( the 011

"

s of t b e

E D IT E D BY

L . C RA N M E R - B YN G

Dr . S . A . KA P A D I A

TH E I N S T RUC TI O N O F PTAH H O TE P
-
FI RS T E D I T I O N Fe mafy, 1 90 6
Rep n n te d
'

S EC ON D E D I TI ON A ugmf, 1 9 1 2
 TH E WI S D O M O F T H E E AS T

T H E I N S T R UC T I O N
OF P TA H H O T E P -
AN D
TH E I N S T RU C T I O N OF
K E GE M N I : T H E O L D E S T

BOO K S I N T H E W O RL D
T RA N S L AT E D FRO M T H E E G Y P T I A N
WI TH AN I N T RO D U C T I O N AN D A P P E N D I "

BY B ATTI S C O M B E GU N N

LO N D O N

JO H N M U RRAY ,
A L B E M A RL E S T RE E T ,
w ,
 C O N TE N TS

I NT ROD UCTI ON

TH E I N S TRUCTI ON OF P TAH -H OTE P

THE I N STRUCTI ON OF KE

C EM N I

AP P E N D I "

N OTE TO A P P E ND I "

TH E I N S TRUCTI ON OF A ME NE MH E ET

E " P LA NATI ON OF N AM E S

B I B LI OGRAP H Y
 E D I TORI AL N OTE

HE object of the editors of this series is a

very denite one The y desire above a l l
.

things that in their humb le way these books

s
, ,

h a ll be the ambassadors of good will and -

understanding between E ast and West the o ld ,

worl d of Thought and the new of Action I n

, .

this endeavour and in their own sphere they

, ,

are but foll owers of the highest example in the

l and . They are condent that a deeper know
l edge o f the great idea l s and l ofty phil osophy
of Orie n t a l though t may help to a reviva l of
that true spirit of Charity which neither despises
nor fears the nations of another creed and
col our .

C RANME R B Y N G -
.

S A K APAD I A . . .

N O B TH B B O O K S O C IE TY ,
21 C R O M W E L L R O AD ,
K E N S IN GT O N , S . W .
INSTRUCTI ON OF PTAH HOTEP -

I N TRO DUC TIO N

I S t h e re a n yt hin g wh ere of it may b e aid. s

ss
S e e , t hi i n e w ?
I t ha t h b e e n a l re ady of Ol d t ime ,
s s
Which wa b e fore u
s s
.

Th e re i n o re me mb ran ce of forme r t hin g ;

s
N e it h e r h all t h e re b e a n y re me mb ran ce
s
O f t hin g t h a t a r e t o c ome
s s
With t h o e t h a t h al l c ome afte r .

N these days when a ll things and memorie s

,

of the past are at l e n gth become not onl y

subservient to b ut submerged by the matters
, ,

and n e eds of the immedi ate present those ,

paths of knowl edge that l ead into regions seem

ingl y remote from such needs are som e what
discredited ; and the aims of those that foll ow
them whi ther they l ead are regarded as quite out
of touch with the re al interests of l ife Very .

greatly is this so with arch aeol ogy and the study,

of ancient and curious tongues and se archings

into ol d thoughtson high and eve r insi t en t s
,

q uestions ; a pub l ic wh ich has ha rdl y time t o

11
m g TH E
t I NSTRUCT I ON OE P TAH H OTE P
-

re ad more than its daily newspaper and it s

weekly novel has denounced al most dismissed

them with many other nobl e and wonderful

,

things as unpractical whatever that vague
, ,

and holl ow word may mean

As
.

to those matters which lie very far back con ,

c e rning the l ands of several thousand years ago it ,

is very generally hel d that they are the proper a nd

pecul iar province of special ists dr y as dustsand ,
- -
,

persons with an irreducibl e minimum of human

nature It is thought that knowl edge concerning
.

them not the b l ank ignorance regar di ng them that

,

al most everywhere obtains is a thing of which ,

to be rather ashamed a detrimental possession ;

,

in a word that the subject is not o n l y u n pro t

,

ab l e ( a grave o ffence ) but al so uninteresting

, ,

and therefore contemptib l e This is a true .

estimate of general opinion al though there are

thos
,

e who will for their own sakes gainsay it

,

When therefore I state that one of the writing

h e rein transl ated has an age of nearl y s
, ,

ix thou
, .

s
sand years and that another is but ve hundr ed
,

years younger it is l ikely that many will nd

,

this sufcient reason against further perusa l

deemin g it impossibl e that su ch things can poss ess
,

attrac t ion for one not an enthusiast for th e m .

Yet so few are the voices across so great a span

of years that those among them having anything
to tell us shoul d be wel come excee dingly
whereas for the mos
,
t part they have cried in t he
,
 INTRO D UCT I ON 13

wil dernes s of negl ect hitherto or fall en on ears

,

ll ed with the c l amour of more instant things .

I coul d show if this were a tting p l ace that

, ,

Arch ae ol ogy is not at a ll di vorced from life nor ,

e ven devoid of emotion as subtl e and strange ,

as swift and moving as that experienced by

,

those who l ove and foll ow Art She Arch aeo l ogy
.
, ,

is for thos e who know her ful l of such emotion

, ,

garbed in an imperishabl e gl amour she is raised ,

far above the turmoil of the present on t he wings

of I magination Her eyes are sombre with the
.

memory of the wisdom driven from her scattered

sanctuaries ; and at her lips wonderful things
strive for utterance In her are gathered to
.

gether the l on gin gs and t he l aughter the fears

, ,

and failures the sins and spl endours and achieve

,

ments of innumerabl e generations of men ; and

by her we are shown a ll the el emental and terribl e
passions of the unchangin g so ul of man to which ,

a ll cul tures and phil osop hi es are but garments to

hi de its nakedness and thus in her as in Art , ,

some of us may rea lise oursel ves Withal S he is .

heavy hearted making continual l amentation for

-
,

a gl ory that has withered and o ld hopes without

ful l ment and all her habitations ar e la id waste
As
.

for the true l over of a ll ol d and forgotten

things it may j us tly be said of him as of t he
poet N a s
, ,

F or the dreams
'

, cz tu r n on
, t . a n d
the wonder are with him from the begin n ing ;
and in e arly chil dh ood knowing as yet hardl y
,
14 THE IN S TRU CTI ON OF PTAH H OTE P -

t he names of ancient peop l es he is c ons cious ,

of and yearns instinctively toward an immense

, ,

and ever rece ding past With the one as wi th

-
.
,

the other the unaccount abl e passion is so kn i tted

,

into his soul that it will neve r among a th ousand,

distractions and adverse in fl uences entirely for

s
,

sake him ; nor can such an one by will ing cau e

it to come or to depart He will live much in
.

imagination therein treading fair p l aces now

,

enwra pped in their inevitabl e shroud of wind

b l own sand ; buil ding anew te mpl es whose
sto nes hardl y remain one upon the other co n ,

sec rate to gods dead as their mul titudes o f

worshippers ; hol ding converse with the sages
who with all their l ore coul d not esca pe the
, ,

ul timate ob l ivion : a spectato r of sp l endi d

pageants a ministrant at strange rite a witness s
to vast tragedies he al so h as
, ,

admittan ce to the
magic al kingdom to which is
,

,
added the fre edom
of the city of Remembrance His care will be .

t o construct patient ly and with much l abour

, ,

a pictu re ( which is often l ess than an outl ine )

of the condi tions of the humanity th a t has b ee n ,

and he neither rejects n or despises any rel ic ,

however trivial or unl ovely that will h e lp him

, ,

in its degree to understand better that humanity

,

or to bridge the wide chasms of his ignorance .

Moreover great age hall ows all thin gs even

the mo s
, ,

t mean investing them with a certain

,

sanctity ; a n d the littl e sandal of a namel ess

 ME MO RIALS OF TH E PAST 15

chil d or the rude amul et pl aced l ong ago with

,

weepin g on the still bosom of a friend will

move his heart as strongly by its appeal as the
,

proud and enduring monument of a great con

qu e r o r insatiab l e of praise At times moving
.
,

among the tokens of a period that the ravenous

yea rs dare not wholl y efface in passing he hears , ,

calling faintly as from afar innumerab l e voices

,

the voices of those who stretching forth in Sheol

,

eager hands toward Life greatly desire that

,

some memorial of them be it but a name may

, ,

survive in the worl d of men . i

Ancient E gypt fares perhaps better than other

Countries of antiquity at the hands of the general
reader and sometimes obtains a hearing when
,

they do not by reason of its intimate contact

,

at certain periods with the nation that has

brought us the Old Tes ta me n t B e cause of this
.

the report of it has been with us constantly

and it has nearly beco me a symbol in religion
,

The stories of Moses and the magicians and ,

of the d e al ings of Abraham and Joseph with

P haraoh together with the rude woodcuts of
,

E gyptian taskmasters and cupbearers in famil y

B ib l es have invested the venerab l e l and with a
,

dreamy myste ry ; whil e every one has heard of

Rameses the P haraoh of the Oppression and
, ,

Meneptah the P haraoh of the E xodus

, An d .

it is possib l e that for the sake of such associa

16 THE IN ST RUCT I ON O F P TAH -
H OTE P

tion if not for his

, own sake P tah h ot e p will be ,

considered worthy of notice .

B u t in spi t e of the fact that the Ancient

E gyptians enj oy rather more pop ul arity than
their contemporaries it is evident that the books
whi ch they wrote are c l osed books to tho s
,

e who
have not the gl amour of vanished peop l es and ,

the fascination of mighty cities now made deso

l ate strong upon them
,
.

Yet in the heterogeneous an d pitiful otsam

that rel uctant seas have washed to us piecemeal
from a remote past there are as will be shown , ,

l ate r many things which a l though pr o cee di ng

from a cul ture and modes of thought a sfar
, ,

removed from our own as they may well b e a re ,

1

worth the readin g which do not require any ,

special knowl edge for their understanding ; and

of these are the transl ations in this book .

The foll owing pages whi ch al though addressed , ,

to the general reader may yet be of some ,

assistance to those especiall y intere sted in E gypt ,

give among other matters the p l ace of the

, ,

I nstructions of P tah h o t e p and K e ge mn i in -

the literature of E gypt ; their p l ace their

Much in ge n uity h a sb p
e x e n ded to S h ow t h at E g yp tia n
man n e rs st ms b ks d t h t hi gs
e en
an d w m h th
sm s w ; st h gh th sp sd s
cu o , oo . an o er n , e re uc e
imil it y t d
s s s
a e a o ur o n a ou e u o e ar re ec e

di t it h t h m t i t m w hi h
s sd i ki g b w iti g
u cu
l l t im s d p l
any c re e e r on pe or on . xc e n o c

mm t
l v l t t sm k i g wil l s i g t sh l d t h t hi gs
a re co on o a e an a ce ,
a r n n e e r, r n

s
an er
th gp
o e- e er a n n o c oo o n

d tly p b b l v
, , ,

t t i l if h w y f w
s
an e c e en ro gyp a e, e an e ca n o er e

pa ral l l te t h lif
o fet d y e o o a .
18 TH E I NSTRUCT I ON OF P TAH -
H OTE P

Such are the l ove songs ful l of the burnin g

-
,

utteranc e of desire ; the pathetic and even bitter

dirges whose singers have seen all the works
,

that are done under the sun and f ound all to ,

be vanity and vexation of spirit An d such .

al so are the didactic poems for the instruction

of youth which in poetic p hr ase and in great
,

detail incul cate among other things the pra c

tice of right conduct as
, ,

the price of happiness

a courtesy hardl y l ess considerate than our own
and a charity which when certain inevitabl e
,

shortcomings are all owed for bears comparison ,

with al most any l ater system Out of these .

there are many that may properl y c l aim a pl ace

in a series bearing the seal of the Wisdom of
the E ast though they bel ong onl y to the more
,

objective and practical side of that Wisdom

.

