I tend to use the kahuna concept of mana to evaluate any path. Mana is a concept of “proven effectiveness.” It plugs into the idea that whoever or whatever was more in synch with the over arching order would be stronger and more able than those who worked against it or were just resistant to it. So, though ancient Egyptian religion was absorbed by eastern orthodox Catholicism and Islam, in a sense it still exists and was absorbed for a reason.
Catholicism arose with the spread of the Roman Empire, and the subjugation of native faiths was necessary in their eyes to establish the primacy of Roman temporal power. This was likely also what lead to the fall of Rome. With the attempted subjugation of the Norse people there was a lot of resistance, and their native shamanic types developed small organizations. In Celtic lands the ousted spiritual guides became witches, and tended to keep the peace even if it meant accepting a degree of exile. In the Nordic lands the waer-loga (the men of the logs or rune staves) became what are now called warlocks, and even declared the Aesir they worshiped to stand in opposition to Christ. Though the native symbols were originally very much like the symbolism from the east, they reversed some of it mostly as a declaration of war. Nordic mercenaries (the vandals and such) eventually subverted the “Holy Roman Empire”.
The warlocks were present in every culture, because as the Romans become dependant on hired muscle their agenda would become present in that land also. Even winning some converts. So spiritually and politically the warlocks seemed like anarchists, thus were feared. Basically warlock freedom fighters.
The imagery of Set as “disruptive” has been echoed repeatedly. But the influence of the followers of Set in ancient Egyptian culture (and any whose beliefs have paralleled the followers of Set) have not been an influence of chaos so much as order. In Japanese shamanism the oni were scary and animalistic (brutal), but they were the instruments of justice of the celestial bureaurocracy. In Egyptian religion the coming of Anubis was scary, because he brought you to justice. If you were given unto Amit that wasn’t an act of corruption, it was your just deserts. In Greek religion the Erinyes “a.k.a. furries” would be sent for those who created too much disturbance in the order of the gods. Again still instruments of justice.
An attempt of social control thru afterlife? If you believe in the immortality of the soul then the idea of the continuance of a social order into the spirit world isn’t so illogical. It could be said that the phenomenon behind things like the stock market and the seeming irrationality of our supposedly very ordered systems, even to a degree the ability of our communication systems to outstretch our comprehension/control, could be considered spiritual influences. In Greek religion, Morpheus was the offspring of chaos herself. This is where we get the word, and temples existed to Morpheus recognizing the influence of dreams on everything from politics to personal decision making. No such temple existed in Egypt because they saw sleep as a little death. So you could and perhaps would encounter any of the gods. If you dreamt of a jackal you encountered Anubis.
Your thoughts are welcome. Be well friends.
Travis Saunders
Dragon Intuitive
~science,mysticism,spirituality~