Anubis

Ringkasan

Anubis adalah dewa Mesir kuno untuk mumifikasi, ritus pemakaman, dan penjagaan makam, serta pemandu jiwa ke alam baka; ia digambarkan sebagai kanid hitam atau pria berkepala jakal.

Anubis is the ancient Egyptian god of mummification, funerary rites, and the guarding of tombs, and a guide of souls to the afterlife; he is depicted as a black canine or a jackal-headed man.

Kisah dan tradisi

Anubis (juga dikenal sebagai Inpu, Inpw, dan Anpu) adalah dewa Mesir untuk mumifikasi, ritus pemakaman, penjaga makam, dan pemandu ke alam baka, sekaligus dewa pelindung jiwa tersesat dan orang tak berdaya. Namanya adalah bentuk Yunani dari Anpu atau Inpu, yang berarti "membusuk". Ia salah satu dewa tertua Mesir dan kemungkinan berkembang dari dewa jakal Wepwawet, yang sering tertukar dengannya. Anubis digambarkan sebagai kanid hitam, persilangan jakal dan anjing bertelinga runcing, atau pria berotot berkepala jakal. Warna hitam dipilih karena maknanya, melambangkan pembusukan tubuh sekaligus tanah subur Nil. Sebuah arca memperlihatkannya sepenuhnya sebagai jakal, dan gambaran populernya adalah pria berkepala jakal yang memegang timbangan emas untuk menimbang hati terhadap bulu kebenaran. Salima Ikram menduga ia digambarkan sebagai "super-kanid", bukan sekadar jakal atau anjing. Sebelum Osiris bangkit pada Kerajaan Tengah, Anubis dikenal sebagai "Yang Pertama di antara Orang Barat", raja orang mati, dan pada Periode Dinasti Awal serta Kerajaan Lama ia satu-satunya Penguasa Orang Mati. Seiring mitos Osiris makin populer, Osiris mengambil semakin banyak atributnya, dan Anubis menjadi pelindung serta "tangan kanan" Osiris yang menjaga jasadnya, mengawasi mumifikasi, dan membantu penghakiman jiwa. Pada adegan penghakiman ia menimbang hati terhadap sosok dewi Ma'at, dan ia disebut membantu menghakimi orang mati serta menghukum pelanggar makam bersama pasukan utusannya. Dalam kisah yang tercatat pada milenium pertama SM, Set menyamar sebagai macan tutul untuk mendekati jasad Osiris, lalu ditangkap Anubis dan dicap dengan besi panas; Anubis kemudian menguliti Set dan mengenakan kulitnya sebagai peringatan. Anubis juga diseru untuk perlindungan dan pembalasan, termasuk menegakkan kutukan atau menangkal kutukan. Putrinya, Qebhet, membawa air sejuk bagi jiwa orang mati di Balai Kebenaran. Pada masa awal Anubis dianggap putra Ra dan Hesat, tetapi setelah diserap ke dalam mitos Osiris ia dianggap putra Osiris dan Nephthys. Dalam kisah ini Nephthys hamil dengan Anubis, meninggalkannya setelah lahir karena takut Set mengetahuinya, dan Isis kemudian menemukan serta mengangkatnya sebagai anak. Plutarch mencatat bahwa anak itu menjadi pengawal dan pengikut Isis dan dikabarkan menjaga para dewa seperti anjing menjaga manusia. Pusat kultus Anubis berada di Cynopolis, "kota anjing", di Mesir Hulu, dan para pendetanya sering memakai topeng kayu sang dewa dalam ritual. Ia menjadi dewa pelindung para pembalsem, yang kadang mengenakan topeng berbentuk kepalanya. Orang Yunani mengaitkannya dengan Hermes, dan Plutarch menilai kekuasaannya mirip dengan Hecate. Sumber menyebut bahwa meski banyak tampil dalam seni, Anubis tidak berperan besar dalam banyak mitos.

