Secrets of the Temple of Khnum in Esna
معبد خنوم
معبد خنوم بإسنا، المعروف أيضًا باسم معبد إسنا، مخصص للإله خنوم وزوجتيه منهيت ونبتو، وابنهما حكا، والإلهة نيث. وتتميز بجمال موقعها وروعة هندستها المعمارية. . ينقل معبد إسنا إحساسًا بالأهمية التي علقها المصريون القدماء على أماكن عبادتهم. طُلب من جميع المصريين الذين دخلوا حدود المعبد المصري “الامتثال لقواعد صارمة فيما يتعلق بطقوس الطهارة”.
بدأ بناء معبد خنوم، الإله الخالق ذو رأس الكبش الذي خلق الإنسان على عجلة فخارية، على يد بطليموس السادس فيلوميتور (180-45 قبل الميلاد). أضاف الرومان قاعة الأعمدة، وهي الجزء الوحيد المحفور من المعبد الذي يمكن زيارته اليوم، مع منحوتات محفوظة جيدًا من أواخر القرن الثالث الميلادي.
Today the Temple of Khnum lies in a 9-metre-deep pit, representing 15 centuries of desert sand and debris, which have accumulated since its abandonment in Roman times. Most parts of the temple, which are similar in size to the temples of Edfu and Dendera, are still covered by the ancient city of Esna. A pier connecting the temple to the Nile was built by the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD).
The central entrance leads into a dark vestibule, where the ceiling is supported by 18 columns with exquisitely varied floral capitals in the form of palm fronds, lotus buds and papyrus fans. Some also contain bunches of grapes, a distinctly Roman touch. The ceiling was decorated with astronomical scenes, while the columns were covered with hieroglyphic accounts of temple rituals. In the front corners, along with smaller doorways, are two hymns to Khnum. The first is a morning chant to wake Khnum at his shrine; The second is the wonderful “Hymn of Creation,” which acknowledges Him as the Creator of all, even foreigners: “All are shaped on the potter’s wheel, and their words are different in every region, but the Lord of the wheel is their Father also.”
On the walls, Roman emperors dressed as pharaohs make offerings to the local deity Esna. The northern wall contains scenes of Emperor Commodus hunting in a forest of papyrus with the god Khnum, and next to this is a temple offering offerings to the god.
The back wall, to the northeast, which was constructed during the Ptolemaic period, features bas-reliefs of two Ptolemaic pharaohs, Ptolemy VI Philometor and Ptolemy VIII Euergetes (170-116 BC). A number of Roman emperors, including Septimius Severus, Caracalla, and Geta, added their names near the back gate of the hall. Outside, an underground pump is having difficulty moving groundwater away from the building. Khnum Temple is located about 200 meters from the boat jetty at the end of the tourist market.
تقدم زيارة معبد خنوم لمحة عن التاريخ الغني لمصر القديمة والجهود المبذولة للحفاظ على تراثها الثقافي في مواجهة التطور الحديث.
