Knowledge for the Afterlife: The Egyptian Amduat - A Quest for Immortality

by Theodor Abt, Erik Hornung

WHY THE AMDUAT IS SIGNIFICANT Every evening the sun becomes old and weak and finally sets behind the Western horizon. Yet, it rises again in the morning, rejuvenated. How is that possible? How could the sun for the Ancient Egyptians the Sungod become young and revitalized during the night, during his night journey? What happens during this time? The Amduat is a description of the journey of the Sungod through the nightworld, that is also the world of the deceased. The knowledge contained in the Amduat is meant for the dead Pharaoh. But the text also recommends this knowledge for living beings. Thus, the journey of the Sungod can also be seen as a symbolic representation of an inner psychic process of transformation and renewal.

Genres: Religion, Egypt, Mythology

154 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2003

Reviews

[☘Misericordia☘ ⚡ϟ⚡⛈⚡☁ ❇️❤❣ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death and life, what kind of toll would we be willing to shoulder for the sake of immortality? Or not?

[Chris Feldman · Rating 3 out of 5]

4 stars for the pictures and descriptions. 2 stars for the scarcity of actual translations, and for the constant attempts to fit the material into the Procrustean bed of Abt's superficial interpretation of Carl Jung (not to mention the totally gratuitous swipes at the "Hippies" of the 1960's, which are completely irrelevant and serve only to make Abt look like a grumpy old man -- surprising given his newage reading of Jung).

[Kenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Contains the most complete account of the "Amduat," or afterlife journey, as displayed on the walls of the tomb of Tutmoses III, the earliest (and most complete) explanation of the "twelve hours of the night," through which the Sun god travels, battling darkness, evil spirits, and serpentine monsters, until he is reborn the next morning. Designed for the Pharaoh's journey, we also tag along on one of the strangest and most compelling cosmologies the world has ever known.

[Kyla Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is gorgeous. An hour by hour explication of the Amduat based upon the tomb of Thothmes III (but incorporating other known sources), coupled with a Jungian analysis of the symbols and progression, all in full colour! Perhaps best savoured in conjunction with Hornung's "The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife".