HYMN 1

verb ḫ pr, ‘come into being’, ‘be born’, and the reflexive ds.f.-
Examples are also to be found in magical literature. For
instance, in the Brooklyn magical papyrus (see line 11 and Intro.
pp. 49–50), Amun-Re is described as the one ‘who came into
being by himself, the great eldest god of the primordial time’,161 a
phrase which could include not only the equivalent of αὐτογέ-
νεθλος but also of προγενέστερος. In conclusion, the compound
αὐτογένεθλος is likely to have been used to translate an Egyptian
participial phrase. This confirms that compound words should
not be regarded as ‘Greek’ in themselves, especially considering
that the Egyptian language does not allow compounds such as
αὐτογένεθλος but only ‘compound expressions’.162
33 In the Greek tradition the idea of fire as the first creative
principle of the universe had been especially developed by the
Stoics, who identified it with the λόγος, ‘universal reason’/god,
starting from Cleanthes drawing on Heraclitus’ views. Thus,
translating ἄβυσσος with ‘great deep’, ‘infinite void’, we could
hypothesize a philosophical echo in a phrase such as ‘the fire
which first appeared in the abyss’. Unfortunately, the other
attestations of ἄβυσσος in the PGM point to a different inter-
pretation since ‘the abyss’ seems to be perceived either as the
Netherworld (or a region of it),163 or as a body of water.164
Therefore, we should conclude that the fire mentioned by the
hymn is imagined as appearing in the Underworld (or generally
underground), or in the water, but neither of these possibilities
fits with a Greek cosmogony, whether philosophical or

161
Sauneron 1970, 4.3. Also on magical healing statues, e.g. Kákosy 1999,
53 (III.1–2), 130 (X+14), 141 (VIII.2); P. Bremner-Rhind, XVIII.17, in Faul-
kner 1933 (translation: Faulkner 1937a).
162
Especially in the so-called nfr-hr construction: ‘beautiful of face’, i.e.
‘with a beautiful face’ (equivalent e.g._ to εὐπρόσωπος); Allen 2000, 6.5. Cf.
2.22A αὐτολόχευτε.
163
E.g. IV 1120, 1350, LXII 29–31.
164
E.g. IV 512, VII 517, XIII 169, 482 (cf. also 15.34); also IV 3064, a
passage echoing the Septuagint, Betz 1992, 97 notes ad loc., especially LXX,
Je. 5.22. On ἄβυσσος hardly meaning ‘the void’ see also III 554 (4.5), IV
1148, VII 261, XXXV 1, XXXVI 217.

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mythological. Of course, considering that πῦρ can be meta-

phorically used for ‘light’ or ‘heat’,165 we could interpret the
phrase as an allusion to Genesis 1.2–5: ‘the darkness was over
the abyss (ἄβυσσος) and the spirit of God moved over the
water. And God said: “let there be light”, and there was light.’
At the same time, fire has an ambivalent symbolism within
the Egyptian religious tradition: it is the perfect means for
the annihilation of enemies, since destroying their bodies
completely prevents them from living a second life in the
Netherworld;166 as it produces light, it finds an easy association
with the light of the sun and its warming, life-giving force. These
aspects make it one of the commonest attributes of solar deities:
every night the sun god has to overthrow his enemies in the
Netherworld in order to rise again the following morning. Fire
as a means of annihilation plays a fundamental role in the daily
fight and triumph of the sun; thus, as a symbol of regeneration,
it is also the means through which the daily rebirth of the sun
is achieved.167 As far as its defensive–devastating power is con-
cerned, the best example is the fire-spitting uraeus serpent
placed on the forehead of solar deities and kings.
Coming back to our hymn, the phrase ‘the fire which first
appeared in the abyss’ recalls an image typical of the Hermo-
politan cosmogony which is to be found again in the theology
of Amun and other solar gods: the primordial deity emerges
as sunlight from the Nun, the primeval ocean, at the begin-
ning of time.168 Similarly, in our hymn the solar god seems to

