| Nun | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 An aspect ofHeh which personifies the endless waters of chaos. Based on the papyrus of Ani and New Kingdom tomb paintings. | |||||
| Name inhieroglyphs |
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| Symbol | Water | ||||
| Consort | Naunet | ||||
| Naunet | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Naunet was often represented with a cobra head like other female members of theOgdoad | ||||||
| Name inhieroglyphs |
| |||||
| Consort | Nu | |||||
Nun ("The Inert One") orNu ("Watery One") (Ancient Egyptian:nnwNānaw;Coptic:ⲚⲟⲩⲛNoun), inancient Egyptian religion, is the personification of theprimordial wateryabyss which existed at the time of creation and from which the creator sun godRa arose.[1]
Nun is one of the eight deities of theOgdoad representingancient Egyptian primordial Chaos from which theprimordial mound arose. Nun can be seen as the first of all the gods and the creator of reality and personification of the cosmos. Nun is also considered the god that will destroy existence and return everything to the Nun whence it came. No cult was addressed to Nun.
Nun's consort (or his female aspect) was the goddessNunut[2] orNaunet (Ancient Egyptian:nnwt).
The name on Nun is paralleled withnen "inactivity" in a play of words in, "I raised them up from out of the watery mass [nu], out of inactivity [nen]". The name has also been compared to the Copticnoun "abyss; deep".[3]
The ancient Egyptians envisaged the oceanic abyss of the Nun as surrounding a bubble in which the sphere of life is encapsulated, representing the deepest mystery of their cosmogony.[4] In ancient Egyptian creation accounts, the original mound of land comes forth from the waters of the Nun.[5] The Nun is the source of all that appears in a differentiated world, from which emerge all aspects of divine and earthly existence. In theEnnead cosmogony, Nun is perceived as transcendent at the point of creation alongsideAtum the creator god.[4]
In the beginning the universe only consisted of a great chaotic cosmic ocean, and the ocean itself was referred to as Nun. In some versions of this myth, at the beginning of timeMehet-Weret, portrayed as a cow with a sun disk between her horns, gives birth to the sun, said to have risen from the waters of creation and to have given birth to the sun godRa in some myths.[1] The universe was enrapt by a vast mass of primordial waters, and the Benben, a pyramid mound, emerged amid this primal chaos. There was alotus flower with Benben,[6] and from this when it blossomed emerged Ra.[citation needed] There were many versions of the sun's emergence, and it was said to have emerged directly from the mound or from a lotus flower that grew from the mound, in the form of a heron, falcon, scarab beetle, or human child.[7][1] InHeliopolis, the creation was attributed toAtum, a deity closely associated with Ra, who was said to have existed in the waters of Nu as an inert potential being.
Beginning with theMiddle Kingdom, Nun is described as "the father of the gods" and he is depicted on temple walls throughout the rest of ancient Egyptian religious history.[4]
TheOgdoad includes along with Naunet and Nun,Amaunet andAmun;Hauhet andHeh; andKauket andKek. Like the other Ogdoad deities, Nu did not have temples or any center of worship. Even so, Nu was sometimes represented by asacred lake, or, as atAbydos, by an underground stream.[citation needed]
Nun was depicted as an anthropomorphic large figure and a personification of the primordial waters,[1] holding a notched palm branch. Nun was also depicted in anthropomorphic form but with the head of a frog, and he was typically depicted in ancient Egyptian art holding aloft thesolar barque or the sun disc. He may appear greeting the rising sun in the guise of a baboon. Nun is otherwise symbolized by the presence of a sacred cistern or lake as in the sanctuaries ofKarnak andDendara.[citation needed]
Nu was shown usually as male but also had aspects that could be represented as female or male. Naunet (also spelt Nunet) is the female aspect, which is the nameNu with a female gender ending. The male aspect, Nun, is written with a male gender ending. As with the primordial concepts of the Ogdoad, Nu's male aspect was depicted as a frog, or a frog-headed man. In Ancient Egyptian art, Nun also appears as a bearded man, with blue-green skin, representing water. Naunet is represented as a snake or snake-headed woman.[citation needed]
In the 12th Hour of theBook of Gates, Nu is depicted with upraised arms holding asolar bark (or barque, aboat). The boat is occupied by eight deities withKhepri, Ra's morning aspect, standing in the middle and being surrounded by the seven other deities.[citation needed]
During theLate Period when Egypt was occupied by foreign powers, the negative aspect of Nun (ie. chaos) became the dominant perception, reflecting the forces of disorder that were set loose in the country.[4]
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