Editing Sobek (section)

==Character and surrounding mythologies==
[[File:Sovk (Suchus, Cronos, Satrune), N372.2.jpg|thumb|Sovk (Suchus, Cronos, Satrune); by [[Jean-François Champollion]]; 1823–1825; [[Brooklyn Museum]] (New York City)]]
Sobek is, above all else, an aggressive and animalistic deity who lives up to the vicious reputation of his patron animal, the large and violent [[Nile crocodile]] / [[West African crocodile]]. Some of his common epithets portray this nature succinctly, the most notable of which being: "he who loves robbery", "he who eats while he also mates", and "pointed of teeth".{{sfn|Bresciani|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA199 199]}} However, he also displays grand benevolence in more than one celebrated myth. After his association with [[Horus]] and consequent adoption into the [[Triad (Egyptian religion)|Osirian triad]] of [[Osiris]], [[Isis]], and Horus in the [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt|Middle Kingdom]], Sobek became associated with Isis as a healer of the deceased Osiris (following his violent murder by [[Set (mythology)|Set]] in the central [[Osiris myth]]).{{sfn|Zecchi|2010|p=3}} In fact, though many scholars believe that the name of Sobek, ''Sbk'', is derived from ''s-bAk'', "to impregnate", others postulate that it is a participial form of the verb ''sbq'',<ref name="WB IV, 95"/> an alternative writing of ''sAq'', "to unite", thereby meaning ''Sbk'' could roughly translate to "he who unites (the dismembered limbs of Osiris)".{{sfn|Bresciani|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA200 200]}}

It is from this association with healing that Sobek was considered a protective deity. His fierceness was able to ward off evil while simultaneously defending the innocent. He was thus made a subject of personal piety and a common recipient of [[votive offerings]], particularly in the later periods of ancient [[Egyptian history]]. It was not uncommon, particularly in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt, for crocodiles to be preserved as [[Animal mummy|mummies]] to present at Sobek's cultic centers.{{sfn|Ikram|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA219 219]}} Sobek was also offered mummified crocodile eggs, meant to emphasize the cyclical nature of his solar attributes as Sobek-Ra.{{sfn|Ikram|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA225 225]}}

Likewise, crocodiles were raised for religious reasons as living incarnations of Sobek. Upon their deaths, they were mummified in a grand ritual display as sacred, but earthly, manifestations of their patron god. This practice was executed specifically at the main temple of [[Crocodilopolis]].{{sfn|Bresciani|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA202 202]}}{{sfn|Bresciani|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA203 203]}} These mummified crocodiles have been found with baby crocodiles in their mouths and on their backs. The crocodile is one of the few reptiles seen to diligently care for their young, and often transports its offspring in this manner. The practice of preserving this aspect of the animal's behavior via mummification is likely intended to emphasize the protective and nurturing aspects of the fierce Sobek, as he protects the Egyptian people in the same manner that the crocodile protects its young.{{sfn|Ikram|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=zz5oNwmdaTcC&pg=PA219 219]}}

In Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt, a local monograph called the ''[[Book of the Faiyum]]'' centered on Sobek with a considerable portion devoted to the journey made by Sobek-Ra each day with the movement of the sun through the sky. The text also focuses heavily on Sobek's central role in creation as a manifestation of [[Ra]], as he is said to have risen from the primal waters of [[Lake Moeris]], not unlike the [[Ogdoad (Egyptian)|Ogdoad]] in the traditional creation myth of [[Hermopolis]].<ref>O'Connor</ref>

Many varied copies of the book exist and many scholars feel that it was produced in large quantities as a "best-seller" in antiquity. The integral relationship between the [[Faiyum]] and Sobek is highlighted via this text, and his far reaching influence is seen in localities that are outside the Faiyum as well; a portion of the book is copied on the [[Upper Egypt]]ian (meaning southern Egyptian) [[Temple of Kom Ombo]].<ref>Tait, 183–184.</ref>