Apech

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Everything posted by Apech

  1. The Serpent Which Came Forth

    Agriculture spread out from the fertile crescent (i.e. south Turkey/Anatolia, the Levant and Mesopotamia) and Egypt etc were early adopters. There is no doubt that transfer of tech includes transfer of culture.
  2. The Serpent Which Came Forth

    Hello I can't help but answer this since the Pyramid Texts of Unas are something of a specialist subject for me (or were when I was studying Egypt). @Nungali has for some reason changed the quote - to give a slightly different meaning as indicated in the translations you quote. So his meaning is specific to him (no less valid though). I checked Sethe's original transcription for what is called Utterance 233 (lines 237/8) just to see what they were saying. Old Kingdom Egyptian is like a no frills version and so there is very little context or explanation in the text. But you can gain some context etc. by seeing where these texts were placed in the pyramid structure. In this case they are on the West gable of the sarcophagus chamber - and are part of a series of 'spells' against inimical beings. That is 'entities' or forces which act against the the process being undertaken in the pyramid (which is one of transformation and 'rebirth' as a spiritual being called an 'akh'.) The words are intended to be spoken to ward off these negative forces. These types of spells occur twice in the Pyramid once here on the West gable above the sarcophagus and once on the East wall of the akhet chamber (that is on the opposite end of the pyramid chambers so they reflect each other). So there are two instances in the process which takes place in the pyramid where negative forces have to be warded off. Translated without interpretation the text says: To be spoken: Falls down the serpent from the earth, Falls down the flame from the Nun (primeval waters), Fall down, slither away. We have to break this down a bit to see what they were saying. First as I said it is a spell to be spoken out loud and its purpose is to ward off a negative force. One of the ways the Egyptians denoted negative forces was by a state of inversion. So there is a right order for things (ma'at) and there is its invert which is negative/evil. So the first two lines describe a negative state which has arisen. That is the serpent has fallen and the flame has fallen. This describes a negative state. Why because serpents like the uraeus (Egypt. Iaret ) literally means 'risen up one' and obviously also flames rise, they don't fall. I think also that the word flame or fire which has the determinative of a torch is referring to light rather than heat. So it is referencing light = awareness which has fallen back into the primeval waters which are dark (kek). So if you imagine that the right (ma'at) state of things would be a risen serpent (like the cobra on the brow of the king) and light emerging from darkness. But because of the interference of inimical beings/forces the opposite has happened and this needs to be addressed. The way this is done is to turn back the negative force onto itself. Like saying 'you made these things fall, now you fall!'. This symmetry is very Egyptian. So the last part of the spell is saying to the negative being 'You fall! and slither away!' (or you fall slitherer) In fact the very last word 'sbn' (slither) gives us a clue to which category of beings is being addressed - it is that of the Sebau fiends ... or Slithering beings. This refers to forces of dissolution or perhaps wasteful energy loss. Like for instance lustful thoughts and the like which drain energy. So my rather free translation would be: "You who made the earth serpent fall, who made the flame from Nun fall; You fall and slither away!!!"
  3. Saruman's Demise

    He changed ‘white’ into many colours… representing his disintegration?
  4. Saruman's Demise

    Hobbits had holes.
  5. Soul Ages

    Strikes me as very New Agey.
  6. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    It has been exhausting placing mines at all the beaches and landing sites in Portugal. But I have finished now and am relaxing at home.
  7. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    Look both ways at the zebra crossing.
  8. The Controversy

    Willie the pimp?
  9. The Controversy

    Is that you John Lennon?
  10. The Controversy

    I stopped taking a skate home from work when my neighbours said it was a bit fishy.
  11. The Controversy

    IEDs
  12. The Controversy

    I knew it!
  13. The Controversy

    Being a bad sport is not extreme.
  14. Hello!

    Bem vindo
  15. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    No, no you will be welcome with open arms. By arms I mean small arms or possibly an assault rifle or two.
  16. change name request

    Forthwith thou shalt be known as bradley.
  17. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    Good to have a run before lunch.
  18. Greetings

    Hi, It's great that you've have an interest in chi etc. and I agree that some claims seem a bit woo woo. But from my experience there's much benefit from studying this and related subjects. You'll get some help from here but you need to look at everything with a bit of a critical eye and decide for yourself what seems to work and what doesn't. My recommendation is to try a system that appeals to you for say three months and then review what the results are. If positive then carry on with it but if not try something else. The best possible outcome is to find a good teacher you can learn from in person. This may happen, it quite often does, when you are ready. The other thing you can do is read round the subject and its history to try to get a feel for the basis of what is going on. Then you'll have a good grounding to work from. Best wishes. A.
  19. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    I agree he is a complete flogsverrranhopgtdj.
  20. Greetings

    Welcome - we should have more discussion on the I Ching so I am looking forward to what you have to say.
  21. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    He’s on the edge of a dessert - tiramisu possibly.
  22. Is It Over? The Dao Bums Fall

    Come on! If Vasco da Gama can do it so can you!
  23. Greetings from a Chen Taiji practitioner

    Hi and welcome.