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Preface
This project came into being through a number of discussions between the
authors on mythology, culture, story, theology, history, and “problems” in the world. As
people who love good story and appreciate culture and value the ways these things are
told, the way mythology is often treated in the modern era is unfair and cruel compared
to the earnest passion of the cultures that produced them. In a culture that has failed to
recognize its own mythology and puts all others in an encyclopedic, archetypal story for
historical and folksy curiosity. Our sense is that isnʼt the way it ought to be. At the
of dealing with myth, reconciling it with the cultures that produced it and the art of story.
are curious about Egypt and its mysterious ideas. They also have some recognition of
its deities and famous figures. But their stories are mostly unknown, so misconceptions
and popular notions are not as difficult to unseat. Additionally, the Egyptian value for the
written word has offered us a variety of mythological sources, robust scholarship, and
Our thanks go to Drs. Jonathan Watt and Suhail Hanna for their oversight of this
project. We also want to acknowledge the scholarship of Willem VanGemeren and E.A.
Wallis Budge as irreplaceable and of great assistance in this study. We are both, as
lovers of myth and language and good story, indebted to J.R.R. Tolkien. The space for a
redemptive approach to myth would have proved near-impossible without his work.
Finally, we are indebted to God, who through Jesus is “the Lord, of Angels and Men —
David Ketter
Geneva College
Spring 2010
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theories and applications and revolutionary claims about the fundamental unity of all
myths and cultural development have continued to influence the study of world religions
and mythology to this very day. While an extended engagement with Campbell's
theoretical framework and methodology is impossible within the context of this study, a
general rebuttal of some of his foundational premises regarding mythology will suffice
for the purpose of reading and understanding the cultural texts that we have inherited
For the purposes of this paper, Campbell's ideas will be engaged in three main
areas: (1) the origin, (2) purpose/nature, and (3) the effects of mythology. If Campbell
can be challenged on the metaphysical origin and ontology of myths, it will certainly
affect our interpretation of the elements of their stories and teaching. This necessarily
affects the practical impact that myths have on their own cultures and others that
interact with them. Campbell's ideas have been drawn specifically from The Masks of
God: Primitive Mythology, published by Viking Press in 1959. The reasons this work
was chosen include that it directly interacts with Egyptian mythology specifically, in
addition to dealing with the fundamental nature of mythology where other works concern
In regard to the origin of mythology, many in the past have been hesitant to make
pagans who had disposed of any Scriptural truth. Enlightenment thinkers generally
either prized literary value or dismissed them as juvenile fancies of irrational man. When
Campbell writes The Masks of God in 1959, yet, he has a few more claims to make
about mythology:
According to Campbell, humans cannot help but create mythology. It is a direct fruit of
humankind. Humanity, for Campbell, did not construct myths for the sake of accessing
some transcendent truth, or to preserve their culture, or enforce morality, or even just to
pass on a good oral tradition. Myth exists because it is a psychological necessity borne
out of our own genetic structure. More precisely, it is borne out of our experience of
suffering and joy. All mythology, Campbell claims, is derived from the human experience
Simply stated, biological psychology forms no basis for any comparative or unitary study
Earlier in her article, "The Myth of Joseph Campbell," Lefkowitz identifies Campbell's
eisegetical imposition of his own values and understanding of human nature is not only
lacking in scholarly rigor, but also in general use for understanding the mythological
texts. There is no doubt that humans love to tell stories. Humans deal and relate in
story. There is a universal sense of story, but by no means is there any unitary story
suffering extend far beyond principles of pleasure and pain, but delve deeply into the
views of the universe around them that cultures adopted and maintained.
J.R.R. Tolkien, in a 1944 letter to his son Christopher, reflects much on the nature
For [this fairy-story essay] I coined the word 'eucatastrophe': the sudden
happy turn in a story which pierces you with a joy that brings tears (which I
argued it is the highest function of fairy-stories to produce). And I was
there led to the view that it produces its peculiar effect because it is a
sudden glimpse of Truth, your whole nature chained in material cause and
effect, the chain of death, feels a sudden relief as if a major limb out of
joint had suddenly snapped back. It perceives — if the story has literary
'truth' [...] that this is indeed how things really do work in the Great World
for which our nature is made. [...] Man the story-teller would have to be
redeemed in a manner consonant with his nature: by a moving story
(Tolkien 100-101).
Thus, in Tolkien's perspective, myth certainly relates to joy and sorrow, but it is much
more part of the creational order. Myth is the fruit of the natural story-teller in all of
humankind. It is the human urge to find and express and experience redemption, and
every human being is driven to find it, and so we have myth, which tells us the way
things the way things are and the way things ought to be. "After all, I believe that
legends and myths are largely made of 'truth', and indeed present aspects of it that can
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only be received in this mode; and long ago certain truths and modes of this kind were
For what one would think to be an essential aspect of dealing with the theory of
mythology, Campbell doesn't deal with the purpose of mythology within cultures as
much. It can be supposed that this may be derived from Campbell's reliance on Jung
and Freud, which would reduce action to chemical and biological eventuality, rather than
statement that it "is not invented rationally" (Campbell 45). But there are a few things
For Campbell, myth is the way that men instinctively organize their rational observations
Campbell, higher rational thought. Art, as "precisely art" can only change form, which
doesn't mean it changes in value. That does not mean that Campbell thinks myth is
without value or that it does not impact human life and culture, but that it is no more and
no less than pre-scientific artistic expression. Wilhelm Dupré, writing in 2005, argues
[Myth is] above all an indispensable element in and for the constitution of
cultural reality and personal consciousness. In its primary meaning, myth
is not a story [...] but the configuration of evidences by which people live,
in which they are aware of themselves and all reality [...] Myth speaks in
the tale of being human (Dupré 155).
