Ancient Egyptians generally believed that there would still be some connection between the dead and the living, and there must be communication channels between Yin and Yang. Therefore, even after death, the deceased will still exist in the family and be respected.
There is no boundary between yin and yang.
There is a strange phenomenon in ancient Egypt: the living and the dead will keep close contact, and those men and women who have passed away will still be part of the people's hearts and will still help solve their demands. Sometimes, a wife dies suddenly after a family dispute, or a father dies suddenly when no one takes care of him at the last moment of his life, which will make the living feel sorry. They are afraid that dead souls will come back for revenge like ghosts, so they can't live. If the only person who dies is someone who is remembered by the living and loved by the world, people will not be afraid, but will write to him for advice and protection. The Book of the Dead has formed a very unique category in the literature, which shows us the close relationship between ancient Egyptians and their close relatives, even after death.
A story that happened on the Nile more than 4000 years ago may inspire readers. The hero of the story is the wife of a priest in Memphis. After her husband died, she lived with a maid who had been ill for a long time. Because there is no helper, she supports her family life alone, so it is very painful. So she thought of her husband. Like most Egyptians, she believes that death will not stop her husband from helping her through the difficulties. She wrote a letter of complaint to her husband on a rough red pottery bowl: "Do you want our house to be deserted? If you don't help, this family will be ruined! Don't you know that in such a man's world, the hired hand wants to help our family? ..... "She thought her maid was cursed by an evil god, and only her dead husband could help, so she went on to write," Can you exorcise evil spirits for her? Get rid of the gods who hurt her and let our children have a way out! ..... exorcise her, now! " After writing the letter, she filled the bowl with food and put it at her husband's grave. She believes that her husband can read this letter and do as she asks.
It is this belief that the soul still exists and lives forever after death that makes the boundary between Yin and Yang in ancient Egypt blurred and full of human warmth. This is one of the reasons why they worked so hard to preserve the dead body. An archaeological discovery once again strengthened people's views. In the tomb of an unknown couple, people found a group of models of their husband and wife chatting. They are surrounded by jewels, clothes, food, cosmetics, toys and other things that may be needed in the afterlife. This perfectly confirms their idea that life after death is the same as before.
The grave is an "eternal home"
Egyptians created countless wealth for the afterlife to enjoy, but also carefully planned anti-corrosion and incense for themselves, and built an "eternal home"-the tomb. From the humble tomb of Mastaba to the magnificent pyramids, the Egyptians tried their best to contribute to the final destination according to their own affordability. They regard death as so sacred and serious that most scholars think it is the joy and significance of this national life.
The ancient Egyptians believed that the graves of the dead were best located in the desert in the west. In this way, the soul of the deceased can go home with the sunset. In order to achieve eternity, these tombs are mostly made of huge stones or chiseled on cliffs.
The tomb in ancient Egypt has two parts, which correspond to its two functions: the tomb part is dug deep underground and enters through the ventilation shaft to bury the dead and their funerary objects; The upper sacrifice hall is the place where the living and the dead meet. The priest and the family of the deceased held a memorial ceremony in this public place, or simply gathered here. They are afraid of dishonest intruders visiting or desecrating graves, so graves always express such fears and threaten to retaliate in the underworld: "If anyone breaks a stone and a brick in my grave, I will grab his neck like a bird and make him feel extremely scared, and I will let everyone know about it"; "Hey, you step into the grave world. If you want the king to reward you, if you want to be an Imaku (a glorious man) before God, then don't enter my grave undignified. After reading these words, anyone who still does not enter solemnly will be judged by God, and I will also ... smash his living home and smash his home. "
Most of the most beautiful graves left behind belong to nobles, but the graves of ordinary people are very simple-sometimes, simply dig a rectangular pit on the surface of the desert, and the dead are wrapped in straw mats or buried directly. All the funerary objects are a few pieces of porcelain and some evil spirits.
