This is the first English translation of a highly appealing volume originally published in French in 1993. Informed by a sense of wonderment at divine doings, it treats the ancient Egyptian gods as if they were an ethnic group that captured the fancy of ethnologists or sociologists. The book begins with the discussion of the gods' community as a society unto itself. The authors describe the structures of the society of the gods and some of the conflicts that frequently upset it, with individual gods acting to protect their own positions in an established hierarchy and struggling to gain power over their fellows. The nature of their immortal but not vulnerable bodies, their pleasures, and their needs are considered. What did they eat, the authors ask, and did they feel pain? The second part of the book cites familiar traditions and littleknown texts to explain the relationship of the gods to the pharaoh, who was believed to represent them on earth. By performing appropriate rites, the pharaoh maintained a delicate equilibrium, balancing the sky home of the sun god, the underworld of Osiris and the dead, and the earth itself. While each world was autonomous and had its own mythological context, the separate spheres were also interdependent, requiring the sun's daily course and the pharaoh's ritual actions to ensure the cohesion of the universe.

Rudolf Steiner emphasizes the astonishing and special relationship between our own time and that of ancient Egypt-how, in the natural rhythm of the ages, the so-called third Post-Atlantian (Egyptian) epoch is mirrored by the fifth (present) epoch. In this sense, today it is especially relevant to look at ancient Egypt with fresh eyes. The evolution of Western civilization has been profoundly influenced by Egyptian myths through the Greek mysteries. Because of other influences, however, this heritage has degenerated-thinking has mummified, and myth has all but disappeared. Consequently, it is important to revive the seed of goodness passed down to us from ancient Egypt. Through true imagination, we have the task of renewing human knowledge of the creative forces in nature, as the Egyptians attempted through the Osiris-Isis myth, and the Greeks through the myth of Demeter. This is what Steiner attempts in this lecture cycle. Steiner's subjects include: experiences of Egyptian initiations; esoteric anatomy and physiology; the stages of evolution of the human form; and much more. The final lecture is on the Christ impulse as the conqueror of matter.

A Study of the Temple-Worship and Mythology of the Ancient Egyptians; Contents: The Worship of the Sun and the Dawn; First Glimpses of Egyptian Astronomy; Astronomical Basis of the Egyptian Pantheon; Two Horizons; Yearly Path of the sun-God; Probable Hor-Shesu Worship; Methods of Determining the Orientation of Temples; Earliest Solar Shrines in Egypt; Other Similar Shrines Elsewhere; Solar Temple of Amen-Ra at Karnak; Age of the Temple of Amen-Ra at Karnak; Stars-Their Risings and Settings; Egyptian Heavens-Zodiacs of Denderah; Circumpolar Constellations: The Myth of Horus; Temples Directed to the Stars; Further Inquiries with Regard to the Stellar Temples; Building Inscriptions; Star Temples at Karnak; Personification of Stars-Temple of Isis at Denderah; Temple of Hathor at Denderah; Star-Cults; Egyptian Year and the Nile; Years of 360 and 365 Days; Vague and the Sirian Years; Sothic Cycle and the Use made of it; Calendar and its Revision; Fixed Year and Festival Calendars; Mythology of Isis and Osiris; Temple-Stars; History of Sun-Worship at Annu and Thebes; Early Temple and Great Pyramid Builders; Cult of Northern as Opposed to Southern Stars; Origin of Egyptian Astronomy-Northern Schools; General Conclusions as to the North and South Races; Egyptian and Babylonian Ecliptic Constellations; Influence of Egypt Upon Temple-Orientation in Greece.

With Their Influence on the Opinions of Modern Christendom. "When Christians shall at length acknowledge that many of those doctrines, which together now make up orthodoxy, or the religion of the majority, as distinguished from the simple religion which Jesus taught and practised; when they shall acknowledge that many of them are so many sad and lamentable errors; then, and not till then, will they seek to know their origin, and enquire from which of the several branches of Paganism they sprung. They will then see that most of the so-called Christian doctrines, that have no place in the New Testament, reached Europe from Egypt, through Alexandria." Contents: Religion of Upper Egypt; Religion of Lower Egypt; Religion Under the Persian Conquerors; Religion Under the Ptolemies; Religion Under the Romans; Christianity Under the Roman Emperors; Christianity Under the Byzantine Emperors.