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In a certain sense, what Dupré says is no contradiction of Campbell's thesis, but what it
does demonstrate is that Campbell is too superficial and lacking in depth of explanation
to account for mythology. A mere biological eventuality cannot have the same import or
impact on a culture's life and development as the cultural phenomenon that involves all
of its aesthetic and theological genius. Myth is a culture's lifeblood. It cannot be a pre-
humanity that birthed it. We are humans and, in order to explore and explain our own
humanity, and our relationship to the cosmos and whatever or whoever else may be, we
live within myths, and tell the story. As Butler says it, "The total body of myths belonging
Progressing from the purpose of myth and coming to see its import, the next
Campbell's biological and psychological commitments have led him to see life in a sort
of evolutionary reductionism. Life simply exists, develops, evolves, and cycles. This is
intuited by human beings as well, who, suppressing the despair that could come without
rational enlightenment, create myth to give a depth of experience, awe, and revelation
to the evolutionary history and natural process that would otherwise suggest a
monotony of continuity. So, myth can only be a mask of upon what would be to the
unenlightened, unscientific mind, a dreary world cycle of birth, life, decay, and death.
This results in a number of questions and cynical theories about the nature of myth, of
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history, and "unscientific reality", as it were, as Heehs demonstrates in his essay "Myth,
This is, plainly, an undeserved and ignoble fate for humanity, that history and myth and
their subjects would be reduced to being mere accounts of interest, failing in the end, to
have any adequacy, to pass muster in the "survival of the fittest" notions propounded by
theorists within these disciplines. The end result is something like cultural homicide and,
if followed through with thoroughly, cultural suicide. This eugenics of the human
experience and day-to-day life cannot be the result of good rational thought, but rather
the fruits of ideological commitments that are unsustainable in an ethic that demands
life.
If we accept what Tolkien and Dupré suggest about myth, however, we are
opened to the possibilities of analyzing and exploring the import of myth in the creation
and development of culture, religious creed and practice, political structures, ideologies,
and inter-cultural relationships. "From the theoretical point of view the quest for myth
underlines the dependence on myth and the need to acknowledge the mythic
should skillfully understand mythology and learn more of ourselves, the truth that has
Works Cited
Campbell, Joseph. The Masks of God: Primitive Mythology. New York, NY: The Viking
Press, Inc. 1959
Dupré, Wilhelm. "The Quest for Myth as a Key to Implicit Religion." Implicit Religion 8.2
(2005): 147-165. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2010.
Heehs, Peter. "Myth, history, and theory." History & Theory 33.1 (1994): 1. Academic
Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2010.
Lefkowitz, Mary R. "The myth of Joseph Campbell." American Scholar 59.3 (1990): 429.
Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2010.
Tolkien, J.R.R. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien. Edited by Carpenter, Humphrey. Boston,
MA: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1981.
Story of Stories
David Ketter
Geneva College
Spring 2010
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disciplines have contested throughout the lives of their respective studies on the place
of myth. Historians from Herodotus to Peter Heehs openly acknowledge the question.
Archaeologists make their best attempts to reconcile the literary myths with the ones
that are unearthed in excavations. Sociologists and psychologists dispute on the nature
and impact of myths on human life. Joseph Campbell attempted to bring some
resolution to the question but failed to account for the depth and presence that
mythology has. It may be, however, that Willem VanGemeren and J.R.R. Tolkien have
provided the pieces to construct a framework from which we can understand and see
mythology within its own context and so read it more accurately and with better results.
But first, we ought to address the question of the significance of mythology and
the goal of knowing and understanding it. Dupré argues that the quest for myths itself is
“one of the strivings that mark the unfolding of humanity” (Dupré 148). He goes on to
The strength that Dupré offers to this discussion is an argument that reflects the story-
teller that exists in the human person. We are driven to know, to explore, to explain and
the communicate in language that is creative and narrative, something that reflects the
tone and pace of everyday life. We inherently realize it is not enough to simply
acknowledge and explain the superficial. What is of value to human beings and what is
remembered by human beings matches the sense of story that our cultures carry.
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Myths, then, are the stories that frame all the others. We live in worlds
constructed by the myths that we have created and continue to tell. And what Dupré
wisely notes is that if we attempt to dismiss or otherwise neglect myths, we will only
succeed in creating new ones. So we are left with the task of recognizing and
understanding mythology in order to rightly access cultures, past and present. But
having the task is not enough, as we need to figure out how to access the content and
direction of myths.
reference, one revelatory and one religious. For the purpose of this study, the distinction
between revelatory and religious, and even the question of the validity of his revelatory
V
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realpolitik, which is to say that it is driven by the human desire for salvation at the
individual and collective level. Salvation here being defined as “that complex of acts,
structures and institutions by which human beings individually and collectively define,
determine, and control their happiness” (21). Itʼs framework, then, is always
manipulative and subject to human selfishness. Within that framing nature, however,
cosmology and mythology are utterly foundational, since they provide the means for
humans to “understand themselves and in terms of which they explain all that is beyond
rational explanation” (ibid). Here, VanGemeren has some level of agreement with
Campbell, insofar as myth is not perceived by him to be rational. He could not, however,
dismiss its impact on its own culture, since “Salvation is understood differently by each
magic” (ibid.).
