The Pyramid Texts of UNAS

Burial-Chamber l Passage-way l Antechamber l Corridor l Serdab

introduction l English text l commentary

X

ANTECHAMBER

North Wall
(302 - 312)

"<" or ">" between numbers = sequence of the text
"<" from right to left (facing right) or ">" from left to right (facing left)

BOOK OF ASCENSION

adapted from the pictures of L.F. Husson in :
Piankoff, A. : The Pyramid of Unas, Bollingen Series, 1968.

to download a larger picture click here
the text reads from left to right

Translation

King Unas flies away, ferries over & climbs ladders

186 (302) the King flies away to Re

by the King

To say the words :
The sky has been bled (at dawn) and Sothis lives, because I, King Unas, I am a living one, the son of Sothis, for whom the Dual Ennead have cleaned the imperishable Striker. My house in the sky will not end. My throne of the Two Lands on Earth will not end.

Men hide, (but) the gods fly away !

Sothis has flown me to the sky into the company of my brothers the gods. Nut the great has uncovered her arms for me. The Two Bas, who are at the head of the Bas of Iunu (Heliopolis), who attend on Re, have bowed themselves, they who spend the night making this mourning for the god.

My seat is with You, O Re, and I will give it to nobody else. I will ascend to the sky to You, O Re, for my face is that of falcons, my wings are those of birds, my talons are the fangs of Him of Atfet.

There is no word against me on Earth among men, there is no accusation in the sky among the gods. For I annulled the word against me, which I destroyed in order to mount up to the sky.
 
Paths-Parter (Wepwawet) has flown me up to the sky among my brethren the gods. I use my arms as a Nile goose, I flap my wings as a kite.

The flier has flown !
O men, I have flown away from You !

187 (303) the King ferries over to the sky

by the King

To say the words :
O western gods, eastern gods, southern gods, and northern gods ! These four pure reed-floats which You set down for Osiris when he ascended to the sky, so that he might ferry over to the Cool Waters with his son Horus at his fingers, so that he might foster him and cause him to appear as a great god in the Cool Waters - set them down for me, King Unas !

by the gods

Are You Horus, son of Osiris ?
Are You, King Unas, the god, the eldest one, the son of Hathor ?
Are You the seed of Geb ?

by the King

Osiris has commanded me, King Unas, to appear as the counterpart of Horus, and these four Akhs who are in Heliopolis have written (it) on the record of the two great gods who are in the Cool Waters.

188 (304) opening of the sky to the King : a ladder in the necropolis

by the King

To say the words :
Hail to You, daughter of Anubis, who is at the windows of the sky, the companion of Thoth, who is at the uprights of the ladder ! Open my way that I, King Unas, may pass.

Greetings to You, ostrich at the lips of the Winding Canal ! Open my way that I may pass !

Greetings, bull of Re who has four horns : a horn of yours in the West, a horn of yours in the East, a horn of yours in the South, and a horn of yours in the North ! Bend down for me this western horn of yours, (so) that I may pass.

by the Bull of Re

Are You a pure Westerner, for You have come forth from Falcon City ?

by the King

Greetings to You, Field of Peace !
Greetings to the vegetation {that is in You !
Greetings to} my vegetation that is in You,
the clean growth therein is pleasant !

189 (305) a Ladder is made for the King

by the King

To say the words :
A ladder has been is knotted together by Re, face to face with Osiris.
A ladder has been knotted together by Horus, face to face with his father Osiris when he goes to his Akh, one of them being on this side, one of them being on that side, while I, King Unas, am between them !

by the gods

Are You a god whose places are pure ?

by the King

I have come forth from a pure (place). 

by Horus

"Stand up, King Unas !", says Horus.

by Seth

"Sit down, King Unas !", says Seth.

by Re

"Take his arm !", says Re.

by the priest

Akh, to the sky !
Corpse, to the Earth !

What people receive when they are buried, their thousand of bread and their thousand of beer, is from the offering table of the Foremost of the Westerners.

Poor is the heir who has no writing.
So King Unas writes with his big finger and does not write with his little finger.

190 (306) the King mounts up the Ladder

by the priest

To say the words :
"How lovely to see ! How pleasing to behold," say they, namely the gods "of this god's going forth to the sky, of King Unas going forth to the sky, with his Bas atop him, his terror about him, and his magic at his feet."

Geb has acted for him just like he was acted for in the same event.

There have come to You the divine Bas of Pe, the divine Bas of Nekhen, the gods who belong to the sky, and the gods who belong to the Earth, (so) that they might make support for You, upon their arms.
So, ascend, King Unas, to the sky and mount up on it in this its identity of "Ladder".

