ATUM - PART TWO
Much like Ra, who had Hathor and Horus as his queen and loyal guard (respectively), Atum would have his son and daughter, Shu and Tefnut, ruling with him. Their origins have inspirational material that the SG-1 writers can draw from for either a movie or continued television saga. Also, these gods can help to reintroduce another Ra-like figure into the series.
Currently, Apophis is unchallenged and the System Lords are ignoring him as a viable threat. His natural enemy, Ra, is dead and there is a need to have a new sun god rule the heavens. At present, the "Stargate SG-1" series has been featuring an unorganized pantheon of Egyptian Goa'uld gods fighting amongst each other. To have a new Goa'uld come from out of nowhere to organize them and take over the universe would be a logical step. Shu and Tefnut would pave the way for the return of the sun god, Atum.
In mythology, Shu is the god of air and is like Atlas, his Greek counterpart. Both supported the heavens with their mighty arms. The symbol that represents Shu is the feather. Symbolically, he represented life. In legend, he once ruled as a king of Egypt for many years and, during this period, he killed all the enemies of Atum or Ra. During this time, Atum and Ra were regarded as separate entities.
In his later years, Shu became frail and nearly blind. His followers quarreled amongst themselves, and even his own son, Geb, questioned the king's motives. Finally, Shu ascended to the heavens and he took his faithful with him. For nine days, darkness fell and winds blew upon the land. When the elements calmed down, Geb appeared before Shu's throne and, along with the people, paid homage. The darkness and winds completely receded. While Shu stood on Ra's boat, Geb reigned on earth as the new king of Egypt.
Tefnut is the wife of Shu and the daughter of Atum. She personifies moisture and symbolizes order. In art, she is depicted in human form wearing the sun's disk encircled by a cobra. Like other goddesses, she too was called the "Eye of Ra." Her role in myth is very much like Hathor's, such that the two were once estranged from their almighty father, Atum-Ra.1 Both ran away.
Like the Hathor myth, Tefnut transformed into a lioness and terrorized the land. The texts describe her to have dragon-like traits -- flames burnt from her eyes and nostrils. Ra would, of course, miss her; he sends Shu and Thoth to retrieve her. They transform into baboons so that they can secretly search for her throughout Egypt. When they find her, it takes some convincing to get her to return. She agrees to come home and a parade is held in the towns passed en route. Ra welcomes her back and restores her position as his Eye. Because of the similarities with the Hathor myth ("The Destruction of Mankind"), Hathor does replace Tefnut in later versions of this story.
With some classic Stargate motifs found in both stories, it is possible to use them to detail the history of these Goa'uld and describe the rise of the System Lords. Here, Ra was not the only one to visit Earth. Atum makes a trip to this world in a time prior to the Stargate's burial because of what Ra has discovered. The Unas host is old and dying. Atum needs a new host. Night becomes day upon his arrival and an unidentified Egyptian becomes the new host -- much like how the myth in the movie describes the event.
The story could go as such: Stargate travel is used to move slaves from Earth to other worlds, and that is where Atum spends most of his time. His son and daughter, Shu and Tefnut, rule the Egyptian lands in Atum's name and defend his honor. But after many decades, there is dissent amongst his followers, and Shu is getting old and frail.
Near death, Atum returns to ancient Egypt and offers Shu a chance at immortality -- life eternal. He agrees and becomes a Goa'uld. With his loyal followers, both leave Egypt, transported into the heavens to directly serve Atum in his master plan to rule the galaxy.
But Queen Tefnut, still a mortal, is defiant. She doesn't like what her father and brother have become and runs away, into the desert -- perhaps hiding out in a lion's den. But in order to restore peace in Egypt (i.e., get rid of the Goa'uld presence), Tefnut has to make the supreme sacrifice -- she becomes a host after Shu and Thoth's constant "pleads." However, in an act of secrecy, Geb, Shu's son, is kidnapped and made into a Goa'uld.
While everyone else leaves, he remains on Earth to maintain the Stargate and insure that the people still worship Atum while he's gone. Enter the return of Ra, the final uprising and the Stargate is buried. But the Antarctic gate still remains in operation.
With faithful followers ready to serve, Atum would then establish a universal government known as the System Lords. Previously, there was no organized order of who controlled what. He divvies up the galaxy more or less like a pie for his cohorts to control, but in the grand scheme, the metaphor of a super pyramid describes where each System Lord rule. With that type of metaphor, Atum would then be regarded as the very first king and the most powerful of all System Lords.
His lineage continues on with the Goa'uld, Shu and Tefnut being next in line. Shu's mythological role suggests that he would be an air force commander, controlling a vast fleet of starships and udajeets (death gliders). With the technology of genetic manipulation stolen at an early time of the Goa'uld Empire, Tefnut would then be regarded as the mother of all Egyptian-named Goa'uld, including Osiris, Isis, Hathor, Seth, Nepthys, Anubis and Heru-ur.
Of course, each of these would have their own agenda once when they established positions of power. Some decided to return to Earth to capture their early days of glory, but there would be problems because of bitter familial conflicts over the same territory.
An important note to make is that there are other gods using Egyptian names, like Apophis and Sokar. They would have risen out the waters, independent from the suggested family structure. This would help to explain why another snake has risen to "bite" Atum, and why some of these Goa'uld are more hostile to their own kind than others. Known as outcasts, this role is only affirmed by the fact that they evolved outside of the lineage.
In the time frame of the SG-1 series, there will be another encounter with the System Lords. There would be a move by this council to get rid of the renegade Goa'uld once and for all, especially with Apophis now in control of Sokar's vast fleet. SG-1 somehow becomes involved, and learn of these other Egyptian gods -- and that they left an agent on Earth, Geb. Since these older gods' interest has grown to beyond that of Earth, the Tau'ri are safe, but there is an unsettling matter because of Geb, and the story focuses in them finding him and learning what his purpose is for remaining here ...
FOOTNOTES
1. At this time, Atum and Ra were regarded to be the same solar deity.
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