Tolkien agrees, however, asserting that the stories that form the heart of myth are
redemption stories (Tolkien 101). In another letter, Tolkien explains how it is that
evidences and notions of redemption serve such a life-giving purpose in cultures, even
connection that connects the stories that we have told to the story that we have all lived:
[C.S.] Lewis recently wrote a most interesting essay (if published I donʼt
know) showing of what great value the ʻstory-valueʼ was as mental
nourishment [...] His point was that [...] the beauty of the story while not
necessarily a guarantee of its truth is a concomitant of it, and a fidelis is
meant to draw nourishment from the beauty as well as the truth [...] I do
not now feel either ashamed or dubious on the Eden ʻmythʼ [...] Genesis is
separated by we do not know how many sad exiled generations from the
Fall, but certainly there was an Eden on this very unhappy earth. We all
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long for it, and we are constantly glimpsing it: our whole nature at its best
and least corrupted, its gentlest and most humane, is still soaked with the
sense of ʻexileʼ (109-110).
The human story is pervaded with this sense of exile, the longing for return, and how
each culture expresses that longing is key to understanding it and its stories. Tolkien
wrote before these letters that “It is precisely the colouring, the atmosphere, the
unclassifiable individual details of a story, and above all the general purport...that really
count. (“On Fairy Stories” 19). Tolkien goes on to argue that “the Tree of Tales” and “the
tangled skein of Language” find their truest expression in myth and that it is certainly
But what of history? If we are looking to the stories we tell for beauty and the
remnants of truth, surely we need to consider the role of history in it. Even Tolkien
acknowledges that “History often resembles “Myth” because they are both ultimately of
the same stuff” (30). Heehs provides an elaborate explanation of current theories of how
history and myth interact (or donʼt), but when he acknowledges the oft-cited conflicts
between history, law, science, and other things termed logos against mythos, he
A different sort of dialectics might help resolve the conflict between mythos
and logos. Such a resolution would seem to be necessary if historiography
is to recover its explanatory power and not become just another literary
genre. [...] Historical narratives are by definition stories that correspond in
some way to actual events in the past. Yet it must be conceded that
historians can no longer leave unexamined such matters as the
problematic relation of documents to events, and the culturally conditioned
—and therefore “mythical” — nature of the reality-grid through which they
view the past. Since logos and mythos interpenetrate, and apparently
cannot easily be extricated from one another, it would seem worthwhile to
try to approach them dialectically (Heehs 16).
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What Heehs goes on to describe is that myth becomes the means we write and
understand history. The claims of narratives ultimately have both aesthetic and social
approaching history with and compared with myth is come into contact with cultural and
religious perspectives on the events of the past. They are the reconciliations of exile in
men who are longing for restoration and redemption. History finds its relationship to
myth as the reminder of exile, the evidence of our loss and brokenness. Myth is how we
describe it, and how we pass on hope for the future. By reading history and reading
myth, we gain a glimpse into the mind of cultures on the brokenness that they were
So, when we are exploring mythology, we ought to recognize (1) the aspects of
exile portrayed, (2) the form of redemption offered, and (3) the hope that results. What
VanGemeren, Tolkien, Heehs, and the Christian tradition as a whole offer is a lens
through which we can uncover beauty and truth in the midst of a broken world. And
where beauty and truth are found, we can direct them to God. Our responsibility is not
The Christian joy, the Gloria, is of the same kind; but [the Gospel story] is
pre-eminently (and infinitely, if our capacity were not finite) high and
joyous. But this story is supreme; and it is true. Art has been verified. God
is the Lord, of angels, and of men — and of elves. Legend and History
have met and fused. But in Godʼs kingdom the presence of the greatest
does not depress the small. Redeemed Man is still man. Story, fantasy still
go on, and should go on. The Evangelium has not abrogated legends; it
has hallowed them, especially the “happy ending.” The Christian has still
to work, with mind as well as body, to suffer, hope and die; but he may
now perceive that all his bents and faculties have a purpose, which can be
redeemed. So great is the bounty with which he has been treated that he
may now, perhaps, fairly dare to guess that in Fantasy he may actually
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assist in the effoliation and multiple enrichment of creation. All tales may
come true; and yet, at the last, redeemed, they may be as like and as
unlike the forms that we give them as Man, finally redeemed, will be like
and unlike the fallen that we know (Tolkien 72-73).
the work of Creation, confident that the grace God has given us extends to the universe
around us, that when Creation is redeemed, the work of men in their stories and art and
efforts will also be redeemed and purified and rendered to their true intent and form. Our
sociology, about people, is to work faithfully in the arena of myth, to uncover and display
its beauty, its truth, and put forward its hope of redemption, confident that it will one day
be redeemed completely.
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Works Cited
Campbell, Joseph. The Masks of God: Primitive Mythology. New York, NY: The Viking
Press, Inc. 1959
Dupré, Wilhelm. "The Quest for Myth as a Key to Implicit Religion." Implicit Religion 8.2
(2005): 147-165. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2010.
Heehs, Peter. "Myth, history, and theory." History & Theory 33.1 (1994): 1. Academic
Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Feb. 2010.
Tolkien, J.R.R. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien. Edited by Carpenter, Humphrey. Boston,
MA: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1981.
Tolkien, J.R.R. Tree and Leaf. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1965.
VanGemeren, Willem. Interpreting the Prophetic Word. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
1996.
The Ra Saga
Marlin Klingensmith
Geneva College
Spring 2010
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Creation
In the beginning there was Nu, and Nu was in the watery void that was before the
world, and he was the void. For he is Nu, the Great Father, first of the Gods, Maker of
all, but not the greatest. He was alone in the beginning, floating in the waters. And he
thought to make a son for himself, and so he created a being that was unlike himself.
that space of substance different than his own. That substance was fire, and it burned
with a fierce light that shone out over the waters. So was Ra born, and the light of his
Now Ra was greater than Nu from whom he arose. His face shone with power
and he desired to rule, but there was nothing to rule. At his desire a mountain rose out
of the waters. And on that mountain Ra made his home but there was no-one to rule on
this hill, so he created more gods from himself so that he might have others to rule over.
