The Karnak temple was known as Ipet-isut (most select of places) by the ancient Egyptians. This location has been in existence for 2000 year, and it has been made to praise the Theben triad of Mut, Amun and Khonsu. The temple is located in Luxor, Egypt.

This derelict place is still capable of overshadowing many of the wonders of the modern world, and in its day must have been awe inspiring. For th ancient people of Egypt, this has been the monument of the gods, a place where they can freely communicate with them. It is the mother of all religious buildings, the largest ever made, and a place of pilgrimage for nearly 4,000 years. Although, today’s pilgrims are mainly tourists.

 Known to be part of the greatest attractions in Egypt, this temples is large covering 200 acres: 1.5 km by 0.8 km. The area of the sacred enclosure of Amun alone is 61 acres, and would hold ten average-sized European cathedrals.

The Home of Amun

This temple was dedicated to Amun. This god was considered unimportant until Thebes became Egypt’s capital in the 12th dynasty. He was represented in his original state as a goose and later as a ram, at the height of his power he was said to have a human head wearing a head dress of feathers-the only remaining goose symbolism.

In ancient times wars were not fought between countries but were considered as contests between gods. It was one god getting the best and defeating another , The god who wins sustain more power and so is his people. This is how Amun, with the help of Thutmose III and various other New Kingdom kings, rose to become the first supreme god of the known world and was hailed as God of gods.

Little is known of him, unlike most other gods he has no legends or miracles to impress his worshippers and seems to be closer to an abstract idea of a godhead. His followers came from all the strata of society and he was known to some as ‘Vizier of the poor.’

The Sacred Lake

Every ancient Egyptian temple has its on sacred lake. Among all the temples, the largest one belongs to Karnak.This are was used during festivals, people would put up images of the gods in golden barges.

The water supply to the Sacred Lake, which symbolized the primeval ocean Nun, comes directly from the Nile. Next to the lake is a small café where you can pit stop in the shade and fantasize about the temple in its golden ages.

The Hypostyle Hall

The Hypostyle hall in the Karnak Temple, at 54,000 square feet, and with its 134 columns (the tallest of the 134 columns reaches a height of 23 meters) is still the largest room of any religious building in the world. In this enormous forest of columns you get a genuine feeling of the wealth of the New Kingdom and of the grandness of Amun as the State-God.

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