Chapter 43 (part 66)

141. 2. Ibid. , p. 149. 3 Ibid. , p. 172.] {p. lxxxix} God and the gods. The passages from the pyramid of Pepi show at once the difference between neter as God, and the "gods" neteru ; the other passages, which might be multiplied almost indefinitely, prove that the Being spoken of is God. The neteru or "gods" whom Unas hunted, and snared, and killed, and roasted, and ate, are beings who could die; to them were attributed bodies, souls, ka's , spiritual bodies, etc . In a remarkable passage from the CLIVth Chapter of the Book of the Dead (Naville, Todtenbuch , Bd. I., Bl. 179, l. 3) the deceased king Thothmes III. prays:-- seset-kua emxet-k Tem huau ma ennu ari-k Preserve me behind thee, O Tmu, from decay such as that which thou workest er meter neb netert nebt er aut neb er t'etfet neb for god every, and goddess every, for animals all, for reptiles all sebuit-f per ba-f emxet mit-f ha-f for each passeth away when hath gone forth his soul after his death, he perisheth emxet sebi-f after he hath passed away. The gods mortal. Of these mortal gods some curious legends have come down to us; from which the following may be selected as illustrating their inferior position. THE LEGEND OF RA AND ISIS. Now Isis was a woman who possessed words of power; her heart was wearied with the millions of men, and she chose the millions of the gods, but she esteemed more highly the millions of the khu's . And she meditated in her heart, saying, "Cannot I by means of the sacred name of God make myself mistress of the earth and become a goddess like unto {p. xc} Legend of Ra and Isis. "Ra in heaven and upon earth?" Now, behold, each day Ra entered at the head of his holy mariners and established himself upon the throne of the two horizons. The holy one had grown old, he dribbled at the mouth, his spittle fell upon the earth, and his slobbering dropped upon the ground. And Isis kneaded it with earth in her hand, and formed thereof a sacred serpent in the form of a spear; she set it not upright before her face, but let it lie upon the ground in the path whereby the great god went forth, according to his heart's desire, into his double kingdom. Now the holy god arose, and the gods who followed him as though he were Pharaoh went with him; and he came forth according to his daily wont; and the sacred serpent bit him. The flame of life departed from him, and he who dwelt among the cedars (?) was overcome. The holy god opened his mouth, and the cry of his majesty reached unto heaven. His company of gods said, "What hath happened?" and his gods exclaimed, "What is it?" But Ra could not answer, for his jaws trembled and all his members quaked; the poison spread swiftly through his flesh just as the Nile invadeth all his land. When the great god had stablished his heart, he cried unto those who were in his train, saying, "Come unto me, O ye who have come into being from my body, ye gods who have come forth from me, make ye known unto Khepera that a dire calamity hath fallen upon me. My heart perceiveth it, but my eyes see it not; my hand hath not caused it, nor do I know who hath done this unto me. Never have I felt such pain, neither can sickness cause more woe than this.