Pagan Paths

Alchemical and spiritual journey together with Thoth-Djehuty – exploring Kemeticism, Hermeticism, spiritual alchemy, and following the path of devotion.

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May you spend the eternity…

Posted by on in Paths Blogs

May you spend lifetime with your gods, pleased with you without displaying anger.
May your reward be received after old age.
[…]
May you enter your tomb of the necropolis and mingle with the excellent Bas. May you be judged among them and be declared righteous in Busiris before Wennefer and be well established in Abydos before Shu-Onuris.
May you cross over to the district of Peqer in the god’s retinue and cross the divine region in the retinue of Sokar.
May you join the crew of the Neshmet barque without being turned away. May you see the sun in the sky when it initiates the year.
[…]
May you be triumphant in the sky, a shining one.
[…]
 May you transform yourself into whatever you wish, like the phoenix, with each of your forms being that of a god, just as you desire.

—    Quoted from: Ancient Egyptian Tombs: The Culture of Life and Death © 2011 Steven Snape.(Translation from Papyrus Anastasi I, based on that of Wente 1990:100-1 (Wente,E.(1990) “Letters from Ancient Egypt”)




Is your ultimate idea of paradise to spend your eternity with chosen deity, to enter the sacred marriage, hierogamy of the soul? Some people follow the path of spells that will make them take permanent residence on the fields of Offerings with Osiris but Coffin text spells of the Book of the Two Ways were written especially for "hermopolitan devotion". The selected few CT spells are precisely aimed at making your residence "in the mansion of the Moon" and joining the suite of all devotees of Djehuty who want to "admire his beauty all the time". And why wouldn’t you? When you start a devotional relationship with a deity, it means you align your soul and desires with that deity’s values and personality - and, with all deep and core aspects, not simply something that lies on the surface. You undergo a transformation with each divinity you touch.


In that, I must caution-- Djehuty isn't simply all-loving all-funny and cuddly "mad scientist"/”Doc Brown”-type as Rick Riordan described him in his fiction. He’s not limited to being only the patron of Writers and scientists. He is not limited to being “harmless” deity of the Moon. Djehuty is also one of divine avengers and deliverers of Divine Wrath. Here we will speak of Djehuty’s assistance to Set during the murder of Aser—Set is able, in the pyramid texts (particularly Pepi 1) to truthfully respond to the divine court that he alone did not kill Aser (which allowed him to gain control of Egypt when Aser was slain), that in fact Aser had been attacking him prior and trampling/kicking him (euphemism for humiliation as in Geb’s punishment to be trampled for all time) which is well recorded in other places—as in the myths of Herichef, the Nebt-Het variation on the tale of the Far Goddess, and in the names of some of the temple lakes (this is likely because of Set’s association with the Flood, blood and wells—as his home waters are considered the well Des-Des). If Set did not kill Aser alone, and no one may lie before Ma’at without challenge, then who was his conspirator? It turns out, it was Djehuty who drew up the plans for the dimensions of the casket and chose the tree (Amtcheret, the White Tamarisk, mother of Wepawawet--- fragments of this can be found in Djehuty prowling the “tamarisk fields” where the “parter of ways” –Wepawawet- [as in Pepy2] was born— armed with his knives threatening the rest of the pantheon that he could easily kill them as well.) The other brother whose eyes were dry, when all else wept for Aser, was Djehuty-- who can take up his knives and become Set. 

… and that UPG of mine that has Djehuty’s strike in a moment vengeance equaling a 50 megaton thermonuclear blast? It was not just a joke I love to tell for fun’s sake. When I stood before his temple pylon in Hermopolis, when I recalled his sanctuary of Dakka and his image in Abu-Simbel, I felt as if I were standing in a place of immense and terrible power. The inscriptions of Dakka temple praise Djehuty as Lord-of-Terror, striking the enemies of Egypt – and, in higher sense, striking the enemies of Ma’at.

For background: These were days of incredibly unjust attacks from NATO forces against Libya, while I’d been traveling around Egypt  (In 2011-2012, I was highly involved in Russian movement against the war in Libya, taking part in political activism rallies and trying to spread the awareness that the unrest in Libya was a potential omen of the Third World War.)
And as Djehuty prayed before the enraged Distant Goddess, Sekhmet-Tefnut-Eye of Ra, to calm  her rage and bring peace and love to the Two Lands, - so I prayed too, about peace in the world, about stopping the violent air strikes and stopping NATO bombing civilians and children in Tripoli and Sirt.

