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diff --git a/11277-0.txt b/11277-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..80a6e6b --- /dev/null +++ b/11277-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,4493 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 11277 *** + + BOOKS ON + EGYPT AND CHALDEA + BY + E. A. WALLIS BUDGE, M. A., LITT D., D. LIT. + _Keeper of the Egyptian and Assyrian + Antiquities in the British Museum_ + AND + L. W. KING, M. A. + _Assistant in the Department of + Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities + in the British Museum_ + + Crown 8vo, 3S, 6d, net each + +Vol I--EGYPTIAN RELIGION. +Egyptian Ideas of the Future Life By E. A. WALLIS BUDGE + +Vol II--EGYPTIAN MAGIC. +By E. A. WALLIS BUDGE + +Vol. III--EGYPTIAN LANGUAGE. +Easy Lessons in Egyptian Hieroglyphics By E. A. WALLIS BUDGE + +Vol IV--BABYLONIAN RELIGION. +Babylonian Religion and Mythology. By L. W. King + +Vol V--ASSYRIAN LANGUAGE. +Easy Lessons in the Cuneiform Texts By L. W. KING, M. A. + +Vols VI, VII, VIII--THE BOOK OF THE DEAD. +an English Translation of the Chapters, Hymns, &c., of the Theban +Recension With Introduction, Notes, and numerous Illustrations By E. A. +WALLIS BUDGE, Litt. D. + +Vols IX-XVI--A HISTORY OF EGYPT. +from the end of the Neolithic Period to the Death of Cleopatra VII, B.C. +30 By E. A. WALLIS BUDGE, Litt. D. 8 vols. Illustrated. + + * * * * * + + + + +VOL. I. + +EGYPTIAN IDEAS OF THE FUTURE LIFE + + +PUBLISHERS' NOTE. + +In the year 1894, Dr. Wallis Budge prepared for Messrs. Kegan Paul, +Trench, Trübner & Co. an elementary work on the Egyptian language, +entitled "First Steps in Egyptian," and two years later the companion +volume, "An Egyptian Reading Book," with transliterations of all the +texts printed in it, and a full vocabulary. The success of these works +proved that they had helped to satisfy a want long felt by students of +the Egyptian language, and as a similar want existed among students of +the languages written in the cuneiform character, Mr. L.W. King, of the +British Museum, prepared, on the same lines as the two books mentioned +above, an elementary work on the Assyrian and Babylonian languages +("First Steps in Assyrian"), which appeared in 1898. These works, +however, dealt mainly with the philological branch of Egyptology and +Assyriology, and it was impossible in the space allowed to explain much +that needed explanation in the other branches of those subjects--that is +to say, matters relating to the archaeology, history, religion, etc., of +the Egyptians, Assyrians, and Babylonians. In answer to the numerous +requests which have been made, a series of short, popular handbooks on +the most important branches of Egyptology and Assyriology have been +prepared, and it is hoped that these will serve as introductions to the +larger works on these subjects. The present is the first volume of the +series, and the succeeding volumes will be published at short intervals, +and at moderate prices. + + + + + EGYPTIAN IDEAS + OF THE + FUTURE LIFE + BY + E.A. WALLIS BUDGE, M. A., LITT. D., D. LIT. + KEEPER Of THE EGYPTIAN AND ASSYRIAN ANTIQUITIES + OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM + + WITH EIGHT ILLUSTRATIONS + + _THIRD EDITION_ + + 1908 + +To SIR JOHN EVANS, K. C. B., D. C. L., F. R. S., ETC., ETC., ETC. IN +GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE OF MUCH FRIENDLY HELP AND ENCOURAGEMENT + + + + +PREFACE. + + * * * * * + +The following pages are intended to place before the reader in a handy +form an account of the principal ideas and beliefs held by the ancient +Egyptians concerning the resurrection and the future life, which is +derived wholly from native religious works. The literature of Egypt +which deals with these subjects is large and, as was to be expected, the +product of different periods which, taken together, cover several +thousands of years; and it is exceedingly difficult at times to +reconcile the statements and beliefs of a writer of one period with +those of a writer of another. Up to the present no systematic account of +the doctrine of the resurrection and of the future life has been +discovered, and there is no reason for hoping that such a thing will +ever be found, for the Egyptians do not appear to have thought that it +was necessary to write a work of the kind. The inherent difficulty of +the subject, and the natural impossibility that different men living in +different places and at different times should think alike on matters +which must, after all, belong always to the region of faith, render it +more than probable that no college of priests, however powerful, was +able to formulate a system of beliefs which would be received throughout +Egypt by the clergy and the laity alike, and would be copied by the +scribes as a final and authoritative work on Egyptian eschatology. +Besides this, the genius and structure of the Egyptian language are such +as to preclude the possibility of composing in it works of a +philosophical or metaphysical character in the true sense of the words. +In spite of these difficulties, however, it is possible to collect a +great deal of important information on the subject from the funereal and +religious works which have come down to us, especially concerning the +great central idea of immortality, which existed unchanged for thousands +of years, and formed the pivot upon which the religious and social life +of the ancient Egyptians actually turned. From the beginning to the end +of his life the Egyptian's chief thought was of the life beyond the +grave, and the hewing of his tomb in the rock, and the providing of its +furniture, every detail of which was prescribed by the custom of the +country, absorbed the best thoughts of his mind and a large share of his +worldly goods, and kept him ever mindful of the time when his mummified +body would be borne to his "everlasting house" in the limestone plateau +or hill. + +The chief source of our information concerning the doctrine of the +resurrection and of the future life as held by the Egyptians is, of +course, the great collection of religious texts generally known by the +name of "Book of the Dead." The various recensions of these wonderful +compositions cover a period of more than five thousand years, and they +reflect faithfully not only the sublime beliefs, and the high ideals, +and the noble aspirations of the educated Egyptians, but also the +various superstitions and childish reverence for amulets, and magical +rites, and charms, which they probably inherited from their pre-dynastic +ancestors, and regarded as essentials for their salvation. It must be +distinctly understood that many passages and allusions in the Book of +the Dead still remain obscure, and that in some places any translator +will be at a difficulty in attempting to render certain, important words +into any modern European language. But it is absurd to talk of almost +the whole text of the Book of the Dead as being utterly corrupt, for +royal personages, and priests, and scribes, to say nothing of the +ordinary educated folk, would not have caused costly copies of a very +lengthy work to be multiplied, and illustrated by artists possessing the +highest skill, unless it had some meaning to them, and was necessary for +the attainment by them of the life which is beyond the grave. The +"finds" of recent years in Egypt have resulted in the recovery of +valuable texts whereby numerous difficulties have been cleared away; and +we must hope that the faults made in translating to-day may be corrected +by the discoveries of to-morrow. In spite of all difficulties, both +textual and grammatical, sufficient is now known of the Egyptian +religion to prove, with certainty, that the Egyptians possessed, some +six thousand years ago, a religion and a system of morality which, when +stripped of all corrupt accretions, stand second to none among those +which have been developed by the greatest nations of the world. + +E. A. WALLIS BUDGE. +LONDON, +_August 21st_, 1899. + + + + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER + + I. THE BELIEF IN GOD ALMIGHTY + + II. OSIRIS THE GOD OF THE RESURRECTION + + III. THE "GODS" OF THE EGYPTIANS + + IV. THE JUDGMENT OF THE DEAD + + V. THE RESURRECTION AND IMMORTALITY + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. + +CHAPTER + + I. THE CREATION + + II. ISIS SUCKLING HORUS IN THE PAPYRUS SWAMP + +III. THE SOUL OF OSIRIS AND THE SOUL OF R[=A] MEETING IN TATTU. R[=A], + IN THE FORM OF A CAT, CUTTING OFF THE HEAD OF THE SERPENT OF + DARKNESS + + IV. THE JUDGMENT OF THE DEAD IN THE HALL OF MA[=A]TI + + V. THE DECEASED BEING LED INTO THE PRESENCE OF OSIRIS + + VI. THE SEKHET-AARU OR "ELYSIAN FIELDS"-- + + (1) FROM THE PAPYRUS OF NEBSENI + (2) FROM THE PAPYRUS OF ANI + (3) FROM THE PAPYRUS OF ANILAI + + + + +CHAPTER I. + + +THE BELIEF IN GOD ALMIGHTY. + +A study of ancient Egyptian religious texts will convince the reader +that the Egyptians believed in One God, who was self-existent, immortal, +invisible, eternal, omniscient, almighty, and inscrutable; the maker of +the heavens, earth, and underworld; the creator of the sky and the sea, +men and women, animals and birds, fish and creeping things, trees and +plants, and the incorporeal beings who were the messengers that +fulfilled his wish and word. It is necessary to place this definition of +the first part of the belief of the Egyptian at the beginning of the +first chapter of this brief account of the principal religious ideas +which he held, for the whole of his theology and religion was based upon +it; and it is also necessary to add that, however far back we follow his +literature, we never seem to approach a time when he was without this +remarkable belief. It is true that he also developed polytheistic ideas +and beliefs, and that he cultivated them at certain periods of his +history with diligence, and to such a degree that the nations around, +and even the stranger in his country, were misled by his actions, and +described him as a polytheistic idolater. But notwithstanding all such +departures from observances, the keeping of which befitted those who +believed in God and his unity, this sublime idea was never lost sight +of; on the contrary, it is reproduced in the religious literature of all +periods. Whence came this remarkable characteristic of the Egyptian +religion no man can say, and there is no evidence whatsoever to guide us +in formulating the theory that it was brought into Egypt by immigrants +from the East, as some have said, or that it was a natural product of +the indigenous peoples who formed the population of the valley of the +Nile some ten thousand years ago, according to the opinion of others. +All that is known is that it existed there at a period so remote that it +is useless to attempt to measure by years the interval of time which has +elapsed since it grew up and established itself in the minds of men, and +that it is exceedingly doubtful if we shall ever have any very definite +knowledge on this interesting point. + +But though we know nothing about the period of the origin in Egypt of +the belief in the existence of an almighty God who was One, the +inscriptions show us that this Being was called by a name which was +something like _Neter_, [Footnote: There is no _e_ in Egyptian, and this +vowel is added merely to make the word pronounceable.] the picture sign +for which was an axe-head, made probably of stone, let into a long +wooden handle. The coloured picture character shews that the axe-head +was fastened into the handle by thongs of leather or string, and judging +by the general look of the object it must have been a formidable weapon +in strong, skilled hands. A theory has recently been put forward to the +effect that the picture character represents a stick with a bit of +coloured rag tied to the, but it will hardly commend itself to any +archaeologist. The lines which cross the side of the axe-head represent +string or strips of leather, and indicate that it was made of stone +which, being brittle, was liable to crack; the picture characters which +delineate the object in the latter dynasties shew that metal took the +place of the stone axe-head, and being tough the new substance needed no +support. The mightiest man in the prehistoric days was he who had the +best weapon, and knew how to wield it with the greatest effect; when the +prehistoric hero of many fights and victories passed to his rest, his +own or a similar weapon was buried with him to enable him to wage war +successfully in the next world. The mightiest man had the largest axe, +and the axe thus became the symbol of the mightiest man. As he, by +reason of the oft-told narrative of his doughty deeds at the prehistoric +camp fire at eventide, in course of time passed from the rank of a hero +to that of a god, the axe likewise passed from being the symbol of a +hero to that of a god. Far away back in the early dawn of civilization +in Egypt, the object which I identify as an axe may have had some other +signification, but if it had, it was lost long before the period of the +rule of the dynasties in that country. + +Passing now to the consideration of the meaning of the name for God, +_neter_, we find that great diversity of opinion exists among +Egyptologists on the subject. Some, taking the view that the equivalent +of the word exists in Coptic, under the form of _Nuti_, and because +Coptic is an ancient Egyptian dialect, have sought to deduce its meaning +by seeking in that language for the root from which the word may be +derived. But all such attempts have had no good result, because the word +_Nuti_ stands by itself, and instead of being derived from a Coptic root +is itself the equivalent of the Egyptian _neter_, [Footnote: The letter +_r_ has dropped out in Coptic through phonetic decay.] and was taken +over by the translators of the Holy Scriptures from that language to +express the words "God" and "Lord." The Coptic root _nomti_ cannot in +any way be connected with _nuti_, and the attempt to prove that the two +are related was only made with the view of helping to explain the +fundamentals of the Egyptian religion by means of Sanskrit and other +Aryan analogies. It is quite possible that the word _neter_ means +"strength," "power," and the like, but these are only some of its +derived meanings, and we have to look in the hieroglyphic inscriptions +for help in order to determine its most probable meaning. The eminent +French Egyptologist, E. de Rougé, connected the name of God, _neter_, +with the other word _neter_, "renewal" or "renovation," and it would, +according to his view, seem as if the fundamental idea of God was that +of the Being who had the power to renew himself perpetually--or in other +words, "self-existence." The late Dr. H. Brugsch partly accepted this +view, for he defined _neter_ as being "the active power which produces +and creates things in regular recurrence; which bestows new life upon +them, and gives back to them their youthful vigour." [Footnote: +_Religion und Mythologie_, p. 93.] There seems to be no doubt that, +inasmuch as it is impossible to find any one word which will render +_neter_ adequately and satisfactorily, "self-existence" and "possessing +the power to renew life indefinitely," may together be taken as the +equivalent of _neter_ in our own tongue, M. Maspero combats rightly the +attempt to make "strong" the meaning of _neter_ (masc.), or _neterit_ +(fem.) in these words: "In the expressions 'a town _neterit_ 'an arm +_neteri_,' ... is it certain that 'a strong city,' 'a strong arm,' give +us the primitive sense of _neter_? When among ourselves one says 'divine +music,' 'a piece of divine poetry,' 'the divine taste of a peach,' 'the +divine beauty of a woman,' [the word] divine is a hyperbole, but it +would be a mistake to declare that it originally meant 'exquisite' +because in the phrases which I have imagined one could apply it as +'exquisite music,' 'a piece of exquisite poetry,' 'the exquisite taste +of a peach,' 'the exquisite beauty of a woman.' Similarly, in Egyptian, +'a town _neterit_ is 'a divine town;' 'an arm _netsri_' is 'a divine +arm,' and _neteri_ is employed metaphorically in Egyptian as is [the +word] 'divine' in French, without its being any more necessary to +attribute to [the word] _neteri_ the primitive meaning of 'strong,' than +it is to attribute to [the word] 'divine' the primitive meaning of +'exquisite.'" [Footnote: _La Mythologie Egyptienne_, p. 215.] It may be, +of course, that _neter_ had another meaning which is now lost, but it +seems that the great difference between God and his messengers and +created things is that he is the Being who is self-existent and +immortal, whilst they are not self-existent and are mortal. + +Here it will be objected by those who declare that the ancient Egyptian +idea of God is on a level with that evolved by peoples and tribes who +stand comparatively little removed from very intelligent animals, that +such high conceptions as self-existence and immortality belong to a +people who are already on a high grade of development and civilization. +This is precisely the case with the Egyptians when we first know them. +As a matter of fact, we know nothing of their ideas of God before they +developed sufficiently to build the monuments which we know they built, +and before they possessed the religion, and civilization, and complex +social system which their writings have revealed to us. In the remotest +prehistoric times it is probable that their views about God and the +future life were little better than those of the savage tribes, now +living, with whom some have compared them. The primitive god was an +essential feature of the family, and the fortunes of the god varied with +the fortunes of the family; the god of the city in which a man lived was +regarded as the ruler of the city, and the people of that city no more +thought of neglecting to provide him with what they considered to be due +to his rank and position than they thought of neglecting to supply their +own wants. In fact the god of the city became the centre of the social +fabric of that city, and every inhabitant thereof inherited +automatically certain duties, the neglect of which brought stated pains +and penalties upon him. The remarkable peculiarity of the Egyptian +religion is that the primitive idea of the god of the city is always +cropping up in it, and that is the reason why we find semi-savage ideas +of God side by side with some of the most sublime conceptions, and it of +course underlies all the legends of the gods wherein they possess all +the attributes of men and women. The Egyptian in his semi-savage state +was neither better nor worse than any other man in the same stage of +civilization, but he stands easily first among the nations in his +capacity for development, and in his ability for evolving conceptions +concerning God and the future life, which are claimed as the peculiar +product of the cultured nations of our time. + +We must now, however, see how the word for God, _neter_, is employed in +religious texts and in works which contain moral precepts. In the text +of Unas, [Footnote: Ed Maspero, _Pyramides de Saqqarah_; p. 25.] a king +who reigned about B.C. 3300, we find the passage:--"That which is sent +by thy _ka_ cometh to thee, that which is sent by thy father cometh to +thee, that which is sent by R[=a] cometh to thee, and it arriveth in the +train of thy R[=a]. Thou art pure, thy bones are the gods and the +goddesses of heaven, thou existest at the side of God, thou art +unfastened, thou comest forth towards thy soul, for every evil word (or +thing) which hath been written in the name of Unas hath been done away." +And, again, in the text of Teta, [Footnote: _Ibid_., p. 113.] in the +passage which refers to the place in the eastern part of heaven "where +the gods give birth unto themselves, where that to which they give birth +is born, and where they renew their youth," it is said of this king, +"Teta standeth up in the form of the star...he weigheth words (_or_ +trieth deeds), and behold God hearkeneth unto that which he saith." +Elsewhere [Footnote: Ed. Maspero, _Pyramides da Saqqarah_, p. 111.] in +the same text we read, "Behold, Teta hath arrived in the height of +heaven, and the _henmemet_ beings have seen him; the Semketet [Footnote: +The morning boat of the sun.] boat knoweth him, and it is Teta who +saileth it, and the M[=a]ntchet [Footnote: The evening boat of the sun.] +boat calleth unto him, and it is Teta who bringeth it to a standstill. +Teta hath seen his body in the Semketet boat, he knoweth the uraeus +which is in the M[=a]ntchet boat, and God hath called him in his +name...and hath taken him in to R[=a]." And again [Footnote: _Ibid_., p. +150.] we have: "Thou hast received the form (_or_ attribute) of God, and +thou hast become great therewith before the gods"; and of Pepi I., who +reigned about B.C. 3000, it is said, "This Pepi is God, the son of God." +[Footnote: _Ibid_., p. 222.] Now in these passages the allusion is to +the supreme Being in the next world, the Being who has the power to +invoke and to obtain a favourable reception for the deceased king by +R[=a], the Sun-god, the type and symbol of God. It may, of course, be +urged that the word _neter_ here refers to Osiris, but it is not +customary to speak of this god in such a way in the texts; and even if +we admit that it does, it only shows that the powers of God have been +attributed to Osiris, and that he was believed to occupy the position in +respect of R[=a] and the deceased which the supreme Being himself +occupied. In the last two extracts given above we might read "a god" +instead of "God," but there is no object in the king receiving the form +or attribute of a nameless god; and unless Pepi becomes the son of God; +the honour which the writer of that text intends to ascribe to the king +becomes little and even ridiculous. + +Passing from religious texts to works containing moral precepts, we find +much light thrown upon the idea of God by the writings of the early +sages of Egypt. First and foremost among these are the "Precepts of +Kaqemna" and the "Precepts of Ptah-hetep," works which were composed as +far back as B.C. 3000. The oldest copy of them which we possess is, +unfortunately, not older than B.C. 2500, but this fact in no way affects +our argument. These "precepts" are intended to form a work of direction +and guidance for a young man in the performance of his duty towards the +society in which he lived and towards his God. It is only fair to say +that the reader will look in vain in them for the advice which is found +in writings of a similar character composed at a later period; but as a +work intended to demonstrate the "whole duty of man" to the youth of the +time when the Great Pyramid was still a new building, these "precepts" +are very remarkable. The idea of God held by Ptah-hetep is illustrated +by the following passages:-- + + 1. "Thou shalt make neither man nor woman to be afraid, for God is + opposed thereto; and if any man shall say that he will live thereby, + He will make him to want bread." + + 2. "As for the nobleman who possesseth abundance of goods, he may act + according to his own dictates; and he may do with himself that which + he pleaseth; if he will do nothing at all, that also is as he + pleaseth. The nobleman by merely stretching out his hand doeth that + which mankind (_or_ a person) cannot attain to; but inasmuch as the + eating of bread is according to the plan of God, this cannot be + gainsaid." + + 3. "If thou hast ground to till, labour in the field which God hath + given thee; rather than fill thy mouth with that which belongeth to + thy neighbours it is better to terrify him that hath possessions [to + give them unto thee]." + + 4. "If thou abasest thyself in the service of a perfect man, thy + conduct shall be fair before God." + + 5. "If thou wouldst be a wise man, make thou thy son to be pleasing + unto God." + + 6. "Satisfy those who depend upon thee as far as thou art able so to + do; this should be done by those whom God hath favoured." + + 7. "If, having been of no account, thou hast become great; and if, + having been poor, thou hast become rich; and if thou hast become + governor of the city, be not hard-hearted on account of thy + advancement, because thou hast become merely the guardian of the + things which God hath provided." + + 8. "What is loved of God is obedience; God hateth disobedience." + + 9. "Verily a good son is of the gifts of God." [Footnote: The text was + published by Prisse d'Avennes, entitled _Facsimile d'un papyrus + égyptien en caractères hieratiques_, Paris, 1847. For a translation of + the whole work, see Virey, _études sur le Papyrus Prisse_, Paris, + 1887.] + +The same idea of God, but considerably amplified in some respects, may +be found in the _Maxims of Khensu-Hetep_, a work which was probably +composed during the XVIIIth dynasty. This work has been studied in +detail by a number of eminent Egyptologists, and though considerable +difference of opinion has existed among them in respect of details and +grammatical niceties, the general sense of the maxims has been clearly +established. To illustrate the use of the word _neter_, the following +passages have been chosen from it:[Footnote: They are given with +interlinear transliteration and translation in my _Papyrus of Ani_, p. +lxxxv. ff., where references to the older literature on the subject will +be found.]-- + + 1. "God magnifieth his name." + + 2. "What the house of God hateth is much speaking. Pray thou with a + loving heart all the petitions which are in secret. He will perform + thy business, he will hear that which thou sayest and will accept + thine offerings." + + 3. "God decreeth the right." + + 4. "When thou makest an offering unto thy God, guard thou against the + things which are an abomination unto him. Behold thou his plans with + thine eye, and devote thyself to the adoration of his name. He giveth + souls unto millions of forms, and him that magnifieth him doth he + magnify." + + 5. "If thy mother raise her hands to God he will hear her prayers [and + rebuke thee]." + + 7. "Give thyself to God, and keep thou thyself daily for God." + +Now, although the above passages prove the exalted idea which the +Egyptians held of the supreme Being, they do not supply us with any of +the titles and epithets which they applied to him; for these we must +have recourse to the fine hymns and religious meditations which form so +important a part of the "Book of the Dead." But before we quote from +them, mention must be made of the _neteru_, _i.e._, the beings or +existences which in some way partake of the nature or character of God, +and are usually called "gods." The early nations that came in contact +with the Egyptians usually misunderstood the nature of these beings, and +several modern Western writers have done the same. When we examine these +"gods" closely, they are found to be nothing more nor less than forms, +or manifestations, or phases, or attributes, of one god, that god being +R[=a] the Sun-god, who, it must be remembered, was the type and symbol +of God. Nevertheless, the worship of the _neteru_ by the Egyptians has +been made the base of the charge of "gross idolatry" which has been +brought against them, and they have been represented by some as being on +the low intellectual level of savage tribes. It is certain that from the +earliest times one of the greatest tendencies of the Egyptian religion +was towards monotheism, and this tendency may be observed in all +important texts down to the latest period; it is also certain that a +kind of polytheism existed in Egypt side by side with monotheism from +very early times. Whether monotheism or polytheism be the older, it is +useless in our present state of knowledge to attempt to enquire. +According to Tiele, the religion of Egypt was at the beginning +polytheistic, but developed in two opposite directions: in the one +direction gods were multiplied by the addition of local gods, and in the +other the Egyptians drew nearer and nearer to monotheism. [Footnote: +_Geschiedenis van den Godedienst in de Oudheid_, Amsterdam, 1893, p. 25. +A number of valuable remarks on this subject are given by Lieblein in +_Egyptian Religion_, p. 10.] Dr. Wiedemann takes the view that three +main elements may be recognized in the Egyptian religion: (1) A solar +monotheism, that is to say one god, the creator of the universe, who +manifests his power especially in the sun and its operations; (2) A cult +of the regenerating power of nature, which expresses itself in the +adoration of ithyphallic gods, of fertile goddesses, and of a series of +animals and of various deities of vegetation; (3) A perception of an +anthropomorphic divinity, the life of whom in this world and in the +world beyond this was typical of the ideal life of man [Footnote: _Le +Livre dei Moris_ (Review in _Muséon_, Tom. xiii. 1893).]--this last +divinity being, of course, Osiris. But here again, as Dr. Wiedemann +says, it is an unfortunate fact that all the texts which we possess are, +in respect of the period of the origin of the Egyptian religion, +comparatively late, and therefore in them we find these three elements +mixed together, along with a number of foreign matters, in such a way as +to make it impossible to discover which of them is the oldest. No better +example can be given of the loose way in which different ideas about a +god and God are mingled in the same text than the "Negative Confession" +in the hundred and twenty-fifth chapter of the Book of the Dead. Here, +in the oldest copies of the passages known, the deceased says, "I have +not cursed God" (1. 38), and a few lines after (1. 