The Understanding of Creation and Organization of Divine Hierarchy according to Memphis Theology in Ancient Egypt

Year 2021, Volume: 18 Issue: 2, 239 - 263, 31.12.2021

Ercüment Yıldırım

https://doi.org/10.17131/milel.959743

Cited By: 2

Abstract

In Ancient Egypt, where life was regulated by faith, theological understandings were the determining factor from the administration of the kingdom to the life of the individual. The Ancient Egyptian society, which was ruled by a central political power since 3100 BC, has maintained its belief and culture in an isolated geography surrounded by deserts for millennia without being exposed to any external influence. As a result of the political and cultural changes experienced in this long process, there have been transformations in the understanding of belief. With the Theologies of Memphis, Heliopolis, Hermopolis and Thebes, which were created by the classification of modern Egyptologists, the belief formation that emerged with these transformations was tried to be defined. Although every theological understanding in Ancient Egypt has a unique creation narrative and divine hierarchy, our study is limited to Memphis Theology. Memphis Theology, which emerged in the period when Ancient Egypt gathered under a common administration and the central culture began to spread, created a belief understanding that appeals to the entire Egyptian society with its inclusiveness. This understanding of belief lasted for millennia and Shabaka who was one of the kings of the twenty-fifth dynasty, re-copied the creation narrative of Memphis Theology in the 7th century BC, and brought it to the present day. This study aims to examine the creation narrative in Memphis Theology in comparison with the general belief system of Egypt, based on the extensive literature on the understanding of belief in Ancient Egypt, and to reveal the changes in the divine hierarchy.

Keywords

Ancient Egypt, Creation, Memphis Theology, Ptah.

Eski Mısır’daki Memfis Teolojisine Göre Yaratılış Anlayışı ve Tanrısal Hiyerarşinin Düzenlenmesi

Abstract

Yaşamın inanç vasıtasıyla düzenlendiği Eski Mısır’da teolojik anlayışlar, krallığın yönetiminden bireyin yaşantısına kadar belirleyici unsur olmuştur. MÖ 3100’lü yıllardan itibaren merkezi bir siyasi güç tarafından yönetilen Eski Mısır toplumu, çöllerle çevrili izole bir coğrafyada sahip olduğu inancı ve kültürü hiçbir dış etkiye maruz kalmadan binyıllarca sürdürmüştür. Bu uzun süreçte yaşanan siyasi ve kültürel değişimler sonucunda inanç anlayışında dönüşümler yaşanmıştır. Modern Mısır bilimcilerin tasnifi ile oluşturulan Memfis, Heliopolis, Hermopolis ve Teb Teolojileri ile bu dönüşümler ile ortaya çıkan inanç biçimlendirmesi tanımlanmaya çalışılmıştır. Eski Mısır’daki her teolojik anlayışın özgün yaratılış anlatısı ve tanrısal hiyerarşisi bulunmasına rağmen çalışmamız, Memfis Teolojisi ile sınırlandırılmıştır. Eski Mısır’ın ortak bir yönetim altında toplanarak merkezi kültürün yayılmaya başladığı dönemde ortaya çıkan Memfis Teolojisi, sahip olduğu kapsayıcılık ile Mısır toplumun tamamına hitap eden bir inanç anlayışı oluşturmuştur. Bu inanç anlayışı, binyıllar boyunca sürmüş ve yirmi beşinci hanedanın krallarından olan Şabaka, MÖ VII. yüzyılda Memfis Teolojisinin yaratılış anlatısını yeniden kopyalatarak günümüze ulaşmasını sağlamıştır. Bu çalışma, Eski Mısır’daki inanç anlayışı ile ilgili geniş literatürden hareketle, Memfis Teolojisindeki yaratılış anlatısını, Mısır’ın genel inanç sistemi ile mukayeseli olarak inceleyip, tanrısal hiyerarşide meydana gelen değişimleri ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır.

Keywords

Eski Mısır, Yaratılış, Memfis Teolojisi, Ptah

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