The Litany of Re

The blog post for this week is written by Linda Kimmel, from Ann Arbor, Michigan, in the United States. When she retired from full-time work as a data research manager in late 2020, she began studying about the ancient world, and serving as a docent at the University of Michigan’s Kelsey Museum of Archaeology. Linda had never heard of the Egypt Centre before the pandemic but has taken every course offered since she first noticed a tweet about the museum in the fall of 2020 and hopes to visit Swansea in late 2022 or 2023.

It seems hard to believe, but our latest Egypt Centre Course—The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife taught by Ken Griffin and moderated by Sam Powell—is now over. Before the class, I felt I knew a fair amount about the Book of the Dead. But I had never even heard of many of the other texts we covered, such as the Amduat, the Book of Gates, and the Book of Caverns. In our final class we covered the Books of the Sky, the Books of the Solar-Osirian Unity, the Hours of the Day, the Hours of the Night, and the Litany of Re. They were all interesting, but I decided to focus here on the Litany of Re. First, because it is so different from most of the other texts. And probably even more important because it features a cat (fig. 1).

Fig. 1: Forms of Re in the tomb of Thutmose III (©Theban Mapping Project)

While modern Egyptologists call it the Litany of Re, ancient Egyptians called it the Book of Adoring Re in the West. Its focus is on The United One, a combination of the gods Re and Osiris, emphasizing their unity and resurrection. The Litany of Re is found primarily in the tombs of the Valley of the Kings, with the first attestation during the reign of Thutmose III, and its last in the tomb of Ramesses X. It usually occupies the first two corridors of a tomb and relates to the Sun god’s journey from the East to the West. One of the things I really enjoyed in this course was Ken’s emphasis on prior research done on each text. We learned that the Litany of Re is one of the most well-studied religious texts found in the Valley of the Kings, with the initial publication of the text by Naville in 1875, and more detailed publications by Piankoff (1964) and Hornung (1975–1976). 

Many of the other texts we studied feature Re, but what makes the Litany of Re different is its format. Unlike previous texts, instead of being divided into twelve hours, and the images into three registers, there is first a large introductory scene at the entryway to tombs. The introduction is followed by “the great litany”, which is divided into 75 sections, each related to a different form or manifestation of Re (fig. 2). Following this are nine longer litanies describing the defeat of the enemies of Re to ensure he will be re-born. 

Fig. 2: Forms of Re in the tomb of Siptah (©Theban Mapping Project)

In the Egypt Centre’s course last summer on Gods, Goddesses, and Demons of Ancient Egypt, we learned that Re was the supreme solar deity of Egypt, and arguably the most important deity. He was often fused with other deities to make them stronger, such as Amun-Re, Re-Horakhty, and Re-Atum. Since that class I have been intrigued by the many aspects of the various gods and goddesses, and with their varying iconography and syncretization with other gods. But I never imagined that one god might have 75 different forms. It turns out that the number 75 appears in multiple contexts. For example, there are 75 serpents in The Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor, and 75 scenes in the Opening of the Mouth Ritual. Most believe the number 75 was significant in some way, but how is unknown.

Each of the 75 sections—or addresses—is relatively short. They each begin with the words “Praise to you, Re, high and mighty,” which is fitting with the notion of “adoring” Re. This adoration is followed by a brief description of the role or functions of this form and ends with the form’s name. Many of these forms are so obscure that they are only found in the Litany of Re. We only touched on a few of the 75 manifestations in class, but I found the following five particularly interesting.

Khepri (Address 2): Khepri is the dawn manifestation of the sun and is shown in the Litany of Re as a mummiform figure with a scarab beetle head, emphasizing the scarab coming forth. In this form, Re embodies the transformative powers of the sun. This coming forth is emphasized in the descriptive part of the address with the words (fig. 3): 

Khepri, alighting of wings.

This one who rests in the Netherworld,

When he transforms into the One Who Comes Forth From His Limbs.

Fig. 3: Khepri (©Theban Mapping Project)

The Blazing One (Address 40): In this manifestation Re is shown as a mummiform figure with a torch on the top of his head. The image is shown in red to indicate fire and heat (fig. 4):

More powerful than those in his following.

Who commands a blaze in the Place of Destruction.

You are indeed the Corpse of the Blazing One.

Fig. 4: The Blazing One (©Theban Mapping Project)

The Great Cat (Address 56): While many of the 75 forms of Re are obscure, The Great Cat is one of the most well-known forms and appears in Chapter 17 of the Book of the Dead (fig. 5):

Great cat, protector of the gods.

Judge, chief of the council, foremost of the sacred cavern.

You are indeed the corpse of the Great Cat.

Fig. 5: The Great Cat 

Mullet Fish (Address 23): The Mullet Fish is one of the most puzzling of the forms of Re. In this form, Re is shown as three mummiform males with divine beards. I spent a lot of time searching for information about mullet fish but never came up with anything useful. The “mysterious” part of the words from the address seem fitting (fig. 6):

Who enters and goes forth, and vice versa.

Who belongs to his mysterious and hidden cavern.

You are indeed the corpse of the Mullet-fish.

Fig. 6: Mullet-fish (©Theban Mapping Project)

The Manifesting One (Address 32): It is possible that this a play on the god Khepri, as the word khepr means “to manifest” or “come into being”. In this form, Re is shown as a scarab-headed figure wearing a floor-length garment (fig. 7):

Plentiful of manifestations in the sacred chamber.

You are indeed the corpse of the Manifesting One.

Fig. 7: Manifesting One (©Theban Mapping Project)

After reading all 75 addresses, one might wonder why they were important. The ancient Egyptians believed it was critical for the deceased to know the names of the gods. To know the names of all the manifestations of Re meant the deceased had power over Re, the most important of deities. This power is emphasized in Litany 1, which follows the 75 addresses, and includes the words:

I know it in their names.

I know all of their manifestations.

I know that which is in their corpses and all their mysterious visible forms.

I summon them in their names.

I call them in their manifestations ….

Thanks to Ken’s weekly emails, I have a lot of reading to do related to the texts we covered in class. Happily, there is only a two-week break before our next class—Middle Kingdom Studies—begins on Sunday June 19. Registration for this new course is available on the museum’s Eventbrite page.

References

Darnell, John Coleman & Colleen Darnell (2018) The Ancient Egyptian Netherworld Books. Atlanta, GA: SBL Press. 

Green, Roger Lancelyn (1967) Tales of Ancient Egypt. London: Puffin Books.

Hornung, Erik (1999). The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

Mojsov, Bojana (2001–2002) ‘The Ancient Egyptian underworld in the Tomb of Sety I: Sacred Books of Eternal Life, The Massachusetts Review 42: 498–506.

Pinch, Geraldine (2002). Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Quirke, Stephen (2013). Going Out in Daylight. London: Golden House Publications.