Maat

For other uses, see Maat (disambiguation).

Maat
Maat was both the goddess and the personification of truth and justice. Her ostrich feather represents truth.
Goddess of truth and justice
Major cult center	All ancient Egyptian cities
Symbol	the ostrich feather
Parents	Ra
Consort	Thoth (in some accounts)

Maat or maʻat (thought to have been pronounced *[muʔ.ʕat]),^[1] also spelled māt or mayet, was the ancient Egyptian concept of truth, balance, order, law, morality, and justice. Maat was also personified as a goddess regulating the stars, seasons, and the actions of both mortals and the deities, who set the order of the universe from chaos at the moment of creation.

The earliest surviving records indicating Maat is the norm for nature and society, in this world and the next, was recorded during the Old Kingdom, the earliest substantial surviving examples being found in the pyramid texts of Unas (ca. 2375 BCE and 2345 BCE) ^[2]

Later, as a goddess in other traditions of the Egyptian pantheon, where most goddesses were paired with a male aspect, her masculine counterpart was Thoth and their attributes are the same. After the rise of Ra they were depicted together in the Solar Barque. As Thoth has been seen to represent the Logos of Plato,^[3] so Maat has been viewed as an expression of Divine Wisdom.^[4]

After her role in creation and continuously preventing the universe from returning to chaos, her primary role in Egyptian mythology dealt with the weighing of souls that took place in the underworld, Duat.^[5] Her feather was the measure that determined whether the souls (considered to reside in the heart) of the departed would reach the paradise of afterlife successfully.

Pharaohs are often depicted with the emblems of Maat to emphasise their role in upholding the laws of the Creator.^[6]

Maat as a principle

Maat wearing feather of truth

Maat as a principle was formed to meet the complex needs of the emergent Egyptian state that embraced diverse peoples with conflicting interests. The development of such rules sought to avert chaos and it became the basis of Egyptian law. From an early period the King would describe himself as the "Lord of Maat" who decreed with his mouth the Maat he conceived in his heart.

The significance of Maat developed to the point that it embraced all aspects of existence, including the basic equilibrium of the universe, the relationship between constituent parts, the cycle of the seasons, heavenly movements, religious observations and fair dealings, honesty and truthfulness in social interactions.^[7]

The ancient Egyptians had a deep conviction of an underlying holiness and unity within the universe. Cosmic harmony was achieved by correct public and ritual life. Any disturbance in cosmic harmony could have consequences for the individual as well as the state. An impious King could bring about famine or blasphemy blindness to an individual.^[8] In opposition to the right order expressed in the concept of Maat is the concept of Isfet: chaos, lies and violence.^[9]

In addition to the importance of the Maat, several other principles within ancient Egyptian law were essential, including an adherence to tradition as opposed to change, the importance of rhetorical skill, and the significance of achieving impartiality, and social justice. In one Middle Kingdom (2062 to c. 1664 BCE) text the Creator declares "I made every man like his fellow". Maat called the rich to help the less fortunate rather than exploit them, echoed in tomb declarations: "I have given bread to the hungry and clothed the naked" and "I was a husband to the widow and father to the orphan".^[10]

To the Egyptian mind, Maat bound all things together in an indestructible unity: the universe, the natural world, the state, and the individual were all seen as parts of the wider order generated by Maat.

The underlying concepts of Taoism and Confucianism resemble Maat at times.^[11] Many of these concepts were codified into laws, and many of the concepts often were discussed by ancient Egyptian philosophers and officials who referred to the spiritual text known as the Book of the Dead.

