Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 29, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Feast of the Beautiful Reunion

Today in the midst of our celebrating abundance, I offer a huge "Nekhtet!" for Kai-Imakhu Merybast, who celebrates her birthday. Not only is she an outstanding servant of Her Mother Bast and someone I am very honored to know and to work with, her very ka is reflected in this website you read. Without her many hours of selfless volunteering, code crunching, HTML blood, sweat and tears, this website would not be what it is. We are very grateful for all the work she has put in and continues to put in so that we may reach out to the Children of Netjer everywhere, and I wanted to say Heru em meses nefer enes! today.

We also honor in festival Mut and Sopdet, the Star Who has reached Her furthest point away from us and is now returning. And as She emerges from Duat so does our Kemetic New Year. I pray that the light of the Hidden Star guide us to that special day only 35 days from now.

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Dua Sopdet! Dua Mut! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Day:
"Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow grow, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation."
George Washington

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 29, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Feast of the Beautiful Reunion

He and She of Gold are definitely coming through! In fact, I was so busy Thursday with work relating to expansion and improvement of House facilities, I didn't get a chance to get online to update the devotion....but I will tease you by telling you that very, very soon the House of Netjer will have a physical counterpart almost as grand as its cyberspace home!

Speaking of our cyberspace home, today I offer a huge "Nekhtet!" for Kai-Imakhu Merybast, who celebrates her birthday. Without her many hours of selfless volunteering, code crunching, HTML blood, sweat and tears, this website would not be what it is. We are very grateful for all the work she has put in and continues to put in so that we may reach out to the Children of Netjer everywhere, and I wanted to say Heru em meses nefer enes! today.

We also honor in festival Mut and Sopdet, the Star Who has reached Her furthest point away from us and is now returning. And as She emerges from Duat so does our Kemetic New Year. I pray that the light of the Hidden Star guide us to that special day only 35 days from now.

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Dua Sopdet! Dua Mut! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Day:
"Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow grow, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation."
George Washington

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 27, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Feast of the Beautiful Reunion

As Heru and Hethert come together, they bless the institution of Nisut. In certain years, a festival called Sed, after the "good name" of Yinepu-Wepwawet, is celebrated where a Nisut is reconsecrated and renewed before the people.

While this year is not a Sed Festival year for our people, I am spending time in the shrine reaffirming my vows and dedications for the end of this year and the coming of the next. I additionally am reflecting on my upcoming trip to Haiti, during which I will take part in ceremonies that strengthen our connection to the other religions of Guinea (Haitian Vodou's name for the ancestral lands of Africa, of which Kemet is a nanchon or country).

In these ceremonies, I will also renew my vows to each child of Netjer, that I might serve you to the best of my ability and honor Netjer in doing so. I am very blessed to be able to undertake this in the year eight of my service, the double-four (completion in two worlds).

Upon my return from Haiti on the last day of the year, New Year's festivities begin with the Days Upon the Year. It will be an exciting and glorious time. I can't wait to see all of you and celebrate our highest holy days together!

Today I pray to our beautiful Couple, He and She of Gold, for all blessings as we enter the final stage of the year.

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Day:
"People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost."
H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 25-26, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Feast of the Beautiful Reunion

The icons are moving closer together, day by day, as we continue the waxing of the moon, the growing of the Sacred Eye of Heru, the return of the Wandering Goddess.

Soon They will embrace, and together give blessing to all Their children and all people everywhere.

Soon They will go on Their honeymoon trip to visit the shrine of Ra and the Akhu, to honor Netjer and the ancestors, just as each of us do every day, the First Time over and over again.

Are you getting excited?

I hope to see many of you in our biweekly Dua celebration this week as we hail high the marriage feast!

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Day:
"Hands that serve are holier than lips that pray."
Sai Baba

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 23-24, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Feast of the Beautiful Reunion

As I placed the icons of Heru and Hethert together for the first time all year in our main shrine, the sunlight from the very orange sunrise, fair proof that Set had again bested His enemy and brought a new morning, shone on both of the gold-leafed icons.

