CONTENTS

TRANSLATOR’S PREFACE . . . . . . v
AUTHOR’S PREFACE . . . . . . vii
OUTLINE OF EGYPTIAN HISTORY . . . . . . xix
BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION—
1. The Development of the Literature . . . . . . xxiii
2. The Learned Scribes . . . . . . xxvii
3. Singers and Storytellers . . . . . . xxviii
4. The Forms of the Poetry . . . . . . xxx
5. Writing and Books . . . . . . xxxv
6. Our Understanding of Egyptian Texts . . . . . . xlii

I. FROM THE OLDEST POETRY

1. FROM THE PYRAMID TEXTS—

The Pyramid Texts are the world's oldest collection of religious spells and rituals, found carved into the walls of Old Kingdom pyramids (c. 2400–2100 BCE).

(a) The deceased’s journey to the sky . . . . . 2
(b)—(e) The same . . . . . 2-4
(f) The deceased conquers the sky . . . . . 4
(g) The deceased devours the gods . . . . . 5 A ritualistic concept where the deceased king absorbs the power and immortality of the gods.
(h) To a constellation, which is to announce the arrival of the deceased in the sky . . . . . 7
(i) The deceased comes as a messenger to Osiris . . . . . 8 Osiris: The god of the dead and the underworld.
(k) The goddesses nurse the deceased . . . . . 8 original: "suckle"
(l) The fate of the enemies of the deceased . . . . . 9
(m) Joy over the inundation . . . . . 10 The annual flooding of the Nile River, which was essential for life and agriculture in Egypt.

2. TO THE CROWNS—

(a) To the crown of Lower Egypt . . . . . 10 The Red Crown (Deshret), symbolizing the northern Delta region.
(b) To the crown of Upper Egypt . . . . . 11 The White Crown (Hedjet), symbolizing the southern Nile Valley.
(c) The same . . . . . 11

3. MORNING HYMNS—

(a) To the sun-god . . . . . 12
(b) To the royal serpent . . . . . 12 Refers to the Uraeus, the protective cobra symbol worn on the pharaoh's forehead.