Anubis (known also as Inpu, Inpw, and Anpu) is the Egyptian deity of mummification and funerary rites. He guards tombs, guides the dead into the afterlife, and is also the patron of lost souls and the helpless. His name is the Greek form of Anpu or Inpu, which meant "to decay". He is one of the oldest Egyptian gods and most likely developed from the jackal god Wepwawet, with whom he is often confused. Anubis is portrayed as a black canine, as a hybrid of jackal and dog with pointed ears, or as a muscular man whose head is that of a jackal. The color black was chosen for its meaning, symbolizing the decay of the body and the fertile soil of the Nile. One statue shows him wholly as a jackal, and his popular image is a jackal-headed man holding golden scales to weigh a heart against the feather of truth. Salima Ikram suggests he is represented as a "super-canid" rather than merely a jackal or a dog. Before the rise of Osiris in the Middle Kingdom, Anubis was known as "First of the Westerners", king of the dead, and in the Early Dynastic Period and Old Kingdom he was the sole Lord of the Dead. As the Osiris myth grew more popular, Osiris took on more of his attributes, and Anubis became Osiris' protector and "right-hand man", guarding his body, overseeing the mummification, and assisting in the judgement of souls. In judgment scenes he weighs the heart against a figure of the goddess Ma'at, and he is said to help judge the dead and to punish violators of tombs with his army of messengers. In a story recorded in the first millennium BCE, Set disguises himself as a leopard to approach the body of Osiris and is seized by Anubis and branded with a hot iron; Anubis then flays Set and wears his skin as a warning. Anubis was also called upon for protection and vengeance, including enforcing curses or defending against them. His daughter, Qebhet, offers cool water to the souls of the dead gathered in the Hall of Truth. At an earlier stage Anubis was regarded as the child of Ra and Hesat, but once he was absorbed into the Osiris myth he was held to be the child of Osiris and Nephthys. In this story Nephthys becomes pregnant with Anubis and abandons him after his birth for fear that Set will find out; Isis later finds and adopts him. Plutarch records that the child became Isis's guard and follower and is reported to guard the gods as dogs do men. The cult center of Anubis was at Cynopolis, "the city of the dog", in Upper Egypt, and his priests often wore wooden masks of the god in rituals. He became the patron god of embalmers, who sometimes wore masks shaped like his head. The Greeks associated him with Hermes, and Plutarch judges his power to be much like that of Hecate. The source notes that although he appears widely in art, Anubis does not play a major role in many myths.

Konteks budaya

Menurut sumber, "super-kanid" Anubis memberi orang jaminan bahwa tubuh mereka akan dihormati saat mati, jiwa mereka dilindungi di alam baka, dan mereka akan menerima penghakiman yang adil.

According to the source, the "super-canid" Anubis gave people confidence that their bodies would be respected in death, their souls shielded in the afterlife, and their lives fairly judged.

Fakta utama

Budaya / Culture: Mitologi Mesir Kuno
Kawasan / Region: Afrika
Negara / Country: Egypt
Era: His image is seen on royal tombs from the First Dynasty of Egypt (c. 3150-2890 BCE); he is thought to have developed in the Predynastic Period (c. 6000-3150 BCE).
Klasifikasi / Classification: Deity
Kemampuan / Abilities: Mumifikasi dan pembalseman, Menimbang hati dan membantu menghakimi orang mati, Menghukum pelanggar makam, Menegakkan dan menangkal kutukan

Nama lain / Alternate names

Inpu, Inpw, Anpu, First of the Westerners, Lord of the Sacred Land, Master of Secrets, He Who is in the Place of Embalming

Tahukah kamu? / Did you know?

Menurut mitos Mesir yang dicatat pada milenium pertama SM, begitulah macan tutul mendapat bintik-bintiknya: Set menyamar sebagai macan tutul lalu dicap dengan besi panas oleh Anubis.

According to an Egyptian myth recorded in the first millennium BCE, this is how the leopard got its spots: Set disguised himself as a leopard and was branded with a hot iron by Anubis.