Friday September 9 2005

Leisure Extra

Catherine Lea

Page 8

LEARN THE SECRETS OF THE EGYPTIANS

The mysteries of life and death in ancient Egypt will be unravelled in Wakefield soon.

"An exhibition of more than 200 fascinating objects - many of which are thought to have originated from ancient tombs will be on display at Wakefield Museum from September 23.

The exhibition will explore ancient rituals and beliefs which shaped Egyptian life, while revealing how many of the pieces were enearthed and eventually transferred to Yorkshire.

The county has a strong tradition of collecting and exploration at ancient at ancient Egyptian sites.

Ancient household items, textiles, jewellery and cosmetic jars will help reveal much of what life was like in the ancient land

The objects will be arranged thematically, giving visitors an insight into distinct aspects of the country's history.

"The main feature in the exhibition will be a magnificent painted sarcophagus - a mummy case which is more than 3,000 years old.

The dazzling case will be accompanied by other stunning relics, including an extremely rare Anubis mask which depicts the jackal headed god of mummification, and ancient inscribed stone slabs, which were often used as gravestones.

People in Wakefield and the surrounding areas will have the chance to learn about Egyptian funeral practices by looking at canopic jars,which would have contained different organs removed from the body during mummification.

Mummified animals and figures of different gods and goddesses who were thought to watch over specific aspects of life on earth will give clues about the belief systems that operated in Egypt during the ancient period.

Many of the objects will be on loan from Harrogates Museum and Arts.

Displayed alongside these will be Wakefield's own collection of Egyptian Artefacts, which originated from numerous expedition by the English archeologist, William Matthew Flinders Petrie.

Matthew Petrie was responsible for laying the foundations of modern Egyptology, and has a significant connection with Wakefield as many of his expeditions were supported by Wakefield wine merchant, William Fennell.

A collection of letters addressed to Fennell by Petrie help to bring the Wakefield collection of artefacts to life.

Hieroglyphs also form an important feature in the exhibtion, which explores how the unlocking of the hiroglyphs code was crucial in bringing to life the many varied beliefs and rituals of Egypt's rich and sophisticated society.

The latter part of the exhibition will explore the fate of the ancient Egyptian's way of life under Alexander the Great and subsequently the Roman Empire.

The closing sections bring visitors back to the modern world with an exploration of how Western designers and architects have continued to be influenced by the ancient Egyptians.

Many of those influences can also be traced through to fashion and popular culture and the closing section of the display pays homage to this.

The culture of ancient Egypt has been a source of fascination for the west since Napoleon's arrival in the country in 1798. More than 200 years on, after countless expeditions, and thousands of hours of painstaking recovery and research, the subject continues to fascinate and intrigue.

The exhibition will take place at the Wakefield Museum, on Wood Street, from September 23. The museum is open from 10.30 am until 4.30pm during the week (Mondays until Saturday), and between 2 pm and 4.30 pm on Sundays."

THE SIRIUS MYSTERY

Robert K.G..Temple 1976

Page 69

A

FAIRYTALE

" Back to Anubis. Wallis Budge says of him:26 'His worship is very ancient, and there is no doubt that even in the earliest times his cult was general in Egypt; it is probable that it is older than that of Osiris.' Also he points out here, as elsewhere, that the face of the deceased human becomes identified with Anubis, and it is just the head of Anubis which is symbolically represented by the jackal or dog. I have already pointed out that he is described as the circle or orbit separating the dark Nephthys from the light Isis or Sirius. In other words, I take Anubis to represent the orbit of Sirius B around Sirius A. We also find him described as 'time',27 a particularly intelligent way of looking at an orbit as progressive and sequential in time. 'Time the devourer', a motif common to us all, is no stranger to the Egyptians. It should not surprise us that Anubis is also represented as a devourer! More specifically, he is accused of
devouring the Apis bull. The Apis bull is the animal into which the dead Osiris was sewn and transported, according to a late legend which is widely known. But more basically, the 'Apis Bull' (the deity known under the Ptolemies as Serapis) is Asar-Hapi. It is Osiris himself! In The Gods of the Egyptians, we read 'Apis is called "the life of Osiris, the lord of heaven" , and 'Apis was, in fact, believed to be animated by the soul of Osiris, and to be Osiris incarnate'. 28
So, consequently, when Anubis devoured Apis, he was eating the husband of Isis! It is very colourfully represented in these dramatic mythological terms, but the meaning is clear.. We read later:29
'Others again are of the opinion that by Anubis is meant Time, and that his denomination of Kuon [the Greek word for 'dog'] does not so much allude to any likeness which he has to the dog, though this be the general rendering of the word, as to that other significance of the term taken from breeding; because Time begets all things out of itself, bearing them within itself, as it were in a womb. But this is one of those secret doctrines which are more fully made known to those who are initiated into the worship of Anubis. '
Exactly. A secret doctrine! What one would give for a fuller account! This is the trouble with most of our sources; they give away little except by inference. Secret doctrines are not scribbled down too frequently and left for posterity. The most secret doctrine" of the Dogon was only revealed with great reluctance after many, many years, and following upon a conference by the initiates. The Egyptians were no fools, and we can hardly expect them to have left papyri or ,texts specifically revealing in so many words what they were not supposed to reveal. We can only try to piece together clues. But we will see our clues eventually turn into a veritable avalanche.
The last passage from Wallis Budge was a quotation by him from Plutarch's 'Isis and Osiris'. Many Egyptologists have remarked on the irony that we have nowhere in Egyptian sources a full, coherent account of Isis and Osiris ­not even in all the sources put together! And we are forced to rely on Plutarch who did preserve a long account which he wrote in his native Greek. Plutarch is thought to have been a priest himself, and was certainly a Delphic initiate.

