Ancient Egyptian Religious Beliefs, the Government, & the Afterlife
Type of Religion: Polytheistic (for a short period of time, it was Monotheistic)
Type of Government: Theocracy
The ties between the ancient Egyptian Government & Religion
The ancient Egyptians believed that Egypt belonged to the gods. They also believed the
pharaoh had come to Earth in order to manage Egypt for the rest of the gods. Due to their beliefs,
the Pharaoh held an immense amount of power. The pharaoh’s status as both a king and god came
with many responsibilities. In addition, the priests in Ancient Egypt were also very powerful. When
things were going well, the people believed the priest and pharaoh were doing their jobs well; when
things in the country were not going well, the people believed the pharaoh and the priest were to
blame. For example, the people blamed the pharaoh if crops did not grow well or if disease struck.
They also demanded that the pharaoh make trade profitable and prevent war.
The journey to the afterlife
People in most ancient civilizations were afraid of their gods. This was not true in ancient Egypt.
Worshipping the gods was a part of daily life in Egypt. The Egyptians loved their gods. They had
little fear and great wonder. There was one exception - the god Ammut. Almost everyone in ancient
Egypt was afraid of Ammut!
When you died, the ancient Egyptians believed you traveled to an afterlife, a place where you
spent eternity. The afterlife was a heavenly place, complete with a heavenly Nile River. The ancient
Egyptians called this heavenly place the land of the Two Fields. In the beginning, only pharaohs
could board Ra's magical boat and travel to the land of the Two Fields, to dwell forever in the
afterlife. But the god Osiris changed that. One of the reasons that Osiris was such a famous and
important god in ancient Egypt is that Osiris opened the door to the afterlife to everyone.
However, you had to earn your way. There were rules. The god Ammut had a big part in the
weighing of the heart ceremony. Ammut was the Devourer. After you died, the ancient Egyptians
believed your heart had to be weighed against a feather. To enter your afterlife, you had to have a
light heart. It had to be lighter than a feather. Light hearts were earned from a lifetime of doing good
deeds. The ancient Egyptians believed if you were a bad person during your life, your heart would
be heavy, and the god Ammut could suddenly appear and eat you up!
To find out if your heart qualified for the trip to the afterlife, your spirit had to enter the Hall
of Ma’at. The god Anubis weighed your heart. The god Thoth recorded the findings. (In ancient
Egypt, everything was recorded and written down.) If your heart was light, you passed the test and
entered your afterlife. BUT, if your heart was heavy because your deeds were dreadful, the god
Ammut would suddenly appear ... and would eat you up! To keep your heart light, the ancient
Egyptians believed you had to spend a lifetime doing good deeds. Crime was very low in ancient
Egypt because some day, after a good life spent by the Nile, everyone wanted to board Ra's boat
and travel to the land of the Two Fields to enjoy their afterlife.
There were a couple of other requirements you had to satisfy before you could spend eternity in the
afterlife.
1.
First, you had to pass the test of heart in the Hall of Ma’at. That got you onboard Ra's boat.
2.
But you also had to have your name written down somewhere.
3.
And you had to have a preserved body.
Since the ancient Egyptians believed that everyone had a soul. They called the soul by two
names - the Ba and the Ka. As the story goes, the Ba returned during the day to watch over the
living family, while the Ka flew off to enjoy life in the land of the Two Fields. At night, both the Ba
and the Ka flew home to their tomb, to rest and prepare for the next heavenly day.
If something
happened to your preserved body, or if your name was not written down somewhere, the Ba and Ka
would get lost. They would not be able to come home to their tomb at night, and you would disappear
forever, no longer able to dwell happily in the afterlife. That's why the use of a cartouche was so
popular. You could write your name down anywhere. It didn't matter where, it just had to be written
down. Most people in ancient Egypt wrote their name down as much as possible, just to be safe.
The use of a cartouche made it easy for your Ba and Ka to find their way home to your preserved
body since it was attached to your coffin. Only royalty or the members of Egypt’s elite could afford
to be mummified. Peasant families did not need the process since they buried their dead in shallow
graves at the edge of the desert which naturally preserved the bodies.
Due to the status of the people that were mummified grave robbing was the most horrible crime
in ancient Egypt. When grave robbers broke into a tomb, they often broke the cartouche when they
opened the coffin. They nearly always damaged the mummified body in their haste to find treasures
buried within the fabric that wrapped it. Grave robbers not only stole someone’s wealth, they stole
their chance to live happily ever after in the land of the Two Fields. Punishment was swift and terrible
for grave robbers caught robbing a grave.
Religious Objects & Lucky Charms
The Book of the Dead
The ‘Book’ was not a single text but a compilation of spells designed to guide the deceased through
the dangers of the underworld, ultimately ensuring eternal life.
Canopic Jars
These four special jars held the preserved lungs, heart, liver, and stomach of the dead person. Each
jar had the head of a different god who were usually the four sons of Horus. The “heads” of the
minor gods were meant to protect the organs.
Eye of Horus
The Wadjet is a powerful symbol of protection also known as the "Eye of Horus" and the "all seeing
eye". It was worn to ensure the safety and health of the bearer and provide wisdom and prosperity.
The Ankh
It is one of the most famous and widely used symbols of Ancient Egypt. Many of the gods of Egypt
are depicted bearing an Ankh to represent their vivacity and immortality. The Ankh was often linked
with the Djed (an ancient symbol representing stability) or the Was (an ancient symbol representing
strength) to form a powerful amulet thought to invoke the god's protection over the bearer.
Scarab Beetle (as jewelry or a good luck charm)
The design was used to make good luck charms and amulets to ward off evil. In ancient Egypt,
scarab jewelry, good luck charms, and amulets were often given as gifts. An inscription was often
added with the name of the owner and perhaps a motto or a message, like, "good luck in your new job".
Over time, the scarab became a sacred symbol.