What is the Tekenu? What was its function? What are its origins? These are questions upon which Egyptologists have long pondered. However, Egyptologists, until now, have avoided any major work on the topic. Previous treatments of the Tekenu largely adopt a selective approach focusing on a specific form. Rarely has the Tekenu been examined profoundly in all of its forms or contexts with its possible origins commented upon merely in passing. The aim of The Tekenu and Ancient Egyptian Funerary Ritual is to provide a provocative examination and interpretation of the Tekenu in an endeavour to proffer plausible answers hitherto eluding scholars. Attested from the Fifth Dynasty until, and including the Saite Period, the Tekenu is a puzzling icon which is depicted within the funerary scenes in the tombs of some ancient Egyptian nobles. In this work four distinct types of Tekenu are identified and classified and then a Corpus Catalogue is formed. The Tekenu is appraised within the context of the wall scene. Two tombs are dealt with in greater detail.

This book provides the first edition with an extensive introduction and full commentary of a unique land survey written on papyrus in Greek which derives from that area of southern (Upper) Egypt known as the Apollonopolite (or Edfu) nome and is now preserved in Copenhagen. Dating from the late second century BC, this survey provides a new picture of both landholding and taxation in the area which differs significantly from that currently accepted. The introduction sets this new evidence in its contemporary context, drawing particular attention to what it reveals about the nature of the relations of the Ptolemaic royal administration with local grandees, Egyptian temples and the army. No student of Hellenistic Egypt can afford to ignore this text, which importantly extends our knowledge of Upper Egypt under the Ptolemaic kings and involves some modification to the prevailing picture of landholding in Hellenistic Egypt.

This catalogue documents an exhibition at the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology on the mysterious ancient Egyptian jackal-headed gods associated with death and the afterlife. These gods are immediately identifiable symbols of ancient Egypt, but their specific identities and roles are often less well known. Death Dogs is the first exhibition to examine their mysteries. The exhibition and catalogue focus on the three most important jackal gods: Anubis (embalmer and guide to the dead), Wepwawet (opener of the ways to the afterlife) and Duamutef (son of Horus, protector of the canopic jar). Jackal gods are represented by a variety of artifacts in the Kelsey Museum collectionstatues, paintings, amulets and other objects. These artifacts are used to examine the jackal gods and their functions in the wider context of ancient Egyptian religion and follow their changing roles into the Graeco-Roman period and beyond. The catalogue features 44 artifacts from the exhibition, some never before exhibited or published, many from University of Michigan excavations in Egypt, along with supplementary artifacts, archival photographs, vintage book illustrations and explanatory graphics. Modern pop cultural manifestations of the Egyptian jackal gods are included to document their persistence into the present. Includes 181 colour illustrations.

Akhenaten, also known as Amenhotep IV, was king of Egypt during the Eighteenth Dynasty and reigned from 1375 to 1358 B.C. E. Called the "religious revolutionary," he is the earliest known creator of a new religion. The cult he founded broke with Egypt's traditional polytheism and focused its worship on a single deity, the sun god Aten. Erik Hornung, one of the world's preeminent Egyptologists, here offers a concise and accessible account of Akhenaten and his religion of light.Hornung begins with a discussion of the nineteenth-century scholars who laid the foundation for our knowledge of Akhenaten's period and extends to the most recent archaeological finds. He emphasizes that Akhenaten's monotheistic theology represented the first attempt in history to explain the entire natural and human world on the basis of a single principle. "Akhenaten made light the absolute reference point," Hornung writes, "and it is astonishing how clearly and consistently he pursued this concept." Hornung also addresses such topics as the origins of the new religion; pro-found changes in beliefs regarding the afterlife; and the new Egyptian capital at Akhetaten which was devoted to the service of Aten, his prophet Akhenaten, and the latter's family.

