The Awakening Aten

by Aidan K. Morrissey

  ‘Finalise the plans with the King’s architects when we are in Waset. The inundation is ending for this year and the new crops will soon be sown. We need the stores ready for the next harvest.’

  The annual flooding of the great river, known as the inundation, was the life blood of the Two Lands. The river brought fertile silt which was deposited on the land. A plentiful inundation meant fertile soil and water for the crops. A poor inundation could mean starvation. It was Yuya’s purpose to ensure this didn’t happen.

  Yuya and Thutmose had quickly assessed the strengths and weaknesses of the released prisoners. Each of the twenty-two sepats of the upper region and the twenty of Lower Kemet were visited. Perneb was responsible for assembling teams of surveyors, supervisors and inspectors who would gauge the likely crop yield. Having completed his shipbuilding duties, Khety was charged with ensuring that new sickles were in plentiful supply in each region.

  ‘I’ve redesigned the traditional sickle,’ Khety said, offering an example of his workmanship up for inspection.

  Yuya examined the short handled implement. Made of wood, it was shaped like the jaw bone of a donkey. The curve of the blade was grooved, with honed flint fixed into the rebates to ensure sharpness.

  ‘It looks good. Have you tried it?’ asked Yuya.

  ‘I spent time with some farmers, cutting reeds. They wanted to keep the sickles, saying they were ten times better than the old ones. It will work equally well with wheat during the harvest.’

  ‘Then get production started, we are going to need thousands.’

  Other former prisoners were given different tasks, based on their abilities. Several were given the job of ensuring the canals and dykes, which channelled the precious river water during the floods to the fields, were in a proper state of repair. In one sepat the canals and dykes had been found to have been so overgrown and neglected that they were useless. Crown Prince Thutmose summarily removed the lackadaisical laggard, who was governor, from his mansion in Iunet and ordered him and his family to Ineb-Hedj to await his father’s decision on his future.

  As time passed and confidence grew in the work of Yuya and the others, their total freedom was granted. The operational centre for their work was in Khent-Min in the ninth sepat of Upper Egypt, where Thutmose gifted a large house and estate to Yuya.

  It was here Yuya brought his new wife, Asenath, to live and where, less than a year afterwards, she bore him a son who they named Tjebnutjer. Kha had moved Merit and Djoser into a part of Yuya’s house. Khety and Perneb had also been assigned quarters on the estate and the four formed a lifelong bond of friendship.

  Their wives too became close, particularly Merit and Asenath.

  ‘We are like sisters, you and I,’ Asenath frequently proclaimed.

  ‘And our children are like cousins,’ replied Merit.

  Kha watched his son Djoser as he began his lessons for the day. Yuya was a great believer in educating the young, for the ability to write and read, not just the local language, but also that of international trading and diplomacy, was an essential part of the modern Kemet. He felt the future belonged to those who were equipped, not just with physical strength, but also information, knowledge and languages.

  Kha wanted to give thanks to the gods. At a small shrine he had erected to the favoured god of his own father, he knelt to burn incense. This shrine was dedicated to Shai, a god of fate and destiny.

  ‘May the power of Shai and his sacred wife, Renenet, ease your way forward in life,’ were the last words Kha heard his father say to him. They were embedded, like an engraving, within him.

  Religion was important to Kha. It was fate that had brought him to the lowest point in his life, his imprisonment; however, it was his destiny to have met Yuya and now to be in a position of relative wealth and comfort. He had no worries about the future of his family and this was truly a blessing. They, and he, had settled well into their new life. Kha missed the hands-on work of tomb building and decoration but this seemed a small price to pay for their safety and security.

  *

  Receding waters, ploughing, sowing, germination, growth – all marked the passing seasons and a new year was beginning.

  ‘Are the scything teams ready?’ Yuya asked Perneb.

  ‘They are being assembled in the delta.’

