Sunken Cities & Egyptian Gods & Goddesses
Exhibit Going On Until April 14th
On January 16, 2019 I was blessed beyond all measure because I experienced Egypt's Sunken Cities Exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. This exhibit has been viewed by thousands in London, Paris, New York, St. Louis, Zurich and Minneapolis. The next two locations for the exhibit after Minneapolis will be Massachusetts and Colorado.
French underwater archaeologist, Franck Goddio discovered two great Egyptian sunken cities: Canopus and Thonis-Heracleion. Canopus is the temple city and Thonis-Heracleion is the commercial and port city. The commercial city did, however, have an Egyptian temple which pharaoh visited every year with the high priest to make sure the Nile Valley would be prosperous and fertile. I have included a photo of what they believe the commercial city looked like in this blog.
What is so amazing is that many of the items and artifacts were in great condition. When I was there I saw the movie on the two cities and experienced the guided tour by the Egyptian expert. Many of the artifacts were of Egyptian gods and goddesses. Some items are from the sunken cities and some are from museums. One of the artifacts discovered was of Cleopatra III in the form of the goddess Isis. The Egyptian queens and pharaohs were thought to be gods and goddesses.
Osiris (merciful judge of the dead) and Isis (goddess of healing and magic) dominate the exhibit. They were married and were also brother and sister. Egyptian pharaohs often married their sisters. Osiris is also the son of Geb and Nut as Isis is the daughter of Geb and Nut. Geb is the god of the Earth and Nut is the goddess of the sky.
In most spiritual traditions the Earth is a goddess and the sky is a god. In Hinduism we have Mother Bhumi or Mother Dharti, who is the goddess of the Earth. In the European pagan tradition Mother Earth is called Gaia or Ceres. In Hinduism the sky god is Indra who is the controller of weather. In the Native American traditions you have the Great Spirit, the Creator or Great Mystery who dwells in the sky. He often is called Father Sky. You also have Thunder Beings who dwell in the sky and cause weather to happen on the Earth.
Two other relatives of Osiris and Isis are also in the exhibit. Seth is also the son of Geb and Nut and is the protector of Ra (Master of the Universe) and the god of good and evil. In this case he is the bringer of evil. He murders Osiris and cuts him into pieces which he disperses all over Egypt. Isis finds all but one piece and resurrects him with the help of Nephthys, her sister, the goddess of peace and harmony. As you recall Jesus was resurrected from the dead. Some yogis of Hinduism have also been resurrected from the dead.
Isis and Osiris join together in ecstasy and Horus is born from the union. He is the celestial falcon and protector of life on Earth. He is also featured in the exhibit as much as his parents are. He has different forms, but the dominate form is the falcon.
Another great god who dominates the exhibit is the bull god, Apis. He will definitely get your attention because he is so large in size and beautiful to behold. In the Hindu tradition Nandi, the Bull, is the transport animal of Lord Shiva and Mother Parvati. We also honor the cow as an incarnation of Mother Lakshmi, the goddess of health, wealth and prosperity. The Egyptians viewed Apis with just as much reverence as the Hindus honor Nandi.
You will also be surprised to know that there were three Greek pharaohs during the existence of the Egyptian sunken cities, Canopus and Thonis-Heracleion. Keep in mind Thonis is an Egyptian word and Heracleion is Greek. This city had two names, one Egyptian and the other Greek in origin. Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and Alexandria, which had the great world library, was named after him.
Because the Greeks were in Egypt, their gods and goddesses were worshiped there as they were worshiped in Greece. They even combined with Egyptian gods and goddesses. The god Serapis also dominates the exhibit. He is a combination of Zeus and Osiris. He has curly hair and a beard. Zeus was the top god on Mount Olympus. Every Greek god and goddess payed homage to him. You will also notice the Greco-Roman god of wine called Dionysus. He was also very popular with the Egyptians. As you recall Jesus turned water in wine in the wedding at Cana. The tour guide could not remember his name, so I told her his name. I learned this in a Western Civilization History class.
This exhibit is still going on until April 14th and is well worth the ticket price. You can also take in other art found in the other sections of the museum. There is a good collection of Native American and Asian art. I got to view the Buddah, Lord Shiva, Mother Saraswati, Mother Lakshmi and Lord Vishnu in different forms. The Chinese art is also worth seeing at the museum.
As you can see art can have a divine purpose as well as a secular purpose. You will experience seeing Egyptian pharaohs there. Most were men, but some pharaohs were female. Female pharaohs often ruled after their husband's death when there was no male heir to the throne. In the case of Tausret she reigned at an end of a dynasty and was favored over the men. She ruled during the time of the Trojan War. There were six female pharaohs in Egypt. The gods and goddesses were very important to the Egyptians and their rulers were elevated to the status of gods and goddesses. You will learn about Egyptian culture during the time of the sunken cities. You will also appreciate their acceptance of Greek culture. This exhibit does stir a global consciousness which is greatly needed in our world today. What a great and wonderful exhibit! Take it in!
JAI SHRI EGYPT! JAI SHRI MA! JAI CONSCIOUSNESS!
Radhapriestess