The Wheel of the Year in Ancient Egypt isbn 978190695138 The very oldest Egyptian ritual calendar was lunar. The evidence for this is very complex and in the words of Professor Leo Depuydt, "does not exactly jump out at you " This ancient lunar calendar continued a veiled existence alongside the dominant solar or civil year. Many details are lost so the project of this book is to bring together what has survived. Revealed here is a very ancient pantheon of gods, including Set, Min, & Hathor, one for each month of the lunar year. I have provided for them a unique collection of liturgy, ritual and prayers as may have been offered in the homes, sanctuaries and temples of the original Egypt. Many of these feasts of Ancient Egypt were celebrated on the phases of the moon - principally when it was new or full. So whatever your favorite god or goddess, make offerings on either of these days and you will be reviving an old and authentic form of the Ancient Egyptian magical religion. To complete the picture I present over several chapters all the technical details of the lunar month as well as its more well known civil replacement. Here you will find information on how certain key days were calculated when needed. These later chapters also provide related material on the mysteries of the Northern Constellations. Finally there are descriptions of the thirty lunar days of each month and lunar omens. So in total this is the most complete and authoritative guide to the ritual wheel of the year at all stages of its use in the Ancient Egyptian magical religion.

In attempting even a brief and imperfect outline of the history of Egyptian queens the author has undertaken no easy task and craves indulgence for its modest fulfillment. The aim has been merely to put the little that is known in a readable and popular form, to gather from many sources the fragments that remain, partly historic, partly legendary, of a dead past. To present -- however imperfectl -- sketches of the women who once lived and breathed as Queens of Egypt.

In this guide to the cosmology of ancient Egypt, Jeremy Naydler recreates the experience of living in another time and place. Temple of the Cosmos explores Egypt's sacred geography and mythology; but more importantly, it reveals with unprecedented clarity an ancient consciousness in tune with the rhythms of the earth. The ancient Egyptians experienced their gods not as remote beings but rather as psychic and natural forces, transpersonal energies that played a part in everyday life. This direct experience of the gods shaped the Egyptian concepts of human development, healing, magic, and the soul's journey through the Underworld as described in the Books of the Dead. While building on the pioneering efforts of R. A. Schwaller de Lubicz and others, "Temple of the Cosmos" is much more than a recapitulation of previous theories of Egyptian spirituality. Rather, this book breaks new ground by placing the work of other Egyptologists in an original, magical context. The result is a brilliant reimagining of the Egyptian worldview and its sacred path of spiritual unfolding.

Deep within each of us lives a primal memory of a time when the natural world was recognized as divine and our temples were built from sacred materials enlivened through magic. Temples were not places you visited once a week; they were centres of community, divine work, healing, and wisdom, places where Heaven and Earth meet. This union of Heaven and Earth--the sacred temple--is also a union of Thoth and Isis: the Egyptian god of wisdom and the creative cosmic force and the Egyptian goddess of civilizing knowledge. Their relationship established the celestial teachings on Earth, for Thoth taught Isis all the mysteries and magic she knows and Isis acted as Thoth's instrument to deliver the teachings in a form humanity could use. In this initiatic guide to temple building on the spiritual and physical planes, Normandi Ellis and Nicki Scully explain how to create a communal spiritual structure for connecting with the ancient Egyptian pantheon as well as how to consecrate yourself and become a vessel suitable for divine wisdom and a home for your personal gods. The authors detail the construction, shamanic visioning, and ritual consecration of a Moon Temple dedicated to Thoth. They explore teachings that help you develop relationships with the Egyptian neteru and realize your place within the family of the Egyptian pantheon. They guide you as you create your inner heart temple, the adytum, a safe place in which to receive guidance and access your higher spiritual bodies and oracular gifts. They provide shamanic journeys and initiations on ascension, shamanic death and renewal, soul retrieval and healing, multidimensional realities, and more. By creating a sacred temple within and without, we each can take part in the union of Isis and Thoth and restore the magic of the Egyptian mysteries to our time.

