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Kemetic Update

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
Some folks asked me:
Hmmm... You know, you've always come across to me as someone who is very level headed and logical, and though I haven't always agreed with the things you've posted, you've always been someone I respect. Not really much more to add than that!

I'm curious to know how your journey down this path goes... If you ever wanted to post your experiences, I'd definitely read it. :) I always feel like I learn something when it's a post you make.

I hope you'll make some posts about your newfound religious afiliation

From Noachidism | Religious Forums

Switching from one set of beliefs to another is hard. It's especially hard when it's fraught with bitterness, heartbreak, and grief, as well as some anger. I ned to go through my angry stage, it's inevitable. It is what it is.

I think I still need to clarify some things.

I am not a Pagan because I thought Paganism would work for me, or even that I think that 'Paganism' is a particularly meaningful term. My favoured form of religion is Abrahamic style, with a scripture, a set of laws, one God, a place of worship, a set liturgy, you know the drill. Pagan faiths always seemed a bit folksy to me; about spirits, lesser-deities, theological heterodoxies, magic. I'm not trying to hide who I am, here; I'm a rules based person who highly values religious orthodoxy, law, and orthopraxy. My religious 'style' is thoroughly Abrahamic. In other words, I'm not suddenly moving into the world of 'circles' and 'sabbats' and 'magick' and 'craft work'. I don't mean to offend folks who practice these things, I'm just saying I want to make it clear that this is not my stead.

So far I've had dreams I've asked for. Dreams of Horu and dreams of Ra, and possibly one of Inpu. I place a lot of importance on dreams, so this works for me. I take these kinds of things very seriously. There was also an incident with a candle I'd left burning at my altar. It was a tealight with a maximum burn time of 4 hours that somehow ended up burning all night for more than 8 hours. I'd had a dream of Horu that morning, too. There may be an explanation for the candle, but I haven't found one. On that night I'd done a candle-lighting ritual to Horu.

The rituals are good and the community seems welcoming. I registered as a user on a UK forum for Kemetics. Turns out we're a very indie bunch.

I've bought several books that have been helpful, my altar is complete, and one man saw me performing the henu gesture outside on the riverbank and could hardly contain his laughter. It's alright; I bought a prayer rug so I could perform henu outside more often now it's summer coming, and he can laugh all he likes.

tumblr_pdcel9Jcaq1qhtihqo3_250.png

I'm still surprised at how niche this particular faith is, when other Pagan faiths such as Asatru, Heathenry etc. Druidry, other Celtic faiths, Hellenismos, Religio Romana, and even Slavic Paganism are on the rise and come with plenty of materials, communities, etc. - at least much more so than Kemeticism. What seems to be the deal here is that the most popular Pagan faiths are European ones, and it's Europeans living in Christian countries who want their ancestral faiths. Folks in Muslim countries such as Egypt haven't really this option, as it could prove a socially bad move in light of their communities, so Kemeticism, being an African spirituality, isn't so popular.

The one thing that's getting me most is that a lot of folks seem to join Pagan religions because they want to abandon Abrahamic norms, because they want to have nothing like their former religion - so I'm feeling a little weird in a [vague] community where I'm saying I have no interest in magic or spirits or spells or such. It's making me feel very disparate.

So there's my daily dose of honesty. I miss Abrahamic religion.
 
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JustGeorge

Not As Much Fun As I Look
Staff member
Premium Member
I admit I don't know a whole lot about Kemeticism. I also admit I don't know a whole lot on Abrahamic faiths.

What, if anything, do the two have in common? How do they differ? Are there different 'branches'(for lack of a better term) of Kemeticism? What does life look like for a Kemetic? What is it you find you miss most about Abrahamic religion?

The dream and candle incident seem fascinating.

I get not being into magic. As a young Pagan woman, I was found it intriguing, but lost interest in it after a few years. Decided I preferred to learn to be in sync with things as they come. Trying to control or alter things was too much responsibility. I did enjoy the seasonal/natural cycle attunements, though.

Can you share more about the henu gesture? What is its purpose? :)
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
What, if anything, do the two have in common?
Not much. I've just always had a fascination and weird connexion to Kemetic faith, the Gods etc.

