Part 9 (2/2)

[FN#226] The text appears to be corrupt in this pa.s.sage.

101. A HYMN OF PRAISE TO HORUS TO GLORIFY HIM, WHICH IS TO BE SAID 102 OVER THE WATERS AND OVER THE LAND.

Thoth speaketh and this G.o.d reciteth [the following]:-

”Homage to thee, G.o.d, son of a G.o.d. Homage to thee, heir, son of an heir. Homage to thee, bull, son of a bull, who wast brought forth by a holy G.o.ddess. Homage to thee, Horus, who comest forth from Osiris, and wast brought forth by the G.o.ddess Isis. I recite thy words of power, I speak with thy magical utterance. I p.r.o.nounce a spell in thine own words, which thy heart hath created, and all the spells and incantations which have come forth from thy mouth, which thy father Keb commanded thee [to recite], and thy mother Nut gave to thee, and the majesty of the Governor of Sekhem taught thee to make use of for thy protection, in order to double (or, repeat) thy protective formulae, to shut the mouth of every reptile which is in heaven, and on the earth, and in the waters, to make men and women to live, to make the G.o.ds to be at peace [with thee], and to make Ra to employ his magical spells through thy chants of praise. Come to me this day, quickly, quickly, as thou workest the paddle of the Boat of the G.o.d. Drive thou away from me every lion on the plain, and every crocodile in the waters, and all mouths which bite (or, sting) in their holes. Make thou them before me like the stone of the mountain, like a broken pot lying about in a quarter of the town. Dig thou out from me the poison which riseth and is in every member of him that is under the knife. Keep thou watch over him ... ... by means of thy words. Verily let thy name be invoked this day. Let thy power (qefau) come into being in him. Exalt thou thy magical powers. Make me to live and him whose throat is closed up. Then shall mankind give thee praise, and the righteous (?) shall give thanks unto thy forms. And all the G.o.ds likewise shall invoke thee, and in truth thy name shall be invoked this day. I am Horus [of] Shet[enu] (?).

”O thou who art in the cavern,[FN#227] O thou who art in the cavern. O thou who art at the mouth of the cavern. O thou who art on the way, O thou who art on the way. O thou who art at the mouth of the way. He is Urmer (Mnevis) who approacheth every man and every beast. He is like the G.o.d Sep who is in Anu (Heliopolis). He is the Scorpion-[G.o.d] who is in the Great House (Het-ur). Bite him not, for he is Ra. Sting him not, for he is Thoth. Shoot ye not your poison over him, for he is Nefer-Tem. O every male serpent, O every female serpent, O every antesh (scorpion?) which bite with your mouths, and sting with your tails, bite ye him not with your mouths, and sting ye him not with your tails. Get ye afar off from him, make ye not your fire to be against him, for he is the son of Osiris. Vomit ye. [Say] four times:-

”I am Thoth, I have come from heaven to make protection of Horus, and to drive away the poison of the scorpion which is in every member of Horus. Thy head is to thee, Horus; it shall be stable under the Urert Crown. Thine eye is to thee, Horus, [for] thou art Horus, the son of Keb, the Lord of the Two Eyes, in the midst of the Company [of the G.o.ds]. Thy nose is to thee, Horus, [for] thou art Horus the Elder, the son of Ra, and thou shalt not inhale the fiery wind. Thine arm is to thee, Horus, great is thy strength to slaughter the enemies of thy father. Thy two thighs[FN#228] are to thee, Horus. Receive thou the rank and dignity of thy father Osiris. Ptah hath balanced for thee thy mouth on the day of thy birth. Thy heart (or, breast) is to thee, Horus, and the Disk maketh thy protection. Thine eye is to thee, Horus; thy right eye is like Shu, and thy left eye like Tefnut, who are the children of Ra. Thy belly is to thee, Horus, and the Children are the G.o.ds who are therein, and they shall not receive the essence (or, fluid) of the scorpion. Thy strength is to thee, Horus, and the strength of Set shall not exist against thee. Thy phallus is to thee, Horus, and thou art Kamutef, the protector of his father, who maketh an answer for his children in the course of every day. Thy thighs are to thee, Horus, and thy strength shall slaughter the enemies of thy father. Thy calves are to thee, Horus; the G.o.d Khnemu hath builded [them], and the G.o.ddess Isis hath covered them with flesh. The soles of thy feet are to thee, Horus, and the nations who fight with the bow (Peti) fall under thy feet. Thou rulest the South, North, West, and East, and thou seest like Ra. [Say] four times. And likewise him that is under the knife.”

[FN#227] Or, den or hole.

