The Book of the Heavenly Cow, or The Book of the Cow of Heaven, is an Ancient Egyptian text thought to have originated during the Amarna Period and, in part, describes the reasons for the imperfect state of the world in terms of humankind's rebellion against the supreme sun god Ra. Divine punishment.
The Book of the Heavenly Cow ca.1323 BCE the Heavenly Cow after the outermost shrine of Tutankhamun The Destruction of Mankind - the New World Order & the Magic of Re by Wim van den Dungen The factsheet: discovery, research, temporal layers, literary features. The Golden Age, human wickedness and divine slaughter.
The divine holding off and Re's withdrawal on the back of Nut. To ascend and descend within the sky. The Fall, the Flood & the evil world? Text & notes. The factsheet.
► discovery 'Then it came to pass, that the Majesty of Re, who came into being by himself.' Book of the Heavenly Cow, line 1. The first passages from the Book of the Heavenly Cow are attested on the interior left and back panels of the outermost of the four gilded shrines discovered in 1923 by Carter in KV62, the tomb of Tutankhamun (ca. 1333 - 1323 BCE), and published by in 1955. Completer versions exist in the tombs of his successors Seti I (ca. 1290 - 1279 BCE), Ramesses II (ca.
1279 - 1213 BCE) and Ramesses III (ca. 1186 - 1155 BCE). In these tombs, the book is exclusively depicted in a subsidiary room of the sarcophagus chamber, especially reserved for it. We also find brief excerpts in the small left niche of the third corridor in the tomb of Ramesses VI (ca.
1143 - 1135 BCE), and another, even shorter version, on a papyrus from the Ramesside Period, now in Turin (, 1869 - 1876, catalogue n°1982). It was not used after the New Kingdom (ca.
1539 - 1075 BCE), though integrated in the Book of the Faiyum from the Roman Period (, 1991, cols.110-112). ► research In 1876, Edouard published the version found in the tomb of Seti I (SI - KV17), situated on the West bank of the Nile at Thebes. This longest, deepest and most completely finished tomb in the Valley of the Kings, was discovered in October 1817 by the Italian antiquarian Giovanni Battista Belzoni (the tomb is marginally known as 'Belzoni's Tomb'). Naville rendered the hieroglyphs into French and English. Later, in 1885, he also published the mutilated version found in the tomb of Ramesses III (RIII - KV11), known since Antiquity. It was partially explored by James Bruce in 1768. In 1881, Heinrich published the first translation into German.
Five years later, (plates 15-18) made the first complete description of SI. In 1941, Charles published a text which took into account, and this for the first time, the version discovered in the tomb of Ramesses II (RII - KV7). This tomb also had, at least partially, stood open since Antiquity.
But he omitted the material from Tutankhamun! As late as 1982, Erik, integrating all extant versions of the book and securing the one in RIII, almost disappeared after Maystre, published the first critical text.
The present condition of the text in SI can be seen in (1991) and (1995). The studies by (1995) and (2000) are to be noted. Recently, a complete translation into English was done by (2003). King Seti's version, found on the four walls of the small annex entered from the hypostile hall of the funerary chamber of SI, is the best preserved copy, but also incomplete. The opening verses are missing and column 95 is the last visible. All versions are incomplete. Their number of columns varies.
In SI, there are 95 columns. RII has 101 columns. In the tomb of RVI, the text is 'very broken and faulty' (, 1954, p.225.). A fair restoration is possible using RII and RIII, finalizing the text with king Tutankhamun's legacy, at the end of which the text breaks off. Fortunately, it happens that in king Tutankhamun's tomb, the text of column 29 and 30 corresponds with column 95, the last line visible in SI.
On Shrine I, columns 31 to 28 give the last part of the book, but without offering an end. Produced the hieroglyphs of this synoptic version of The Book of the Cow of Heaven. The present translation is based on the critical text of (1982). ► temporal layers The following temporal layers may be discerned:.
extant inscriptions: the first, incomplete inscription is on the outermost (largest) of the four gilded shrines of Tutankhamun (Shrine I), and was buried ca.1323 BCE;. the actual literary composition: for (1999), the language and orthography display Late Egyptian influences, and so the original cannot have been written long before its first recording under Tutankhamun. For (1976), the use of Middle Egyptian, given that New Kingdom tales were written in the vernacular of those days (Late Egyptian), makes it probable for it to have been copied (and possibly reworked) in the New Kingdom from a Middle Kingdom (ca. 1938 - 1759 BCE) original (on papyrus?).
