Anubis Speaks!: A Guide to the Afterlife by the Egyptian God of the Dead (4 page)

Caution

ANUBIS WOULD LIKE TO advise you that his

retelling of Ra’s journey through the Land of the Dead combines stories from various papyri and tomb paintings that make up the Books of the Afterlife, such as the Book of Caverns, Book of Hours, Book of Hidden Chambers, Book of Gates, and others. He knows that ancient Egyptian stories and beliefs often changed by district or dynasty and that they often contradicted one another. He selected the stories that he thought best captured the gist of ancient Egyptian beliefs, and also the ones that had the highest chance of scaring you and grossing you out.

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gREETINGS, mORTAL

Allow me to introduce myself. I am

Anubis—the Egyptian god of the “Mysteries of Embalming,” the “Guardian of the Veil of Death,”

“Opener of the Ways of the Dead,” and if you are

“bad” . . .
Your. Worst. Nightmare
.

But do not fear. I will not snatch your beating heart from your chest and toss it to my good friend, crocodile-headed Amut the Destroyer, for a squishy snack . . . not
today
anyway. Instead, I will guide you through my world of deep magic, strange gods, and gruesome monsters. I will show you how my people, the ancient Egyptians, prepared the dead for eternal life, and how we gods fought the forces of darkness 8