Post by Mysti on Jul 6, 2007 7:02:19 GMT -5
Spring Equinox
21-22 M~rch
As already mentioned, the seasons in Egypt, on account of
the flooding of the Nile, were virtually the reverse of our
. experience. The resurrection of Osiris and the erection of
~:.= ::::>jed-pillarwould therefore have occurred at the beginning of
l-=.~er for the Egyptians. For the rites in this book, we have split the
~ =brations concerning Osiris into two parts: the rite marking his
: -~ is left at the correct date (the Celtic Samhain, festival of
- - J "'ad, at the end of October or beginning of November), while
1"'- ::::Iemarking his resurrection (which for the Egyptians would also
:... :: ~n celebrated in November), is here allocated to the spring,
"-: ~ it makes sense in terms of British seasons.
- ::-cording to the myth, Osiris and his wife Isis were king and
c, :: of Egypt in the First Time, when the neteru lived on earth. It
"": :.;:e Solden Age, for Isis and Osiris taught the people all the arts
. 'n~rion, and thus raised them out of a condition of savagery.
Everyone loved Osiris, because he was so kind and wise. Mter he had
civilized Egypt, he travelled all over the world to teach people in
other countries. He never used force to persuade them to give up
their barbaric ways, but won them over by entertaining them with
educational songs. His sister Nephthys, who was married to their
brother Set, desired Osiris. As she was the twin of Isis, she managed to
pass herself off as Isis in order to trick Osiris into having an affair
with her. As a result of this liaison, she conceived the god Anubis, but
tried to conceal this from Set by abandoning the baby after he was
born. Fortunately for Anubis, he was brought up in the desert by wild
dogs, which is why he is represented in the form of a dog or jackal.
Perhaps it was because of this act of adultery that Set became
murderously jealous of Osiris. There are two versions of what he did.
Native Egyptian sources refer to his taking the form of a wild boar
and goring or trampling Osiris to death before pushing him into the
Nile, at a place called Nedit, meaning 'where he was cast down'. The
location is also called Gehesty. In the other version, recorded by I
Plutarch, Set tricked Osiris into climbing inside an ornate chest
which he offered at a party as a prize for whomever its dimensions
fitted best, having deliberately made it to Osiris's measurements and
having ensured that the seventy-two other guests at the party (who
were co-conspirators) were a different shape and size. When Osiris
was inside, Set and his helpers closed the lid, sealed it, and threw the
chest into the Nile so that Osiris drowned. It seems likely that this
story of the body floating along the Nile relates to the apparent drift
of the constellation of Orion, regarded as Osiris, along the Milky
Way, as the stars seem to change their position slightly, day by day.
Isis and Nephthys recovered the body; but in the version of the
s:a>ryaccording to Plutarch, Isis found that it had washed up against
~e river bank at Byblos, where a tree had grown around it which
--as later used as a pillar to support the roof of the palace of the king
aKi queen of that land; Syria. Isis had to remove the pillar before she
could recover the body of her husband. It seems that this version of
~ story may have been an explanation of why Osiris was associated
=ith the Djed-pillar - a fertility symbol resembling a stylized tree,
-hich was erected in a ceremony at the start of the planting season.
-~w:vall painting of the pharaoh Seti I in his temple at Abydos, depicting
...=.llraising the pillar with the help of Isis (or a priestess in the role of
::1-egoddess), shows that the original Djed was taller than a man.
.;.lmiature versions, representing the 'backbone of Osiris', were placed
.:::.the bodies of the dead during the mummification process, to lend
~ deceased the quality of stability in the afterlife.
At the ceremony of erecting the Djed-pillar, a girdle or skirt was
~ around the pillar. This girdle was associated with the Tet Knot or
'3~ckle of Isis', which could be represented in an amulet made of
. nelian, a red stone, placed for protection on the bodies of the
~ The Tet was identified with the blood of Isis (possibly menstrual
:-..:XXI. as the source of her magical power). To tie a girdle in the form
i:I Tet Knot (a bow) around the Djed-pillar symbolized the sexual
:u=on of Isis and Osiris. Rows of alternating Djeds and Tets were
~J as decorative borders in Egyptian religious art to symbolize the
c~ and female divine principles in harmony. In the myth, Isis raises
~~ up from the dead by means of her magic, and keeps him alive
:t:g enough to make love to him and conceive their son Horus.
Mter this, Osiris leaves the earth to reign in Amenti, the underworld
- the realm of the dead.
a
There is a sense in which Osiris is always alive, even though he is
dead, because he is continually dying and being resurrected within the
cycles of nature. As well as being associated with plant life, he is also
the god of the moon, which wanes and waxes. (Thoth and Khonsu are
also moon gods, but according to the Egyptian way of thinking, there is
no inconsistency in this.) In one version of the myth, while Set is out
hunting by the light of the full moon, he discovers Osiris's body where
Isis has hidden it. He dismembers it into fourteen parts and scatters
them all over Egypt, so that Isis, Nephthys and Anubis have to go in
search of the pieces and reassemble the body. The fourteen parts could
be seen as representing the fourteen pieces 'removed' from the moon
during the fourteen nights of its waning, when it appears to get smaller
and smaller; and these pieces are 'replaced' during the fourteen nights
of the waxing part of the moon's cycle, as Isis and Nephthys restore
their brother's body. Easter Day, the celebration of Jesus's resurrection, is I
on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. It
would therefore be very appropriate to celebrate the resurrection of
Osiris on Easter Day, or on the day of the full moon before Easter, as an
alternative to performing the rite on the day of the equinox itself.