How do they differ?
Kemeticism is usually polytheistic, has no set text etc. Kind of like comparing Asatru to Islam.

Are there different 'branches'(for lack of a better term) of Kemeticism?
Most Kemetics are independent practitioners. There is 'Kemetic Orthodoxy', though, as well as Isis spirituality, which is basically Goddess worship for Kemetics. It's a little like Dharmic faiths in that there never really was a set form; each nome (province) had its own theology. So now you will find all manner of theologies, creator Gods etc.

What does life look like for a Kemetic?
Depends where one lives, really. Some attend eclectic Pagan gatherings. Some are independent. For the serious practitioner, a lot of ritual, offerings etc. There are also prayers for the morning, midday and evening.

What is it you find you miss most about Abrahamic religion?
Being able to study books. It having basically cross-cultural understanding now. Places of worship to go to. Set prayers. All of it.

The dream and candle incident seem fascinating.
They were!!! I could hardly believe it.

Can you share more about the henu gesture? What is its purpose? :)
It's kind of a way of saying 'amen' (in-un-ma'a, in Egyptian). You do it at the end of your prayer or ritual, like a bow. I'd like to begin using it for more than this, though.
 
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Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
That really surprises me! What purpose is the Book of the Dead? (Something I purchased once and never read :( )
Many lay-Egyptians were not allowed in the Temples. That was only for priests and their ilk. So texts like The Book of Going forth by Day (The Book of the Dead) was mostly for use by royalty and priestly classes. In the Old Kingdom such things were not even known about by the laity. It's not a very 'democratised' religion, in that sense. Folks would have known about myths from oral traditions and holidays. That being said, as I mentioned above - each nome had its own theology and they could be widely divergent, so that particular book may vary in significance for each group.

Also The BotD is a funerary text lol. There are no overall texts of 'Here is what you have to do in life and overall', really.
 
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SigurdReginson

Grēne Mann
Premium Member
I won't have a chance to fully respond in the way I like until later, given my 12 hour shift situation, but until then thank you for posting this! It's good to know where you're at in your walk. :D

You mention how niche the practice is. Is there a group in your area that practices? If not, do you miss having a local community to practice with, or do you prefer solitary practice?
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
Is there a group in your area that practices? If not, do you miss having a local community to practice with, or do you prefer solitary practice?
I live in a tiny village lol. The only communities here are Christian. Yes, I miss having one.
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
I really like the 42 Laws of Ma'at though, which are found in the Book of Going forth by Day, @JustGeorge,

I have a little book with these in. Sometimes they are translated differently.

In Chapter 125 of The Papyrus of Ani, we find the petitioner led by Anubis into Duat and pronouncing his/her 42 affirmative declarations, listed below from Budge’s public domain translation of the 42 Divine Principles of Maat:
  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 or women.
  5. I have not stolen food.
  6. I have not swindled offerings.
  7. I have not stolen from God/Goddess.
  8. I have not told lies.
  9. I have not carried away food.
  10. I have not cursed.
  11. I have not closed my ears to truth.
  12. I have not committed adultery.
  13. I have not made anyone cry.
  14. I have not felt sorrow without reason.
  15. I have not assaulted anyone.
  16. I am not deceitful.
  17. I have not stolen anyone’s land.
  18. I have not been an eavesdropper.
  19. I have not falsely accused anyone.
  20. I have not been angry without reason.
  21. I have not seduced anyone’s wife.
  22. I have not polluted myself.
  23. I have not terrorized anyone.
  24. I have not disobeyed the Law.
  25. I have not been exclusively angry.
  26. I have not cursed God/Goddess.
  27. I have not behaved with violence.
  28. I have not caused disruption of peace.
  29. I have not acted hastily or without thought.
  30. I have not overstepped my boundaries of concern.
  31. I have not exaggerated my words when speaking.
  32. I have not worked evil.
  33. I have not used evil thoughts, words or deeds.
  34. I have not polluted the water.
  35. I have not spoken angrily or arrogantly.
  36. I have not cursed anyone in thought, word or deeds.
  37. I have not placed myself on a pedestal.
  38. I have not stolen what belongs to God/Goddess.
  39. I have not stolen from or disrespected the deceased.
  40. I have not taken food from a child.
  41. I have not acted with insolence.
  42. I have not destroyed property belonging to God/Goddess.
After the petitioner’s testimony containing the 42 affirmative declarations, the weighing of the ka for truth, and the reading of the scales, it is said that the doer of Maat is administered Maat. If the petitioner is deemed by the Goddess Maat to be in substantial compliance with the 42 Laws of Maat the petitioner passes from Duat to the Field of Reeds (Arus) where Osiris sits as the final gatekeeper.

