Individual Assignment Week 2
Mind-Body and the Meaning of Life Paper
Quandra Johnson
Philosophy\ 443
October 28, 2013
Dr. Shaun Herness

The religions of ancient Egypt have their history rooted in creation myths. These myths were derived from deification of mortals who were great rulers. The ruler, who would become the Egyptian Christ like figure, was known as King Horus. King Horus came from the Southern part of Africa with a small army of invaders in his follow; these men that accompanied King Horus were known as the Blacksmiths because of their iron crafting skills. Horus became the chief deity due to his many accomplishments, which in effect through his rule had a temple erected in his name and image. This Temple was known as the Temple of Horus, Egyptians were a polytheistic people, who did not question or defy traditions handed down to them from their ancestors. The morale of the masses was the burden of the Pharaoh, who was considered to be the highest exalted ruler of the land. If the people were doing well, then the Pharaoh was praised if the people and land were doing bad then the blame was placed at the base of the ruler of the land. This form of praise and blame did not stop at a political level, the ruler of the land was more revered as a God, because it all came down to the leader of the land being looked upon as a God. Egypt was host to well over 700 hundred Gods who were said to watch over the land and its people, these Gods were once human beings who left such a profound effect on the people that, in passing they were believed to have gained the status of immortal with more power than they possessed on a mortal plane ( (Sertima, 1976) . The afterlife began with the total shutdown of the physical body, in proceeding manner the body was mummified or wrapped in a cloth made of the tobacco plant, to maintain a place for the spirit to dwell in during the stage of death. The body being the connection between the spirit and the next world beyond the living was a cause for the offering to be placed in the tomb of the deceased of the old kingdom (James, 1954). Everything from food and liquid hydration, to riches in the form of gold and other fine jewelry were placed in the same chamber of the body, as a form of financial endurance for one to pay their way through the economy of the next life. This process was not limited to just royalty, it held traditions amongst the common as well as the kings and queens. The chief difference lied in, royals were given extravagant pyramids, which some believed were aligned with the stars as a form of dimensional grid networking to take one beyond the terrain of Terra, and into the heavens. The poor were not as fortunate as they were often buried in the hot tempered desert, to have a process of more natural mummification take place (Sertima, 1976) . Egyptian faiths among the people were divided into cults where each set of people had their own Gods that they praised and worshipped along with the existing soul on the throne. Shrines and altars were constructed, on the basis of making sacrificial offerings to appease the Gods that they revered. There were three categories of Gods, local, state, and national Gods (Fage, 1988). Each divided respectively to neighborhoods, city states and the whole of the land. Many Gods were believed to have originated from the soul of other living entities throughout the land, better known as household Gods who were held in high regards yet their recognition didn’t extend past ones living quarters. A term that many of moderns have come to know as animism, that all things had spirit and were to be respected for their power that they drew from the Earth, with a living spirit dwelling inside of them (James, 1954). Fast forward into the 21st century, and one will see a drastic difference in the ways of the old