Life after Death in Ancient Egypt - Research Paper Example

?Death Is not “Just a New Beginning” It goes without saying that fascination for mysteries of Ancient Egypt can hardly cease to exist. For instance, saying “life is only a new beginning” has become quite popular. The majority of people assume that ancient Egyptians thought that their earthly life is not important since it is only a kind of prelude for their afterlives. However, this assumption is quite doubtful since in Ancient Egypt life and afterlife were regarded as equally important stages of a human existence cycle. Interestingly, ancient Egyptians’ beliefs about afterlife can be regarded as a certain reflection of their longings and fears. Admittedly, ancient Egyptians were afraid of death and could only imagine what happened in their afterlives: “Except in imaginative tales, no one had ever come back to tell of it” (qtd. in Bricker 99). Therefore, ancient Egyptians’ beliefs about life after death deserve special attention. In the first place, it is worth considering ancient Egyptians’ attitude towards death. On one hand, people were afraid of death. Many written works suggest that people regarded it as “an enemy from which there was no escape, regardless of all preparations” (Hodel-Hoenes and Warburton 26). Everyone, be it a pharaoh or a poor, eventually dies. Thus, death was also regarded as something inevitable. This was, perhaps, one of the reasons why ancient Egyptians respected it so much. There was even The Book of the Dead which was a guideline that depicted all necessary operations to enable diseased to enter the other world and start their afterlife (Hodel-Hoenes and Warburton 25). The book was concerned “with practical help and magical assistance for the hereafter”; it was not a simple description (Hornung and Lorton 17). Death was regarded as a turning point where people transformed and began their existence in a new form in another world. It is important to point out that ancient Egyptians’ ideas about the form of the afterlife are quite complex. Thus, there is no certain word in the ancient Egyptian language which reveals the idea of the “modern concept of soul” (Pinch 147). In ancient times Egyptians believed that “several components” of a person usually survived death (Pinch 147). The major component was the ka, “a person’s vital force” which was usually depicted as “a double” and dying was described as “joining your ka” (Pinch 147). The ka was closely connected with human body, and mummification was aimed at preserving one’s body for the ka to return to the body “for a more complete union” (Pinch 147). Mummification is worth special attention since it was essential for “successful” afterlife. Cunningham and Reich claim that mummification is a reflection of “the most striking aspect of Egyptian religious thought”, i.e. “its obsession with immortality” (11). However, James Henry Breasted found quite an interesting explanation for the existence of such beliefs and “popularity” of mummification. He claims This insistent belief in a hereafter may perhaps have been … greatly favored and influenced by the fact that the conditions of soil and climate resulted in such a remarkable preservation of the human body as may be found under natural conditions nowhere else in the world. (Breasted 49) Thus, the nature itself influenced the beliefs of ancient Egyptians who worked out certain techniques to preserve human body. It goes without saying that elite had more elaborate funeral than poor people did. However, it is important to note that all people were to be buried in accordance with the necessary rituals. More so, there was even a law concerning people dying in the Nile. According to this law all people, irrespective of their social status and wealth, be it an Egyptian or a foreigner, who died in the Nile (even if the person was unidentified) should be buried “by the inhabitants of the city” and all the necessary rituals should be carried out (Chan et al. 2032). This precision is due to the beliefs that deceased who were not buried in proper way could become a threat for those who lived their earthly lives. Apart from the ka there was another manifestation of a person who died. The ba was the “manifestation of a deceased person” which had the character of the person who died (Pinch 147). The ba had to make a dangerous journey to the underworld to transform into the akh, “effective spirit” (Pinch 147). The journey of the ba was regarded as the most dreadful stage of human existence cycle. The deceased could be “forced to become an excrement-eater”, or can be beheaded as “The Enemies of Ra” (Pinch 154). The deceased had to encounter many vicious and dangerous demons. It was essential to know the exact names of those demons to have the magic power over them (Pinch 154). Those deceased who were caught by such demons were beheaded, “hacked to pieces”, burned like sacrificial animals”, “burned alive and cooked in cauldrons over fires” or even eaten alive (Pinch 155). Apart from these dangers the deceased had to journey through various terrains: impassable forests, fire rivers, deserts, etc. They also had to be judged by Osiris “in the