B u t as touching the books here transl a t ed

,

the Instructions of P tah h ot e p and of K e ge mn i

-

they possess apart from the curious nature of

,

their contents a feature of the greatest interest

, ,

and an adequate cl aim on the notice of a ll persons

interes ted in l iterature and its history F or if .

the datings and ascriptions in them be accepted

as trustworthy ( there is no reason why they
shoul d not be so accepted ) they were composed
,

about four thousand years before C hrist and ,

three thousand ve hundr ed and fty years

before C hrist respectivel y An d the signi cance
s
of tho e remote dates isthat they are the ol dest
.
,

,
 TH E "
T IME OF P TAH H OTE P
-
19

boo k sin the world the earliest extant specimens

,

of the literary art They stand on the extreme

.

ho rizon of a ll that ocean of paper and ink that

has become to us as an atmosphere a fth ,

el ement an essential of l ife

,
.

B ooks of many kinds had of course been written

for centuries before P tah h ot e p of Memp hi s -

summarised for the benet of future ge n e ra t iO I I S

, ,

th e l eading princip l es of moral ity current in his

day ; even before the Vizier ve hundred years ,

earl ier gave to his chil dren the scroll which they
,

priz ed above all things on earth ; but those

have perished and these remain There are .

l ists of titl es which have a l arge soun d and ,

prayers to the Gods for all good things on the ,

t ombs and monumen t s of kings and magnates

l ong before the time of K e ge mn i ; but those

are not boo ks in any sense of that word E ven .

the l ong strange chants and spell s engr aven in

,

the R oyal P yramids over against Memp hi s are

l ater than the time of P tah h o te p and ca n not -
,

be call ed books in their present form al though ,

some of them apparently originated before the

F irst Dynasty .
z

'

Nor do the ol dest books of any other country

approach these two in ant iquity To draw .

sv
Th e mon ume n t l e a e n o doub t of t h i
1
s
P e n a n d in k we re
s s y sy s
.

F
u e d in th e ir t D n a t , an d pe ec h h a d b e e n re duced t o
v s ss
i ib l e ign b e fore t h a t
sv s
.

2
Ab o u t y
I n al l E g p t ian date gi e n in t hi b e bk
s
s
I foll ow Profe or P e trie chron ol og

s .
20 THE IN STRUCT I ON OF P TAH -
H OTE P

comparisons between them l e t us in im agination , ,

pl ace oursel ves at the period at which P tah h o te p

lived that is about 35 50 under King

Is Os
, , ,

i l iving for ever and take a gl ance at

, ,

futurity .

The B abyl onians are doubtl ess exercising their

l iterary tal ents but they will l eave nothin g
worthy the name of book to the far posterity of
ft y four centuries
-
hence Thirteen centuries shall .

pass before Hammurabi King of B abyl on drafts , ,

the code of l aws that will be found at that time .

O n l y after two thousand years shall Moses write

on the origin of things and the Vedas be arranged
,

in their present form It will be two and a hal f - -

thousand years before the Great King of Je rus

-
.

l e m will set in order many proverbs and write

books s
.

o much resemb l ing in form and styl e , ,

that of P tah h ote p before the source and

-

summit of E uropean l iterature will write h is

worl d epic s F or the space of years between
.

Sol omon and oursel ves great though it seem

is not so great asthat be tween Sol omon an d
, ,

P tah h o te p
-
.

The number of extant texts of the cl ass to which

the subj oined immedi ately bel ong is not l arge
in proportion to the rest of E gyptian MSS .
,

Th e s d gu re sf s d in th e sf
d t sM d m pl s
it i is
ca e o

ss
e a re r oun , o c o ur e , an

Sol o mo n an d Mo e t ra dit ion a l a e

s
s
o e rn c r . c a ce

Ge ne i an d P r over b: muc h la te r t ha n 1 5 0 0 an d 1 0 0 0
 CONCE RNIN G TH E B OOK

but they seem to be representative of the c l ass ,

being di verse in date and subject but simil ar ,

in form There is great uniformity in the

.

arrangement of most of them in the foll owing ,

respects .They have as titl e the word I n

struction an d are written by a father
for the advantage of his son ; they are very po etic
in their arrangement of words and phrases and

are usually divided into short sections or para

grap h s by the use o f red ink for the rst sentence
of each Such is
. the Ins truction of P tah h ot e p -

on moral ity ( the nest of its c l ass ) the I nstru o

tion of King Ame n e mh e e t on the holl owness

of friendship and other matters ; the Instruction

of D e u o f the son of K h e rt i on the excell ence

, ,

of the l iterary l ife ; and others I n many .

respects and in many detail s they greatl y

resembl e the didactic works of the Old Tes ta me n t
and Apo cryphe .

These In structio n s were hel d in high esteem

"

as text books and writing exercises in sch ool s

-

a circumstance to which we owe the pres ervation

of many of them F or a con s iderabl e number
.

of important and interesting p oems l etters and , ,

narratives are onl y known to us from school

exercise books
-
The pupil at the Chamber
.

of I nstruc t ion wrote out about three pages of

these each day as a means of improving his
,

writing as a model of styl e in compo sition and

for purposes of e dic a t io n These exercis e s
, ,

.
22 TH E I N ST RUCT I ON OF P TAH - H OTE P

abound in errors of spell ing and grammar having

sometimes the master s corrections el egantl y

written above in red As may be imagined a

.
,

school boy s scrawl over three thousand years

o l d is no easy thing to trans l ate ; but fa u te de

mieux the E gyptol ogist wel comes any version ,

even the most barbarous F ortunately the .

,

MS from which these trans l ations come is

.

not of this kind ; a detail ed description of it

may interest some of my readers .

The P risse P apyrus which is well known by ,

name and a few extracts t o a ll persons conversant

with E gyptian matters was acquired in E gypt
by M P risse d Av e n n e sa French arch aeol ogist
,

.
,

of distinction and pub l ished by him in

,

The exact p l ace of its di scovery is unknown .

M P risse is said to have bought it of one of the

.

fe l l a hf
in whom he emp l oyed to make excavations
at the burial ground of Thebes This man
-
.

pre t ended that he had no knowl edge of its

nding as he was trying to sell it for a friend
,
.

It is b elieved that it was actually taken by the

Arab from the tomb of one of the Kings E n t e f
3

but this is not certain If it were it woul d

ermin us
.
,

rhaps enab l e us to x a t a d qu em for

p e

t he writing of this copy al though tombs ofte n ,

co ntain obj ects of l ater date The papyr us was .

presente d in about 1 8 4 7 by M P risse to the , .

,

pp
S e e A e n dix for t h e l it e ra t ure of t hi a y ru s
pp s
s s s
.

v
Th e e we re kin g of t h e E l e e n th Dy n a ty, ab out 2985 B 0 . .
 TH E T RE ATI S E OF K E GE MN I

23

B ib l iotheque National e ( in those days the B ib lio

theque R oyal e ) at P aris , where it still is divided
,

and gl az ed in the usual manner .

Spread out at it measures about 23 ft

,
.

7 in . with an average height of 5 % in which

,
.
,

is about the usual height of papyr i of the E l eventh

and Twel fth Dynasties I t contains at present
.

eighteen pages of heavy and bol d b l ack and

red writin g in the s ,
o ca ll ed hieratic character
-
.

At rst sight it appears to b e in perfect pre

servation being entirel y free from the cracks
,

and decay which mar many ne manuscripts

of far l ater date ; but an examination of the
contents shows that an unknown quantity has
b een torn o ff from the commencement Ori .

gi n a ll y the ro ll contained at l east two books of ,

which we have the l atter part of one and the

whol e of the other B etween these there is a
.

bl an k space of some 5 3 in .

The characters are c l earl y and carefully made ,

but are not al ways correct as though the Oopyist ,

had a badl y written or very curs i ve copy before

him and was not a lways sure of his spell ing
, .

The rst of these books of which o n l y the l ast

,

two pages remain to us is a treatise on deport

ment and is here call ed the I n s
,

truction of K e

s
,

g e m n i I t.has a l ways been attributed t o thi

person since its discovery but examination of ,

as much of the book as exists will S h ow that it

is not said to have b een written by him B ec aus e .
24 TH E I N STRUCT I ON OF P TAH -
H OTE P

hi sis the o n l y name mentioned E gyptol ogist s ,

have concl uded that he is the author The .

unn a med Vizier who call ed his chil dre n to him

, ,

can har dl y be K e ge mn i who was not raised to

,

the rank of Vizier and Governor of a city until

afterwards K e ge mn i may well have been a
.

son of the author This is not of material .

importance however as the date of writing is

given as the end of the reign of H e un i the l as
, ,

t ,

King of the Th ird D ynasty who died about ,

3 99 8 This book then which argues a

society of some renement is so far as it goes
, ,

, , ,

the ol dest in the worl d .

Aft er a l ong stretch of b l ank papyrus from ,

which a third book has p erhaps been erased

we come upon the I n s
,

truction o f P ta h ho tep in -

it s entirety di vided into sections by red writing

, ,

as aforesaid I n this al so we get a denite date

.

, , ,

for we l earn in the opening l ines that its author

r compil er ) l ive d in the reign of King I s Osi
"pow I s Os
.

i was the l ast rul er but one of the

F ifth D ynasty and rul ed forty four years from
,
-
,

about 3 5 8 0 to 3 5 3 6 Thus we may take

abou t 3 5 5 0 as the period of P tah h ot e p -
.

Of these two kings th ere is hardl y anything

to say H e un i is o n l y known to us by mention
.

of his name we have no record of any act of his .

1
s
I n th e t ra n l a t ion t h e e di i ion s v s s i di ca t e d, for p pss
swhi h s
ur o e
s
a re n

o f re fe re n ce , b y n u mb e r a n d l e tt e r c ar e n o t , o f c ou r e ,
s m ti
,

qf A me ne mh ot

in t h e origin al S o a l o in t he I n o on

pp
.

( A e n di x).
26 TH E IN STRUCT I ON OF P TAH H OTE P
-

It is as fresh and readab l e a s

. in the year after
it was written Will the books of our time l ast
.

one tenth so l ong

-
It is not without a feel ing
of awe even of sadnessthat one with any sense
, ,

of the wonder of things gazes for the rst time

on the ol d book and think of all it has survived
, s .

S o many empires have arisen and gone down

since t hose words were penned so many great ,

and t erribl e things have been .

An d we are fortunate indeed in having s uch

a book as this of P tah h ote p for the most ancient
-

compl ete l iterary work extant F or not by any .

magical texts or hymns and prayers shoul d we

, ,

be so well shown the conditions of that early

time ; but our moral ist by advancing counsel s ,

of perfection for every contingency has l eft us ,

a faithful record of his age The veil of v e and .

-

a hal f thousand years is rent and we are met with

-
,

a vivid and a fascinating picture of the domestic

and social l ife of the Ol d Kingdom We read

of the wife who mus

.

,
t be treated kindl y at
a l l costs the genial generosity of the rich man ,

and the scowl ing boor a thorn in the side of his

,

friends and re l ations the laughing stock of a l l

,
-

men ; the unquenchab l e talkers of every station

in life who argue high who argue l ow who
, , ,

al so argue round about them as common as now ,

in the E a st and the trusted councill or weighing

every word ; the obstina t e ign ora mus
, ,

who see s
 AN E GYP TI AN CHESTE RFI E LD 27

everything inverted l istening open mouthed to

,
-

the disj ointed gossip of those near him and ,

the schol ar conversing freel y with l earned

,

and unl earned al ike recognisin g that measured

, ,

against the inn i te possibil ities of knowl edge and

skill we are all much of the same tature ; the
,
s
master of the estate or province treated with ,

inn i te respect by his subordinates in rank and

weal th and the paid servants that are never
,

satised who l eave after presents have been

,

made them ; the hard working c l erk who casts -

accounts a ll day and the tradesmen wh o will

,

perhaps give you credit wh e n money is dear ,

if you have previously made friends of them ;

the well bred diner out lightl y passing on his
- -
,

favourite dish contenting himsel f with p l ain fare

, ,

a n d the go urma n d who visits his friends at meal

times departing on l y when the l arder is entirel y

,

exhausted .

