← Home
The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) · 204 of 357 · tr. E.A. Wallis Budge

Chapter 32 (part 1)

PLATE XXV. Vignette: A swallow perched on a conical object painted red and green. Text [CHAPTER LXXXVI.]: (I) HERE BEGIN THE CHAPTERS OF MAKING TRANSFORMATIONS. THE CHANGING INTO A SWALLOW. (2) Saith Osiris Ani, triumphant: "I am the swallow, [I am] the swallow, [I am] the scorpion, the daughter of Ra. Hail, ye gods, whose scent is sweet; hail, ye gods, whose scent is sweet! Hail, thou Flame, which comest forth from (4) the horizon! Hail, thou who art in the city. May the Guardian of the Bight lead me on. O stretch out up unto me (5) thine bands that I may be able to pass my days in the Island of Flame. I have fared forth with my warrant. I have come with the power thereof. Let the doors be opened unto me (6). How shall I tell what I have seen therein? Horus was like unto the prince of the sacred bark, and the throne of his father was given unto him. Sut, the son of Nut, also hath gotten the fall which he (7) wrought for Horus. He who is in Sekhem passed judgment upon me. I stretched out my hands and my arms unto Osiris. I have passed on to judgment, (8) and I have come that I may speak; grant that I may pass on and deliver my message. I enter in, having been judged; I come out (9) at the door of Neb-er-tcher magnified and glorified. I am found pure at the Great place of passage [of souls]. I have put away my faults. (10) I have done away mine offences. I have cast out the sins which were a part of me. I, even I, am pure, (11) I, even I, am mighty. O ye doorkeepers, I have made my way [unto you]. I am like unto you. I have come forth by day. I have walked with my legs, and I have gotten the power of the footstep wherewith do walk the shining ones of light (12). I, even I, know the hidden ways to the doors of the Field of Aaru; and (13), though my body be buried, yet let me rise up; and may I come forth and overthrow all my foes upon earth." Appendix: Rubric . If this chapter be known [by the deceased], he shall come forth by day in Neter-khert, and he shall go in again after he hath come forth. if this chapter be not known, he shall not enter in after he hath come forth, nor shall he come forth by day. Vignette: A golden hawk holding a flail, emblem of rule. Text [CHAPTER LXXVII.]: (1) CHAPTER OF CHANGING INTO A GOLDEN HAWK. Saith Osiris Ani: "(2) May I, even I, arise in the seshet chamber, like unto a hawk of gold (3) coming forth from his egg. May I fly and may I hover as a hawk, with a back seven (4) cubits wide, and with wings made of emeralds of the South. May I come forth from the sektet boat (5), and may my heart be brought unto me from the mountain of the east. May I alight on the atet boat, and may those who are in (6) their companies be brought unto me, bowing down as they come. May I rise, may I gather myself together (7) as the beautiful golden hawk [which hath] the head of a bennu bird.
§ Ask Guru about this passage →
Themes
Anthropomorphismtheology

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

The text uses personal pronouns ('Thou', 'I') to depict a relational interaction with the divine.

All passages →
Asha Cosmic Ordercosmology

Truth as the fundamental structure of reality.

[auto] The text invokes 'right and truth' as a principle upheld by the deity, reflecting truth as the fundamental structure of reality.

All passages →
Divine Lighttheology

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

[auto] The speaker declares themselves a 'shining one clothed in power,' indicating the possession of a luminous divine quality.

All passages →
Funerary Navigationpraxis

Texts and rituals guiding the soul through death.

[auto] The passage is from the Book of the Dead, explicitly describing the deceased as equipped for the journey through the afterlife.

All passages →
Inner Lightanthropology

The divine spark or luminous quality residing within the human person, potentially recognisable through introspection.

The declaration 'I am a shining one' implies an internalized state of luminosity or spiritual radiance within the person.

All passages →
Living Godtheology

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

The deity is addressed as an active agent who 'raisest up' individuals, conceiving the divine as dynamic and present.

All passages →
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.

[auto] The passage explicitly invokes 'right and truth' (Ma'at) as the standard for divine favor and cosmic order.

All passages →
Mystical Unionsoteriology

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

The deceased identifies directly with the god Osiris ('Osiris Ani'), suggesting a merging of identities.

All passages →
Psychopomp Journeycosmology

Guided passage of the soul through afterlife realms.

