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<strong>THE</strong> DOCTRINE <strong>OF</strong> ETERNAL LIFE.<br />
Egyptian belief in a future life.<br />
The doctrine of eternal life in the VIth dynasty.<br />
The ideas and beliefs which the Egyptians held in reference to a future existence are not readily to be<br />
defined, owing to the many difficulties in translating religious texts and in harmonizing the statements<br />
made in different works of different periods. Some confusion of details also seems to have existed in the<br />
minds of the Egyptians themselves, which cannot be cleared up until the literature of the subject has been<br />
further studied and until more texts have been published. That the Egyptians believed in a future life of<br />
some kind is certain; and the doctrine of eternal existence is the leading feature of their religion, and is<br />
enunciated with the utmost clearness in all periods. Whether this belief had its origin at Annu, the chief<br />
city of the worship of the sun-god, is not certain, but is very probable; for already in the pyramid texts we<br />
find the idea of everlasting life associated with the sun's existence, and Pepi I. is said to be "the Giver of<br />
life, stability, power, health, and all joy of heart, like the Sun, living for ever."[1] The sun rose each day<br />
in renewed strength and vigour, and the renewal of youth in a future life was the aim and object of every<br />
Egyptian believer. To this end all the religious literature of Egypt was composed. Let us take the<br />
following extracts from texts of the VIth dynasty as illustrations:--<br />
1. ha Unas an sem-nek as met-th sem-nek anxet<br />
Hail Unas, not hast thou gone, behold, [as] one dead, thou hast gone [as] one living<br />
hems her xent Ausar.<br />
to sit upon the throne of Osiris.[2]<br />
[1. ### Recueil de Travaux, t. v., p. 167 (1. 65).<br />
2. Recueil Travaux, t. iii., p. 201 (1. 206). The context runs "Thy Sceptre is in thy hand, and thou givest commands unto<br />
the living ones. The Mekes and Nehbet sceptres are in thy hand, and thou givest commands unto those whose abodes are<br />
secret."]<br />
{p. lvi}<br />
2. O Ra-Tum i-nek sa-k i-nek Unas . . . . . . sa-k pu en<br />
O Ra-Turn, cometh to thee thy son, cometh to thee Unas . . . . . thy son is this of<br />
t'et-k en t'etta<br />
thy body for ever.[1]<br />
3. Tem sa-k pu penen Ausar ta-nek set'eb-f anx-f anx-f<br />
O Turn, thy son is this Osiris; thou hast given his sustenance and he liveth; he liveth,<br />
anx Unas pen an mit-f an mit Unas pen<br />
and liveth Unas this; not dieth he, not dieth Unas this.[2]<br />
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