Akhe - Religion

Question 1

What is he known as?

Answer 1

• “living spirit of Aten” “he who is of service to the Aten” – Akhenaten himself

Question 2

What is he famous for?

Answer 2

• Initiating a religious revolution – didn’t last long
• Did this by promoting new version of sun god, Aten and denouncing all other Egyptian gods
• Moving Egypt’s capital north from Thebes, establishing a brand new city, Akhetaten (Amarna) – horizon of Aten. May have wanted to cut off from religion of Thebes, city gone now as Horemheb took for own building which in turn preserved it.
• Commissioning amazing artworks with a new natural style as well as a new sun temple style with no roof or inner sanctuary.
• Neglecting the empire? (some historians believe blame for decline of empire as ignored foreign relations)

Question 3

Although it is believed he invented Aten, what does Redford maintain?

Answer 3

‘changes had been building up for generations’ and according to Gardiner ‘revolution was already in the air’ in the reign of his father, Amenhotep.

Question 4

History of Atenism before him:

Answer 4

Worship of sun god associated with royalty since the Old kingdom and the Aten regarded as physical aspect of sun god. There was already concept of one universal, creative sun god (Re-Horakhte), new deity called Aten with own sanctuaries and priests

Question 5

What happened during his reign to religion?

Answer 5

Polytheism -> monotheism

Question 6

How did his religious revolution happen?

Answer 6

Historians separate it into 3 main stages.

Each was characterised by new developments in ideology, building and artistic techniques and actions

Question 7

Stage 1: when he announced a new solar god, Re-Horakhte, what did he refer to it as?

Answer 7

• The Great Sun-Disk, The Fashioner of Brightness

- The Living Disk who Brightens the Land with its Beauty

Question 8

Stage 1: What did he state on two damaged talatat blocks?

Answer 8

new god unique as Aten was living, self-created god represented only by the light radiated from the sun-disk

Question 9

Stage 1: What was Re-Horakhte still depicted as?

Answer 9

a falcon-headed god with the solar disk above him early in this stage

Question 10

Stage 1: What was difference between the other gods?

Answer 10

• images of other gods (i.e. statues) were created by man and that these statues were worshipped
  • The sun, however, seemed to be a living entity in the sky and was self created, existing before humans.
  • Primal existence

Question 11

Stage 1: How did he justify its existence?

Answer 11

Primordial god and continue to exist even after humans – raise status as god

Question 12

Stage 1: how was the god depicted at this stage?

Answer 12

2 figures depicted sitting across from each other on either side of a table of offerings. Close relationship between king and god evident

Question 13

Stage 2: when was it?

Answer 13

2 or 3 year reign

Question 14

Stage 2: when did he introduce major changes?

Answer 14

possibly coinciding with jubilee festival (celebrating reign every 7 years though held in his third year)

Question 15

Stage 2: What changed to the image of the god?

Answer 15

anthropomorphic flacon-headed man was replaced with an icon

Question 16

Stage 2: What was the Aten nor represented as?

Answer 16

large disk with a uraeus and arm-like rays ending in hands. In some depictions hands hold ankhs (offer symbol of life to king) or hands open to accept king’s offerings

Question 17

Stage 2: How was Akhenaten often depicted in scene with Aten?

Answer 17

In these depictions, Akhenaten often dominated image, depicting himself bigger than the god as sign of status. Also close proximity

Question 18

Stage 2: arch. evidence for rise of Aten:

Answer 18

God’s name enclosed in 2 cartouches showed heavenly king, accompanied by “Aten the Living, the great, Who is in Jubilee, Lord of Heaven and Earth”

Question 19

What were the main significance of these changes from stage 1-2?

Answer 19

• Breaking with the tradition of cult images and the associated rituals by choosing an icon, rather than an anthropomorphic form.
• Pointed out that the god “built himself by himself” without the involvement of humans.
• Position of the king in relation to the Aten and his size affirmed the king’s divinity (his god-like status)
• This position depicts Akhenaten as a manifestation of the god on earth.
• King became the focus of worship since only he could have a relationship with the Aten.
• Despite these changes, there was no break with any other god. The Aten and other gods, such as Amun were worshipped alongside each other.

Question 20

Stage 3: When was it?

Answer 20

Years 5 to 9 of reign

Question 21

Stage 3: What happened during this stage?

Answer 21

His belief that the sun-disk was the only god was implemented with greater intensity.

Question 22

Stage 3: what actions did he take?

Answer 22

• Built cult centre which belonged exclusively to Aten.
• Took action against all other gods, particularly Amun.
• As evidence of break with Amun, changed name from Amenhotep IV (Amun is satisfied) to Akhenaten (He who is serviceable to the Aten).
• Ordered closure of all temples of other gods and erased their names from temple walls and tombs.
• Even mortuary gods such as Osiris were no longer mentions in the texts and Osirian funerary rites were not practiced.
The plural word ‘gods’ never used again during his reign

Question 23

What were his main religious changes?

Answer 23

• Promoted Re-Horekhte -> later replaced with icon, Aten
• Introduced new sun temple layout – similar and different to traditional
• Built new capital, Akhetaten, dedicated to god ‘Horizon of Aten’
• Stopped using word ‘gods’ and closed many temples, esp. Amun temples
• Cancelled religious festivals (Opet -> Jubilee)
• Changed his name

Question 24

Where is his view of the Aten found?

