The film Justice League, directed by Zack Snyder, takes a unique technique to depict Superman’s resurrection. Sure, the Snyder Cut is more authentic and all that, but we are talking about one specific scene here. Superman’s pose when he dons his black costume and flies off to recharge his batteries is eerily similar to that of a particular Son of God.
And this is not unusual. Comic comics are brimming with gods from various pantheons and times. Thor’s heroic journeys to Earth-616 are well-known. Diana of Themiscyra is an important member of DC’s most famous superhero squad. The Ancient Egyptians, on the other hand, are a pantheon that is frequently disregarded and has only recently received some mainstream attention.
Egyptian mythology is fascinating because of its complexity and macabre nature, as we are learning with Marvel’s Disney+ series “Moon Knight.” Fans are far more interested in knowing about the enigmatic Ammit, the mistress of the occult terrorist Arthur Harrow, who scares even the Ennead, than in learning about Khonshu, who has been characterized as a prick with a poet’s heart.
What is it about her that makes her so dangerous? What is the name of this mythical goddess? Or, to put it another way, who is she? This is Moon Knight’s Evil Goddess Ammit is Origins – Explained, and we will answer all of your questions and more.
But first; is Ammit a real Egyptian Goddess? Real-life origins – explored
When Steven Grant calls Ammit the “world’s first bogeyman”, he isn’t wrong. In fact, that is perhaps the most-accurate 3-word description anyone can come up with for this cosmic beast. In ancient Egypt, the afterlife wasn’t a simple case of partying up in heaven or serving eternal damnation in hell; Death was an occasion. They had elaborate ceremonies to put their dead to rest: you must have heard about the obscene amounts of wealth those Pharaohs loved carrying with them into the afterlife. But what exactly was it?
And how does Ammit fit into all of it? Let us explain. In Egyptian mythology, it was believed that after a person died and their bodies were embalmed and mummified, their souls descended to the Duat; aka the Realm of the Dead. Now, we know what you’re thinking; here we go, the Realm of the Dead must be a place with bones for trees and mounds of heads for shrubbery, and the hellfire and brimstone comprised its atmosphere.
But in reality, the weirdest part of the Duat was the fact that it had turquois trees and lakes of fire, with only the latter even slightly qualifying as a feature of a religion’s “hell”. Ancient Egyptians believed the afterlife to be a continued celebration of life itself, which is why Pharaohs carried most of their worldly possessions to their literal grave. During the mummification process, most of the internal organs of a person are removed from their nasal passage, save one; the most important organ in a human being’s body, the heart.
So what happens when someone dies? Well, their hearts are weighed on a scale by the Egyptian God of Death, Anubis. In a ritual appropriately called the “Weighing of the Heart”, the God of Death measures a person’s worthiness by comparing their heart’s weight with that of the Goddess of Truth Ma’at, who is often represented by an ostrich feather. It is believed that a person’s heart records their deeds in life.
If a person’s heart weighs lighter than the feather of Ma’at, they are allowed to ascend to Aaru, the fabled Field of Reeds where Osiris holds court and an individual’s soul can finally find everlasting peace. If it weighs heavier, however, then they’re denied the one thing that every Egyptian looked forward to in life & death; the continuation of their existence. Hearts outweighing Ma’at’s feather implied the sinful nature of that person’s existence, and such souls could not be allowed to exist beyond the time they’d already had.
So these hearts are fed to the Devourer of the Dead; the goddess known as Ammit. Technically, Ammit is more of a spirit than a goddess, because she has one purpose: to cleanse the “evil” from the Duat by making it her most-recent meal. With the head of a crocodile, the body of a lion, and the hind of a hippopotamus, Ammit’s corporeal form was a combination of every Man-Eater known to Egyptians at the time, which makes sense, honestly.
Fun fact: so important was Ammit to the cycle of the afterlife that people in ancient Egypt would put her mark on their doors to ward off evil! So, to sum it all up, Ammit is the minor funerary goddess who consumes the hearts- and thereby souls- of those judged unfit for Aaru by Anubis via Ma’at. Phew, that was a mouthful and a half. Okay, onto what you came here for.
Who Is Moon Knight‘s Ammit in Marvel Comics?
If you were to read the story of Ammit from Marvel Comics, you’d think she’s more Cerberus than Hades; unlike her depiction in the Moon Knight TV series. Ammit/Ammitu/Ammut debuted not in the pages of Khonshu’s latest avatar but in those of Marvel Comics adaptation of Conan the Barbarian. She would go on to become a part of the Inhumans franchise for a bit before her Marvel universe origins were revealed in the first issue of their Mystik Arcana series.