165
LSJ, 5b. See also Johnston 2004 on the theurgic identification among
divinity, light and fire.
166
See I n.135 and n.137.
167
Hornung 1963; Hornung LdÄ ‘Amduat’, D; Hermsen 1995, 73–4, 84–6;
Grieshammer, LdÄ ‘Feuer’.
168
On the connection between the fire/flame and the primordial mound
in the Hermopolitan cosmogony see Hermsen 1995. E.g. P. Berlin 3049,
VIII.3, ‘you enlightened the obscured earth when you rose up from the Nun’;
P. Berlin 3055, XVIII.9: ‘he came out of the water, he wrapped himself up
with the flame’. Cf. Zivie-Coche 2009.

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 HYMN 1

‘be’ the first appearing fire, which would not fit with Genesis
1.2–3 where light is a creation of God. Bergman demonstrated
that at least in one case (VII 517) ἄβυσσος is used in the PGM
to translate Nun, and ⲛⲟⲩⲛ, the Coptic word derived from
Nwn, means ‘abyss’, ‘depth’, of hell, earth or sea.169
34 The word δύναμις is often used in Hellenistic hymns to
refer specifically to the divine power.170
35 Unless we are dealing with a separate entity, which is quite
unlikely, the verse should again refer to the solar god, which
would fit with line 21, where he was the ‘supreme ruler of
Hades’. As discussed above, implying that the sun is the lord
of the Netherworld seems to reflect a long-standing Egyptian
conception, and the presence of this phrase within this very
‘Egyptian-echoing’ passage could confirm the analysis in line
21. Furthermore, the idea of the god ‘destroying in Hades’
adds an even more Egyptian nuance since the sun god, during
his Netherworld journey, is traditionally engaged in the
‘destruction’ of his enemies, first of all the serpent Apophis,
who every night tries to prevent the new dawn.171
36–7 The passage implies that the solar god is imagined as
travelling by boat, as he does in the Egyptian mythology, and
not by chariot, as he does in the Greek.172 Though the final
request would better suit the daimon than the solar god
himself (cf. lines 32–7), pleading with the god for benevolence
does not contrast with the rest of the hymn, since he had
already been asked to come propitiously (line 8) and not to be
indignant (line 27).

169
Within a possible Egyptian theogony, Bergman 1982, 34; Thissen 1991,
297; cf. XXXVI 217; Crum et al. 1939, 226; Fauth 1995, 82.
170
Cf. Isidorus, Hym. 1.11, σῇ δυνάμει Νείλου ποταμοὶ πληροῦνται
ἅπαντες, ‘through your power all the channels of the Nile are filled’, and
Vanderlip 1972, ad loc. Cf. also an earlier attestation in Aristotle’s hymn to
Virtue (PMG 842): Furley and Bremer 2001, 7.4.11; cf. also Jördens 2013,
143–50.
171
Cf. I n.119, n.167 and n.358.
172
Kitchen, LdÄ ‘Barke’. Cf. 7.14, 20–6; Plu. De Iside 364c8–9.

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 HYMN 2

VERSIONS TWO, THREE AND FOUR

TO HELIOS-HORUS: IV 436–61 [A],
1957–89 [B] (FOURTH CENTURY)
AND VIII 74–81 (FOURTH/FIFTH
CENTURY) [C]
These three versions of the hymn are very similar and thus are
analysed together. In fact, although there are some variants
and differences in the disposition of the verses (see apparatus),
they are not significant as far as the contents required to
investigate the nature of divinity are concerned. The three
versions appear in three different spells: version two [A] in a
love spell; version three [B] in a necromantic procedure aimed
at acquiring a spirit as assistant; and version four [C] in a
dream oracle. Here is an outline of the spells’ structure.

