Sacred Legacy of Ancient Egypt by Kerry Wisner

The Sacred Legacy of Egypt

by Kerry Wisner

This article previously appeared in Cup of Wonder Issue Number One

As the sun’s light arches over the eastern horizon a man and woman dressed in long white robes with gold sashes about their waists enter the dimly lit shrine. The room, draped in dark blue linen and thick with the smoke of incense, echoes from the gentle sound of the priestess’ gold Sistrum, a sacred musical rattle. Suddenly a light flares up as the priest intones the ancient words, while igniting the flame of an oil lamp on the altar situated at the northern end of the room: "Come, come in peace, O glorious Eye of Heru, Be strong and renew Your youth in peace. For the flame shines like Ra on the double horizon. We are pure, we are pure, we are pure, we are pure!" (Adapted from "The Chapter of Striking A Fire" Budge 1909.197)

In the center of the altar a small wooden cabinet painted gold stands in simple dignity, its double doors bolted shut. Over the doors the Ancient Egyptian hieroglyph of the winged–disk blazes as a symbol of protection and power (Lurker 1980.130). All the while the Sistrum continues its hypnotic rhythm as the priestess begins to chant the words from the ancient rite of the ‘House of Morning’: "Awake in Peace O Gold in Peace, Awake in Peace O Lady of Heaven in Peace, Awake in Peace O Hwt–Hrw in Peace, Awake in Peace O Lady of Beauty in Peace. The bolts of Heaven are opened, may we honor the presence welcomed!" Slowly the bolts are slid to the side and the doors gently release, swinging open.

There in the glimmer of the lamp’s sacred flame, the golden statuette of a slender goddess is revealed. Her beauty seems sublime as her face comes into view. Upon her head she wears the horns of the sacred cattle of the Nile valley. In between these the solar disk is displayed. As the ceremony continues this simple effigy seems almost alive with energy and awareness. For through the ancient rites this statue has become the living embodiment of the divine energy of the goddess herself; Hathor, Hwt–Hrw, Nebet–Hetepet. For this one moment in time the quintessence of the Great Mother flows through this simple image composed of marble and gold. Moved beyond all words the priestess and priest kneel, leaning forward and kissing the floor before the altar. Then, slowly rising, they lift their hands turning their palms toward the statue in the sacred gesture of adoration.

Each day this couple performs this incredibly ancient and moving ceremony of worship and magick. This is the same ceremony that was performed throughout the temples of Ancient Egypt for thousands of years. Yet, here on the verge of the new millennium, centuries after the last members of the priesthood of Egypt have faded into the past, these and many other people like them have reawakened the age old ceremonies.

The couple described actually exist. Each weekday, two hours after this ceremony is performed one can find the priest dressed in business clothes managing the operations of a large company, while the priestess can be found installing computer systems for a variety of corporations. Both are intelligent, well–educated people who are also versed in the majority of religions of the modern era, yet they have rejected these in favor of embracing a creed that stems from one of the oldest known civilizations in the world, Ancient Egypt. But why? In an age when science and technology have advanced eons beyond anything that the ancients appear to have had, why worship gods from such a distant era?

To understand the answer to this question one must first rethink their own approach toward spirituality. For most people in western culture spirituality is almost like a spectator sport where one is obligated to meet in a building designated for the purpose of observing a minister or priest. There is very little interaction with the public itself. And rather than experiencing god for oneself, one is expected to accept the minister’s word on faith that the god in question is there. Rarely will a western religion allow attempts to be made to actually experience deity.

The religion of Ancient Egypt was very different than this. Rather than seeing God as a distant being residing far away, separate from creation, the Egyptians saw the divine as part of all of nature. From the sky and sun, to the earth and the rivers that flowed over it, all was perceived as an expression and embodiment of deity. The divine, or Neter as the Egyptians called it, is spread throughout the universe (Sauneron 1960.35), with nature being the living garment of the supreme intelligence. As philosopher and historian Jeremy Naydler explains the Ancient Egyptians "saw through the vivid landscape in which they lived to the energies, forces, and beings of which it was an expression" (Naydler 1996.6). To the ancients the Neteru, the gods, were sensuous living forces that were very much involved in the created universe (Finnestad 1997.220).

