Soul
From Wepwawet Wiki
The soul is made up of multiple parts:
- ka
- ba
- khat
- ib
- ren
- khaibit
Contents |
Ka
The ka (kA) of a person is the life force of an individual. In some texts it is translated as "double", meaning it is a secondary part of the individual, in relation to the ba. They believed that the ka was what caused an individual to require food and drink, and that the ka would require these things after death. It was the ka that was believed to inhabit the mummified body (khat) of an individual, and so the people of Kemet mummified their dead to ensure that the ka would have a reasonably intact place to return to. Gods themselves were thought to possess multiple kau while humans only possessed one. It was therefore possible for individuals to believe that the kau of the Netjeru would inhabit their statues in their temples once the ritual of the Opening of the Mouth had been performed on them. For this reason, temple priests presented food and drink to the statues of the gods, hoping to satisfy their kau.
Individuals wealthy enough hired individuals called "ka-priests" or "ka-servants" to return daily to the tomb and provide offerings. These individuals and their descendants were expected to ensure that the individual who was buried would eternally receive offerings. These priests often shirked their duties, and so to ensure that the buried individual was provided with offerings, the walls were inscribed with offering lists, consisting of formulaic listings of offerings made on the behalf of the deceased by the king. These offerings were called Htp-di-nsw, or a "Boon-which-the-king-gives".
The ka acts as a filter for the ba, slightly altering the way a person's given personality (as set in the ba) shows. While the ba is considered mostly unconscious in life, the ka is not. It is sometimes said that if the ba is "*who* you are", then the ka is "*how* you are".
Akh
If Ka passes judgement, the Ka becomes Akh.
Ba
The ba (bA) is an individual's eternal essence - similar to one's unconscious self. It is said that one can communicate with one's ba through meditation or other means, and there is a story from ancient times in which a man argues with his ba about whether or not he should stay alive. The ba is the part of a person which will not change, even after death, and makes up the majority of a person's personality in life. The ka acts as a filter for the ba.
Khat
The Khat (XAt) is what the people of Kemet called the physical body of an individual. This is the part of the human being that was tangible and can be touched. When an individual died, this is the part that was embalmed and mummified. When an individual was alive, his or her khat housed the ka (double or fleeting soul), ba (immortal soul), ib (the heart or seat of knowledge and goodness), sekhem (personal power), ren (one's name) and the khaibit (shadow).
