Ways To Live Forever In Ancient Egyptian And Greek Culture

Egyptians believed in a pleasant life after death, where people were rewarded for living a good life. The Egyptians worshipped gods that they believed would extend favor onto them for doing good. This was much more optimistic view of existence than that of the Mes. The Code of Hammurabi from the mes did provide an attempt to establish a baseline of acceptable behavior for all to live by. The Egyptians to that same concept to a higher

With the cyclical nature of Egyptian society blossomed their desire for order and law. This order in ancient Egyptian civilization was referred to as Ma’at. All aspects of life were based around this concept and their religion could “‘be defined as the realization of Ma’at’” (Charles 1). Ma’at was not only an idea, but a goddess to the Egyptians. She was associated with balance and harmony on Earth. With the existence of Ma’at came the importance of consistency in Egyptian beliefs and practices; one of these consistencies was the importance of the afterlife. Ancient Egyptian people believed in the existence of life after death. They left items with the dead to go with them as they passed and the people also worked to maintain

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)

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.

Anthropologists can generally conclude that ancient Egyptians strove for immortality and that their beliefs of transcendence were extremely important to them, given burial sites, tomb art, and various extensive ancient texts. Pyramid texts illustrate deliberate assurance to the deceased that physical death was solely an illusion, thereby insinuating that the actual death

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

The Egyptian worldview is very different from other worldviews of other civilizations. For starters, the Egyptians were very positive and successful. Not every civilization was like them however. The Egyptians had many great resources around them and used them to their advantage. Other civilizations had wars, famine, destruction and many other factors that did not conclude in them having a positive outlook on their life. Throughout the paper, I will highlight contrasting points using prime reality, death and the world around them as categories to dictate the differences within the civilizations.

The theme I have chosen is the Quest for immortality/ creation of legacy. Ancient Egyptians believed that there was a life after death; they focused much of their life preparing for the afterlife. The afterlife did not come easy to them, as they felt like they needed to live the best life possible otherwise they would not be accepted into the afterlife.

While describing the cultural among the people of Mesopotamia and Egypt, I learned the differences and similarities in culture. The birth of Mesopotamian Civilization began in c. 3000 B.C.E., in the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers of Southwest Asia. Mesopotamia is a Greek word and it means ‘between the rivers.’ In contrast, the birth of Egyptian Civilization began in c. 3100 B.C.E., in a valley of the Nile River in Northeastern Africa. Egypt is a Greek word and it means ‘House of the Spirit of Ptah.’ Since there are several categories in the cultures of the Mesopotamians and the Egyptians, I decided to narrows it to three categories: Religion, Writing, and Geography. The three categories will present the basis to compare cultural differences and similarities.

Religion was a very big part in every ancient Egyptians life much like the Mesopotamians the Egyptians with great distinction considered themselves laborers with the gods. The Egyptians also believed their gods would prevent the reoccurrence of previous states of chaos and that a mortal human’s duty was to give thanks and

Almost everyone has heard of the ancient civilization of Egypt. Most people generally know when and where the Egyptians lived, what their government was like, how they lived on a day to day basis, and what all they achieved in the many centuries that they flourished. This paper will go in depth on all of these categories.

After death, an Ancient Egyptian’s Akh, or complete soul, goes through many tests to prove it deserves a final resting place in the afterlife. The ultimate trial is the judgement of the heart. It’s verdict determined your existence and whether or not you made it into the peaceful afterlife. This common belief for Ancient polytheists in Egypt played a huge role in the decisions they made, as a heart proved heavy in the final judgement would limit your existence furthermore. While a heart that was found to be light and pure with good deeds would be granted an eternal afterlife. Many gods, goddesses, and tools were involved with this process, each playing a different and crucial part for this supreme trial.

The Egyptians actually put more thought into death than they did into living. To Egyptians dying was a step in the process to reaching the eternal afterlife. Egyptians put much effort into preserving the bodies of the dead, because they believed the body played a major role in the afterlife. The underworld was ruled by the god Osiris. Osiris was quite a busy god as he not only ruled the underworld, but he also controlled everything that came from the Earth. In order to get to the afterlife, one must pass through others to include passing demons. There were many tests that one would have to pass in order to make it to the afterlife. One test included the weighing of the heart to determine if it was filled with sin. If the heart weighed more than a feather it would be eaten by the monster called Am-Mut. However, if one’s heart passed the test they would be welcomed into the afterlife. Once in the afterlife one would still be required to work and grow crops in their field. Worshipping the god’s was also required in the

The Egyptians also regarded the concept of life highly, even after death◊2. This is shown in their extensive efforts to preserve the body of their pharaoh. Ancient Egyptians mummified their pharaohs because they believed their pharaohs ruled even after death. Everyone, of all classes, planned

The ancient Egyptians relied heavily on their religion. In addition to their religion, the Osiris myth was famous among the people because it implied that any deceased individual can get to the afterlife. The deceased would endure a ritual of mummification. Their organs