She-Wolf

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

It cannot be proven(most gods aren't provable){not to offend anyone}
that the werewolf god is shewolf, i've heard many theorys about this, and I was wondering if anyone believes in SHE-WOLF(besides me)

[Tempest]

"Werewolf god"? I've never heard of that. Where can I read more about it?

[blueeyes]

The only god you have to follow is whatever one you find. There is no god for us just as there is no god for humans; if there is anything, it is responsible for all races (?species?).

If there is a god that is a werewolf, then it would be female and a wolf, if only to fufill the concepts of both creator and elementalist.

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

go to this webpage to read about She-Wolf
http://werewolves.monstrous .com/famous_werewolves.ht m#_Toc523814061

The She-Wolf was another aspect of the Triple Goddess, as shown by her triadic motherhood. She gave three souls to her son, the legendary King Erulus or Herulus, so that when Evander overthrew him, he had to be killed three times. The Amazons, who worshipped the Triple Goddess, incorporated a tribe called the Neuri, who "turned themselves into wolves" for a few days each year during their main religious festival, presumably by wearing wolf skins and masks. The same story was told of a certain Irish tribe in Ossory, who became wolf-people when attending their yuletide feast, devouring the flesh of cattle as wolves, and afterward regaining their human shape.

South Slavs used to pass a newborn child through a wolf skin, saying that it was thus born of the She-Wolf. After their conversion to Christianity, the people claimed this ceremony would protect the child from witches. But its real purpose, obviously, was to assimilate the child to the wolf totem via a second birth from the wolf.

The Gaulish Diana had numerous wolf-cultists among her votaries, in both ancient and medieval times. Under her totemic name of Lupa she was a mother of wild animals, and certain women seem to have impersonated her in southern France.

A Provencal troubadour named Pierre Vidal wrote a love poem to a lady of Carcassonne, whose name was Loba, "She-Wolf":


"When loup-garou the rabble call me,
When vagrant shepherds hoot,
Pursue, and buffet me to boot,
It doth not for a moment gall me
I seek neither palaces nor halls,
Or refuge when the winter falls;
Exposed to winds and frosts at night,
My soul is ravaged with delight.
Me claim my she-wolf so divine;
And justly she that claim prefers,
For, by my troth, my life is hers
More than another's, more than mine."


Lovers of the She-Wolf sometimes found her on a holy mountain, which the gypsies called Monte Lupo, Wolf-Mountain. Young men could learn the secrets of magic by celebrating the sacred marriage: masturbating over the Goddess's statue and ejecting semen on it. She would guide and protect them, provided they never again set foot in a Christian church. Her votaries' shape shifting followed the phases of the moon, which was another form of the Goddess herself. In the 12th century, Gervais of Tilbury noted: "In England we often see men changed into wolves at the changes of the moon."


This is from
http://werewolves.monstrous .com/fam...m#_Toc52381406 1 webpage

[LV426]

"She-Wolf
The She-Wolf was another aspect of the Triple Goddess, as shown by her triadic motherhood. She gave three souls to her son, the legendary King Erulus or Herulus, so that when Evander overthrew him, he had to be killed three times. The Amazons, who worshipped the Triple Goddess, incorporated a tribe called the Neuri, who "turned themselves into wolves" for a few days each year during their main religious festival, presumably by wearing wolf skins and masks. The same story was told of a certain Irish tribe in Ossory, who became wolf-people when attending their yuletide feast, devouring the flesh of cattle as wolves, and afterward regaining their human shape.

South Slavs used to pass a newborn child through a wolf skin, saying that it was thus born of the She-Wolf. After their conversion to Christianity, the people claimed this ceremony would protect the child from witches. But its real purpose, obviously, was to assimilate the child to the wolf totem via a second birth from the wolf."

The above is from the website that lycanthrope12_8_03 posted.

I have a great problem with this information because there is no reference listed and in researching those mentioned in the post I found to have very little correlation between this goddess and werewolves or even wolves.

The Triple Goddess was first founded in greece. Greek mythology tells of the three fates who were all goddesses but only one at a time. Lachesis, Atropo, and Clotho. These were the goddesses that determined the fate of the living.

The Germanic myths tell of the Norns or Wyrd Sisters, Yerd, Verdandi, Skuld.