In the texts in this rite, Osiris is shown as the indwelling divine
principle in many aspects of nature: the earth, the sun, the sea, the
Nile in flood, and the vegetation, particularly the crops which provide
food. Above all, he is the potential for life, hidden in the dark
earth, which appears dead in the barren season but which is ready to
bring forth new growth when the fertile season returns.
To perform this rite, you will need a small Djed-pillar. It
is fairly simple to make one £rom the cardboard tube taken £rom the
inside of a roll of kitchen paper. A Djed-pillar has four flanges at its
upper end. To make these, you will need to cut out four discs of cardboard,
each about four inches in diameter. Cut three sections, each of
about an inch and a quarter, off the end of the tube, and insert three
of the cardboard discs between these sections, gluing them in place.
Glue the last disc onto the end to make the top flange. (It is easier to
assemble if you glue each section onto the middle of a disc and wait
ior it to dry, then glue the parts together, one on top of another, to
complete the pillar.) If you like, the top can be finished off by gluing
on the cap £rom a small jar. A slightly larger lid could also be fixed to
lie base, to give it more stability. The pillar should then be painted
\J,rith acrylic paint) in suitable spring colours, such as green and
'~llow. In the section between the second and third flange, you could
?<lint some Utchat eyes - a pair on each side, so that they may be
5oeen£rom both directions.
A few names and concepts which appear in this rite need to be
~xplained. 'Inert One', 'Bull of Djedu', 'Lord of the West', 'Helpless
One' and 'Listless One' are titles of Osiris. Un-nefer, 'the good being',
lS another of his epithets. Isis is described as the Wailer because she
xes the form of a kite - a small bird of prey - when she mourns
Osiris; a 'screecher' is another such bird. The Djendru bark is a deified
.:oat. Shen-a-sek is a sea. The Mansion of the Prince in On is the
~ce of divine justice in Heliopolis. Thoth is spoken of as the son of
Osiris in one of the texts, because Osiris is often identified with Ra,
ASat the end of the rite, in the Priestess's final speech. The White
Crown, hedjet, is the pharaonic crown of Upper Egypt. The Per-nu is
one of two national shrines: it was in the Delta, under the protection
of the goddess Wadjet, here identified with Isis. The Hau-nebut are
rne Isles. Har-Sopd is Horus identified with the falcon god Sopdu of
rne eastern Delta region. Ra-Harmachis is the Sphinx. Atmu is a god
of the primeval waters. Horus, rather confusingly, is referred to as if
he is already adult, even though he has yet to be born at this stage of
me myth; but in the timeless realm of the neteru, this way of thinking
makes sense, since Horus is a divine principle which is eternally
II
present.
In this rite there is a very brief assumption of the godform of Set
by the First Participant. This may make some people uneasy; but it
mould be remembered that Set is not a totally evil deity, and was
once worshipped like any other god: the pharaohs called Seti were
~ed in his honour. So long as the godform departs fully at the end
of the rite - something which should always be ensured, regardless of
!Ie type of godform that is assumed - then there is no danger to the
?IDicipants. Some people speak as if Set were the Egyptian equiva-
.ent of the Devil, but this is far from being the case: he is a divine
?£inciple, albeit a stormy and impetuous one.
..SPRING EQUINOX RITE
The Resurrection
of Osiris
Cast the circle in the usual way and, if desired, call on Qebhsennuf in the
East, Duamutif in the South, Imsety in the vvest and Hapi in the North for
protection.
Two candles on the altar are unlit at start of rite. Incense is also unlit. A
model of a Djed-pillar lies on its side, with a red ribbon beside it. The
Priestess has a sistrum.
Shake sistrum.
Light the candles.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: The shining Eye of Horus cometh. The
brilliant Eye of Horus cometh. It cometh in peace, it sendeth forth
rays of light unto Ra in the horizon, and it destroyeth the powers of
Set, according to the decree. It leadeth them on and it taketh possession
of him, and its flame is kindled against him. Its flame cometh and
!
SPRING EQUINOX RITE 59
goeth about, and bringeth adoration; it cometh and goeth about
heaven in the train of Ra upon the two hands of thy two sisters, 0
Ra. The Eye of Horus liveth, yea liveth.
Light the incense.
SECOND PARTICIPANT:
The fire is laid, the fire shines;
The incense is laid on the fire, the incense shines.
.
Your perfume comes to us, 0 Incense;
May our perfume come to you, 0 Incense:
Your perfume comes to us, you gods;
May our perfume come to you, you gods;
May we be with you, you gods;
May you be with us, you gods.
