Amon
King of the Gods. By Mut, his wife and queen, he fathered the moon god Khonsu. He is also known as Amun or Amun-Ra,
and other gods are sometimes seen as manifestations of him. He is often
depicted as either a ram, a man with a ram's head, or a bearded man
with a feathered crown. His Greek equivalent is Zeus.
Anubis
God of the Dead and Embalming. He's the son of Nephthys and either Seth or Osiris.
He's also the husband of Anput, who's also his female aspect, and
father of Kebechet ("cooling water"), goddess of embalming fluid. His
Egyptian name is Inpu, and he's often depicted as a jackal or a man with
the head of a jackal. In the Book of the Dead, he's depicted as
Guardian of the Scales, weighing a soul of the dead against the feather
of Ma'at to determine the fate of the soul. As god of the dead, he's often overshadowed by Osiris, and as god of embalming, he helped Isis mummify Osiris after Osiris had been killed by his brother Seth.
Bastet
Goddess of the Moon and Cats, Both Wild and Domestic. Also called Bast or Baset, she's the daughter of Ra, and sister of Hathor, Ma'at, Sekhmet,
Shu, and Tefnut. She's often depicted as a domestic cat or lioness, or
as a woman with the head of a domestic cat or lioness, holding a
percussion instrument known as a sistrum. She was originally conceived
of as a solar deity, but the Greeks identified her with their
moon-goddess Artemis.
Bes
God of Protection, particularly of the Home, Women, and Children.
Sometimes also called Bisu, he's often portrayed as a dwarf with a
protruding tongue, bowed legs, and a prominent phallus. As protector of
the household, he wards off sorrow and scares away evil spirits,
including while women are in labor, making him a god of childbirth as
well. Because he drives away evil spirits, he has become associated with
the good things in life, such as music, dance, and pleasure.
Geb
God of the Earth. Sometimes also called Seb or Keb, he's the son of Shu, god of air, and Tefnut, goddess of moisture. By Nut, his sister and wife, he's the father of Isis, Osiris, Seth, and Nephthys.
He's often depicted as a man in a reclining position with his phallus
reaching toward his wife, the sky, and his laughter is said to cause
earthquakes. The Greeks sometimes equated him with the Titan Cronus.
Hathor
Goddess of Love, Beauty, Music, Pleasure, Motherhood, and Fertility. She's the daughter of Ra, and sister of Bastet, Ma'at, Sekhmet,
Shu, and Tefnut. She's also the wife of Horus, and is sometimes known
as Mehturt or Hesat (in her manifestation as 'Celestial Cow').
Oftentimes, she's depicted as either a cow or a woman holding a sistrum
and wearing a headdress consisting of cow horns, a sun disk, and an
uraeus, or an upright cobra that symbolizes royalty and divine
authority. Even though her Greek equivalent is Aphrodite, she's closely
associated with the Egyptian war-goddess Sekhmet. In fact, at the
request of Ra, she became Sekhmet and punished mankind for plotting
against Ra; however, when she nearly wiped out humanity in the process,
Ra pacified her bloodlust by tricking her into drinking beer that had
been colored to look like blood.
Horus
God of the Sky and War. He's the son of Isis and Osiris, and husband of Hathor. He was born in the marshes of the Nile Delta, where Isis hid him from his uncle, Seth,
until he could reach manhood and avenge his father's murder. After a
series of conflicts, he eventually triumphed over Seth, avenging
Osiris's murder and uniting the two kingdoms of Egypt in the process.
He's often depicted as a falcon, with the sun as his right eye and the
moon as his left, or as a man with a falcon's head. He's sometimes split
into two separate entities, the childlike Horus the Younger, and Horus
the Elder. The Eye of Horus, called wedjat, is a symbol of protection,
and the Egyptian pharaohs were said to be Horus in human form.
Isis
Goddess of Marriage, Motherhood, Magic, and Fertility. She's the daughter of Geb, god of the earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky. She's also the sister of Nephthys and Seth, sister-wife of Osiris, and mother of Horus.
She's often depicted as a woman, wearing either a throne-shaped
headdress or cow horns with a sun disk. Sometimes, however, she's also
portrayed with wings, or sitting on a throne, nursing the newborn Horus.
The most well-known story involving her recounts how she resurrected
her husband, Osiris, after he had been murdered and dismembered by their
brother, Seth. She first gathered up the dismembered pieces and
reassembled his body; however, since his phallus had been eaten by a
fish, she used magic to fashion a gold one for him. Then, using magic
taught to her by Thoth,
resurrected him, and conceived their son, Horus. Afterwards, she fled
to the marshes of the Nile Delta, where she gave birth to Horus and hid
him from Seth, until Horus could reach manhood and avenge Osiris's
murder.
Khnum
God of Creation. He's the husband of Satis, goddess of flooding, and
father of Anuket, goddess of the Nile. As god of creation, he's said to
create children from clay using a potter's wheel and then place them in
their mothers' wombs. He's also considered a water god, due to his
close connection with the Nile, and is often depicted as a man with the
head of a ram.
