Sekhmet

Myth and origin

Sekhmet appears in the Pyramid Texts (c. 2400-2300 BCE) and rises to particular prominence in the New Kingdom. Her name derives from the Egyptian root sekhem, "power," with the feminine ending; she is literally "the powerful one." Her most famous narrative is preserved in the "Book of the Heavenly Cow," inscribed in royal tombs from the time of Tutankhamun (c. 1330 BCE) onward. According to this text, when humanity rebelled against the aging sun god Ra, he sent his eye in the form of the lioness Sekhmet (or Hathor transformed) to slaughter the rebels. She slew so many that the desert ran red with blood, and she would not stop. Ra, alarmed at the prospect of human extinction, ordered seven thousand jars of beer dyed red with ochre to be poured across the fields. Sekhmet drank the disguised beer thinking it blood, became intoxicated, and ceased her rampage.

This near-extinction myth is one of the most theologically sophisticated narratives of the ancient Near East: it explains why the cosmic order requires sacrifice and propitiation, why even divine justice can become excessive, and why the gods themselves must use trickery to limit their own instruments. Sekhmet was thereafter linked structurally to Hathor; the two are sometimes called the "two faces" of the same goddess, Sekhmet representing the destructive aspect and Hathor the nurturing. The annual New Year ceremonies at Memphis included extensive propitiations of Sekhmet to keep her wrath at bay through the dangerous transition.

Attributes and stories

You recognise Sekhmet by her lioness head atop a human body, the solar disk encircled by the uraeus serpent on her head, her red sheath dress (the colour of fire and blood), the was-sceptre and ankh she holds, and her sacred arrows. Hundreds of seated black granite statues of Sekhmet were commissioned by Pharaoh Amenhotep III (r. 1390-1352 BCE), originally placed in the temple of Mut at Karnak; many now stand in the world's great museums. Her chief sanctuary was the temple of Ptah at Memphis, where she formed a triad with Ptah (her husband) and Nefertem (her son), the lotus-god of perfume and beauty. Her secondary cult centre was at Letopolis and at smaller shrines throughout Egypt.

Sekhmet is the patron of swnw (physicians) and sau (magicians), particularly those concerned with epidemic disease. Her priest-physicians were specialists in the diseases she was thought to send—plague, fevers, sudden mass illness—and the medical papyri (Ebers Papyrus, c. 1550 BCE; Edwin Smith Papyrus) preserve incantations addressed to her. She is invoked also against snakebite, against the demons of the new year, and as protector of the pharaoh in battle. Her arrows could pierce her enemies even at great distance—Tutankhamun's pectoral identifies the king with Sekhmet's arrows defeating his foes. The "Litany of Sekhmet," inscribed in many temples, lists her hundred-plus names and forms; on each of the five intercalary days at year-end, four images of Sekhmet were processed to absorb the dangers of the transition.

Modern reception

Sekhmet has been increasingly visible in modern goddess spirituality, particularly in feminist reclamations of fierce divine feminine. Robert Masters' The Goddess Sekhmet (1988) developed a contemporary practice tradition. Normandi Ellis's Awakening Osiris (1988) gives her a major modern voice. Egyptological foundations include Philippe Germond's Sekhmet et la protection du monde (1981) and Geraldine Pinch's Egyptian Mythology (2002). Jungian readings treat her as the destructive aspect of the great mother archetype—Kali's Egyptian sister—and as the necessary divine rage that responds to violation of cosmic order. Marion Woodman's late work and Clarissa Pinkola Estés's Women Who Run with the Wolves (1992) implicitly draw on this archetype.

Astrologically, Sekhmet corresponds to Mars in its destructive-protective aspect, to the Sun in its burning desert mode, and to Leo as the lion sign. She has affinities with Scorpio's capacity for vengeance and transformative anger. The asteroid Sekhmet (5381) bears her name. In contemporary Kemetic spirituality and feminist witchcraft she is invoked for healing, for setting boundaries, for righteous anger in the face of injustice, and for the protection of women and children. Modern shamanic and energy-healing traditions sometimes draw on her image. The mythological deity test may reveal her presence.

Symbolic depth

In the tarot, Sekhmet corresponds to Strength (Arcanum VIII or XI), the woman with the lion, often depicted in Egyptianising decks with explicit Sekhmet iconography. She also informs The Tower (XVI) as the catastrophic divine intervention, and the King and Queen of Wands in their fiery aspects. The Five and Seven of Wands carry her martial energy. On the Kabbalistic Tree of Life she resonates with Geburah, the fifth Sephirah of severity, divine wrath, and protective fire—the necessary counterweight to Chesed's mercy.

Symbolically, Sekhmet teaches that some violations require fury. Cosmic order is not maintained by gentleness alone; sometimes the lioness must rise. Her healing power derives precisely from her destructive power—she can stop diseases because she can send them, she can defend life because she comprehends death. Her shadow is rage that cannot be appeased, the bloodlust that destroys the people it claims to defend. The beer-trick myth teaches that even divine wrath must be intercepted at the right moment by an ally. Working with this archetype invites you to honour your protective anger without becoming consumed by it. Continue with Hathor her counterpart, Ra, and Isis, or return to the main glossary.

Also known as

• Sakhmet
• the Powerful One
• Eye of Ra
• Lady of Pestilence
• Nesert