Also called the sha, Typhonic beast.
Their story
Set was usually shown with the head of a strange animal, or as that animal whole: a dog-like beast with a long curved snout, tall flat-topped ears and a stiff tail often forked at the end. Scholars have suggested an aardvark, an okapi, a jackal, a donkey or a pig, but none fits well, and it may be a creature of the imagination or a composite. Modern writers sometimes call it the sha, from a word used for a desert animal. It appears as early as the Predynastic period, which shows how old Set's cult is.
Best times to give to them
- the third epagomenal day
What they like being given
- water
- incense
How to honour them
- Use the image respectfully as a sign of Set.
How they can help you
- understanding Set
- honouring the untamed side of life
Symbols
- curved snout
- tall squared ears
- stiff forked tail
Its identity remains unresolved.
Sources
- Te Velde, Seth, God of Confusion
- Wilkinson, The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt
More Egyptian beings
- Imhotep Djoser's architect, later worshipped as a god
- Amenhotep son of Hapu The wise official who became a healer saint
- The Ba The part of the self that moves freely
- The Ka The life force that receives offerings
- Ib, Ren and Sheut The heart, the name and the shadow
- The Akhekh The winged griffin of the desert
- The Apis Bull The sacred bull of Memphis
- The Mnevis Bull The sacred bull of Heliopolis