Khepri (The Scarab Beetle) is shown taking wing to transcend the wheel of karma.
Artifact Location: MWM personal momento collection of items picked up randomly and strangely during the 1970's - this item was given to MWM by a person who traveled extensively throughout the world.
Physical Description: Silver, very crude cast probably made as a copy of a copy of ...x copies; orange coral beads, blue ceramic hemispheres, beads glued in place very sloppily which accounts for the yellowish stain around the turquoise, especially at the top, blue ceramic scarab, very poor quality carving. The glue was obviously of poor quality as well, since three beads have fallen off and have been lost while in MWM's possession.
Artifact Source: It is probably authentically Egyptian and the silver work is probably a close copy of an original ancient Egyptian jewelry item and/or artistic motifs. The contrasting colors also probably match an original scheme since the smithies attempted to convey the look of turquoise (used extensively by ancient Egyptians) through the use of a glaze which gives the ceramic beads and the scarab the appearance of turquoise. Probably manufactured in the old section of Cairo near the bazaar.
In this piece we can see a good portion of the master metaphysical template of a sophisticated (basically hermetic) cosmology. Though this specimen is crudely crafted, the philosophical and scientific symbolism behind this piece is world-class and the experience of it is truly profound when one realizes that its design is a communication from the hand and mind of artists who existed several thousand years ago.
The Outer Ring:The outer ring, on which are mounted the coral beads and the "turquoise" ceramic beads, is composed of 12 heart- shaped petals which rest on a bottom layer composed of twelve separate, distinct "humps". The artist gave the heart petals the emphasis by placing colored beads upon them, giving us a master pattern of 12 which we are supposed to notice, indeed, do notice as we live it each and every year.
If one focuses on the extreme edge, one sees that all 24 "humps" merge, forming a continuous, symmetrical sine wave, which is about as mathematically pure a symbol for the linear action of matter and energy in motion in universe as can be conceived anywhere, anytime, though it takes a fairly sophisticated understanding of physics to truly appreciate its universality as a pure symbol. The bottom 12 humps are composed artistically of curved lines which give a decisively wave-like appearance to the entire outer ring, and these "wavelets" are composed of exactly, count them, four lines, making sure that we do not wish this univeral statement. As theorists will tell you, the necessary and sufficient points to define any particular wave at all in the universe are exactly four, no more no less. Strange to find this fundamental mathematical statement as lines traced in a bauble, is it not? In an unusual twist, almost Escherian, the sine waves are also shown to be "surf" waves, flowing out from a common center, implying, what else, a source, the source of the cosmic ocean.
The twelve heart-petals emerge rather like
"breakers" or as a spiraling twist directly out of the lines which define the
bottom 'waves", implying another dimension to the waves, or another dimension to the
universal flow of energy and matter, a dimension of symbolic consciousness centered in the
heart. Each petal rests on the ebb and flow of the two sides (polarities) of the
sine waves as they flow around and around the circle (cycle).
The outer ring of moving waves which have spiralled into the hearts now "crest" into two complementary colors (opposite polarities of each other on the wheel of the color spectrum), the orange and the blue. Thus the philosophic consciousness behind this design has instructed our eyes to see a fundamental dualism, a basic polarity which is repeated over and over again. Each color forms a hexagram of six. Each six forms a perfect star of David, which aside from its use by the Jews, is the perfect hermetic signature "as above, so below", one triangle of three blues, for example, mirroring (opposite direction) the other triangle of three blues. This signature of course is echoed in the mirror of Giza where the triplet of great pyramids mirror the three stars of the belt of Orion at the "set date" of 10,500 BC. In both this tiny mirror and in the mirror of Giza, we can see the Hermetic signature and thus we know through what tradition their purpose, designers, and craftsmen must be understood, namely, the Hermetic metaphysical tradition.
Each color contains the same hexagram of Hermes, giving us four triangles, the opposite apexes of each pair pointing us out, out, out to the four cardinal directions of the earth, thus encompassing, thus containing by implication our entire frame of material reference. The entire set of twelve color points on the cosmic ocean comprise the complete frame of reference and division for a cycle, poignantly emphasized by the inner edge of the outer ring. The inner edge is given high definition, in bold bas relief, very abstractly, very starkly in contrast with the rest of the design elements, informing us, more, demanding of us that we take this is an intellectual prime cipher, the sign of unity, the sign of identity for one complete cycle, the sign of unity of the cosmic ocean, from which by implication it has sprung, and the sign of completeness of the concept. Onto this inner edge band are welded the 12 cups which hold the 12 colored stones, giving us the absolute definition of the cycle.