[FN#228] We ought, perhaps, to translate this as ”forearms.”

Beautiful G.o.d, Senetchem-ab-Ra-setep-[en]-Amen, son of Ra, Nekht-Heru- Hebit, thou art protected, and the G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses are protected, and conversely. Beautiful G.o.d, Senetchem-ab-Ra-setep-[en]-Ra, son of Ra, Nekht-Heru-Hebit, thou art protected, and Heru-Shet[enu], the great G.o.d, is protected, and conversely.

ANOTHER CHAPTER LIKE UNTO IT. ”Fear not, fear not, O Bast, the strong of heart, at the head of the holy field, the mighty one among all the G.o.ds, nothing shall gain the mastery over thee. Come thou outside, following my speech (or, mouth), O evil poison which is in all the members of the lion (or, cat) which is under the knife.”

[The narrative of the stinging of Horus by a scorpion is continued thus]:

”I am Isis, who conceived a child by her husband, and she became heavy with Horus, the divine [child]. I gave birth to Horus, the son of Osiris, in a nest of papyrus plants.[FN#229] I rejoiced exceedingly over this, because I saw [in him one] who would make answer for his father. I hid him, and I concealed him through fear of that [fiend (?)].[FN#230] I went away to the city of Am, [where] the people gave thanks [for me] through [their] fear of my making trouble [for them]. I pa.s.sed the day in seeking to provide food for the child, [and] on returning to take Horus into my arms I found him, Horus, the beautiful one of gold, the boy, the child, without [life]. He had bedewed the ground with the water of his eye, and with foam from his lips. His body was motionless, his heart was powerless to move, and the sinews (or, muscles) of his members were [helpless]. I sent forth a cry, [saying]:

[FN#229] Or, Ateh, the papyrus swamp.

[FN#230] i.e., Set.

”'I, even I, lack a son to make answer [for me].[FN#231] [My] two b.r.e.a.s.t.s are full to overflowing, [but] my body is empty. [My] mouth wished for that which concerned him.[FN#232] A cistern of water and a stream of the inundation was I. The child was the desire of my heart, and I longed to protect him (?). I carried him in my womb, I gave birth to him, I endured the agony of the birth pangs, I was all alone, and the great ones were afraid of disaster and to come out at the sound of my voice. My father is in the Tuat,[FN#233] my mother is in Aqert,[FN#234] and my elder brother is in the sarcophagus. Think of the enemy and of how prolonged was the wrath of his heart against me, [when] I, the great lady, was in his house.'

[FN#231] i.e., to be my advocate.

[FN#232] Literally ”his thing.”

[FN#233] Tuat is a very ancient name of the Other World, which was situated either parallel with Egypt or across the celestial ocean which surrounded the world.

[FN#234] The ”perfect place,” i.e., the Other World.

”I cried then, [saying,] 'Who among the people will indeed let their hearts come round to me?' I cried then to those who dwelt in the papyrus swamps (or, Ateh), and they inclined to me straightway. And the people came forth to me from their houses, and they thronged about me at [the sound of] my voice, and they loudly bewailed with me the greatness of my affliction. There was no man there who set restraint (?) on his mouth, every person among them lamented with great lamentation. There was none there who knew how to make [my child] to live.

”And there came forth unto me a woman who was [well] known in her city, a lady who was mistress of her [own] estate.[FN#235] She came forth to me. Her mouth possessed life, and her heart was filled with the matter which was therein, [and she said,] 'Fear not, fear not, O son Horus! Be not cast down, be not cast down, O mother of the G.o.d. The child of the Olive-tree is by the mountain of his brother, the bush is hidden, and no enemy shall enter therein. The word of power of Tem, the Father of the G.o.ds, who is in heaven, maketh to live. Set shall not enter into this region, he shall not go round about it. The marsh of Horus of the Olive-tree is by the mountain of his brother; those who are in his following shall not at any time ... ... it. This shall happen to him: Horus shall live for his mother, and shall salute (?) [her] with his mouth. A scorpion hath smitten (i.e., stung) him, and the reptile Aun-ab hath wounded him.'”

[FN#235] Or perhaps, ”a lady who was at the head of her district.”

Then Isis placed her nose in his mouth[FN#236] so that she might know whether he who was in his coffin breathed, and she examined the wound[FN#237] of the heir of the G.o.d, and she found that there was poison in it. She threw her arms round him, and then quickly she leaped about with him like fish when they are laid upon the hot coals, [saying]:

[FN#236] i.e., the mouth of Horus.

[FN#237] Literally, ”pain” or ”disease.”

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