So when I prayed about the world peace in the quietness of sunny day in Nubia, I literally had the feeling that I was standing above the cover of silo holding a 50-megaton thermonuclear missile. The eye of the abyss, the divine rage against all isfet, against all the injustice happening on earth, was clouding down below in that silo—more destructive than anything man could conjure. Djehuty was pleading with Sekhmet to stop the war; it was rage and grief and sorrow, and by the same time love to all the people, “small brothers”, tears of Ra, who make so many mistakes. We prayed in Dakka, and two birds of prey were soaring high in the light-blue skies, hinting to me that the Netjeru were watching and listening to our fears.

When I arrived in Hermopolis – the ‘home town” of Djehuty, - the place was filled with awe-inspiring and humbling power that made my heart tremble in my chest. When I finally looked at the magnificent triple-Atef crown on the noble Ibis head, I felt that the reach of the divine rage of Thrice-Great One –here represented differently than the divine fool who lured back the Far Goddess as a storytelling baboon--, compared to that thermonuclear blast, would be as a supernova compared to dim candle light. As a divine Avenger and protector of Peace, Djehuty must be powerful.

All this does not mean that Djehuty is perpetually angry or willing to destroy everything; this is not his default “mood” or “manner of being”. He is indeed “subduer of Asia”. One of BOTD spells where the deceased wants to take a place beside Thoth, he claims that he has a knife which Thoth used in a fierce battle. In another spell, the deceased asks Thoth to gather his enemies into "slaughter-house of Khemenu". He wields the blood-stained Knives, and gives his devotees in the afterlife a “welcoming gift” – arms of their enemies, delicately cut as if offering a bouquet to a banquet-goer. I love him as this benevolent “Lord of Terror”, who comes from Dakka; the mortuary priest of the Ogdoad, Djehuty-Setem, appearing near the mound of Djeme in Medinet-Habu and Qasrl-el-Agouz;  the baboon greeting the sun in the small chapel in el-Qab; the White Moon, night sun of silver, peacefully glowing over the dry fields of Hermopolis-Khemennu. I'm not afraid of Djehuty "bathing in the blood of enemies", or delivering vengeance.  The promises of Thoth (to those who are loyal to his teachings and values, to those who step “on his waters” and welcome him in the shrines of their heart) are long and happy life full of prosperity and balance and love of people who will surround you through your earthly years.

I’m really telling you all this in hopes you realize if you want to work with the Netjeru on most deep level, you have to contemplate their most terrifying appearances and discern if you can deal with that. It doesn’t matter what you believe, personally (“I don’t care if the source texts say X did that, my X would never do that” etc), because the Netjeru will be as they are and have been. They do not require your approval to perform their functions. In fact, from personal experience, they may troll you over such silliness if you continue to work with them and plant your head firmly in the sand about their darker aspects.

So... if you honestly want to pursue relationship with a deity, it would be most wise to try to learn all the precise aspects of their personality, their values and agendas. And you may keep in mind that these agendas are what you will be “used” for – or gently led towards – if you sign up for that Deity Work.

And “Great Work” is not just a euphemism…

Really, gods can be demanding and pushing and bringing chaos when necessary; promises to gods are always serious deal.
It’s said that marking oneself with symbol of a deity during ritual should be taken very seriously, and works as dedication/offering sign much as it did in ancient Egypt where human “gifts” to the temple would be marked with the sign of the deity. I marked my own hands with signs of caduceus (for Thoth-Hermes) and it was a "free pass" for him to take my life and turn it "upside down", however, for the greater good. (There is a greater good and it is cosmic Ma’at. Beyond that spiritual improvement would also qualify.) But it would be wrong to consider me some sort of slave. Regarding my personal journey, Djehuty has always, always cared about my consent in everything; if I asked for his intervention or if he wanted something for the Greater Good, but it required change. Only when he was absolutely certain that I gave him my consent to "take my life under his control and do something for the situation", did he intervene.

