cover of episode Ra and the Sun Gods

Ra and the Sun Gods

2024/9/19
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The Ancients

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Ra, the Egyptian Sun God, is a complex figure with multiple forms tied to the sun's journey. He sails the sun across the sky by day, transforming from Khepri to Ra to Atum, and navigates the underworld by night, battling the serpent Apophis with the help of Seth.
  • Ra's different forms represent the sun's journey across the sky and through the underworld.
  • The sun god's voyage through the underworld is fraught with danger, including the monstrous serpent Apophis.
  • Set, the god of chaos, plays a crucial role in protecting Ra during his nightly journey.

Shownotes Transcript

Of all the Egyptian Gods it is Ra, the God of the Sun, who is perhaps most well known in the popular imagination. He is said to have voyaged across the sky on his solar barge and then come nightfall descended into the underworld to battle all sorts of monstrous creatures. But Ra is a complicated character. He is often fused with other Egyptian gods and transformed into different solar deities entirely. So who really is he? And where do the tales about him come from?

In today's episode of The Ancients - the second in our 5 part series on Egyptian Gods and Goddesses - Tristan Hughes is joined by Egyptologist Campbell Price to unpack to story of Ra and the Sun Gods and explore the deity who the Ancient Egyptians arguably revered most highly.

Presented by Tristan Hughes. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. The producer is Joseph Knight, the senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

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