  ‘And the new scythes are already there to distribute,’ added Khety. ‘The threshing and winnowing teams are also in place. I’ve designed a special sledge, laden with stones, to be pulled by donkey teams to do the threshing. It’s cleaner and more efficient than driving cattle back and forth.’

  ‘The plan is to have the teams collect the harvest, starting in the north where the crop ripens quickest, then move ever south,’ Perneb continued. ‘To save time we have instructed them to remove only the ears of the wheat and leave them on the ground. This means they’ll be much quicker in their task. A second team of gatherers, the womenfolk and children of the scythe wielders, will follow to collect the reaped ears in sacks, which will be carried from the fields. The use of squads is more efficient than donkeys.’

  ‘Hopefully there’ll still be some grain left to feed the widows and other unfortunates who will follow behind,’ interjected Yuya.

  Khety and Perneb exchanged smiling glances.

  ‘We won’t tolerate lack of efficiency, Yuya,’ Khety said. ‘However, we have instructed that one half khar of grain shall be scattered, thinly and randomly across the harvested field so the poor will have something to collect, even if they’ll have to work for it. By the end of the harvest season even the gleaners will have enough to eat.’

  ‘Are the granaries finished Kha?’ asked Yuya.

  ‘You asked me that last week and the week before.’

  ‘And your answer both times was “they will be” so, are they now?’

  Despite the good humour there was steeliness in Yuya’s voice; he was a close friend but Kha knew he had to comply with his wishes or they would become commands.

  ‘With the harvest so near, I’ll be taking a trip to inspect all the sites. I’m informed, and believe, that all is in order but I will check personally.’

  ‘Then we’ll come with you and stay to see the harvest begin,’ said Yuya. ‘We’ll send a message to Prince Thutmose, asking if he wishes to join us. We can collect him as we pass Ineb-Hedj.’

  Their conversation was interrupted by a royal messenger. Yuya took the papyrus, opened and read it.

  ‘It seems that Prince Thutmose won’t be joining us and neither will you, Kha,’ he said. ‘The King has decided some of our neighbours are becoming too belligerent and need to be taught a lesson. The King wishes an artist to accompany him, so that the victories, which he clearly believes will be his, can be properly recorded in Temples and monuments on his return. Prince Thutmose was ordered to find the right person and has chosen you, Kha.’

  He handed the papyrus to Kha, who took it with trembling hands. He had never been a soldier and never wanted to be. He had never seen battle, nor a man die. He had not even watched an animal being slaughtered, always closing his eyes whenever he attended sacrificial ceremonies. He read the words several times. He was not being ordered, but invited by the Prince.

  ‘Is there a difference?’ he thought. He knew there was not.

  ‘Please excuse me. I need to tell Merit that her husband has been commanded by the King to go to war.’

  *

  ‘But you can’t!’ Merit said.

  Kha offered her the papyrus. She waved it away.

  ‘I don’t care what it says, I don’t want you to go.’ Tears ran down her cheeks.

  ‘I’m not going to fight. I’ll be there to witness and make notes, to sketch events so that whoever designs the victory stelae or scarabs, whoever plans the Temple and monument carvings, can have a first-hand account.’

  ‘But the old King was away for almost a year
before his final victory at Megiddo,’ she said.’

  ‘The battle at Megiddo lasted only a day – it was the siege that lasted seven months,’ replied Kha. ‘I don’t think I’ll have to make a record of a siege.’

  ‘I don’t want you to go,’ she repeated.

  ‘You’ve seen the papyrus. A boat will be arriving today to collect me. I’ll be safe. I promise.’

  ‘You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep,’ she said and stormed off.

  Kha loved Merit. It hurt him to see her so upset, but he knew not to go after her immediately. She needed time to herself. She would probably walk in the grounds, sit by the river. It was her favourite place. He knew she wasn’t angry with him, but worried. He would make sure that they parted well, seeking her out before he left.

