her productions to thee."[1] The same texts assign to the king the fourteen kas of Rā. I have already explained the meaning of ka, which corresponds in this place to our word "spirit." But Rā was said to possess seven souls (baiu) and fourteen kas.[2] This explains the true meaning of the expression, "the souls of the king," which has puzzled many scholars. It is very frequently found and at a very early period. The king had the seven souls of Rā.[3]
That the sovereign in his official utterances should proclaim his divinity, is less to be wondered at than that private individuals should speak of him in the same style. But the doctrine was universally received. "Thou art," says an ode translated by M. Chabas and Mr. Goodwin, "as it were the image of thy father the Sun, who rises in heaven. Thy beams penetrate the cavern. No place is without thy goodness. Thy sayings are the law of every land. When thou reposest in thy palace, thou hearest the words of all the lands. Thou hast millions of ears. Bright is thy eye above
- ↑ I quote, with slight alteration, the excellent English version given in Madame Duemichen's translation of the "Flotte einer ägyptischen Königin."
- ↑ Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, Vol. VI. p. 501.
- ↑ It is quite true, as M. Grébaut says, Mélanges d'Arch. Vol. III. p. 60, "que le singulier [ba] variait avec la forme [baiu] pour l'expression de la même idée et dans les mêmes formules." This is also the case with ka and the plural kau.
