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12 The Destiny and Journeys of the Sages
Those who the Gods guide cannot get lost. Those they forbid passage will not be able to cross the river of life. Ptah-Hotep
An evil fate awaits those who walk upon the waters of the Gods. Whereas those who walk on the earth are reduced to fighting to gain a favourable destiny. Temple of Esna
For the shining soul who advances, The path is already there. Ptah-Hotep
The faculty of transcendence, the ba, makes its way to the place that it knows. It will not wander from its habitual path. Thus, no magician can obstruct it. Merikare
You will take the form of a phoenix, a swallow, Of a heron, whichever you want. You will cross without being fettered, You will float upon the wave, You will be born a second time. \ Your eyes will be opened, Your ears will be made to hear what is ordained, Your mouth will speak, Your feet will walk, Your hands and your arms will move. Tomb of Paheri
Can you leave the light of day, Upright on two feet, Can you exercise mastery on the Way of Light, Since you know the secret routes. Texts of the Sarcophagi, IV 49
I travel the Milky Way, In the company of the Divine Light. I have regulated my step correctly, I rule Heaven. Texts of the Sarcophagi II, 376 and 164
Raise Heaven to the height of your arms, Widen the earth to the length of your stride. The Book of Leaving the Day, Ch.48
I am a jackal with swift feet who can travel around the world in an instant. The `Red Chapel' of Hatshepsut
Amon-Ra (The secret of the revelation through the light) is the Double mast that catches the wind, He does not waver in the north wind, He does not flinch from the south wind. He supports the sail, Even if the weather is bad, And He allows passage. Ostracon British Museum 5656a
Venerate Amon Ra, the king of the Gods, the primordial, He who was the first to come into existence, The unique God, lie who is loved, He who has raised the sky, I He who created the sky, the land and the waters! Come to me, Amon, Help me to reach the limit of the desert. You who saves the cast away Help me to reach firm ground. Theban Relief, Cairo Museum
The tempest moves aside for the sailor who remembers the name of Amon. The storm becomes a sweet breeze for he who invokes His name Thus the shipwrecked mariner is saved. Amon is more effective than millions for he who places Him in his heart. Thanks to Him the single man becomes stronger than a crowd. Hymn to Amon at Leyde
I am the heart of the Lord, The eyes and ears of the King. See, I am a captain of his ship. I know not sleep by night and by day. I stand up and I sit down, My heart lies under the bonds of time before and time after. Tomb of Rekhmire
If you work the rudder correctly, You will be in the flow of the current which leads to the accomplishment of justice. Keep watch so as not to undertake a voyage which would endanger the ropes of the rudder. Stories of the Oases
I am the steering oar of the Divine Light with which Perfection, that oar which fire cannot burn and water cannot make wet, is satisfied. Texts of the Sarcophagi V, 1Sb-16a
I am she who has the oar of the ship of command. The sovereign of life, Guide of the light on the beautiful roads, I am she who fixes the cables on the rudders on the routes of the West, I am the Third, The Queen of brightness, The one who guides the great ones who are lost and exhausted on the roads of the reborn. I am she who has the splendor on the roads of the cloudy sky. I am the Queen of the winds on the isle of joy, I am she who has the oars, Who guides those who are lost in the underworld, I am Hathor, Queen of the northern sky, Who watches over the reborn, I am a haven of tranquillity for the just, A ferry for the chosen, I am she who has created the ship for the passage of the just.
Texts of the Sarcophagi IV, 177
The crooked man does not enter the place of righteousness, The country of silence. Only the man with a good heart is permitted entrance to the ferry, Since the ferryman does not allow the wicked to cross. How happy they are, those who cross to the other side. Hymn to Amon at Leyde
Length of Life Amon may be so far away on His many roads, But His eyes and His ears stay open. He hears the cries of those who call to Him, And in an instant He comes from afar to those who invoke Him. It is He who prolongs or shortens life. He changes the destiny of those whom He loves. Hymn to Amon at Leyde
Every man who is enlightened will reach the age of one hundred and ten. Ten years of his life will be without disorder, without impurity, without faults or lies, conforming to that which the neophyte has accomplished on the way to becoming a sage. That is why he will eat bread every day next to the powerful God. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch.228
Death
To hide death in the background is bad for man. Texts of the pyramids, 1439
When death comes, it embraces the old like a child in the arms of its mother. Ani
The West is the dwelling place for he who has not transgressed the Rule. Happy is he who reaches there! Nobody can reach there unless Their hearts have conformed exactly to the Rule. Down there there is no distinction between rich and poor, Unless it is in the favour of he who is found to be righteous When weighed in the scales of justice before the master of Eternity. Petosiris
Happy is he who reaches the West, Then he is safe in the hands of God. Amenemope
Death comes before me today like a cure after an illness, Like liberty after imprisonment. Death has come before me today like the perfume of myrrh. Like sitting under a sail on a windy day. Death has come before me today like the scent of the lotus, Like being seated by the banks of rivers of ecstasy. Death has come before me today like the moment when clamor ceases, like the moment when you finally reach home after a long expedition. Death has come before me today like the lightening of a darkened sky, like the discovery of something unknown. Death has come before me today like when a man longs to see his home again after years of captivity. Dialogue of a man with his Ba spirit
The Tomb
Do not lose yourself in the exterior world to the extent that you neglect the place of your eternal rest. Ani
