Keeping Records

An article on recording Egypt's religious literature carved on the walls of its temples from the University of Tübingen.

http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=63740&CultureCode=en

Mummies with Heart Disease

This article concerns 20 mummies from the Cairo Egyptian Museum from various periods in a study of hereditary heart disease. The mummies are from the upper classes of ancient Egyptian society and in at least 9 cases were found to have suffered from arteriosclerosis.

One of the worst cases was found in the beautifully preserved mummy of the lady Rai, a courtier from the court of Amenhotep I.

A Search in Secret Egypt

Paul Brunton
E.P. Dutton & Co. INC
New York
1936
ISBN-10: 0943914981

This 1936 book is one of those that has become a classic. I have to say that I started to read it a few years ago; however, I stopped because the author Paul Brunton kept talking about Atlantis, so I shied away till now.


So here I have reapproached this book in a different light and must say that I am enjoying the first few chapters. The list of characters who put on displays of mysticism or chicanery for the author is a colorful bunch who perform a series of trivial and unnecessary talents.


You never know when you will need to stick hatpins in your face to entertain guests or sacrifice the neighbor's pet with your mind, very useful indeed! The book interestingly goes on to an interview on Islam with an Egyptian cleric who gives answers to common misconceptions of the faith.


The author then goes into a comparative study of Islam, Christianity, and other faiths, which has taken me on a journey I did not see coming. The author's words are well placed in a story that deals with the mystical world without challenging the reader into believing anything other than the toleration of different faiths, including the often misunderstood deities of Pharaonic Egypt.


Mr. Brunton visits and amply describes beautiful mosques and ancient temples whose walls are covered with images of ancient Pharaohs making offerings to animal-headed gods. At the temple of Denderah, the author heads to the roof to see the famous zodiac, the original now in the Louvre, and it finds tens of thousands of years in its conception. Then again, are the authors "Atlantians" who he credits for the original seed of this zodiac even claiming the starting date of the alignment of the zodiac was 90,000 years old?


Mr. Brunton visits the ruins of Karnak and appears to misinterpret a scene on its walls to fit his beliefs, but his night descriptions of the complex at Karnak are challenging and fascinating.


The author visits a well-known snake charmer who is responsible for keeping the village clear of snakes, particularly the deadly ones, including cobras, with the author himself being taught the art of the snake charmer and becoming, though reluctantly, a charmer himself.


The book ends with a message from an Adept (holy man) warning about the opening of ancient tombs and the wrath the spirits who are released from the tomb may have on modern society and modern man.


Mr. Brunton was an obviously colorful character who held a lot of ideas I might otherwise consider to be wacky, but I finished this book with a respect for its eloquent author and his eccentric views.


I have felt that this was indeed a very interesting search in secret Egypt.

Cambyses Ghost Army

This article is of particular interest on the reports that Herodotus wrote down that the Persian king Cambyses sent an army to the Siwa oasis to punish the priests who refused to legitimize his rule.

Recently with the help of Discovery twin brothers announced they had found Cambyses' 50 000 strong armies which had been buried alive in a sand storm. The article talks about Herodotus being the only historian to make this and other big claims about events in Cambyses' reign.

In the photos presented by Discovery and the brothers is a pile of bones in which I was able to identify 17 skulls just a few short of 50 000. Egypt's Dr. Zahi Hawass disputes this claim and has informed necessary security authorities.

http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=209177