It was a very sparkling, and beautiful, and golden light all over the shrine.

I knelt and said a prayer for all of you that you too could feel this golden light in your lives: this unadulterated joy, this feeling of peace and love that goes beyond all hatred, all suffering, all disorder to bring all together in the simple meeting of a god and a goddess.

See the sunrise and wish Them well.

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Day:
"Success is that peace of mind that comes from knowing you've done everything in your power to become the very best you're capable of becoming."
John Wooden

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 21-22, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Feast of the Beautiful Reunion

We've finally finished our discussion of the 42 Purifications. Nekhtet to all of you who read through, discussed and otherwise participated in the teaching! I would be very interested in doing another such devotional review of a Kemetic text in the future and welcome your suggestions.

We've finished also just in time to begin the last major festival of our Kemetic year, and one of the most moving at least for me: The Feast of the Beautiful Reunion of Hethert and Heru of Behdet. Coinciding with the Summer Solstice, the "return of the Wandering Goddess" Who has returned from the southlands after having cooled Her rage, this festival marks the marriage feast of the goddess and the god in two of Their major cities: Tanetjeru (modern Dendera) and Behdet (modern Edfu), both in Upper Egypt.

During our festival from New Moon to full we will celebrate the coming together of She and He of Gold, the Great Falcons, the Mistress of all Love and the Lord of all Justice. It is a time to reaffirm love and reunion in your own life, to celebrate the vows of marriage and the bonds of friendship and love. Celebrate with us this very happy time when the gods Themselves feast for love and joyousness!

I pray that the Golden Ones pour out Their abundance on you.

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Day:
"You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love."
Henry Drummond

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 20, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 42

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail White-Tusks, coming forth from Lake-land, I do not slaughter divine cattle-herds.

Our forty-second and final purification contains a pun (the words for "slaughter" and "cattle-herds" both being pronounced "smaam" in the final section). It also contains a proscription, making a fourth purification to add to the last three, of taking for oneself what has been dedicated to Netjer -- in this case, poaching the herds of livestock kept on temple grounds for the daily meals of the gods (and, eventually if one were patient, the daily meal of all people associated with the temple through the "reversion of offerings" rituals we've already discussed).

This would be a particularly important statement if, as has been theorized by many, the Purifications began not as ritual notices of innocence for every deceased person, but as a list of "purification requirements" for priests on duty. Priests had direct access to the offerings discussed, where a person who did not work in the temple very likely would not, and so pocketing profits from the divine offerings would not be a serious problem as it would for someone who had daily access to the piles of food and cakes and drinks and other rich offerings coming in from the people and palaces.

The "bottom line" of all four purifications? Remember your god (or goddess) first. All else can then follow.

On the eve of the Feast of the Beautiful Reunion, one of the most beautiful festivals of our Kemetic Year, I rejoice that we have completed our reading of the 42 Purifications and hope they will present a new source of inspiration and wisdom for each of you. I look forward to this year's final major festival and will pray to its major celebrants, Heru and Hethert, that all of you find appropriate and happy relationships in your lives and that you celebrate all love and abundance with each other.

Dua Heru! Dua Hethert! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 19, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 41

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Carrying-in-His-Portion, coming forth from Ma'ati, I do not carry off the offering-cakes for the children; I have not tied up the god of my town.

A third purification goes with the previous two: Purification 41, overseen by the "Carrier of Portion" coming from the "Two Truths," that is, the place of final judgment (making this guardian probably Yinepu as the one Who oversees the judgment). In its first line one is purified from taking the offerings that are intended to feed children. (Has anyone noticed how we have a progression, from the gods to ancestors to children? Something to think about...)

Its second line is a bit more enigmatic ("I have not tied up/fettered the town god,") until one realizes that when this purification was written, each god or goddess of a locality probably had a theophany, an animal symbol. Many people mistakenly believe the ancient Egyptians worshipped these animals. Even the Greeks who came into Egypt poured much of their time and resources into expanding the "animal cults" as they are often called ,as they found it fascinating and interesting that these "Egyptian savages" would put so much of their worship and interest into a bird or a cat or a monkey or a bull.

