M. Isidora Forrest's Blog, page 48

The Disturbing Story of Isis & Re…More Disturbing Than Ever??

This is a repost of a previous blog entry. Two reasons. One, I have two other huge deadlines that I’m trying to meet this weekend. And two, this is an important Isis myth. It almost always gets overshadowed by the main Isis and Osiris myth, the murder of Osiris and Isis’ search for Him.

But this is the Isis myth that is, for many, the most unsettling when we are first learning our Isis lore; and that is the tale of how Isis tricked the Sun God Re into revealing His most secret name and thereby gained additional power for Herself and for Her son, Horus. Know that story? If not, here’s a link to Isis Magic on Googlebooks; go to page 61 and start reading there. (Since I originally wrote this post, Isis Magic is back in print and available here. Yay!) That way I can leave space in this post for another intriguingly similar story I want to tell.

On the basis of this tale, some have decided that Isis is an evil magician. I have even seen the story—recently, I might add—used as an argument to show how naturally underhanded all women are. And, on the face of it, the tale is troubling. Isis decides to gain power. She deliberately poisons Re, then cures Him only after He reveals to Her His most secret, hidden, and powerful name. The name gives Isis Divine power equal to Re’s and She secures from Re a promise that He will give His Two Eyes, the sun and moon, to Her son Horus.

What are we to make of this? Is Isis just another underhanded and tricky female? Perhaps we should consider Her as one of the Trickster Deities. She’s a Divine Magician, after all, and magicians are always tricky. Or maybe Isis was forced to resort to magical artifice to break through a Divine glass ceiling. Think of royal women in the Egyptian court. Because they did not have outright power equal to men’s, they would have used tricks, subterfuge, perhaps even poison, as a path to power. We must remember that it is always human beings who tell these stories, thus all stories come through a human filter.

As you might guess, none of these explanations satisfy me. I do have one that does, but it will take me a little while to get to my point, so I hope you’ll bear with me.

Background Info

There are several things you should know about this story. First, the version of the tale that has come down to us is from a papyrus known as the Turin Papyrus. It has been dated to Egypt’s 20th dynasty, about 1186-1169 BCE. No doubt, the story itself is much, much older, but the version we have comes from the later time. Second, the story is part of a healing formula to cure snakebite. Egyptian medicine almost always had a magical prescription as well as whatever herbal or surgical therapy was given. Such prescriptions often included a myth that related to the problem, followed by a statement that just as so-and-so was cured in the myth, so shall the sufferer be cured. In this case, just as Re was cured by Isis, so shall the snakebite sufferer be cured. Instruction is given at the end of the formula to recite the story over images of the main characters in the tale.

Elements of the Myth: the old king

The papyrus tells us that Re was so old that He drooled. In a time when the pharaoh was considered a God, and therefore should be the epitome of physical, mental and spiritual perfection, it would hardly be acceptable to have a ruler so old He drooled. Myths such as the death of the Holly King in Celtic countries, ritual combat to the death between the outgoing priest of Diana at the grove of Nemi and an incoming hopeful, and Arthurian legends of the Wounded King of the Wasteland—all point to the archetypal nature of this theme.

Elements of the Myth: the Goddess of Renewal

If you know anything about Isis, you know that one of Her key powers is the ability to renew and resurrect. The Turin papyrus tells us that Isis came to Re with Her magic and that Her “mouth was full of the breath of life.” When Sirius, the Star of Isis, rose in late summer, it signaled the beginning of the New Year and the renewal of all things. Her magic brought Osiris back to life enough to conceive Horus and then gave Him a new existance as Lord of the Dead. As some of you may know, I believe Isis is the ancient Bird of Prey Goddess. Thus She is the Lady of Death and Regeneration, an identity that She has never lost, even to this day. Since the failing Re does not willingly give up His power, Isis must create the conditions that force the old ruler to the point of renewal.

Elements of the Myth: the saliva of the God

In Egypt, magic might be worked by means of bodily fluids. Saliva, semen, blood, sweat, milk, and other such fluids were a means of creation. If it was the blood, sweat, and tears of the Deities, it was even more creative and powerful. Since Re drooled, rather than purposefully spitting (for example, when Atum creatively spit to give birth to the Goddess Tefnut), He was wasting His power.

Elements of the Myth: the holy serpent

Yet, the Goddess does not let it go to waste. Instead, She mixes Re’s drool with earth, the place of renewal from which new life grows, to create a holy cobra. The cobra is a mixture of life—in that it is made partly of earth and will ultimately cause Re to be healed—and death—in that it is made from the wasted generative power of Re and is a symbol of His unfitness for His throne. And of course, the serpent is an almost universal symbol of renewal due to the snake’s ability to shed its skin and emerge new from the experience.

In the form of the holy cobra, Re’s own weakness strikes Him and brings Him more pain than He has ever before experienced. He quakes with cold and burns with fire.

Elements of the Myth: name magic

In Egyptian magical theory, to know someone or something’s name is to be able to access its essence at the time of Creation, when all heka was at its more pure and potent. In this story, Re is considered the most powerful Deity in the universe (the tale also contains a litany of Re’s great powers). Knowing His secret name confers ultimate power; including the power to heal. As Isis tells Re, “the person who hath declared his name shall live.”

If this story is very ancient, it may be that its original form, in which Isis renews Re simply because that’s what the Goddess does, was lost. Perhaps later scribes tried to explain the Mystery to themselves and their audiences by framing it as a trick to gain power. Thus what may seem like simple blackmail is actually much more profound. Re is being forced to reveal a most secret and inner part of Himself to the Goddess. To be healed, He must make Himself vulnerable to the Lady of Renewal. He must accept both Her help and Her very real power.

Once Re gives Himself over to Isis, He is healed, renewed in strength and power. He learns that He must give up in order to gain. He learns to trust the Goddess Whom He has been forced to trust. And the Goddess proves Herself worthy. In no successive myth do we ever find any evidence that Isis abuses the ultimate power She has gained.

But Wait, There’s More

In the very same papyrus in which this story is found, there is a parallel story involving Horus and Set. It, too, is a magical snakebite cure. Here’s that story:

Horus and Set were voyaging together on Horus’ golden barque. Suddenly, Set cried out, “Come to me Horus, I have been bitten!”

And Horus turned to Set and said, “Tell Me Thy name, that I may work magic for Thee. One works magic for a man through his name, and a God is greater than His reputation.”

Set replied, “I am Yesterday, I am Today, I am Tomorrow That Has Not Yet Come.”

But Horus said, “No, Thou art not Yesterday, Today, or Tomorrow That Has Not Yet Come. Tell me Thy name, that I may work magic for Thee. One works magic for a man through his name, and a God is greater than His reputation.”

