Apophis

Apep coiled across the dark route as Ra’s Night Boat entered the underworld. The great serpent attacked the solar barque during its nightly passage and tried to obstruct its journey towards dawn. He lived in the waters of Nun or in the depths of the celestial Nile. He was called the Great Rebel and the Evil One. He usually appeared as a huge serpent, though one telling made him a monstrous crocodile.

Powerful deities stood in the prow of the boat and guarded Ra. Seth, the strongest of the gods, fought Apep with a club or a spear. In the myth of the great quarrel, Seth claimed that he had stood at the front of Ra’s boat, defeated Ra’s enemies, and cast them into the abyss. The hostile serpent was beaten and slaughtered, but his death did not end the danger. Apep returned to life and attacked again on another night.

The struggle took place as the Night Boat passed through dark caverns beneath the earth. In another telling, Ra travelled through Nut, the sky goddess, after she swallowed him at nightfall. Other dangers lay along the route. Submerged sandbanks threatened the boat, while hostile crocodiles, turtles, and snakes attacked it. Spirits of the blessed dead joined the divine crew when their help was needed. Deities also stood on the deck and defended the vulnerable sun during the night voyage.

Rituals were performed in temples to ensure Apep’s defeat. The sun god’s rays woke the sleeping dead at the midpoint of the night and revived Osiris. After Ra and Osiris shared a brief mystical union, the Night Boat continued through the caverns. Ra survived Apep’s attack and completed the voyage. He emerged in the east from behind Manu, the mountain of sunrise, and passed between two sycamores as the daily journey began. Apep’s defeat remained temporary, and the serpent returned during the next night to challenge the solar barque again.

Apep attacked Ra during the sun god’s passage through the night. He appeared as an immense winding serpent, shaped like an intestine, without arms or legs. The gods stood in the prow of Ra’s solar barque and protected him. Apep usually struck in the seventh or twelfth hour of the night.

Serq, the Scorpion-goddess, weakened Apep with her spell. Horus spoke a spell over him, hacked him into pieces, and spat upon him. Apep was ordered to retreat and was told that his head would be cut off. Ra’s flame burned in his soul, while the slaughtering knife of the great god overturned his form. The gods captured the serpent, cut his immense body apart, and burned or trampled the remains.

Seth, described as the strongest of the gods, attacked Apep with a club or spear. In another account, the Great Tom Cat, a form of Ra, cut off Apep’s head beneath the sacred ished tree at Heliopolis during the night when the rebels were driven away. Spirits of the dead also joined the struggle. Temple rites were performed to secure Apep’s defeat. Rituals named and destroyed every part of his being, including his body, ba, ka, secret name, shadow, heka, bones, and sperm. His names and forms were written on papyrus and burned, or sealed in a box and buried. After Apep had been cut down and destroyed, Ra continued through the night towards dawn.