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The Egyptian Book of the Dead


Papyrus of Ani; Egyptian Book of the Dead [Budge]
240 BC
THE PAPYRUS OF ANI
(THE EGYPTIAN BOOK OF THE DEAD)
Translated by E.A. Wallis Budge
THE CHAPTER OF MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO A SWALLOW. The Osiris Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am a swallow, [I am] a swallow. [I am] that Scorpion, the daughter of Ra. Hail, O ye gods whose odour is sweet. Hail, O ye gods whose odour is sweet. Hail, Flame, who comest forth from the horizon. Hail, thou who art in the city. I have brought the Warder of his corner there. Give me thy two hands, and let me pass my time in the Island of Flame. I have advanced with a message, I have come having the report thereof [to make]. Open to me. How shall I tell that which I have seen there? I am like Horus, the governor of the Boat, when the throne of his father was given unto him, and when Set, that son of Nut, was [lying] under the fetters which he had made for Osiris. He who is in Sekhem hath inspected me. I stretch out my arms over Osiris. I have advanced for the examination, I have come to speak there. Let me pass on and deliver my message. I am he who goeth in, [I am] judged, [I] come forth magnified at the Gate of Nebertcher. I am purified at the Great Uart. I have done away my wickednesses. I have put away utterly my offences. I have put away utterly all the taints of evil which appertained to me [upon the earth]. I have purified myself, I have made myself to be like a god. Hail, O ye Doorkeepers, I have completed my journey. I am like unto you. I have come forth by day. I have advanced on my legs. I have gained the master over [my] footsteps. [Hail, ye] Spirit-souls! I, even I, do know the hidden roads and the Gates of Sekhet Aaru. I live there. Verily, I, even I, have come, I have overthrown my enemies upon the earth, although my body lieth a mummy in the tomb.

APPENDIX

RUBRIC: (Naville, op. cit., II, Bl. 202) If this Chapter be known by the deceased, he shall enter in after he hath come forth by day.

RUBRIC: (Saite Recension)

If this Chapter be known by the deceased, he shall come forth by day from Khert-Neter, and he shall go [again] after he hath come forth. If this Chapter be not known [by the deceased], he shall not go in again after he hath come forth [and he] shall not know [how] to come forth by day.

[THE CHAPTER] OF MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO A HAWK OF GOLD. The Osiris Ani saith:-

I have risen up out of the seshett chamber, like the golden hawk which cometh forth from his egg. I fly, I alight like a hawk with a back of seven cubits, and the wings of which are like unto the mother-of-emerald of the South. I have come forth from the Sektet Boat, and my heart hath been brought unto me from the mountain of the East. I have alighted on the Atet Boat, and there have been brought unto me those who dwelt in their substance, and they bowed in homage before me. I have risen, I have gathered myself together like a beautiful golden hawk, with the head of the Benu, and Ra hath entered in [to hear my speech]. I have taken my seat among the great gods, [the children of] Nut. I have settled myself, the Sekhet-hetepet (the Field of Offerings) is before me. I eat therein, I become a Spirit-soul therein, I am supplied with food in abundance therein, as much as I desire. The Grain-god (Nepra) hath given unto me food for my throat, and I am master over myself and over the attributes of my head.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO A DIVINE HAWK. The Osiris Ani saith:-