Page 70

"He had a talent for befriending priests and priestesses. One of his best friends was the priestess Clea of the oracle at Delphi. His treatise 'Isis and Osiris' is dedicated to Clea and addressed to her. It begins with these words: 'All good things, my dear Clea, sensible men must ask from the gods; and especially do we pray that from those mighty gods we may, in our quest, gain a knowledge of themselves, so far as such a thing is attainable by men.' This gives some indication of what Plutarch was like as a man.
The Introduction to the Loeb edition of Isis and Osiris by F. C. Babbitt says: '[Plutarch] once visited Egypt, but how long he stayed and how much he learned we have no means of knowing. It is most likely that his treatise represents the knowledge current in his day, derived, no doubt, from two sources: books and priests.' It is certain that Plutarch's friend Clea, who was so important at Delphi, would have seen to it that Plutarch had ample introductions to leading priests of Egypt. This sort of thing was standard practice - as with the study of Egyptian religion and astronomy undertaken centuries earlier by the Greek scholar Eudoxus (colleague of Plato and Aristotle), who was given a letter of introduction to the last of the native Pharaohs, Nectanebo, by the Spartan general Agesilaus, and who in turn sent him off to associate with his priests. The fact that Plutarch's treatise is addressed to Cl ea may indicate a debt to her for its preparation as well as common religious enthusiasms. So, no doubt Plutarch did with the Egyptian priests what Griaule and Dieterlen did with the Dogon - drew some secret traditions out of them. It is thus not surprising that Plutarch's essay is more respected by Egyptologists than by classicists.
Plutarch says: 'Some are of the opinion that Anubis is Cronos.'30 Chronos, of course, was the Greek 'time the devourer', spelt with an h. Cronos in Latin is Saturn. There is a considerable debate among scholars whether Cronos (Sa turn), the former chief god prior to Zeus (J u pi ter), has any definite relation to the word chronos spelt with the h and sometimes used as a proper name for Time. From this latter word we derive chronology, chronicle, etc. The Sumerian god Anu is quite similar to the Greek Cronos because both Cronos and Anu were 'old' gods who were displaced by younger blood - by Zeus and Enlil respectively. Thus another possible link between Anu and Anubis, if one be willing to grant that Cronos and Chronos are not entirely separate words and concepts in ancient pre-classical Greece.
Wallis Budge continues with reference to Plutarch:
Referring to Osiris as the 'common Reason which pervades both the superior and inferior regions of the universe', he [Plutarch] says that it is, moreover, called 'Anubis, and sometimes likewise Hermanubis (i.e. Heru-em-Anpu); the first of these names expressing the relation it has to the superior, as the latter, to the inferior world. And for this reason it is, they sacrifice to him two Cocks, the one white, as a proper emblem of the purity and brightness of things above, the other of a saffron colour, expressive of that mixture and variety which is to found on those lower regions.'
Here is what I take to be a possible reference to the white Sirius A and the 'darker' Sirius B. But also, the 'lower regions' are the horizons, where white heavenly bodies at their 'births' and 'deaths' become saffron-coloured.
There is a clearer translation by Babbitt in the precise description of Anubis / Page 71 / as 'the combined relation of the things'31 rather than as 'the common Reason which pervades' the light world and the dark world. A circular orbit is just that - 'a combined relation' between the star revolving and the star revolved around. In order to make this more firmly established less as fancy than as fact, I shall cite Plutarch's words from his next paragraph (Babbitt's translation):
'Moreover, they (the Egyptians) record that in the so-called books of Hermes (the Trismegistic literature?) it is written in regard to the sacred names that they call the power which is assigned to direct the revolution of the Sun Horus . . .'
This is important because we see here that they specifically call the orbit of the sun by a god's name. If they can call the revolution of the sun by a god's name, they can call the revolution of Sirius B (assuming they really knew about it) by a god's name. We are dealing with a precedent. Now we resume this quotation because it is interesting for other reasons: '. . . but the Greeks call it Apollo; and the power assigned to the wind some call Osiris and others Serapis; and Sothis in Egyptian signifies "pregnancy" (cyesis) or "to be pregnant" (cyein): therefore in Greek, with a change of accent, the star is called the Dog-star (Cyon), which they regard as the special star of Isis.'
