Eye of Ra....

My obsession with مصر Misr began with my father's first trip to Egypt when I was 12. He came back and told stories about three huge triangular structure made of yellow limestone [The Pyramids of Giza] standing in the middle of nowhere, Nile in its epic blue-glory, flowing along the city carrying the stories of historical & cultural importance & the largest monolith statue with lion's body and human head [The Sphinx] . The imagery was so strong that I could see myself seeing it, walking with it...breathing it.

Nothing had left such an impression on me as that description. There were many more visits to Egypt but no photographs, but many stories. With each story I was building the city in my head, gathering whatever I could from school library or little internet access I had at that time. I still remember the first word I typed in Google search engine was EGYPT & it was not very different from what I had imagined. Since then there was no looking back, until few other mysteries occupied me more, but nothing was as fascinating.

Egypt kept coming back & am glad it did.

The stories laid in the history of Egypt are atrocious, bold and highly complicated yet compelling. Even after many documentaries, books & movies this city has never ceased to excite me in innumerable ways.

The love affair with mysterious Egypt was revived recently by a tiny tattoo on some stranger's ankle...and I was smiling thinking you always had your ways of reaching out to me! :)

Eye of Ra is an ancient Egyptian symbol of protection, royal power and good health. The symbol is impersonated in goddess Wadjet, the green one. A symbol of prosperity & growth. Much to the contradiction or my inability to understand, the funerary amulets were made in this symbol of eye of Horus. May be she was intended to protect the Pharaoh in after life and ward away the evil.

When I whisper the names of Atum, Wadjet, Horus, Bastet, Mut, Sekhmet, Hathor I wonder how it would be when I'll meet them face to face and listen to the tales by the stones laid there since time immemorial.