The Egyptian temple was also perceived very differently than current society views its churches. Through careful symbolism and sacred rites, these massive structures became locations where, as Egyptologist Serge Sauneron explained, Neter "consents to ‘embody’ itself" (Sauneron 1960.35). In fact, every detail of these buildings were meant to strengthen the link between the material world and the spiritual forces that created it. This was no static symbolist’s vision. Rather these structures became dynamic, vital, living vehicles (Finnestad 1997.217). As such they weren’t places for the masses to gather inside to ‘watch’ someone else perform. The temple was a sacred instrument used to bring the divine through in concentrated and powerful forms. Here, in the sacred temples the priesthood who had spent years in training, daily came face to face with the essence of the divine as channeled through the individual god or goddess to whom the temple was dedicated.

This connection with the divine in very real and unlimited terms is a powerful, moving experience for those who have participated in these rites. The Ancient Egyptian spiritual path offers a means to experience for oneself the divine in very direct and personal ways. Egyptologist Ragnhild Bjerre Finnestad explains that, "In Egyptian religion, the approach to god was predominately sacramental and sensory." She continues, "The cognitive approach, so important in Western religion, was not stressed" (Finnestad 1997.219).

Each ceremony was meant to be a direct interaction between the Neteru (the gods) and the participant. As such, the wording of the hymns and invocations all reflect this. For example the following excerpt from a series of hymns to the goddess Hwt–Hrw, whom the Greeks later named Hathor, reads: "I praise the Golden One, I worship her majesty, I exalt the Lady of Heaven, adoration to Hathor, praise to my mistress . . . I rejoice at Hathor’s coming, I love to see your beauty rise . . . my hands say ‘come to me, come to me’, my body moves and my lips repeat holy music for Hathor, music a million times, because you love music, a million times music to your Kaö (Lichtheim 1973.95, 1976.184, 1980.107–109). Clearly this is no static doctrine preached from a man–made hierarchy. Rather this is a living religion in which the feminine aspect of the supreme being is invited to come and be one with the individual. As such this becomes both an act of worship and magick in the highest sense conceivable.

Egyptian religion functions on many different levels, with its rites seeking to attune the individual to the celestial cycles. As we have seen, the daily rite (described at the beginning of this article), with its emphasis on the cyclic rebirth of the sun, forms a connection between the participants and the immense spiritual power that surges forth each dawn. This is a ceremony of renewal, light and awareness.

In addition to this there are a variety of rituals devoted to the rhythms of the moon and stars. One of the most dramatic of these may be found in the rites associated with the rising of the star Sirius when it first becomes visible just before sunrise. This is an annual event of extreme importance. For Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, was seen as the spiritual essence of a number of goddesses all of whom were central to Egyptian theological thought. These included Hathor, Isis, Sopdet and more (Hart 1986.205–207, Parker 1950.33). The helical rising of Sirius marked the beginning of the new year for each of the calendars in the Egyptian’s multiple system (Parker 1978.707). Incorporated into this are both the civil and lunar calendars; the later of which marks the timing of the majority of the religious ceremonies and festivals (Parker 1978.708).

The new year’s festival was one of the most powerful ceremonies of Ancient Egypt. On this day the revitalizing light of the star Sirius and the Sun where united with the earthly image of the Neter of each temple (Meeks 1996.197). For on this one day the statues were taken from their shrines and placed where they could bathe in the light of these sacred manifestations of the feminine and masculine forces of life: Sirius, the stellar goddess, and the Sun, the living image of the god.