Hail, thou Great God, come thou to Tetu. Make thou ready for me the ways, and let me go round [to visit] my thrones. I have laboured. I have made myself perfect. O grant thou that I may be held in fear. Create thou awe of me. Let the gods of the Tuat be afraid of me, and let them fight for me in their halls. Permit not thou to come nigh unto me him that would attack me, or would injure me in the House of Darkness. Cover over the helpless one, hide him. Let do likewise the gods who hearken unto the word [of truth], the Khepriu gods who are in the following of Osiris. Hold ye your peace then, O ye gods, whilst the God holdeth speech with me, he who listeneth to the truth. I speak unto him my words. Osiris, grant thou that that which cometh forth from thy mouth may circulate to me. Let me see thine own Form. Let thy Souls envelop me. Grant thou that I may come forth, and that I may be master of my legs, and let me live there like Nebertcher upon his throne. Let the gods of the Tuat hold me in fear, and let them fight for me in their halls. Grant thou that I may move forward with him and with the Ariu gods, and let me be firmly stablished on my pedestal like the Lord of Life. Let me be in the company of Isis, the goddess, and let [the gods] keep me safe from him that would do an injury unto me. Let none come to see the helpless one. May I advance, and may I come to the Henti boundaries of the sky. Let me address words to Keb, and let me make supplicaion to the god Hu with Nebertcher. Let the gods of the Tuat be afraid of me, and let them fight for me in their halls. Let them see that thou hast provided me with food for the festival. I am one of those Spirit-souls who dwell in the Light-god. I have made my form in his Form, when he cometh to Tetu. I am a Spirit-body among his Spirit- bodies; he shall speak unto thee the things [which concern] me. Would that he would cause me to be held in fear! Would that he would create [in them] awe of me! Let the gods of the Tuat be afraid of me, and let them fight for me [in their halls]. I, even I, am a Spirit-soul, a dweller in the Light-god, whose form hath been created in divine flesh. I am one of those Spirit-souls who dwell in the Light-god, who were created by Tem himself, and who exist in the blossoms of his Eye. He hath made to exist, he hath made glorious, and he hath magnified their faces during their existence with him. Behold, he is Alone in Nu. They acclaim him when he cometh forth from the horizon, and the gods and the Spirit-souls who have come into being with him ascribe fear unto him.

I am one of the worms which have been created by the Eye of the Lord One. And behold, when as yet Isis had not given birth to Horus, I was flourishing, and I had waxed old, and had become pre-eminent among the Spirit-souls who had come into being with him. I rose up like a divine hawk, and Horus endowed me with a Spirit-body with his soul, so that [I] might take possession of the property of Osiris in the Tuat. He shall say to the twin Lion-gods for me, the Chief of the House of the Nemes Crown, the Dweller in his cavern: Get thee back to the heights of heaven, for behold, inasmuch as thou art a Spirit-body with the creations of Horus, the Nemes Crown shall not be to thee: [but] thou shalt have speech even to the uttermost limits of the heavens. I, the warder, took possession of the property of Horus [which belonged] to Osiris in the Tuat, and Horus repeated to me what his father Osiris had said unto him in the years [past], on the days of his burial. Give thou to me the Nemes Crown, say the twin Lion-gods for me. Advance thou, come along the road of heaven, and look upon those who dwell in the uttermost limits of the horizon. The gods of the Tuat shall hold thee in fear, and they shall fight for thee in their halls. The god Auhet belongeth to them. All the gods who guard the shrine of the Lord One are smitten with terror at [my] words.

Hail, saith the god who is exalted upon his coffer to me! He hath bound on the Nemes Crown, [by] the decree of the twin Lion-gods. The god Aahet hath made a way for me. I am exalted [on the coffer], the twin Lion-gods have bound the Nemes Crown on me and my two locks of hair are given unto me. He hath stablished for me my heart by his own flesh, and by his great, two-fold strength, and I shall not fall headlong before Shu. I am Hetep, the Lord of the two Uraei-goddesses who are to be adored. I know the Light-god, his winds are in my body. The Bull which striketh terror [into souls] shall not repulse me. I come daily into the House of the twin Lion-gods. I come forth therefrom into the House of Isis. I look upon the holy things which are hidden. I see the being who is therein. I speak to the great ones of Shu, they repulse him that is wrathful in his hour. I am Horus who dwelleth in his divine Light. I am master of his crown. I am master of his radiance. I advance towards the Henti boundaries of heaven. Horus is upon his seat. Horus is upon his thrones. My face is like that of a divine hawk. I am one who is equipped [like] his lord. I shall come forth to Tetu. I shall see Osiris. I shall live in his actual presence.... Nut. They shall see me. I shall see the gods [and] the Eye of Horus burning with fire before my eyes. They shall reach out their hands to me. I shall stand up. I shall be master of him that would subject me to restraint. They shall open the holy paths to me, they shall see my form, they shall listen to my words.

