You've probably seen him in movies or video games as the red-eyed guy with a weird animal head who wants to burn the world down. But if you're asking set god of what, you're going to get a much messier answer than "the god of evil." Ancient Egypt didn't really do "evil" in the way we think about it today. They did chaos. They did storms. They did the stuff that makes you uncomfortable but is somehow necessary for the universe to keep spinning.
Set—or Seth, depending on who you're talking to—is basically the black sheep of the Egyptian pantheon. He’s the guy who killed his brother Osiris, hacked him into pieces, and tried to steal the throne from his nephew Horus. It’s a drama that makes Succession look like a playground dispute. Yet, for thousands of years, Pharaohs took his name. They worshipped him. They didn't see him as a devil to be banished, but as a force to be managed. He was the god of the red land, the desert, and the foreign frontier. He was the literal thunder in the sky.
The Identity Crisis: What Exactly Was the Set Animal?
Before we get into the "why" of his worship, let's talk about the "what." Specifically, that head. Egyptologists have been arguing about the Set animal for over a century. It’s got squared-off ears, a long curved snout, and a stiff, forked tail. It’s not a jackal like Anubis. It’s not a hawk like Horus. Some people swear it’s an aardvark. Others think it’s a stylized saluki or maybe a giraffe. Honestly? It might be a composite of several animals or an extinct species we haven't found yet.
This mystery fits his personality perfectly. Set is the god of the "other." He represents things that don't fit into neat boxes. In a civilization built entirely on the predictable flooding of the Nile—the "Black Land"—Set ruled the "Red Land" (the Deshret). That was the scorching, unpredictable desert. It was dangerous, but it was also where the Egyptians got their precious metals and gemstones. You couldn't live there, but you couldn't ignore it either.
More Than a Murderer: Set as a Protector
Here is the thing that really trips people up: Set was one of the good guys for a long time. Every single night, according to Egyptian myth, the sun god Ra traveled through the underworld on a boat. And every night, a giant chaos serpent named Apep (or Apophis) tried to swallow the sun and end existence.
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Who was the only god strong enough to stand on the prow of the boat and spear the serpent?
Set.
He used his chaotic, violent energy for the greater good. The Egyptians understood that you need a bit of a monster to fight a bigger monster. This duality is why the set god of what question is so tricky. He’s the god of the storm, but sometimes you need a storm to clear the air or to drive away your enemies. During the Ramesside period, he was a huge deal. Pharaohs like Seti I and Ramesses II (who even named his daughter Bintanath after a Canaanite goddess associated with Set) saw him as a patron of war and military might. They wanted his strength on the battlefield.
The Great Rivalry: Why He Became the Villain
If he was so respected, why is he remembered as a villain? It mostly comes down to the cult of Osiris. As the myth of Osiris—the king who was murdered and reborn—became the central story of Egyptian religion, Set had to play the antagonist.
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The story is brutal. Set was jealous of his brother Osiris, the first king of Egypt. He tricked Osiris into a beautiful coffin, sealed it with lead, and dumped it in the Nile. When Isis found the body, Set found it again, tore it into 14 pieces, and scattered them across Egypt. This wasn't just a family feud; it was a cosmic battle between Ma'at (order/balance) and Isfet (chaos).
- Horus represented the living king.
- Osiris represented the dead king.
- Set represented the threat from outside.
Eventually, Horus and Set went to court before the other gods. They fought for eighty years. There were contests of strength, weird sexual power plays, and massive legal battles. In the end, Horus won the throne, and Set was relegated to the sky or the desert. Over time, especially when Egypt was being invaded by foreigners like the Hyksos or the Persians, Set became a symbol of the "evil" outsider. He was "demonized" in a literal sense. By the Late Period, his statues were being smashed, and his name was being erased from monuments.
Set in the Modern World: Why We’re Still Obsessed
You see Set everywhere now, from the Shin Megami Tensei games to Marvel comics. But modern Pagans and Setians view him differently. They see him as a symbol of individualism. To them, Set isn't "evil"; he’s the rebel who refuses to conform. He’s the spark of consciousness that separates the self from the collective.
Scholars like Herman te Velde, who wrote the definitive book Seth, God of Confusion, argue that Set is essential to the Egyptian worldview. You can't have a day without a night. You can't have growth without decay. Set is the necessary friction in the gears of the universe. Without him, everything would just stay the same forever, which is a different kind of death.
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The Natural Power of the Storm
If you want to understand the set god of what mystery, look at the weather. In the Nile Valley, the weather is mostly boring. It’s sunny and hot. But every once in a while, a massive dust storm rolls in from the Sahara. The sky turns blood-red. The wind howls. Visibility drops to zero. That is Set.
He is the god of the "red" things—red hair was even considered a "Setian" trait and was often viewed with suspicion (or sometimes reverence) in ancient Egypt. He is the roar of the thunder that people couldn't explain. He is the unpredictable urge to break things just to see what happens.
Practical Insights: Living with a "Setian" Energy
We all have a little bit of Set in us. It’s that part of you that wants to quit your job on a whim, or the part that stands up to a bully when everyone else is quiet. It’s raw, unrefined power.
- Embrace the pivot. In Egyptian thought, Set represents change. If your life feels stagnant, you might need a "storm" to shake things up. It’s uncomfortable, but it’s how we grow.
- Respect the shadow. You can’t get rid of your darker impulses, but like Ra, you can harness them. Use your aggression for exercise or your stubbornness to finish a hard project.
- Acknowledge the "other." Set reminds us that there is a world beyond our borders. Being comfortable is great, but the "Red Land" is where the gold is hidden.
The next time you see a depiction of this weird, long-snouted deity, don't just think "villain." Think of the protector on the sun boat. Think of the desert wind. Think of the chaos that makes order actually mean something. Set is the reminder that the universe isn't a safe, tidy box—it's a wild, dangerous, and incredibly vibrant place that requires a bit of fire to keep it alive.
To truly understand Set, look into the specific myths of the Contendings of Horus and Seth. It’s a long, strange read that reveals more about the Egyptian psyche than any dry textbook ever could. Study the transformation of his cult from the early dynasties to the Greek occupation. You’ll find that "god of what" changes depending on who is wearing the crown and who they are afraid of.