A few years ago in a museum I overheard a mother telling her young child staring at a votive cat statue, "And that, honey, is the cat those Egyptians worshipped." I turned to her and asked if she were a Christian (she was) -- then asked her if she worshipped sheep!

"Of course not!" came the reply.

"But Jesus is the Lamb of God," I countered.

It took about a minute before she corrected her daughter into knowing that the cat was a symbol of a god, not the actual god itself, any more than a "graven image" is a god or a rock or a tree or a river is a god. "Untie" your god by understanding that while you may have a particular understanding of Him or Her, others may have others -- and this is all correct as divinity cannot be "fettered" by the human imagination.

As we celebrate holidays concerning rebirth and regrowth, may you "let Netjer loose" in your own life so that abundance can come forth! I pray to Heru and Khnum Who appear today for strength, power and creativity in your lives.

Dua Heru! Dua Khnum! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 18, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 40

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Holy-of-head, coming forth from his shrine, I do not carry away offering-cakes from the Akhu.

In relation to the thirty-ninth Purification, Purification 40 discusses the disposition of offerings made to the Akhu, the blessed dead or ancestors of the people. Just as one does not abscond with Netjer's offerings before they have been blessed and shared, one also does not divert the offerings given in honor of the ancestors, lest their favor and help in our lives be passed by.

I invite you to share an offering with your ancestors at our Online Ancestral Shrine modeled after the field of offerings at Abdju (modern-day Abydos, Middle Egypt). May they receive you warmly, happily and in all blessing. As the Secret Procession of Ma'at and Ra occurs today, be on the lookout for their clandestine appearance in your life.

Dua Ma'at! Dua Ra! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 16-17, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Our Nisut's lessons on the 42 Purifications will resume on Monday.

Various festivals of Amun, Ra and the Eye of Ra as Tefnut, Sekhmet and/or Hethert occur this weekend as we gear up for the Return of the Eye (that is, Summer Solstice) and the celebration of the great marriage-feast of Heru and Hethert in the Feast of the Beautiful Reunion! Enjoy the weekend preparing for these wonderful celebrations of the return of long days and festive nights!

Dua Netjer! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Weekend:
"Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself."
Harvey Fierstein

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 15, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 39

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Neheb-nefret, coming forth from his cavern, I do not cancel the cake-offerings of Netjer.

Purification 39 is dedicated to "The One Who Harnesses Good Things," and protects against taking back what one has already pledged, in this case, the patu netjeru or the "divine offering-cakes." The verb here translated "to cancel" or "to annul," hedj, can also be translated "to destroy" or "to damage." Given the context of the established offerings (the "cake offering" describes a specific offering always given in a temple by priests to a god or goddess, every morning, as part of His or Her standard ration), I believe this purification is not about destroying offerings, but refusing to give them or somehow diverting them before they reach their intended Source.

For the ancient Kemetic as well as the modern Kemetic Orthodox, offerings make a specific journey: from their point of origin to the hands of the offerer, firstly to an intended god or goddess, and then, once He or She has enjoyed the offering, "revert" back into the hands of the offerer, to be used or shared by him or her and his or her family and friends. Offerings are never wasted; tables in ancient scenes piled high with food and flowers and luxury gifts were not set aflame, or let to rot, or thrown away in the temple's evening trash -- they were shared with Netjer, Who then shared them with Its Children. We give, in order that Netjer give to us. May we not interfere with the offering-cakes, lest Netjer find less reason to share with us.

On this Feast of the Half-Month, in the festival where Heru Hears Your Words in the Presence of All Netjeru, may you share your offering of prayer with Netjer that It share an offering of blessing in return. Send me a prayer to read before His icon, that He may hear you today, and always, with His offerings.