First he created the calm Shu and to the lioness Tefnut. To Shu he gave power over the
winds, and to Tefnut he gave power over the moisture. Ra, with the help of the twins
separated the waters and the air over the mountain and so formed the body of Geb,
who was the earth, and Nut, who was the sky.
Ra spoke the words of creation, and commanded the earth and the heavens to
rise out of the waste of water. And at his command they appeared. Nut formed the vault,
which is arched over Geb, who lies prostrate beneath her, at the eastern horizon she is
poised upon her toes, at the western horizon, she rests upon her fingertips. And for the
first days of creation Geb and Nut were locked in loving embrace. And from their union
came the birth of Osiris and Isis and then Set and Nephthys. And these gods were the
Klingensmith
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first and foremost throughout all the ages of creation. Theirs are the works that bless
and trouble the world most fully. From them came all the other gods and all the
Men sprang forth from the eye of Ra, to be pleasing in his sight. And he placed
them on the face of the earth and he encouraged them to grow in the presence of his
light. And he saw that the world that he had created was good, so he desired to go
down into it and to work in it as a master over all. So he descended from the heavens,
leaving the protective embrace of Nut and he took on a body like our own. And he
became king over the first nation of the Earth. He built his palace on the banks of the
Nile, creating the great nation of Egypt, the nation blessed of the gods. And he caused
Maat to come out from him and bring peace and order to the world.
The Names of Ra
Ra has many great names that are not know to minds of men. He has been
called Atum, Amun, and Kheperi by various peoples at various times. Among these
names there is one that is not known even to the other gods. This is the name that is
written in the scroll of Nu. This name gives Ra divine power and makes him king over all
the gods. Now long ago Isis, the great enchantress, would wander the depths of the
void, searching for knowledge of the secret things. As she wandered there she came to
know Nu, and she saw that he carried with him always a pouch around his neck. She
Now, Isis was always looking for things that she did not know. And she was
seized by her curiosity and used her powers to bind Nu in the void, for she was strong in
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the ways of magic. And she took the pouch from around his neck, and tried to open it.
But the cords that bound the pouch would not yield to her will. Nu shook his head in
sadness. "The seal cannot be broken by anything other than the secret name of Ra."
This caught Isis's attention, and she left Nu and sought to gain the power of Ra.
She plotted a way that Ra might give up his name and power to her.
She knew that Ra was strong in body and in heart, and that her magics would
have no power over him. So she came up with a cunning plan to use his strength
against him: for only Ra could hurt Ra. She waited at Ra's palace until the great god
rested from the powerful works of his days. When at last Ra fell asleep she crept into
where he rested and used an enchanted knife to slice away a piece of his shadow
which she stored in a jar. She retreated quickly lest Ra wake and find her with a piece of
himself, and she retreated to her own home on the earth, where she lived as a woman
magician. At her place she worked long and hard over the piece of shadow, she
fashioned it with knowledge and secret powers and created from it a snake whose
She delighted in her work and took the serpent to one of the places that Ra
And so it happened that as he walked about the kingdom surveying what he had
created that a snake hidden in the bushes struck him in the heel causing him great pain.
The gods that were with him looked on in concern and asked him "Ra, mighty
beyond thought, what troubles you that you cry out so?"
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But Ra could not answer, for his body was shaking so badly that his teeth rattled
together so that he could not speak. The venom overwhelmed his body. After a while he
managed to compose himself and fight the poison enough to speak "Gather around, my
children, so that I can tell you of my troubles. I am wracked by a pain that I have never
felt before. And the cause of my pain is hidden now from my great sight. Great is the
power that afflicts me. Never before have I met a power that was thus able to harm me:
I am a god and the son of the one god; I am the Mightiest One. Father forged my name
in a secret place and he concealed it in his scroll so that no magician might ever know it
so that it might not be used against me. I am the sun: Khepera at dawn, Ra at high
noon, and Tum at eventide. By these names I call upon the power that works upon me
Now Isis felt the power of this command, and she cowered in fear, because she
was afraid that her work would be undone by the powerful will of Ra. But the power of
Ra's words did not come upon her because the venom was made out of Ra's own
shadow, which answered to none of the names Ra spoke. If she had worked the spell
without the aid of Ra's shadow Ra's words would have destroyed her then.
Ra cried out in despair when the pain did not cease at his words. "I am the Great
god Ra, all things were created out of my will. My will worked all things, why does my
will fail me on this?" And he went into a great despair and the world went dark.
Isis went to the other gods and gathered them together and spoke to them. "Ra,
our great-father is ill, he must be made well, call all of our brothers and sisters and have
them come and bring the greatest cures they know that they might work healing upon
him."
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And so all the children of Ra gathered together full for fear and sadness, for it
was unheard of that a god should die. And the thought of Ra weakened frightened them
all. Even those who lusted after his power were brought to terror. And Isis came with
them, pretending to sorrow greatly, she put forth a great show with much wailing and
lamenting as all the other gods attempted by their words and magics and cures, to
make Ra well. But all of their attempts failed to even ease the pain that wracked Ra's
body, for none of their powers could work against the power of Ra. Once all the other
gods had made their attempt Isis came forth "What ails you father?" she asked, her
tongue weaving between her teeth. She examined Ra's body. "Thou hast been bitten by
a serpent, great Ra, one of the creatures thou didst create. Why can you not work your
healing?"