Indeed, in, a text from the First Intermediate Period (ca. 2198 - 1938 BCE), the central motif of the destruction of rebellious mankind is alluded to in the Hymn to Re (cf. Italics), suggestive of a common mythological frame. If Lichtheim is correct, the Book of the Heavenly Cow was a classic of Egyptian literature. 'Well tended is humanity - the cattle of the god: he made sky and earth for their sake, he subdued the water monster, he made breath for their noses to live. They are his images, who came from his body.
He shines in the sky for their sake. He made for them plants and cattle, fowl and fish to feed them. He slew his foes, reduced his children, when they thought of making rebellion. He makes daylight for their sake, he sails by to see them. He has built his shrine around them, when they weep he hears. He made for them rulers in the egg, leaders to raise the back of the weak.
He made for them magic as weapons, to ward off the blow of events, watching over them by day and by night. He has slain the traitors among them, as a man beats his son for the sake of his brother. For the god knows every name.' , Hymn to Re, 284 - 305.
Although attested for the first time on Shrine I of Tutankhamun, central elements of the legend of the Heavenly Cow appear in older texts. The motifs of the cow and ascension of Re appear in the Pyramid Texts. The legend of the Golden Age, in which Re ruled Egypt and, being weary of human wickedness, took off to his palace, probably predates the redaction of our New Kingdom sources.
The image of mankind as 'a tear' says it all: Sethian mankind brings slaughter into the world and triggers the end of the Golden Age, as well as the advent of a new world order. In the latter, the divine mind prevails (as vizier of Re). A truly Hermopolitan image. 'To say: 'I, king Unas, have inundated the land which came forth from the lake, I have torn out the papyrus-plant, I have satisfied the Two Lands, I have united the Two Lands, I have joined my mother the Great Wild Cow.' ' Pyramid Texts, § 388. 'It is my mother the Great Wild Cow, long of plumes, bright of head-cloth, pendulous of breasts, who has lifted me up to the sky, not having left me on Earth, among the gods who have power.'
Pyramid Texts, § 1566. Beside these allusions, the Coffin Texts bring in the theme of Re being alighted on the cow Great Flood (spell 79), whereas in spell 76, the eight Heh gods are mentioned. The latter belong to the local myth of Hermopolis (the city of Thoth).
In this tale, the primordial chaos is personified by four gods with their female counterparts (forming together the Ogdoad). The importance of Thoth in the book is also suggestive of a Hermopolitan origin. ► literary features Scholars like (1984) and (1975) made partial translations. This habit of separating the mythological narrative about the destruction of mankind from the more eschatological and magical sections, is misleading. Initiated in the XIXth century, it caused the whole book to be identified with its introductory part and assisted a confused interpretation (, 1912/1994).
The different sections do form a whole, albeit a complex one. The overall theme is not the destruction of man, but the fallen nature of the latter and, as a consequence, the establishment of a new world order after Re withdraws to his stellar abode on the back of Nut transformed into the Heavenly Cow.
It ends with four magical 'spells' enabling the living and the dead to participate in Re's process of renewal. Is the overall intention of the Ars Obscura of the books of the netherworld, especially the and the Book of Gates. In the 6th Hour of the night, the midnight mystery occurs, and the Oroboros-serpent 'Many Faces' effectuates the renewal of Re. Enclosed by it, Re's corpse returns to the First Time. The corpse of Re (and the image of ) is encircled by the protective womb of a mysterium coniunctionis between the physical cycle of Re and the spiritual power of Atum.
Hence forward, the light of Re is rekindled. The body of Khepri encircled by Many Faces is also Re's encounter with himself, which makes him project outside creation and unite with the First Time and with Atum-Kheprer. The magical spells mentioned in the book are intended for the living and the deceased. Both need to rekindle their energies by participating in the daily renewal of Re for ever and ever. It is interesting to note that, apart from the use of Middle Egyptian, the directions for its use by non-royals were mindlessly inscribed in New Kingdom royal tombs, and this despite the fact the netherworld books were solely intended for royal tombs.
Perhaps the sacerdotal study of the netherworld started earlier? The Book of the Two Ways, part of the Coffin Texts (spells 1029 to 1185), also suggests this. the literary form: in the critical edition, the text is marked by a metrical structuring of 330 verses. The present reading underlines five parts: (a) the partial destruction of mankind, (b) the inevitable withdrawal of Re and the new world order, (c) the description of the magical representation of Nut as a Heavenly Cow, (d) the completion & rule of the new world order and (e) the section on magic;.
the literary aim: the underlying theme of this complex and mysterious text is the withdrawal of Re on the back of Nut as the Heavenly Cow and the subsequent new world order. The destruction of mankind, a classical theme in the Mesopotamian and Biblical narratives of the Flood, invokes the cause of Re's withdrawal, namely human wickedness.