Embellish your tomb in the Necropolis, Enrich your resting place in the West. Welcome this thought, Since death is a narrow gate for us, And life triumphant. The dwelling place of death is destined for life. Hor-Djedef
As for my tomb, this kingdom, I built it in the shade. I was respected both by men and by God. Not once did the builders use a single brick of anyone else's tomb to build mine. One remembers the judgement after death. Inscription of Remen-Oui-Kai
The Court of the Underworld
The assembly of judges metes out justice to the condemned and you know that they will not be indulgent on the day when they do justice to he who submits to it. And it is even more serious when the accuser is a sage! Do not fool yourself with the length of years: to them the length of existence seems but an hour. A man lives after his death, And his actions are judged as a whole next to him. It is eternity that laughs, And you would be foolish to ignore it. Those who reach there without committing evil, Will be there like Gods, They will move freely there like the Masters of Eternity. Merikare
Life After Death
All who are knowledgeable will not die a second time. His enemies will not be able to harm him. No magic will keep him tied to this earth. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch. 83
Live life, then truly you will not die a death. Texts of the Pyramids, 810
0 Osiris the king, You left but you returned. You slept but you awoke. You have landed on the banks of the underworld but yet you live. Texts of the Pyramids, 1975
Every fortunate person who knows the secret of Osiris hidden in the shadows will live as a living man amongst the living. Texts of the Sarcophagi VII, 364
Goddess of Heaven, Hearken to me, , Allow me to enter into the life that is yours. Do not close the doors before me. Allow me to cross the firmament, Unite me with the doors of the dawn. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch. 644
My protection comes from all the Gods, eternally. I am someone whose name is secret. I am he who was never counted. I am completely unharmed. The Book of Leaving the Day, Ch. 7
Place your bones in order, Reassemble your limbs, Turn your face towards the beautiful West: You will return, eternally youthful, each and every day. Texts of the Sarcophagi VII, 255
Rebirth is that which moves amongst its brothers the Gods in the country of light. Texts of the Sarcophagi VI, 296
Give me your hands, I was born from you! You are the Word and the intuitive knowledge, Which are near to the creator every day. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch.335
I was born from the creative power, born of herself. She conceived me in her heart, She created me with her magical power. I was not born of a human childbirth.
You live this wonderful life which is that of the Master of the Country of Light, of the great wave that lies in the heavens. Texts of the Pyramids, 1772
May my name last like the stars in the skies, Let them buttress my statue like one of their followers, Let my creative power be remembered in his temple night and day, May my youth be renewed like the moon, Let my name not be obliterated by eternity. Statue in Cairo, 42237
Paradise and the After-Life
I have not neglected the day of crossing to the other world, I am remembered by those who rest in their eternal dwelling places. I have acted in a way that will leave them to feast in joy. Thus have I arrived in the realm of the hereafter with the favour of the Gods. Statue in Cairo, 42231
Fear does not exist in the afterlife. There are no arguments. There, people do not doubt one another, In this country that knows no discord. Theban tomb of Neferhotep
Plan to find yourself in the land of plenty amongst the followers of Osiris and among the servants of Thoth. Each day they eat bread with the living, they do not die, they breathe the breath of immortality. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch. 1162
Think about the countryside, the towns, the land, he tilling and the harvesting, seeing the Divine Light, Ra, and Osiris, the reborn, and Thoth, knowledge, every day. You will have the mastery of water and air, doing everything that you love like he who finds himself on the isle of fire, then life will be such that death is impossible, dwelling in the land of plenty where there are fields and pastures for always and forever. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch.467
The south wind changes to the north for you. Your mouth is guided to the teat of the celestial cow. You become pure enough to look at the sun. You cleanse yourself in the divine basin. You are strong beside Osiris, the rebirth. Come in total silence to the vital power. The Song of the Harpist
You are the mistress of your conscience, Of your heart, Of your arms and legs. You consume your funerary offerings. You are the mistress of the water, of the air, of the fecund flood, of the twin banks, Of those who would act against you in the Kingdom of the Underworld. You are not nourished by earthly food. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch.225
The Being of Light
The being of light is destined for heaven. Texts of the Pyramids, 474
Give a lot to the spirit of light, Do what it loves. Ani
I have explored heaven, I have gone deeply into the country of light, I have crossed the light, I have walked its length, I have become master of the spiritual power of my predecessor, I am truly a being of light. Texts of the Sarcophagi, Ch.574
The Ba, the Spirit-Bird
A man must accomplish what is useful and sacred to his Ba. Merikare
I have come to you, master of the sacred land. I have practised the Law on earth, without deviation; Allow me to be glorified in Heaven and powerful on the earth. Made just like the masters of the starry constellations. Let the ability to move myself (ba) allow me to travel to anywhere I wish. Stele of Rome at Abydos
Your faculty of movement or ba will live forever, Like Orion set in the navel of the Goddess of Heaven. You will become as gold, You will shine brilliantly. In the constellations of the stars you will fulfil a royal function. Your name will be great in the West. Ritual of Embalming |
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