Bojana Mojsov tells the story of the cult of Osiris from beginning to end, sketching its development throughout 3,000 years of Egyptian history.
Draws together the numerous records about Osiris from the third millennium B.C. to the Roman conquest of Egypt.
Demonstrates that the cult of Osiris was the most popular and enduring of the ancient religions.
Shows how the cult provided direct antecedents for many ideas, traits and customs in Christianity, including the concept of the trinity, baptism in the sacred river, and the sacrament of the Eucharist.
Reveals the cult's influence on other western mystical traditions and groups, such as the Alchemists, Rosicrucians and Freemasons.
Written for a general, as well as a scholarly audience.

In their wide-ranging interpretation of the religion of ancient Egypt, Francoise Dunand and Christiane Zivie-Coche explore how, over a period of roughly 3500 years, the Egyptians conceptualized their relations with the gods. Drawing on the insights of anthropology, the authors discuss such topics as the identities, images, and functions of the gods; rituals and liturgies; personal forms of piety expressing humanity's need to establish a direct relation with the divine; and the afterlife, a central feature of Egyptian religion. That religion, the authors assert, was characterized by the remarkable continuity of its ritual practices and the ideas of which they were an expression.Throughout, Dunand and Zivie-Coche take advantage of the most recent archaeological discoveries and scholarship. Gods and Men in Egypt is unique in its coverage of Egyptian religious expression in the Ptolemaic and Roman periods. Written with nonspecialist readers in mind, it is largely concerned with the continuation of Egypt's traditional religion in these periods, but it also includes fascinating accounts of Judaism in Egypt and the appearance and spread of Christianity there."

Presents proof that an advanced black African civilization inhabited the Sahara long before Pharaonic Egypt
- Reveals black Africa to be at the genesis of ancient civilization and the human story
- Examines extensive studies into the lost civilization of the "Star People" by renowned anthropologists, archaeologists, genetic scientists, and cultural historians as well as the authors' archaeoastronomy and hieroglyphics research
- Deciphers the history behind the mysterious Nabta Playa ceremonial area and its stone calendar circle and megaliths
Relegated to the realm of archaeological heresy, despite a wealth of hard scientific evidence, the theory that an advanced civilization of black Africans settled in the Sahara long before Pharaonic Egypt existed has been dismissed and even condemned by conventional Egyptologists, archaeologists, and the Egyptian government. Uncovering compelling new evidence, Egyptologist Robert Bauval and astrophysicist Thomas Brophy present the anthropological, climatological, archaeological, geological, and genetic research supporting this hugely debated theory of the black African origin of Egyptian civilization.
Building upon extensive studies from the past four decades and their own archaeoastronomical and hieroglyphic research, the authors show how the early black culture known as the Cattle People not only domesticated cattle but also had a sophisticated grasp of astronomy; created plentiful rock art at Gilf Kebir and Gebel Uwainat; had trade routes to the Mediterranean coast, central Africa, and the Sinai; held spiritual and occult ceremonies; and constructed a stone calendar circle and megaliths at the ceremonial site of Nabta Playa reminiscent of Stonehenge, yet much older. Revealing these "Star People" as the true founders of ancient Egyptian civilization, this book completely rewrites the history of world civilization, placing black Africa back in its rightful place at the center of mankind's origins.

For more than 2,000 years, between 1500 BCE and 600 CE, the Egyptian processional oracle was one of the main points of contact between temple-based religion and the general population. In a public ceremony, a god would indicate its will or answer questions through the movements of a portable cult statue borne by priests or important members of the community. The Egyptian Oracle Project is an interactive performance that adapts this ceremony to serve as the basis for a mixed-reality educational experience for children and young adults, using both virtual reality and live performance. The scene is set in a virtual Egyptian temple projected onto a wall. An oracle led by a high priest avatar (controlled by a live human puppeteer) is brought into the presence of a live audience, who act in the role of the Egyptian populace. Through the mediation of an actress, the audience interacts with the avatar, recreating the event. The series of carefully focused essays in this book provides vital background to this path-breaking project in three sections. After a brief introduction to educational theatre and virtual reality, the first section describes the ancient ceremony and its development, along with cross-cultural connections. Then the development of the script and its performance in the context of mixed-reality and educational theatre are examined. The final set of essays describes the virtual temple setting in more detail and explores the wider implications of this project for virtual heritage.