CHAPTER IV

THE "BOOK OF THE DEAD"

THE Book of the Dead, the Egyptian title of which, "Pert em hru," has been variously translated "coming forth by day" and the "manifestation day," is a great body of religious compositions compiled for the use of the dead in the other world. It is probable that the name had a significance for the Egyptians which is incapable of being rendered in any modern language, and is borne out by another of its titles--"The chapter of making perfect the Khu"--or spirit. Texts dealing with the welfare of the dead and their life in the world beyond the grave are known to have been in use among the Egyptians as early as 4000 B.C. The oldest form of the Book of the Dead known to us is represented in the Pyramid Texts. With the invention of mummification a more complete funerary ritual arose, based on the hope that such ceremonies as it imposed would ensure the corpse against corruption, preserve it forever, and introduce it to a

. Indeed, from internal evidence it is possible to show that many of these were revised or edited long before the copies known to us were made. Even at as early a date as 3300 B.C., the professional writers who transcribed the ancient texts appear to have been so puzzled by their contents that they hardly understood their purport. Dr. Budge states: "We are in any case justified in estimating the earliest form of the work to be contemporaneous with the foundation of the civilization which we call 'Egyptian' in the Valley of the Nile."

A "DISCOVERY" 3400 YEARS OLD

A hieratic inscription upon the sarcophagus of Queen Khnem-nefert, wife of Mentu-hetep, a king of the eleventh dynasty, c.2500 B.C., states that a certain chapter of the Book of the Dead was discovered in the reign of Hesep-ti, the fifth king of the first dynasty, who flourished about 4266 B.C. This sarcophagus affords us two copies of the said chapter, one immediately following the other. That as early as 2500 B.C., a chapter of the Book of the Dead should be referred to a date almost 2000 years before that time is astounding, and the mind reels before the idea of a tradition which, during comparatively unlettered centuries, could have conserved a religious formula almost unimpaired. Thus thirty-four centuries ago a portion of the Book of the Dead was regarded as extremely ancient, mysterious, and difficult of comprehension. It will be noted also that the inscription on the tomb of Queen Khnem-nefert bears out that the chapter in question was "discovered" about 4266 B.C. If it were merely discovered at that early era, what periods of remoteness lie between that epoch and the time when it was first reduced to writing? The description of the chapter on the sarcophagus of

Book of the Dead.

A bas-relief of the second dynasty bears an inscription dedicating to the shade of a certain priest the formula of the "thousand loaves of bread, thousands of jugs of ale," and so forth, so common in later times. We thus see that 4000 years B.C. it was regarded as a religious duty to provide offerings of meat and drink for the dead, and there

THE THREE RECENSIONS

There were three recensions or versions of the Book of the Dead--the Heliopolitan, the Theban, and the Saite. The Heliopolitan Recension was edited by the priests of the College of Anu, Or On, known to the Greeks as Heliopolis, and was based upon texts not now recoverable. The Pyramids of Unas, Teta, and Pepi contain the original texts of this recension, which represent the theological system introduced by the priests of Ra. The essentials of the primitive Egyptian religion are, however, retained, the only modification in them being the introduction of the solar doctrine of Ra. In later times the priesthood of Ra were forced to acknowledge the supremacy of Osiris, and this theological defeat is visible in the more modern texts. Between the sixth and eleventh dynasties the priests of On edited a number of fresh chapters from time to time.

The Thebas Recension was much in vogue from the eighteenth to the twenty-second dynasties, and was usually written upon papyri and painted upon coffins in hieroglyphs. Each chapter was preserved distinct from the others, but appears to have had no distinct place in the entire collection.

SELECTIONS FROM THE "BOOK OF THE DEAD"

A HYMN TO THE SETTING SUN

A hymn of praise to Ra when he riseth upon the horizon, and when he getteth in the land of life. Osiris, the scribe Ani saith:

"Homage to thee, O Ra, when thou risest--as--Tem-Heru-khuti--Tem-Harmachis--Thou art adored--by me when-thy beauties are before mine eyes, and--when thy--radiance--falleth--upon--my--body. Thou goest forth to thy setting in the Sektet boat with--fair--winds, and thy heart is glad; the heart of the Mater boat rejoiceith. Thou stridest over the heavens in peace, and all thy foes are cast down; the never-resting stars sing hymns of praise unto thee, and the stars which rest, and the stars which never fail glorify thee as thou sinkest to rest in the horizon of Manu, O thou who art beautiful at morn and at eve, O thou lord who livest and art established, O my lord!