Not o n l y do we nd such characters as these

in P tah h o t e p s
-
hand book but interesting scenes

-
,

are brought near to us by the writing reed of that -

prim aeval Chesterel d We nd oursel ves taking .

supper at the tabl e of a great man His sub .

ordinates sit round scarcely daring to raise ,

the ir eyes from their food not speaking to their ,

host until spoken to He serves the food that .

is before him according to his l iking for each

'

guest ; and the l ess favoured n d sol ace in the

reection that even the distribution of food is
28 TH E I N STRUC T I ON OF P TAH -
H OTE P

according to P rovidence We pass on Now we . .

are in the hall of council with the other overseers

and o ic ialsof the province and our overl ord ,

presiding We notice wi th astonishment the

extreme sol emnity and s
.

trict observance of
c u stom and precedence in thi s archaic period .

Many of those who have met report on the

matters under their charge and others debate on ,

them The one now speaking is discussing a

.

trade about which he knows nothing and an ,

expert rises and makes very short work of his

opponent s arguments Now we are among

.

some p e opl e dividing u p pr operty One of them

has tried of cour s e to bull y h isfriends
.

,
into giving
,

h im more than his due share and having fail ed , , ,

l eaves the house in a rage He will regret it .

l ater An d so on
. .

Nothing de n ite is known concerning these

two nob l es beyond what is said of them in their
works A ne tomb of a certain K e ge mn i exists

at Memphis ; his
.

tit les so far as can be as oer ,

t a in e d are : J udge of the H igh C ou rt

l
Govern or
of the La n d u n to its
,

Limit, S ou th a n d N orth 3
D ir ector of e ve ry C omma n d He has sometimes .

been supposed to be identic al with our K e ge mn

l
sp s sp s
Th e in cri t ion a n d c ul t ure from t h i t omb h a e n ot ye t s v
be e n p s
u b l i h e d, b ut a w k w
de a l in g it h it w
il l h ort l y a ppe a i s
s p s pss
or .

v
Th e a b o e t it l e , e x c e t in g t h e r t , a re fr om Le iu , D e n kmcile r
'

an : Agy p t en a n d A t h io ie n , Ab t h I I 48, B e rlin , 1 8 49 5 8

p . . .
 WH O WAS P TAH H OTE P ?
-
29

but I am assured by those most competent to

judge that this tomb cannot be earlier than the
Fifth Dynasty ( a good three hundred years from
the date assigned to the moral ist ) so that the ,

theory that they are one person may be dismiss e d

as h ighl y improbabl e No other person of the .

name is known .

The position is much the same with P tah h ot e p -

.

There are near Memphis the tombs of several

nobl es of this name of whom two l ived in the
reign of I sOs
,

i and in this case again it has been , ,

assumed that one of these two must be the writer

1

of the Instruction B u t in neither instance do

.

the titles coincide with or incl ude those assigned

to him The highest titl e whi ch he bears
E ldes
.
,

t S on of the K in g does not anywhere ,

appear in these tombs I t is true that one of .

these cont e mporaries was H eredita ry C hief ; but

we know that P tah h ot e p was a common name -

at this time an d in the absence of more certain

,

proof it will b e well to abstain from the ide n t i c a

tion of l ike names upon insufcient grounds
Thus it is
.

only by the chance discovery of thi s

1
Cal l e d Pta h -h ot e p I b y E gy t ol ogi t p ss
For a de c ri t io n of sp
s s s s s
. .

h i t omb , e e Ma r ie t t e , A , L e M a t a ba do l A n cien E mp ir e ,

s sss
.

Pari , 1 88 9 D 62 Fo r t h e o t h er P ta h -h ot e p u n de r I O i, ee
Q G s
. .

u ib e ll , J an d t h , F L , E gyp t ia n Re ea r ch A cc oun t ;
ri f
s
s s
. . .

The R a me e um a n d t he Tomb of P t a h -he tcp , Lo n don , 1 89 8 Al o

Dv s
.

a ie , N de G , a n d G ri t h , F ; L E gyp t E a: l or a ti on Fun d ;
s s v s
. .
, .

The M a t a ba qf P t a hhe tep a n d A hh t he tcp a t /re h, 2 l

s k
qa o
v
,
Th e litl l e gu re on t h e co e r of th i b oo
,

Lo n don , 1 90 0 , 1 90 1
s s
.

i fr om t hi to mb .
30 TH E IN STRUCT I ON OF P TAH -
H OTE P

scroll that these two princes of ol d time whos e ,

bodies are b l own about the desert dust these

many centuries are sec ured from utter ob l ivion
men s uch a s did bea r rul e in the ir kin gdoms
,

men ren own ed for the ir power givin g cou n s

,

el by

s s
,

their u n der t dian n g,decla ring prophecie

a nd

s
L ea der of the p e opl e by the ir cou n el a n d by ss ,

the ir kn o w l edge of l ea r n in g mee t for the people

s s s
,

wi e a n d el oqu e n t in the ir in tru ction An d

against such as these that from remote years

.

ha ve le ft a n a me behind the m tha t the ir pra ises

,

might be repor ted how many are there which

ha ve n o me mor ia l ; who a re peris hed as

,

tho ugh
a n d a r e become a s
,

the y ha d n ever be en though

they ha d n e ver been born an d their children a fter
them

I had intended t o make a detail ed anal ysis of

the moral sense of P tah h o te p and K e ge mn i -

,

but it appears unnecessary ; since they give

their advice so cl earl y and simpl y they may ,

safely be l eft to speak for themse l ves B ut

as
.

especiall y note wor thy I woul d point to the

gracious tol erance of i gnorance enj oined in 1
( P tah h o t e p) and the
,
n e reason given for that
injunction in contrast with the scorn expressed
,

for the obstinate fool ( P h 40 ) the care due to .

a wife ( P h which is in signal contrast to

the custom of other E astern nations in this
.

1
The Wis
dom of t he S on f
o S ir aoh, ch a p . xl i v .
 H IS TEACH IN G 31

respect ; the great stress

1
l aid on l ia l duti e s
( P h 3 8 .3 9 4 1 4 2 ,
the enthusiasm
,
for
, ,

obedience expressed in a jargon of puns ( Ph

,
.

whi ch once the high watermark of styl e among

,
-

E gyptian litera ti has l ong since l ost its savour ; ,

the interesting matter on manners at tabl e

( Kg 2 3 .P h,7 in society
, ( Kg 4 P.h 1 4 ,1 8 20 .
,
.
, , ,

and in o fcial positions ( P h 5 8 1 3 1 5 1 6 .

, , , , ,

17 ,
24 A rough c l assication inc l uding
,

many sections is here given

Duties toward superiors ( P h 2 7 8 1 0 .
, , , ,

1 5 , 27 ,
Duties toward equal s ( 3 ,
6 , 1 4 , 1 8 , 20 , 26, 29,
3 3, 35,
Duties toward inferiors ( 1 4 5 1 6 1 7 , , , , ,

The whol e teaching resolves into the maxim ,

B e good and you will be happy ; , not at all

in the sense that virtue is its own reward I do

not think that that woul d have seemed an

adequate return to P tah h ot e p but in the s ense -

of material wel fare rewarding as a matter of ,

course an honourab l e l ife F oll owing his reason

, .

ing if a man be obe di ent as a son punctilious

, ,

as a servant generous and gentl e as a master , ,

and courteous as a friend then all good things ,

shall fall to him he shall reach a green o ld age ,

honoured by the King an d his memory shall ,

be l ong in the l and This theory which is not .

,

Th e E g t ia n yp
e re mon ogami t s
w a t t hi t ime , s
s s d th e wife
s s
an
e n jo yed oc ial e qual it w it h h e r h u b a n d y .
3 2 TH E IN ST RUC T I ON OF P TAH -H OTE P

found satisfactory in o u r day is insisted on by

,

most of the ancient moral ists who appear to ,

regard it not as a substitute for conscience but

rather as a ra is
, ,

on d etre or justicati on thereof

.

Yet centuries before a King of Israel had seen

,

a ll things that are and found them vanity a

, ,
.

King of E gypt had l eft it on record that he had

done all good things for his subjectsan d that ,

there was no satisfaction therein .

It has been said with some truth of codes of

moral s and l aws that what is omitted is al most
as impo rtant as what is inc l uded B u t we must .

not carry thi s too far ; we shoul d be fool ish

indeed did we assert that those things omitted
from such a code as P tah h ot e p swere not
-

practised or not hel d to be important in his day .

For exampl e he knows nothing

,
as a Higher -

Critic woul d say o f kindn ess to animal s ; but

we kn ow from many things that the E gyptia n s

treated animal s kin dl y and made much of them
as pets In the very tomb of that P tah h ot e p
.

mentione d above who may be o ur author

1
, ,

is depicted the bringing of three dogs and a tame

monkey to him whil e he is dressing ; possibl y
so that he may feed them himself An d this .

kin dl y feel ing obtained throughout E gyptian

histo They treated animal s more as dumb
frie n in th ose days than might have bee n
Pa ge 29, foot n ote .
34 TH E IN ST RUCT I ON OF P TAH H OTE P
-

seemingl y su f cient to him that one do the right

in this worl d without thinking overmuch about
,

the other . This is the more curio us in that

other writers of the same c l ass have many injune
tions regarding worship and sacrice ; and so
co mp l ete is his reserve touching this matter
s
,

o important in the eyes of other E gyptians that ,

it is easy to bel ieve that it was intentional We .

may even discern in him a protagonist of the

modern E thical School whose adherents may
,

be interested to nd their views impl icitly hel d

so l ong ago
Notwiths
.

tanding this singul arity he is by ,

no means unmindful of D eity We notice that .

he has occasion to speak several times of the

God in His rel ation to huma n i ty and human
a ffairs . If we coll ect these references to the
God we shall nd that the foll owin g qual ities
,

are attributed to Him He rewards dil igence

.

( 9
,
1 0 ) and pu n i shes sin ( 6 1 0 ; a l so,
Kg .

He is the giver of good things ( P h 22 3 0

dis pens
.
, ,

es fate and preordains events ( 6 7 9 , ,

l oves His creation observes men s actions

desires them to be fruitful and mul tiply
All this is in comp l ete accord with the bel ief of
other rel igions inc l uding C hrist ianity regarding

the Godhead An d here we touch another

.

p l e asing characteristic of this most ancient of

books its cathol ic spirit and disregard of those

l
N tar o
 TH E GO D S OF E GYP T 35

mythol ogical and esoteric riddl es that most

E gyptian works propound to us continuall y .

It M b e noticed that the God is not anywhere

mentioned by name O siris ( 5 ) and Horus ( 4 1 )
.

are alluded to but onl y historicall y in respect

, ,

of their rul e upon earth not as present powers , .

Th e reason is this that at that time the Gods

, ,

even the great Gods were onl y l ocal that is to , ,

say their worship was conned to certain towns

,

or districts nomes and beyond the bound

aries of these their names l ost that power and
inuence which they exerted in their pecul iar
provinces A book therefore which spoke of
.
, ,

one God only b y name woul d have been found

much l imited as to popul arity and use Hen ce

the ol d m
.

oral ists and di dactic writers whatever ,

God they might the msel ves worship fore b ore ,

to mention Him since by many readers He wou l d

,

not be recognised as paramount ; they wrote

in stead The God that is the G o d of your

, , ,

all egiance whoever He may be Thus were

the reader a native of Hel iopolishis God woul d

.
, ,

be At cmu the Setting Sun ; of Memphis P tah

, , ,

the Re veal er ; of Hermopolis Thoth Master , ,

of Div ine Words and Chief of the E ight It .

was for this reason that the unknown author

of what is call ed the Negative C on fession
makes the deceased say I ha ve n ot s cor n ed the ,

ss
Thi i a n arb it ra r y na me n ot e xi s
ti g in n t he origin al . It
woul d b e b e tt e r n ame d The D e cl a ra tion of I n n oce n ce .