  *

  The boat that came to collect Kha was not alone. Part of the army, going to Naharina with the King, was coming from bases in Nubia and Waset to the south. A flotilla arrived, some boats full of Nubian archers, others carrying rough looking infantrymen with hard faces and scowls. Yet more boats were loaded with dismantled chariots and horses.

  ‘It seems the Naharina princes and others are testing the mettle of the Great Warrior’s son,’ Yuya said to Kha as they waited for the ships to dock.

  Merit and Djoser were by Kha’s side, the quarrel forgiven. The inquisitive child was fascinated by the sight of the soldiers, excited by the chariots and horses. He loved to hear stories about ancient battles, and Kha was a good story teller. Fast and robust chariots easily outflanking enemy infantry. Reins held by a driver, a fighter using spear and bow at will devastating the enemies of Kemet. The uniquely Kemetian way of quickly dismantling and reconstructing this effective weapon of war, allowing King Thutmose III, to surprise his enemy at Megiddo by moving his army and their chariots through a narrow unguarded mountain pass. Legends which were fascinating to the young boy.

  ‘Can I come too?’ he asked.

  ‘Not this time, little captain,’ Kha said, ‘but when I come back, I’ll tell you all about it.’

  ‘These foreign Princes seem as if they are like children,’ Merit said to Asenath, who had come to bid farewell to Kha. ‘They push the boundaries of behaviour until they are stopped.’

  ‘It’s how they learn,’ Asenath replied. ‘Princes, with status but no power, can indeed act like children, but children don’t normally cause the deaths of many men in learning proper manners. Princes are not the same in that respect.’ She touched Merit’s arm, trying to ease the fear she saw in her friend’s eyes.

  Khety, Perneb and their families also came to say goodbye. They had no concern for Kha’s safety, as they knew he wouldn’t be called to fight.

  ‘Just don’t fall out of a speeding chariot,’ Khety said, ‘they are not safe things. I have some ideas how to make them safer, perhaps I should write to the King.’

  ‘It’s enough that you do the jobs the King let you out of prison to do, before trying to rearrange his army,’ said Yuya.

  ‘Then I shall make a new chariot for you first, Yuya. You can tell the King, he seems to listen to what you say.’

  At the signal from the captain, Kha stepped aboard the first boat which contained the officers of all three divisions of the army, charioteers, bowmen and infantry. They knew that the person they were collecting was the personal invitee of the Crown Prince and, although they didn’t know his station, they could not risk offending him or the Prince by putting him in one of the cargo boats, or with the soldiers. Had they known his past they might not have been so generous.

  For those men who remained on the dock, the thoughts of harvests, threshing, winnowing and granaries, seemed to be of lesser importance. Some of Kha’s friends were envious of his going on an adventure they could only dream of.

  ‘Don’t be jealous of Kha,’ Yuya said to them as he and his Kha-less team set off on the journey north to inspect the harvest preparations. ‘We too are heading for a war. One against starvation. Our work, now and in the years to come, must ensure that the King has a people to protect and provide for, and not one ravaged by famine and disease. I don’t know what Kha will do, but I do know that we must ensure our jobs are done properly, without error. The King placed his trust in Prince Thutmose and me, we in turn have placed our trust in you. Time will be our true judge, for we must make ready for the lean years to come.’

  *

  As they arrived in the northern city of Khasu, where the harvest would begin, they found everything in order. The granaries designed by Kha were finished. In times of plenty it was enough that these were guarded by sentries, however, if meagre harvests were indeed to follow, Kha believed the work for the next year would be to build protective walls, which could be more easily secured against the hungry or greedy. The hungry would be fed and cared for and the greedy punished. Nonetheless, it would be necessary for there to be order. To maintain that order, soldiers and fortifications would be essential.

  Yuya visited the tool store rooms organised by Khety.

  ‘The scythes, sieves and winnowing forks are all in here. I ordered the linen sacks to be made from quality flax. They’ll last the whole season.’

