egyptian religion. columbia electronic encyclopedia

7/21/2019 Egyptian Religion. Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia

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Ttulo: Egyptian religion. Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition, Q1 2014

Egyptian religion

Contenido

1. Early elie!"

2. #e$elopment o! a %ational &eligion

'. The (a)or Cult"

4. The &ole o! the *ing

+. i!e a!ter #eath

6. ibliography

Egyptian religion, the religiou" belie!" o! the ancient inhabitant" o! Egypt. -n!ormation

concerning ancient Egyptian religion i" abundant but un"ati"!actory. nly certain part" o!

Egyptian religiou" li!e and thought are /non hole period" remain in the dar/. hat e do

/no i" that the religiou" belie!" o! the Egyptian" ere riddled ith incon"i"tencie" and

con!u"ion". (any god" and godde""e" "eem more or le"" identical, and yet they e3i"ted together.

Contradictory myth" e3plaining the creation o! the orld, natural phenomena, and the li/e ere

accepted ithout argument. ttribute" o! deitie" ere !reely and indi"criminately adopted !rom

one group or locality to another, and combination" and !u"ion" o! god" ere !re5uent. -t i"

impo""ible to di"cern an orderly and con"i"tent picture o! Egyptian religion, and much"cholar"hip remain" hypothe"i" and con)ecture.

Early elie!"

robably the olde"t !orm o! religiou" or"hip in Egypt a" animal or"hip. Early predyna"tic

tribe" $enerated their on particular god", ho ere u"ually embodied in a particular animal.

7ometime" a hole "pecie" o! animal a" "acred, a" cat" at uba"ti" at other time" only

indi$idual animal" o! certain type" ere or"hiped, a" the pi" bull at (emphi". " Egyptian

ci$ili8ation ad$anced, deitie" ere gradually humani8ed. (any ere repre"ented ith human

bodie" 9although they retained animal head" and other human characteri"tic" and attribute". The

ol! phoi" became a god o! ar, and the ibi" Thoth became a patron o! learning and the art".

e do not /no preci"ely ho or hy certain animal" became a""ociated ith certain god".

(oreo$er, the relation"hip beteen a god and hi" animal $aried greatly. The god Thoth a" not

only identi!ied ith the ibi", but al"o ith the baboon and ith the moon. cca"ionally a god

a" a compo"ite o! $ariou" animal", "uch a" Taurt, ho had the head o! a hippopotamu", the

bac/ and tail o! a crocodile, and the cla" o! a lion.

;u"t a" a god could repre"ent $ariou" natural phenomena, "o could a "ingle phenomenon be gi$en

di!!erent e3planation". The ancient Egyptian concei$ed o! the earth a" a di"/, ith the !lat plain"

o! Egypt a" the center and the mountainou" !oreign land" a" the rim "urrounding and "upportingthe di"/. elo ere the deep ater" o! the underorld, and abo$e a" the plain o! the "/y.

7e$eral "y"tem" o! co"mic deitie" aro"e to e3plain thi" natural phenomenon. 7ome attributed the
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creation o! the orld to the ram


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The &ole o! the *ing

(o"t "cholar" ha$e concluded that, in later time" at lea"t, there a" no clo"e per"onal tie beteen

the indi$idual Egyptian and the god", that the god" remained aloo!, that their relation"hip to

human" a" indirect, communicated to him by mean" o! the /ing. There a" no e"tabli"hed boo/

or "et o! teaching", a" the ible or the Qur=an, and !e pre"cribed condition" o! beha$ior or

conduct. ?uman" ere guided e""entially by human i"dom and tru"ted in their belie! in thegoodne"" o! the god" and o! their di$ine "on, the /ing. n important concept in Egyptian li!e a"

the idea o! maatA)u"ticeB. lthough the Egyptian a" entirely "ub"er$ient to the "tate, the /ing

had the duty o! tran"lating the ill o! the god". The uni$er"e had been created by bringing order

and )u"tice to replace prime$al chao", and only through the continuance o! order and )u"tice

could the uni$er"e "ur$i$e. The la o! nature, o! "ociety, and o! the god" a" an organic hole,

and it a" the duty o! the /ing to admini"ter that la, hich a" guided by the concept o! maat.

" Egypt !louri"hed, "o did the "tate cult. " the pharaoh" gre more poer!ul, they poured

riche" into the "tate cult and built huge and "plendid temple" to their god". The prie"thood" thu"

gre $ery poer!ul.

i!e a!ter #eath

The populace !ound it" e3pre""ion o! religiou" !eeling in the !unerary cult". The great body o!

mortuary te3t" ha", in !act, pro$ided u" ith much that e /no o! ancient Egypt, particularly o!

belie! in the a!terli!e 9"ee oo/ o! the #ead. The dead ere pro$ided ith !ood and drin/,

eapon", and toiletry article". Tomb" ere o!ten $i"ited by the !amily, ho brought ne

o!!ering". roper precaution" and care !or the dead ere mandatory to in"ure immortality 9"ee

mummy. lthough the ancient Egyptian" "trongly belie$ed in li!e a!ter death, the idea o!

pa""ing !rom li!e on earth to li!e in the herea!ter a" "omehat ob"cure, and the concept"

concerning the a!terli!e ere comple3.

The ancient Egyptian, hoe$er, hoped not only to e3tend li!e beyond the gra$e, but to become

part o! the perennial li!e o! nature. The to mo"t important concept" concerning the a!terli!e

ere the ka and the ba. The kaa" a /ind o! double or other "el!, not an element o! the

per"onality, but a detached part o! the "el! hich a" "ometime" "aid to guide the !ortune" o! the

indi$idual in li!e, li/e the &oman geniu", but a" clearly mo"t a""ociated ith a per"on=" !ortune"

in the herea!ter. hen people died they ere "aid to )oin ith their ka.(ore important perhap"

than the kaa" the concept o! the ba.The bai" perhap" loo"ely identi!iable a" the "oul o! a

per"on. (ore "peci!ically the ba a" the mani!e"tation o! an indi$idual a!ter death, u"ually

thought to be repre"ented in the !orm o! a bird. The Egyptian" al"o belie$ed in the concept o!

akh,hich a" the tran"!ormation o! "ome o! the noble dead into eternal ob)ect". The noble"t

ere o!ten concei$ed o! a" being tran"!ormed into "tar", thu" )oining in the changele"" rhythm o!the uni$er"e.

Bibliography

7ee ;. ?. rea"ted,Development of Religion in Ancient Egypt9112, repr. 1D0 E. . T. .

udge,From Fetish to God in Ancient Egypt91'4, repr. 1D2 ?. ran/!ort,Ancient Egyptian

Religion914F, repr. 161 ;. Cerny,Ancient Egyptian Religion91+2, repr. 1+D 7. (oren8,

Egyptian Religion9tr. 1D'.

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