Ma'at
Goddess of Truth and Justice. She's the daughter of Ra, and sister of Bastet, Hathor, Sekhmet, Shu, and Tefnut. She's also the wife of Thoth,
god of knowledge and writing, and is often depicted as a feather or a
woman wearing an ostrich feather in her hair, holding a scepter in one
hand and an ankh in the other. In the Duat, the Egyptian underworld, it
is Ma'at's feather that is weighed against the heart (believed to
contain the soul) of the deceased to determine if the deceased is worthy
of entering Aaru (Egyptian heaven), as depicted in the Book of the
Dead; those who fail are devoured by Ammit, a female demon that has the
body of both a lion and hippopotamus and the head of a crocodile.
Min
God of Fertility and Male Sexuality. Also called Khem or Khnum,
he's often depicted as a man with dark skin, wearing a feathered crown
and holding his erect phallus in his left hand while his right hand
holds a flail upwards. One of his symbols is lettuce, considered to be
an aphrodisiac, and he's often been identified with the Greek Pan.
Nephthys
Goddess of Lamentation. She's the youngest daughter of Geb, god of the earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky. She's also the sister of Isis and Osiris, sister-wife of Seth, and mother of Anubis.
She's sometimes depicted as a kite (type of bird) or a woman with
falcon wings outstretched for protection, but is most often depicted as a
woman wearing a headdress in the shape of a basket on top of a house.
She's often paired with her sister, Isis, in funerary rites, and as
goddess of lamentation, she's said to guide the newly deceased to the
Egyptian underworld and bring comfort to their loved ones. She's also
said to bring comfort to women in labor while Isis acts as midwife.
Nut
Goddess of the Sky. Also called Nuit, Newet, or Neuth, she's the
daughter of Shu, god of air, and Tefnut, goddess of moisture. She's also
the sister-wife of Geb, god of the earth, and mother of Isis, Osiris, Seth, and Nephthys.
Considered to be the personification of the sky, she's often depicted
as a naked woman painted with stars. Her fingers and toes are said to
touch the four cardinal directions, and it's said she swallows the sun
each night and gives birth to it each morning.
Osiris
God of the Dead, the Underworld, and Resurrection. He's the oldest son of Geb, god of the earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky. He's also the brother of Seth and Nephthys, brother-husband of Isis, and father of Horus and possibly Anubis.
He's often depicted as a man with green skin, holding a shepherd's
crook in one hand and a flail in the other, and wearing a crown with an
ostrich feather on either side of it. Before taking over as god of the
underworld, he was killed and dismembered by his brother, Seth, who
tricked him into a box that had been fitted to Osiris's measurements.
His wife, Isis, then found his dismembered body, reassembled him (except
for his phallus, which was eaten by a fish), and resurrected him.
Ptah
God of Creation, Craftsmen, and Fertility. He's the husband of Sekhmet,
and is often depicted as a mummified man with green skin, a skull cap,
and holding a scepter with an ankh and a djed, or pillar-like symbol.
He's sometimes combined with Seker, god of craftsmen, and/or Osiris, and is said to have created the world by dreaming of it in his heart and then calling it into being.
Ra
God of the Sun. He's the father of Bastet, Hathor, Ma'at, Sekhmet, Shu, and Tefnut, and is sometimes combined with sun-gods Amon, Atum, or Horus.
He's usually depicted as a man with the head of a hawk or a falcon,
with a sun disk and uraeus on his head. Humans are said to be created
from his sweat and tears, while the pharaohs, referred to as Sons of Ra,
were said to be manifestations of Ra on Earth. Upon learning that
mankind was plotting against him, he sent Hathor-as-Sekhmet to punish
them, but when she became too bloodthirsty and nearly destroyed humanity
in the process, he pacified her with beer colored to look like blood.
As god of the sun, he's said to possess a boat upon which he journeys
across the sky each day and through the underworld each night.
Sekhmet
Goddess of War and Destruction. She's the daughter of Ra, and sister of Bastet, Hathor, Ma'at,
Shu, and Tefnut. She's also the wife of Ptah, and is sometimes also
called Sakhmet, as well as other variations. She's usually depicted as a
lioness or as a woman with the head of a lioness, wearing a dress the
color of blood and a headdress that consists of a sun disk and uraeus.
She's known to be bloodthirsty and to rise up against Ra's enemies, and
the hot desert winds are said to be her breath. Cow-goddess Hathor once
transformed into her and nearly destroyed humanity, but was pacified by
beer colored to look like blood.
Seth
God of Darkness, Chaos, the Desert, and Storms. He's the son of Geb, god of the earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky. He's also the brother of Isis and Osiris, brother-husband of Nephthys, and possible father of Anubis.
Other names for him include Set and Sutekh, and he's often portrayed as
evil. In fact, the most well known story involving him tells how he
killed his brother, Osiris, by tricking him into a box that had been
fitted to Osiris's measurements, then dismembered him and scattered the
pieces. His nephew, Horus, later defeated him after a series of conflicts.
Thoth
God of Knowledge, Writing, and Mediation. He's the husband of Ma'at,
and is usually depicted as an ibis or baboon, or as a man with the head
of an ibis or baboon. As god of writing, he's credited with inventing
the hieroglyphs, and one of his duties is as a scribe in the Duat, the
Egyptian underworld. He's also credited with creating all works of
science, religion, philosophy, and magic; in fact, he gave magic words
to Isis so she could resurrect her husband, Osiris.
As god of mediation, he arbitrates between good and evil, ensuring
neither triumphs over the other. The Greeks identified him with Hermes,
and it's said that without his words, the gods wouldn't exist.
SOURCES: Wikipedia and Encyclopedia Mythica