Every religion has its own interpretation of the afterlife. While most modern faiths are fairly self-explanatory when it comes to what occurs after death, whether it' s hell, heaven, purgatory, or any combination of the three, ancient religions had their own set of destinations.
While Norse mythology supports a variety of afterlives, from Asgard to Helheim, Greek mythology sends most people to Hades (which isn't all horrible, depending on where you wind up).
According to World History Encyclopedia, the Egyptians' understanding of the afterlife has evolved since the Predynastic period, which lasted from 6000 to 3150 B. C. E. People believed in the immortality of the soul even back then; it was just a question of what happened to it.
Beliefs about the afterlife grew throughout the Early Dynastic period and into the Middle Kingdom, culminating in the New Kingdom, when they were completely filled out. The final outcome varies, but most accounts indicate to a voyage through the Duat, where the gods would judge the soul.
The vast range of ways a person could spend forever is one of the numerous contrasts between the Egyptian afterlife and those of other myths. But first, it had to travel past the Duat, which was accomplished in the following manner.
Living One's Life in Anticipation Of Death
The average Egyptian's connection with death was complex. Because everything in life leads up to death, ancient Egyptians saw life as a test to see what occurs after death.
Egyptians had little need for adventure, according to the World History Encyclopedia, because they were content to stay at home and improve their immediate surroundings. Their explanation was that the afterlife was widely regarded as a carbon copy of their previous existence. The better their first existence was, the more they wanted to return to it in their second life for all eternity.
Then there's the issue of mummification following death. The Australian Museum takes visitors through the complete process of mummification and afterlife preparation. It took a lot of effort to earn the ancient Egyptians the reputation of being " obsessed" with death, according to World History Encyclopedia, but that's exactly what life was like for them.
Another important distinction between Egyptian death and most other religious deaths is the notion that it was only a break in life, not the end of it. That's why they mummified in the first place, according to the Canadian Museum of History, so that their bodies would be preserved when their souls returned from the afterlife' s tribulations.
Dead People's Book
Knowing what was ahead beyond death, the Egyptians understood the importance of being prepared. The soul had to endure a perilous journey through various hurdles, passing through the judgment of numerous gods, all in an effort to ensure that eternity was spent in a happy place and not buried in eternal nothingness, almost like a that eternity was spent in a happy place and not buried in eternal nothingness, almost like a version of Dante' s " Inferno. " Needless to say, there was a great deal on the line when the soul embarked on its adventure.
To be ready, Egyptians produced the Book of the Dead, which was essentially a papyrus scroll. This book was essential to the soul's ability to overcome all of life's challenges. It effectively served as a tour of everything that needed to be stated, done, and accomplished in order to pass the Duat' s examinations.
In the hereafter, there were demons everywhere, tests designed to throw the spirit off track, and if you weren't prepared, it was easy to get lost. There wasn't just one book, though. " There was a pool of writings [about 200] from which you might choose, "John H. Taylor, British Museum's funerary archaeology expert, said (via History Extra), " but no known book has every known spell."
The Ka And The Ba Are Two Different Words For The same Thing
Though it was not an active function, the physical body played a significant role in the hereafter. It would be dispatched across the Duat on a solar bark (a boat), and the ba the manifestation of the ka, or the soul would have to return to the body on a boat), and the ba the manifestation of the ka, or the soul would have to return to the body on a regular basis to rest and heal for the next leg of the journey.
Every day, the ba would embark on its voyage
across the Duat, completing the tests and tasks set
before it. Fighting monsters, appeasing the gods,
solving puzzles, and passing various trials were all
common occurrences. And this journey had two
components, one for the body and one for the soul.
The body had to be mummified properly so that it wouldn't degrade while the ba was away, and the ba had to successfully complete its trials so that it could return to the body. After all, the ba is the life giving power that the body demands, according to Jiri Janak's " Journey to the Resurrection."
The Link With The Night Sky
The Duat, in and of itself, is a contentious topic in debates of the Egyptian afterlife. According to Sylvia Zago's research of the Duat in " Imagining the Beyond," while it is often believed to relate to the afterlife itself, it also has a meaning that connects it to the stars and the universe.According to Zago, the Duat may have initially meant to a single site on the afterlife journey, but it was later confounded to refer to the entire voyage. Given the gods' extensive relationship with astronomy, the connection to the cosmos brings about the other connection with the Duat: that the afterlife for Egyptians takes place in the stars.
