Bennu Bird

The Bennu Bird was Ra's, the sun god, ba (soul). It was said to see a Bennu Bird was blinding. The creature itself had iridescent feathers of blue and white with an Atef crown atop its head. According to Herodotus, the Bennu was the inspiration for the Greecian Phoenix. In fact, a lot of inspiration for the Greeks came from Egypt. Take the sphinx for example. Its original Egyptian name is Shesepankh. The word Shesepankh can be translated to living image. Whereas the Greecian sphinx translates to strangler. Pretty crazy, right?

The Bennu was a self-created creature meaning it came from nothing and no one and just willed itself into existence. It was said that the Bennu lived 500 years then died and resuscitated itself to lay an egg in its nest. Kind of like the Phoenix being reborn of its ashes.

In conclusion, the Bennu Bird played a pivotal role in ancient Egyptian religion.