There is also the ancient archetype familiar to most cultures referred to as the Triple Goddess. It is a representation of the three forms a woman takes in her lifetime. The goddess triad represents three distinct phases of a woman's life which correspond with the three phases of the moon, Waxing, Full, and Waning. Three is a sacred pagan number, and the Triple Goddess represents The Goddess at her most complete. The three aspects of the Triple Goddess are Maiden, Mother and Crone.

The Maiden aspect of the Triple Goddess corresponds with a woman's life roughly from birth into the 20's. The Maiden aspect represents new beginnings, youth, childhood, adventure, risk, spontaneity and playfulness.

The Mother aspect signifies nurturing, caring, unity, fertility and richness; this is the time when a woman is at the peak of her power, from approximately her late 20's into her latter 40's. The Mother is life itself, the source of all creation. She is healing, growth, abundance, sexuality and love.


The final aspect of the Triple Goddess is the Crone. She is the master of wisdom, mysteries, transformation, death, rebirth, and banishings. She is the teacher, the Wise One, the chameleon, the Silent One.

The above mentioned She-Wolf is said to be the mother of Herulus, but Herulus' mother was Goddess Feronia. Feronia is a goddess of fertility and is said to have been worshipped by slaves who believed that if they sat upon a sacred stone in her sanctuary they were destined for freedom.


Also it is mentioned that the Neuri are Amazonian when in fact, The Neuri are in Polish mythology and are considered are shape-shifters of uncertain origins. They are said to be sorcerers that can take the shape of a wolf for one week once a year.

Also the mention of the werewolves of Ossary is aso incorrect.

There are a number of old tales about strange tribes of wolf-men living in remote areas of County Tipperary, whose assistance was often sought by the ancient kings of Ireland when they made war upon each other. There are also tales of strange beings - half-men, half-wolves - roaming the remote forest and mountain areas of the island. Indeed, one of the oldest written stories that we have about werewolves comes from Ireland. This comes from the pen of Giraldus Cambrensis who wrote down many old Irish tales. The events are supposed to have taken place just a few years before his arrival in Ireland in 1185.


This is the tale as taken from the book Beasts, Banshees and Brides from the Sea by Bob Curran

I highly recommend this book to any who are interested in Irish folklore. There are some definite spine tingling tales within it's cover.

Thankfully someone else wrote this out on the web so I didn't have to type it all up but I have read the book and found the tales within to be fascinating. However there is no mention of a She-Wolf Goddess.

[LV426]

The Werewolves of Ossory
by Giraldus Cambrensis
Several years before the arrival of Prince John in Ireland, a certain priest was travelling from the kingdom of Ulster towards Meath on some urgent and religious business. With him travelled a young boy, a novice at one of the religious houses in Ulster, as a kind of squire or helpmate on his travels. Their journey was a long and arduous one which took them through much strange and brooding country where the people still kept close to the old pagan ways.

One evening, as the sun was setting, they reached a great and sprawling wood which ran along the borders of Meath and was known far and wide as part of the ecclesiastical See of Ossory. Dark was coming quickly, and the priest decided that the edge of the forest might make a good place to camp for the night. Accordingly, he lit a small fire, both for warmth and to keep wild forest animals away, and he and the boy prepared a simple evening meal for themselves.

As night drew on, the violet sky overhead changed to a deeper hue and soon utter darkness spread across the entire countryside. The small fire burned low and the boy lay half-dozing whilst the holy man pored over his religious books. Whilst he was so doing, he suddenly became aware that the sounds from the neighbour ing woodlands, which had been quite loud at a time, had fallen away and an eerie silence pervaded the area. It was a strange thing and it badly frightened the priest for he was on holy business and was well aware that the Evil One was abroad on the road and was seeking to divert his path. Then, from the darkness beyond the fireglow came a voice, soft and gruff, but with a hint of urgency about it.

'Father!' it said. The priest looked towards the boy who appeared to be Iying fast asleep. Thinking that he had imagined it, he turned back to the pages of his book. But the voice came again, harsh and insistent: 'Father!'

Rising, the priest closed his sacred book and walked to the edge of the fireglow. Standing there, he looked out into the darkness of the forest beyond.

'Who's there?' he asked, grasping the crucifix which hung about his neck, for he was sorely afraid of the machinations of the Evil One. 'Who calls me?'

