EGYPTIAN HYMNS TO THE GODS
In this chapter are given translations of Hymns that were sung in the
temples in honour of the great gods of Egypt between 1600 B.C. and 900
B.C., and of Hymns that were used by kings and private individuals. The
following Hymn to Amen-Rā is found in a papyrus preserved in the
Egyptian Museum in Cairo; the asterisk marks groups of words which are
equivalent to our lines in poetical compositions.
I. A Hymn to Amen-Rā,* the Bull, dweller in Anu, chief of all the gods,*
the beneficent god, beloved one,* giving the warmth of life to all*
beautiful cattle.*
II. Homage to thee, Amen-Rā, Lord of the throne of Egypt.* Master of the
Apts (Karnak).* Kamutef at the head of his fields.* The long-strider,
Master of the Land of the South.* Lord of the Matchau (Nubians),
Governor of Punt,* King of heaven, first-born son of earth,* Lord of
things that are, stablisher of things (_i.e._ the universe), stablisher
of all things.*
III. One in his actions, as with the gods,* Beneficent Bull of the
Company of the Gods (or of the Nine Gods),* Chief of all the gods,* Lord
of Truth, father of the gods,* maker of men, creator of all animals,*
Lord of things that are, creator of the staff of life,* Maker of the
herbage that sustaineth the life of cattle.*
IV. Power made by Ptah,* Beautiful child of love.* The gods ascribe
praises to him.* Maker of things celestial [and] of things terrestrial,
he illumineth Egypt,* Traverser of the celestial heights in peace.* King
of the South, King of the North, Rā, whose word is truth, Chief of
Egypt.* Mighty in power, lord of awe-inspiring terror,* Chief, creator
of everything on earth,* Whose dispensations are greater than those of
every other god.*
V. The gods rejoice in his beautiful acts.* They acclaim him in the
Great House (_i.e._ the sky).* They crown him with crowns in the House
of Fire.* They love the odour of him,* when he cometh from Punt.*[1]
Prince of the dew, he traverseth the lands of the Nubians.* Beautiful of
face, [he] cometh from the Land of the God.*[2]
[Footnote 1: The Southern and Eastern Sūdān.]
[Footnote 2: Somaliland and Southern Arabia.]
VI. The gods fall down awestruck at his feet,* when they recognise His
Majesty their Lord.* Lord of terror, great one of victory,* Great one of
Souls, mighty one of crowns.* He maketh offerings abundant, [and]
createth food.* Praise be unto thee, creator of the gods.* Suspender of
the sky, who hammered out the earth.*
VII. Strong Watcher, Menu-Amen,* Lord of eternity, creator of
everlastingness,* Lord of praises, chief of the Apts (Karnak and Luxor),
firm of horns, beautiful of faces.*
VIII. Lord of the Urrt Crown, with lofty plumes,* Whose diadem is
beautiful, whose White Crown is high.* Mehen and the Uatchti serpents
belong to his face.* His apparel (?) is in the Great House,* the double
crown, the _nemes_ bandlet, and the helmet.* Beautiful of face, he
receiveth the Atef crown.* Beloved of the South and North.* Master of
the double crown he receiveth the _ames_ sceptre.* He is the Lord of the
Mekes sceptre and the whip.*
IX. Beautiful Governor, crowned with the White Crown,* Lord of light,
creator of splendour,* The gods ascribe to him praises.* He giveth his
hand to him that loveth him.* The flame destroyeth his enemies.* His eye
overthroweth the Seba devil.* It casteth forth its spear, which pierceth
the sky, and maketh Nak to vomit (?) what it hath swallowed.*
X. Homage to thee, Rā, Lord of Truth.* Hidden is the shrine of the Lord
of the gods.* Khepera in his boat* giveth the order, and the gods come
into being.* [He is] Tem, maker of the Rekhit beings,* however many be
their forms he maketh them to live,* distinguishing one kind from
another.*
XI. He heareth the cry of him that is oppressed.* He is gracious of
heart to him that appealeth to him.* He delivereth the timid man from
the man of violence.* He regardeth the poor man and considereth [his]
misery.*
XII. He is the lord Sa (_i.e._ Taste); abundance is his utterance.* The
Nile cometh at his will.* He is the lord of graciousness, who is greatly
beloved.* He cometh and sustaineth mankind.* He setteth in motion
everything that is made.* He worketh in the Celestial Water,* making to
be the pleasantness of the light.* The gods rejoice in [his] beauties,*
and their hearts live when they see him.*
XIII. He is Rā who is worshipped in the Apts.* He is the one of many
crowns in the House of the Benben[1] Stone.* He is the god Ani, the lord
of the ninth-day festival.* The festival of the sixth day and the Tenat
festival are kept for him.* He is KING, life, strength, and health be to
him! and the Lord of all the gods.* He maketh himself to be seen in the
horizon,* Chief of the beings of the Other World.* His name is hidden
from the gods who are his children,* in his name of "Amen."*[2]
[Footnote 1: The Benben was the abode of the Spirit of Rā at times.]
