Visiting the Afterlife

I think everyone is curious about the after life – life after death – what happens at death. When we stop being curious, we have lost something profound and in our nature. Wittgenstein famously said: “Death is not an event in life: we do not live to experience death.” That is a philosophical position. On the other hand, there are plenty of people and peoples who claim to know about death and what happens thereafter – and even some who claim to have returned from its dark shadow.

Most prominent, perhaps, of these peoples is the great Ancient Egyptian civilisation from which so much in our culture derives, even if obliquely, say, through Greek or Jewish culture. Thus, for me, the trip to the British Museum to see the exhibition – Journey through the Afterlife: The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead – was a must. The exhibition finishes – www.britishmuseum.org/whats_on/all_current_exhibitions/book_of_the_dead.aspx – on the 6^th March, so there is still time to see it. My wife and I went up last Wednesday; and it was fantastic.

First, it was incredibly clear and well laid out. There was a wealth of detail and information. One stared fascinated by the tools and the concepts of things like the Opening the Mouth ceremony: the dead person's mouth being forced opened literally so that he symbolically breathed again, as he or she would need to do to be alive. This, a sort of equivalent to smacking the new born baby, so that they start the breathing process.

Or what about the Devourer: the monster, whose rump is a hippopotamus, his core body a lion, and his head a crocodile; if you fail the judgement test, you get eaten whole by this beast who stands there waiting as the scales of your life are weighed.

If you pass the test, of course, you go on to meet Osiris, the lord of life, whose face is green. Why? Because green signals his life giving power. There is a wonderful description of Osiris' resurrection from the dead, which is not quoted in the Exhibition: “… the masters who witnessed .. when the corpse of Osiris entered the mountain and the soul of Osiris walked out shining … when he came forth from death, a shining thing, his face white with heat …” That is a truly staggering description in its particularity.

I could go on, but I think my point is clear. Egyptian civilisation is truly amazing, and was I think truly advanced till it degenerated. This Exhibition demonstrates one small facet, but oh! How provocative that is. I hope you get to see it.