[Homage] to you, O ye gods of the Tuat, whose faces are turned back, whose powers advance, conduct ye me to the Star-gods which never rest. Prepare ye for me the holy ways to the Hemat house, and to your god, the Soul, who is the mighty one of terror. Horus hath commanded me to lift up your faces; do ye look upon me. I have risen up like a divine hawk. Horus hath made me to be a Spirit-body by means of his Soul, and to take possession of the things of Osiris in the Tuat. Make ye for me a path. I have travelled and I have arrived at those who are chiefs of their caverns, and who are guardians of the House of Osiris. I speak unto them his mighty deeds. I made them to know concerning his victories. He is ready [to butt with his] two horns at Set. They know him who hath taken possession of the god Hu, and who hath taken possession of the Powers of Tem.

Travel thou on thy way safely, cry out the gods of the Tuat to me. O ye who make your names pre-eminent, who are chiefs in your shrines, and who are guardians of the House of Osiris, grant, I pray you, that I may come to you. I have bound up and I have gathered together your Powers. I have directed the Powers of the ways, the wardens of the horizon, and of the Hemat House of heaven. I have stablished their fortresses for Osiris. I have prepared the ways for him. I have performed the things which [he] hath commanded. I come forth to Tetu. I see Osiris. I speak to him concerning the matter of his Great Son, whom he loveth, and concerning [the smiting of] the heart of Set. I look upon the lord who was helpless. How shall I make them to know the plans of the gods, and that which Horus did without the knowledge of his father Osiris?

Hail, Lord, thou Soul, most awful and terrible, behold me. I have come, I make thee to be exalted! I have forced a way though the Tuat. I have opened the roads which appertain to heaven, and those which appertain to the earth, and no one hath opposed me therein. I have exalted thy face, O Lord of Eternity.

APPENDIX (In the Papyrus of Nu, Sheet 14, the Chapter ends with the following.)

Exalted art thou on thy throne, O Osiris! Thou hast heard fair things, O Osiris! Thy strength is vigorous, O Osiris! Thy head is fastened on thy body, O Osiris! Thy neck is made firm, O Osiris! Thy heart is glad, [O Osiris!]. Thy speech is made effective, O Osiris! Thy princes rejoice Thou art established the Bull in Amentet. Thy son Horus hath ascended thy trrone, and all life is with him. Millions of years minister unto him, and millions of years hold him in fear. The Company of the Gods are his servants, and they fold him in fear. The god Tem, the Governor, the only One among the gods, hath spoken, and his word passeth not away. Horus is both the divine food and the sacrifice. He made haste to gather together [the members of] of his father. Horus is his deliverer. Horus is his deliverer. Horus hath sprung from the essence of his divine father and from his decay. He hath become the Governor of Egypt. The gods shall work for him, and they shall toil for him for million of years. He shall make millions of years to live through his Eye, the only one of its lord, Nebertcher.]

(From the Turin Papyrus, Bl. XXX)

Exalted is thy throne, O Osiris. Thou hearest well, O Osiris. Thy strength flourisheth, O Osiris. I have fastened thy head [on thy] body for thee. I have stablished thy throat, the throne of the joy of thy heart. Thy words are stable. Thy shenit princes are glad. Thou art stablished as the Bull of Amentet. Thy son Horus hath ascended thy throne. All life is with him. Millions of years work for him. The Company of the Gods fear him. Tem, the One Power of the Gods, hath spoken, and what he hath said is not changed, Hetu Aabi. Horus hath stood up. I have gone about collecting his father. Horus hath delivered his father. Horus hath delivered [his mother]. My mother is Horus. My brother is Horus. My uncle is Horus. I have come. Horus followeth his father.... there the dirt of his head. The gods shall serve him. Millions of years...... in his Eye, the Only One of its Lord, Neb-er-tcher.

