The Roles of Thoth in Ancient Egypt

The man with the head of an ibis and always holding a writing palette was probably one of the more important gods of the ancient Egyptians. If you think about it, writing is a form of communication, and writing things down is a thousand times better than talking face to face, anyway. Thoth also takes the animal form of the baboon.

According to the ancient religion of Egypt, Thoth was the heart, which was the seat of knowledge, intelligence and the mind and tongue of the god Ra. He played many roles in ancient Egypt; one of them was maintaining the universe in order. Thoth was also the creator of the 356-day calendar. According to the legend, the year was not 365 days long. The year was 360 days long and Nut was sterile during these days. To solve the problem, Thoth gambled with Khons (the moon) for 1/72nd of its light (360/72=5) and won. During the 5 days, Nut got pregnant and gave birth to Osiris, Set, Isis, and Nepthys.

Thoth was also the god who always spoke the words that fulfill the wishes of Ra. Thoth was the one who spoke the words that created the heavens and Earth in ancient Egypt. 

Thoth was also given a vital role during the Weighing of the Heart Ceremony. Thoth recorded everything that went on during judgment day. He is often seen sitting or near the scales of justice.

One of the reasons why Thoth became associated with the Moon was because the Baboons sang to the moon at night, and the Ancient Egyptians thought that Thoth took the form of a Baboon–the Baboons were said to be sacred to this god.

The Book of Thoth

The ancient Egyptians said that Thoth had written a book about all of the secrets to the universe. The book was the “Book of Thoth. Anyone who read it would be cursed by the knowledge of Thoth. People have been searching for this book for centuries despite the curse. Some think that it is hidden in a secret place in the Great Pyramid

Credits

http://www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/thoth.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoth