Traveling through the Duat is even more dangerous than traveling by day. It begins with the solemn ascent of Ra and his retinue to the western mountain. The god of gods then sits on the golden throne - the solar sanctuary, which is located in the center of the Mesktet Rook. The throne is wrapped in the rings of its body by the giant serpent Mehen, the protector of the night Rook. Hu, Sia, Sekhem and Hekh take the places of the rowers, wave their oars in unison, and the voyage begins, full of dangers and adventures.
The underground valley of the Nile is divided by twelve gates into twelve parts - “provinces”, “nomes”, corresponding to the twelve hours of the night. The Boat sails through each province strictly at a certain hour. All gates are guarded by monsters and fire-breathing snakes. Ra could not have overcome any obstacle on his own: in order for the demons spitting fire to open the gates and let Rook through, you need to know their names and magic spells. These spells are known only to God, who commands the demons pulling the Solar Boat. They have to do this because there is no air in the Duat - Shu cannot penetrate the underworld - and there is no point in setting a sail.
The Demon Lord is assisted by Heka, the god of sorcery and magic. It gives spells magical power.
The entrance to the Duat is guarded by the gods Upuaut and Nehebkau, as well as a snake called the “Guardian of the Desert.” Nehebkau is a snake-headed deity, lord of time and patron of the harvest. He joins the retinue of Ra and accompanies the Lord of All That Is through all twelve provinces of the Duat. Wolf Upuaut, a warlike, heavily armed god, also joins the gods in the Boat of Eternity.
All gates of the Duat have their own names. The first, “Entrance to the Secret Hall,” is guarded by the Guardian of the Desert. He is above these gates and opens them for Ra. God Reason (Sia) says to the Guardian of the Desert:
- Open your Underworld for Ra, open the gates to the One who dwells on the horizon!
The boat of the solar god passes the Entrance to the Secret Hall. At the same moment, the gates close with a clang, and those in the desert cry as they hear the door being locked.
In the second province, the harvest god Nyop(e)ri and his wife Nepit come out to meet Rook. Neperi's body is entwined with wheat ears. He feeds the dead in the Duat, and his afterlife carries the epithet “He who lives after death.” On earth, Neperi, together with other gods of fertility, takes care of the living Egyptians, who love the good god very much for this and, as a sign of gratitude, celebrate harvest festivals in his honor,
The Night Boat sails past the burials, and Ra sends the life-giving light of its rays to the mummies. The dead come out of their tombs, greeting the Sun and enjoying its radiance. They sing:
Glory to you, Ra! <...>The inhabitants of the Duat worship you. They praise you, who are to come in the world <...>The hearts of the underground rejoice, When you bring light to those who dwell in the West. Their eyes open, For they see you. Their hearts are full of joy, When they look at you, For you hear the prayers of those lying in the tombs, You destroy their sorrows And drive away evil from them. All those who sleep worship your beauty, When your light illuminates their faces. You pass, and darkness covers them again, And each one again lies down in his own coffin. “You are greasy thanks to your [sacrificial] libations,” Ra answers solemnly, addressing the mummies and gods of the Underworld. - Your souls will not be destroyed, your offerings will not be destroyed <...> [Truly you are the ones] who drive Anona away from me.
The Solar Boat sails on, and as it moves forward, the dead come out and out of their tombs and greet Ra.
In the fourth province of the Duat, Ra, from the words born in his heart, gives names to the four human races) establishing their hierarchy on earth: “people” (i.e. Egyptians), “tegennu” (whites, i.e. Libyans), “amu” (yellows, i.e. Azitians) and “nekhsu” (blacks, i.e. Nubians).
In front of the fifth gate is the Great Hall of Two Truths - the hall where Osiris administers Judgment over the dead.
The fifth gate is called the "Lords of Time". They are guarded by guards: the Truthful of Heart, the Bower of Ra and the Hidden of the Heart, as well as two uraei. The name of each of the two uraei: "He who shines for Ra." The guards and uraei say to the sun god:
- Come to us, you, First [on] the horizon, Great God, revealing secrets! Open the sacred gates, open the secret doors <...>.
After this greeting, the god Sia turns to the serpent guardian of the gate, whose name is “He whose eye scorches”:
- Open up your underworld for Ra! Open these gates before the Dweller on the horizon, when he dispels the deep darkness and illuminates the Secret Hall.
The gate opens and the Mesktet Boat sails on.
But midnight is approaching - the hour of the terrible battle between Ra and his eternal enemy, the serpent Apep. Apep lies in wait for Rook every night. Seeing her, with a guttural roar he opens his gigantic mouth and in an instant drinks all the water of the underground Nile. The boat lies bottom on the river sand, and the gods have to enter into battle with Apep.
Even the great Ra cannot defeat the insidious serpent unless the almighty god resorts to the help of magic. Therefore, before the battle, the god of magic Heka pronounces the following spell:
"Spell to overcome Anona, <... > Perish, Apop! Perish, Apop! Perish, Apop. Perish, Apop. This is Ra and his Ka, this is the pharaoh and his Ka. Ra arrives - mighty. Ra arrives - strong. Ra arrives - exalted. Ra arrives - magnificent. Ra arrives - jubilant. Ra - beautiful arrives.
Pa, the king of Upper Egypt, arrives. Ra, the king of Lower Egypt, arrives. Ra - the divine one - arrives. Ra arrives - the right-voiced one. Come [Ra] to the pharaoh - may he be alive, unharmed, and in good health. You destroyed all his enemies, just as he destroyed Anona for you. He drove out evil for you <...>."
After this, the gods enter into battle. The warlike Upuaut, Onuris, Horus and other gods raise their pointed spears, Wadjet-uraeus emits dazzling rays, the serpent Mehen sinks its teeth into the body of Apep.
The solar god and his retinue are often helped to fight Apep by the goddess Neith, the wife of Upuaut. Neith's epithet is "Terrifying". She is the patroness of troops, invariably leads the army and ensures its victory. Like her husband, the wolf Upuaut, Neith bears the epithet “Opener of the Paths (Duata)”, since she also guards the gates leading to the Underworld.
However, despite the fact that Neith is harsh, merciless to the enemies of Ra and merciless during battles, in peacetime she is a good goddess, the patroness of hunting, weaving - the main craft of the city of Sais, which is under her tutelage, and the goddess of fertility. In the Duat, at the Judgment of Osiris, Neith, along with Panda, Nephthys and Nut, protects the dead with their outstretched wings.
Under the leadership of Ra, the gods of his retinue defeat the evil Apep - they pierce his giant body with spears and force him to spew out all the swallowed water. The serpent hides in the abyss of the underground Nile and heals its wounds until the next night. The evil goddess Selket helps him last.
Having won the victory over Apep, the gods rejoice:
<...> The vile ones fell under his knife (Ra). And the serpent vomited out what he had devoured. Arise, O Ra, in your sanctuary! Strong is Ra, Weak are the enemies! High is Ra, Low are the enemies! Alive is Ra, Dead are the enemies! Fed of Ra, Hungry of the enemies, Drunk of Ra, Thirsty of the enemies! Ascended of Ra, The fallen of the enemies! < ...>Ra exists, you are not, Apep! At the end of its journey, in the twelfth province of the Duat, the Mesktet Boat swims into the body of a giant serpent and, having passed through the womb of the monster, emerges at the foot of the eastern mountains. Then, through a cave gaping in one of the mountains, the Rook flies out into the sky. The “Doors of the Horizon” open, Ra washes himself in the sacred afterlife lake and solemnly moves to the daytime Boat of Mandzhet.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru