SHAMANIC WISDOM IN THE PYRAMID TEXTS The Mystical Tradition of Ancient Egypt Jeremy Naydler, Inner Traditions, Rochester, Vermont, 2005. Paperback, 460 pages, £17.99. ISBN 0-89281-755-0. UK distributor: Deep Books Ltd., telephone 0208 693 0234.

To those of us who have spent time in the sacred sites of Egypt, and read its sacred texts, it has always seemed self-evident that this ancient society was deeply committed to the mystical. That philosophers like Pythagoras and Plato reputedly travelled to Egypt as the source of wisdom was but due recognition of this fact.
    It comes as a surprise to find that Egyptology denies it: Prof. Erik Hornung, for example, writes that ‘no trace of mysticism can be found in ancient Egypt’. Instead, the spiritual texts emerged from a complex funerary belief system rather than being based upon a mystical journey.
    Dr. Jeremy Naydler confronts this challenge, showing that these texts refer “not to ‘funerary beliefs’ but to actual mystical experiences.” He explains: “if the spirit world is a reality, then human beings may become conscious of it, and journey into it...” And this mystical journey forms the basis of the Pyramid Texts and those writings derived from them; the Coffin Texts, the Book of the Dead and, ultimately, the Hermetic works.
    Dr. Naydler’s focus is upon the Pyramid Texts, the earliest spiritual writings in Egypt. He shows their close affinity with shamanism and the Classical mystery traditions - they concern an ascent, a vision of the Gods and a spiritual rebirth. They are, he explains, a record of experience, of initiation into the mysteries of the “Other World”, the Duat.
    He also looks at the implications: that the pyramid, temple, and ceremonial court built by each Pharaoh were constructed not merely for the royal funerary cult but as part of an enigmatic mystical practice: the mysterious Sed festival. The most secret part of this involved the Pharaoh having an “ecstatic visionary experience”; the Pyramid Texts are a record of this experience.
    This is an important book for it places our focus for understanding these ancient texts where it should be, upon profound human experience. It is also a rigorously academic study which seeks the meaning of these texts on their own terms rather than by imposing a modern secular explanation upon them. Dr. Naydler has done Egyptology a service; hopefully this book will provide that critical point of pressure which will change Egyptology’s dogmatic and superficial attitude towards the rich mystical life of ancient Egypt. And, in so doing, allow us all to learn from it.
    Michael Baigent