And again you are missing the point.

The fact that the math problems in the Rhind papyrus were not meant to be used as a magical spell shows that the Egyptians did not think of everything in terms of magical spells. Period. You can cite whoever you want, but if they don't follow the facts then they don't make sense. It does not make sense to say that the Rhind was magical even if there is no proof that it was created as some sort of "magical" spell or that the Egyptians viewed it as a form of magic. That does not mean that magic and mathematics did not have roles within Egyptian cosmology. It only means that all practice mathematics in Egypt was not considered "magical".

Of course there are mathematical elements in Egyptian thought that do have "magical" aspects. One example is the horus eye fractions. However, that does not prove that whenever the Egyptians did math they looked at it as practicing magic, because they did not.

When they wanted to blend math and magic they did so and it is unambiguous. What you are doing is saying that all practice of math in Egypt as magical, when it wasn't and just because math wasn't considered magical in all cases, does not present a dichotomy. It just proves you wrong in equating intellect with magic in the minds of the ancient Egyptians. The point was that the ancient Egyptians did not view all things as a form of magic and therefore you cannot equate intellectual pursuits with being magical pursuits and you cannot equate them to being considered as such in the minds of the Egyptians.

And as for the definition of animism, it is in the dictionary or are you saying that we need some "special" definition in order for it not to cause conflict with Egyptology? Animism has a well defined meaning and Egyptology needs to stop trying to bend words in order to make them fit their special "Egyptological" view. Egypt was animistic. They believed that nature and natural elements of nature had souls, which is a fundamental aspect of animism. Egyptology does not define animism, animism is defined by those who practice it and the common elements between such traditions.

Quote

The term animism is derived from the Latin word anima meaning breath or soul. The belief of animism is probably one of man's oldest beliefs, with its origin most likely dating to the Paleolithic age. From its earliest beginnings it was a belief that a soul or spirit existed in every object, even if it was inanimate. In a future state this soul or spirit would exist as part of an immaterial soul. The spirit, therefore, was thought to be universal.

There has been sharp divisions of thought as to the original concept of animism held by primitive peoples. An British anthropologist Sir Edward Burnett Tylor in his "Primitive Culture" (1871) defined animism "as a general belief in spiritual beings and considered it 'a minimum definition of religion.'" He stated all religions from the simplest to the most complexed shared some sort of animistic belief. According to him primitive peoples, defined as those without a written tradition, believed the spirits or souls caused life in human beings. They pictured these souls as vapors or shadows going from one body to another. The souls not only passed between human beings but into, plants, animals and inanimate objects as well.

From: [www.themystica.com]

Most references say the same thing, animism is the belief that humans have souls and that nature and animals have souls. Of course this is exactly what you get in Egyptian religion where the deities give the breath of life to the pharaoh and these deities have souls and represent animals and forces of nature.





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2007 06:08PM by Doug M.