Jan. 16, 2007

Horemhep was sitting in his office thinking about how to handle his next duty. He had just learned that the Pharaoh had passed and it was now his responsibility to prepare the son for his new role. New Pharaohs were a rarity since it was a lifetime appointment usually pre ordained by the sitting Pharaoh. In this case that was true. The only son was to be the new Pharaoh and, since he was only thirty years of age the High Priest considered that a suitable religious ceremony was called for. The High Priest was the second most powerful person in Egypt at the present time so that his views on this would prevail. After the coronation, things would be different but, until then, he was the authority on such matters.

Horemhep continued mulling the matter. Wa, the son, was not a religious man so what was needed was an effort to put him in touch with the gods. The worst thing that could happen he knew, would be if a Pharaoh ruled according to his own lights. Arrogance would soon overcome good judgement. The only way to avoid that was to see to it that the young man was made aware of his subordination to Re. Horemhep had just the thing in mind. He was fairly sure that Wa would not object since he had always shown deference to the High Priest.

The High Priest stood up and poured water into a cup and then sprinkled some powder into the water and stirred it. The experience would occur in the Great Pyramid. Only he and his most trusted staff knew the entry into the pyramid existed and what was inside. The old Pharaoh had also known since he had undergone a similar experience to that Horemhep had in mind. All who knew the nature of the inside of the pyramid were sworn to secrecy on pain of death if they discussed it. Horemhep doubted the experience would have the force it did if the young Pharaoh was warned about it. It wasn’t a sure thing anyway. If the new Pharaoh was unimaginative, it probably wouldn’t work. The drug would open his mind to a suitable experience and the enormity of the event would also put the new Pharaoh in a suitable frame of mind.

The experience was not without danger. If the young Pharaoh became hysterical, things could become unpredictable. Horemhep would be nearby throughout so that if he started screaming the experience could be prematurely terminated. He hoped this would not happen since his future and that of Egypt would be in doubt if it did.

Horemhep didn’t know why the pyramids were built. It had been done so long ago and had been so secret that the few who knew had died unexpectedly he supposed without passing the information on and it had been of such sensitivity it hadn’t been recorded. The entrance had been rediscovered by accident when additional storage space had been needed and workmen digging beneath the temple had located the tunnel. They had been sworn to secrecy and promised that their families would be cared for as long as they lived or until the secret became public. They were also warned that if they were guilty of leaking, the penalty would be death. From then on the existence of the tunnel had been passed from high priest to high priest.

* * *

Wa was waiting in the sitting room of his fathers bedroom. He had been told to come here by his mother. His father, the Pharaoh, had become ill at dinner the previous evening and had been taken to bed. The doctors had been with him all night. Presently one of the chaplains entered the room and gestured to him. He arose and followed him out of the palace. The chaplain walked hurriedly towards the temple holding Wa’s arm and urging him forward with frequent requests that he hurry. He didn’t say a word about where they were going but Wa was sure it had something to do with his fathers illness. Wa was thirty years old and the only son so he was frequently urged to study hard since he was likely to take over as Pharaoh some day.

When they arrived at the temple he was asked to sit in the foyer and await the High Priest. Wa was afraid of the High Priest. He liked him, but he was unsure of the dividing line between the Pharaoh and the High Priest and what would happen if a conflict developed between the two. The chaplain disappeared into the inner sanctum and a few minutes later the High Priest appeared. Horemhep was wearing his robes of office but otherwise seemed normal. Horemhep was wondering how best to establish an appropriate relationship with the new Pharaoh. Wa rose to greet him. They bowed to each other and Wa gestured to the seat next to him. The High Priest sat down and began speaking, "Your father has begun his journey to the next life and you are to be prepared for your new duties."

Wa was not surprised since his father had been in failing health for a long time. He didn’t have a particularly close relationship with his father, in fact it had been quite formal. He had known from childhood that he was expected to be Pharaoh some day and everyone treated him with the respect due the next Pharaoh who had the power of life and death over all citizens, including his son.

