Maat: Guardian Of Laws, Values, Truth And Justice

Meet with us the Egyptian goddess Maat. Discover how she is represented in this mythology, her family, powers and most popular legends.

Who is Maat?

Maat is a person and an idea. As an idea, she is the concept of truth and justice. She is a guardian of the laws and values of Egypt, as well as universal harmony. She was also responsible for making sure that the rhythms and forces of the natural world kept running as they should, from the stars in the sky to the daily lives of human beings.

When someone died, Maat judged their souls. If their soul was not so burdened that it weighed more than their actual feather, they could pass on to the afterlife. Many cultures have recognized that our universe is in a constant struggle between the twin forces of chaos and order. Modern scientists tell us that the entire universe is in an unstoppable decline toward a state of total disorder known as “entropy.”

The Vikings also believed that a chaotic end time known as “Ragnarok” would inevitably take place. The ancient Egyptians were no different in recognizing order and chaos, but their view was that great beings worked to keep these forces in balance. On the side of chaos was its personification, Isfet. In opposition to Isfet and all the evil in the world was the goddess Maat. Her difficult task was inextricably intertwined with the duties of the pharaohs and the very fabric of Egyptian society.

Appearance

Maat is depicted as a beautiful young woman. She usually holds an Egyptian-style scepter (or “threshing floor”) in one hand and an ankh in the other. These two objects have a very strong symbolic meaning for the Egyptians. The “threshing floor” is a symbol of power and the ankh is known as a symbol of eternal life.

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In some pictures of her, she has wings under each arm and can also be shown with her ostrich feather of truth on her head. It is against the weight of this feather that the souls of the dead would be judged in the afterlife. In addition, another symbol associated with Maat is the scales. It seems that equating scales with balance, harmony and justice is a tradition that goes back to ancient times.

Family

Maat is often described as the daughter of Ra, the sun god. She has no mother and was created by Ra when she rose from the water of chaos, or “Nun” as she is known in Egyptian. Sometimes, however, Maat is not credited with being Ra’s daughter, but his wife.

Although there is no complete agreement on this, many stories indicate that Maat was married to Thoth, the god of wisdom. In the later periods of Egyptian mythology, male and female gods and goddesses were paired as complementary aspects of each other, and since Maat and Thoth shared many similar attributes, they were seen as a logical pair.

However, Thoth is not always Maat’s partner. Some stories tell us that Thoth’s female counterpart is Seshat. Seshat is the goddess of writing, knowledge and measurement, which also makes her a logical partner for Thoth. So far there is no solid evidence to show which of these versions of the story is the most accurate.

In the stories in which she is paired with Thoth, Maat has a total of eight children with him. These eight children were the gods of the city Hermopolis. Thoth is the Egyptian equivalent of Hermes, hence the name of the city. In the cult of Hermopolis, it was these eight gods who were responsible for creating the world and everything in it.

Origin and History

The first mention in ancient Egyptian records takes place more than 2,300 years ago. He was one of the gods created when the sun god Ra emerged from the chaotic and primordial waters of Nun. Maat was order, justice and harmony. In the beginning, the entire universe was filled with Maat, but with the fall of mankind, disorder, evil and chaos entered the universe in the form of Isfet.

There was a constant battle to defend Maat, a duty that fell upon the pharaohs in particular, but resided in all peoples. She devoted her time to helping the pharaohs maintain justice and order. She presided over the entrance to the afterlife and was protected by all Egyptians. If she were ever defeated, the universe would descend into chaos and total disorder.

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One of her most important tasks was to guide Ra’s path across the sky each day as the sun. She helped him chart his course to avoid danger, making sure he completed each journey safely.

Later Influence

The mythology of Maat was quite influential in the ancient world, and even today we can still see things that have been inspired by this goddess. Isis is probably the goddess figure most closely related to the idea of Maat, and sometimes they can even be seen as one being. It is possible, though still debatable, that Isis was also the inspiration for the Christian Mother Mary, which means that Maat may have had some influence on at least one of the major modern religions.

Where we see Maat’s influence most clearly in the modern world has to be in the presence of Lady Justice. She can be seen as a statue in front of many courts: a blindfolded woman holding a sword and scales. There is no doubt that the image of Maat has strongly inspired this modern symbol of law and order.

So it may be accurate to say that, although no one calls this goddess of justice by her ancient name anymore, every day thousands of people judging in the courts of the world expect this lady of justice to be merciful to them.