Egyption Mythology - A Wife's Undying Love

The  Death of Osiris

Long ago in ancient Egypt an evil god by the name of Seth despised of his siblings Osiris and Isis. When Osiris and Isis got married he grew more deceptive. Seth was jealous of the skills Osiris wielded and the praise he got from the village. One day when Isis was away and Osiris was coming in from his travels he was greeted by Seth. Previously Seth had planned with the queen of Ethiopia to build a chest using Osiris' exact measurements so that only he could fit into the beautifully made cedar chest made with ebony and ivory. At the great feast Seth offered the chest to anyone who could fit inside of it. A naive Osiris lay inside the chest and it is instantly nailed shut and sealed with molten lead. His body as sent across the Nile until it somehow became indulged between two branches. A kind and queen unaware of the chest made the trees into a great pillar for his palace. When Isis found out about his disappearance she searched allover Egypt and found no trace of the beautiful chest. On her journey she ended up in he land of Byblos where she met bathing maidens whom Isis taught to braid their hair. Isis was marveled at the strange fragrance that lingered on their skin. Queen Astarte was amazed by the maidens hair and asked to be taught. She asked the maidens to retrieve the strange woman by the shore (Isis) to serve in her palace and tend to her children. Isis agreed. Isis became fond of baby Dictys and thought of making him immortal. She burned away his mortal parts while she flew around him in the form of a swallow. Astarte rushed into the room screaming and broke the magic. Then Isis took on her actual form and stunned Astarte. They offered her gifts and riches but all she asked for was the pillar. When received she took out the chest of Osiris and gave back the pillar. When she received the chest she flung herself onto it in sorrow and wept for days, the sorrow was so terrible Dictys died at the sound. On her way home she hid the chest in the marshes. By chance one day while hunting Seth discovered the chest and ripped the body of Osiris into 14 shreds scattering them up and down the Nile. Once again Isis began her search for her husband. Slowly she recovered more and more pieces and used magic to form his body so the priests could build a shrine for his funeral rites.

The Moral: Whilst there is no moral specific moral for this myth. We are shown the undying love of a wife. Isis never gave up in the search for her husbands body.Isis wanted her husbands body to reach the underworld as safe as possible so he would be reincarnated as a even greater diety. Isis loved her husband to no end. This being why this Egyptian myth is my favorite. It shows us that true love never dies. 

Work Cited:
"Ancient Egypt: The Mythology - The Story of Isis and Osiris." Ancient Egypt: The Mythology - The Story of Isis and Osiris. Web. 2 May 2014.