Three Novels of Ancient Egypt Khufu's Wisdom

by Naguib Mahfouz

  The officer listened to the envoy attentively, saluted once more, and left.

  2

  An hour passed. Then a man of great dignity, somewhat short and lean, -with a prominent brow, arrived at the ship. Bowing with dignity to the envoy, he said in a quiet voice, “He who has the honor of receiving you is Hur, chamberlain of the Southern Palace.”

  The other inclined his stately head and said in his rough voice, “And I am Khayan, high chamberlain of the Palace of the Pharaoh.”

  Hur said, “Our master will be happy to receive you immediately.”

  The envoy made a move to rise and said, “Let us go.” Chamberlain Hur led the way, the man following him with unhurried steps, supporting his obese body on his stick, while the other two bowed to him reverently. Khayan had taken offense and was asking himself, “Should not Seqenenra have come himself to receive the envoy of Apophis?” It annoyed him excessively that the former should receive him as though he were a king. Khayan left the ship between two rows of soldiers and officers, and saw a royal cavalcade awaiting him on the shore headed by a war chariot and with more chariots behind. The soldiers saluted him and he returned their salute haughtily and got into his chariot, Hur at his side. Then the small procession moved off toward the palace of the governor of the South. Khayan's eyes swiveled right and left, observing the temples and obelisks, statues and palaces, the markets and the unending streams of people of all classes: the common people with their almost naked bodies, the officers with their elegant cloaks, the priests with their long robes, the nobles with their flowing mantles, and the beautifully dressed women. Everything seemed to bear witness to the mightiness of the city and to its rivalry of Memphis, the capital of Apophis. From the first instant, Khayan was aware that his procession was attracting looks everywhere, and that the people were gathering along the way to watch, though coldly and stolidly, their black eyes examining his white face and long beard with surprise, distaste, and resentment. He boiled with anger that the mighty Apophis should be subjected to such a cold welcome in the person of his envoy and it vexed him that he should appear as a stranger in Thebes two hundred years after his people had descended on the land of Egypt and seated themselves on its throne. It angered and exasperated him that his people should have ruled for two hundred years, during which the south of Egypt had preserved its identity, character, and independence — for not a single man of the Hyksos resided there. The procession reached the square in front of the palace. It was broad, with far-flung corners, government buildings, ministries, and the army headquarters lining its sides. In its center stood the venerable palace, its imposing sight dazzling the eyes — a mighty palace, like that of Memphis itself, with guardsmen topping its walls and lined up in two rows at the main gate. The band struck up a salutatory anthem as the envoy's procession passed, and as the procession crossed the courtyard Khayan wondered to himself, “Will Seqenenra meet me with the White Crown on his head? He lives as a king and observes their etiquette and he governs as kings govern. Will he then wear the crown of the South in front of me? Will he do what his forebears and his own father, Seneqnenra, refrained from doing?” He dismounted at the entrance to the long colonnade and found the palace chamberlain, the head of the royal guard, and the higher officers waiting to receive him. All saluted and they proceeded before him to the royal reception hall. The antechamber leading to the doorway of the hall was decorated on both sides with sphinxes, and in its corners stood giant officers chosen from among the mighty men of Habu. The men bowed to the envoy, making way for him, and Chamberlain Hur walked ahead of him into the interior of the hall. Following, Khayan beheld, at some distance from the entrance and dominating the space, a royal throne on which sat a man crowned with the crown of the South, the scepter and the crook in his hand, while two men sat to the right of his throne and two to the left. Hur, followed by the envoy, reached the throne and bowed to his lord in veneration, saying in his gentle voice, “My lord, I present to Your Highness High Chamberlain Khayan, envoy of King Apophis.”

