Anubis was associated with the mummification and protection of the dead for their journey into the afterlife. He was usually portrayed as a half human, half jackal, or in full jackal form wearing a ribbon and holding a flail in the crook of its arm. The jackal [Note: recent genetic studies show that the Egyptian jackal is actually a form of the grey wolf and has thus been renamed the “Egyptian Wolf" was strongly associated with cemeteries in ancient Egypt, since it was a scavenger which threatened to uncover human bodies and eat their flesh. The distinctive black color of Anubis “did not have to do with the jackal [per se] but with the color of rotting flesh and with the black soil of the Nile valley, symbolizing rebirth.”
Anubis is depicted in funerary contexts where he is shown attending to the mummies of the deceased or sitting atop a tomb protecting it. In fact, during embalming, the “head embalmer” wore an Anubis costume. The critical weighing of the heart scene in the Book of the Dead also shows Anubis performing the measurement that determined the worthiness of the deceased to enter the realm of the dead (the underworld, known as Duat). New Kingdom tomb-seals also depict Anubis sitting atop the nine bows that symbolize his domination over the enemies of Egypt.
Look at me busting out some last minute art before Fanime. This is also a submission to Out of Step Books’s Enchanted art anthology.
Meanwhile you can pick up prints at my Etsy shop
HYMN TO ANPU
Hail Lord of the Western Lands
Hail Foremost of Westerners
Hail Lord of the Necropolis
Hail Chief of the Holy Dwelling
Hail Weigher of Righteousness
Hail Prince of the Divine Court
Hail Jackal Ruler of the Bows
Hail Anpu
Be welcome in peace
You who are lord of this shrine
You whose face is strong amongst the gods
In ancient texts you were all of these things
To me you are all of these things and so much more
To me you are like a father in so many ways
You have been there for as long as I can remember
I grew up under your watchful eye
From your painting on my wall
I always knew you were real
But I never knew you were really there
Watching me grow up from your painting on my wall
I called to you in times of trouble
When I felt weak and powerless
To right the wrongs done, to give me strength
When I felt lost and alone
To show me the way, and soothe my tattered heart
I never heard a reply, I didn’t need to.
I knew you would hear, wherever you were
With childlike certainty and innocence I knew
But I never knew you were really there
Watching me grow up from your painting on my wall
More grown up now, I know better
I feel your presence when I sit before your shrine
Like a warm cool darkness, a summer twilight all around me
And while still you do not speak
Oh Lord of the Lands of Silence
You guide me but softly
You teach me but gently
From the shadows in the Land of Silence
You reveal your guidance and warnings without words
Through my intuition you speak
So I do not know when it’s you, or if it’s just me
That I may heed and follow as I choose.
For you rule wit out ruling
You guide but do not force
You unlock the door but do not open it
That is left to me, so that I will grow
Into the kind of independent child any parent would be proud of
You compel my love and devotion without demanding
I’ve made no vows, no promises of service, of my devotion
Between us there is no need for overt assertions of proof
Oh Weigher of Hearts
You know the truth of the love and devotion within my heart
You know my dedication is already given
In what I know as your way
Without words
I trust you without question
And follow without tiring
For while in your presence I am at peace
The kind of peace that is so precious, so rare
The utter tranquility of all of my being
I ask for little other than you remain,
Guiding, teaching, and strengthening as you do
From the shadows in the Land of Silence
Until I cross the threshold and join you there