36 TH E IN ST RUCT I ON OF P TAH -
H OTE P

God f y
o m town A n d indeed
.

so simp l y and , ,

purel y does P tah h o t e p speak of the God that

-

the modern reader can without the l east de ,

gradation of his ideal s consider the author as ,

referring to the D eity of monotheism and if he ,

be of C hristendom read God ; if of Isl am read

, ,

All ah ; if of Jewry Jehovah

, .

No doubt the gul f xed between teaching and

practice was as great then as now We h ave .

the teaching w e know that the teaching was

,

current a ll over E gypt in various forms but of ,

the practice we know very l ittl e Human nature .

being much the sa me at a ll times and p l aces we ,

must beware of me asuring the one by the other ,

the unknown by the known and must be content

to take such couns
,

el s as showing the E gyptian

N ot w ha t he w a sb ,
ut wha t h e s
h ld h v
ou a e be e n .

It is estab l ished that they were a kin dl y ,

peace l oving peop l e ge nial and courtly ; but

-
,

whethe r l a w abiding is another matter We

-
.

know no t hing about their l aws but we know ,

s s p
ss
s
s
I t h a b e e n t h o ugh t b y ma n y E gy t ol ogi t t h at t h e G od
ss
me n t ion e d in t h i an d o t h e r t e xt i a n ame l e mon ot h e i tic s

s s
a b t ra c t ion tra n c e n din g a ll n amed go d s s
Al th ough t hi t h e ory
s sp sv s
.

h a t h e u port o f man y gre a t n a me , I e n t ure t o a y t h a t t h e

v s
e ide n c e for uch a n impo rt a n t doc t rin e i in t h e h igh e t de grees s
stis
un a f t y ac o r
 P RE V I OUS TRAN S LATI ON S 37

that the l aw courts were busy and that lega l

-
,

ofcial s were numerous and we know further , ,

that their dupl icity and la ck of straightforward

ness were proverbial among the Greeks an d
R omans and persist to thi s day
,
.

I have note d a b ove the resem bl ance of t h e

E gyptian I nstructions to the Jewish di dactic
books ( P roverbsand E ccles tesin the Old
ia s
Tes ta men t Wis dom of S olo mon and E ccl es
,
ia s
ticu s
in the Apocrypha ) ; this will be obvio u s to a ll
readers C ompare e g the opening o f P tah
h o t e p ( B ) with the opening of P roverbs I t
.
,
.
.
,

is not necessary to point out a ll the p a rall el s in

detail .

I come l astl y to speak of other trans l ations

, , .

The rst into any l anguage was that of the

R ev D I Heath Vicar of B rading I s
. . . l e of Wight
, , .

This version which rst appeared in 1 8 5 6 was

, ,

ruined by the tra n sl ator s theory that the P risse

P apyru sconta ined references to the E xodus ,

and was written by the Shepherd King Apho -

,

bis How he obtained that name from P tah

.

h o t e p how he read the E xodus into his book

, ,

or how he got three fourths of his trans l ation -

,

it is not possibl e to say Written in a style .

which is in itsel f a matter for decipherment it is

full of absurditi e s and gra t uitou smis
,

takes and ,

1
Th e b o o ksm e n t io n e d h e re are st f
e ort h in de t a il in t h e
B ib l iogra h p y .
38 TH E IN ST RUCT I ON OF P TAH H OTE P
-

is entirely worthl e s s It is one more instance of

.

the l amentab l e resul ts that arise when a person

with a preconceived B ibl ical theory comes into
contact with E gyptian re cords I n the foll owing .

year M Chabas did part of the papyrus into

.

F rench and as might be expected of an E gypto

l ogis hi sversion w a s
, ,

t of such attainments ,

innitel y more accurate than the foregoing In .

1 8 69 Herr L auth made a trans l ation al so

partial into Latin and in 1 8 8 4 M P hil ippe

, .

Virey pub l ished a careful study and comp l ete

transl ation of both books His rendering was .

subsequentl y transl ated into E ngl ish and pub

l ish e d ( with some al terations ) in Recor ds of the

P as ,
t 1 8 90 and has remained the onl y compl ete
,

transl ation in E ngl ish It has b een taken bodily

s s
.

( even the footnotes ) into Myer s Olde t B oo k in

the World and has been pu t into charming verse

by C anon R awnsl ey in his N otes
,

fo r the N il e .

Thus it appears to be in a sense the standard , ,

version Neverthel ess it l eaves very much to be

.
,

desired in point of accuracy al though the general

sen s
,

e of each section is usually caught Of l ater .

years Mr Grifth has done important work on

.

this text and I am indebted to his transl ations

,

for several readings

As
.

regards the version here o ffered I will onl y

s ay that it h a s
,

been done with considerabl e care ,

On l y of Pta h-h ote p.

 TH E O LDE ST B OOK KNOWN 39

without prejudice and it is thought in accordance

, , ,

with scientic methods of transl ation and that

it has bee n compared with a ll previous renderings ,

and will be found to be on the whol e the most

, ,

accurate that has yet appeared .

An d now I will l eave P tah h o te p to speak for -

himsel f I t may be thought that he has be en

.

introduced at too great l ength ; but I woul d point

s
out that hi book has been strangel y overl ooked
by the educated publ ic hitherto al though it woul d ,

be dif c ul t to over estimate its importance to

-
,

l iterature as the o l dest comp l ete book known

to ethics and theol ogy as the earlies
,

t ex pression
of the mystery we name C onscience and to l overs ,

of antiquity as one of the most instructive and

touching relics of a peop l e and a power that once
were great and are now brought to nothing B y .

a happy chance the words of our sage have been

justied in that he said N o word tha t ha th
et dow n s
h e r e be e n s ha ll cea s
, ,

e o ut of the la n d for

e ver
.

Woul d indeed that we had more of such
books as this whereby we may a l ittl e l ighte n
,

the darkness that l ies behind the risings of a

mill ion suns ; and l earn how littl e the human
heart and the el ements of human intercourse
,

s
,

al ter throughout the ages An d what of the .

other writers of that time who e works and ,

whose very names are entirel y swept away To

this there is no better answer made than in the
l amentation made by the harper c l ose upon ve
40 TH E IN STRUC T I ON OF P TAH -H OTE P

thousand years ago which was written up in the ,

tomb of King E n t e f

sti g pl L " wh t fth i d di ? I h

a ce a o e r

d th w dsf Y mh t p
n o re n -
. o ee a ve

hea r e or d f H ddfo e o e an o ar e e ,

wh s s
o e i
y g s ma p tn ti l l y B h
enld I re ea con n ua e o

b d s Th i w lls
.

wh ere th i a re e r a o e e r a a re over

th w
ro n d th i pl
,
an s t sth gh
e r

a ce a re no , even a ou

they had n ot be e n .

The bur den of E gypt .

B ATTI S C O M B E G UN N .
42 TH E I N STRUCT I ON OF P TAH H OTE P -

once hearkened unto the gods I pray thee le t .

,

this thing be done that sin may be banished,

from among persons of understanding that thou ,

ma v e n lighten the l ands

Said the Maj esty of this God Instruct him ,

then in the words of ol d time ; may he be a

,

wonder unto the children of princes that they ,

may ente r and hearken with him Make straight .

a ll their hea rts and discourse with him without ,

causing weariness .

13 H ere begin the proverbs of fa ir sp eec h

.
,

spoken by the Here di tary Chief the Holy F ather , ,

B el oved of the God the E l dest Son of the King

, ,

of his body the Governor of his City the Vezier

, , ,

P tah h o te p when instructing the ignorant in the

-
,

knowl edge of exactness in fair speaking the -

gl ory of him that obeyeth the shame of him tha t

t ra n sre s
s
,

g e t h them .

He said unto his son

1 . not proud because thou art l earned ; but
Be
discourse with the ignorant man as with the ,

sage F or no l imit can be set to skill neither is

.
,

there any craftsman that possesseth full a dv a n

tages F air speech is more rare than the emeral d
that i s
:
found by sl ave maidens on the pebbl es-
.

2 If thou nd an arguer talking one that is

well disposed and wiser than thou l e t thine arms
. ,

Th e Kin g .
3
Tit l e of an orde r of t he pis
t hood
r e .
 TH E E TH I C S OF AR GUM E NT 43

fall bend thy back be not angry with him if

, ,
1

he agree ( 2) not with thee R efrain from speaking .

evilly oppose him not at any time when he

speaketh I f he address thee as one ignorant
.

of the matter thine humbl eness shall bear away

,

his contentions .

If thou nd an arguer tal king thy fell ow

s
3 .
, ,

one that is within thy reach keep not il ence ,

when he saith aught that is evil so shal t thou

be wiser than he Gre at will be the appl ause on.
.

the part of the l isteners and thy name shall be ,

good in the knowl edge of princes .

4 If thou nd an arguer tal king a poor man

.
, ,

that is to say not thine equal be not scornful ,

toward him because he is l owly Le t him al one

then shall he confound himself Q
.

uestion him .

not to pl ease thine heart neither pour out thy ,

wrath upon him that is bef ore thee ; it is shameful

to confuse a mean mind I f thou be about to .

do that which is in thine heart overcome it as a ,

thing rejected of princes .

5 If thou be a l e ader as one directing the

.
,

conduct of "the mul titude endeavour al ways to

.
,

be gracious that thi ne own conduct be without

,

defect Great is Truth appointing a straight

.
,

path never hath it been overthrown since the

,

Th e s
t m
cu o ar y a ttitude of a sbmis
s
iv i
u e n fe rior a t t h a t time .
 44 TH E INST RUC TION OF P TAH -H OTE P

r eign of Osiris On e that o v e rs

te ppe t h the l aws
.
1

sha ll be pun i shed O verstepping is by the

covetous man ; but degradations ( ) bear o ff l
.

his riches Never hath evi l doing brought its

.
-

venture safe to port F or he saith I will .

,

obtain by myse lf for myself and saith not ,

,

I will obtain because I am a ll owed 11 t

l imits of jus
.
,

tice are s te adfast it is tha t which

a m ail re pe at et h fro m his father
'
"

C ause not fear among men ; for "this "the

6
God pun is
.

he t h l ikewise F or the re is a man .

that saith Therein is l ife ; and he 1 8 bereft of

,

the bread of his mouth There is a man that .

saith P ower " is therein " and he saith I

, ,

seize for myse l f that which I pe rceive Thus a .

ma n speaketh and he is smitten down I t is ,

.

another that a t t a in e t h by giving unto him that

hath not Never hath that which men have pre
.

pared for come to pass for what the God hath

commanded even that thing cometh to pass,
.

Live therefore in the house of kindl iness and

, , ,

men shall come and give gifts of themse lves .

7 . I f thou be among the guests of a man that

is greater than thou accept that which he giveth ,

thee puttin g it to thy l ips I f thou l ook at him

,
.

that is before thee ( thine host ) ; pierce hi m not

ss s
Th e G o d O ir i w a b e lie e d t o h a e re ign e d o n
1 v v
s s
man y t h o u an d y e ar b e fore M ew , t h e r t hi to rica l kin g ss .
 MANNE R S FO R GUE STS 45

with many gl ances I t is abhorred o f the soul 1

to stare at him Speak not till he addres

.

. s thee
one knoweth not what may be evil in his O pinion
Speak when he qu e s
.

t ion e t h thee ; so shall thy

speech be good in his opinion The nob l e who .

sitteth before food divideth it as his soul moveth

him he giveth unto him that he woul d favour
it is the custom of the evenin g meal I t is his

soul that gu ide t h his hand I t is the nobl e that

b es
.

to w e t h not the underl ing that a tt a in e t h

,
.

Thus the eating of bread is under the provi

dence of the God ; he is an ignorant man that
disp u t e t h it .