  At this the envoy bowed in greeting and the king returned his greeting, gesturing to him to sit on a chair in front of the throne, -while Hur stood to the right of the throne. The king desired to present his courtiers to the envoy, so he pointed with his scepter to the man closest to him on his right and said, “This is User-Amun, chief minister.” Then he pointed to the man next to him and said, “Nofer-Amun, high priest of Amun.” Next he turned to his left and indicated the man next to him. “Kaf, commander of the fleet.” He pointed to the man next to him and said, “Pepi, commander of the army.” With the introductions completed, the king turned his gaze on the envoy and said in a voice whose tones indicated natural nobility and rank, “You have come to a place that welcomes both you and him who has entrusted you with his confidence.”

  The envoy replied, “May the Lord preserve you, respected governor. I am indeed happy to have been chosen for this embassy to your beautiful country, of historic repute.”

  The king's ears did not fail to note the words “respected governor” or their significance, but no sign of his inner perturbation showed on his face. At the same moment, Khayan shot a quick scrutinizing glance from his bulging eyes and found the Egyptian governor to be a truly impressive man, tall of stature, with an oval, beautiful face, extremely dark, his features distinguished by the protrusion of his upper teeth. He judged him to be in his fourth decade. The king imagined that the envoy of Apophis had come for the same reason that had brought earlier missions from the North, namely, to ask for stone and grain, which the kings of the Herdsmen considered tribute, while the kings of Thebes saw them as a bribe with which they protected themselves against the evil of the invaders.

  The king said quietly and with dignity, “It is my pleasure to listen to you, envoy of mighty Apophis.”

  The envoy moved in his seat as though about to jump up and fight. In his rough voice he said, “For two hundred years, the envoys of the North have never ceased to visit the South, each time returning satisfied.”

  The king said, “I hope that this beautiful custom may continue.”

  Khayan said, “Governor, I bring you three requests from Pharaoh. The first concerns the person of my lord Pharaoh; the second, his god, Seth; and the third, the ties of affection between North and South.”

  The king now gave him his full attention and concern showed on his face. The man went on to say, “In recent days, my lord the king has complained of terrible pains that have wracked his nerves by night and of abominable noises that have assaulted his noble ears, rendering him prey to sleeplessness and ill health. He summoned his physicians and described to them his nocturnal sufferings and they examined him with care, but all went away again puzzled and none the wiser. In the opinion of them all, the king was in good health and well. When my lord despaired, he finally consulted the prophet of the temple of Seth and this wise man grasped the nature of his sickness and said, ‘The source of all his pains is the roaring of the hippopotami penned up in the South, which has infiltrated his heart.’ And he assured him that there could be no cure for him unless they were killed.”

  The envoy knew that the hippopotami kept in the lake of Thebes were sacred, so he stole a glance at the governor's face to gauge the effect of his words, but found it stony and hard, though it had reddened. He waited for him to make some comment but the man uttered not a word and appeared to be listening and waiting. So, the envoy said, “While my lord was sick, he dreamed he saw our god Seth in all his dazzling majesty visit him and rebuke him, saying, ‘Is it right that there should not be a single temple in the whole of the South in which my name is mentioned?’ So my lord swore that he would ask of his friend, the governor of the South, that he build a temple to Seth in Thebes, next to the temple of Amun.”

  The envoy fell silent, but Seqenenra continued to say nothing, though he now appeared as one taken aback and surprised by something that had never before occurred to him. Khayan, however, was unconcerned by the king's darkening mood an
d may even have been driven by a desire to provoke him. Chamberlain Hur, grasping the danger of the demands, bent over his lord's ear, whispering, “It would be better if my lord did not engage the envoy in discussion now.”

  The king nodded in agreement, -well aware what the chamberlain -was driving at. Khayan imagined that the chamberlain was notifying his lord of what he had said, so he waited a little. However, the king merely said, “Have you any other message to convey?”

  Khayan replied, “Respected governor, it has reached my lord's notice that you crown yourself with the White Crown of Egypt. This surprises him and he finds it out of keeping with the ties of affection and traditional friendship that bind the family of Pharaoh to your own time-honored family.”

  Seqenenra exclaimed in astonishment, “But the White Crown is the headdress of the governors of the South!”

