CHAPTER 1

IDEAS ABOUT DEATH IN THE ANCIENT WORLD

If we proceed from the conviction that the idea of karma and transmigration of the soul (Latin - reincarnation; Greek - metempsychosis) is universal, then, of course, it is strange to hear Christians who renounce it and thereby oppose themselves to all mankind and all of history. But are Christians really such "degenerates"? If we find that the Bible keepers have indeed never accepted the transmigration of souls, will this rejection of karmism be something unique, unprecedentedly scandalous, and will isolate them from the rest of humanity?

If all the surrounding peoples and previous religious traditions believed in reincarnation, then in general it is natural to assume that this idea could be reflected in Christianity in one way or another. And what if the religions of the Ancient East did not have the idea of reincarnation? In this case, the rejection of the idea of karma by Christians will no longer seem too scandalous. It can be assumed that in this matter Christians continue the tradition inherent in the more ancient cultures of the Middle East. So, in order to prepare Theosophists for the most unpleasant surprise for them (that is, to the demonstration of a negative biblical attitude to reincarnation), let us begin our discussion of the attitude of Christianity to the idea of metempsychosis from afar. Let's start ab ovo. From the Ancient East.

A) Where did the soul of the Egyptian move?

According to Theosophical opinion, "in Egypt, before the doctrine of transmigration of souls appeared anywhere and from there already passed and spread among other peoples"4. In fact, the theory of reincarnation among the Egyptians is told by Herodotus (History 2:123). In the third century A.D., the Egyptian Christian writer Clement of Alexandria spoke of the "purely national origin" of the reincarnation opinions of his pagan compatriots (Stromata. VI,4). In the Egyptian "Book of the Dead" there are many chapters called "On Reincarnation in...". Soul transmigration is recognized by Hermetic literature that spread from Egypt in the late antique period.

And yet all this evidence is not sufficient to substantiate the Theosophical thesis.

Yes, in the "Book of the Dead" (created from 2300 to 1700 BC) there are chapters with titles that so gladden the hearts of supporters of reincarnation. "Chapter on reincarnation into a lotus", "Chapter on reincarnation into the ruler of supreme princes", "Chapter on reincarnation into a divine falcon", etc. But they do not say that a person is born in a new body, returning to the earthly world again. No, these are incantations that assure spirits, gods and demons that a dead person has been transformed into one of the gods, that he has become deified, that he must be accepted as one of his own in the kingdom of eternity. These are the formulas of man's new identity, which he acquires (hopes to find) in the world of God. But this is not an expression of the hope that the soul will have a new body on earth, different from the one that has been turned into a mummy.