Excerpts From the Pyramid Texts

The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts Translated into English

by R. O. Faulkner, Aris & Phillips, Warminster, England, 1969
Hymn 1:
I say by Nut, the brilliant, the great: This is my son, my first born, opener of my
womb; this is my beloved, with whom I have been satisfied.
Hymn 20
O King, I have come in search of you, for I am orus; I have struc! your mouth for
you, for I am your beloved son; I have split open your mouth for you. I announce him
to his mother when she laments him, I announce him to her who was "oined to him.
#our mouth is in good order, for I have ad"usted your mouth to your bones.
Hymn 211
$y detestation is hunger, and I will never eat it. $y detestation is thirst, and I will
never drin! it. It is indeed I who will give bread to those who e%ist, for my foster&
mother is Iat and it is she who nourishes me, it is indeed she who bore me. I was
conceived in the night, I was born in the night, I belong to those who are in the suite
of 'a, who are before the $orning (tar. I was conceived in the )byss, I was born in
the )byss; I have come and I have brought to you the bread which I found there.
Hymn 217
O Thoth, go and proclaim to the western gods and their spirits: *This King comes
indeed, an imperishable spirit, adorned with )nubis on the nec!, who presides over
the +estern eight. e claims hearts, he has power over hearts. +hom he wishes to
live will live; whom he wishes to die will die.,
Hymn 260
$y limbs which were in concealment are reunited, and I "oin those who are in the
)byss, I put a stop to the affair in On, for I go forth today in the real form of a living
spirit, that I may brea! up the fight and cut off the turbulent ones. I come forth, the
guardian of "ustice, that I may bring it, it being with me; the wrathful ones bustle
about for me and those who are in the )byss assign life to me.
Hymn 306
ow lovely to see- ow pleasing to behold- say they, namely the gods, when this god
ascends to the s!y, when you ascend to the s!y with your power upon you, your terror
about you, and your magic at your feet. .eb has acted on your behalf in accordance
with the manner in which things should be done for you.
Hymn 307
The !ing declares his right to "oin the gods: )n Onite /character0 is in me, O- .od;
your Onite /character0 is in me, O- .od; an Onite /character0 is in me, O- 'a; your
Onite /character0 is in me, O- 'a. $y mother is an Onite, my father is an Onite, and I
myself am an Onite, born in On when 'a was ruler of the Two 1nneads and the ruler
of the plebs was Nefertem, /even I0 who have no e2ual, the heir of my father .eb.
Hymn 355
O- King, your head is !nit to your bones for you, and your bones are !nit to your head
for you. The doors of the s!y are opened to you, the great bolts are drawn bac! for
you, the bric! is drawn out of the great tomb for you.
Hymn 357
O- Osiris the King, .eb has given you your eyes, that you may be content with the
eyes of this .reat One in you; .eb has caused that orus give them to you, so that
you may be pleased with them. Isis and Nephthys have seen and found you, orus has
reassembled you, orus has caused Isis and Nephthys to protect you, they have given
you to orus and he is pleased with you. It goes well with orus in your company in
your name of *ori3on from which 'a goes forth,; in your embrace in your name of
*Inmate of the 4alace,. #ou have closed your arms about him, and his bones are in due
order, his heart is proud.
O- Osiris the King, mount up to orus, beta!e yourself to him, do not be far from
him. orus has come that he may recogni3e you; he has smitten (eth for you bound,
and you are his fate. orus has driven him off for you, for you are greater than he; he
swims bearing you; he lifts up one who is greater than he in you, and his followers
have seen you, that your strength is greater than his, so that they cannot thwart you.
orus comes and recogni3es his father in you, you being young in your name of ,5resh
+ater,; orus has split open your mouth for you.
O- King, do not languish, do not groan, for .eb has brought orus to you that he may
claim their hearts for you; he has brought all the gods to you at once, and there is none
of them who can escape from him. orus has protected you, and he will not fail to
protect you; orus has wrested his 1ye from (eth and has given it to you, /even0 this
his sweet 1ye. $a!e it come bac! to you, assign it to yourself, and may it belong to
you. Isis has reassembled you, the heart of orus is glad about you in this your name
of ,5oremost of the +esterners,, and it is orus who will ma!e good what (eth has
done to you.
Hymn Hymn 364:
orus has reassembled your members for you, and he will not let you perish; he has
put you together, and nothing shall be disturbed in you; orus has set you up, and
there shall be no unsteadiness.
O- Osiris the King, lift up your heart, be proud, open your mouth, for orus has
protected you and he will not fail to protect you. O- Osiris the King, you are a mighty
god, and there is no god li!e you. orus has given you his children that they may bear
you up; he has given you all the gods that they may serve you, and that you may have
power over them; . . . 6ive, that you may go to and fro every day; be a spirit in your
name of *ori3on from which 'a goes up,; be strong, be effective, be a soul, and have
power for ever and ever.
Hymn 365:
'aise yourself, O- King; run, you who are greatly strong. #ou shall sit at the head of
the gods, you shall do this which Osiris did in the $ansion of the 4rince, which is in
On. 'eceive your dignity, for your foot will not be obstructed in the s!y, you will not
be opposed on earth, for you are a spirit whom Nut bore, whom Nephthys suc!led,
and they put you together. )rise in your strength and do what formerly you used to do,
for you are more spirit&li!e than all the spirits. #ou shall got to 4e and find him whom
you will meet there; you shall return to Ne!hen and find him whom you will meet
there; you shall do what Osiris did, for you are he who is upon his throne. )rise, O-
spirit, greatly strong, adorned as a great wild bull; you will not be opposed in any
place where you wal!, your foot will not be obstructed in any place where you desire
to be.
Hymn 366
O Osiris the King, arise, lift yourself up- #our mother Nut has borne you, .eb has
wiped your mouth for you, the .reat 1nnead protects you and has put your foe under
you.
Hymn 367
O- Osiris the King, .eb brings orus to you that he may protect you and bring to you
the hearts of the gods; may you neither languish nor groan. orus has given to you his
1ye that you may ta!e possession of the Wrrt&crown by means of it at the head of the
gods. orus has reassembled your limbs and he has put you together, and nothing in
you shall be disturbed.
Thoth has laid hold of your foe for you, he having been decapitated together with
those who are in his following, and he will have no mercy on him.
Hymn 412:
O- flesh of the King, do not decay, do not rot, do not smell unpleasant. #our foot will
not be over passed, your stride will not be over stridden, shall not tread on the
corruption of Osiris. #ou shall reach the s!y as Orion, your soul shall be as effective
as (othis; have power, having power; be strong, having strength; may your soul stand
among the gods as orus who dwells Irw. $ay the terror of you come into being in
the hearts of the gods the Nt&crown which is on the King of 6ower 1gypt, li!e
the Mizwt&crown which is on the King of 7pper 1gypt, li!e the tress which is on the
verte% of the Mntw&tribesmen. #ou shall lay hold of the hand of the Imperishable
(tars, your bones shall not perish, your flesh shall not sic!en, O- King, your members
shall not be far from you, because you are one of the gods.
'emove yourself from upon your left side, put yourself upon your right side, for your
seats among the gods endure and 'a leans on you with his arm. #our scent is as their
scent, your sweat is as the sweat of the Two 1nneads. #ou appear in the royal hood,
your hand grasps the scepter, your fist grips the mace; stand at the head of the
8onclaves, "udge the gods, for you belong to the stars who surround 'a, who are
before the $orning (tar, you are born in your months as the moon, 'a leans upon you
in the hori3on.
The .reat $aiden who dwells in On has placed for you her hands on you, because
there is no mother of yours among men who could bear you, because there is no father
of yours among men who could beget you. #our mother is the great wild cow who
dwells in Ne!heb white of head&cloth, long of plumes, and pendulous of breasts; she
suc!les you and will not wean you. 'emove yourself from upon your left side, put
yourself upon your right side, for your seat among the gods endures and 'a leans on
you with his arm.