8 If thou be an emissary sent from one nobl e

.

to another be exact after the manner of him

,

that sent thee give his message even as he hath

,

said it B eware of making enmity by thy words

.
,

setting one nobl e against the other by perverting

truth Overstep it not neither repeat that which
.
,

any man be he prince or peasant sai th in opening

, ,

the heart it is abhorrent to the soul .

9 . I f thou have p l oughed gather thine harvest ,

in the el d and the God shall make it great

,

under thine hand F il l not thy mouth at thy .

neighbours tab l e I f a crafty man be the

. .
2

S oul

ka , a n d t hr o ugh o ut t h i w o r K a i t ra n l at e d s k s s

s
.

er on in 2 2 w i l l i 2 7
s s
p 2 n

p p s s
, .

An o b cu re or co rru t hra e h e re fol l ow , w h ich doe n o t

ss
admit of a t i fa ct ory t ra n l a t ion s .
46 TH E INST RUCTION OF P TAH H OTE P
-

pos s esso r of weal th he steal eth like a crocodil e

,

from the priests .

Le t not a man be envious that hath no chil dren ;

l e t himbe neither downcast nor quarrel some on
account of it F or a father though great may
.
, ,

be grieved ; as to the mother of chil dren she ,

hath l ess peace than another Verily each man .

,

is created "to his destiny " by the God Who ,

is the chief of a tribe trustful in foll owing ,

him .

10 If thou be l owly serve a wise man that

.
, ,

a ll thine actions may be good b e fore the God .

I f thou have known a man of none account that

hath b e en advanced in rank be not haughty ,

toward him on account of that which thou

knowest concerning him ; but honour him that
hath been advanced according to that which
,

he hath become .

B ehol d riches come not of themselves ; it

,

is their r ul e for him that desireth them I f he .

bestir him and coll ect them hi mself the God ,

shall make him prosperous ; but He shall punish

him if he be s l othful
,
.

11 Foll ow thine heart during thy l ifetime

do not more than is commanded thee D iminis
.

h .

not the time of foll owing the heart it is abhorred

of the soul that its time "of ease"be taken away
,
.

Shor t en not the daytime more than is needful to

 F R OM FATH E R TO SON 47

maintain thin e house .When riches are gained ,

foll ow the heart ; for riches are of no avail if

one be weary .

12 If thou wo ul dest be a wise man beget a

s
.
,

o n for the p l easing of the God I f he make .

straight his course after thine exampl e if he ,

arrange thine affairs in due order do unto him ,

a ll that is good for thy son is he begotte n of

, ,

thine own soul Sunder not thine heart from

.

him or thine own begotten shall curse "thee "

,
.

I f he be heedl ess and trespass thy rul es of

conduct and is viol ent ; if every speech that
,

cometh from his mouth be a vil e word ; then

beat thou him that his tal k may be tting
, .

Keep him from those that make l ight of that

which is c ommanded for it is they that make ,

him rebell ious

An d they that are guided go
.

not astray but they that l ose their bearings

,

cannot nd a straight course .

13 . I f thou be in the chamber of council act ,

al ways according to the s t eps enjoined on thee

at the beginning of the day B e not absent or .
,

thou shal t be expell ed but be ready in entering

and making report Wide is the seat of one .

that hath made address The council chamber .

-

a c t e t h by strict ru l e ; and a ll its p l ans are in

accordance with method It is the God that .

s
Tra n la tion doub t fu l. 9
i s mf
. co o rta b l e .
48 TH E INSTRUCTION OF P TAH -H OTE P

a dv a n c e t h one to a seat therein the l ike is not

done for e lbo w e r s .

14 If thou be among peopl e make for thysel f

.
,

l ove the beginning and end of the heart

, One .

that knoweth not his course shall say in himsel f

( seeing thee ) He that ordereth
,
himse l f du l y
becometh the owner of weal th ; I shall copy his
conduct Thy name sh all be good though thou
.

,

speak not ; thy body shall b e fed ; thy face shall

be "seen "among thy neighbours ; thou shal t be
provided with what thou l ackest As to t h e man .

whose heart obeyeth his belly he causeth disgust ,

in pl ace of l ove His heart is . his

body is gross ( l ) he is insol ent toward those
,

endowed of the God He that obeyeth his belly .

hath an enemy .

15 . R eport thine actions without conceal ment ;

discover thy conduct when in council with thine
overl ord I t isnot evil for the envoy that his
.

report be not answered Yea I know it by , , ,

the prince for that which he knoweth in cl u de t h

not "this " I f he ( the prince ) think that he will
.

O ppose him on account of it "he thinketh " He ,

"
will be sil ent because I have spoken .

16 . If thou be a l eader cause that the rul es ,

s
H i b e l l , re u mab l
y p s y
v s s ss y
.

2
Th e ab o e tra n l a t ion i n ot a t i fa ctor ; t h e t e xt may b e
p
c orru t s s
N o in t e l ligib l e t ra n l a t ion of it h a ye t b e e n ma de
. .
50 TH E INSTRUC TION O F P TAH H OTEP -

19 .If thou desire that thine actions may

be good save thysel f from a ll malice and
beware of the qual ity of covetousness gvhi c h is
, ,

a ,

grievous inner ( ) mal ady

l Le t it not chance .

that thou fal l thereinto It setteth at variance .

fathers ih l a w and the kinsmen of the daughter

- -

in l a w
-
it s u n de re t h the wife and the husband .

I t gathereth unto itsel f all evil s it is the girdl e

of a ll wickedness B u t the man that is

j ust
o u r is
.

h e t h ; truth goeth in his footsteps and he

maketh habitations
,

therein not in the dwellin g ,

of covetousness .

20 B e not covetous as touching shares

. in ,

seizing that which is not thine own property .

B e not covetous toward thy neighbo u rs ; for

with a gentl e man praise avail e t h more than
might He "that is covetous "cometh empty from
.

among his neighbours being void of the per ,

suasion of speech One hath remorse for even

.

a l itt l e covetousness when his be ll y c o o l e t h .

21 I f thou woul dest be wis

e provide for thine
house and l ove thy wife that is
.
,

,
in thine arms .

Fill her stomach c l othe her back ; o il is the ,

remedy of her limbs Gl adden her h e art dur ing .

thy lifetime for she is an estate protabl e unto

its l ord B e not harsh for gentl eness ma s
,

. t e re t h ,

her more than strengt h Give ( l ) to her that for .

whi ch she sigheth and that toward which her

1
all wic k e dn e s
sis c on t a in e d th e re in .
 TH E TRE ATME NT OF S E RVANTS 51

eye l ooketh ; so shal t thou keep her in thine

house .

22 Satisfy thine hired servants out of such

.

things as thou hast ; it is the duty of one that hath

been favoured of t he God I n sooth it is hard .
,

to satisfy hired servants For one saith He .

,

is a l avish person one knoweth not that which

may come "from B u t on the morrow he
thi nketh He is a person of exactitude ( parsi
,

mony ) content therein An d when favours

.
,

have been shown unto servants they say We , ,

go .

P eace dwell eth n o t in that town wherein
dwell servants that are wretched .

23 . R epeat not extravagant speech neithe r ,

l iste nthereto for it is the utterance of a body

heated b y wrath When such speech is repeated
.

to thee hearken not thereto l ook to the ground

, , .

Speak not regarding it that he that is before thee ,

may kn ow wisdom I f tho u be commande d to do .

a theft bring it to pass that the command be

,

taken o ff thee for it is a thing hateful ac cording

That which destroyeth a vision is
,

to l a w . t he
veil over it .

24 . I f thou woul dest be a wise man and one ,

sitting in council with his overl ord app ly thine ,

heart unto perfection Sil ence is more protabl e .

unto thee than abundance of speech Consider .

A sv
e r an t .
52 TH E INST RUCTION OF P T AH H OTE P
-

how thou may be Opposed by an expert that

speaketh in counc il I t is a fool ish thing to speak
on every kind of work for he that dis
.

pji t e t h thy ,

words shall put them unto proof .

25 .If thou be powerful make thysel f to be ,

honoured for knowl edge and for gentl eness .

Speak with authority that as if foll owin g ,

inj unctions for he that is humbl e ( when highl y

,

p l aced ) fall eth into errors E xal t not thine .

heart that it be not brought l o w

, B e n ot sil ent .

,

but beware of interruptio n and of answering

words with heat P u t it far from thee control
.

thysel f The wrathful heart speaketh ery

words it dar t e t h out at the man of peace that
.

approacheth stopping his path ,

.

O n e that reckoneth accounts a ll the day

passeth not an happy moment One that gl ad .

de n e t h his heart a ll the day provideth n et for his

house The bowman hit t e t h the mark a sthe
.
,

steersman reacheth l and by di versity of aim

He that obeyeth his heart shall command
,

.
.

26 . not a prince be hinde red when he is

Le t
occupied neither oppress the heart of him that
is al ready l aden F or he shall be hostil e toward
but shall bare hissoul
.

o n e that de l ayeth him ,

p v
C o m a re P ro x vu 1 8
s v s w k
. . .

3
S o a l o in l ife , b y di e r it y of aim, a l t e r n a t in g an d
sss
pp s sv
or
pl a y, h a in e i e c ure d k
Tac in g i e i de n t l y me a n t in t he
s
ca e o f t h e ss
t e e r man .
 D UT I E S OF TH E G R E AT 53

unto one that l oveth him The di spo sal of soul s .

is with the God and that which He l oveth

,

is His creation Set out therefore after a

.
, ,

viol e nt quarrel ; be at peace with him that is

.

hostil e unto "thee " his opponent It is such

so i s
.

that make l ove to grow .

27 . I nstruct a nobl e in such things as be

protab l e unto him ; cause that he be received
among men Le t his satisfaction fall on his
master for thy provision de pe n de t h upon his
.

wil l B y reason of it thy bell y shall be satised

.

thy back will be c l othed thereby Le t him .

receive thine heart that thine house may our ish

and thine honour if thou wish it to o u ris
,

-
h
thereby He shall extend thee a kin dl y hand
. .

F urther he shall impl ant the l ove of thee in the

,

bodies of thy friends F orsooth it is a soul .

,

l oving to h e a rke n .
l

28 . I f thou be the son of a man of the priest

hood and an envoy to conc ili ate the mul titude
, ,

speak thou without favouring one side .

Let it n o t be said His conduct is that of t h e

nob l es favouring one side in his

,

,
spee ch Turn .

thine aim toward exact judgments .

ssThi s s w s
e c t ion re fe r to t h e re l a t ion b e t ee n t h e on of a
s w
n ob l e man an d hi s t u t o r, d e llin g on t h e b e n e t from forme r
pp s
u il p s s ys v p s
in h igh l a c e , if t h e ir ch oo l da h a e b ee n l ea a n t
ss ss s s s s
.

Th e l a t e n t e n ce o f t h i e c t io n , a of e c t ion 23 an d 25 , i
s w
o me ss s
hat o de bott e
s p ss p pr o .

3
An ob c ur e h ra e i h e re .
54 TH E T
INS RUCTION OF P TAH H OTE P
-

29 . I f thou have been gracious at a former

time having forgiven a man to guide him aright
, ,

shun him remind him not after the rst day

,

that he hath been sil ent t o thee "concerning it" .

30If thou be great after being of none

account and has
,
.

t gotten riches after squal or

, ,

being foremost in these in the city and hast ,

knowl edge concerning useful matters so that

promotion is
,

come unto thee ; then swathe not

thine heart in thine hoard for thou art become ,

the steward o f the endowments of the God .

Thou art not the l ast ; another shall be thine

equal and to him shall come the l ike "fortune and
,

station" .

31 . thy back u nto thy chief thine over

B end ,

s e er in the King s pal ace for thine house depend

,

eth upon his we al th and thy wages in their ,

season How foolish is one that q u a rre lle t h with

his chief for one l iveth onl y whil e he is
.

gracious
P l under not the hous es of tenants
.