"My eyes grow dim, a strange fire burns through my body while at the same time
waters quench my own inner fire. Why do my powers fail me?" Ra cried out.
"Do not worry father Ra," Isis said, "I will weave great spells, I will thwart your
enemy with magics. But I fear that I cannot prevail on my own. I must overwhelm the
serpent with the brightness of thy glory. But first, you must reveal your secret name to
me, for your name will allow me to deliver thee from thy distress by the power of thy
name."
Ra heard her in great sorrow and he said: "I have created the heavens. Behold! I
have even framed the earth, and the mountains are the work of my hands; I made the
sea, and I cause the Nile to flood the land of Egypt. I am the Great Father of the gods
and the goddesses. I gave life unto them. I created every living thing that moves upon
the dry land and in the sea depths. When I open my eyes there is light: when I close
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them there is thick darkness. My secret name is known not unto the gods. I am Khepera
at dawn, Ra at high noon, and Tum at eventide. What I command my will works." But his
Isis heard Ra's lament, and rejoiced in her heart. For she knew that her desire
was close at hand. "Divine father, thou hast not yet spoken thy name of power. If thou
And as Isis spoke these words, fires of venom burned stronger in Ra's heart. And
he looked up into the eyes of Isis and he beheld her plan, and he did not desire that any
of the gods have power over him. He hid his understanding and pretended to cry out in
pain again. "It is my will that my name go out from me and be revealed to Isis." And then
he pretended to fall into a deep sleep, the fires of the sun retreated completely from the
Isis rejoiced secretly in her heart as the knowledge of the name came to her.
"With this knowledge I will be able to command the eyes of Ra, the sun that sees in the
day and the moon that sees in the night." And so she called on her powers and soothed
Ra's pain. "Depart, O venom of Ra, from Ra; come forth from heart and flesh; flow out,
shining from his mouth. By my will and by the secret name of Ra I command you." And
the venom spilled out of Ra's mouth, shining bright silver. "Behold! I have overcome the
serpent and caused the venom to be spilled upon the ground, because the secret name
of the divine father hath been given unto me . . . . Now let Ra live, for the venom hath
And so was Ra made whole. The venom departed from his body and there was
no longer pain in his heart or any sorrow. He opened his eyes once more, shedding light
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on the world, and his eyes blinded Isis standing before him and he shook his head. "If
you wanted more power and place among the gods all you needed was to ask and I
would have granted it to you, for you were favored among the gods. Your power is great
that you managed to fool me for a time, and that you have learned my secret name. But
I compel you by the full force of my will to never share or use the knowledge you have
gained to control me." And Isis felt the weight of Ra's words descend on her, and she
knew that her effort was in vain, the secret knowledge was locked as surely within her
as it was within Ra and within Nu's pouch. "For saving my life I grant you one wish to
compel the world as you desire by my name, whatever you want of it, so long as it does
not seek to unseat me from my power. However, for causing me this pain I will curse
you with a great tragedy that will destroy everything that you love. Now go and be wise."
Rebellion Against Ra
As Ra ruled over the people of Egypt his body body began to age, like the body
of a man. His subjects in the lower kingdom began to speak disdainfully about him
behind his back. "Our king Ra grows old" they said, "his bones, once strong, grow weak.
His skin is aged bronze, not the burnished gold it once was."
They thought that their words were spoken in secret, but all things come back to
Ra in the end, just so these words came back to Ra, and he grew angry that his people
would speak such words against him and he said to himself. "Am I not gracious Ra,
have I not been good to my people, has my face not shone on them and given them
great prosperity? What have I done that they should mock me? These are my creations,
they should not say such things. I am god, the greatest of gods. What is it to them that
my body grows old? I am still strong." And so he called together and spoke to his
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servants, the other gods, and he said to them "Bring before me Shu and Tefnut, Seb
and Nut, the first of the gods, bring Nu before me also. Let the great gods come here,
and gather in secret that men not behold them and take flight in fear."
The great gods came and bowed before Ra, hiding their coming from men. And
once they had gathered they came before Ra's great sun-throne and said, "Speak what
Ra was very pleased with this gathering, his face shone with his pleasure as he
looked over the gods. "Nu," he said, "Eldest of gods, my father, who wrote words that
started creation, I did not know if you would come. But it pleases me much that even
Nu bowed his head. "You are the greatest god. Even your creator comes to serve
you."
And Ra was greatly pleased as he turned to the other gods. "My children, who
were with me before the world was fully formed. There are men who have spoken evil
words against me. Men, who came out of my will dare to speak words that are against
me. They think that I have grown weak in my age. But they do not know the power of
the gods. They dare even to consider raising arms against me. I asked you heare to
counsel me in this matter. I am hesitent to punish mankind until I have heard from you
"Why do you seek our counsel?" Seb asked, "you are first among gods and if you
Ra looked down from his throne, his eyes burning brightly with fire. "I asked you
here because I desire in my heart to destroy completely what I have created. Their
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foolish words have spurred me to anger. If it were left to me I would wash the world with
the fire of my wrath and return everything to the watery void from which it began.
Leaving me and no-one else alive save for Osiris and Anubis: for Anubis must remain
alive to rule over the vast number of the dead. But Osiris will rule over a new world
The gods were dismayed at Ra's words of anger. For they too would be punished
by Ra's wrath against man. They all recoiled in fear. Until Nu, in his watery peace spoke
forth words of wisdom "Hear me, my son, greatest of gods and mightier than me.
Remember back to the begining as I speak this words, and hear my counsel.