Hymn 422
O- King, go, that you may be a spirit and have power as a god, as the successor of
Osiris; you have your soul within you, you have your power about you, you have
your Wrrt&crown upon you, you have your Mizwt&crown upon your shoulder . #our
face is before you, worship of you is before you, the followers of the god are behind
you, the nobles of the god are in front of you. They recite: *The god comes, the god
comes, this King comes on the throne of Osiris, the spirit who is from Nedit comes,
the 4ower who is in the Thinite nome., Isis spea!s to you, Nephthys calls to you, the
spirits come to you bowing and they !iss the earth at your feet because of the dread of
you, O- King, in the towns of (ia. )scend to your mother Nut; she will ta!e your hand
and give you a road to the hori3on, to the place where 'a is. The doors of the s!y are
opened to you, the doors of the firmament are thrown open to you, and you will find
'a standing as he waits for you; he will ta!e your hand for you and guide you to the
two 8onclaves of the s!y, he will set you on the throne of Osiris .
O- King, the 1ye of orus comes to you, it addresses you; your soul which is among
the gods comes to you, your power which is among the spirits comes to you. The son
has protected his father, orus has protected Osiris, orus has protected this King
from his foes. $ay you arise, O- King, protected and provided as a god, e2uipped
with the form of Osiris upon the throne of the 5oremost of the +esterners; may you do
what he was wont to do among the spirits, the Imperishable (tars; may your son
succeed to your throne e2uipped with your form, and may he do what formerly you
were wont to do in the presence of the 5oremost of the 6iving, in accordance with
what 'a the great god commanded. $ay he cultivate barley, may he cultivate emmer,
may he present you therewith.
O- King, there is given to you what is yours, by 'a; may you spea! of yourself when
you have received the form of a god; may you be great thereby with the gods who
preside over the 6a!e.
O- King, may your soul stand among the gods and among the spirits, for it is fear of
you which is on their hearts. O- King, succeed to your throne at the head of the living,
for it is the dread of you which is on their hearts . $ay your name live upon earth,
may your name endure upon earth, for you shall not perish, nor shall you be destroyed
for ever and ever.
Hymn 437:
)wa!e for orus - )rise against (eth- 'aise yourself as Osiris, as a spirit, the son of
.eb, his first&born- #ou arise as )nubis who is on the baldachin, the gods tremble at
you, the three&day festival is celebrated for you, you are pure for the New $oon, your
appearing is for the monthly festival, the .reat $ooring&post calls to you as to im
who stands up and cannot tire, who dwells in )bydos . . .
The earth spea!s: The doors of the earth&god are opened for you, the doors of .eb are
thrown open for you, you come forth at the voice of )nubis, he ma!es a spirit of you
li!e Thoth, you "udge the gods, you set bounds to the celestial e%panses between the
Two +ands in this your spirituali3ed state which )nubis commanded. If you wal!,
orus will wal!; if you spea!, (eth
will spea!; beta!e yourself to the waterway, fare upstream to the Thinite nome, and
traverse )bydos. The celestial portal to the hori3on is opened to you, and the gods are
"oyful at meeting you; they ta!e you to the s!y with your soul, you having been
endowed with a soul through them. #ou will ascend to the s!y as orus upon
the sdsd of the s!y in this dignity of yours which issued from the mouth of 'a as
orus who is at the head of the spirits, you being seated upon your iron throne. $ay
you remove yourself to the s!y, for the roads of the celestial e%panses which lead up to
orus are cleared for you. (eth is brotherly toward you as the .reat One of On, for
you have traversed the +inding +aterway in the north of the s!y as a star crossing the
sea which is beneath the s!y. The Netherworld has grasped your hand at the place
where Orion is, the 9ull of the (!y has given you his hand, and you eat of the food of
the gods whereof they eat, the savour of Ddwn is on you, /even0 of the youth of 7pper
1gypt who came out of Nubia ; he gives you the incense wherewith the gods are
censed. The two daughters of the King of 6ower 1gypt, his first&born, the two .reat
6adies, bore you, 'a has summoned you from the 3enith of the s!y as orus who
presides over his thigh&offerings, Srtwty 6ord of Sbwt, as the :ac!al, the .overnor of
the 9ows, as )nubis who presides over the 4ure 6and. e sets you as the $orning
(tar in the middle of the 5ield of 'ushes, you being seated on your throne. #our
amputated parts are raised up by the ;ouble 8rown, 6ord of the 9ows, your
abundance is in the 5ield of the .ods, whereon they feed. #ou have your
spirituali3ation, you have your messengers, you have your intelligence, you have your
earth&attac!ers.