So Set said, “I am a Quiver of Arrows, I am a Cauldron of Disturbance.”

“No, Thou art not,” said Horus and repeated what He had said before.

“I am a Man of a Thousand Cubits, Whose Reputation is Not Known.”

“No, Thou art not,” said Horus and repeated again what He had said.

“I am a Threshing Floor; I am a Jug of Milk, Milked from the Breast of Bastet.

“No, Thou art not,” said Horus again.

Finally, Set replied with His True Name, “I am a Man of a Million Cubits Whose Name is Evil Day. As for the Day of Giving Birth or of Conceiving, There is No Giving Birth and Trees Bear No Fruit.”

The formula concludes with the promise that the sufferer will be made as sound as Horus was by Isis, so even though in this story Horus is one Who is pushing Set to reveal His true name, the cure is attributed to Isis.

What the Trickster Teaches

It seems clear to me that a key to both of these myths is vulnerability to the Divine that precedes healing. We must reveal our innermost selves, symbolized by our true name, to Goddess, to God. We must do so even if, like Set, it is a name with which we are not entirely comfortable. We must give ourselves over to the Divine, as we are, right now, with no masks. Only in this state of radical openness can we receive the renewing gifts that Divinity has for us. Like Re and like Set, we must—at least eventually—be willing to acknowledge and trust the Divine in order to bring Its power into our lives. This vulnerability and revelation of truth can be painful, like poison; and yet the truth always frees us.

Like Re especially, we must acknowledge the power of Goddess and make ourselves open to Her. If we don’t, She will find a way—perhaps a rather difficult way—to bring that lack to our attention. But when we do reveal ourselves to Her, we can know Her and be known by Her. We can enter into mystical communion with Her as we move through the natural cycle of death and renewal that is guided by Her hand.

Filed under: Goddess Isis Tagged: Egyptian magic, Isis, Isis & Re, Isis Magic, Pagan Spirituality, The Goddess, The Goddess and modern women

Isis & the Magic of Myrrh

A hymn to Isis at Her temple in Philae says,

“O Isis, giver of life, who dwells in the Pure Island, take to yourself the myrrh which comes from Punt, the lotus-fragrance which issues from your body, that your heart may be glad through it, and that your heart may rejoice every day.”

Myrrh trees being planted in an Egyptian garden

Myrrh (commiphora myrrha) was one of the most sacred herbal substances of ancient Egypt and was a precious offering given to all the Deities. It was used in two primary forms: essential oil and gum resin. Myrrh oil was considered one of the Seven Sacred Oils of Egypt and the gum resin was frequently burned as incense. Both oil and resin were used in a wide variety of perfumes and medicines.

If you are not familiar with it, myrrh produces a strange and interesting scent. I wouldn’t exactly call it a “lotus fragrance” as the Isis hymn says. In fact, “bitter” is a word you could use of it, but it’s bitter in a good way, like bitter herbs that serve as a catalyst to bring out the flavors of in certain foods. When the resin first hits the coal, there is a brief sweet note, but it quickly gives way to a darker burnt-wood scent. I use it as an underworld fragrance, but often mix it with amber to sweeten the scent.

[image error]

Myrrh resin or “tears” weeping from the tree trunk

Myrrh resin is exuded by several species of trees native to Arabia and eastern Africa. The Egyptians imported myrrh from Punt, in modern Somalia; and much of the world’s myrrh still comes from that area. In appearance, myrrh trees are small and shrub-like with gnarled branches, triple leaves, and small white flowers. The resin weeps naturally from the trunk and may be easily collected. However, small cuts are often made in the trunk to increase the flow. Thus the resin can be said to result from the wounding and weeping of the tree. In addition to myrrh’s bitterness, this is perhaps another reason for its association with sorrow, mourning, and death. Myrrh oil was one of the most important used in mummification—so much so that some of Egypt’s ancient mummies still smell of myrrh. “Death is before me today, like the fragrance of myrrh,” says an ancient text. Myrrh was sometimes said to have originated in the underworld.

Myrrh is sacred to Isis in Her role as Goddess of Death and Mourning. Myrrh’s bitterness may easily be associated with Isis’ bitter task of searching for the scattered pieces of Her beloved husband’s body. In the magical papyri, myrrh is called the Guide of Isis for it was thought to assist Her in this sorrowful task. While the papyri don’t say specifically how Isis employed Her “guide,” we can speculate that She may have burned it as incense—perhaps as part of a visionary rite—or made it into ink with which to inscribe amulets to aid Her search. A recipe for one such magical ink included myrrh, along with dried figs, date pits, and wormwood. The ritual instructions tell us that this ink was the one Isis used to record Her magical words as She fit together the members of Osiris. Myrrh was also sometimes called the Tears of Horus, perhaps in connection with His own mourning for His father.

Myrrh tears

Even though the Egyptians closely associated myrrh with death, they also connected it with pleasure and power. Myrrh was one of the many fragrances favored by the Lady of Joy, Hathor, and it was an ingredient in many, many of the most famous Egyptian perfumes. In perfume, the slight bitterness of myrrh adds depth to many lighter, sweeter fragrances. In the funerary texts, the deceased was expected to spend pleasant hours living and eating beneath myrrh trees in the Otherworld. In one interesting formula, the deceased claims that his putrefaction—the fluid from his decaying body—is actually myrrh and that his Divine Mother Hathor anoints Herself with it. Myrrh was also the incense burned in temples of Re at noon, the time of His greatest power. The strong scent of myrrh reflected the noontime power of the Sun.

[image error]

“Offering to Isis” by Sir Edward John Poynter, 1866; perhaps she has myrrh in that little container?

Magically, myrrh is used to purify, bless, and protect. It is said to increase the power of any incense with which it is burned. The dark scent of myrrh aids meditation and may be used to awaken our awareness of the spiritual realities behind the everyday world. Thus it is an excellent scent for use not only in meditation, but also before and during magical rites. Because of its association with death, myrrh is often connected with the planets Saturn and Mars, considered planets of ill fortune in ancient astrology. Today’s astrologers take a more balanced view of these two planets—attributing to them stability, strength, and energy. This view is clearly in step with myrrh’s ancient associations with power and protection.

On the practical side, myrrh is slightly antiseptic so the powdered resin may be dusted on sores as a local disinfectant. It is an astringent, a digestive aid, and an anti-gas tonic. Used as a mouthwash, it relieves sore teeth and gums. Taken internally, it cures bad breath and tightens loose teeth. It may be taken for coughs, asthma, and other chest problems. The ancient Egyptians used myrrh for all these purposes and more. From personal experience, I can also add that the essential oil works like catnip for my cat.

Myrrh is a balm of healing, protection, and care for the dead. It is a scent of spiritual power and energy. As Goddess of Death and Mourning, Lady of Healing, and one of Egypt’s most powerful Goddesses, Isis is the Lady of Myrrh.

Filed under: Goddess Isis Tagged: Aspects of Isis, Egyptian magic, Goddess worship, Isis and Myrrh, Isis Magic, Isis Rituals, Isis worship today, The Goddess,

A Festival of Lights for Isis

One of the things I’ve been looking at lately is the continuity between the ancient Egyptian nature and worship of Isis and its later expression when Her religion spread throughout the Greco-Roman world.

There are many such points of continuity, in my opinion, but one that caught my attention recently is Isis’ enduring expression as a Lady of Light.

An oil lamp from Egypt, Roman period. It shows Isis and Harpocrates.

The ancient Egyptians held Festivals of Lights in which the entire town or city would light oil lamps that would burn throughout the night—entirely equivalent to our own stringing of lights at Halloween or Yule. (My imagination sees Egyptian neighbors vying with each other over elaborate displays of lights.)

The historian Herodotus (5th century BCE) writes about such a Festival of Lights at Sais, the city of Neith. He says:

“At the times when they gather together at the city of Sais for their sacrifices, on a certain night they all kindle lamps many in number in the open air round about the houses; now the lamps are saucers full of salt and oil mixed, and the wick floats by itself on the surface, and this burns during the whole night; and to the festival is given the name Lychnocaia (“Lamp Lighting”). Moreover those of the Egyptians who have not come to this solemn assembly observe the night of the festival and themselves also light lamps all of them, and thus not in Sais alone are they lighted, but over all Egypt: and as to the reason why light and honour are allotted to this night, about this there is a sacred story told.”

—Herodotus, Histories, Book II, Chapter 62

Illumination of the dead

There were Festivals of Light at the New Year and on the five epagomenal days that led up to it. On these days, the birthdays of Osiris, Horus, Set, Isis, and Nephthys were celebrated and lights were placed in tombs for the dead. If we can judge by Herodotus’ statement, then other Festivals of Lights were celebrated in which Egyptian homes were illuminated as well as tombs.

I read somewhere that the “sacred story” attached to the Sais festival was that the lights were to assist Isis in Her search for the body of Osiris, but so far I haven’t found confirmation on that. It might just be a scholar’s best guess. I’ll let you know what I find out.

In the meantime, lets leap forward about 800 years and move from Egypt to Rome.

The illustration for the month of August from the Calendar of Philocalus

The 4th-century-CE Calender of Philocalus lists a festival called the Lychnapsia Philocaliana on August 12th. As you may be able to guess, it was a lamp-lighting festival. The scholars who have studied it seem reasonably certain that it was an Isis festival because a.) the August 12th date of this lamp festival is at roughly the same time as the great Egyptian Festival of Lights at the epagomenal birthdays of the Deities, b.) Isis was extremely popular in Rome and anything Egyptian would have been considered Isiac as well, and c.) there are “Egyptian Days” designated on the calendar several days before and several days after the Lychnapsia.

Furthermore, the theory is that the August 12th date (due to some calendrical calculations with which I will not bore you) corresponded to the 4th epagomenal day—and the 4th epagomenal day is the birthday of Isis.

So there you are. In 354 CE, at Mediterranean latitudes, Isiacs could celebrate the birthday of Isis by the lighting of lamps in Her honor. Next month, modern Isiacs can do the same—perhaps by lighting candles and even putting them on a birthday cake for Her, thus joining today’s traditions with ancient ones. (Want to know when Sirius rises in your area so you can time Her birthday locally? Click here.)

Such interpretations and updating of our traditions is precisely what we human beings have always done. It enables us to connect with the richness of the past and to have traditions that continue to make spiritual and emotional sense to us.

If this scholarly theory about the birthday of Isis is correct, during those 800 years from 5th-century-BCE Egypt to 4th-century-CD Rome, the form of the Isis lamp-lighting rite no-doubt changed, the language changed, the images of the Goddess changed, and yet the essence of the festival was retained: the birth of Isis was celebrated with illuminations. In Egypt, these lamps may have illuminated the paths of the dead or kept the chaos of the end of the year at bay until the rising of a brand new light—the light of Sirius, the Star of Isis—rose to signal the arrival of the New Year. Hundreds of years later, in Rome, the lamps may have been symbols of the illumination brought by Isis to the souls of Her initiates and devotees or the Divine Light She shone upon them every day. What do the illuminations of Isis mean to you today and how will you celebrate?

Lychnapsia!

Filed under: Goddess Isis Tagged: Aspects of Isis, Goddess Isis, Goddess worship, Isis, Isis & Sirius, Isis Magic, Isis worship today, Lady of Light, Pagan Spirituality, why worship and how

Isis & Sacred Magic & Esoteric Books

I’ll be speaking at the Esoteric Book Conference in Seattle this coming September (September 15 at 11:30 a.m.) as part of the second edition release of Isis Magic. This is the hermetic event par excellence for all those who revere the works of Thoth, that is, BOOKS. By day, it’s books and lectures; by night, performance art. The Book Fair and Art Show portion of the conference is free and open to the public and yes, of course, we will have copies of Isis Magic available.

This is my first time attending or speaking there and I’m feeling just a tad nervous about it, not quite sure why. Anyway, I’ll be talking about how Isis worked with Her sacred magicians through the ages. I’d like to share with you a little preview…

Isis is magic.

Yes, this Great Egyptian Goddess is many other things, too—wisdom, power, compassion, Divine Mystery. Yet for me, all these are magic, and specifically sacred magic.

When we speak casually of magic today—for instance, when we say that the Yuletide season or the springtime is a magical time of year—we mean that it is out of the ordinary, special. Our senses are heightened. Lights seem brighter. Scents are more pungent and evoke memories and images. Music is more clear, beautiful, and meaningful. The numinous seems to be with us in the faces of the people we meet, in the very earth itself. When we speak of magic in this way, we are using the word correctly for this is precisely the magical state of mind. By helping us focus our attention and awaken our souls, magic heightens our senses and we perceive in a more-than-ordinary way.

Isis, at the prow of the boat, works Her magic on the enemy serpent, Apophis

The ancient Egyptians were the first to understand Isis as Goddess of Magic. They called Her Nebet Heka, Lady of Magic. To them, She was the Great Enchantress, the One Whose Words Come to Pass Without Fail.