Dua Heru! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 14, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Yet another biweekly Dua brings more Shemsu into the faith through a Naming Ceremony! 34 people including friends and family of the faithful attended and watched as Kemetic Names were renewed for veteran Shemsu and new names were bestowed on the following:

Sekhemaset of Rumania
A'aneniheru of Washington State
Khetemenheruakhety of California

And, for the first time, both Shemsuhood and Naming were conferred posthumously on an Akh. The Wesir Sehytaset (Frances V. M. D'Alessio), daughter of Aset-Serqet and maternal grandmother of Imakhu Inibmutes, became a member of our Shemsu family last evening and is now a blessed Akh of the Kemetic Orthodox faith, alongside our other House Akhu the Wesir Amunemma'atef (Terry Atwood, 1999) and the Wesir Shambo Shankara ("Gary," 2000).

We ask the blessing of all the Gods and Goddesses of Kemet on Their Shemsu newly consecrated. Nekhtet!

Dua Netjer! Nekhtet!

Her Holiness' lessons on the 42 Purifications will resume tomorrow.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 13, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 38

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Nehebkau, coming forth from his cavern, I do not cause grief.

The thirty-eighth purification is dedicated to Nehebkau, "The One Who Harnesses the Spirits," son of Serqet. He is personified as a snake (although given hermaphroditic features, causing many on the Internet to think He is a snake goddess rather than a snake god), and greatly powerful in ancestral heka.

The verb here is written in a very sloppy manner, and a number of translators have disagreed on its meaning. I have found this purification translated in several ways including "I do not make extollings(?)" or "I do not commit theft(?)," and after looking at a corrected image of the original papyrus I am using for this translation (in this case, the papyrus of Ani located currently in the British Museum), I have concluded it is a Late Egyptian writing of the word saqyt, the causative form of aqyt, "grieving." [This means nothing in terms of its religious meaning, but I realize some of my readers are "following along" and might wish to know how I translate individual words.]

Grief is a natural human reaction to loss or negative news. While it can have a calming effect on a person in shock, it is generally not something we want to inflict on each other; we get enough of it without having to make more.

On this day of Nit emerging from Nun, lay your grief aside, and resolve to cause no more. I pray that She pour the waters of creation over all grief and wash it away.

I look forward to yet another Naming Ceremony this evening with the Remetj and Shemsu of the faith. How exciting!

Dua Nit! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 12, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 37

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Wadjet of the people, coming forth from Sau, I do not revile Netjer.

Companion to Purification 34 ("I do not revile the Nisut"), Purification 37 invokes Wadjet as the sacred cobra coiled about the kingly crowns against those who would revile Netjer Itself. Here Wadjet is described as coming forth from Sau (Greek Sais) and with the epithet "of the people" (rekhyet): the subjects of the crown She sits upon (as opposed to remetj, mankind in general and people belonging to the nation of Kemet in specific.

I pray to Wadjet, the spitter of flame who guards the shrine of the icons of our House, to drive away all Isfet from the gods and goddesses She protects. May She also rise in the hearts of all the rekhyet who love Her. On this day I also lift my voice in prayer and song to Aset, Whose marriage contract was sealed today; to Ihy Whose birth we celebrate; and to Ra Who celebrates festival alongside Them. Nekhtet!

Dua Aset! Dua Ihy! Dua Ra! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 11, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 36

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Ihy, coming forth from the Nun, I do not exalt my own voice.

Purification 36 invokes Ihy, the sistrum-playing son of Hethert and Heru-behdety, for His guardianship over sound and volume: in this case, the volume of kai kheru-i, or "putting my own voice high."

This can be interpreted as a literal statement ("I didn't yell,") but it can also be interpreted as not using one's voice as a weapon, not attempting to talk over another or to assert oneself by drowning out all other voices. Given our past purifications about the power of words and the usefulness of harmony in the human community, it is a fairly obvious purification that shouldn't require much of my voice to clarify for you -- I leave you to contemplate it for yourselves in the harmonious melody Ihy brings.