Much more could be said about the pattern of alteration of the triangles and the definitions created by how the hearts welded onto and bisect the cypher of unity for the cycle, but let us pass onto...
We see again the expression of a fundamental
dualism, the circle bisected perfectly by a line which runs through the scarb, resulting
in two figures, mirror opposites, each dominating one half of the cyle. As any
student of energy will tell you, a wave defined by four points will describe exactly two
halves, one the peak and the other the valley of a wave, each the mirror opposite of the
other.
The two figures could be of either sex, or as a pair of male and female, but their individual genders were of supreme indifference to the philosophical tradition behind this master template. Their purpose is too display two neters (Egyptian for divine cosmic principles of universe, the children of Atum, the one God which is beyond and above it all) as mirror opposites of each other, repeating, summarizing, and demonstrating the fundamental polarity of the energy which is manifest in universe, thought of as positive and negative poles in the western cosmology, known as yinyang in the old Chinese cosmology. Anthropomorphizing the two principles defines them as divine, not as empty, random patterns, such as the waves which run accross the earth's ocean. Regardless of which way the circle rolls, one neter is looking forward in time, another is looking backwards in time.
The artistic genius behind this template makes full use of the juxtaposition of the bodies, the arms, and the folds of their robes or dresses to convey the sensation of the undulating motion of waves, which is the ideal expression of energy flowing in universe. Notice how the skirts appear like breaking waves creating surf on a beach. Thus these arbitrary non-gender specific figures perceptually oscillate back and forth between individual identities and the flow of motion on the beach of the cosmic ocean. This aspect of the design is no accident or coincidence, the Egyptians artists had many characteristic poises of the neters containing fundamentally different dynamics which could have been used. Most especially, the Egyptians were hardly ever shown wearing such full skirts or robes, not even the women.
These neters are holding, not lifting, holding, a sort-of-basket formed by another starkly composed bas relief circle in which sits a scarab (Khepri or Khepera). The edge design of the sort-of-basket mirrors very well the cipher sign of identity of the cycle, mirrors as well very clearly in style and shape the oblong band which defines and contains any cartouche (a personal identity signature used by the literati of ancient Egypt) thus our mind is perceptually directed to find a specific identity, in this case, the scarab which sits within.
The scarab or dung beetle is famous for rolling its food up (generally dung) into a ball about its own size which it then rolls around till it finds a place to bury it in order to consume it privately (theft between scarabs is a major problem). The female will create a foodball which it buries and then into which it lays an egg as a part of its annual cycle of reproduction. Hence, the scarab is exactly the symbol of the annual cycle of life's renewal. Thus we have the name of the cycle of this wheel, The Year.
The scarab's basket is firmly held by the polarity neters but the scarab faces upward and its basket has outstretched wings as if it were to fly beyond the cycle, thus signifying an identity which flies beyond the cycle of the year. But the wings are contained within the cycle of the year, in fact, its wings are but an expression of the substance of the cycle (the silver substrate) and are firmly welded to arise out of the annual cycle (the inner edge of the outer band). The scarab's basket is not going somewhere else. Thus the scarab finds transcendence as the expression of the cycle which repeats itself endlessly, never by becoming something other than the cycle. This is not just a cycle, it is the ever-repeating cycle of eternity. Thus we see that this piece is not just a piece of fashion jewelry, it is the Egyptian Wheel of Karma.
But this is not just any old scarab dung beetle. The wings and the basket give us much more dimension of identity than the material cycle of the year. The outstretched wings are also used as the motif of the sun god and the basket is highly suggestive of the orb or disk of Re with which the outstretched wings are typically painted on the crossbeams of every temple built by the Egyptians. These are said to represent the sun God, Ra or Re, depending upon the translater. The connection to the sun in this instance is perfect, for the scarab is the symbol of the annual cycle of renewal, hence its basket is the annual cycle of the earth around the sun.
By bringing Re into the picture, we have here the clear signification of an aspect of the divine, for Re is said to rule the earth, the giver and controller of the destiny of life on earth. But we are not pointed directly to Re, he is only hinted at as being in a sense the behind-the-scenes puppetmaster of the scarab. By juxtaposing the scarab over the sun disk, we are pointed beyond Re, we are pointed to Atum-Re (the formless invisible one who created Re) in his name as Khepri (to use the type of phraseology often used by the Egyptians).
