The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) · 56 of 357 · tr. E.A. Wallis Budge
Chapter 6 (part 12)
Every khu and every god stretcheth out his hand unto this Pepi when he cometh forth into heaven by the Ladder of God .
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that which he seeth and that which he heareth make him wise, and serve as food for him when he cometh forth into heaven by the Ladder of God.
Pepi riseth up like the uræus which is on the brow of Set, and every khu and every god stretcheth out his hand unto Pepi on the Ladder.
Pepi hath gathered together his bones, he hath collected his flesh, and Pepi hath gone straightway into heaven by means of the two fingers of the god who is the Lord of the Ladder." Elsewhere we are told that Khonsu and Set "carry the Ladder of Pepi, and they set it up." When the Osiris of a man has entered into heaven as a living soul, he is regarded as one of those who "have eaten the eye of Horus he walks among [1.
Recueil de Travaux , t.
v., p.
190, ll.
181, 182.
2.
Ibid.
, t.
iv., p.
70, l.
579 ff 3..
Études de Mythologie et d'Archéologie , t.
i., p.
344, note 1.
4 ###.
Recueil de Travaux , t.
v., p.
52 (1.
456).
5.
###.
Ibid.
, t.
iii., p.
165 (l.
169).] The deification of the spiritual body.
living ones, he becomes "God, the son of God," and all the gods of heaven become his brethren. His bones are the gods and goddesses of heaven; his right side belongs to Horns, and his left side to Set; the goddess Nut makes him to rise up as a god without an enemy in his name "God"; and God calls him by his name. His face is the face of Ap-uat, his eyes are the great ones among the souls of Annu, his nose is Thoth, his mouth is the great lake, his tongue belongs to the boat of right and truth, his teeth are the spirits of Annu, his chin is Khert-khent-Sekhem, his backbone is Sema, his shoulders are Set, his breast is Beba. etc.
; every one of his members is identified with a god.
Moreover, his body as a whole is identified with the God of Heaven.
For example it is said concerning Unas:-- t'et-k t'et ent Unas pen af-k af en Unas pen Thy body is the body of Unas this.
Thy flesh is the flesh of Unas this.
kesu-k kesu Unas pen seb-k seb Unas pen Thy bones are the bones of Unas this.
Thy passage is the passage of Unas this.
seb Unas pen seb-k The passage of Unas this is thy passage. [1.
Recueil de Travaux , t.
v., p.
183 (l.
166).
2 ###.
Ibid.
, t.
viii., p.
89 (t.
574).
3.
###.
See pyramid of Teta, (Recueil, t.
v.), ll.
45, 137, 197, 302.
4.
###.
Ibid.
, t.
iii., p.
202 (1.
209).
5 Ibid.
, t.
v., p.
23 (l.
198), 6 Ibid.
, t.
v., p.
38, (l.
279).
7.
Ibid.
, p.
26 (l.
The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.
The identification of body parts with gods reflects the axiom that cosmic structures are mirrored in the human form.
The Stoic and Plotinian doctrine that all parts of the cosmos are bound by hidden affinities, so that a movement in one part resonates through the whole; the metaphysical basis for astrology, magic, and divination.
The connection between body parts and celestial deities implies hidden affinities binding the cosmos.
The Egyptian principle of truth, balance, and right order underlying both the cosmos and human conduct; the parallel to Zoroastrian asha and Greek dike.
The text references the 'boat of right and truth,' aligning with the Egyptian principle of Maat.
The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.
[auto] The text details how every member of the deceased's body is identified with a specific god or cosmic element.
The doctrine — central to Eastern Orthodox and Maximian theology — that the human person is progressively transformed into a partaker of the divine nature by grace, not merely justified or united in passing ecstasy.
[auto] The passage explicitly describes the deification of the spiritual body and the deceased becoming 'God, the son of God'.
Iamblichean ritual practice that engages the gods directly through consecrated material symbols and actions, on the premise that divine power descends into properly prepared matter — distinct from philosophical contemplation alone.
Ritual actions involving gods and ladders are performed to engage divine power for the soul's ascent.