Toa Lesson 1
1. Summarize the plot of the Asarian Resurrection Myth.
Asar along with his wife Aset ruled Egypt. They brought peace and prosperity to the land and abroad. During one night of celebration Asar mistakenly slept with Nebthet, Aset’s twin sister and from that act came Anpu. Overcome with anger and jealousy Set conspired and killed Asar. It was because of Aset’s non compromising determination, love, diligence, that she was able to find Asar and bring him back to life so that she could give birth to Heru the child savior. Aset raised Heru in the papyrus swamps in solitude. Set was out hunting one day and came upon the body of Asar which this time he dismembered and spread out upon the earth. Again with the help of other deities Aset sets out on another journey to locate all the pieces of Asar except his phallus. Asar is resurrected and becomes the ruler of the underworld Asar Sokar. As Heru grows the time comes where he is initiated into the mysteries of creation. Through the ever persistent nature of the ego to go against that which is righteous he transforms himself into a scorpion and kills Heru. Although Aset is versed in the words of power she is unable to revive her son. Through Aset’s cries she is able to stop the boat of a million years and the deity Djehuty comes reassure here of Heru victory against set and that he will not die. The battle goes on for some time. Neither seeming to have the upper hand. Set once found Heru while he was sleep and gouged out his left eye which was found by Djehuty and its dismembered pieces where put back together. Through many trials and tribulations and even a letter from Asar Sokar himself Heru is finally crowned as the King of Egypt.
2. What are the main takeaways from the Asarian Resurrection Myth, the important teachings to remember?
We as initiates represent Asar the soul who has been dismember by Set (egoism). It is through wisdom and spiritual aspiration that one is able to find and resurrect the soul back to its rightful position. Another main take away is that Anpu appears right before spiritual aspiration is born. So the ability to determine the difference between right and wrong is very important in the beginning of ones spiritual practice. From a personal perspective it makes the adoption of Maat as the foundation of my life easier when I have a good grasp on what righteous action are to begin with. It doesn’t make it easier to act righteous but internally I cant lie to myself and act as if I didn’t know what I was doing was wrong. Another teaching to remember is that when Heru was killed by Set, even though Aset couldn’t directly revive him, her one pointed devotion as well as concentration on the divine caused the divine to stop and to attend to her desires as symbolized by her cries after he was killed. So it is through devotion and a one pointed mind that we can come into direct contact with the divine causing all of creation to come to a stand still. One of the important themes in the Asarian Resurrection Myth is that when Heru is crowned King he doesn’t retaliate against Set. Set has a job to do and he is fulfilling his role in Egypt (creation). If we look and the hieroglyph as well with Heru and Set tying the Sema knot. The Asarian Resurrection Myth is about restoring the balance. We are being killed by egoism. We need to restore ourselves back to our rightful place as masters of creation and not slaves to it. So enlightenment is when the opposites are first balanced and then transcended. Another concept which is against the current state of thinking where we destroy what we don’t need or want instead of understanding that everything can be useful. As the ego can be purified and used to achieve great feats of service to the divine.
3. Based on the video lecture and your current understanding at this time, A. what have you discovered so far about the importance about the role of Aset in that epic teaching of the Asarian Resurrection Myth? B. what do you make of her character, her personality?
A. Aset is the main ingredient in this story. She is the dedicated wife who searches for her husband tirelessly, She finds no rest until she finds Asar, not only once but twice when he was first killed and secondly when he was dismembered and his pieces spread out upon the earth. It’s through her magic words of power she is able to resurrect Asar and give birth to Heru who would later take up arms and fight for his rightful place as heir and ruler to the throne of Egypt. Aset also shows great determination and focus when Heru is killed and she is unable to revive him. It is through her cries that she is able to stop creation and attract the help of the divine. Aset is also the spiritual teacher to Heru and instructs him in the wisdom of creation.
B. As a follower of Aset she represents many characteristics which should be discovered in ourselves. First off her names means wisdom and not just intellectual wisdom but that of direct experience. Wisdom can only come from direct experience of what one has been studying and it implies living a life based off of what has been learned. As an aspirant moving away from just intellectually knowing something to actually trying to become one with it through the three modes of expression. She represents another important quality and that is of an unwavering dedication and persistence to find and resurrect Asar. I now understand the importance of sticking to your personal practices so that eventually your dedication and persistence to the rituals lead you to the point of direct experience of the divine. Through the many trials and tribulations she faces against Set she never looses this relentless attitude to attain the goal of reinstating Heru to his rightful place.
