Lucas Chen
Professor Chrissanthos
World History 10
July 15, 2015
From the death and beyond and back- Egyptian belief of afterlife
In the year 1999, one of my favorite childhood movie, the mummy, came out, and it was a blockbuster. Modern archeologist and society have always been attracted by Egyptian culture. Not considering the impact of Egyptian empire culture in history, people are interest about Egyptian culture because of the magnificent pyramid and mysterious mummies. From the view of people today, these archeological discovery are for amusement, but for the ancient Egyptians these are what they live for. The belief in an afterlife is one the most influential religious forces within Egyptian society. The afterlife contributed to Egyptian’s
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Unfortunately, this method is not very effective at preserving the bodies. It was not until the new kingdom of Egypt, “some significant advance in mummification were made in the eighteenth Dynasty”. First, the embalmer use a very long needle consists of iron, and he insert the needle through nostril cavity. This shows that Egyptian have understanding of physiology, which allows them to remove brain tissue with least amount of damage to skulls. After the removal of the brain tissue, to insure skull’s structural integrity and prevent rotting, Egyptian injected resin, sticky substance acquire from tree sap. Egyptian was able to inject resin into the brain which is quite difficult task because resin will dry up once it come in contact with ambient air. The development and usage of resin shows Egyptian have a great understanding of material science. This advancement in material is driven by their belief in …show more content…
Once understand the concept of afterlife which is the idea of entering eternal life beyond death, the Egyptian are not obsess with death. Instead, they are living for life, an eternal life with god. This is shown by the inscription on Abydos stela. “The singer Tjeni-aa, he says, how well-established you are in your place of eternity,…whom he wished to sing for his Ka every day.” To be with god, self-righteousness is established deep down each Egyptians’ heart. Without this belief, none of the advancement in technologies, trade, and social morale will exists, and none of us would heard of the great pyramid of Giza or
However, each civilization’s reaction to this realization diverged. Egyptian beliefs focused on preparing for the afterlife. According to the Book of the Dead, “after [the deceased] has been…purified…he shall be in the train of Osiris, continually and forever,” demonstrating Egyptians believed death was something for which people must prepare through proper behavior and honoring the gods. Therefore, Egyptian religion focused on preparation for the afterlife. This differs drastically from the Mesopotamian view of the underworld, which Enkidu describes in The Epic of Gilgamesh as a bleak place to all, no matter the person’s actions in life.
Funerary customs are practises and beliefs that the Ancient Egyptians used to respect their dead, and preserve their bodies in preparation for the afterlife which was a universe that mirrored their life on Earth, where they would live with the Gods in eternal Egypt. The body of the deceased could be mummified, which was where a body is dried, packed with minerals and wrapped in linen cloths, whereas another form would be embalming which is the use of salts and spices to preserve a body and took 70 days in total. However, there were many tests and dangers on the way to the afterlife, including fire-filled lakes, poisonous snakes and executioners. Because of this, there were many ceremonies and tests to see if the deceased person was worthy of the Afterlife. Such as the opening of the mouth ceremony which was when a priest touched parts of the deceased body at a funeral in order for the
Egyptian belief on the afterlife helped form their theology. The Gods were heavily implemented into the belief of the afterlife. Osiris the “God of the Living” was prayed to as the God that passed judgement on those entering the afterlife. This made a huge impact on their theology. Appointing Osiris as the god of the living immediately caused him to rise as the most
Ancient Egyptian civilization was based on religion. Their belief in the rebirth after death became their driving force behind their funeral practices. Death was simply a temporary interruption, rather than an end to life, and that eternal life could be ensured by means of worship to the gods, preservation of the physical form thru mummification, substantial ceremonies and detailed burial policies and procedures. Even though many today have varying views of an afterlife, many of the funerary practices that originated in Egypt can be seen in present day funeral services.
In this paper I will plan to discuss in detail the funerary procedures that were used in ancient Egypt. I will pay particular attention as to how the Idea of the afterlife influenced many of the traditions in ancient Egypt that we now think of today. In surveying their beliefs on the afterlife we will begin to get a better picture as to how these ideas affected almost all aspects of their ancient culture, and indeed had impacts on neighboring cultures. I will take a look at what aspects of their religious mythology lead them to these traditions and why its observation was so key to their society.
