Discovery Of Osiris

[Ursus]

28 October - November 3rd was a public liturgical event (as opposed to the private mysteries) in the Isiac cult.

 

Myth recounted how Set, the god of Chaos, murdered his brother, the fertility god Osiris. Set then scattered the pieces of the corpse across Egypt. Isis, the sister-wife of Osiris, with the help of other gods recovered most of the parts and magically reanimated Osiris, where he became god of the underworld and the afterlife.

 

The cult would reenact the myth by taking a statue of Osiris and scattering its pieces asunder. The cult adherents would wear black and make lamentations during this period of mourning. Then priests wearing masks in imitation of Isis' divine retinue would "find" the pieces and reassemble them, recreating the resurrection of Osiris. The lamentations would give way to joyous celebrations, for if the magic of Isis had helped Osiris conquer death, surely she would do the same for her loyal cult adherents. In exchange for submission to the cult, the followers of Isis believed they would have a better life in this world and an assured place in the life to come.

 

The festival was thus the "Easter" of the Isiac religion. Interestingly, its place at the end of October and early November coincides with Samhain, a festival of the dead celebrated widely throughout the Celtic world, which was co-opted by the Christian Church as All Souls Day, and secularized in the modern world as Halloween.

[Flavia Gemina]

Do you have a reference for that ceremony, Ursus? Preferably a primary source?

 

Thanks!

[Ursus]

I'm drawing upon Robert Turcan's "Cults of the Roman Empire" who in turn draws upon Plutarch, Apuleius, Seneca and some of the early Christian writers.

[The Augusta]

Ursus - could you confirm or deny whether that scattering of Osiris' little bits involved the Nile in any way? I am sure I read somewhere that it was the Nile that gave him his immortality - but that may be some crackpot myth or theory from elsewhere.

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

In fact a central part of Osiris was thrown into the Nile by the evil Seth and fish ate it, thus becoming sacred to ancient Egyptian. Thus even when "rebuilt" he was incomplete, reason why even when back from the dead he became their god. If I remember well the lacking piece was the penis and a fake wooden one was built to replace it. Thus was Osiris able to give his sperm to Isis who could then give birth to Horus.

[docoflove1974]

In fact a central part of Osiris was thrown into the Nile by the evil Seth and fish ate it, thus becoming sacred to ancient Egyptian. Thus even when "rebuilt" he was incomplete, reason why even when back from the dead he became their god. If I remember well the lacking piece was the penis and a fake wooden one was built to replace it. Thus was Osiris able to give his sperm to Isis who could then give birth to Horus.

 

How symbolic that it's the phallus that was thrown away and never found...on the fertility god. Is this somehow analogous to Persephone and the pomegranate?

[Bryaxis Hecatee]

Good question. The Osiris myth is very old, dating back to at least 3000 BC, probably at least as old as the most primitive versions of the Persephone myth, fully in the period of the fertility godess but also at the period of the birth of the male dominance and kingship ( do not forget the role of Osiris in the royal ideology of ancient egypt ). A king ( man ) lacking his manhood is interesting. Yet this is neither my period nor my domain of interest and I would'nt want to introduce anyone in error so i'll refrain my answer.

[Ursus]

Ursus - could you confirm or deny whether that scattering of Osiris' little bits involved the Nile in any way? I am sure I read somewhere that it was the Nile that gave him his immortality - but that may be some crackpot myth or theory from elsewhere.

 

 

The earliest accounts of the myth simply have Osiris drowning in the Nile.

 

As time passed the god Set, who had once been a revered if frightening god of chaos, turned into an evil figure. He then became the murderer of Osiris.

 

The fullest account of the myth - the one where indeed Set dismembers the corpse and scatters it across Egypt - isn't even Egyptian. It was told by Plutarch. And I surmise there are Platonic overtones added to the myth.

[Flavia Gemina]

In fact a central part of Osiris was thrown into the Nile by the evil Seth and fish ate it, thus becoming sacred to ancient Egyptian. Thus even when "rebuilt" he was incomplete, reason why even when back from the dead he became their god. If I remember well the lacking piece was the penis and a fake wooden one was built to replace it. Thus was Osiris able to give his sperm to Isis who could then give birth to Horus.

 

Yes, Osiris' manly bits were eaten by a fish... but not just any fish: the oxyrhyncus, literally 'sharp-nosed' pike. The city of Oxyrhyncus (where all the papyrus was found) is named after this fish and the inhabitants revered it.

 

(Someone on this forum recommended I read City of the Sharp-nosed Fish, about Greeks in Roman Egypt and I'm glad they did. It's fabulous!)