Remember that I gave thee life in the beginning, and that I wrote your secret name in
my scroll. Your kingdom is secure, your throne is great. Even if these rebellious people
were to come up against you all their works would be futile. They could no more slay
you than a sand beetle could slay a full grown man. Your might is great, but let not your
wrath consume the whole world. Your power can work against the rebels without
destroying everything. Send out your eye, your daughter Hathor, to seek out the rebels
in the kingdom."
Ra was pleased with this counsel and sent the other gods away. Summoning his
daughter Hathor. "There are people among the lower kingdom," he told her. "Evil rebels
speaking words against me. They wish to rise up and slay me."
Hathor bowed before him. "As you created me from your body. As I watch over
and care for the growing things of this world. I will not allow you to be destroyed," she
said, her eyes flaring with anger. "I will seek out those who have wronged you and I will
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destroy them. Until their blood flows freely on the ground I am no longer the gentle-
And she rose up and went forth from Ra, and went into the lower kingdom and
sought out those who had spoken so against Ra. And she happened upon them
cowering in caves in the hills. And she slew them quickly. And she rejoiced as she slew.
And she went forth from the caves and found more who saught to oppose Ra. And she
slew them too. She decended into a murderous rage, slaughtering the enemies of Ra
across the countryside of the lower kingdom, leaving a swath of bodies in her wake. For
many days and nights she rejoiced in her work, Sehkmet the bloody walked the earth
and she waded in the blood. And Ra in his glory stayed in the sky for these days
watching with pleasure as his anger worked out through his daughter.
always in they sky. So he sent his servants to gather the barley of the lower kingdom,
and he brewed beer from the blood of the rebels. And as he tasted it and his anger was
abated. And he had pity on the remnant of the rebels. They had tasted his anger long
enough. But he could not calm Sehkmet from her anger. And she would surely purge
them entirely. So he devised a plan. He looked at the seven thousand jars of beer that
Sehkmet rested that night in the sight of Ra, and Ra commanded that his servent
take the beer he had made and empty the jars where she slept. And the land was
flooded with the blood. So that when Sehkmet awoke her heart was glad and she saw
her glorious face reflected in the surface of the blood. And she began to drink. She did
not stop drinking until she was so drunk that she wandered across the land covered in
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blood and paid no heed to mankind. And as she was drunk Ra came to her and calmed
And so Hathor returned, no longer was she Sehkmet, but she was again the
After Hathor returned to Ra, he spoke to her about how his body had aged. He
was growing old. He had spent long enough ruling the earth as a man. "I am pained," he
said. "I can feel the age in my body. My mind is still strong, but the years have come to
torment me. I grow weary. I have lost my desire to live among men. They rose up
against me and spoke ill of my age. But I did not destroy them completely in my mercy."
And the gods that were with him grew excited, at the thought that Ra would be
leaving them and they would have their chance at power. "Rest for a time," they told
him. "Leave this world to us. You have created a great thing. You have earned your
rest."
And Ra answered them. "My body grows weak, and my streangth fails me. I will
not travel here any more, and I shall not wait for my body to fail completely. Bring me
Nu, my father."
The gods brought Nu and left the two of them alone at Ra's command. Nu asked
Ra. "What ails you my son. Did I not create you to be eternal? Is not your name written
in my scroll?"
Ra answered. "My name is in your scroll, but the body I have created is like that
"Then take on your old body," Nu said, "Or a new one, that does not bear the
frailty of man."
Ra nodded his assent. "I took this body to share the pain of men and to rule over
them justly. But they have betrayed the balance of Maat, and I have no desire to
continue as they are. Come, call my children. Shu, and Nut, and Hathor. They shall help
And Shu and Nut came. "Lift me onto your back, Shu. Carry me into the
heavens."
And darkness fell again on the land. Men cried out in fear as the light of Ra left
the world. They were afraid that the punishment worked by Sehkmet would continue
again. That the darkness was a sign of Ra's continued wrath. And they begged for Ra to
only slay those wicked who profaned his name and kingship. And they wept all the
Until the bright light of Ra shone from the east. As he was born up into the sky,
his eyes turned down on the world from above. Where he could now see everything
from afar and did not have to worry about the pains of age. Or the machinations of
human enemies. His glory illuminated the whole world once more. And the men rejoiced
and took up their arms and marched into the lower kingdom, where enemies of Ra still
dwelt. And they slew them, completing the work that Hathor had been stayed from. Ra
looked down from the heavens and he was pleased. And he spoke to his high priest.
"Now is your sin forgiven. Death pays for the words that have been spoken. Sacrifice:
life slakes wrath. Worship me and speak not wrongly of me. And I will shine my light
And the priests were grateful and the people went out and gathered animals and
sacrificed a thousand bulls to Ra that day, offering up life and blood as a pleasing aroma
to Ra.
Ra smelled the sacrifice rising to him. And he ate of the flesh. And he looked
down on the earth. He turned to Nut. "From now on I will rule from the heavens. My
see day and night through my eyes, the sun and moon, which now shine from above.
And he went through the heavens, creating lands there apart from the lands
below. The fields of Aalu. He gave life to the stars the shone in Nut's garments. They
came to life and they worshiped Ra, like unto him, but lesser in glory.
And he crafted the halls of the underworld, and granted reign there to Anubis and
he commanded Thoth to record the sins of men, to take the names of his enemies and
bind them in Duat when they have left the mortal world.
