Extracts from the 'Book of the Dead' :

Third part : Transformation :

 

In the third part, the dead, (having regenerated their souls), travel in "space-time", reaching the palace of Atoum in the holy city of Heliopolis . Although the 'Texts of the Sarcophagi' mention about "60 transformations" of the of the dead though several different aspects, chapters 76 and 88 only mention 12, (comparable to the 12 hours that Re travels during the day).

CHAPTER 64 - How the saved soul is raised and transformed like an eternal spirit, just like that of God. The soul of the blest N. says :

• I am yesterday, the dawn (the present) and tomorrow ( the future): I organize the rebirth of souls, of all nature and her mysteries.
• I am the Creator of the gods who give nourishment to the people of Douat, those who inhabit the Western sky.
• I am the master of the East, I have two faces.
• I arrange the rising of the sun, whose rays rise up into the sky and descend at dawn to transform the dwellings of the dead.
• Your heart delights in its own achievements, O thou (Re), who enters the sky just above the sea, who rises and falls, to leave again in the East.
• You invoke the souls of my elders and predecessors (on earth). Let your light shine on me; widen my paths and help me to travel the earth with the same ease as you cross the sky.
• I am Kem-our, abundance is my name: I am generous, but I hide my true self.
• I am the Ray of light which appears at your door and goes where it wishes; I know that Unfathomable is your name and you supply all the needs of the blest, using millions of vessels which contain the blessing.
• I am in charge of this wealth, distributed according to the time, on the day when we shall see the companions of Orion (those personages from ancient times which are on the sun dial); there are twelve in all.
  
• I came from Letopolis to Heliopolis to tell the Phoenix about the events at the Douat. O land of silence, where mysterious things are happening, like Khepri the golden scarab, (a synonym for the rising sun). Let me rise up and see the light of the sun; let me travel in peace and walk on the celestial waters; let me fly towards the effulgence of the blest, towards Re who gives life anew each day to everyone.
• I am the one who presides over Roseatu:
• I am Osiris, whose name is the owner of millions of lands…
  
• I embraced the sycamore and the sycamore protected me; the doors of the Douat opened for me; I went to see Re at his setting, and I was united with the wind when he reappeared, my hands were purified in adoring him; yet I can do everything that the living can do.
• I was resurrected, I flew up to the sky and I rested on earth.
• My eyes saw what I wished to see. I am the one who brought into the world the One who knows the plan for life on earth and in the empire of the dead, (allusion to a double judgement of the soul where forty-two people gave evidence that after his death, there was no sign of decay to his body and in the heart of the earth was the great judgment of Osiris, whose soul was compared to the goddess of truth: Maat).

 

 
CHAPTER 69 - Formula to coming forth into the day :

• I am Osiris, the Radiant. I am the oldest of all the gods, the oldest of the heirs (by the five days of the epagomenes) of my father Geb.
• I am ORION, who came down to earth, but also moved in the world above the stars…
• I am Anubis. I am the elder Horus, the day of his glorious arrival…
• O great one, go in and say to the writer of the scripts, the guardian of the door of Osiris that I am come, blessed and as a divine being to save my own soul.
• I am powerful and divine from Osiris' bed, I came into the world with him and I am young once again...

CHAPTER 70 - Formula for coming forth into the day, the words of Osiris N = the soul in bliss:

• Oh, Falcon (Horus), who rises up from Noun, keep me whole as thou art whole.
• Horus in the southern sky, Thot in the northern sky, I appeased the ureus who was angry, and I offered Maat to Him who loves it (words of Thot)

CHAPTER 72 - Formula for coming forth into the day (Continued):

• He who knows this book on earth or that which is written on the sarcophagus, can come forth into the day in any way he desires. He then may return to his place without being rejected. He will prosper as he did on earth and how will do whatever he wishes, (like the gods of Ennead, who are in the Douat. This has been done on millions of occasions.

CHAPTER 76 - The way to become any aspect that you may desire; the words of N.:

• I went to the House of the King.
• Greetings to you wearing the white crown; I shall become UN with the great GOD.  Clear the way for me so that I may reach him.

CHAPTER 77 - The way to become like the golden Falcon (Re in the morning)

• I appeared as a great Falcon, emerging from an egg. My back has four elbows. I do not fly and I stay in the boat of day, where the ancient gods live.
• I appear to them as a beautiful golden Falcon with the head of a phoenix; everyone pays homage to me and bows down to me. I reside among the ancient gods of the sky; the land of happiness has been prepared for me in the afterlife.

CHAPTER 78 (CH. 77 cont.) :

• I come today to the divine house of Isis the divine. The Ba of Horus allowed me to know the mysteries and secrets of the birth of Horus in the hidden lairs. If I tell too much, the soldiers of Chou (an Atlantean expression) will chase me and crush my pride.
• As a Falcon, I live in the light. My crown and my Radiance have given me power. I travel to and fro from one end of the sky to the other. You gods of Douat who drive away those who become tainted; you, the Invincible who hold the Stars.
• Osiris, you became the "Bull of the West" when your son Horus (the Falcon) came to the throne. All life emanates from him, and the Ennead and multitudes of servants tend to his needs.
• Atoum, the "all-powerful", priceless among the gods, he who cannot go back on his word (Hou) said: "Horus (N) is a sage who has joined together all the aspects of his father, and is also a brother, a friend."

CHAPTER 79. The Way to join the company of the gods and become the lord of the divine assembly. Words of N:

• Greetings to you, Atoum, the creator of the sky, the Master of all that exists. You produce the seeds and the crops; you brought the gods to earth. Great God of Existence, Master of Life; Thou who enables human beings to thrive.
• I salute the circle of celestial gods.
• I come before you, pure, undefiled, divine, strong, full of life and happiness. I bring you incense and Resin of the turpentine tree to purify your saliva.
• I came to you as the son and daughter of Atoum…

CHAPTER 83 - The way to become like the phoenix:

• I flew away as an ancient god, and I came back to life as the golden scarab (beetle), Khepri, I grew like a plant, protected by my carapace, like a tortoise.
• Whosoever knows this way (and is pure), may come out into the day after their death and become anything they desire. He may see the solar disc, live beside Re and be vindicated by Osiris so that no evil can befall him.

CHAPTER 85 - The way to become a living soul - the words of N.

• I am Eternal; I am the soul of Re who rose from the Noun, the soul who created Hou.
• My abomination is evil behavior, I hate it all.
• I believe in Maat (Daughter of Re, and the goddess of justice and truth) and stay beside her. I am the Lord of light and my horror is going into the slaughter room of the Douat and dying there.
• I gave the quality of blessedness to Osiris.
• I am the oldest of the ancient gods; my soul is that of all the gods, of eternity; my body is everlasting. I have overcome my sins. I saw my father, the lord of the night, (whose body was at Heliopolis), and I lead the inhabitants of the twilight over the hill of the ibis. 

CHAPTER 92 - the way for the Soul to open the tomb to let in the shadow of N. , so that it may go forth into the day.

• "Eye of Horus, take me with you, so that I can admire your beauty on the forehead of Re. Show the way to him who can walk so that he may go to the great God within the Boat of the Day, where the Souls are tried and he will repeat my words to Osiris."

CHAPTER 97 - The words to say:

• I am your Father, the Flood, (which brings abundance), the one that quenches thirst and watches over all the islands. I have purified myself in the island of contentment and refuge…
• I have been just and honest, and when I inhabited the earth, I was the interpreter of his words of the One who is in the likeness of the exalted Master, Ra, who lives in truth.

 

 
CHAPTER 109 - Knowing the souls of the East, the words of N. :

• I know the northern door of the sky, where RL navigates by Sail and by Oar; I am the worker in the divine boat; I am the one who paddles unceasingly.
• I know the two turquoise sycamores where Rê leaves; they guard the Heights-of-Chou, (ancient Atlantian names!); this is the door of the Lord of the East, by which Rê-Horakhty, the star of the morning, leaves.

CHAPTER 110 - N. in the countryside of bliss:

• Here I am paddling this barque in Hotep's canals - a name which is synonymous with peace, but which could also belong to one of the gods of bliss. I am powerful here, for I am one who knows Hotep, I paddle in his canals to reach his towns… I equip this countryside which is yours, beloved Hotep, master of the breeze, I thrive here and am strong, and my heart is happy here.
• To be Hotep, master of the countryside of Bliss!
• To be Horus the falcon a thousand cubits long! He comes and goes wherever he chooses in his canals and in his towns and does everything as it is done normally in the Island of Fire. This is Hotep.
• I live in Hotep, I am Hotep in the town of the gods…
• To be Hotep, master of the breeze…

CHAPTER 122 - Words to go home to the sky having left the earth. Words spoken by the spirit N.

