The Egyptian ruler, whose meeting with Abraham had proved so untoward
an event, was the first to bear the name Pharaoh. The succeeding kings
were named thus after him. The origin of the name is connected with the
life and adventures of Rakyon, Have-naught, a man wise, handsome, and
poor, who lived in the land of Shinar. Finding himself unable to
support himself in Shinar, he resolved to depart for Egypt, where he
expected to display his wisdom before the king, Ashwerosh, the son of
'Anam. Perhaps he would find grace in the eyes of the king, who would
give Rakyon the opportunity of supporting himself and rising to be a
great man. When he reached Egypt, he learnt that it was the custom of
the country for the king to remain in retirement in his palace, removed
from the sight of the people. Only on one day of the year he showed
himself in public, and received all who had a petition to submit to
him. Richer by a disappointment, Rakyon knew not how he was to earn a
livelihood in the strange country. He was forced to spend the night in
a ruin, hungry as he was. The next day he decided to try to earn
something by selling vegetables. By a lucky chance he fell in with some
dealers in vegetables, but as he did not know the customs of the
country, his new undertaking was not favored with good fortune.
Ruffians assaulted him, snatched his wares from him, and made a
laughing-stock of him. The second night, which he was compelled to
spend in the ruin again, a sly plan ripened in his mind. He arose and
gathered together a crew of thirty lusty fellows. He took them to the
graveyard, and bade them, in the name of the king, charge two hundred
pieces of silver for every body they buried. Otherwise interment was to
be prevented. In this way he succeeded in amassing great wealth within
eight months. Not only did he acquire silver, gold, and precious gems,
but also he attached a considerable force, armed and mounted, to his
person.
On the day on which the king appeared among the people, they began to
complain of this tax upon the dead. They said: "What is this thou art
inflicting upon thy servants—permitting none to be buried unless they
pay thee silver and gold! Has a thing like this come to pass in the
world since the days of Adam, that the dead should not be interred
unless money be paid therefor! We know well that it is the privilege of
the king to take an annual tax from the living. But thou takest tribute
from the dead, too, and thou exactest it day by day. O king, we cannot
endure this any longer, for the whole of the city is ruined thereby."
The king, who had had no suspicion of Rakyon's doings, fell into a
great rage when the people gave him information about them. He ordered
him and his armed force to appear before him. Rakyon did not come
empty-handed. He was preceded by a thousand youths and maidens, mounted
upon steeds and arrayed in state apparel. These were a present to the
king. When he himself stepped before the king, he delivered gold,
silver, and diamonds to him in great abundance, and a magnificent
charger. These gifts and the display of splendor did not fail of taking
effect upon the king, and when Rakyon, in well-considered words and
with a pliant tongue, described the undertaking, he won not only the
king to his side, but also the whole court, and the king said to him,
"No longer shalt thou be called Rakyon, Have-naught, but Pharaoh,
Paymaster, for thou didst collect taxes from the dead."
So profound was the impression made by Rakyon that the king, the
grandees, and the people, all together resolved to put the guidance of
the realm in the hands of Pharaoh. Under the suzerainty of Ashwerosh he
administered law and justice throughout the year; only on the one day
when he showed himself to the people did the king himself give judgment
and decide cases. Through the power thus conferred upon him and through
cunning practices, Pharaoh succeeded in usurping royal authority, and
he collected taxes from all the inhabitants of Egypt. Nevertheless he
was beloved of the people, and it was decreed that every ruler of Egypt
should thenceforth bear the name Pharaoh.[81]