A Hymn to the Setting Sun . From the Papyrus of Mut-hetep

Vignette : In this papyrus this Chapter is without a vignette .
Text : I . (1) [ANOTHER CHAPTER OF] THE MYSTERY OF THE
TUAT (UNDERWORLD) AND OF PASSING THROUGH THE UNSEEN
NETHERWORLD, and of seeing the Disk when he setteth in Amen-
tet, [when] he is adored by the gods and by the Khus in the
underworld, and [when] the Soul (2) which dwelleth in Ra is
made perfect. He is made mighty before Tern ; he is made great
before Osiris ; he setteth his terror before the company of the
gods who are the guides of the netherworld ; he maketh long(?)
his steps and he maketh his face to enter (?) [with that of] the
great god . Now every K/ u, for whom these words shall have
been said, shall conic forth by day in any form which he is
pleased to take ; (4) he shall gain power among the gods of the
Tuat (underworld), and they shall recognize him as one of them-
selves ; and he shall enter in at the hidden gate with power .

The lady (5) Mut-hetep, victorious, singeth hymns of praise
to thee, [saying] : "O Ra-Tem, in thy splendid progress thou
"risest, and thou settest as a living being in the glories (6) of
"the western horizon, ; thou settest in thy territory which is in
"Manu . Thy uraeus is behind thee, thy uraeus is behind thee .
"Homage to thee, O thou who art in peace, homage to thee, O
"thou who art in peace . Thou art joined unto the Eve of Tem,
"and it chooseth (7) its powers of protection [to place] behind
"thy members . Thou goest forth through heaven, thou travellest
"over the earth, and thou journcyest onward . O Luminary,
"the northern and southern halves of heaven come to thee and
"they bow low in adoration, (8) and they pay homage unto thee,
"day by day . The gods of Amentet rejoice in thy beauties and
"the unseen places sing hymns of praise unto thee . Those who
"dwell in the Sektet boat (9) go round about thee, and the
"Souls of the East pay homage to thee, and when they meet thy
"Majesty they cry : `Come, come in peace!' There is a shout
"of welcome to thee (10), O lord of heaven and governor of
"Amentet! Thou art acknowledged by Isis who seeth her son
"in thee, the lord of fear, the mighty one of terror . Thou settest
"as a living being (11) in the hidden place . Thy father [Ta-]
"tunen raiseth thee up and he placeth both his hands behind
"thee ; thou becomest endowed with divine attributes in [thy]
"members of earth ; thou wakest in peace and thou settest (12 )
"in Manu.r Grant thou that I may become a being honoured
"before Osiris, and that I may come to thee, O Ra-Tem! I have
"adored thee, therefore do thou for me that which I wish . Grant
"thou (13) that I may be victorious in the presence of the company
"of the gods . Thou art beautiful, O Ra, in thy western horizon
"of Amentet, thou lord of Maat, thou mighty one of fear, thou
"whose attributes are majestic, O thou who art greatly (14) be-
loved by those who dwell in the Tuat (underworld) ; thou shinest
"with thy beams upon the beings that are therein perpetually,
"and thou sendest forth thy light upon the path of Re-stau . Thou
"openest up the path of the double Lion-god, thou settest the
"(15) gods upon [their] thrones, and the Klutz in their abiding
"places . The heart of Naarerf 2 is glad [when] Ra setteth, the
"heart of Naarerf is glad when Ra setteth ."

"Hail, O ye gods of the land of Amentet who make offerings
"and oblations unto (16) Ra-Tem, ascribe ye glory [unto him
"when] ye meet him . Grasp ye your weapons and overthrow ye
"the fiend Sebd on behalf of Ra, and (17) repulse the fiend Nebt
"on behalf of Osiris . The gods of the land of Amentet rejoice
"and lay hold upon the cords of the Sektet boat, and they come
"in peace ; (18) the gods of the hidden place who dwell in
"Amentet triumph ."

"Hail, Thoth, who didst make Osiris to triumph over his
"enemies, make thou Mut-hetep, victorious, to triumph over her
"enemies (19) in the presence of the great divine sovereign chiefs
"who live with Osiris, the lord of life . The great god who dwell-
"eth in his Disk cometh forth, that is, Horns the avenger of his
"father, Unnefer-Ra . (20) Osiris setteth, and the Khu[s] who are
"in the Tuat (underworld) say : Homage to thee, O thou who
"comest as Tem, and who comest into being as the creator of
"the gods . Homage to thee, O thou who comest as the holy
"Soul of souls, who dwellest in the horizon . Homage to thee
"who art more glorious than [all] the gods and who illuminest
"the Tuat with thine Eve. Homage to thee who sailest in thy
"glory and who goest round about in thy Disk ."

