Description
Book SynopsisAncient Egyptians imagined the afterlife as a kind of journey you had to make to get to paradise – but it was quite a hazardous journey so you would need help along the way. So spells and magic formulas written on papyrus were placed in coffins and burial chambers and believed to protect and aid the deceased in duat, or the underworld. These funerary texts were developed over many centuries into individualized collections known as the Book of the Dead. One of the best-known versions, the ‘Papyrus of Ani’, is featured here.
Some 192 spells are known, although no single manuscript contains them all. The spells are designed to give the dead mystical knowledge in the afterlife, offer incantations to help preserve different parts of the deceased, and protect the dead from hostile forces. Some of the spells are to make sure you can control your own body after death. The ancient Egyptians believed that a person was made up of different elements: body, spirit, name, heart, all embodiments of a person, and they were afraid that these elements would disperse when you died.
Presented in a high-quality Chinese-bound format with accompanying illustrations, Egyptian Book of the Dead is an ideal resource of esoteric wisdom for anyone interested in Ancient Egyptian notions of death and the path to the afterlife.
Table of ContentsIntroduction
From the Papyrus of Ani:
HYMN TO OSIRIS
A HYMN OF PRAISE TO RA WHEN HE RISETH IN THE EASTERN PART OF HEAVEN
HYMN TO OSIRIS UN-NEFER
THE CHAPTERS OF COMING FORTH BY DAY
TEXTS RELATING TO THE WEIGHING OF THE HEART OF ANI
THE SEVEN ARITS
THE PYLONS OF THE HOUSE OF OSIRIS
THE PRIESTS ANMUTEF AND SAMEREF
THE SOLAR LITANY
THE CHAPTER OF THE NEW MOON
THE NEGATIVE CONFESSION
ADDRESS TO THE GODS OF THE TUAT
THE CHAPTER OF REPULSING SLAUGHTER IN HENSU
THE TEXTS IN THE FUNERAL CHAMBER
