Cat Mythology: Cats as a Diety
Cats as deities are most closely associated with ancient Egypt. The ancient
Egyptians had several feline gods and goddesses. Lions were said to guard the great god
Ra during his nightly journey through the underworld. The Egyptians had a fascination
with lions. They created their sphinx with the body of a lion and the head of Pharaoh.
Three lion goddesses existed in ancient Egypt. Sekhmet was a fierce and powerful
goddess. She was a war goddess who was sent by her father Ra to earth to destroy his
enemies. She is usually depicted as a woman with the head of a lion. Another lion headed
goddess was Tefnut whose name means moisture. She represented a primeval force of
nature. The third lion goddess was Mafdet who was the goddess of protection.
Among her fierce sisters, gentle Bast may seem a bit out of place. Often shown as
a graceful cat wearing bracelets a broad collar and earrings, Bast was the protectress of
domestic cats and those who cared for them. Her principle gifts to the world were joy and
pleasure. She was a much beloved household deity. Her principle temple was at Bubastis
and was said to be one of the most beautiful and popular in all of Egypt. She had a
secondary seat in Memphis as well. There is some evidence to believe that the ancient
Egyptians believed that Bast and Sekhmet were actually two faces of the same divine
force. Sekhmet representing the violent aspect of the divine, and Bast, the gentler
qualities.
Egyptian children were often consecrated to Bastand placed under her protection.
Bast was considered a divine mother and was sometimes depicted with kittens. When a
woman in ancient Egypt wanted to have children, she would often wear a bracelet or a
necklace depicting the goddess Bast with kittens. The number of kittens shown with the
goddess represented the number of children desired by the woman. Ancient Egyptians
seemed to consider cats to be the height of beauty. The styles of makeup they used,
especially around the eyes, tended to give them a feline look.
Cats were so highly regarded by the ancient Egyptians that the penalty for killing
one was death. When a family cat died of accident or old age, its’ human family would
go into mourning. They would shave their eyebrows off to show their grief. Cats were
often mummified. One royal cat was buried in a marble coffin. The hieroglyphs on her
coffin referred to her as “Lady Cat”.
Bast was said to be the wife of the god Ptah. Ptah was the creator god of the
universe. Ptah and Bast were said to have had a son, the fierce lion god Maahes. Maahes
originated as a Nubian god. During the New Kingdom, his worship moved northward
where he was incorporated into the Egyptian pantheon as the son of Bast and Ptah. On
becoming a divine mother, Bast became associated with the protectress of Lower Egypt,
Wadjet. They became linked as Wadjet-Bast. A similar association was created in the
Upper Kingdom By the combination of Sekhmet and the Upper Kingdom protectress
Nekhbet.
The constantly changing nature of Egyptian religion can be rather confusing.
They had an inclusive attitude towards other gods and religions. The ancient Egyptians
freely adapted and adopted these others into their own cosmology. This attitude makes it
difficult for modern readers to understand. Most of us have been raised in religions
whose nature is highly exclusive. With an exclusive religion, outside influences are
rejected or even actively repelled. The Egyptians, as demonstrated by the story of Bast
and Maahes, had a very different way at looking at religion.
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A Short History Of Cats
It seems strange that there was ever a time when cats were not a part of our lives.
It’s been less that 10,000 years since cats swaggered into our lives. Hardly an eye blink in
the grand sweep of life on this planet. Why were cats so late to join our team? The simple
answer is they didn’t need us to survive. Cats were surviving just fine on their own. Then,
people invented agriculture. Agriculture resulted in large scale storage of grains which
attracted the usual and well know group of freeloaders, mice and rats. Grain attracted
rodents. Rodents attracted cats who consider them tasty meals. The result was that cats
set up housekeeping close to human settlements. Eventually, cats being cats, moved right
on in.
Who were these first cats? The first clue lies in where agriculture was first
practiced. Agriculture first took root (no pun intended) in the Middle East in a great
sweep from modern day Turkey to Egypt. Within this area ranges the African wild cat,
Felis libyca. African wild cats are slightly larger that our modern house cats and are
yellow in color with muted stripes. These cats have a docile, almost laid back nature.
Interestingly, these cats still tend to live and hunt near human dwellings today. Locals
still like to catch and rear young wild cats as pets. When mature, wild cats raised by
humans tend to behave very much like our familiar housecats. A very good case can (and
has) been advanced designating Felis libyca as the principal founding population for
domestic cats. At least two other varieties of wild cat are speculated to have contributed
to the genetic make up of domestic cats. One is Felis silvestris, The European wildcat
who appears to have contributed darker markings and a peppery spirit to the African wild
cat base. Also, from Asia, comes the Pallas or Steppe cat (Felis manul) that appears to
have contributed long-haired coats to the mix.
The early period of domestication of cats is vague with only patches of evidence.
However, by 6,000 B.C. statues found in Anatolia (modern Turkey) show women playing
with domestic cats. Cats had clearly become common and affectionate pets by that time.
The earliest written records about cats appear by approximately 4,000 B.C. in Egypt
where they were frequently kept to hunt mice and rats from stored grains. It was a good
time to be a cat in ancient Egypt. Domestic cats were thought to be the embodiment of
the goddess Bast (or Bastet). There was a necropolis at her principal temple at Bubastis
that contained mummified cats.
Romans spread the domestic cat northward into central Europe and westward to
Britain during the expansion of their empire. Cats were quickly adopted and admired as
great hunters. And they continued to move north and east in Europe. The Vikings used
cats as both rodent hunters and pets. The Viking goddess of love and war, Freyja, was
associated with cats. Huge winged cats drew her chariot. It also became the custom to
give new brides a kitten in her name.
The Middle Ages it were a very bad time to be a cat. Cats were said to be witches
familiars, in league with the devil. Because of this superstition, cats were routinely killed
during festivals. Sometimes they were even burned alive or thrown off tall buildings. The
Europeans paid heavily for their cruelty to cats. The deaths of so many cats allowed the
rodent population to rise out of control, bringing in the Black Death which killed so much
of the European population. Eventually, the cats’ cleanly ways and hunting prowess
redeemed them in the eyes of the people of Europe. By the 1600s, people in France began
putting little holes near the bottom of their doors to allow their cats to enter and leave as
they please.
In Asia cats continued to be familiar hunters and cherished pets. Cats were often
subjects for drawing and painting in China. In Japan, cats in the form of Maneki Neko,
usually portrayed as a sitting cat with one paw raised and bent, are considered good
fortune. They are often found in businesses to draw in money.
The history of cats is a fascinating one, worthy of much more in depth study. It
fosters an appreciation for the personalities and talents of our pets.
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