42) he adds, "I have +not thought scorn of the god living in my city." It seems that here we +have indicated two different layers of belief, and that the older is +represented by the allusion to the "god of the city," in which case it +would go back to the time when the Egyptian lived in a very primitive +fashion. If we assume that God (who is mentioned in line 38) is Osiris, +it does not do away with the fact that he was regarded as a being +entirely different from the "god of the city" and that he was of +sufficient importance to have one line of the "Confession" devoted to +him. The Egyptian saw no incongruity in setting references to the "gods" +side by side with allusions to a god whom we cannot help identifying +with the Supreme Being and the Creator of the world; his ideas and +beliefs have, in consequence, been sadly misrepresented, and by certain +writers he has been made an object of ridicule. What, for example, could +be a more foolish description of Egyptian worship than the following? +"Who knows not, O Volusius of Bithynia, the sort of monsters Egypt, in +her infatuation, worships. One part venerates the crocodile; another +trembles before an ibis gorged with serpents. The image of a sacred +monkey glitters in gold, where the magic chords sound from Memnon broken +in half, and ancient Thebes lies buried in ruins, with her hundred +gates. In one place they venerate sea-fish, in another river-fish; +there, whole towns worship a dog: no one Diana. It is an impious act to +violate or break with the teeth a leek or an onion. O holy nations! +whose gods grow for them in their gardens! Every table abstains from +animals that have wool: it is a crime there to kill a kid. But human +flesh is lawful food." + +[Footnote: Juvenal, Satire XV. (Evans' translation in Bohn's Series, p. +180). Led astray by Juvenal, our own good George Herbert (_Church +Militant_) wrote:-- + + "At first he (_i.e._, Sin) got to Egypt, and did sow + Gardens of gods, which every year did grow + Fresh and fine deities. They were at great cost, + Who for a god clearly a sallet lost. + Ah, what a thing is man devoid of grace, + Adoring garlic with an humble face, + Begging his food of that which he may eat, + Starving the while he worshippeth his meat! + Who makes a root his god, how low is he, + If God and man be severed infinitely! + What wretchedness can give him any room, + Whose house is foul, while he adores his broom?"] + +The epithets which the Egyptians applied to their gods also bear +valuable testimony concerning the ideas which they held about God. We +have already said that the "gods" are only forms, manifestations, and +phases of R[=a], the Sun-god, who was himself the type and symbol of +God, and it is evident from the nature of these epithets that they were +only applied to the "gods" because they represented some qualify or +attribute which they would have applied to God had it been their custom +to address Him. Let us take as examples the epithets which are applied +to H[=a]pi the god of the Nile. The beautiful hymn [Footnote: The whole +hymn has been published by Maspero in _Hymns au Nil_, Paris, 1868.] to +this god opens as follows:-- + + "Homage to thee, O H[=a]pi! Thou comest forth in this land, and dost + come in peace to make Egypt to live, O thou hidden one, thou guide of + the darkness whensoever it is thy pleasure to be its guide. Thou + waterest the fields which R[=a] hath created, thou makest all animals + to live, thou makest the land to drink without ceasing; thou + descendest the path of heaven, thou art the friend of meat and drink, + thou art the giver of the grain, and thou makest every place of work + to flourish, O Ptah! ... If thou wert to be overcome in heaven the + gods would fall down headlong, and mankind would perish. Thou makest + the whole earth to be opened (_or_ ploughed up) by the cattle, and + prince and peasant lie down to rest.... His disposition (_or_ form) is + that of Khnemu; when he shineth upon the earth there is rejoicing, for + all people are glad, the mighty man (?) receiveth his meat, and every + tooth hath food to consume." + +After praising him for what he does for mankind and beasts, and for +making the herb to grow for the use of all men, the text says:-- + + "He cannot be figured in stone; he is not to be seen in the sculptured + images upon which men place the united crowns of the South and the + North furnished with uraei; neither works nor offerings can be made to + him; and he cannot be made to come forth from his secret place. The + place where he liveth is unknown; he is not to be found in inscribed + shrines; there existeth no habitation which can contain him; and thou + canst not conceive his form in thy heart." + +First we notice that Hapi is addressed by the names of Ptah and Khnemu, +not because the writer thought these three gods were one, but because +Hapi as the great supplier of water to Egypt became, as it were, a +creative god like Ptah and Khnemu. Next we see that it is stated to be +impossible to depict him in paintings, or even to imagine what his form +may be, for he is unknown and his abode cannot be found, and no place +can contain him. But, as a matter of fact, several pictures and +sculptures of H[=a]pi have been preserved, and we know that he is +generally depicted in the form of two gods; one has upon his head a +papyrus plant, and the other a lotus plant, the former being the +Nile-god of the South, and the latter the Nile-god of the North. +Elsewhere he is portrayed in the form of a large man having the breasts +of a woman. It is quite clear, then, that the epithets which we have +quoted are applied to him merely as a form of God. In another hymn, +which was a favourite in the XVIIIth and XIXth dynasties, H[=a]pi is +called "One," and is said to have created himself; but as he is later on +in the text identified with R[=a] the epithets which belong to the +Sun-god are applied to him. The late Dr. H. Brugsch collected [Footnote: +_Religion and Mythologie_, pp. 96-99.] a number of the epithets which +are applied to the gods, from texts of all periods; and from these we +may see that the ideas and beliefs of the Egyptians concerning God were +almost identical with those of the Hebrews and Muhammadans at later +periods. When classified these epithets read thus:-- + + "God is One and alone, and none other existeth with Him; God is the + One, the One Who hath made all things. + + "God is a spirit, a hidden spirit, the spirit of spirits, the great + spirit of the Egyptians, the divine spirit. + + "God is from the beginning, and He hath been from the beginning; He + hath existed from of old and was when nothing else had being. He + existed when nothing else existed, and what existeth He created after + He had come into being. He is the father of beginnings. + + "God is the eternal One, He is eternal and infinite; and endureth for + ever and aye; He hath endured for countless ages, and He shall endure + to all eternity. + + "God is the hidden Being, and no man hath known His form. No man hath + been able to seek out His likeness; He is hidden, from gods and men, + and He is a mystery unto His creatures. + + "No man knoweth how to know Him, His name remaineth hidden; His name + is a mystery unto His children. His names are innumerable, they are + manifold and none knoweth their number. + + "God is truth, and He liveth by truth, and he feedeth thereon. He is + the King of truth, He resteth upon truth, He fashioneth truth, and He + executeth truth throughout all the world. + + "God is life, and through Him only man liveth, He giveth life to man, + and He breatheth the breath of life into his nostrils. + + "God is father and mother, the father of fathers, and the mother of + mothers. He begetteth, but was never begotten; He produceth, but was + never produced He begat Himself and produced Himself. He createth, but + was never created; He is the maker of His own form, and the fashioner + of His own body. + + "God Himself is existence He liveth in all things, and liveth upon all + things. He endureth without increase or diminution, He multiplieth + Himself millions of times, and He possesseth multitudes of forms and + multitudes of members. + + "God hath made the universe, and He hath created all that therein is: + He is the Creator of what is in this world, of what was, of what is, + and of what shall be. He is the Creator of the world, and it was He + Who fashioned it with His hands before there was any beginning; and He + stablished it with that which went forth from Him. He is the Creator + of the heavens and the earth; the Creator of the heavens, and the + earth, and the deep; the Creator of the heavens, and the earth, and + the deep, and the waters, and the mountains. God hath stretched out + the heavens and founded the earth. What His heart conceived came to + pass straightway, and when He had spoken His word came to pass, and it + shall endure for ever. + + "God is the father of the gods, and the father of the father of all + deities; He made His voice to sound, and the deities came into being, + and the gods sprang into existence after He had spoken with His mouth. + He formed mankind and fashioned the gods. He is the great Master, the + primeval Potter Who turned men and gods out of His hands, and He + formed men and gods upon a potter's table. + + "The heavens rest upon His head, and the earth supporteth His feet; + heaven hideth His spirit, the earth hideth His form, and the + underworld shutteth up the mystery of Him within it. His body is like + the air, heaven resteth upon His head, and the new inundation [of the + Nile] containeth His form. + + "God is merciful unto those who reverence Him, and He heareth him that + calleth upon Him. He protecteth the weak against the strong, and He + heareth the cry of him that is bound in fetters; He judgeth between + the mighty and the weak, God knoweth him that knoweth Him, He + rewardeth him that serveth Him, and He protecteth him that followeth + Him." + +We have now to consider the visible emblem, and the type and symbol of +God, namely the Sun-god R[=a], who was worshipped in Egypt in +prehistoric times. According to the writings of the Egyptians, there was +a time when neither heaven nor earth existed, and when nothing had being +except the boundless primeval [Footnote: See Brugsch, _Religion_, p. +101.] water, which was, however, shrouded with thick darkness. In this +condition the primeval water remained for a considerable time, +notwithstanding that it contained within it the germs of the things +which afterwards came into existence in this world, and the world +itself. At length the spirit of the primeval water felt the desire for +creative activity, and having uttered the word, the world sprang +straightway into being in the form which had already been depicted in +the mind of the spirit before he spake the word which resulted in its +creation. The next act of creation, was the formation of a germ, or egg, +from which sprang R[=a], the Sun-god, within whose shining form was +embodied the almighty power of the divine spirit. + +Such was the outline of creation as described by the late Dr. H. +Brugsch, and it is curious to see how closely his views coincide with a +chapter in the _Papyrus of Nesi Amsu_ preserved in the British Museum. +[Footnote: No. 10,188. See my transcript and translation of the whole +papyrus in _Archaeologia_ vol. 52, London, 1801.] In the third section +of this papyrus we find a work which was written with the sole object of +overthrowing [=A]pep, the great enemy of R[=a], and in the composition +itself we find two versions of the chapter which describes the creation +of the earth and all things therein. The god Neb-er-tcher is the +speaker, and he says:-- + + "I evolved the evolving of evolutions. I evolved myself under the form + of the evolutions of the god Khepera, which were evolved at the + beginning of all time. I evolved with the evolutions of the god + Khepera; I evolved by the evolution of evolutions--that is to say, I + developed myself from the primeval matter which I made, I developed + myself out of the primeval matter. My name is Ausares (Osiris), the + germ of primeval matter. I have wrought my will wholly in this earth, + I have spread abroad and filled it, I have strengthened it [with] my + hand. I was alone, for nothing had been brought forth; I had not then + emitted from myself either Shu or Tefnut. I uttered my own name, as a + word of power, from my own mouth, and I straightway evolved myself. I + evolved myself under the form of the evolutions of the god Khepera, + and I developed myself out of the primeval matter which has evolved + multitudes of evolutions from the beginning of time. Nothing existed + on this earth then, and I made all things. There was none other who + worked with me at that time. I performed all evolutions there by means + of that divine Soul which I fashioned there, and which had remained + inoperative in the watery abyss. I found no place there whereon to + stand. But I was strong in my heart, and I made a foundation for + myself, and I made everything which was made. I was alone. I made a + foundation for my heart (_or_ will), and I created multitudes of + things which evolved themselves like unto the evolutions of the god + Khepera, and their offspring came into being from the evolutions of + their births. I emitted from myself the gods Shu and Tefnut, and from + being One I became Three; they [Illustration: THE CREATION. The god Nu + rising out of the primeval water and bearing in his hands the boat of + R[=a], the Sun-god, who is accompanied by a number of deities. In the + upper portion of the scene is the region of the underworld which is + enclosed by the body of Osiris, on whose head stands the goddess Nut + with arms stretched out to receive the disk of the sun.] sprang from + me, and came into existence in this earth. ...Shu and Tefnut brought + forth Seb and Nut, and Nut brought forth Osiris, Horus-khent-an-maa, + Sut, Isis, and Nephthya at one birth." + +The fact of the existence of two versions of this remarkable Chapter +proves that the composition is much older than the papyrus [Footnote: +About B.C. 300.] in which it is found, and the variant readings which +occur in each make it certain that the Egyptian scribes had difficulty +in understanding what they were writing. It may be said that this +version of the cosmogony is incomplete because it does not account for +the origin of any of the gods except those who belong to the cycle of +Osiris, and this objection is a valid one; but in this place we are only +concerned to shew that R[=a], the Sun-god, was evolved from the primeval +abyss of water by the agency of the god Khepera, who brought this result +about by pronouncing his own name. The great cosmic gods, such as Ptah +and Khnemu, of whom mention will be made later, are the offspring of +another set of religious views, and the cosmogony in which these play +the leading parts is entirely different. We must notice, in passing, +that the god whose words we have quoted above declares that he evolved +himself under the form, of Khepera, and that his name is Osiris, "the +primeval matter of primeval matter," and that, as a result, Osiris is +identical with Khepera in respect of his evolutions and new births. The +word rendered "evolutions" is _kheperu_, literally "rollings"; and that +rendered "primeval matter" is _paut_, the original "stuff" out of which +everything was made. In both versions we are told that men and women +came into being from the tears which fell from the "Eye" of Khepera, +that is to say from the Sun, which, the god says, "I made take to up its +place in my face, and afterwards it ruled the whole earth." + +We have seen how R[=a] has become the visible type and symbol of God, +and the creator of the world and of all that is therein; we may now +consider the position which he held with, respect to the dead. As far +back as the period of the IVth dynasty, about B.C. 3700, he was regarded +as the great god of heaven, and the king of all the gods, and divine +beings, and of the beatified dead who dwelt therein. The position of the +beatified in heaven is decided by R[=a], and of all the gods there +Osiris only appears to have the power to claim protection for his +followers; the offerings which the deceased would make to R[=a] are +actually presented to him by Osiris. At one time the Egyptian's greatest +hope seems to have been that he might not only become "God, the son of +God," by adoption, but that R[=a] would become actually his father. For +in the text of Pepi I, [Footnote: Ed. Maspero, line 570.] it is said: +"Pepi is the son of R[=a] who loveth him; and he goeth forth and raiseth +himself up to heaven. R[=a] hath begotten Pepi, and he goeth forth and +raiseth himself up to heaven. R[=a] hath conceived Pepi, and he goeth +forth and raiseth himself up to heaven. R[=a] hath given birth, to +Pepi, and he goeth forth and raiseth himself up to heaven." +Substantially these ideas remained the same from the earliest to the +latest times, and R[=a] maintained his position as the great head of the +companies, notwithstanding the rise of Amen into prominence, and the +attempt to make Aten the dominant god of Egypt by the so-called "Disk +worshippers." The following good typical examples of Hymns to R[=a] are +taken from the oldest copies of the Theban Recension of the Book of the +Dead. + + +I. FROM THE PAPYRUS OF ANI. [Footnote: See _The Chapters of Coming Forth +by Day_, p. 3.] + + "Homage to thee, O thou who hast come as Khepera, Khepera the creator + of the gods. Thou risest and thou shinest, and thou makest light to be + in thy mother Nut (_i.e._, the sky); thou art crowned king of the + gods. Thy mother Nut doeth an act of homage unto thee with both her + hands. The laud of Manu (_i.e._, the land where the sun sets) + receiveth thee with satisfaction, and the goddess Ma[=a]t embraceth + thee both, at morn and at eve. [Footnote: _i.e._, Ma[=a]t, the goddess + of law, order, regularity, and the like, maketh the sun to rise each + day in his appointed place and at his appointed time with absolute and + unfailing regularity.] Hail, all ye gods of the Temple of the Soul, + [Footnote: _i.e._, the soul referred to above in the account of the + creation; see p. 24.] who weigh heaven and earth in the balance, and + who provide divine food in abundance! Hail, Tatunen, thou One, thou + Creator of mankind and Maker of the substance of the gods of the south + and of the north, of the west and of the east! O come ye and acclaim + R[=a], the lord of heaven and the Creator of the gods, and adore ye + him in his beautiful form as he cometh in the morning in his divine + bark. + + "O R[=a], those who dwell in the heights and those who dwell in the + depths adore thee. The god Thoth and the goddess Ma[=a]t have marked + out for thee [thy course] for each and every day. Thine enemy the + Serpent hath been given over to the fire, the serpent-fiend Sebau hath + fallen down headlong; his arms have been bound in chains, and thou + hast hacked off his legs; and the sons of impotent revolt shall + nevermore rise up against thee. The Temple of the Aged One [Footnote: + _i.e._, R[=a] of Heliopolis.] (_i.e._, R[=a]) keepeth festival, and + the voice of those who rejoice is in the mighty dwelling. The gods + exult when they see thy rising, O R[=a], and when thy beams flood the + world with light. The Majesty of the holy god goeth forth and + advanceth even unto the land of Manu; he maketh brilliant the earth at + his birth each day; he journeyeth on to the place where he was + yesterday." + + +II. FROM THE PAPYRUS OF HUNEFER. [Footnote: From the Papyrus of Hunefer +(Brit. Mus. No. 9901).] + + "Homage to thee, O thou who art R[=a] when thou risest and Temu when + thou settest. Thou risest, thou risest, thou shinest, thou shinest, O + thou who art crowned king of the gods. Thou art the lord of heaven, + thou art the lord of earth; thou art the creator of those who dwell in + the heights, and of those who dwell in the depths. Thou art the One + God who came into being in the beginning of time. Thou didst create + the earth, thou didst fashion man, thou didst make the watery abyss of + the sky, thou didst form Hapi (_i.e._, the Nile), thou didst create + the great deep, and thou dost give life unto all that therein is. Thou + hast knit together the mountains, thou hast made mankind and the + beasts of the field to come into being, thou hast made the heavens and + the earth. Worshipped be thou whom the goddess Maat embraceth at morn + and at eve. Thou dost travel across the sky with thy heart swelling + with joy; the great deep of heaven is content thereat. The + serpent-fiend Nak [Footnote: A name of the Serpent of darkness which + R[=a] slew daily.] hath fallen, and his arms are cut off. The Sektet + [Footnote: The boat in which R[=a] sailed from noon to sunset.] boat + receiveth fair winds, and the heart of him that is in the shrine + thereof rejoiceth. + + "Thou art crowned Prince of heaven, and thou art the One [dowered with + all sovereignty] who appearest in the sky. R[=a] is he who is true of + voice. [Footnote: _i.e._, whatsoever R[=a] commandeth taketh place + straightway; see the Chapter on the Judgment of the Dead, p. 110.] + Hail, thou divine youth, thou heir of everlastingness, thou + self-begotten One! Hail, thou who didst give thyself birth! Hail, One, + thou mighty being, of myriad forms and aspects, thou king of the + world, prince of Annu (Heliopolis), lord of eternity, and ruler of + everlastingness! The company of the gods rejoice when thou risest and + dost sail across the sky, O thou who art exalted in the Sektet boat." + + "Homage to thee, O Amen-R[=a], [Footnote: On the god Amen, see the + chapter, "The Gods of the Egyptians."] who dost rest upon Maat; + [Footnote: _i.e._, "thy existence, and thy risings and settings are + ordered and defined by fixed, unchanging, and unalterable law."] thou + passest over heaven and every face seeth thee. Thou dost wax great as + thy Majesty doth advance, and thy rays are upon all faces. Thou art + unknown, and no tongue can declare thy likeness; thou thyself alone + [canst do this]. Thou art One... Men praise thee in thy name, and they + swear by thee, for thou art lord over them. Thou hearest with thine + ears, and thou seest with thine eyes. Millions of years have gone over + the world. I cannot tell the number of those through which thou hast + passed. Thy heart hath decreed a day of happiness in thy name of + 'Traveller.' Thou dost pass over and dost travel through untold spaces + [requiring] millions and hundreds of thousands of years [to pass + over]; thou passest through them in peace, and thou steerest thy way + across the watery abyss to the place which thou lovest; this thou + doest in one little moment of time, and then thou dost sink down and + dost make an end of the hours." + + +III. FROM THE PAPYRUS OF ANI. [Footnote: Plate 20.] + +The following beautiful composition, part hymn and part prayer, is of +exceptional interest. + + "Hail, thou Disk, thou lord of rays, who risest on the horizon day by + day! Shine thou with thy beams of light upon the face of Osiris Ani, + who is true of voice; for he singeth hymns of praise unto thee at + dawn, and he maketh thee to set at eventide with words of adoration, + May the soul of Ani come forth with thee into heaven, may he go forth + in the M[=a]tet boat, may he come into port in the Sektet boat, and + may he cleave his path among the never-resting stars in the heavens. + + "Osiris Ani, being in peace and triumph, adoreth his lord, the lord of + eternity, saying, 'Homage to thee, O Heru-Khuti (Harmachis), who art + the god Khepera, the self-created one; when thou risest on the horizon + and sheddest thy beams of light upon the lands of the North and of the + South, thou art beautiful, yea beautiful, and all the gods rejoice + when they behold thee, the king of heaven. The goddess Nebt-Unnut is + stablished upon thy head; and her uraei of the South and of the North + are upon thy brow; she taketh up her place before thee. The god. Thoth + is stablished in the bows of thy boat to destroy utterly all thy foes. + Those who are in the Tuat (underworld) come forth to meet thee, and + they bow low in homage as they come towards thee, to behold thy + beautiful form. And I have come before thee that I may be with thee to + behold thy Disk each day. May I not be shut up [in the tomb], may I + not be turned back, may the limbs of my body be made new again when I + view thy beauties, even as [are those of] all thy favoured ones, + because I am one of those who worshipped thee upon earth. May I come + unto the land of eternity, may I come even unto the everlasting land, + for behold, O my lord, this hast thou ordained for me.' + + "'Homage to thee, O thou who risest in thy horizon as R[=a], thou + restest upon Ma[=a]t, [Footnote: _i.e._, unchanging and unalterable + law.] Thou passest over the sky, and every face watcheth thee and thy + course, for thou hast been hidden from their gaze. Thou dost show + thyself at dawn and at eventide day by day. The Sektet boat, wherein, + is thy Majesty, goeth forth with might; thy beams are upon [all] + faces; thy rays of red and yellow cannot be known, and thy bright + beams cannot be told. The lands of the gods and the eastern lands of + Punt [Footnote: _i.e._, the east and west coasts of the Red Sea, and + the north-east coast of Africa.] must be seen ere that which, is + hidden [in thee] may be measured. [Footnote: I am doubtful about the + meaning of this passage.] Alone and by thyself thou, dost manifest + thyself [when] thou comest into being above Nu. May I advance, even as + thou dost advance; may I never cease [to go forward], even as thy + Majesty ceaseth not [to go forward], even though it be for a moment; + for with strides dost thou in one brief moment pass over spaces which + [man] would need hundreds of thousand; yea, millions of years to pass + over; [this] thou doest, and then thou dost sink to rest. Thou puttest + an end to the hours of the night, and thou dost count them, even thou; + thou endest them in thine own appointed season, and the earth, + becometh light, Thou settest thyself before thy handiwork in the + likeness of R[=a]; thou risest in the horizon.' + + "Osiris; the scribe Ani, declareth his praise of thee when thou + shinest, and when thou risest at dawn he crieth in his joy at thy + birth, saying:-- + + "'Thou art crowned with the majesty of thy beauties; thou mouldest thy + limbs as thou dost advance, and thou bringest them forth without + birth-pangs in the form of R[=a], as thou dost rise up in the + celestial height. Grant thou that I may come unto the heaven which is + everlasting, and unto the mountain where dwell thy favoured ones. May + I be joined unto those shining beings, holy and perfect, who are in + the underworld; and may I come forth with them to behold thy beauties + when thou shinest at eventide, and goest to thy mother Nut. Thou dost + place thyself in the west, and my hands adore [thee] when thou settest + as a living being. [Footnote: _i.e._, "because when thou settest thou + dost not die."] Behold, thou art the everlasting creator, and thou art + adored [as such when] thou settest in the heavens. I have given my + heart to thee without wavering, O thou who art mightier than the + gods.' + + "A hymn of praise to thee, O thou who risest like unto gold, and who + dost flood the world with light on the day of thy birth. Thy mother + giveth thee birth, and straightway thou dost give light upon the path + of [thy] Disk, O thou great Light who shinest in the heavens. Thou + makest the generations of men to flourish through the Nile-flood, and + thou dost cause gladness to exist in all lands, and in, all cities, + and in all temples. Thou art glorious by reason of thy splendours, and + thou makest strong thy KA (_i.e._ Double) with, divine foods, O thou + mighty one of victories, thou Power of Powers, who dost make strong + thy throne against evil fiends--thou who art glorious in Majesty in + the Sektet boat, and most mighty in the [=A]tet [Footnote: The Sun's + evening and morning boats respectively.] boat!" This selection may be + fittingly closed by a short hymn [Footnote: From the Papyrus of Nekht + (Brit. Mus. No. 10,471).] which, though, of a later date, reproduces + in a brief form all the essentials of the longer hymns of the XVIIIth + dynasty (about B.C. 1700 to 1400). + + "Homage to thee, O thou glorious Being, thou who art dowered [with all + sovereignty]. O Temu-Harma-chis, [Footnote: The evening and morning + sun respectively.] when thou risest in the horizon of heaven, a cry of + joy cometh forth, to thee from the mouth of all peoples, O thou + beautiful Being, thou dost renew thyself in thy season in the form of + the Disk within thy mother Hathor; [Footnote: Like Nut, a goddess of + the sky, but particularly of that portion of it in which the sun + rises.] therefore in every place every heart swelleth with joy at thy + rising for ever. The regions of the North and South come to thee with + homage, and send forth, acclamations at thy rising in the horizon of + heaven; thou illuminest the two lands with rays of turquoise light. + Hail, R[=a], thou who art R[=a]-Harmachis, thou divine man-child, heir + of eternity, self-begotten and self-born, king of the earth, prince of + the underworld, governor of the regions of Aukert (_i.e._ the + underworld)! Thou didst come forth, from the water, thou hast sprung + from the god Nu, who cherisheth thee and ordereth thy members. Hail, + god of life, thou lord of love, all men live when thou shinest; thou + art crowned king of the gods. The goddess Nut doeth homage unto thee, + and the goddess Ma[=a]t embraceth thee at all times. Those who are in + thy following sing unto thee with joy and bow down their foreheads to + the earth when they meet thee, thou lord of heaven, thou lord of + earth, thou king of Right and Truth, thou lord of eternity, thou + prince of everlastingness, thou sovereign of all the gods, thou god of + life, thou creator of eternity, thou maker of heaven, wherein thou art + firmly established. The company of the gods rejoice at thy rising, the + earth is glad when it beholdeth thy rays; the peoples that have been + long dead come forth with cries of joy to see thy beauties every day. + Thou goest forth each day over heaven and earth, and art made strong + each day by thy mother Nut. Thou passest through the heights of + heaven, thy heart swelleth with joy; the abyss of the sky is content + thereat. The Serpent-fiend hath fallen, his arms are hewn off, and the + knife hath cut asunder his joints, R[=a] liveth in Ma[=a]t the + beautiful. The Sektet boat draweth on and cometh into port; the South + and the North, the West and the East, turn, to praise thee, O thou + primeval substance of the earth who didst come into being of thine own + accord, Isis and Nephthys salute thee, they sing unto thee songs of + joy at thy rising in the boat, they protect thee with their hands. The + souls of the East follow thee, the souls of the West praise thee. Thou + art the ruler of all the gods, and thou hast joy of heart within thy + shrine; for the Serpent-fiend Nak hath been condemned to the fire, and + thy heart shall be joyful for ever." + +From the considerations set forth in the preceding pages, and from the +extracts from religious texts of various periods, and from the hymns +quoted, the reader may himself judge the views which the ancient +Egyptian held concerning God Almighty and his visible type and symbol +R[=a], the Sun-god. Egyptologists differ in their interpretations of +certain passages, but agree as to general facts. In dealing with the +facts it cannot be too clearly understood that the religious ideas of +the prehistoric Egyptian were very different from those of the cultured +priest of Memphis in the IInd dynasty, or those of the worshippers of +Temu or Atum, the god of the setting sun, in the IVth dynasty. The +editors of religious texts of all periods have retained many grossly +superstitious and coarse beliefs, which they knew well to be the +products of the imaginations of their savage, or semi-savage ancestors, +not because they themselves believed in them, or thought that the laity +to whom they ministered would accept them, but because of their +reverence for inherited traditions. The followers of every great +religion in the world have never wholly shaken off all the superstitions +which they have in all generations inherited from their ancestors; and +what is true of the peoples of the past is true, in a degree, of the +peoples of to-day. In the East the older the ideas, and beliefs, and +traditions, are, the more sacred they become; but this has not prevented +men there from developing high moral and spiritual conceptions and +continuing to believe in them, and among such must be counted the One, +self-begotten, and self-existent God whom the Egyptians worshipped. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + + +OSIRIS THE GOD OF THE RESURRECTION. + +The Egyptians of every period in which they are known to us believed +that Osiris was of divine origin, that he suffered death and mutilation +at the hands of the powers of evil, that after a great struggle with +these powers he rose again, that he became henceforth the king of the +underworld and judge of the dead, and that because he had conquered +death the righteous also might conquer death; and they raised Osiris to +such an exalted position in heaven that he became the equal and, in +certain cases, the superior of R[=a], the Sun-god, and ascribed to him +the attributes which belong unto God. However far back we go, we find +that these views about Osiris are assumed to be known to the reader of +religious texts and accepted by him, and in the earliest funeral book +the position of Osiris in respect of the other gods is identical with +that which he is made to hold in the latest copies of the Book of the +Dead. The first writers of the ancient hieroglyphic funeral texts and +their later editors have assumed so completely that the history of +Osiris was known unto all men, that none of them, as far as we know, +thought it necessary to write down a connected narrative of the life and +sufferings upon earth of this god, or if they did, it has not come down +to us. Even in the Vth dynasty we find Osiris and the gods of his cycle, +or company, occupying a peculiar and special place in the compositions +written for the benefit of the dead, and the stone and other monuments +which belong to still earlier periods mention ceremonies the performance +of which assumed the substantial accuracy of the history of Osiris as +made known to us by later writers. But we have a connected history of +Osiris which, though not written in Egyptian, contains so much that is +of Egyptian origin that we may be sure that its author drew his +information from Egyptian sources: I refer to the work, _De Iside et +Osìride_, of the Greek writer, Plutarch, who flourished about the middle +of the first century of our era. In it, unfortunately, Plutarch +identifies certain of the Egyptian gods with the gods of the Greeks, and +he adds a number of statements which rest either upon his own +imagination, or are the results of misinformation. The translation +[Footnote: _Plutarchi de Iside et Osirids liber: Graece et Anglice_. By +S. Squire, Cambridge, 1744.] by Squire runs as follows:-- + + "Rhea, [Footnote: _i.e._, Nut.] say they, having accompanied Saturn + [Footnote: _i.e._, Seb.] by stealth, was discovered by the Sun, + [Footnote: _i.e._, R[=a].] who hereupon denounced a curse upon her, + 'that she should not he delivered in any month or year'--Mercury, + however, being likewise in love with the same goddess, in recompense + of the favours which he had received from her, plays at tables with + the Moon, and wins from her the seventieth part of each of her + illuminations; these several parts, mating in the whole five days, he + afterwards joined together, and added to the three hundred and sixty, + of which the year formerly consisted, which days therefore are even + yet called by the Egyptians the Epact or superadded, and observed by + them as the birthdays of their gods. For upon the first of them, say + they, was OSIRIS born, just at whose entrance into the world a voice + was heard, saying, 'The lord of all the earth is born.' There are some + indeed who relate this circumstance in a different manner, as that a + certain person, named Pamyles, as he was fetching water from the + temple of Jupiter at Thebes, heard a voice commanding him to proclaim + aloud that 'the good and great king Osiris was then born'; and that + for this reason Saturn committed the education of the child to him, + and that in memory of this event the Pamylia were afterwards + instituted, a festival much resembling the Phalliphoria or Priapeia of + the Greeks. Upon the second of these days was AROUERIS [Footnote: + _i.e._, Hera-ur, "Horus the Elder."] born, whom some call Apollo, and + others distinguish by the name of the elder Orus. Upon the third Typho + [Footnote: _i.e._, Set.] came into the world, being born neither at + the proper time, nor by the proper place, but forcing his way through + a wound which he had made in his mother's side. ISIS was born upon the + fourth of them in the marshes of Egypt, as NEPTHYS was upon the last, + whom some call Teleute and Aphrodite, and others Nike--Now as to the + fathers of these children, the two first of them are said to have been + begotten by the Sun, Isis by Mercury, Typho and Nepthys by Saturn; and + accordingly, the third of these superadded days, because it was looked + upon as the birthday of Typho, was regarded by the kings as + inauspicious, and consequently they neither transacted any business on + it, or even suffered themselves to take any refreshment until the + evening. They further add, that Typho married Nepthys; and that Isis + and Osiris, having a mutual affection, loved each other in their + mother's womb before they were born, and that from this commerce + sprang Aroueris, whom the Egyptians likewise call the elder Orus, and + the Greeks Apollo. + + "Osiris, being now become king of Egypt, applied himself towards + civilizing his countrymen, by turning them from their former indigent + and barbarous course of life; he moreover taught them how to cultivate + and improve the fruits of the earth; he gave them a body of laws to + regulate their conduct by, and instructed them in that reverence and + worship which they were to pay to the gods. With the same good + disposition he afterwards travelled over the rest of the world + inducing the people everywhere to submit to his discipline; not indeed + compelling them by force of arms, but persuading them to yield to the + strength of his reasons, which were conveyed to them in the most + agreeable manner, in hymns and songs, accompanied by instruments of + music: from which last circumstance the Greeks conclude him to have + been the same with their Dionysius or Bacchus--During Osiris' absence + from his kingdom, Typho had no opportunity of making any innovations + in the state, Isis being extremely vigilant in the government, and + always upon her guard. After his return, however, having first + persuaded seventy-two other persons to join with him in the + conspiracy, together with a certain queen of Ethiopia named Aso, who + chanced to be in Egypt at that time, he contrived a proper stratagem + to execute his base designs. For having privily taken the measure of + Osiris' body, he caused a chest to be made exactly of the same size + with it, as beautiful as may be, and set off with all the ornaments of + art. This chest he brought into his banqueting-room; where, after it + had been much admired by all who were present, Typho, as it were in + jest, promised to give it to any one of them whose body upon trial it + might be found to fit. Upon this the whole company one after another, + go into it; but as it did not fit any of them, last of all Osiris lays + himself down in it, upon which the conspirators immediately ran + together, clapped the cover upon it, and then fastened it down on the + outside with nails, pouring likewise melted lead over it. After this + they carried it away to the river side, and conveyed it to the sea by + the Tanaïtic mouth of the Nile; which, for this reason, is still held + in the utmost abomination by the Egyptians, and never named by them + but with proper marks of detestation. These things, say they, were + thus executed upon the 17th [Footnote: In the Egyptian calendar this + day was marked triply unlucky.] day of the month Athyr, when the sun + was in Scorpio, in the 28th year of Osiris' reign; though there are + others who tell us that he was no more than 28 years old at this time. + + "The first who knew the accident which had befallen their king were + the Pans and Satyrs who inhabited the country about Chemmis + (Panopolis); and they immediately acquainting the people with the news + gave the first occasion to the name Panic Terrors, which has ever + since been made use of to signify any sudden affright or amazement of + a multitude. As to Isis, as soon as the report reached her she + immediately cut off one of the locks of her hair, [Footnote: The hair + cut off as a sign of mourning was usually laid in the tomb of the + dead.] and put on mourning apparel upon the very spot where she then + happened to be, which accordingly from this accident has ever since + been called Koptis, or _the city of mourning_, though some are of + opinion that this word rather signifies _deprivation_. After this she + wandered everywhere about the country full of disquietude and + perplexity in search, of the chest, inquiring of every person she met + with, even, of some children whom she chanced to see, whether they + knew what was become of it. Now it happened that these children had + seen what Typho's accomplices had done with the body, and accordingly + acquainted her by what mouth of the Nile it had been conveyed into the + sea--For this reason therefore the Egyptians look upon children as + endued with a kind of faculty of divining, and in consequence of this + notion are very curious in observing the accidental prattle which they + have with one another whilst they are at play (especially if it be in + a sacred place), forming omens and presages from it--Isis, during this + interval, having been informed that Osiris, deceived by her sister + Nepthys who was in love with him, had unwittingly united with her + instead of herself, as she concluded from the melilot-garland, + [Footnote: _i.e._, a wreath of clover.] which he had left with her, + made it her business likewise to search out the child, the fruit of + this unlawful commerce (for her sister, dreading the anger of her + husband Typho, had exposed it as soon as it was born), and + accordingly, after much pains and difficulty, by means of some dogs + that conducted her to the place where it was, she found it and bred it + up; so that in process of time it became her constant guard and + attendant, and from hence obtained the name of Anubis, being thought + to watch and guard the gods, as dogs do mankind. + + "At length she receives more particular news of the chest, that it had + been carried by the waves of the sea to the coast of Byblos, + [Footnote: Not the Byblos of Syria (Jebêl) but the papyrus swamps of + the Delta.] and there gently lodged in the branches of a bush of + Tamarisk, which, in a short time, had shot up into a large and + beautiful tree, growing round the chest and enclosing it on every + side, so that it was not to be seen; and farther, that the king of the + country, amazed at its unusual size, had cut the tree down, and made + that part of the trunk wherein the chest was concealed, a pillar to + support; the roof of his house. These things, say they, being made + known to Isis in an extraordinary manner by the report of Demons, sue + immediately went to Byblos; where, setting herself down by the side of + a fountain, she refused to speak to anybody, excepting only to the + queen's women who chanced to be there; these indeed she saluted and + caressed in the kindest manner possible, plaiting their hair for them, + and transmitting into them part of that wonderfully grateful odour + which issued from her own body. This raised a great desire in the + queen their mistress to see the stranger who had this admirable + faculty of transfusing so fragrant a smell from herself into the hair + and skin of other people. She therefore sent for her to court, and, + after a further acquaintance with her, made her nurse to one of her + sons. Now the name of the king who reigned at this time at Byblos, was + Meloarthus, as that of his queen was Astarte, or, according to others, + Saosis, though some call her Nemanoun, which answers to the Greek name + Athenais. + + "Isis fed the child by giving it her finger to suck instead of the + breast; she likewise put him every night into the fire in order to + consume his mortal part, whilst transforming herself into a swallow, + she hovered round the pillar and bemoaned her sad fate. Thus continued + she to do for some time, till the queen, who stood watching her, + observing the child to be all in a flame, cryed out, and thereby + deprived him of that immortality which would otherwise have been + conferred upon him. The Goddess upon this, discovering herself, + requested that the pillar, which supported the roof, might be given + her; which she accordingly took down, and then easily cutting it open, + after she had taken, out what she wanted, she wrapped up the remainder + of the trunk in fine linnen, and pouring perfumed oil upon it, + delivered it again into the hands of the king and queen (which piece + of wood is to this day preserved in the temple of Isis, and worshipped + by the people of Byblos). When this was done, she threw herself upon + the chest, making at the same time such a loud and terrible + lamentation over it, as frightened the younger of the king's sons, who + heard her, out of his life. But the elder of them she took with, her + and set sail with the chest for Egypt; and it being now about morning, + the river Phaedrus sending forth a rough and sharp air, she in her + anger dried up its current. + + "No sooner was she arrived at a desart place, where she imagined + herself to be alone, but she presently opened the chest, and laying + her face upon her dead husband's, embraced his corpse, and wept + bitterly; but, perceiving that the little boy had silently stolen + behind her, and found out the occasion of her grief, she turned + herself about on the sudden, and in her anger gave him so fierce and + stern a look that he immediately died of the affright. Others indeed + say that his death did not happen in this manner, but, as was hinted + above, that he fell into the sea, and afterwards received the greatest + honours on account of the Goddess; for that the Maneros, [Footnote: A + son of the first Egyptian king, who died in his early youth; see + Herodotus, ii. 79.] whom the Egyptians so frequently call upon in + their banquets, is none other than this very boy. This relation is + again contradicted by such as tell us that the true name of the child + was Palaestinus, or Pelusius, and that the city of this name was built + by the Goddess in memory of him; adding farther, that the Maneros + above mentioned is thus honoured by the Egyptians at their feasts, + because he was the first who invented music. There are others, again, + who affirm that Maneros is not the name of any particular person, but + a mere customary form, and complimental manner of greeting made use of + by the Egyptians one towards another at their more solemn feasts and + banquets, meaning no more by it, than to wish, that what they were + then about might prove fortunate and happy to them, for that this is + the true import of the word. In like manner, say they, the human + skeleton, which at these times of jollity is carried about in a box, + and shewn to all the guests, is not designed, as some imagine, to + represent the particular misfortunes of Osiris, but rather to remind + them of their mortality, and thereby to excite them freely to make use + of and to enjoy the good things which are set before them, seeing they + must quickly become such as they there saw; and that this is the true + reason of introducing it at their banquets--but to proceed in the + narration. + + "Isis intending a visit to her son Orus, who was brought up at Butus, + deposited the chest in the meanwhile in a remote and unfrequented + place: Typho however, as he was one night hunting by the light of the + moon, accidentally met with it; and knowing the body which was + enclosed in it, tore it into several pieces, fourteen, in all, + dispersing them up and down, in different parts of the country--Upon + being made acquainted with this event, Isis once more sets out in + search of the scattered fragments of her husband's body, making use of + a boat made of the reed Papyrus in order the more easily to pass thro' + the lower and fenny parts of the country--For which, reason, say they, + the crocodile never touches any persons, who sail in this sort of + vessels, as either fearing the anger of the goddess, or else + respecting it on account of its having once carried her. To this + occasion therefore is it to be imputed, that there are so many + different sepulchres of Osiris shewn, in Egypt; for we are told, that + wherever Isis met with any of the scattered limbs of her husband, she + there buried it. There are others however who contradict this + relation, and tell us, that this variety of Sepulchres was owing + rather to the policy of the queen, who, instead of the real body, as + was pretended, presented these several cities with the image only of + her husband: and that she did this, not only to render the honours, + which would by this means be paid to his memory, more extensive, but + likewise that she might hereby elude the malicious search of Typho; + who, if he got the better of Orus in the war wherein they were going + to be engaged, distracted by this multiplicity of Sepulchres, might + despair of being able to find the true one--we are told moreover, that + notwithstanding all her search, Isis was never able to recover the + member of Osiris, which having been thrown into the Nile immediately + upon its separation from the rest of the body, had been devoured by + the Lepidotus, the Phagrus, and the Oxyrynchus, fish which of all + others, for this reason, the Egyptians have in more especial + avoidance. In order however to make some amends for the loss, Isis + consecrated the Phallus made in imitation of it, and instituted a + solemn festival to its memory, which is even, to this day observed by + the Egyptians. + + "After these things, Osiris returning from the other world, appeared + to his son Orus, encouraged him to the battle, and at the same time + instructed him in the exercise of arms. He then asked him, 'what he + thought was the moat glorious action a man could perform?' to which + Orua replied, 'to revenge the injuries offered to his father and + mother.' He then asked him, 'what animal he thought most serviceable + to a soldier?' and being answered 'a horse'; this raised the wonder of + Osiris, so that he farther questioned him, 'why he preferred a horse + before a lion?' because, adds Orus, 'tho' the lion be the more + serviceable creature to one who stands in need of help, yet is the + horse [Footnote: The horse does not appear to have been known in Egypt + before the XVIIIth dynasty; this portion of Plutarch's version of the + history of Osiris must, then, be later than B.C. 1500.] more useful in + overtaking and cutting off a flying adversary.' These replies much + rejoiced Osiris, as they showed him that his son was sufficiently + prepared for his enemy--We are moreover told, that among the great + numbers who were continually deserting from Typho's party was his + concubine Thueris, and that a serpent pursuing her as she was coming + over to Orus, was slain by her soldiers--the memory of which action, + say they, is still preserved in that cord which is thrown into the + midst of their assemblies, and then chopt into pieces--Afterwards it + came to a battle between, them which lasted many days; but victory at + length inclined to Orus, Typho himself being taken prisoner. Isis + however, to whose custody he was committed, was so far from putting + him to death, that she even loosed his bonds and set him at liberty. + This action of his mother so extremely incensed Orus, that he laid + hands upon her, and pulled off the ensign of royalty which she wore on + her head; and instead thereof Hermes clapt on an helmet made in the + shape of an oxe's head--After this, Typho publicly accused Orus of + bastardy; but by the assistance of Hermes (Thoth) his legitimacy was + fully established by the judgment of the Gods themselves--After this; + there were two other battles fought between them, in both of which + Typho had the worst. Furthermore, Isis is said to have accompanied + with Osiris after his death, and in consequence hereof to have brought + forth Harpocrates, who came into the world before his time, and lame + in his lower limbs." + +When we examine this story by the light of the results of hieroglyphic +decipherment, we find that a large portion of it is substantiated by +Egyptian texts: _e.g._, Osiris was the son of Seb and Nut; the Epact is +known in the Calendars as "the five additional days of the year"; the +five gods, Osiris, Horus, Set, Isis, and Nephthys, were born on the days +mentioned by Plutarch; the 17th day of Athyr (Hathor) is marked as +triply unlucky in the Calendars; the wanderings and troubles of Isis are +described, and "lamentations" which she is supposed to have uttered are +found in the texts; lists of the shrines of Osiris are preserved in +several inscriptions; the avenging of his father by Horus is referred to +frequently in papyri and other documents; the conflict between Set and +Horus is described fully in a papyrus in the British Museum (No. +10,184); a hymn in the papyrus of Hunefer relates all that Thoth +performed for Osiris; and the begetting of Horus by Osiris after death +is mentioned in a hymn to Osiris dating from the XVIIIth dynasty in the +following passage:-- + + "Thy sister put forth her protecting power for thee, she scattered + abroad those who were her enemies, she drove away evil hap, she + pronounced mighty words of power, she made cunning her tongue, and her + words failed not. The glorious Isis was perfect in command and in + speech, and she avenged her brother. She sought him without ceasing, + she wandered round and round the earth uttering cries of pain, and she + rested (_or_ alighted) not until she had found him. She overshadowed + him with her feathers, she made air (_or_ wind) with her wings, and + she uttered cries at the burial of her brother. She raised up the + prostrate form of him whose heart was still, she took from him of his + essence, she conceived and brought forth a child, she suckled it in + secret, and none knew the place thereof; and the arm of the child hath + waxed strong in the great house of Seb. The company of the gods + rejoice, and are glad at the coming of Osiris's son Horus, and firm of + heart and triumphant is the son of Isis, the heir of Osiris." + [Footnote: This remarkable hymn was first made known by Chabas, who + published a translation of it, with notes, in _Revue Archéologique_, + Paris, 1857, t. xiv. p. 65 ff.] + +[Illustration: 1. Isis suckling her child Horus in the papyrus swamps. +2. Thoth giving the emblem of magical protection to Isis. 3. Amen-R[=a] +presenting the symbol of "life" to Isis. 4. The goddess Nekhebet +presenting years, and life, stability, power, and sovereignty to the son +of Osiris. 5. The goddess Sati presenting periods of years, and life, +stability, power, and sovereignty to the son of Osiris.] + +What form the details of the history of Osiris took in the early +dynasties it is impossible to say, and we know not whether Osiris was +the god of the resurrection to the predynastic or prehistoric Egyptians, +or whether that _rôle_ was attributed to him after Mena began to rule in +Egypt. There is, however, good reason for assuming that in the earliest +dynastic times he occupied the position of god and judge of those who +had risen from the dead by his help, for already in the IVth dynasty, +about B.C. 3800, king Mea-kau-R[=a] (the Mycerinus of the Greeks) is +identified with him, and on his coffin not only is he called "Osiris, +King of the South and North, Men-kau-R[=a], living for ever," but the +genealogy of Osiris is attributed to him, and he is declared to be "born +of heaven, offspring of Nut, flesh and bone of Seb." It is evident that +the priests of Heliopolis "edited" the religious texts copied and +multiplied in the College to suit their own views, but in the early +times when they began their work, the worship of Osiris was so +widespread, and the belief in him as the god of the resurrection so +deeply ingrained in the hearts of the Egyptians, that even in the +Heliopolitan system of theology Osiris and his cycle, or company of +gods, were made to hold a very prominent position. He represented to men +the idea of a man who was both god and man, and he typified to the +Egyptians in all ages the being who by reason of his sufferings and +death as a man could sympathize with them in their own sickness and +death. The idea of his human personality also satisfied their cravings +and yearnings for intercourse with a being who, though he was partly +divine, yet had much in common with themselves. Originally they looked +upon Osiris as a man who lived on the earth as they lived, who ate and +drank, who suffered a cruel death, who by the help of certain gods +triumphed over death, and attained unto everlasting life. But what +Osiris did they could do, and what the gods did for Osiris they must +also do for them, and as the gods brought about his resurrection so they +must bring about theirs, and as they made him the ruler of the +underworld so they must make them to enter his kingdom and to live there +as long as the god himself lived. Osiris, in some of his aspects, was +identified with the Nile, and with R[=a], and with several other "gods" +known to the Egyptians, but it was in his aspect as god of the +resurrection and of eternal life that he appealed to men in the valley +of the Nile; and for thousands of years men and women died believing +that, inasmuch as all that was done for Osiris would be done for them +symbolically, they like him would rise again, and inherit life +everlasting. However far back we trace religious ideas in Egypt, we +never approach a time when it can be said that there did not exist a +belief in the Resurrection, for everywhere it is assumed that Osiris +rose from the dead; sceptics must have existed, and they probably asked +their priests what the Corinthians asked Saint Paul, "How are the dead +raised up? and with what body do they come?" But beyond doubt the belief +in the Resurrection was accepted by the dominant classes in Egypt. The +ceremonies which the Egyptians performed with the view of assisting the +deceased to pass the ordeal of the judgment, and to overcome his enemies +in the next world, will be described elsewhere, as also will be the form +in which the dead were raised up; we therefore return to the theological +history of Osiris. + +The centre and home of the worship of Osiris in Egypt under the early +dynasties was Abydos, where the head of the god was said to be buried. +It spread north and south in the course of time, and several large +cities claimed to possess one or other of the limbs of his body. The +various episodes in the life of the god were made the subject of solemn +representations in the temple, and little by little the performance of +the obligatory and non-obligatory services in connection with them +occupied, in certain temples, the greater part of the time of the +priests. The original ideas concerning the god were forgotten and new +ones grew up; from being the _example_ of a man who had risen from the +dead and had attained unto life everlasting, he became the _cause_ of +the resurrection of the dead; and the power to bestow eternal life upon +mortals was transferred from the gods to him. The alleged dismemberment +of Osiris was forgotten in the fact that he dwelt in a perfect body in +the underworld, and that, whether dismembered or not, he had become +after his death the father of Horus by Isis. As early as the XIIth +dynasty, about B.C. 2500, the worship of this god had become almost +universal, and a thousand years later Osiris had become a sort of +national god. The attributes of the great cosmic gods were ascribed to +him, and he appeared to man not only as the god and judge of the dead, +but also as the creator of the world and of all things in it. He who was +the son of R[=a] became the equal of his father, and he took his place +side by side with him in heaven. + +We have an interesting proof of the identification of Osiris with R[=a] +in Chapter XVII. of the Book of the Dead. It will be remembered that +this Chapter consists of a series of what might almost be called +articles of faith, each of which is followed by one or more explanations +which represent one or more quite different opinions; the Chapter also +is accompanied by a series of Vignettes. In line 110 it is said, "I am +the soul which dwelleth in the two _tchafi_, [Footnote: _i.e._, the +souls of Osiris and R[=a].] What is this then? It is Osiris when he +goeth into Tattu (_i.e._, Busiris) and findeth there the soul of R[=a]; +there the one god embraceth the other, and souls spring into being +within the two _tchafi_." In the Vignette which illustrates this passage +the souls of R[=a] and Osiris are seen in the forms of hawks standing on +a pylon, and facing each other in Tattu; the former has upon his head a +disk, and the latter, who is human-headed, the white crown. It is a +noticeable fact that even at his meeting with R[=a] the soul of Osiris +preserves the human face, the sign of his kinship with man. + +Now Osiris became not only the equal of R[=a], but, in many respects, a +greater god than he. It is said, that from the nostrils of the head of +Osiris, which was buried at Abydos, came forth the scarabaeus [Footnote: +See von Berginaun in _Aeg Zeitschrift_, 1880, p. 88 ff.] which was at +once the emblem and type of the god Khepera, who caused all things to +come into being, and of the resurrection. In this manner Osiris became +the source and origin of gods, men, and things, and [Illustration: The +soul of R[=a] (1) meeting the soul of Osiris (2) in Tattu. The cat +(_i.e._, R[=a]) by the Persea tree (3) cutting off the head of the +serpent which typified night.] the manhood of the god was forgotten. The +next step was to ascribe to him the attributes of God, and in the +XVIIIth and XIXth dynasties he seems to have disputed the sovereignty of +the three companies of gods, that is to say of the trinity of trinities +of trinities, [Footnote: Each company of the gods contained three +trinities or triads.] with Amen-R[=a], who by this time was usually +called the "king of the gods." The ideas held concerning Osiris at this +period will best be judged by the following extracts from contemporary +hymns:-- + + "Glory [Footnote: See _Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_ (translation), + p. 11.] be to thee, O Osiris, Un-nefer, the great god within Abtu + (Abydos), king of eternity, lord of everlastingness, who passest + through millions of years in thy existence. The eldest son of the womb + of Nut, engendered by Seb the Ancestor [of the gods], lord of the + crowns of the South and of the North, lord of the lofty white crown; + as prince of gods and men he hath received the crook and the whip, and + the dignity of his divine fathers. Let thy heart, which dwelleth in + the mountain of Ament, be content, for thy son Horus is stablished + upon thy throne. Thou art crowned lord of Tattu (Busiris) and ruler in + Abydos." + + "Praise [Footnote: _Ibid._, p. 34.] be unto thee, O Osiris, lord of + eternity, Un-nefer, Heru-Khuti (Harmachis) whose forms are manifold, + and whose attributes are great, who art Ptah-Seker-Tem in Annu + (Heliopolis), the lord of the hidden place, and the creator of + Het-ka-Ptah (Memphis) and of the gods [therein], the guide of the + underworld, whom [the gods] glorify when thou settest in Nut. Isis + embraceth thee in peace, and she driveth away the fiends from the + mouth of thy paths. Thou turnest thy face upon Amentet, and thou + makest the earth to shine as with refined copper. The dead rise up to + see thee, they breathe the air and they look upon thy face when the + disk riseth on its horizon; their hearts are at peace, inasmuch as + they behold thee, O thou who art eternity and everlastingness." + +In the latter extract Osiris is identified with the great gods of +Heliopolis and Memphis, where shrines of the Sun-god existed in almost +pre-dynastic times, and finally is himself declared to be "eternity and +everlastingness"; thus the ideas of resurrection and immortality are +united in the same divine being. In the following Litany the process of +identification with the gods is continued:-- + + 1. "Homage to thee, O thou who art the starry deities in Annu, and the + heavenly beings in Kher-aba; [Footnote: A district near Memphis.] thou + god Unti, [Footnote: A god who walks before the boat of the god, Af, + holding a star in each hand.] who art more glorious than the gods who + are hidden in Annu. O grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pass in + peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor + have I done aught with deceit." + + 2. "Homage to thee, O An in Antes, Harmachis; thou stridest over + heaven with, long strides, O Harmachis. O grant thou unto me a path," + etc. [Footnote: This petition is only written once, but it is intended + to be repeated after each of the nine sections of the Litany.] + + 3. "Homage to thee, O soul of everlastingness, thou Soul who dwellest + in Tattu, Un-nefer, son of Nut; thou art lord of Akert (_i.e._, the + underworld). O grant thou unto me a path," etc. + + 4. "Homage to thee in thy dominion over Tattu; the Ureret crown is + stablished upon thy head; thou art the One who maketh the strength + which protecteth himself, and thou dwellest in peace in Tattu. O grant + thou unto me a path," etc. + + 5. "Homage to thee, O lord of the Acacia [Footnote: This tree was in + Heliopolis, and the Cat, _i.e._, the Sun, sat near it. (See p. 63).] + tree, the Seker boat [Footnote: The ceremony of setting the Seker boat + on its sledge was performed at dawn.] is set upon its sledge; thou + turnest back the Fiend, the worker of Evil, and thou causest the + Utchat (_i.e._, the Eye of Horus or R[=a]), to rest upon its seat. O + grant thou unto me a path," etc. + + 6. "Homage to thee, O thou who art mighty in thine hour, thou great + and mighty Prince, dweller in An-rut-f, [Footnote: The place where + nothing grows--the underworld.] lord of eternity and creator of + everlastingness, thou art the lord of Suten-henen _(_i.e._, + Heracleopolis Magna). O grant," etc. + + 7. "Homage to thee, O thou who restest upon Right and Truth, thou art + lord of Abydos, and thy limbs are joined unto Ta-tchesert (_i.e._, the + Holy Land, the underworld); thou art he to whom fraud and guile are + hateful. O grant," etc. + + 8. "Homage to thee, O thou who art within thy boat; thou bringest + H[=a]pi (_i.e._, the Nile) forth from his source; the light shineth + upon thy body, and thou art the dweller in Nekhen. O grant," etc. + + 9. "Homage to thee, O creator of the gods, thou king of the South and + of the North, O Osiris, victorious one, ruler of the world in thy + gracious seasons; thou art the lord of the celestial world. O grant," + etc. + +And, again: "R[=a] setteth as Osiris with all the diadems of the divine +spirits and of the gods of Amentet. He is the one divine form, the +hidden one of the Tuat, the holy Soul at the head of Amentet, Un-nefer, +whose duration of life is for ever and ever." [Footnote: See _Chapters +of Coming Forth by Day_, p. 334.] We have already referred to the help +which Thoth gave to Isis when he provided her with the words which +caused her dead husband to live again, but the best summary of the good +deeds which this god wrought for Osiris is contained in a hymn in the +_Papyrus of Hunefer_, [Footnote: _Ibid_., p. 343.] where the deceased +is made to say:-- + + "I have come unto thee, O son of Nut, Osiris, Prince of + everlastingness; I am, in the following of the god Thoth, and I have + rejoiced at everything which he hath done for thee. He brought the + sweet air into thy nostrils, and life and strength to thy beautiful + face; and the north wind which cometh forth from Temu for thy + nostrils, O lord of Ta-tchesert. He made the god Shu to shine upon + thy body; he illumined thy path with rays of light; he destroyed for + thee the faults and defects of thy members by the magical power of the + words of his mouth; he made Set and Horus to be at peace for thy sake; + he destroyed the storm-wind and the hurricane; he made the two + combatants (_i.e._, Set and Horus) to be gracious unto thee and the + two lauds to be at peace before thee; he did away the wrath which was + in their hearts, and each became reconciled unto his brother (_i.e._, + thyself). + + "Thy son Horus is triumphant in the presence of the full assembly of + the gods, the sovereignty over the world hath been given unto him, and + his dominion extendeth unto the uttermost parts of the earth. The + throne of the god Seb hath been adjudged unto him, together with the + rank which was created by the god Temu, and which hath been stablished + by decrees [made] in the Chamber of Archives, and hath been inscribed + upon an iron tablet according to the command of thy father Ptah-Tanen + when he sat upon the great throne. He hath set his brother upon that + which the god Shu beareth up (_i.e._, the heavens), to stretch out the + waters over the mountains, and to make to spring up that which groweth + upon the hills, and the grain (?) which shooteth upon the earth, and + he giveth increase by water and by land. Gods celestial and gods + terrestrial transfer themselves to the service of thy son Horus, and + they follow him into his hall [where] a decree is passed that he shall + be lord over them, and they do [his will] straightway. + + "Let thy heart rejoice, O lord of the gods, let thy heart rejoice + greatly; Egypt and the Red Land are at peace, and they serve humbly + under thy sovereign power. The temples are stablished upon their own + lands, cities and nomes possess securely the goods which they have in + their names, and we will make unto thee the divine offerings which we + are bound to make, and offer sacrifices in thy name for ever. + Acclamations are made in thy name, libations are poured out to thy KA, + and sepulchral meals [are brought unto thee] by the spirits who are in + thy following, and water is sprinkled ... on each side of the souls of + the dead in this land. Every plan for thee which hath been decreed by + the commands of R[=a] from the beginning hath been perfected. Now + therefore, O son of Nut, thou art crowned as Neb-er-tcher is crowned + at his rising. Thou livest, thou