Maat: Difference between revisions
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Latest revision as of 00:54, 16 March 2025
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This article is about a Thelema topic
Maat or Maʽat (Egyptian: mꜣꜥt /ˈmuʀʕat/, Coptic: ⲙⲉⲓ) comprised the ancient Egyptian concepts of truth, balance, order, harmony, law, morality, and justice. Maat was also the goddess who personified these concepts and regulated the stars, seasons, and the actions of mortals and the deities who had brought order from chaos at the moment of creation. Her ideological opposite was Isfet (Egyptian jzft), meaning injustice, chaos, violence, or doing evil.
Pronunciation
Cuneiform texts indicate that the word m3ˤt was pronounced /múʔʕa/ during the New Kingdom of Egypt, having lost the feminine ending t. Vowel assimilation of u to e later produced the Coptic word ⲙⲉⲉ/ⲙⲉ "truth, justice".
History
The earliest surviving records indicating that Maat is the norm for nature and society, in this world and the next, were recorded during the Old Kingdom of Egypt, the earliest substantial surviving examples being found in the Pyramid Texts of Unas (c. 2375 BCE and 2345 BCE).
Later, when most goddesses were paired with a male aspect, her masculine counterpart was Thoth, as their attributes are similar. In other accounts, Thoth was paired off with Seshat, the goddess of writing and measure, a lesser-known deity.
After her role in creation and continuously preventing the universe from returning to chaos, her primary role in ancient Egyptian religion dealt with the Weighing of the Heart that took place in the Duat. Her feather was the measure that determined whether the souls (considered to reside in the heart) of the departed would successfully reach the paradise of the afterlife. In other versions, Maat was (the feather as) the personification of truth, justice, and harmony.
Pharaohs are often depicted with the emblems of Maat to emphasise their roles in upholding the laws and righteousness. From the Eighteenth Dynasty (c. 1550 – 1295 BC) Maat was described as the daughter of Ra, indicating that pharaohs were believed to rule through her authority.
Goddess
Maat was the goddess of harmony, justice, and truth represented as a young woman. Sometimes, she is depicted with wings on each arm or as a woman with an ostrich feather on her head. The meaning of this emblem is uncertain, although the god Shu, who in some myths is Maat's brother, also wears it. Depictions of Maat as a goddess are recorded from as early as the middle of the Old Kingdom (c. 2680 to 2190 BCE).
The sun-god Ra came from the primaeval mound of creation only after he set his daughter Maat in place of isfet (chaos). Kings inherited the duty to ensure Maat remained in place, and they with Ra are said to "live on Maat", with Akhenaten (r. 1372–1355 BCE) in particular emphasising the concept to a degree that the king's contemporaries viewed as intolerance and fanaticism. Some kings incorporated Maat into their names, being referred to as Lords of Maat, or Meri-Maat (Beloved of Maat).
Maat had a central role in the Weighing of the Heart ceremony, where the decedent's heart was weighed against her feather.
Principle
Maat represents the ethical and moral principles that all Egyptian citizens were expected to follow daily. They were expected to act with honor and truth in matters that involved family, the community, the nation, the environment, and the gods.
Maat as a principle was formed to meet the complex needs of the emergent Egyptian state, which embraced diverse peoples with conflicting interests. The development of such rules sought to avert chaos, and it became the basis of Egyptian law. From an early period, the king would describe himself as the "Lord of Maat," who decreed with his mouth the Maat he conceived in his heart.
The significance of Maat developed to the point that it embraced all aspects of existence, including the fundamental equilibrium of the universe, the relationship between constituent parts, the cycle of the seasons, heavenly movements, religious observations, good faith, honesty, and truthfulness in social interactions.
The ancient Egyptians were profoundly convinced of an intrinsic holiness and unity within the universe. Cosmic harmony was attained through proper public and ritual life. Any disruption in cosmic harmony could have repercussions for both the individual and the state. An impious king could cause famine, and blasphemy could lead to blindness for an individual. In contrast to the correct order represented by the concept of Maat is the concept of Isfet: chaos, falsehood, and violence.
In addition, several other principles within ancient Egyptian law were essential, including an adherence to tradition as opposed to change, the importance of rhetorical skill, and the significance of achieving impartiality and "righteous action". In one Middle Kingdom (2062 to c. 1664 BCE) text, the creator declares, "I made every man like his fellow". Maat called the rich to help the less fortunate rather than exploit them, echoed in tomb declarations: "I have given bread to the hungry and clothed the naked" and "I was a husband to the widow and father to the orphan".
To the Egyptian mind, Maat bound all things together in an indestructible unity: the universe, the natural world, the state, and the individual were all seen as parts of the broader order generated by Maat.
A passage in the Instruction of Ptahhotep presents Maat as follows:
- Maat is good and its worth is lasting.
- It has not been disturbed since the day of its creator,
- whereas he who transgresses its ordinances is punished.
- It lies as a path in front even of him who knows nothing.
- Wrongdoing has never yet brought its venture to port.
- It is true that evil may gain wealth but the strength of
- truth is that it lasts;
- a man can say: "It was the property of my father."
Law
There is little surviving literature that describes the practice of ancient Egyptian law. Maat was the spirit in which justice was applied rather than the detailed legalistic exposition of rules. Maat represented the standard and basic values that formed the backdrop for applying justice that had to be carried out in the spirit of truth and fairness. From the Fifth Dynasty (c. 2510–2370 BCE) onwards, the vizier responsible for justice was called the Priest of Maat, and in later periods, judges wore images of Maat.
Later scholars and philosophers also incorporated concepts from the Sebayt, a type of indigenous wisdom literature. These spiritual texts addressed common social and professional situations, detailing the best ways to resolve or approach each in the spirit of Maat. They provided practical advice and were highly case-based, making it challenging to derive specific or general rules from them.
During the Greek period of Egyptian history, Greek law coexisted with Egyptian law. Egyptian law protected women's rights, allowing them to act independently of men and own significant personal property, which eventually influenced the more restrictive norms of the Greeks and Romans. When the Romans took control of Egypt, the Roman legal system that was implemented throughout the Empire was enforced there.
Afterlife
In the Duat, the Egyptian underworld, the hearts of the deceased were said to be weighed against the single "Feather of Maat," which symbolically represents the concept of Maat, in the Hall of Two Truths. This is why hearts were left in Egyptian mummies while their other organs were removed, as the heart (called "ib") was considered part of the Egyptian soul. If the heart was found to be lighter than or equal in weight to the feather of Maat, the deceased had led a virtuous life and would proceed to Aaru. Osiris came to be viewed as the guardian of the gates of Aaru after he became part of the Egyptian pantheon, displacing Anubis in the Ogdoad tradition. A heart deemed unworthy was devoured by the goddess Ammit, and its owner condemned to remain in the Duat.
The weighing of the heart, typically depicted on papyrus in the Book of the Dead or in tomb scenes, depicts Anubis overseeing the weighing while Ammit sits, awaiting the results to consume those who failed. The image features a balancing scale with an upright heart on one side and the Shu-feather on the other. Other traditions maintain that Anubis brought the soul before the posthumous Osiris, who performed the weighing. While the heart was weighed, the deceased recited the 42 Negative Confessions as the Assessors of Maat looked on.
- More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Maat ]
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- More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Maat ]
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