Great Books Club: The Wisdom of the Egyptians

These first two videos are overviews of what "The Book of the Dead" is...and isn't.

This Wikipedia article is included to provide some context for modern understandings of the various components of the Egyptian afterlife. (There do not appear to be consistent understandings -- either today or in ancient Egypt -- of exactly what was happening. Rather, the conceptions of the afterlife mirror the diversity of Egyptian conceptions of the gods themselves).

This article from WorldHistory.org is included to provide a slightly different perspective on the components of the afterlife.

This video explains the ka as a sort of "double" or "vital force" of the person.

This video claims that the ba COULD develop into the akh. In fact, making this transition happen was one of the major goals of the Egyptian funerary practices.

This video claims having an akh wasn't an inherent part of being a person. It arose as a result of right-living, but also right-preparation of the dead by the living.

This TEDtalk animated video gives you a solid "big picture view" of what the ancient Egyptians thought happened after death. THIS is the journey for which the Book of the Dead was intended to equip you.