“O my heart of different ages! Do not stand up as a witness against me, do not be opposed to me in the tribunal, do not be hostile to me in the presence of the keeper of the balance, for you are my ka which was in my body, the protector who made my members hale.”
Inspired by: Egyptian mythology.
Would you put your heart on the scale?
You die.
Then you find yourself flowing down a river, dodging the gaze of an evil snake, facing judgment from 42 minor deities, until you reach a room with a golden scale at the center.
You’re standing in the Hall of Truth, before the final test of the Egyptian afterlife journey – the Weighing of the Heart.
The Jackal-god Anubis will now place your heart on the scale against the feather of Ma’at – the goddess of justice, truth, and balance.
If your heart ends up being lighter than the feather – you get to pass into the afterlife.
But if it’s heavier, weighed down by your sins and your guilt… Ammit – a creature that’s part crocodile, part lion, and part hippopotamus, pleasantly nicknamed She Who Swallows the Dead, will consume your heart – forever destroying your soul.
If you faced this trial today: would you feel ready to put your heart on the scale?
***
A heavy heart
The myth of the weighing of the heart didn’t lose its relevance.
We still use expressions like: it weighs on my heart, when we feel sad, worried or guilty.
We can feel the weight of guilt on our hearts.
In Poland, we even use the expression: a stone off my heart, when we finally get rid of the guilt or worry that was weighing us down.
While the myth focuses on the weight of sin and guilt – not grief or sadness – it still serves as an important reminder to take care of our conscience.
To live our lives in a way that makes our hearts as light as a feather.
Updates
I took a couple vacation days, so I’ll finally have a bit more time on growing this newsletter.
Hope you enjoyed today’s issue – I wish to inspire you to search for other interesting stories yourself. Maybe you’ll find a new book that you love, or finally pick up the one you bought months ago but still didn’t open.
P.S. I received some info about issues with the poll. All of the votes seem to be going through on my end – so don’t worry, I’m getting all of your feedback.
Topic for next week: “Arachne – Why you should never outshine the master”
Hope to see you there,
Łukasz Skoneczny
