Following the Sun : A Practical Guide to Egyptian Religion

by Sharon LaBorde

A newly revised and expanded edition of the popular original, "Following the Sun" contains everything you need to get started in your own Egyptian Pagan or Kemetic practice. It includes major topics such as explanations of Egyptian history versus conspiracy theories, understanding the concept of "ma'at" and Egyptian ethics, how to build your own altar or shrine, crafting your own ritual garb and oils, and rituals and prayers for a variety of purposes. Now with expanded sections on ancient Nubia's relation to ancient Egypt, ancient polytheism and the Exodus story, and complete rituals for a Tameran Wheel of the Year. With a down-to-earth, easy to read format, this book is a must for anyone seeking to explore Egyptian Paganism.

Genres: Egypt, Religion, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Paganism, History

300 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2010

Reviews

[Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very thorough and practical guide to the ancient Egyptian religion.

[Brandon Hensley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is written with a clear vision and an impeccably thought-out purpose: to assume zero-knowledge on the part of the reader, and to make zero assumptions on the part of the author. Sharon LaBorde sets out the principles of Egyptian/Kemetic Polytheism in their simplest terms without diluting the wealth of knowledge and source material she brings to the table. In making zero assumptions about the reader, she also presents the material in two different ways to ensure its accessibility. On the one hand she presents it as it would be meaningful to those who are more reconstructionist in their outlook, and on the other hand she presents it as it would be meaningful to those who are more eclectic and/or Wiccan in their outlook. In neither approach does she dilute the value of the text, something that is difficult for any author to do when trying to maximize the potential audience. Her careful treatment of historic sources, philological problems within the history (and contemporary study) of Egyptology, and sensitive acknowledgements of contemporary issues of race, colonialism, and privilege makes this an absolutely essential piece to have on one's bookshelf if one is interested in Egyptian Paganism.

My main criticism is that the book is presented in such a way that belies the academic skill of its author. While LaBorde has mentioned on her YouTube channel that she avoids in-line citations and footnotes because they interrupt the flow of reading, this becomes a detriment when she begins exploring some of the less accessible historical points regarding various temples and observances. Without these footnotes or in-line citations, we are left to fend for ourselves in her understandably lengthy bibliography. Her conversational style of writing is still highly scholarly and demands endnotes at the very least, and it leaves a sense of incompleteness when I cannot easily pinpoint what rabbit hole I need to follow next. Thankfully the book is not entirely devoid of in-line references, and she often refers to what source a particular text or recipe comes from. However, given the overall quality of the work, the relative lack of references is disappointing.

Overall, and I cannot stress this enough, if you are looking for a book to get started on the path of practical Egyptian religion in a contemporary context, or if you are looking simply to help round out your current observance, this book is required reading.

[Sophie Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Too be honest the only thing I have to mention is that we now know the pyramids were not Pharoah tombs, although they were built for the Pharoahs at the time. None of the Pharoahs who commissioned the build of the pyramids are buried in them, neither were the Pharoahs after them.

This is a newer discovery though and this book was revised in 2017. In 2017 we all fully believed the pyramids were tombs.

I loved the journey through egyptian history. Not wild or overbearing. It's very readable even for those who don't know about Egypt/kemeticism. It goes through a time line of sorts, discusses holidays and how the Egyptians viewed the world and their religion. Which is just so incredibly interesting.

I don't know how people can know ancient egypt existed/moder egypt exists and not want to learn everything they can about it lol

This includes Gods/Goddesses descriptions and prayers/rituals as well.

Very approachable read

I count these reads and textbooks because I do read/study them for fun 😂 it's self care for me.

Dua Anpu 💜

[R.C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book, like just about every book on religion, could be extremely right for the right person. For me, though, this book tried to do too many things in perhaps the wrong order.

Overall, it just lost stars because it talked about too many things before it actually got into the meat of the topic. This problem started in the very first chapter, which is about "controversies" and in-depth treatments of side questions such as "were the Egyptians black?", "what about the Exodus in the Bible?" and "what about Atlantis?" Which just...baffled me, as these felt like barely relevant side issues (or drama that was going on in the author's religious circle) that the author just had to talk about (for 30 pages) before she could move on. It was just very ODD and felt very pasted on. Add to that the next chapter being what felt like a gratuitously long essay on Egyptian history that didn't feel like it added enough to the religious discussion later to make up for the amount of pages it took up. (Also, the author won no points from my little academic heart by saying basically, "people have said I should include citations for this huge analysis of Egyptian history I'm giving here, but why should I, they are in the books in the bibliography, read those if you want" which just signaled to me that she wanted to do analysis without actually showing her work - not a good look.) At that point we were over 70 pages in and I was frustrated enough to put the book down for...like...six months.

The rest of the book was much better, though, as chapter 3 started about where I'd expect, with magical worldview, and then getting into the gods and rituals and holidays, as well as the other recipes/how-tos you'd expect for a book aimed at those interested in exploring the faith. The beginning, though, just felt like a stumbling block to get to this information. I'd give everything but the first three chapters 4 stars!

[Damian Brzeszczyński · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is truly wonderful, and I am certain that it's gonna stay with me for a very long time. It gives you the basics, and, fortunately, it suggests where you can learn more about more specific problems concerning the Ancient Egyptian Religion.

Also, the cover is incredibly beautiful. I may be biased, though. I love Ra.

[Kirsty Rowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an incredibly informative book, and with that in mind I would say its not for a casual read, you need to be concentrating in order to truly take in the information. It's also fabulous for reference and a book I will continue to go back to for information.

[Halon W · Rating 5 out of 5]

very informative and wide-scoped--overall a great read! i plan to read their other book as well. i would've liked more in-text citations, as i plan to branch out to many of the sources used for further research

[Hinakah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting to read but didn’t necessarily convince me to follow kemeticism, not that that was the point of this book. I wish it went deeper into the stories of the deities and how to venerate them. If you are new to Ancient Egyptian Religion this is a great book to start.