May we live with you, you gods;
May you live with us, you gods.
We love you, you gods;
May you love us, you gods.
Shake sistrum.
PRIEST: Hail to you, Lady of Goodness, at seeing whom those
:who] are in the Netherworld rejoice, who removes the limpness of
:he Inert One, because of whom Osiris has trodden, who made for
.=rimthe stride of those who walk in his moment of interment, in this
"i'OUI' name of 'Dam which is under the feet'.
Hail to you, Mistress of the Old Ones, Lady of many faces in the
Secret Place, who gives orders to the Bull of Djedu, who guides the
Lonl ot tn.e "We'&t, -a-twn.Oll\ O'&1:ri'i>-re~()iceQ. Wnel\ n.e 'i>'dWner, M.\'i>t-re'i>'"
of the hidden mysteries, who announces festivals in the bow of the
bark when men navigate in the morning, to whom the Inert One has
turned his face in this her name of Mistress of Faces.
Hail to you, Great One behind your lord; who raises him up after
being limp...
Hail to you, you who are in attendance on your lord, Mourner of
Osiris, the Great One, the Wailer, Mistress of the Per-nu ...
PRIESTESS:
The beneficent Isis who protected her brother
and sought for him, she would
take no rest until she had found him.
She shaded him with her feathers and gave him air
with her wings.
She cried out for joy and brought her brother to land.
She revived the weariness of the Listless One and took his
seed into her body,
thus giving him an heir.
She suckled the child in secret, the place where he was
being unknown.
PRIEST: Hail to you, you tree which encloses the god, under which
the gods of the Lower Sky stand, the end of which is cooked, the
inside of which is burnt, which sends out the pains of death: may you
gamer together those who are in the Abyss, may you assemble those
""'-ho are in the celestial expanses. Your top is beside you for Osiris
~en the Djed-pillar of the Great One is loosed, like her who pre-
~ over Hetepet who bows to the Lord of the East. Your tomb, 0
Osiris, your shade which is over you, 0 Osiris, which repels your
'ITiking-power, 0 Set; the peaceful maiden who helped this spirit of
Gehesty; your shadow, 0 Osiris.
:IRST PARTICIPANT: The Djed-pillar of the Day-bark is
released for its lord, the Djed-pillar of the Day-bark is released for its
?:tJtector. Isis comes and Nephthys comes, one of them from the
-esr and one of them from the east, one of them as a 'screecher', one
':J£iliem as a kite; they have found Osiris, his brother Set having laid
~ low in Nedit; when Osiris said 'Get away from me', when his
;;;zme became Sokar.
PRIESTESS AS ISIS:
~ Helpless One!
"" ;: Helpless One asleep!Ah Helpless One in this place
,vhich you know not - yet I know it!
~..:-.:;,c:dI have found you lying on your side -
~e great Lisdess One.
""...:...Sister!
: ~..;EST: Says Isis to Nephthys.
PRIESTESS AS ISIS:
This is our brother,
Come let us lift up his head,
Come let us rejoin his bones,
Come let us reassemble his limbs,
Come let us put an end to all his woe,
that, as far as we can help, he will weary no more.
May the moisture begin to mount for this spirit!
May the canals be filled through you!
May the names of the rivers be created through you!
Osiris, live!
Osiris, let the great Lisdess One arise!
I am Isis.
SECOND PARTICIPANT AS NEPHTHYS:
I am Nephthys,
It shall be that Horus will avenge you,
It shall be that Thoth will protect you
- your two sons of the Great White Crown -
It shall be that the Company will hear,
Then will your power be visible in the sky
and you will cause havoc among the hostile gods,
for Horus, your son, has seized the GreatWhite Crown -
seizing it from him who acted against you.
Then will your father Atum call 'Come!'
Osiris, live!
Osiris, let the great Lisdess One arise!
PRIEST: The sky reels, the earth quakes, Horus comes, Thoth
appears, they raise Osiris from upon his side and make him stand up
in front of the Two Enneads. Remember, Set, and put in your heart
this word which Geb spoke, this threat which the gods made against
you in the Mansion of the Prince in On because you threw Osiris to
the earth, when you said, 0 Set:
FIRST PARTICIPANT AS SET: I have never done this to him.
PRIEST: So that you might have power thereby, having been saved,
and that you might prevail over Horus; when you said, 0 Set:
FIRST PARTICIPANT AS SET: It was he who attacked me.
PRIEST: When there came into being this his name of 'Earth
attacker'; when you said, 0 Set:
FIRST PARTICIPANT AS SET: It was he who kicked me.
PRIEST: When there came into being this his name of Orion, long
,,£leg and lengthy of stride, who presides over Upper Egypt.
Raise yourself, 0 Osiris, for Set has raised himself, he has heard the
~t of the gods who spoke about the god's father. Isis has your arm, 0
2'Siris;Nephthys has your hand, so go between them. The sky is given
en you, the earth is given to you, and the Field of Rushes, the Mounds
:£Horus, the Mounds of Set; the towns are given to you and the nomes
:membled for you by Atum, and he who speaks about it is Geb.
