Horus

The name "Horus" derives from the ancient Egyptian ḥr (or ḥr.w), meaning "distant one" or "he who is above." This term is attested in hieroglyphic inscriptions from the Predynastic Period, making it one of the earliest named deities in Egyptian religion.

Tlie last in the line of divine Sovereigns in Egypt, said to be the son of Osiris and Isis. He is the great god "loved of Heaven", the "beloved of the Sun, the offspring of the gods, the subjugator of the world". At the time of the Winter Solstice (our Christmas), his image, in the form of a small newly-born infant, was brought out from the sanctuarj^ for the adoration of the worshipping crowds. As he is the type of the vault of lieaven, he is said to have come from the Maem Misi, the sacred birth-place (the womb of the World), and is, therefore, the "mystic Child of the Ark" or the argha, the symbol of the matrix, Cosmically, he is the Winter Sun. A tablet describes him as the "substance of his father", Osiris, of whom he is an incarnation and also identical with him. Horus is a chaste deity, and "like Apollo has no amours. His part in the lower world is associated with the Judgment. He introduces souls to his father, the Judge" (Bonwiek). An ancient hymn says of him, "By him the world is judged in that which it contains. Heaven and earth are under his immediate presence. He rules all human beings. The sun goes round according to his purpose. He GLOSSAHV 135 brings forth abundance and dispenses it to all tlu»-artli. Kv.-ry on*adores his beauty. Sweet is his love in us." Hotri (8k.). A priest who recitrs the liyiiins from thth'ig Wda. and makes oblations to the fire.

The figure of Horus, as described by Blavatsky, transcends the mere mythological son of Osiris and Isis to become a profound symbol of spiritual attainment. His association with the Winter Solstice, a time of rebirth and the sun's slow return, imbues him with the essence of renewal and the promise of light after darkness. This aligns with the perennial wisdom found across traditions, where the divine child represents the nascent spark of consciousness within the individual, awaiting cultivation.

Georges Bataille, in his exploration of the sacred, might see in Horus the embodiment of a primal sovereignty, a cosmic ruler whose very existence imposes order upon chaos. Mircea Eliade, in his studies of shamanism and archaic religions, would likely point to Horus as an axis mundi figure, connecting the earthly realm with the celestial, a mediator between the human and the divine. The falcon's keen sight, its ability to survey vast territories from above, becomes a metaphor for spiritual insight, the capacity to perceive the underlying order of existence.

The notion of Horus as the "substance of his father" and an incarnation of Osiris speaks to a principle of continuity and divine inheritance, a theme explored in various mystical lineages. In Sufism, for instance, the concept of the insan al-kamil, the perfect human, embodies a similar idea of divine manifestation through perfected individuals. The Hermetic tradition itself, with its emphasis on "as above, so below," finds in Horus a potent emblem of this cosmic correspondence. His role in judgment, introducing souls to his father, resonates with the idea of a higher self or divine consciousness guiding the individual soul through its trials and towards ultimate integration. This is not a punitive judgment, but rather a process of recognition and alignment with the cosmic law.

The "mystic child of the ark" imagery, linking Horus to the womb and the matrix, further emphasizes his role as a generative principle, the source of renewed cosmic life. It suggests that true sovereignty, like the sun's annual cycle, is a process of constant renewal, emerging from a sacred origin. The ancient hymn that states, "By him the world is judged in that which it contains," points to an immanent divine presence that permeates and governs all existence, a concept that finds echoes in the panentheistic leanings of many esoteric paths. Ultimately, Horus offers a compelling vision of the divine potential inherent within the human spirit, a call to embody celestial order and kingship within oneself.