In discussing Egyptian ideas about the Soul it must first be understood that while everyone agrees that the Egyptians looked at the Soul as having several distinct components, there is no agreement as to what those components were or exactly how many components where involved –some say that the Egyptian Soul had five parts, others that it had seven or eight parts, still others say that there were nine.
Moreover because of the extreme longevity of Egyptian civilization –at least four thousand years from the dawn of dynastic civilization until the advent of Christianity- Egyptian ideas about these differing components underwent changes over time, so that so that the same beliefs current at the dawn of Egyptian civilization were not necessarily current at its dénouement.
Therefore the comments which follow must be viewed as being rather broad, and reflecting my own opinion –just as any other analysis of the subject is necessarily influenced by the opinion of its author in the absence of a conclusive statement by the Egyptians themselves.
It has often been said that Egyptian ideas about the Soul are very alien to the modern mind. In my opinion this is because of a typically Judeo-Christian overly literal interpretation of just how separate the Egyptians actually viewed the SoulÂ’s components as being.
Certainly in Metaphysical circles the idea that the Soul has several components is not alien at all. As Pagans we quite naturally speak of our “Higher Self”, our “Astral Self”, our “Younger Self”, our “Conscious Self”, et cetera. We think of these as being different aspects of our Soul of which in many cases we are not fully conscious, but we never think of them as being disconnected entities. I see no reason why this should have been different for the ancient Egyptians.
In fact it is my opinion that Egyptian ideas about the Soul were in fact remarkably similar to modern ideas about the Soul.
Most lists of the parts of the Egyptian concept of the Soul include the following: The Khat: the Sahu: the Khaibit: the Ab: the Ren: the Ka: the Ba: the Khu: and the Sekhem.
Each of these aspects of the Soul had a specific nature, about which –again- there is often much disagreement.
The Khat was understood to be the physical body itself: the corpse which was, if at all possible, mummified and preserved in the tomb.
It is often asserted that the Egyptians believed that it was essential to preserve the body if the Soul was to enjoy eternal life –though this seems to be something of an over-statement
Moreover because of the extreme longevity of Egyptian civilization –at least four thousand years from the dawn of dynastic civilization until the advent of Christianity- Egyptian ideas about these differing components underwent changes over time, so that so that the same beliefs current at the dawn of Egyptian civilization were not necessarily current at its dénouement.
Therefore the comments which follow must be viewed as being rather broad, and reflecting my own opinion –just as any other analysis of the subject is necessarily influenced by the opinion of its author in the absence of a conclusive statement by the Egyptians themselves.
It has often been said that Egyptian ideas about the Soul are very alien to the modern mind. In my opinion this is because of a typically Judeo-Christian overly literal interpretation of just how separate the Egyptians actually viewed the SoulÂ’s components as being.
Certainly in Metaphysical circles the idea that the Soul has several components is not alien at all. As Pagans we quite naturally speak of our “Higher Self”, our “Astral Self”, our “Younger Self”, our “Conscious Self”, et cetera. We think of these as being different aspects of our Soul of which in many cases we are not fully conscious, but we never think of them as being disconnected entities. I see no reason why this should have been different for the ancient Egyptians.
In fact it is my opinion that Egyptian ideas about the Soul were in fact remarkably similar to modern ideas about the Soul.
Most lists of the parts of the Egyptian concept of the Soul include the following: The Khat: the Sahu: the Khaibit: the Ab: the Ren: the Ka: the Ba: the Khu: and the Sekhem.
Each of these aspects of the Soul had a specific nature, about which –again- there is often much disagreement.
The Khat was understood to be the physical body itself: the corpse which was, if at all possible, mummified and preserved in the tomb.
It is often asserted that the Egyptians believed that it was essential to preserve the body if the Soul was to enjoy eternal life –though this seems to be something of an over-statement