For millennia, people have grappled with the notion of what the right conduct should be. Such conduct should be conducive to peace and happiness, both for the individual and society as a whole. Philosophers spoke of a golden mean, or middle path, for those who want to clear their minds and hearts. And prophets promised their followers eternal happiness if a certain set of deity-inspired rules was pursued.
The trend can be traced back to ancient Egypt, where the wisdom of the time was often recorded in the form of instructions passed from father to son. The most famous of these are the instructions of Amen-em-apt (also spelled Amenemope) to his son Hor-em-maakher. Written in the form of a poem around 1100 BCE, this set of instructions is often cited as a primary source of inspiration for biblical teachings.
The most complete text of the “Instructions of Amen-em-apt”, divided by the ancient scribe into 30 chapters, is held in the British Museum as Papyrus 10474.
The papyrus, purchased in Thebes, or modern Luxor, by E. A. Wallis Budge in 1880, has been translated several times into English. An Arabic translation is available in Salim Hassan’s epic work titled Misr Al-Qadimah, or Ancient Egypt.
The following are extracts:
1. Student duties
Open your ears and listen well.
Sharpen your mind to understand.
Avoid neglect, for it is bad form.
2. Respect the weak
Do not rob a wretch, or attack a cripple.
Do not stretch out your hand to hurt an old man.
Do not open your mouth to insult an elderly person.
Do not embark on a mischievous errand
Nor befriend those who do so.
3. Rules of discussion
Do not befriend the hot-tempered.
Do not engage him in conversation.
Check your tongue when answering your superiors.
Take care not to offend them.
Do not give free rein to your answer.
Chat with men of your own measure
And take care not to offend them.
4. Reject the evil
Do not raise an outcry against one who attacks you.
He who does evil, the shore rejects him.
Its floodwater will carry him away.
The north wind will descend to destroy him.
5. emple rules
Do not abuse the temple grounds.
Do not act with greed in the temple.
6. Things change
Don’t say, “Today is like tomorrow, how will this end?”
When tomorrow comes, today has vanished.
The deep has become the water’s edge.
The jackals are sated.
The birds are in feast.
7. Act with integrity
Do not move the markers on the borders of fields.
Do not shift the position of the measuring cord.
Do not be greedy for a cubit of land.
Do not encroach on the boundaries of a widow.
8. Be good to others
Set your goodness before people
And you are honoured by all.
Keep your tongue clean from obscenities
And you will be favoured by all.
You will find your place in the temple,
And you will eat from the bread of the offerings,
And you will be respected in your old age.
9. Fate of the oppressor
Recognise he who does this on earth:
He who is the oppressor of the weak,
He who is bent on destroying your being,
He who is used to taking lives.
His house will be an enemy to the town.
His storerooms will be destroyed.
His wealth will be seized from his children.
His possessions will go to others.
10. Avoid greed
Do not set your heart on wealth.
There is no escape from destiny.
Do not let your heart go astray,
Nor strain to boost your fortune.
What you have, let it suffice.
If riches come to you through theft
They will disappear before the night is over.
They will grow wings like geese
And fly away with the wind.
11. Poor is better
Do not rejoice in wealth from theft
Nor complain of being poor.
If the leading archer passes forward
His company will abandon him.
The boat of the greedy is stranded on the shore
But the quiet one sails with the wind.
12. Avoid trouble
Guard your tongue from harmful speech
And you will be loved by others.
13. void hot temper
Swift is the speech of he who is angry,
Swifter than the wind over water.
He tears down things with his tongue
As he makes his hurtful speech.
His answers are worthy of punishment
And he carries the weight of the world,
But his load is falsehood.
He is the ferryman of snaring [[?]] words.
He goes and comes with quarrel on his mind.
When he eats and drinks inside
His words are heard outside.
14. Fate of the angry
He runs before the wind like a cloud.
He obscures the radiance of the sun.
He flips his tail like a young crocodile.
He draws himself up to strike.
His lips are sweet, but his tongue is bitter.
A fire is burning in his belly.
Do not leave to join him
Lest the horrors carry you away.
15. No to perjury
Do not bear witness with false words
Nor brush aside a man by your tongue.
Do not denounce a man who’s done no evil,
Nor falsify your pen.
16. Be generous
If you come across a large debt against a poor man
Make it into three parts.
Forgive two, let one stand.
You will find it a path of life.
After sleep, when you wake in the morning.
You will find it as good news.
Better is praise with the love of men
Than wealth in the storehouse.
Better is bread with a happy heart
Than wealth with worries.
17. Uphold justice
Do not support an unfair case in the law court,
Nor brush aside one who is right.
Do not favour the well-dressed man,
Nor disdain the one in rags.
Do not take a gift from a powerful man
To deprive a weak man of his right.
18. Respect rank and age
If you see one higher in rank than you outdoors
Walk behind him respectfully.
Give a hand to an elder who is sated with beer.
Respect him as his children would.
The arm is not hurt by being bared,
Nor is the back broken from bending.
A man doesn’t lose anything by speaking softly,
Nor does he gain if his speech is gruff.
19. Stand your ground
Do not humiliate yourself in front of anyone.
If someone tries to bribe you, don’t give in.
Do not look down to the floor.
Do not do as he tells you.
20. Be honest
Do not tip the balance in your favour,
Nor reduce the amount you’re weighing.
Do not use faulty measures,
And if you find someone cheating
Avoid him like the plague.
21. Courtroom protocol
Do not go into the courtroom before the nobleman.
Do not say falsehoods.
Do not hesitate in your answer.
Say the truth in front of the nobleman.
Do not sell your soul.
22. Be fair
Do not try to corrupt a man in the courtroom.
Do not accept a gift from a strong man.
Do not be unfair to the weak because of him
For justice is a divine gift.
23. Acceptance of fate
Do not say, “I need a strong backer
Because someone is coming after me.”
Nor say, “I want a saviour because someone hates me.”
You must accept the fate God has given you.
You do no know what tomorrow may begin.
Leave your destiny in the hand of God
And your calm will defeat their evil.
24. The art of listening
Do not intimidate those who talk to you
But let them speak from the heart.
Be calm so as to find the truth.
Let them finish what they have to say.
25. Be discreet
Do not hear the words of a nobleman indoors
Then go outdoors to spill the beans.
Do not let the words make the rounds
Or your heart will suffer the pain.
26. Respect the disabled
Do not make fun of a blind man or ridicule a dwarf.
Do not mistreat the cripple.
Do not abuse the mentally challenged, for they are the children of God.
27. Honour the old
Do not curse an old man
For he saw (the deity) Ra before you.
Let him hit you with his hand in your chest.
Let him curse you and stay calm,
For if you show up before him a day later
He will give you his own bread.
28. Be considerate
Do not ask about the identity of a widow caught in the field
And be patient until she offers her answer.
Do not show your oil pot to strangers
But share it with your brothers.
God delights in the happiness of the humble.
29. Crossing the river
Do not prevent people from crossing the river
If you have a place in your boat.
Do not make for yourself a bridge on the river
Then struggle to collect the passage fees.
Charge the man with wealth
And give free passage to the poor.
30. Conclusion
Contemplate these thirty chapters
For there is pleasure and knowledge in them
That surpass all knowledge in books.
They can reach the illiterate as well
And if you read them to the illiterate
You will be purifying your soul.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 14 August, 2014 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.
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