art stablished, thou renewest thy + youth, and thou art true and perfect; thy father R[=a] maketh strong + thy members, and the company of the gods make acclamations unto thee. + The goddess Isis is with thee and she never leaveth thee; [thou art] + not overthrown by thine enemies. The lords of all lands praise thy + beauties, even as they praise R[=a] when he riseth at the beginning of + each day. Thou risest up like an exalted being upon thy standard, thy + beauties lift up the face [of man] and make long [his] stride. The + sovereignty of thy father Seb hath, been given unto thee, and the + goddess Nut, thy mother, who gave birth to the gods, brought thee + forth as the firstborn, of five gods, and created thy beauties and + fashioned thy members. Thou art established as king, the white crown + is upon thy head, and thou hast grasped in thy hands the crook and + whip; whilst thou wert in the womb, and hadst not as yet come forth + therefrom upon the earth, thou wert crowned lord of the two lands, and + the 'Atef' crown of R[=a] was upon thy brow. The gods come unto thee + bowing low to the ground, and they hold thee in fear; they retreat and + depart when, they see thee with the terror of R[=a], and the victory + of thy Majesty is in their hearts. Life is with thee, and offerings of + meat and drink follow thee, and that which is thy due is offered up + before thy face." + +In one paragraph of another somewhat similar hymn [Footnote: See +_Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, p. 342.] other aspects of Osiris are +described, and after the words "Homage to thee, O Governor of those who +are in Amentet," he is called the being who "giveth birth unto men and +women a second time," [Footnote: The words are _mes tememu em nem_.] +_i.e._, "who maketh mortals to be born again." As the whole paragraph +refers to Osiris "renewing himself," and to his making himself "young +like unto R[=a] each and every day," there can be no doubt that the +resurrection of the dead, that is to say, their birth into a new life, +is what the writer means by the second birth of men and women. From this +passage also we may see that Osiris has become the equal of R[=a], and +that he has passed from being the god of the dead to being the god of +the living. Moreover, at the time when the above extracts were copied +Osiris was not only assumed to have occupied the position which R[=a] +formerly held, but his son Horus, who was begotten after his death, was, +by virtue of his victory over Set, admitted to be the heir and successor +of Osiris. And he not only succeeded to the "rank and dignity" of his +father Osiris, but in his aspect of "avenger of his father," he +gradually acquired the peculiar position of intermediary and intercessor +on behalf of the children of men. Thus in the Judgment Scene he leads +the deceased into the presence of Osiris and makes an appeal to his +father that the deceased may be allowed to enjoy the benefits enjoyed by +all those who are "true of voice" and justified in the judgment. Such an +appeal, addressed to Osiris in the presence of Isis, from the son born +under such remarkable circumstances was, the Egyptian thought, certain +of acceptance; and the offspring of a father, after the death of whose +body he was begotten, was naturally the best advocate for the deceased. + +But although such exalted ideas of Osiris and his position among the +gods obtained generally in Egypt during the XVIIIth dynasty (about B.C. +1600) there is evidence that some believed that in spite of every +precaution the body might decay, and that it was necessary to make a +special appeal unto Osiris if this dire result was to be avoided. The +following remarkable prayer was first found inscribed upon a linen +swathing which had enveloped the mummy of Thothmes III., but since that +time the text, written in hieroglyphics, has been found inscribed upon +the _Papyrus of Nu_, [Footnote: Brit. Mus., No. 10,477, sheet 18. I have +published the text in my _Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, pp. +398-402.] and it is, of course, to be found also in the late papyrus +preserved at Turin, which the late Dr. Lepsius published so far back as +1842. This text, which is now generally known as Chapter CLIV of the +Book of the Dead, is entitled "The Chapter of not letting the body +perish." The text begins:-- + + "Homage to thee, O my divine father Osiris! I have come to thee that + thou mayest embalm, yea embalm these my members, for I would not + perish and come to an end, [but would be] even like unto my divine + father Khepera, the divine type of him that never saw corruption. + Come, then, and make me to have the mastery over my breath, O thou + lord of the winds, who dost magnify those divine beings who are like + unto thyself. Stablish thou me, then, and strengthen me, O lord of the + funeral chest. Grant thou that I may enter into the land of + everlastingness, even as it was granted unto thee, and unto thy father + Temu, O thou whose body did not see corruption, and who thyself never + sawest corruption. I have never wrought that which thou hatest, nay, I + have uttered acclamations with those who have loved thy KA. Let not my + body turn into worms, but deliver me [from them] even as thou didst + deliver thyself. I beseech thee, let me not fall into rottenness as + thou dost let every god, and every goddess, and every animal, and + every reptile to see corruption when the soul hath gone forth from + them after their death. For when the soul departeth, a man seeth + corruption, and the bones of his body rot and become wholly + loathsomeness, the members decay piecemeal, the bones crumble into an + inert mass, the flesh turneth into foetid liquid, and he becometh a + brother unto the decay which cometh upon him. And he turneth into a + host of worms, and he becometh a mass of worms, and an end is made of + him, and he perisheth in the sight of the god Shu even as doth every + god, and every goddess, and every feathered fowl, and every fish, and + every creeping thing, and every reptile, and every animal, and every + thing whatsoever. When the worms see me and know me, let them fall + upon their bellies, and let the fear of me terrify them; and thus let + it be with every creature after [my] death, whether it be animal, or + bird, or fish, or worm, or reptile. And let life arise out of death. + Let not decay caused by any reptile make an end [of me], and let not + them come against me in their various forms. Do not thou give me over + unto that slaughterer who dwelleth in his torture-chamber (?), who + killeth the members of the body and maketh them to rot, who worketh + destruction upon many dead bodies, whilst he himself remaineth hidden + and liveth by slaughter; let me live and perform his message, and let + me do that which is commanded by him. Gave me not over unto his + fingers, and let him not gain, the mastery over me, for I am under thy + command, O lord of the gods. + + "Homage to thee; O my divine father Osiris, thou hast thy being with + thy members. Thou didst not decay, thou didst not become worms, thou + didst not diminish, thou didst not become corruption, thou didst not + putrefy, and thou didst not turn into worms." + +The deceased then identifying himself with Khepera, the god who created +Osiris and his company of gods, says:-- + + "I am the god Khepera, and my members shall have an everlasting + existence. I shall not decay, I shall not rot, I shall not putrefy, I + shall not turn into worms, and I shall not see corruption under the + eye of the god Shu. I shall have my being, I shall have my being; I + shall live, I shall live; I shall germinate, I shall germinate, I + shall germinate; I shall wake up in peace. I shall not putrefy; my + bowels shall not perish; I shall not suffer injury; mine eye shall not + decay; the form of my countenance shall not disappear; mine ear shall + not become deaf; my head shall not be separated from my neck; my + tongue shall not be carried away; my hair shall not be cut off; mine + eyebrows shall not be shaved off, and no baleful injury shall come + upon me. My body shall be stablished, and it shall neither fall into + ruin, nor be destroyed on this earth." + +Judging from such passages as those given above we might think that +certain of the Egyptians expected a resurrection of the physical body, +and the mention of the various members of the body seems to make this +view certain. But the body of which the incorruption and immortality are +so strongly declared is the S[=A]HU; or spiritual body, that sprang into +existence out of the physical body, which had become transformed by +means of the prayers that had been recited and the ceremonies that had +been performed on the day of the funeral, or on that wherein it was laid +in the tomb. It is interesting to notice that no mention is made of meat +or drink in the CLIVth Chapter, and the only thing which the deceased +refers to as necessary for his existence is air, which he obtains +through, the god Temu, the god who is always depicted in human form; the +god is here mentioned in his aspect of the night Sun as opposed to R[=a] +the day Sun, and a comparison of the Sun's daily death with the death of +the deceased is intended to be made. The deposit of the head of the God-man +Osiris at Abydos has already been mentioned, and the belief that it +was preserved there was common throughout Egypt. But in the text quoted +above the deceased says, "My head shall not be separated from my neck," +which seems to indicate that he wished to keep his body whole, +notwithstanding that Osiris was almighty, and could restore the limbs +and reconstitute the body, even as he had done for his own limbs and +body which had been hacked to pieces by Set. Chapter XLIII of the Book +of the Dead [Footnote: See _The Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, p. +98.] also has an important reference to the head of Osiris. It is +entitled "The Chapter of not letting the head of a man be cut off from +him in the underworld," and must be of considerable antiquity. In it the +deceased says: "I am the Great One, the son of the Great One; I am Fire, +and the son of the Fire, to whom was given his head after it had been +cut off. The head of Osiris was not taken away from him, let not the +head of the deceased be taken away from him. I have knit myself together +(_or_ reconstituted myself); I have made myself whole and complete; I +have renewed my youth; I am Osiris, the lord of eternity." + +From the above it would seem that, according to one version of the +Osiris story, the head of Osiris was not only cut off, but that it was +passed through the fire also; and if this version be very ancient, as it +well may be and probably is, it takes us back to prehistoric times in +Egypt when the bodies of the dead were mutilated and burned. Prof. +Wiedemann thinks [Footnote: See J. de Morgan, _Ethnographie +Préhistorique_, p. 210.] that the mutilation and breaking of the bodies +of the dead were the results of the belief that in order to make the KA, +or "double," leave this earth, the body to which it belonged must be +broken, and he instances the fact that objects of every kind were broken +at the time when they were placed in the tombs. He traces also a +transient custom in the prehistoric graves of Egypt where the methods of +burying the body whole and broken into pieces seem to be mingled, for +though in some of them the body has been broken into pieces, it is +evident that successful attempts have been made to reconstitute it by +laying the pieces as far as possible in their proper places. And it may +be this custom which is referred to in various places in the Book of the +Dead, when the deceased declares that he has collected his limbs "and +made his body whole again," and already in the Vth dynasty King Teta is +thus addressed--"Rise up, O thou Teta! Thou hast received thy head, thou +hast knitted together thy bones, [Footnote: _Recueil de Travaux_, tom. +v. p. 40 (I. 287).] thou hast collected thy members." + +The history of Osiris, the god of the resurrection, has now been traced +from the earliest times to the end of the period of the rule of the +priests of Amen (about B.C. 900), by which time Amen-R[=a] had been +thrust in among the gods of the underworld, and prayers were made, in +some cases, to him instead of to Osiris. From this time onwards Amen +maintained this exalted position, and in the Ptolemaic period, in an +address to the deceased Ker[=a]sher we read. "Thy face shineth before +R[=a], thy soul liveth before Amen, and thy body is renewed before +Osiris." And again it is said, "Amen is nigh unto thee to make thee to +live again.... Amen cometh to thee having the breath of life, and he +causeth thee to draw thy breath within thy funeral house." But in spite +of this, Osiris kept and held the highest place in the minds of the +Egyptians, from first to last, as the God-man, the being who was both +divine and human; and no foreign invasion, and no religious or political +disturbances, and no influence which any outside peoples could bring to +bear upon them, succeeded in making them regard the god as anything less +than the cause and symbol and type of the resurrection, and of the life +everlasting. For about five thousand years men were mummified in +imitation of the mummied form of Osiris; and they went to their graves +believing that their bodies would vanquish the powers of death, and the +grave, and decay, because Osiris had vanquished them; and they had +certain hope of the resurrection in an immortal, eternal, and spiritual +body, because Osiris had risen in a transformed spiritual body, and had +ascended into heaven, where he had become the king and the judge of the +dead, and had attained unto everlasting life therein. + +The chief reason for the persistence of the worship of Osiris in Egypt +was, probably, the fact that it promised both resurrection and eternal +life to its followers. Even after the Egyptians had embraced +Christianity they continued to mummify their dead, and for long after +they continued to mingle the attributes of their God and the "gods" with +those of God Almighty and Christ. The Egyptians of their own will never +got away from the belief that the body must be mummified if eternal life +was to be assured to the dead, but the Christians, though preaching the +same doctrine of the resurrection as the Egyptians, went a step further, +and insisted that there was no need to mummify the dead at all. St. +Anthony the Great besought his followers not to embalm his body and keep +it in a house, but to bury it and to tell no man where it had been +buried, lest those who loved him should come and draw it forth, and +mummify it as they were wont to do to the bodies of those whom they +regarded as saints. "For long past," he said, "I have entreated the +bishops and preachers to exhort the people not to continue to observe +this useless custom"; and concerning his own body, he said, "At the +resurrection of the dead I shall receive it from the Saviour +incorruptible." [Footnote: See Rosweyde, _Vitae Patrum_, p. 59; _Life of +St. Anthony_, by Athanusius (Migne), _Patrologiae_, Scr. Graec, tom. 26, +col. 972.] The spread of this idea gave the art of mummifying its +death-blow, and though from innate conservatism, and the love of having +the actual bodies of their beloved dead near them, the Egyptians +continued for a time to preserve their dead as before, yet little by +little the reasons for mummifying were forgotten, the knowledge of the +art died out, the funeral ceremonies were curtailed, the prayers became +a dead letter, and the custom of making mummies became obsolete. With +the death of the art died also the belief in and the worship of Osiris, +who from being the god of the dead became a dead god, and to the +Christians of Egypt, at least, his place was filled by Christ, "the +firstfruits of them that slept," Whose resurrection and power to grant +eternal life were at that time being preached throughout most of the +known world. In Osiris the Christian Egyptians found the prototype of +Christ, and in the pictures and statues of Isis suckling her son Horus, +they perceived the prototypes of the Virgin Mary and her Child. Never +did Christianity find elsewhere in the world a people whose minds were +so thoroughly well prepared to receive its doctrines as the Egyptians. + +This chapter may be fittingly ended by a few extracts from, the _Songs +of Isis and Nephthys_, which were sung in the Temple of Amen-R[=a] at +Thebes by two priestesses who personified the two goddesses. [Footnote +1: See my _Hieratic Papyrus of Nesi-Amsu (Archaeologia, vol. III_)] + + "Hail, thou lord of the underworld, thou Bull of those who are + therein, thou Image of R[=a]-Harmachis, thou Babe of beautiful + appearance, come thou to us in peace. Thou didst repel thy disasters, + thou didst drive away evil hap; Lord, come to us in peace. O Un-nefer, + lord of food, thou chief, thou who art of terrible majesty, thou God, + president of the gods, when thou dost inundate the land [all] things + are engendered. Thou art gentler than the gods. The emanations of thy + body make the dead and the living to live, O thou lord of food, thou + prince of green herbs, thou mighty lord, thou staff of life, thou + giver of offerings to the gods, and of sepulchral meals to the blessed + dead. Thy soul flieth after R[=a], thou shinest at dawn, thou settest + at twilight, thou risest every day; thou shalt rise on the left hand + of Atmu for ever and ever. Thou art the glorious one, the vicar of + R[=a]; the company of the gods cometh to thee invoking thy face, the + flame whereof reacheth unto thine enemies. We rejoice when thou + gatherest together thy bones, and when thou hast made whole thy body + daily. Anubis cometh to thee, and the two sisters (_i.e._, Isis and + Nephthys) come to thee. They have obtained beautiful things for thee, + and they gather together thy limbs for thee, and they seek to put + together the mutilated members of thy body. Wipe thou the impurities + which are on them upon our hair and come thou to us having no + recollection, of that which hath caused thee sorrow. Come thou in thy + attribute of 'Prince of the earth,' lay aside thy trepidation and be + at peace with us, O Lord. Thou shalt be proclaimed heir of the world, + and the One god, and, the fulfiller of the designs of the gods. All + the gods invoke thee, come therefore to thy temple and be not afraid. + O R[=a] (_i.e._, Osiris), thou art beloved of Isis and Nephthys; rest + thou in thy habitation forever." + + + + +CHAPTER III. + + +THE "GODS" OF THE EGYPTIANS. + +Throughout this book we have had to refer frequently to the "gods" of +Egypt; it is now time to explain who and what they were. We have already +shown how much the monotheistic side of the Egyptian religion resembles +that of modern Christian nations, and it will have come as a surprise to +some that a people, possessing such exalted ideas of God as the +Egyptians, could ever have become the byword they did through their +alleged worship of a multitude of "gods" in various forms. It is quite +true that the Egyptians paid honour to a number of gods, a number so +large that the list of their mere names would fill a volume, but it is +equally true that the educated classes in Egypt at all times never +placed the "gods" on the same high level as God, and they never imagined +that their views on this point could be mistaken. In prehistoric times +every little village or town, every district and province, and every +great city, had its own particular god; we may go a step farther, and +say that every family of any wealth and position had its own god. The +wealthy family selected some one to attend to its god, and to minister +unto his wants, and the poor family contributed, according to its means, +towards a common fund for providing a dwelling-house for the god, and +for vestments, etc. But the god was an integral part of the family, +whether rich or poor, and its destiny was practically locked up with +that of the family. The overthrow of the family included the overthrow +of the god, and seasons of prosperity resulted in abundant offerings, +new vestments; perhaps a new shrine, and the like. The god of the +village, although he was a more important being, might be led into +captivity along with the people of the village, but the victory of his +followers in a raid or fight caused the honours paid to him to be +magnified and enhanced his renown. + +The gods of provinces or of great cities were, of course, greater than +those of villages and private families, and in the large houses +dedicated to them, _i.e._, temples, a considerable number of them, +represented by statues, would be found. Sometimes the attributes of one +god would be ascribed to another, sometimes two or more gods would be +"fused" or united and form one, sometimes gods were imported from remote +villages and towns and even from foreign countries, and occasionally a +community or town would repudiate its god or gods, and adopt a brand new +set from some neighbouring district Thus the number of the gods was +always changing, and the relative position of individual gods was always +changing; an obscure and almost unknown, local god to-day might through a +victory in war become the chief god of a city, and on the other hand, a +god worshipped with abundant offerings and great ceremony one month +might sink into insignificance and become to all intents and purposes a +dead god the next. But besides family and village gods there were +national gods, and gods of rivers and mountains, and gods of earth and +sky, all of which taken together made a formidable number of "divine" +beings whose good-will had to be secured, and whose ill-will must be +appeased. Besides these, a number of animals as being sacred to the gods +were also considered to be "divine," and fear as well as love made the +Egyptians add to their numerous classes of gods. + +The gods of Egypt whose names are known to us do not represent all those +that have been conceived by the Egyptian imagination, for with them as +with much else, the law of the survival of the fittest holds good. Of +the gods of the prehistoric man we know nothing, but it is more than +probable that some of the gods who were worshipped in dynastic times +represent, in a modified form, the deities of the savage, or +semi-savage, Egyptian that held their influence on his mind the longest. +A typical example of such a god will suffice, namely Thoth, whose +original emblem was the dog-headed ape. In very early times great +respect was paid to this animal on account of his sagacity, +intelligence, and cunning; and the simple-minded Egyptian, when he heard +him chattering just before the sunrise and sunset, assumed that he was +in some way holding converse or was intimately connected with the sun. +This idea clung to his mind, and we find in dynastic times, in the +vignette representing the rising sun, that the apes, who are said to be +the transformed openers of the portals of heaven, form a veritable +company of the gods, and at the same time one of the most striking +features of the scene. Thus an idea which came into being in the most +remote times passed on from generation to generation until it became +crystallized in the best copies of the Book of the Dead, at a period +when Egypt was at its zenith of power and glory. The peculiar species of +the dog-headed ape which is represented in statues and on papyri is +famous for its cunning, and it was the words which it supplied to Thoth, +who in turn transmitted them to Osiris, that enabled Osiris to be "true +of voice," or triumphant, over his enemies. It is probably in this +capacity, _i.e._, as the friend of the dead, that the dog-headed ape +appears seated upon the top of the standard of the Balance in which the +heart of the deceased is being weighed against the feather symbolic of +Ma[=a]t; for the commonest titles of the god are "lord of divine books," +"lord of divine words," _i.e._, the formulae which make the deceased to +be obeyed by friend and foe alike in the next world. In later times, +when Thoth came to be represented by the ibis bird, his attributes were +multiplied, and he became the god of letters, science, mathematics, +etc.; at the creation he seems to have played a part not unlike that of +"wisdom" which is so beautifully described by the writer of Proverbs +(see Chap. VIII. vv. 23-31). + +Whenever and wherever the Egyptians attempted to set up a system of gods +they always found that the old local gods had to be taken into +consideration, and a place had to be found for them in the system. This +might be done by making them members of triads, or of groups of nine +gods, now commonly called "enneads"; but in one form or other they had +to appear. The researches made during the last few years have shown that +there must have been several large schools of theological thought in +Egypt, and of each of these the priests did their utmost to proclaim the +superiority of their gods. In dynastic times there must have been great +colleges at Heliopolis, Memphis, Abydos, and one or more places in the +Delta, not to mention the smaller schools of priests which, probably +existed at places on both sides of the Nile from Memphis to the south. +Of the theories and doctrines of all such schools and colleges, those of +Heliopolis have survived in the completest form, and by careful +examination of the funeral texts which were inscribed on the monuments +of the kings of Egypt of the Vth and VIth dynasties we can say what +views they held about many of the gods. At the outset we see that the +great god of Heliopolis was Temu or Atmu, the setting sun, and to him +the priests of that place ascribed the attributes which rightly belong +to R[=a], the Sun-god of the day-time. For some reason or other they +formulated the idea of a company of the gods, nine in number, which was +called the "great company _(paut)_ of the gods," and at the head of this +company they placed the god Temu. In Chapter XVII of the Book of the +Dead [Footnote: See _Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, p. 49.] we find +the following passage:-- + + "I am the god Temu in his rising; I am the only One. I came into being + in Nu. I am R[=a] who rose in the beginning." + +Next comes the question, "But who is this?" And the answer is: "It is +R[=a] when at the beginning he rose in the city of Suten-henen +(Heracleopolis Magna) crowned like a king in rising. The pillars of the +god Shu were not as yet created when he was upon the staircase of him +that dwelleth in Khemennu (Hermopolis Magna)." From these statements we +learn that Temu and R[=a] were one and the same god, and that he was the +first offspring of the god Nu, the primeval watery mass out of which all +the gods came into being. The text continues: "I am the great god Nu who +gave birth to himself, and who made his names to come into being and to +form the company of the gods. But who is this? It is R[=a], the creator +of the names of his members which came into being in the form of the +gods who are in the train of R[=a]." And again: "I am he who is not +driven back among the gods. But who is this? It is Tem, the dweller in +his disk, or as others say, it is R[=a] in his rising in the eastern +horizon of heaven." Thus we learn further that Nu was self-produced, and +that the gods are simply the names of his limbs; but then R[=a] is Nu, +and the gods who are in his train or following are merely +personifications of the names of his own members. He who cannot be +driven back among the gods is either Temu or R[=a], and so we find that +Nu, Temu, and R[=a] are one and the same god. The priests of Heliopolis +in setting Temu at the head of their company of the gods thus gave +R[=a], and Nu also, a place of high honour; they cleverly succeeded in +making their own local god chief of the company, but at the same time +they provided the older gods with positions of importance. In this way +worshippers of R[=a], who had regarded their god as the oldest of the +gods, would have little cause to complain of the introduction of Temu +into the company of the gods, and the local vanity of Heliopolis would +be gratified. + +But besides the nine gods who were supposed to form the "great company" +of gods of the city of Heliopolis, there was a second group of nine gods +called the "little company" of the gods, and yet a third group of nine +gods, which formed the least company. Now although the _paut_ or company +of nine gods might be expected to contain nine always, this was not the +case, and the number nine thus applied is sometimes misleading. There +are several passages extant in texts in which the gods of a _paut_ are +enumerated, but the total number is sometimes ten and sometimes eleven. +This fact is easily explained when we remember that the Egyptians +deified the various forms or aspects of a god, or the various phases in +his life. Thus the setting sun, called Temu or Atmu, and the rising sun, +called Khepera, and the mid-day sun, called R[=a], were three forms of +the same god; and if any one of these three forms was included in a +_paut_ or company of nine gods, the other two forms were also included +by implication, even though the _paut_ then contained eleven, instead of +nine gods. Similarly, the various forms of each god or goddess of the +_paut_ were understood to be included in it, however large the total +number of gods might become. We are not, therefore, to imagine that the +three companies of the gods were limited in number to 9 x 3, or +twenty-seven, even though the symbol for god be given twenty-seven times +in the texts. + +We have already alluded to the great number of gods who were known to +the Egyptians, but it will be readily imagined that it was only those +who were thought to deal with man's destiny, here and hereafter, who +obtained the worship and reverence of the people of Egypt. These were, +comparatively, limited in number, and in fact may be said to consist of +the members of the great company of the gods of Heliopolis, that is to +say, of the gods who belonged to the cycle of Osiris. These may be +briefly described as follows:-- + + 1. TEMU or ATMU, _i.e._, the "closer" of the day, just as Ptah was the + "opener" of the day. In the story of the creation he declares that he + evolved himself under the form of the god Khepera, and in hymns he is + said to be the "maker of the gods", "the creator of men", etc., and he + usurped the position of R[=a] among the gods of Egypt. His worship + must have been already very ancient at the time of the kings of the + Vth dynasty, for his traditional form is that of a man at that time. + + 2. SHU was the firstborn son of Temu. According to one legend he + sprang direct from the god, and according to another the goddess + Hathor was his mother; yet a third legend makes him the son of Temu by + the goddess Ius[=a]set. He it was who made his way between the gods + Seb and Nut and raised up the latter to form the sky, and this belief + is commemorated by the figures of this god in which he is represented + as a god raising himself up from the earth with the sun's disk on his + shoulders. As a power of nature he typified the light, and, standing + on the top of a staircase at Hermopolis Magua, [Footnote: See above, + pp. 69 and 89.] he raised up the sky and held it up during each day. + To assist him in this work he placed a pillar at each of the cardinal + points, and the "supports of Shu" are thus the props of the sky. + + 3. TEFNUT was the twin-sister of Shu; as a power of nature she + typified moisture or some aspect of the sun's heat, but as a god of + the dead she seems to have been, in some way, connected with the + supply of drink to the deceased. Her brother Shu was the right eye of + Temu, and she was the left, _i.e._, Shu represented an aspect of the + Sun, and Tefnut of the Moon. The gods Temu, Shu, and Tefnut thus + formed a trinity, and in the story of the creation the god Temu says, + after describing how Shu and Tefnut proceeded from himself, "thus from + being one god I became three." + + 4. SEB was the son of the god Shu. He is called the "Erp[=a]," _i.e._, + the "hereditary chief" of the gods, and the "father of the gods," + these being, of course, Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nephthys. He was + originally the god of the earth, but later he became a god of the dead + as representing the earth wherein the deceased was laid. One legend + identifies him with the goose, the bird which, in later times was + sacred to him, and he is often called the "Great Cackler," in allusion + to the idea that he made the primeval egg from which the world came + into being. + + 5. NUT was the wife of Seb and the mother of Osiris, Isis, Set, and + Nephthys. Originally she was the personification of the sky, and + represented the feminine principle which was active at the creation of + the universe. According to an old view, Seb and Nut existed in the + primeval watery abyss side by side with Shu and Tefnut; and later Seb + became the earth and Nut the sky. These deities were supposed to unite + every evening, and to remain embraced until the morning, when the god + Shu separated them, and set the goddess of the sky upon his four + pillars until the evening. Nut was, naturally, regarded as the mother + of the gods and of all things living, and she and her husband Seb were + considered to be the givers of food, not only to the living but also + to the dead. Though different views were current in Egypt as to the + exact location of the heaven of the beatified dead, yet all schools of + thought in all periods assigned it to some region in the sky, and the + abundant allusions in the texts to