Beast and Myth
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Bastet

EgyptianGoddessCatProtectorHousehold

Lore

Bastet is a Deity (goddess of home, cats, and protection) whose presence reads like a field note on sacred domesticity. Smell: a steady veil of myrrh and lotus, edged with warm milk and sun-dried papyrus. Sound: the soft, balletic padding of many small paws, punctuated by the bright metallic tinkle of tiny bronze bells and an undercurrent of low, reverent humming. Temperature: a comforting, sun-warmed heat that settles over stone and skin alike, as if the room itself remembers midday on the Nile. Even when unseen, she leaves the ordered traces of careful caretaking—clean rugs, anointing oils, and the calm posture of cats at rest.
Origin: Ancient Egyptian • Bubastis (Nile Delta)
Classification: Deity

Field Notes

Observations
  • A sudden congregation of cats and the lingering scent of myrrh/lotus with faint bronze chimes.
Encounter Advice
  • taboo: Never harm or publicly shame cats, never desecrate a household shrine or hearth, and avoid loud profanities or chaotic rituals within a home under her patronage.
  • reverence: Maintain a clean, hospitable household; tend and protect cats; leave offerings (milk, fish, incense); ring a small bell or sing a short hymn at dusk; honor oaths made in the home.
  • offering: Milk or fish, fragrant oils or incense (myrrh/lotus), small bronze trinkets or bells, and the care of a cat or the maintenance of a household altar.

Abilities

  • Call of the Cat-Host
    Conjures and animates swarms of cats—domestic and wild—that can swarm foes, scout unseen places, or form living shields around worshippers.
  • Household Aegis of Bubastis
    Weaves a protective enchantment over a home or temple that repels disease, malevolent spirits, and misfortune tied to the hearth.
  • Sistrum's Harmony
    Plays a sistrum-born enchantment that calms tempers, amplifies fertility and blessing, or—when sped—ignites ecstatic, protective fervor in crowds.

Weaknesses

  • Cult Neglect
    Prolonged cessation of offerings, daily rites, and the annual Bubastis festival greatly reduces Bastet's ability to manifest or protect a locale.
  • Desecration of Sacred Cats
    The deliberate killing or desecration of living cats or mummified cats severs Bastet's favor from a household and destabilizes her protections there.
  • True-Name Binding
    Recitation of a secret Bubastite epithet written in temple hieroglyphs can tether, banish, or bind Bastet within a bounded locus.