  Yuya inspected the sacks and the wooden poles, each three times as tall as a man, which would be used to carry the ears of corn from the fields to the threshing floor. With some pride Khety showed Yuya his threshing sledge idea.

  ‘They’re light, easily moved from place to place as the harvesters head south, but when weighted by stones they’ll prove effective.’

  ‘I imagine that more than a few children might enjoy being used as weights and have a ride at the same time,’ Yuya commented.

  ‘As long as they weigh as much or more than the stones that will work,’ replied Khety.

  From the store rooms, Yuya moved with Perneb to the camp for the harvesters and their families. Sitting in small groups outside makeshift tents, they were in good humour and eager to start work. They would be fed the staple diet of beer and bread, with some fruits and vegetables, for the period of the harvest and at the end they would receive their payment in wheat.

  ‘As much as a man can reap in a day is the standard,’ Perneb informed Yuya.

  ‘That seems fair for this year, however, we need to think for following years whether the grain will be too precious to use for payment. Also, if the crop yield is low, the amount he can reap in a day will be much reduced; let’s think of another method of payment which will be fairer in hard times. I’ll discuss it with Prince Thutmose on his return from his father’s war. As expected, you’ve done a good job, Perneb. Thank you.’

  ‘It is I who must thank you Yuya, without you none of this would be possible. I owe my life to you. I thank you personally, on behalf of my family and indeed on behalf of my country.’

  ‘Please stop, Perneb,’ Yuya pleaded. ‘You’re beginning to sound like a diplomat. Enough. Let’s go to the fields and see how kind God has been to us this year.’

  They were not disappointed. The fields of green they had last seen, were now golden with the ripened plants.

  ‘We can start the harvest tomorrow,’ one of the farm inspectors informed them.

  ‘Good,’ replied Yuya. ‘We’ll stay tonight and see the harvest begin before continuing our tour to check that everywhere else is as well prepared.’

  As Ra returned from his perilous journey of the night and brought his dawn light, the harvesters moved, scythes in hand, towards the resplendent fields. A slight breeze wafted the ears of the wheat.

  ‘Another cycle is about to end,’ Perneb said, as a statue of the god Min was paraded in front of them. ‘Only nine months ago, the waters of the inundation receded, leaving our people with rich new silt, the river’s gift to the land.

  ‘I was fascinated watching the sowers, with sacks tied around their necks, freely casting seed upon the fertile land, singing hymns of praise and thanks a
s they worked,’ said Khety. ‘I have worked all my life in a town and have never before witnessed the farming process. The scattering, then covering, of the seeds using a plough attached to the horns of cattle, or by teams of people using short, back-breaking hoes. I even saw, in some areas, livestock being used to trample the seed into the ground. For next year, I hope to develop a uniform method for this.’

  Yuya smiled. Khety was always trying to improve the way things were done.

  ‘All the methods work well, Khety and have for centuries,’ Perneb said. ‘It’s the way of things. Moisture, and warmth from the sun, germinate the seeds and sprouts soon appear. These grow strong and green, turning to gold, as the gods dictate, so that man knows when it’s time to reap. The cycle repeated each year.’

  ‘We must always honour the gods who make this happen,’ said Khety. ‘Hapi, making sure the river’s waters overflow its banks. Ra, fighting his eternal nightly battles to rise and bring his light, Min, the god of fertility, always on hand to ensure the best conditions and the great god Osiris overseeing the work of the other gods. The people of Kemet do their work, bringing home the glorious bounty granted to them by these and all the other, ever watchful, deities worshipped in the Two Lands. Enough religious talk, I don’t know about you two, but I’m going to help these harvesters.’

  He ran, sickle in hand, to the front of the harvesting team, joined the reapers and sliced his sickle through the stalks in time with the other men and the hymn they were singing.

  *

  That night Yuya dreamed.

  He saw Kha, sitting at a table, eating the meat of a cow and being presented with a harp. He awoke, disturbed, knowing the dream’s significance.