Questions

How do contemporary western Neo-Pagans perceive gender and sex in regards to their view of Deity, and their own identity?

In what ways are contemporary western Neo-Pagans adopting, interpreting and practicing aspects of ancient Egyptian Paganism, and what relevance does it have today?

How are ancient Egyptian religious traditions being revived, reconstructed and reinterpreted in contemporary western Neo-Pagan spirituality? 

 Priestess Anna-Saqqara Price worshipping Hathor-Isis at Philae, Egypt.
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I am feeling particualrly inspired by the work of Dr Jenny Butler, of Cork University, who studies contemporary Paganism, Druidry & Witchcraft in Ireland. I have been exploring the relatively new field of Pagan Studies, which is a response to the growing spiritual movement sparking in the 20th Century, in The UK, Europe and the USA.

If I chose to go down this route I could be leaving a specialism in Egyptology (which I love) in favour of one related to Religious Studies and Anthropology. I am certainly very interested in this, but need to question what this will mean for my future career prospects, as well as need to research potential supervisors.

An additional reference is the work of Dr Paul Harrison, who has studied contemporary Egyptian Spirituality. Looking at the contents of his monograph I know that there is still lots of things I could cover - you cannot completely study the extend of a religion in a single thesis or book.

Harrison, P. (2017) Profane Egyptologists: The Modern Revivival of Ancient egyptian Religion. Routledge: London.

https://ucc-ie.academia.edu/JennyButler 
https://journals.equinoxpub.com/index.php/POM/index

Broadening Disciplines

In addition to remaining within the discipline of Egyptology I also wanted to consider other options, namely disciplines relating to religion, theology, sociology and gender.
I am very interested in contemporary religion - especially those which relate to ancient Paganism and the women's spirituality movement. One consideration I did have was to look into the contemporary Western manifestation of Egyptian religion, the relevance it has on devotees lives today and what about it sparks a spiritual experience.

https://sekhmettemple.com/

What new information could this re-discovery tell us?

Tomb of 5th Dynasty Priestess of Hathor, Hetepet rediscovered.

Hathorian Ritual

Following on form my previous post I find that the subject of gender and the cult of Hathor is definitely something that interests me a great deal. I have been speaking to Lesley Kinney regarding this topic and I adore the tools of Hathor's cult and their singificance to women, both in Temples and for everyday people. The only trouble is finding a gap in the research, for Hathor appears to be equally popular with Egyptologists as with the Ancient Egyptians!

Kinney, L. (2008) Dance, Dancers and the Performance Cohort in the Old Kingdom. Archaeopress: Oxford.

18th Dynasty Menat necklace, from Malqata, Birket Habu Mound B 1, Private House B, MMA excavations, 1911–12.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 11.215.450.

Idea Development (1)

Snakes...

Identifying the differences between power OVER and power OF serpents in Old and Middle Kingdom magical tools and iconography... 

For example, looking at birth wands, figurines, stelae etc. Currently just pondering the difference between trying to dominate and control animal (and its associations, master/mistress of animals pose?) and trying to harness or invoke its power (like appealing to deities or using the clay cobras).

'Demonstrating power-over verses harnessing the power-of snakes in Middle and New Kingdom Religious and Magical practice.'

- 16/1/18

General Research Interests

Intital topics mind-mapping:

 

2/1/18