the heavenly bodies--that is, the + sun, moon, and stars--which the deceased dwells with, prove that the + final abode of the souls of the righteous was not upon earth. The + goddess Nut is sometimes represented as a female along whose body the + sun travels, and sometimes as a cow; the tree sacred to her was the + sycamore. + + 6. Osiris was the son of Seb and Nut, the husband of Isis and the + father of Horus. The history of this god is given elsewhere in this + book so fully that it is only necessary to refer briefly to him. He + was held to be a man although of divine origin; he lived and reigned + as a king on this earth; he was treacherously murdered by his brother + Set, and his body was cut up into fourteen pieces, which were + scattered about Egypt; after his death, Isis, by the use of magical + formulae supplied to her by Thoth, succeeded in raising him to life, + and he begot a son called Horus; when Horus was grown up, he engaged + in combat with Set, and overcame him, and thus "avenged his father"; + by means of magical formulae, supplied to him by Thoth, Osiris + reconstituted and revivified his body, and became the type of the + resurrection and the symbol of immortality; he was also the hope, the + judge, and the god of the dead, probably even in pre-dynastic times. + Osiris was in one aspect a solar deity, and originally he seems to + have represented the sun after it had set; but he is also identified + with the moon. In the XVIIIth dynasty, however, he is already the + equal of R[=a], and later the attributes of God and of all the "gods" + were ascribed to him. + + 7. Isis was the wife of Osiris and mother of Horus; as a nature + goddess she had a place in the boat of the sun at the creation, when + she probably typified the dawn. By reason of her success in + revivifying her husband's body by means of the utterance of magical + formulae, she is called the "lady of enchantments." Her wanderings in + search of her husband's body, and the sorrow which she endured in + bringing forth and rearing her child in the papyrus swamps of the + Delta, and the persecution which she suffered at the hands of her + husband's enemies, form the subject of many allusions in texts of all + periods. She has various aspects, but the one which appealed most to + the imagination of the Egyptians, was that of "divine mother"; in this + character thousands of statues represent her seated and suckling her + child Horus whom she holds upon her knees. + + 8. Set was the son of Seb and Nut, and the husband of Nephthys. At a + very early period he was regarded as the brother and friend of "Horus + the Elder," the Aroueris of the Greeks, and Set represented the night + whilst Horus represented the day. Each of these gods performed many + offices of a friendly nature for the dead, and among others they set + up and held the ladder by which the deceased made his way from this + earth to heaven, and helped him to ascend it. But, at a later period, + the views of the Egyptians concerning Set changed, and soon after the + reign of the kings called "Seti," _i.e._, those whose names were based + upon that of the god, he became the personification of all evil, and + of all that is horrible and terrible in nature, such as the desert in + its most desolate form, the storm and the tempest, etc. Set, as a + power of nature, was always waging war with Horus the Elder, _i.e._, + the night did battle with the day for supremacy; both gods, however, + sprang from the same source, for the heads of both are, in one scene, + made to belong to one body. When Horus, the son of Isis, had grown up, + he did battle with Set, who had murdered Horus's father Osiris, and + vanquished him; in many texts these two originally distinct fights are + confused, and the two Horus gods also. The conquest of Set by Horus in + the first conflict typified only the defeat of the night by the day, + but the defeat of Set in the second seems to have been understood as + the victory of life over death, and of good over evil. The symbol of + Set was an animal with a head something like that of a camel, but it + has not yet been satisfactorily identified; figures of the god are + uncommon, for most of them were destroyed by the Egyptians when they + changed their views about him. + + 9. NEPHTHYS was the sister of Isis and her companion in all her + wanderings and troubles; like her she had a place in the boat of the + Sun at creation, when she probably typified the twilight or very early + night. She was, according to one legend, the mother of Anubis by + Osiris, but in the texts his father is declared to be R[=a]. In + funeral papyri, stelae, etc., she always accompanies Isis in her + ministrations to the dead, and as she assisted Osiris and Isis to + defeat the wickedness of her own husband (Set), so she helped the + deceased to overcome the powers of death and the grave. + +Here then we have the nine gods of the divine company of Heliopolis, but +no mention is made of Horus, the son of Isis, who played such an +important part in the history of his father Osiris, and nothing is said +about Thoth; both gods are, however, included in the company in various +passages of the text, and it may be that their omission from it is the +result of an error of the scribe. We have already given the chief +details of the history of the gods Horus and Thoth, and the principal +gods of the other companies may now be briefly named. + + NU was the "father of the gods," and progenitor of the "great company + of the gods"; he was the primeval watery mass out of which all things + came. + + PTAH was one of the most active of the three great gods who carried + out the commands of Thoth, who gave expression in words to the will of + the primeval, creative Power; he was self-created, and was a form of + the Sun-god R[=a] as the "Opener" of the day. From certain allusions + in the Book of the Dead he is known to have "opened the mouth" + [Footnote: "May the god Ptah open my mouth"; "may the god Shu open my + mouth with his implement of iron wherewith he opened the mouth of the + gods" (Chap. XXIII.)] of the gods, and it is in this capacity that he + became a god of the cycle of Osiris. His feminine counterpart was the + goddess SEKHET, and the third member of the triad of which he was the + chief was NEFER-TEMU. + + PTAH-SEKER is the dual god formed by fusing Seker, the Egyptian name + of the incarnation of the Apis Bull of Memphis, with Ptah. + + PTAH-SEKER-AUSAR was a triune god who, in brief, symbolized life, + death, and the resurrection. + + KHNEMU was one of the old cosmic gods who assisted Ptah in carrying + out the commands of Thoth, who gave expression in words to the will of + the primeval, creative Power, he is described as "the maker of things + which are, the creator of things which shall be, the source of created + things, the father of fathers, and the mother of mothers." It was he + who, according to one legend, fashioned man upon a potter's wheel. + + KHEPERA was an old primeval god, and the type of matter which contains + within itself the germ of life which is about to spring into a new + existence; thus he represented the dead body from which the spiritual + body was about to rise. He is depicted in the form of a man having a + beetle for a head, and this insect became his emblem because it was + supposed to be self-begotten and self-produced. To the present day + certain of the inhabitants of the Sûdân, pound the dried scarabaeus or + beetle and drink it in water, believing that it will insure them a + numerous progeny. The name "Khepera" means "he who rolls," and when + the insect's habit of rolling along its ball filled with eggs is taken + into consideration, the appropriateness of the name is apparent. As + the ball of eggs rolls along the germs mature and burst into life; and + as the sun rolls across the sky emitting light and heat and with them + life, so earthly things are produced and have their being by virtue + thereof. + + R[=A] was probably the oldest of the gods worshipped in Egypt, and his + name belongs to such a remote period that its meaning is unknown. He + was in all periods the visible emblem of God, and was the god of this + earth to whom offerings and sacrifices were made daily; time began + when R[=a] appeared above the horizon at creation in the form of the + Sun, and the life of a man was compared to his daily course at a very + early date. R[=a] was supposed to sail over heaven in two boats, the + [=A]TET or M[=A] TET boat in which he journeyed from sunrise until + noon, and the SEKTET boat in which he journeyed from noon until + sunset. At his rising he was attacked by [=A]pep, a mighty "dragon" or + serpent, the type of evil and darkness, and with this monster he did + battle until the fiery darts which he discharged into the body of + =Apep scorched and burnt him up; the fiends that were in attendance + upon this terrible foe were also destroyed by fire, and their bodies + were hacked in pieces. A repetition of this story is given in the + legend of the fight between Horus and Set, and in both forms it + represented originally the fight which was supposed to go on daily + between light and darkness. Later, however, when Osiris had usurped + the position of R[=a], and Horus represented a divine power who was + about to avenge the cruel murder of his father, and the wrong which + had been done to him, the moral conceptions of right and wrong, good + and evil, truth and falsehood were applied to light and darkness, that + is to say, to Horus and Set. + +As R[=a] was the "father of the gods," it was natural that every god +should represent some phase of him, and that he should represent every +god. A good illustration of this fact is afforded by a Hymn to R[=a], a +fine copy of which is found inscribed on the walls of the sloping +corridor in the tomb of Seti I., about B.C. 1370, from which we quote +the following:-- + + 11. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, who dost enter + into the habitations of Ament, behold [thy] body is Temu. + + 12. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, who dost enter + into the hidden place of Anubis, behold, [thy] body is Khepera. + + 13. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, whose duration + of life is greater than that of the hidden forms, behold [thy] body is + Shu. + + 14. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, .... behold + [thy] body is Tefnut. + + 15. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, who bringest + forth, green things in their season, behold [thy] body is Seb. + + 16. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, thou mighty + being who dost judge,... behold [thy] body is Nut. + + 17. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, the lord.... + behold [thy] body is Isis. + + 18. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, whose head + giveth light to that which is in front of thee, behold [thy] body is + Nephthys. + + 19. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, thou source of + the divine members, thou One, who bringest into being that which hath + been begotten, behold [thy] body is Horus. + + 20. "Praise be unto thee, O R[=a], thou exalted Power, who dost dwell + in and illumine the celestial deep, behold [thy] body is Nu." + [Footnote: For the text see _Annales du Musée Guimet: Le Tombeau de + Seti 1_. (ed. Lefébure), Paris, 1886, pl. v.] + +In the paragraphs which follow R[=a] is identified with a large number +of gods and divine personages whose names are not of such common +occurrence in the texts as those given above, and in one way or another +the attributes of all the gods are ascribed to him. At the time when the +hymn was written it is clear that polytheism, not pantheism as some +would have it, was in the ascendant, and notwithstanding the fact that +the Theban god Amen was gradually being forced to the headship of the +companies of the gods of Egypt, we find everywhere the attempt being +made to emphasize the view that every god, whether foreign or native, +was an aspect or form of R[=a]. + +The god Amen just referred to was originally a local god of Thebes, +whose shrine was either founded or rebuilt as far back as the XIIth +dynasty, about B.C. 2500. This "hidden" god, for such is the meaning of +the name Amen, was essentially a god of the south of Egypt, but when the +Theban kings vanquished their foes in the north, and so became masters +of the whole country, Amen became a god of the first importance, and the +kings of the XVIIIth, XIXth, and XXth dynasties endowed his temples on a +lavish scale. The priests of the god called Amen "the king of the gods," +and they endeavoured to make all Egypt accept him as such, but in spite +of their power they saw that they could not bring this result about +unless they identified him with the oldest gods of the land. They +declared that he represented the hidden and mysterious power which +created and sustains the universe, and that the sun was the symbol of +this power; they therefore added his name to that of R[=a], and in this +form he gradually usurped the attributes and powers of Nu, Khnemu, Ptah, +H[=a]pi, and other great gods. A revolt headed by Amen-hetep, or +Amenophis IV. (about B.C. 1500), took place against the supremacy of +Amen in the middle of the XVIIIth dynasty, but it was unsuccessful. This +king hated the god and his name so strongly that he changed his own name +into that of "Khu-en-Aten," _i.e._, "the glory of the solar Disk," and +ordered the name of Amen to be obliterated, wherever possible, on +temples and other great monuments; and this was actually done in many +places. It is impossible to say exactly what the religious views of the +king were, but it is certain that he wished to substitute the cult of +Aten, a form of the Sun-god worshipped at Annu (_i.e._, On or +Heliopolis) in very ancient times, for that of Amen. "Aten" means +literally the "Disk of the Sun," and though it is difficult to +understand at this distance of time in what the difference between the +worship of R[=a] and the worship of "R[=a] in his Disk" consisted, we +may be certain that there must have been some subtle, theological +distinction between them. But whatever the difference may have been, it +was sufficient to make Amenophis forsake the old capital Thebes and +withdraw to a place [Footnote: The site is marked by the ruins of Tell +el-Amarna.]some distance to the north of that city, where he carried on +the worship of his beloved god Aten. In the pictures of the Aten worship +which have come down to us the god appears in the form of a disk from +which proceed a number of arms and hands that bestow life upon his +worshippers. After the death of Amenophis the cult of Aten declined, and +Amen resumed his sway over the minds of the Egyptians. + +Want of space forbids the insertion here of a full list of the titles of +Amen, and a brief extract from the Papyrus of the Princess Nesi-Khensu +[Footnote: For a hieroglyphic transcript of the hieratic text, see +Maspero, _Mémoires_, tom. i., p. 594 ff.] must suffice to describe the +estimation in which the god was held about B.C. 1000. In this Amen is +addressed as "the holy god, the lord of all the gods, Amen-R[=a], the +lord of the thrones of the world, the prince of Apt (_i.e._, Karnak), +the holy soul who came into being in the beginning, the great god who +liveth by right and truth, the first ennead who gave birth unto the +other two enneads, [Footnote: _i.e._, the great, the little, and the +least companies of the gods; each company (_paut_) contained nine gods.] +the being in whom every god existeth, the One of One, the creator of the +things which came into being when the earth took form in the beginning, +whose births are hidden, whose forms are manifold, and whose growth +cannot be known. The holy Form, beloved and terrible and mighty.... the +lord of space, the mighty One of the form of Khepera, who came into +existence through Khepera, the lord of the form of Khepera; when he came +into being nothing existed except himself. He shone upon the earth from +primeval time, he the Disk, the prince of light and radiance.... When +this holy god moulded himself, the heavens and the earth were made by +his heart (_or_ mind).... He is the Disk of the Moon, the beauties +whereof pervade the heavens and the earth, the untiring and beneficent +king whose will germinateth from rising to setting, from whose divine +eyes men and women come forth, and from whose mouth the gods do come, +and [by whom] food and meat and drink are made and provided, and [by +whom] the things which exist are created. He is the lord of time, and he +traverseth eternity; he is the aged one who reneweth his youth.... He is +the Being who cannot be known, and he is more hidden than all the +gods.... He giveth long life and multiplieth the years of those who are +favoured by him, he is the gracious protector of him whom he setteth in +his heart, and he is the fashioner of eternity and everlastingness. He +is the king of the North and of the South, Amen-R[=a], king of the gods, +the lord of heaven, and of earth, and of the waters and of the +mountains, with whose coming into being the earth began its existence, +the mighty one, more princely than, all the gods of the first company." + +In the above extract, it will be noticed that Amen is called the "One of +One," or the "One One," a title which has been explained as having no +reference whatever to the unity of God as understood in modern times: +but unless these words are intended to express the idea of unity, what +is their meaning? It is also said that he is "without second," and thus +there is no doubt whatever that when the Egyptians declared their god to +be One, and without a second, they meant precisely what the Hebrews and +Arabs meant when they declared their God to be One. [Footnote: See +Deut., vi. 4; and _Koran_, chapter cxii.] Such a God was an entirely +different Being from the personifications of the powers of nature and +the existences which, for want of a better name, have been called +"gods." + +But, besides R[=a], there existed in very early times a god called +HORUS, whose symbol was the hawk, which, it seems, was the first living +thing worshipped by the Egyptians; Horus was the Sun-god, like R[=a], +and in later times was confounded with Horus the son of Isis. The chief +forms of Horus given in the texts are: (1) HERU-UR (Aroueris), (2) +HERU-MERTI, (3) HERU-NUB, (4) HERU-KHENT-KHAT, (5) HERU-KHENT-AN-MAA, (6) +HERU-KHUTI, (7) HERU-SAM-TAUI, (8) HERU-HEKENNU, (9) HERU-BEHUTET. +Connected with one of the forms of Horus, originally, were the four gods +of the cardinal points, or the "four, spirits of Horus," who supported +heaven at its four corners; their names were HAPI, TUAMUTEE, AMSET, and +QEBHSENNUF, and they represented the north, east, south, and west +respectively. The intestines of the dead were embalmed and placed in +four jars, each being under the protection, of one of these four gods. +Other important gods of the dead are: (1) ANUBIS, the son of R[=a] or +Osiris, who presided over the abode of the dead, and with AP-UAT shared +the dominion of the "funeral mountain"; the symbol of each of these gods +is a jackal. (2) HU and SA, the children of Temu, or R[=a], who appear +in the boat of the sun at the creation, and later in the Judgment Scene. +(3) The goddess MA[=A]T, who was associated with Thoth, Ptah, and Khnemu +in the work of creation; the name means "straight," hence what is right, +true, truth, real, genuine, upright, righteous, just, steadfast, +unalterable, and the like. (4) The goddess HET-HERT (Hathor), _i.e._, +the "house of Horus," which was that part of the sky where the sun rose +and set. The sycamore tree was sacred to her, and the deceased prays to +be fed by her with celestial food from out of it (5) The goddess +MEH-URT, who represented that portion of the sky in which the sun takes +his daily course; here it was, according to the view held at one period +at least, that the judgment of the deceased was supposed to take place. +(6) NEITH, the mother of SEBEK, who was also a goddess of the eastern +portion of the sky. (7) SEKHET and BAST, who are represented with the +heads of a lion and a cat, and who were symbols of the destroying, +scorching power of the sun, and of the gentle heat thereof, +respectively. (8) SERQ, who was a form of Isis. (9) TA-URT (Thoueris), +who was the genetrix of the gods. (10) UATCHET, who was a form of +Hather, and who had dominion over the northern sky, just as NEKHEBET was +mistress of the southern sky. (11) NEHEB-KA, who was a goddess who +possessed magical powers, and in some respects resembled Isis in her +attributes. (12) SEBAK, who was a form of the Sun-god, and was in later +times confounded with Sebak, or Sebek, the friend of Set. (13) AMSU (or +MIN or KUEM), who was the personification of the generative and +reproductive powers of nature. (14) BEB or BABA, who was the "firstborn +son of Osiris." (15) H[=a]pi, who was the god of the Nile, and with whom +most of the great gods were identified. + +The names of the beings who at one time or another were called "gods" in +Egypt are so numerous that a mere list of them would fill scores of +pages, and in a work of this kind would be out of place. The reader is, +therefore, referred to Lanzone's _Mitologia Egizia_, where a +considerable number are enumerated and described. + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + + +THE JUDGMENT OF THE DEAD. + +The belief that the deeds done in the body would be subjected to an +analysis and scrutiny by the divine powers after the death of a man +belongs to the earliest period of Egyptian civilization, and this belief +remained substantially the same in all generations. Though we have no +information as to the locality where the Last Judgment took place, or +whether the Egyptian soul passed into the judgment-hall immediately +after the death of the body, or after the mummification was ended and +the body was deposited in the tomb, it is quite certain that the belief +in the judgment was as deeply rooted in the Egyptians as the belief in +immortality. There seems to have been no idea of a general judgment when +all those who had lived in the world should receive their reward for the +deeds done in the body; on the contrary, all the evidence available goes +to show that each soul was dealt with individually, and was either +permitted to pass into the kingdom of Osiris and of the blessed, or was +destroyed straightway. Certain passages in the texts seem to suggest the +idea of the existence of a place for departed spirits wherein the souls +condemned in the judgment might dwell, but it must be remembered that it +was the enemies of R[=a], the Sun-god, that inhabited this region; and +it is impossible to imagine that the divine powers who presided over the +judgment would permit the souls of the wicked to live after they had +been condemned and to become enemies of those who were pure and blessed. +On the other hand, if we attach any importance to the ideas of the Copts +upon this subject, and consider that they represent ancient beliefs +which they derived from the Egyptians traditionally, it must be admitted +that the Egyptian underworld contained some region wherein the souls of +the wicked were punished for an indefinite period. The Coptic lives of +saints and martyrs are full of allusions to the sufferings of the +damned, but whether the descriptions of these are due to imaginings of +the mind of the Christian Egyptian or to the bias of the scribe's +opinions cannot always be said. When we consider that the Coptic hell +was little more than a modified form of the ancient Egyptian Amenti, or +Amentet, it is difficult to believe that it was the name of the Egyptian +underworld only which was borrowed, and that the ideas and beliefs +concerning it which were held by the ancient Egyptians were not at the +same time absorbed. Some Christian writers are most minute in their +classification of the wicked in hell, as we may see from the following +extract from the life of Pisentios, [Footnote: Ed. Amélineau, Paris, +1887, p. 144 f.] Bishop of Keft, in the VIIth century of our era. The +holy man had taken refuge in a tomb wherein a number of mummies had been +piled up, and when he had read the list of the names of the people who +had been buried there he gave it to his disciple to replace. Then he +addressed his disciple and admonished him to do the work of God with +diligence, and warned him that every man must become even as were the +mummies which lay before them. "And some," said he, "whose sins have +been many are now in Amenti, others are in the outer darkness, others +are in pits and ditches filled with fire, and others are in the river of +fire: upon these last no one hath bestowed rest. And others, likewise, +are in a place of rest, by reason of their good works." When the +disciple had departed, the holy man began to talk to one of the mummies +who had been a native of the town of Erment, or Armant, and whose father +and mother had been called Agricolaos and Eustathia. He had been a +worshipper of Poseidon, and had never heard that Christ had come into +the world. "And," said he "woe, woe is me because I was born into the +world. Why did not my mother's womb become my tomb? When, it became +necessary for me to die, the Kosmokratôr angels were the first to come +round about me, and they told me of all the sins which I had committed, +and they said unto me, 'Let him that can save thee from the torments +into which thou shalt be cast come hither.' And they had in their hands +iron knives, and pointed goads which were like unto sharp spears, and +they drove them into my sides and gnashed upon me with their teeth. When +a little time afterwards my eyes were opened I saw death hovering about +in the air in its manifold forms, and at that moment angels who were +without pity came and dragged my wretched soul from my body, and having +tied it under the form of a black horse they led me away to Amonti. Woe +be unto every sinner like unto myself who hath been born into the world! +O my master and father, I was then delivered into the hands of a +multitude of tormentors who were without pity and who had each a +different form. Oh, what a number of wild beasts did I see in the way! +Oh, what a number of powers were there that inflicted punishment upon +me! And it came to pass that when I had been cast into the outer +darkness, I saw a great ditch which was more than two hundred cubits +deep, and it was filled with reptiles; each reptile had seven heads, and +the body of each was like unto that of a scorpion. In this place also +lived the Great Worm, the mere sight of which terrified him that looked +thereat. In his mouth he had teeth like unto iron stakes, and one took +me and threw me to this Worm which never ceased to eat; then immediately +all the [other] beasts gathered together near him, and when he had +filled his mouth [with my flesh], all the beasts who were round about me +filled theirs." In answer to the question of the holy man as to whether +he had enjoyed any rest or period without suffering, the mummy replied: +"Yea, O my father, pity is shown unto those who are in torment every +Saturday and every Sunday. As soon as Sunday is over we are cast into +the torments which we deserve, so that we may forget the years which we +have passed in the world; and as soon as we have forgotten the grief of +this torment we are cast into another which is still more grievous." + +Now, it is easy to see from the above description of the torments which +the wicked were supposed to suffer, that the writer had in his mind some +of the pictures with which we are now familiar, thanks to the excavation +of tombs which has gone on in Egypt during the last few years; and it is +also easy to see that he, in common with many other Coptic writers, +misunderstood the purport of them. The outer darkness, _i.e._, the +blackest place of all in the underworld, the river of fire, the pits of +fire, the snake and the scorpion, and such like things, all have their +counterparts, or rather originals, in the scenes which accompany the +texts which describe the passage of the sun through the underworld +during the hours of the night. Having once misunderstood the general +meaning of such scenes, it was easy to convert the foes of R[=a], the +Sun-god, into the souls of the damned, and to look upon the burning up +of such foes--who were after all only certain powers of nature +personified--as the well-merited punishment of those who had done evil +upon the earth. How far the Copts reproduced unconsciously the views +which had been held by their ancestors for thousands of years cannot be +said, but even after much allowance has been made for this possibility, +there remains still to be explained a large number of beliefs and views +which seem to have been the peculiar product of the Egyptian Christian +imagination. + +It has been said above that the idea of the judgment of the dead is of +very great antiquity in Egypt; indeed, it is so old that it is useless +to try to ascertain the date of the period when it first grew up. In the +earliest religious texts known to us, there are indications that the +Egyptians expected a judgment, but they are not sufficiently definite to +argue from; it is certainly doubtful if the judgment was thought to be +as thorough and as searching then as in the later period. As far back as +the reign of Men-kau-R[=a], the Mycerinus of the Greeks, about B.C. +3600, a religious text, which afterwards formed chapter 30B of the Book +of the Dead, was found inscribed on an iron slab; in the handwriting of +the god Thoth, by the royal son or prince Herut[=a]t[=a]f. [Footnote: +See _Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, Translation, p. 80.] The original +purpose of the composition of this text cannot be said, but there is +little doubt that it was intended, to benefit the deceased in the +judgment, and, if we translate its title literally, it was intended to +prevent his heart from "falling away from him in the underworld." In the +first part of it the deceased, after adjuring his heart, says, "May +naught stand up to oppose me in the judgment; may there be no opposition +to me in the presence of the sovereign princes; may there be no parting +of thee from me in the presence of him that keepeth the Balance!... May +the officers of the court of Osiris (in Egyptian _Shenit_), who form the +conditions of the lives of men, not cause my name to stink! Let [the +judgment] be satisfactory unto me, let the hearing be satisfactory unto +me, and let me have joy of heart at the weighing of words. Let not that +which is false be uttered against me before the Great God, the Lord of +Amentet." + +Now, although the papyrus upon, which this statement and prayer are +found was written about two thousand years after Men-kau-R[=a] reigned, +there is no doubt that they were copied from texts which were themselves +copied at a much earlier period, and that the story of the finding of +the text inscribed upon an iron slab is contemporary with its actual +discovery by Herut[=a]t[=a]f. It is not necessary to inquire here +whether the word "find" (in Egyptian _qem_) means a genuine discovery or +not, but it is clear that those who had the papyrus copied saw no +absurdity or impropriety in ascribing the text to the period of +Men-kau-R[=a]. Another text, which afterwards also became a chapter of +the Book of the Dead, under the title "Chapter of not letting the heart +of the deceased be driven away from him in the underworld," was +inscribed on a coffin of the XIth dynasty, about B.C. 2500, and in it we +have the following petition: "May naught stand up to oppose me in +judgment in the presence of the lords of the trial (literally, 'lords of +things'); let it not be said of me and of that which I have done, 'He +hath done deeds against that which is very right and true'; may naught +be against me in the presence of the Great God, the Lord of Amentet." +[Footnote: _Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, p. 78.] From these +passages we are right in assuming that before the end of the IVth +dynasty the idea of being "weighed in the balance" was already evolved; +that the religious schools of Egypt had assigned to a god the duty of +watching the balance when cases were being tried; that this weighing in +the balance took place in the presence of the beings called _Shenit_, +who were believed to control the acts and deeds of men; that it was +thought that evidence unfavourable to the deceased might be produced by +his foes at the judgment; that the weighing took place in the presence +of the Great God, the Lord of Amentet; and that the heart of the +deceased might fail him either physically or morally. The deceased +addresses his heart, calling it is "mother," and next identifies it with +his _ka_ or double, coupling the mention of the _ka_ with the name of +the god Khnemu: these facts are exceedingly important, for they prove +that the deceased considered his heart to be the source of his life and +being, and the mention of the god Khnemu takes the date of the +composition back to a period coaeval with the beginnings of religious +thought in Egypt. It was the god Khnemu who assisted Thoth in performing +the commands of God at the creation, and one very interesting sculpture +at Philae shows Khnemu in the act of fashioning man upon a potter's +wheel. The deceased, in mentioning Khnemu's name, seems to invoke his +aid in the judgment as fashioner of man and as the being who is in some +respects responsible for the manner of his life upon earth. + +In Chapter 30A there is no mention made of the "guardian of the +balance," and the deceased says, "May naught stand up