; neithe r

steal the things of a friend l est he acc u se thee ,

in thine hearing which thr usteth back the

,

heart If he know of it he will do thee an injury

1
.

Q
.
,

uarre l li n g in p l ace of friendship is a foo l ish

Lite ral l , y It is t ha t w hic h t th t he he art from

p s
s pre ve n e
v
a d an cin g ( i) A curiou h ra e .
 z: TH E T E ST OF F RI E NDSH I P 55

32 . C
" oncerning un natural sin " .

33 I f thou woul dest see k out the nature of

a friend as k it not o f any companion of h is
.

, ; but
pass a time with him al one that thou inj ure not ,

his a ffairs Debate with him after a season ; test

hi s
.

heart in an occasion of speech When he .

hath tol d thee his past life he hath made an ,

O pportun ity that thou may either be ashamed

for him or be famil iar with hi m B e not reserved .

with him when he openeth speech neither answer ,

him after a scornful manner Withdraw not .

thysel f from him neither interrupt ( ) him 2

whose matter 1 s
,

not yet ended whom it is possibl e ,

t o benet .

34 . thy face be bright what time thou

Le t
l ivest That which goeth into the storehouse
.

must come out therefrom ; and bread is to be

shared He that is grasping in entertainment shall
.

himsel f have an empty belly ; he that causeth

strife cometh himsel f to sorrow Take not such .

an one for thy companion I t is a man s kindl y .

acts that are remembered of him in the years afte r

his life 1
.

3 5 Know well thy merchants ; for when thine

.

a ffairs are in evil case , thy good repute amo n g

thy friends is a channel ( 2) whi ch is ll ed It is .

more impo rtant than the di gn i ties of a man ; and

Lite ra l l y , afte r ss
hiti k c or spt
ce re .
56 TH E INSTRUCT I ON OF P TAH H OTE P

t heweal th of one passeth to another The good .

repute of a man s son is a gl ory unto him and

a good charac ter is for remembrance .

36 c hiey
. Corr ec t
instruct conformab ly
"therewith " Vice must b e drawn out that virtue
may remain N or is this a matter of mis
.
,

fortune
.
,

f one that is a gainsay er becometh a strife

o r

maker .

37 . If
thou make a woman to be asham e d ,

wanton of heart one known b y her townsfol k ,

to be fal se ly p l aced be kind unto her for a sp a ce

s
, ,

end her not away give her to eat The wanton , .

n e ss of her heart shal l esteem thy guidance .

0 If thou obey these things that I have sa id

.

unto thee a ll thy demeanour shall be of the best

,

for veril y t h e qual ity of tru th is among their

, ,

excell ences Set the memory of them in the

.

mouths of the peopl e ; for their proverbs are

good Nor shall any word that hath here been
s
.

e t down cea se out of this l and for ever but ,

sha ll be made a pattern whereby princes shall

speak well They ( my words ) shall instruct a
.

man how he shall speak after he hath heard

, ,

them ; yea he shall become as one skilful in,

obeying e x cell ent in speaking after he ha th

, ,

heard them Good fortune shall befall him for.

,

he shall be of the highest ra n k He shall be

.

gracious to the end of his l ife he shall be con

58 TH E INST RUCT I O N O F P T AH -H O TE P

He that obeyeth becometh one obeyed .

It is good indeed when a son obeyeth his

father ; and he ( his father ) that hath s p
hath great j oy of it Such a son s h a be mil d
as a master and he tha t heareth him s
.

, hall obe y
him that hath spoken He shall be comel y in
body and honoured by hi s
.

father His memory

s
.

ha ll be in the mouths of the l iving those upon

earth as l ong as they exis
,

,
t .
1

39 Le t a son receive the word of his father

not being heedl ess of any rul e of his In s
.
,

truct .

thy son "thus " for the obedient man is one that
is perfe ct in the opini on of princes I f he direc t
his
.

mouth by what hath been enj oined him ,

watchf ul and obedient thy son shall be wise and

his goings see m l y Hee dl essnes
, ,

s l eadet h unto
.

disobe di ence on the morrow but understanding

shall stab l ish him As for the fool he shall b e
c rus
.
,

hed .

40 sfor
the fool devoid of obedi ence he
A
Knowl edge he regardeth as
.
, ,

doeth nothing
ignorance protabl e things ashurtful things
.

He doeth a ll kind of errorsso tha t he is

.
,

rebuked ,

the refor every day He l iveth in death there .

p e c t io n i ss sp la y u on t h e roo t p
ms s
Th e gre a t e r a rt o f t h i
s s
a
s w i m i i l d h a r ( lit t er ) a n d obe y

s
h i h i t u
ss
, c n e a n n g n c u e o r e .

Thi t ire o me to rt u re of w ord i fre q ue n t in E gypt ia n , e pe c ia ll y

s s
in o l d re ligiou t e xt .
 ON E G E NE RATION TO AN O TH E R 59

with ; i it shisfood
chatte ring speech he At
as
.

ma rv e ll e th , W isdom of princes l iving

at the ,

in death every day He is shunned because of

his
.

misfortunes by reas on of the mul titude of ,

af ictions that cometh upon him every day .

41 . son that hearkeneth is as a F oll ower

A
of Horus He is good after he hearkeneth ; he
.
1

groweth ol d he reacheth honour and reverence

He repeatet h in l ike manner to hi sson s and
.
,

daughters so renewing the instruction of his

father E ach man in s
,

. t ru c t e t h as di d his begetter ,

repeating it unto his chil dren Le t them "in t urn " .

speak with the ir sons and daughters that they ,

may be famous in their deeds L e t that whi ch .

thou speakest imp l ant true things and just in

the l ife of thy chil dren : Then the hi ghest
authority shall arrive and sins depart "from
them" An d such men as
,

. see t hese things shall

say Surely that man hath spoken to good
,

pur pose and they shall do l ikewise ; or B u t

,

,

surel y that man was experienced An d a ll .

pe op l e shall dec l are I t is they that shall dir ect

the mul titude ; digni ties

,

are not compl ete W ithout

them .

Take not any word away neither add one ; ,

Th e ol l o e r

F o f H o ru w s
a l e ge n dar

s d na t of y y sy
s s
a re
de migo d , b e l ie e d b y t he E g t ia n v yp
t o h a e rul e d for a b o u t v
y s s
1 3 , 40 0 e ar a ft e r t h e re ign o f H orn , a n d b e fo re th at of M n s
s p s s
s
.

Th e re 1 8 a l o a n orde r of irit o f t hi n ame .

60 TH E I NST RUCTI ON OF P TAH H OTE P
-

set not one in the p l ace of another B eware of .

opening in thyself .

B e wary of speech when a l earn ed man

hearkeneth unto th e e ; desire t o be stabl ished
for good in the mouth of those that hear thee
speaking I f thou have entered as an expert
.
,

speak wi th exact ( i ) lips that thy conduct may ,

be seeml y .

thine heart overowing ; but refrain

42 B e
.

thy mouth Le t thy conduct be exact whil e

.

amongst nob l es and seeml y before thy l ord

, ,

doing that which he hath commanded Such

a s
.

on shall speak unto them that hearken to

him ; moreover his begetter shall be favoured
,
.

Appl y thi ne heart W hat time thou speakest to

, ,

saying things such that the nobl es who l isten

decl are H o w excell ent is that whi ch cometh
,

out of his mouth "

43 . C arry out the behest of to thee th y l ord .

How good is the teaching of a man s father for

,

he hath come from him w h o hath spoken of his ,

son whil e he was yet unborn ; and that which

is done for him ( the son ) is more than that which
is commande d him F orsooth a good son is of .
,

the gift of the God ; he doeth more than is

1
A w ord of un n o n me a n in g k w a ar e n t l pp
ome in d o fy s k
p l an t S uc h a o rd e em w s s
o ut of p
l a ce h e re , a n d ma y b e
k w y p
. .

idioma tic , l i e our

o e r l a n gu age B ut t h e re ce di n g

v s s s k
.

lin e ob i o u l y
re fe r to t hi b oo .
 WHOM TH E KING HONO UR E TH 61

enjoined on him he doeth right and putteth

his
, ,

heart into a ll his goings .

D . I f now thou attain my position thy body ,

shall ourish the King shal l be content in a ll

,

that thou doest and thou shal t gather years of

,

l ife not fewer than I have passed upon earth

I h ave gathered even v e s
.

c o re and ten years of

life for the King hath bestowed upon me

,

favours more than upon my forefathers ; this

becau s e I wrought truth and justice for the King
unto mine old age .

IT I S F IN I S H E D
FRO M I TS BE G I N N IN G TO I TS END
EVEN AS FO U N D IN WRI TI N G .
 TH E I NST RUC TION OF K E GE MN I

l The cautious man o u ris

.
1
h e t h the exact one ,

is pra ised the innermost chamber openeth unto

the man of sil ence Wide is the seat of the
.
2

man gentl e of speech ; but knives a re prepared

aga inst one that fo rc e t h a path that he advance ,

not save in due season

,
.

2 I f thou sit with a company of peop l e desire

.
,

not the bread that thou l ikest : short is the

time of restraining the heart and gluttony is an ,

abomination ; there in is the qual ity of a beast .

A handful of water qu e n c h e t h the thirst and a

mouthful of mel on s
,

u pp or t e t h the heart A .

good thi ng standeth for goodness but some ,

small thing standeth for p l enty A base man 3

is he that is governed by his

.

bell y he depart eth

o n l y when he is no l onger abl e to ll full his
bell y in men s houses
.

Th e o rigin al s v s
i n ot di ide d in to e c tion
c o mfo rt a b l e
s
.

3 Thi i a r ss k sy
a t h e r da r a in g, b ut a pp
ar e n t l y
t h e a u th or me an s
t ha t a l th o u gh t h e du l y s
in t ru c t e d gu e t sw ill o n l a rta e y p k
mode ra t e l of t h e a b un da n c e b e fo re h im, W h a t h e ca t i a
y sss
d t hs re t s sp
Hi o r t io n w
ill b e e qu a l t o t h e w hol e a s
s s
g oo a e

s
.

y
re gard qua lit , t h ough in fe rior a re ard
g qua n tit y .
 ON AVOID ING OFFE N CE 63

3 . I f thou sit with a gl utton eat with him , ,

then depart ( i ) .

If thou drink with a dr un kard accept "drin k" , ,

and his heart shall be satised .

R efuse not meat when with a greedy man .

Take that which he giveth thee set it not on one

side thinking that it will be a courteous thing
,
.

4 If a man be l acking in good fell owship n o

s
.
,

peech hath any inuence over him He is sour .

of face toward the gl ad hearted that are kindl y t o

-

him he is a grief unto hi s mother and hi s frien ds

an d a ll men " cry " Le t thy name be known tho u
,

art sil ent in thy mouth when thou art addressed

5 B e not haughty because of thy might in
.

the midst of thy young sol diers B eware of

making strife for on e knoweth not the things
.

that the God Will do when He pu n is

,

he th
The Vizier caused hi s
.

sons and daughters t o

be summoned when he had n i shed the rul es of
,

the conduct of men An d they marvell ed when

.

they came to him Then he said unto them

.
,

Hearken unto everything that is in writing in

this book even as I have said it in adding
,

un t o protab l e sayings An d they cast them

sel ves o u their bell iesand they read it ev en

'
.

, ,

as it was in writing An d i t was bette r in their

.

opinion than any thing in this l and un to its

N owthey were l iving when His Majesty t he ,

King of Upper and L ower E gypt H E UN I , ,

64 TH E INST RUC TION O F P TAH H OTE P
-

departed and His Majesty the King of Upper

, ,

and L ower E gypt S E N FO RU was enthr oned

, ,

as a gracious kin g over the whol e of this l and

Then was K e ge mn i made Governor of his
.

and Viz ier

.