[Footnote 2: _Amen_ means "hidden."]
XIV. Homage to thee, dweller in peace. Lord of joy of heart, mighty one
of crowns,* lord of the Urrt Crown with the lofty plumes,* with a
beautiful tiara and a lofty White Crown.* The gods love to behold thee.*
The double crown is stablished on thy head.* Thy love passeth throughout
Egypt.* Thou sendest out light, thou risest with [thy] two beautiful
eyes.* The Pāt beings [faint] when thou appearest in the sky,* animals
become helpless under thy rays.* Thy loveliness is in the southern sky,*
thy graciousness is in the northern sky.* Thy beauties seize upon
hearts,* thy loveliness maketh the arms weak,* thy beautiful operations
make the hands idle,* hearts become weak at the sight of thee.*
XV. [He is] the Form One, the creator of everything that is.* The One
only, the creator of things that shall be.* Men and women proceeded from
his two eyes. His utterance became the gods.* He is the creator of the
pasturage wherein herds and flocks live,* [and] the staff of life for
mankind.* He maketh to live the fish in the river,* and the geese and
the feathered fowl of the sky.* He giveth air to the creature that is in
the egg. He nourisheth the geese in their pens.* He maketh to live the
water-fowl,* and the reptiles and every insect that flieth.* He
provideth food for the mice in their holes,* he nourisheth the flying
creatures on every bough.*
XVI. Homage to thee, O creator of every one of these creatures,* the One
only whose hands are many.* He watcheth over all those who lie down to
sleep,* he seeketh the well-being of his animal creation,* Amen,
establisher of every thing,* Temu-Herukhuti.* They all praise thee with
their words,* adorations be to thee because thou restest among us,* we
smell the earth before thee because thou hast fashioned us.*
XVII. All the animals cry out, "Homage to thee."* Every country adoreth
thee,* to the height of heaven, to the breadth of the earth,* to the
depths of the Great Green Sea.* The gods bend their backs in homage to
thy Majesty,* to exalt the Souls of their Creator,* they rejoice when
they meet their begetter.* They say unto thee, "Welcome, O father of the
fathers of all the gods,* suspender of the sky, beater out of the
earth,* maker of things that are, creator of things that shall be,*
KING, life, strength, and health be to thee! Chief of the gods, we
praise thy Souls,* inasmuch as thou hast created us. Thou workest for us
thy children,* we adore thee because thou restest among us."*
XVIII. Homage to thee, O maker of everything that is.* Lord of Truth,
father of the gods,* maker of men, creator of animals,* lord of the
divine grain, making to live the wild animals of the mountains.* Amen,
Bull, Beautiful Face,* Beloved one in the Apts,* great one of diadems in
the House of the Benben Stone,* binding on the tiara in Anu (On),*
judge of the Two Men (_i.e._ Horus and Set) in the Great Hall.*
XIX. Chief of the Great Company of the gods,* One only, who hath no
second,* President of the Apts,* Ani, President of his Company of the
gods,* living by Truth every day,* Khuti, Horus of the East.* He hath
created the mountains, the gold* [and] the real lapis-lazuli by his
will,* the incense and the natron that are mixed by the Nubians,* and
fresh myrrh for thy nostrils.* Beautiful Face, coming from the Nubians,*
Amen-Rā, lord of the throne of Egypt,* President of the Apts,* Ani,
President of his palace.*
XX. King, One among the gods.* [His] names are so many, how many cannot
be known.* He riseth in the eastern horizon, he setteth in the western
horizon.*
XXI. He overthroweth his enemies at dawn, when he is born each day.*
Thoth exalteth his two eyes.* When he setteth in his splendour the gods
rejoice in his beauties,* and the Apes _(i.e._ dawn spirits) exalt him.*
Lord of the Sektet Boat and of the Āntet Boat,* they transport thee
[over] Nu in peace.* Thy sailors rejoice* when they see thee
overthrowing the Seba fiend,* [and] stabbing his limbs with the knife.*
The flame devoureth him, his soul is torn out of his body,* the feet (?)