"Homage to thee, O thou who art Ra when thou risest, and. Tem when thou settest--in--beauty. Thou risest and shinest on the back of thy mother--Nut,--O thou who art crowned king of the gods! Nut doeth homage unto thee, and everlasting and

HYMN AND LITANY TO OSIRIS

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OPENING THE MOUTH OF OSIRIS

In one of the tombs of the New Stone Age was found a flint instrument which, as we know from inscriptions of the dynastic period, was used in performing the ceremony of "opening the mouth" of the dead, a fact that proves that even in the Old Stone Age a ceremony was performed on the dead body with the purpose of assisting the soul, or spirit, to acquire the faculties and powers needed by it in the other world. In this ceremony the flint instrument was thrust between the teeth of the dead man, and when these were separated his spirit form was believed. to acquire the power to eat and drink, to speak, to think, and to perform all the natural functions of the body.

The Chapter Of Opening The Mouth Of Osiris. The scribe Ani, triumphant, saith:

"May the good Ptah open my mouth, and may the god of my city loose the swathings, even the swathings which are over my mouth. Moreover, may Thoth, being filled and furnished with charms, come And loose the bandages, even the bandages of Set which fetter my mouth; and may the god

SOUL AND BODY

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never lie down in death. Let not the Osiris Ani, triumphant, lie down in death among those who lie down in Annu, the land wherein souls are joined unto their bodies even in thousands. Let me have possession of my ba--soul--, and of my khu, and let me triumph therewith in every place wheresoever it may be.--Observe these things which--I--speak, for it hath staves with it;--observe then, O ye divine guardians of heaven, my soul-wheresoever it may be.--If it would tarry, do thou make my soul to look upon my body, for thou shalt find the Eye of Horus standing by thee like those--beings who are like unto Osiris--.

"Hail, ye gods, who tow along the boat of the lord of millions of years, who bring--it--above the underworld and who make it to travel over Nut, who make souls to enter into--their--spiritual bodies, whose hands are filled with your ropes and who clutch your weapons tight, destroy ye the Enemy; thus shall the boat of the sun be glad and the great God shall set out on his journey in peace. And behold, grant ye that the soul of Osiris Ani, triumphant, may come forth before the gods and that it may be triumphant along with you in the eastern part of the sky to follow unto the place where it was yesterday;--and that it may have--

(These words are to be said over a soul of gold inlaid with precious stones and placed on the breast of Osiris.)

OF EVIL RECOLLECTIONS

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OF RESCUE

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(If this chapter be known--by the deceased--he shall be able to transform himself into a khu provided--with his soul and with his shade--in the underworld, and he shall never be held captive at any door in Amentet, in entering in or in coming out.)

OF OPENING THE TOMB

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OF NOT SAILING TO THE EAST

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OF BEING NIGH UNTO THOTH

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OF BEING NIGH UNTO THOTH

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The following--words are to be recited in the Sektet boat: "--Hail,--sceptre of Anubis, I have made the four Khus who are in the train of the lord of the universe to be at peace with me, and I am the lord of the fields through their decree. I am the divine father Bah--i.e., the god of the water flood--, and I do away with the thirst of him that keepeth ward over the Lakes. Behold ye me, then, O great gods of majesty who dwell among the Souls of Annu, for I am lifted up over you. I am the god Menkh--i.e., Gracious One--who dwelleth among you. Verily I have cleansed my soul, O great god of majesty, set not before me the evil obstacles which issue from thy mouth, and let not destruction come round about me, or upon me. I have made myself clean in the Lake of making to be at peace,--and in the Lake of--weighing in the balance, and I have bathed myself in Netert-utchat, which is under the holy sycamore tree of heaven. Behold--I am--bathed,--and I have--triumphed--over--all--mine enemies--straightway who come forth and rise up against right and truth. I am right and true in earth. I, even I, have spoken (?) with my mouth--which is--the power of the Lord,

