“The Secret Power of Ra”
Ra the Shining One rose out of the mists that covered the waters. Nun the spirit of the waters floated above him.
Ra was all powerful and his power came from his Secret Name. This gave him the power to create a thing just by calling its name.
He said “I am Khepera at the dawn, Ra at noon and Tum in the evening.” And the sun rose in the east and traveled across the sky to set in the west.
Thus he created the first day.
He then named Shu the keeper of the wind, and Tefnut the spitter of rain. “Geb” he spoke, and the earth rose up from the sea. Nut was named and she stretched her body across the sky from one horizon to the other to form the arch that held the stars and path for the sun and moon. Hapi he named last and the River Nile flowed through Egypt bringing life to the land.
He named all things on earth and lastly named Man and Woman, and they multipied to live in prosperity on the banks of the Nile.

Sekhmet the Goddess of Vengence and Hathor the Goddess of Love
When Ra rose from the mists, he created night and day, and Apophis, the Dragon of Evil formed in the darkness of the night vapours and tried to spoil all that was bright and good. Apophis was the enemy of the good rule of Ra as Pharaoh, and as Ra grew old, Apophis reached into the hearts of the people of Egypt and many followed his false promises of power and rebelled against Ra.
Ra called a counsel of his children, Shu, Tefnut, Geb, Nut and Hapi. He also called on Nun who ruled the spirit of the primeval waters. And he asked them all what he should do about the evil among the people of Egypt.
“They gather in Upper Egypt to go greater evil even as we meet here,” he said. “Should I strike them all down with a burning glance of my all-seeing Eye?”
Nun, the eldest, spoke first. “Pharaoh do not turn your eye upon Egypt, for you will destroy every being and every thing. Destroy only the evil men and women and spare the good.”
Ra nodded and spoke the word Sekhmet and a mighty lioness sprang into the counsel circle. She circled the floor and finally stopped in front of the throne of Ra. For many moments Sekhmet looked at the face of Ra, then she twitched her tail and turned and leapt out of the circle and sped to Upper Egypt.
The mighty jaws and claws of Sekhmet slaughtered the evil doers in Upper Egypt until the Nile ran red with their blood. Her hunger was endless and every day she stalked the men and women of Upper Egypt, and hid by night licking her paws and dreaming of new prey in the coming morning.
But Ra did not want to destroy mankind, only the evildoers. He decided to trick Sekhmet to stop her slaughter, but said, “I will not humble her for she has done what I asked, but I will give her a far greater power over men so that she will not be dishonored.” But first he had to catch her.
So to trap Sekhmet he sent messengers to Elephantine Island at the First Cataract of the Nile, telling them to bring red ochre.
He sent the ocher to Heliopolis to the priest of the Temple of the Sun, Ra’s temple. He commanded the priests and all the royal court to make beer and to mingle it with the red ochre so that it was red as blood.
“Quickly, carry the blood red beer to Upper Egypt and spread it on the land to trap Sekhmet,” commanded Ra.
When Sekhmet came out in the morning to feast on the wicked, she saw no men, but instead saw what looked like pools of blood spread over the land.
She found she was thirsty and she drank the blood until she was drunk and helpless. And Ra called to her, “Come my pretty one,” and she staggered down the Nile to Heliopolis.
Ra met her and lay his hand on her head, “Sekhmet, you have come in peace, so peace be with you, and a new name.You will no longer be Sekhmet the Slayer; you will be Hathor the Lady of Love. You will no longer rule man by terror, but will rule them by the passion of love. For Love is stronger than Hate and Terror, and all men will grow weak with love and be in your power.”
“And I decree that on the first day of every year that the priestesses of love will mix the ochre of Elephantine with the beer of Heliopolis at a great festival to Hathor.”
And the evil of Apophis was stopped and the bittersweet gift of love was bestowed on mankind.

How Ra Ascended to the Heavens
Osiris and Isis married when they grew up, as did Set and Nephthys. But Ra was still Pharaoh, though he had grown older and older and his hand shook with old age and the spittle dribbled from his lips.
Isis, who was the greatest magician that Egypt had ever known, devised a plan to trick Ra to leave his throne so that Osiris might become Pharaoh. Thoth told her that she could not succeed unless she learned Ra’s secret name. Only with his hidden name could she gain power over Ra.
While only Ra could create living things, Isis used her magic to steal some of this power from Ra and create a cobra of clay. Each day Ra passed by Isis on his way to Upper Egypt. As he passed on the road, the spittle from his lips fell into the dust. Isis gathered this spittle and dust and with her magic made the first cobra and lay it beside the path of Ra, for it had form but was lifeless.
When Ra next passed along the road his eye fell on the lifeless cobra and it came into being. It reared out of the grass and bit Ra on the heel as he passed and then the cobra slithered away.
Ra sat down beside the road holding his heel and soon a great pain shot through him and he cried aloud. All the gods came swiftly to help him in his anguish, and Isis was among them.
Isis cradled Ra’s heel in her hand and asked him how they could help him in his agony. Ra replied that all those who knew magic and had wisdom must be called to help him. So one by one they came, and none could help.
The last who came was Isis.
Ra’s pain had grown greater, he shivered and his eyes grew dim. “Help me Isis for you are the greatest magician in Egypt. I do not know what poison attacks me, or what snake bit me, for I did not make it.”
Isis bowed before Ra and whispered that she had great magic, but she must have extra power to cast out this strange poison that came from no snake that Ra had made; a snake that no one in Egypt had known existed. “I must have the power of your secret name, Divine Father.”
Ra was cautious and told her many of his names of power, but Isis shook her head and told him he must tell her his secret name. Finally the pain burned more powerfully and Ra relented. But before he told her his secret name he made her promise that she would tell no one but the son that she and Osiris would bear.
She must tell no one the secret name but Horus their son who would rule after Osiris.
Isis swore this oath and Ra whispered his secret name. With that name Isis chanted a spell of extraordinary power that drove the poison out of Ra’s body.
Ra’s pain ended, but he was tired and felt very old. He knew that Osiris was destined to reign after him, and his grandson Horus would follow as the third God-Pharaoh. So Ra left the earth and took his place in the heavens as the Burning Eye. He crossed the sky daily and passed under the earth in the twelve regions of the Duat nightly.
Osiris became Pharaoh of Egypt and Isis was his Queen. They built their capital at Thebes and ruled wisely.

Apophis in the Duat
When Ra sent Sekhmet to punish the evildoers of Upper Egypt, the power of Apophis was diminished and he retreated into the desert and brooded. Ra had earned his eternal hatred, but the shining eye of Ra was too strong for him. So Apophis looked for cool dark places to hide during the day and he traveled by night out of sight of Ra.
One night, in the Western Desert, he found the entrance to the Duat, the underworld where all spirits of the dead must come. And the dark mist and the shadowy passage filled with the wandering spirits seemed to be a place that Apophis could safely plan and plot against Ra.
Apophis traveled six hours along the passage, passing many evil demons, but a great evil is not troubled by a lesser one. On the seventh hour he found a cave to hide in and he made himself a home and waited. For Apophis reasoned that if Ra had taken mortal form to become Pharaoh, he must eventually die, as all human must. Apophis would wait until the spirit of Ra came upon its journey in the Duat and he would have his revenge on his enemy. For if Apophis could destroy the spirit of Ra, Ra would lose his immortality.
But Ra did not die, and while Apophis sulked in the Duat, Ra grew old and ascended to the heavens to become the sun disk who traveled across the sky by day and who sailed through the passageway of the Duat by night with his companions of great power and wisdom.
On the night of the day he ascended to heaven Ra sailed his boat into the dangerous passage of the underworld. At each hour he met demons and monsters who tried to stop his passage. His companions used magic and weapons to fight each one and by the seventh hour they were tired and sore from battle.
As they sailed past the liar of Apophis their shouts and boasts attracted his attention and he hurried to see who was in this boat. He was furious when he saw Ra. It was not how Apophis had imagined it.