On this day of The Anger of Heru-wer's Eye, may Behdety, as the Splendid Winged Disk, go forth and shoot down all the enemies of Ma'at in your life, either those of your own making or those inflicted upon you by outside forces. May your battle-cry be sweet, short, and without further injury, and may your victories be long.

Dua Udjat-Heru! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 9-10, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Our Nisut's lessons on the 42 Purifications will resume on Monday.

Over the weekend we celebrate no special holidays, but we do remember the passing of the beloved temple cat Cleopatra Hatshepsumau to the Beautiful West one week ago. May she be received in Bast's celestial entourage and watch over the new temple kitten, Ru Antyemnakht, as he begins his guardianship of the House's main shrine at the tender young age of 12 weeks!

Dua Netjer! Nekhtet!

Thought for the Weekend:
"It is better to be defeated on principle than to win on lies."
Arthur Calwell

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Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 8, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 35

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Working-in-His-Heart, coming forth from Tjebu, I do not wade in waters.

The thirty-fifth purification is governed by the local god of Antinaiopolis (Tjebu), a city in Upper Egypt. Bearing in mind that Upper Egypt is an arid area with a thin strip of cultivatable land, the river and irrigation canals at this point are critical for the maintenance of life -- both for drinking water and for pure water to flow into the fields.

Thus, it would be extremely important to keep those waters clean -- to not wash clothes or go swimming in potable water would be important. For those of us who do not live in a riverine community, the importance of clean water might not seem so large. Any of us who have lived through a drought, however, know that the appropriate use of the liquid life which is water is akin to the preservation of life itself, and not to waste natural resources (as water is an unrenewable resource) is still an important thing even in a world where most get their water from pipes rather than directly from natural sources.

I pray today to Hapi, the moving river Nile of Kemet, that He continue to feed His people in modern Egypt even if His powers are somewhat abated by the Aswan Dam; and that everyone, everywhere, when pouring a ritual offering of water realize how precious and important of an offering it truly is.

Dua Wesir! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 7, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 34

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail You-Who-Leaves-Nothing-Out, coming forth from Djedu (Busiris), I do not revile the Nisut.

Wesir, the Nisut of the Akhu and the first mythological ruler of the people of the Two Lands, He Who "leaves nothing out," is the guardian of Purification 34. The verb here translated "to revile," iry shenty, also means to curse, to dispute, to oppose or to speak badly of someone, in this case a Nisut.

For the ancients this purification needs little explanation. In a country where religion and politics are completely united, and where the Nisut is the First Citizen symbolizing all people, it makes sense to state one had not cursed Him or Her. To do so would be to curse oneself. But today, when the people of Kemet no longer have a political authority and the office of Nisut-bity is wholly one of spiritual leadership rather than political leadership, how are we to understand this purification?

As the current holder of the office of Nisut for my people, I would ask that each of you prayerfully consider this to be a purification against badmouthing any person having authority, whether a parent, a teacher, an elder, a political figure, or a spiritual teacher -- either yours or someone else's.

This is absolutely not to say that there are not authority figures who abuse their authority, or that it is wrong to think for yourself. It is to say that in the spirit of Ma'at we should consider all persons children of Netjer who are capable of teaching us something, and therefore worthy of our respect in some way, even if not in other ways. In addition, all of the purifications we've already discussed, and will continue to discuss, about the futility and potential for isfet related to saying bad things about others should stand -- there are far better ways to assert Ma'at than character assassination and verbal potshots, the "reviling" discussed here.

In the name of Wesir, I pour cool water for all spiritual teachers, past and present, and for all spiritual students, including those teachers. May we always respect each other and honor the gods and goddesses through Their children, all teachers and students in their own way in this House of Life we call Earth.

Dua Wesir! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 6, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 33

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Nefertem, coming forth from Het-ka-Ptah, I do not wrong myself, I do not do evil.