Egypt Life after death is an intricate theme when it comes to the religion of ancient Egypt. The Egyptians put a heavy emphasis on immortality and life after death; hence the reason why they built tombs and paid homage to those who were no longer in the earth realm and with the gods in the starry heavens. The afterlife was so imperative, in fact, that there were directions written in tombs 4,400 years old; and on papyrus in the Book of the Dead (which served as a guide to the afterlife for 1,500 years. Instructions on the journey to the afterlife could span more than thirty feet. Instructions included how to avoid demon faced beings, names of gatekeepers, and protection from snakes and scorpions.
In this paper I will plan to discuss in detail the funerary procedures that were used in ancient Egypt. I will pay particular attention as to how the Idea of the afterlife influenced many of the traditions in ancient Egypt that we know think of today. In surveying their beliefs on the afterlife we will begin to get a better picture as to how these ideas affected almost all aspects of their ancient culture, and indeed had impacts on neighboring cultures. I will take a look at what aspects of their religious mythology lead them to these traditions and why its observation was so key to their society.
The afterlife is important because, the Egyptians believed that people HAD 2 parts of them. Ka is one of them. Ka means “ life force that they only had while alive” and Ba means “which was more like a soul”. If you had that you could enter afterlife. If the Egyptians enter the afterlife, they would live longer. That why afterlife is so
Regardless of social strata, death and the afterlife were almost always valued by the living in ancient Egypt. The afterlife was birthed and designed for great societal rulers but eventually trickled down and was adopted by other levels of society (Murnane in Obayashi, 1992, p. 42). Death was interpreted as “new life in another state” by ancient Egypt, and the ultimate goal of immortality could be attained if specific burial arrangements were made for the dead. This was to avoid a final death of the soul known as the “second death,” and measures such as burial with food, drink, and personal possessions, were taken to aid the soul on its journey into immortality (Murnane in Obayashi, 1992, p. 36).
They created great rituals that would support their beliefs through mummification and the journey to the underworld. In time, the Egyptian way may not have lived on but it brought a history to refer to, and in this paper, I have explained to the best of my knowledge about the Ancient Egyptian way of preparing for a good afterlife, with the techniques of mummification and rituals taken part in the
Ancient Egyptians thought of death, and the rituals concerning them, as the journey someone’s soul makes to the afterlife. That is why the burial process is all about preparing the body for this journey. Eternity was the main goal most Egyptian men and women wanted to reach. This was their main goal. Their eternity was not the one above the clouds, but the one that was a replication of their human, earthly life.
Egyptian burial is the common term for the ancient Egyptians funerary rituals that concern death and the soul’s journey to the afterlife. In ancient Egyptian rituals, ‘Eternity’ was the common destination of every individual, man, woman and child in Egypt, but it doesn’t mean ‘eternity’ in heaven rather an eternal Egypt which mirrored the person’s life on Earth. The afterlife for the ancient Egyptians was a perfect reflection of the life they lived on Earth. Ancient Egyptian’s burial rites were practiced as early as 4000 BCE, although the earliest preserved body from a tomb was discovered in Gebele in Egypt. It dates backs to 3400 BCE. Burial rites changed over time between the period of 4000 BCE and 30 BCE, although a factor stayed unchanged,
Ancient Egyptians dedicated their entire lives towards the afterlife. No sooner did a pharaoh take the throne, than he began building his gateway into death, his tomb. The tomb acted as a guide to avoid hazards on the journey to the Field of Reeds, where one’s soul could live eternally. To achieve success on their mission, the dead undergo the process of mummification, keep daily possessions within reach, and -------------------------.
They believed that the gods punished them with floods and or famine. Their pessimistic outlook on life made them have bad premonitions towards their afterlife. They believed that at death that they were going to descend forever into a dark underworld, a huge cave filled with nothing but dust and silence. They tried to enjoy life as much as they could but did not look forward to the afterlife. Death was not the paradise that the Egyptians believed in. It was considered eternal hell. (Hause, 2001, pg. 10)
The Egyptians believed very much in life after death. As Taylor states in Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt, “It is often observed that they appear to have devoted greater efforts and resources to preparing for the afterlife than to creating a convenient environment for living” (Taylor, 2001:12). The Egyptians viewed life on earth as one stage and death as the beginning of another. They believed that, “human existence did not end with death and that survival of the body played a part in the new life” (Taylor, 2001:12). One of the key elements in the Egyptian culture and religion was the preservation of the body. The body was the most important aspect because it was like a portal through which an individual could continue to live