|
In Egyptian mythology,
Meret (also spelt Mert) was the token wife occasionally given
to Hapy, the god of the Nile, her name being a reference to
this, meaning simply the beloved. As token wife, she was usually
depicted with the same associations as Hapy, having on her head
either the blue lotus for Upper Egypt, or the papyrus plant
for Lower Egypt. Since Hapy was the source of bountyfulness,
Meret was usually depicted with an offering bowl, as she was
seen, being his wife, as the symbolic recipient of his generosity.
Amongst the lower classes, where nationalism was less important
than successful harvest, she was more strongly considered
the wife of Hapy, than the protectresses
of Lower and Upper Egypt, which were more normally his wife
in the upper classes. As a deity whose role was to be the
symbolic receiver of bountyfulness from the inundation of
the Nile, she was strongly associated with rejoicing, such
as singing, and dancing. Later stories tell that Meret was
the goddess of the eight hour, in the Book
of Gates.
Gods
and Goddesses Menu
This article is copied from
an article on Wikipedia.org
- the free encyclopedia created and edited by online user
community. Although the vast majority of the wikipedia encyclopedia
articles provide accurate and timely information please do
not assume the accuracy of any particular article. This article
is distributed under the terms of GNU
Free Documentation License.
|