  The envoy replied with assurance and insistence, “On the contrary, it was the crown of those of them who were kings, and for that reason, your glorious father never thought of wearing it, for he knew that there is only one king in this valley who has the right to wear a crown. I hope, respected governor, that my lord's reference to his sincere desire to strengthen the good relations between the dynasties of Thebes and Memphis will not be lost on you.”

  Khayan ceased speaking and silence fell once more. Seqenenra was plunged in melancholy reflection, his heart weighed down by the king of the Herdsmen's harsh demands, which attacked the very wellsprings of faith in his heart and of pride in his soul. The impact of these things reflected itself in his pallor and in the stony faces of the courtiers around him. Appreciative of Hur's advice, he volunteered no reply but said in a voice that retained, despite everything, its calm, “Your message, Envoy, involves a delicate matter that touches on our beliefs and traditions. This being so, it seems to me best that I inform you of my opinion on it tomorrow.”

  Khayan responded, “The best opinion is that on which counsel is taken first.”

  Seqenenra turned then to Chamberlain Hur and said, “Conduct the envoy to the wing that has been made ready for him.”

  The envoy raised his huge, short body, bowed and then departed, with a conceited and haughty gait.

  3

  The king sent for his crown prince, Kamose, -who arrived -with a speed that indicated how anxious he was to know what message the chamberlain of Apophis had brought. After he had greeted his father reverently and taken his place on his right, the king turned to him and said, “I have sent for you, Prince, to acquaint you with the communication of the envoy of the North, that you may give us your opinion on it. The matter is indeed serious, so listen to me well.”

  The king related in clear detail to his crown prince what the envoy Khayan had said, the prince listening to his father with a depth of concern that showed on his handsome countenance, which resembled that of his father in its color and features and the projection of the upper teeth. Then the king turned his eyes to those present and said, “So now you see, gentlemen, that to please Apophis we must take off this crown, slaughter the sacred hippopotami, and erect a temple in which Seth is worshipped next to the temple of Amun. Counsel me as to what must be done!”

  The indignation that showed on all their faces revealed the anxiety that churned in their breasts. Chamberlain Hur was the first to speak and he said, “My lord, even more than these demands I reject the spirit that dictated them. It is the spirit of a master dictating to his slave, of a king incriminating his own people. To me, it is simply the ancient conflict between Thebes and Memphis in a new shape. The latter strives to enslave the former, while the former struggles to hold on to its independence by all the means at its disposal. There is no doubt that the Herdsmen and their king resent the survival of a Thebes whose doors are locked against their governors. Perhaps they themselves are unconvinced by their claim that this kingdom is merely an autonomous province, subject to their crown, and they have therefore decided to put an end to the manifestations of its independence and to control its beliefs. Once they have done that, it will be easy for them to destroy it.”

  Hur was strong and forthright in his speech and the king remembered the Herdsmen's kings’ history of meddling -with the rulers of Thebes, and how the latter -would deflect their evil with a fair reply, and with gifts and the appearance of submission, in order to preserve the South from their interference and their evil. His family had played a great role in this, so much so that his father, Seneqnenra, had managed to train mighty forces in secret to maintain the independence of his kingdom should stratagems and a show of loyalty in his voice not suffice. Then Commander Kaf spoke, “My lord, I believe we should yield to none of these demands. How can we agree that our lord should remove his crown from his head? Or that we should kill the sacred hippopotami to please one who is an enemy to even the least of our people? And how can we build a temple to that Lord of Evil whom these Herdsmen worship?”

  The high priest Nofer-Amun then spoke, “My king, the Lord Amun will not consent that a temple for Seth, the Lord of Evil, be erected next to His, or that His pure land be watered with the blood of the sacred hippopotami, or that the protector of His kingdom forgo his crown, when he is the first governor of the South to crown himself with it, at His command! No, my lord! Amun will never accept that! Indeed, He waits for the one who will lead an army of His sons to liberate the North and unify the nation! Then it will be once more as it was in the days of the first kings.”