Hall of the Double Truth” (Pinch 155). As far as the “trial” is concerned it is worth mentioning that the ba had to deny all possible sins with the emphasis on “anti-social conduct which would made a person a bad citizen” (Pinch 155). During the trial Anubis weighed the heart of a person. The heart of a sinner was heavier than a symbol of ma‘at, rightfulness, and the deceased would be condemned to the second death (Pinch 155). This is why, it was very important to “conform to ma‘at”, i.e. to conduct rightfully (Bricker 96). Therefore, people living their earthly life always remembered that they were to stand before their god so they knew they would be judged for injustice they made, or could be praised for the injustice they had to face. Notably, all these trials were depicted in sacred books and depicted in the walls of tombs, so that the deceased could handle with all those dangers and transform into the effective spirit. More so, during the funeral many spells were cast over the body of the deceased to make him/her prepared for the journey. Thus, the process of the funeral was extremely important for the sake of the deceased since if the ba failed to successfully complete the journey it could become the mut, “the dangerous dead” (Pinch 148). Traitors or executed prisoners could become the mut, or deceased who died for the second time in the afterlife could also become the mut (Pinch 148). The mut could not enter the world of the dead so it troubled those living earthly lives. Pinch provides numerous examples from written works concerning people lamenting about spirits who caused various problems to them. For instance, a man wrote a letter where he accused his dead wife of causing various troubles to him. Interestingly, there were people who addressed their dead relatives to protect them from their enemies who were also dead (Pinch 149). Clearly, there were numerous spells to secure living people, dwelling, and even burial places from various vicious spirits (Pinch 149). It was also believed that such spirit could become a threat for health and even cure of patients, so there were spells for medicines as well. Thus, people tried to secure themselves, their close people and their property from evil actions of vicious spirits. Noteworthy, not only vicious muts could be dangerous for people. Though the akh was believed to be the rightful spirit and in spite of the fact that those spirits lived happily with gods and “enjoyed semi-divine powers” they could become dangerous for people who do not conform to ma‘at in their earthly lives (Pinch 147). Thus, it was believed that such rightful spirits could punish those who robbed a tomb or made other wrongful deeds (Pinch 150). In fact, such spirits continued living their rightful life after their death helping gods and sometimes people achieve justice. It is possible to state that such ideas about afterlife can be regarded as a reflection of ancient Egyptians’ ideas about the purpose of their existence. For instance, it was believed that if a person did not fulfill his/her predestination he/she could not enter the world of dead. Thus, ancient Egyptians believed that their earthly life is meaningful. More so, they knew that it was essential to conform to ma‘at during earthly life so that they could be able to attain the status of the effective spirits in their afterlives. Interestingly, afterlife of ancient Egyptians was similar to their earthly living, they had an aim and were to move on, they were tried and had to face many difficulties. Therefore, ancient Egyptians believed the world to be cyclical and meaningful where people have to live on rightfully to improve the world around them. On balance it is possible to point out that ancient Egyptians believed that there was afterlife for every individual. Every person had several stages during his/her life cycle: earthly life, death, the status of the ka, the status of the ba and the status of the akh or the mut. Ancient Egyptians believed that in every stage of the life cycle it was essential to conduct rightfully to enjoy certain benefits. Finally, it is possible to note that ancient Egyptians’ beliefs about afterlife reveal their ideas about their earthly life. Works Cited Breasted, James Henry. Development of Religion and Thought in Ancient Egypt. New York, NY: Cosimo, Inc., 2010. Bricker, Daniel P. "Innocent Suffering in Egypt." Tyndale Bulletin 52.1 (2001): 83-100. Chan, Steve S., Jonathan P. Elias, Mark E. Hysell, and Michael J. Hallowell. "CT of a Ptolemaic Period Mummy from the Ancient Egyptian City of Akhmim." RadioGraphics 28.7 (2008): 2023-2032. Cunningham, Lawrence S., and John J. Reich. Culture and Values: A Survey of the Humanities. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning, 2009. Hodel-Hoenes, Sigrid, and David Warburton. Life and Death in Ancient Egypt: Scenes from Private Tombs in New Kingdom Thebes. New York, NY: Cornell University Press, 2000. Hornung, Erik and David Lorton. The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife. New York, NY: Cornell University Press, 1999. Pinch, Geraldine. Magic in Ancient Egypt. 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