Weru (Egyptian mythology)
| Weru in hieroglyphics | ||||
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| Old empire |
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| Middle realm |
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| Gr.-Roman. time |
Weru Wrw The big ones |
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Weru was the ancient Egyptian name of sacrificial deities , which is well documented in the Old Kingdom .
background
Old empire
In the early Old Kingdom, the Weru were considered the sacrificial gods of the deceased king ( Pharaoh ), who rose for him in the morning and prepared his morning meal. In return, the king should provide the Weru deities with a donation of water that he had previously received. In the further course, the late king led the Scherru deities ( the little ones ).
The same symbolism was transferred to Shu and Tefnut , especially in the New Kingdom , who were responsible for resouling the deceased after the mouth-opening ritual had been performed.
Middle realm
In the Middle Kingdom , the Weru are worshiped as deities that Atum created . Particularly noticeable is the changed role assignment of the Weru, who now become offerings themselves, which the deceased makes together with Amun when the Weru are killed on the night of the judgment . After killing the Weru, the deceased cuts their bodies and then kills the Scherru, in order to then go to the graves of the Weru and Scherru to rest . The killing robbed the Weru deities of their power to influence the deceased.
See also
literature
- Christian Leitz u. a .: Lexicon of the Egyptian gods and names of gods . Peeters, Leuven 2002, ISBN 90-429-1147-6 , pp. 471-472.