Ammit used to be a sphinx in ancient Egypt, fond of asking riddles to human beings at precarious points in time. This was likely done to reconcile her appearance in Egyptian mythology with another prominent symbol similar to it. She was made from acacia petals mixed with Nile water, black sand, and desert heat, and transformed into her awesome, bestial form by the goddess Ma’at’s magical spells. For centuries, she has served as the Watcher of the Throne of Bone and the Guardian Halls of Ma’at; hence the Cerberus parallel.
In addition to this, Ammit also carries out the duties assigned to her in actual Egyptian mythology. In the Marvel universe, Ammit is the Devourer of the Dead as well, with the only difference in her portrayal being that she ate souls instead of hearts; probably because eating a heart is a gruesome experience for the person going through it, and the person watching it happen. We’ve re-watched season 1 episode 6 from Game of Thrones enough times as it is. The other minor adjustment is that Thoth, the Egyptian God of Wisdom, would record the events of the judgment before the “sentences” were carried out. This version of Ammit is only involved in a couple of major storylines in the comics.
She appeared to the mutant Magik when she was displaced through time and helped her recover the Sword of Bone as part of her quest. Her second major storyline would also involve this mystical artifact, but it would lean into her sphinx origins as well. As part of Ian McNee’s quest to restore balance to the magical realm, he was tasked with obtaining the Sword of Bone.
As he was tracking his mark on a train bound to what he thought was a lead, he sensed a scent that just made his job a whole hell of a lot easier; that acacia flowers. Coming face-to-face with Ammit’s female form, McNee gives her an ostrich feather as a tribute and asks her the location of the Sword of Bone. Ammit, being the mischievous, riddle-spinning sphinx she is, agrees, but on one condition: Ian must answer a riddle of hers. The sorcerer challenges her to a straight-up fight, but she refuses, saying that theirs must be a battle of intellect. And if McNee loses, all she’ll devour is his mind.
Luckily, Ian makes it out of that situation with his head intact and with the Sword of Bone safely in his hands. The only time Ammit and Moon Knight cross paths in the comics is in the 2nd issue of Moon Knight Volume 8, where she allies with Khonshu in his latest mind-game with Marc Spector as one of the mercenaries assigned tormentors. Besides this one instance, Ammit & Moon Knight have no significant relationship; but all that is about to change thanks to the Disney+ series.
How Ammit is different in the Moon Knight TV series than the comics or Egyptian mythology
In the Moon Knight TV series, the basic idea of Ammit has been kept the same, but her premise has been extensively revised to fit the show’s narrative; just like her disciples. See, while Marc Spector’s costumed alter ego is a cult favorite among comic book readers, his continuity is about as linear as The Smiler Roller Coaster in Alton Towers Resort. The fact that the first meeting between Ammit and Moon Knight takes place in the 8th volume of the character’s plagued solo run should tell you all you need to know about how crazy things are for him.
But hey, if Kevin Feige wants to shuffle around gods & goddesses from the Egyptian pantheon to make room for more cool, bird-skulled CGI animation, then we’re not gonna stop him. Ammit is introduced as the current patron deity of Arthur Harrow: crazy cult leader and the self-appointed herald of salvation. Harrow himself is a combination of a bunch of different Moon Knight characters on top of his own, like The Sun King, Morning Star & the Shadow Knight, who was none other than Marc Spector’s brother Randall!
Arthur Harrow used to be the avatar of Khonshu before Marc, but the overbearing Moon God’s constant demands broke his sanity and caused him to leave his master. Harrow realized that he had been going about things the wrong way; if he were to truly fight crime and end all evil on Earth, he would have to stop the bad people from doing bad things before they did it. No prizes for guessing who he decides can help him achieve his goals. Harrow decides to dedicate himself to unleashing Ammit onto the world and finally administer the judgment it has long avoided.
In a neat yet disturbing homage to his comic book character, Arthur breaks glass and lines his slippers with it to remind himself of the sins he must repent for; in the comics, Harrow is a mad scientist whose pursuit into the depths of understanding pain inadvertently landed him on Moon Knight’s radar. And he isn’t the only person who’s received a backstory upgrade, because the MCU has effectively turned Ammit into a deadly combination of herself, Anubis & Ma’at.
See, Ammit isn’t just the Devourer of the Dead in this TV series; she is Judge, Jury & Executioner. Once a soul rests upon her scales, Ammit can see their past, present & future, all at once, and pass judgment upon what their afterlife status is going to be. This is critical to the story, now that we’ve also been introduced to the MCU version of the Ennead. Unlike Khonshu, we haven’t seen the physical form of any of the other Egyptian Gods or Goddesses yet.