Black History Heroes: 42 Laws of Maat Under Kemet Law
 

JustGeorge

Not As Much Fun As I Look
Staff member
Premium Member
I really like the 42 Laws of Ma'at though, which are found in the Book of Going forth by Day, @JustGeorge,

I have a little book with these in. Sometimes they are translated differently.

In Chapter 125 of The Papyrus of Ani, we find the petitioner led by Anubis into Duat and pronouncing his/her 42 affirmative declarations, listed below from Budge’s public domain translation of the 42 Divine Principles of Maat:
  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 or women.
  5. I have not stolen food.
  6. I have not swindled offerings.
  7. I have not stolen from God/Goddess.
  8. I have not told lies.
  9. I have not carried away food.
  10. I have not cursed.
  11. I have not closed my ears to truth.
  12. I have not committed adultery.
  13. I have not made anyone cry.
  14. I have not felt sorrow without reason.
  15. I have not assaulted anyone.
  16. I am not deceitful.
  17. I have not stolen anyone’s land.
  18. I have not been an eavesdropper.
  19. I have not falsely accused anyone.
  20. I have not been angry without reason.
  21. I have not seduced anyone’s wife.
  22. I have not polluted myself.
  23. I have not terrorized anyone.
  24. I have not disobeyed the Law.
  25. I have not been exclusively angry.
  26. I have not cursed God/Goddess.
  27. I have not behaved with violence.
  28. I have not caused disruption of peace.
  29. I have not acted hastily or without thought.
  30. I have not overstepped my boundaries of concern.
  31. I have not exaggerated my words when speaking.
  32. I have not worked evil.
  33. I have not used evil thoughts, words or deeds.
  34. I have not polluted the water.
  35. I have not spoken angrily or arrogantly.
  36. I have not cursed anyone in thought, word or deeds.
  37. I have not placed myself on a pedestal.
  38. I have not stolen what belongs to God/Goddess.
  39. I have not stolen from or disrespected the deceased.
  40. I have not taken food from a child.
  41. I have not acted with insolence.
  42. I have not destroyed property belonging to God/Goddess.
After the petitioner’s testimony containing the 42 affirmative declarations, the weighing of the ka for truth, and the reading of the scales, it is said that the doer of Maat is administered Maat. If the petitioner is deemed by the Goddess Maat to be in substantial compliance with the 42 Laws of Maat the petitioner passes from Duat to the Field of Reeds (Arus) where Osiris sits as the final gatekeeper.

Black History Heroes: 42 Laws of Maat Under Kemet Law

I love these! A lot to strive for.
 

Brickjectivity

Turned to Stone. Now I stretch daily.
Staff member
Premium Member
Switching from one set of beliefs to another is hard. It's especially hard when it's fraught with bitterness, heartbreak, and grief, as well as some anger. I ned to go through my angry stage, it's inevitable. It is what it is.
I was born angry, so I'm not impressed. :p

I think I still need to clarify some things.

I am not a Pagan because I thought Paganism would work for me, or even that I think that 'Paganism' is a particularly meaningful term. My favoured form of religion is Abrahamic style, with a scripture, a set of laws, one God, a place of worship, a set liturgy, you know the drill. Pagan faiths always seemed a bit folksy to me; about spirits, lesser-deities, theological heterodoxies, magic. I'm not trying to hide who I am, here; I'm a rules based person who highly values religious orthodoxy, law, and orthopraxy. My religious 'style' is thoroughly Abrahamic. In other words, I'm not suddenly moving into the world of 'circles' and 'sabbats' and 'magick' and 'craft work'. I don't mean to offend folks who practice these things, I'm just saying I want to make it clear that this is not my stead.