  Ardor now flowed like blood in the veins of Commander Pepi. Standing and revealing his alarming height and broad shoulders, he said in his deep voice, “My lord, our great men have spoken truly. I am certain that these demands are meant as nothing but a test of our mettle and a way of forcing us into humiliation and submission. What does it tell us that this savage who has descended on our valley from the furthest reaches of the barren deserts should demand of our king that he remove his crown and worship the Lord of Evil and slaughter the sacred hippopotami? In the past, the Herdsmen would ask for wealth and we were not stingy to them with our wealth. But now they are greedy for our freedom and our honor. Faced with that, death would seem easy and delightful to us. Our people in the North are slaves who plough the land and writhe in agony under the tongues of the lash. We hope to free them one day from the torture they suffer, not pass of our own free will into the same wretched state as theirs!”

  The king kept silent. He was listening keenly, holding his emotions in check by looking downward. Prince Kamose had tried to explore his face but failed. His inclinations -were -with Commander Pepi and he said violently, “My lord, Apophis greedily eyes our national pride and wants nothing but to reduce the South to submission as he reduced the North. But the South that would not accept humiliation when its enemy was at the height of his powers will never accept it now. Who now would say that we should squander what our forefathers struggled to maintain and care for?”

  User-Amun, the chief minister, was of all the people the most moderate and his policy was ever directed to avoiding the anger of the Herdsmen and exposure to their savage forces, so that he might devote himself to developing the wealth of the South, exploiting the resources of Nubia and the Eastern Desert, and training a strong, invincible army. He was frightened of the consequences to which the impetuousness of the crown prince and the commander of the army might lead. Directing his words to the courtiers, he said, “Remember, gentlemen, that the Herdsmen are a people of plunder and pillage. Though they have ruled Egypt for two hundred years, their eyes are still drawn by gold, for which they will do anything and which distracts their attention from nobler goals.”

  But Commander Pepi shook his head with its shining helmet and said, “Your Excellency, we have lived with these people long enough to know them. They are people who, if they desire something, ask for it frankly, without seeking to use stratagems and concealment. In the past they asked for gold and it was carried to them. But now they are asking for our freedom.”

  The chief minister said, “We must temporize unt
il our army is complete.”

  The commander replied, “Our army is capable of repelling the enemy in its present state.”

  Prince Kamose looked at his father and found that his eyes were still downcast. Passionately, he said, “What is the use of talk? Our army may need some men and equipment, but Apophis will not wait -while -we ready our gear. He has presented us -with demands -which, if-we concede them, -will condemn us to collapse and obliteration. There is not a man in the South who prefers surrender to death, so let us refuse these demands with disdain and raise our heads before those long-bearded Herdsmen -with their -white skins that the sun -will never cleanse!”

  The enthusiasm of the young prince had its impact on the people. Determination and anger showed in their faces and it seemed as though they had had enough of talk and were wanting to take a resolute decision, when the king raised his head and, gazing intently at his crown prince, asked, in his sublimely noble voice, “Do you think that we should reject the demands of Apophis, Prince?”

  Kamose replied confidently and vehemently, “Resolutely and disdainfully, my lord!”

  “And what if this rejection drags us into war?”

  Kamose replied, “Then let us fight, my lord.”

  Commander Pepi said with enthusiasm no less than that of the prince, “Let us fight until we have pushed the enemy back from our borders and, if my lord so wills, let us fight till we have liberated the North and driven the last of the white Herdsmen with their long, dirty beards from the land of the Nile!”

  Next the king turned to Nofer-Amun, the high priest, and asked him, “And you, Your Holiness, what do you think?”

  The venerable old man replied, “I think, my lord, that whoever tries to extinguish this holy burning brand is an infidel!”

  Then King Seqenenra smiled in consent and turning to his chief minister, User-Amun, said to him, “You are the only one left, Minister.”