Ancient Egyptian legends

by Margaret Alice Murray

On the farther wall of the ravine is a high and vaulted building, the home of Night and Darkness. Two birds cling on either side, and round about it glides a two-headed serpent. He lifts his savage heads, and his poison is ever ready to strike the rash intruder who should dare to try to pass. Faithful is his watch, for in the home of Night and Darkness lives Khepera, the great Soul of the universe, he whose emblem is the beetle, the god of resurrection. In the form of a scarab he watches the coming of Ra, and he flies upon the Boat and awaits there the time when he shall bring Life back to the god. And now through the thick darkness along the narrow passage falls a gleam of light; the Morning Star stands by the gate to lead the Boat onwards; for in the darkest of the night is a promise of the coming day.

Slowly goes the Boat of Ra, passing through the Duat, through regions of thick darkness, of terror and dismay, to the place where the abominable Apep lies in wait for the coming of Ra. Thus passes the fifth hour of the night, and the sixth hour is at hand. Then the goddess of the fifth hour makes way for the goddess of the sixth hour, and she calls aloud the name of the Guardian of the gate. Flung wide are the portals, and the Boat of Ra passes through.

"Abyss of waters" is the name of the sixth country of the Duat, and Osiris has dominion over it, Osiris, the great god, Lord of the city of Daddu, the living King, Creator of men, of cattle, and of the green things which grow upon the earth, Osiris, to whom all men bow in praise and adoration.

The river rises out of the sand again, and the Boat floats upon its waters, and those who are in it rejoice, for the hours of the night are passing away. On the banks of the river are the great shapes of the gods, mysterious and wonderful; nine sceptres of sovereignty stand there also, and a monstrous lion looms through the darkness, faintly seen in the light which comes from the Boat of Ra. Three shrines stand beside the river, and a serpent whose breath is flame guards each one. Mystic and strange are the forms within the shrines, and to man it is not given to know the meaning of them; in one is a human head, in another the wing of a bird, in the third the hind part of a lion. Here also lives the great coiled serpent with five heads, and within his coils lies Khepera, god of resurrection. On his head he places the scarab, beneath his feet is the sign of flesh; thus does he send Life into the dead, and thus will he re-vivify Ra. For this is the farthest point of the Duat, and beyond the gate lies the way to the sunrise.

Slowly goes the Boat of Ra, passing through the Duat, through regions of thick darkness, of horror and dismay, where the abominable Apep lies in wait for the coming of Ra. Thus passes the sixth hour of the night, and the seventh hour is at hand. Then the goddess of the sixth hour makes way for the goddess of the seventh hour, and she calls aloud the name of the Guardian of the gate. Flung wide are the portals, and the Boat of Ra passes through.

"Secret cavern" is the name of the seventh country of the Duat. Full of danger and peril is it, for the abominable Apep dwells in this land. As a great and monstrous serpent does he appear and with wide-open mouth he swallows the waters of the river, that the Boat may be wrecked and that Ra may perish. Then would the earth belong to the powers of darkness, and evil and wickedness would overcome the gods.

But in the prow of the Boat stands Isis, the great enchantress, whose magic none can withstand; Isis, the greatest of the goddesses, she who can raise the dead, and to whom all mankind pay love and reverence. With arms outstretched, she recites the Words of Power; calling aloud across the dark river. Over the body of Ra, the serpent Mehen casts his protecting coils, for now is the time of danger.

On a sandbank in the midst of the river lies the abominable Apep. Four hundred and fifty cubits long is the sandbank; the coils of Apep cover it so that naught can be seen but the river around him. Loud does he hiss and roar, and the Duat is filled with the thunder of his voice, yet Isis flinches not, nor does she cease her incantations and the magical movements of her hands. Her spells prevail and the abominable Apep lies helpless on the sand. Then Selk and Her-desuf leap from the Boat of Ra and bind him with cords, and with sharp knives they pierce his flesh, hoping to destroy him. But Apep is immortal, and every night will he await and attack the Boat of Ra. Yet Selk and Her-desuf hold him fast while the Boat continues on its way, past the great sandbanks, where he writhes and twists and struggles to get free, but the cords are strong and the knives are sharp and his efforts are in vain.

Onward goes the Boat to the burial-places of the gods. These stand beside the river; high mounds of sand are they, over each mound is a building, and at each end the head of a man watches the passing of Ra.

Softly goes the Boat of Ra, passing through the Duat, moving through the darkness to the sunrise and the day. Thus passes the seventh hour of the night, and the eighth hour is at hand. Then the goddess of the seventh hour makes way for the goddess of the eighth hour, and she calls aloud the name of the Guardian of the gate. Flung wide are the portals, and the Boat of Ra passes through.