The thirty-third purification is guarded by Nefertem, the son of Ptah and Sekhmet, from the temple of Ptah Het-ka-Ptah, "The House of Ptah's ka" at Mennefer (Memphis). It describes two kinds of wrongdoing: iuty, or "wrongdoing" directed at oneself; and iry bin, literally "the making of evil." Bin is an evil action or thought, also sometimes translated "bad" or "negative," as opposed to Isfet, the state of mind and being directly opposed to Ma'at. One could say that bin leads one into Isfet, so here the purification is hoping to stop evildoing before it even reaches that point.

The statement makes a point of singling out wronging oneself as well as general acts of wrongdoing. Why? And why does the comment about not wronging oneself come before the one about doing any wrong at all? Thoughts to contemplate on this day of the Full Moon Festival. I pray to Sokar-Wesir, the keeper of the healed Eye, that all your actions multiply Ma'at, for yourself and for everyone around you.

Dua Sokar-Wesir! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 5, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 32

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Lord-of-Two-Horns, coming forth from Sauty, I do not talk too much.

Purification 32 is overseen by the "Lord of Two Horns," local protector of the ancient city of Sauty (Lycopolis), modern-day Assiut in Middle Egypt, a city that has been mentioned in our purifications before with its major divinity, Wepwawet. What I have here translated as "talking too much" is in the papyrus asha kheru-i her medet, literally "my voice numerous in words."

Many of the writings of ancient sages talk about "the silent man," the one who holds his tongue and practices the art of listening over the art of oratory. It is considered a Kemetic virtue to keep one's words to a minimum, to say what one means with a minimum of embellishment, and to let others vent rather than venting at them. Being a person of few words can have its advantages in many situations. The less words one speaks, the more weight those words carry. In the act of heka, the directed deliberate speech sometimes called "magic," less words makes each one that much more powerful. It is the difference between a flash of light and a concentrated beam, between a bucket of water and a fire hose. Concentrating your words into small circles, keeping your voice from becoming "many with words," has many benefits.

Practice silence today in the name of Nebt-het Who keeps silence as part of Her blessing. Choose your words carefully, consciously, and frugally. I pray to Djehuty, the Lord of Wisdom Who invented words that you find enlightenment and peace as you purify a thirty-second time.

Dua Netjer! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!

Daily Devotions from Her Holiness
Nisut Hekatawy I (ankh udja seneb)
June 4, 2001

Bless all the children of Netjer, known and unknown!
May your coming be peaceful.

Purification 31

For an explanation/introduction to this lesson, click here.

Hail Maker-of-Plans, coming forth from Utent, I am not an eavesdropper.

The thirty-first purification is dedicated to "The Maker of Plans," a local god from northeast Nubia (the area of modern-day Somalia called Punt by the ancients). His purification stands against smetmet, literally "the placing of seed in my ear," translated "to eavesdrop."

Eavesdropping is an art form that seems perfected in the Western world, from gossipmongering printed in national tabloids to corporate espionage that can land people in prison or have them tried for treason against their governments. We seem to differentiate between levels of eavesdropping and even have different words for the process: "spying," "snooping," and the like. All reveal a situation where a person has lost trust in another, feeling a need to go "check up" on him or her.

What is important about the purification is that eavesdropping occurs when respect or trust has been lost: when people either feel they are more important than they are and force their way into conversations that are not theirs to hear, or when people do not trust others and so check up on their conversations. Eavesdropping can be accomplished either directly or indirectly; having others relay information you are not privy to is a form of eavesdropping. All revolves around respect and trust as an action that maintains Ma'at; when trust is lost, isfet is more likely to occur, in this form or others.

I pray today to Heka, Whose birthday is celebrated today, that everything that comes from your mouth is pure, and that you respect your friends and loved ones without their having to "prove" themselves, directly or indirectly. May your lives be free from eavesdropping and all other forms of interpersonal mistrust, either made by you or toward you.

Dua Netjer! Nekhtet!

I invite your discussion and participation in this teaching in the Devotions boards.

Email our Nisut (AUS) with a private prayer!