Η καθημερινή ζωή των Αιγυπτιακών Θεών

by D. Meeks - C. Favard Meeks, Σταύρος Βλοντάκης (Μετάφραση)

Μπορούμε να αποδώσουμε μια καθημερινή ζωή στους αιγυπτιακούς θεούς; Προτιμούμε να τους φανταζόμαστε ακίνητους, όμοιους με τα αγάλματά τους ή με τα ανάγλυφα των ναών.
Μολαταύτα οι συγγραφείς, καλώντας τον αναγνώστη να πάρει κατά γράμμα τις μυθολογικές διηγήσεις και τις ζωγραφισμένες ή σκαλισμένες στην πέτρα παραστάσεις, πετυχαίνουν να ξαναδώσουν ζωή και αίσθηση στις ιερατικές φιγούρες του αιγυπτιακού πανθέου.

Από σελίδα σε σελίδα διαγράφεται μια εκπληκτική σύλληψη του σύμπαντος, της γένεσής του και των μηχανισμών του. Θα το έχετε καταλάβει: δεν ανοίγει κανείς το βιβλίο αυτό, σοφή και φωτεινή αποκατάσταση της αιγυπτιακής θρησκείας, χωρίς να εκτεθεί σε μια βαθιά εντύπωση παραδοξότητας.

Genres: History, Egyptology, Nonfiction, Mythology, Egypt, Religion, Egyptian Literature

399 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[محمد جمال]

قرأت الترجمة العربية الصادرة عن مكتبة الأسرة... الكتاب شديد الأهمية والعظمة، لكن الترجمة العربية بائسة.
نصف مملكتي للي يجيبلي النسخة الإنجليزية من الكتاب، ورقي أو إلكتروني

[Alicja · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected this book, from what I read online about it, to be more like ‘Mythos’ or something similar but it was more like reading a thesis about Egyptian gods and their contribution to Egyptians and the Pharaohs. The main thing I liked about this book was the fact they had a lot of pictures in the book did help to visualise it better. I do suggest to anyone who reads the book that they have at least a little bit of knowledge relating to Egyptian gods but not enough to know the various Gods stories otherwise it would be a very difficult read.

[Fabio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Per chi vuole addentrarsi in questo mondo e conoscere più in profondità gli dèi egizi, lo raccomando assolutamente.

[DAJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something about French Egyptologists makes them treat their subject with an odd sort of exuberance. This book is Exhibit A. As the book's own back cover puts it, the authors treat the gods "as a tribe or community that has caught the interest of anthropologists." Part One, written by Meeks, draws largely on lesser-known mythological texts from the Late and Ptolemaic Periods that include some of the most bizarre stories. Then he embellishes them with subjective judgments of the gods' behavior and with odd details like "one can imagine the expression on poor Sobek's face". (Contrary to his assertion, I can't really picture what a chagrined crocodile would look like.) This strange, colorful side of the gods isn't discussed enough in Egyptology, but too often Meeks doesn't make clear which episode comes from what source (though the footnotes help), or what symbolic meaning a mythic incident might have. He does, however, make some important observations about aspects of the gods' behavior, ranging from their law courts to their bodily functions, that other sources overlook.

Favard-Meeks wrote Part Two, about the relationship between gods and humanity. It starts out with subject matter that many other sources cover: how the Egyptians envisioned the world and how they interacted with the gods in temples. It quickly moves into less familiar territory, as its description of the underworld consists mainly of a description of the Book of Caverns, which may be the weirdest underworld book and isn't as well known as some of the others. The last sections describe several festivals and the myths related to them, many of which, like the Ptolemaic New Year festivities, aren't very commonly described in other sources.

Despite its eccentricity, the book is useful for getting a well-rounded perspective on the gods. Its vivid anecdotes feel a world away from other authors' abstract, intellectual analyses of Egyptian theology. Once, when researching a particular topic covered in both places, I switched from a passage of Jan Assmann's The Search for God in Ancient Egypt to a section of this book and felt pretty jarred by the contrast.

[Ulvhud · Rating 4 out of 5]

Letto quando ancora non avevo alcuna base del mondo egizio (se non quelle nozioni apprese alla scuola dell'obbligo), si rivela un saggio piacevole per iniziare a muovere i primi passi nel mondo egizio

[J. Else · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s got lots of intriguing information that I’ll use in my writing. However, the presentation is dry and easily gets dull. Recommend biting off small nuggets at a time.

[Recensioni in tre parole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ultraterreno. Narrativo. Contemplativo.

[Claudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nella traduzione italiana il titolo risulta fuorviante perché della “vita quotidiana degli egizi” non c’è veramente nulla. Il titolo originale “La vie quotidienne des dieux égyptiens”, rispecchia effettivamente maggiormente quanto contenuto nel libro.
Si tratta di un excursus interessante e abbastanza approfondito sui rituali religiosi che andavano a caratterizzare la religione egiziana. Vengono spiegati e illustrati alcuni aspetti interessanti e sfumature particolari: il concetto di divinità, l’anima diversificata in ka e ba, l’oltretomba, i vari aspetti degli dei, i loro ruoli,…
Sono riportati e spiegati, anche alcuni racconti mitologici o stralci di essi. Diciamo che io ero in cerca di qualcosa che approfondisse maggiormente la cosmogonia, le caratteristiche degli dei, le dinamiche che intercorrono tra le varie divinità e, appunto, i racconti mitologici in senso stretto.

[Katelis Viglas · Rating 2 out of 5]

The greek translation of the volume is included inside a historical series for the daily life in different historical ages. It's an informative compedium on the subject. The writers focus at the facts of Egyptian myths which can be considered as gods' everyday activities. Because of the specificity of the subject, I think it can be used not only by a common reader, but by egyptologists as well. Due to its divine character the daily life of these entities is totaly strange, incredible, extraordinary, usually repulsive.

[800£Chimneypiece · Rating 2 out of 5]

Da una parte sono sicuramente io che, non sapendone abbastannza, non riuscivo a seguire facilmente; dall'altra mi aspettavo un saggio sulla vita quotidiana degli Egizi includendo anche elementi riguardanti la religione, e non un saggio esclusivamente sugli dèi con sporadiche incursioni degli uomini.

[Lorenzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very GREAT read!!!