For a moment there was silence, then the same harsh voice came again.

'A penitent sinner who seeks only your blessing, Father', it replied.

The priest clutched the crucifix even more tightly for he knew that Satan was the father of all lies, and that this might be a wily ruse to lure him into the darkness of the forest where he might be set upon by demons. Nevertheless, he took another step forward.

'If you are truly a repentent sinner', he said sternly, 'step forward into the firelight and reveal yourself so that I may hear your sins and grant you absolution.'

There was a long pause and the darkness in front of the holy man appeared to deepen slightly. The voice came again.

'I - I cannot, Father. I am under a severe curse and if you were to see me, you would find my appearance strange.'

It spoke with such pathos that the priest found himself quite moved. He peered against the darkness but could see nothing, save the movement of bushes in a light evening wind. When he spoke again, his tone was less stern and commanding.

'In my travels all across this country', he said kindly, 'I have seen many awful deformities. I have seen lepers and those who were born with terribly twisted bodies and faces. I have looked into countenances which were almost too terrible to gaze upon and I have given succour to those who were most sorely afflicted. I have seen men living under the most terrible of curses. So I doubt if anything that you can show me will alarm or disgust me. I therefore ask you again to come forward and let me gaze upon you so that I can see to whom it is that I grant the Lord's absolution.'

He waited but there was no response from the night for a long, long while. Then the voice came again, still harsh, yet breaking with emotion.

'If you were to see me', it told the priest, 'you would be greatly afraid. And, in truth, it is not absolution for myself which brings me so close to your fire but rather it is to seek absolution for she who cannot come.'

The priest was puzzled but he answered earnestly and in the same kindly tone.

'Tell me, are you diseased in some way?' he asked.

'After a fashion', answered the voice. 'But, Father, my form is so terrifying that you would be struck with fear if you were to behold it.'

The priest answered, using the same kindly tone.

'I have God's word and His goodness and power to protect me', he said. 'Why should I be frightened by one of His creatures? Please, I beg you as a priest, come into the light so that I may see you and give you the blessing for which you ask.'

By this time the boy had wakened and was now sitting by the edge of the fire looking out into the darkness with eyes that were wide and full of terror. He was only a novice and was unsettled by the strange, bodiless, growling voice. The priest motioned him to sit still and be quiet.

'Come forward!' he repeated. 'You cannot frighten me!'

There was a movement in the darkness beyond the firelight and into the wan circle of brilliance came a huge grey wolf, its muzzle white and dripping and its tongue lolling out of the side of its mouth. The priest crossed himself in shock and the boy made to cry out but was struck dumb by terror.

'There!' said the wolf in that familiar voice. 'Now you see me! Are you not terrified?' The priest was fairly choking with fear but yet he shook his head.

'I - I am protected by the living God Himself', he managed to say, 'but what sort of creature are you for I believe that there is more to you than the form which I see before me?' The wolf looked at him with red eyes which glowed menacingly in the firelight.

'As I told you, I am one who lives under a terrible curse', it replied. 'Once I was like you but am now forced to wear this terrible form for a period of seven years. Yet in my heart I am still a devout Christian in need of succour and blessing. And there are yet more of us out in yonder forest who are aMicted with the same curse.' The priest composed himself slightly.

'And yet, you worship God and openly and freely acknowl edge the sacrifice of His son for mankind at Calvary?' he enquired. 'You can acknowledge that with all your heart?'

The wolf stretched itself close to the fire and the boy ran back into the shadows and sat there, crouching in terror.

'Aye and gladly', said the creature. 'Although we wear this ghastly form, we are as human and in need of salvation as any other people.' The priest nodded thoughtfully, his initial terror beginning to fade.

'But how came you by this fearsome form?' he asked in wonder. 'And why must you wear it for seven years?' The wolf watched him warily.

'I am a member of Clan Allta, a tribe of this region', it answered, 'and like yourself, Father, we are believers in Jesus Christ and in the power of His salvation. However, in times long past, we were cursed for some ancient sin by the blessed Abbot Natalis.'

The priest took in a sharp breath. He had heard of Natalis, who had come to Ireland shortly after the Blessed Patrick to bring the Word of God to a dark and pagan land. He had even read some of the holy man's works. From what he had read, he had always imagined the holy man to be exceedingly severe and inflexible in his teachings and one who would brook no deviation from his own interpretations of God's law.