Ra was not a weak spirit wandering unaware into his jaws, but he was a shining warrior surrounded by strong and powerful companions who defended him. Apophis rushed down to the river and swam to the side of the boat. He avoided the paddles and raised himself up onto the side in order to strike at Ra. But his companions were ready and they thrust and stabbed at him with sharp knives and spears and knocked him off the side of the boat.
The boat sailed on and Apophis climbed out of the water and made his way back to the cave. As a magical creature, Apophis healed quickly and so he was ready the next night when the boat appeared, but once again he was cast off the boat by the companions of Ra. The thrid and the fourth night were the same and the pattern of this struggle was set for eternity.
Each night Ra sailed by Apophis, and Apophis tried to swallow the sun disk. But Ra’s companions fought with Apophis, wounding him with sharp knives so that he was weakened and Ra triumphed.
Each night Apophis saw his enemy sail past him toward the end of the passage in the Duat to emerge on the eastern horizon to begin the new day. Each day Apophis licked his wounds and fretted and planned for the next chance to attack Ra.
To this day Ra is triumphant and Apophis dwells in weakness and malice in the Duat.

The Greatest Magician in Egypt
It is often said that the good things come in small packages and it proved to be so when the young grandson of Ramses the Great proved himself to be the greatest magician in Egypt.
Se-Osiris was the son of Setna, a great scribe. Setna’s father was Ramses the Great, and he served the Pharaoh.
On a hot and dusty day when the wind was blowing off the desert a tall stranger was brought into the cool throne room of Ramses.
The man was proud but poor and dressed in dusty brown robes. He bowed to Pharaoh and said “O, King of Egypt, I come to you from the South where the magicians are strong with power. I have been sent by my King to challenge your magicians to prove that they are weak and cannot compare with those of the South.”
And he held out his hand, and in it was a sealed papyrus scroll. He said, “I challenge all of Egypt to read what is on this scroll without breaking the seal. If no one can meet my challenge, I will return to my King and tell him that the magic of Egypt is weak.”
Ramses scowled at the magician from the South and told his guards to escort him to the guest house while he took counsel from his nobles and advisers.
When the man had been escorted out of the hall, Setna spoke saying, “Pharaoh, when you next hold court, I will bring a magician who can match the challenge from the man from the South and show that the magicians of Egypt are the most powerful.” But Setna was troubled for he must now search the land for such a powerful magician.
As Setna sat in the cool shade of his garden planning his task, his son Se-Osiris came to his side. Setna told Se-Osiris his troubles and was astonished when his son laughed at his story.
“Se-Osiris, why is it that you laugh when I am so troubled?”
Se-Osiris answered, “Do not be troubled, for I will read the sealed papyrus and humble this man and his proud King of the South.”
Setna was doubtful of his son’s boast, but he proposed that Se-Osiris prove his powers, and his son agreed. Setna sealed one of the papyrus from his daily dispatches and to his delight Se-Osiris read the words as if they were spread before him.
The next day when Pharaoh summoned his court Setna brought Se-Osiris to sit beside him. When the man from the South was brought into the hall Pharaoh called Setna to answer the man’s challenge.
Setna rose and said, “This man’s challenge is but mere child’s play to the Magicians of Egypt. I have not troubled the master magician to come, but bring instead my son, Se-Osiris, to read the papyrus.
Se-Osiris stepped forward and gazed into the eyes of the Man from the South. After a few moments he turned to Pharaoh and began to tell him the tale that was written on the papyrus.
“Pharaoh, it is a tale of pride and insult to a Pharaoh in the past.”
“Once a prideful magician in the South boasted that he could humiliate the Pharaoh of Egypt, and his King overheard him and asked that he make good his boast.
That night, the magician summoned all his power and he sent four ghostly litter bearers north, down the Nile, to the chambers of the sleeping Pharaoh and they stole him away and brought him back up the Nile to the magician. The magician and his King bound the Pharaoh and paraded him in front of the palace proclaiming that here was proof that the Pharaoh of the North was weak. And they dared to beat him across the back with canes so that welts rose in his flesh, but they didn’t kill him, they just wanted to humiliate him. Just before dawn, the magician sent the litter bearers back down the Nile to return Pharaoh to his bed.
