The Importance Of Religion In Ancient Egyptian Religion

The Importance Of Religion In Ancient Egyptian Religion

While some civilizations are defined by their religion, ancient Egyptian religion was defined by the civilization. The people of ancient Egypt (3500–30 BCE) were greatly influenced by the cyclical nature of their environment and the Nile River, causing their society to be immensely uniform in their ways. This uniformity is reflected in Egyptian theology and overall culture; the Egyptian polytheistic gods and their existence in daily life rarely, if ever, changed and never drastically. However, for a brief period in the Old Kingdom, a rapid shift in Egyptian religion took place. Akhenaten, originally known as Amenhotep IV, became pharaoh of Egypt, and with his rule came the upheaval of practices which had previously been in place for thousands of years.

With the cyclical nature of Egyptian society blossomed their desire for order and law. This order in ancient Egyptian civilization was referred to as Ma'at. All aspects of life were based around this concept and their religion could "'be defined as the realization of Ma'at'" (Charles 1). Ma'at was not only an idea, but a goddess to the Egyptians. She was associated with balance and harmony on Earth. With the existence of Ma'at came the importance of consistency in Egyptian beliefs and practices; one of these consistencies was the importance of the afterlife. Ancient Egyptian people believed in the existence of life after death. They left items with the dead to go with them as they passed and the people also worked to maintain

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