Ancient Egyptian Afterlife

Ancient Egyptians believed in a religion based on polytheism, or the belief in many deities. They believed in around 2000 gods and goddesses which were said to have the bodies of humans and the heads of animals. The two gods which had the most power over the afterlife were; Amon-Ra, the god of the sun and Osiris, the god of the Underworld. Other holy creatures included; crocodiles, cats and bulls.

The Egyptian priests had a book which told all of the major spells and beliefs for their religion. This book was called "The Book of the Dead." Every person who was rich enough to be mummified and blessed had their own Book of the Dead buried with them to help prepare them for the long journey into the afterlife. Egyptians believed that death was a transitional stage that would lead to a better life. Only when they reached the afterlife did they reach their full potential. Because of this, Egyptians would dedicate their entire lives to preparing for life after death.

Mummification was only reserved for royalty and anyone else who could afford it. When a commoner would pass away, their soul would roam between the Egyptian version of Heaven and Hell.

According to the ancient Egyptians there were six important elements that were necessary for rebirth in the afterlife. The body, the shadow, the name, the spirit (or ka), the personality (or ba) and the immortality (or akh). All were given to the man or woman at birth, except the akh.

The shadow always follows the person. They could not exist without a shadow. In pictures the shadow is represented by a small human figure painted black.

The name is said to live as long as it is spoken. Efforts to protect the name include; a cartouche (form of "magical rope"), which surrounds the name and keeps it safe.

The ka, or spirit, was made on a potters wheel by the ram-headed god, Khnum. The ka has the same needs as the physical body, such as; food, water, etc. Therefore, Egyptians would leave offerings of food, drink and personal possessions of the dead in the tomb.

The ba was like the physical body in that, everyone's was different. The ba was given to the human through the "breath of life." It was allowed to move freely from the physical world and the underworld and could take on many different forms.
The akh, the only element not joined at birth, was immortal and unchangeable. It was created after death through the use of spells and text read at the funeral. The akh was achieved so that the individual could not "die a second time", which would mean the end of one's existence.

The elements listed above would not exists were it not for the physical body. They needed a way to preserve the body and that's where mummification came in.

Mummification is the preservation of the physical body. The priests performing the mummification would begin by trying one last time to revive the dead. Then in a special shelter called an ibu, the priests would wash the body and purify it in oils. After the body was cleansed it was taken to the embalmers workshop called the wabet. A cut was made on the left side of the abdomen and all organs, but the heart were removed. It was perceived that all thought was done in the heart. So when they removed the "useless" brain through the deceased person's nose they immediately discarded it. The priests would place the organs in sacred jars called Canopic Jars. There were four jars in all and the guardians were the four sons of Horus. Imset was the guardian of the liver, Duamutef was the guardian of the stomach, Qebehsenuf guarded the intestines and Ha'py was the guardian of the lungs.

Once the organs were removed the body was packed with a type of salt called natron for forty days. At the end of the forty days the inside of the body was filled with linen or sawdust, resin and natron. The body was then wrapped in bandages and adorned with jewelry and amulets between the layers. A mask made to look like the person was laid on the head of the body by the Chief Embalmer, who wore a jackal mask symbolizing Anubis. The mummy was then placed in a plain coffin.

Seventy days needed to pass to complete the mummification. At this time the plain coffin was put into an elaborately decorated coffin and was placed in a tomb along with games, statues, furniture and other personal possessions.
The last ceremony performed before the tomb was sealed was the "Opening of the Mouth." This was a very important ceremony, because it enabled the deceased to eat, speak, etc and have full use of his or her body. The priest would stand the coffin upright and place his hands on the face while reciting specific spells. After this ceremony the tomb was sealed and the funeral was performed.

When the deceased reached the afterlife they had to begin by passing a test. Anubis would weigh the heart of the man against a feather which represented Ma'at, the goddess of justice and truth. If the man led a good life then his heart would weigh the same as the feather and would, therefore, pass on to the next task. However, if the heart weighed more than the feather, the man had not led a good life and his body was eaten by a monster. The monster was part crocodile, part lion and part hippopotamus, because these were the three creatures most feared by Egyptians. If the person was eaten then he ceased to exist. This the equivalent of Hell in ancient Egypt.

If the man passed the heart test Osiris would ask him to do small tasks, usually agricultural. Wealthy people had statues placed in their tombs called shabtis. Egyptians believed that these statues would do Osiris's work for them.
Preserving their afterlife was the most important thing in an Egyptians life. Though not all were allowed to take part, all Egyptians felt the same way about life after death.