THE CHAPTER OF BEING TRANSFORMED INTO THE PRINCE OF THE TCHATCHAU CHIEFS.The Osiris Nu, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am the god Tem, the maker of the sky, the creator of the things which are, who cometh forth from the earth, who made the seed of man to come into being, the Lord of things, who fashioned the gods, the Great God, who created himself, the Lord of Life, who made to flourish the Two Companies of the Gods. Homage to you, O ye divine Lords of things, ye holy beings, whose seats are veiled! Homage to you, O ye Lords of Eternity, whose forms are concealed, whose sanctuaries are mysteries, whose places of abode are not known! Homage to you, O ye gods, who dwell in the Tenait (Circle of Light)! Homage to you, O ye gods of the Circle of the country of the Cataracts! Homage to you, O ye gods who dwell in Amentet! Homage to you, O ye gods who dwell within Nut! Grant ye to me that I may come before you, I am pure, I am like a god. I am endowed with a Spirit-soul. I am strong. I am endowed with a Heart-soul. I bring unto you incense, and spice, and natron. I have done away with the chidings of your mouths. I have come, I have done away the evil which was in your hearts, and I have removed the offences which appertained to you [against me]. I bring to you deeds of well-doing, and I present before you truth. I know you. I know your names. I know your forms which are not known. I come into being among you. My coming is like unto that god who eateth men, and who feedeth upon the gods. I am strong before you even like that god who is exalted upon his pedestal, unto whom the gods come with rejoicing, and the goddesses make supplication when they see me. I have come unto you. I have ascended my throne like your Two Daughters. I have taken my seat in the horizon. I receive my offerings of propitiation upon my altars. I drink my fill of seth wine every evening. I come to those who are making rejoicings, and the gods who live in the horizon ascribe unto me praises, as the divine Spirit-body, the Lord of mortals. I am exalted like that holy god who dwelleth in the Great House. The gods rejoice greatly when they see my beautiful appearances from the body of the goddess Nut, and when the goddess Nut bringeth me forth.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO THE SERPENT SATA. The Osiris Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am the serpent Sata whose years are infinite. I lie down dead. I am born daily. I am the serpent Sa-en-ta, the dweller in the uttermost parts of the earth. I lie down in death. I am born, I become new, I renew my youth every day.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO THE CROCODILE-GOD. The Osiris Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am the Crocodile-god (Sebak) who dwelleth amid his terrors. I am the Crocodile-god and I seize [my prey] like a ravening beast. I am the great Fish which is in Kamui. I am the Lord to whom bowings and prostrations are made in Sekhem. And the Osiris Ani is the lord to whom bowings and prostrations are made in Sekhem.

(From the Papyrus of Nebseni)

Behold, I am the dweller in his terrors, I am the crocodile, his firstborn. I bring (prey) from a distance. I am the Fish of Horus, the Great One in Kamui. I am the lord of bowings in Sekhem.

THE CHAPTER OF MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO PTAH. The Osiris Ani [whose word is truth, saith]:-

I eat bread. I drink ale. I gird up my garments. I fly like a hawk. I cackle like the Smen goose. I alight upon that place hard by the Sepulchre on the festival of the Great God. That which is abominable, that which is abominable I will not eat. [An abominable thing] is filth, I will not eat thereof. That which is an abomination unto my KA shall not enter my body. I will live upon that whereon live the gods and the Spirit-souls. I shall live, and I shall be master of their cakes. I am master of them, and I shall eat them under the trees of the dweller in the House of Hathor, my Lady. I will make an offering. My cakes are in Tetu, my offerings are in Anu. I gird about myself the robe which is woven for me by the goddess Tait. I shall stand up and sit down in whatsoever place it pleaseth me to do so. My head is like unto that of Ra. I am gathered together like Tem.