And the sun-throne of Ra circles the world, passing through the twelve hours of
day above and the twelve hours of night below, through Duat, the underworld. He called
to his priests. "In the evening," he told them, "when I grow old in the sky. And I am Tum,
say seventy-five invocations of power to defeat the demons of darkness who wait on the
horizon for me to descend to Duat. Your words will be heard and Anubis will open the
western gate, and all the dead will pass into the underworld with me, to have their
Ra carries a scepter in one hand, to judge the people. And he bears the Ankh of
life in the other. And through the underworld he passes every night. And he faces the
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demon of darkness, the great sun-swallower Apep. The night serpent, who desires to
devour him, but he sheds his light in the Underworld, giving light unto the souls of the
dead. And then he passes over the watery abyss of Nu and is lifted up into the heavens
and is born of Hathor and carried across the sky that is Nut.
The Tale of Osiris
Marlin Klingensmith
Geneva College
Spring 2010
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In the time when the gods still walked the world, after Ra left this world to make
his daily circuit through the heavens and the underworld. The throne of the living world
was granted to Ra's favorite, his grandson, the son of Geb and Nut. Born of earth and
sky. He bridged the gap between heaven and the underworld, ruling kindly over the
realm of mankind. After the slaughter of the lower kingdom Osiris knit the people back
together again in one kingdom. He watched over the harvest and assured that the crops
would grow well. This was a time of great prosperity and peace. The land was fruitful at
his suggestion, the sky brought forth rain to water the crops. The Nile was ever-full in
the flood-times. All of the land prospered. And Isis, the firstborn of Geb and Nut, was his
wife, ruling at his side. She used her great cunning and wisdom, which rivaled that even
Maat, the goddess of balance, was appeased by the rule of Osiris, and she kept
the world in balance. And peace was over the entire world, for it was the golden age.
And all of mankind was at peace, for they could do nothing against the might of the
gods. But there was one among the gods who was jealous of Osiris's position. Set,
Osiris's brother, who defends the sun-boat of Ra from the Serpent-destroyer Apep every
night thought that he should have been raised to the throne when Ra retreated to the
heavens. His heart was poisoned by desire. He wanted what Osiris had. He passed
over the world every day, looking at the peace, and the joy. And he saw the beauty of
Isis, and the golden palace of Osiris. And then every night he would descend into the
darkness with his mighty spear to defend the sun boat as it passed through the
darkness. His prowess at combat was greater than Osiris's. If Osiris had to guard the
sun-boat than Ra would be devoured by the great serpent. But even though his might at
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arms was greater than that of Osiris he would not be able to defeat the magics that Isis
had placed around him. Isis, the blessed enchantress was endowed with great power
over magic. Her spells were more powerful than any others. And Set did not want to
Every time he would go to bed with his wife, Nephthys, he did not have any
desire for her, for his mind was on Isis, his other sister. His desire for Isis was so great
that Nephthys, despite her greatest effort could not awaken the spark of love in Set. And
she was greatly distressed, and began to suspect the reason for Set's lack of interest in
her.
One day as Set thought upon his revenge and rested on his bed, Nephthys
conspired to dress herself as Isis and came to Set and offered herself to him. But Set
was so caught up in his plots against Osiris that he did not notice that it was not Isis, but
he was also so caught up in his plans that even his wife dressed as Isis was not enough
to bring him peace. And he began to hate Osiris even more, and he spoke to his wife
who was disguised as Isis and told her of his plans. And she was angered and revealed
Set left from his bed in anger and he went to the palace of Osiris as Osiris slept
and he measured the body of Osiris and he took the measurements to the craftsmen on
the earth, and he had a box made to the exact measurements of Ra. And he had it
inscribed with great magics that would prevent escape. Set returned to his home and he
rested. Nephthys could do nothing against the wrath of Set though she tried to come to
him again. Begging him not to carry through with his plan. For she did not want him to
be killed. For this was before any of the gods had been slain.
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A feast was being held among the gods, and the male gods were known to have
great tests of strength and power while the women-gods gave gifts to the people in the
courtyard. Set brought with him the box and he challenged anyone to get into the box,
whoever fit in the box would earn it as a prize, for it was made of fine gold. So Osiris,
drunk on fine beer, and seeing that the box was desirable, climbed into the box.
Set, in a single movement slammed shut the lid of the box and poured molten
lead into it. And in the presence of all the assembled gods he lifted the box above his
head and carried it to the Nile, where he threw it in. Osiris was trapped in the box, and
could not escape as the lead poured over his body. He was seared, and he could not
breath. So it was that he died in the box. As it was thrown into the river. The box sank to
the bottom of the Nile and was carried far to the south.
Nephthys approached Isis during the feast and warned her what was going to
happen. But Isis was too late to prevent Set's plan. But she agreed to Nephthys plans
and Nephthys disguised herself as Isis and went in to Set, pretending to be impressed
by his victory. And Set in his victory went in to her, and Nephthys was made happy.
Set took the throne of Osiris, and ruled the land. The gods followed him out of
fear. And Ra turned his face from the world and wept bitter tears for the passing of his
favorite child. In the world, darkened by Ra's mourning, the peace that had been
granted by Maat began to crumble. For Maat was displeased by the actions of Set. And
she was mistreated by Set. She alone set her face against him. Causing the people to
rise up. And there was a great war between the people and those who followed Set.
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There was much prayer from the children of the gods. But Ra did not listen for he
Isis at last found the body of Osiris, still in the box, where it had come to rest
against a bush that had now grown into a great tree. She worked her magic and
removed the box from the tree. And she carried it through the desert on her way back to
the great city where Osiris's great temple was. As she traveled she worked every night,
tirelessly trying to open the box and undo the magics that Set had worked upon it.
At last she managed to open the box and she looked down upon the body of
Osiris. And she wept and threw herself upon him. And she cried bitter tears. And she
prayed a mighty prayer that was so strong that it drew Osiris's spirit back into his body.