“A Votary of Isis” by Edwin Long, no doubt influenced by the mummy portraits

Egyptologists translate the Egyptian word heka (also hike or hika) as “magic.” It is a very flexible word. It can mean the force magic, an act of magic, magic words, magical formulae, a magician, or the God, Magic. As a God, Heka is said to be the first-made thing and it is because of Magic that all the Deities live. The ancient Egyptians conceived of magic as a living force, a primordial power, the energy of the universe. They believed it to be the essential energy that infuses and underlies all things, spiritual and physical. Magic connects everything and allows the levels of Being to interpenetrate and affect each other. Magic is required to ascend to the realm of the Deities, every ancient Egyptian’s post mortum goal. By harmonizing with the thread of magic that is woven in all things, human beings can commune with the Deities, grow, have effect in the world, and be spiritually renewed.

As Lady of Magic, Isis is the patroness, embodiment, and most-potent wielder of this sacred and living power. By Her magic, Isis not only turns the stars in the heavens, but heals us, protects us, and can lift us up in spiritual communion with Her.

Ptolemaic Isis; note She holds a cobra rather than the sistrum that will later be so characteristic

As Isis’s worship spread from Her native Egypt to Greece, Rome, and beyond, Her identity as Lady of Magic followed. This identification was so constant that when Plotinus, the Greek founder of Neoplatonism, agreed to a magical evocation of his guardian spirit, the Egyptian priest who conducted the ceremony declared that it could only take place in the Temple of Isis because Her temple was the only pure place appropriate for the working of high magic in all of Rome.

Plotinus would have known this magical approach to the spiritual as theurgy or Divine Work. Like the path of the monk, the mystic, the shaman, the priestess or priest, theurgy is a way to approach the Divine. The method of theurgy is ritual; theurgy is ritual magic for spiritual purposes. One of its greatest proponents, the fourth-century ce Neoplatonist Iamblichus, insisted that theurgy works not simply because of the mechanism of the ritual, but because of the foundation of Divine Love which supports the process. In other words, the Deities respond to our invocations because They love us.

Apuleius of Madaura, a second-century CE initiate of a variety of the Mysteries of his time, would probably have agreed. He not only defined magic as “a religious tradition dealing with things divine” and “an art acceptable to the immortal gods,” but is also the author of an ancient novel which is our only surviving first-person account of an initiation into any of the ancient Pagan Mysteries—specifically, the Mysteries of Isis. Its final chapter is a deep expression of the author’s love for Isis and his understanding of Her reciprocal love for him.

19th century Golden Dawn leader, Moina Mathers, as a priestess of Isis

Roman Isis

Those of us who are attracted to Isis today can be heirs to this powerful spiritual tradition. By opening ourselves to Isis through the prayers, meditations, and rituals of sacred magic, we experience the sacred. We grow. We discover who we really are. We become wiser and more compassionate. We learn how to live more authentically, in greater harmony with our true selves and the Divine reality of the Goddess.

The ancient worshippers of Isis found the creative and renewing power of magic to be both natural and, in the hands of their loving Goddess, a great boon to humanity. They understood magic to be inseparable from a relationship with Isis, the Goddess of Magic and a sacred magician Herself. Like them, we can have the same understanding. From the compassionate magic of healing to the ecstasy of the theurgic union that renews the spirit and deepens the soul, we can know all these things as part of the sacred magic that is, and always has been, Isis.

Modern altar of Isis of the Fellowship of Isis, Utah

Filed under: Goddess Isis, Modern Paganism Tagged: egyptian goddess, Esoteric Book Conference 2013, Isis Magic, Isis the Magician, Lady of Magic, sacred magic, Votary of Isis

Lotus Wand of Isis—Heka Variation

The priestess prepares to do magic; photo by Hilda H Photography

Like so many of us who work with Isis, I invent my own variations on the rituals I do with and for Her. Heck, I even do variations on my own stuff!

I’d like to share one of those with you today.

This particular rite is not in Isis Magic, but is based on the Lotus Wand of Isis (page 319 in the old version, page 323 in the new edition). The original Lotus Wand of Isis helps the priestess or priest open themselves to the Divine energy of Isis by opening the energy centers of the body—the shenu—then circulating the Divine Life and Light of Isis through those centers.

The variation is focused on opening the shenu of the priestess or priest in order to receive the heka or magic of Isis. I have found that it is a good method for “charging yourself up” for an important ritual; I also use it when I feel a lack of personal vitality.

Here’s what I do:

• Enter the temple or shrine and give the Sign of the Wings of Isis toward my sacred image of Isis and say, “I am a priestess of Isis, I am a handmaiden of the Goddess.”

• Purification and consecration of the temple and myself; I almost always use the general House of Isis method (“Isis is pure; I am pure,” etc.)

• Facing the image, I once more give the Sign of the Wings of Isis and say, “Isis is all things and all things are Isis.”

• Seat myself before the image of Isis, usually sitting cross-legged on a floor pillow (alternatively, I might stand facing Her).

• Visualize the figure of Isis the Magician, Iset Hekaet, towering above me, and ask Her to aid me in opening my shenu that I may receive any of Her heka that She would care to share with me. When I feel Her presence and consent, I begin.

• Instead of visualizing blossoming lotuses, I will trace the hieroglyphs for the word “heka” on myself to enliven my shenu. These are the twisted wick for the “h” sound and the upraised arms of “ka.”

[image error]

The twisted wick and the ka hieroglyphs; together, they make “heka”

• Raise my arms above my head with fingertips touching; this forms the top loop of the wick glyph. Breathe in and vibrate: ISET HEKAET (“Isis the Magician”); vizualize the Goddess sending Her heka to me, filling the loop I am making with my arms with the electric blue light of Magic. (No doubt influenced by sci-fi and fantasy flicks, yes, I usually see heka energy as electric blue.) Take a moment to see my crown shen (singular of shenu) illuminated.

• Separate my hands and bring them to the sides of my forehead, as if cradling the “third eye.” Breathe in and vibrate: HEKA ISET (“magic of Isis”); visualize the third eye shen filling with magic.

• Bring my hands down and cross them at the throat (this represents the first twist in the “h” glyph). Breathe in and vibrate: HEKA ISET; visualize the throat shen filling with magic.

• Still following the graceful curves of the “h” glyph, now I bring my hands down so that they are on both sides of my chest, cradling my heart. This represents the second loop of the glyph. Breathe in and vibrate: HEKA ISET; visualize the throat shen filling with magic.

Ah, the electric blue light of heka

• Following the curve of the glyph, I bring my hands down and cross them at my genitals; this is the second twist in the glyph. Breathe in and vibrate: HEKA ISET; visualize the genital shen filling with magic.

