Ancient Egyptians On The Afterlife

The Ancient Egyptian society’s beliefs based their religion on polytheism which is defined as multiple ‘gods’ which were in charge of an area of life. There were up to 2,000 ‘gods and goddesses’ which controlled every aspect of the Egyptians lives. As a result the beliefs and religion belonging to the society affected the Egyptians to an ample extent. This can be observed through the values of : everyday life - , the judicial system - which was founded on religion and monitored by the religious leaders, the afterlife - to be believed that your body needed to be prepared for the afterlife and your honourable works on earth was judged by Osiris and the approach to the status of animals - for example cats were believed to be an earthly form of

There were many ways that the Ancient Egyptian society and the Mesopotamian society were similar yet at the same time they were very different. Egyptians and Sumerians agreed on religion in a sense that both cultures were polytheistic. However, the relationships between the gods and goddesses were different between the Sumerians and Egyptians. This essay will discuss those differences in culture, religion and the viewpoints on death and afterlife.

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).

The Egyptians believed that “if they were righteous, could expect a happy existence in the life after death” (15). Their idea of the underworld consisted of “lavish and well-equipped tombs,” providing all needs (20). However, not all Egyptians had these grand tombs, “but all had the hope of continuing to be after death” (20). Elaborate funeral rituals were held for the deceased for judgment by the gods. A series of sacred texts known as the Book of the Dead held the funeral rites, which was intended as a “manual of spells, incantations, and declarations” that would ease passage through the underworld and the afterlife (21). In the ritual, each spirit had to approach the Hall of Two Truths where the gods challenged the dead’s virtues, while they (the dead) proclaimed the sins they did not commit. Once satisfying all gods, the spirit was ready for final ritual, presenting

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

Chapters 1 & 2 focused on religions in the Americas and religions in Africa. One of those religions is the Ancient Egyptians. Discuss in detail the religion of the Ancient Egyptians. Pick one other religion discussed in these two chapters discuss it in detail.

How does the Ancient Egyptian view of the afterlife compare to burial rituals and beliefs of the afterlife in today’s cultures?

The belief in the afterlife answered the enduring questions of purpose and destiny. Ancient Egyptians lived their lives preparing for the afterlife. As soon as a pharaoh came into power he began planning and constructing his tomb, so that if he died early, his journey to the afterlife would not be delayed. The ancient Egyptians' attitude towards death was influenced by their belief in immortality. They regarded death as a temporary interruption, rather than the cessation of life. To ensure the continuity of life after death, people paid homage to the gods, both during and after their life on earth. When they died, they were mummified so the soul would return to the body, giving it breath and life this is known as. The deceased organs were taken out and stored in canopic jars. There were four jars, each for the safekeeping of particular human organs: the stomach, intestines, lungs, and liver, all of which, it was believed, would be needed in the afterlife. There was no jar for the heart as the Egyptians believed it to be the seat of the soul, and so it was left inside the body. When the soul left the body at death, it was thought to appear in the Hall of Truth to stand before Osiris for judgement. The heart of the deceased was weighed on a golden scale against the white feather of Ma’at. If the heart was found to be lighter than the feather, the soul was allowed to move on to the

The ancient Egyptian’s views were very different than those of the views of the Mesopotamians who viewed the afterlife as this dark and gloomy place where no matter what your status was on earth everyone was the same in the afterlife. The Mesopotamian’s believed that the afterlife was the total opposite of life on earth; people would eat clay, drink dirt and wear garments made out of feathers. In contrast, the Egyptians viewed the afterlife as a mirror image of life on earth. Egyptians were buried with their most valuable possessions so that they would have these things in the afterlife as well. The Egyptians praised their pharaohs and believed that the pharaohs served with the gods in the afterlife. The path that they take to get there was

Ancient Egyptians created little figuring called the Shabti that was made by their owner and when the owner died it will come to life to do the owners work for them, but this idea did not start so easily. In the Egyptian period the kings would bury their servants, so they replaced them with Shabti dolls so servant lives weren't wasteful. At first they were shaped like mummies, but people began to become creative with them in the form of their owner or the shape if proper servants carrying tools and baskets. Some of the owner wrote chapter 6 of “The book of the dead” on the shabits. Some kings had hundreds of Shabti so that they could have fresh servants, every day and a few supervisors to make sure that the tasks are performed properly and that’s why they are so many displays in the museums all over the world.

This is Mai. He lives in Egypt with his mom and dad. He is nervous because the Pharaoh of Egypt is on the verge of passing away. Mai is not very sure what will happen to the Pharaoh after death. He isn’t very knowledgeable about the afterlife.

According to the book of dead the ancient Egyptians individual after the death went on a journey in their afterlife, a spiritual journey as they are judged and passed through different gates according to the Gods. It’s not the same for everyone it is based on their righteousness and their sins against the Gods and the Goddesses, the righteous are taken ahead in the paradise and the ones who sin are punished by Gods and monsters on their way.

Egypt is one of the oldest civilizations to exist, originating back to about 8000 BCE, and it is currently the second most populated country in Africa. Almost all of those who live in Egypt live near the Nile River, due to the harsh environment within the Sahara Desert which was possibly once a thriving land of vegetation◊1. However, even though the Ancient Egyptians lived in such a limited amount of space, they had quite a lot of artistic creations.

Ancient egypt is a place full of wonders and full of ancient artifacts that have preserved many tales for centuries. In ancient times there were many different things that were common to egyptians than what we do today. For example many pharaohs (egyptian rulers) were expected to be embalmed and mummified when they have passed. In our time today it is not expected for people to be embalmed and mummified. Also people believe in many mythological stories about many egyptian gods creating many things that couldn’t be explained at the time. Now we have many explanations for many of the gods who egyptians used to explain the world around us.

The Egyptians belief about the afterlife is they embraced it. Ancient Egyptians were not afraid to die. Death was not considered an end to life. It was merely an interruption. They invested in their death, but their investment was not about death, it was about setting themselves up in the afterlife.