While reading chapter 3, it was pretty clear that the afterlife concept it is incorporated in the Egyptian art. They believed “in the eternal existence of a person’s ka, or life force, which continued to inhabit the corpse after an individual died” (Kindle Edition 55). Thus, individuals with the economic resources available to them decided to decorate their tombs. During the Predynastic period, the finding of the Palette of King Narmer served as the conventional pattern for Egyptian artists. During this period, the Imhotep designed the pyramid of Djoser. The pyramid is a tomb which integrated the Egyptians’ belief of the ka. Following the concept of the afterlife, the pyramids of Gizeh are a perfect example. The purpose of the pyramids was…
The Egyptians believed that a body had to be properly prepared in order to live on in a similar way in the afterlife, more importantly, they thought the body had to be preserved. The Egyptians embalmed and mummified their dead to preserve them, the body needed to be accompanied by its Ba and Ka, the person’s dead spirit and the person’s life energy. It would also need familiar possessions to take with him/her.…
Egyptian religion was polytheistic which meant that they believed in more than one god. They also thought how you acted in your life on earth will affect you in the after life. This is why many rulers were buried with a lot of their gold and precious items. Some of the kings and queens had servants killed and buried with them so they would be able to service them in the after…
Egypt was one of the oldest civilizations that stand strong for more than 30 centuries with great military conquests, political revolution, strong religion belief and reinventing architecture. In their religion, it was believed that the mortal life is a trial and test that all needed to pass in order to live the life they were meant to have, the afterlife. Egyptians believed that all great things will only come to them if their names and legacy are kept going on and that’s one of the reasons why pharaohs constructed huge temples.…
The Nile was an important part of their afterlife, too. In the Egyptian afterlife, a dead person had to have their heart weighed, and if the heart was the “right” weight, they could pass into the Field of Reeds (Doc. D). In the Field of Reeds, Egyptians would farm crops such emmer wheat and flax (which was weave into linen cloth) (Doc. D). There were also trees, date palms, and ornamental planets (Doc. D). The Nile, even in the afterlife, was the source for all this beauty and wonder. This proves how the Nile shaped the Egyptian view of the afterlife.…
There’s an Egyptian book called Book of the Dead which is best known literary work on Egyptian religion. It contains a collection of spells and incantations used during this time to help dead people reach the afterlife (Edgar). In this book they explained the preparation for the underworld, in which they have Anubis weighs the dead person’s heart against a feather. This is for the gods to determine the worthless of the soul of the person that just died. For the Egyptians, death was not the end for them, it was just an extension of their worldly life. Their meaning of the next life for them meant that there will be birds, animals, people, rivers, food and even wine…
The Egyptians’ view of the afterlife contrasts with the Mesopotamian’s view in that the Egyptians believed in the afterlife as a continuation of life on earth and the Mesopotamians believed life after death would be a miserable existence. The geographical location of the two civilizations may have influenced their views on the afterlife. The Egyptians were blessed with fertile land that came regularly, which was thought to be the work of the gods. This led the Egyptians to believe the gods were generous and helpful, which is expressed by the gods’ role in the afterlife as the providers or caretakers for the Egyptians’ souls. This belief is conveyed through the Egyptians reverence of the gods in saying, “Hail, O all ye gods of the House of Soul.” Conversely, the Mesopotamians were plagued with unpredictable, life-threatening floods that led them to believe the gods cared very little for the Mesopotamians, or the gods were trying to harm them, so the Mesopotamian’s afterlife would be miserable. The Mesopotamians wrote,“There is a house where people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat... They who had stood in the place of gods...now stood like servants,” expressing their fear that life after death would be a time of hardship and servitude. This fear of death was the reason for the Mesopotamian’s interest in immortality, opposed to the Egyptian’s readiness for death. The geographical location of the two early civilizations led to differing beliefs of what happens after…
The Ancient Egyptians believed that when the King or Pharaoh died, part of his spirit remained with his body. Ancient Egyptians were very concerned with the afterlife. By mummifying a dead person’s body the Ancient Egyptians thought that the person’s soul from their…
Egyptians believed that when a king died, his spiritual body returned to its original abode with the gods. The Egyptians felt it was their duty to worship the kings even after they left earth. By having festivals at the tombs, placing offerings of food in the grave of the dead to prevent them from returning, and praying for the welfare of the dead; they believed that their offerings helped the kings find their way to the gods above. “This happy result was partly by the performance of certain ceremonies which first wholly magical, but late, partly magical and partly religious” (3).…
• What were the steps of the mummification and burial process? Why did Egyptians build pyramids? What do those rituals exhibit about what they believed about the afterlife?…
The Egyptians took great care of their dead because of their religious beliefs. According to John Catoir, author of “World Religions: Beliefs Behind Today's Headlines,” Egyptians believed that an afterlife involved a full human existence, not a mere spirit life, therefore the soul must join the body in heaven. It was hoped that by preserving their bodies from decay they would enhance the process of resurrection and provide themselves with a decent start in the new life. The priests who performed the mummification were thought of as acting in the role of Anubis, the god of the dead.…
Egyptian burial practices began in the old kingdom (2786 – 2181B.C.E) where as the ancient Egyptian believed in another life after dying. This started to become practiced throughout the culture of the Egyptians in the old kingdom. This became important for the Egyptians to be buried as to their standards. The burial had to be correct for the Egyptians because it meant to be born again in the next life for them. The economic class buried Egyptians, where as wealthy burials included more than what poor burials would be involved. For most Egyptians who were low or middle status would do their burials in the deserts. As for the process of the burial, the closest people to the dead would wrap their body in cloth and bury it with everyday necessities and food they would take over to the next life for them and the…
Egyptian scultpure was based on the belief of the after life. Bodies of Eygtian rulers was pereserved. In addition, possions would be buried with him.…
The ancient Egyptians preserved the bodies of the dead. They believed that to live forever in the afterlife they had to preserve the body. At the time when the pyramids where being built they were still trying to find a good working way to preserve the dead bodies. The process that the ancient Egyptians came up with later is called embalming. They soak the body in salt for forty days to dry out the body.…
Ancient Egyptians believed that life on Earth was only temporary, but life would continue on into the afterlife, where they would spend eternity. The decisions they made in the mortal world would predict their destiny after death. The egyptians believed one either was sent to the afterlife for their good deeds, or they suffer the consequences of their wrongdoings, and are sent to the underworld. The Egyptians lived their lives according to how they would want to live for eternity since “the Egyptian afterlife was a mirror-image of life on earth.” (Mark)…