Don’t Know Much About® Mythology (13 page)

What was the “weighing of the heart”?

From the earliest of days, Egyptian life revolved around the cycles of birth, death, and rebirth. What was true for the earth itself—with life coming from the Nile floods that allowed the crops to flourish—could be true for humans. Very early on in the Egyptian world, this fundamental duality between life and death and the hope for renewal became an essential part of Egyptian mythology. Initially, it was expressed in the life of the kings and royalty. Descended from the gods, they were destined to be reunited with the gods. But at some point in Egypt’s long history, the death and resurrection business went retail.

After death, Egyptians hoped to become one with Osiris, the god of resurrection and the underworld. The elaborate rituals of mummification and burial were all expressions of this desire. And the centerpiece of the elaborate rituals that guided the journey of the souls of the dead to the afterlife was the belief that the dead person would come to be judged by the gods in a ceremony known as the “weighing of the heart.”

As the deceased traveled to an encounter with the gods, there were thought to be many trials, mirroring the trials that Re went through each night as he passed through the dangerous underworld before reemerging the next day. Ultimately, however, the deceased was brought into the great hall of judgment, before Osiris, accompanied by Isis and Nephthys and foty-two other gods, each one representing the
nomes
—administrative provinces into which Egypt was divided. Standing before the gods on this judgment day, the dead person would attest to having lived a just life. Then his heart was weighed on the scales of justice against the feather of the goddess Maat, a daughter of Re, who was the personification of the Egyptian idea of
maat
, the philosophy, religious notion, concept of harmony, and code of behavior that served as the basis for the stability of Egyptian society. It was the cosmic order that came through justice and right living.

This was the Egyptian equivalent of coming to the Pearly Gates and standing before St. Peter. Or, in more traditional Christian terms, the Judgment Day at which God would judge “the quick and the dead.” If the deceased’s heart was heavy with sin and evil deeds, redemption and eternal life were lost. For those who failed the weighing of the heart, the fearsome
Ammut
, “devourer of the dead,” waited, eager to ravenously eat the heart of the deceased. An eternity in a sort of limbo followed. If the heart was in balance with the feather of truth, the soul of the deceased was saved and could join Osiris and the other gods.

By the New Kingdom (1550–1069 BCE), the possibility of achieving immortality was opened up to at least the upper and middle classes who could afford elaborate burial—the hope of the afterlife in eternity had gone retail and was available in The Book of the Dead. Produced on papyrus scrolls by scribes, these elaborate books were purchased by the families of the deceased and then entombed with the mummified body. Depending on the wealth of the dead person, they might contain as many as two hundred pages. This manual for immortality ensured that the deceased would know the proper words to say when confronted by the feather of truth.

WHO’S WHO OF EGYPTIAN MYTHS

In addition to the gods already singled out, there was an enormous Egyptian pantheon consisting of hundreds of major and minor deities. Some were ancient local gods, patrons of cities, towns, and villages up and down the Nile. Others were newly minted gods that reflected the changes over the long course of Egyptian history. This list includes some of the other most significant Egyptian deities and the role they played in Egyptian society.

Ammut
The goddess known as the “eater (devourer) of the dead” stands by the scales when the hearts of the dead are weighed at the entrance to the underworld. If the dead person has led a wicked life and is not fit to survive into the next world, Ammut eats the heart. There are, however, no accounts of anyone failing that test. Terrifying to behold, Ammut incorporates three of the most feared animals of ancient Egypt, with the head of a crocodile, the body of a lion, and the hindlegs of a hippopotamus.

Anubis
The god of embalming and cemeteries, he is the jackal-headed son of Osiris and his sister Nephthys. The connection between the jackal and death probably came from people seeing the desert canines who scavenged in the shallow graves of early cemeteries. Adopted by Isis, Anubis becomes her devoted servant and plays a role in the Isis-Osiris story, wrapping the dead Osiris in bandages and making him the first mummy. After Osiris becomes lord of the underworld, Anubis joins him and presides over the crucial ceremony of weighing the heart. Those who pass this crucial test are then taken by Anubis to be judged in person by Osiris.
Anubis became the patron of embalmers, and priests who supervised the preparation of the mummy wore a jackal-headed Anubis mask.

Bast
(or
Bastet
) The daughter of the sun god Re, she is the popular, catlike goddess of love, sexuality, and childbirth. At her cult city, Bubastis in the Nile Delta, thousands of cats, which were prized by Egyptians and thought to be lucky, were mummified in her honor.