IT I S FH TI S H E D .
66 AP P E ND I"

In the twentieth year of his reign he assoc iated

his son S e n w e s e rt I with him in a cc regency
which l as
-
, ,

ted ten years .From 8 we gather

that the at t empted assassination took p l ace just
before the dual rul e ; whil e the I nstruction was
evidently penned shortly before the writer s

death The house referred to is presumab l y

.

his pyr amid tomb call ed K e n 6fe r a me n e mh e t

Ame n emM et is
- - -
, .

exa l ted a n d good The site of

this buil ding is

.

not known
This Ins tr uction w a spopul ar asa schoo l
.

e x ercise in the New K ingdom an d we posse s

s
s
,

e veral copies or parts of copies There is no .

od text for the l atter part 1 2 ) whi h

s
g o c :

i corru pt in such MSS as contain it.

I have used the critical text of Mr Grif th

e its r dgyptis
.
,

ub l ish e d in the " chrift fu che S pra ch e

p ,

1 896
It is hoped that the B ibliography will be us
.

eful
to s s
tudents of the book of P tah h ot e p a n d -

B . G .
 TH E IN S TRUCTI ON or AME NE MH E E T

E GI NNE TH here the Instruction made by

the Maj e sty of the King of Upper and
L ower E gypt S G J E B Rff Son of the S un

E H T E P -

AM E N E M H E E T the Ju s
,

t i e d
,

He speaketh thus .

in discovering words of truth unto his Son the ,

Lord of the Worl d

1 Shine forth he saith even as the God
.
, , .

Hearken to that which I say unto thee : that

thou may reign over the l and that thou m
govern the world that thou may excel in gooa ;
,

ness .

2 Le t one with dr aw himsel f from his sub

.

ordinate s entirely It befall eth that mankind .

give their hearts unto one that causeth them

fear .Mix not among them al one ; ll not
thine heart with a brother ; know not a tru sted
friend make for thyself no famil iar dependents
in these things is no satisfaction .

3 When thou l iest down have car e for thy
very life since friends exist not fo r a man in the
,

A mon ial t itl e ppl i d t s p ssn l

de ce a ed e r s
t
s
ce re a ogou
s
a e o on ,
a o
Ju t 1 e d i n ot an e xact re n de rin g, b ut it
isslu ua , an d w il l sv er e.
68 APP E ND I "

day of misfortunes I gave to the beggar and

.
,

caused the orphan t o live I made him that had

not to attain even as he that had
,
"

4 B ut it was the eater of my food t lia t made

'

insurrection against me ; to wh om I gave mine

hands he created di turb anc e thereby ; they
, s
that arrayed them in my ne linen regarded me
as a shadow ; and it wasthey that anointed
themselves w ith my spic e sthat en te red my
harem .

5 My images are among the living ; and my

.

achievements are among men B u t I have .

made an heroic story that hath not be en heard ,

a great feat of arms that hath not been seen .

Surely one gh te th for a l assoed ox that forgetteth

yesterday ; and good fortune 1 of no avail
1
s
un to one that cannot perceive it
6 It wa s
.

after the evening meal and night

w as
. ,

come I took for myself an h our of ease

. .

I l a y down upon my bed for I was weary My

.
,

heart began to wander I sl ept An d l o " ,

weapon s were bran dished and there was con fer

ence concerning me I acted as
,

the serpent of
.

the desert .

7 I awoke to ght ; I was al one

. I found .

one struck down it was the captain of the guard;

s
,

H ad I receive d quickl y the arm fro m his hand ,

s
An al l u ion to th e peopl e of Egypt, wh om he had free d from
t he fa rcign o ss
pp s
re or .

9
"e h e re ma in e d quie t b ut wat chfu l
H .
 A PALAC E C ONS P I RAC Y 69

I had driven back the dastards by smiting

around B ut he was
. not a brave man on that
night n or could I ght alone ; an occasion o f
,
'

prowess cometh not to one surprised Thus .

was I .

8 B eho l d then vile things came to pass for

.
, , ,

I was without thee the courtiers knew not that

I had passed on to thee "my power" I sat not with ,

thee on the throne 1

Le t me , the n make thy .
,

pl ans B ec ause I awe d them not I was not

.

unmindful of them ; but mine heart bringeth

not to remembrance the s l ackness of servants .

9 Have ever women gathered together assail

ants ? are assas
.

sins reared within my pala ce ?

was the opening done by cutting through the
ground ? The underl in gs were deceived as to
what they did B u t misfortunes ha Ve not
.
8

come in my train since my birth nor hath there

e xis te d the equal of me as a doer of val iance .

1 0 I forced my way up to E l ephantin e I

s
.
,

went down unto the c oast l ak e I have stood -

upon the boundaries of the l and and I have ,

se en its centre I have set the l imits of might

by my might in my deeds
.

1 1 I raised corn
. I l oved N 6pi

the Nil e
,

begged of me every vall ey In my reign n one .

1
Re fe rrin g t o t h e cc -re ge n c s
y with h is

ss
s s
on
mpt e d a
.

Re fe rrin g to t h e i ti
s
at t e
ssth
a na on .

Th e limit , ou an d n orth, of h i kin gdom .

The god of corn .

70 AP P E ND I "

hungered none thirsted therein Th ey were

, .

contented m that which I did saying concernin g ,

me E very comman dment is meet

s
, .

1 2 I overcam e l ions ; I carried o cr oc odil e

I cast the Nub ia n s
. .

under my feet I carried o ff

the Southern Nubians ; I e s m d the As iatic s
t o ee even as hounds
,
.

1 3 I have made me an house a dorne d with

s s s s
.
,

g o l d it c eil ing with la p i l u li it wa ll hav

ing deep foundations I t s
, a z ,

doors are of copper

.
,

their bol t s are of bron z e It is made for ever .

l a sting ; ete rnity is in awe of it I know every .

di mension thereof 0 Lord of the Worl d "

s
,

1 4 There ar e diver devic e s in buil dings

. I .

kn ow the pronouncem e nt s of men when inquiring

into its beauties ; but they know not that it was
without thee O my son S e n w e s
, e r t ; l ife, safe ,

a nd sound b e to thee ,
by thy feet do I wal k

thou art after mine own heart by thine eyes do ,

I see ; born in an hour of del ight with spiri t s

that rendered thee prais
,

e .

1 5 B ehol d that which I have done at the

.
,

beginn ing le t me set it in order for thee at the

,

en d l e t me be the l an ding p l ace o f that which is -

in thine heart Al l men together set the White

.

Crown on the Offspring of the God xing it

s
due pl ace I shall begin thy praises
,

u nto it .

when in the B oat of R a Thy kingdom hath

be en from prim aev al t ime ; n ot by my doing ,

 H AIL AN D FAR E WE LL 71

who have done val iant things R aise up monu

.

ments make beautiful thy tomb I have fought

, .

against him whom thou knowest ; for I desire

saf e and s
o und be to thee
,

not that he shoul d be beside thy Majesty Life . ,

IT IS FIN I S H E D- 1
AN E" P LAN ATI ON OF N A M E S OCC URRI N G
I N TH I S B OOK .

A H E N E MH E ET The God Amn i to the for e s

s
.

H E UNI I ha ve mitten
ss
.

I Or Of u n kn own mea n in g
s sl is
.

K E G E MNI I ha ve fown d a ou l ; or, A

ou

f ou n d for me
isstis
.

PTAH H OTEP
-
The God P ta h a e , a u dnl l di g
e i th e r t o t he b e l ie f t h a t t o b e ge t

a chil d w a p l e a in s s
g t o t h e G od,
or

t o t h e dedi ca tion of t h e ch il d t o
t h e God .

S E B 6TE P n B R C on ten tin g the hea/rt of the God Ra

'
- -
.

S E N F6RU The bea u tier .

S EN WE S E RT Of dou b tful me a n in g ; con n e cte d wi th

sss
The Godde We er t .

Ot he r s l l i gsf thos m s e e na e a re : Amen e mha t

s
p e n

Hana ; As
s a, P t hiwt p S htp
a e c e e a br a , Ra ehetep
7 4 AP P E ND I "

W o rld

sB s
t Lit e e ra tu re New Y o rk, 1 8 98 9 Con ta in s
s sti s

. .

t ra n l a tio n o f man y ec on

As
s
.

H e a th , D I On . .
f a MS . o the P hwn icia n K in g a,

ru l in g in E gypt P al m before Abr a ha m A Re cord of the

'

a rcha l A ge or , ; n ow The P roverbs of A pho bis 1 90 0

s s
,

t f y l l t l t d M th l R i w L d J l y v
s
r u ra n a e o n y e e o n o n u

s s
, , . .

1 85 6 The r t t ra n l a t io n of K g an d Ph Afte rward

s s
s
. . .

i u ed a a pa mphl e t , Lo n do n , 1 8 5 8 .

Laut h , F J D er Au tor K a diz mn a c ar 5 40 0 Ja hr en

'

si s
is
. . .

S t z un g b er cht e de r kgl b ay e r Akade m e de r W e n

i i
s s s
is
. .

cha ft e n Miin che n , 1 8 69, ii C on ta n a n a n al y of K g i

s
. . .

La uth , F J D er P r in z P ta h ho tep dber dd Al ter

s si
r
. .

P ta h ho tep E thik S t z un g b e r cht e de r kgl b a ye r Aka i

ss
is
-
. . .

de mie de r W e n chaft e n M iin ch e n , 1 8 70 , ii H e ft i

i s s
is si L
.

i
B e l age C on ta n an aly
. an d t ra n l at on n t o a t in an d i
G e rman of t he great e r part of Ph
s
.

M aha y, J P P r ol egomen a to An cien t H i tor y, art

'

s si s s p
. .

on don , 1 8 7 1 C on ta n t ran lat on from La ut h re n i

Lg
.

M y T Th Ol d s ks
( e ri n .

t B i th W ld N w Y k
C t i s Vi y s s t s
e r, . e e oo n e or . e or ,

1 90 0 t l ti d
d C s
. on a n re ra n a on a n no e .

s P t i W M F R l igi i i A i t
C t i s s l ti sf m y
a . e r e, . . . e on an on c en ce n n c en

Egyp t L d t
st s
1 898
. on on , . on a n ra n a on o an
b y F L G ift h
P issd A sE F s s
e c l on . . r .

imil d i
e y l g s

t
d Theb s
y ru
g
r e p p gy
ve n n e ,
. ac e un en ,

d l B ibl i thg
'

t d
P is
r ouve e , on n a o ue c c e 6 a rt ,

t li E P dA 1 8 47

w s s
c e . . . ar ,
.

H D N t th N il t th wi th
s
y n e , g . . o e or e e, o e er a
M e tr ica l Ren der in g of the ymn 0 An ci en t E g p t, a nd o
s
the P r ecep t of P ta h ho tep ( the 0 l e t B ook in t -
s W ld or
Lo n don 1 8 92
sd p py sP ms s
.

Re v il lou t , E

L ee dcux p r efa ce
P is1 8 96 C t i s
u a ru c . .

v
Re ue gyptol ogiqu e , t ome v ii
s
ar , on a n . .

tran lat ion of K g a n d of P h

s
. .

Re vill out , E Le P ta h ho tep Re ue v

s s s
-
. .

gyptologi u e , t ome x P ari , 1 90 2 C on tain t ran la t m n

s
. .

an d t e x t 0 Ph
ss s s
.

V ire y, P Etude ur l c p d r u P re eu l e l w r c dc
s s
.

Ka gun n a ct l e l epon dc P ta h otop B i b h othque de .

 B IB LIOG RAP H Y 75

s
l Ecol e de H aute s
Etu de , fa c 7 0 ssPari , 1 88 7 C on s
s s sss
-
. . .

tain compl e t e t ran l ation an d e lab orat e di cu ion of t he

s
s s
t e xt al o gl o ary
s s
.

V ire y, P The P r ecep t o P ta h hotep ( the Ol de t B ook

s s ss
-
.

in the Wor l d) Re cord 0 t he Pa t, n e w e rie ,

Lon don , 1 8 90 . s s
C on tain a t ran lation of Ph .

