Lesson 1 TOA
1. Summarize the plot of the Asarian Resurrection Myth.
Asar was killed by his brother Set so that he could become the king of Egypt. Aset found Asar and resurrected him and then Aset gave birth to Heru. Heru grows up under the guidance and teachings of Aset to challenge Set for the throne of Egypt. Through many battles Heru is victorious and takes his rightful place as the ruler of Egypt.
2. What are the main takeaways from the Asarian Resurrection Myth, the important teachings to remember?
Set which symbolizes egoism kill Asar which represents the higher self. It is through wisdom that spiritual aspiration is born once the desire arises to find out who we really are. Once spiritual aspiration is born which is symbolized by the birth of Heru a holy war ensues. It is through the teachings of Aset (wisdom teachings) that we are able to regain our rightful place as ruler of Egypt which is the uniting of lower and upper Egypt representing the lower and higher nature within us. We become enlightened which is symbolized by they hieroglyph of Heru and Set juxtaposed tying the knot of Sema. Another important teaching is that Set isn’t killed, destroyed or for that matter banished to some far off place for his unrighteous acts. He simply takes his rightful place on the Barque of Ra keeping the forces of chaos at bay as Ra traverses creation. So a purified ego is what is to be cultivated by each aspirant on their path to enlightenment.
3. Based on the video lecture, the readings and your current understanding at this time, A- what have you discovered so far about what is the importance of the role of Aset in this epic teaching of the Asarian Resurrection and B- what do you make of her character, her personality?
A. The role of Aset in the Asarian Resurrection story is of paramount importance. It is Aset who diligently searches for and finds Asar. It is through her wisdom and magic words of power that she is able to raise Asar and then give birth to Heru. Also it is through her previous knowledge gained ( from the myth of Aset and Ra) that she is able to properly instruct Heru and aids in the defeat of Set and Heru taking his rightful place as ruler of Egypt. In one part of the story it is Asar who sends a letter to the council which helps to convince them that Heru should be the rightful ruler of Egypt, which none of this could be done if Aset hadn’t resurrected Asar in the first place. Being that Aset represents wisdom and also more importantly the intuitional realization that comes from practicing the wisdom her part in this story is the pivotal point that the entire story rest on. If there is no Aset then Asar would not have been found and Heru would not have been born and that means that unrighteousness and chaos would have ruled the world instead of harmony, peace and balance.
B. The personality of Aset in my opinion does represent some very important qualities for the spiritual aspirant to adopt. Firstly in the Myth of Aset and Ra, Aset has grown tired of worldly knowledge and thereby sets in motion a plan to discover the ultimate name of Ra. Similarly as aspirants once we begin to become fed up with the world we should use the Shedy disciplines as our plan to discover the truth behind creation and God. Secondly in the Asarian Resurrection it is the devotion and diligence that allows her to find Asar. Again as aspirants we should develop the Aset like devotion and diligence when tying to discover the higher self. It is the divine love and detatchment that allows Aset to teach Heru even though at one time in a fit of rage he cuts off her head. She doesn’t act out of negativity or discontinue the teachings because of Heru’s immaturity. Also it is Aset cunning nature that allows her to deceive Set and get him to admit to his own ignorance and treachery in stealing the throne from Heru. It has been said that we must learn to trick the ego at times to bend it to our will.
Aset is a very profound Goddess with a very important teaching for all aspirants to learn in my opinion.