When Pharaoh awoke the next morning he realized that his nightmare was real and that the welts on his back were proof.
He sent for his chief magician and told him of his nightmare and commanded that the King of the South and his magician be repaid in kind and the Pharaoh should be made safe from further humiliations.”
As Se-Osiris spoke the Man from the South gasped, stating, “It is true that is the story of the papyrus,” and he backed toward the door.
“Stop him!” said Se-Osiris, “There is more.”
Se-Osiris continued.
“The Egyptian Magician consulted with the priest of the god Ptah and slept that night at his alter to gain Ptah’s wisdom, and the next day returned to the hall of Pharaoh.
When he found that Pharaoh had not been troubled in his sleep, he was pleased and he set about to see that it did not happen again. That night he set spells of great power around the Pharaoh sleeping couch and when the ghostly litter bearers appeared, the magician saw them waver and shake before the spells that protected the room. Soon, they faded away, and Pharaoh slept safely through the night.
The next night the Egyptian Magician created his own troupe of ghostly litter bearers and they brought the King of the South to the hall of Pharaoh, where Pharaoh had him bound and beaten. Each night for four nights the King of the South was brought at the command of Pharaoh. Each night he suffered humiliation in the court of Pharaoh, and each day he called upon his own court magician to prevent the Pharaoh from taking him, but the magician of the South failed. In his fury, the King of the South cursed his magician to wander the earth until he could prove that there is a magic greater than that of Egypt.”
The Man from the South struggled with the guards, crying for them to free him as he had done no harm.
“Yes, that is what is in the papyrus,” the Man from the South admitted, “Now, may I go in peace, mighty Pharaoh?”
But Se-Osiris bowed to Pharaoh and said, “Do not let him go. He will not go in peace, for he is the Magician in the story and he has wandered for many years seeking to prove the weakness of Egyptian magic so that he can attack Pharaoh in revenge. Let us settle it today so that he will wander and skulk no more.”
The Man from the South drew himself up when he heard this challenge from the boy. “Who are you to challenge the greatest magician in the South?” and he threw down the papyrus. The papyrus unrolled itself and changed into a large cobra that hissed and spit at Se-Osiris.
But Se-Osiris only laughed and waved his hand and the cobra became a small worm that slithered off.
The Man of the South howled in rage and called in a cloud of darkness that descended on the hall.
Se-Osiris began to whirl about and his robes seemed to soak up the darkness until Se- Osiris stopped and shook a black dust onto the floor. When he was finished he stood in the clear air and calmly gazed at the Man from the South.
Once again the Man from the South gathered his spells and a pillar of flame arose before him and moved across the floor toward Pharaoh.
Se-Osiris stepped in front of the flame and pushed it back with his arms. The flame stopped and then retreated toward the Man from the South.
Se-Osiris clapped his hands and cried “Enough, end it now.”
The flame surrounded the Man from the South and he instantly dwindled into a pile of ashes.
Se-Osiris, turned to his father and Pharaoh and said, “He will not trouble Egypt again, for I have proven that the magic of Egypt is still stronger than that of the South.”
The Great Pharaoh Ramses replied, “And you, Se-Osiris are the greatest Magician in Egypt.”
Set the Betrayer
Osiris and Isis ruled wisely. The men of Egypt were their children and they taught them how to grow and harvest wheat and barley to make bread and how to grow fruit, dates and grapes and make wine. They taught Egyptians how to love the law and honor the gods, especially Amon-Re at Thebes. They taught the men of the Delta and Upper Egypt. When this was done peace and order came to Egypt.
Osiris went out to other distant places to teach men to live in peace and while he was away he left Isis to rule Egypt.
Osiris went in peace to the distant communities and they came to the ways of Egypt. But not all men in Egypt followed Osiris, some followed evil and Set, the brother of Osiris, became the leader of the evildoers and sought to gain the throne of Egypt by trickery.
Set pretended to love Osiris but he secretly gathered a band of conspirators and plotted against him.
