Stories taken from Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie
The first story from the second part of the reading told a tale about brothers. The oldest brother provided for his younger brother. The young brother, Bata, tended to the cattle and lived with them. One day the younger brother entered the house of his older brother and found his wife doing her hair. Bata asked her for some food but she told him she was too busy working on her hair. He then asked where it was stored and he would just get it himself if she would not help. The wife then tried to tempt the younger brother. Bata became angry and yelled at her saying that 'You're like a mother to me and my older brother is like a father'. Bata ran back to the cattle and went about his day. The story goes on to tell about how the wife accused Bata of trying to take advantage of her. The older brother, Anpu, became so angry that he grabbed a knife and went to kill his brother. Anpu waited outside of the cattle shed to kill his brother, but the cattle warned Bata about his intentions. Bata ran away with Anpu following him. One of the gods saw what was happening and created a river between the brothers filled with alligators. Bata called out to the gods to hold counsel for his telling and they would decide if he was truthful. Bata cut off a piece of his flesh to show he was innocent and Anpu knew that his wife had lied. Bata then went off to find a new place to live and flourish. Anpu went home and killed his wife and mourned the loss of his brother. Bata was found in the new land by the gods and they felt pity over his solitude. They created him a wife that was the most beautiful woman in the world. Bata warned the wife to stay in his home and to never come out. One thing led to another and she ended up being taken to the king of Egypt. She told them how to kill Bata and he was slain. But he came back with the help of his brother and transformed into different beings. He ended up becoming the child in his wife and then later became the king of Egypt.
(Caption: Egyptian cattle with people from Wikipedia)
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