So far I've had dreams I've asked for. Dreams of Horu and dreams of Ra, and possibly one of Inpu. I place a lot of importance on dreams, so this works for me. I take these kinds of things very seriously. There was also an incident with a candle I'd left burning at my altar. It was a tealight with a maximum burn time of 4 hours that somehow ended up burning all night for more than 8 hours. I'd had a dream of Horu that morning, too. There may be an explanation for the candle, but I haven't found one. On that night I'd done a candle-lighting ritual to Horu.

The rituals are good and the community seems welcoming. I registered as a user on a UK forum for Kemetics. Turns out we're a very indie bunch.

I've bought several books that have been helpful, my altar is complete, and one man saw me performing the henu gesture outside on thr riverbank and could hardly contain his laughter. It's alright; I bought a prayer rug so I could perform henu outside more often now it's summer coming, and he can laugh all he likes.
Yes a very indie bunch. I have a personal question. I remember you saying that you were having trouble finding a group to fit in with as you were the only Noachide around. I understood that very well. Is this Kemitic movement going to help with that situation? How 'Indie' is it?

I'm still surprised at how niche this particular faith is, when other Pagan faiths such as Asatru, Heathenry etc. Druidry, other Celtic faiths, Hellenismos, Religio Romana, and even Slavic Paganism are on the rise and come with plenty of materials, communities, etc - at least much more so than Kemeticism. What seems to be the deal here is that the most popular Pagan faiths are European ones, and it's Europeans living in Christian countries who want their ancestral faiths. Folks in Muslim countries such as Egypt haven't really this option, as it could prove a socially bad move in light of their communities, so Kemeticism, being an African spirituality, isn't so popular.

The one thing that's getting me most is that a lot of folks seem to join Pagan religions because they want to abandon Abrahamic norms, because they want to have nothing like their former religion - so I'm feeling a little weird in a [vague] community where I'm saying I have no interest in magic or spirits or spells or such. It's making me feel very disparate.

So there's my daily dose of honesty. I miss Abrahamic religion.
I gather its fascinating. Unlike me you seem to have a voracious appetite for reading about various entries on the religion tree.
 

Brickjectivity

Turned to Stone. Now I stretch daily.
Staff member
Premium Member
No it won't. It's a very small faith group.

I've already rejected the biggest ones.
*sigh* Well...I am not going to talk down to you like some half interested Bob who thinks he understands things about things he knows nothing about. I know you're doing what you must do to get to the next level of your game, and it is quite impressive that you can breath in religions and just know all kinds of things about them. So much...delicious reading. Are you sure your brain can take it?

Aside: I'm going to slam your fingers in a drawer if you keep giving me optimistic likes. I strongly prefer the heart like over the optimistic like. In fact I believe that the optimistic like is a contagion which shall one day be purged from the system. ***This is not a mod action.***
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
Random other things I've learned:

1. Sandalwood incense is the best incense.

2. Statues etc. are ridiculously expensive, to say they're resin/plastic.

3. I like touching stuff.
 

JustGeorge

Not As Much Fun As I Look
Staff member
Premium Member
Random other things I've learned:

1. Sandalwood incense is the best incense.

2. Statues etc. are ridiculously expensive, to say they're resin/plastic.

3. I like touching stuff.

1. YES! It is amazing.

2. You can say that again...

3. Guess I never thought about that... is this a new experience for you?
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
1. YES! It is amazing.

2. You can say that again...

3. Guess I never thought about that... is this a new experience for you?
I also love musk scent, but in incense form it's just not the same.

It is kind of. There's not a great deal to touch at an Anglican church and certainly not in Noachidism. Maybe had I attended the RCC longer I would have noticed it. I like comfort objects etc., which I already knew, but not that I had a specific thing for it with religious statues.
 

Spirit of Light

Be who ever you want
*sigh* Well...I am not going to talk down to you like some half interested Bob who thinks he understands things about things he knows nothing about. I know you're doing what you must do to get to the next level of your game, and it is quite impressive that you can breath in religions and just know all kinds of things about them. So much...delicious reading. Are you sure your brain can take it?

Aside: I'm going to slam your fingers in a drawer if you keep giving me optimistic likes. I strongly prefer the heart like over the optimistic like. In fact I believe that the optimistic like is a contagion which shall one day be purged from the system. ***This is not a mod action.***
After your reply, i just had to give you a optimistic like :p
 
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