Bastet

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

Bast, the Cat Goddess

Bastet is also called The Soul of Isis,

and in the ancient of days, a city was named in the Goddess' honour. Worshippers from far and wide would come to worship the Goddess Bast in her city, Bubastis.

Cats were at one time, the guardians of the Temple, and were venerated as aspects of the divine. It is believed that a cat has magickal energy stored in it's tail, and have always been associated with the supernatural and naturally, with Witches in later times. The worship of the Goddess as the Cat extends into the deepest mists of antiquity. 

and this worship was nowhere more pronounced than in ancient Egypt.

"For thirty centuries, from her sacred seat

The cat looked down, and crouching at her feet

Beheld the race of conquering Pharaohs kneel."

Cats are believed to capture the rays of the sun in their eyes, and retain it within until sunrise. The sacred cats of the Goddess were tended to by the priests of the Temple, and they were consulted at the twitch of a whisker or movement of the tail to obtain a prophecy of events still to come.

Cats have been known to be familiars of Witches and enjoy a special relationship with those who love them as the divine creatures they are.

Many divinities are associated with felids of all kinds. In ancient Egypt, cats were selectively bred and thus, all of the wonderful breed varieties on show and cuddled up in the laps of their pet humans today probably have a great-great ancestor who would gracefully able along through the vast corridors of the Temples at Philae and Bubastis.

Bast , according to The Egyptian Book of the Dead,

“Was the personification of the gentle and fructifying heat of the sun,as opposed to that personified by Sekhet..The cat was sacred to Bast, and the goddess is usually depicted cat-headed.The most famous seat of her worship was the city of Bubastis, the modern Tell Basta, in the Delta.”

Bast is the mother of the god Nfer-Tmu, who manifests as a lion-headed Deity crowned with the Lotus. Nefer-Tmu is identified with the Sun on the horizon, and had a brother, Khon-Su, who could magickally impregnate women via moon-beams.

In the pyramid of Unas, the king who became a god by consuming all of the knowledge of the gods; it is written :”Xaa em Nefer-Tmu em sessen er sert Ra” ; meaning, “Rise like Nefer-Tmu from the Lotus lily to the nostrils of Ra”

Bastet  was worshipped in great processions, in a similar fashion as the festival processions of Isis and Hathor, whom some identify as being possibly Bast’s alter-ego. Sekhmet is the sister of Bastet, and represents the destructive power of the Sun.

Often, Sekhmet was portrayed as a golden Ureaus Cobra, spitting rays of concentrated fire onto the heads of the enemies of the Neteru from a far distance.

Sekhmet is the sister of the ancient Goddess Wadjet, the wife of Hapi, the androgynous fertility God of the river Nile.

Wadjet is a Cobra Goddess and the sacred beasts of Wadjet are the mongoose and the sacred Cobra, as well as the lion.

When Sekhmet went on the rampage in the defence of the order of the universe and devoured the enemies of the Goddesses and Gods, She was as unstoppable as Kali in this state until according to myth, the other Neteri decided to mix beer in with the blood of their fiendish enemies and the goddess became too distracted to continue after a while.

Actually these tales of bloodthirsty goddesses as it were, are all to be interpreted in a higher meaning, as order was returned to the natural universe after the destructive/defensive aspects of the Great Universal Mother of many Names had regained equilibrium and balance. When negative patterns of behaviour threaten to burst out of control in a highly stressful situation, then Sekhmet and Bastet can certainly help to destroy those 'inner foes' of the Goddess and god within. Cat's eyes are very sharp, and discerning. Discernment is a great ability to cultivate.. 

The eyes of a cat seem to rise and widen with the waxing of the Moon, and due to their nocturnal habits, cats have always seemed affiliated to the Moon. The associations between Witches and cats are so strong that in the middle ages, Pope Innocent(sic)the eighth issued his infamous decree identifying evil witchcraft with cats and their owners. This started the medieval witch-craze, during which shameful times there were official days set aside where cats and suspected witches would be burnt alive publicly. Needless to say, every Witch Goddess was thought to be a cat, especially a black cat. In ancient Egypt, male cats represented the Sun and female cats, the moon. Cats are very fertile and amorous in nature, and so, again due to a basic and fundamental misunderstanding of the various meanings and applications of the term Fertility on all levels of being and being very afraid of anything remotely sexual in orientation, the Inquisitors and judges of the witch courts made Witches and our cats out to be something to do with their Devil.The spiritual devotees or children of Bast were called "Little Kittens", or Children of Bastet; which name was chosen by the patriarchs in a derogatory sense to mean the "bastard" child who has no father, or was born out of Christian wedlock (all Pagans). 

Naturally, following this ill-advised episode of religious madness, the rodent population exploded out of control and as a result, most of Europe was laid to waste with the bubonic plague. Just goes to show!

If anyone tells me that their cat comes when called, as a dog will, I have serious doubts as to whether that’s actually true or not.

Cats are the most independent, autonomous creatures, obeying no master; and so they appeal greatly to similar minded women.

 “Praise names of Bastet include Mistress of the Oracle, and Great Conjuress of the Casket.”

“Bastet has dominion over sex, fertility, marriage, magic, music, childbirth, prosperity, joy, dance and healing – in short, the pleasures of life.”

