EGYPT - Religion
Gods and Godesses, Book of
Dead, Spirit of Dead,
Mummification, and the Afterlife
History
• The time known as “Ancient Egypt” lasted from around 3300 BC
until it became an independent state in 1300 BC. During this time,
there were about 9 dynasties or periods, in which different pharaohs
ruled.
• During the Early Dynastic Period, the development of writing called
hieroglyphics began. This period also began constructing large scale
buildings and begun the trade line outside of the Nile valley.
Another period that had a great impact on the Ancient Egyptian life,
was the Old Kingdom. Historians have dated that this is when the
art of embalming, or mummification began.
• The Middle Kingdom about 2055 BC, is most likely when military
campaigns against foreign nations began. Around 2575 BC another
great accomplishment was made by Pharaoh Khufu. His pyramid of
Gaza, is now one of the most famous and greatest pyramids known.
The fall of the Egyptian dynasty came around 527BC when Egypt
fell under the rule of the Persians.
Mythology: The Birth of the World
• The mythology of Ancient Egypt centers
around nature, the earth, sun, moon, sky,
stars and the Nile River. According to legend,
the Egyptian Empire began with the creation
of Nu. Nu was a swirling watery chaos and
then the waters began to subside, a land
appeared. Atum is the God whom emerged
from the Nu and is the creator of the world.
This God is also know as the great scarab
beetle. Atum gave birth to two children, Shu
and Tefnut. Atum’s children represented the
air and the rain. According to legend Atum
then parted with his children and when they
were reunited, his tears of joy created the
men on the earth.
Gods and Goddesses
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Ancient Egyptians worship of 2000 different gods
Before Egypt was united their were 40 tribes all with different gods
After all the Gods were kept, meaning many gods had similar characteristics
Animals were considered the living images of the gods
How Gods Dress
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Tunic with suspenders.
Dress with suspenders.
The short loincloth
The short-sleeved overall
The full-length dress
Ra (re)
Ma’at
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Sun God
Appearance:
A man with the head of
a Hawk wearing a sun
disk headdress
He was the most
important God
The ancient Egyptians
believed that each night
Ra was swallowed night
by Nut, the sky goddess
then reborn in the
morning.
Thoth
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Appearance: A man
with the head of an ibis
holding a writing palette
Thoth was the go of
Knowledge and writing
It was said that he gave
the gift of hieroglyphics.
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Appearance: A Woman
with a feather on top of
her head
Ma'at was the goddess
of truth, justice and
harmony.
Ma’at was oftene
associated with the
balance of things on
earth.
Anubis
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Appearance: A Man
with the head of a jackal
Anubis was the god of
embalming and the
dead.
Jackals were often seen
found in cemeteries,
because of this it was
believed that Anubis
watched over the dead.
Horus
Osiris
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Appearance: Man with
the head of a hawk
Horus was a god of
the sky. He is the
protector of the ruler of
Egypt.
It was believed that the
pharaoh was the 'living
Horus'.
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Amun
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Appearance: A Man
with a ram-head
wearing an ostrich
feather hat
Amun was one of the
most powerful gods
in ancient Egypt.
At the height of
Egyptian civilisation he
was called the 'King of
the Gods'.
Appearance: A
mummified man who is
wearing a white
headdress with feathers
Osiris was the god of
the dead, and ruler of
the Underworld.
Osiris was also the god
of vegetation (plant
matter) that’s why he is
green in appearance.
Atum
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Appearance: Man with
the double crown
Atum was a creator
god.
It was belived that Atum
was the first god to exist
on earth.
BOOK OF THE DEAD
(reu nu pert em hru)
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In Egyptian called reu nu pert em hru which translates into "The Book of Coming forth by Day"
Contains spells, charms, passwords and numbers to help secure an easy passage for the
deceased into the after life
Egyptians believed that knowledge of the appropriate spells was essential to achieving
happiness in the next life
first inscribed on the sarcophogaus of the deceased in 1600 BCE, then later written on papyrus
paper
there are many different versions of the Book of the Dead including:
* Heliopolitan version which is known from five
copies inscribed in the tombs of Kings from the fifth dynasty and edited by priests of Annu
* Theban version which is the most modern version
written on papyrus paper and organized into chapters containing only hieroglyphics
* Saite version which is very strictly organized
spell 125 is one of the most well known segments which is the judging of the soul done by
Osiris and his 42 judges
The weighing of the heart against Ma'at is considered one of the more important chapters
"Book of the Dead" meant to aid deceased in not dying a second time and becoming an akh
The book of dead
inscribed on tomb 
 weighing of the
heart against Ma'at’s
Feather
SPIRIT OF THE DEAD
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Egyptians believe that each person is composed of three essential elements: ba
(soul/personality), ka (life force), and the body in which the soul is kept
Ka, ba and akh are believed to be immortal aspects of the soul thus remaining alive inside the
body after death
In the Opening of the Mouth ceremony, the ba and ka are released into the next world
Upon death, the ba and ka become separated from the body but remain alive
Because the body of the deceased is mummified, the body must rely on the ba to seek out the ka
During the night when Ra visits the underworld, the ba are allowed to freely roam but must
always return to the underworld because that is where the body lies and the ba and body are
part of the same being
If the ba is successful in reuniting itself with the ka, it becomes an akh
If successful in becoming an akh, the akh inhabits the world after as it is believed by the
Egyptians that three kinds of beings inhabit the world after death: gods, the dead (those who's
ba and ka have not been united) and akhs
Akhs are believed to be the "spirit of the dead"
Ba
Ka 
Ba leaving the
body 
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Embalming
The earliest Egyptians’ buried their dead in small pits
where they would eventually dry out from the heat, leaving
life-like mummies (Mummification). Many years later, people
began placing the dead in coffins to protect them from the
wildlife. This process proved to be unacceptable, as the body
would decompose since it wasn’t exposed to the heat. As a
result, the process of embalming began.