to oppose me in +judgment in the presence of the lords of things!" The "lords of things" +may be either the "lords of creation," _i.e._, the great cosmic gods, or +the "lords of the affairs [of the hall of judgment]," _i.e._, of the +trial. In this chapter the deceased addresses not Khnemu, but "the gods +who dwell in the divine clouds, and who are exalted by reason of their +sceptres," that is to say, the four gods of the cardinal points, called +Mestha, H[=a]pi Tuamutef, and Qebhsennuf, who also presided over the +chief internal organs of the human body. Here, again, it seems as if the +deceased was anxious to make these gods in some way responsible for the +deeds done by him in his life, inasmuch as they presided, over the +organs that were the prime movers of his actions. In any case, he +considers them in, the light of intercessors, for he beseeches them to +"speak fair words unto R[=a]" on his behalf, and to make him to prosper +before the goddess Nehebka. In this case, the favour of R[=a], the +Sun-god, the visible emblem of the almighty and eternal God, is sought +for, and also that of the serpent goddess, whose attributes are not yet +accurately defined, but who has much to do with the destinies of the +dead. No mention whatever is made of the Lord of Amentet--Osiris. + +Before we pass to the consideration of the manner in which the judgment +is depicted upon the finest examples of the illustrated papyri, +reference must be made to an interesting vignette in the papyri of +Nebseni [Footnote: British Museum, No. 9900.] and Amen-neb. [Footnote 2: +British Museum, No. 0964.] In both of these papyri we see a figure of +the deceased himself being weighed in the balance against his own heart +in the presence of the god Osiris. It seems probable that a belief was +current at one time in ancient Egypt concerning the possibility of the +body being weighed against the heart, with the view of finding out if +the former had obeyed the dictates of the latter; be that as it may, +however, it is quite certain that this remarkable variant of the +vignette of Chapter 30B had some special meaning, and, as it occurs in +two papyri which date from the XVIIIth dynasty, we are justified in +assuming that it represents a belief belonging to a much older period. +The judgment here depicted must, in any case, be different from that +which forms such a striking scene in the later illustrated papyri of the +XVIIIth and following dynasties. + +We have now proved that the idea of the judgment of the dead was +accepted in religious writings as early as the IVth dynasty, about B.C. +3600, but we have to wait nearly two thousand years before we find it in +picture form. Certain scenes which are found in the Book of the Dead as +vignettes accompanying certain texts or chapters, _e.g._, the Fields of +Hetep, or the Elysian Fields, are exceedingly old, and are found on +sarcophagi of the XIth and XIIth dynasties; but the earliest picture +known of the Judgment Scene is not older than the XVIIIth dynasty. In +the oldest Theban papyri of the Book of the Dead no Judgment Scene is +forthcoming, and when we find it wanting in such authoritative documents +as the Papyrus of Nebseni and that of Nu, [Footnote: British Museum, No. +10,477.] we must take it for granted that there was some reason for its +omission. In the great illustrated papyri, in which, the Judgment Scene +is given in full, it will be noticed that it comes at the beginning of +the work, and that it is preceded by hymns and by a vignette. Thus, in +the Papyrus of Ani, [Footnote: British Museum, No. 10,470.] we have a +hymn to R[=a] followed by a vignette representing the sunrise, and a +hymn to Osiris; and in the Papyrus of Hunefer, [Footnote 2: British +Museum, No. 9901.] though the hymns are different, the arrangement is +the same. We are justified, then, in assuming that the hymns and the +Judgment Scene together formed an introductory section to the Book of +the Dead, and it is possible that it indicates the existence of the +belief, at least during the period of the greatest power of the priests +of Amen, from B.C. 1700 to B.C. 800, that the judgment of the dead for +the deeds done in the body preceded the admission of the dead into the +kingdom of Osiris. As the hymns which accompany the Judgment Scene are +fine examples of a high class of devotional compositions, a few +translations from some of them are here given. + +HYMN TO R[=A]. [Footnote: See _The Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, p. +7.] + + "Homage to thee, O thou who risest in Nu, [Footnote: The sky + personified.] and who at thy manifestation dost make the world bright + with light; the whole company of the gods sing hymns of praise unto + thee after thou hast come forth. The divine Merti [Footnote: + Literally, the Two Eyes, _i.e._, Isis and Nephthys.] goddesses who + minister unto thee cherish thee as King of the North and South, thou + beautiful and beloved Man-child. When, thou risest men and women live. + The nations rejoice in thee, and the Souls of Annu [Footnote: _i.e._, + R[=a], Shu and Tefnut.] (Heliopolis) sing unto thee songs of joy. The + Souls of the city of Pe, [Footnote: Part of the city of Buto + (Per-Uatchit). The souls of Pe were Horus, Mestha, H[=a]pi.] and the + Souls of the city of Nekhen [Footnote: _i.e._, Horus, Tuamutef, and + Qebhsennuf.] exalt thee, the apes of dawn adore thee, and all beasts + and cattle praise thee with one accord. The goddess Seba overthroweth + thine enemies, therefore hast thou rejoicing in thy boat; thy mariners + are content thereat. Thou hast attained unto the [= A]tet boat, + [Footnote: _i.e._, the boat in which the sun travels until noon.] and + thy heart swelleth with joy. O lord of the gods, when thou didst + create them they shouted for joy. The azure goddess Nut doth compass + thee on every side, and the god Nu floodeth thee with his rays of + light. O cast thou thy light upon me and let me see thy beauties, and + when thou goest forth over the earth I will sing praises unto thy fair + face. Thou risest in heaven's horizon, and thy disk is adored when it + resteth upon the mountain to give life unto the world." + + "Thou risest, thou risest, and thou comest forth from the god Nu. Thou + dost renew thy youth, and thou dost set thyself in the place where + thou wast yesterday. O thou divine Child, who didst create thyself, I + am not able [to describe] thee. Thou hast come with thy risings, and + thou hast made heaven and earth resplendent with thy rays of pure + emerald light. The land of Punt [Footnote: _i.e._, the land on each + side of the Red Sea and North-east Africa.] is established [to give] + the perfumes which, thou smellest with thy nostrils. Thou risest, O + marvellous Being, in heaven, and the two serpent-goddesses, Merti, are + established upon thy brow. Thou art the giver of laws, O thou lord of + the world and of all the inhabitants thereof; all the gods adore + thee." + +HYMN TO OSIRIS [Footnote: See _The Chapters of Coming Forth by Day_, p. +11.] + + "Glory be to thee, O Osiris Un-nefer, the great god within Abydos, + king of eternity and lord of everlastingness, the god who passest + through millions of years in thy existence. Thou art the eldest son of + the womb of Nut, thou wast engendered by Seb, the Ancestor of the + gods, thou art the lord of the Crowns of the North and of the South, + and of the lofty white crown. As Prince of the gods and of men thou + hast received the crook, and the whip, and the dignity of thy divine + fathers. Let thy heart which is in the mountain of Ament [Footnote: + _i.e._, the underworld.] be content, for thy son Horus is established + upon thy throne. Thou art crowned the lord of Tattu (Mendes) and ruler + in Abtu (Abydos). Through thee the world waxeth green in triumph + before the might of Neb-er-tcher. [Footnote: A name of Osiris.] Thou + leadest in thy train that which is, and that which is not yet, in thy + name of 'Ta-her-sta-nef;' thou towest along the earth in thy name of + 'Seker;' thou art exceedingly mighty and most terrible in thy name of + 'Osiris;' thou endurest for ever and for ever in thy name of + 'Un-nefer.'" + + "Homage to thee, O thou King of kings, Lord of lords, Prince of + Princes! From the womb of Nut thou hast ruled the world and the + underworld. Thy body is of bright and shining metal, thy head is of + azure blue, and the brilliance of the turquoise encircleth thee. O + thou god An, who hast had existence for millions of years, who + pervadest all things with thy body, who art beautiful in countenance + in the Land of Holiness (_i.e._, the underworld), grant thou to me + splendour in heaven, might upon earth, and triumph in the underworld. + Grant thou that I may sail down to Tattu like a living soul, and up to + Abtu like the phoenix; and grant that I may enter in and come forth + from the pylons of the lands of the underworld without let or + hindrance. May loaves of bread be given unto me in the house of + coolness, and offerings of food and drink in Annu (Heliopolis), and a + homestead for ever and for ever in the Field of Reeds [Footnote: A + division of the "Fields of Peace" or Elysian Fields.] with wheat and + barley therefor." + +In the long and important hymn in the Papyrus of Hunefer [Footnote: See +_The Chapters of Coming Forth By Day_, pp. 343-346.] occurs the +following petition, which is put into the mouth of the deceased:-- + + "Grant that I may follow in the train of thy Majesty even as I did + upon earth. Let my soul be called [into the presence], and let it be + found by the side of the lords of right and truth. I have come into + the City of God, the region which existed in primeval time, with [my] + soul, and with [my] double, and with [my] translucent form, to dwell + in this land. The God thereof is the lord of right and truth, he is + the lord of the _tchefau_ food of the gods, and he is most holy. His + land draweth unto itself every land; the South cometh sailing down the + river thereto, and the North, steered thither by winds, cometh daily + to make festival therein according to the command of the God thereof, + who is the Lord of peace therein. And doth he not say, 'The happiness + thereof is a care unto me'? The god who dwelleth therein worketh right + and truth; unto him that doeth these things he giveth old age, and to + him that followeth after them rank and honour, until at length he + attaineth unto a happy funeral and burial in the Holy Land" (_i.e._, + the underworld). + +The deceased, having recited these words of prayer and adoration to +R[=a], the symbol of Almighty God, and to his son Osiris, next "cometh +forth into the Hall of Ma[=a]ti, that he may be separated from every sin +which he hath done, and may behold the faces of the gods." [Footnote: +This quotation is from the title of Chapter CXXV. of the Book of the +Dead.] From the earliest times the Ma[=a]ti were the two goddesses Isis +and Nephthys, and they were so called because they represented the ideas +of straightness, integrity, righteousness, what is right, the truth, and +such like; the word Ma[=a]t originally meant a measuring reed or stick. +They were supposed either to sit in the Hall of Ma[=a]t outside the +shrine of Osiris, or to stand by the side of this god in the shrine; an +example of the former position will be seen in the Papyrus of Ani (Plate +31), and of the latter in the Papyrus of Hunefer (Plate 4). The original +idea of the Hall of Ma[=a]t or Ma[=a]ti was that it contained forty-two +gods; a fact which we may see from the following passage in the +Introduction to Chapter CXXV. of the Book of the Dead. The deceased says +to Osiris:-- + + "Homage to thee, O thou great God, thou Lord of the two Ma[=a]t + goddesses! I have come to thee, O my Lord, and I have made myself to + come hither that I may behold thy beauties. I know thee, and I know + thy name, and I know the names of the two and forty gods who live with + thee in this Hall of Ma[=a]ti, who live as watchers of sinners and who + feed upon their blood on that day when the characters (_or_ lives) of + men are reckoned up (_or_ taken into account) in the presence of the + god Un-nefer. Verily, God of the Rekhti-Merti (_i.e._, the twin + sisters of the two eyes), the Lord of the city of Ma[=a]ti is thy + name. Verily I have come to thee, and I have brought Ma[=a]t unto + thee, and I have destroyed wickedness." + +The deceased then goes on to enumerate the sins or offences which he has +not committed; and he concludes by saying: "I am pure; I am pure; I am +pure; I am pure. My purity is the purity of the great Bennu which is in +the city of Suten-henen (Heracleopolis), for, behold., I am the nostrils +of the God of breath, who maketh all mankind to live on the day when the +Eye of R[=a] is full in Annu (Heliopolis) at the end of the second month +of the season PERT. [Footnote: _i.e._, the last day of the sixth month +of the Egyptian year, called by the Copta Mekhir.] I have seen the Eye +of R[=a] when it was full in Annu; [Footnote: The allusion here seems to +be to the Summer or Winter Solstice.] therefore let not evil befall me +either in this land or in this Hall of Ma[=a]ti, because I, even I, know +the names of the gods who are therein." + +Now as the gods who live in the Hall of Ma[=a]t with Osiris are two and +forty in number, we should expect that two and forty sins or offences +would be mentioned in the addresses which the deceased makes to them; +but this is not the case, for the sins enumerated in the Introduction +never reach this number. In the great illustrated papyri of the XVIIIth +and XIXth dynasties we find, however, that notwithstanding the fact that +a large number of sins, which the deceased declares he has not +committed, are mentioned in the Introduction, the scribes and artists +added a series of negative statements, forty-two in number, which they +set out in a tabular form. This, clearly, is an attempt to make the sins +mentioned equal in number to the gods of the Hall of Ma[=a]t, and it +would seem as if they preferred to compose an entirely new form of this +section of the one hundred and twenty-fifth chapter to making any +attempt to add to or alter the older section. The artists, then, +depicted a Hall of Ma[=a]t, the doors of which are wide open, and the +cornice of which is formed of uraei and feathers, symbolic of Ma[=a]t. +Over the middle of the cornice is a seated deity with hands extended, +the right over the Eye of Horus, and the left over a pool. At the end of +the Hall are seated the goddesses of Ma[=a]t, _i.e._, Isis and Nephthys, +the deceased adoring Osiris who is seated on a throne, a balance with +the heart of the deceased in one scale, and the feather, symbolic of +Ma[=a]t, in the other, and Thoth painting a large feather. In this Hall +sit the forty-two gods, and as the deceased passes by each, the deceased +addresses him by his name and at the same time declares that he has not +committed a certain sin. An examination of the different papyri shows +that the scribes often made mistakes in writing this list of gods and +list of sins, and, as the result, the deceased is made to recite before +one god the confession which strictly belongs to another. Inasmuch, as +the deceased always says after pronouncing the name of each god, "I have +not done" such and such a sin, the whole group of addresses has been +called the "Negative Confession." The fundamental ideas of religion and +morality which underlie this Confession are exceedingly old, and we may +gather from it with tolerable clearness what the ancient Egyptian +believed to constitute his duty towards God and towards his neighbour. + +It is impossible to explain, the fact that forty-two gods only are +addressed, and equally so to say why this number was adopted. Some have +believed that the forty-two gods represented each a name of Egypt, and +much support is given to this view by the fact that most of the lists of +names make the number to be forty-two; but then, again, the lists do not +agree. The classical authors differ also, for by some of these writers +the names are said to be thirty-six in number, and by others forty-six +are enumerated. These differences may, however, be easily explained, for +the central administration may at any time have added to or taken from +the number of names for fiscal or other considerations, and we shall +probably be correct in assuming that at the time the Negative Confession +was drawn up in the tabular form in which we meet it in the XVIIIth +dynasty the names were forty-two in number. Support is also lent to this +view by the fact that the earliest form of the Confession, which forms +the Introduction to Chapter CXXV., mentions less than forty sins. +Incidentally we may notice that the forty-two gods are subservient to +Osiris, and that they only occupy a subordinate position in the Hall of +Judgment, for it is the result of the weighing of the heart of the +deceased in the balance that decides his future. Before passing to the +description of the Hall of Judgment where the balance is set, it is +necessary to give a rendering of the Negative Confession which, +presumably, the deceased recites before his heart is weighed in the +balance; it is made from the Papyrus of Nu. [Footnote: British Museum, +No. 10,477.] + + 1. "Hail Usekh-nemtet (_i.e._, Long of strides), who comest forth from + Anuu (Heliopolis), I have not done iniquity. + + 2. "Hail Hept-seshet (_i.e._, Embraced by flame), who comest forth + from Kher-[=a]ba, [Footnote: A city near Memphis.] I have not robbed + with violence. + + 3. "Hail Fenti (_i.e._, Nose), who comest forth from Khemennu + (Hermopolis), I have not done violence to any man. + + 4. "Hail [=A]m-khaibitu (_i.e._, Eater of shades), who comest forth + from the Qereret (_i.e._, the cavern where the Nile rises), I have not + committed theft. + + 5. "Hail Neha-bra (_i.e._, Stinking face), who comest forth from + Restau, I have slain neither man nor woman. + + 6. "Hail Rereti (_i.e._, Double Lion-god), who comest forth from + heaven, I have not made light the bushel. + + 7. "Hail Maata-f-em-seshet (_i.e._, Fiery eyes), who comest forth from + Sekhem (Letopolis), I have not acted deceitfully. + + 8. "Hail Neba (_i.e._, Flame), who comest forth and retreatest, I have + not purloined the things which belong unto God. + + 9. "Hail Set-qesu (_i.e._, Crusher of bones), who comest forth from + Suten-henen (Heracleopolis), I have not uttered falsehood. + + 10. "Hail Khemi (_i.e._, Overthrower), who comest forth from Shetait + (_i.e._, the hidden place), I have not carried off goods by force. + + 11. "Hail Uatch-nesert (_i.e._, Vigorous of Flame), who comest forth + from Het-ka-Ptah (Memphis), I have not uttered vile (_or_ evil) words. + + 12. "Hail Hra-f-ha-f (_i.e._, He whose face is behind him), who comest + forth from the cavern and the deep, I have not carried off food by + force. + + 13. "Hail Qerti (_i.e._, the double Nile source), who comest forth + from the Underworld, I have not acted deceitfully. + + 14. "Hail Ta-ret (_i.e._, Fiery-foot), who comest forth out of the + darkness, I have not eaten my heart (_i.e._ lost my temper and become + angry). + + 15. "Hail Hetch-abehu (_i.e._, Shining teeth), who comest forth from + Ta-she (_i.e._, the Fayyûm), I have invaded no [man's land]. + + 16. "Hail [=A]m-senef (_i.e._, Eater of blood), who comest forth from + the house of the block, I have not slaughtered animals which are the + possessions of God. + + 17. "Hail [=A]m-besek (_i.e._, Eater of entrails), who comest forth + from M[=a]bet, I have not laid waste the lands which have been + ploughed. + + 18. "Hail Neb-Ma[=a]t (_i.e._, Lord of Ma[=a]t), who comest forth from + the city of the two Ma[=a]ti, I have not pried into matters to make + mischief. + + 19. "Hail Thenemi (_i.e._, Retreater), who comest forth from Bast + (_i.e._, Bubastis), I have not set my mouth in motion against any man. + + 20. "Hail [=A]nti, who comest forth from Annu (Heliopolis), I have not + given way to wrath without due cause. + + 21. "Hail Tututef, who comest forth from the home of Ati, I have not + committed fornication, and I have not committed sodomy. + + 22. "Hail Uamemti, who comest forth from the house of slaughter, I + have not polluted myself. + + 23. "Hail Maa-ant-f (_i.e._, Seer of what is brought to him), who + comest forth from the house of the god Amsu, I have not lain with the + wife of a man. + + 24. "Hail Her-seru, who comest forth from Nehatu, I have not made any + man to be afraid. + + 25. "Hail Neb-Sekhem, who comest forth from the Lake of Kaui, I have + not made my speech to burn with anger. [Footnote: Literally, "I have + not been hot of mouth."] + + 26. "Hail Seshet-kheru (_i.e._, Orderer of speech), who comest forth + from Urit, I have not made myself deaf unto the words of right and + truth. + + 27. "Hail Nekhen (_i.e._, Babe), who comest forth from the Lake of + Heq[=a] t, I have not made another person to weep. + + 28. "Hail Kenemti, who comest forth from Kenemet, I have not uttered + blasphemies. + + 29. "Hail An-hetep-f (_i.e._, Bringer of his offering), who comest + forth from Sau, I have not acted with violence. + + 30. "Hail Ser-kheru (_i.e._, Disposer of Speech), who comest forth + from Unsi, I have not hastened my heart. [Footnote: _i.e._, acted + without due consideration.] + + 31. "Hail Neb-hrau (_i.e._, Lord of Faces), who comest forth from + Netchefet, I have not pierced (?) my skin (?), and I have not taken + vengeance on the god. + + 32. "Hail Serekhi, who comest forth from Uthent, I have not multiplied + my speech beyond what should be said. + + 33. "Hail Neb-abui (_i.e._, Lord of horns), who comest forth from + Sauti, I have not committed fraud, [and I have not] looked upon evil. + + 34. "Hail Nefer-Tem, who comest forth from Ptah-het-ka (Memphis), I + have never uttered curses against the king. + + 35. "Hail Tem-sep, who comest forth from Tattu, I have not fouled + running water. + + 36. "Hail Ari-em-ab-f, who comest forth from Tebti, I have not exalted + my speech. + + 37. "Hail Ahi, who comest forth from Nu, I have not uttered curses + against God. + + 38. "Hail Uatch-rekhit [who comest forth from his shrine (?)], I have + not behaved with insolence. + + 39. "Hail Neheb-nefert, who comest forth from his temple, I have not + made distinctions. [Footnote: _i.e._, I have not been guilty of + favouritism.] + + 40. "Hail Neheb-kau, who comest forth from thy cavern, I have not + increased my wealth except by means of such things as are mine own + possessions. + + 41. "Hail Tcheser-tep, who comest forth from thy shrine, I have not + uttered curses against that which belongeth to God and is with me. + + 42. "Hail An-[=a]-f (_i.e._, Bringer of his arm), [who comest forth + from Aukert], I have not thought scorn of the god of the city." + +A brief examination of this "Confession" shows that the Egyptian code of +morality was very comprehensive, and it would be very hard to find an +act, the commission of which would be reckoned a sin when the +"Confession" was put together, which is not included under one or other +part of it. The renderings of the words for certain sins are not always +definite or exact, because we do not know the precise idea which the +framer of this remarkable document had. The deceased states that he has +neither cursed God, nor thought scorn of the god of his city, nor cursed +the king, nor committed theft of any kind, nor murder, nor adultery, nor +sodomy, nor crimes against the god of generation; he has not been +imperious or haughty, or violent, or wrathful, or hasty in deed, or a +hypocrite, or an accepter of persons, or a blasphemer, or crafty, or +avaricious, or fraudulent, or deaf to pious words, or a party to evil +actions, or proud, or puffed up; he has terrified no man, he has not +cheated in the market-place, and he has neither fouled the public +watercourse nor laid waste the tilled land of the community. This is, in +brief, the confession which the deceased makes; and the next act in the +Judgment Scene is weighing the heart of the deceased in the scales. As +none of the oldest papyri of the Book of the Dead supplies us with a +representation of this scene, we must have recourse to the best of the +illustrated papyri of the latter half of the XVIIIth and of the XIXth +dynasties. The details of the Judgment Scene vary greatly in various +papyri, but the essential parts of it are always preserved. The +following is the description of the judgment of Ani, as it appears in +his wonderful papyrus preserved in the British Museum. + +In the underworld, and in that portion of it which is called the Hall of +Ma[=a]ti, is set a balance wherein the heart of the deceased is to be +weighed. The beam is suspended by a ring upon a projection from the +standard of the balance made in the form of the feather which is the +symbol of Ma[=a]t, or what is right and true. The tongue of the balance +is fixed to the beam, and when this is exactly level, the tongue is as +straight as the standard; if either end of the beam inclines downwards +the tongue cannot remain in a perpendicular position. It must be +distinctly understood that the heart which was weighed in the one scale +was not expected to make the weight which was in the other to kick the +beam, for all that was asked or required of the deceased was that his +heart should balance exactly the symbol of the law. The standard was +sometimes surmounted by a human head wearing the feather of Ma[=a]t; +sometimes by the head of a jackal, the animal sacred to Anubis; and +sometimes by the head of an ibis, the bird sacred to Thoth; in the +Papyrus of Ani a dog-headed ape, the associate of Thoth, sits on the top +of the standard. In some papyri (_e.g._, those of Ani [Footnote: About +B.C. 1500.] and Hunefer [Footnote: About B.C. 1370.]), in addition to +Osiris, the king of the underworld and judge of the dead, the gods of +his cycle or company appear as witnesses of the judgment. In the Papyrus +of the priestess Anhai [Footnote: About B.C. 1000.] in the British +Museum the great and the little companies of the gods appear as +witnesses, but the artist was so careless that instead of nine gods in +each group he painted six in one and five in the other. In the Turin +papyrus [Footnote: Written in the Ptolemaic period.] we see the whole of +the forty-two gods, to whom the deceased recited the [Illustration: The +weighing of the heart of the scribe Ani in the Balance in the presence +of the gods.] "Negative Confession," seated in the judgment-hall. The +gods present at the weighing of Ani's heart are-- + + 1. R[=A]-HARMACHIS, hawk-headed, the Sun-god of the dawn and of noon. + + 2. TEMU, the Sun-god of the evening, the great god of Heliopolis. He + is depicted always in human form and with the face of a man, a fact + which proves that he had at a very early period passed through all the + forms in which gods are represented, and had arrived at that of a man. + He has upon his head the crowns of the South and North. + + 3. SHU, man-headed, the son of R[=a] and Hathor, the personification + of the sunlight. + + 4. TEFNUT, lion-headed, the twin-sister of Shu, the personification of + moisture. + + 5. SEB, man-headed, the son of Shu, the personification of the earth. + + 6. NUT, woman-headed, the female counterpart of the gods Nu and Seb; + she was the personification of the primeval water, and later of the + sky. + + 7. ISIS, woman-headed, the sister-wife of Osiris, and mother of Horus. + + 8. NEPHTHYS, woman-headed, the sister-wife of Osiris, and mother of + Anubis. + + 9. HORUS, the "great god," hawk-headed, whose worship was probably the + oldest in Egypt. + + 10. HATHOR, woman-headed, the personification of that portion of the + sky where the sun rose and set. + + 11. HU, man-headed, and + + 12. SA, also man-headed; these gods are present in the boat of R[=a] + in the scenes which depict the creation. + +On one side of the balance kneels the god Anubis, jackal-headed, who +holds the weight of the tongue of the balance in his right hand, and +behind him stands Thoth, the scribe of the gods, ibis-headed, holding in +his hands a reed wherewith to write down the result of the weighing. +Near him is seated the tri-formed beast [=A]m-mit, the, "Eater of the +Dead," who waits to devour the heart of Ani should it be found to be +light. In the Papyrus of Neb-qet at Paris this beast is seen lying by +the side of a lake of fire, at each corner of which is seated a +dog-headed ape; this lake is also seen in Chapter CXXVI. of the Book of +the Dead. The gods who are seated before a table of offerings, and +Anubis, and Thoth, and [=A]m-mit, are the beings who conduct the case, +so to speak, against Ani. On the other side of the balance stand Ani and +his wife Thuthu with their heads reverently bent; they are depicted in +human form, and wear garments and ornaments similar to those which they +wore upon earth. His soul, in the form of a man-headed hawk standing +upon a pylon, is present, also a man-headed, rectangular object, +resting upon a pylon, which has frequently been supposed to represent +the deceased in an embryonic state. In the Papyrus of Anhai two of these +objects appear, one on each side of the balance; they are described as +Shai and Renenet, two words which are translated by "Destiny" and +"Fortune" respectively. It is most probable, as the reading of the name +of the object is _Meskhenet_, and as the deity Meskhenet represents +sometimes both Shai and Renenet, that the artist intended the object to +represent both deities, even though we find the god Shai standing below +it close to the standard of the balance. Close by the soul stand two +goddesses called Meskhenet and Renenet respectively; the former is, +probably, one of the four goddesses who assisted at the resurrection of +Osiris, and the latter the personification of Fortune, which has already +been included under the _Meskhenet_ object above, the personification of +Destiny. + +It will be remembered that Meskhenet accompanied Isis, Nephthys, Heqet, +and Khnemu to the house of the lady Rut-Tettet, who was about to bring +forth three children. When these deities arrived, having changed their +forms into those of women, they found R[=a]-user standing there. And +when they had made music for him, he said to them, "Mistresses, there is +a woman in travail here;" and they replied, "Let us see her, for we know +how to deliver a woman." R[=a]-user then brought them into the house, +and the goddesses shut themselves in with the lady Rut-Tettet. Isis took +her place before her, and Nephthys behind her, whilst Heqet hastened the +birth of the children; as each child was born Meskhenet stepped up to +him and said, "A king who shall have dominion over the whole land," and +the god Khnemu bestowed health upon his limbs. [Footnote: See Erman, +_Westcar Papyrus_, Berlin, 1890, hieroglyphic transcript, plates 9 and +10.] Of these five gods, Isis, Nephthys, Meskhenet, Heqet, and Khnemu, +the first three are present at the judgment of Ani; Khnemu is mentioned +in Ani's address to his heart (see below), and only Heqet is +unrepresented. + +As the weighing of his heart is about to take place Ani says, "My heart, +my mother! My heart, my mother! My heart whereby I came into being! May +naught stand up to oppose me in the judgment; may there be no opposition +to me in the presence of the sovereign princes; may there be no parting +of thee from me in the presence of him that keepeth the Balance! Thou +art my _ka_, the dweller in my body; the god Khnemu who knitteth and +strengtheneth my limbs. Mayest thou come forth into the place of +happiness whither we go. May the princes of the court of Osiris, who +order the circumstances of the lives of men, not cause my name to +stink." Some papyri add, "Let it be satisfactory unto us, and let the +listening be satisfactory unto us, and let there be joy of heart unto us +at the weighing of words. Let not that which is false be uttered against +me before the great god, the lord of Amentet! Verily how great shalt +thou be when thou risest in triumph!" + +The tongue of the balance having been examined by Anubis, and the ape +having indicated to his associate Thoth that the beam is exactly +straight, and that the heart, therefore, counterbalances the feather +symbolic of Ma[=a]t _(_i.e._, right, truth, law, etc.), neither +outweighing nor underweighing it, Thoth writes down the result, and then +makes the following address to the gods:-- + + "Hear ye this judgment. The heart of Osiris hath in very truth been + weighed, and his soul hath stood as a witness for him; it hath been + found true by trial in the Great Balance. There hath not been found + any wickedness in him; he hath not wasted the offerings in the + temples; he hath not done harm by his deeds; and he spread abroad no + evil reports while he was upon earth." + +In answer to this report the company of the gods, who are styled "the +great company of the gods," reply, "That which cometh forth from thy +mouth, O Thoth, who dwellest in Khemennu (Hermopolis), is confirmed. +Osiris, the scribe Ani, triumphant, is holy and righteous. He hath not +sinned, neither hath he done evil against us. The Devourer [=A]m-mit +shall not be allowed to prevail over him, and meat-offerings and +entrance into the presence of the god Osiris shall be granted unto him, +together with a homestead for ever in the Field of Peace, as unto the +followers of Horus." [Footnote: These are a class of mythological +beings, or demi-gods, who already in the Vth dynasty were supposed to +recite prayers on behalf of the deceased, and to assist Horus and Set in +performing funeral ceremonies. See my _Papyrus of Ani_, p. cxxv.] + +Here we notice at once that the deceased is identified with Osiris, the +god and judge of the dead, and