The Death of Osiris Shishaq

Before we go back to the individual scenes in the hypocephalus, I'd like to share some things about Egyptian death rituals and their purpose in their understanding of their faith. They had a strong belief in life after death.  From picture found on the walls of burial chambers and pyramids, the life after death was all of the good things of this earth life only bigger and better than anything we have here.  If the deceased had led a good and virtuous life, s/he could become as the gods.  In the earlier dynasties, all people became an Osiris.  In the later dynasties, if a man, he could become an Osiris; if a woman, she could become a Hathor. 

The Egyptians believed in a resurrection.  Osiris is a resurrected God, slain in life by his own brother, Set, and saved by his wife, Isis.  The highly respected Egyptologist, Budge, mentioned that Christian missionaries to Egypt in the earliest years of the Christian faith found huge success and growth in the Church in Egypt; the reason he cited was that it wasn't that big a step from Osiris to Jesus Christ.

Egyptians also believed in the post-mortal existence of the family, as represented by Osiris, Isis, and their son, the god Horus.  These three are represented in stone at the Temple of Karnak. There are even sections in the Book of the Dead that discuss the binding or sealing of families together.

The Book of the Dead: This is a very detailed description of those things every Egyptian should know about God, life, and death.  It very likely was associated with some sort of ritual (we might say "ordinance") through which each Egyptian passed to prepare him/her for the path each must walk to get to Osiris.  It would include messengers/helpers to guide them along the path; the negative confessions each must make along the way (I have not committed adultery; I have not murdered; I have not stolen; etc.); the final judgment when the heart is weighed to determine the person's worthiness to pass into the presence of the god, Osiris.  LDS scholar, Hugh Nibley, as called this an Egyptian Endowment in his book on this topic.  Some Egyptologists believe it to contain magic spells.  We understand it to contain ordinances.

The Book of Breathings: This is a sort of Reader's Digest condensed version of the Book of the Dead.  It is often placed in the coffin with the deceased person.  As such, it is sometimes called a coffin text.  Among the fragments of papyri owned by the LDS Church are portions from 3 different sets of the Book of Breathings.  The names of the deceased are included in their personal book.

The Book of Breathings is so named because it describes the resurrection when the deceased is entered into that place where his/her breathing is restored.  This is just one of the many pictures I found on this topic.  To me it looks like gods or messengers from god opening a veil though which the person would pass if s/he knew the correct responses.

The hypocephalus is a disc-shaped token placed under the deceased person's head.  It is a reminder for the eternality of life and the connection of this life to the life to come in one complete round.  The outer ring represent the expanse of the heavens.  The great God of Creation is the central focus of the piece.  It is divided into two halves with God in the center.  The upper half shows things of the eternity.  The Solar Barque is portrayed in this section because it is the belief that the deceased person traveled by barque on his/her road to Osiris.  The barque is a means of transportation but it is also a protection to the person riding in it.

The bottom half of the circle (shown here upside down for easier reading)represents this earth life.  It deals with the four corners of the earth, with fertility and family.

Sometimes the writing on the hypocephalus have been called magic or spells to keep the dead person safe, but I don't believe it is a grouping of magical spells.  I see it as a testimony and hope for eternal life of the person who is dead.  The one in the Book of Abraham belonged to a man named Shishaq.  He is referenced in the prayers written alongside of God.  It refers to him as 'Osiris Shishaq' and expresses Shishaq's hope for an eternal if in the presence of Osiris.  I'd call that faith and hope, not magic.

Most of my sources came from a Discussion of the Pearl of Great Price presented by BYU TV and featuring several members of the faculty from the Department of Ancient Scripture.  Professor Rhodes, who was a key person on the panel, is, in fact, an Egyptologist and very knowledgeable and highly respected on the subject.  You can watch a rerun of this program by following this link:
http://www.byutv.org/watch/cadcec25-f9d6-4451-b196-e2e32c8ea4d5/pearl-of-great-price-discussions-the-facsimilesthe-picnic