• This time I curve my hands out to both sides of my knees, cradling the sacred space between the knees. Breathe in and vibrate: HEKA ISET; visualize the knee shen filling with magic.

• Finally, I curve around to cross my hands at the shen beneath my feet (this is the third twist) and touch the fingertips of both hands to the earth, if seated, or point them toward the earth, if standing. This represents the two ends of the wick glyph. Breathe in and vibrate: HEKA ISET; visualize the shen beneath my feet filling with magic.

• Take a moment to visualize my illuminated shenu; then with a fluid motion, I retrace the “h” glyph down my body and raise my arms in the “ka” sign (see above). I repeat this as much as desired. On each retracing of the hieroglyphs, I vibrate; HEKA.

• To close, I thank Iset Hekaet for the magic She shared with me, and make the Sign of the Wings of Isis.

I’m also experimenting with using crossed hands at each shen, which would result in a longer “twisted wick” glyph, but would have the advantage of having the same gesture at each shen. Perhaps you’ll give it try and let me know how it works for you.

Filed under: Goddess Isis, Modern Paganism Tagged: Egyptian magic, Invocation of Isis, Isis Magic, Lady of Magic, magic and theurgy, Pagan Spirituality, personal vitality, priestess of Isis, sacred image, why worship and how

The Magic Book

An Egyptian magical book

The Egyptophiles among you may have heard the ancient Egyptian story usually called Setna and the Magic Book. It’s the one where the son of Ramesses the Great learns of a previous prince who aspired to magical knowledge and had discovered a magic book locked inside a series of chests and sunk in the bottom of the river. And now the son of Ramesses wants it for himself. Ring a bell?

I’d seen reference to that story again and again over the years, but I’d never read the whole thing. Turns out the tale is much more interesting than I’d thought. For one thing, the main story-within-a-story is being told by a woman, Ahura, the daughter of King Merneptah. What’s more, she’s dead when she’s telling it! And since it’s a tale of magic, both Isis and Thoth figure in the story, too.

So for today’s Isiopolis, I’d like to tell you Ahura’s tale, which comes from 1100 BCE.

The ka of Ahura warns Setna

The sons of Rameses go to the tomb of a former prince, Naneferkaptah, who supposedly had a most amazing magical book. But when they get to the tomb, they find the kas of the prince and of his wife, the princess Ahura, quite present in the tomb. Ahura warns them away from seeking the book of magic as she relates her tale:

The princess starts by explaining that she and Naneferkaptah were the only children of the king and he loved them both very much. When they were grown, the king decided to marry them to the children of one of his generals. But the queen objected and said the siblings should be married to each other.

The next paragraph is a bit unclear but is a bantering exchange between Ahura and her father. Apparently Ahura, too, wanted to marry her elder brother, Naneferkaptah, and had sent a message to her father saying so. He played grumpy, then they both laughed and Ahura got her way.

An Egyptian noble family

She and Naneferkaptah were married. They loved one another and Ahura soon became pregnant with their child. The king was happy and sent precious gifts. When Ahura bore her child, he was named Merab, meaning Beloved Heart, and his name was registered in a book in the House of Life.

Naneferkaptah was very keen to learn from the ancient writings and spent much time reading in the Memphis cemetery and deciphering the sacred inscriptions on the monuments. One day, a priest saw him at his work and laughed at him. The priest said that what the prince was working so hard at was worthless compared to the magic book the priest knew of, which was written by Thoth Himself and which “will bring you to the Gods.”

An artistic imagining of an Egyptian priest magician making offering

The priest told Naneferkaptah that—quoting here—”When you read but two pages in this, you will enchant the heaven, the earth, the abyss, the mountains, and the sea; you shall know what the birds of the sky and the crawling things are saying; you shall see the fishes of the deep, for a divine power is there to bring them up out of the depth. And when you read the second page, if you are in the world of ghosts, you will become again in the shape you were in on earth. You will see the sun shining in the sky, with all the gods, and the full moon.”

Well, Naneferkaptah was completely excited and promised the priest whatever he wanted if only he would tell Naneferkaptah where the book was. The priest wanted enough silver so that he could have a rich funeral, a wish the prince readily and easily granted.

So the priest told him, “This book is in the middle of the river at Koptos, in an iron box; in the iron box is a bronze box; in the bronze box is a sycamore box; in the sycamore box is an ivory and ebony box; in the ivory and ebony box is a silver box; in the silver box is a golden box; and in that is the book. It is twisted all round with snakes and scorpions and all the other crawling things around the box in which the book is; and there is a deathless snake by the box.”

Then Ahura says, “And when the priest told Naneferkaptah, he did not know where on earth he was, he was so much delighted.”

She, however, was not happy about her husband’s desire and felt a sense of foreboding. But the prince would not be dissuaded. Taking the royal boat, Ahura, and Merab with him, the prince sailed to Koptos.

There was a temple of Isis in Koptos and so all the Isis priests came to meet the arrival of the royal boat. The priests entertained the prince and the wives of the priests entertained Ahura. And so they feasted and “made holiday” with the priests of Isis and their wives.

After four days, the prince was ready to go after his prize. He had apparently learned enough magic that he could create a crew of magical workmen and tools. The prince “put life into” the boat and crew and sent the magical workers off to find the book in the river.

This they did. The book was enclosed and guarded just as the priest had said it would be. Naneferkaptah put a spell on the magical guardians and fought the “deathless snake,” finally cutting him to bits and placing sand between the pieces so they could not rejoin.

The prince opened chest after chest, finally finding the book. He read it and—as promised—he could enchant the heavens and all the rest of the promised powers were his. So he had the magical workmen take him back to where Ahura waited for him, in her words, sitting “like one who is gone to the grave.”

Pretty cool cover art for a book on Egyptian-flavored Reiki that’s has a nice magical feel

Now this next part, I found very interesting. Ahura herself asks to read the book. She does so and she, too, can now enchant the heavens and has gained all the other powers as well. Since she cannot write, she asks Naneferkaptah to write everything on the book down on papyrus so that he could dip it in beer, then drink the dissolved words, and thereby know everything that was in them forever.

So back they go to Koptos and “make a feast with Isis of Koptos and Harpokrates.” But by now, Thoth had learned of the theft of His book and the killing of His magical guardians, which really kinda pissed Him off. So Re decrees that Naneferkaptah and all his kin could be killed. Ouch.

And so tragedy strikes. First the child Merab falls in the water and drowns. His father magically brings the body up and enchants the child so he can say what happened. Thus Naneferkaptah and Ahura learn of Thoth’s anger. They return to Koptos, have their child embalmed and buried, and head back to Memphis.