OF BRINGING A BOAT ALONG IN HEAVEN

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OF PROTECTING THE BOAT OF RA

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--This Chapter--shall be recited over a bandlet of the fine linen of kings--upon which--it hath been written with Anti, which shall be laid upon the neck of the perfect Khu on the way of the burial. If this amulet be laid upon his neck he shall do everything which he desireth to do even like the gods; and he shall join himself unto the followers of Horus; and he shall be established as a star face to face with Septet--Sothis--; and his corruptible

ON GOING INTO THE BOAT OF RA

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OF KNOWING THE SOULS OF THE EAST

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1 toward the gate of the lord of the East through which Ra cometh forth. I, even I, know the Sektet-Aarru of Ra, the walls of which are of iron. The height of the wheat therein is five cubits, of the cars thereof two cubits, and the stalks thereof three cubits. The barley therein is--in height--seven cubits, the ears thereof are three cubits, and the stalks thereof are four cubits. And behold, the Khus, each one of whom therein is nine cubits in height, reap is near the divine Souls of the East. I, even I, know the divine Souls of the East, that is to say, Heru-khuti--Harmachis--, and the Calf of the goddess Khera, and the Morning Star--daily. A divine city hath been built for me, I know it, and I know the name thereof; 'Sekhet-Aarru' is its name."

OF SEKHET-HETEPET

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1, and I know the waters, cities, nomes, and lakes which are in Sekhet-hetep. I exist therein, I am strong therein, I become a khu therein, I eat therein, I sow seed therein, I reap the harvest therein, I plough therein, I make love therein, I am at peace with the god Hetep therein. Behold I scatter seed therein, I sail about among its lakes and I come forward to the cities thereof, O divine Hetep. Behold my mouth is equipped with thy horns--for teeth--, grant me an overflowing supply of the food whereon the kas and

1 I have entered into thee and my soul followeth after me, and my divine food is upon both my hands, O Lady of the two lands, 2 who establishest my word whereby I remember and forget; I would live without injury, without any injury--being done--unto me, oh, grant to me, oh, 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 Un (en)-em-hetep, thou Lady of the winds, I have entered into thee and I have opened--i.e., shown--my head. Ra falleth asleep,

1 I have entered into thee and I have counted my harvest, and I go forward to Uakh. 2 I am the bull enveloped in turquoise, the lord of the Field of the Bull, the lord of the divine speech of the goddess Septer--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--I come after--the divine kas. O Tchefet, 3 I have entered in to thee. I array myself in apparel, and I gird myself with the sa garment of Ra; now behold,--he is--in heaven and those who dwell therein follow Ra, and--I--follow Ra in heaven. O Unen-em-hetep, lord of the two lands, I have entered into thee, and I have plunged into the lakes of Tchesert; behold me, for all filth hath departed from me. The Great God groweth therein, and behold, I have found--food therein--; I have

1 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 caught the worms and serpents, and I am delivered. And I know the name of the god who is opposite to the goddess Tchesert, and who hath straight hair and is equipped with two horns; he reapeth, and I both plough and reap. O Hast, I have entered in to thee, 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 who hath turquoise (?) eyes, namely, Ari-en-ab-f--i.e., he doeth as he pleaseth--. O Usert, 2 I have come into thee at the head of the house wherein divine food is brought for me. O Smam, 3 I have come into thee. My heart watcheth, my head is equipped with the white crown, I am led into celestial regions, and I make to flourish terrestrial objects, and there is joy of heart for the

OF KNOWING THE SOULS OF PE

(1 and in the nome of Khat! --Hail,--ye goddesses of the class who dwell in the city of Pe, ye celestial lands (?), ye stars, and ye divine beings, who give cakes and ale (?), do ye know for what reason the city of Pe hath been given unto Horus? I, even I, know though ye knoweth it not. Behold