But it happened, that as the bonds that chained Osiris in the box were broken Set
felt them. And he looked upon the face of his lover, and he realized that he had been
deceived and he rose in a wrath, and struck Nephthys a mighty blow and gathered a
great army and stormed out into the desert. He traveled fast, by chariot, across the face
of the world. And he came to where Osiris and Isis were locked in loving embrace.
Anger filled him, and he struck Osiris through the heart with his spear. And he picked
him up with his bare hands and he tore him into pieces, first he removed his manhood
and devoured it, the rest of Osiris's body he tore into 12 pieces which he gave to his
army to take to the far reaches of the world where they would not be found.
Set then forced himself upon Isis and entered where Osiris had been but
moments before. And he raped his sister. Who he thought he had as wife for the course
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of his rule. And he was filled with the flood of victory. For the manhood of Osiris
When he woke the next morning he found that Isis had left him and he
descended again into a mighty rage, but all his power could not reveal to him where Isis
had gone. So he returned to his palace where his tyranny grew greater.
Isis wandered the far reaches of the world, trying to find the pieces of her
beloved that had been distributed. She went first to Nephthys, while Set slept in the
desert who agreed to help her and then she went to Thoth who provided her with
wisdom and also agreed to help. For wisdom did not see any growth under the rule of
Set as it had in the day of Osiris. And together they worked a spell that allowed Isis to
locate in turn all the pieces. And she bore a son of her last encounter with Osiris, and
she named him Horus, and he traveled beside his mother, waiting for his time to
revenge his mother's rape and his father's murder. Isis found Osiris's head in the far
north reaches, past the Mediterranean sea. His feet she found in the deserts far to the
south, where no man had lived. But in the end she managed to gather all the pieces
together. She bound his body in linen strips to keep it together. And she prayed to Ra.
"Remember the time that you granted me a wish, to re-shape the world as I pleased by
your name. When I conspired to trick your true-name out of you? I call on that promise
now, oh great maker. Remember me, and remember your son, Osiris, your favorite."
And so it was that she was granted the power to do as she pleased, and she re-
awoke the spark of life in Osiris, and he was restored, his body was made whole again,
save for his manhood that had been devoured by unholy Set. Though Isis fashioned him
one of the finest gold. And Osiris embraced his wife Isis and held her in his arms again.
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"Thank you faithful, beautiful, Isis whose works are beyond all praise. You have
granted me restoration and rebirth." Osiris praised his wife. "But, you know that Maat
has a law that once something has been dead it cannot live in this world any longer. I
must not stay in this world over-long for fear of angering Maat. I can not rule the world
Isis was tearful. "But I worked so hard to have you back, must you certainly leave
me?"
Osiris wrapped her again in his arms. "Do not think that your works have been in
vain. For my spirit has a form, and the gods may pass between the gates of the dead,
so I shall see you again. But the balance must be maintained. I will not go against the
"I understand, beautiful Osiris. I will come to you. Not even death or Maat can
keep me you from my love." Isis said and then introduced their son Horus to his father.
And Osiris was glad to see the glorious face of his son and commanded that
Horus should take the throne from Set and gave him his blessing.
recognized the great power of the one reborn and stepped aside saying, "Here has
come one greater than me, whose sandals I am not worthy to unlace. I will take my
place, opening the doorway for the souls of the dead. You, my lord must rule the lands
here."
Horus then went with his mother to the palace of Set, armed with magic granted
him by Isis, and a magical knife created by Thoth. And Ra's face shined again on the
world. And Horus stormed through the gate. And none of the gods or men that served
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Set dared stand in his way as he made his way to his father's throne, where Set sat,
ruling in tyranny over the world. And Horus challenged Set to a duel, and faced him. And
there was a great battle that lasted for many days. Set was defeated, but before the
final blow fell Horus withdrew his hand. And he smiled down on his wicked uncle. "Today
I have defeated you, but I graciously allow you to live, if you withdraw your claim to the
throne." But Set would not withdraw his claim. And the gods began to fight again. And
so Horus was forced to the final blow. His sword fell one last time, and removed Set's
manhood. In disgrace Set fled into the darkness. And Horus ascended the throne, to
Set fell into the shadows, and he conspired with the world-serpent Apep, and his
jealousy now works against the Sun-boat of Ra every night int he darkness, but the
Osiris rules the land of the dead as well as he ruled the land of the living. He
weighs the balance of Maat, providing the scales of judgment against which every soul
of the dead is weighed. He commends the just to the lands of the blessed. And he
Horus ruled peacefully for a long time, until his rule stirred up dissent among the
people. The people grew impatient always serving the same ruler, who never changed
and was always the same. For they changed, and their needs changed. And it was hard
for a god who was always the same to serve their needs in rule. So it was that Horus
retreated to the realm of the gods and did not show his true face upon the earth. But he
sent an incarnation to take his place on the throne, to live as a man and to die as a man
when it was time. And that way he satisfied the balance of Maat. And change could
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occur, and the people could develop into a mighty power. Ruled ever by a changing
And so it is that Horus watches over the people while they live, and gives
guidance to the people, in his incarnation as Pharaoh and his father Osiris watches over
them in the next life. So it is that the gods are at peace. So it is that Set, wicked Set,
eternally strives for revenge, battling Horus at every turn. When Horus wins, Maat is
upheld and the world is at peace. When Set wins, the world is in turmoil. But we know
that dark times do not last forever, and the face of Horus will shine over the world again
again. In the last days, Horus and Set will fight one last time for the world. Horus will
defeat Set forever, and Osiris will be able to return to this world. On that day, the Day of
Awakening, all the tombs shall open and the just dead shall live again, and all sorrow
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