Maat
Embodiment of the divine order, truth, and justice. Maat, absent from the chaos before the act of creation, was the base of all being, constantly under attack by the forces of chaos such as the Apepi snake trying to destroy Re on his course through the underworld. In the spiritual realm it was the gods fighting evil demons, who constantly restored order, in this world it was the pharaoh who upheld it, by dispensing justice, protecting the weak, and defending the land of the gods against lawless foreigners.In the Pyramid Texts of Unas there is mention of Wish-of-the-gods, who is in the bow of Re's bark [1], which has been interpreted by some to denote Maat. In the course of history Maat became the daughter of Re:
Mat, daughter of Re, presider over the palace, mistress of heaven, ruler of the gods. She gives myriads of years.Maat's symbol is a feather. It is with the weight of this feather that the heart of the deceased is compared to during the Judgment of the Dead. Should the heart be weighed down with sin, should the magic of the heart scarab placed over it to prevent the heart from bearing witness against its owner be of no avail, and should the protestations of innocence not be believed, then the dead person's heart will be devoured by the demon Ammit and he will not have part in the eternal life.Tomb of the vizier Ramose, 18th dynasty
J. H. Breasted, Ancient Records of Egypt, Part Two, § 939
Maat's counterpart is Isfet, which denotes all that is wrong and chaotic.
[1] M. Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol.1 p.39
