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In Egyptian mythology,
Menhit (also spelt Menchit) was originally a foreign war goddess,
and the female counterpart, and thus wife, to Anhur.
It was said that she had come from Nubia with Anhur.
Her name depicts this warrier status, as it means (she who)
massacres.
Due to the agressive attributes possessed by lions, most
things connected to warfare in Egypt were depicted as leonine
(lion-like), and Menhit was no exception, being depicted as
a lion-goddess. She was also believed to ride ahead of the
Egyptian armies and cut down their enemies with fiery arrows,
also like other war gods.
In the 3rd Nome of Upper Egypt, particularly at Esna, she
was said to be the wife of Khnum,
and mother of Heka.
As the centre of her cult was toward the southern border
of Egypt, which was in Upper Egypt, she became strongly identified
with Sekhmet, who was originally
the lion-goddess of war for Upper Egypt, eventually being
considered simply an aspect of her.
Gods
and Goddesses Menu
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