Knowledge for the Afterlife: The Egyptian Amduat - A Quest for Immortality

Amazing book - I read it for a class but have also used it to teach. The Amduat contains answers for how to tend the soul. It is amazing that 3,500 years ago, the Egyptians were writing about depth psychology. I wrote a paper about the sixth and seventh hours specifically and how those two panels represent the transformative process of going to college. I am especially moved by the image of Thoth the baboon-headed god offering Thoth the Ibis in order to gain sight (knowledge). It shows that in order to learn, one must put themselves into the process, they have to offer up their soul. The other image from the seventh hour is powerful in that both Osiris and Re are aided in the defeat of their enemies and specifically the death of Apopis. I say how this shows how we can't do it alone and we all need help but how in the final image for that panel - when we help each other, we all rise together. The sun rises but so does the moon and stars - because when we help others we help ourselves..

I began reading this book at the same time I was reading Jung, Joseph Campbell, and the Traveller's Guide to the Duat by Kiya Nicoll. I had hoped it would create a better understanding of what I was looking at, which was decoding ancient Egyptian thought in terms of their afterlife and how it relates to the subconscious of man. There is no sense in any of this as these two idiots would ascribe meaning to it. Fact is, the 'document' of the Duat, especially Hours 6 and 7, relate to the butchering of the human spiritual body and it's consumption by these vile beings which pass themselves off as 'deities'. The reason it has 'endured' is because it is a kind of 'legal document' proclaiming 'the process' of how we are farmed and butchered as a species-not in the fleshly sense, but as it relates to our spirits, soul, and energetic body. What horrors I can tell you of what those 'crowns' REALLY do.

At last, the book is here and the reading is great. I am sure to purchase the more in depth: The Egyptian Amduat-The Book of the Hidden Chamber. While traveling, the Knowledge for the Afterlife is with me and the other will grace my ancient Egyptian book shelf for years to come. Thanks Amazon.com for keeping both books available!!!

It is everything I had hoped it would be - A very interesting addition to my book collection, I think

Knowledge for the Afterlife by Abt and Hornung is a delightful and solid little book about an important illustrated New Kingdom text found in tombs of several Pharaohs. The book is set in two colors of text, black and blue. The black text is by Hornung and describes the significance of the Amduat for the Egyptians--the title is often rendered as: "That which is in the Netherworld." The blue text is by Abt and gives an interpretation for our lives, based of Jung. Hornung's exposition is extensive, and in particular follows the version on the walls of the burial chamber of the tomb of Tuthmosis III. The center piece of the book consists of twelve schematic drawings representing the somewhat more detailed actual drawings on the walls, and an outline and explanation of the hieroglyphic text on the walls. Each schematic is complete for one of the twelve hours of the night. They present the underworld journey of the sun from sunset to sunrise. In this journey, the "old" sun, helped by many lesser gods and goddesses must fend off many attacks on his progress, and sometimes his very existence, while also undergoing regeneration preparatory to a dawn birth as a new and vigorous sun. The exposition explains the terrain covered, the events of the journey, identifies the gods and the various enemies of the Sun that appear and explains their actions. The dead Pharaoh participates in this journey of the Sun god. The book has many color illustrations, some are photos of the actual walls of the tombs, others are of artifacts that help illustrate the concepts behind the Amduat. The book was occasioned by an exposition that traveled to museums in Europe and the United States, entitled "The Quest for Immortality--Treasures of Ancient Egypt" which featured a full sized replica of the burial chamber of Tuthmosis III. The catalog for this exposition carries its name and Hornung is both its editor and a contributor. It is a large, splendid book with many color photographs of interesting artifacts from the collections in Egypt, as well as commentary which surpasses in quality that in most such catalogs. It discusses the Amduat but does not attempt the complete exposition given in Knowledge for the Afterlife.I recommend Knowledge for the Afterlife for the layman as well as for serious students of ancient Egypt. It is more available than the more complete exposition by Hornung entitled (in its recent English translation), The Egyptian Amduat: the Book of the Hidden Chamber, and for most people is a rather adequate substitute.

This book is truly beautiful. I am a bibliophile, and this book meets and exceeds all of my standards for printing and publication. I consider the physical presentation of the book, from the jacket to the boards, a work of art. The paper quality and the print job are amazing. I think all books on Egypt should be printed in the same manner of this book, original hieroglyphs and translation.