• Who then are you? Where did you come from?
• I am one of you. The Gatherer of souls is the ferryman's name. Everything belongs to me, all has been given to me. I entered as a falcon and left as a phoenix. Morning star, clear me a path so that I can Reach the good world of the West. I belong to Osiris's lake and adore Osiris, master of life.  

CHAPTER 123 - Words to accede to the Great Castle. Words spoken by the spirit N.

• Greetings to you AT0UM ! I am Thot… I came so that you see me from the "Castle of Umm-her, he who renews faces". I am like someone who orders the youngest and the oldest alike.

CHAPTER 124 - Words to Reach Osiris's Assembly.

• Oh, doorman of Sehetep-Taouy, make it so the Luminous one opens his arms to me… Here I am with Osiris, I say words to him from men and I Repeat the words of the gods (to be known).
• Come perfect fortunate one, offer Maat to he who loves her.

CHAPTER 125 - N.'s declaration of innocence according to the Nu Papyrus (Budge p. 240-252): 

• I have been in the temple of "Him who is on the Mountain - Osiris". Having entered Osiris's temple, I saw the High priest, I removed the veils from him who was there. At Roseatu, I saw the mystery of him who was there. At Naref, I dressed him who was naked and gave myrrh to the women of the sacred lake. Let the weighing of my soul take place among us now. The three questions asked by his Majesty Anubis are:

1. 1. Do you know the name of this gate ? So Osiris N. the fortunate one answers:
   - 'Shu' is the name of this gate.
2. Do you know the name of this threshold ?
   - Master of Strength, who is on his own two legs.
3. Do you know the name of the lintel?
   -Master of strength who brings in the cattle.

   Anubis answers "enter since you have given the three answers, Osiris N."

 

 

Words to be said when acceding to the room of the two Maats (Isis and Hathor) :

To separate the spirit N. from the sin that it has committed and enable it to see the gods:

• Greetings to you, High God, Master of the two Maats! I came to you, my Master, to see your perfection. I know you and I know the name of the two Maats (at your side). Here I have now come to you and have brought what is just and have chased iniquity away.

- I have not committed iniquity against men,
- I have not mistreated people,
- I committed no sins in the Place of Truth,
- I have done no harm…
- I did not "blaspheme" God,
- I did not impoverish the poor in their belongings,
- I did not do what is abominable to the gods…
- I have not afflicted and made the people weep,
- I have not starved anyone (but have fed instead),
- I did not kill or order killings,
- I have harmed no one,
- I did not soil the gods' bread,
- I did not steal the holy wafers belonging to the fortunate ones (of the sky),
- I was not a pederast,
- I did not Reduce my bushel, (my scales were fair),
- I did not add to the weight of my scales,
- I did not cheat on the measurement of lands,
- I did not steal milk from the mouths of small children,
- I did not deprive cattle of its pasture,
- I did not steal the gods' birds and fish,
- I did not divert water when there was a flood,
- I did not put out a fire which burned brightly,
- I did not forget the days for offering meat,
- I did not oppose a god during a procession,

I am pure, I am pure, I am pure! My purity is that of the Grand Phoenix at Heracleopolis, as I am the nose of the Master of the winds who makes all men live in this, the day of the Filling of the Eye at Heliopolis…

• Oh God (Re) of Heliopolis, who walks with large strides, I have committed no iniquities.
• Oh (Atoum), he who extinguishes the flame at Kher-aha, I was not a brigand.
• Oh (Thot), monkey, native of Hermopolis, I have not been greedy.
• Oh fearsome face, native of Roseatu, I killed nobody.
• Oh Routy (Atoum), native of the skies, I did not shrink my bushel.
• Oh Master of equity native of Maat, I did not steal shares of bread.
• Oh Re the pale, native of Heliopolis, I was not talkative.
• Oh Villain, native of Antjy, I did not argue but for my own business.
• Oh Ouamemty, snake divinity, I did not trade with a married woman.
• Oh Chief of the Great Ones, native of Imou (Delta), I did not inspire fear…
• Oh child, native of Heqa-adj, I was not deaf to words of truth.
• Oh he who announces the decision, native of Ounsy (Upper Egypt), I was not insolent…
• Oh Nefertum of Memphis, I am without sin, I did no harm.
• Oh Fluid, native of Noun, I was not noisy.
• Oh Commander of men, I did not blaspheme God.
• Oh you from Houy who does good, I did not take on airs…

