DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.30604#0071
THE DOCTRINE OF ETERNAL LIFE.
lxiii
having been buried in the lowest chamber, “ his ka cometh forth to him.”1 Of
Pepi I. it is said :—
MIU! u-
di su ka - k
Washed is thy ka,
/'rWW'. _
“ l
en iet t' etta
for ever.2
-f- ±,n~ ±.n u- An ±.n pf
aha uab - k uab ka-k uab ba - k uab seyem - k
Thou art pure, thy ka is pure, thy soul is pure, thy form is pure.3
The ka, as we have seen, could eat food, and it was necessary to provide food
for it. In the Xllth dynasty and in later periods the gods are entreated to grant
meat and drinlc to the ka of the deceased ; and it seems as if the Egyptians
thought that the future welfare of the spiritual body depended upon the main-
tenance of a constant supply of sepulchral offerings. When circumstances
rendered it impossible to continue the material supply of food, the ka fed upon
the offerings painted on the walls of the tomb, which were transformed into
suitable nourishment by means of the prayers of the living. When there were
neither material offerings nor painted similitudes to feed upon, it seems as il the
ka must have perished ; but the texts are not definite on this point.
The following is a specimen of the ka’s petition for food written in the a prayer of the ka.
XVIIIth dynasty :—
“ May the gods grant that I go into and come forth from my tomb, may the
“ Majesty refresh its shade, may I drink water from my cistern every day, may all
“ my limbs grow, may Hapi give unto me bread and Ilowers of all kinds in their
“ season, may I pass over my estate every day without ceasing, may my soul
-f ■
□
A
hems ka - k am - f
sitteth thy ka [and] it eateth
‘0
ta
bread
hena - k
with thee
at ur
unceasingly
1 P<L^U^-^>L 483.
2 Recueil de Travaux, t. v., p. 166, 1. 67.
3 Il’id., 1. 112.
lxiii
having been buried in the lowest chamber, “ his ka cometh forth to him.”1 Of
Pepi I. it is said :—
MIU! u-
di su ka - k
Washed is thy ka,
/'rWW'. _
“ l
en iet t' etta
for ever.2
-f- ±,n~ ±.n u- An ±.n pf
aha uab - k uab ka-k uab ba - k uab seyem - k
Thou art pure, thy ka is pure, thy soul is pure, thy form is pure.3
The ka, as we have seen, could eat food, and it was necessary to provide food
for it. In the Xllth dynasty and in later periods the gods are entreated to grant
meat and drinlc to the ka of the deceased ; and it seems as if the Egyptians
thought that the future welfare of the spiritual body depended upon the main-
tenance of a constant supply of sepulchral offerings. When circumstances
rendered it impossible to continue the material supply of food, the ka fed upon
the offerings painted on the walls of the tomb, which were transformed into
suitable nourishment by means of the prayers of the living. When there were
neither material offerings nor painted similitudes to feed upon, it seems as il the
ka must have perished ; but the texts are not definite on this point.
The following is a specimen of the ka’s petition for food written in the a prayer of the ka.
XVIIIth dynasty :—
“ May the gods grant that I go into and come forth from my tomb, may the
“ Majesty refresh its shade, may I drink water from my cistern every day, may all
“ my limbs grow, may Hapi give unto me bread and Ilowers of all kinds in their
“ season, may I pass over my estate every day without ceasing, may my soul
-f ■
□
A
hems ka - k am - f
sitteth thy ka [and] it eateth
‘0
ta
bread
hena - k
with thee
at ur
unceasingly
1 P<L^U^-^>L 483.
2 Recueil de Travaux, t. v., p. 166, 1. 67.
3 Il’id., 1. 112.