A further piece of information from Plutarch about Anubis is :32 'And when the child (Anubis, child of Nephthys by Osiris) had been found, after great toil and trouble, with the help of dogs which led Isis to it, it was brought up and became her guardian and attendant, receiving the name Anubis, and it is said to protect the gods just as dogs protect men.'
If Anubis is conceived of as an orbit around Sirius, then he would indeed be attendant upon Isis! He would go round and round her like a guard dog.
Plutarch has an interesting tale: 'Moreover, Eudoxus says that the Egyptians have a mythical tradition in regard to Zeus that, because his legs were grown together, he was not able to walk. . .'33 This sounds very like the amphibious Oannes of the Sumerians who had a tail for swimming instead of legs for walking.
Plutarch provides us with an important and crucial clue linking Isis with the Argo and the Argonauts and demonstrating a probable derivation of an idea that has puzzled classicists enormously (and later on we shall see the links between Isis and the Argo considerably elaborated): 'Like these also are the Egyptian beliefs; for they often times call 1sis by the name of Athena, expressive
of some such idea as this, "I came of myself," which is indicative of self­impelled motion. '34
I t must be remembered that the Greek goddess Athena, the goddess of the mind and of wisdom, was reputed to have sprung full-fledged from the brow of Zeus. She was not born. She came of herself. However, the quotation must be continued to make the point:
Typhon, as has been said, is named Seth and Bebon and Smu, and these names would indicate some forcible and preventive check or opposition or reversal.
Moreover, they call the lodestone the bone of Horus, and iron the bone of Typhon, as Manetho records. For, as the iron oftentimes acts as if it were being attracted and drawn toward the stone, and oftentimes is rejected / Page 72 / and repelled in the opposite direction, in the same way the salutary and good and rational movement of the world at one time, by persuasion, attracts and draws towards itself and renders more gentle that harsh and Typhonian movement, and then again it gathers itself together and reverses it and plunges it into difficulties.
The identification of Isis with Athena here in connection with lodes tones and 'self-impelled motion' brings to mind the placing by Athena of a cybernetic* oak timber from the holy sanctuary of Dodona (supposedly founded by Deukalion, the Greek Noah, after his ark landed) in the keel of the Argo. H. W. Parke in his books Greek Oracles and The Oracles of Zeus refers to this: 'Athena when the Argo was built took a timber from the oak tree of Dodona (the oracular centre of Zeus) and fitted it into the keel. This had the result that the Argo itself could speak and guide or warn the Argonauts at critical moments, as it actually is represented as doing in our extant epics on the subject. The original epic is lost, but there is no reason to doubt that this miraculous feature went back to it, and, if so, was at least as old as the Odyssey in which the Argo and its story are mentioned.' Parke then emphasizes most strongly that it is the timber itself that acts as guide. It is self-sufficient and not merely an oracular medium. Thus we see that the Argo had a unique capacity for 'self­impelled motion' which was built into it by Athena (whom Plutarch identifies with Isis). 35
Now is a suitable stage to return to the Sumerians, as in their culture we shall find many significant references to 'fifty heroes', 'fifty great gods', etc. But first we shall leave the fifty Argonauts and their magical ship to turn our attention to what appears to be a rather precise Egyptian description of the Sirius system preserved in an unusual source. The source is G. R. S. Mead (who was a friend of the poet Yeats and is mentioned by his nickname 'Old Crore' in Ezra Pound's Cantos), whose three-volume Thrice Greatest Hermes36 contains a translation of, with extensive prolegomena and notes to, the obscure and generally ignored ancient 'Trismegistic literature' of the Hermetic tradition. These writings are largely scorned by classical scholars who consider them Neoplatonic forgeries. Of course, ever since the wild Neoplatonic boom in the Italian Renaissance period when Marsilio Ficino translated and thereby preserved for posterity (one must grant the Medicis the credit for finding and purchasing the manuscripts!) such Neoplatonists as Iamblichus, as well as these Trismegistic writings, the Neoplatonists have been in the doghouse. The Loeb Classical Library still has not published all of Plotinus even now.
