Chapter 43 (part 40)

Thou art the heir of Seb and the sovereign of all the earth; [* This festival took place on the 17th and 18th days of the month Thoth; see Brugsch, Kalendarische Inschriften, p. 235.] {footnote page liii} Seb hath seen thy glorious power, and hath commanded thee to direct the (11) universe for ever and ever by thy hand. "Thou hast made this earth by thy hand, and the waters thereof, and the wind thereof, the herb thereof, all the cattle thereof, all the winged fowl thereof, all the fish thereof, all the creeping things thereof, and all the four-footed beasts thereof. (12) O thou son of Nut, the whole world is gratified when thou ascendest thy father's throne like Ra. Thou shinest in the horizon, thou sendest forth thy light into the darkness, thou makest the darkness light with thy double plume, and thou floodest the world with light like the (13) Disk at break of day. Thy diadem pierceth heaven and becometh a brother unto the stars, O thou form of every god. Thou art gracious in command and in speech, thou art the favoured one of the great company of the gods, and thou art the greatly beloved one of the lesser company of the gods. "Thy sister put forth her protecting power for thee, she scattered abroad those who were her enemies, (14) she drove back evil hap, she pronounced mighty words of power, she made cunning her tongue, and her words failed not. The glorious Isis was perfect in command and in speech, and she avenged her brother. She sought him without ceasing, (15) she wandered round and round the earth uttering cries of pain, and she rested[*] not until she had found him. She overshadowed him with her feathers, she made wind with her wings, and she uttered cries at the burial of her brother. (16) She raised up the prostrate form of him whose heart was still, she took from. him of his essence, she conceived and brought forth a child,[+] she suckled it in secret (?) and none knew the place thereof; and the arm of the child hath waxed strong in the great house of Seb. (17) The company of the gods rejoiceth and is glad at the coming of Osiris's son Horus, and firm of heart and triumphant is the son of Isis, the heir of Osiris."[++] [*. Literally, "she alighted not,"; the whole passage here justifies Plutarch's statement ( De Iside Osiride , 16) concerning Isis: {Greek Au?th`n de` genome'nhn xelido'na tu~j ki'oni peripi'tesðai kai` ðrhnei~n }. +. Compare Plutarch, op. cit. , §19: {Greek T`hn d' I?'sin th`n teleuth`n e`ks O?si'ridos suggenome'nou tekei~n h?li'to'mhnon kai` a?sðenh~ toi~s ka'twðen gui'ois to`n A?rpokra'thn }. ++. The remainder of the hymn refers to Horus.]] {p. liii} Osiris invested with the attributes of Ra.