The Ancient Egyptians are recorded in their own historical writings about their worship of cats dating back as far as to 2400 B.C. though there have now been writings in Sanskrit that date further back than that and evidence in Africa of cat worship and/or domestication prior to the earliest Egyptian writings by 600 or more years.

Part of the worship in Egypt was admiration the cat's agility as well as the ability to land upon it's feet without harm - this was a mystery to the people back then. Coupled in with other attributes of cat (I.E. "seeing" in the dark (the pupils expanded and contracted much like the waxing and waning of the Moon in the thoughts of the people back then), when stroked - the fur sometimes gave off sparks (fire was an awesome force back then and a Solar attribute), and then cat's natural habits of loving to catnap in the sunshine and exploring at night) that although strange they also created an aura of wonder and respect. Male and female cats were thought to be related to a heavenly couple concept - the male was the solar aspects and the female was the lunar.

The Egyptians felt the cat deserved a high honor in expression of it's life. Thus how the 9 lives thought came to be - they associated the cat to the Trinity (ancient symbol of the Mother, Father, and Son) - aka 3 - and multiplied it by the same highly revered number equaled to 9, the highest expression of honor that they could bestow upon the cat.

The Egyptian goddess of the cat was Bast, whose statue was located in the town of Bubastis. Laws were decreed to protect the cat, woe to the person who didn't like cats back then for the penalties for harm to or intent to bring harm to a cat were severe -- let alone if a person killed a cat. When the cat used up one of it's last 9 lives, the owners had it mummified and would set them in Temple of Bast (though some royalty mummies exhumed have also been found with a mummified cat at their side) along with some mummified rice for the cat to eat in the afterlife. There is theory about a plague of rats that prompted the cat's high regard above all other animals by the Egyptians in the days of the ancients but to be honest, but there is no such documentation nor reason given why this form of worship started.

Over the years, in other cultures and walks of life, the cat may have no longer been worshipped by ornate rituals or such as in the days of the Ancient Egyptians but the cat's natural abilities still amazed people. In Norse mythology, the cat was again featured (9 lives aspect as well); Frigga rode in a chariot that was pulled by a pair of cats and Frigga was given power over the 9th world (Hel, the place of the dead) by Odin.

When Christianity took it's stronghold and the Norse and Teutons were converted - the old myths took on a new spin. This is a trait associated with early Christianity - to take the old set of beliefs or thoughts of a sect of people after they had converted to Christianity and give them a twist in thoughts. The old set of beliefs and the followers of them became known as pagan. Pagan loosely meant that the people (who didn't follow the Christianity line of thought) were uncultured heathens and godless in beliefs - thus their beliefs were anti-God and if the beliefs were anti-God then they *just had to be* the works of the Devil. Gargoyles that graced the structures of early churches were not merely for sake of decor - they were were actually an employment of the the people's former belief systems and some of the faces were those recognized by the people to be a representation of certain gods or goddesses. Thus the church used the old system of belief to have the people feel welcomed to the new one.

Then over time the faces in the gargoyles and carvings became less welcoming as the church slowly converted the former high honor attachments to the god or goddess actually being a misguided sinner who didn't know (or, in some cases, did indeed know) that they were being used by the Devil to lead others astray. No longer were they regarded as welcoming faces or aspects of the former belief system of the people ... but feared ones. Frigga became labeled to be a witch (a bad fate indeed in those days by the Christian context) and her name became associated to Friday (a day of the week it was felt that her followers - other witches - would meet upon to carry out their dastardly deeds on society). Hel, the 9th world in Norse mythology, suffered the same fate as Hades in another mythology - Hel was given another "l" on the end and became a place where the Devil ruled supreme over the dead sinners, a place no decent Christian wanted to strive to visit or be doomed to. Naturally then the Christians had to explain the cats that pulled her chariot to indeed be evil themselves and to being servants to the witch - often times thought as being the animal of choice a witch would use to fly through the night upon.

Further expansion of this last "idea" was that darker the cat's fur, the more demonical in nature the feline would be. Now you have an understanding of where the black cat stigma stemmed from - it not only became a symbol of witchcraft, but also of darkness and danger.

