XPost: alt.history.ancient-egypt   
   From: eugene@dynagen..co..za   
      
   "Katherine Griffis"  wrote:   
      
   >   
   >It's an interesting question:  most texts do not emphasise the celibate   
   >state unless it is for religious purposes, such as when a person, under   
   >the phyle system, was required to eschew from sexual relations during   
   >the period of performing his/her religious duties (Roth 1991).   
   >   
   >The only reference I could find to a virginal state being prized was in   
   >the medical arts,  when treating the /aAa/ and /nsy.t/ diseases, of   
   >which we do not understand the nature of the illnesses.  In both cases,   
   >the urine of a virgin, along with pulverised donkey testicles, was   
   >considered the proper treatment (Westendorf 1970).   
   >   
   >Beyond that, priests/priestesses were allowed to have sexual relations,   
   >and even marry.  Fertility seems more emphasised in Egyptian religious   
   >texts than not.   
      
   As far as I can remember certain Egyptian cults had prostitutes   
   attached to the temples - but I may be wrong on this.   
      
   I recall reading, decades ago, in, I think one of Joseph Campbell's   
   works, a claim that the Isis/Horus figure served as   
   inspiration/motivation/whatever for the ubiquitous Madonna and child   
   depictions of the early Christian artitsts.  Seeing as the Isis cult   
   endured in Rome for more than 500 years after the Christian era I   
   suppose this is possible.  (Returning to the original subject!)   
      
   Eugene L Griessel   
      
      Science has nothing to be ashamed of even in the ruins of Nagasaki.   
      The shame is theirs who appeal to other values than the human   
      imaginative values which science has evolved.   
      Jacob Bronowski   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)