PRIESTESS: Rise up thou, 0 Osiris. Thou hast thy backbone, 0
Still-Heart, thou hast the ligatures of thy neck and back, 0 Still-
Heart. Place thou thyself upon thy base. I put water beneath thee, and
I bring unto thee a Djed of gold that thou mayest rejoice therein.
The Djed-pillar is stood upright. Shake sistrum.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: 0 Osiris the King, arise, lift yourself
up! Your mother Nut has borne you, Geb has wiped your mouth for
you, the Great Ennead protects you and has put for you your foe
under you.
ALL: Carry one who is greater than you.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: Say they to him in your name of 'Palace
of the Great Saw'.
ALL: Lift up him who is greater than you.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: Say they in your name of'Thinite
Nome'.Your two sisters Isis and Nephthys come to you that they
may make you hale, and you are complete and great in your name of
'Wall of the Bitter Lakes', you are hale and great in your name of
'Sea'; behold, you are great and round in your name of 'Ocean';
behold, you are circular and round as the circle which surrounds the
Hau-nebut; behold, you are round and great as Shen-a-sek.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: Isis and Nephthys have waited for you
in Asyut, and because their god is in you in your name of'God'; they
praise you lest you be far from them in your name of 'Sacred Beard';
they join you lest you be angry in your name of'Djendru-bark'.
PRIESTESS: Your sister Isis comes to you rejoicing for love
of you. You have placed her on your phallus and your seed issues into
her, she being ready as Sothis, and Har-Sopd has come forth from
you as Horus who is in Sothis.
The red ribbon is tied in a bow around the Djed-pillar, to represent the
union oj Isis and Osiris. Shake sistrum.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: It is well with you through him in his
name of ' Spirit who is in the Djendru-bark', and he protects you in
his name of Horus, the son who protects his father.
Shake sistrum.
PRIESTESS: Hail, thou lord of the underworld, thou Bull of those
who are therein, thou image of Ra-Harmachis, thou Babe of beautiful
appearance, come thou to us in peace. Thou didst repel thy
disasters, thou didst drive away evil hap;Lord, come to us in peace.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: 0 Un-nefer,lord of food, thou chief,
thou who art of terrible majesty, thou God, president of the gods,
when thou dost inundate the land all things are engendered.
PRIEST: Thou art gentler than the gods. The emanations of thy
body make the dead and the living to live, 0 thou lord of food, thou
prince of green herbs, thou mighty lord, thou staff of life, thou giver
of offerings to the gods, and of sepulchral meals to the blessed dead.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: Thy soul flieth after Ra, thou shinest
at dawn, thou settest at twilight, thou risest every day; thou shalt rise
on the left hand of Atmu for ever and ever.
PRIESTESS: Thou art the glorious one, the vicar ofRa; the company
of the gods cometh to thee invoking thy face, the flame
whereof reacheth unto thine enemies. We rejoice when thou gatherest
together thy bones, and when thou hast made whole thy body
daily.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: Anubis cometh to thee, and the two
sisters come to thee. They have obtained beautiful things for thee, and
they gather together thy limbs for thee, and they seek to put together
the mutilated members of thy body. Wipe thou the impurities which
are on them upon our hair and come to us having no recollection of
that which hath caused thee sorrow.
PRIEST: Come thou in thy attribute of 'Prince of the Earth', lay
aside thy trepidation and be at peace with us, 0 Lord. Thou shalt be
proclaimed heir of the world, and the One god, and the fulfiller of
the designs of the gods. All the gods invoke thee, come therefore to
thy temple and be not afraid.
SPRING EQUINOX RITE 67
Shake sistrum.
Meditation.
Shake sistrum.
PRIESTESS: 0 Ra, thou art beloved of Isis and Nephthys; rest
thou in thy habitation for ever.
PRIEST: We give thanks to Osiris, to Isis, to Nephthys, to Horus, to
Thoth, to the Spirit of the Sacred Tree, and to all the deities who
have helped us in this rite.
if the Sons of Horus, QebhsennuJ, Duamutej, Imsety and Hapi, have
been called on for protection, they should be thanked too and bid farewell,
bifore dissolving the circle.
Shake sistrum.
SOURCES: The Pyramid Texts, Utterances 269,366,477,532 and 574, translation by
RO Faulkner. The CoffinTexts, Spells 236,238 and 239, translation by RO Faulkner. The
Book of the Dead, Chapters 137B and 155, translation by EA Wallis Budge. 'The
Lamentations of Isis and Nephthys' (Coffin Texts, Spell 74) and an XVIIIth Dynasty
'..
Hymn to Osiris, both ITom Myth and Symbol in Andent Egypt, translation by RT Rundle
Clark. 'The Songs ofIsis and Nephthys' ITom the Bremner-Rhind Papyrus, translation by
.
EA Wallis Budge in Egyptian Religion.