When Osiris returned from his journey Set held a feast in his honor and planned a cunning trick to get rid of him.
The food and drink were plentiful at the banquet and many flattering speeches were made for Osiris. And at the end of the evening Set declared that he had a gift for one of his guests. He brought forth a beautiful chest made of cedar wood from Lebanon and ebony from Ethiopia. It was inlaid with gold and silver and many precious stones.
Set cried out to his guests, “I will give this chest to the one who most perfectly fits inside it. Come now and try it on for size for it is a beautiful thing.”
All the guests tried the chest in turn, but some were too short, some too fat, some too tall and some too thin.
Finally Osiris stepped up and said, “Let me try”. Into the chest he stepped, and it fit perfectly for Set had had it secretly made to fit him. “It is mine,” Osiris cried triumphantly, “just like it was made for me!” As it had been.
Set stepped up to the chest and slammed the lid and locked it saying, “It will be your beautiful coffin.” And he and his companions nailed the coffin shut and sealed it with lead and threw it into the Nile in the secret hours of the night.
The swift current of the Nile carried the chest out to sea.
The chest floated over the waves until it came to shore near Byblos. As the chest approached the beach a great wave arose and tossed it into the branches of a tamarind tree. The tree quickly drew the chest into its innermost heart and folded its truck around it. And the god’s presence made the tree grow into the most beautiful tree in the land.
The tamarind tree had such fragrant blossoms and wood, that its fame reached the ears of the King and Queen of Byblos.
They had the tree cut down and made a pillar out of the trunk. The pillar was set in the palace and its fame spread throughout the land, for it had the most beautiful fragrance that made all those around it feel blessed.
Isis learned of Set’s treachery and mourned the death of Osiris and vowed to find his body so that he might have a proper burial that would ensure his entry into the Duat, the Land of he Dead.

The Children of Nut the Lady of Heaven
Ra was a powerful Pharaoh and he was jealous of his power, but he had made himself a man, and knew someday he would grow old. So he spoke the word “Thoth” and the god of wisdom and magic came into being.
Thoth could speak prophecy and Pharaoh asked him what he saw in the future. Thoth uttered this prophecy, “There will be another ruler of Egypt after you, he will be the son of Nut.”
Pharaoh became angry and cursed Nut. “Nut will remain childless, as she will give birth to no child on any day in the year, neither on any night. I have spoken and so it will be.”
Nut, who had heard the prophecy, was heart-broken and she went to Thoth to seek advice as he was the wisest of the gods. Nut begged Thoth to help her. Thoth agreed to help her if she would marry him. Nut, who secretly loved Thoth, agreed.
Thoth knew that he could not change the curse of Pharaoh, but he thought of a way to give Nut her children and avoid the curse. He went to visit Khonsu the moon-god and gave him beer and honey and played a game of droughts long into the night. The bets ran higher and higher until Khonsu bet a portion of his own light.
Thoth was clever and won many rounds of droughts, so many that he won enough of Khonsu’s light to make five extra days. Thoth fitted these days in between the end of the old year and the beginning of the new year.
Poor Khonsu lost so much light that he could not shine fully every night of the month and was forced to wane to a sliver of light and slowly wax back to his full glory.
And Nut and Thoth had five children on the five new days that were never before in Pharaoh’s year. Osiris was born on the first day and a great voice from heaven proclaimed “The Lord of All comes forth into the light!”
Harmachis was born on the second day. Set was born on the third day and Isis was born on the fourth day. On the last day Nephthys was born.
And Nut was happy. Thoth instructed Osiris and Isis in all his skills and powers to prepare them for the day when Osiris would become Pharaoh and Isis would be his consort.
The Search of Isis for the Body of Osiris
When Set killed Osiris by shutting him in a box and throwing the box in the Nile, children playing along the Nile and the seashore saw the beautiful box floating by. The box was thrown up on the shore at Byblos and the roots of a tamarind tree grew around it, pulling it into the heart of the tree. The tamarind tree drew upon the power of the god Osiris’ body and grew into the most fragrant tree in the land.