II . The following variant of the above hymn is translated from
the text in the Papyrus of Nekhtu-Amen (Naville, Todtenbuch,
Bd. ii . P . 23) .


ANOTHER CHAPTER OF THE MYSTERY OF THE TUAT (UNDER-
WORLD) AND OF TRAVERSING THE UNSEEN PLACES OF THE
UNDERWORLD, of seeing the Disk when he setteth in Amentet,
[when] he is adored by the gods and by the Klnts of the Tuat
(underworld), and [when] the divine Khu which dwelleth within
Rd is made perfect . He setteth his might before Ra, he setteth
his power before Tem, [he setteth his strength] before Khenti-
Amentet, and he setteth his terror before the company of the
gods . The Osiris of the gods goeth as leader through the Tuat
(underworld), he crasheth through mountains, he bursteth through
rocks, he maketh glad (?) the heart of everv Khu. This com-
position shall be recited by the deceased when he cometh forth
and when he goeth in with the gods, among whom he findeth
no opposition ; then shall he come forth by day in all the
manifold and exceedingly numerous forms which he may be
pleased to take. [The Osiris    saith : -]

"A hymn of praise to Ra at eventide [when] he setteth as a
"living being in Baakha .r The great god who dwelleth in his
"Disk riseth in his two eyesa and all the Khus of the under-
"world receive him in his horizon of Amentet ; they shout praises
"unto Heru-khuti (Harmachis) in his form of Tem, and they sing
"hymns of joy to Ra when they have received him at the head
"of his beautiful path of Amentet"

He (i . e ., the deceased) saith : "Praise be unto thee, O Ra,
"praise be unto thee, O Tem, in thy splendid progress . Thou
"hast risen and thou hast put on strength, and thou settest like
"a living being amid thy glories in the horizon of Amentet, in
"thy domain which is in Manu . Thy uraeus-goddess is behind
"thee ; thy uraeus-goddess is behind thee . Hail to thee, in peace ;
"hail to thee, in peace . Thou joinest thyself unto the Eye of
"Horns, and thou hidest thyself within its secret place ; it des-
"troveth for thee all the convulsions of thy face, it maketh thee
"strong with life, and thou livest . It bindeth its protecting amulets
"behind thy members . Thou sailest forth over heaven, and thou
"makest the earth to be stablished ; thou joinest thyself unto the
"upper heaven, O Luminary . The two regions of the East and
"West make adoration unto thee, bowing low and paying ho-
mage unto thee and they praise thee day by day ; the gods of
"Amentet rejoice in thy splendid beauties . The hidden places
"adore thee, the aged ones make offerings unto thee, and they
"create for thee protecting powers . The divine beings who dwell
"in the eastern and western horizons transport thee, and those
"who are in the Sektet boat convey thee round and about. The
"Souls of Amentet cry out unto thee and say unto thee when
"they meet thy majesty (Life, Health, Strength!) `All hail, all
"hail!' When thou comest forth in peace there arise shouts of
"delight to thee, O thou lord of heaven, thou Prince of Amentet .
"Thy mother Isis embraceth thee, and in thee she recognizeth
"her son, the lord of fear, the mighty one of terror . Thou settest
"as a living being within the dark portal . Thv father Tatunen
"lifteth thee up and he stretcheth out his two hands behind thee ;
"thou becomest a divine being in the earth . Thou wakest as
"thou settest, and thy habitation is in Manu . Grant thou that
"1 may be venerated before Osiris, and come thou [to me], O
"Ra-Tem. Since thou hast been adored [by me] that which I
"wish thou shalt do for me day by day. Grant thou victory
"[unto me] before the great company of the gods, O Ra who
"art doubly beautiful in thy horizon of Amentet, thou lord of
"Maat who dwellest in the horizon . The fear of thee is great,
"thy forms are majestic, and the love of thee is great among
"those who dwell in the underworld ."

The Source: The Book oDead, the Chapters of Coming Forth by Day
Translated into English by E. A. Wallis Budge, Litt.D., D.Lit
London, 1898.


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Chap . XV :


LITANY OF THE NINE GODS.

- Hymn to Ra . From the Papyrus of Ani.

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