The Book of Egyptan Ritual Jocelyn Almond and Keith Seddon
21-22 M~rch
As already mentioned, the seasons in Egypt, on account of
the flooding of the Nile, were virtually the reverse of our
. experience. The resurrection of Osiris and the erection of
~:.= ::::>jed-pillarwould therefore have occurred at the beginning of
l-=.~er for the Egyptians. For the rites in this book, we have split the
~ =brations concerning Osiris into two parts: the rite marking his
: -~ is left at the correct date (the Celtic Samhain, festival of
- - J "'ad, at the end of October or beginning of November), while
1"'- ::::Iemarking his resurrection (which for the Egyptians would also
:... :: ~n celebrated in November), is here allocated to the spring,
"-: ~ it makes sense in terms of British seasons.
- ::-cording to the myth, Osiris and his wife Isis were king and
c, :: of Egypt in the First Time, when the neteru lived on earth. It
"": :.;:e Solden Age, for Isis and Osiris taught the people all the arts
. 'n~rion, and thus raised them out of a condition of savagery.
Everyone loved Osiris, because he was so kind and wise. Mter he had
civilized Egypt, he travelled all over the world to teach people in
other countries. He never used force to persuade them to give up
their barbaric ways, but won them over by entertaining them with
educational songs. His sister Nephthys, who was married to their
brother Set, desired Osiris. As she was the twin of Isis, she managed to
pass herself off as Isis in order to trick Osiris into having an affair
with her. As a result of this liaison, she conceived the god Anubis, but
tried to conceal this from Set by abandoning the baby after he was
born. Fortunately for Anubis, he was brought up in the desert by wild
dogs, which is why he is represented in the form of a dog or jackal.
Perhaps it was because of this act of adultery that Set became
murderously jealous of Osiris. There are two versions of what he did.
Native Egyptian sources refer to his taking the form of a wild boar
and goring or trampling Osiris to death before pushing him into the
Nile, at a place called Nedit, meaning 'where he was cast down'. The
location is also called Gehesty. In the other version, recorded by I
Plutarch, Set tricked Osiris into climbing inside an ornate chest
which he offered at a party as a prize for whomever its dimensions
fitted best, having deliberately made it to Osiris's measurements and
having ensured that the seventy-two other guests at the party (who
were co-conspirators) were a different shape and size. When Osiris
was inside, Set and his helpers closed the lid, sealed it, and threw the
chest into the Nile so that Osiris drowned. It seems likely that this
story of the body floating along the Nile relates to the apparent drift
of the constellation of Orion, regarded as Osiris, along the Milky
Way, as the stars seem to change their position slightly, day by day.
Isis and Nephthys recovered the body; but in the version of the
s:a>ryaccording to Plutarch, Isis found that it had washed up against
~e river bank at Byblos, where a tree had grown around it which
--as later used as a pillar to support the roof of the palace of the king
aKi queen of that land; Syria. Isis had to remove the pillar before she
could recover the body of her husband. It seems that this version of
~ story may have been an explanation of why Osiris was associated
=ith the Djed-pillar - a fertility symbol resembling a stylized tree,
-hich was erected in a ceremony at the start of the planting season.
-~w:vall painting of the pharaoh Seti I in his temple at Abydos, depicting
...=.llraising the pillar with the help of Isis (or a priestess in the role of
::1-egoddess), shows that the original Djed was taller than a man.
.;.lmiature versions, representing the 'backbone of Osiris', were placed
.:::.the bodies of the dead during the mummification process, to lend
~ deceased the quality of stability in the afterlife.
At the ceremony of erecting the Djed-pillar, a girdle or skirt was
~ around the pillar. This girdle was associated with the Tet Knot or
'3~ckle of Isis', which could be represented in an amulet made of
. nelian, a red stone, placed for protection on the bodies of the
~ The Tet was identified with the blood of Isis (possibly menstrual
:-..:XXI. as the source of her magical power). To tie a girdle in the form
i:I Tet Knot (a bow) around the Djed-pillar symbolized the sexual
:u=on of Isis and Osiris. Rows of alternating Djeds and Tets were
~J as decorative borders in Egyptian religious art to symbolize the
c~ and female divine principles in harmony. In the myth, Isis raises
~~ up from the dead by means of her magic, and keeps him alive
:t:g enough to make love to him and conceive their son Horus.
Mter this, Osiris leaves the earth to reign in Amenti, the underworld
- the realm of the dead.
a
There is a sense in which Osiris is always alive, even though he is
dead, because he is continually dying and being resurrected within the
cycles of nature. As well as being associated with plant life, he is also
the god of the moon, which wanes and waxes. (Thoth and Khonsu are
also moon gods, but according to the Egyptian way of thinking, there is
no inconsistency in this.) In one version of the myth, while Set is out
hunting by the light of the full moon, he discovers Osiris's body where
Isis has hidden it. He dismembers it into fourteen parts and scatters
them all over Egypt, so that Isis, Nephthys and Anubis have to go in
search of the pieces and reassemble the body. The fourteen parts could
be seen as representing the fourteen pieces 'removed' from the moon
during the fourteen nights of its waning, when it appears to get smaller
and smaller; and these pieces are 'replaced' during the fourteen nights
of the waxing part of the moon's cycle, as Isis and Nephthys restore
their brother's body. Easter Day, the celebration of Jesus's resurrection, is I
on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. It
would therefore be very appropriate to celebrate the resurrection of
Osiris on Easter Day, or on the day of the full moon before Easter, as an
alternative to performing the rite on the day of the equinox itself.