The followers of Seth end the Golden Age and make man slaughter man;. the workings of magic: preparing for magic as well as a series of interesting spells and statements about Re's magic persist;. etiological statements: most of the time, the causation of a variety of mythological facts (like the existence of certain deities) is explained by using plays on words (puns) contained in divine quotations preceding each statement. These clever etiologies are part of the development of the narrative and are integral to the myth. Besides the representation of the Heavenly Cow, the book has two other figures interlaced in the text, acting as supporters of the sky: supporters of the sky: Neheh & Djet (left) and Pharaoh after, 1941. These figures represent the ontological and anthropological (political & religious) accommodations of the new world order, to wit: on the one hand, continuous ('djedet') and discontinuous ('neheh') eternity and on the other hand, the rule of Pharaoh, who offers two Sekhem or 'power' staves (upper register) and upholds the sky. Note the Was-sceptres carried by the two aspects of eternal time.
Supporters of the sky: Neheh & Djet shrine I of Tutankhamun Interior Left Panel -, 1955. Traditionally, the Heh-gods are the avatars of Shu, joining him in the effort to uphold (and guard) the sky (cf. The Heh-gods in the representation of the Heavenly Cow and in Hermopolitan myth).
The Egyptian word 'HH' was associated with 'million' and with the verbs 'to search' and 'to look for'. The god Heh had as consort Hauhet, who was identified with 'djet' or 'djedet', eternal sameness. The eight Heh-gods refer to the Ogdoad of Hermopolis, identifying Heh with infinity.
The Festival of Drunkenness is a religiously significant celebration that was held annually (said to be biannually in some places) by the ancient Egyptians. The background story for the celebration of this festival can be found in a text known as The Book of the Heavenly Cow. In this text, there is an ancient Egyptian myth involving the destruction of mankind. According to the myth, human beings were saved from extinction thanks, in part, to alcohol. The Destruction of Mankind In The Book of the Heavenly Cow, there is a myth known as the ‘Destruction of Mankind’.
This story begins by stating that once upon a time, human beings lived together with the gods, and were ruled over by Ra (Re). It goes on to say that when Ra had grown old, mankind began to conspire against him. Ra became aware of mankind’s scheming, and decided to summon the other gods to his palace, in order to obtain counsel from them. A scene from the Book of the Heavenly Cow as depicted in the tomb of Seti I. ( ) After explaining his dilemma to the gods, it was suggested to Ra that he ought to release his Eye, so that it might smite down humanity. He agreed with this suggestion, and sent his Eye in the form of the goddess Hathor to punish mankind.
In the meantime, the humans fled to the desert, as they became fearful of Ra. Nevertheless, Hathor, who was transformed into a lion (or the warlike goddess Sekhmet), descended and slew mankind in the desert.
In one version of the story, the goddess went on a rampage, and was about to wipe out all of humanity when Ra took pity on mankind. It was through Ra’s subsequent intervention that mankind was saved. In an alternate version of the myth, it seems that Ra had planned the event to save mankind, so that he could be the savior of humanity. Statue of Sekhmet from the temple of Mut. ( ) Thus, Ra summoned his messengers, and ordered them to bring him a great amount of haematite from Elephantine.
He then ordered the haematite to be ground. In the meantime, barley was also being ground to produce beer. When both substances were ready, Ra had the haematite put into the beer, so that it resembled human blood. It is written that 7,000 jars of this beer were made. Nun, the embodiment of the primordial waters, lifts the boat of the sun god Ra into the sky at the moment of creation. ( ) One night, Ra poured out the blood-like beer, which flooded the fields “three palms high.” On the morning of the next day, the goddess saw that the fields were flooded with what seemed to be human blood, and was delighted at the sight.
She began drinking the liquid without knowing that it was actually beer, and soon became intoxicated, then fell asleep. As a result, mankind was saved from destruction. The Day of Celebration The Festival of Drunkenness is celebrated on the 20th day of Thoth, the 1st month of the ancient Egyptian calendar. The festival of drunkenness was a communal affair and on one level, the celebrations took place in temples. On another level, this festival took place in peoples’ houses and shrines. Typically, the participants of this festival would be served lots of alcohol, get drunk, and fall asleep. It was not regarded, however, as a social drinking session, but was sacred event.