This also assists in explaining why, in the days of the Witch Hunts and other such spectacles, a person who talked to a cat or had a cat as a loyal pet (especially a black one) ran high risk of being accused of witchcraft. It was thought the person would a sign a "pact" with the Devil (generally writing their name on a contract of sorts in blood). In return for promises of riches and other goodies, which the Christians who headed the witch hunts scoffed at such promises since the Devil is a known trickster and liar, the Devil assigned one of his imps or demons to assist the person. Now the person naturally couldn't wander about town with an imp or demon readily open to view that they consulted or chatted with - so the imp or demon would take on a new image that would help them blend in more. These shapes were various - a misshapen man, a mirror image of the person themself who signed the pact, a dwarf, etc. - but the most common felt form that the "consort in crime" would take on was the shape of a cat and became known as the witch's "familiar".

Now, the "familiar" wasn't with the witch every hour of the day - it was free to roam the earth and would come to the witch when she needed assistance or to attend the Sabbaths with her. Even so, the witch was responsible for the "familiar's" nourishment. It was thought the witch grew a "teat" (now you know where the term "witch's teat" comes from and I will further explain the saying "colder than a witch's teat"in a moment) that the imp or demon would use to suckle upon, much like a newborn babe would. This "teat" would be non-human in thought - so devoid of nerve endings (pain couldn't be felt in the area this was hidden in or even shown to be located at) and body temperature. This also became known as the "Witch's Mark" and what was sought after to discover with certain "tools" the witch hunter liked to employ. Sadly, most of the now known medical explanations of certain mole traits or that certain areas of the human body do not have nerve endings that sense pain were not known at that time. To curtail a witch's power or possible spell over you, one had to kill the form of the imp or demon (there was a specific way one had to go about this - depending on what area of where they lived in). If the witch was uncovered and tried, then generally at her/his execution - the cat or what ever shape the "familiar" was thought to exist in was executed along with the witch.

Since the advent of Christianity and the Witch Hunts - the cat has been looked upon with mixed feelings that exists to this day in many areas or to many people. Some admire the cat's abilities and sense of look of wisdom it possesses as it lounges regally to sunbathe on a window ledge. Others can't see past the dark implications attached the cat - even some still attaching the idea of witchcraft and/or the Devil to the animal.

One of the most damaging superstitious thought attached to the cat is that it "sucks a baby's breath away". It was thought that the cat would perch itself upon the chest of an infant, invalid, or some other helpless individual and suffocate them by sucking the breath right out of the person. So it isn't uncommon to hear someone tell a new mother to get rid of the family pet cat due to this superstition even in this day and age. It seems that this superstition may stem forth from the fact that many cats like to sleep with humans, snuggling up close to the person's body to share the warmth and even sometimes checks out the person's face closely any chance it gets. Couple this known habit in with witch superstitions and you have the cat suddenly viewed upon as this murderous beast - and in some cases linked to the idea of vampires (who were also nocturnal creatures of habit that plagued the helpless living while they slept) and the medeivel thought reason behind pale, anemic people (they suffered from the nightly visits of the air-sucking-cat, dontcha know).

Let's try to be realistic in how the cat may be fascinated by a newborn baby. Babies are warm and cuddly - cats like to snuggle up to warm people. Now add in the fact that babies suckle milk, and we all know cats have a weakness for milk - couple this in with the cat's curiosity on the human face inspection front and you have the myth explained in full - the cat, smelling the milk scent coming from the baby's mouth area will sniff at the baby's mouth while checking out the babe. By no means though does the cat's breathing patterns interrupt with the human breathing pattern nor does it suck the air from the baby's mouth - having the child fight for air. The child will instinctively turn it's head to deter the cat's inspection process and the cat will soon bore itself with the babe and leave to explore other things or nap.

But the myth persisted and still persists that a cat shouldn't be in the house of small children, most especially when they are napping or at nighttime. But the danger doesn't exist from the superstition of the cat sucking the air from the baby but rather that the cat loves to snuggle and in it's desire for a warm spot might curl up too close to a baby's face, thus the fur causing a problem in the sleeping babies air supply. Generally though, the cat will prefer a bed of it's own (a basket or whatever for a cat bed) since many children move a lot in their sleep and will thwap the cat unknowingly. More children and babies are actually killed through suffocation by their own parents or siblings rolling over on them in their sleep than by a cat or any other animal/myth/whatever means.

To be said to be "nervous as a cat" is a common saying and yet not a favorable one. This is usually said to suggest that the person was uptight, on edge, and jumpy. In actuality though, cats are not at all like this since they were gifted with superior nerve system and rarely rarely ever suffer from diseases of the nerves. Cats are very alert and sensitive critters - thus why they are easily annoyed if they feel they are tormented and while jump away from the tormentor if they can, usually with an insulting glance cast at the person or object of torment while doing so.