that they have bestowed upon him the +god's own name; the reason of this is as follows. The friends of the +deceased performed for him all the ceremonies and rites which were +performed for Osiris by Isis and Nephthys, and it was assumed that, as a +result, the same things which took place in favour of Osiris would also +happen on behalf of the deceased, and that in fact, the deceased would +become the counterpart of Osiris. Everywhere in the texts of the Book of +the Dead the deceased is identified with Osiris, from B.C. 3400 to the +Roman period. Another point to notice is the application of the words +_ma[=a] kheru_ to the deceased, a term which I have, for want of a +better word, rendered "triumphant." These words actually mean "true of +voice" or "right of word," and indicate that the person to whom they are +applied has acquired the power of using his voice in such a way that +when the invisible beings are addressed by him they will render unto him +all the service which he has obtained the right to demand. It is well +known that in ancient times magicians and sorcerers were wont to address +spirits or demons in a peculiar tone of voice, and that all magical +formulae were recited in a similar manner; the use of the wrong sound or +tone of voice would result in the most disastrous consequences to the +speaker, and perhaps in death. The deceased had to make his way through +a number of regions in the underworld, and to pass through many series +of halls, the doors of which were guarded by beings who were prepared, +unless properly addressed, to be hostile to the new-comer; he also had +need to take passage in a boat, and to obtain the help of the gods and +of the powers of the various localities wherein he wanted to travel if +he wished to pass safely into the place where he would be. The Book of +the Dead provided him with all the texts and formulae which he would +have to recite to secure this result, but unless the words contained in +them were pronounced in a proper manner, and said in a proper tone of +voice, they would have no effect upon the powers of the underworld. The +term _ma[=a] kheru_ is applied but very rarely to the living, but +commonly to the dead, and indeed the dead needed most the power which +these words indicated. In the case of Ani, the gods, having accepted the +favourable report of the result obtained by weighing Ani's heart by +Thoth, style him _ma[=a] kheru_, which is equivalent to conferring upon +him power to overcome all opposition, of every kind, which he may meet. +Henceforth every door will open at his command, every god will hasten to +obey immediately Ani has uttered his name, and those whose duty it is to +provide celestial food for the beatified will do so for him when once +the order has been given. Before passing on to other matters it is +interesting to note that the term _ma[=a] kheru_ is not applied to Ani +by himself in the Judgment Scene, nor by Thoth, the scribe of the gods, +nor by Horus when he introduces him to Osiris; it is only the gods who +can make a man _ma[=a] kheru_, and thereby he also escapes from the +Devourer. + +The judgment ended, Horus, the son of Isis, who has assumed all the +attributes of his father Osiris, takes Ani's left hand in his right and +leads him up to the shrine wherein the god Osiris is seated. The god +wears the white crown with feathers, and he holds in his hands a +sceptre, a crook, and whip, or flail, which typify sovereignty and +dominion. His throne is a tomb, of which the bolted doors and the +cornice of uraei may be seen painted on the side. At the back of his +neck hangs the _menat_ or symbol of joy and happiness; on his right hand +stands Nephthys, and on his left stands Isis. Before him, standing on a +lotus flower, are the four children of Horus, Mestha, H[=a]pi, Tuamutef, +and Qebhsennuf, who presided over and protected the intestines of the +dead; close by hangs the skin of a bull with which magical ideas seem to +have been associated. The top of the shrine in which the god sits is +surmounted by uraei, wearing disks on their heads, and the cornice also +is similarly decorated. In several papyri the god is seen standing up in +the shrine, sometimes with and sometimes without the goddesses Isis and +Nephthys. In the Papyrus of Hunefer we find a most interesting variant +of this [Illustration: Horus, the son of Isis, leading the scribe Ani +into the presence of Osiris, the god and judge of the dead; before the +shrine of the god Am kneels in adoration and presents offerings.] +portion of the scene, for the throne of Osiris rests upon, or in, water. +This reminds us of the passage in the one hundred and twenty-sixth +chapter of the Book of the Dead in which the god Thoth says to the +deceased, "Who is he whose roof is of fire, whose walls are living +uraei, and the floor of whose house is a stream of running water? Who is +he, I say?" The deceased answers, "It is Osiris," and the god says, +"Come forward, then; for verily thou shalt be mentioned [to him]." + +When Horus had led in Ani he addressed Osiris, saying, "I have come unto +thee, O Un-nefer, and I have brought the Osiris Ani unto thee. His heart +hath been found righteous and it hath come forth from the balance; it +hath not sinned against any god or any goddess. Thoth hath weighed it +according to the decree uttered unto him by the company of the gods; and +it is very true and right. Grant unto him cakes and ale; and let him +enter into thy presence; and may he be like unto the followers of Horus +for ever!" After this address Ani, kneeling by the side of tables of +offerings of fruit, flowers, etc., which he has brought unto Osiris, +says, "O Lord of Amentet, I am in thy presence. There is no sin in me, I +have not lied wittingly, nor have I done aught with a false heart. Grant +that I may be like unto those favoured ones who are round about thee, +and that I may be an Osiris greatly favoured of the beautiful god and +beloved of the Lord of the world, [I], the royal scribe of Ma[=a]t, who +loveth him, Ani, triumphant before Osiris." [Footnote: Or "true of voice +in respect of Osiris;" _i.e._, Ani makes his petition, and Osiris is to +hear and answer because he has uttered the right words in the right +manner, and in the right tone of voice.] Thus we come to the end of the +scene of the weighing of the heart. + +The man who has passed safely through this ordeal has now to meet the +gods of the underworld, and the Book of the Dead provides the words +which "the heart which is righteous and sinless" shall say unto them. +One of the fullest and most correct texts of "the speech of the deceased +when he cometh forth true of voice from the Hall of the Ma[=a]ti +goddesses" is found in the Papyrus of Nu; in it the deceased says:-- + + "Homage to you, O ye gods who dwell in the Hall of the Ma[=a]ti + goddesses, I, even I, know you, and I know your names. Let me not fall + under your knives of slaughter, and bring ye not forward my wickedness + unto the god in whose train ye are; and let not evil hap come upon, me + by your means. O declare ye me true of voice in the presence of + Neb-er-teber, because I have done that which is right and true in + Ta-mera (_i.e._, Egypt). I have not cursed God, therefore let not evil + hap come upon me through the King who dwelleth in his day. + + "Homage to you, O ye gods, who dwell in the Hall of the Ma[=a]ti + goddesses, who are without evil in your bodies, and who live upon + right and truth, and who feed yourselves upon right and truth in the + presence of the god Horus, who dwelleth in his divine Disk; deliver ye + me from the god Baba [Footnote: The first born son of Osiris.] who + feedeth upon the entrails of the mighty ones upon the day of the great + reckoning, O grant ye that I may come to you, for I have not committed + faults, I have not sinned, I have not done evil, I have not borne + false witness; therefore let nothing [evil] be done unto me. I live + upon right and truth, and I feed upon right and truth. I have + performed the commandments of men [as well as] the things whereat are + gratified the gods; I have made God to be at peace [with me by doing] + that which is his will. I have given bread to the hungry man, and + water to the thirsty man, and apparel to the naked man, and a boat to + the [shipwrecked] mariner. I have made holy offerings to the gods, and + sepulchral meals to the beatified dead. Be ye then my deliverers, be + ye then my protectors, and make ye not accusation against me in the + presence of [Osiris]. I am clean of mouth and clean of hands; + therefore let it be said unto me by those who shall behold me, 'Come + in peace, come in peace.' I have heard the mighty word which the + spiritual bodies spake unto the Cat [Footnote: _i.e._, R[=a] as the + slayer of the serpent of darkness, the head of which be cuts off with + a knife. (See above, p. 63). The usual reading is "which the Ass spake + to the Cat;" the Ass being Osiris and the cat R[=a].] in the house of + Hapt-re. I have testified in the presence of Hra-f-ha-f, and he hath + given [his] decision. I have seen the things over which the Persea + tree spreadeth within Re-stau. I am he who hath offered up prayers to + the gods and who knoweth their persons. I have come, and I have + advanced to make the declaration of right and truth, and to set the + Balance upon what supporteth it in the region of Aukert. + + "Hail, thou who art exalted upon thy standard (_i.e._, Osiris), thou + lord of the 'Atefu' crown whose name is proclaimed as 'Lord of the + winds,' deliver thou me from thy divine messengers who cause dire + deeds to happen, and who cause calamities to come into being, and who + are without coverings for their faces, for I have done that which is + right and true for the Lord of right and truth. I have purified myself + and my breast with libations, and my hinder parts with the things + which make clean, and my inward parts have been [immersed] in the Pool + of Right and Truth. There is no single member of mine which lacketh + right and truth. I have been purified in the Pool of the South, and I + have rested in the City of the North, which is in the Field of the + Grasshoppers, wherein the divine sailors of R[=a] bathe at the second + hour of the night and at the third hour of the day; and the hearts of + the gods are gratified after they have passed through it, whether it + be by night, or whether it be by day. And I would that they should say + unto me, 'Come forward,' and 'Who art thou?' and 'What is thy name?' + These are the words which, I would have the gods say unto me. [Then + would I reply] 'My name is He who is provided with flowers, and + Dweller in his olive tree.' Then let them say unto me straightway, + 'Pass on,' and I would pass on to the city to the north of the Olive + tree, 'What then wilt thou see there?' [say they. And I say]' The Leg + and the Thigh,' 'What wouldst thou say unto them?' [say they.] 'Let me + see rejoicings in the land of the Fenkhu' [I reply]. 'What will they + give thee? [say they]. 'A fiery flame and a crystal tablet' [I reply]. + 'What wilt thou do therewith?' [say they]. 'Bury them by the furrow of + M[=a][=a]at as Things for the night' [I reply]. 'What wilt thou find + by the furrow of M[=a][=a]at?' [say they]. 'A sceptre of flint + called Giver of Air' [I reply]. 'What wilt thou do with the fiery + flame and the crystal tablet after thou hast buried them?' [say they]. + 'I will recite words over them, in the furrow. I will extinguish the + fire, and I will break the tablet, and I will make a pool of water' [I + reply]. Then let the gods say unto me, 'Come and enter in through the + door of this Hall of the M[=a][=a]ti goddesses, for thou knowest us.'" + +After these remarkable prayers follows a dialogue between each part of +the Hall of M[=a][=a]ti and the deceased, which reads as follows:-- + + _Door bolts_. "We will not let thee enter in through us unless thou + tellest our names." + + _Deceased_. "'Tongue of the place of Right and Truth' is your + name." + + _Right post_. "I will not let thee enter in by me unless thou tellest + my name." + + _Deceased_. "'Scale of the lifter up of right and truth' is thy + name." + + _Left post_. "I will not let thee enter in by me unless thou tellest + my name." + + _Deceased_. "'Scale of wine' is thy name." + + _Threshold_. "I will not let thee pass over me unless thou tellest my + name." + + _Deceased_. "'Ox of the god Seb' is thy name." + + _Hasp_. "I will not open unto thee unless thou tellest my name." + + _Deceased_. "'Leg-bone of his mother' is thy name." + + _Socket-hole_. "I will not open unto thee unless thou tellest my + name." + + _Deceased_. "'Living Eye of Sebek, the lord of Bakhau,' is thy name." + + _Porter_. "I will not open unto thee unless thou tellest my name." + + _Deceased_. "'Elbow of the god Shu when he placeth himself to protect + Osiris' is thy name." + + _Side posts_. "We will not let thee pass in by us, unless thou tellest + our names." + + _Deceased_. "'Children of the uraei-goddesses' is your name." + + "Thou knowest us; pass on, therefore, by us" [say these]. + + _Floor_. "I will not let thee tread upon me, because I am silent and I + am holy, and because I do not know the names of thy feet + wherewith thou wouldst walk upon me; therefore tell them to + me." + + _Deceased_. "'Traveller of the god Khas' is the name of my right foot, + and 'Staff of the goddess Hathor' is the name of my left + foot." + + "Thou knowest me; pass on, therefore, over me" [it saith]. + + _Doorkeeper_. "I will not take in thy name unless thou tellest my + name." + + _Deceased_. "'Discerner of hearts and searcher of the reins' is thy + name." + + _Doorkeeper_. "Who is the god that dwelleth in his hour? Utter his + name." + + _Deceased_. "'M[=a]au-Taui' is his name." + + _Doorkeeper_. "And who is M[=a]au-Taui?" + + _Deceased_. "He is Thoth." + + _Thoth_. "Come! But why hast thou come?" + + _Deceased_. "I have come and I press forward that my name may be + mentioned." + + _Thoth_, "In what state art thou?" + + _Deceased_. "I am purified from evil things, and I am protected from + the baleful deeds of those who live in their days; and I + am not of them." + + _Thoth_. "Now will I make mention of thy name [to the god]. And who is + he whose roof is of fire, whose walls are living uraei, and + the floor of whose house is a stream of water? Who is he, I + say?" + + _Deceased_. "It is Osiris." + + _Thoth_. "Come forward, then; verily, mention of thy name shall be + made unto him. Thy cakes [shall come] from the Eye of R[=a]; + and thine ale [shall come] from the Eye of R[=a]; and thy + sepulchral meals upon earth [shall come] from the Eye of + R[=a]." + +With these words Chapter CXXV comes to an end. We have seen how the +deceased has passed through the ordeal of the judgment, and how the +scribes provided him with hymns and prayers, and with the words of a +confession with a view of facilitating his passage through the dread +Hall of the Ma[=a]ti goddesses. Unfortunately the answer which the god +Osiris may be supposed to have made to his son Horus in respect of the +deceased is not recorded, but there is no doubt that the Egyptian +assumed that it would be favourable to him, and that permission would be +accorded him to enter into each and every portion of the underworld, and +to partake of all the delights which the beatified enjoyed under the +rule of R[=a] and Osiris. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + + +THE RESURRECTION AND IMMORTALITY. + +In perusing the literature of the ancient Egyptians one of the first +things which forces itself upon the mind of the reader is the frequency +of allusions to the future life or to things which appertain thereto. +The writers of the various religious and other works, belonging to all +periods of Egyptian history, which have come down to us, tacitly assume +throughout that those who once have lived in this world have "renewed" +their life in that which is beyond the grave, and that they still live +and will live until time shall be no more. The Egyptian belief in the +existence of Almighty God is old, so old that we must seek for its +beginnings in pre-dynastic times; but the belief in a future life is +very much older, and its beginnings must be as old, at least, as the +oldest human remains which have been found in Egypt. To attempt to +measure by years the remoteness of the period when these were committed +to the earth, is futile, for no date that could be given them is likely +to be even approximately correct, and they may as well date from B.C. +12,000 as from B.C. 8000. Of one fact, however, we may be quite certain; +that is to say, that the oldest human remains that have been found in +Egypt bear upon them traces of the use of bitumen, which proves that the +Egyptians at the very beginning of their stay in the valley of the Nile +made some attempt to preserve their dead by means of mummification. +[Footnote: See J. de Morgan, _Ethnographie Préhistorique_, Paris, 1897, +p. 189.] If they were, as many think, invaders who had made their way +across Arabia and the Red Sea and the eastern desert of the Nile, they +may have brought the idea and habit of preserving their dead with them, +or they may have adopted, in a modified form, some practice in use among +the aboriginal inhabitants whom they found on their arrival in Egypt; in +either case the fact that they attempted to preserve their dead by the +use of substances which would arrest decay is certain, and in a degree +their attempt has succeeded. + +The existence of the non-historic inhabitants of Egypt has been revealed +to us in recent years by means of a number of successful excavations +which have been made in Upper Egypt on both sides of the Nile by several +European and native explorers, and one of the most striking results has +been the discovery of three different kinds of burials, which +undoubtedly belong to three different periods, as we may see by +examining the various objects which have been found in the early graves +at Nak[=a]dah and other non-historic sites of the same age and type. In +the oldest tombs we find the skeleton laid upon its left side, with the +limbs bent: the knees are on a level with the breast, and the hands are +placed in front of the face. Generally the head faces towards the south, +but no invariable rule seems to have been observed as to its +"orientation." Before the body was laid in the ground it was either +wrapped in gazelle skin or laid in loose grass; the substance used for +the purposes of wrapping probably depended upon the social condition of +the deceased. In burials of this class there are no traces of +mummification, or of burning, or of stripping the flesh from the bones. +In the next oldest graves the bodies are found to have been wholly or +partly stripped of their flesh; in the former case all the bones are +found cast indiscriminately is the grave, in the latter the bones of the +hands and the feet were laid together, while the rest of the skeleton is +scattered about in wild confusion. Graves of this period are found to be +oriented either north or south, and the bodies in them usually have the +head separated from the body; sometimes it is clear that the bodies have +been "jointed" so that they might occupy less space. Occasionally the +bodies are found lying upon their backs with their legs and arms folded +over them; in this case they are covered over with clay casings. In +certain graves it is clear that the body has been burnt. Now in all +classes of tombs belonging to the prehistoric period in Egypt we find +offerings in vases and vessels of various kinds, a fact which proves +beyond all doubt that the men who made these graves believed that their +dead friends and relatives would live again in some place, of the +whereabouts of which they probably had very vague ideas, in a life which +was, presumably, not unlike that which they had lived upon earth. The +flint tools, knives, scrapers and the like indicate that they thought +they would hunt and slay their quarry when brought down, and fight their +foes; and the schist objects found in the graves, which M. de Morgan +identifies as amulets, shows that even in those early days man believed +that he could protect himself against the powers of supernatural and +invisible enemies by talismans. The man who would hunt and fight in the +next world must live again; and if he would live again it must be either +in his old body or in a new one; if in the old body, it must be +revivified. But once having imagined a new life, probably in a new body, +death a second time was not, the prehistoric Egyptian hoped, within the +bounds of possibility. Here, then, we have the origin of the grand ideas +of the RESURRECTION and IMMORTALITY. + +There is every reason for believing that the prehistoric Egyptian +expected to eat, and to drink, and to lead a life of pleasure in the +region where he imagined his heaven to be, and there is little doubt +that he thought the body in which he would live there would be not +unlike the body which he had while he was upon earth. At this stage his +ideas of the supernatural and of the future life would be like those of +any man of the same race who stood on the same level in the scale of +civilization, but in every way he was a great contrast to the Egyptian +who lived, let us say, in the time of Mena, the first historical king of +Egypt, the date of whom for convenience' sake is placed at B.C. 4400. +The interval between the time when the prehistoric Egyptians made the +graves described above and the reign of Mena must have been very +considerable, and we may justly believe it to represent some thousands +of years; but whatever its length, we find that the time was not +sufficient to wipe out the early views which had been handed on from +generation to generation, or even to modify some of the beliefs which we +now know to have existed in an almost unchanged state at the latest +period of Egyptian history. In the texts which were edited by the +priests of Heliopolis we find references to a state or condition of +things, as far as social matters are concerned, which could only exist +in a society of men who were half savages. And we see from later works, +when extracts are made from the earlier texts which contain such +references, that the passages in which objectionable allusions occur are +either omitted altogether or modified. We know of a certainty that the +educated men of the College of Heliopolis cannot have indulged in the +excesses which the deceased kings for whom they prepared the funeral +texts are assumed to enjoy, and the mention of the nameless abomination +which the savage Egyptian inflicted upon his vanquished foe can only +have been allowed to remain in them because of their own reverence for +the written word. + +In passing it must be mentioned that the religious ideas of the men who +were buried without mutilation of limbs, or stripping of flesh from the +body, or burning, must have been different from those of the men who +practised such things on the dead. The former are buried in the +ante-natal position of a child, and we may perhaps be justified in +seeing in this custom the symbol of a hope that as the child is born +from this position into the world, so might the deceased be born into +the life in the world beyond the grave; and the presence of amulets, the +object of which was to protect the body, seems to indicate that they +expected the actual body to rise again. The latter, by the mutilation of +the bodies and the burning of the dead, seem to show that they had no +hope of living again in their natural bodies, and how far they had +approached to the conception of the resurrection of a spiritual body we +shall probably never know. When we arrive at the IVth dynasty we find +that, so far from any practice of mutilation or burning of the body +being common, every text assumes that the body is to be buried whole; +this fact indicates a reversal of the custom of mutilation, or burning, +which must have been in use, however, for a considerable time. It is to +this reversal that we probably owe such passages as, "O flesh of Pepi, +rot not, decay not, stink not;" "Pepi goeth forth with his flesh;" "thy +bones shall not be destroyed, and thy flesh shall not perish," +[Footnote: See _Recueil de Travaux_, tom. v. pp. 55, 185 (lines 160, +317, 353).] etc.; and they denote a return to the views and ways of the +earliest people known to us in Egypt. + +In the interval which elapsed between the period of the prehistoric +burials and the IVth dynasty, the Egyptian formulated certain theories +about the component parts of his own body, and we must consider these +briefly before we can describe the form in which the dead were believed +to rise. The physical body of a man was called KHAT, a word which +indicates something in which decay is inherent; it was this which was +buried in the tomb after mummification, and its preservation from +destruction of every kind was the object of all amulets, magical +ceremonies, prayers, and formulae, from the earliest to the latest +times. The god Osiris even possessed such a body, and its various +members were preserved as relics in several shrines in Egypt. Attached +to the body in some remarkable way was the KA, or "double," of a man; it +may be defined as an abstract individuality or personality which was +endowed with all his characteristic attributes, and it possessed an +absolutely independent existence. It was free to move from place to +place upon earth at will, and it could enter heaven and hold converse +with the gods. The offerings made in, the tombs at all periods were +intended for the nourishment of the KA, and it was supposed to be able +to eat and drink and to enjoy the odour of incense. In the earliest +times a certain portion of the tomb was set apart for the use of the KA, +and the religious organization of the period ordered that a class of +priests should perform ceremonies and recite prayers at stated seasons +for the benefit of the KA in the KA chapel; these men were known as "KA +priests." In the period when the pyramids were built it was firmly +believed that the deceased, in some form, was able to be purified, and +to sit down and to eat bread with it "unceasingly and for ever;" and the +KA who was not supplied with a sufficiency of food in the shape of +offerings of bread, cakes, flowers, fruit, wine, ale, and the like, was +in serious danger of starvation. + +The soul was called BA, and the ideas which the Egyptians held +concerning it are somewhat difficult to reconcile; the meaning of the +word seems to be something like "sublime," "noble," "mighty." The BA +dwelt in the KA, and seems to have had the power of becoming corporeal +or incorporeal at will; it had both substance and form, and is +frequently depicted on the papyri and monuments as a human-headed hawk; +in nature and substance it is stated to be ethereal. It had the power to +leave the tomb, and to pass up into heaven where it was believed to +enjoy an eternal existence in a state of glory; it could, however, and +did, revisit the body in the tomb, and from certain texts it seems that +it could re-animate it and hold converse with it. Like the heart AB it +was, in some respects, the seat of life in man. The souls of the blessed +dead dwelt in heaven with the gods, and they partook of all the +celestial enjoyments for ever. + +The spiritual intelligence, or spirit, of a man was called KHU, and it +seems to have taken form as a shining, luminous, intangible shape of the +body; the KHUs formed a class of celestial beings who lived with the +gods, but their functions are not clear. The KHU, like the KA, could be +imprisoned in the tomb, and to obviate this catastrophe special formulae +were composed and duly recited. Besides the KHU another very important +part of a man's entity went into heaven, namely, his SEKHEM. The word +literally means "to have the mastery over something," and, as used in +the early texts, that which enables one to have the mastery over +something; _i.e._, "power." The SEKHEM of a man was, apparently, his +vital force or strength personified, and the Egyptians believed that it +could and did, under certain conditions, follow him that possessed it +upon earth into heaven. Another part of a man was the KHAIBIT or +"shadow," which is frequently mentioned in connexion with the soul and, +in late times, was always thought to be near it. Finally we may mention +the REN, or "name" of a man, as one of his most important constituent +parts. The Egyptians, in common with all Eastern nations, attached the +greatest importance to the preservation of the name, and any person, who +effected the blotting out of a man's name was thought to have destroyed +him also. Like the KA it was a portion, of a man's most special +identity, and it is easy to see why so much importance grew to be +attached to it; a nameless being could not be introduced to the gods, +and as no created thing exists without a name the man who had no name +was in a worse position before the divine powers than the feeblest +inanimate object. To perpetuate the name of a father was a good son's +duty, and to keep the tombs of the dead in good repair so that all might +read the names of those who were buried in them was a most meritorious +act. On the other hand, if the deceased knew the names of divine beings, +whether friends or foes, and could pronounce them, he at once obtained +power over them, and was able to make them perform his will. + +We have seen that the entity of a man consisted of body, double, soul, +heart, spiritual intelligence or spirit, power, shadow, and name. These +eight parts may be reduced to three by leaving out of consideration the +double, heart, power, shadow and name as representing beliefs which were +produced by the Egyptian as he was slowly ascending the scale of +civilization, and as being the peculiar product of his race; we may then +say that a man consisted of body, soul, and spirit. But did all three +rise, and live in the world beyond the grave? The Egyptian texts answer +this question definitely; the soul and the spirit of the righteous +passed from the body and lived with the beatified and the gods in +heaven; but the physical body did not rise again, and it was believed +never to leave the tomb. There were ignorant people in Egypt who, no +doubt, believed in the resurrection of the corruptible body, and who +imagined that the new life would be, after all, something very much like +a continuation of that which they were living in this world; but the +Egyptian who followed the teaching of his sacred writings knew that such +beliefs were not consistent with the views of their priests and of +educated people in general. Already in the Vth dynasty, about B.C. 3400, +it is stated definitely:-- + + "The soul to heaven, the body to earth;" [Footnote: _Recueil de + Travaux_, tom. iv. p. 71 (l. 582).] and three thousand years later the + Egyptian writer declared the same thing, but in different words, when + he wrote:--[Footnote: Horrack, _Lamentations d' Isis_, Paris, 1866, + p. 6.] "Heaven hath thy soul, and earth thy body." + +The Egyptian hoped, among other things, that he would sail over the sky +in the boat of R[=a], but he knew well that he could not do this in his +mortal body; he believed firmly that he would live for millions of +years, but with the experience of the human race before him he knew that +this also was impossible if the body in which he was to live was that in +which he had lived upon earth. At first he thought that his physical +body might, after the manner of the sun, be "renewed daily," and that +his new life would resemble that of that emblem of the Sun-god R[=a] +with which he sought to identify himself. Later, however, his experience +taught him that the best mummified body was sometimes destroyed, either +by damp, or dry rot, or decay in one form or another, and that +mummification alone was not sufficient to ensure resurrection or the +attainment of the future life; and, in brief, he discovered that by no +human means could that which is corruptible by nature be made to become +incorruptible, for the very animals in which the gods themselves were +incarnate became sick and died in their appointed season. It is hard to +say why the Egyptians continued to mummify the dead since there is good +reason for knowing that they did not expect the physical body to rise +again. It may be that they thought its preservation necessary for the +welfare of the KA, or "double," and for the development of a new body +from it; also the continued custom may have been the result of intense +conservatism. But whatever the reason, the Egyptian never ceased to take +every possible precaution to preserve the dead body intact, had he +sought for help in his trouble from another source. + +It will be remembered that when Isis found the dead body of her husband +Osiris, she at once set to work to protect it. She drove away the foes, +and made the ill-luck which had come upon it to be of no effect. In +order to bring about this result "she made strong her speech with all +the strength of her mouth, she was perfect of tongue, and she halted not +in her speech," and she pronounced a series of words or formulae with +which Thoth had provided her; thus she succeeded in "stirring up the +inactivity of the Still-heart" and in accomplishing her desire in +respect of him. Her cries, prompted by love and grief, would have had no +effect on the dead body unless they had been accompanied by the words of +Thoth, which she uttered with boldness (_Ichu_), and understanding +(_ager_), and without fault in pronunciation (_an-uh_). The Egyptian of +old kept this fact in his mind, and determined to procure the +resurrection of his friends and relatives by the same means as Isis +employed, _i.e._, the formulae of Thoth; with this object in view each +dead person, was provided with a series of texts, either written upon +his coffin, or upon papyri and amulets, which would have the same effect +as the words of Thoth which were spoken by Isis. But the relatives of +the deceased had also a duty to perform in this matter, and that was to +provide for the recital of certain prayers, and for the performance of a +number of symbolical ceremonies over the dead body before It was laid to +rest finally in the tomb. A sacrifice had to be offered up, and the +deceased and his friends and relatives assisted at it, and each ceremony +was accompanied by its proper prayers; when all had been done and said +according to the ordinances of the priests, the body was taken, to its +place in the mummy chamber. But the words of Thoth and the prayers of +the priests caused the body to become changed into a "S[=A]HU," or +incorruptible, spiritual body, which passed straightway out of the tomb +and made its way to heaven where it dwelt with the gods. When, in the +Book of the Dead the deceased says, "I exist, I exist; I live, I live; I +germinate, I germinate," [Footnote: See Chap. cliv.] and again, "I +germinate like the plants," [Footnote: See Chap. lxxxviii. 