Even when Khonshu’s reality-warping shenanigans piss them off enough to call for a grand council, they don’t appear themselves, instead of operating through their avatars on Earth. This takes place in the 3rd episode, where Ammit is practically exonerated by her defendant Arthur, who was summoned to basically the Gods’ version of a court trial. Under normal circumstances, incapacitating a domineering shady deity is something we would approve of. But after seeing what she is capable of, and the path she has chosen for the world, we cannot help but shudder at the thought of encountering her.
What Makes Ammit So Terrifying & Mighty?
The fact that her nickname is the Devourer of the Dead should give you enough of an idea as to exactly how terrifying Ammit really is. In her original role, she was kind of like the Alioth of the Egyptian pantheon. Her job was to consume any soul that was unworthy of being allowed to cross over into the Field of Reeds called Aaru. And it isn’t like someone could just Dax their way out of her, either. As we’ve mentioned above, Ammit was the end of the line for Egyptians who were considered unworthy of having an afterlife.
So, for all intents and purposes, if she deems you evil, that’s it: no magic resurrections, no accidental revivals due to temporal distortions, you will simply cease to exist because the journey down Ammit’s gullet is a one-way trip. The knowledge itself would terrify the bejesus out of a common man. And now, add to that the fact that MCU Khonshu and Ennead actually trapped her in her prison themselves, and you start to see why the whole “Judge, Jury, Executioner” deal might be a tad…extremist.
There’s a line in the series where Arthur Harrow exalts the virtues of Ammit being unleashed upon the world. He argues that had Ammit been free, she would have prevented Hitler and the destruction he wrought. Nero, the Armenian genocide, Pol Pot; all of these historically evil men could have been stopped way before they got the chance to traumatize entire generations of human beings if only Ammit was allowed to administer her brand of justice.
See, after millennia of passing judgment over mortal souls that seem to successive care lesser about morality itself, Ammit realized that her true purpose wasn’t to pass judgment after the crime had been committed; it was to stop it from ever occurring in the first place. Her logic behind this conclusion is because she can see a person’s entire life like a highlight reel and instantly pinpoint their evil deeds, that eliminating them before they get the chance to carry them out is the best course of action for establishing a utopia.
But like every deal that is too good to be true, there is a massive catch-22 here; and that is the fact that taking pre-emptive action against an objectively innocent person is something inherently unnatural. Ammit has passed on her power to judge a person’s deed and subsequently absorb their life force (if needed) to Arthur, and we see how terrifying it really is in the very first episode. In it, Harrow condemns an elderly woman to death when the Scales of Ammit he has tattooed on his forearm decrees that she is a sinner to be purged from existence.
The woman insists that she hasn’t done anything wrong in her life, but Arthur just coolly informs her that her misdeeds could take place a millennia later and it wouldn’t matter; because Ammit’s judgment is absolute, and that is what should terrify us all. The definition of evil in this Egyptian goddess’s book seems to be loose at best, and she just happens to be a proponent for a planet-wide genocide of all the “bad guys”. The pre-emptive and decisive nature of Ammit’s sentencing is what makes her such a dangerous cosmic entity.
The Ennead withdrew from the affairs of man for a reason; they realized humanity cannot be dictated, and that mankind would have to pave its own path in its journey to becoming the masters of the universe. Ammit’s intervention would not only upset the social order, but it would also violate the sacred oath of the Egyptian pantheon and turn human beings into puppets bent to her fabricated idea of goodness. One would much rather be a denizen of Marvel’s Zombieverse, we think.
Why Ammit is one to watch out for
Kevin Feige is definitely playing the long game with this series. After the conclusion of the Infinity Saga, it looks like the next big plot in the MCU is going to be the Kang Multiversal War. But before we see Nathaniel Richards in his iconic armor, we’re going to see most of the Gods in the Marvel Cinematic Universe face their reckoning. Gorr the God Butcher is coming in Thor: Love and Thunder, and Doctor Strange 2: the Multiverse of Madness will be in theatres next month. One of the biggest rumored cameos is going to be the Vishanti; the 3 cosmic beings who give Strange his powers as Sorcerer Supreme.
The creator of this order is the goddess Ishtar, who is also revered by the ancient Egyptians of the Marvel Comic Universe as the Goddess of Order Ma’at. That’s right: Ammit’s patron goddess from the comics might debut in less than 4 weeks! And we’re going to see her before that, definitely. What will be interesting is where they go from there. The MCU is trying to establish its god-lore in earnest, now that Phase 4 is in full swing. And alongside Khonshu, Ammit is going to be his central focus.