ISIS RITUAL

ISIS RITUAL

One of the enduring sources of information about Isiacism (Isis worship) in the Greco-Roman world is the Golden Ass by Lucius Apuleius of Madaura.

Lucius was an educated man who lived during the height of the Roman Empire in the first half of the second century CE. He was initiated into the worship of Isis and his real life experience of the cult served as inspiration for his writing.

Towards the end of the Golden Ass, Lucius is thought by many modern scholars to have woven part of the liturgy (1) of Isis into his story (see below). These moving and powerful words provide a glimpse at the passion surrounding the Great Mother Goddess of the Nile – a goddess whose worship had, in Lucius’ time, been observed for thousands of years.

"En adsum tuis commota, Luci, precibus, rerum naturae parens, elementorum omnium domina, saeculorum progenies initialis, summa numinum, regina manium, prima caelitum, deorum dearumque facies uniformis, quae caeli luminosa culmina, maris salubria flamina, inferum deplorata silentia nutibus meis dispenso: cuius numen unicum multiformi specie, ritu vario, nomine multiiugo totus veneratus orbis. Inde primigenii Phryges Pessinuntiam deum matrem, hinc autochthones Attici Cecropeiam Minervam, illinc fluctuantes Cyprii Paphiam Venerem, Cretes sagittiferi Dictynnam Dianam, Siculi trilingues Stygiam Proserpinam, Eleusinii vetusti Actaeam Cererem, Iunonem alii, Bellonam alii, Hecatam isti, Rhamnusiam illi, et qui nascentis dei Solis et occidentis inclinantibus inlustrantur radiis Aethiopes utrique priscaque doctrina pollentes Aegyptii caerimoniis me propriis percolentes appellant vero nomine reginam Isidem.”

Rerum naturae parens, elementorum ominium domina, saeculorum progenies initialis, summa numinum, regina manium,

I am the mother of the universe, the sovereign of all the elements, the origin before the centuries, the totality of the divine powers, the queen of the spirits,

prima caelitum, deorum dearumque facies uniformis, quae caeli luminosa culmina, maris salubria flamina, inferum deplorata silentia nutibus meis dispenso:

the first of the celestial ones; the unique image of all the male and female divinities: I rule with a sign of the head the bright peaks of the celestial vault, the salutary winds of the sea, the desolate silences of the hell.

cuius nomen unicum multiformi specie, ritu vario, nomine multiiugo totus veneratur orbis.

My essence is indivisible, but in the world I am worshipped anywhere under manifold forms, with different rites, under different names.

Inde primigenii Phryges Pessinuntiam deum matrem,

Therefore the Frigis, the first inhabitants of the earth, call me mother of the gods [Great Mother, Cybele], adored in Pessinus;

et qui nascentibus dei Solis inchoantibus (et occidentis inclinantibus) inlustrantur radiis Aethiopes utrique priscaque doctrina pollentes Aegyptii caerimoniis me propriis percolentes appellant vero nomine reginam Isidem.

But the two stocks of the Ethiopians, the one illuminated by the rising rays of the god Sun at dawn, the others by those dying at sunset, and the Egyptians gifted with the ancient knowledge, they honour me with rites that belong to me alone, and they call me with my true name: Isis Queen.

The translation of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs (the original language of Isis) into modern English is fraught with many obstacles. The most obvious of these is the relative size of both languages.

Egyptian hieroglyphs are highly symbolic devices numbering less than a thousand individual forms. Modern English on the other hand is the largest, most complex language every spoken and contains approximately 1,000,000 words.

In practical terms this means each individual hieroglyph can be described by any number of words in English, providing a wide margin for error and debate among Egyptologist. Although Egyptologists have gained considerable ground in understanding and translating hieroglyphs, the interpretation of many glyphs remains a subject of hot debate. Added to this problem are differences in culture.

The original significance of many hieroglyphs can only be understood via the religious or cultural context in which they first appeared. In many cases this cultural context has long disappeared and can only be guessed at by modern scholars. To modern eyes the religious ideas and practices of ancient Egypt are complex and unfamiliar and (again) there is much debate within academic circles.

In Ptolemaic times the vocalisation of religious liturgies (1) was alliterative in nature (ie. the commencement of two or more stressed syllables of a word group using the same letter, as in – apt alliteration’s artful aid). During classical times Egyptian priests were renowned for over-stressing their liturgies and making odd hisses and guttural sounds to heighten the effect of their words!

Following is part of a traditional morning rite in honour of the Egyptian Goddess Isis. Each phrase contains three versions – the ancient Egyptian language, a phonetic rendering of the original words and a modern English approximation: