Life Of Pharaohs Essay

The life of a pharaoh was that of great importance, luxury, and power. At the death of one stood even more challenges and the possibility of an eternity of paradise or the punishment of a second, horrific death. The tombs of these Pharaohs took many forms over the reign of the Egyptian empire. A multitude of ceremonies took place once a pharaoh passed on to the afterlife. Many of which cost the lives of other people and animals to ensure the luxury of a pharaoh in his next life. Pharaohs would begin preparing very early on in their reign for their eventual deaths and journey on to their life after death. The preparation of a pharaohs tomb began long before his death by creating a proper tomb. These tombs changed drastically over time beginning with the earliest “mastabas.” In every ‘mastaba’ there was a large room for ceremonies honoring the spirit of the deceased and an adjoining smaller room, the serdab, where a statue of the dead person would

After the pharaoh died, he would be lead to the god Anubis in the Hall of Ma’at, also known as the Hall of the Two Truth, by Anubis. There dead would recite what is known as the forty-two negative confessions and then the heart is placed on a golden scale to be balanced against the “Feather of Ma’at,” also known as the “Feather of Truth.” If the heart is found to be heavier than the feather, then the heart would be tossed to the ground to be eaten by the demoness Ammut who was part crocodile, leopard, and rhinoceros. Though if the heart is found to be lighter than the feather, then the god Horus leads the soul to the King of the dead, Osiris. If Osiris finds the soul worthy, then they will then be granted into the Field of Reeds. This process is the most vital part of a soul’s journey because even though they are already dead, it is a matter of life and