This was definitely the point of having my life flipped upside down—my turning point. For example, I kept losing jobs again and again, but, it was all for the greater good, because each job I lost was quite shitty, and each new job was better than the previous. I was afraid to lose each job and lose income, but generally Djehuty was like "No, this job does not suit you well. You will leave it, even if you are afraid of finding another one".  He was pulling these strings, making me lose jobs and finding new; but this was Djehuty and he acted in very, very gentle ways when he was able, and tried his best to protect me from being hurt. I may also add that even when I gave him the control over my life and situations (this is different from being a godslave f being in sacred D/s relationship, to clarify), - he never betrayed my trust. He led me through all the darkness (including long and hard battle for my mental health) as most trusted friend and guide.
I would not jump of the cliff, if he told me to do so. =) But if he were to say “Give me your hand, close your eyes and walk with me” - I would without hesitation. I gave him my trust and he earned my loyalty.

This being said- any dedication to deity is archetypically the sacrifice. You become their offering, especially if you take priestly vows. You become "consecrated for the God". Entering the “chamber of darkness” is really like leaving all your former knowledge and possessions behind. Your mind and soul are questioned and turned inside out, you take a journey through your unconscious to be assembled again -- and one of the main points of the journey is to meet the God "face to face". For me, it was a feeling of being lifted up to some unknown height - and when the God looks at you "face to face", it's like all parts of your mind and soul are being X-rayed.

After this it will take time to get used to a thought that now you will never be alone- that the Gods to whom you took dedication are with you forever. Before making a dedication of devotional service, especially the “long term” - think if you want to spend your eternity with That deity - really, deeply, imagine this in the inner sanctuary of your heart.
The Fields of Reeds and Fields of Offerings are not simply idyllic places of idle, relaxed, peaceful enjoying afterlife where your ushabti work instead of you. What makes the Duat a beautiful place and desired place is the presence of the Netjeru; it’s the possibility to join the blessed spirits and the constellations of stars seeing the beauty of Sun-Ra and Djehuty-Moon for blessed “eternity everlasting”. The sekhet-aaru is the fields where Netjeru reap what was sewn in human souls.
And in the fields of Offerings we come to share the feast table with the Gods.
Always be with Them. Always following Them. Partake in their joy. Partake in their battles against the Isfet. You follow them, and do what they do, it’s perpetual adoration and still the “final frontier” of fighting the world entropy, Uncreation.

As the ultimate goal of bhakti is mystical union with your chosen God.
You may want to get ready to dissolve into him and be renewed and recreated again.


“What a fine lot is yours
that you have joined the Lords of Eternity!
How enduring is Your name forevermore
as one transfigured in the Divine Land.
The Gods you followed when you were alive,
you have the entrée to Them face to face,
They are ready to receive your soul, preserve your honors,
and multiply the good works of your hands.
They shall purify your beauty
and mantain the altar to your person,
each God with His portion.
And They say to you:
“Welcome in peace, O priest pleasing to our spirit”

(from the Second Song of the Harper, “House of Eternity” of the priest Neferhotep)

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Born in USSR and living in St. Petersburg, Russia; my spiritual journey started when I was a young teen. After more than 20 years of being practicing Russian Orthodox and later, Roman Catholic, I followed my heart always calling me to honor the Gods of Ancient Egypt. My devotion belongs to Thoth-Hermes-Djehuty, Thrice Greatest, Lord of Khemenu (Hermopolis), and I try to serve him as a priestess (hmt-Ntr). My path is independent, solitary and not hardcore reconstructionist, and I don’t belong to organized Kemetic temples.I studied biology in University, but after graduation, for many years have been working in telecommunications and computer networking. Now I work in international trade; but this is what I do “for a living”, as I’m poet and writer before all. I write poetry and prose since early childhood (of course, my writings are mostly in Russian) and I have some published books, science-fiction novels and poetry. I follow hermetic philosophy and viewpoints, and my interests, besides Ancient Egypt, include medieval history and art, Spiritual Alchemy, traveling around the world, translating books from English and studying more foreign languages (including Egyptian hieroglyphics). I am also president of the St. Petersburg chapter of the International Alchemy Guild.  

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