, and fertility. Resurrected her dead brother to bear, by him, Horus.
Geb—Son of Shu and Tefnut, brother (and consort) of Nut. Atum-Ra wrenched Geb from Nut, and made Geb the Earth. Later reunited with Nut to father: Osiris, Seth, Isis, and Nephthys. Has goose on head.
Hapi—Nile, the.
Hawit-Haru (Hathor)—Feminine personification of the sun. Goddess of the sky, love, sex, music, and wine. Becomes a black lioness when angry (see Sekhmet), otherwise: cow horns on head.
Heka—Magic. Attends Ra in his solar barque.
Heru (Horus)—Son of Isis and (the reanimated corpse of) Osiris. Grew up to avenge his father’s murder. Falcon on head.
Heru-Behdeti (Horus of Edfu)—Personification of the midday sun, with the wings of a falcon.
Hu—The Authoritative Utterance exclaimed by Atum at the moment of creation. Attends Ra in his solar barque. (Along with Magic).
Inpu (Anubis)—Son of Osiris and Nephthys. God of mummification and the protector of graves. Head of a dog/jackal, for a head.
Khepri—What Atum-Ra looks like in the morning: scarab-beetle head.
Khonsu—Moon god. Protector of travelers at nighttime. Son of Amun, friend (and employee) 0f Thoth. Falcon and moon on head.
Khnum—Ram god. Created by Atum-Ra to sculpt the bodies of humans and gods upon his potter’s wheel. Male sheep on head.
Ma’at—Truth and Justice: the feather that’s weighed against the heart of the dead. Created alongside Shu and Tefnut.
Muhamad A. Jamal—Writer and translator. The “A” stands for either: a) Author, b) Adib, or c) Absolutely fabulous.
Nebet-Het (Nephthys)—Fourth child of Geb and Nut. Consort of Set, but fell for Osiris and had Anubis by him, which irritated Set. House and basket on head.
Neit—Goddess of war and/or weaving. Some myths have her as the creator of the universe. Beetle, arrow, or unknown beetly/arrowy object on head.
Nemty—Bit-part ferryman falcon god. The OG Egyptian hustler who will help you with anything… for the right price… as long as it involves his boat.
Nun—Primeval watery (or muddy) mass and the stage upon which Atum created himself and the universe. Domain of Apep and source of Hapi (the famously watery and muddy river Nile).
Nut—(Long “u” as in “peanoot butter”.) Daughter of Shu and Tefnut. Sister and consort of Geb who became Earth as Nut became Sky. Her starry torso arches over the world: legs in the east, arms in the west. She is the path her grandfather, Atum-Ra, takes during the day. Mother of Osiris, Set, Isis, and Nephthys.
Ra—Most common form of the Sun-god. Rides barque with his crew: Magic, Authoritative Utterance, and Intelligence (see Sia).
Sekhmet—Hathor, irate, as a black lioness. Goddess of war and revenge. Represents the destructive powers of the sun (Patron Saint of UV).
Seshat—Goddess of writing and knowledge. Sister, wife, daughter, or female counterpart (👍) of Thoth.
Set (Seth)—Nut’s renegade son. Lord of the deserts, the storms and… the foreigners. Killed his brother Osiris to take his throne, later embroiled in a conflict with Osiris’ son, Horus. Head of a creature not known to Woman, Man, or Egyptologist: the Set animal.
Shu—Sister and consort of Tefnut. Personification of all things air. Holds up the sky, who also happens to be his daughter, Nut.
Sia—Intelligence. Attends Ra in his solar barque.
Sobek (Suchus)—Crocodile god. Son of Neit and Lord of Semen. Also: has ram horns.
Sokar (Socharis)—Mummified hawk. Funerary god who oversees hours Four and Five of Atum-Ra’s nightly journey through the Underworld.
Tefnut—Brother and consort of Shu. Personification of all things wet.
Usir (Osiris)—Brother and consort of Isis. God of fertility who taught the living how to make wine. In death, he became Lord of the Underworld. In resurrection, he became the father of Horus. Had beef with Set.
James Scanlan is an Arabic-to-English translator from the UK. In 2022, he won the ArabLit Story Prize for his translation of Belal Fadl’s ‘The Kid Sheikh.’
Also read:
The Introduction: ‘The Children of Nut and Other Myths’
In Conversation: Muhamad A. Jamal & James Scanlan on Making and Remaking Egyptian Myth
Excerpt from Muhamad A. Jamal’s ‘Flying’