Welcome to Ancient Egypt’s realm of hell called Duat. It is also known as Amenthes and the realm of the dead.
The tombs of the deceased are seen to be individual entrances to Duat. The landscape resembles that of Egypt but with the addition of extraordinary features such as lakes of fire and walls of iron. The ultimate goal is to reach the Hall of Judgement for the Weighing Heart Ceremony. In order to get there, souls must travel for twelve hours with different tasks and hurdles in each hour. This includes passing through gates which are guarded by demons. These demons have the bodies of humans but heads of animals or insects. There are other hidden locations where gods and creatures can emerge and threaten the spirits on their journey.
The realm is detailed in many Egyptian texts including the Book of Gates, the Book of Caverns, and the Book of the Dead. Osiris and Anubis are the gods who presides over this realm. While Osiris is the god of the underworld, he is also the god of transition and resurrection. Anubis, the god of mummification and the afterlife, weighs the hearts of all those who enter the realm. If their heart is heavy with wrong, it is eaten by the “Devourer of Souls,” the demon Ammut. The Egyptian culture believes in resurrection, so from judgement a soul goes on to the next life. It either becomes a higher or lower being from the previous life based on the deeds it performed during that life.
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