The Sun and its Symbol according to Ancient Egyptians

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Egypt During the New Kingdom, the cult of the sun god Ra became increasingly important until it evolved into the uncompromising monotheism of Pharaoh.  According to the cult, Ra created himself from a primeval mound in the shape of a pyramid and then created all other gods. Thus, Ra was not only the sun god, he was also the universe, having created himself from himself. Ra was invoked as Aten or the Great Disc that illuminated the world of the living and the dead.

Egyptian Monuments

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If you are traveling to Egypt, you should not miss seeing the ancient Egyptian sites. Ancient Egypt’s civilization spanned more than 3,000 years and despite it coming to an end around 2000 years ago, there are many well-preserved temples, pyramids, tombs and monuments to visit. These Egyptian monuments that outlived age, and survived throughout time is now considered to be disgraceful by the new Islamist s who took over after the revolution. They are considering how to either put them down,  or cover them with wax !!!!! Can you believe that?????

Egyptians Habits during Easter Day

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Spring festival is as old as Egypt itself. “The spring festival coincided with the vernal equinox, and the ancients imagined that that day represented the beginning of creation. The date of Sham El Nessi m was not fixed. Rather, it was announced every year on the night before the feast at the foot of the Great Pyramid. The feast of ‘Sham o,’ means ‘renewal of life’ which was later corrupted during the Coptic age to ‘sham m’ (smelling or breathing) and the word ‘nessim’ (breeze) was added. Sham El Nessi m was also connected to the Harvest season. Egyptians up till this very day celebrate Spring by going out on trips outdoors, in parks or on a short cruise the the river Nile. The whole idea is to enjoy the summer breeze, yet they always start their day with smelling onions!!!

Egyptian Handcrafted Industries

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Amidst all the turbulence in the Middle Eastern area, the handcrafted industries are still struggling to survive. With very little tools and almost no marketing channels, as the tourists have moved far away from that territories, yet they are trying to persist. Egypt was the center of the Middle East for years, being number one in the touristic industry. Now with all the political disturbances, and all the conflicting views of those who run it, cannot predict the near or far future. Though the picture now is really blurting, yet I am quite sure that the people who built the Pyramids and Sphinx thousands of years ago will not give up.

History and Origin of Valentine’s Day

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February 14 is Valentines Day, the day on which we celebrate and explore love in all it’s many ideals. How a day for lovers came to be celebrated during the middle of February is an interesting and ages old story. The story of Valentines Day begins during the heyday of the Roman Empire, which held a festival every February. This Lupercalia Festival was held in honor of the God of Fertility and during the festivities young men would get to choose their mate. At the time marriage was a common occurrence, but when Claudius became Emperor he changed all of that. Fearing that men would refuse their duty to fight because they would not want to leave their wives behind, he outlawed all marriages. Young couples still fell in love though and still wished to marry and they took these desires to the Catholic Bishop Valentine who, understanding love, began to secretly marry couples. When Claudius found out, he had Valentine arrested and ordered put to death. While waiting in jail, Valentine began exchanging letters with the jailer’s daughter and soon had fallen in love with her. The day he was to be beheaded, he wrote her one last note and signed it: “˜From Your Valentine’ HAPPY VALENTINE EVERYBODY

The Origin Of Khan El Khalily District

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It was named after Prince Jaharkas Al-Khalili, who was one of the powerful Mamluke Princes in the 14th century. It is famous for its unusual, typically oriental souvenirs, and handmade crafts. The Medieval atmospheres of this traditional market, together with the labyrinth layout of the streets, gives visitors o lot of pleasure and a glimpse into what medieval markets once were like. Nevertheless inspite of their difficult circumstances and their lack of technology, yet their ancient techniques have dazzled the whole world, and their handcrafted merchandise is still required all over the globe.

Strange Ways of Celebrating New Year

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In many countries, there’s a shared belief that specific actions taken on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day—or at the stroke of midnight when one becomes the other—can influence the fate of the months ahead. In the Philippines, for example, wearing polka dots and eating round fruits is supposed to ensure a prosperous new year; in Spain, wolfing down handfuls of grapes as the clock strikes 12 is said to have the same effect. In other countries, New Year’s customs are about driving away the bad spirits of the past year, so that the new one can arrive unsullied and uncorrupted. The purifying power of fire is often used in such ceremonies: during the Scottish festival of Hogmanay, for instance, parades of village men swing giant blazing fireballs over their heads as they march through the streets. In Panama, effigies of popular celebrities and political figures, are burned on bonfires. Other bad-spirit-banishing customs are less fiery and more fun-like the Danish tradition of jumping off chairs at midnight (which gives new meaning to the term “leap year”). No matter how odd they may seem to us, though, these customs share an optimism that’s hard not to appreciate. Out with the old, in with the new!

Ancient Egyptian Beleifs

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From this belief of creation came the conception of the ennead, a group of nine divinities, and the triad, consisting of a divine father, mother, and son. Every local temple in Egypt possessed its own ennead and triad. The greatest ennead, however, was that of Ra and his children and grandchildren. This group was worshiped at Heliopolis, the center of sun worship. The origin of the local deities is obscure; some of them were taken over from foreign religions, and some were originally the animal gods of prehistoric Africa. Gradually, they were all fused into a complicated religious structure, although comparatively few local divinities became important throughout Egypt. In addition to those already named, the important divinities included the gods Amon, Thoth, Ptah, Khnemu, and Hapi, and the goddesses Hathor, Mut, Neit, and Sekhet. Their importance increased with the political ascendancy of the localities where they were worshiped. As the religion became more involved, true deities were sometimes infused with human beings who had been glorified after death and given places in local divine hierarchies.

Our Famous Traditional Egyptian Cookies,’Ghorieba’

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Ghoraieba is a traditional Egyptian cookies that had been done for thousands of years in special occasions. It  is the kind of cookies that melts in your mouth as soon as you taste it, sometimes it breaks in your hand before having a bite. Let me give its recipe it could be great in Xmas. 1 Beat butter till white. 2 Add Sugar and beat for 3 more minutes. 3 Add A.P. flour, salt and beat for 2 minutes. 4 Garnish with ½ Almond or a pine (as per photo). 5 Roll it into small balls and slightly press it down by your thumb (with the almond to stick on it). 6 The dough consistency should be like the moist sand but when you squeeze it in your hand-plum it should hold it self. After baking slightly leave it to cool down before serving. leave it to rest in the Fridge for 15min. 8 Bake in medium-low pre-heated oven (color should be like ivory) don’t let it blush could be a delicious Xmas cookies.

Animals in Ancient Egyptian World

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Animals have always been around in Egypt, however whilst some will be familiar to modern Egyptian people, other species have become extinct or moved further south, deeper into Africa. Both domesticated, such as cattle, cats and dogs, and wild animals, such as lions and hyenas, abounded in ancient Egyptian times. Animals were worshiped, feared and loved. This relationship even carried on in the underworld after death, as certain animals was mummified, including family pets. Mummified remains, animal-related hieroglyphs, and detailed paintings, reliefs and sculptures of the animals of ancient Egypt clearly show the animals that were not only well known, but also very important, to the peoples of Egypt ever since Predynastic times. Dogs, while often depicted as hunting with their masters or as watch dogs, but they were never shown as an animal to be petted.  They were given individual names and were often buried with their masters. Some of their names were “Brave One”, “Reliable” and “Good Herdsman” as well as naming them for their color, just as some people do today. The types of dogs the Egyptians had were related to the basenji, the saluki, the greyhound and maybe even the mastiff and dachshunds.