Here offer the four cakes of Ra, and the offerings of the earth. I shall come forth. My tongue is like that of Ptah, and my throat is like unto that of Hathor, and I remember the words of Tem, of my father, with my mouth. He forced the woman, the wife of Keb, breaking the heads near him; therefore was the fear of him there. [His] praises are repeated with vigour. I am decreed to be the Heir, the lord of the earth of Keb. I have union with women. Keb hath refreshed me, and he hath caused me to ascend his throne. Those who dwell in Anu bow their heads to me. I am [their] Bull, I am stronger than [the Lord] of the hour. I unite with women. I am master for millions of years.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO THE SOUL OF TEM. The Osiris Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I shall not enter into the place of destruction, I shall not perish, I shall not know [decay]. I am Ra, who came forth from Nu, the Soul of the God who created his own members. What I abominate is sin; I will not look thereon. I cry not out against truth, nay, I live therein. I am the god Hu, the imperishable god, in my name of "Soul." I have created myself with Nu, in the name of "Khepera." I exist in them like Ra. I am the Lord of Light.

APPENDIX (From the Papyrus of Nu)

That which is an abomination unto me is death; let me not go into the chamber of torture which is in the Tuat. I am the delight of the Khu of Osiris. I make to be content the heart[s] of those who dwell among the divine things which are beloved [by me]. They cause the fear of me [to abound], they create the awe of me to be in those divine beings who dwell in their own circles. Behold, I am exalted on my own standard, and upon my throne, and upon my seat which is assigned [to me]. I am the god Nu, and those who commit sin shall not destroy me. I am the firstborn of the primeval god, and my soul is the Souls of the Eternal Gods, and my body is Everlastingness. My created form is [that of] the god Eternity, the Lord of Years, and the Prince of Everlastingness. I am the Creator of the Darkness, who maketh his seat in the uttermost limits of the heavens, [which] I love. I arrive at their boundaries. I advance upon my two legs. I direct my resting place. I sail over the sky. I fetter and destroy the hidden serpents which are about my footsteps [in going to] the Lord of the Two Arms. My soul is the Souls of the Eternal Gods, and my body is Everlastingness. I am the exalted one, the Lord of the Land of Tebu. I am the Child in the city: "Young man in the country" is my name. "Imperishable one" is my name. I am the Soul Creator of Nu. I make my habitation in Khert-Neter. My nest is invisible, my egg is not broken. I have done away the evil which is in me. I shall see my Father, the Lord of the Evening. His body dwelleth in Anu. I am made to be the Light-god, a dweller in the Light-god, over the Western Domain of the Hebt bird.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO THE BENU BIRD. The Osiris, the scribe Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I flew up out of primeval matter. I came into being like the god Khepera. I germinated like the plants. I am concealed like the tortoise [in his shell]. I am the seed of every god. I am Yesterday of the Four [Quarters of the Earth, and] the Seven Uraei, who came into being in the Eastern land. [I am] the Great One (Horus) who illumineth the Hememet spirits with the light of his body. [I am] that god in respect of Set. [I am] Thoth who [stood] between them (Horus and Set) as the judge on behalf of the Governor of Sekhem and the Souls of Anu. [He was like] a stream between them. I have come. I rise up on my throne. I am endowed with Khu. I am mighty. I am endowed with godhood among the gods. I am Khensu, [the lord] of every kind of strength.