The King Malcander and his wife Queen Astarte were told of the fragrant tree, and they cut it down and made a pillar for their great palace at Byblos. The fragrance of the tree filled their palace and it was the marvel of the countryside.
Isis, who carried the son of Osirus, Horus, grieved the loss of her husband and vowed to find his body and bury him with all ceremony so that he could travel to the Duat, the Land of the Dead. But first she awaited the birth of Horus on a floating island in the Nile Delta, protected and hidden from Set by the Goddess Buto.
When Horus was born, she left him in the care of Buto and set out to find the body of Osiris, her husband.
Children along the Nile saw Isis searching in the reeds and when she asked them about the box, they reported that they had seen the beautiful box float down the Nile. Isis traveled down the Nile, asking as she went, and traveled along the coast when she came to the Great Green Sea. Finally she came to Byblos where she heard about the marvelous fragrant tamarind pillar. Using her magic, she saw a vision of the chest within the heart of the tree and knew that the fragrance of the wooden pillar in the palace was the fragrance of the god Osiris who was hidden inside.
Isis turned herself into an old woman and spoke to the hand maidens of the Queen when they came down to the shore to wash and bathe in the sea. She taught them to braid their hair and make themselves beautiful with flowers and trinkets from the sea shore.
Queen Astarte saw the new ornaments and hair styles of her hair maidens and asked who had taught them this new art of beauty. When they told her, she asked them to bring the old woman to the palace.
When she met the old woman, the Queen could see that she was wise and skilled in the arts of beauty and adornment. She invited to Isis to come to the palace and join her household, taking care of her sickly son Diktys.
Diktys grew stronger in Isis care, and Astarte was glad, but she was also fearful because the maid said that Isis shut them out of the nursery at night and they heard strange sounds from behind the closed doors.
So one night Astarte hid herself in the nursery and watched as Isis closed the doors behind the maids. She was horrified to see that Isis built a fire surrounding her son Diktys and once he was encircled, she changed into a swallow and flew around and around the fragrant wooden pillar in the room.
Astarte rushed forward and pulled the child out of the fire, only to find him unharmed.
Isis changed from a swallow into her mortal form and stood before the Queen in all her majesty and beauty. The Queen was dazzled and in awe.
Isis took the child and held him for his mother to see, saying “Foolish woman, you have prevented your son becoming immortal and one of the gods, as I am. I could have made him so. But now he will live a normal lifespan, and die as all men do.”
The Queen could only beg Isis for her forgiveness and promise her gold and riches to continue tending to Diktys. But Isis refused, saying “My magic has been interrupted and cannot be continued, but I can give you my blessing if you will pay me what I ask.”
The Queen offered Isis anything she wished to secure her continued blessing for her son. Isis asked for the fragrant wooden pillar. The Queen consented for she could see that the life of her son had been saved and that the blessing of Isis would ensure his health and happiness into the future.
Once Isis had the pillar, she asked for it to be split open. The workmen found the coffin of Osirus inside the heart of the pillar. Isis removed the coffin and poured perfume and oils on the pillar. “Take this pillar into your temple and it will become a powerful relic that many pilgrims will come to see to seek its healing powers, for it has contained the body of a god.”
And the Temple of Baalat in Byblos became famous for the the wooden relic “The Lady of Byblos.”
And Isis took the body of Osirus home that he might be buried and pass into the Duat. There he became the King of the Dead who judged all souls. The worthy souls dwelt with him in the Duat and the unworthy were doomed to eternal nothingness.
The Magician’s Journey to the Underworld, The Duat
Se-Osiris, Egypt’s Greatest Magician, Travels to the Land of the Dead
Se-Osiris, Egypt’s greatest magician, and his father Setna saw two funeral processions pass by. One was the funeral of a poor man with only his family to mourn him. The other was the long funeral procession of a rich man which sparkled with the gold of the coffin and the ornaments of the mourners.
Setna began to praise the beauty of the stately procession, but his son commented that the funeral of the poor man was more worthy.
“Why?” asked Setna.