of this serpent Nak are carried off.*
XXII. The gods rejoice, the sailors of Rā are satisfied.* Anu
rejoiceth,* the enemies of Temu are overthrown.* The Apts are in peace.*
The heart of the goddess Nebt-ānkh is happy,* [for] the enemies of her
Lord are overthrown.* The gods of Kher-āha make adorations [to him].*
Those who are in their hidden shrines smell the earth before him,* when
they see him mighty in his power.*
XXIII. [O] Power of the gods,* [lord of] Truth, lord of the Apts,* in
thy name of "Maker of Truth."* Lord of food, bull of offerings,* in thy
name of "Amen-Ka-mutef,"* Maker of human beings,* maker to be of ...,
creator of everything that is* in thy name of "Temu Khepera."*
XXIV. Great Hawk, making the body festal.* Beautiful Face, making the
breast festal,* Image ... with the lofty Mehen crown.* The two
serpent-goddesses fly before him.* The hearts of the Pāt beings leap
towards him.* The Hememet beings turn to him.* Egypt rejoiceth at his
appearances.* Homage to thee, Amen-Rā, Lord of the throne of Egypt.* His
town [Thebes] loveth him when he riseth.*
HERE ENDETH * [THE HYMN] IN PEACE,*
ACCORDING TO AN ANCIENT COPY.*
The following extract is taken from a work in which the power and glory
of Amen are described in a long series of Chapters; the papyrus in which
it is written is in Leyden.
"[He, _i.e._ Amen], driveth away evils and scattereth diseases. He is
the physician who healeth the eye without [the use of] medicaments. He
openeth the eyes, he driveth away inflammation (?)... He delivereth whom
he pleaseth, even from the Tuat (the Other World). He saveth a man from
what is ordained for him at the dictates of his heart. To him belong
both eyes and ears, [he is] on every path of him whom he loveth. He
heareth the petitions of him that appealeth to him. He cometh from afar
to him that calleth [before] a moment hath passed. He maketh high
(_i.e._ long) the life [of a man], he cutteth it short. To him whom he
loveth he giveth more than hath been fated for him. [When] Amen casteth
a spell on the water, and his name is on the waters, if this name of his
be uttered the crocodile (?) hath no power. The winds are driven back,
the hurricane is repulsed. At the remembrance of him the wrath of the
angry man dieth down. He speaketh the gentle word at the moment of
strife. He is a pleasant breeze to him that appealeth to him. He
delivereth the helpless one. He is the wise (?) god whose plans are
beneficent.... He is more helpful than millions to the man who hath set
him in his heart. One warrior [who fighteth] under his name is better
than hundreds of thousands. Indeed he is the beneficent strong one. He
is perfect [and] seizeth his moment; he is irresistible.... All the gods
are three, Amen, Rā and Ptah, and there are none like unto them. He
whose name is hidden is Amen. Rā belongeth to him as his face, and his
body is Ptah. Their cities are established upon the earth for ever,
[namely,] Thebes, Anu (Heliopolis), and Hetkaptah (Memphis). When a
message is sent from heaven it is heard in Anu, and is repeated in
Memphis to the Beautiful Face (_i.e._ Ptah). It is done into writing, in
the letters of Thoth (_i.e._ hieroglyphs), and despatched to the City of
Amen (_i.e._ Thebes), with their things. The matters are answered in
Thebes.... His heart is Understanding, his lips are Taste, his Ka is all
the things that are in his mouth. He entereth, the two caverns are
beneath his feet. The Nile appeareth from the hollow beneath his
sandals. His soul is Shu, his heart is Tefnut. He is Heru-Khuti in the
upper heaven. His right eye is day. His left eye is night. He is the
leader of faces on every path. His body is Nu. The dweller in it is the
Nile, producing everything that is, nourishing all that is. He breatheth
breath into all nostrils. The Luck and the Destiny of every man are with
him. His wife is the earth, he uniteth with her, his seed is the tree of
life, his emanations are the grain."
HYMNS TO THE SUN-GOD
The following extracts from Hymns to the Sun-god and Osiris are written
in the hieratic character upon slices of limestone now preserved in the
Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
"Well dost thou watch, O Horus, who sailest over the sky, thou child who
proceedest from the divine father, thou child of fire, who shinest like
crystal, who destroyest the darkness and the night. Thou child who
growest rapidly, with gracious form, who restest in thine eye. Thou
wakest up men who are asleep on their beds, and the reptiles in their
nests. Thy boat saileth on the fiery Lake Neserser, and thou traversest
the upper sky by means of the winds thereof. The two daughters of the
Nile-god crush for thee the fiend Neka, Nubti (_i.e._ Set) pierceth him
with his arrows. Keb seizeth (?) him by the joint of his back, Serqet
grippeth him at his throat. The flame of this serpent that is over the
door of thy house burneth him up. The Great Company of the Gods are
wroth with him, and they rejoice because he is cut to pieces. The
Children of Horus grasp their knives, and inflict very many gashes in
him. Hail! Thine enemy hath fallen, and Truth standeth firm before thee.
