- For other uses, see Isis.
Isis was a non-corporeal lifeform, a cosmic god-entity who was either a living star or whose lifespan was bound to the star Isis.
Background[]
The entity manifested both as a floating eye within a triangle and as an old humanoid woman. She appeared to have control over gravitation and electromagnetic phenomena. The Eye manifestation was said to be a transmitter of life and light, which according to legend created the species of Isisians out of dirt and nurtured the culture on the surface of Isis III. The old woman manifestation communicated telepathically, calling herself “sun-god incarnate.” “I am the warmth! I am the light! I am the giver! I am the protector! I am Isis, the god of the sun!” However, her statements were subject to interpretation. For instance, she described a passage of “moments” which were proven to have occurred 25 million years earlier.
History[]
The USS Enterprise arrived to observe the star Isis go nova in the year 2267, but was drawn into an encounter on the surface of Isis III with the old woman manifestation of Isis, who said she was as curious about them as they were about her. Nyota Uhura and Christine Chapel spent time with her, describing her as a woman of nobility, and came to respect her wish to die on the planet. Isis created directional lightning bolts, disabled phasers and communicators, made a jungle trail disappear, created a gravitic passage underneath her temple, subdued Chapel with intense solar radiation, transported the landing party back to the Enterprise, and created a gravity pocket to protect the starship against shock waves while the star and planet exploded. She chose to mind meld with Spock briefly, who later described her with admiration, as having seen “inconceivable things,” and having a sense that the star itself had taken human form to talk to them. (TOS comic: "Death of a Star")
After reviewing Kirk’s log entries, Colonel James Briton of the United Space Services sent a memo to Kirk asking if he would “speculate on the nature of the being you called Isis,” asking if she was unique or if there might be others of her species. (The Enterprise Logs, Volume 4, back cover)
- It was unclear whether Isis was the actual Earth goddess from Egyptian mythology. While Uhura and Spock seemed to think she was, James T. Kirk did not. She said she was the god of the sun, but only appeared connected to the star Isis. She did not describe any interaction with Earth’s past. Neither her temple, manifestations, nor the Isisian city appeared Egyptian. The headpiece she wore was not that of the Egyptian Isis. Sirius, the star associated with Egyptian Isis, was a binary star, whereas the star which went nova was a lone star. And that moment for her which encompassed the last 25 million years would have included all of recorded human history, including the time of ancient Egypt.
- If she was that god, then she was capable of living within or traveling between many stars and possibly experienced time in some non-linear way. In that case, she might be a Being. Artemis said the Beings were the source of Greek, Roman, Egyptian, and Norse mythology. Known Beings who affected Egyptian culture were Amen-Re/Zeus, Anubis/Loki, and Thoth. (NF novel: Being Human)