shadow realms

These places mirror/shadow/overlap our physical world.

Neter Khert - sky -
Duat - solar
Sekhet Hetepet
Amentet - earth

Though Neter Khert is 'the sky' it is often translated as 'underworld' . This is a land of gods that people / human souls can go to. This place is associated with the 'stellar' path, mostly aimed at the Ka. Referanced through The Book of the Divine Cow and The Book of Aker. Nope, have not found the book of aker.

Book of the Divine Cow


Prelude

Then it came to pass, that the Majesty of Re, who came into being by
himself,
having been king of mankind and gods, (still) together as a unity,
(that) mankind
plotted against the person of Re while his Majesty, life, prosperity,
health, had grown old, his bones being silver, his flesh gold, his hair
of genuine lapis lazuli.

Part 1 : The Destruction of Mankind

the divine council


Now his Majesty had learned about the plot divised
against him by mankind. Then his Majesty, life, prosperity, health, said
to those who were
in his
retinue :

"Summon to me my Eye, Shu, Tefnut, Geb, and Nut as well as the
fathers and mothers who were with me when I was in Nun, and also the god

Nun, bringing his courtiers along with him. (But) bring them secretly,
lest
mankind see and their hearts flee. Come with them to
the Great Palace, so that they may give their council. (For) in the end,
I may return
to Nun, to the
place where I came into being !"

So these gods were brought, and these gods were lined up on
his two sides, bowing their heads toward the ground before his Majesty,
in order
that he might speak his words in front of the father of
the eldest (gods), the maker of mankind and king of commoners.

They said to his Majesty :
"Speak to us, so that we may hear it !"

Then Re
said to
Nun :
"O eldest god in whom I came into being, and You ancestral gods !
Behold, mankind,
who came into being from my Eye,
is plotting against me. Tell me what You
would do about this, since I am searching. I seek not to slay them
before having
heard what You might have to say."

The Majesty of Nun replied :
"O my son Re ! God greater than his maker, and
more august than his creators, be seated on your throne !
Great is fear of You when your Eye is on those who conspire
against You !"

The Majesty of Re said :
"See, they have fled into the desert, their
hearts being afraid that I speak to them."

They said to his Majesty :

"Send out your Eye that it may smite them for You, those conspirers of
evil
! No Eye is more fit to smite them for You. May it come down as Hathor
!"

the divine slaughter held off


(And so) this goddess returned after slaying mankind in the desert, and
the
Majesty of this god said (to her) :

"Welcome in peace, Hathor, Eye who did
what I came for !"

Said the goddess :
"As You live for me, I have
overpowered mankind, and it was balm to my heart."

Then the Majesty of Re
said :
"I shall have power over them as king !
Hold off diminishing their number !"

And
so the Powerful One (Sekhmet) came into being.

divine drunkenness

The beer-mash of the night for she who would wade in their blood
as far
as Henes.


Re said
:
"Summon to me speedy messengers who run like a body's shadow."

These
messengers were brought immediately, and the Majesty of this god said :

"Run up to
Yebu
and fetch me red ocher in great
quantity !"

So this red ocher was brought to him, and the Majesty of this great god
ordered the Side-Lock Wearer in On
to grind this red
ocher, while maidservants crushed barley for beer. Then the red
ocher was added to the beer-mash, and it looked like the blood of men ;
seven thousand
jars of beer were made.
Then the Majesty of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Re came together
with the gods to
see this beer.

And when the Earth was light for the killing of mankind by this goddess
in her
time of traveling South, the Majesty of
Re said :

"It is good ! I shall save mankind from her (by it)."

Re said
:
"Carry it to the place where she plans to slay mankind."

Re, the Majesty of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, got up early when
it was
still
night in order to have this sleeping draught poured out. Then the fields

were flooded three palms high with the liquid by the might of
the Majesty of this god. When the goddess set out in the morning, she
found
these (fields) inundated, and her face was delighted by it. She drank
and it
pleased her heart. She returned drunk and failed to recognize mankind.


The Majesty of Re said to this goddess :
"Welcome in peace ! O Beautiful
One !"

