Egyptian Ascent Literature

Mortuary Texts

Faulkner, R. O. "The King and the Star-Religion in the Pyramid Texts." Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 25 (1966) 3:153-61. [HBLL DS 41 .J6]

Wente, Edward F. "Mysticism in Pharonic Egypt?" Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 41 (July 1982) 3:161-79. [HBLL DS 41 .J6]

Jacq, Christian. Le voyage dans l'autre monde selon l'Egypte ancienne. (Paris: Le Rocher, 1986) {BYU NA]. Focuses on general view of the Other World

Isis Mysteries (Hellenistic)

Apuleius, Metamorphoses, 11.24.

(cf. Segal, "Heavenly Ascent," 1350; Goodenough, Jewish Symbols, 149f; Cumont, Oriental Religions in Roman Paganism, 100)

talk given last year by Antonio Loprieno on the ancient Egyptian antecedents of Hellenistic Egyptian mysteries

General Bibliography

David, A. Rosalie. The ancient Egyptians : religious beliefs and practices. (Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1982) [BL 2441.2 .D32 1982]

Grimal, Nicolas-Christophe. A history of ancient Egypt. (Blackwell, 1992). [DT 83 .G7513 1992]

Quirke, Stephen. Ancient Egyptian religion. (British Museum Press, 1992). [BL 2441.2 .Q57x 1992]

Funerary vs. other ritual texts

List of major Egyptian funerary texts

see David

ancient Egyptian vs. Hellenistic

Egyptian view of the cosmos of the afterworld

Pyramid Texts on celestial ascent (Faulkner)

PT 1 on king as son of god

"Recitation by Nut, the greatly beneficent: The King is my eldest son who split open my womb; he is my beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

stars as gods or souls of the blessed dead

citations from article

circumpolar stars = pole star is center

are these purely post mortem, or are they living ascents as well?

The mortal uses of Egyptian funerary ritual (Wente)

mentions of the rituals from Book of Amduat being "useful on earth"

read p. 165, 166

175-6, argues that the books were originally for earthly rituals, and later adapted for funerary

"part of a cultic drama which mirrored an event in the world of the gods" (177)