“Now come into being all the words of the Lord of All: I was Atum when I was alone in the Abyss; I was Re in his glorious appearings when he began to rule what he had made.” (Spell 17, Book of the Dead)
The main sun-god of Iunu was Atum. He was a form of Re, the supreme god of the sun. Atum is mostly associated with the setting, or dying sun. The sun-cult at Heliopolis placed Atum at the head of their pantheon. He was the creator of all things and was called “The All” or the “Complete One”.
Once, there was nothing. This was before creation had taken place and the world was filled with endless darkness and only the lifeless water, Nun was upon the earth. Then, a mound of fertile silt emerged from the still waters. Upon this mound (benben) appeared the self-produced, sun-god Atum. Through sneezing (or masturbation in other versions), the newly formed sun-god created the deities Shu (male, divine personification of air) and Tefnut (female, divine personification of moisture). These two in turn procreated and formed Geb (male, divine personification of the earth) and Nut (female, divine personification of the sky). Shu separates Geb and Nut, but they still are able to create the four gods who represent the forces of life, birth and sexuality. These four were: Osiris, Isis, Seth and Nephthys.
(More information can be found on the Iunu page.)
The benben, from the verb weben meaning “to rise”, was pictured as the primordial mound from which the creator god, Atum came into existence. It became represented by the obelisks in Egyptian monuments. They have had a long history and were carved from single boulders.
In 357 AD, Emperor Contantine removed Thuthmosis III’s obelisk from Aswan, Egypt. Of the 28 obelisks which are still around, only 7 still remain in Egypt. The largest is 107 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs 502 tons. It is in Rome now.
As with the perhaps, more recognizeable phoenix (Greek), the benu-bird was connected with the sun and rebirth. This being the case, the benu was closely connected with Iunu as well as its major gods, Re and Atum. This legendary bird was worshipped at Iunu as the incarnation of Re (representing the soul of Re). It was believed to have perched upon the benben.
The benu played an important role in The Book of the Dead. There are many spells which refer to this bird of death and rebirth. One of which is Spell 83, the spell for being transformed into a phoenix:
I have flown up like the primeval ones, I have become Khepri, I have grown as a plant, I have clad myself as a tortoise, I am the essence of every god, I am the seventh of those seven uraei who came into being in the West, Horus who makes brightness with his person, that god who was against Seth, Thoth who was among you in that judgement of Him who presides over Letopolis together with the Souls of Heliopolis, the flood which was between them. I have come on the day when I appear in glory with the strides of the gods, for I am Khons who subdued the Lords.
As for him who knows this pure spell, it means going out into the day after death and being transformed at will, being in the suite of Wennefer, being content with the food of Osiris, having invocation-offerings, seeing the sun; it means being hale on earth with Re and being vindicated with Osiris, and nothing evil shall have power over him. A matter of a million times true.
Sources:
"Ancient Egypt" by David P. Silverman, General Editor
"Ancient Egypt: An illustrated reference to the myths, religions, pyramids and temples of the land of the pharaohs" by Lorna Oakes and Lucia Gahlin
"The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead" by R.O. Faulkner
"Guiness World Records: Mysteries and Marvels of the Past" by Scholastic
