of his father Ausar. The eye was restored by
Hathor, and this restoration came to symbolize
the process of making whole and healing. Some
versions of the story indicate that Djehuty
restored the eye. The restored eye was a symbol
of the God of light and represented protection,
strength, and perfection.
Another version of the myth states that it was
the right eye of Heru, representative of the sun,
that was torn out, again by Set, during one of their
battles. Djehuty restored all of the eye except a
small piece. This incomplete eye is the origin of
the Horus-eye fractions. In this system, parts of
the eye were assigned fractional equivalents rang-
ing from 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32, to 1/64. When
added, these fractional equivalents total 63/64,
known in mathematical circles as the reciprocal 2n
series and a complementary fraction. The Horus
eye fractions were used for measuring grains and
medicines.
Celestially speaking, the right eye is symbolic of
the sun, the day, and its power. The left eye also
represents the waxing and waning properties of
the moon—the Horus or light of the night. The
eye is also the Pole star, the star that is closest to
the celestial North Pole and an important factor in
Egyptian celestial time keeping. The two winged
eyes represent the two divisions of Heaven: north
and south, and sun and moon. In this guise, the
left eye is feminine and associated with Isis.
The iconography of ancient Egypt, found com-
monly on tomb and temple walls, would depict
either the right or left eye. One eye is considered
white and the other black. The two eyes together
were often placed on the door recesses of tombs
for protection against evil. The eye would also be
drawn with arms carrying an ankh, papyrus staff
(which means to flourish), or lighted candles. In
theBook of the Coming Forth by Day, the wedjat
eye appears with falcon wings, which are symbols
of Heru. A sheet of papyrus shows the eye inside
of a circle emerging from the horizon: a symbol of
Ra-Horakhty or Ra in Horus.
Another popular icon of the wedjat appeared in
the form of the amulet. The wedjat was the most
common of the various amulets used by the
Egyptians. The use of these amulets was universal
and spans all time periods. The Book of the
Coming Forth by Dayinstructs that the wedjat
should be made of lapis-lazuli or mak stone,
whereas amulets were fashioned from gold, silver,
granite, hematite, porcelain, wood, and so on. The
wedjat was worn by Egyptians to bring them
strength, vigor, protection, safety, and good
health. In ritual, offerings were made to wedjat
amulets at the summer solstice when the sun was
most powerful. A corresponding amulet was
placed on any body part after words of power, or
hekau, were spoken. This ritual allowed the
deceased to take his place on the boat of Ra.
The wordwedjat, or Wadjyt, means sound and
is the name of a cobra goddess or neter often
depicted as rearing cobra. This image, the uraeus,
was a symbol of kingship and worn on the top of
the forehead. The Wadjyt was also depicted as a
lionine form known as the Eye of Ra.
The Eye of Horus survived beyond ancient
Egypt in various cultural, mystic, esoteric, and,
more recently, neo-Egyptian traditions. The occu-
pation of Egypt by France in the late 18th century
sparked modern Western interest in all things
Egyptian, which continues today in many esoteric
traditions of the West that use the wedjat. The
masonic symbol of the Eye of Providence, which
appears on U.S. currency, is said to derive from
the Eye of Horus, as does the Rx symbol used by
the pharmaceutical industry.
Communities of African and African-descended
people also identify with and use the wedjat in
their sacred practices. At times, it is also consid-
ered a representation of the third eye, which is a
part of the Hindu tradition. The evil eye is not part
of the wedjat tradition, although some sources
may link the two. The concept of the third eye does
relate to the wedjat because wedjat represents
the eye of the mind or the illuminated mind.
Therefore, the wedjat is still popular as both a
symbol and an amulet, either for protection or for
its association with ancient Egyptian culture.Denise MartinSeealsoHeka; Heru, Horus; MagicFurther Readings
Budge, E. A. W. (1971).Egyptian Magic. New York:
Dover.
Cooper, J. C. (1978).An Illustrated Encyclopedia of
Traditional Symbols. London: Thames and Hudson.Eye of Horus 253