Shapash- Canaanite GodDeity"Torch of the Gods"
Also known as: Sapas, Šapšu, and Špš
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Description
By day she crossed the sky and saw everything: every oath sworn, every crime committed, nothing hidden from the Torch of the Gods. By night she descended into the underworld, carrying light even to the realm of the dead. When the gods needed someone who could walk between both worlds, only Shapash could go.
Mythology & Lore
Torch of the Gods
Shapash was the sun goddess of Canaan. By day she crossed the sky and saw everything beneath her light. Nothing could be hidden from her. By night she journeyed through the underworld, carrying light into the realm of death, and rose again each dawn in the east.
Between Life and Death
After Mot swallowed Baal and dragged him to the underworld, Shapash helped Anat locate his body. She alone knew the paths between the living and the dead.
When Baal returned to life and fought Mot again, the two gods clashed until neither could stand. Shapash intervened. She warned Mot that El would overturn his throne if he continued fighting. Even Mot heeded her.
The funeral text KTU 1.161 invokes Shapash during burial rites for King Niqmaddu of Ugarit. The sun goddess who found Baal among the dead could guide a king there too.
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