RUBRIC: [If] this Chapter [be known by the deceased], he shall come forth pure by day after his death, and he shall perform every transformation which hs soul desireth to make. He shall be among the Followers of Un-Nefer, and he shall satisfy himself with the food of Osiris, and with sepulchral meals. He shall see the Disk [of the Sun], he shall be in good case upon earth before Ra, and his word shall be truth in the sight of Osiris, and no evil thing whatsoever shall have dominion over him for ever and ever.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO A HERON. The Osiris the scribe Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am the master of beasts brought for sacrifice, [and] of the knives which are [held] at their heads [and] their beards; those who dwell in their emerald [fields], the Aged Gods, and the Spirit-souls, are ready at the moment for the Osiris Ani, whose word is truth, in peace. He maketh slaughter on the earth, and I make slaughter on the earth. I am strong. I follow the heights unto heaven. I have made myself pure. I walk with long strides to my city. I have become an owner of land there. I advance to Sepu...... is given to me in Unu. I have set the gods upon their roads. I have made splendid the houses and towns of those who are in their shrines. I know the stream of Nut. I know Tatun. I know Teshert. I have brought along their horns. I know Heka. I have hearkened to this words. I am the Red Bull-calf which is marked with markings. The gods shall say when they hear [of me]: Uncover your faces. His coming is to me. There is light which ye know not. Times and seasons are in my body. I do not speak [lies] in the place of truth, daily. The truth is hidden on the eyebrows. [By] night [I] sail up the river to keep the feast of him that is dead, to embrace the Aged God, and to guard the earth, I the Osiris Ani, whose word is truth.

APPENDIX (From the Saite Recension)

RUBRIC: If this Chapter be known [by the deceased], he will live like a perfect Spirit-soul in Khert-Neter; no evil thing whatsoever shall overthrow him.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO THE LOTUS. The Osiris Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am the holy lotus that cometh forth from the light which belongeth to the nostrils of Ra, and which belongeth to the head of Hathor. I have made my way, and I seek after him, that is to say, Horus. I am the pure lotus that cometh forth from the field [of Ra].

APPENDIX (Naville, op. cit., I, Bl. XCIII)

Chapter of making the transformation into a lotus. The Osiris, the lady of of the house, Aui, whose word is truth, in peace, saith:- Hail, thou Lotus, thou type of the god Nefer-Temu! I am the man who knoweth your names. I know your names among the gods, the lords of Khert-Neter. I am one among you. Grant ye that I may see the gods who are the Guides of the Tuat. Grant ye to me a seat in Khert-Neter, near the Lords of Amentet. Assign to me a habitation in the land of Tchesert. Receive ye me in the presence of the Lords of Eternity. Let my soul come forth in whatsoever place it pleaseth. Let it not be rejected in the presence of the Great Company of the Gods.

[THE CHAPTER OF] MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION INTO THE GOD WHO LIGHTENETH THE DARKNESS. The Osiris the scribe Ani, whose word is truth, saith:-

I am the girdle of the garment of the god Nu, which giveth light, and shineth, and belongeth to his breast, the illuminer of the darkness, the uniter of the two Rehti deities, the dweller in my body, through the great spell of the words of my mouth. I rise up, but he who was coming after me hath fallen. He who was with him in the Valley of Abtu hath fallen. I rest. I remember him. The god Hu hath taken possession of me in my town. I found him there. I have carried away the darkness by my strength, I have filled the Eye [of Ra] when it was helpless, and when it came not on the festival of the fifteenth day. I have weighed Sut in the celestial houses against the Aged One who was with him. I have equipped Thoth in the House of the Moon-god, when the fifteenth day of the festival come not. I have taken possession of the Urrt Crown. Truth is in my body; turquoise and crystal are its months. My homestead is there among the lapis-lazuli, among the furrows thereof. I am Hem-Nu, the lightener of the darkness. I have come to lighten the darkness; it is light. I have lightened the darkness. I have overthrown the ashmiu- fiends. I have sung hymns to those who dwell in the darkness. I have made to stand up the weeping ones, whose faces were covered over; they were in a helpless state of misery. Look ye then upon me. I am Hem-Nu. I will not let you hear concerning it. [I have fought. I am Hem-Nu. I have lightened the darkness. I have come. I have made an end to the darkness which hath become light indeed.]