In the texts in this rite, Osiris is shown as the indwelling divine
principle in many aspects of nature: the earth, the sun, the sea, the
Nile in flood, and the vegetation, particularly the crops which provide
food. Above all, he is the potential for life, hidden in the dark
earth, which appears dead in the barren season but which is ready to
bring forth new growth when the fertile season returns.
To perform this rite, you will need a small Djed-pillar. It
is fairly simple to make one £rom the cardboard tube taken £rom the
inside of a roll of kitchen paper. A Djed-pillar has four flanges at its
upper end. To make these, you will need to cut out four discs of cardboard,
each about four inches in diameter. Cut three sections, each of
about an inch and a quarter, off the end of the tube, and insert three
of the cardboard discs between these sections, gluing them in place.
Glue the last disc onto the end to make the top flange. (It is easier to
assemble if you glue each section onto the middle of a disc and wait
ior it to dry, then glue the parts together, one on top of another, to
complete the pillar.) If you like, the top can be finished off by gluing
on the cap £rom a small jar. A slightly larger lid could also be fixed to
lie base, to give it more stability. The pillar should then be painted
\J,rith acrylic paint) in suitable spring colours, such as green and
'~llow. In the section between the second and third flange, you could
?<lint some Utchat eyes - a pair on each side, so that they may be
5oeen£rom both directions.
A few names and concepts which appear in this rite need to be
~xplained. 'Inert One', 'Bull of Djedu', 'Lord of the West', 'Helpless
One' and 'Listless One' are titles of Osiris. Un-nefer, 'the good being',
lS another of his epithets. Isis is described as the Wailer because she
xes the form of a kite - a small bird of prey - when she mourns
Osiris; a 'screecher' is another such bird. The Djendru bark is a deified
.:oat. Shen-a-sek is a sea. The Mansion of the Prince in On is the
~ce of divine justice in Heliopolis. Thoth is spoken of as the son of
Osiris in one of the texts, because Osiris is often identified with Ra,
ASat the end of the rite, in the Priestess's final speech. The White
Crown, hedjet, is the pharaonic crown of Upper Egypt. The Per-nu is
one of two national shrines: it was in the Delta, under the protection
of the goddess Wadjet, here identified with Isis. The Hau-nebut are
rne Isles. Har-Sopd is Horus identified with the falcon god Sopdu of
rne eastern Delta region. Ra-Harmachis is the Sphinx. Atmu is a god
of the primeval waters. Horus, rather confusingly, is referred to as if
he is already adult, even though he has yet to be born at this stage of
me myth; but in the timeless realm of the neteru, this way of thinking
makes sense, since Horus is a divine principle which is eternally
II
present.
In this rite there is a very brief assumption of the godform of Set
by the First Participant. This may make some people uneasy; but it
mould be remembered that Set is not a totally evil deity, and was
once worshipped like any other god: the pharaohs called Seti were
~ed in his honour. So long as the godform departs fully at the end
of the rite - something which should always be ensured, regardless of
!Ie type of godform that is assumed - then there is no danger to the
?IDicipants. Some people speak as if Set were the Egyptian equiva-
.ent of the Devil, but this is far from being the case: he is a divine
?£inciple, albeit a stormy and impetuous one.
..SPRING EQUINOX RITE
The Resurrection
of Osiris
Cast the circle in the usual way and, if desired, call on Qebhsennuf in the
East, Duamutif in the South, Imsety in the vvest and Hapi in the North for
protection.
Two candles on the altar are unlit at start of rite. Incense is also unlit. A
model of a Djed-pillar lies on its side, with a red ribbon beside it. The
Priestess has a sistrum.
Shake sistrum.
Light the candles.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: The shining Eye of Horus cometh. The
brilliant Eye of Horus cometh. It cometh in peace, it sendeth forth
rays of light unto Ra in the horizon, and it destroyeth the powers of
Set, according to the decree. It leadeth them on and it taketh possession
of him, and its flame is kindled against him. Its flame cometh and
!
SPRING EQUINOX RITE 59
goeth about, and bringeth adoration; it cometh and goeth about
heaven in the train of Ra upon the two hands of thy two sisters, 0
Ra. The Eye of Horus liveth, yea liveth.
Light the incense.
SECOND PARTICIPANT:
The fire is laid, the fire shines;
The incense is laid on the fire, the incense shines.
.
Your perfume comes to us, 0 Incense;
May our perfume come to you, 0 Incense:
Your perfume comes to us, you gods;
May our perfume come to you, you gods;
May we be with you, you gods;
May you be with us, you gods.
