The Egyptian Afterlife & The Light Bringers

Weighing the soul of the deceased (Image credit www.quora.com).

Most researchers accept Egyptian Afterlife traditions at face value but, as we shall see there is a lot more to them than is generally understood. The Afterlife journey of deceased Egyptians was first recorded in the Pyramid Texts and from dynasties 5 and 6, in the Coffin Texts. In dynasties 7-10 it was documented in various Books of the Dead and it was shown on the walls of tombs. In common with some other peoples, the Egyptians associated the East, the direction of the rising sun, with life and the West, where it sets, with death. Consequently, they built tombs, such as in the Valley of the Kings, on the west bank of the Nile. The Giza Plateau, where there are numerous tombs, is also in the West. The necropolis of Thebes, and private and royal cemeteries, were there and the main city was on the eastern side.

In order to appreciate the deeper significance of Egyptian Afterlife beliefs, we need to bear in mind that numerous people in the Early World people had legends about a great civiliser who taught their ancestors agriculture and many useful arts. In some cultures he was described as having the appearance of a bearded, white, man who wore a long white robe and carried a staff. He was, sometimes, associated with the Pleiades whose stars featured in many early traditions. The Incas called him Viracocha , the West African Dogon call him Lebe and in Mexico he was Quetzalcoatl/Kukulcan -The Feathered Serpent one of whose symbols was a crook staff. The Egyptians knew him as Osiris and they depicted him as a bearded man in a close fitting white garment holding a crook staff and flail over his shoulders. They also associated him with the Pleiades. In early days, Osiris was linked with agriculture but the Egyptians later made him the main god of the dead. The Egyptians had over a hundred local and National, gods but Osiris remained popular with them throughout the long period of their history.

Lord Osiris in white gown with crooked staff, note green skin and what seems to be an elongated head (image credit: Wiki Commons).

Animals played an important role in Early World religious symbolism and the Apis Bull was regarded as an incarnation of Osiris. When a new Apis Bull was found it was linked with his rebirth on Earth and when one died it was buried in huge stone sarcophagus. The Greeks worshipped a god called Serapis who was an amalgamation of Osiris and his Apis Bull form and several temples were dedicated to him. He was also regarded as the Protector of Alexandria.

The Egyptians believed that when they died they would enter another dimension called the Tuat and through this ran a river which joined the Nile in a huge circle. The Tuat was a gloomy region with areas of boiling water and hostile creatures which devoured the souls of the dead. Every Egyptians hoped to be united with Osiris when they died and they believed that they would join him after a perilous journey, through this threatening region where they would face many obstacles such as venomous serpents. An important trial that they had to overcome was to have their hearts weighed against a feather. If their hearts were heavier, they would be devoured by a monster. After overcoming all the obstacles, they would arrive at a region called The Field of Reeds, where Osiris lived with his court and this is where they hoped to spend eternity. Before joining Osiris, however, they had to pass through a series of gates where they would be questioned by the three gatekeepers.

In the funeral rites of Egyptian dignitaries, a representation of the

Segment of the pyramid texts of Unas (Image credit pyramidtextsonline.com).

deceased, in the form of Osiris, was carried in procession by servants. When Egyptian kings died, they became Osiris and, according to the Pyramid Texts of Unas, in the Afterlife journey from his pyramid, Unas/Osiris travelled through the stars on a journey to the Pleiades. From the reign of Seti, onwards, in the Ramessid period, Egyptian rulers were shown in the form of Osiris on their sarcophagi. Queens also became Osiris. Egypt’s famous queen Hatshepsut was shown as this god, at the end of her Earthly life, on the Upper Terrace of her fabulous temple at Deir al Bahari. Another example of this is found in the amazing tomb of Nefertari, the favourite wife of Ramesses 11 in the Valley of the Queens. After entering her tomb, the beautiful queen is shown descending the steep staircase to the lower chambers. The ceiling of the anti-chamber of the first hall is decorated with star symbols and the queen is ‘symbolically welcomed by the Pleiades’. The ceiling of the Golden Hall, where Nefertari was laid in her sarcophagus, is covered in stars and she is shown dressed as Osiris, holding his sceptre, and awaiting her resurrection as him.

The Egyptian Books of the Dead also allude to events which reputedly occurred in the pre-deluge era, when the ‘enemies of Osiris’ were drowned, and the indications are that this event was linked with The Flood that destroyed much, of the world 5,000 years ago which is the subject of the hundreds of deluge legends which were told around the world.

Some of the most important Egyptian features in the realm of Osiris have not been discussed in this article but it can be mentioned that they are linked with traditions associated with other Early World ‘civilising gods’ and with those associated with the Annunaki. The Indications are that the Egyptians adopted as their chief God of the Dead an entity who they revered as a Pleiades linked being who helped civilise their people. Those who wish to know more about this fascinating subject will find it explained in my book The Pleiades Legacy (The Old World) which covers a wide range of related subjects such as Osiris’ link with the Great Pyramid, sacred symbolism, the secret beliefs of the Dogon,  the link between Egyptian and Sumerian Annunaki traditions, the significance of the serpent in Early World religion, the story of The Flood, the sacred architectural of the Colosseum, the Roman Circus, the Maltese temples, and the link between the Early World star-god traditions.

by Leonard Farra author of the Pleiades Legacy series.

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