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Wadjet ¬
 In
Egyptian mythology,
Wadjet (also spelt Wadjit, and, in greek, Udjo, Uto, Edjo, an Buto) was
originally the local goddess of the city of the same name, Per-Wadjet, which was
named after her. She was known as Buto to the Greeks. As the patron goddess, she
was associated with the land, and so became considered a snake, usually a cobra,
which were omnipresent around the area. Indeed, her name means papyrus coloured,
a reference to the Cobra's skin.
Eventually, Wadjet became the patron goddess of the whole of Lower Egypt, and
since she was linked to the land, she was thought of as the wife of
Hapy, the god of
the Nile, which flowed through it. As patron of Lower Egypt, she automatically
became associated with
Nekhbet, who held
the same position in Upper Egypt, and together they were known as the two ladies
of the pharaoh.
As a cobra, she was depicted as such, and became confused with
Renenutet, with
whom her identity eventually merged. As patron and protectress, she was often
shown coiled upon the head of
Ra, the chief
deity, in order to act as his protection, an image of her which became the
Uraeus symbol. Consequently she became associated with the Eye of
Ra. Indeed, in
later times, she was often depicted simply as a woman with a snake's head, or as
a woman wearing an Uraeus, which had originally itself been her.
In becoming the protectress of
Ra, who was also a
sun god, she became a goddess associated with heat and fire, and so was
sometimes said to be able to send fire onto those who might attack.
Consequently, she later became identified with the war goddess of Lower Egypt,
Bast, who acted as
another figure symbolic of the nation, consequently becoming Wadjet-Bast. In
this position, since
Bast was a lioness,
Wadjet-Bast was often depicted with a lion's head. Eventually, her position as
patroness lead to her being identifed as the more powerful goddess
Mut, whose cult had
risen to power with the cult of Amun, and eventually being absorbed into her as
Mut-Wadjet-Bast.
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