dy·ad
Noun
/?d?ad/
dyads
plural
- Something that consists of two elements or parts
- An operator that is a combination of two vectors
- A divalent atom or radical
Deities were often grouped in pairs as the
phenomenon of duality pervades Egyptian culture and is at the
heart of the Egyptian concept of the universe itself - though
rather than focusing on the essential differences between the
two parts of a given pair, ancient Egyptian thought usually
stresses their complementary nature as a way of expressing the
essential unity of existence. The endless duality found
throughout the cosmic, geographic and temporal aspects of the
Egyptian universe (heaven-earth, existence-nonexistence,
stasis-change, north-south, desert-fertile, day-night, etc..)
is found in pairs of Egyptian gods and goddesses which
represented these and many other binary aspects of the world.
Deities were also "created" as counterparts to established
Egyptian god sand goddesses in order to form balanced, sexually
paired couples, as may well have occurred in the following
instances:
Almost invariably, dyads are composed of male and female
elements such as these, though there are a few examples of
sibling dyads of the same sex such as the brothers Horus
and Seth and the sisters Isis and Nephthys. Sometimes too,
deities may be mentioned together in pairs when their roles
or areas of influence are clearly related. Thus, the lunar
deities Thoth and Khonsu, the solar deities Ra and Atum,
the two deified brothers Peteese and Pihor, and many others
may be grouped together in this manner. Another way in
which ancient Egyptian religion formed groups of two
deities is when two Egyptian gods are utilized to represent
a larger group. This may be seen in examples of Thoth and
Horus who are sometimes depicted together representating
the four gods of ritual lustration, Horus, Seth, Thoth and
Nemty.
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