[From the Papyrus of Nu (British Museum No. 10,477, sheet 13).]

The Chapter of knowing the “Chapters of coming forth by day” in a single Chapter. The overseer of the palace, the chancellor-in-chief, Osiris Nu, triumphant, begotten of the overseer of the palace, Amen-hetep, triumphant, saith:

“I am Yesterday and To-morrow; and I have the power to be born a second time. [I am] the divine hidden Soul, who createth the gods, and who giveth sepulchral meals to the divine hidden beings [in the Tuat (underworld)], in Amenti, and in heaven. [I am] the rudder of the east, the possessor of two divine faces wherein his beams are seen. I am the lord of those who are raised up, [the lord] who cometh forth from out of the darkness. [Hail,] ye two divine Hawks who are perched upon your resting-places, and who hearken unto the things which are said by him, the thigh [of the sacrifice] is tied to the neck, and the buttocks [are laid] upon the head of Amentet. May the Ur-urti goddesses (i.e., Isis and Nephthys) grant such gifts unto me when my tears start from me as I look on. ‘I know the abysses’ is thy name. [I] work for [you], O ye Khus, who are in number [four] millions, [six] hundred, and 1,000, and 200, and they are [in height] twelve cubits. [Ye] travel on joining the hands, each to each, but the sixth [hour], which belongeth at the head of the Tuat (underworld), is the hour of the overthrow of the Fiend. [I] have come there in triumph, and [I am] he who is in the hall (or courtyard) of the Tuat; and the seven(?) come in his manifestations. The strength which protecteth me is that which hath my Khu under its protection, [that is] the blood, and the cool water, and the slaughterings which abound(?). I open [a way among] the horns of all those who would do harm unto me, who keep themselves hidden, who make themselves adversaries unto me, and those who are upon their bellies. [pg 047] The Eye shall not eat (or absorb) the tears of the goddess Aukert. Hail, goddess Aukert, open thou unto me the enclosed place, and grant thou unto me pleasant roads whereupon I may travel. Who art thou, then, who consumest in the hidden places? I am the Chief in Re-stau, and [I] go in and come forth in my name of ‘Hehi, the lord of millions of years [and of] the earth’; [I am] the maker of my name. The pregnant one hath deposited [upon the earth] her load. The door by the wall is shut fast, and the things of terror are overturned and thrown down upon the backbone(?) of the Bennu bird by the two Samait goddesses. To the Mighty One hath his Eye been given, and his face emitteth light when [he] illumineth the earth, [my name is his name].41 I shall not become corrupt, but I shall come into being in the form of the Lion-god; the blossoms of Shu shall be in me. I am he who is never overwhelmed in the waters. Happy, yea happy, is the funeral couch of the Still-heart; he maketh himself to alight upon the pool(?), and verily he cometh forth [therefrom]. I am the lord of my life. I have come to this [place], and I have come forth from Re-aa-urt the city of Osiris. Verily the things which are thine are with the Sariu deities. I have clasped the sycamore tree and I have divided(?) it; I have opened a way for myself [among] the Sekhiu gods of the Tuat. I have come to see him that dwelleth in his divine urÆus, face to face and eye to eye, and [I] draw to myself the winds [which rise] when he cometh forth. My two eyes(?) are weak in my face, O Lion[-god], Babe, who dwellest in Utent. Thou art in me and I am in thee; and thy attributes are my attributes. I am the god of the Inundation (Bah), and ‘Qem-ur-she’ is my name. My forms are the forms of the god Khepera, the hair of the earth of Tem, the hair of the earth of Tem. I have entered in as a man of no understanding, and I shall come forth in the form of a strong Khu, and I shall look upon my form which shall be that of men and women forever and forever.”

i.42 [if this chapter be known] by a man he shall come forth by day, and he shall not be repulsed at any gate of the tuat (underworld), either in going in or in coming [pg 048] out. he shall perform [all] the transformations which his heart shall desire for him and he shall not die; behold, the soul of [this] man shall flourish. and moreover, if [he] know this chapter he shall be victorious upon earth and in the underworld, and he shall perform every act of a living human being. now it is a great protection which [hath been given] by the god. this chapter was found in the foundations of the shrine of hennu by the chief mason during the reign of his majesty the king of the north and of the south, hesepti, triumphant, who carried [it] away as a mysterious object which had never [before] been seen or looked upon. this chapter shall be recited by a man who is ceremonially clean and pure, who hath not eaten the flesh of animals or fish, and who hath not had intercourse with women.

ii.43 if this chapter be known [by the deceased] he shall be victorious both upon earth and in the underworld, and he shall perform every act of a living human being. now it is a great protection which [hath been given] by the god.

this chapter was found in the city of khemennu, upon a block of iron of the south, which had been inlaid [with letters] of real lapis-lazuli, under the feet of the god during the reign of his majesty, the king of the north and of the south, men-kau-ra (mycerinus) triumphant, by the royal son heru-ta-ta-f,44 triumphant; he found it when he was journeying about to make an inspection of the temples. one nekht(?) was with him who was diligent in making him to understand(?) it, and he brought it to the king as a wonderful object when he saw that it was a thing of great mystery, which had never [before] been seen or looked upon.

this chapter shall be recited by a man who is ceremonially clean and pure, who hath not eaten the flesh of animals or fish, and who hath not had intercourse with women. and behold, thou shalt make a scarab of green stone, with a rim plated(?) with gold, which shall be placed in the heart of a man, and it shall perform for him the “opening of the mouth.” and thou shalt anoint it with anti unguent, and thou shalt recite over it [these] enchantments:45