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Maat the Egyptian Goddess
Maat was the Goddess of truth, justice and reality.
She symbolized the balance between the antitheses in Egyptian life between
Upper and Lower Egypt,
between the fertile valley and the desert, and so between good and evil.
She was thus the basis of civilization and Egyptian strength.
Maat was said to reign when the kingdom was unified and when men were
peaceful and content with their lot,
performing their duties of righteous conduct as laid down in the divine
order.
Without Maat creation could not be sustained and the divine intention was
thwarted.
The pharaoh was the chief upholder of Maat,
and when he could present her to the gods he was giving them the most
precious thing,
sometimes offered instead of the ritual meal. For the gods themselves lived
by Maat.
She was said to be the daughter of Ra and the wife of Tuth,
having accompanied them in the solar barque when they emerged from Nun for
the first time.