In the temples, the celebrants would be awoken by the sound of drums and music. Upon waking up, they would worship the goddess Hathor.
A drawing based on an ancient Egyptian wall painting shows a drinking festival in progress. ( ) Other aspects of the ritual celebration included dancing and the lighting of torches, which was performed in the hopes that the devotees of the goddess would receive an epiphany from her. Another activity believed to have been undertaken during the festival was sex.
In a hymn regarding the festival, there is a phrase “travelling through the marshes”, and it has been speculated that this is an ancient Egyptian euphemism for having sex. Egyptian painting of dancers and flutists, from the Tomb of Nebamun. ( ) One explanation for this activity is provided by regarding Hathor in her role as a goddess of love. Alternatively, it may have been linked to the fertility of the land as well. The Festival of Drunkenness was typically celebrated around the middle of August, the period when the Nile began to rise. Therefore, sexual activity during the festival may have also been perceived as a means of bringing the Nile floods back, and thus ensuring the fertility of the land. Featured Image: Painting of an ancient Egyptian woman being served beer.
References Anon., Destruction of Mankind Online Nederhof, M.-J. (trans.), 2006. Destruction of Mankind. Available at: Bleeker, C.
Hathor and Thoth: Two Key Figures of the Ancient Egyptian Religion. Boyle, A., 2006. Sex and Booze Figured in Egyptian Rites. Online Available at: Experience Ancient Egypt, 2016. The Eye of Ra and the Destruction of Mankind.
Online Available at: Healy, M., 2013. Uncovered: Ritual public drunkenness and sex in ancient Egypt. Online Available at: Seawright, C., 2013. Ancient Egyptian Alcohol: Beer, Wine and the Festival of Drunkenness. Online Available at:. The main property of ground hematite is actually magnetic when mixed with other materials such as copper. Hematite itself is antiferromagnetic - Antiferromagnetism is when the electrons within a material coalesce, forming a chain of oppositely charged particles, even though the material as a whole does not appear to have any magnetic quality.
Antiferromagnetism means that the electrons within the material do not align themselves with the same magnetic polarity. Even within the specific domains, the material does not display any magnetic qualities. As a result of the electrons not aligning themselves in the same polarity, they cancel each other out with the specific chain of electrons. It seems the ancient Egyptians knew about iron powder metallurgy and thus they ground the hematite and used it to 'deflect' or neutralise the electromagnetic field of Hathor (or what was described as Hathor - possible a field of radiation/cosmic rays from a celestial event?).
In the caves of Lascaux, there are paintings showing the celestial Bull - this we know because the dots in the paintings are identical to the Pleiades and the eye of the Bull is Alcyone, the star which magnetically drakes the entire solar system in tis wake according to ancient sources. So this festival is not really about drunkeness at all. And it has absolutely no connection to fertility of land or anything else. Any state of 'drunkeness' was likely a side effect of the magnetic event at such scale -e.g disorientation from cosmic radiation and subsequent festivities to celebrate the diversion of a disaster. Analysed ice core samples extracted from Antarctica indicate elevated levels of cosmogenic Beryllium-10 (10Be) occurring within Egypt’s Predynastic Middle Period – Nagada ll, (3600 – 3200 BC). Beryllium-10 is created by the interaction of cosmic ray particles within earth’s atmosphere.
One of the results of an increase in cosmic ray activity interacting with earth will be an increase of Beryllium-10 where in about two years, it will settle from the atmosphere and take residence in the polar ice caps where its intensity can be verified and also when the cosmic bombardment occurred. Ice core samples show Earth, during this dynasty, was heavily bombarded by cosmic rays, twice - firstly around 3200 BC and then again about 3000 BC. The “Third Eye” was commonly described by ancient sages who had “experienced the divine light”.
Could this divine light have been the interpreted visualization of an extreme cosmic outburst and why the Pharaoh’s role (Abrams, 2006) was to maintain the balance of the cosmos and his realm through the preservation of past and present cosmic events? The Egyptian secular artistic style during this dynasty, changed during the time of their last encounter with extreme cosmic rays. The artistic styled they adapted remained unchanged for the next 3000 years perhaps due to this extreme cosmic event.
I believe the comments made by G J Leale, about the “disorientation from cosmic radiation” need to be examined in greater detail. His explanations are quite convincing. For additional information, google “Dr. Paul LaViolette + Beryllium-10”, and his “galactic superwave theory”.