In fact, as seen in R. A. Wells' " Origin of the Hour and the Gates of the Duat," which compares the gates of the underworld to the various arcs of the stars in the night sky, the details can all be connected. In a sense, the many constellations represented all of the gates that the ba passed through in the afterlife.
The Role Of The Gods In Life And Death
The Role Of The Gods In Life And Death
Unlike the Greek gods, who were unconcerned about any mortal' s journey through life and death, the Egyptian gods were deeply involved in what transpired along the path. While it was primarily an endeavor to guarantee that everyone ended up where they belonged, it nonetheless allowed for the exercise of free choice while also providing some guidance.
According to World History, gods were regarded as close companions of individuals. In life, Hathor was always close by to give shade, but in the afterlife, Selket, Nephthys, and Qebhet greeted freshly arrived souls and assured their safe passage. And, unlike Charon in the Greek underworld, Qebhet would provide new souls drink and nutrition when they were thirsty.
Then there were Anubis, Thoth, and Osiris, among a slew of other gods, waiting to judgment souls. While there were " trickster" gods such as Seth in Egyptian mythology, the majority of the gods were very straightforward and dedicated to their straightforward and dedicated to their responsibilities in life and death.
Depending on how the judgment went, you could be in for an eternity filled with even closer encounters with the gods. Some souls spent eternally in Osiris's house, while others sailed with Ra in his solar barge. Of course, Ammit ate some of them, but only the unworthy. For all eternity, everyone else had a rather healthy and joyful
Getting Through The Barriers
This is the point in the adventure that it feels like you' re in a video game. One of the essential components of the ba's journey through the afterlife was encountering creatures and " bosses" that had to be defeated in order to go to the next " level. "Each gate was guarded by a deity and had to be defeated in order to go to the next level. "Each gate was guarded by a deity and had to be defeated in a specific manner (History Extra).
The numerous literature of the dead came in handy in this situation. They included instructions on how to defeat each deity as well as spells to cast in order to progress. For example, when the ba approaches the sixth gate, the secret formula is given by spell 146, according to History Extra.
"Make a way for me," you continue," for I know you, I know your name, and know the name of the deity who protects you' Mistress of Darkness, loud of yells; its height cannot be determined by its breadth, and its extent in space cannot be determined. "It has snakes on it, the number of which is unknown; it was made before the Inert One's name."You might also approach the gate by stating, "Mine is a name stronger than yours, mightier than yours upon the road of justice," according to spell 144. Because no two books of the dead were alike, they each had their own set of instructions.
The Heart Is Scrutinized.
There are many theories about what happens in the Hall of Truths, including whether it was ever called that (some call it the Hall of Ma' at), but the most popular version claims that after answering the 42 judges' questions, the soul could increase its chances of receiving good news by reciting the " Negative Confession" (per World History Encyclopedia).
This confession includes 42 offenses that one wasThis confession includes 42 offenses that one was not supposed to commit, such as stealing, making someone cry, making someone hungry, and so on. In front of all the judges, the ba would say that it had not done these things.
The heart (the vessel of the soul) would then be assessed against the feather of Ma' at, the Egyptian goddess of truth, justice, harmony, and balance, if the 42 judges liked the answers and trusted the confession (via History Extra).
Depending on who you ask, Osiris or Anubis would lay the heart on the scale, and it would be weighed, literally, against the truth. If the scales were balanced, it showed you were trustworthy and deserving. If they didn't balance, you' d lied and it snowed you were trustworthy and deserving. If they didn' t balance, you' d lied and were therefore unworthy.
However, that isn't the end of the story. Even if the scales didn't balance, there were still plenty of options for the judged soul.." A Field Of Reeds In Various Versions Of Eternity And Paradise
The A' Aru, or Field of Reeds, would be the ideal ending location if everything went well throughout the ba' s voyage through the Duat' s gates and the 42 judges perceived no misgivings in the perceived no misgivings in the
heart/soul of the dead. According to the World
History Encyclopedia, this was a glorified version of
existence, which explains why Egyptians spent so
much time in life refining their surroundings- they
wanted to return to this forever.
However, that wasn't the only possibility. Because no two books of the dead were same, they all ended in various places. One was the Field of Reeds, but there was also the option of spending eternity with one of the gods.
Two examples are provided by History Extra, both of which sound promising. The first was to spend eternally with Ra in his sun boat, cruising through the sky, and the second was to spend eternity with Osiris in the Duat, enjoying a front-row seat to all the trials encountered by other beings.
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