"The sky will be given to King Unas, and the Earth will be given to him.", says Atum.
It is Geb is the one who argues for it, (saying) : 
"The mounds  praised are the Mounds of Horus and the Mounds of Seth, and the Fields of Reeds shall adore You in this your name of Morning God, as Sobek under his mangroves."

Has he (Seth) slain You, his heart having said that You would die because of him ? But look, You have become a more enduring bull of the wild bulls than he !

Endure, endure, O enduring bull, (so) that You, King Unas, may be enduring at the head of them, at the head of the Akhs forever !

Except for Re, King Unas rules everybody & everything

191 (307) the King is the Bull of Heliopolis

by the King

To say the words :
There is a Heliopolitan in me, O god !
Your Heliopolitan (nature) is in me, O god !
There is a Heliopolitan in me, O Re !
Your Heliopolitan (nature) is in me, O Re !
My mother is a Heliopolitan, my father is a Heliopolitan.
I, King Unas, am a Heliopolitan myself, born in Heliopolis when Re was ruler of the Dual Ennead and above the plebs, Nefertem without peer, heir of my father Geb.

As for any god who will thrust out his arm (to hold me off), when my face turns to worship You and to call to You about my body, O god, and about my nose, O god, he will have no bread ;
he will have no wafer in the company of his brothers the gods ;
he will not send (messengers) ;
he will not leap <the barrier> in the company of his brothers the gods ;
the doors of the Nightboat will not be opened to him ;
the doors of the Dayboat will not be opened to him ;
he will not be judged as a citizen ;
the doors of provisioning will not be opened to him !

I have come to You !
For I am the wild bull of the savannah, the great-faced bull who comes from Heliopolis. I am both the one who gave You birth and the one who can continue to give You birth.

192 (308) the gods invoke the King naked

by the King

To say the words :
Greetings to You, Horus on the Mounds of Horus !
Greetings to You, Seth on the Mounds of Seth !
Greetings to You, Reeds in the Field of Reeds !
Greetings, You two reconciled gods, twin children of the four foremost gods of the Great Mansion, You who invoke me naked !

I, King Unas, have looked on You as Horus looked at Isis.
I have looked at You as Ka-Assigner looked on Serket.
I have looked at You as Sobek looked at Neith.
I have looked at You as Seth looked at the two reconciled (gods).

193 (309) the King is the servant of Re

by the King

To say the words :
I, King Unas, I am <the secretary> of the god, in charge of the Mansion of Re, born of Prayer-of-the-gods, who is in the prow of the Boat of Re.

I shall sit before him, I shall open his boxes, I shall break open his edicts, I shall seal his dispatches, I shall send out his unwearying messengers, and I shall do what he says to me.

194 (310) the King warns the gods

by the King

To say the words :
If I, King Unas, should be cursed, then will Atum be cursed.
If I should be reviled, then will Atum be reviled.
If I should be smitten, then will Atum be smitten.
If I should be hindered on this road, then will Atum be hindered.
I am Horus !
I have come in the wake of my father !
I have come in the wake of Osiris !

O You (ferryman), who faces forward and backward,
bring this (ferryboat) to me ! 

by the ferryman

"Which ferryboat should I get for You ?"

by the King

Bring me : "Whenever It Flies It Lands !"

195 (311) the King wants to be seen by Re and sees Re

by the King

To say the words :
See me, O Re !
Recognize me, O Re !
I, King Unas, belong to those that know You, so know me.
I will not forget the blessing of the given offering,
(so that) she who maroons whom she would maroon will open the doors of the horizon at the ascent of the Dayboat.
I know the Hall of the Baldachin in the middle of the Platform of Izken from which You go forth when You board the Nightboat.

Commend me, commend me, commend me, commend me -to say the words four times without pause- to those four of yours who go down behind You, and who see with two faces and who argue with fierce <roaring> about the first-born with those who will have trouble, along with those whom they would destroy, (so that) they will not cross (him with) their arm when I turn to You, when I come to You and tell You this name of yours of "Great Flood which came forth from the Great One".

I will not become blind if You put me in darkness.
I will not become deaf even though I do not hear your voice.

You should take me with You, with You !
He who will drive away storms for You, who will dispel the clouds for You, and who will break up the hail for You.
I will make genuflection after genuflection for You !
I will make adoration after adoration for You when You set me on the body of the vulture !

196 (312) the King as ascending bread

by the King

To say the words :
The bread has flown !
The bread has indeed flown,
toward my mansions, the Mansions of the Red Crown !