He is one of the older Egyptian Gods, and at some point was actually worshipped and liked until his transformation.
You'd think deities would be immune to family feuds, but it seems no one is...
Seth's family is of course the main powerhouse of Egyptian religion. They are members of the Great Ennead , and their myths were the most dramatic and elaborate.
Days of our Divine Lives anyone?
At first, Seth was not evil. In fact, he was Ra's right hand man! He was the one warding off enemies and guiding Ra's solar boat. He also helped the dead in their journeys (like most other Egyptian Gods if you think about it).
He was worshipped for these qualities and deeds.
But, in spite of that, he did have a streak of violence. This is what will unravel him later on in one of ancient Egypt's most famous myths...
As with humans, jealousy and envy were the seeds that lead to his fall from grace. Osiris, Seth's younger brother, was so successful in his domain. He was loved and worshipped, and his roles were overpowering those of Seth.
And this in turn brought out the worst in Seth - and he then becameGod of Evil.
He murdered his own brother. Funnily enough, one myth states that Osiris had an affair with Seth's wife Nephthys that resulted in a son (Anubis) . This was not brought up as a cause for Seth's hatred and anger towards his brother.
It seems Osiris's misdeeds were of no consequence compared to Seth's. Once he was branded as a villain, he was always in the wrong no matter what!
After he killed his brother, Isis tried to revive her dead husband. This angered Seth even more, and he then systematically chopped Osiris into little pieces. And again, Isis somehow managed to resurrect enough of him to have a son with him - he Great God Horus.
Naturally, Horus grew up wanting to avenge his father's murder. This was the beginning of one of the greatest battles in ancient Egyptian mythology. Horus was now the Chosen One, he who shall deliver all from Evil, and put an end to the darkness!
And as usual, the good guy wins.
Seth's Function and Worship Egyptian God Seth
Originally, The Egyptian God Seth was known as The Red God. This is because his earliest function was ruler of the desert and the storms that come with it.
If you've ever seen a red sand storm you'd understand why Seth was associated with evil and chaos. In the middle of one, it really does look like the end of the world!
He was also linked with lots of different ancient Egyptian animals - although no one understands what his form represents.
He is usually depicted having a strange animal head.
For lack of a better description, it is just called the Seth animal.
The Egyptian God Seth was first worshipped in Upper Egypt as a good God. He was ferocious and extremely powerful, which was not necessarily a bad thing when used for fighting enemies. In fact, there are Pharaohs named after him.
Then after a while, followers of Horus overpowered his cult and he was demoted to being the villain.
At another point, when the Hyksos invaded Egypt they reinstated him as a main God – which of course made him even more evil in the eyes of Egyptians. He didn't stand a chance after that.
I guess every story has to have an antagonist for it to be effective.
Seth's name has other spellings by the way, like Set and Seti...
...and also Setan :-)
Remember in the Bible, when "God" created Adam, Sethan (Satan) was jealoused?
Now the chronological error occurred again in Cain killing Abel. Sethan killed his brother Osiris out of jealousy, Cain did the same thing.
Now I present to you, Michael Tsarion for those who don't already know him.
Stop worshiping the God that destroyed you and is still doing same.