Maat and the law

There is little surviving literature that describes the practice of ancient Egyptian law. Maat was the spirit in which justice was applied rather than the detailed legalistic exposition of rules (as found in Mosaic law of the 1st millennium BCE). Maat was the norm and basic values that formed the backdrop for the application of justice that had to be carried out in the spirit of truth and fairness. From the 5th dynasty (c. 2510-2370 BCE) onwards the Vizier responsible for justice was called the Priest of Maat and in later periods judges wore images of Maat.^[12]

Later scholars and philosophers also would embody concepts from the wisdom literature, or Sebayt.^[13] These spiritual texts dealt with common social or professional situations and how each was best to be resolved or addressed in the spirit of Maat. It was very practical advice, and highly case-based, so that few specific and general rules could be derived from them.

During the Greek period in Egyptian history, Greek law existed alongside Egyptian law. The Egyptian law preserved the rights of women who were allowed to act independently of men and own substantial personal property and in time this influenced the more restrictive conventions of the Greeks and Romans.^[14] When the Romans took control of Egypt, the Roman legal system which existed throughout the Roman Empire was imposed in Egypt.

Maat and scribes

Scribes held prestigious positions in ancient Egyptian society in view of their importance in the transmission of religious, political and commercial information.^[15]

Thoth was the patron of scribes who is described as the one "who reveals Maat and reckons Maat; who loves Maat and gives Maat to the doer of Maat".^[16] In texts such as the Instruction of Amenemope the scribe is urged to follow the precepts of Maat in his private life as well as his work.^[17] The exhortations to live according to Maat are such that these kinds of instructional texts have been described as "Maat Literature".^[18]

Maat as a goddess

or or or or or or or
Goddess Maat[19][20] in hieroglyphs

Maat was the goddess of harmony, justice, and truth represented as a young woman,^[21] sitting or standing, holding a was scepter, the symbol of power, in one hand and an ankh, the symbol of eternal life, in the other. Sometimes she is depicted with wings on each arm or as a woman with an ostrich feather on her head.^[22] Depictions of Maat as a goddess are recorded from as early as the middle of the Old Kingdom (c. 2680 to 2190 BCE).^[23]

The sun-god Ra came from the primaeval mound of creation only after he set his daughter Maat in place of Isfet (chaos). Kings inherited the duty to ensure Maat remained in place and they with Ra are said to "live on Maat", with Akhenaten (r. 1372-1355 BCE) in particular emphasising the concept. Some of them incorporated Maat into their names, being referred to as Lords of Maat,^[24] or Meri-Maat (Beloved of Maat). When beliefs about Thoth arose in the Egyptian pantheon and started to consume the earlier beliefs at Hermopolis about the Ogdoad, it was said that she was the mother of the Ogdoad and Thoth the father.

In the Duat, the Egyptian underworld, the hearts of the dead were said to be weighed against her single "Feather of Ma'at", symbolically representing the concept of Maat, in the Hall of Two Truths. A heart which was unworthy was devoured by the goddess Ammit and its owner condemned to remain in the Duat. The heart was considered the location of the soul by ancient Egyptians. Those people with good and pure hearts were sent on to Aaru. Osiris came to be seen as the guardian of the gates of Aaru after he became part of the Egyptian pantheon and displaced Anubis in the Ogdoad tradition.

The weighing of the heart, pictured on papyrus in the Book of the Dead typically, or in tomb scenes, shows Anubis overseeing the weighing and the lioness Ammit seated awaiting the results so she could consume those who failed. The image would be the vertical heart on one flat surface of the balance scale and the vertical Shu-feather standing on the other balance scale surface. Other traditions hold that Anubis brought the soul before the posthumous Osiris who performed the weighing.

