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2008 Through A Glass Darkly Magic Dreams PDF
2008 Through A Glass Darkly Magic Dreams PDF
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the context of Lucians tale The Sorcerers Apprentice
in chapter seven and Richard B. Parkinson discusses
the meaning of a simile found in Sinuhes dreams
(chap. 8). In chapter nine, Joachim F. Quack of the
University of Heidelberg reports on several newly
translated papyrus fragments with divination passages, and John Ray of Cambridge University introduces the dreams of two girls from the 2nd century
B.C. (chap. 10). Robert K. Ritner of the University of
Chicago discusses serpents in ancient Egyptian divination in chapter eleven and Anthony Spalinger of
the University of Auckland examines the dream of
Amenhotep II found on the Memphis stele (chap. 12).
Finally, Willeke Wendrich of the University of
California reports on his research regarding the power
of knots and knotting in Ancient Egypt (chap. 13).
Although there are many articles that are worthy
of note, four chapters best reflect the quality and
depth of research presented in this book. Lloyds
essay (chap. 5), Heka, Dreams, and Prophecy in
Ancient Egyptian Stories, provides an introductory
look at magic, dreams and prophecy in broad terms as
they appear in certain Middle and New Kingdom narratives. The word magic (heka) is used as a term of
convenience when translating Ancient Egyptian texts.
Unlike modern usages, heka in pharaonic Egypt did
not have any of the negative connotations that are so
often attached to the Western European understanding
of the term magic (p. xiv). It was the Egyptian belief
that a knowledge of specific words and actions contain the power to alter normal experience for both the
gods and men. Magic was an integral part of Egyptian
thought, a type of cosmic force central to all of
Ancient Egyptian life. Every Egyptian who could
gain access to it, used magic; however, it was not considered a part of the black arts that might be associated with sorcery, neither was it thought to be a
deviant practice (p. 1).
According to Lloyd, Ancient Egyptian literature
used heka for very specific reasons, namely, to
emphasize the nature of a particular experience.
Highly fictionalized stories with fanciful plots, like
those found in the Westcar papyrus, used magic fre-
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quently to animate objects, maintain longevity, foretell the future and talk to animals. Stories firmly rooted in reality seldom include heka in the narrative. In
the Eloquent Peasant there is no mention of magic,
just the implication that the villain would use nefarious means (i.e., heka) to steal from his neighbor.
Likewise, although the snake talks to the hero in the
Ship-Wrecked Sailor, there is no evidence that magic
was used as a means of communicating. Heka also
had enormous entertainment value. Practioners were
known to have performed many extraordinary feats
such as speaking to the dead and creating hallucinogenic states. Egyptian magic and magicians gained
widespread popularity and enormous international
prestige by the Roman period. Egyptians, through
their unique knowledge of heka, could control the
unseen links that bound all elements in the cosmos
and master the very mechanisms of the universe
itself (p. 90).
One of the most familiar episodes of Egyptian
magic is found in the book of Exodus. Ritners essay
entitled And Each Staff Transformed into a Snake:
The Serpent Wand in Ancient Egypt examines the use
of snakes in Egyptian magic. Ancient Egyptian practioners usually had both a serpent-shaped staff and a
wand which were used together. According to Ritner
serpent-shaped wands had a long history within
indigenous Egyptian religious cultures (p. 205). The
most ubiquitous serpent staff in Ancient Egypt is the
was or +am-scepter which represented divine authority. Gods, kings, queens and priests are often seen
holding this type of staff in temple reliefs, tomb paintings and other decorative arts. The serpentine form of
the staff appears to have the head of a snake on the top
and a fork to trap snakes on the bottom.
Recently, Ritner has reexamined serpent wands
found in various museums. He has found only eight
that can be identified with certainty. Their individual
material, lengths, shapes, workmanship and dates
vary greatly. Most are owned by the Boston Museum
of Fine Arts. Two of the most interesting serpent
wands are made of bronze and have two cobra-shaped
heads. Each is approximately 22 inches long and has
a slithering shape. Another example was carved from
wood and was painted. Although actual examples of
serpent wands are rare, their depictions are quite common. Both the serpent staff and wand were used
together in ritual magic. Ancient Egyptians believed
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appropriate for readers interested in general information about the use of magic in Ancient Egypt.
However, Lloyds overview provides a framework for
the entire book and helps define the role that heka
played in the lives of ancient Egyptians, and Leskos
and Ritners essays provide the most useful articles
for those interested in archaeology and biblical studies. Other interesting articles include Noegels essay
On Puns and Divination: Egyptian Dream Exegesis
from a Comparative Perspective, and Wendrichs
essay Entangled, Connected or Protected? The
Power of Knots and Knotting in Ancient Egypt,
which were not covered in this review.
The one major criticism that I have with this volume is the way it is organized. Although not stated
directly, Szpakowska attempted to place the essays in
chronological order beginning with display magic in
the Old Kingdom and ending with Greco-Roman
dreams. If this volume had been organized topically,
beginning with Lloyds essay as the initial framework
for discussing magic, dreams and prophecy, then this
book would be more cohesive. Nevertheless, Through
a Glass Darkly is an important work that provides a
specialist view of magic in Ancient Egypt.
Robert D. Bates
La Sierra University
Presocratics:
Natural Philosophers before
Socrates, by James Warren. Ancient Philosophies
2. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2007.
224 pp.
The second of ten projected volumes in the
Ancient Philosophies series, this work explores the
thought of the Greek philosophers of the sixth and fifth
centuries B.C. who immediately preceded Socrates.
The author, a senior lecturer in Classics and Fellow of
Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, writes with students in mind. Beginning with Thales, Warren
describes the teachings of those thinkers whose work
has survived in fragments and in quotations by later
authors, reconstructing their philosophies as best he
can and relating them to each other and to the philosophies that followed in the classical period.
Presocratics has several outstanding features.
Rather than simply summarizing each philosophers