After some Thebes were buried, they might meet some people: the tomb was opened and the dead wife followed him underground; Or, he met an unwelcome intruder-a grave robber. If the deceased was respected before his death and his relatives and friends often missed him, he would come to the memorial hall to send him a letter, hoping that the deceased would act as a judge and judge whether his behavior was appropriate; Relatives and friends will also put food and wine on the altar in front of the statue. It is true that no one can stay in people's memory forever. Egyptians used to put carved sacrifices on the altar in case future generations forgot their ancestors and the altar was empty.
Coffins may be more suitable for the title of "forever home" than graves. Many coffins are well-made and exquisite in craftsmanship, and they have become favorite collections of people all over the world. These coffins are the main channel for people to understand Egyptian art. In the ancient kingdom, the shape of coffins was just a simple rectangle. Previously, the coffin was square, and the arms and legs of the deceased could only be put in by bending. The famous humanoid coffin was invented in the Middle Kingdom. In the new kingdom, the shape of human coffins is fixed. In the era of Ramses' rule, groups of coffins like this were everywhere. However, the sturdy and exquisite sarcophagus has always been the exclusive product of the king and a few powerful people. The trend of decorating coffins has been popular for centuries and lasted for a long time. Sometimes all the characters on the coffin are covered with gold foil, and sometimes they wear everyday clothes. Most decorative paintings are inscribed, full of mysterious spells, statues, scenes of hades and fragments of daily life. For the dead, coffins decorated with mysterious words and patterns are an umbrella against evil forces.
Revelation of resurrection
In the process of observing the seasonal cycle, the Egyptians were inspired that life can transcend death. Because with the changes of the four seasons, the bleak land where everything is dying will glow with vitality and flowers when spring comes. In the early dynasty, funerary objects were buried with the dead, which shows that the Egyptian view of death has taken shape at this time. To some extent, this concept is influenced by the following phenomenon: the bodies of the poor are hastily buried on the edge of the desert and are not easy to rot. Because the sand absorbs the water in the body, the bacteria lose the conditions for growth, and the body becomes a natural mummy. In addition, Egypt's climate is dry and rainy, and the body is still intact. This discovery caters to the beliefs of the Egyptians. They believe that the integrity of the body is an indispensable condition for the rebirth of the dead. This belief inspired them to invent a set of artificial methods to preserve corpses.
Paying attention to the body does not mean that they lack the concept of soul. Egyptians believe that everyone is composed of several important groups of material and spiritual elements. If he or she wants to be reborn, each group of elements must be preserved intact. In addition to the body, the soul can also be preserved through rituals and spells. At the thought of the joy of body resurrection, people can't help but yearn for the proper preservation of the body.
When the Egyptians discovered that burying the dead in wet sand would rot the body, they realized the importance of dehydration. It is natural for the rich to want a comfortable and permanent home. They want to preserve the body by artificial means and let it be properly placed. In this way, they no longer have to worry about missing the chance of eternal life because of physical deformity.
Natural mummy
In the early dynasty and the pyramid period, it was thought that only Pharaoh could achieve eternal life. After Pharaoh's death, Horus, hidden in his body, will return to Osiris. Pyramids are the ultimate destination of Pharaoh's noble status. His concubines, priests and minions are all buried in the nearby small golden pagoda and the tomb of Mastaba, surrounded by pyramids, hoping to follow their masters in the afterlife.
In the new kingdom era, people's views on life and death have undergone important changes. This may be because the collapse of the early dynasty shattered people's absolute trust in kingship. From then on, anyone can pray for eternal life.
But for ordinary people, new beliefs are just a kind of spiritual comfort. Because of poverty, they can only repeat the original funeral way. The graves of these poor people are scattered on the edge of cultivated land or lost in the rolling yellow sand in the desert. The unique arid environment absorbed the water of the corpse, prevented it from rotting, and finally became a natural mummy. This realized people's desire to preserve the body. In a sense, the Egyptian concept of rebirth originated from the desert environment here, which perfected their concept system of rebirth. You can filter it yourself.