But most readers will not be familiar either with the term 'trismegistic' or with the Neoplatonists. So I had better explain. The Neoplatonists are Greek philosophers who lived long enough after Plato to have lost the name of Platonists as far as modern scholars are concerned (though they were intellectual disciples of Plato and considered themselves Platonists). Modern scholars have added the prefix 'Neo-' to 'Platonist' for their own convenience, in order to / Page 73 / distinguish them from their earlier predecessors, those Platonists who lived within 150 years of Plato himself. The Platonic Academy existed for over nine centuries at Athens. In actuality, scholars talk about 'Middle Platonists', 'Syrian Platonists', 'Christian Platonists', 'Alexandrian Platonists', and so on. I suggest the reader look at my Appendix I, which will tell him a lot about the Neoplatonists and their connection with the Sirius mystery, and which deals primarily with Proclus.
G. R. S. Mead, at the beginning of his work Thrice Greatest Hermes, explains fully what 'the Trismegistic Literature' is. He calls it 'Trismegistic' instead of by its earlier designation 'Hermetic' (from the name of the Greek god Hermes) in order to distinguish it from other less interesting writings such as the Egyptian Hermes prayers and also the 'Hermetic Alchemical Literature'. The Trismegistic writings are now fragmentary and consist of a large amount of exceedingly strange sermons, dialogues, excerpts by Stobaeus and the Fathers of the Church from lost writings, etc. I hesitate to give a brief summary of them and suggest that the interested reader actually look into this subject himself. There are some matters which defy summary, and I consider this to be one of them. The writings contain some 'mystical' elements and certainly some sublime elements. Old Cosimo de Medici was told by Ficino that he could translate for him either the Hermetic Literature or the dialogues of Plato, but not both at once. Cosimo knew he was dying. He said something like: 'If only I could read the Books of Hermes, I would die happy. Plato would be nice but not as important. Do the Hermes, Ficino.' And Ficino did.
As I explain fully in Appendix I, the Neoplatonists are so thoroughly despised through the bias of the moment, however one cares to define that bias, that "the Trismegistic literature suffers with Neoplatonism under the onus of being considered too far removed from reality and logic and being inclined towards the mystical. This does not fit well with the hard rationalism of an age still bound by the (albeit decaying) fetters of nineteenth-century scientific deterministic prejudice. The sublime irony is, of course, that proven and authentic Egyptian texts are obviously mystical, but that is considered all right. However, as long as there is a belief that the Trismegistic literature is Neoplatonic it will be despised because it is mystical.
The Trismegistic literature may be Neoplatonic. But that does not make what it has to say about Egyptian religion any less valid per se than the 'Isis and Osiris' by the Greek Plutarch, who was only slightly earlier in time than the Neoplatonist Greeks. It is time for scholars to pay some attention to this sadly neglected material. Much of the Trismegistic literature probably goes back to genuine sources or compilations such as Manetho's lost Sothis. Or the literature may be quite ancient, in which case some of it cannot, in its present form, be earlier than the Ptolemaic period when the Zodiac as we know it was introduced into Egypt by the Greeks who in turn had it from Babylon. (I cannot here discuss the matter of earlier forms of zodiac, such as at Denderah.)
Mead quotes an Egyptian magic papyrus, this being an uncontested Egyptian document which he compares to a passage in the Trismegistic literature: 'I invoke thee, Lady Isis, with whom the Good Daimon doth unite, He who is Lord in the perfect black. '37
We know that Isis is identified with Sirius A, and here we may have a / Page 74 / description of her star-companion 'who is Lord in the perfect black', namely the invisible companion with whom she is united, Sirius B.
Mead, of course, had no inkling of the Sirius question. But he cited this magic papyrus in order to shed comparative light on some extraordinary passages in a Trismegistic treatise he translated which has the title 'The Virgin of the World'. In his comments on the magic papyrus Mead says: 'It is natural to make the Agathodaimon ("the Good Daimon") of the Papyrus refer to Osiris; for indeed it is one of his most frequent designations. Moreover, it is precisely Osiris who is pre-eminently connected with the so-called "under­world", the unseen world, the "mysterious dark". He is lord there. . . and indeed one of the ancient mystery-sayings was precisely, "Osiris is a dark God." ,
'The Virgin of the World' is an extraordinary Trismegistic treatise in the form of a dialogue between the hierophant (high priest) as spokesman for Isis and the neophyte who represents Horus. Thus the priest instructing the initiate is portrayed as Isis instructing her son Horus.
The treatise begins by claiming it is 'her holiest discourse' which 'so speaking Isis doth pour forth'. There is, throughout, a strong emphasis on the hierarchical principle of lower and higher beings in the universe - that earthly mortals are presided over at intervals by other, higher, beings who interfere in Earth's affairs when things here become hopeless, etc. Isis says in the treatise: 'It needs must, therefore, be the less should give place to the greater mysteries.' What she is to disclose to Horus is a great mystery. Mead describes it as the mystery practised by the arch-hierophant. It was the degree (here 'degree' is in the sense of 'degree' in the Masonic 'mysteries', which are hopelessly garbled and watered-down versions of genuine mysteries of earlier times) 'called the "Dark Mystery" or "Black Rite". It was a rite performed only for those who were judged worthy of it after long probation in lower degrees, something of a far more sacred character, apparently, than the instruction in the mysteries enacted in the light.'
Mead adds: 'I would suggest, therefore, that we have here a reference to the most esoteric institution of the Isiac tradition. . .', Isiac meaning of course 'Isis-tradition', and not to be confused with the Book of Isaiah in the Bible (so that perhaps it is best for us not to use the word-form 'Isiac').
It is in attempting to explain the mysterious 'Black Rite' of Isis at the highest degree of the Egyptian mysteries that Mead cited the magic papyrus which I have already quoted. He explains the 'Black Rite' as being connected with Osiris being a 'dark god' who is 'Lord of the perfect black' which is 'the unseen world, the mysterious black'.
This treatise 'The Virgin of the World' describes a personage called Hermes who seems to represent a race of beings who taught earthly mankind the arts of civilization after which: 'And thus, with charge unto his kinsmen of the Gods to keep sure watch, he mounted to the Stars'.
According to this treatise mankind have been a troublesome lot requiring scrutiny and, at rare intervals of crisis, intervention.
After Hermes left Earth to return to the stars there was or were in Egypt someone or some people designated as 'Tat' (Thoth) who were initiates into the celestial mysteries. I take this to refer to the Egyptian priests. However, one of the most significant passages in the treatise follows immediately upon this / Page 75 / statement, and indicates to me that this treatise must have some genuine Egyptian source, for no late Greek should have been capable of incorporating this. But in order to recognize this one must know about the extraordinary Imhotep, a brilliant genius, philosopher, doctor, and Prime Minister (to use our terms) during the Third Dynasty in Egypt circa 2600 B.O. under King Zoser, whose tomb and temple he constructed and designed himself. (This is the famous step-pyramid at Sakkara, the first pyramid ever built and the world's earliest stone building according to some.) Imhotep was over the centuries gradually transformed into a god and 'a son of Ptah'. One reason why the process of his deification may have been retarded for some thousands of years is that writings by him survived, rather like the survival of the Gathas by Zarathustra (Zoroaster), making it impossible to claim that a man who left writings could in fact have been a god. Just like Mohammed and Zoroaster, Imhotep remained a sort of 'prophet' through his surviving writings.
For the significant passage, now, here is the entire paragraph: 'To him (Hermes) succeeded Tat, who was at once his son and heir unto these knowledges [this almost certainly implies a priesthood] ; and not long afterwards Asclepius­Imuth, according to the will of Ptah who is Hephaestus, and all the rest who were to make enquiry of the faithful certitude of heavenly contemplation, as Foreknowledge (or Providence) willed, Foreknowledge queen of all.'
Now this is a really striking passage. We have the mysterious 'Hermes' succeeded by an Egyptian priesthood of Thoth. Then 'not long afterwards' we have someone called Asclepius-Imuth 'according to the will of Ptah'. This is Imhotep! Ptah, known to the Greeks as Hephaestus, was considered the father of Imhotep in late Egyptian times. In fact, it is interesting that this text avoids the late form 'son of Ptah' to describe Imhotep. Imhotep was known to the Greeks and provided the basis for their god Asclepius (the Greek god of medicine, corresponding to Imhotep's late form as Egyptian god of medicine). Imhotep is also spelled Imouthes, Imothes, Imutep, etc. Hence the form in this treatise 'Asclepius-Imuth'.
There is absolutely no question that Imhotep is being referred to here. And in the light of that, certain other statements in this passage become quite interesting.
It has already been mentioned that in a treatise like 'The Virgin of the World', where gods' names are thrown round like birdseed, the authors were exceedingly restrained to have avoided labelling Asclepius-Imhotep as 'a son of Ptah-Hephaestus'. This may, indeed, point to a genuine early source from the time before that when the Egyptians ceased to regard Imhotep as a mortal.
Hurry says :38

