SET AND XEPER

SET AND XEPER

By Tommy Eriksson

In the oldest Egyptian cosmogonies, the origin of existence is described as a boundless primordial state of chaos, darkness, and potential. This state is called Nun – the formless primordial waters from which all existence would later arise. Nun was not emptiness in the absolute sense, but rather a state in which all possibilities existed without distinction or structure.

In this primal sea, the eight primordial forces operated, known in the Hermopolitan tradition as the Ogdoad: Nun and Nunet (the primordial waters), Heh and Hehet (infinity), Kek and Keket (darkness), and Amun and Amunet (the hidden, invisible). These divine principles did not represent creation in an active sense, but rather the state preceding all order.

From Nun eventually arose the demiurge Ra. According to the myth, he manifested through the first lotus blossom that rose from the primordial waters. When the lotus petals opened, Ra appeared as a divine child, and from him radiated a light distinct from the darkness of chaos. This light was not a continuation of Nun, but a rupture of its formlessness. With Ra, the creation of the cosmos began – an ordered and bounded universe.

This act, however, did not mean that chaos ceased to exist. On the contrary, several texts describe how the chaotic forces react against creation. From the depths of Nun emerges Apep (Apophis), the cosmic serpent or dragon personifying chaos’ resistance to order.

Apep is a necessary antagonistic principle whose function is to dissolve, devour, and return the cosmos to its original state.

Ra, whose existence depends on light and order, is depicted as constantly threatened by Apep. In this cosmic conflict, Ra creates Shu, the principle of air, and Tefnut, the principle of moisture and balance, who together establish the first structures of creation. Through Ra’s eye – later identified with Hathor, Sekhmet, and the Uraeus – order is maintained through violent force.

In the draconic interpretation, however, this creation is understood as an intrusion into the primordial chaos. When Shu and Tefnut dwell in Nun, they come into contact with Apep, and the chaotic essence follows them back into creation. This essence, later identified as Isfet – the principle of disorder and dissolution – is introduced into the cosmos through their offspring: Geb (the Earth) and Nut (the Sky).

Nut and Geb are initially held together, but are separated by Shu at Ra’s command. In this way, space, time, and cosmic structure are established. Ra’s jealousy leads to Nut being forbidden to give birth during the days of the year. Only through Thoth’s cunning – when he wins five extra days outside the year’s order – can Nut bear her children during the so-called epagomenal days.

During these days, Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nephthys are born. Osiris and Isis represent in classical mythology the cycles of life, fertility, law, and cosmic continuity. Set, on the other hand, occupies a special position. He is born violently and unnaturally, and from the outset is associated with storm, desert, chaos, and transgression. In this tradition, Set is understood as the divine bearer of Isfet – the force that does not seek balance but change through conflict.

When humanity is later formed by Khnum on the potter’s wheel from Geb’s clay, an additional aspect of the chaotic essence is activated: Khem Sedjet, the black flame. This force is divided into 72 sparks and bound to humanity even before the breath of life. These sparks represent the potential for transcendence, for conscious becoming beyond cosmic order.

Being and Becoming

Within the draconic Setian tradition, a clear distinction is made between being and becoming.

Being corresponds to the cosmic order under Maat – a state of balance, stability, and repetition. Here, the individual is part of an already established structure and is expected to maintain it through conformity.

Becoming, Xeper, is the opposite. It is the active will to transcend given conditions and to become self-created. This becoming is not compatible with Maat, but is driven by Isfet. Khem Sedjet functions here as the inner spark that drives the individual away from cosmic stagnation.

Set in this context is not a destructive figure in a banal sense, but the divine principle that enables transformation through dissolution. He creates and destroys without regard for cosmic harmony. Where Osiris dies to be reborn within order, Set acts to break order itself.

The cosmos is temporary.
Chaos is primordial and eternal.

Set in Historical and Mythological Context

Set was, during early Egyptian history, a fully accepted and revered god. He was lord of the desert, storms, and borderlands, and associated with strength, war, and kingship. Several pharaohs bore his name, and temples dedicated to Set existed, among other places, in Tanis.

With the rise of the Osirian cult, Set’s role changed. He came to be depicted as Osiris’ murderer and as a destabilizing force. His cult was marginalized, his temples destroyed, and his name erased from inscriptions. In later texts, he is even identified with Apep – the enemy he had previously fought.

This demonization follows a well-known pattern in the history of religion, in which older chaotic or transgressive deities are reinterpreted as malevolent figures when new order-based cults take precedence.

In the draconic Setian tradition, Set is reclaimed as the principle that refuses to submit to cosmic determinism. He is the god of isolation, will, and radical becoming – not a protector, but a trial.