Bes
A popular household god, he is an ugly but friendly dwarf god who frightens away evil spirits, and his name may have meant “to protect.” He was likely a god who developed later in Egyptian history and has similarities with about ten other gods. But as Bes, he is one of the most widely worshipped gods, whose image was often found in households on headrests and beds as well as on mirrors and cosmetic items. Because of his benevolent nature, Bes is often depicted with
Taweret
(“the great female one”), a goddess of childbirth, because he also looks on while women give birth, and is considered a good-luck figure. In spite of her benevolent role, Taweret, who protected women during childbirth, has many fearsome animal attributes and is portrayed with the head of a hippopotamus, a lion’s limbs, the tail of a crocodile, a swollen human belly, and breasts—her forbidding appearance is thought to keep away evil spirits.
Bes was so popular and long-lasting that Roman soldiers apparently carried his likeness on amulets when they went into battle.

Hapy
God of the Nile floods, he lives in a cave near the cataract and it is his job to keep the land along the river fertile. Although a male god, he is often depicted with long hair, large breasts, and a protruding stomach, all symbols of fertility. His annual feast days were especially important, and one ancient text describes the sacrifice of more than one thousand goats to him.

Hathor
A powerful, complex goddess, she is one of the most significant goddesses, the protectress of lovers and women, especially in childbirth. Often shown in human form, Hathor is also depicted as a cow-headed goddess. At times, she was closely connected with Re and said to be both his wife and daughter. Hathor suckled the young
Horus
and came to his aid when
Seth
put out his eyes. In other traditions, she marries Horus, and her milk becomes the food of the gods. In the underworld, Hathor also greets the souls of the dead and offers them food and drink.
As men aspired to “become”
Osiris
in the afterlife, women typically wished to be associated with Hathor.

Imhotep
Unlike most of the deities in this chapter, Imhotep is no myth. In fact, he was probably more interesting than myth. He was a real man, whose existence is proved by archaeology and written accounts. Only later did Egyptian-era spin doctors take over and transform him into a legend that had nothing to do with sacred stories. (Or cursed mummies. In the most recent
Mummy
films, the evil Mummy is said to be the reincarnated Imhotep who was once buried alive for trifling with the secrets of the dead.) The historical Imhotep was a multitalented priest and chief advisor, or vizier, to King Djoser. He was also the architect of the Step Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara, the first colossal stone building in history. Although Imhotep’s own tomb has not been located, a limestone bust of him was found in Djoser’s funerary complex. A high priest in Heliopolis, Imhotep was eventually deified and regarded as the son of Ptah, the ancient creator god. He was also viewed as the patron god of physicians, and even today, modern medicine honors him as the first physician known by name. (A statue in his honor stands in the Hall of Immortals in the International College of Surgeons in Chicago.)

Mehet-Weret
(or
Mehturt
) An ancient cow-goddess and sky goddess, whose name means “great flood,” she is also identified with the celestial river or canal on which Re sails his boat. In early traditions, Mehet-Weret is seen as the mother of Re, usually depicted as a cow, or half cow, half human, with a sun disk between her horns. She is also later linked with Hathor, another central cow-goddess.

Neith
One of the most ancient deities whose existence is known in the prehistoric and early dynastic periods, she is a mother goddess worshipped in the Nile Delta. According to Egyptian tradition, Neith invented childbirth and brought gods, animals, and humans into existence. Because she is so ancient, she acquired other attributes over time and was also considered a warrior goddess. In one story, she spat into the water and her spit turned into Apep, the dragonlike serpent of the underworld who tries to devour Re each night as he passes through the Duat.

Sekhmet
The lion-headed wife of the early creator god
Ptah
, she is a war goddess whose name means “powerful,” and she could breathe fire against her enemies. Many Egyptian kings adopted her as a patroness of battle. In another of her roles, Sekhmet is the goddess who delivers punishments to the other gods.

Serqet
An ancient scorpion goddess, she is the companion of
Isis
, and is one of the four funerary deities (the others were Isis, Nephthys, and Neith) who protect and guard the coffins and canopic jars that contain the embalmed, mummified organs of the deceased. There is a famous gilded wooden statue of Serqet, wearing the scorpion with a raised tail on her head, discovered in the tomb of Tutankhamun in which she guards one side of the king’s shrine. Serqet was also invoked through spells that were meant to protect and heal poisonous bites.

Thoth
(or
Djehuty
) Originally a moon god, he is best known as the divine scribe who records the weighing of souls when they arrive in the hall of justice to determine their fate after death. Thoth is usually depicted with the head of an ibis, because the curved beak of that bird was thought to resemble the crescent moon. (He is also sometimes depicted as a baboon.) In The Book of the Dead, Spell 30B invokes Thoth in his role in the weighing ceremony:
Thus says Thoth, judge of truth, to the Great Ennead which is in the presence of Osiris: Hear the word of very truth. I have judged the heart of the deceased, and his soul stands as witness for him. His deeds are righteous in the great balance, and no sin has been found in him.”
As the inventor of writing and patron of scribes, Thoth records the Ennead’s “divine words” and documents the passing of kings. Worshipped as a patron of learning and the master of inventions, Thoth is also credited with the creation of writing.