For many years Egyptologists have been puzzled to explain why Imhotep, who lived in the days of King Zoser, ca. 2900 B.O., was not ranked among the full gods of Egypt until the Persian period, dating from 525 B.O. The apotheosis of a man, however distinguished, so many centuries after his life on earth seems mysterious. The explanation appears to be that first
suggested by Erman, viz. that Imhotep, at any rate during a large part of the interval was regarded as a sort of hero or demigod and received semi­divine worship. Erman suggested that this rank of demigod was bestowed / Page 76 / on him at the time of the New Kingdom, i.e. about 1580 B.C., but more recent evidence seems to indicate that this demigod stage was reached at a much earlier period.
Here a bit of chronology helps. 'The Virgin of the World' correctly described Imhotep as 'not long afterwards', following upon the creation of the Egyptian priesthood, presumably in the First Dynasty after Menes, in the form in which it would be known after the unification of Egypt. Imhotep lived in the Third Dynasty, at the beginning of the Old Kingdom. I. E. S. Edwards39 estimates this as commencing about 2686 B.G. He puts the start of the First Dynasty about 3100 B.G. Imhotep is thus literally 'not long afterwards'. Whoever wrote 'The Virgin of the World' knew his Egyptian chronology and also did not call Imhotep 'son of Ptah'.
There is another point. Looking at this statement from 'The Virgin of the World': '. . . and all the rest (i.e. after Imhotep) who were to make enquiry of the faithful certitude of heavenly contemplation. . .', we find that we have a
reference to successors of Imhotep who 'enquired' into the riddles of the universe and also a description of Imhotep's own activities as an 'enquirer'. This also is accurate and reflects considerable knowledge of the subject. For Imhotep is often described as the first genuine philosopher known by name.
And on p. 30 of his book, Hurry refers to apparent successors mentioned in an Oxyrhyncus papyrus (in Greek, edited by Grenfell and Hunt) which relates that 'Imhotep was worshipped as early as the IVth Dynasty, and his temple was resorted to by sick and afflicted persons'. Hurry further says: 'The other persons are Horus son of Hermes, and Kaleoibis son of Apollo (Imhotep being a son of Pta h) ; it is not known who these were.' Could they have been successors
of Imhotep at 'enquiring'? It seems likely that we shall be learning more of these people as excavations in Egypt proceed. In 1971-2 there came to light at Sakkara a remarkable group of texts written by a man named Hor (from Horus), describing his life at an Egyptian temple in the Ptolemaic period, recounting his dreams and his political encounters. These texts should have been published by 1976 by the Egypt Exploration Society.
Hurry refers to the Trismegistic (Hermetic) literature as follows: 'If the references to Imhotep in Hermetic literature can be trusted, he was also interested in astronomy and astrology, although no special observations are associated with his name. Sethe gives various references to that literature, showing that Imhotep was reputed to have been associated with the god Thoth (Hermes) in astronomical observations.'4o Obviously Imhotep, as chief priest under King Zoser (for he held that office as well), was associated with Thoth
(Tat) in the form of the priesthood previously mentioned who had the 'Dark Rite' as their highest mystery. Here is actual confirmation, then, that it was astronomical matters with which they dealt. In other words, my astronomical interpretation receives some confirmation from this source as well. It is nice when loose ends tie up.
Inscriptions in a temple at Edfu built by Ptolemy In Euergetes I (237 B.G.) describe Imhotep as 'the great priest Imhotep the son of Ptah, who speaks or lectures'. Hurry says 'Imhotep enjoyed the reputation of being "one of the greatest of Egyptian sages" ;41 his fame for wisdom made so deep an impression / Page 77 / on his countrymen that it endured as a national tradition for many centuries.
'As regards his literary activities, he is said to have produced works on medicine and architecture, as well as on more general subjects, and some of his works were extant at the dawn of the Christian era. . . . his eminence as a man of letters led him to be recognized as the "patron of scribes." ,