But on the way back, the same thing next happens to Ahura. She drowns, is magically brought up, then embalmed and buried in Koptos.

With such disaster befalling his family, Naneferkaptah could not return alive to his father. Tying the book to himself, he drowns himself in the river. None of the crew knew where he was, so they returned to Memphis and related the entire sorry story to the king.

In mourning, the king and his court went to the boat, only to find the body of Naneferkaptah in the inner cabin of the boat—still dead—but at least available for proper rites and burial, which the king has done.

The most haunting of the ka statues

The king also orders the magic book hidden once more. Ahura concludes, “I have now told you the sorrow which has come upon us because of this book.”

The story of Setna and his further adventures with the kas of Naneferkaptah and Ahura continue, but this post is long enough for now and I’ll tell that on another day.

There are a number of interesting things about this story. Importantly, it is told by a woman. She is no mere appendage, but a main player. It is also interesting that Ahura can read, but not write. So even a princess did not necessarily learn to write. You can also see some of the main mechanisms of Egyptian magic: magical servants, magical guardians, consuming the words of a spell to integrate the magic into yourself, necromancy, and of course, the power-conferring magical book itself. It was also interesting to see the involvement of the priesthood of Isis and Harpokrates in Koptos. In my fantasy version of the tale, they would warn the prince of his coming folly. But I guess you don’t mess with a royal on a mission.

Filed under: Goddess Isis Tagged: Egyptian magic, Egyptian princess, Egyptian worldview, Isis Magic, Ka of Ahura, Magic, Magic book, Ramesses, setna, Thoth

Isis and the Waters

The beautiful blue Nile God, Hapy

In Egypt, the waters of the Nile were (and I suspect, are) sacred. The ancients usually called the Nile simply, “the Great River (Iteru)” or by the name of the Nile God Hapy, though they had other terms for it as well: Sweet Waters, The Circler, and Cooling.

Since the annual Inundation flooding of the Nile was The Thing That Made Life Itself Possible in Egypt, many Deities were connected with the Great Flood in addition to Hapy. (You’re way ahead of me, aren’t you?) Yes, Isis is prominent among them.

As early as the Pyramid Texts, Isis is connected to Sopdet, Who, as the star Sirius, is the Herald of the Inundation. As Iset-Sopdet or Isis-Sothis, the Goddess was known to be the bringer of the holy flood because Her beautiful star was seen rising in the pre-dawn sky just before the beginning of the Inundation. In the Coffin Texts, Isis is also the bringer of water, this time to the deceased: “It is Isis who will give me water,” says Spell 473. As a healing Goddess, Isis is called upon the bring cooling water to dampen the heat of inflamed wounds or burns. She was also associated with rain. At Philae, She is “the rain-cloud that makes green the field when it descends.” The calendar in the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus notes “Birth of Isis: the heaven rained.”

These statues are usually identified as Nile Goddesses, but she may be a dancing priestess with her arms upraised…perhaps in the Wings of Isis

The Greek travel writer Pausanias relates a story, no doubt told to him by an Egyptian, that it is the mourning tears of Isis that causes the waters of the Nile to rise. As Iset-Meheyet (“Isis the Flood”), Isis is Herself the holy Inundation.

In Isis Magic, you’ll find a number of ways for honoring Isis as Lady of the Waters. For instance, there is a ritual for transforming any water into sacred Nile water for use in your rites, as well as an autumn ritual for celebrating your own “Inundation.”

I recently learned of yet another Nile Goddess Who became assimilated with Isis. She first shows up in Egypt on coins from the last decade BCE and keeps Her place on Alexandrian coinage until 273 CE. She is considered the wife of Hapy. Her name is Euthenia, a Greek name as you can see, and it means “abundance” and “plenty.” In Greece, Euthenia was known as one of the Graces.

The statue of Isis-Euthenia, clearly showing the Knot of Isis

When Euthenia came to Egypt, the Egyptians were not content to leave well enough alone. They started to connect Her with their own abundance-bringing Goddess Isis. We can see this happening in a statue of Euthenia now in the Greco-Roman museum in Alexandria and shown here. Like the famous statues of the Nile in the Vatican and Naples Museums, Euthenia is shown reclining, cup in hand, and surrounded by the child-cherubs known as putti. Like the Nile God, She, too, is leaning on a sphinx. But tied into the front of Euthenia’s robe is—an Isis knot! Just like the ones seen tied into the robes of Isis’ priestesses. So now we clearly have Isis-Euthenia—and an example of the Egyptianizing of a Greek Goddess rather than the Hellenizing of an Egyptian Goddess.

One of the famous statues of The Nile with His many children; I think this one is in the Naples Museum in Italy

In Greek myth, river Gods often have a plethora of water-nymph daughters. Turns out the Egyptians had a similar idea. The 20th dynasty tomb of Ramesses IX says that “the two daughters of Hapy shatter for you [Re] the Evil Doer.”

And once more we can connect Isis with the Nile, for She, too, is called “Nymph” in the .

There is also a famous and sad inscription from a father who lost his daughter Isidora (you see why this caught my attention) in her youth. The inscription is from her tomb wherein her father laments, “Praise Isidora with libations and prayer, the maiden who was abducted by the nymphs. Hail, my child, Nymph is your name…” Scholars are unsure, but this may mean that the child drowned.

The tradition of the Nile God and Goddess, Hapy and Isis-Euthenia, remained potent far into Pagan-hostile times. In the seventh century CE, under the Emperor Mauricius (who was suspected of having Pagan sympathies), a miracle occurred. From out of the waters of the Nile emerged two gigantic human figures, one male, one female. Some decried this apparition as the work of demons, others took it as a sign that the Great River was both male and female. I don’t know what the rest of this story is, but I will try to find out. I wonder if someone brought up two of the offering statues that were sometimes given to the Nile?

As late as the Medieval Period, a large statue of a woman with a child—surely Isis with Horus—was in the church of El-Mu’llaqa in Old Cairo and was supposed to prevent the area from being submerged in the ongoing annual inundation.

When the rains come again to Portland in the Fall, I know I shall be honoring Isis as the Caller of the Waters, She Who fills the rivers with Her tears. Perhaps you will join me whenever the Waters come to your part of the world.

I love these old photos. This one is from the 1890s; the ballerina Vera Karalli in a pose from the ballet, The Pharaoh’s Daughter. She is surrounded by The Nile and His many children.

