Kept by the Sun and the Rising Star

The Oxford Book of Death

By D.J. Enright

Here are cakes for thy body,

Cool water for thy throat,

Sweet breezes for thy nostrils,

And thou art satisfied.

No longer dost thou stumble

Upon thy chosen path,

From thy mind all evil

And darkness fall away.

Here by the river,

Drink and bath thy limbs,

Or cast thy net, and surely

It shall be filled with fish.

The holy cow of Hapi

Shall give thee of her milk,

The ale of gods triumphant

Shall be thy daily draught.

White linen is thy tunic,

Thy sandals shine with gold;

Victorious thy weapons,

That death come not again.

Now upon the whirlwind

Thou followest thy Prince,

Now thou hast refreshment

Under the leafy tree.

Take wings to climb the zenith,

Or sleep in Fields of Peace;

By day the Sun shall keep thee,

By night the rising Star”(176-177).

The Other World (as cited in Enright)

                     The comforts that Egyptians predicted for the time after death, emphasizes their positive opinion on death and the afterlife. When death occurred the individual was lain to rest with food, drink and perfume to give them comfort during the passage to the afterlife. Their cares and troubles in life dropped away; perhaps when they confessed to the forty-two judges. It is interesting that the river [Nile] is referenced many times within Egyptian mythology in relation to death because the river during that time period was the life giver to the entire land. Perhaps it is referenced because when the Nile is related to life thus also related to the afterlife.