The Book of the Dead: The Weighing of the Heart
Central to ancient Egyptian funerary mythology is the judgment scene where the deceased's heart is weighed against the feather of Maat (truth and cosmic order) in the Hall of Two Truths. After death, the soul (the ba) journeys through the underworld (Duat), facing dangerous demons, fiery lakes, and gatekeepers. The climax is before Osiris, Lord of the Dead, enthroned with Isis and Nephthys behind him and the forty-two assessor gods before him. Anubis, the jackal-headed god of embalming, weighs the heart on a scale while Thoth, the ibis-headed scribe, records the verdict. If the heart balances