Religion in the Time of Amenhotep III
Traditionally a Pharaohs role in religion in
their Empire was immense as they were seen as the embodiment of the Gods on Earth. A major part of the Pharaoh’s role was to uphold maat within his Kingdom; maat meaning the balance of truth and justice in the universe. The Pharaoh was to pay respects to the Gods in order to uphold maat, whether the major Gods or the lesser Gods, all were important in controlling maat in the Kingdom. The King of Egypt would uphold maat through several dedications, through building and restoring temples, and through dedicating statues to certain Gods, supplying temples and shrines with furnishings, along with taking part in the various festivals and religious feasts that were in honour of the Gods. Evidence of the Pharaohs offerings to the Gods can be found in scenes found in mortuary temples and tombs, depicting the Pharaohs offering gifts to the Gods. The Pharaohs were not only the ultimate head of Religion in Egypt but also had cults devoted to them; this was largely to secure their position as an incarnate of a God on Earth. At the beginning of the 18th dynasty, the cult of Amun was the most dominant above all the rest. The Pharaoh and the other officials would devote themselves to worshipping Amun, in order to succeed with their campaigns and would attribute their victories etc. as a result of their devotion to Amun. This ultimately gained power and wealth in the priesthood of Amun. This priesthood, were incredibly important, they would give or withdraw the support of Amun, if they did not agree with certain agendas. This power that the Priesthood of Amun held was something that concerned the Pharaoh Amenhotep. The King believed that they were gaining far too much influence in not only religion but also in administration; it was extremely important to the Pharaoh to hold the supremacy throughout the Empire. To control this influence of the Priesthood, Amenhotep changed the officials within his administration. This change meant that men could not come into certain positions just through family e.g. father to son, but had to be elected by the Pharaoh. |
It was in Amenhotep III’s reign that the beginnings of a new cult were to arise. The King promoted the interests of the sun-god Aten. Although Amenhotep’s son, Akhenaten, has become well-known for his belief and his spreading of the worship of the Aten, it was in fact Amenhotep who began the cult. He did this for several reasons: the Sun God had been a major God in the earlier age of the Kings, when they had exercised absolute power, & the Aten
was a symbol of divinity & had been associated with Royalty since the Middle Kingdom. However, this new cult was not to devalue any of the other Gods, but to introduce a new form of worship. Evidence that the Aten was present in the reign of Amenhotep III, can be seen through several things: the Pharaoh was referred to as the “Dazzling Sun-Disk”, called his palace at Malkata -before it was renamed in year 30 of his reign- Radiance of the Aten or Splendour of Aten, built a temple in Nubia called Gem Aten & his youngest daughter by Tiye was named Beketaten. Another change in Amenhotep III’s reign compared to those before him was that The Pharaoh became a god while he was still alive, whereas others became deified after they had passed away. Statues and reliefs worshipping the King were placed in various temples. Evidence of this Pharaoh worship was found in the Nubian Temple at Soleb, where the Pharaoh is depicted as worshipping and making offerings to an image of himself as a God. |