Answer 24

Hymn to the Sun-Disk

Question 25

What does he associate to the Aten in the Hymn?

Answer 25

the creator of all life “You made the earth as you wish” “You made millions of forms from yourself alone”, a universal god, the sustainer of life, a source of power and beauty, a remote, heavenly king “Though you are far, your rays are one earth. Though one sees you, your strides are unseen.”

Question 26

Despite beauty of hymn, what does Redford maintain?

Answer 26

maintain that Aten was cold and lacking in compassion, that although it created and sustained life, ‘no texts tells us that he hears the cry of the poor man, or succours the sick, forgives the sinner’.

Question 27

What kind of god wasn’t the Aten?

Answer 27

not a god that ordinary Egyptians could relate to, and was intentional as could only be worshipped through the son of the disk, Akhenaten and ‘great queen whom he loves’

Question 28

Where is evidence for his rel/ship with Aten?

Answer 28

hymns and prayers inscribed on tomb walls of king’s courterirs

Question 29

What is his rel/ship with Aten with quotes?

Answer 29

o The living image of Aten on earth. The physical son of Aten – ‘your child who comes from your rays’
o The only one who knew his father’s will and mind – ‘Whom you have taught your ways and your might’
o The only one whose prayers were heard by the Aten
o The only one to express Aten’s teachings – ‘I have carried out his teaching.’
o Akhenaten’s relationship with the Aten, ‘reaffirmed the divinity of kingship’

Question 30

what was the features of the Aten cult?

Answer 30

• exlusive, nothing left from traditional forms of worship
• no divine family but linked in a traid with his creation, Akhenaten (male principle) and Nefertiti (female principle)
• not anthropomorphic
• No mythology associated with Aten, only daily ritual was food offering, no cult image of god so no need for festivals such as Opet and Valley festivals
• only king communicate with Aten

Question 31

what does a historian state about feature of the Aten cult?

Answer 31

As historian states, “Akhenaten attemped to simplify the solar cult but what he ‘left to Egypt was not a god at all but a disk in the heavens’”

Question 32

what were the main effects of his religious changes?

Answer 32

• Temple architecture, decoration and ritual,
• art,
• king’s jubilee,
• site and layout of new capital city Akhetaten,
• economy,
• funerary practices,
• social life of ordinary Egyptians

Question 33

feature of new sun temple?

Answer 33

traditional roofed temple with dim interior and dark windowless sanctuary replaced with temple ope to sky so living disk could be seen throughout the day

Question 34

what were his sun temples oriented to?

Answer 34

the rising sun

Question 35

what does the talatat at Thebes record?

Answer 35

Talatat, record existence of four sun temples built to Aten at Thebes

Question 36

where was offering ritual held?

Answer 36

• Held in open, conducted by king who was the only one eligible to deal directly with the Aten.
• Reliefs show him riding to the temple of Aten in his chariot, accompanied by his family, officials and soldiers.

Question 37

what happened to other temples due to concentration on Aten?

Answer 37

Other temples suffered as more and more goods were reserved for the worship of Aten.

Question 38

what changed in art?

Answer 38

• With emergence of Aten, came changes in temple and funerary art: the proportions of human figure (partic. King) and composition of scenes that included royal family.

Question 39

how was Akhenaten and Nefertiti often represented as?

Answer 39

• often appeared together standing under the rays of Aten, as image created divide triad – creator god and the male and female aspects of the cosmos.

Robins believe when child added to scene, represents the ‘continued powers of creation’.

Question 40

when and why did he build new city Akhetaten?

Answer 40

• Sometime in year 5, believed he announced his decision to build a new city dedicated to Aten. (abandon Thebes)
• Gardiner: this was “promoted by the recognition that the cults of Aten and Amun-re could no longer be carried out side by side”.

Question 41

why did he build akhetaten?

Answer 41

He may have believed Aten deserved a special city of its own, built on a site which had never been associated with any other god

Question 42

where is akhetaten?

Answer 42

Located near modern El-Amarna

Question 43

what happened to the economy when he introuced Aten?

Answer 43

For centuries, the Egyptians had a system in which religion, politics and economics were integrated. By focusing on ‘one god’, building a new capital, Akhenaten altered the economy and turned the whole system upside down

Question 44

why did he close all the other temples?

Answer 44

It is possible that when Akhenaten closed all the Amun temples he had economic motives. The Amun priesthood was very wealthy, perhaps he believed this money could fund his new building program in Akhetaten. Also since Akhenaten did not replace these temples the economy started to break down which lead to corruption.

Question 45

what happened to the system and production after Aten?

Answer 45

‘the abandonment of the system of divine estates led to the ruination of a whole system of production and distribution without providing any new structure to replace it’

Question 46

what happened to the funerary practices?

Answer 46

Funerary practices changed during Akhenaten’s reign, when the Aten came in, other funerary beliefs were eliminated. Continuity remained in once aspect of burial practices; mummification. However, rituals were under developed during Atenism as Akhenaten had banned the cult of Osiris. Its seems that under Akhenaten’s reign, the commoner had to worship the king for a good afterlife. They could no longer be welcomed into the afterlife by Osiris. This had a large impact on Egyptian people, as they had nothing to look forward to in the afterlife.