May we live with you, you gods;
May you live with us, you gods.
We love you, you gods;
May you love us, you gods.
Shake sistrum.
PRIEST: Hail to you, Lady of Goodness, at seeing whom those
:who] are in the Netherworld rejoice, who removes the limpness of
:he Inert One, because of whom Osiris has trodden, who made for
.=rimthe stride of those who walk in his moment of interment, in this
"i'OUI' name of 'Dam which is under the feet'.
Hail to you, Mistress of the Old Ones, Lady of many faces in the
Secret Place, who gives orders to the Bull of Djedu, who guides the
Lonl ot tn.e "We'&t, -a-twn.Oll\ O'&1:ri'i>-re~()iceQ. Wnel\ n.e 'i>'dWner, M.\'i>t-re'i>'"
of the hidden mysteries, who announces festivals in the bow of the
bark when men navigate in the morning, to whom the Inert One has
turned his face in this her name of Mistress of Faces.
Hail to you, Great One behind your lord; who raises him up after
being limp...
Hail to you, you who are in attendance on your lord, Mourner of
Osiris, the Great One, the Wailer, Mistress of the Per-nu ...
PRIESTESS:
The beneficent Isis who protected her brother
and sought for him, she would
take no rest until she had found him.
She shaded him with her feathers and gave him air
with her wings.
She cried out for joy and brought her brother to land.
She revived the weariness of the Listless One and took his
seed into her body,
thus giving him an heir.
She suckled the child in secret, the place where he was
being unknown.
PRIEST: Hail to you, you tree which encloses the god, under which
the gods of the Lower Sky stand, the end of which is cooked, the
inside of which is burnt, which sends out the pains of death: may you
gamer together those who are in the Abyss, may you assemble those
""'-ho are in the celestial expanses. Your top is beside you for Osiris
~en the Djed-pillar of the Great One is loosed, like her who pre-
~ over Hetepet who bows to the Lord of the East. Your tomb, 0
Osiris, your shade which is over you, 0 Osiris, which repels your
'ITiking-power, 0 Set; the peaceful maiden who helped this spirit of
Gehesty; your shadow, 0 Osiris.
:IRST PARTICIPANT: The Djed-pillar of the Day-bark is
released for its lord, the Djed-pillar of the Day-bark is released for its
?:tJtector. Isis comes and Nephthys comes, one of them from the
-esr and one of them from the east, one of them as a 'screecher', one
':J£iliem as a kite; they have found Osiris, his brother Set having laid
~ low in Nedit; when Osiris said 'Get away from me', when his
;;;zme became Sokar.
PRIESTESS AS ISIS:
~ Helpless One!
"" ;: Helpless One asleep!Ah Helpless One in this place
,vhich you know not - yet I know it!
~..:-.:;,c:dI have found you lying on your side -
~e great Lisdess One.
""...:...Sister!
: ~..;EST: Says Isis to Nephthys.
PRIESTESS AS ISIS:
This is our brother,
Come let us lift up his head,
Come let us rejoin his bones,
Come let us reassemble his limbs,
Come let us put an end to all his woe,
that, as far as we can help, he will weary no more.
May the moisture begin to mount for this spirit!
May the canals be filled through you!
May the names of the rivers be created through you!
Osiris, live!
Osiris, let the great Lisdess One arise!
I am Isis.
SECOND PARTICIPANT AS NEPHTHYS:
I am Nephthys,
It shall be that Horus will avenge you,
It shall be that Thoth will protect you
- your two sons of the Great White Crown -
It shall be that the Company will hear,
Then will your power be visible in the sky
and you will cause havoc among the hostile gods,
for Horus, your son, has seized the GreatWhite Crown -
seizing it from him who acted against you.
Then will your father Atum call 'Come!'
Osiris, live!
Osiris, let the great Lisdess One arise!
PRIEST: The sky reels, the earth quakes, Horus comes, Thoth
appears, they raise Osiris from upon his side and make him stand up
in front of the Two Enneads. Remember, Set, and put in your heart
this word which Geb spoke, this threat which the gods made against
you in the Mansion of the Prince in On because you threw Osiris to
the earth, when you said, 0 Set:
FIRST PARTICIPANT AS SET: I have never done this to him.
PRIEST: So that you might have power thereby, having been saved,
and that you might prevail over Horus; when you said, 0 Set:
FIRST PARTICIPANT AS SET: It was he who attacked me.
PRIEST: When there came into being this his name of 'Earth
attacker'; when you said, 0 Set:
FIRST PARTICIPANT AS SET: It was he who kicked me.
PRIEST: When there came into being this his name of Orion, long
,,£leg and lengthy of stride, who presides over Upper Egypt.
Raise yourself, 0 Osiris, for Set has raised himself, he has heard the
~t of the gods who spoke about the god's father. Isis has your arm, 0
2'Siris;Nephthys has your hand, so go between them. The sky is given
en you, the earth is given to you, and the Field of Rushes, the Mounds
:£Horus, the Mounds of Set; the towns are given to you and the nomes
:membled for you by Atum, and he who speaks about it is Geb.
