Читать книгу Horus and Set: Two Ancient Egyptian Gods - Gertcel Davydov, Gertz (Gertcel) Davydov, Gertz Davydov - Страница 3

Isis and her sister, Nebet-het, mourned the death of Osiris. The general Anubis gathered the pharaoh’s remains, embalmed them, and hid them in a cave. Isis promised that she would return for her murdered husband and that his embalmed corpse would repose in a purpose-built temple as befitted a supreme ruler of Egypt.

The queen knew that Set would stop at nothing, killing anyone who stood between him and the throne. To protect her unborn child, the rightful heir to the throne, she immediately sought refuge in the marshy delta of the Nile. There she built a small house among thickets of papyrus, far from any people, and she anxiously awaited the birth of the future king.

Isis, who had a deep knowledge of astrology, kept track of the movements of the heavenly bodies. The birth of a god was meant to be marked by a special sign. The winter sky was alight with a multitude of stars, but Isis waited for the appearance of a new, exceptionally bright star that would herald the coming of a savior, a son of the gods. At the end of the first month of winter, the day the infant Horus was born, a new star shone brightly in the night sky. The significance of this was noted not only by Isis but also by the sages who studied heavenly objects from all over the world. When they saw the star, they knew that a child, the descendant of the gods whom they had been expecting, had been born. To pay their respects to the infant and his mother, three wise men followed this bright star to the Nile delta bearing gifts. They found Isis’s refuge, and next to her in a reed basket was the newborn Horus, to whom they presented their gifts. These wise men told the queen that they had made the journey so that they could bow before the future ruler of Egypt. Isis was pleased by the omen and the arrival of the travelers. She knew that her son was destined for great fortune and that his name would be remembered until the end of time. Fearing that a vengeful Set would find out about the birth, Isis followed Anubis’s advice and decided to remain in hiding until Horus was grown.

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But what Isis and her general feared did not come to pass. When Set’s court astrologers informed him of the new star, he sent soldiers all over the kingdom to kill the infant. But they never found the location of the rightful heir. This was unfortunate for Set, who in the meantime was unable to assume the throne during the nine months since Osiris’s death. He told the Council that Apep was the one who had killed Osiris, but they would not be convinced until they saw the body. As his patience waned, Set became more and more insistent that they recognize the death of the pharaoh and name him the rightful heir. He went as far as to threaten them, saying that unless the Council soon made him the supreme ruler, he would return to the desert regions of Upper Egypt, leaving Ra without an escort on the Sun Boat. Apep would be free to swallow the sun, Egypt would be enveloped by a never-ending darkness, and stars would shine no more.

The Council, which was now made up of seven, rather than nine, members since Osiris was absent and Set could not vote impartially, decided at their meeting that Set would be named the supreme ruler. They knew that the kingdom could not go without a pharaoh for long, so they made this concession on the condition that Set continued to fight Apep and that he would abstain from waging war without the Council’s approval. The Council bestowed upon the new pharaoh two titles: Protector of the Sun God Ra, and Lord of Virtue and Courage.

Through his unquestioning submission to the will of the Council, Set at long last attained dominion over the entire kingdom.

***

Time went by, and Set had already been ruler of Egypt for four years. His decrees had raised taxes on farmers and introduced charges on water. He had long dreamed of world domination, and it was by these means that he would raise his army. The Council was unaware of his plans. Set claimed that he was merely replenishing the treasury after years of neglect under the previous pharaoh. Set encountered no opposition to the new taxes. The Council remained neutral so long as Set kept his word by escorting Ra and keeping his army out of neighboring lands. For his part, Set was content with the status quo and did everything he could to ensure the support of the Council.