"What must I do now?" he said.

"Come with me, you will need some preparation," said the High Priest.

He arose and followed the High Priest down a corridor to a small room on the outer wall. The room was barren except for a window for light and two pillows. They sat down and the High Priest stared at him for several seconds.

"There are some things you must know and a ceremony that you will participate in to confirm that you accept the responsibilities that await you. Before doing that look into your heart and assure yourself that you are prepared for this heavy burden. If you feel it is beyond you say so and other alternatives will be pursued. If you accept and are unequal to the challenge, nothing good can result."

Wa considered the High Priest’s words for a while and decided to start with a formality, "A Pharaoh needs a wife so that a new Pharaoh can be produced. I have been told I can choose one when I become Pharaoh. Is that true?"

"It is true…with suitable advice…, but now is not the time to consider the question. Do you accept the challenge?"

"Yes, of course. I’ve been preparing for this moment my whole life," he said.

"Good. Look at this diagram," The High Priest said withdrawing a scroll from his sleeve.

It was a drawing of the great pyramid. He had seen the pyramids up close several times during his life. Nobody seemed to know who had built them and why they were there. He had been told in answer to one of his questions that they represented Egypt and had been there as long as anyone could remember. They were enormous, the greatest structures in Egypt or anyplace else as far as he knew. They had no apparent opening and were covered with some sort of shiny rock that made them glow in the light of the sun or moon. There were three, the largest, the next largest was nearly as big and a smaller one. Nearby was the lion statue, said to represent a constellation. Rumor had it that the pyramids represented the belt of the constellation of Orion and that Orion was the prototype of the Pharaoh.

The priest spoke, "The pyramids and the lion are the gift of the ancients. Their home was destroyed by earthquake many eons ago and the lion commemorates the demise of their land."

"The pyramid represents Egyptian society," said the priest. "The bottom represents the workers, the middle the overseers, the top the advisers to the Pharaoh and you will notice the capstone is missing."

He had noticed that both in the picture and the top of the actual pyramid. He had asked about it as a child and had been told it was lost. Nobody knew how. There was a rumor an evil genie had stolen it but he didn’t believe in genies.

"What happened to the capstone," Wa said.

"He died," the priest said.

Wa thought about that. He must mean the Pharaoh, he thought. That must mean I have to become the capstone. How can one do that? He wondered. He decided to ask.

"You mean I have to become the capstone?"

The priest nodded.

"How do I do that?" Wa said.

The priest shrugged. "That is what the ceremony is about. You had better rest. The ceremony begins at sunset. You must fast until then." And with that, he left.

Wa lay down and tried to sleep, which was impossible. He wondered about the ceremony. He supposed he had to be blessed in his new role. Being Pharaoh didn’t worry him, he had been training his whole life and had accompanied his father to every ceremony the Pharaoh had participated in since Wa had arrived at manhood.

As the sun was setting in the west, the priest returned carrying a cup of liquid. He held it out to Wa and said, "Here, drink this so you won’t be thirsty. Do you need to relieve yourself before we go?"

Wa shook his head no and drank the liquid. It was very bitter. Then he followed as the priest led him further back into the rear of the temple. After passing several rooms they came to a descending stairwell and started down. At the bottom was another man Wa hadn’t seen before. He was carrying a torch and was standing before a corridor leading off into the darkness. He began walking down the corridor and Wa and the priest followed.

Wa asked the priest where they were going and the priest answered, "To the Pyramid." He said it with such finality that Wa decided he had better just follow rather than ask questions. After five or ten minutes the tunnel began to incline gradually upwards and after another five or ten minutes they came to a stairwell and began to climb. They climbed up several long stairwells and paused to catch their breath and then started up again.

Eventually they came to a bare carved stone room. "Are we in the pyramid now?" Wa asked.

"Yes." Was the terse response.