'The sin which my clan committed has long been forgotten', went on the wolf, 'but the curse is still in force. Every seven years two of us must lose our mortal form to wear the skin of the wild wolf and must live in the deep woods away from the rest of our clan. When the seven years are up we shed our animal form and regain our human shape and two others must take our place. It is a terrible burden, Father, and one which will never be lifted, for Natalis is long dead.

'My wife and I were chosen to take the wolf-shape over six years ago. We were old and it was assumed that the clan could do without us, and so we were driven out from among our people under the curse. Our time in wolf-shape had almost passed when some hunters, passing through these woodlands, aimed an arrow which struck my wife, grievously wounding her. Father, I fear that she is not long for this world and I would implore you to give her the final absolution before she dies.'
The beast looked at the priest with large and imploring eyes. 'She lies in a place not far from here. I beg you, come and minister to her.'

The creature spoke so earnestly and with such passion that the priest could not find it in his heart to refuse.

[LV426]

'Very well', he said, motioning to the boy to remain where he was by the fire. 'Lead me to where your wife lies and if she is truly a Christian, I will administer the final sacraments to her.' At his words, the wolf sprang up and moved to the very edge of the firelight, waiting for the priest to follow.

'Come then', it said. 'We must make haste for I fear that her hour may be passing even as we speak.' Gathering up his religious books, the priest followed and the wolf made off into the darkness of the wood.

The journey deep into the forest was a dangerous one. The wolf moved swiftly and silently ahead of the old man, and the priest was now sure that any noises that had been made earlier were to alert him to the beast's presence near his fire. The trail that they followed was a difficult path, pitted with holes and deep gullies which the priest often found awkward to negotiate. At length they came to a fork in the trail, marked by a lightning blasted tree. Close by there was a small river flowing and the roots of the ancient oak trailed over into the water.

'Here we are', said the wolf suddenly. The priest squinted in the gloom. There in a small cave among the jumbled roots lay an old she-wolf, as grizzled and thin as her mate. At his approach, she raised her ancient head.

'See, my dear', said the first wolf in a low and soothing voice, 'I have done as I promised and have brought a priest for you.'

Kneeling down, the priest scrambled under the entrance to the cave and squatted beside the she-wolf. There was a great wound on her flank from which part of the shaft of an arrow still stuck out. The priest moved closer to the dying animal.

'Who are you?' he whispered. 'What are you?' The female further licked her head with some difficulty and blood bubbled between her wolf-lips.

'My husband may have already told you', she answered. 'We are the Werewolves of Ossory, condemned to live in this guise for a season. We are sometimes hunted for our pelts which are extremely valuable and I have been wounded by hunters. I desire to die with the Holy Offices of a priest. Hear my confession and grant me your blessing, Father'. The priest nodded hesitantly.

'You think we are evil', went on the she-wolf. 'You think that this is some trick of the Evil One, sent to lure you away from the sacred paths of the Church.' The priest nodded again. 'Yet we readily acknowledge the name of God, of Jesus Christ His Son and of the Virgin Mary. What creature of evil could do that? I tell you that underneath this fearsome form we are as human and as Christian as yourself, Father.' The priest still seemed uncertain.

'What will it take to convince you?' asked the male wolf, rearing up on its hind-legs. 'If I were to walk like a man would that set your mind at rest that we are truly human?' The priest hesitated. 'We will do anything to convince you, if you will hear my wife's confession!' The priest licked his dry lips uneasily.

'You say that you are human', he answered, 'but ... but I see only the animal. And certainly you speak like mortals and yet your words come in the rough grunts of the beast. If ... if I could but see the human which you say lurks beneath the wolf-skin, then my mind would be at rest.'

The female wolf straightened herself painfully. The priest drew back in alarm but then saw that she did not mean to threaten him.

'Very well', she said. 'In the name of the living God, behold my true face.' And she brought her right forepaw to her jaws and began to gnaw and bite at the skin. Blood spurted out and part of the leg fell away to reveal the fingers of a human hand below. Raising the hand to its belly, the female wolf proceeded to rip and tear at the flesh there, pulling it back and opening it as though it was a hairy garment. The wolf-head seemed to fall away like a woollen mask and, beneath skin and membrane, the priest thought that he saw another, human head. This was the head of an old woman, thin and brown-skinned, narrow and with hair plastered across the sides of the face.