Hymn 438
Oho- Oho- I will ma!e it for you, this shout of acclaim, O- my father, because you
have no human fathers and you have no human mothers; your father is the .reat +ild
9ull, your mother is the $aiden.
Hymn 467
'a, as for this which you said, O- 'a, *O for a son-,; for you are royal. O- 'a, he
having a soul and being mighty and strong, active of arms and far&striding,: I here am
O- 'a; I am your son, I am a soul, I am strong, I am mighty, active of arms and far&
striding. I shine in the 1ast li!e 'a, I travel in the +est li!e Khoprer, I live on what
orus 6ord of the s!y lives on by decree of orus 6ord of the s!y. I am pure, O- 'a, I
go down to my seat, I ta!e my oar, I row 'a when traversing the s!y, even a star of
gold, the flash of the 9ull of the sunshine; a spear of gold which appertains to im
who traverses the s!y. (omeone flies up, I fly up from you, O- men; I am not for the
earth, I am for the s!y. O- you local god of mine, my double is beside you, for I have
soared to the s!y as a heron, I have !issed the s!y as a falcon, I have reached the s!y
as a locusts which hides the sun. I have not opposed the King, I have not succored
9astet, I will not act the dancer as the great one of the carrying&chair.
Hymn 485C
O orus who is upon the sdsd, give me your hand that I may ascend to the heavens.
(et your hand on me with life and dominion, that you may assemble my bones and
collect my members. $ay you gather together my bones at . . . there is no limb of
mine devoid of .od. $ay I ascend and lift myself up to heaven as the great star in the
midst of the 1ast.
Hymn 513
$y father ascends to the s!y among the gods who are in the s!y; he stands at the
.reat 4olar 'egion and learns the speech of the sun&fol!. 'ep finds you on the ban!s
of the s!y as a waterway traveler who is in the s!y: *+elcome, O- you who have
arrived,, say the gods. e sets his hand on you at the 3enith of the s!y; *+elcome, O-
you who !now your place, say the gods. 9e pure; occupy your seat in the 9ar! of 'af,
row over the s!y and mount up to the distant ones; row with the Imperishable (tars,
navigate with the 7nwearying (tars, receive the freight of the Night&bar!.
Hymn 519
#ou shall ta!e me with you to your great field which you have laid down with the help
of the gods, and what you eat at night when they are bright is the fullness of the .od
of 5ood. I will eat of what you eat, I will drin! of what you drin!, and you will give
satiety to me at the pole, at that which is the foremost of its flagstaffs. #ou will cause
me to sit because of my righteousness and I will stand up because of my blessedness; I
will stand up when I have ta!en possession of my blessedness in your presence, "ust as
orus too! possession of his father,s house from his father,s brother (eth in the
presence of .eb. #ou shall set me to be a magistrate among the spirits, the
Imperishable (tars in the north of the s!y, who rule over offerings and protect the
reaped corn, who cause this to go down to the most chief of the food&spirits who are in
the s!y.
Hymn 570
I will never swallow the 1ye of orus so that men may say: *e is dead because of it.,
I will never swallow a limb of Osiris so that men may say: *e is dead because of it., I
live by grace of my father )tum; protect me, O- Ne!hbet. #ou have protected me, O-
Ne!hbet, dwelling in the 4rince&$ansion which is in On, you have commended me to
im who is in his service that I may be served. e who is in his service has
commended me to im who is in his litter that I may be served. The !ing is immortal.