In other words, he was the first great philosopher. And he obviously 'spoke and lectured' in his lifetime. Perhaps he was the first classical Greek in prototype. We also have something to look forward to - his tomb has yet to be discovered. It is thought to be at Sakkara, and the late Professor Emery more than once thought he had come close to discovering it in his excavations there, which are now being carried on by Professor Smith, who is a man with a strange enough aura about him to convince anyone that he is capable of making a discovery which would be the most important in archaeological history and beside which the minor and later tomb of a boy Pharaoh named Tutankhamen would entirely pale by comparison. But perhaps the most interesting thing about the possible forthcoming discovery of Imhotep's tomb is that it will almost certainly be full of books. Would a man like Imhotep be buried without them?
Bearing these books in mind (and I am sure they are there waiting under­ground like a time bomb for us), it is interesting to read this passage in 'The Virgin of the World' following shortly upon that previously quoted:
The sacred symbols of the cosmic elements were hid away hard by the secrets of Osiris. Hermes, ere he returned to Heaven, invoked a spell on them, and spake these words: . . . 'O holy books, who have been made by my immortal hands, by incorruption's magic spells. . . (at this point there is a lacuna as the text is hopeless) . . . free from decay throughout eternity remain and incorrupt from time! Become unseeable, unfindable, for every one whose foot shall tread the plains of this land, until old Heaven doth bring forth meet instruments for you, whom the Creator shall call souls.'
Thus spake he; and, laying spells on them by means of his own works, he shut them safe away in their own zones. And long enough the time has been since they were hid away.
In the treatise the highest objective of ignorant men searching for the truth
is described as: '(Men) will seek out. . . the inner nature of the holy spaces which no foot may tread, and will chase after them into the height, desiring to observe the nature of the motion of the Heaven.
'These are as yet moderate things. For nothing more remains than Earth's remotest realms; nay, in their daring they will track out Night, the farthest Night of all.'
We 'will chase out into the height' of space to 'observe the nature of the motions of the Heavens', says this old (indeterminately old) treatise. How correct it was. We have now landed on the moon, which is 'chasing out into the height' with a vengeance. And we are indeed 'observing the nature of the motion of the Heavens'. And the treatise is also right in saying that 'these are yet moderate things'. For, as everyone knows, the people in the space programme feel as if they have only just begun. Man will only pause properly again when he has made the entire solar system his familiar and his own. Then we shall / Page 78 / be faced with the limitations of our solar system and the barrier that separates it from the stars. What then ? Yes, what we have done to date certainly deserves the description of 'yet moderate things'. Vasco da Gama may have congratulated himself on his brilliant navigational accomplishments, but as we can clearly see in his case, a beginning is only a beginning. It is 'yet moderate things'.
According to the treatise, after these moderate things we shall 'in our daring' even learn the greatest secret. . . we shall discover 'Night'. And the meaning of the 'Dark Rite' will become clear. And as this rite and this mystery concern Isis and the star Sirius and by the context of this prophecy clearly concerns the heavens, can we be accused of sensationalism in making the suggestion that nothing would shake up the human race more than having the discovery of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe proven for the first time? And what if the dark companion of Sirius really does hold the answer to this mystery? What if the nearest centre of civilization really is based at the Sirius system and keeps a watchful eye on us from time to time? What if this is proven by our detecting on our radio telescopes actual traces of local radio communica.. tions echoing down those nine light years of space in the vast spreading ripple of disintegrating signals that any culture remotely near to us in development would be bound to dribble forth into the surrounding universe? What if this happens ? It will be like the sky falling in, won't it?

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"* Norbert Wiener in Cybernetics, the pioneer textbook of computer theory, said: 'We have decided to call the entire field of control and communication theory, whether in the machine or
in the animal) by the name Cybernetics. . . (from the Greek for) steersman.'

A