'Jesu!' he muttered, crossing himself. The woman's ancient mouth worked to form words. 'There, Father', said the old lady's voice. 'Now do you believe? Beneath that wolf-body we are indeed human.' She worked and tore through sinew and gristle, allowing her liKle head to poke out through.

'Now, Father', said the male wolf. 'You have heard our tale, you know that we are human and are true believers. Will you hear my wife's confession and grant her the absolution for which she craves?' The priest sighed at the horror of it all and at the awfulness of the holy curse which lay upon the old couple. Sometimes, he thought, those who called themselves Christian were far worse in their ways than the pagans whom they sought to convert.

'I will hear your confession', he said slowly and with much sadness in his voice. He bent down as the male wolf moved away into the dark, and listened to the small, halting voice as the old woman made her final confession. Then he made the sign of the cross above her.

'I grant you my absolution', he said. 'Go to meet your maker in peace.' The she-wolf sank down into the darkness with a contented sigh.

'Now, though my body dies in its present form', she whispered, 'my immortal soul shall be with God.' And she laid her head down and sank into a deep and restful sleep.

At first light, the male wolf led the priest back to his campsite where the boy was waiting for him. Later, the beast led the two of them to the very edge of the forest so that they could continue their journey. As they were about to depart, the priest turned to the wolf and said:

'Tell me if you know, will the invader remain in Ireland for much longer?' He asked the question for he imagined that the wolf, being a supernatural creature, might have some knowledge of the future. The animal considered for a while.

'On account of the grievous sins of our nation and the enormous wickedness of the people here, God has inflicted the rule of a foreign enemy upon them. As to whether they will remain, I cannot tell at present. Return to these woods upon your way back from Meath and I may be able to tell you.'

And he bid the priest farewell and loped off back into the forest. The priest called after him that he would return with all possible speed to hear the answer but by that time the wolf had returned to the dark woodland depths. Sadly, the priest turned and continued on his journey.

His business in Meath took him much longer than he had expected and so it was early in the following year before he journeyed back to Ulster. On his way, he stopped in the woods of Ossory but, although he searched, he could not find any sign of the wolf at all. Perhaps he had been killed by hunters or maybe he had moved on. Either way there was not a trace of him to be seen."

Incidentaly for those who are interested, Giraldus Cambrensis wrote quite a bit about the folktales and myths of Ireand and claimed that most of his stories were from first hand experiance.

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

lycanthropic howl, where are you getting this info from?

[LV426]

Well the Triple Goddess info I got from my brain, I read it but you can check out the fates info from Bullfinches Mythology, you can also look in Fafnir which has Germanic Mythology. Aspects of the Goddess which can be found in any New Age bookstore.


The Neuri I found in the Encyclopedia.

And the Werewolves of Ossary came from Beasts, Banshees and Brides from the Sea by Bob Curran

[Wolfy]

Are there any more lycanthrope gods more than She Wolf?

[Wraywolf]

Firstly, who is 'She Wolf'? And how long has she been a deity? I don't mean, how long has she supposedly existed in your 'religion', I mean when was the religion that worshiped her founded? I'd also like to see some actual documents about this god, and not just your description.

[DarkWolf]

Didn't you already make a thread about werewolf Gods?

Multiple threads on the same thing is spamming.

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

well..no deity or god can be proven, wraywolf, so you cant prove it

[DarkWolf]

well..no deity or god can be proven, wraywolf, so you cant prove it
He means documentation of the deity, like there's a bible for Jesus/God, documents on the Greek and Roman Gods and so on.

In other words, where did Wolfy hear about this She Wolf?

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

well, i did, read this forum
http://www.werewolf.com/vb/showthread.php?t=233 3

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

well, hope that helped everyone

[Wolfy]

It cannot be proven(most gods aren't provable){not to offend anyone}
that the werewolf god is shewolf, i've heard many theorys about this, and I was wondering if anyone believes in SHE-WOLF(besides me)
I believe in She-Wolf :D

[DarkWolf]

The Triple Goddess was first founded in greece. Greek mythology tells of the three fates who were all goddesses but only one at a time. Lachesis, Atropo, and Clotho. These were the goddesses that determined the fate of the living.