Prin ted by E azd l , sA Vi

Wa t on : n ey, Ld , Lon don
. an d Aylccbury.
 TH E WI S D O M O F TH E E AST
S E RI E S
Edite d byL CRANMER BYNG
- . an d Dr S . A KAPADIA
. .

TH E S E RI E S A N D I TS PU RP O S E
j HE s
o b e ct
f t h isS i sis v y
of d it the Editor o er e a er e n e on e .

Th y des i b v ll thi gs
e th t i th i h mb l w y th s
re a o e a n a n e r u e a e e

b ks sh ll b the mb s sd sf g d will d d s
, ,

oo a t di g
e a a a or o oo - an un er an n

b tw
e E s t
e end W s t th ald w ld f Th gh t
an d th w fe
e o or o ou an e ne o

th is d v nd i th i w s ph th y
f ll w s
A ti c I
on n en b t
ea o ur, a n e r o n e re , e are u

f th high s
.

o o er t mp l i th l d Th y
o e d te e xa e n e an e a re con en

k wl dg f th g t id ls d l fty phil sphy f

.

th t a d p a ee er no e e o e re a ea an o o o o

O i t l th ght m y h lp t
r en a ou viv l f th t t s pi it f Ch ity
a e o a re a o a rue r o ar

w hi h ith
c d spis s f sth ti sf th
ne er e de d n or e ar e na on o an o e r cre e an

co lo ur .

NE W V O L UM E J US T O UT
A
.

TH E B U DD H A S
W AY O F V I RT U E Tran la tio ns of
D h mm p d A N D E RS
.

W C D WA G I S W ARA a n d K
M mb sf h R y
h B J S
s
t e a a a a. U
y y b h
. . . . .
.

e er o t e o al iat ic S oc ie t , Ce l o n ran c 91 . n e t.

TH E H E AR T
sB y L D B
O F I N DIA S k s
A R N E TT M
i
e tc h e th e H i tor s of H in du
f s
n
gs s
.

Re li i o n Mo

d r al
t U v s
an A f
t y C ll g
. ro e or o
L d
.
.
, ,
.
.

S an k ri t a
1 ni er i o e e , on on . 2 n et.

B RA H M A K N O W L E DG E : A O u t l i e f t h P h il s
-
phy o f
As s
n n o e
h ds d b y S k
o o
t h e V da t t f th b y th U p
e is
n a.
D P f s
e
s
or
s
e an a an an ara .
B y L D B A RN E TT M A
llCo 3
.
L .

Lon do
fS k t Um s y . .
rTT. . ro e or o an
'

rl at ve r rt
'

e ge , n . 1; n e t.
TH E P ATH O F L I G H T Re ndered for the r t time in to s
g s
.

E n li h f ro m th e h
B od i-ch a ryava tara o f San d-D e va A M an ual of

hs
.

M ah a Y an a - B udd i m B y D B arn e t t , M A , Lit t D

. L . . . . . . 2 / n et.

LE GE N DS D I AN B U D D H I S M T s l t d f m
OF IN ran a e ro
a l H isi d B ddh is
.

m I di
by W INI R D S TE NS 1
'
LI id n t ro f E ge
uc t on B f to re u u e n en o u ne urn o u
wi h I
,

d i
t an n t ro uc t o n F E PH E . 2 n e t .)

T H E W A Y O F T H E B U DD H A S l ti sf m th B ddhis

t e ec on ro e u
s g h w i h h igi l P l i wit h I d ti b y H E R E R
.

BA N ES
t e xt , to e t e r t t e or na a , n t ro uc on B T
Y/ t , z ne .

I RAN I AN ( Per s
i an , P e h l vi, "e n d, e tc .
)
TH E U B AI Y AT o r H AFI "
R

s
T ra n l ate d with I n tro duc tion
by S E D A D U L M m LL D R s
h V sb y
.

L C R AN M E R B N
Y B a ) ,
.
. e n de r e d in t o E n gl i er e

.
l t -
Y G. r ne .

TH E S PL E N D O U R O F G O D B i g E t ts f m th S d
W i i g sf h B h is Wi h I t d i by E H A MM O N D f
. e n x ra c ro e a cre
r t n o t e a a . t n ro uc t o n n rc . o n e t.

T H E TE AC H I N G S O F " O R OA S T E R d t h P h il s phy an e o o

s s
,

f th P i R l igi n T l t d with I t d ti by D
ADIA L
o e ar e o ra n a e n ro uc on r.

U iv s
.

S A K . . i y C ll g
AP L d 1 , e c t u re r , n er t o e e, on on . 2 n e t.

TH E P E R S I AN M Y S TI C S .

I J al l u

d-din Rl iml By F H A AN D DA
DL V IS . l
c - n e t.

AD LA N D D A S
. . .

II .
Jami . By F . H VI . 2 1 n e t.

TH E B U S T AN OF S A DI F
. ro m the P e r ians . Tran l ate d s
wi h I d ti by A H A RT E DW A RD S 1
t n t ro uc on . . 2 n et .

S A D I S S CROLL O F W I S D OM With


B y S AI H H K S A Dr
by S i A R H R N WO LL AS TO N
. .

I d in t ro u c t on r T U xl n e t

Wi h P s
.
.
,

i S ip dd d 1
t er an cr t a e . 2 n e t.

T H E R O S E G AR DE N OF S A D I S l t d an d R e n de red

wi h I d i by L CR A N M E R B N
e ec e

f m th P s
.

ro i e er an t n tro uct o n .
-
Y G. 1 1 n et.

TH E AL C H E M Y OF H A P P IN E S S B y AL G ri m m
h by C A FI EL D
gs
. .

Re n de re d in t o E n l i L UD . 2 / n e t.

TH E C O N FE S S I O N S O F A L G H A" " AL I Tran late d for s

s s
.

t h e r t t ime in to E n gl i h y A b C L UD FI E LD , M A rl . . n e t.
TH E A W A K E N I N G O F T H E O U L From the
S Arab ic o f
s
.

I B M TUF AL I . T ran l at e d Wit h I n tro du t i b y PA U L B RON

c on N LE , Ph D . .

r id n e t .

TH E RE L I G ION O F TH E K ORAN . With I n troduction b y

S ir A WO L LA STO N
RT H UR I n t
N . , I e .

A R A B I A N W IS D O M S e le ction s an d T ran slation s from th e

A b i b y JO H N W R
.

ra c MD / t O TA B E T, . I ne .

T H E S I N G I N G C A R AV A N S ome E choe s o f Arab ian P oe try . .

B y H E NR B R 1 t Y AE LE I N . 2 ne .

T H E D I W A N O F A B U L -A L A B y H E N RY B AERLE I N

. .

I I .
n e t.

AN C IE N T JE W ISH P ROV E RB S C om il e d . p an d C la ie ds
s
by A . CO H E N , l at e S c h o la r o f E ma n u e l C o l l e ge , Ca m r id b g e. 2 1 n et.

TH E W IS DOM OF TH E AP OC R Y P H A With an I n tro

by C E LAW R E N E A h P il g im g
.

duc t io n . . C , ut or of

r a e, e tc . 2 / n e t.

TH E W I S DO M O F I S RAE L : B e in g E x t ra c t sf ro m th e
B ab y l o n ia n T al mu d d M idra s h Ra b b o th Tra n la te d s
by E DW IN CO LL IN S
an .

fr o m t h e A rama ic wi h t an I n t roduct io n . I l n e t.

TH E D U TI E S O F TH E H E ART B y R AB B I B AC H Y E
IN L NS
. .

T r an s l t d f m h
a e H b w wi h I
rod t e e re t n t r o uct ion by E W D CO L I ,
Ho l li erH b wS h l UC L
e I re c o a r, . . . I n et.

CHI NES E
T AO I S T T E A C H I N G S F m th M ys ti l Philo sphy of Lie h
d by L I O N L G I LE S M A
ro e ca o
s
.

Tz ii T r an l

. l ate E , . . a n e t.

A L UTE OF j ADE B e in g S e l e ctio n s

f m th s
s
C la ica l P o et sf
by L C R AN M E R B YN G
. ro e o

Ch i R d d wit h a I t du t i
n a. en e re n n ro c on .
- . 2 1 n et.

T H E C L A S S I C S O F CO N FU C I U S .

I T h e B o o k o f O de s
.
( S h i K in g) -

B y L CRAN M E R B N
.

1 n t - Y G. 1 e

I I T h e B o o k o f H is
.
.

. t o ry ( S h u K in g) -
.

B y W G O RN O L fl t . D. ne .

T H E S AY I N GS OF C O N FU C I U S A n ew Tran lation s of th e
swit h I sby
.

g f h C
L I O N EL G I LE S M A
r e at e r
p f i ar t o t e o n uc an An a l e c t n t ro duc t io n an d N o te
As s is t i
,

h De pa r t me n t of O rie n t al
sip sf th
ta n t
B ks d M B it is
n e

h M sm
, . .

oo an an u cr t o e r u eu . 21 n et.
TH E C ON DUCT O F L I FE ; o r, T h e U n iv e r a l O rde r o f s
Con fuc iu s s
A tran l a tio n of on e o f th e four Co n fucian Boo k , s
w s
.

h it h
e r to kn o n a th e Doc tr in e of t h e M e an B y K U H U N G M I NG , M A . . .

I I n e t.

TH E B OOK O F FI L I A L D U TY s
Tran l ate d fro m the Ch in e s
s Ch i g by I A N C H EN
e
s h s
.

of the H ia o n V , r t S ec re ta r t o t h e C in e y e
Le ga t iOU . I ,
n e t.

TH E S AY I N G S O F L A O T " U From the C hin e sT s

y L I EL I LE
e ran

s
h M sm
.

w h
.

la t e d it I n t roduct io n b ON G S , o f th e B rit i u eu . I l n e t.

M US I N G S O F A C H I N E S E M Y S T I C S e le ction s fro m th e
Ph il sphy f Ch g T ii W it h I t d t i b y L I O N L G I LE S M A
.

(O n ) As is
u an

h M us
o o z n ro uc on E
s t t t h B it is
.
, . .

xo t , e um 1 t an a e r . 2 ne .

T H E FL I G H T O F T H E D R A G O N An E s say o n th e The o ry
d J p n b as sB y
.

d P ti f A t i Ch i e d on O igi al S ou

LA UR E N C E B N O N l t
an r ac ce o r n n a an a a , r n r ce .

I Y . a ne .

J AP AN E S E
G E R S O F JA P A N B i g V sT s
T H E M A S T E R- S I N e n er e ran

l r s sP sB y C LA R A A WA L S j
.

at onf m h J p ro t e a an e e oe t . . H . z n et .

W O M E N A N D W I S D O M O F JAP A N W ith I t d ti . n ro uc on

b y S TA A S .
I t K I H I. I ne .

E G YP TI AN
TH E B U RDE N OF IS IS B e ing th e Lame n t o f I i s s
sd an

s s w h by A M E S
.

N e ph th y Tra n l a t e d fr o m t h e Egypt ian it an I n t roduc tion J

E NN S l
.

TE A C E L E D I . I n e t.

TH E U C T I O N O F P TA H H O T E P A N D T H E
IN S TR -

I N S T R U CT I ON O F K E G E M N I T he O l des t B oo k sin

s
.

W T l d f m h E gy i wi h I d u ti n d
c o u sG U NN
h l d t t t t t an

A pp n dix by B ATT I s
n o n r c o
t e or . p an ra a e ro e

e l t E . I ne .

E dit oria l Co mmumca tron h ou l d be a ddre e d to s s ss

T H E E D ITO OF T H E S DO OF T H E E RS WI M AS T SE RI E S
5 OA AL E M A RLE S REE
, B T T,

LO N DO N ,
W .

LO N DON : JO H N M UR RAY , ALBE MARLE S TRE E T, w .

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