It is known that millions of people love cats - yet there are just as many that have a deeply set fear or sheer hatred for the animal. The term for this is Aleurophobia and some of the symptoms it can take on is nausea, fainting spells, and even convulsions and sometimes the symptoms can arise from the mere thought or mention of a cat - let alone physical contact. Supposedly it has been proven that people are not born with a cat associated phobia, but rather is an acquired one. Usually stemming back to early childhood of when they may have pulled on a cat and gotten scratched in return or instilled into the child by a role model figure at a time before their memory banks were in total recall ability phase and thusly formed more of a subconscious thought danger to the cat than an actual conscious one.

Sneezing, coughing or swelling of the throat, and watery eyes are common symptoms that allergy sufferers can experience around a cat. This is due to the dander (or dead skin flakes) in the cat's fur rather than by the fur of the cat itself. A person allergic to a cat may do fine around a dog and then again some folks are allergic to the dander on both animals. So it isn't the loose tuft of hair (during shedding season or just due to the cat or dog resting on a piece of furniture) but the dead skin flakes that is attached to the hair follicles. Asthma sufferers at times cannot be in close contact with a cat due to the dander and hair follicles in the air tend to irritate the already sensitive airways of the person - not due to actual allergy.

Certain breeds of dogs and cats are able to be around even the most ardent allergy sufferer because the fur on those breeds may help keep the dander down or the breed's skin may not be as prone to creating dander. Himalayans are usually the best cat breed of choice for persons who love cats but also have contact with company that are allergy sufferers to have around - this breed doesn't shed like others do and thus this helps keep the dander flakes down out of the air. Some mixed kittens with their fur taking on the traits of the Himalayan breed parent are also generally known to do OK around allergy sufferers - though I have to warn you that it is hard to tell just how much the kitten is taking after the Himlayan parent until the actual "contact test" is done. There are also some commercially available pet shampoos that claim to help keep the dander down on dogs and cats but this isn't foolproof - some humans use the heck out of Head & Shoulders Shampoo^tm and yet look like they are still the source of snowstorms by the still visible appearance of flakes on the shoulders of their outfits. *shrug*

If you do own a cat but know of someone who suffers from asthma or a cat allergy who wants to visit your place .. then here is what you can do to try (but no guarantee this will be 100% effective) to make their visit to your home a more comfortable one. Bathe the critter in the special shampoo the day or two before the person's expected visit and set the animal in a room that you already closed off to clean the heck out of with a vacuum cleaner and dust rags. While the cat is in the closed off room drying out - this is your time to set to work in the other rooms. It is preferred to have the carpeting and floor coverings steam cleaned - but this is not always conveniently possible for the person to have done, so they should exercise more detailed cleaning process of the following steps described here.

Use a new vacuum cleaner bag per room as a rule of thumb - to help eliminate the vacuum mechanics sending some of the dust particles back out in the air of the room, also helps that while you are cleaning one room to have the doors to the other rooms not yet cleaned or already cleaned closed off. If possible, wash all bedding, draperies, and furniture coverings and let air dry -- even in rooms "Fluffy" doesn't like to frolic around in, we are talking about airborne dander and hair follicles that hold the dander that can drift about room to room by merely you walking casually through your hallway that can cause it to be sent back into the air to lay to rest some place else. Vacuum the carpeting in each room then the furniture cushions or pillows. Dust off all fixtures and pieces of decor. Close the door to the room and head on to the next room to repeat this process.

After a couple of hours or so after the cleaning of the last room in your place - replace the vacuum bag and repeat the vacuuming process so you can gather up the airborne particles from the prior "cleaning attack". Recall to have doors to other rooms closed off to help contain the airborne particles - you may get by with using only one vacuum bag for this repeat step but if the person is thought to be highly sensitive to dander, I would personally recommend that you invest in more bags and use the one bag per room rule of thumb. Now you can finally set the now dried critter free from the closed off room and vacuum that particular room again it had been contained in.

On the day of the actual visit, time your vacuuming repeat process (yes -- again) to take place 3 or 4 hours prior - at least - to the person's expected time of arrival. Don't forget to go over the furniture again either with the vacuum's upholstery attachments though this time you can use the same bag for all the rooms. Have the family cat put into a room that is not close the main rooms that the person may be in and make sure the other family members know that "Fluffy" cannot be set free until after the person leaves.

All this work is no guarantee that the person's allergy or asthma may not flare up while in the home - but sometimes can result in that the person can possibly lengthen the time they can sit and visit with you in the comfort of your house or apartment before their eyes start to water or their throat feels like it is getting irritated.