While the Fates are more closely relative to the whole "3 stages of the woman" thing (Fates were exactly that: a young girl, a woman in her prime, and an old woman) the Triple Goddess thing of witchcraft could also have come from a different aspect of Greek Mythology: Greek Mythology had 3 Witch Goddesses, after all. Just a thought.

[lycanthrope012_8_03]

..a conspiricy theory, perhaps

[Wraywolf]

Do the followers of she-wolf have a name? All cults need a good long name, usually containing the word enlightenment or purity.

[LV426]

Do the followers of she-wolf have a name? All cults need a good long name, usually containing the word enlightenment or purity.
As I stated before She Wolf seems to be a misrepresentation of a goddess. The site that ycanthrope designated as his source obtained the information from another such site and the information is incorrect in that there is only partial information provided. It seems that the bulk of the information regarding the goddess was left out in order to give the impression that this is a true wolf goddess. In actuality she was just another goddess that was sometimes associated with wolves.

[Wraywolf]

Ah, sorry, I only skimmed the above posts. I've always found religion intolerably boring. Unless it's Greek myth. With plenty of those nude statues. :D

[nightwolf]

Are there any more lycanthrope gods more than She Wolf?
TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION YES ANUBIS IS ALSO A LYCANTHROPIC GOD

[LV426]

TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION YES ANUBIS IS ALSO A LYCANTHROPIC GOD
Actually correction, Anubis is an anthropomorphic god. Considered to be the jackal headed god there has been some question about what kind of canid Anubis was.


Anubis, is the mysterious canid deity of ancient Egypt. Even the meaning of his name is unknown -- speculations range from "Royal Child" to having derived from the world for "to putrefy". Both certainly fit the deity, who was at various points in time of Egyptian history known as the lord of the dead before Osiris and, later, became popularly known as the son of Osiris.



The deep black color Anubis's animal is not reflective of its actual coat but is instead symbolic of his position as a funerary deity. The reason for Anubis's animal being canid is based on what the ancient Egyptians themselves observed of the creature -- dogs and jackals often haunted the edges of the desert, especially the cemeteries where the dead were buried.

Anubis is an extremely ancient deity. The oldest mastabas of the Old Kingdom have prayers to him carved into their walls, and he is mentioned in the Pyramid Texts in his most celebrated role as a guardian and protector of the dead. A standard offering formula for the dead in the Old Kingdom began thusly:


"An offering which the king gives and Anubis, who is upon his mountain and in the place of embalming, the lord of the necropolis...."

As mentioned previously, Anubis began in the position that Osiris would later command. In the earliest period of Egyptian religion Anubis was clearly the lord of the dead and Osiris the embalmed god while Anubis performed the act of embalming. Titles that were invested unto Osiris -- such as Khenty-Imentiu or "Foremost of Westerners" -- were originally Anubis's. As the drama of Osiris's death and vindication unfolded over the centuries, Anubis assumed the role of the guide who holds steady the scales on which their hearts are measured against the feather of ma'at as "He Who Counts the Hearts". Should the heart be light as the feather, the soul would then be lead by Anubis (or, in some cases, Harseisis) to be presented to Osiris. Should the heart be heavy, it is fed to Ammit and the soul destroyed.

As Imy-ut, or "He Who is In the Place of Embalming", Anubis is the embalmer who washes the entrails of the dead and guards over their physical bodies as well as the places that house them (the tomb and the necropolis). Priests wearing a mask of Anubis were responsible for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony that reawakened a dead person's senses. In a reflection of the royal seal used on the tombs of the Valley of the Kings depicting pharaoh's victory over the "nine bows" (enemies of Egypt), Anubis is shown recumbent over nine bows meant to be hostile forces of the Underworld who he -- as "Jackal Ruler of the Bows" -- has triumphed over.

Anubis's parentage is a mystery -- in one tradition he is the son of Nebt-het (Nephthys) and Ra. In yet another, from the Coffin Text period, the cow goddess Hesat is his mother and, from the same source, Bastet is even accounted as his mother (most likely a pun on the ointment jars that comprise her hieroglyphs -- the same jars that were used during the embalming process Anubis was lord of). The Pyramid Texts even supply Anubis with a daughter in the form of the goddess Qeb-hwt ("Cooling Water") -- a celestial serpent or ostrich Who purifies and quenches the monarch.

