Egyptian religious poetry

INTRODUCTION 33

early as the xviiith dynasty (circa 1500 B.c.), when Egypt had spread far beyond its original borders and had come in close contact with other civilizations and other religions. As the great and ruling power her religion was of importance to the conquered countries and had to be explained to a certain extent. The Egyptian theologians of the period made a gallant attempt, though with disastrous results, to unify the varying beliefs held by the people of their country. It is possible that their rearrangement of the pantheon may have been intelligible when delivered by word of mouth, but their writings on the subject are too often incomprehensible. Therefore to obtain any real understanding of the beliefs of the ancient Egyptians it is necessary to study the religion before the theologians began to explain it; in other words, before the xviiith dynasty.

The prehistoric periods show that there was a strong belief in a future life, but it is not until the historic period that there is any recognizable indication of the worship of God. In the prehistoric periods Egypt was divided into a number of little ptincipalities, which were conquered and united under one head by Menes, the first historic King or Pharaoh. Each little state had its own king and its own deity, the god or goddess being almost invariably in animal form; in later times, they are depicted with human bodies and animal heads. In these little states there seems to have been the usual primitive belief that the deity also dwelt in a human being, always the King himself, and that to the Ruler belonged the creative power of God. He was thus the giver of fertility to every living creature within his little kingdom, and was worshipped by his subjects as God Incarnate. When the country was united into one kingdom, the King became Osiris (Us-yri), the Occupier of the Throne. In Egypt the throne descended in the female line and could be acquired only by marriage with the heiress; the Queen was then Isis

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