What kind of a ceremony was involved, Wa wondered.

They walked out of the room into a corridor. It was totally silent except for the sounds of their steps, smelled kind of dank, and nothing could be seen outside of the torch light. Suddenly their guide turned left and began to climb a steep passageway back in the direction they had come. At the top they had to stoop to enter another room. There was a stone uncovered box in the room. Other than that it was just another bare cut stone room.

The priest told him to lie down in the box. Wa gave him a questioning look and the priest said, "It is necessary." The guide just stood there. When he was lying in the sarcophagus as he supposed it was, the priest began to pray. "Osiris, please guide this worthy and protect him from whatever he might encounter in your realm." Then laying his hand on Wa’s head, he said, "We will return when you do." The two of them lifted the stone cover of the sarcophagus and placed it over him. There was a small crack through which he could see the faint light fading as the two men shuffled away.

Wa waited hoping that they would return but all that happened was a voice in the dark intoned the words, "Now Wa must die so that a new Pharaoh can be borne." Wa began to panic. He swallowed and told himself to relax, they wouldn’t let him really die.

He could see and hear nothing. He felt around and discovered nothing but stone as expected. The lid was too heavy to lift, so he supposed he would just have to wait. He imagined he was somewhere in the center of the pyramid with tons of stone directly over him.

Pretty soon he began to notice stars. Orion was particularly noticeable. Then he heard a rustling sound. He looked around but could see nothing but stars and then he noticed something moving. As it came closer he saw it was a giant scorpion. He cringed but he couldn’t move so whatever its intent was, he was at its mercy. When it got close to him it fixed its beady red eyes on him and then turned around. Its tail was curled over its back, then it shot out and stung him in the heart. He groaned and clutched his breast as the scorpion slowly receded into the gloom.

Wa didn’t know if a vision could sting him to death but if this was death, it wasn’t so bad. In fact he felt peaceful. Then he saw a white light approaching. When it was close enough he saw the image of Osiris beckoning and then the light faded away. He laid there and pondered what it could mean. Then he fell asleep. He dreamed he was the capstone.

After a while, he was startled awake when the lid began to move and light appeared. When the lid was off he sat up and the two men kneeled before him and pronounced, "Pharaoh, this ceremony must forever remain secret. The penalty for discussing it is death."

Wa got out of the sarcophagus and they departed the way they had come.

As he returned to the light of day, Wa was surprised to note that the vision of the world had become sharper with more intense colors.

The next morning, when he awoke, Wa was still wondering what his vision meant. It was like a dream he thought, but he was sure he had been awake. Whatever else it was, Osiris meant it was certainly religious. Wa had spent very little time on religion during his life. It seemed to him religion was mostly ritual which was important to many people, though not to him. Now, he thought the time had come for him to learn more. He determined to ask Horemhep for some instruction. Maybe the high priest could make it clear to him why praying to the Sun was important. His father had said to him once that it was important that the people see that the Pharaoh and Re were connected in some way. He hadn’t known what that meant at the time, but it stuck with him and now it seemed common sense though he wasn’t sure why. Maybe that’s what praying should be for, for him…to ask Re for his help in performing his duties as Pharaoh.

Wa was unsure how he felt about being manipulated into that experience by Horemhep. He suspected there was something in that drink, but since it couldn’t be discussed he guessed he would have to draw his own conclusions. He wasn’t about to test the pronouncement that discussing it meant death, even if it was symbolic. He was glad he had had the experience. He was beginning to think he was related in some way to Osiris, maybe his reincarnation? Anyway, after the coronation he would have to adjust his relationship with Horemhep. Make it clear that he, Horemhep was the servant of Wa.

He dozed off again. He dreamed he was in the Hall of Ma’at watching his own heart being weighed by Thoth, the god of thought. He saw himself standing on the other side of the scale with Anubis. Then he realized, in the dream, that he was seated on Osiris’ throne.