[auto] The speaker describes being equipped for a journey where the deity raises them up, implying guided passage through afterlife realms.

All passages →
Sacred Namestheology

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

The invocation of the name 'Osiris Ani' serves to establish identity and power in the ritual context.

All passages →
Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

[auto] The phrase 'Thou raisest up' suggests an upward movement or elevation of the soul toward a higher state.

All passages →
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 claims the identity 'Osiris Ani,' asserting a transformation into or identification with the divine nature.

All passages →
Related passages · 11 parallels
christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 5, Section 1a
“131 CHAPTER V Concerning ” Existence “ and also concerning ” Exemplars .” I. Now must we proceed to the Name of “Being” which is truly applied by the Divine Science to Him that truly Is. But this much we must say, that it is not the purpo…”
Shared concept: Mystical Union — The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity. (derived)
christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 5, Section 1i
“364 The ultimate Godhead is reached only by the Negative Path, and known only by Unknowing. The Affirmative Path of philosophical knowledge leads only to the differentiated manifestations of the Godhead: e.g. the Trinity, in Its creative…”
Shared concept: Mystical Union — The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity. (derived)
neoplatonism|Iamblichus: On the Mysteries|Chapter III
“According to another order, however, he arranges the God Emeph prior to, and as the leader of, the celestial Gods. And he says that this God is an intellect, itself intellectually perceiving itself, and converting intellections to itself. B…”
Shared concept: Maat Cosmic Order — The Egyptian principle of truth, balance, and right order underlying both the cosmos and human conduct; the parallel to Zoroastrian asha and Greek dike. (derived)
christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 7)
“48.) "The soul and the Word are not one or one being. The soul is born from the centre of nature, from the essences, and belongs to the body, for she issues from the essences of the body, and attracts to herself the body; but the Word is f…”
Shared concept: Theosis Deification — 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. (derived)
western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XXII (part 13)
“Then the understanding of such a man receives from the Holy Spirit the highest and hidden mysteries which according to the divine Paul, neither the human eye can understand nor the human reason comprehend unaided. (Ii Corinthians ii, 9).…”
Shared concept: Divine Light — The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation. (derived)
renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori)|First Dialogue-m
“Thus everything has an impetus towards its beginning retrogressively, and progressively towards its end and perfection, as Empedocles well said, and from which sentence I think may be inferred that which the Nolan said in this octave: The s…”
Shared concept: Spiritual Ascent — A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source. (derived)
greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Hymn LVI. THE TERRESTRIAL HERMES
“LVI. TO THE TERRESTRIAL HERMES. The FUMIGATION from STORAX. HERMES I call, whom Fate decrees to dwell In the dire path which leads to deepest hell O Bacchic Hermes, progeny divine Of Dionysius, parent of the vine, p. 189 And of celestial Ve…”
Shared concept: Psychopomp Journey — Guided passage of the soul through afterlife realms. (derived)
western_esoteric|The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall)|Atlantis and the Gods of Antiquity-g
“At the first gate the great crown is removed from her head, at the second gate the earrings from her ears, at the third gate the necklace from her neck, at the fourth gate the ornaments from her breast, at the fifth gate the girdle from her…”
Shared concept: Spiritual Ascent — A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source. (derived)
neoplatonism|Iamblichus: On the Mysteries|Chapter XXI
“Is, therefore, what you add in the third place more true; viz. “ that there is a certain mixed form of hypostasis, consisting of our soul and divine inspiration externally derived ?” Consider this then more accurately, lest we should be dec…”
Shared concept: Inner Light — The divine spark or luminous quality residing within the human person, potentially recognisable through introspection. (derived)
platonism|Plato: Phaedrus|Section 1r
“But he whose initiation is recent, and who has been the spectator of many glories in the other world, is amazed when he sees any one having a godlike face or form, which is the expression of divine beauty; and at first a shudder runs throug…”
Shared concept: Anthropomorphism — Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery. (derived)
zoroastrianism|Avesta (Gathas)|Spenta Mainyu Gatha, Yasna L, Section 1b
“(And together with that chief speaker of your word I would engage yet others in the cause). Your well-incited 5 and swift 6 (servants), O Ahura! would I yoke 7 on (as steeds to take their holy course toward heaven), gaining 7 thereby (at…”
Shared concept: Asha Cosmic Order — Truth as the fundamental structure of reality. (derived)