Now with Khepri we definitely enter the mystery portion of the Egyptian metaphysic. Perhaps because of his repulsive symbolism, that of a man with a beetle for a head, Egytians said little about him in the various vignettes. He appears nowhere as a hero of deeds, is never involved in the plot lines of other Gods and heros, and, like the Phoenix, is only mentioned in passing in the primary stories about the gods as an aspect of the one god behind all of the other gods. Here then we connect quite obviously with one of the more glaring pointers to the hidden layer of doctrines of the ancient Egyptians.
Here is another representation of Khepri which is widely repeated throughout Egypt (with apologies to whomever I have ripped this off from, I have forgotten the source but will make amends). In this pictograph we see the solar disk of Re (with its obvious rays descending downward) being rolled through the heavens like a ball of dung by a flying scarab beetle.
One must suppose that the Egyptians expected Re to have as good a sense of humor as their own. Or, that the Egyptians really knew that the real locus of the divine was in neither the scarab nor the sun, which is highly suggested in the following statement by a supplicant for immortality, Nesi-Khonsu, a priestess of Amen, in about 1000 BC.
"This holy god, the lord of all the gods, Amen-Ra, the holy soul who came into being in the beginning, the great god who liveth by MAAT, the first divine matter which gave birth unto subsequent divine matter…the one one who hath made everything which hath come into existence…Khepera who createth every evolution of his existence…the god Khepera who is unknown and who is more hidden than the gods, whose substitute is the divine Disk…the unknown one who hideth himeself from that which cometh forth from him…"
The Book of the Dead of Nesi-Khonsu, translated by Wallis Budge in his "Book of the Dead", p. 651
The level of abstraction in this particular rendition of the Book of the Dead is sophisticated and the doctrine it expressed is indistinquisable from the doctrines which are articulated with great detail in the hellenic dialogues which have become known as the "Hermetic Doctrine". Sounds a lot like Brahma as well as the God of the Hebrews and the Christians, and the Allah of the Muslims.
A more tangible, Egyptian way of seeing Khepri was expressed by R.T. Rundle Clark in his "Myth and Symbol in Ancient Egypt" (p. 265):
"The High God went through a series of changing forms as he developed from the first life to come from the waters. He can be a sheperd herding his flock, a king on a throne, the idol in its shrine, as well as his past forms as lotus flower, Divine Child, hawk, serpent, ram, and so on…"
This multiversity of forms available to the high god was symbolized as Atum coming forth in his name as Khepri. Like Atum, and the Phoenix, Khepri stands outside of the ennead of gods. Re is the head of the ennead of the tangible, divine aspects of god, and thus Re is the ruler of his own suite, which for us on earth is everything in the solar system, but in the Egyptian metaphysic Re and all the forms in his suite are merely manifestations of the forms and cycles of Khepri which springs out of Atum (alternatively spelled as Atem, Amen, or Amon). To put it all in one line, from Atum springs the flow of the universe through the forms of Khepri, which are subject on earth to Re. And in this one liner derived fairly and squarely from Egyptian symbolism, we see the well of the Hermetic doctrine.
The basket and wings which hold the specific identity of the scarab are the real universal Khepri nature of the scarab. This nature arises out of the cosmic ocean to manifest the identity of the scarab/year. The signification of the scarab in its Khepri nature takes us into the realm of larger cycles and forms than the year of a scarab. Khepri is the neter, (cosmic principle) of all forms and all cycles. Here then we see the Khepri scarab as a symbol for the ever-repeating cyclical aspects of materiality in general, but connected to a tanscendent aspect of all cycles and all forms. The Khepri scarab has outstretched wings as if to fly beyond the cycle, thus signifying an identity which can transcend the repeating cycle.
The polarity neters hold and balance the basket, Khepri. The balance provided by the neters gives the wings of Khepri the balanced connection to the cycle (inner ring). The wings rather closely define one third of the annual circle, forming a base for a triangle which is parallel to one of the triangles of cosmic order defined by the coral beads. The triangle which Khepri's wings suggest is a downward pointing one, signifying "that which is defined from the cosmic order above". Note that Khepri's scarab color is blue, a color of the substance of cold solid materiality while the descending cosmic triangle (as above) its wings point to is the opposite polarity, orange, a color of the light.
We are complete in this circle with the idea of carnality interconnected with divinity with an implicit direction for exploring existence beyond the ever repeating cycles of the years. UP AND OUT. Our minds are implicitly directed to search for the dharma of meaning and purpose, a transcendence of the wheel which is suggested by the wings. We are directed to look for wings which can fly over the waters of materiality, rather than through it.
