The Goddess Bast

Bast was worshipped from the most ancient times, when her early form was lioness-headed. It wasn't until the first millennium BC that she was worshipped in the form of a lissome domestic cat or else as a cat-headed woman. No life-size (or greater) representations of Bast, in any form, have survived intact, although a great many smaller bronzes and statues have been recovered and can now be seen in museums around the world. But this does not necessarily mean that larger statues didn't exist.

In his 'Histories', the Greek historian Herodotus tells us that a statue of the Goddess existed in the main temple shrine at Bubastis, but although he tells us that this statue was carried out among the people as part of Bast's festival he gives us no detailed description of her.

No anecdotal stories have survived about Bast's mythological life. As with so many of the Egyptian Gods, we know of her characteristics but not her exploits. We have to consider that, unlike other ancient cultures, the Ancient Egyptians may not have placed great importance upon such legends; the stories might not just be lost but never have existed in the first place. In some regions, Bast was regarded as the daughter of the creator God, Atum, in others as the daughter of the sun God, Ra. We know that she had children - Nefertum and Mahes - and she might have shared a husband with Sekhmet in the creator God of Memphis, Ptah.

That Bast was a very important Goddess there is no doubt, as the remains of her city, Bubastis, attest. Huge blocks of pink granite lie tumbled upon the ground, and an extensive cat cemetery can still be explored.

Bast was associated with childbirth, perhaps because of the way a mother cat cares for her kittens - and the fact that she might have continual litters of them. During the 2nd Century AD Plutarch wrote, somewhat mysteriously, that the Egyptian Cat gives birth first to one kitten, then two, until the number seven is reached. He points out that this makes a total of twenty-eight, the same as the days of the lunar month.

Nowadays, Bast has assumed a mother Goddess aspect. While there is no doubt she has a side whose teeth and claws are bared, she is now generally regarded as benevolent. Her rituals involve music, feasting and dancing, when she can be petitioned to grant boons. Bast can be invoked to help with problems concerning domestic life, work situations and success, as well as love and good health, for the petitioner, their friends and families, or their cats. Any visit to the Temple of Bast, through visualisation, is a time of serenity, contemplation and pleasure. (Lady of the Flame)