When thou again transformest thyself into Tem, thou givest thy hand to
the Lords of Akert (_i.e._ the dead), those who lie in death give thanks
for thy beauties when thy light falleth upon them. They declare unto
thee what is their hearts' wish, which is that they may see thee again.
When thou hast passed them by, the darkness covereth them, each one in
his coffin. Thou art the lord of those who cry out (?) to thee, the god
who is beneficent for ever. Thou art the Judge of words and deeds, the
Chief of chief judges, who stablishest truth, and doest away sin. May he
who attacketh me be judged rightly, behold, he is stronger than I am; he
hath seized upon my office, and hath carried it off with falsehood. May
it be restored to me."
HYMN TO OSIRIS
"[Praise be] unto thee, O thou who extendest thine arms, who liest
asleep on thy side, who liest on the sand, the Lord of the earth, the
divine mummy.... Thou art the Child of the Earth Serpent, of great age.
Thy head ... and goeth round over thy feet. Rā-Khepera shineth upon thy
body, when thou liest on thy bed in the form of Seker, so that he may
drive away the darkness that shroudeth thee, and may infuse light in thy
two eyes. He passeth a long period of time shining upon thee, and
sheddeth tears over thee. The earth resteth upon thy shoulders, and its
corners rest upon thee as far as the four pillars of heaven. If thou
movest thyself, the earth quaketh, for thou art greater than.... [The
Nile] appeareth out of the sweat of thy two hands. Thou breathest forth
the air that is in thy throat into the nostrils of men; divine is that
thing whereon they live. Through thy nostrils (?) subsist the flowers,
the herbage, the reeds, the flags (?), the barley, the wheat, and the
plants whereon men live. If canals are dug ... and houses and temples
are built, and great statues are dragged along, and lands are ploughed
up, and tombs and funerary monuments are made, they [all] rest upon
thee. It is thou who makest them. They are upon thy back. They are more
than can be done into writing (_i.e._ described). There is no vacant
space on thy back, they all lie on thy back, and yet [thou sayest] not,
"I am [over] weighted therewith. Thou art the father and mother of men
and women, they live by thy breath, they eat the flesh of thy members.
'Pautti' (_i.e._ Primeval God) is thy name." The writer of this hymn
says in the four broken lines that remain that he is unable to
understand the nature (?) of Osiris, which is hidden (?), and his
attributes, which are sublime.
HYMN TO SHU
The following Hymn is found in the Magical Papyrus (Harris, No. 501),
which is preserved in the British Museum. The text is written in the
hieratic character, and reads:
"Homage to thee, O flesh and bone of Rā, thou first-born son who didst
proceed from his members, who wast chosen to be the chief of those who
were brought forth, thou mighty one, thou divine form, who art endowed
with strength as the lord of transformations. Thou overthrowest the Seba
fiends each day. The divine boat hath the wind [behind it], thy heart is
glad. Those who are in the Āntti Boat utter loud cries of joy when they
see Shu, the son of Rā, triumphant, [and] driving his spear into the
serpent fiend Nekau. Rā setteth out to sail over the heavens at dawn
daily. The goddess Tefnut is seated on thy head, she hurleth her flames
of fire against thy enemies, and maketh them to be destroyed utterly.
Thou art equipped by Rā, thou art mighty through his words of power,
thou art the heir of thy father upon his throne, and thy Doubles rest in
the Doubles of Rā, even as the taste of what hath been in the mouth
remaineth therein. A will hath been done into writing by the lord of
Khemenu (Thoth), the scribe of the library of Rā-Harmakhis, in the hall
of the divine house (or temple) of Anu (Heliopolis), stablished,
perfected, and made permanent in hieroglyphs under the feet of
Rā-Harmakhis, and he shall transmit it to the son of his son for ever
and ever. Homage to thee, O son of Rā, who wast begotten by Temu
himself. Thou didst create thyself, and thou hadst no mother. Thou art
Truth, the lord of Truth, thou art the Power, the ruling power of the
gods. Thou dost conduct the Eye of thy father Rā. They give gifts unto
thee into thine own hands. Thou makest to be at peace the Great Goddess,
when storms are passing over her. Thou dost stretch out the heavens on
high, and dost establish them with thine own hands. Every god boweth in
homage before thee, the King of the South, the King of the North, Shu,
the son of RĀ, life, strength and health be to thee! Thou, O great god
Pautti, art furnished with the brilliance of the Eye [of Rā] in
Heliopolis, to overthrow the Seba fiends on behalf of thy father. Thou
makest the divine Boat to sail onwards in peace. The mariners who are
therein exult, and all the gods shout for joy when they hear thy divine
name. Greater, yea greater (_i.e._ twice great) art thou than the gods
in thy name of Shu, son of Rā."