Thus
beautiful women came to be in Imu.

The Majesty of Re said to this
goddess :
"Let sleeping draughts be prepared for her on the seasonal
feasts of the year, and let this be entrusted to maidservants."

And since this first day, the (custom) came into being that people
entrust the
preparation of sleeping drinks to maidservants on the Feast of Hathor."

The
Majesty of Re said to this goddess :
"Is there a burning pain of sickness ?"

And so respect is bound to come into being through pain.

Part 2 : The Withdrawal of Re

The Majesty
of Re said :
"As true as I live, my heart is too weary to remain with them.
I wanted to slay them, but did not do it. At present, their small number
no
longer interests me."

The gods in his retinue said :
"Do not withdraw in your weariness,
for You have power over all what You desire."

The Majesty of this god then
said to the Majesty of Nun :
"My limbs are feeble as in the First Time. I
will not return until another (cycle) overtakes me."

Then the Majesty of Nun said :

"O (my) son Shu, {your} eye shall serve {your} father as protection.
O (my) daughter Nut, place him {upon your back}."

Nut replied :
"But how,
my father Nun ?"
Nut said : "Do not {be childish}, O Nun !"

{And so} Nut became {a
cow}.

Then the Majesty of Re {placed} himself on her back !

the rejection of slaughter

Thereupon these men {came back from their place of flight}, and they saw
him on the back of the
cow, and they spoke to him :

"(---) we have {come} so
that we might overthrow your enemies, who complotted against those who
created
them."

(But) his Majesty proceeded to {his} palace {on the back} of this cow.
He did
{not} set off with them ! So the land lay in darkness. And when it
dawned in the early morning, these men came out carrying bows and
{clubs}, and they {found} a way of shooting at the enemies.

(But) the Majesty of
this god said :
"Your baseness be behind You, slaughterers !
May
your slaughtering be far removed {from me}."

And so slaughter {originated} among mankind.

Re's ascension and palace among the stars

This god then said to Nut :
"I placed myself on your back to be uplifted."

"What
is this ?", asked Nut.

And so {she} came to be
there in both the heavens.

The Majesty of this god said :
"Stay far away
from them !
Lift me up !
Look at me !"

And so she became the sky.

Then the
Majesty of {this} god was visible within her.

She said :
"If only You would provide
me with a multitude !"

{And so the Milky Way} came into being.

His Majesty, life, prosperity, health, said :
"Peaceful is the field here."

And so the Field of
Offerings (or Peace) came into being.

"Oh, I shall plant green herbs in it."

And so the
Field of Rushes came into being.

"I shall provide them with everything."

And
so ever scintilating stars (came into being).

Then Nut started trembling owing to the height.

So the Majesty of Re said :
"lf only I had the Heh gods supporting
her !"

And so the Infinite Ones came into being.

The Majesty of Re said :
"O my son Shu, place yourself under my daughter
Nut and guard for me the two groups of Infinite Ones who
live in the twilight. Place her over your head and nurture her."

And so
it came to pass, that a nurse is given to a son or a daughter, and that a
father
places a son on top of his head.

Part 3 : The Cow of Heaven


This spell is to be recited over the (picture of) a cow, with "the
Infinite Ones who are"
(inscribed) on her chest, and over whose back is (inscribed) "the
Infinite Ones who are".
Whose four hoofs are filled out in
paint and upon whose belly are nine stars, issuing from its hindquarters
in front of its hind legs, while beneath its belly stands Shu, painted
in yellow ocher, his arms support these stars, and inscribed with his
name between
them, which says "Shu is himself".

A barque, on which are a steering-oar and a
shrine with a Solar disk over it and Re in it, is in front of Shu, close
to his
hand, while another version (of a barque) is behind him, close to his
(other)
hand. Her two udders are placed in the middle of her left leg, one half
of them being drawn in paint in the middle of this hind leg with the
following words outside in retrograde : "I am who I am. I will not
let them take action." What is (written) beneath the barque that is in
front
is : "You shall not grow weary, my son." - in
retrograde, and as follows : "Your condition is like that of one who
lives
forever." and as follows : "Your son is in me. Life, prosperity and
health be
for your nose !"


