Perception Of Anubis To Non-Egyptians
During a different period, the influence of the Greek mythology blended with that of the ancient Egyptians. The gods of ancient Egypt, and the gods of the Greeks beget new god that would eventually be discarded for the Greek system of gods that many are familiar with today. This was during the Ptolemaic period, when the Greeks identified Hermes, the messenger of the gods as having the same qualities of Hermes. The myths of the two religions merged, and Anubis and Hermes became the same deity. Thus this era produced a deity in Grecian clothing, with the head of a dog, and the name “Hermanubis.”
Hermanubis was mainly worshipped in the area of the Grecian city uten-ha/Sa-ka/ Cynopolis. The city’s name in Greek, whether meant as a derogative term given by nobility, or taken willingly as honour, was literally translated in the Greek language to mean “city of dogs.” Hermanubis was worshipped in the area, and maintained as a deity up until the mid to late second century. Hermanubis also appeared in literature pertaining to alchemy from the Renaissance as well as the Medieval Age.
The Greeks were not fond of the Egyptian ways, and religious beliefs. The worship and respect of dogs was believed to be almost the equivalent of Satanic worship. The Greeks had great disdain for the gods of the Egyptians, and it is evident in some texts that they began calling Anubis the “Barker.” Despite their obvious dislike and possibly even fear, the god Anubis was identified with Sirius in the heavens, and Cerberus below in the Underworld.
The main reason for the Greek and Roman repulsion for the gods of the Egyptians, namely Anubis, was because dogs are identified as scavengers of the dead by the rest of the world. Worshiping a creature that fed on dead flesh to them was likened to the nature of the lowliest maggot. However, even as the philosopher and writer Tertillian wrote that the Egyptian ways were a “despicable religion” and that a worshiper would be “led like a slave by the greedy throat and filthy habits of a dog”, he among others forgot the maggot’s purpose. A scavenger such as the crow, worm, and even dog cleans the dead flesh so that the living will persevere. The same can be said metaphorically. Without due attendance to the dead, the living will stagnate that much faster.