Wepwawet was the wolf-headed (or jackal-headed) Egyptian god whose name means “Opener of the Ways” — the divine scout and guide who opened the paths for the army in war, for the king in his journeys, for the sun in its course, and for the dead in the underworld. A god of war, death and the opening of the road, he is the one who goes before, clearing and opening the way ahead.
The Opener of the Ways
Wepwawet (Egyptian Wepwawet, “Opener of the Ways”) was depicted as a wolf or jackal, or as a man with a canine head — closely resembling Anubis, with whom he was often associated, though Wepwawet was usually shown grey or white (a wolf) where Anubis was black (a jackal). His name perfectly captures his function: he was the god who opened the ways — the scout, the pathfinder, the one who goes ahead to clear and open the road. This made him a god of multiple kinds of “opening”: opening the way for the army into enemy territory, for the king on his journeys and processions, for the sun on its daily course, and — most importantly — for the dead on their journey through the underworld.
The God of War
Wepwawet was a powerful god of war. As the “opener of the ways,” he went before the Egyptian army into battle, scouting and clearing the path, opening the way to victory. His standard (a pole bearing his wolf-image) was carried at the head of the army and in royal processions, leading the way before the king and his forces. As a fierce canine war-god, he cleared the road of enemies and led the advance, and he was invoked for military success and the opening of the way to conquest. His martial, pathfinding aspect made him a god of the vanguard, the one who leads and opens the advance.
The Guide of the Dead
In the realm of death, Wepwawet had a crucial role as the opener of the ways of the underworld. He went before the deceased, opening and clearing the paths through the dangerous landscape of the Duat (the underworld), guiding the dead safely toward the judgement and the afterlife. He was closely linked to Anubis and Osiris in the funerary cult, and he played a part in the rituals of the dead, including the “Opening of the Mouth” ceremony that restored the senses of the deceased. As the one who opened the way, he ensured that the dead could make their perilous journey through the underworld and reach the realm of Osiris — the divine guide and pathfinder of the dead.
The One Who Goes Before
Wepwawet endures as the Egyptian “Opener of the Ways” — the wolf-god of war, death and the opening of the road, the divine scout who went before the army, the king, the sun and the dead to clear and open the path ahead. He embodies the Egyptian sense that every journey — whether into battle, through life, or into death — needs one who goes before to open the way; and he stands as the great pathfinder of Egyptian myth, the one who clears the road and opens the ways, leading the living to victory and the dead to the afterlife.
The wolf who goes before — opening the way for the army into battle, for the king on his road, for the sun across the sky, and for the dead through the dangers of the underworld.