What is (written) behind Shu, close to his arm, is as follows : "Guard
them !"
What is behind him at his flank is (written) in retrograde as follows :
"It is
right that they should enter when I retire each day." What is (written)
under the arm of the figure below the left hind leg and behind it is
as follows : "Everything is sealed." What is (written) above his head,
below the hindquarters of the cow and what is between its hind legs is
as follows :
"May he come out." What is (written) behind the two figures
that are between its hind legs and above their heads : "The aged one is
in
the realm of the dead. Praise is given to him when he enters." What is
(written) over the heads of the two figures that are
between its forelegs : "He who procreates, he who adores, support of the

sky."

Part 4 : The New World Order


the Earth and the Duat

Then the Majesty of this god said to Thoth :
"Summon to me the Majesty of Geb
saying : 'Come quickly at once !'"


So the
Majesty of Geb came.

The Majesty of this god said :
"Take heed of your snakes which are in
You ! Behold, they feared me as long as I was there, but You know their
magical power. Go
then to the place where my father Nun is and tell
him to keep watch over terrestrial and aquatic snakes. You are to write
down each mound
belonging to the snakes there, saying : 'Beware of spoiling anything !'
They should know that I am here, for I am
shining for them too.
Now as for their habitation, it will exist in this
land forever. Also guard against the magical spells which their mouths
know, since
(the god) Magic is
himself therein, as indeed (the god) Knowledge is with You. It will not
happen, that
being as great as I am, I shall have to keep guard over them as formely.
I hand
them over to your son Osiris,
who will keep watch over the youngest of them
and cause the hearts of the oldest of them to forget their magical
power. They
who are excellent in what pleases them against the whole world, using
their magic which is in their bodies."

the divine mind as vicar of Re

The Majesty of this god said then :
"Summon then Thoth
to me."

So he was
brought at once, and the Majesty of this god said to Thoth :

"Behold, I am here in the sky in my abode. Since I am going to
give
light and brilliance in the Duat and on the Island of the Twin Bas,
be a scribe
there and calm down those who are there, those whom we created and those
who
(nevertheless) rebelled. It is You who shall repulse the followers
of this (god) with unsatisfied heart.
You are to be in my place, my vicar, so it
will be said of You : 'Thoth, the vicar of Re.' And I shall cause You to
send out those who
are greater than You."

And so the Ibis of Thoth came into being.

"And I
shall cause You to stretch out your hand in front of the primeval gods,
who are
greater than You, and my affairs will be good if You do that."

And so the Ibis-bird
of Thoth came into being.

"And I shall cause You to encompass the two
heavens with your perfection and with your brightness."

And so the Moon
of Thoth came into being.

"And I shall cause You to drive back the
Hanebu."

And so the Baboon of Thoth came into being and
became vizier.

"As long as You are my vicar, the eyes of all who look
at You are opened through You, and everyone will praise god for You."

Part 5 : The Magic of Nut and Re

the preparations


(If) a man pronounces this spell over himself, he should be anointed
with olive oil
and salve, the censer in his hands with incense, natron behind his ears
and natron pellets
in his mouth, dressed in two fresh linen garments, (put on) after
he has bathed himself in flowing water, shod with sandals of
white leather. Maat should be painted on his tongue
in the green colors of the scribe. If Thoth intends to recite this for
Re, he
should purify himself with a ninefold purification, three days long.
Servants
(of the god) and men should do the same. The one who recites this,
should carry
out this image which is in this book. Then he increases his lifetime
doublefold (---) of excess. His eyes will be his, and all his limbs will
be his.
His steps will not go astray, so that the people say of him : "He is
like Re on
the day of his birth !" His things cannot be diminished, nor can his
gateway
crumble. This is a successful method, (proven) a million times !

return to the First Time


Nun was embraced by the Eldest (god)
himself, who said to the gods who came out
(with him) in the East of the sky :

"Give praise to the Eldest god,
from whom I came into being ! It is I who made
the sky and set {it} in place in order to let the souls of the gods
reside in
it. I am with them for the eternal recurrence (of time) born through the
years. My soul is magic. It is (even) greater than
this."

