A brief history of Anubis and the ancient Egyptian afterlife

Learn about the famous jackal-man Anubis and his role in the ancient Egyptian pantheon. For more information about ancient Egyptian afterlife customs and beliefs, check out these Amazon affiliate link resources:
YTC Egyptian Anubis – Collectible Figurine Statue Figure Sculpture Egypt Multi-colored
Ancient Gods of Egypt
Anubis: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Egyptian God of the Afterlife
Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Book of Going Forth by Day: The Complete Papyrus of Ani Featuring Integrated Text and Full-Color Images
Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt

Watch the Hartiverse video about the god Anubis here: https://youtu.be/49dnRMYiHew

The gods associated with ancient Egypt are among the most ancient deities recognized, and amongst these, Anubis may be the most well-known. Archaeologists have discovered references to Anubis in the earliest pre-dynastic period of Egyptian history, more than 5,000 years ago.

To ancient Egyptians, the world acted according to the model of the area where these people were living, brought to life by the sun along with the Nile, each capable of making life along with death. Their community was quite organized. Every year the Nile river would burst its banks and spread out over the fields, after which it would recede, providing fertilized land. Existence, to the ancient Egyptians, acquired a rhythm enshrined in religion.

There were a great many other gods who in turn took many forms and had various titles. Each area and village had its own gods and beliefs, but some gods were popular to just about all regions of Egypt and commonly known today as Osiris, Isis, Anubis, Bes, Ma’at, Khum, Seth, Hathor, Bastet, Thoth, Sobek, Amun Ra, Mut and Khonsu.

Anubis was a principal deity of the very first Egyptians. He was the primary god belonging to the 17th Upper Egyptians, an urban area the Greeks called “Cynopolis,” or City of the Dogs. His general role changed because of the growth of the cult of Osiris. Myth asserts Anubis was a son of Osiris, not by Isis his wife, but by Nepthys, who had disguised herself as Isis. Worried about her own husband’s anger from her giving birth, Nepthys then asked Isis to become the foster mother of Anubis.

Today Anubis may be known generally as the “God of the Dead,” yet this includes connotations that are absent from his role in Egyptian faith. The afterlife was very serious to the ancient Egyptians and they invested a lot of their existence planning for this, thinking that after they perished they would journey to an underworld called Duat where they would be judged. The voyage was believed to be very difficult, so numerous spells and incantations were needed to help them uncover the way.

These were written in the “Book of Coming Forth by Day,” often known as the “Book of the Dead” which was put within the coffin. About 17 feet in length, these books associated with the prosperous would comprise their own individual range of spells and adornment, whereas those not as well-heeled would get one and simply add the name of their loved one. It’s obvious from the many such books that have lasted, that Anubis wasn’t to be dreaded or feared, he was rather the friend of the dead, because Anubis defended “he who is upon his mountain,” not simply the dead, but also their resting places. This could be the basis for his therianthropic manifestation, being a male with the head of a jackal, as jackals were generally found in or around a necropolis.

Anubis is always displayed in black, as that is the color of a body after it has been mummified. His zoomorphic form is seemingly that of a jackal, although a number of scholars argue that it is in fact a jackal-dog hybrid. Howard Carter, expounding on possibly the most recognized Anubis statue of all, the Anubis statue from the burial place of Tutankhamen, mentions canine-like ears as well as a pointed muzzle with the low slung tail of the jackal.

As the ancient Egyptians had a strong faith in the existence of a soul or spirit, they were equally sure that both the human body and spirit were necessary to be able to take pleasure in the afterlife. It was this belief which led them towards the invention of ever more advanced procedures of mummification to conserve the body and also the making of tombs to store it.

It was the purpose of Anubis to protect the body and shield it through the mummification treatment when he would preside over the embalming of the body as well as the “opening of the way,” the ceremony where the departed became able to converse and eat again in preparation for the afterlife. For this reason, an Anubis statue, more so than almost every other Egyptian statue, has been seen in every tomb.

The last and maybe most important role of Anubis was to guide the deceased through the underworld to the “Hall of Two Truths” where he was shown as a heart. The belief was that every individual, including the pharaoh, would be required to weigh his soul against the feather of Ma’at, the goddess associated with justice. As guardian of the dead, Anubis ensured the scale was exactly horizontal before the judgement. If the soul was too heavy, it was the responsibility of Anubis to offer the dead to Ammit, the feared demon who would destroy the deceased forever, but if the judgement was favorable, the deceased was viewed as having led an outstanding and genuine life and was made welcome by Osiris to the afterlife.

Whether a jackal or a jackal-headed man, an Egyptian god of the dead statue appeared to be part of every Egyptian home, reassuring the occupants that even through loss, they would receive a reasonable and just guardian and protector to guide the way to immortality.

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