Osiris - God of the Underworld

Osiris was the ruler of the Kingdom of the Dead, and by the New Kingdom, the dead could go on to become like Osiris, the ultimate symbol of resurrection. Osiris is ichnographically depicted in mummy wrappings, holding a crook and flail, wearing the atef crown and a beard - the complete attire of a king. His mummy appearance and green or black face represent his resurrection and ultimate fertility; indeed he is often seen with an erect penis.

The Myth - During the divine age when the gods ruled the land of Egypt, the sky goddess Nut and Geb, the personification of the earth, gave birth to four children: Isis, Nephthys, Seth and Osiris. Osiris married his sister Isis, and rightfully took the throne of Egypt. All was well until his envious brother Seth grew bitter of his brother and plotted his death. According to myth Seth constructed a chest and tricked his brother into climbing inside. Once Osiris sat within the chest Seth nailed the lid shut and threw the now coffin into the river Nile. With Osiris lost, Seth ruled Egypt, whilst the widowed Isis carried out a search for her husbands body. Eventually the body was found by Isis, who hid it in the marsh. The evil Seth came upon the body, dismembered it, and scattered the fourteen pieces throughout the world. Isis did not go this far to give up now, so she set about locating the body parts. All were retrieved except that of his penis. Isis substituted this with a replica in order to have one last embrace with her husband. With the help of Anubis, the god of embalming, Isis breathed temporal life into the reassembled mummified body of her husband, and so successful was her work that she conceived a child. The child was Horus, who would grow up to be one of the most powerful gods in the universe. Horus avenged the death of his father, taking the throne from Seth in a great battle that cost him an eye. Horus went on to rule the land of Egypt, a god that living pharaoh's personified in human form, whilst his father ruled the underworld, a place where dead kings became one with Osiris.

The ka of the dead

The ka is a complex life force that is not at all easy to sum up. It is a powerful aspect of a person's being that is created at birth, and remains an integral part of their being.

Upon death the person died but the ka lived on, still requiring a host to live in.

It is for these reasons that the preservation of the corpse by mummification was such an integral process of funerary arrangements. Wisely the Egyptians believed that if the body did decay then the ka could still reside in an image of the deceased, such as a carved statue or a picture on the tomb wall. The ka would live within the body, inside the tomb, with the tomb itself being based on the idea of an Egyptian house. Those who died were referred to as, "Those who had gone to their ka's". The ka is quite a passive force: it has no life outside the tomb, and is dependent upon the living to provide sustenance through offerings. The hieroglyph for the ka is of two extended arms held up, as if in embrace.

The word ka is similar to that of "bull" and "food", implying its earthly qualities, male potency and explicit dependence upon food offerings (kaw). The eternal ka had physical requirements of food and drink, which would be delivered through a cult. The eldest son of the deceased was obliged to take care of the funeral arrangements, and the regular supply of offerings.

However, this system is flawed: the family may prove unreliable, trouble or economic struggle may compromise the delivery of offerings, and indeed, the family line might die out.

For these reasons cults could be managed by paid professionals. Upon death a person could leave an amount of land to the care of a Ka Priest who would appropriate an amount of the harvest to the deceased and keep the rest as payment. Magic, yet again, was employed to provide insurance in case the cult was ineffective. Tomb scenes of offerings being presented to the dead could magically sustain the ka if physical supplies ceased. Also recitation of texts in the tomb, such as, "1000 loafs of bread (and) 1000 jugs of beer", could satisfy the needs of the ka. Thus a tomb is necessary to ensure the safe being of the body, and to effectively sustain the needs of the ka.

The ka's more animate partner is the ba, which has a life outside of the tomb. The ba has different powers to the ka, and is often regarded as a psychic force or powerful spirit. The ba has the power of movement - New Kingdom funerary scenes depict the ba as a hovering bird with a human head. Spells allow the ba to, "assume any form it wishes"

(Ashley Cook)