Egyptian god, the personification of a person's lifetime or fate. His name means 'determiner', which is not only determining fate, however. Shai is also the giver of blessings from which people can live. In that capacity he is closely related to the goddess Renenutet, the goddess of the harvest. Both gods were frequently mentioned together and often functioned as the 'name' of other gods, such as Re, Amun, Ptah and others. In the Late Period Shai was even considered to be a form of the creator and sun god. He is called 'the one who is in Nun' or even 'the god of gods' in papyri. Shai is also linked with the king, who after all is responsible for the wellbeing of the country. In connection with his function as 'determiner', the god is sometimes depicted in illustrations in the Book of the Dead showing the weighing of the heart scene.