“Bastet’s annual festival in Bubastis was Egypt’s most popular festival.An ancestor of today’s Mardi Gras, the festival was remnowned for it’s parties, revelry and drunkenness.

Herodotus, the Greek traveler and historian, writing in the 5^th century BCE, claimed that more wine was consumed in Egypt during this time than during the entire remainder of the year.

Although many details have been lost, Bastet’s festival celebrated female sexuality and generative power.

As the barge approached towns and settlements on it’s way to the festival, it would halt and the mainly female celebrants on board would loudly hail the local women congregating on the riverbanks.

They would shout sexual obscenities to each other, dance wildly, and perform ana - suromai,

The ritual act of lifting up the skirts and exposing the vulva, associated with laughter, healing, and defiance of grief.”

 

~Judika Illes ; “The Element Encyclopedia of Witchcraft- The  complete A-Z  for the entire magical world” Hammersmith, London. Harper Element Publishers. ISBN-13 978-0-00-719293-9

It's been mentioned before, that cats were always worshipped by human beings; and they still haven't forgotten this ~ at all! : ))

[0n91zzng8hod0]

So happy to see this too!  At one time I had 28 cats.  I adore them!

And I do know that I am from the cat planet Haldar. So a cat being myself too.

I did not know that the soul of Isis was a cat and it now makes perfect sense

to me!!!

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

I,m so glad you enjoyed it, Janet :) and it's always a great pleasure for me to honour the Goddess `

No they don't just come like dogs will ! But it's the telepathy and loving touch which lets all animals know who are their allies and who presents a threat. 20! Wow...

28! The Soul of Isis is really one of the ancient Egyptian praise-names of Isis. Love, love, love...

Thank you, Devi.

[2q6yrxdsq8izl]

If anyone tells me that their cat comes when called, as a dog will, I have serious doubts as to whether that’s actually true or not.

Cats are the most independent, autonomous creatures, obeying no master; and so they appeal greatly to similar minded women.

To this I can say yes. I have two cats, and they both come when I call, as a matter of fact there are times they run to me. One sits in the window and is waiting for me when I come home, when I come in side he is at the door waiting for me. They talk to me, One day I was sitting on my back steps patting a stray cat and my black one, Natasha tried to jump through the window to get at it. I was in shock. Yes, they know their names, they fight for my lap. Natasha when she was younger use to run and jump in my arms. My white one, Sunshine(Male) comes running when I use energy. These two are not independent they are the opposite with me.

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

Mmmm...maybe cats will only come to those who truly love them from the heart:) It's a gift which means that one is in tune with nature. You are obviously one of us then, aleta ~ actually I have found that dogs will also avoid unbalanced people.

However cats choose with whom and when they will work with , not the other way round, whereas dogs are more easily trainable generally speaking. I suppose that as they are feminine , Lunar beings cats appeal to people who have more independent female energies? (and can use them ;)

[2q6yrxdsq8izl]

I talk to them like they are another person. My Natasha got very sick a few weeks ago and I have been doing crystal work and healing energy on her. I have been using my necklace as a pendulum to focus the healing energies into her. She is coming back, slowly. She has not eaten any food for over a week, just drinks water. Yesterday she came out of the bedroom and has been going around the apartment. She has lost so much weight and is weak, but she is fighting. The last few days I have caught her sleeping and she had her front paws on the crystals. I also lay her on my chest and bring our heartbeats together. They are very much a part of me. When I work energy Sunshine likes to climb in my lap. Lol, I also have spirits and other things in my home. It is funny to watch the cats, usually, Sunshine play with them. He is white with blue eyes and she is black with gold. I touch her constantly and am taking the illness and pain into my body. Only stays for a little while then it goes away.

[003rmwojjqvb5]

Beautifully said, Zephonith.

I felt (and feel) such a profound degree of respect, love, adoration, and awe for my magnificent daughter Betty La La that I never exactly "called" her (not in the usual manner, that is); however, if she was in a different room than me (which was rare - we were and are always together), I'd express my desire for her presence in this manner, "Where's Betty? Where are you, my beautiful girl?" When called in this way, she always came running to me... and with such joy on her face.

I miss her terribly - even those words are so pale; they don't come anywhere near expressing how I feel. I long for the day when we will be reunited forever. I pray every day that that time comes soon.

On a related note, following is a quote from William S. Burroughs' The Cat Inside that a good friend sent me as his tribute to Betty La La when her body failed this June 11:

“Evidence indicates that cats were first 'tamed' in Egypt. The Egyptians stored grain, which attracted rodents, which attracted cats. (No evidence that such a thing happened with the Mayans, though a number of wild cats are native to the area.) I don't think this is accurate. It is certainly not the whole story. Cats didn't start as mousers. Weasels and snakes and dogs are more efficient as rodent-control agents. I postulate that cats started as psychic companions, as Familiars, and have never deviated from this function.” 
― William S. Burroughs, The Cat Inside

Love, purrs, blessings, and light from Betty La La & me,

>^..^< Meribast

[1yrns4vean19o]

Great post Zeph.....interesting how the war against cats lead to the buboni plague epidemic

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

Al-Uzza also loves Cats :)

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

But...weez come from the same Mimi!

[Zephonith Serpent Woman]

Hail the Goddess )O(

[0g47xjgxnx7ji]

Aw! It's like the wild big cat versions of my kitties! I love them so much. <3 I am convinced that our black guy has invisibility powers. :3