More Egyptian History to Inspire The Beyond Series of Supernatural Novels

 the week tour of Egypt via a beautiful River boat decorated in an English 1930's Art Deco style was just the tip of the iceberg on this amazing trip down the Nile in 2013. I visited many of my favourite historical sites that I've read about since I was old enough to read. Medinet Habu is the Mortuary Temple of Rameses III situated on the West Bank of Luxor with relief's and carvings depicting the wars defeating the "Sea Peoples" and was the place of worship specifically for the sun god Amun Ra.

 Amun Ra is the ultimate god of the entire ancient Egyptian deity system. Ancient Egyptians considered him as the God of Kings and the King of gods. He is the oldest and most worshipped deity and this photo show Rameses III paying homage to the ultimate sun god and a Pharaoh was considered the Son of Ra and the creator of all life. Whilst other Egyptian deities came and went in popularity throughout the civilisations lifespan, but Amun-Ra was the constant "super god" that was always worshipped. You can see the two distinct feather plumes on his head.

On the opposite side of the temples main gates is a relief of Rameses paying homage to another major god - Horus.
was a sun god and the king of the gods. “The living Horus” was one of the Pharaohs titles and emphasized his right to rule Egypt like Horus ruled the gods. His emblem was the falcon and he was one of the five Osirian gods along with Osiris, Isis, Set and Nephthys. One of the most well known symbols associated with Egypt is the Eye of Horus, which symbolized power.

Rameses II at Karnack: The Karnak Temple Complex, commonly known as Karnak, comprises a vast mix of decayed temples, chapels, pylons, and other buildings. Building at the complex began during the reign of Senusret I in the Middle Kingdom and continued into the Ptolemaic period, although most of the extant buildings date from the New Kingdom. The area around Karnak was the ancient Egyptian Ipet-isut ("The Most Selected of Places") and the main place of worship of the eighteenth dynasty Theban Triad with the god Amun as its head. It is part of the monumental city of Thebes. The Karnak complex gives its name to the nearby, and partly surrounded, modern village of El-Karnak,

Colossi of Memnon Statues also known as Whistling Statues as they are known to sing, usually an hour or two after sunrise. They are two massive stone statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III, who reigned during Dynasty XVIII. For the past 3400 years (since 1350 BC) they have stood in the necropolis at Thebes, west of the River Nile from the modern city of Luxor.

 The Sphinx on the road to Karnak: The familiar depiction of the sphinx of ancient Egyptian culture is a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man. Historians interpret this mixed form as a symbolic joining of a lion's strength and dominance to a king's intelligence. Although the sphinx's heads down the Pharaohs roads to Karnak also have different animal heads to represent and pay homage to various deities. For instance a sphinx with a rams head is the depiction of the king of Gods Amun-Ra.

 Sacred Lake at Karnak is the largest of its kind and was dug by Tuthmosis III (1473-1458 BC). It measures 393 feet by 252 feet and is lined with stone wall and has stairways descending into the water. The lake was used by the priests for ritual washing and ritual navigation. It was also home to the sacred geese of Amun (the goose being another symbol of Amun) and was a symbol of the primeval waters from which life arose in the ancient Egyptian’s idea of creation. It was surrounded by storerooms and living quarters for the priests. There was also an aviary for aquatic birds.

Amenhotep's Red Granite Sacred Scarab beetle monument located close to the Scared Lake is a huge tourist attraction, especially for the singletons of this world. The belief is that you walk seven times anti clockwise around the beetle wishing for your soul mate and you will receive a marriage proposal. I was unmarried at the time and oddly was proposed to in the local cafe after leaving the tourist attraction. The cynical person I am decided the canny cafe owner knew this so asking any lady seeming to be alone would gain extra business. However, just weeks after this trip I was proposed to by my boyfriend who is now my loving husband. So maybe the myth and magic of the Ancient Egyptians does work sometimes.

 Our huge boat had to pass through the locks heading towards Aswan Dam these little rowing boats would dangerously attach themselves to the huge tourist boats (I can't call them ships because they just weren't big enough) and sail along the side whilst attempting to throw table cloths and other souvenirs to the tourists sunbathing on the pool decks. As we entered the locks these two nutters rowed in with our enormous barge. In the UK it would have turned into a governmental Health and Safety Publicity Circus.

Osiris, Geb and Nut: Osiris was the god of the dead and resurrection. He was the ruler of the Tu'at and people would appeal to him to care for their departed ancestors. Osiris was the king of the gods until his brother killed him. Ancient Egypt held the goddess Nut (Osiris's Mother) as one of the most loved goddesses. Known as the sky goddess, she held the title of “she who gives birth to the gods.” From birth to death, Nut played an important role in Egyptian mythology as the barrier between the order of creation and chaos. Geb was Osiris's father and the god and personification of the earth. He was unusual because he was a male earth deity, while most ancient cultures regarded the earth as female.
At the moment you may be wondering what this all has to do with my books, but over the next couple of blogs, all will become clear. My fourth book in Lycan Lamia in The Beyond Series also makes everything become clear with my characters epic journey through the supernatural world.
Alison's Website: www.thebeyondseries.com