Among the legacies of the ancient Egyptians: religious ceremonies and visiting the dead

Picture of the ancient Egyptians when visiting the dead

Religious ceremonies and occasions in ancient Egypt were a way to establish a connection with the spirit world.

The ancient Egyptians believed that there are certain days in the year when the worlds (the material world - the lower world - the celestial world) come close and the barriers between them dissolve so that the spirits of ancestors who left our world, as well as the "nitros" (divine entities) - as the supreme ancestor of humans and For all creatures - to move easily between the dimensions of the universe and come to visit our world.

The book "The Crossing of Eternity" is considered one of the most important sources in which the ancient Egyptians recorded lists of these important spiritual occasions.

The most important thing that draws attention is that every occasion must meet the elements of time and place. Every feast or occasion is linked to one of the main Egyptian cities and to the "Natir" (the divine entity) that inhabits that city.

The book "Crossing the Eternity" appeared in the late period (dynasties 25 and 26), and it is one of the Egyptian books of the afterlife.

One of the ritual texts addressed to one of the souls, wishing them to participate in the religious feasts of different cities, came in the book “Crossing Eternity.”

The text says:-

*** I invite you to participate in 39 of the feasts of Thebes, 39 of the feasts of Abydos, and 78 of the feasts of Memphis (twice the number of the feasts of the previous cities) *** The text also mentioned other important Egyptian feasts.

In fact, this book is not a guide to spirits in the afterlife - as some believed - but rather a guide to the world of the living, i.e. a guide to the times and holy places that can become a bridge between earth and heaven.

The Egyptian in the late era no longer believed that the divine presence is limited only to the other world, but rather it extends to include sacred places on earth, and these places are the cities that belong to the world of the living.

The demand for visiting the tombs of the late ancestors began to increase greatly in the Sawy era. And through the tombs, the Egyptians used to communicate with the spirits of the ancestors, who would come to visit the tombs on religious occasions.

And every city in Egypt also had a religious celebration held for the "Lanter" who lived in that city (Osiris in Abydos, Horus in Edfu, Ptah in Memphis, Nate in Sais, etc.).

Those regional celebrations were the most appropriate time to visit the tombs of the late ancestors, where the living and the dead of humans, as well as the “nitros” (divine entities) meet in one place and time in which the borders between the different worlds dissolve.

And in those visits to the tombs, the sacrifices played an important role in establishing the connection with each of the departed ancestors, as well as the "nitro".

Thus, the ancient Egyptian succeeded in conjuring up the spirit world on earth, and thus made Egypt a holy land, rather the holiest place on earth, to the extent that the ancient Egyptian believed that resurrection and immortality are linked only to the land of Egypt, so he was keen to die and be buried in its land. .

That is why it was also said about Egypt, and the Egyptian folklore still preserves the traditions of visiting the dead on religious occasions. And the Egyptians in the countryside and Upper Egypt are still keen on the “slight of the giraffe”, where the living go to visit the spirits of the departed ancestors, carrying with them the “pie of mercy”, and the living share food and drink in the cemeteries to share with them the souls of the dead.