“Because,” replied Se-Osiris, “the poor man will most likely be judged favorably in the Judgment Hall of Osiris, but the rich man is sure to have a heavy burden of evil on his heart. The rich man’s heart will probably tip the scale when it is weighed against the feather of Maat.”
“Is not the wealth of the man, proof of his status and his good works for the Pharaoh?”
“Perhaps, but his status here will do nothing to save him in the Hall of Judgment. However, if you doubt me, we can see the outcome for this wealthy man, for I know the words of power to open the gates of the Duat. I can transform you and me into our Ba form, and we can fly beside this man as he journeys through the Duat to the Hall of Judgment.”
Setna feared that this magic was too dangerous. What if they could not return, once they entered the Duat. Therefore, he followed his son into the Temple of Osiris with fear.
As Ramses’ son and grandson, none barred them from the sanctuary. Once inside, Se-Osiris drew a magic circle around the alter and the statue of Osiris and motioned his father to step inside with him. He threw a magic powder into the flames on the alter and spoke the magic word of power. The Temple rocked as if an earthquake had struck and the flames on the alter leapt to the ceiling and then died down.
In the darkness, Setna saw two glowing forms standing beside Osiris, each with a flame tongue hovering over his head. It was his own Ka and the Ka of Se-Osiris, and the flame of their souls hovered over their body doubles. In the shadows he saw two bodies lying still. And he recognized himself and his son.
“Come, Father,”Said Se-Osiris,”for we must complete our journey before the sun rises again, or we will dwell in Duat forever.”
“Lead the way,” he said, as he floated upward on the smoke of the alter fire, following his son.
The souls of father and son sped across the western landscape at supernatural speed until they flew through the gap in the western mountains of Abydos into the First Region of the Night. There the glorious Mesektet Boat of Ra was waiting to gather all the souls of the dead of that day.
The boat sparkled with gold and precious jewels. Gods walked along the banks of the River of Death, pulling the Boat of Ra toward the open gates of the Duat. Six serpents were curled on either side of the gate and they hissed as the Boat with it’s souls traveled by. The Ba’s of Setna and Se-Osiris floated after it.
The door to the Second Region of the Night was guarded by fire breathing serpents and had many sharp spear points fixed to the top so that none could climb back. And the souls of the dead in the Boat chanted the proscribed words and the door opened to reveal the Kingdom of Ra where the old gods dwelt, but the souls could only marvel at the sights along the banks because they must travel on into Amenti, the Third Region, where Osiris sat in the Hall of Judgment.
The doors to the Third Region were terrible because their pivots were seated in the eye sockets of two men who had done much evil while on the earth.
Inside the Third Region the boat drew up to the bank and the souls climbed up and walked in procession through the outer court of the Hall of Judgment. Once all aboard were left to their fate, the Boat of Ra moved on through the next region and the next, until it had completed it’s journey through the Nine regions of the Night and Ra was reborn in the East with the rising of the Sun.
Setna and Se-Osiris followed the souls of dead to the portal of the Hall of Osiris where each answered the challenge of the Door-Keeper as they had been taught in life.
“You cannot pass unless you know my name. What is my name?” the Door-Keeper cried.
“Understander of Hearts is your name and Searcher of Bodies,” each soul answered in turn.
“Who should I tell of your coming?” demanded the Door-Keeper.
“Tell the Interpreter of the Two Lands that I come,” replied the souls.
“Who is the Interpreter of the Two Lands? asked the Door-Keeper.
“It is Thoth the Wise God.”
So each filed passed the Door-Keeper in turn.
Thoth greeted each one saying, “You can come with me, but why have you come?”
“I have come to be announced.”
“What is your condition?”
“I am pure of sin.”
“Who do you wish to see?”
“The one whose ceiling is of fire, whose wall are made of writhing serpents and whose floor is flowing water, for he is Osiris.”
“Very well,” answer Thoth and led them before Osiris upon his throne. Osiris was wrapped as a mummy is in death with the Uraeus on his forehead and the crook and the scourge crossed his breast. Before his throne stood a huge balance to weigh the heart of the souls.
