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The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) · 133 of 357 · tr. E.A. Wallis Budge

Chapter 15 (part 3)

Akert is the country of which Osiris was the prince; and it is mentioned as connected with Stat and Neter-khert , each of which is a name of the great necropolis on the western bank of the Nile. See Brugsch, Dict. Géog ., p. 75; Lepsius, Todtenbuch , chap. 165, 1. 6; Naville, La Litanie du Soleil , p. 98. 8. An or Ani, a name or form of Ra, the Sun-god (compare "Ani at the head of the cycle of the gods," Grébaut, Hymne , p. 22), and also of Osiris. Ani is also identified with the Moon-god; compare {footnote p. 255} [*] "Hail, Ani, thou shinest upon us from heaven every day. May we never cease to behold thy rays! Thoth protecteth thee and maketh thy soul to stand up in the maat boat in thy name of Moon." For the identification of Ani with Horus, see Naville, La Litanie du Soleil , p. 99, note 10. The god Ani is also addressed as "Eye of Horus " by the deceased in the 39th chapter of the Book of the Dead, which refers to the "uniting of a soul to its body in the underworld." * For the hieratic text, see De Horrack, Lamentations d'Isis et de Nephthys , p. 4, II. 1-3.] beautiful in countenance in Ta-sert.[1] Grant thou to the ka of Osiris, the scribe Ani, splendour in heaven and might upon earth and triumph in Neter-khert;[1] and that I may sail down to (11) Tattu like a living soul and up to (13) Abtu like a bennu (phœnix); and that I may go in and come out without repulse at (15) the pylons of the Tuat.[1] May there be given unto (16) me loaves of bread in the house of coolness, and (17) offerings of food in Annu, (18) and a homestead for ever in Sekhet-Aru[2] with wheat and barley (20) therefor."
Themes
◆Living Godtheology

The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.

The text addresses the deities directly in prayer ('Hail, Ani', 'Grant thou'), implying their active presence.

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◆Maat Cosmic Ordercosmology

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 'maat boat' is explicitly mentioned as the vessel in which Thoth makes the soul stand up.

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◆Prayerpraxis

Direct address to the divine, whether petitionary, contemplative, or liturgical; speech and silence offered upward.

The text contains direct petitions to the gods for splendour, triumph, food, and safe passage.

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◆Theosis Deificationsoteriology

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.

The deceased Ani petitions to be identified with Osiris ('ka of Osiris, the scribe Ani') and gain divine attributes.

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◇Anthropomorphismtheology

Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery.

[auto] Deities are described with human attributes such as being 'beautiful in countenance' and the 'Eye of Horus'.

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◇Divine Lighttheology

The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation.

[auto] References to Ra as the Sun-god who 'shinest upon us' and the Moon-god highlight the luminous quality of the divine.

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◇Funerary Navigationpraxis

Texts and rituals guiding the soul through death.

[auto] The passage is excerpted from the Book of the Dead and explicitly references the afterlife realm (Akert) and the underworld journey.

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◇Psychopomp Journeycosmology

Guided passage of the soul through afterlife realms.

[auto] Mentions of the 'underworld' and travel via the 'maat boat' indicate a guided passage through afterlife realms.

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◇Sacred Namestheology

Divine names or formulas that carry ontological power, used in prayer, liturgy, or magical practice.

[auto] The text details the various names and forms of deities (Ra, Osiris, Ani, Horus) and their theological interchangeability.

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