Filed under: Goddess Isis Tagged: Aspects of Isis, coffin texts, Goddess Isis, Goddess of the Nile, Goddess worship, Isis & Hapy, Isis & Sirius, Isis and the Nile, Isis and the Waters, Isis Magic, nile god, rhind mathematical papyrus, sacred nile

Isis the Feminist

A friend once remarked to me on how she couldn’t get into Isis because of the subservient way She went around “picking up after Osiris.” My friend was, of course, referring to the main Isis-Osiris myth in which Isis travels the length and breadth of Egypt to find and conduct proper funeral rites over the scattered pieces of Her murdered husband’s body.

I must admit, that comment took me aback.

Oh how I love this! Isis the Riveter

For its day, I have always considered the ancient myth and worship of Isis to be pretty darned feminist, modeling both feminine power and independence. My own feminism is one of the reasons I began exploring Goddess in the first place.

So my friend had seen the Isis-Osiris myth as just another “woman-taking-care-of-her-man” story, while I’d seen it as the opposite: a tale of the reversal of stereotypes. Instead of the prince saving the princess, the princess had to save the prince, put him back together, and give him renewed life.

We were both right, of course. A myth speaks to us however it speaks to us. Yet, I do think that Isis and Her cycle of myths, especially when you include the important Isis & Re story, provide a proto-feminist model.

Part of the credit for this goes to ancient Egyptian society. While we should have no illusions that men and women were true equals in Egypt, still they were more equal in Egypt than in any of Egypt’s Mediterranean neighbors. In Egypt, women could hold and sell property; they were considered (at least theoretically) equal to men before the law; they could instigate lawsuits; they could lend money; and although it was unusual, a woman could live independently, without a male guardian. In contrast, Greek and Roman laws firmly relegated women to control by their husbands or male relatives and provided little economic or legal protection to women.

This is a logo for a female boxer; I also love this

So when Isis’ myths depict Her acting autonomously for Her own ends or wielding power, this type of female behavior was not as strange in Egypt as it was in the rest of the Mediterranean world.

Even when Egypt was ruled by non-natives under the Ptolemies (from 305 to 30 BCE), the native Egyptian respect for the feminine and The Feminine seems to have crept in. By the end of the dynasty, the historian Diodorus Siculus (Diodorus of Sicily) could write that due to the success of Isis’ benevolent rule of Egypt (while Osiris was on His mission to civilize the world):

…it was ordained that the queen should have greater power and honor than the king and that among private persons the wife should enjoy authority over her husband, the husbands agreeing in the marriage contract that they will be obedient in all things to their wives. (Diodorus Siculus, Book II, section 22)

This wasn’t true, of course, but it is interesting that that would be the impression that Diodorus received when visiting Egypt and speaking to Egyptians.

I’m reading an article in the Journal of Hellenic Studies by Rachel Evelyn White about women in Ptolemaic Egypt that discusses the possibility that the family tomb may have been the property of a female heir, and which was likely a holdover from ancient Egyptian tradition. This is based on some Egyptian contracts of the time combined with the fact that this was specifically the case among the nearby Nabataeans. If so, this could be one of the bases for retained female power in Egypt, as well as giving women another connection with Isis as the provider of proper burial and funerary rites. It may also point to very ancient matrilineal traditions in Egypt.

Power Isis…see Her video below

We should also recall that in several of the remaining Isis aretalogies, the Goddess declares women’s equality with men. What’s more, the relationship between women and men is meant to be friendly and loving—like the relationship modeled by Isis and Osiris. The aretalogy from Maronea we discussed last week states that Isis established language so that men and women, as well as all humankind, should live in mutual friendship.

In a later Hermetic text entitled Kore Kosmu, Isis explains to Horus the origin and equality of male and female souls, declaring that:

The souls, my son Horus, are all of one nature, inasmuch as they all come from one place, that place where the Maker fashioned them; and they are neither male nor female; for the difference of sex arises in bodies, and not in incorporeal beings. (Scott, Walter, Hermetica, Vol. 1 (Boulder, Colorado, Hermes House, 1982), p. 499-501.)

In the , it is stated quite plainly: ”Thou [Isis] didst make the power of women equal to that of men.” I know of no other ancient texts that lay out the message of female-male equality so strongly as is done in the Isis aretalogies and hymns. If you do, I would love to hear about it.

In her book, Her Share of the Blessings, Women’s Religions Among Pagans, Jews, and Christians in the Greco-Roman World, Ross Kramer writes, “At least at the explicit level, the religion of Isis was more favorable to women than any other religion.”

While Isis modeled a role in which many women could see themselves, as protectress and promoter of both husband and child, Isis also modeled feminine autonomy and authority.

And so I honor Thee, Isis, Goddess of Women, and Isis the Feminist.

This, this…well…this is just a hoot. The new character for the combat video game SMITE is a pretty badass Isis. It’s worth checking this video out to see the powers they attribute to Her in the game.

Filed under: Goddess Isis, Modern Paganism Tagged: ancient egyptian society, ancient myth, Early Feminism, egypt women, Feminism, Feminist, Goddess, Goddess Feminism, Goddess Isis, Isis

The Aretalogy of Isis from Maroneia

An offering to your ka, Laura

My friend, Laura Janesdaughter, has indeed passed into the embrace of Isis. She was and is a great lover of the Goddess and a mentor of priestesses. She died at dawn on Memorial Day, surrounded by priestesses chanting for her and reading into her ears words from the sacred books. I could not wish for a better death. Goodbye, sweet priestess and teacher and friend.

Today’s post is dedicated to Laura.

Let us talk today about the aretalogy of Isis from a place called Maroneia. It is in the very northernmost part of Greece, in Thrace near the Bulgarian border. In legend, the city of Maroneia was founded by Maron, who some say was a son of Dionysos and some say was a son of Osiris (remember the close connection between these Gods). In ancient times, Maroneia was famous for producing nearly magical wines; hence the Dionysos-Osiris connection, no doubt.

The hymn to Isis from Maroneia is classed with the aretalogies of the Goddess, though in style it is somewhat different. An aretalogy is usually first-person statements by a Deity about Her or His nature and powers. This one is an address to the Goddess, which switches back and forth between second and third person. It is written in Greek on stone and found in a sanctuary dedicated to The Egyptian Gods, Isis and Serapis.

Hellenized Isis and Serapis

Its discoverer dated it to the 2nd-century BCE, which makes it the oldest of the known Isis aretalogies. Though it is also the most different of the aretalogies, and aims to interpret Isis to Greeks by connecting Her to Demeter, Athens, and Eleusis, scholar Louis Zabkar, who has studied the hymns to Isis at Philae as well as the aretalogies, is convinced that the original text on which this hymn is based is indeed Egyptian.

The Maroneia aretalogy was created and inscribed for Isis in gratitude for “the miraculous healing of my eyes.” Thus, it is a votive offering. Here is the text, which follows the author’s explanation about his healing:

Earth, they say, is the mother of all, from her who was first, you were born [as her] daughter.

You took Serapis as [your] companion, and after you [thus] instituted legitimate marriage, the world shone out before your faces, illuminated by Helios and Selene. Thus you are two, and [yet] you are called the many by men. Life indeed knows you alone to be the gods.

How would it not be hard to master the subject of a eulogy when one must begin the praise by [first] recalling many gods?

With Hermes she discovered writings, the sacred ones of these for the initiated, and the demotic for all [others].

She established Justice, so that each one of us, just as he by nature endures equal death, may also be able to live in conditions of equality.

She established language for men, for some the barbarian, for some the Greek, so that the human race may live in mutual friendship, not only men with women, but all with all.

You have given laws; they were called thesmoi in the beginning.

Thus the cities were solidly established, because they discovered that violence is not lawful, but that the law is without violence.

You made that parents be honored by their children, considering them not only as parents, but as gods.

This is why gratitude should be [even] greater, since it was the goddess [herself] who made out of natural necessity a law.

You are pleased with Egypt as your dwelling-place; among the Greek cities you most honor Athens.

It is there that for the first time you made known the fruits of the earth.

Triptolemos, having subdued your sacred serpents, carried by a chariot, distributed the seed to all Greeks.

This is why we are eager to see in Greece, Athens, and in Athens, Eleusis, considering [Athens] the City of Europe, and [Eleusis] the Sanctuary of the City.

She decreed that life should come into existence through man and woman.

She decreed … that the woman ….(and the rest is lost)

Writing in Greece to Greeks, the author securely ties Isis to Demeter and Her Mysteries at Eleusis, yet he knows that She is an Egyptian Goddess. What’s more, if you look at the specific qualities of Isis you will indeed find parallels with the other known Isis aretalogies of known Egyptian origin. (We can look at those in another post, later.)

The key things in this hymn for me are the claim that Isis and Serapis are “the two” and yet “the many,” the Goddess’ prohibition against violence, Her establishment of language for the mutual friendship of man and woman as well as all humankind, and the statement of the overall equality of human beings since we all share equal deaths. If we die equally, then the Goddess decrees we should live equally.

Powerful stuff.

Filed under: Goddess Isis Tagged: Goddess worship, hymn to isis, Isis, Isis Aretalogy from Maroneia, Isis worship today, serapis, The Goddess

Into the Embrace of Isis

No matter what else occurs, there are two things that happen to all human beings. We are born and we die.

Green Isis spreads Her wings over the deceased

A friend is now taking the second half of that journey and is passing into the embrace of Isis. And so today I write about death, a subject that was of more than casual interest to the ancient Egyptians.

I know I am idealizing the ancients in at least some of my comments about them. But maybe that’s okay for it allows us to find an anchor of wisdom in the past that also makes heart sense for us today as we continue our very-human journey through life and death. Some early scholars even considered the Egyptians to have been people obsessed by death. But perhaps that was only because they hadn’t yet discovered the love poetry and the silly graffiti. Or perhaps the ancient Egyptians really did have a better handle on it than we do today. By living with the knowledge of their eventual deaths, they were able to squeeze the real sweetness out of life.

An image from the TV show Smallville, when Isis possesses Lois. I shall reinterpret it as the Goddess shining Her light on Her deceased priestess in the otherworld. Why not?

Isis, of course, has a huge role in realm of the dead. If proto-Isis is, as I believe, the prehistoric Bird of Prey Goddess, Who is both Bringer to Death and Giver of Rebirth, then it is fair to say that human beings have always, always perceived this aspect of Her nature.

The ancient Egyptians had many euphemisms for death, even as we do. One of my favorites is “The Great Mooring.” Because boats played such an important part in the lives of the people of Egypt, they were also important in death. The deceased traveled through the otherworld by sacred boat until the boat came to moor at its final destination and was secured to its mooring post. Every Egyptian hoped to safely reach  her or his individual mooring post.

Menit (without the Weret)

The Great Mooring Post was personified as a Goddess. She is the Goddess of Death Who calls us to our final mooring and to Whom our boats return and are always safely docked. When we can be certain of Her identity, She is none other than Isis. “The Mooring Post summons you as Isis,” say the Pyramid Texts, “the Mourning Woman calls to you as Nephthys.”

As The Great Mooring Post, Isis’ name is Menit Weret. Being called by or spoken to by Menit Weret was understood as an important part of the process of death and eventual rebirth. The Coffin Texts tell the deceased that the Great Mooring Post speaks to him and a stairway to Heaven is set up for him, enemies fall before him, and even the stars bow down. Magical words of power ensured that the beings in the realm of the dead would serve the deceased, that his Divine mothers would nurse and kiss him, and that the Great Mooring Post would call to him.

Isis by Armand Point, from about 1909. I’ve never seen this one before and so I include it here for your viewing pleasure.

It is a tender thought to imagine Isis calling us to our deaths. “Come,” She says with warmth and wisdom in Her voice, “it is time. I will show you the way.”

I don’t know what happens once we die. Maybe the atheists are right and nothing happens. I hope not; and I do have faith that there is something more. I also think that—at least as we are dying and perhaps for a while thereafter—we enter precisely the sort of otherworld we expect. That’s why it’s important for the Prophetess or Prophet of Isis to have her or his “death dream.” (Page 608 in the new Isis Magic.) It is in these “lower astral” realms that our expectations about death can be met.

Osiris rising between Isis and Nephthys

If I were a Protestant Christian, I would expect to find Jesus waiting for me. If I were Catholic Christian, I might expect to spend some time in Purgatory being purified. If I were ancient Egyptian, I would expect to journey through the otherworld with my Book of Coming Forth by Day as my guide along the way. As an Isian, I expect Isis to meet me; that is part of my death dream. And I am reasonably confident that this is indeed at least the immediate afterlife that I will experience. Which is good.

Being called by the Great Mooring Post

When my mother died, many years ago now, Isis brought comfort to me and to my grieving father, who was at the time nominally Unitarian, but had no real beliefs about the afterlife one way or another. So I let him borrow mine. I worked the ritual of the Opening of the Ways for an Ever-Living One (yes, also from Isis Magic, pg. 411) for my mother and, in vision, I saw Isis come, wrap my mother in Her wings, and guide her into the otherworld.

This felt very certain to me and I shared this with my father. I think it helped him. I know it helped me.

Filed under: Goddess Isis, Modern Paganism Tagged: Aspects of Isis, Goddess Isis, Isis, Isis and Death, Isis as Guide in death, Isis Magic, Isis Rituals, Isis worship today, Pagan Spirituality, The Goddess