• Greetings to you, gods who are in the room of the two Maats! I know your names. You shall tell the Master of the Universe the fair things which I did as I practiced fairness in Egypt; and I did not blaspheme God.
• Greetings to you who are in the room of the two Maats, you who are exempt from lies by your essence, who live by that which is equitable in the eyes of Horus-who-is-in-the-sun…
• Here I am before you without sin, without malice, without accusation, without having been ruthless against anyone. I lived by fairness. I did that which men speak of, that which rejoices the gods. I satisfied God by doing that which he found pleasing: I gave bread to the hungry and water to the thirsty, clothes to those who were naked and a boat to those who did not have one and I served divine offerings to the gods and funeral offerings for the fortunate ones (the beatified mortals).
• I am someone whose hands and mouth are pure, someone to whom it is said "Come in peace" by those who see me… I am a respectable man in the gods' eyes. I came here to show truth, to reset the scales to their correct position in the kingdom of the dead. Not one of my members is lacking in justice.

CHAPTER 126 -

• Thot, Lord of the moon, is represented either as an ibis or as an ibis-man. It is tradition that he takes on the appearance of the old monkey-god who was venerated at Hermopolis from the earliest dynasties and was soon integreted into the Ogdoad. It was in this city too that he became the husband of the goddess of Writings: Seshat. Master and guardian of the Writings, ruler of the scribes, who counts the sins of men during their judgment after death. As Master of Speech and of Thoughts, Egyptian Religion considers him also as Ptah's tongue and Re's heart… The Greeks assimilated him into the god Hermes.

 
Let us return to the three major Cosmologies (Egyptian theologies of Creation):

• At Heliopolis, Atoum created himself above the primitive waters: The Noun. He made two children, Shu and Tefnut who, in turn, engendered Geb (the earth) and Nut (the sky).
• At Hermopolis, Thot is the God of creation who by his word made an ogdoad of allegorical gods, (according to a tradition even older than the sun gods). According to this, Re came to Hermopolis out of a lotus which was floating on the primordial ocean…
• The third cosmology comes from Memphis where the clergy of the Ancient Empire instituted Ptah as creator by the use of the Verb. He conceived the world with his intelligence and created it by his word.
• Ptah would then have made an ogdoad made of two hypostase gods. The two principal divinities who are part of this being are Horus (the intelligence which reigns in his heart) and Thot, a form of his divine will, itself an instrument of his creation.

Words spoken by the spirit N. :

" Oh four baboons who are seated in the bow of Re's barque, who offer fairness to the Master of the universe, who separate the weak from the strong, who give joy to the gods and the fortunate ones by giving them funeral offerings, they who live by drinking in justice, they whose hearts are free from lies and whose abomination is sin:

-Purify me, remove my wrongdoings, wash away my sins…

- Come! We will remove your wrongdoings, we will erase your sins, we cast away everything that was wrong in you. Enter into Roseatu and come in through the mysterious doors of the West. Like the other elected fortunate ones, you will be able to come and go as it pleases you, and you will be called every day beside the horizon. "

 

 
CHAPTER 127 - N.'s entrance into the palace of Douat:

• You have been proclaimed JUST, great god who is in the solar disk, (Re); Osiris who presides over the West has spoken these words before the Valley of the Dead, you are proclaimed just in the Great Assembly.
• Oh keepers of the gates which swallow up souls and swallow the unworthy dead, who assign them to their places of destruction, but who declare JUST the soul of any fortunate one who is found excellent, high in prestige in the House of the Necropolis:
• Acclaim as you would one who is Re, or one who is Osiris…
• You are truly Horehkty! How full of fairness is the soul of the excellent fortunate one!
• How powerful is he who is in his hands, say the two high gods!
• N. appeared as a living spirit who inhabits the sky. He has been allowed to carry out transformations, his voice has been proclaimed just in the assembly of Douat as if he himself were Re.  

 

 
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