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The myth of Osiris the deity has been passed on to us by Plutarch and is therefore well documented. Osiris is the Greek rendering of the Egyptian Ousir. Originally he was a nature god and embodied the spirit of vegetation and the ebb and flow of the Nile, as one might expect, but later became worshipped as the god of the dead. Myth has it that he was born in Thebes of Geb and Nut who ascended to rule the heavens on their death. This is supported in Plutarch's De Iside et Osiride quoting Osiris as son of Rhea, the Egyptian Nut, the wife of Helios, the Egyptian Ra, by Kronos, the Egyptian Seb. He was handsome, dark-skinned and taller than other men. When he became King of Egypt he married his sister Isis and immediately taught his people to produce grain and grapes for bread and wine. It was he who created the god cult and built temples and gave law to his people. He then spread civilisation the world over based on non violence leaving Isis to rule in his place but on his return became victim of his evil, jealous brother Set. In the 28th year of his reign Osiris was tricked into a box to meet his death and cast into the Nile. His loving wife immediately set to searching for the box and when it was found hid it whilst their posthumous son Horus was being born. Unfortunately Set found the hiding place and dismembered the body casting it around the kingdom. Such was her love that Isis resumed the search once more and found every part of Osiris except for the phallus and with the aid of sorcery brought him back to life. Horus then battled Set and eventually won and when the gods judged the case they found Osiris to be entirely innocent of all blame and deserving of life once more. However, he preferred to leave Horus as king and depart this earthly life to live in the Elysian Fields where he welcomed the souls of the just. His tomb is said to be in Abydos in the Nile Delta. He was worshipped widely as a trinity with Isis and Horus and was identified with Dionysus and Hades, and Isis also took on many other names in other religions such as Demeter, Hera, Selene and even Aphrodite. Osiris, under different names, is represented in the myths of many countries, often in his dragon or serpent incarnation reflecting the winding shape of the River Nile.
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