3.] the +deceased does not mean that his physical body is putting forth the +beginnings of another body like the old one, but a spiritual body which +"hath neither defect nor, like R[=a], shall suffer diminution for ever." +Into the S[=A]HU passed the soul which had lived in the body of a man +upon earth, and it seems as if the new, incorruptible body formed the +dwelling-place of the soul in heaven just as the physical body had been +its earthly abode. The reasons why the Egyptians continued to mummify +their dead is thus apparent; they did not do so believing that their +physical bodies would rise again, but because they wished the spiritual +body to "sprout" or "germinate" from them, and if possible--at least it +seems so--to be in the form of the physical body. In this way did the +dead rise according to the Egyptians, and in this body did they come. + +From what has been said above, it will be seen that there is no reason +for doubting the antiquity of the Egyptian belief in the resurrection of +the dead and in immortality, and the general evidence derived both from +archaeological and religious considerations supports this view. As old, +however, as this belief in general is the specific belief in a spiritual +body (S[=A]H or S[=A]HU); for we find it in texts of the Vth dynasty +incorporated with ideas which belong to the prehistoric Egyptian in his +savage or semi-savage state. One remarkable extract will prove this +point. In the funeral chapters which are inscribed on the walls of the +chambers and passages inside the pyramid of King Unas, who flourished at +the end of the Vth dynasty, about B.C. 3300, is a passage in which the +deceased king terrifies all the powers of heaven and earth because he +"riseth as a soul (BA) in the form of the god who liveth upon his +fathers and who maketh food of his mothers. Unas is the lord of wisdom +and his mother knoweth not his name. He hath become mighty like unto the +god Temu, the father who gave him birth, and after Temu gave him birth +he became stronger than his father." The king is likened unto a Bull, +and he feedeth upon every god, whatever may be the form in which he +appeareth; "he hath weighed words with the god whose name is hidden," +and he devoureth men and liveth upon gods. The dead king is then said to +set out to limit the gods in their meadows, and when he has caught them +with nooses, he causes them to be slain. They are next cooked in blazing +cauldrons, the greatest for his morning meal, the lesser for his evening +meal, and the least for his midnight meal; the old gods and goddesses +serve as fuel for his cooking pots. In this way, having swallowed the +magical powers and spirits of the gods, he becomes the Great Power of +Powers among the gods, and the greatest of the gods who appear in +visible forms. "Whatever he hath found upon his path he hath consumed, +and his strength is greater than that of any spiritual body (S[=A]HU) in +the horizon; he is the firstborn of all the firstborn, and ... he hath +carried off the hearts of the gods.... He hath eaten the wisdom of every +god, and his period of existence is everlasting, and his life shall be +unto all eternity, ... for the souls and the spirits of the gods are in +him." + +We have, it is clear, in this passage an allusion to the custom of +savages of all nations and periods, of eating portions of the bodies of +valiant foes whom they have vanquished in war in order to absorb their +virtues and strength; the same habit has also obtained in some places in +respect of animals. In the case of the gods the deceased is made to +covet their one peculiar attribute, that is to say, everlasting life; +and when he has absorbed their souls and spirits he is declared to have +obtained all that makes him superior to every other spiritual body in +strength and in length of life. The "magical powers" (_heka_) which the +king is also said to have "eaten," are the words and formulae, the +utterance of which by him, in whatever circumstances he may be placed, +will cause every being, friendly or unfriendly, to do his will. But +apart from any question of the slaughter of the gods the Egyptians +declared of this same king, "Behold, thou hast not gone as one dead, but +as one living, to sit upon the throne of Osiris." [Footnote: _Recuell de +Travaux_, tom. v. p. 167 (l. 65).] and in a papyrus written nearly two +thousand years later the deceased himself says, "My soul is God, my soul +is eternity," [Footnote: Papyrus of Ani, Plate 28, l. 15 (Chapter +lxxxiv.).] a clear proof that the ideas of the existence of God and of +eternity were identical. Yet one other example is worth quoting, if only +to show the care that the writers of religious texts took to impress the +immortality of the soul upon their readers. According to Chapter CLXXV. +of the Book of the Dead the deceased finds himself in a place where +there is neither water nor air, and where "it is depth unfathomable, it +is black as the blackest night, and men wander helplessly therein. In it +a man may not live in quietness of heart, nor may the longings of love +be satisfied therein. But," says the deceased to the god Thoth, "let the +state of the spirits be given unto me instead of water, and air, and the +satisfying of the longings of love, and let quietness of heart be given +unto me instead of cakes and ale. The god Temu hath decreed that I shall +see thy face, and that I shall not suffer from the things which pained +thee; may every god transmit unto thee [O Osiris] his throne for +millions of years! Thy throne hath descended unto thy son Horus, and the +god Temu hath decreed that his course shall be among the holy princes. +Verily he shall rule over thy throne, and he shall be heir of the throne +of the Dweller in the Lake of the Two Fires. Verily it hath been decreed +that in me he shall see his likeness, [Footnote: _i.e._, I shall be like +Horus, the son of Osiris.] and that my face shall look upon the face of +the lord Tem." After reciting these words, the deceased asks Thoth, "How +long have I to live?" and the god replies, "It is decreed that thou +shalt live for millions of millions of years, a life of millions of +years." To give emphasis and additional effect to his words the god is +made to speak tautologically so that the most unlettered man may not +miss their meaning. A little later in the Chapter the deceased says, "O +my father Osiris, thou hast done for me that which thy father R[=a] did +for thee. So shall I abide on the earth lastingly, I shall keep +possession of my seat; my heir shall be strong; my tomb and my friends +who are upon earth shall flourish; my enemies shall be given over to +destruction and to the shackles of the goddess Serq. I am thy son, and +R[=a] is my father; for me likewise thou shalt make life, and strength, +and health!" It is interesting to note that the deceased first +identifies Osiris with R[=a], and then he identifies himself with +Osiris; thus he identifies himself with R[=a]. + +With the subjects of resurrection and immortality must be mentioned the +frequent references in the religious texts of all periods to the meat +and drink on which lived the beings who were believed to exist in the +world beyond the grave. In prehistoric days if was natural enough for +the dead man's friends to place food in his grave, because they thought +that he would require it on his journey to the next world; this custom +also presupposed that the deceased would have a body like unto that +which he had left behind him in this world, and that it would need food +and drink. In the Vth dynasty the Egyptians believed that the blessed +dead lived upon celestial food, and that they suffered neither hunger +nor thirst; they ate what the gods ate, they drank what they drank, they +were what they were, and became in such matters as these the +counterparts of the gods. In another passage we read that they are +apparelled in white linen, that they wear white sandals, and that they +go to the great lake which is in the midst of the Field of Peace whereon +the great gods sit, and that the gods give them to eat of the food (_or_ +tree) of life of which they themselves eat that they also may live. It +is certain, however, that other views than these were held concerning +the food of the dead, for already in the Vth dynasty the existence of a +region called Sekhet-Aaru, or Sekhet-Aanru had been formulated, and to +this place the soul, or at least some part, of the pious Egyptian hoped +to make its way. Where Sekhet-Aaru was situated we have no means of +saying, and the texts afford us no clue as to its whereabouts; some +scholars think that it lay away to the east of Egypt, but it is far more +likely to represent some district of the Delta either in its northern or +north-eastern portion. Fortunately we have a picture of it in the +Papyrus of Nebseni, [Footnote: Brit. Mus., No. 9900; this document +belongs to the XVIIIth dynasty.] the oldest probably on papyrus, and +from this we may see that Sekhet-Aaru, _i.e._, the "Field of Reeds," +typified some very fertile region where farming operations could be +carried on with ease and success. Canals and watercourses abound, and in +one section, we are told, the spirits of the blessed dwelt; the picture +probably represents a traditional "Paradise" or "Elysian Fields," and +the general characteristics of this happy land are those of a large, +well-kept, and well-stocked homestead, situated at no great distance +from the Nile or one of its main branches. In the Papyrus of Nebseni the +divisions of the Sekhet-Auru contain the following:-- + +[Illustration: The Elysian Fields of the Egyptians according to the +Papyrus of Nebseni (XVIIIth dynasty).] + + 1. Nebseni, the scribe and artist of the Temple of Ptah, with his arms + hanging by his sides, entering the Elysian Fields. + + 2. Nebseni making an offering of incense to the "great company of the + gods." + + 3. Nebseni seated in a boat paddling; above the boat are three symbols + for "city." + + 4. Nebseni addressing a bearded mummied figure. + + 5. Three Pools or Lakes called Urti, Hetep, and Qetqet. + + 6. Nebseni reaping in Sekhet-hetepet. + + 7. Nebseni grasping the Bennu bird, which is perched upon a stand; in + front are three KAU and three KHU. + + 8. Nebseni seated and smelling a flower; the text reads: "Thousands of + all good and pure things to the KA of Nebseni." + + 9. A table of offerings. + + 10. Four Pools or Lakes called Nebt-tani, Uakha, Kha(?), and Hetep. + + 11. Nebseni ploughing with oxen by the side of a stream which is one + thousand [measures] in length, and the width of which cannot be said; + in it there are neither fish nor worms. + + 12. Nebseni ploughing with oxen on an island "the length of which is + the length of heaven." + + 13. A division shaped like a bowl, in which is inscribed: "The + birthplace(?) of the god of the city Qenqentet Nebt." + + 14. An island whereon are four gods and a flight of steps; the legend + reads: "The great company of the gods who are in Sekhet-hetep." + + 15. The boat Tchetetfet, with eight oars, four at the bows, and four + at the stern, floating at the end of a canal; in it is a flight of + steps. The place where it lies is called the "Domain of Neth." + + 16. Two Pools, the names of which are illegible. The scene as given in + the Papyrus of Ani [Footnote: Brit. Mus., No. 10,470, Plate 35] gives + some interesting variants and may be described thus:-- + + 1. Ani making an offering before a hare-headed god, a snake-headed + god, and a bull-headed god; behind him stand his wife Thuthu and + Thoth holding his reed and palette. Ani paddling a boat. Ani + addressing a hawk, before which are a table of offerings, a statue, + three ovals, and the legend, "Being at peace in the Field, and + having air for the nostrils." + + 2. Ani reaping corn, Ani driving the oxen which tread out the corn; + Ani addressing (_or_ adoring) a Bennu bird perched on a stand; Ani + seated holding the _kherp_ sceptre; a heap of red and a heap of + white corn; three KAU and three KHU, which are perhaps to be read, + "the food of the spirits;" and three Pools. + + 3. Ani ploughing a field near a stream which contains [Illustration: + The Elysian Fields of the Egyptians according to the Papyrus of Ani + (XVIIIth dynasty).] neither fish, nor serpents, nor worms of any + kind whatsoever. + + 4. The birthplace of the "god of the city;" an island on which is a + flight of steps; a region called the "place of the spirits" who are + seven cubits high, where the wheat is three cubits high, and where + the S[=A]HU, or spiritual bodies, reap it; the region Ashet, the god + who dwelleth therein being Un-nefer (_i.e._, a form of Osiris); a + boat with eight oars lying at the end of a canal; and a boat + floating on a canal. The name of the first boat is Behutu-tcheser, + and that of the second Tohefau. + +So far we have seen that in heaven and in the world beyond the grave the +deceased has found only divine beings, and the doubles, and the souls, +and the spirits, and the spiritual bodies of the blessed; but no +reference has been made to the possibility of the dead recognizing each +other, or being able to continue the friendships or relationships which +they had when upon earth. In the Sekhet-Aaru the case is, however, +different, for there we have reason to believe relationships were +recognized and rejoiced in. Thus in Chapter LII. of the Book of the +Dead, which was composed with the idea of the deceased, from lack of +proper food in the underworld, being obliged to eat filth, [Footnote: +This idea is a survival of prehistoric times, when it was thought that +if the proper sepulchral meals were not deposited at regular intervals +where the KA, or "double," of the deceased could get at them it would be +obliged to wander about and pick up whatever it might find to eat upon +its road.] and with the object of preventing such an awful thing, the +deceased says: "That which is an abomination unto me, that which is an +abomination unto me, let me not eat. That which is an abomination unto +me, that which is an abomination unto me, is filth; let me not be +obliged to eat thereof in the place of the sepulchral cakes which are +offered unto the KAU (_i.e._, "doubles"). Let it not touch my body, let +me not be obliged to hold it in my hands; and let me not be compelled to +tread thereon in my sandals." + +Some being or beings, probably the gods, then ask him, "What, now, wilt +thou live upon in the presence of the gods?" And he replies, "Let food +come to me from the place of food, and let me live upon the seven loaves +of bread which shall be brought as food before Horus, and upon the bread +which is brought before Thoth. And when the gods shall say unto me, +'What manner of food wouldst thou have given unto thee?' I will reply, +'Let me eat my food under the sycamore tree of my lady, the goddess +Hathor, and let my times be among the divine beings who have alighted +thereon. Let me have the power to order my own fields in Tattu +(Busiris), and my own growing crops in Annu. Let me live upon bread made +of white grain, and let my beer be made from red grain, and may the +persons of my father and mother be given unto me as guardians of my +door, and for the ordering of my homestead. Let me be sound and strong, +and let me have much room wherein to move, and let me be able to sit +wheresoever I please." + +This Chapter is most important as showing that the deceased wished to +have his homestead and its fields situated in Tattu, that is to say, +near the capital of the Busirite or IXth nome of Lower Egypt, a district +not far from the city of Semennûd (_i.e._, Sebennytus) and lying a +little to the south of the thirty-first parallel of latitude. It was +here that the reconstitution of the dismembered body of Osiris took +place, and it was here that the solemn ceremony of setting up the +backbone of Osiris was performed each year. The original Sekhet-Aaru was +evidently placed here, and we are therefore right in assuming that the +fertile fields of this part of the Delta formed the prototype of the +Elysian Fields of the Egyptian. At the same time he also wished to reap +crops on the fields round about Heliopolis, the seat of the greatest and +most ancient shrine of the Sun-god. The white grain of which he would +have his bread made is the ordinary _dhura_, and the red grain is the +red species of the same plant, which is not so common as the white. As +keepers of the door of his estate the deceased asks for the "forms (_or_ +persons) of his father and his mother," and thus we see a desire on the +part of the Egyptian to continue the family life which he began upon +earth; it goes almost without saying that he would not ask this thing if +he thought there would be no prospect of knowing his parents in the next +world. An interesting proof of this is afforded by the picture of the +Sekhet-Aaru, or Elysian Fields, which is given in the Papyrus of Anhai, +[Footnote: Brit. Mus., No. 10,472.] [Illustration: Anhai bowing before +her father and mother. The Elysian Fields. From the Papyrus of Anhai +(XXIInd dynasty).] a priestess of Amen who lived probably about B.C. +1000. Here we see the deceased entering into the topmost section of the +district and addressing two divine persons; above one of these are +written the words "her mother," followed by the name Neferitu. The form +which comes next is probably that of her father, and thus we are sure +that the Egyptians believed they would meet their relatives in the next +world and know and be known by them. + +Accompanying the picture of the Elysian Fields is a long text which +forms Chapter CX. of the Book of the Dead. As it supplies a great deal +of information concerning the views held in early times about that +region, and throws so much light upon the semi-material life which the +pious Egyptians, at one period of their history, hoped to lead, a +rendering of it is here given. It is entitled, "The Chapters of +Sekhet-Hetepet, and the Chapters of Coming Forth by Day; of going into +and of coming forth from the underworld; of coming to Sekhet-Aaru; of +being in Sekhet-Hetepet, the mighty land, the lady of winds; of having +power there; of becoming a spirit (KHU) there; of reaping there; of +eating there; of drinking there; of making love there; and of doing +everything even as a man doeth upon the earth." The deceased says:-- + + "Set hath seized Horus, who looked with the two eyes [Footnote: + _i.e._, the Eye of R[=a] and the Eye of Horus.] upon the building (?) + round Sekhet-hetep, but I have released Horus [and taken him from] + Set, and Set hath opened the path of the two eyes [which are] in + heaven. Set hath cast (?) his moisture to the winds upon the soul that + hath his day, and that dwelleth in the city of Mert, and he hath + delivered the interior of the body of Horus from the gods of Akert. + + "Behold me now, for I make this mighty boat to travel over the Lake of + Hetep, and I brought it away with might from the palace of Shu; the + domain of his stars groweth young and reneweth the strength which it + had of old. I have brought the boat into the lakes thereof, so that I + may come forth into the cities thereof, and I have sailed into their + divine city Hetep. And behold, it is because I, even I, am at peace + with his seasons, and with his direction, and with his territory, and + with the company of the gods who are his firstborn. He maketh Horus + and Set to be at peace with those who watch over the living ones whom + he hath created in fair form, and he bringeth peace; he maketh Horus + and Set to be at peace with those who watch over them. He cutteth off + the hair from Horus and Set, he driveth away storm from the helpless, + and he keepeth away harm from the spirits (KHU). Let me have dominion + within that field, for I know it, and I have sailed among its lakes so + that I might come into its cities. My mouth is firm, [Footnote: + _i.e._, I know how to utter the words of power which I possess with + vigour.] and I am equipped to resist the spirits (KHU), therefore they + shall not have dominion over me. Let me be rewarded with thy fields, O + thou god Hetep; but that which is thy wish do, O thou lord of the + winds. May I become a spirit therein, may I eat therein, may I drink + therein, may I plough therein, may I reap therein, may I fight + therein, may I make love therein, may my words be mighty therein; may + I never be in a state of servitude therein; but may I be in authority + therein. Thou hast made strong the mouth (_or_ door) and the throat + (_?_) of Hetep; Qetet-bu is his name. He is stablished upon the + pillars [Footnote: _i.e._, the four pillars, one placed at each + cardinal point, which support the sky.] of Shu, and is linked unto the + pleasant things of R[=a]. He is the divider of years, he is hidden of + mouth, his mouth is silent, that which he uttereth is secret, he + fulfilleth eternity and hath possession of everlasting existence as + Hetep, the lord Hetep. + + "The god Horus maketh himself to be strong like unto the Hawk which is + one thousand cubits in length, and two thousand [cubits in width] in + life; he hath equipments with him, and he journeyeth on and cometh + where his heart's throne wisheth to be in the Pools [of Hetep] and in + the cities thereof. He was begotten in the birth-chamber of the god of + the city, offerings of the god of the city are made unto him, he + performeth that which it is meet to do therein, and causeth the union + thereof, and doeth everything which appertaineth to the birth-chamber + of the divine city. When he setteth in life, like crystal, he + performeth everything therein, and the things which he doeth are like + unto the things which are done in the Lake of Twofold Fire, wherein + there is none that rejoiceth, and wherein are all manner of evil + things. The god Hetep goeth in, and cometh out, and goeth backwards + [in] that Field which gathereth together all manner of things for the + birth-chamber of the god of the city. When he setteth in life, like + crystal, he performeth all manner of things therein which are like + unto the things which are done in the Lake of Twofold Fire, wherein + there is none that rejoiceth, and wherein are all manner of evil + things. + + "Let me live with the god Hetep, clothed and not plundered by the + lords of the north, and let the lord of divine things bring food unto + me. Let him make me to go forward, and let me come out, and let him + bring my power unto me there; let me receive it, and let my equipment + be from the god Hetep. Let me gain the mastery over the great and + mighty word which is in my body in this place wherein I am, for by + means of it I will remember and I will forget. Let me go forward on my + way and let me plough. I am at peace with the god of the city, and I + know the waters, and the cities, and the nomes, and the lakes which + are in Sekhet-Hetep. I exist therein, I am strong therein, I have + become a spirit (KHU) therein, I eat therein, I sow seed therein, I + reap the harvest therein, I plough therein, I make love therein, and I + am at peace with the god Hetep therein. Behold I scatter seed therein, + I sail about among its lakes, and I advance to the cities thereof, O + divine Hetep. Behold, my mouth is provided with my [teeth which are + like] horns; grant me therefore an overflowing supply of the food + whereon, the 'Doubles' (KAU) and the Spirits (KHU) do live. I have + passed the judgment which Shu passeth upon him that knoweth him, + therefore let me go forth to the cities of [Hetep], and let me sail + about among its lakes, and let me walk about in Sekhet-Hetep. Behold + R[=a] is in heaven, and behold the god Hetep is the twofold offering + thereof. I have come forward to the land [of Hetep], I have girded up + my loins and come forth so that the gifts which are about to be given + unto me may be given, and I am glad, and I have laid hold upon my + strength which the god Hetep hath greatly increased for me." "O + Unen-em-hetep, [Footnote: The name of the first large section of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have entered into thee, and my soul followeth after + me, and my divine food is upon my hands. O Lady of the two lands, + [Footnote: A lake in the second section of Sekhet-Aaru.] who + stablishest my word whereby I remember and forget, let me live + uninjured, and without any injury [being done] unto me. O grant to me, + O do thou grant to me, joy of heart; make thou me to be at peace, bind + thou up my sinews and muscles, and make me to receive the air." + + "O Unen-em-hetep, O Lady of the winds, I have entered into thee, and I + have shewn [Footnote: Literally, "opened."] my head [therein]. R[=a] + sleepeth, but I am awake, and there is the goddess Hast at the gate of + heaven by night. Obstacles have been set before me, but I have + gathered together what R[=a] hath emitted. I am in my city." + + "O Nut-urt, [Footnote: The name of a lake in the first section of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have entered into thee and I have reckoned up my + harvest, and I go forward to Uakh. [Footnote: The name of a lake in + the second section of Sekhet-Aaru.] I am the Bull enveloped in + turquoise, the lord of the Field of the Bull, the lord of the divine + speech of the goddess Septet (Sothis) at her hours. O Uakh, I have + entered into thee, I have eaten my bread, I have gotten the mastery + over choice pieces of the flesh of oxen and of feathered fowl, and the + birds of Shu have been given unto me; I follow after the gods, and the + divine 'Doubles' (KAU)." + + "O Tohefet, [Footnote: The name of a district in the third section of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have entered into thee, I array myself in apparel, and + I have guarded myself with the _Sa_ garment of R[=a]; now behold, he + is in heaven, and those who dwell therein follow him, and I also + follow R[=a] in heaven, O Unen-em-hetep, lord of the two lands, I have + entered into thee, and I have plunged into the lakes of Tohesert; + behold me now, for all uncleanness hath departed from me. The Great + God groweth therein, and behold, I have found [food therein]; I have + snared feathered fowl and I feed upon, the finest of them." + + "O Qenqentet, [Footnote: The name of a lake in the first section, of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have entered into thee, and I have seen, the Osiris + [my father], and I have gazed upon my mother, and I have made love. I + have captured the worms and serpents [which are there] and have + delivered myself. I know the name of the god who is opposite to the + goddess Tohesert, who hath straight hair and is provided with horns; + he reapeth, but I both plough and reap." + + "O Hast, [Footnote: The name of a lake in the third section of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have entered into thee, and I have driven back those + who would come to the turquoise [sky]; and I have followed the winds + of the company of the gods. The Great God hath given my head unto me, + and he who hath bound on me my head is the Mighty One with the eyes of + turquoise, that is to say, Ari-en-ab-f (_i.e._, He who doeth as he + pleaseth)." + + "O Usert, [Footnote: The name of a lake in the third section of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have come unto thee at the house where the divine food + is brought unto me." + + "O Smam, [Footnote: The name of a lake in the third section of + Sekhet-Aaru.] I have come unto thee. My heart watcheth, and I am + provided with the white crown. I am led into celestial regions, and I + make the things of earth to flourish; and there is joy of heart for + the Bull, and for celestial beings, and for the company of the gods. I + am the god who is the Bull, the lord of the gods as he goeth forth + from the turquoise [sky]." + + "O divine nome of wheat and barley, I have come unto thee, I have come + forward to thee, and I have taken up that which followeth me, namely, + the best of the libations of the company of the gods. I have tied my + boat in the celestial lakes, I have lifted up the post at which to + anchor, I have recited the prescribed words with my voice, and I have + ascribed praises unto the gods who dwell in Sekhet-hetep." + +Other joys, however, than those described above, await the man who has +passed satisfactorily through the judgment and has made his way into the +realm of the gods. For, in answer to a long petition in the Papyrus of +Ani, which has been given above (see p. 33 f.), the god R[=a] promises +to the deceased the following: "Thou shalt come forth into heaven, thou +shalt pass over the sky, thou shalt be joined unto the starry deities. +Praises shall be offered unto thee in thy boat, thou shalt be hymned in +the [=A]tet boat, thou shalt behold R[=a] within his shrine, thou shalt +set together with his Disk day by day, thou shalt see the ANT [Footnote +1: The name of a mythological fish which swam at the bow of the boat of +R[=a].] fish when it springeth into being in the waters of turquoise, +and thou shalt see the ABTU [Footnote: The name of a mythological fish +which swam at the bow of the boat of R[=a].] fish in his hour. It shall +come to pass that the Evil One shall fall when he layeth a snare to +destroy thee, and the joints of his neck and of his back shall be hacked +asunder. R[=a] [saileth] with a fair wind, and the Sektet boat draweth +on and cometh into port. The mariners of R[=a] rejoice, and the heart +of Nebt-[=a]nkh (_i.e._, Isis) is glad, for the enemy of R[=a] hath +fallen to the ground. Thou shalt behold Horus on the standing-place of +the pilot of the boat, and Thoth and Ma[=a]t shall stand one upon each +side of him. All the gods shall rejoice when they behold R[=a] coming +in peace to make the hearts of the shining ones to live, and Osiris Ani, +triumphant, the scribe of the divine offspring of the lords of Thebes, +shall be along with them." + +But, not content with sailing in the boat of R[=a] daily as one of many +beatified beings, the deceased hoped to transform each of his limbs into +a god, and when this was effected to become R[=a] himself. Thus in +Chapter XLII. of the Book of the Dead [Footnote: See _The Chapters of +Coming Forth by Day_, p. 93.] the deceased says-- + + "My hair is the hair of Nu. + + "My face is the face of the Disk. + + "My eyes are the eyes of Hathor. + + "My ears are the ears of Ap-uat. + + "My nose is the nose of Khenti-Khas. + + "My lips are the lips of Anpu. + + "My teeth are the teeth of Serqet. + + "My neck is the neck of the divine goddess Isis. + + "My hands are the hands of Ba-neb-Tattu. + + "My fore-arms are the fore-arms of Neith, the Lady of Saïs. + + "My backbone is the backbone of Suti. + + "My phallus is the phallus of Osiris. + + "My reins are the reins of the Lords of Kher-[=a]ba. + + "My chest is the chest of the Mighty one of terror. + + "My belly and back are the belly and back of Sekhet. + + "My buttocks are the buttocks of the Eye of Horus. + + "My hips and legs are the hips and legs of Nut. + + "My feet are the feet of Ptah. + + "My fingers and my leg-bones are the fingers and leg-bones of the + Living Gods." [Footnote: The idea of the deification of the human + members was current already in the VIth dynasty. See _Recueil de + Travaux_, tom. viii, pp. 87, 88.] + +And immediately after this the deceased says: + + "There is no member of my body which is not the member of a god. The + god Thoth shieldeth my body altogether, and I am R[=a] day by day." + +Thus we see by what means the Egyptians believed that mortal man could +be raised from the dead, and attain unto life everlasting. The +resurrection was the object with which every prayer was said and every +ceremony performed, and every text, and every amulet, and every formula, +of each and every period, was intended to enable the mortal to put on +immortality and to live eternally in a transformed glorified body. If +this fact be borne in mind many apparent difficulties will disappear +before the readers in this perusal of Egyptian texts, and the religion +of the Egyptians will be seen to possess a consistence of aim and a +steadiness of principle which, to some, it at first appears to lack. + + + + +THE END. + +Printed BALLANTYNE, HANSON & Co +Edinburgh & London + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Egyptian Ideas of the Future Life +by E. A. Wallis Budge + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 11277 *** |