Taken from The Wisdom of Maat by Dr. Muata Ashby
(I have not)
1. done what is wrong / vaiant: I have not acted with falsehood
2. robbed with violence
3. done violence (to anyone or anything) Variant: I have not been rapacious (taking by force; plundering)
4. commited theft /variant: I have not coveted
5. murdered men or woman / Variant: I have not ordered someone else to commit murder
6. defrauded offerings / variant: not destroyed food supplies or increased or decresed the measures to profit)
7. acted deceitfully / vairant: I have not acted with crookedness
8. robbed the things that belong to god
9. told no lies
10. snatched away food
11. uttered evil words / variant: allowed myself to become sullen, to sulk or become depressed
12. attacked no one
13. slaughtered the callte that are set apart for the gods/ variant: slaughttered the sacred bull (apis)
14. eaten my heart (been overcome with anguih and distraught) / variant: committed purgery
15. laid wast the ploughed lands
16. been an eavesdropper or pried into matters to make mischief
17. spoken against anyon / variant: babbled, gossiped
18. allowed myself to become angry with out cause
19. commited adultery /variant: committed homosexuality
20. committed any sin against my own purity
21.. voilated sacred times and seasons
22. done that which is abominable
23. uttered fiery words. been a man of anger
24. stopped my ear listeninng to the words of right and wrong (Ma'at)
25. stirred up strife (disturbance) cause terror. not struck fear into any man
26. cause anyone to weep /variant: hoodwinked
27. lusted or committed fornication nor have I lain with others of my same sex varient/ I have not molested children
28. avenged myself /variant: cultivated resentment
29. Worked grief, abused anyone / cultivated a quarrelsome nature
30. acted insolently or with violence
31. judged hastely varient/been impatient
32. transgressed or angered god
33. multiplied my speech o vermuch (talked to much)
34. done harm or evil /variant: thought evil
35. worked treason or curses on the king
36. befouled water variant/ held back the water from flowing in its season
37. spoken scornfully / variant: yelled unnecessarily or raised my voice
38. I have not cured god
39. behaved with arrogance / variance: been boastfull
40. been overwhelmingly proud or sought for distinctions for myslef
41. never magnifid my condition beyond what was fitting or increased my wealth, except with such things as are (justly) mine own possessions by means of Ma'at. / variant: I ahve not disputed over pssessions except when they concern my own rightful possessions. / variant: I have not desired more than what is rightfully mine.
42. I have never thought evil (blaphemed) or slighted the god in my native town
This is THE BEGINNING, and its probably the last thing people think about when they ask me to teach them. Ethics.
Im not sure if its because now people just assume the 'teacher' will not go over this, or insist they have any ? When I
started studdying seriously with my first teacher, this was my beginning. There are many text out there that discuss
"proper behavior" from Anqeshok to Ptah-Hotep. Many who have approached me asking about Ancient Egyptian
Magick are usually not thinking they are going to get lessions in proper behavoir. Usually they do expect to lear at
least about the dieties. One of my former students mentioned, after reviewing a lession plan for a group, introducing
Kemet/Tamery (ancient egypt) and her dieties grumbled that he learned more editing that than he had from me in the
six months I had taken him on.
My favorite excersis, that seemed to take students more than two weeks to do was to go through this list and write one
or two thoughts in regards to how it is still aplicable today. I also had in my possession another book by Dr. Ashby, a
study guide for the negitive confession where he broke them down into sections, for example Right Speach, Right
Behavior and other such things, and then included text from kemetic Saages and how certain aspects were cariied
over into the 10 Commandments.
My Teacher explained very long ago that the priests of her temple would Read this In the morning after waking and then
again in the evening before going to sleep. I think this should be touched on, as this activity helps you keep yourself in
check so to speak. Of course the negitive confession appears in more than the book of going forth by day/ aka the papyrus
of Ani. It was part of a manuscript burried with the dead, in order to assist them in thier afterlife. Though I have herd of the
practice of reading it when a loved one dies. There isn't just ONE negitive confession to be found in ancient text,
sometimes there are 30 or more than 42, sometimes its in the manner of a brief statement, insted of many declariations.
This alwsys make me thin of the Four Noble Truthes and the Eigthfold Path. Life is suffering. The origin of this suffering,
is because people have attatchments.Attatchments can be 'let go' aka the cessasion of suffering the last noble truth
is the path to the cessasion of sufffering through the Eight Fold Path.
Prajna is the sanskrit word for Wisedom and here we have
Right View
Right Thought
Sila is the sanskrit word for Ethical Conduct
Right Speach
Right Action
Right Livelyhood
Samadhi the sanskrit word for right Consentration
Right Effort
Right Mindfullness.
Right Concentration
Even in the wisdom text are the above considered and quite apparent.
Ptah-hotep even had something I consider a manual of proper behavior. Keeping all of this in mind, I think one could
have an improved life whether they adhear to any specific Traditional teaching or not.
True wisdom, does not very from culter to culter, though the words may be differant, as thier symbols, they say
just about the same thing.
