Ancient Egyptian Cosmogony - The Origins of the Egyptians

Unlock the secrets of the ancient world as we journey through the sands of time, comparing the awe-inspiring civilizations of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia! 🌍✨ Dive deep into their mystical religions, monumental architectures, and pioneering systems of writing. As the mighty Nile meets the tumultuous Tigris and Euphrates, discover the intertwined destinies of two of history's most fascinating cultures. Subscribe and join us on this captivating exploration — where pyramids meet ziggurats and pharaohs meet kings! 🏺🔍 #AncientCivilizations #EgyptVsMesopotamia #HistoryRevealed #Egyptian #mythology

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► References
Wilkinson, Toby (2016). Writings from Ancient Egypt
Naville, Edouardo (2022). Texts relating to the Myth of Horus collected in the Temple of Edfu
Kurth, Dieter (1994). Edfu
Van Den Dungen, Wim (2018). Ancient Egyptian Readings

[Crecganford]

Are there any gods or myths in Egyptian mythology you would like to know more about?

[wireless]

I would love more material on Mesopotamia. I have heard so little about it, but it seems so important.

[miketacos]

This channel has covered so many mythologies I didn’t even know about, so this video makes Egypt feel totally new.

[adamhoward]

Really been enjoying this series! Would you ever consider covering Uralic or Basque mythologies? I’m guessing they probably also have really old substrata that also show up in other mythologies (for example Asko Parpola’s suggestion that “asura” comes from a Uralic word meaning “lord”) that I’d be really fascinated to learn more about

[markwrede]

Annual flooding of the Nile would drive denizens to primordial hills. The Nile had likely been inhabited by hominid ancestors for a million years.

[JonnoPlays]

Love your channel! Thanks for putting in the work so we can finally get the straight story.

[henridelagardere]

Only a week or so ago, we were listening to Alice Coltrane's _Ptah, the El Daoud, _ a soothingly beautiful, spiritual album, and here you come today. Thanks for *your* inspiring work!

[TheLastAxeman]

John I really love your videos, thank you for bringing actual scholarship to people who cannot actively study it via academia and work in the field. You're a hero!

[nils]

So good! What I enjoy about these myths is that you get an idea of the collective human mind and imagination, and I think it can help aproximate a kind of truth about the meaning of it all. Thanks so much for this content!

[MatthewCaunsfield]

So many creation myths in Egypt! Love it 👍

[jaredjordan]

Excellent video, although there was one very common oversight. Upper and Lower Egypt were two very distinct cultures. They became more homogenized after The First Intermediate Period, but understanding the roots of these cultures is important to understanding differences in their mythology.

The Upper Egyptians were most likely Africans moving due to the desertification of The Sahara. They were moving East and then traveled North along The Nile until they ran into The Lower Egyptians. As such, their roots were distinctly African and share the same roots as The Serer culture and religion.

The Lower Egyptians came to the Nile Delta from The Levant. It's also likely that there was migration from Anatolia. So The Lower Egyptians would have had heavy Proto-Indo-European influences.

These two groups would have also been genetically distinct. We see this in The Papyrus on Ani. His wife Tutu is depicted with light skin while Ani is depicted with dark skin. His funeral is depicted with both light and dark skinned mourners. So when talking about the genetics of The Ancient Egyptians, it's important to know which part of Egypt genetic samples were taken from.

[andrewcutler]

Another vote for Basque. Mal'ta Buret culture and dogs would be nice, and any of their contacts with the Gravettians.

[waraidako]

I'd love a video discussing the role of Apep in Egyptian mythology, and any possible provenance shared with chaos serpents in other mythologies. Are we apes just naturally afraid of snakes and that's why they keep appearing in these roles, or is there maybe some older tradition they all stem from?

[starryeye]

I really enjoy your research and work, thank you for sharing with us

[dcmurray]

The way you started, I thought you would find the answer would be 42!! Still, I enjoy your videos, they are very well researched and presented - shows good scholarship. Thank you. Looking forward to the next one!

[PlanetDeLaTourette]

Consider the depth of thought. The ogdoad is quantum foam. An abstract space of forces. Four male/female pairs. I think these pairs are also structured as opposition/complement. A sort of yin yang. Animating principles are anthropomorphized. Depictions use patterns in those, which might be significant. The raise of the Amun pair created a new pair: void. The raise of the Amun is a big bang. Physical reality unfolds. Then it's more problem solving. It must be a dung beetle that pushes the sun forward. Mechanism. They saw it happening; these creatures pushed balls (crap) (from which new life emerged (eggs in dung)).

It should be noticed that humans could think of an empty space as an absolute beginning. Then they tried to formulate forces that created reality. It's physics. Sort of. It is not a crazy idea from far in the past. It is how we think today.

At the moment of establishment of civilization the philosophy was quite advanced. Humans are apes and had deconstructed the universal principles back to zero, nothingness. Then a logic of continuation was applied: male/female pairs. Then it takes a lot of leaps. These fundamental constructions are interesting and funny. They worked with what they had.

On top of a pyramid stands a benben stone. It refers to the first land on which the light rays are cast. At sunrise these peaks lit up first. That's why these pyramids are so big and precise. The creation of the universe. Every day.

[kylemacarthur]

Crecganford videos are the ONLY videos i save for the weekend like a reward. Your videos are amazing! I do a little jig when one comes out!

[megasupreme]

There's been a lot of focus on Proto-Indo-European mythology in academia, and to an extent on this channel. I love the work you do, especially with your resources in the mythology database. It would be rather lovely if you could do something regarding the Proto-Afroasiatic mythology. They gave rise to the renowned ancient egyptians and the various semitic peoples, as well as a whole plethora of lesser known groups in northern africa... it deserves much more attention than it has gotten.

[-zorkaz-]

The separation of Earth and Sky is also pretty prevalent in Maori mythology with Rangi and Papa. How the myth made it all the way there must be quite the story ...

[erikthalman]

"... one that doesn't come from a fantasy world." 😂
Dr. White, could you do a video about the Pharoah Akhenaten? I've read articles in big magazines about him, with claims ranging from his monumental but short-lived influence on Egyptian culture, religion, and art, to readings of him as the first genuine monotheist, and wild claims of him as a historical inspiration for Moses or Abraham! Would you be interested in tracing the Pharoah's influences in myth and his revolution for Aten the One God? Would love to hear your perspective!!!