Egyptian magic

[David19]

I'm hoping someone here can help me. Was magic a big part of the Kemetic religion and also is it a big part of your religious life or don't you practice or not believe in it. If you do practice, what types of Egyptian magic is there, like are there specific magics that are only done in the Kemetic religion like Asatru and Vanatru have Seidr and Galdr, etc?.

Thanks for any help.

[SidneyCozzoi]

Good question, I would like to know as well...I will research that...
Here are some sites I've found
http://hem.bredband.net/arenamontanus/Mage/Egypt/Magick.html
http://www.kemet.org/home.htm (http://www.kemet.org/home.html)

http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/kemetic/index_a.htm (http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/kemetic/index_a.htm)

Hope these help, I don't have much time to read through them,i should be working :-).

[Ishtara]

You might want to do a search on "Heka", which is the closest Kemetic concept to our idea of magic.
Heka can be (loosely) translated as words of power and expresses the belief that words have the power to shape the world. In that sense, magic was definitely part and parcel of life in Ancient Egypt.
Amulets were another common magical practice.

I personally do not practice magic. I do not feel I am far enough along my path for that yet. There is also the fact that I feel fulfilled by my relationship with Netjer through prayer and ritual, so I do not necessarily feel the need to "harness" Their power and ask for more, as it were. I worship the Names and try my best to serve Ma'at, I do not "work" with them.

[Ahautenites]

What Ishtara says is very accurate.

The ancients frequently used magicians to help them with illnesses. It was a very holistic way of healing, actually. There would be a doctor who would prescribe things to the patient. And in addition to that, if the person or their family had enough money, they could get a priest to pray on their behalf. And if they had still more money left over, they could also get a magician to either work a spell for the patient or else sell a spell to the patient that the patient would have to follow precisely. Some people would put the healing in this order. Others might choose to only have one of these services (and not all would choose a doctor as their first choice).

Geraldine Pinch describes a lot of fascinating things in her book Magic in Ancient Egypt (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0292765592/qid=1133999908/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14/103-3865340-8873419?n=507846&s=books&v=glance). She's a bit more Hermetic in her focus (so take it with a grain of salt), but she still gives some intriguing information.

As to my own practices.... I very rarely do anything officially magical. And when I do, it's really not the same as the concept of "heka." It's Witchcraft. Other than that, I have to be very careful about what I wish for, because somehow, my weirdest (and generally my most facetious) wishes usually come true.

[Ishtara]

One book I would recommend on the subject is "Magic and Mystery in Ancient Egypt" by Christian Jacq.

This book is a good, sythetic introduction to the Egyptian idea of magic and its different aspects in everyday life. It will not, however, give you lists of spells or reconstruct rituals, but I think it is a good thing to start with the historical facts and archeological evidence before delving into more mystical/occult books.

It is also very easy to read, as Christian Jacq is not only an egyptologist, but also a novelist whose series about Ancient Egypt have been extremely successful. Needless to say he knows how to enliven the driest subjects :)