Temples of Maat

The earliest evidence for a dedicated temple is in the New Kingdom (c. 1569 to 1081 BCE) era, despite the great importance placed on Maat. Amenhotpe III commissioned a temple in the Karnak complex, whilst textual evidence indicates that other temples of Maat were located in Memphis and at Deir el-Medina.^[25]

Maat themes found in the Book of the Dead and on tomb inscriptions

A section of the Egyptian Book of the Dead written on papyrus showing the "Weighing of the Heart" in the Duat using the feather of Maat as the measure in balance

One aspect of ancient Egyptian funerary literature which often is mistaken for a codified ethic of Maat is Spell (Chapter) 125 of the Book of the Dead or Papyrus of Ani (known to the ancient Egyptians as The Book of Going Forth by Day). The lines of this spell are often collectively called the "Forty-Two Declarations of Purity" or the Negative Confessions. These declarations varied somewhat from tomb to tomb and so cannot be considered a canonical definition of Maat. Rather, they appear to express each tomb owner's individual conception of Maat, as well as working as a magical absolution—misdeeds or mistakes made by the tomb owner in life could be declared as not having been done, and through the power of the written word, wipe that particular misdeed from the afterlife record of the deceased.

Many of the lines are similar, however, and they can help to give the student a "flavor" for the sorts of things which Maat governed — essentially everything, from the most formal to the most mundane aspects of life.

The doctrine of Maat is represented in the declarations to Rekhti-merti-f-ent-Maat and the 42 Negative Confessions listed in the Papyrus of Ani. The following are taken from public domain translations made by E. A. Wallis Budge in the early part of the 20th century; more recent translations may differ in the light of modern scholarship.

42 Confessions (Papyrus of Ani)

1. I have not committed sin.
2. I have not committed robbery with violence.
3. I have not stolen.
4. I have not slain men and women.
5. I have not stolen grain.
6. I have not purloined offerings.
7. I have not stolen the property of the god.
8. I have not uttered lies.
9. I have not carried away food.
10. I have not uttered curses.
11. I have not committed adultery, I have not lain with men.
12. I have made none to weep.
13. I have not eaten the heart [i.e I have not grieved uselessly, or felt remorse].
14. I have not attacked any man.
15. I am not a man of deceit.
16. I have not stolen cultivated land.
17. I have not been an eavesdropper.
18. I have slandered [no man].
19. I have not been angry without just cause.
20. I have not debauched the wife of any man.
21. I have not debauched the wife of [any] man. (repeats the previous affirmation but addressed to a different god)
22. I have not polluted myself.
23. I have terrorised none.
24. I have not transgressed [the Law].
25. I have not been wroth.
26. I have not shut my ears to the words of truth.
27. I have not blasphemed.
28. I am not a man of violence.
29. I am not a stirrer up of strife (or a disturber of the peace).
30. I have not acted (or judged) with undue haste.
31. I have not pried into matters.
32. I have not multiplied my words in speaking.
33. I have wronged none, I have done no evil.
34. I have not worked witchcraft against the King (or blasphemed against the King).
35. I have never stopped [the flow of] water.
36. I have never raised my voice (spoken arrogantly, or in anger).
37. I have not cursed (or blasphemed) God.
38. I have not acted with evil rage
39. I have not stolen the bread of the gods.
40. I have not carried away the khenfu cakes from the Spirits of the dead.
41. I have not snatched away the bread of the child, nor treated with contempt the god of my city.
42. I have not slain the cattle belonging to the god.^[26]

Assessors of Maat

"The Assessors of Maat" are the 42 deities listed in the Papyrus of Nebseni, to whom the deceased make the Negative Confession in the Papyrus of Ani.^[27]