I escape my day of death "ust as (eth escaped his day of death.
I escape my half&months of death "ust as (eth escaped his half&months of death.
I escape my months of death "ust as (eth escaped his months of death.
I escape my year of death "ust as (eth escaped his year of death.
;o not brea! up the ground, O- you arms of mine which lift up the s!y as (hu; my
bones are iron and my limbs are the Imperishable (tars. I am a star which illumines
the s!y, I mount up to the god that I maybe protected, for the s!y will not be devoid of
me and this earth will not be devoid of me for ever. I live beside you, you gods of the
6ower (!y, the Imperishable (tars, who traverse the land of 6ibya, who lean on
your drm&staffs; I lean with you on a was&staff and a drm&staff, for I am your fourth.
The !ing is one with the sun&god. ear it, O- 'a, this word which I say to you; your
nature is in me, O- 'a, and your nature is nourished in me, O- 'a.
Hymn 571
The !ing is the son of )tum and is a star The King,s mother was pregnant with him,
/even he0 who was in the 6ower (!y, the King was fashioned by his father )tum
before the s!y e%isted, before earth e%isted, before men e%isted, before the gods were
born, before death e%isted; the King escapes his day of death "ust as (eth escaped his
day of death, this King is bound for your . . . O- you gods of the 6ower (!y, who
suffer no harm from your foes, this King will suffer no harm from his foes; O- you
who die not because of a !ing, this King will not die because of a !ing; O- you who
die not because of any dead, the King will not die because of any dead, for the King is
an Imperishable (tar, son of the s!y&goddess who dwells in the $ansion of (el!et . 'a
has ta!en this King to himself to the s!y so that this King may live, "ust as he who
enters into the west of the s!y lives when he goes up in the east of the s!y; e who is
in his service has commended this King to im who is in his litter that they may serve
the King, for the King is a star. The protection of 'a is over this King and the
protection of 'at will not be removed from over this King; I orus has offered this
King his arms on his own account and allots this King to (hu, whose arms which are
under the s!y are upraised. O- 'a, give this King your hand; O- great god, give this
!ing your staff that he may live for ever.
Hymn 610
)wa!e for orus- (tand up for (eth- 'aise yourself, you eldest son of .eb, at whom
the Two 1nneads tremble- (tand up, O- erdsman, for whom the three&day festival is
celebrated- $ay you appear for the monthly festival, may you be pure for the New
$oon festival.
Hymn 682
#ou are greeted by (o!ar, O- King, your face is washed by Dw3-wr. The King soars
as a divine falcon, the King flies heavenward li!e a heron, the King flies up as a
goose, the King,s wings are those of a divine falcon, the King,s wing&feathers are
those of a divine falcon. The bones of the embalmed King are raised up, for the King
is pure; the King,s cloa! is on his bac!, the King,s !nit&garment is upon him, even
his nsdw which belongs to the snp. The King embar!s with 'a in this great bar! of
his, he navigates in it to the hori3on in order to rule the gods in it, and orus navigates
in it to the hori3on with him, the King rules the gods in it with him in the hori3on, for
the King is one of them.
Hymn 683
The King lives, the King lives, and lives the 1ye of orus which is in On.
Hymn 685
The waters of life which are in the s!y come, the waters of life which are in the earth
come, the s!y is aflame for you, the earth 2ua!es at you before the god,s birth; the two
mountains are split apart, the god comes into being, the god has power in his body ;
/so0 the two mountains are split apart, this King comes into being, this King has power
in his body.
9ehold this King, his feet are !issed by the pure waters which e%ist through )tum,
which the phallus of (hu ma!es and which the vagina of Tefenet creates. They have
come and have brought to you the pure waters with their father; they cleanse you and
ma!e you divine, O- King. #ou shall support the s!y with your hand, you shall lay
down the earth with your foot, a libation shall be poured out at this King,s gate. +hen
the face of every god is washed, you shall wash your hands, O- Osiris, you shall wash
your hands, O- King, you shall be young /again0, O- god.