As each soul stood before Osiris each proclaimed his defense: “I am pure! I am pure! May purity is an that of the Bennu Bird, whose nest rest upon the stone persea-tree, the obelisk at Heliopolis. I have come without sin, without guilt, without evil. I live on truth and eat of truth. I have given bread to the hungry…” Each soul continued until the proscribed speech had been completed.
Annubis then took each heart out of the Ka of the soul and placed it on one Scale. On the other scale, was set the feather of Truth. The heart of the evil doer was heavy with sin and sank low on the balance. Waiting below the balance was Amemt the Devourer of Hearts. Amemt waited to reach the sinking scale and grabbed the hearts weighted with sin. He bore the heart away and the evil doer was forced to walk into the flickering darkeness of the Duat where Apophis dwelt in the Pits of Fire.
But the good man’s heart rose in the lightness of his good deeds and Thoth cried out to Osiris, “This man has spoken truth. Let not the Eater of Souls have power over him. Grant him a place in the Fields of Peace with the the companions of Horus.”
Horus then took the good man’s hand and bade Osiris grant the soul a place in the Fields of Peace. And Osiris nodded his consent. The good man ran rejoicing into the Fields of Peace to await the time when Osiris returned to earth to live with the righteous.
Setna and Se-Osiris watched silently as the good and the evil were sorted into their just destinations.
“See, Father, the rich man’s fate is not affected by his wealth or the splendor of his funeral procession, but the gaining of that wealth may place a heavy burden of sin on his heart. Even the poor man can attain the rewards of the Fields of Peace, and the wealth or poverty of his life has no bearing on his judgment. As the poor man’s life is simple and unburdened by the practices of gaining and keeping wealth and status, his heart too is unburdened.”
With that, Se-Osiris led this father soaring through the night back to reclaim their bodies at the Temple in Thebes.
Together they watched the sun rise from the forecourt of the temple and contemplated the judgment of Osiris in the Underworld.

“The Legend Of The Bay”

When God desired to create the horse, he summoned forth the South Wind, which the people of Egypt call, “El Marees,” saying, “I shall create from thy substance a new being which shall be good fortune unto my followers and humiliation to my enemies. Condense thyself!” And the wind condensed itself. And the angel Gabriel caught a handful of it and said to God: “Here is the handful of wind.” And God created therefrom an Arab horse of bay color and addressed it by saying, “I have created thee and named thee ‘horse.’ I have bestowed my blessings upon thee above all other beasts of burden and made thee their master. Success and happiness are bound to thy forelock; bounty reposes on you back, and riches are with you wherever you may be. And I have endowed thee to fly without wings; you are for pursuit and for flight. And thou shalt carry men who will glorify me, and thou shalt glorify me thereby.” And when the horse neighed, He said to it, “I have blessed thee and will affright the pagans with your neighing, and I will fill their ears with it and fill their hearts with great fear from it, and humiliate their necks with the sound of it!

“The Legend Of The Five”

“Al Khamsa” is an Arabic term roughly translated as “the five.” Early occidental travelers to the extended Arabian peninsula frequently reported that the term “al khamsa” (el Khamsa, el Khoms, etc.) was used to designate the five best or favorite “breeds,” strains or families, of the unique and ancient breed of horses of the native Bedouin. These travelers indicated that there were many strains and that the list of “the five” varied from tribe to tribe or from sheykh to sheykh. The story of “Al Khamsa” refers to the five favorite horses of the prophet Muhammad (AD 570-632). According to this legend, a tribe of Bedouin, after a long journey in the desert, released their mares to run to a watering hole to quench their thirst. As a test of their loyalty the mares were called back to their masters before reaching the water, and of the many mares, only five returned faithfully without drinking. These became the five original favorite mares of the Bedouin, and each was given a strain name which would carry on with its descendants. Just which strains these were depended on the teller of the tale as there are actually more than five strains and all are related and of equal importance. The term “Al Khamsa” signified purity of bloodlines to the Bedouin, as it does today to supporters of Al Khamsa.