Part 1 (2/2)

Translated by E. A. Wallis Budge, Litt.D., D.Lit., F.S.A.

A Hymn To The Setting Sun

A HYMN OF PRAISE TO RA WHEN HE RISETH UPON THE HORIZON, AND WHEN HE SETTETH IN THE LAND OF LIFE. Osiris, the scribe Ani, saith:

”Homage to thee, O Ra, when thou risest [as] Tem-Heru-khuti (Tem-Harmachis). Thou art adored [by me when] thy beauties are before mine eyes, and [when thy] radiance [falleth] upon [my] body. Thou goest forth to thy setting in the _Sektet_ boat with [fair] winds, and thy heart is glad; the heart of the _Matet_ boat rejoiceth. Thou stridest over the heavens in peace, and all thy foes are cast down; the never-resting stars sing hymns of praise unto thee, and the stars which rest, and the stars which never fail glorify thee as thou sinkest to rest in the horizon of Manu,(1) O thou who art beautiful at morn and at eve, O thou lord who livest and art established, O my lord!

”Homage to thee, O thou who art Ra when thou risest, and Tem when thou settest [in] beauty. Thou risest and s.h.i.+nest on the back of thy mother [Nut], O thou who art crowned king of the G.o.ds! Nut doeth homage unto thee, and everlasting and never-changing order(2) embraceth thee at morn and at eve. Thou stridest over the heaven, being glad of heart, and the Lake of Testes is content [thereat]. The Sebau Fiend hath fallen to the ground; his arms and his hands have been hacked off, and the knife hath severed the joints of his body. Ra hath a fair wind; the _Sektet_ boat goeth forth and sailing along it cometh into port. The G.o.ds of the south and of the north, of the west and of the east, praise thee, O thou divine substance, from whom all forms of life come into being. Thou sendest forth the word, and the earth is flooded with silence, O thou only One, who didst dwell in heaven before ever the earth and the mountains came into existence. O Runner, O Lord, O only One, thou maker of things which are, thou hast fas.h.i.+oned the tongue of the company of the G.o.ds, thou hast produced whatsoever cometh forth from the waters, and thou springest up from them over the flooded land of the Lake of Horus. Let me snuff the air which cometh forth from thy nostrils, and the north wind which cometh forth from thy mother [Nut]. Oh, make thou to be glorious my s.h.i.+ning form (_khu_), O Osiris, make thou to be divine my soul (_ba_)! Thou art wors.h.i.+pped [in] peace (or [in] setting), O lord of the G.o.ds, thou art exalted by reason of thy wondrous works. s.h.i.+ne thou with thy rays of light upon my body day by day, [upon me], Osiris the scribe, the teller of the divine offerings of all the G.o.ds, the overseer of the granary of the lords of Abtu (Abydos), the royal scribe in truth who loveth thee; Ani, victorious in peace.”

Hymn And Litany To Osiris

[From the Papyrus of Ani (British Museum No. 10,470, sheet 19).]

”Praise be unto thee, O Osiris, lord of eternity, Unnefer, Heru-khuti (Harmachis), whose forms are manifold, and whose attributes are majestic, Ptah-Seker-Tem in Annu (Heliopolis), the lord of the hidden place, and the creator of Het-ka-Ptah (Memphis) and of the G.o.ds [therein], the guide of the underworld, whom [the G.o.ds] glorify when thou settest in Nut. Isis embraceth thee in peace, and she driveth away the fiends from the mouth of thy paths. Thou turnest thy face upon Amentet, and thou makest the earth to s.h.i.+ne as with refined copper. Those who have lain down (_i.e._, the dead) rise up to see thee, they breathe the air and they look upon thy face when the Disk riseth on its horizon; their hearts are at peace inasmuch as they behold thee, O thou who art Eternity and Everlastingness!”

Litany

”Homage to thee, [O lord of] starry deities in Annu, and of heavenly beings in Kher-aba; thou G.o.d Unti, who art more glorious than the G.o.ds who are hidden in Annu; oh grant(3) thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O An in Antes, (?) Heru-khuti (Harmachis), with long strides thou stridest over heaven, O Heru-khuti. Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O Soul of everlastingness, thou Soul who dwellest in Tattu, Unnefer, son of Nut; thou art lord of Akert. Oh, grant thou unto me a path wherein I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee in thy dominion over Tattu; the _Ureret_ crown is established upon thy head; thou art the One who maketh the strength which protecteth himself, and thou dwellest in peace in Tattu. Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O lord of the Acacia tree, the _Seker_ boat is set upon its sledge; thou turnest back the Fiend, the worker of evil, and thou causest the _Utchat_ to rest upon its seat. Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O thou who art mighty in thine hour, thou great and mighty Prince, dweller in An-rut-f,(4) lord of eternity and creator of everlastingness, thou art the lord of Suten-henen (Heracleopolis Magna).

Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O thou who restest upon Right and Truth, thou art the lord of Abtu (Abydos), and thy limbs are joined unto Ta-tchesertet; thou art he to whom fraud and guile are hateful. Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O thou who art within thy boat, thou bringest Hapi (_i.e._, the Nile) forth from his source; the light s.h.i.+neth upon thy body and thou art the dweller in Nekhen.(5) Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

”Homage to thee, O creator of the G.o.ds, thou King of the North and of the South, O Osiris, victorious one, ruler of the world in thy gracious seasons; thou art the lord of the celestial world.(6) Oh, grant thou unto me a path whereon I may pa.s.s in peace, for I am just and true; I have not spoken lies wittingly, nor have I done aught with deceit.”

Hymn To Ra

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