1 Then said Ra to those gods, 'Place ye him in his chamber, and he shall do well.' Now the black pig was Suti who had transformed himself into a black pig, and it was he who had aimed the blow of fire which was in the eye of Horus. Then said Ra unto those gods, 'The pig is an abominable thing unto Horus; oh, but he shall do well although the pig is an abomination unto him.' Then the company of the gods, who were among the divine followers of Horus when he existed in the form of his own child, said, 'Let sacrifice be made--to the gods--of his bulls, and of his goats, and of his pigs.' Now the father of Mesthi, Hapi, Tuamautef and Qebhsennuf is Horus, and their mother is Isis. Then said Horus to Ra, 'Give me two divine brethren in the

OF THE SWALLOW

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If this chapter be known--by the deceased--he shall come forth by day, he shall not be turned back

TRANSFORMATION INTO A LOTUS

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TRANSFORMATION INTO A LOTUS

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TRANSFORMATION INTO PTAH

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OF PERFORMING TRANSFORMATIONS

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COMING FORTH BY DAY

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THE CHAPTER OF BRINGING CHARMS TO OSIRIS

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THE CHAPTER OF MEMORY

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THE CHAPTER OF GIVING A HEART TO OSIRIS

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LITANY

"Homage to thee,--O Lord of--starry deities in Annu, and of heavenly things in Kher-aba; thou god Unti, who art more glorious than the gods who are hidden in Annu; O grant thou unto me a path wherein I may pass in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit."

"Homage to thee, O An in Antes, (?) Heru-khuti--Harmachis--, with long strides thou stridest over heaven, O Heru-khuti. 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."

"Homage to thee, O Soul of everlastingness, thou Soul who dwellest in Tattu, Unnefer, son of Nut; thou art lord of Akert. 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."

"Homage to thee in thy dominion over Tattu; the Ureret crown is established 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 whereon I

"Homage to thee, O lord of the Acacia tree, the Seker boat is set upon its sledge; thou turnest back the Fiend, the worker of evil, and thou causest the Utchat to rest upon its seat. Oh, 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."

"Homage to thee, O thou art mighty in thine hour, thou great and mighty Prince, dweller in An-rut-f, 1 lord of eternity and creator of everlastingness, thou art the lord of Suten-henen--Heracleopolis Magna--. Oh, 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."

"Homage to thee, O thou who restest upon Right and Truth, thou art the lord of Abtu-Abydos--, and thy limbs are joined unto Tatches-ertet; thou art he to whom fraud and guile are hateful. Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pass in peace, for I am just and

"Homage to thee, O thou who art within thy boat, thou bringest Hapi--i.e., the Nile--forth from his course; the light shineth upon thy body and thou art the dweller in Nekhen. 1 Oh, 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."

"Homage to thee, O creator of the gods, thou King of the North and of the South, O Osiris, victorious one, ruler of the world in thy gracious seasons, thou art the lord of the celestial world. 2 Oh, 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."

HYMN TO RA

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Footnotes

153:1 The four pillars at the south, north, west, and east of heaven upon which the heavens were believed to rest.

157:1 Or, "I am at peace with the god of the city."

158:1 "Existence in Peace," the name of the first section of the Elysian Fields.

158:2 The name of a pool in the second section of the Elysian Fields.

159:1 The name of a pool in the first section of the Elysian Fields.

159:2 He name of a pool in the second section of the Elysian Fields.

159:3 The name of a district in the third section of the Elysian Fields.

160:1 The name of a pool In the first section of the Elysian Fields.

160:2 "Usert," the name of a pool in the third section of the Elysian Fields.

160:3 "Smam," the name of a pool in the third section of the Elysian Fields.

161:1 A name of the city of Mendes, the metropolis of the sixteenth nome of Lower Egypt.

162:1 "He ate his heart." He lost his temper and raged.

175:1 "The place where nothing groweth," the name of a district in the underworld.

176:1 The name of the sanctuary of the goddess Nekhebet in Upper Egypt.

176:2 The two lands, Atebui, which were situated one on each side of the celestial Nile.