APOPHIS, THE EGYPTIAN SPIRIT OF EVIL, DARKNESS AND DESTRUCTION

WHAT

• The Egyptian spirit of evil, darkness, and destruction
• Enemy of Ra, the Egyptian god of the sun
• Depicted as either a giant snake or occasionally as a crocodile
• Lived in the underworld
• Tried to destroy order, truth and plunge the world into darkness

WHEN

• First mentioned by name in the Middle Kingdom, during troubled times
• Descriptions or images of an evil serpent were long before the Middle Kingdom
• Middle Kingdom -- Dynasty Eleven (B.C. 2134-1991)

WHY

• Apophis wanted to swallow the sun god Ra so that Isfet (chaos) would overcome Ma'at (order).
• If he defeated Ra, he would rule all of Egypt.
• He wanted to plunge the world into darkness.
• He was associated with unexplained darkness, which were probably solar eclipses.

SOURCES

• www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/apep, Ancient Egypt Online, 2010
• Haiku Deck pictures
• www.touregypt.net, Tour Egypt, 2014