The Egyptians believed that the gods were not distant deities in the heavens; the gods lived alongside people and interacted with them daily. Trees were considered the homes of the gods and one of the most popular of the Egyptian deities, Hathor, was known as “The Lady of the Sycamore” because she was thought to favor this tree to rest in or beneath. Goddesses associated with protection, mothering, and nurturing were also closely associated with trees.
Eternity was not a nebulous concept of some ‘heaven’ far from the earth but rather a daily encounter with the gods and goddesses in Nature and you would continue to have contact with them forever, in life and after death.
In order for one to experience this heaven-on-earth, one needed to be aware of the importance of harmony in life and how a lack of such harmony affected others as well. If one lost sight of what there was to be grateful for, then thoughts and energies could be drawn toward the forces of darkness and chaos.
This belief gave rise to an Ancient Egyptian ritual called The Five Gifts of Hathor. I suggest that all of us perform this ritual regularly. This magical practice is simple: just look at the fingers of your hand and name the five things in life one is most grateful for. You need to be specific in this, naming anything you hold dear such as a spouse, children, cat or dog, or the tree by the stream in the yard.
As your hand is readily available at all times, it will serve as a reminder that there are always five things one should be grateful for, and this will help you to maintain a light heart to help keep harmonious balance. According to the Ancient Egyptians this was an important ritual throughout one’s life and was equally significant after one’s death since, in order to progress on toward an eternal life of bliss, one’s heart needed to be lighter than a feather when one stood in judgment before Osiris. Whether or not we will be judged by Osiris, the Five Gifts of Hathor is a simple way to maintain harmonious balance in your life!
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