Anubis
(aka Anpu, Inis)
Anubis is Egyptian god of the dead, represented as a black jackal or dog,
or as a man with the head of a dog or jackal.
His parents were usually given as Osiris in combination with Nephthys.
His paternal lineage is a matter of debate.
One story says that he was born as a result of Osiris mistaking Nephthys for Isis.
Nephthys was careful to conceal her pregnancy from everybody and Anubis was
secretly born in a field.
Isis found out about it and brought the baby back to her home.
She allowed the child to be suckled by a greyhound (or some form of dog)
who just had a litter of puppies.
Anubis grew up with the instincts of the dog.
After the early period of the Old Kingdom, he was superseded by Osiris as god of the dead,
being relegated to a supporting role as a god of the funeral cult and of the care of the dead.
In the Book of the Dead, he was depicted as presiding over the weighing of the heart of the
deceased in the Hall of the Two Truths.
In his role as psychopomp he was referred to as the "conductor of souls".
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