The temples of Horus at Edfu and Hathor at Dendera document this ceremony. Just before sunrise the priesthood began a slow procession through the temple. They carried offering, ceremonial implements and shrines holding gold statues of the Neteru. Slowly climbing the eastern staircase the procession echoed the steady ascent of Sirius and the Sun. Once on the roof the shrines were opened to greet the morning light (Meeks 1996.196–197, West 1985. 402).

Inscriptions from Dendera take up the narrative. Hathor is ". . . the beautiful one who appears in heaven, the truth which regulates the world at the head of the sun barge, the Queen and Mistress of awe, the ruler (of gods and) goddesses, Isis the great, the Mother of the Gods." Here Hathor’s identity extends to Isis and Sopdet (Krupp 1983.258). Additional inscriptions continue: "Radiantly, above Her father’s forehead, the Golden One rises, and Her mysterious form occupies the bow of His boat. Her rays unite with the luminous God on that beautiful day of the birth of the sun disk on the morning of the new year’s feast" (Krupp 1991.218). The ‘Golden One’ referred to is none other than Hwt–Hrw, Hathor, the Great Mother of the Egyptian pantheon in her form of the star Sirius. Here the union of Goddess and God are played out on a cosmic scale. Rejuvenated by the combined light of Sun and star the statues were returned to their shrines and the procession began its journey down into the temple via the opposite staircase representing the westerly journey of these celestial bodies (Meeks 1996.197).

Filled with layers of symbolism and rich with pageantry this ceremony holds important meaning for humanity today. For although one may not be able to perform the rite as described above, the observation of this annual celestial event reaffirms our connection with the natural cycles that form the universe. The Ancient Egyptian new year recognizes the immense spiritual power that comes forth on the one day in the year when the stellar and solar cycles coincide. For through this union of goddess and god, representing the two aspects of the supreme force, all comes into being.

Perhaps some of the strongest appeals of Ancient Egyptian religion can be found in both its antiquity and the fact that its approach to spirituality is in many respects diametrically opposite that of our current era. For today science and technological have far outstripped society’s spiritual development. The average person thinks little of metaphysical matters other than those moments when tragedy strikes or the unexplained occurs. While our understanding of the material workings of the universe has expanded dramatically, our emotional and spiritual maturity has failed to keep pace. To the contrary, the Ancient Egyptians placed a higher emphasis on sacred development, understanding and personal involvement. The oldest known religious writings in the world come from Egypt in the form of the pyramid texts. Perhaps by drawing from this rich spiritual legacy a balance can be formed between the fast paced materialistic world of today and the sacred center that is the essence of everyone of us.

Works Cited

Budge, E.A. Wallis. The Book of Opening the Mouth. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co. Ltd. 1909.

Finnestad, Ragnhild Bjerre. "Temples of the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods: Ancient Traditions in New Contexts." Temples of Ancient Egypt. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. 1997.

Hart, George. A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, Inc., 1986.

Krupp, E.C. Echoes of the Ancient Sky. NY: Harper & Row. 1983.

__________. Beyond the Blue Horizon. NY: Harper & Row. 1991.

Lichtheim, Miriam. Ancient Egyptian Literature: Vol. II: The New Kingdom. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1976. This is a 3 volume work (Vol I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms, and Vol. III: The Late Period, complete the set)

Lurker, Manfred. An Illustrated Dictionary of the Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd. 1980.

Meeks, Dimitri and Christine Favard–Meeks. Daily Life of the Egyptian Gods. Trans. G. M. Goshgarian. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1998.

Naydler, Jeremy. Temple of the Cosmos. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions. 1996.

Parker, R.A. The Calendars of Ancient Egypt. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1950.

Parker, R.A. Egyptian Astronomy, Astrology and Calendarical Reckoning. Dictionary of Scientific Biography, vol. XV, Suppl. 1. NY: Charles Scribner’s Sons. 1978.

Sauneron, Serge. The Priests of Ancient Egypt. NY: Grove Press. 1960.

West, John Anthony. The Traveler’s Key to Ancient Egypt: A Guide to the Sacred Places of Ancient Egypt. NY: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1985.