Week 4 Storytelling: Ra's Creation

(Ra, the Sun God, illustrated by Dixey)

When Ra, the Sun God, was created by the wastewater, Nu, he knew he had to build something great. He felt the desire to fill the world with something that would take care of it. His companions made the stars, rain, and the beautiful features of the earth, so why not create creatures that appreciated this beauty.

So, for an uncountable amount of time, he spoke about the creation of beings. He kept the final design of them to himself, but spoke about how they would act to the other gods. He requested for suggestions from the other gods. The three hints that he unveiled to the other gods were that the beings would worship the gods, they would build a great empire, and that if they obeyed the gods, they would enter the heavens when they died. 

Ra stayed tight lipped about the plans he had. He would not tell the other gods and goddesses when this event was occurring or how it would happen. The gods and goddesses just knew it was going to happen soon. So, they waited patiently.

Then one day, Ra approached Tefnut, the Goddess of Rain, and asked that she meet him in private. Ra told her the next time she makes it rain, the beings would come into existence. Tefnut agreed to keep these plans a secret, but struggled with hiding her excitement.

A short time after the meeting with Tefnut, it was raining. Ra watched the water droplets hit the grounds of Egypt and prepared to reveal his creations. He sat upon his throne, hidden by the clouds, and wept. His tears would turn into humans as they fell to Egypt. He cried the entire time it rained. Hundreds of human beings were created in a matter of hours and the gods and goddesses were watching with excitement. 

Once the rain stopped, Ra met with the gods and goddesses and spoke of his plan. He, himself, would be disguised as a human and rule over them for a period-of-time. He wanted to establish the rules and teach them about the gods and goddesses. Ra wanted to build the foundation of the empire he envisioned. The other gods and goddesses were nervous, but agreed. Ra reassured them that his absence would only be for the span of a typical human life and that he would be back.

Ra promised that each god or goddess would get worshiped for the roles they played in creating these new beings. 

With that being said, he turned himself into a human and fell from the skies to join his creations.

Author's Note: I chose to base my story off of the Creation story in the Ancient Egypt Unit. The original story is about the creation of the Egyptian gods and goddesses. Much like the Greek creation story, there was a creature of sorts that created the gods and goddesses. The first was Ra and then after that, one by one, the gods were created. At the end of the story it mentions how Ra created humans and became human himself, and ruled them as the first king.

I wanted to focus on the human creation aspect of the story. I wanted to personify the gods and goddesses even more. I wanted it to seem like Egypt was planned to be this great empire blessed by the numerous Egyptian gods and goddesses. Even though the gods and goddesses were involved in the creation of the humans, I wanted it to be a surprise to them too. Ra was to be the only one who knew exactly what they were like until he was ready to share them. I wanted this story to seem like that Ra saw the humans as not only a gift to the world, but a gift to the gods and goddesses too.

Creation, Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907).