Osiris, God of Afterlife

Who Osiris Was

• Osiris started as a local fertility god in Lower Egypt (Busiris).
• By around 2400 BCE, he became both:
• God of fertility (life, crops, growth).
• God of the dead (embodiment of the deceased king).
• Egyptian kingship tied into this:

• The dead king became Osiris.
• The living king was Horus, Osiris’s son.
• Isis was Osiris’s wife and Horus’s mother.
• Seth was Osiris’s brother and murderer.

歐西里斯是誰

• 歐西里斯最初是下埃及布西里斯的地方生育神。
• 約在西元前2400年，他同時成為：
• 生育之神（掌管生命、農作物、成長）。
• 死亡之神（象徵已逝的國王）。
• 埃及王權與此結合：

• 已逝的國王化為歐西里斯。
• 在世的國王是荷魯斯，歐西里斯之子。
• 伊西斯是歐西里斯的妻子，也是荷魯斯的母親。
• 賽特是歐西里斯的兄弟與殺害者。

The Myth of Osiris

• According to Plutarch, Seth killed Osiris, cut his body into 14 pieces, and scattered them across Egypt.
• Isis and Nephthys found and buried the pieces (except the phallus), reviving Osiris.
• Osiris then ruled the underworld as judge of the dead.
• Horus fought Seth, avenged his father, and became king of Egypt.

歐西里斯的神話

• 根據希臘作家普魯塔克的記載，賽特殺害歐西里斯，將其屍體切成十四塊並散佈埃及各地。
• 伊西斯與其姊妹奈芙蒂斯找回並埋葬了所有部分（除了陽具），使歐西里斯復生。
• 從此歐西里斯成為冥界的統治者與審判者。
• 荷魯斯擊敗賽特，為父報仇，並成為埃及的新王。

Osiris’s Role in Life and Death

• Osiris wasn’t just ruler of the dead—he symbolized life itself:
• Fertility of crops.
• The Nile’s annual flood.
• Around 2000 BCE, Egyptians believed all people became linked with Osiris at death, not just kings.
• This didn’t mean resurrection, but renewal of life in the afterlife and through descendants.

歐西里斯在生命與死亡中的角色

• 歐西里斯不僅是死後的統治者，他象徵著生命本身：
• 農作物的肥沃。
• 尼羅河的年度氾濫。
• 約在西元前2000年，埃及人相信所有人死後都與歐西里斯相連，而不僅僅是國王。
• 這並不意味著復活，而是生命的更新，在來世與後代中延續。

Worship and Festivals

• Osiris’s cult spread widely, merging with other fertility and underworld gods.
• Festivals in the Middle Kingdom (1938–1630 BCE) included:
• Processions and night rituals at Abydos.
• Public participation and burials along the processional road.
• Annual festivals reenacted Osiris’s fate:

• “Osiris gardens” were made—molds shaped like Osiris, filled with Nile soil and grain.
• Sprouting plants symbolized Osiris’s strength and renewal.

崇拜與祭典

• 歐西里斯的信仰廣泛傳播，並與其他生育與冥界神明融合。
• 中王國時期（西元前1938–1630年）的祭典包括：
• 在阿拜多斯舉行的遊行與夜間儀式。
• 民眾可參與，並在遊行道路旁埋葬或立紀念碑。
• 每年祭典重演歐西里斯的命運：

• 建造「歐西里斯花園」—— 歐西里斯形狀的模具，填入尼羅河水與穀物。
• 穀物萌芽象徵歐西里斯的力量與更新。

Later Connections

• At Memphis, Osiris was linked with the sacred bull Apis → Osiris-Apis, later becoming Serapis in Hellenistic times.
• Greeks and Romans connected him with Dionysus.
• He was also identified with Soker, another god of the dead.

後期的聯繫

• 在孟菲斯，歐西里斯與神聖公牛阿比斯結合 → 奧西里斯-阿比斯，後來演變為希臘化時期的塞拉比斯。
• 希臘與羅馬人將歐西里斯與酒神狄奧尼索斯相連。
• 歐西里斯也與孟菲斯的死神索克同化。

Depictions

• Oldest images date to ~2300 BCE.
• In the New Kingdom (1539–1075 BCE), Osiris was shown as:

• A mummy with arms crossed.
• Holding a crook and flail (symbols of kingship).
• Wearing the atef crown (white crown of Upper Egypt + two ostrich feathers).

歐西里斯的形象

• 最早的形象約在西元前2300年。
• 新王國時期（西元前1539–1075年），歐西里斯被描繪為：

• 木乃伊，雙臂交叉於胸前。
• 一手持牧杖，一手持鞭。
• 頭戴阿特夫冠（上埃及白冠加兩根鴕鳥羽毛）。

Original Information: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Osiris-Egyptian-god

Summarized, simplified and translated with Microsoft Copilot and edited