Isis - The Goddess of Fertility

Isis - The Goddess of Fertility

The goddess of fertility, Isis was also known as the goddess of motherhood, fertility, magic, death, healing and rebirth and she was worshipped in ancient Egypt. Isis was the first daughter of Geb and Nut who were the god of the earth and the goddess of the sky respectively. Isis was the sister of Osiris who later on became his wife. The son of Isis and Osiris was Horus. Other names by which she was known in Egypt are Auset, Aset or Eset, which are words that were often associated with the word throne. After the death of Osiris, his husband, Isis took over as the goddess of the dead and the funeral rites. She was both the sister and wife of Osiris but in ancient Egypt incest was seen as up to standard in the lives of the Egyptian Gods as it helped in retaining the sacred bloodline of the gods. Isis was also touted as the mother and protector of the Pharaohs.

Some more about Isis

Isis was usually represented as a woman donning a long sheath dress and an empty throne as her headdress. The empty headdress represented the death of her husband and her role as the seat of the power of the pharaoh. In some scenes she is seen as a woman with a headdress of a solar disc and horn. In some rare scenes she is a woman with the head of a cow. She is also represented as the goddess of the wind as a woman with outstretched wings. She is also seen with Horus her son and a crown and a vulture. She is also seen as a woman holding a lotus. In the heavens, her symbol is the star Sept (Sirius). The scared animals of Isis are the cows, snakes and scorpions. She is also the patron of hawks, swallows, doves and vultures.

Isis as goddess of  motherhood and fertility

Isis was referred to be the mother goddess where she represented the maternal spirit in the purest form. She was the divine life giver and was honored as the mother of one of the most powerful gods, Horus. She was said to be the mother of all the pharaohs and entire Egypt. She played the part of nursing Horus along with Hathor. Isis is also known for offering Egyptians the knowledge of cultivation and the advantages of the river Nile. It is believed that the annual inundation of the Nile was tears of Isis which came out because of her husband’s death preceded by the appearance of the star Sept (Sirius) in the sky. This legend till today is known as the yearly celebration known as “The Night of the Drop”.