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'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne...

Kasia Szpakowska Orcid Logo

Le Cauchemar dans les Societes Antiques

Swansea University Author: Kasia Szpakowska Orcid Logo

Abstract

The dream in ancient Egypt functioned as a liminal zone between the land of the living and the afterlife. However, the dream was also a phenomenon over which the dreamer had little control, and its permeable boundaries allowed both the divine and the demonic inhabitants of the beyond access to the v...

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Published in: Le Cauchemar dans les Societes Antiques
ISBN: 978-2-7018-0291-6
Published: Paris, France de Boccard 2010
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa11527
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spelling 2019-06-24T14:55:07.7806730 v2 11527 2012-06-14 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010. 79af40d0177760d56ab90a2742b02a74 0000-0001-9254-9495 Kasia Szpakowska Kasia Szpakowska true false 2012-06-14 ACLA The dream in ancient Egypt functioned as a liminal zone between the land of the living and the afterlife. However, the dream was also a phenomenon over which the dreamer had little control, and its permeable boundaries allowed both the divine and the demonic inhabitants of the beyond access to the visible world. Sometimes the result was a positive beneficial experience, as is attested in New Kingdom royal texts and elite hymns that relate the awe-inspiring contact a dreamer could have with a god or a goddess. But another more disturbing belief was that dreams could also allow the vulnerable sleeper to be watched or even assaulted by the hostile dead. While today we call these events «nightmares» and consider them psychological phenomena, the Egyptians blamed them on external monsters or demons crossing over from the other side. These entities included the dead, and here it appears that the line between the justified transfigured dead and the malevolent unjustified dead might not have been an immutable one. Drawing upon both textual and material evidence primarily from the New Kingdom, this paper will explore the identity and nature of the hostile entities who dared to disturb the sleep of the living. Surviving spells, prescriptions, and apotropaic devices attest to the prevalent fear of nightmares while the intricate steps one could take to ensure safety in the night emphasize the tangible nature of these fears. To protect themselves against such demons of the dark, sleeping mortals could access the same potent energies that restored order and kept at bay the chaotic enemies of the sun-god himself. Book chapter Le Cauchemar dans les Societes Antiques de Boccard Paris, France 978-2-7018-0291-6 dream, nightmare, demon, religion, magic, Ancient Egypt, archaeology 31 3 2010 2010-03-31 COLLEGE NANME Classics COLLEGE CODE ACLA Swansea University 2019-06-24T14:55:07.7806730 2012-06-14T15:38:36.9897633 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences School of Culture and Communication - Classics, Ancient History, Egyptology Kasia Szpakowska 0000-0001-9254-9495 1
title 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
spellingShingle 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
Kasia Szpakowska
title_short 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
title_full 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
title_fullStr 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
title_full_unstemmed 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
title_sort 'Nightmares in Ancient Egypt.' In Le cauchemar dans l’Antiquité: Actes des journées d'étude de l'UMR 7044 (15-16 Novembre 2007, Strasbourg), edited by Jean-Marie Husser and Alice Mouton. Études d'archéologie et d'histoire ancienne, 21-39. Paris: de Boccard, 2010.
author_id_str_mv 79af40d0177760d56ab90a2742b02a74
author_id_fullname_str_mv 79af40d0177760d56ab90a2742b02a74_***_Kasia Szpakowska
author Kasia Szpakowska
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publishDate 2010
institution Swansea University
isbn 978-2-7018-0291-6
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hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
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hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
department_str School of Culture and Communication - Classics, Ancient History, Egyptology{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Culture and Communication - Classics, Ancient History, Egyptology
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description The dream in ancient Egypt functioned as a liminal zone between the land of the living and the afterlife. However, the dream was also a phenomenon over which the dreamer had little control, and its permeable boundaries allowed both the divine and the demonic inhabitants of the beyond access to the visible world. Sometimes the result was a positive beneficial experience, as is attested in New Kingdom royal texts and elite hymns that relate the awe-inspiring contact a dreamer could have with a god or a goddess. But another more disturbing belief was that dreams could also allow the vulnerable sleeper to be watched or even assaulted by the hostile dead. While today we call these events «nightmares» and consider them psychological phenomena, the Egyptians blamed them on external monsters or demons crossing over from the other side. These entities included the dead, and here it appears that the line between the justified transfigured dead and the malevolent unjustified dead might not have been an immutable one. Drawing upon both textual and material evidence primarily from the New Kingdom, this paper will explore the identity and nature of the hostile entities who dared to disturb the sleep of the living. Surviving spells, prescriptions, and apotropaic devices attest to the prevalent fear of nightmares while the intricate steps one could take to ensure safety in the night emphasize the tangible nature of these fears. To protect themselves against such demons of the dark, sleeping mortals could access the same potent energies that restored order and kept at bay the chaotic enemies of the sun-god himself.
published_date 2010-03-31T03:13:21Z
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