To the ancient Egyptians, the process of rebirth beyond the material cycles of the years (an opportunity provided by death) was not to be feared, but accepted as part of the divine order of things, in fact, part of a larger cyclical wheel not of bondage but of liberation. The idea of transcendence of the cycles of Khepri was expressed in the symbol of the Phoenix. This larger wheel of liberation is the cycle of the Phoenix, symbolized as the Ibis, an aloof, but benign bird which migrates with the seasons (cosmic cycles) rather than living and dying like the scarab within one cycle of seasons. To transcend the identity of Khepri, to become reborn (as above) one must become "as the Phoenix", a being of transcendent migration, never contained, who flies beyond the repeating finite cycles of carnal existence. Literally, one could evolve, according to the Egyptians, from being as Khepri, constantly reborn into materiality, to being as Phoenix, reborn into immortality, but it took a dharma quest to succeed.
There is one element of the design which is
so humbly stated it is easy to overlook, the strange little "tuft" above the
scarab, part of its Kephri nature.. This symbol we will meet again and again.
Take a good look at it. 
It seems largely irrelevant, at most a quick afterthought by the
artist, a simple motif added to some silver which was used to anchor Khepri's cup to the
inner ring. One could easily take these tufts to be the legs and the antenna of the
scarab beetle. But notice how the tufting lines (five) harmonize stylistically with the
lines of the wave flows of the cosmic ocean on the outer ring. And observe if you will
that the "heart" above the tuft looks rather similar to the Atef Crown, worn by
transcendent beings, especially by Atum, the creator god which was the final focal point
and the one God behind everything in Egyptian metaphysics.
Oh the incredible power of repetition, metaphorical synergy, and conjuctive positioning in the hands of an informed artist! The heart is more than a heart, it is the crown of command of God, expressed both as a heart materializing through the cycles of the cosmic ocean and as the Atef crown symbol of power over Khepri and his journey as the scarab on the wheel. And, if we look once more at the Atef, it also looks highly suspiciously like the two feathers of MAAT (the Egyptian concept of the truth as the "suchness" of right balance) descending onto the world of the scarab.
With this we see that the neters of the two kneeling figures are not just two figures. They are the statement that the perfection of MAAT is present. Generally, MAAT is shown with a feather above the head of a standing figure, a pair of feathers or a pair of neters with feathers signifying perfectly balanced MAAT. Each neter has a horizontal wing above its head, a bit of departure from normal practice, pointing to a pair of fiery Atef feathers which descend from the spiritual dimension (as above) of the cosmic ocean to the material dimension (as below).
One meets the polarity neters and the wings again and again in the literature and artifacts of Egypt, they are fundamental symbols of great importance to the Phoenix and the Major Arcana of Atum.
The innocuous symbol of the tuft is more than it seems and has nothing to do with beetle anatomy. It is after all, a part of the cup (the Khepri nature) which holds the beetle, it is not the beetle. The tuft points us directly to the Atef feathers of MAAT. Even more, as my pages will unfold, this innocuous tuft is nothing less than a master key for unlocking a part of the meaning of the pictographic panels of the gods in ancient Egypt. This symbol, never understood even as a crown symbol, is the Phoenix Crown, completely unrecognized in the current annals of egyptololgy. By crowning the scarab, who is correctly balanced and aligned in the Wheel of Karma, with the Phoenix Crown, below the divine energy (orange) descending from the Atef Crown, the philosophic intelligence behind this humble piece of jewelry has pointed us directly to the possibility of liberation from the wheel of causality by realization of our nature as flowing from the divine and has enjoined us to take up the Dharma quest to realize this connection with the divine, to realize it by becoming one with it and thus get off the Wheel of Karma.
The final realization of the Wheel is that we, as scarabs, in our nature as a form of Khepri (divinity), when balanced on the "cusp" through the manifestation of truth, are eligible for transformation, are ready for transfiguration into the Phoenix by the power of Atum, indeed the Phoenix Crown signifies that the crowning power of transformation is already present.
By now we are entitled to guess the perfectly obvious: this is the fundamental equation of the Egyptian metaphysic, it is the essence of the Book of the Dead, and more...this is the egg of the Phoenix. From this equation, from this seed, the entire symbolism expressed in the pictographs of Egypt can be, layer by layer, like the raw material for the growth of a crystal, "repolarized" and re-integrated into an harmonious, lucid statement. I leave you with these words, the tears flowing from my eyes in overwhelming release of realization of completion and transcendence from the long long road of my quest.
How did that psychic figure my name was on it?
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Last Revision: May 14, 1998