Steps lead from the Nile to the entrance of the temple. The shape of the horizon behind the temple is in the form of the hieroglyph for mountain.

The river is the main highway for travel. During some festivals the statue of the god would be taken out of its shrine in the temple, placed in a sacred barque, then a procession of boats would proceed along the Nile to another temple. The festival of Opet (Luxor) celebrated the New Year when the star Sothis (Sirius) appeared at dawn and the river began to rise. The festivities are depicted in relief carvings on the walls of the Temple of Luxor, where the magnificently decorated barques of Amon, Mut and Khonsu (father, mother and child) floated in a procession from the temple of Karnak to Luxor. There the gods stayed for 24 days while Amon celebrated his union with the divine mother, Mut; and the people came from all around to celebrate the rising of the Nile, with much food and wine, music and dancing girls.

Many temples were placed facing the rising sun so that at a particular time of year the sun shone directly through the gate and internal doors and right up into the heart of the temple, illuminating the statue of the god within the inner sanctum.

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