The embalming process was a long and grotesque process in
some cases. The first stage of the embalming process was to
take the body to the “ibu” and wash it with good smelling
palm wine and then wash it with water from the Nile River.
Next, an incision was made to the left side of the body which
allowed the embalmer to remove the internal organs (The
Religion of Ancient Egypt). The only organ not taken out of
the body was the heart, as it was the center of intelligence
and feeling and, therefore, needed in the afterlife. The body
was then stuffed and covered with natron, which allowed the
body to dry out. After forty days, the body was then washed
again. Once again the body was covered with oil after the
embalmers restuffed the body. The body was then ready for
wrapping.
Mummification
Embalming the Body
• Wash the body with good smelling palm
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Wrapping
• First the head and neck are wrapped with •
linen. The fingers and toes are wrapped
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individually. The arms and legs are
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wrapped separately from the body
• In the layers the embalmers place
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amulets to protect the body in the
underworld. The 'isis knot' amulet
protects the body and ' Plummet'
represents personal balance
Priests read out spells while the mummy
is being wrapped.
Papyrus scroll filled with spells from the
book of the dead is wrapped in the
mummies hands
A cloth is then wrapped over the whole
body and a painting of Osiris is Painted
on top.
A funeral is then held for the dead person
before the body is layered to rest they
have a ritual called 'the opening of he
mouth' this lets the dead person eat and
drink one last time
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wines and rinse with water from the Nile.
Cut a slit in the left side of the body and
remove internal organs the liver, stomach,
lungs and intestines are placed in canopic
jars.
imsety the human headed god holds the liver
hapy the baboon headed god holds the lungs
duamutef the jackal headed god holds the
stomach
qebehsenuef the falcon headed god holds the
intestines
A hook is then inserted up the nose to
remove the brains the heart remains in the
body because the Egyptians believed that
your heart was the most important aspect of
the human.
the body is then covered and stuffed with
which will help to dry out the body
The body is then placed in the desert for 40
days. After the 40 days the body is then
washed again with Nile water the skin is the
covered in oils.
Canopic
Jars 
The After Life
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Death is not seen as the last stage of life
Before the mummy can reach the underworld it has to pass through seven
gates, aided by the magic spells inscribed upon the funerary objects, then
the dead person arrives in the presence of Osiris (god of the underworld)
Osiris then performs a ceremony called the 'weighing of the heart'
Heart of the dead person is weighed on a scale by the jackal headed god
Anubis (god of dead) against the feather of Ma'at (goddess of truth)
Balancing the scale meant immortality
If the scale did not balance then Amemt (crocodile headed god) would eat
the heart, and Seth, murderer of Osiris ate the rest of the body
Cats: The Sacred Animal
• Although many cultures have had cats, the Ancient Egyptians
were the first to domesticate and allow them in their homes.
During the first years of the domesticated cat, these animals were
most likely used to chase off rodents and snakes from the crops
and homes of the Egyptians. Slowly however, these animals were
eventually revered a God. People began placing cats on tombs and
outside their homes to protect the inhabitants and ward off evil
spirits. The first famous cat deity was Bastet (Watson). She was
the goddess of fertility and was the protector of the children and
cats. Sekhmet was Bastet’s counterpart and known as the goddess
of war and pestilence. Together the two maintained balance of
nature.
• Cats were so highly recognized that they were often waited on and
when they died, they were mummified just as a person would be.
The mummified corpse would then be offered to Bastet. After the
death of the animal, the owner would go into deep mourning and
even shaved their eyebrows to show their great los.
• Laws also protected the cat. Suppose a human killed a cat,
whether intentional or not, that human was sentenced to death.
The cat definitely held a powerful spot in Ancient Egyptian history.
Bibliography
• "History of Ancient Egypt." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation,
Inc. 22 Nov. 2005 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Ancient_Egypt>.
• "The Religion of Ancient Egypt." The Ancient Egyptian Culture Exhibit. 1998.
Minnesota State University, Dept. of Anthropology. 10 Nov. 2005
<http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/egypt/religion/religion.html>.
• "Mummification." Ancient Egypt. 1999. The British Museum. 10 Nov. 2005
<http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk/mummies/home.html>.
• Kinnaer, Jacques. "The History of Ancient Egypt." The Ancient Egyptian Site. 15
1997. 15 Nov. 2005 <http://www.ancient-egypt.org>.
• Watson, John. "An Overview of the Ancient Egyptian Religion." Tour Egypt. 22 Nov.
2005 <http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/religion.htm>.
• Watson, John. "An Overview of the Ancient Egyptian Religion." Tour Egypt. 22 Nov.
2005 <http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/religion.htm>.
Bibliography (Pictures)
• "Large Bastet the Goddess Protector." The Museum Store. Talaria Enterprises. 22
Nov. 2005 <http://www.talariaenterprises.com/products_lg/5596.html>.
• Beebe, Judy. "Canopic Jars." Planetlightworker.com. New Earth Publications. 22 Nov.
2005
<http://www.planetlightworker.com/articles/judybeebe/may_images/symbol3.jpg>.
• “Mummification." The Ancient Egyptian Culture Exhibit. 1998. Minnesota State
University, Dept. of Anthropology. 10 Nov. 2005
<http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/egypt/religion/religion.html>.
• “Atum." Ancient Egypt. 1999. The British Museum. 10 Nov. 2005
<http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk/mummies/home.html>.