Khnum is the soul of Shu.
Kindness is the soul of eternal recurrence.
Night is the
soul of darkness.
Re is the soul of Nun.
The Ram of Mendes is the soul of
Osiris.
Crocodiles are the souls of Sobek.
The soul of every god and every
goddess is in the snakes.
The soul of Apophis is in the Eastern Mountain, while
the soul of Re is in magic thoughout the whole world.

first spell : protection through Re


(What) a man should say in order to make his protection through magic :

"I am this pure
magic which is in the mouth and in the body of Re. O gods, You who are
far from
me. I am Re, the Luminous One !"

second spell : identification with the magic of Re


(What)
You should say when You pass by in the evening at twilight :

"Upon your face !
You enemy of Re !
I am his soul, pure magic !"

(and say) :
"O Lord of Eternal
Recurrence, who formed Everlastingness, who diminished the years of the
gods.
When Re comes down, these come out of him every day. Lord of his (own)
godliness. Ruler who made his own
maker. Beloved one of the fathers of the gods."

third spell : hymn to Nut


A magician, his head being purified, should make a female figure,
standing to his
South, and draw a goddess upon her, and in the middle of her, a snake
standing
erect upon its tail, with her hand upon its body and its tail upon the
ground.

(He should say) :
"O You, to whom Thoth gives praise, while the dignity of
heaven is upon You and toward whom Shu extends his arms, may You save me
from
those two great and mighty gods who dwell in the East of the sky,
who guard
heaven, who guard Earth, and who are with enduring mysteries."

Then they must
say :
"How great he is when he goes forth to see Nun !"

fourth spell : ritual of Re


for the living


Words recited by a priest on the first and the fifteenth of the month,
in accord
with this ancient format. The one who recites this spell shall
live in the necropolis, and respect for him shall be greater than (for)
those who are upon Earth.

If they ask :
"What are your names ?"

(answer) :
"Eternal Recurrence and Everlastingness !".

Then they are bound to say :
"{Truly}
a god !", and to say :
"He has reached us here by this way."

for the dead


(Say) :
"I know the name of that god whose face is that of Hersefu
! I am he to whom an
amulet is attached in the evening. I am Re amid his Ennead, his court
made of
magic. I pass by uninjured. I belong to the flame, which is the soul of
fire. I
have no adversaries among men, gods, spirits, among the dead, or in
anything in
the whole of this land."

Words spoken by these gods who are gone alive. The gods are to be
informed,
they who have their faces in their hands, (that) he is allowed to pass
by on the road.

And so the Flaming One came into being in the sky.

conclusion of the book ?

As for any able scribe who knows the divine words and the spells that
are in his
mouth, he can ascend and descend within the sky. Those of the West
cannot hold
him back, nor can the saliva of his mouth become hot. His head cannot be
removed
by decapitation, nor does he (need to) bend his arms before the
tribunal. He
shall enter at the head of the spirits together with those who know the
spells
of the magical formulary. No crime which he may have done upon Earth can
be reckoned. He can not
be short of donations, nor can the net be prepared for him. If You hand
over
(these spells) to any prince or to any magistrate, (those) who
take care for the one who has no bread, (then) his headcloth need not be
removed
(before) the elders, (but) they will regard him as leaves (------) One
shall not
do anything harmful to him or (------)

Duat - solar
this is also translated as underworld /realm of the dead - this is where Ra makes his nightly journey. this is a light and dark world. Or I shoudl say there is only light when Ra passes through that section. The Duat has two main sections : Sekhet- Hetepet (it has 14 regions/ Aats) Sekhet Iaru has seven arits and twenty one gates (with gate guardians) and corresponds to the moon cycles.

In the first aat in sekhet hetepet is the earth shadow, Amentet, its one of the destinations where life on earth is simulated in its most ideal way was a reward for living a 'justified' life.

You can find more about these 'realms' when reading things like budges books of what is in the duat. (which I dont feel like reading rt now.