Egyptian Ideas of the Future Life Part 6

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 G.o.ds are present in the boat of R[=a]

in the scenes which depict the creation.

On one side of the balance kneels the G.o.d 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 G.o.ds, 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 G.o.ds 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 G.o.d Shai standing below it close to the standard of the balance. Close by the soul stand two G.o.ddesses called Meskhenet and Renenet respectively; the former is, probably, one of the four G.o.ddesses who a.s.sisted 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 G.o.ddesses 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 G.o.d Khnemu bestowed health upon his limbs. [Footnote: See Erman, _Westcar Papyrus_, Berlin, 1890, hieroglyphic transcript, plates 9 and 10.] Of these five G.o.ds, 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 G.o.d 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 circ.u.mstances 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 G.o.d, 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 a.s.sociate 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 G.o.ds:--

"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 G.o.ds, who are styled "the great company of the G.o.ds," 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 G.o.d 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 cla.s.s of mythological beings, or demi-G.o.ds, who already in the Vth dynasty were supposed to recite prayers on behalf of the deceased, and to a.s.sist 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 G.o.d and judge of the dead, and that they have bestowed upon him the G.o.d'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 a.s.sumed 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 pa.s.s 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 pa.s.sage in a boat, and to obtain the help of the G.o.ds and of the powers of the various localities wherein he wanted to travel if he wished to pa.s.s 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 p.r.o.nounced 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 G.o.ds, 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 G.o.d 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 pa.s.sing 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 G.o.ds, nor by Horus when he introduces him to Osiris; it is only the G.o.ds 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 a.s.sumed all the attributes of his father Osiris, takes Ani's left hand in his right and leads him up to the shrine wherein the G.o.d Osiris is seated. The G.o.d 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 a.s.sociated. The top of the shrine in which the G.o.d sits is surmounted by uraei, wearing disks on their heads, and the cornice also is similarly decorated. In several papyri the G.o.d is seen standing up in the shrine, sometimes with and sometimes without the G.o.ddesses Isis and Nephthys. In the Papyrus of Hunefer we find a most interesting variant of this [Ill.u.s.tration: Horus, the son of Isis, leading the scribe Ani into the presence of Osiris, the G.o.d and judge of the dead; before the shrine of the G.o.d 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 pa.s.sage in the one hundred and twenty-sixth chapter of the Book of the Dead in which the G.o.d 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 G.o.d 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 G.o.d or any G.o.ddess. Thoth hath weighed it according to the decree uttered unto him by the company of the G.o.ds; 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 G.o.d 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 pet.i.tion, 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 pa.s.sed safely through this ordeal has now to meet the G.o.ds 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 G.o.ddesses" is found in the Papyrus of Nu; in it the deceased says:--

"Homage to you, O ye G.o.ds who dwell in the Hall of the Ma[=a]ti G.o.ddesses, 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 G.o.d 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 G.o.d, therefore let not evil hap come upon me through the King who dwelleth in his day.

"Homage to you, O ye G.o.ds, who dwell in the Hall of the Ma[=a]ti G.o.ddesses, 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 G.o.d Horus, who dwelleth in his divine Disk; deliver ye me from the G.o.d 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 G.o.ds; I have made G.o.d 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 [s.h.i.+pwrecked] mariner. I have made holy offerings to the G.o.ds, 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 a.s.s spake to the Cat;" the a.s.s 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 G.o.ds 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 Gra.s.shoppers, 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 G.o.ds are gratified after they have pa.s.sed 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 G.o.ds 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, 'Pa.s.s on,' and I would pa.s.s 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 G.o.ds say unto me, 'Come and enter in through the door of this Hall of the M[=a][=a]ti G.o.ddesses, 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 pa.s.s over me unless thou tellest my name."

_Deceased_. "'Ox of the G.o.d 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 G.o.d Shu when he placeth himself to protect Osiris' is thy name."

_Side posts_. "We will not let thee pa.s.s in by us, unless thou tellest our names."

_Deceased_. "'Children of the uraei-G.o.ddesses' is your name."

"Thou knowest us; pa.s.s 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 G.o.d Khas' is the name of my right foot, and 'Staff of the G.o.ddess Hathor' is the name of my left foot."

"Thou knowest me; pa.s.s 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 G.o.d 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?"