Anubis is depicted most often as a man with the head of a black canid with alert, pointed ears. He is also represented by a full black canid wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum in the crook of its arm. Very rarely is he ever shown fully human, though there are some cases (such as in the temple of Ramesses II of Abydos) of this. Perhaps the most famous representation of Anubis, the gold-gilded wooden canid found in the tomb of Tutankhamen, was doubtlessly placed there as a protector of the dead and guardian of the tomb.

Anubis was worshipped throughout Egypt, but the center of his cult was in Cynopolis (Upper Egypt).

[J.L.R.]

Actually correction, Anubis is an anthropomorphic god. Considered to be the jackal headed god there has been some question about what kind of canid Anubis was.


Anubis, is the mysterious canid deity of ancient Egypt. Even the meaning of his name is unknown -- speculations range from "Royal Child" to having derived from the world for "to putrefy". Both certainly fit the deity, who was at various points in time of Egyptian history known as the lord of the dead before Osiris and, later, became popularly known as the son of Osiris.



The deep black color Anubis's animal is not reflective of its actual coat but is instead symbolic of his position as a funerary deity. The reason for Anubis's animal being canid is based on what the ancient Egyptians themselves observed of the creature -- dogs and jackals often haunted the edges of the desert, especially the cemeteries where the dead were buried.

Anubis is an extremely ancient deity. The oldest mastabas of the Old Kingdom have prayers to him carved into their walls, and he is mentioned in the Pyramid Texts in his most celebrated role as a guardian and protector of the dead. A standard offering formula for the dead in the Old Kingdom began thusly:


"An offering which the king gives and Anubis, who is upon his mountain and in the place of embalming, the lord of the necropolis...."

As mentioned previously, Anubis began in the position that Osiris would later command. In the earliest period of Egyptian religion Anubis was clearly the lord of the dead and Osiris the embalmed god while Anubis performed the act of embalming. Titles that were invested unto Osiris -- such as Khenty-Imentiu or "Foremost of Westerners" -- were originally Anubis's. As the drama of Osiris's death and vindication unfolded over the centuries, Anubis assumed the role of the guide who holds steady the scales on which their hearts are measured against the feather of ma'at as "He Who Counts the Hearts". Should the heart be light as the feather, the soul would then be lead by Anubis (or, in some cases, Harseisis) to be presented to Osiris. Should the heart be heavy, it is fed to Ammit and the soul destroyed.

As Imy-ut, or "He Who is In the Place of Embalming", Anubis is the embalmer who washes the entrails of the dead and guards over their physical bodies as well as the places that house them (the tomb and the necropolis). Priests wearing a mask of Anubis were responsible for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony that reawakened a dead person's senses. In a reflection of the royal seal used on the tombs of the Valley of the Kings depicting pharaoh's victory over the "nine bows" (enemies of Egypt), Anubis is shown recumbent over nine bows meant to be hostile forces of the Underworld who he -- as "Jackal Ruler of the Bows" -- has triumphed over.

Anubis's parentage is a mystery -- in one tradition he is the son of Nebt-het (Nephthys) and Ra. In yet another, from the Coffin Text period, the cow goddess Hesat is his mother and, from the same source, Bastet is even accounted as his mother (most likely a pun on the ointment jars that comprise her hieroglyphs -- the same jars that were used during the embalming process Anubis was lord of). The Pyramid Texts even supply Anubis with a daughter in the form of the goddess Qeb-hwt ("Cooling Water") -- a celestial serpent or ostrich Who purifies and quenches the monarch.

Anubis is depicted most often as a man with the head of a black canid with alert, pointed ears. He is also represented by a full black canid wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum in the crook of its arm. Very rarely is he ever shown fully human, though there are some cases (such as in the temple of Ramesses II of Abydos) of this. Perhaps the most famous representation of Anubis, the gold-gilded wooden canid found in the tomb of Tutankhamen, was doubtlessly placed there as a protector of the dead and guardian of the tomb.

Anubis was worshipped throughout Egypt, but the center of his cult was in Cynopolis (Upper Egypt).


Ahhh Anubis needs a huge, doesn't even know who his parents are... Poor guy...

Have you hugged your Anubis lately?

Wow loads of brain juice for me! Thanks... :)

[Wraywolf]

I'd hug him...

BIG AND GOOD!