PRIESTESS: Rise up thou, 0 Osiris. Thou hast thy backbone, 0
Still-Heart, thou hast the ligatures of thy neck and back, 0 Still-
Heart. Place thou thyself upon thy base. I put water beneath thee, and
I bring unto thee a Djed of gold that thou mayest rejoice therein.
The Djed-pillar is stood upright. Shake sistrum.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: 0 Osiris the King, arise, lift yourself
up! Your mother Nut has borne you, Geb has wiped your mouth for
you, the Great Ennead protects you and has put for you your foe
under you.
ALL: Carry one who is greater than you.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: Say they to him in your name of 'Palace
of the Great Saw'.
ALL: Lift up him who is greater than you.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: Say they in your name of'Thinite
Nome'.Your two sisters Isis and Nephthys come to you that they
may make you hale, and you are complete and great in your name of
'Wall of the Bitter Lakes', you are hale and great in your name of
'Sea'; behold, you are great and round in your name of 'Ocean';
behold, you are circular and round as the circle which surrounds the
Hau-nebut; behold, you are round and great as Shen-a-sek.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: Isis and Nephthys have waited for you
in Asyut, and because their god is in you in your name of'God'; they
praise you lest you be far from them in your name of 'Sacred Beard';
they join you lest you be angry in your name of'Djendru-bark'.
PRIESTESS: Your sister Isis comes to you rejoicing for love
of you. You have placed her on your phallus and your seed issues into
her, she being ready as Sothis, and Har-Sopd has come forth from
you as Horus who is in Sothis.
The red ribbon is tied in a bow around the Djed-pillar, to represent the
union oj Isis and Osiris. Shake sistrum.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: It is well with you through him in his
name of ' Spirit who is in the Djendru-bark', and he protects you in
his name of Horus, the son who protects his father.
Shake sistrum.
PRIESTESS: Hail, thou lord of the underworld, thou Bull of those
who are therein, thou image of Ra-Harmachis, thou Babe of beautiful
appearance, come thou to us in peace. Thou didst repel thy
disasters, thou didst drive away evil hap;Lord, come to us in peace.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: 0 Un-nefer,lord of food, thou chief,
thou who art of terrible majesty, thou God, president of the gods,
when thou dost inundate the land all things are engendered.
PRIEST: Thou art gentler than the gods. The emanations of thy
body make the dead and the living to live, 0 thou lord of food, thou
prince of green herbs, thou mighty lord, thou staff of life, thou giver
of offerings to the gods, and of sepulchral meals to the blessed dead.
FIRST PARTICIPANT: Thy soul flieth after Ra, thou shinest
at dawn, thou settest at twilight, thou risest every day; thou shalt rise
on the left hand of Atmu for ever and ever.
PRIESTESS: Thou art the glorious one, the vicar ofRa; the company
of the gods cometh to thee invoking thy face, the flame
whereof reacheth unto thine enemies. We rejoice when thou gatherest
together thy bones, and when thou hast made whole thy body
daily.
SECOND PARTICIPANT: Anubis cometh to thee, and the two
sisters come to thee. They have obtained beautiful things for thee, and
they gather together thy limbs for thee, and they seek to put together
the mutilated members of thy body. Wipe thou the impurities which
are on them upon our hair and come to us having no recollection of
that which hath caused thee sorrow.
PRIEST: Come thou in thy attribute of 'Prince of the Earth', lay
aside thy trepidation and be at peace with us, 0 Lord. Thou shalt be
proclaimed heir of the world, and the One god, and the fulfiller of
the designs of the gods. All the gods invoke thee, come therefore to
thy temple and be not afraid.
SPRING EQUINOX RITE 67
Shake sistrum.
Meditation.
Shake sistrum.
PRIESTESS: 0 Ra, thou art beloved of Isis and Nephthys; rest
thou in thy habitation for ever.
PRIEST: We give thanks to Osiris, to Isis, to Nephthys, to Horus, to
Thoth, to the Spirit of the Sacred Tree, and to all the deities who
have helped us in this rite.
if the Sons of Horus, QebhsennuJ, Duamutej, Imsety and Hapi, have
been called on for protection, they should be thanked too and bid farewell,
bifore dissolving the circle.
Shake sistrum.
SOURCES: The Pyramid Texts, Utterances 269,366,477,532 and 574, translation by
RO Faulkner. The CoffinTexts, Spells 236,238 and 239, translation by RO Faulkner. The
Book of the Dead, Chapters 137B and 155, translation by EA Wallis Budge. 'The
Lamentations of Isis and Nephthys' (Coffin Texts, Spell 74) and an XVIIIth Dynasty
'..
Hymn to Osiris, both ITom Myth and Symbol in Andent Egypt, translation by RT Rundle
Clark. 'The Songs ofIsis and Nephthys' ITom the Bremner-Rhind Papyrus, translation by
.
EA Wallis Budge in Egyptian Religion.
The Book of Egyptan Ritual Jocelyn Almond and Keith Seddon