Apophis (; ), also known as Apep () or Aphoph (, ) Erman, Adolf, and Hermann Grapow, eds. 1926–1953. ''Wörterbuch der aegyptischen Sprache im Auftrage der deutschen Akademien''. 6 vols. Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs'schen Buchhandlungen. (Reprinted Berlin: Akademie-Verlag GmbH, 1971). is the ancient Egyptian deity who embodied darkness and disorder, and was thus the opponent of light and Maat (order/

truth Truth or verity is the Property (philosophy), property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth, 2005 In everyday language, it is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise cor ...

). Ra was the bringer of light and hence the biggest opposer of Apophis.

Features

Because Ra was the solar deity, bringer of light, and thus the upholder of Maat, Apophis was viewed as the greatest enemy of Ra, and thus was given the title ''Enemy of Ra'', and also "the Lord of Chaos". "The Lord of Chaos" was seen as a giant

snake Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...

or serpent leading to such titles as ''Serpent from the Nile'' and ''Evil

Dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

''. Some elaborations said that he stretched 16

yard The yard (symbol: yd) is an English units, English unit of length in both the British imperial units, imperial and US United States customary units, customary systems of measurement equalling 3 foot (unit), feet or 36 inches. Sinc ...

s in length and had a head made of

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

. Presented on a Naqada I (c. 4000–3550 BCE) C-ware bowl (now in Cairo) a snake was painted on the inside rim combined with other desert and aquatic animals as an enemy of a deity, seemingly a solar deity, who is invisibly hunting in a big rowing vessel. The snake on the inside rim is believed to be Apophis. The few descriptions of the origin of Apophis in myth usually demonstrate that it was born after Ra, usually from his

umbilical cord In Placentalia, placental mammals, the umbilical cord (also called the navel string, birth cord or ''funiculus umbilicalis'') is a conduit between the developing embryo or fetus and the placenta. During prenatal development, the umbilical cord i ...

. Geraldine Pinch claims that a much later creation myth explained that, "Apophis sprang from the saliva of the goddess

Neith Neith (, a borrowing of the Demotic (Egyptian), Demotic form , also spelled Nit, Net, or Neit) was an ancient Egyptian deity, possibly of Ancient Libya, Libyan origin. She was connected with warfare, as indicated by her emblem of two crossed b ...

when she was still in the primeval waters. Her spit became a snake 120 yards long." But Apophis was commonly believed to have existed from the beginning of time in the waters of Nu of primeval chaos.

Battles with Ra

Tales of Apophis battles against Ra were elaborated during the New Kingdom. Storytellers said that every day Apophis must lie below the horizon and not persist in the mortal kingdom. This appropriately made him a part of the

underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. ...

. In some stories, Apophis waited for Ra in a western mountain called ''Manu'', where the sun set, and in others, Apophis lurked just before dawn, in the ''Tenth region of the Night''. The wide range of Apophis possible locations gained him the title ''World-Encircler''. It was thought that his terrifying roar would cause the underworld to rumble. Myths sometimes say that Apophis was trapped there, because he had been the previous chief god overthrown by Ra, or because he was evil and had been imprisoned. The Coffin Texts imply that Apophis used a magical gaze to overwhelm Ra and his entourage. Ra was assisted by a number of defenders who travelled with him, including

Set Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics *Set (mathematics), a collection of elements *Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively Electro ...

and possibly the Eye of Ra. Apophis movements were thought to cause earthquakes, and his battles with

may have been meant to explain the origin of thunderstorms. In one account, Ra himself defeats Apophis in the form of a cat.

Religious Practices

Ra's victory each night was thought to be ensured by the prayers of the Egyptian

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

s and worshippers at

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

s. The Egyptians practiced a number of

ritual A ritual is a repeated, structured sequence of actions or behaviors that alters the internal or external state of an individual, group, or environment, regardless of conscious understanding, emotional context, or symbolic meaning. Traditionally ...

s and

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic (supernatural), magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly app ...

s that were thought to ward off Apophis and to aid Ra in continuing his journey across the sky. In an annual

rite Rite may refer to: Religion * Ritual, an established ceremonious act * Rite (Christianity), sacred rituals in the Christian religion * Ritual family, Christian liturgical traditions; often also called ''liturgical rites'' * Catholic particular ch ...

called the ''Ritual of Overthrowing Apophis'', priests would build an

effigy An effigy is a sculptural representation, often life-size, of a specific person or a prototypical figure. The term is mostly used for the makeshift dummies used for symbolic punishment in political protests and for the figures burned in certain ...

of Apophis that was thought to contain all of the evil and darkness in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

, and burn it to protect everyone from Apophis evil for another year. The Egyptian priests had a detailed guide to fighting Apophis , referred to as ''The Books of Overthrowing Apep'' (or the ''Book of Apophis'', in Greek). The chapters described a gradual process of dishonoring, dismemberment, and disposal, which include: *Spitting Upon Apophis *Defiling Apophis with the Left Foot *Taking a Lance to Smite Apophis *Fettering Apophis *Taking a Knife to Smite Apophis *Putting Fire Upon Apophis In addition to stories about Ra's victories, this guide had instructions for making wax models, or small drawings, of the serpent, which would be spat on, mutilated and burnt, whilst reciting spells that would aid Ra in killing Apophis. Fearing that even the image of Apophis could give power to the demon, any rendering would always include another deity to subdue the monster. As Apophis was thought to live in the underworld, he was sometimes thought of as an ''Eater of

Soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

s''. Thus the dead also needed protection, so they were sometimes buried with spells that could destroy Apophis . The '' Book of the Dead'' does not frequently describe occasions when Ra defeated the chaos snake explicitly called Apophis. Only ''Book of the Dead'' Spells 7 and 39 can be explained as such.J.F.Borghouts, ''Book of the Dead 9 From Shouting to Structure'' (Studien zum Altaegyptischen Totenbuch 10, Wiesbaden, 2007).

Gallery

File:LdM Imenemsaouf.jpg, Apophis below the barque of Ra with seven knives, Book of the Dead of Amenemsaouf, 21st Dynasty,

Louvre Museum The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

File:Edfu16.JPG, The hieroglyph for Apophis name showing a serpent stabbed with five knives, Temple of Edfu, Ptolemaic period File:Papyrus of Hunefer, detail.jpg, Ra, in the form of a cat, smiting Apophis with a knife. Papyrus of Hunefer, 19th dynasty File:Apep 1.jpg,

Atum Atum (, Egyptian: ''jtm(w)'' or ''tm(w)'', ''reconstructed'' ; Coptic ''Atoum''), sometimes rendered as Atem, Temu, or Tem, is the primordial God in Egyptian mythology from whom all else arose. He created himself and is the father of Shu and ...

facing Apophis , tomb of Ramesses I, 19th Dynasty (c. 1292–1290 BC) File:A shallow white cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a man on a boat alongside a hippo and crocodile MET DP259217.jpg, Example of a Naqada 1 C-Ware bowl (though not the one depicting Apophis )

References

External links