See also

• Seshat, goddess of writing and measure, and a wife of Thoth
• Egyptian soul

Notes

1. ^ Information taken from phonetic symbols for Maat, and explanations on how to pronounce based upon modern reals, revealed in (Collier and Manley pp. 2-4, 154)
2. ^ "Egyptian Religion" Siegfried Morenz, Ann E. Keep, p. 273, Cornell University Press, 1992, ISBN 0801480299; some scholars believe that this kind Ancient Egyptian literature is based on older oral traditions, e.g "The Experience of Ancient Egypt", Ann Rosalie David, p. 43, Routledge, 2000: "A History of Ancient Egypt", Nicolás Grimal, p. 126, Wiley-Blackwell, 1994
3. ^ (Budge The Gods of the Egyptians Vol. 1 p. 400 & p. 407 & p. 416)
4. ^ "Mary, the feminine face of the Church", Rosemary Radford Ruether, p. 25, Westminster John Knox Press, 1977, ISBN 0664247598
5. ^ (Budge The Gods of the Egyptians Vol. 1 p. 418)
6. ^ "Egyptian Myths", George Hart, p. 46, University of Texas Press, 1990, ISBN 0292720769
7. ^ Norman Cohn, "Cosmos, Chaos and the World to Come", p. 9, Yale University Press, 1993, ISBN 0-300-05598-6.
8. ^ John Romer, "Testament", pp. 41-42, Guild Publishing, 1988.
9. ^ "Religion and Cultural Memory: Ten Studies", Jan Assmann, Translated by Rodney Livingstone, p. 34, Stanford University Press, 2006, ISBN 080474523.
10. ^ "Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs", James P. Allen, p. 116, Cambridge University Press, 2000, ISBN 0521774837.
11. ^ "Creation and Cosmology: A Historical and Comparative Inquiry", E. O. James, p. 50, BRILL, 1969, ISBN 9004016171
12. ^ "Egyptian Religion", Siegfried Morenz, Translated by Ann E. Keep, p. 117-125, Cornell University Press, 1992, ISBN 0801480299
13. ^ See Russ VerSteeg, Law in Ancient Egypt 19 (Carolina Academic Press 2002)
14. ^ "The Greek World", Anton Powell, Routledge, p. 303, 1997, ISBN 0415170427
15. ^ Black, p. 130
16. ^ Black, p. 131
17. ^ Black, p. 132
18. ^ Black, p. 157
19. ^ Hieroglyphs can be found in (Collier and Manley pp. 27, 29, 154)
20. ^ (Budge The Gods of the Egyptians Vol. 1 p. 416)
21. ^ Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, Robert A. Armour, American Univ in Cairo Press, p167, 2001, ISBN 9774246691
22. ^ Budge The Gods of the Egyptians Vol. 1 p. 416)
23. ^ "The Oxford Guide: Essential Guide to Egyptian Mythology", Edited by Donald B. Redford, p. 190, Berkley, 2003, ISBN 0-423-19096-X
24. ^ "100 Hieroglyphs:Think Like an Egyptian", Barry Kemp, Granta, p137, ISBN 1 86207 658 8
25. ^ "The Essential Guide to Egyptian Mythology:The Oxford Guide", p190, Berkley Reference, 2003, ISBN 0-425-19096-X
26. ^ (Budge The Egyptian Book of the Dead pp. 576 - 582 of final edition, 1913, ISBN 0-517-12283-9) The text has been modified, keeping Budge's numbering but removing the "Hail, insert name," at the beginning of the declarations. Repeated statements are made to two different entities.
27. ^ (Budge The Gods of the Egyptians Vol. 1 pp. 418-20)

References

• Black, James Roger. "The Instruction of Amenemope: A Critical Edition and Commentary--Prolegomenon and Prologue", Dissertation University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2002 [1]
• Budge, E. A. Wallis. The Egyptian Book of the Dead: (The Papyrus of Ani) Egyptian Text Transliteration and Translation. New York: Dover Publications, 1967. Originally published in 1895.
• Budge, E. A. Wallis. The Gods of the Egyptians: Studies in Egyptian Mythology — Volume 1. New York: Dover Publications, 1969. Originally published in 1904.
• Collier, Mark and Manly, Bill. How to Read Egyptian Hieroglyphs: Revised Edition. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998.
• Faulkner, Raymond. The Egyptian Book of the Dead. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1994.
• Mancini, Anna. Maat Revealed: Philosophy of Justice in Ancient Egypt. New York: Buenos Books America, 2004.
• Strudwick, Helen. The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Singapore: De Agostini UK, 2006.

External links

• Egypt: Law and the Legal System in Ancient Egypt by Mark Andrews