Death

Death takes different forms in these stories: hunger that swallows the living, a road to one’s ancestors, and a kingdom ruled by Osiris. Alongside them are the living, mourning, burying and remembering the dead. These articles bring together the vocabulary of death, its stories and funeral practices.

1. m-w-t

   Arabic māta, yamūtu and mawt have close counterparts in Akkadian, Ugaritic, Hebrew and Aramaic. The article also explores the proposed relationship between Arabic “dead” and Sanskrit mṛta. Their meanings agree, but Sanskrit grammar treats t as part of a suffix, an important issue for understanding the proposed connection.

2. Mot

   Ugaritic Mot bears the name of death itself. The Baal Cycle describes his enormous mouth and insatiable hunger, then brings him into conflict with Baal and Anat. When Anat cuts, burns, grinds and winnows him, the story uses grain-processing actions to describe her revenge, linking the fear of destruction with familiar agricultural work.

3. Yama

   In Vedic hymns, Yama knows the road taken by the Fathers who preceded the living in death. Funeral hymns address him when speaking of the deceased’s destination. His name means “twin” and relates to his sister Yami: texts and rituals explain his role among the dead, while his name expresses a family relationship.

4. Osiris

   Osiris joins the fate of the deceased with life continuing after him. His body receives care, his son inherits, and his authority appears in the realm of the dead and judgment. Some Egyptian objects form an Osirian body from grain and soil, giving germination a tangible role in rituals of hope for life.