The Sun God’s Eye Right Eye
The sun god, Re (a form of Atum), ruled over the earth, where humans and divine beings coexisted. Humans were created from the Eye of Re or wedjat (eye of wholeness). This happened when the eye separated from Re and failed to return. Shu and Tefnut went to fetch it, but the eye resisted. In the ensuing struggle, the eye shed tears from which humans were born.
The familiar eye motif is an enduring symbol for the creator, Atum, for Re, and for Horus, the son of Osiris and Isis. It represents the power to see, illuminate, and act. The act of bringing the eye back to the creator was equivalent to healing the earth – the restoration of right and order. Maintaining rights and order to prevent the earth from falling into chaos was central to the pharaoh’s role.
Another version of the creation myth states that the wedjat simply wandered off, so Re sent Thoth, the moon god, to fetch it. When it returned, the eye found that another eye had taken its place. To pacify the furious eye, Re placed it on his brow in the shape of a uraeus (a cobra goddess), where it could rule the whole world. Pharaohs wore the uraeus on their brows as a symbol of protection and to show that they were descended from the sun god.
The Difference between the Eye of Horus and the Eye of Re
Deleted: The eye of Ra represents the right eye, and the eye of Horus the left eye. The eye of Horus is a strong protective symbol, used for thousands of years by the Egyptians.