Spell of version A (IV 296–466)

• Title: Φιλτροκατάδεσμος θαυμαστός, ‘extraordinary

binding-love spell’.
• Preliminaries and rite: The magician prepares two wax fig-
urines, a man and a woman;173 the latter has to be engraved
with magical words and pierced with copper needles. A spell
is recited and written on a lead tablet to be placed with the
figurines beside the grave of someone who had an untimely
or violent death.
• Spell for the lead tablet: The magician addresses chthonic
gods and daimons, so that they may assist one daimon (also
called ‘god of the dead’) who has to attract and bind the

173
Cf. DD, 239–44, nos. 330–5.

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 HYMN 2

victim of the spell so that she will be ‘filled with love and
desire’ for the performer of the spell (or for his client).
• Invocation: The hymn invokes Helios-Horus so that he sends
a daimon to attract the victim of the spell. Contrary to version
one, in this case the allusion to the necromantic procedure fits
the context since the spell makes clear that the ‘daimon’ is
chthonic and identifies him with the spirit of a dead person
(not by chance the lead tablet has to pe placed beside the
grave of someone who had an untimely or violent death).

Spell of version B (IV 1928–2005)

174
• Title: ‘Spell of attraction of King Pitys over any skull cup’.
• Prayer to Helios: The magician briefly invokes Helios so that
the god may grant him power over the spirit of one who died
violently.
• Invocation: The hymn has to be recited at sunset. Also in
this case, the allusion to necromantic procedures fits the
context. Moreover, the final part of the hymn was slightly
modified to refer specifically to the spirit of the deceased,
who is supposed to become the magician’s assistant.
• Rite: The magician has to write magical words on thirteen
ivy leaves, to be used as a wreath, and on a skull.

Spell of version C (VIII 64–110)

• Title: ‘Dream oracle of the god Bes’.

• Preliminaries: Before going to sleep, the magician has to
copy on his left hand the image of Bes (drawn at the
end of the spell) and wrap his hand and his neck with a
‘black cloth of Isis’.
• Invocation: The hymn (of which only eight verses are pre-
served, lines 1–6, 11–12) invokes Helios so that he may send
a daimon, a ‘truthful prophet’, to prophesy to the magician.

174
For the word σκύφος, ‘cup’, referring to a skull in this spell and in other
passages of the PGM see Faraone 2005, especially 262–9.

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 HYMN T O HELI OS -HORUS

• Alternative procedure: If the magician wants to conjure the

daimon with a lamp divination instead of a dream oracle,
he has to use a lamp and a different prayer (a non-metrical
invocation to the ‘headless god’).175
• Notes and release: This final section describes the drawing
of the god Bes and the release procedure (the magician
dismisses the daimon by wiping out the sketch of Bes drawn
on his hand).
• Drawing of the god Bes.
Dactylic hexameters. Guide edition: MT.176

Ἀεροφοιτήτων ἀνέμων ἐποχούμενος αὔραις,

Ἥλιε χρυσοκόμα, διέπων φλογὸς ἀκάματον πῦρ,
αἰθερίοισι τρίβοισι μέγαν πόλον ἀμφιελίσσων,
γεννῶν αὐτὸς ἅπαντα, ἅπερ πάλιν ἐξαναλύεις

5 ἐκ σοῦ γὰρ στοιχεῖα τεταγμένα σοῖσι νόμοισι,
κόσμον ἅπαντα τρέφουσι τετρά⟨τρο⟩πον εἰς ἐνιαυτόν.
κλῦθι, μάκαρ
κλῄζω σε, τὸν οὐρανοῦ ἡγεμονῆα,
γαίης τε χάεός τε καὶ Ἄϊδος, ἔνθα νέμονται
δαίμονες ἀνθρώπων, οἱ πρὶν φάος εἰσορόωντες.
10 καὶ δὴ νῦν λίτομαί σε, μάκαρ, ἄφθιτε, δέσποτα κόσμου

ἢν γαίης κευθμῶνα μόλῃς νεκύων τ’ ἐνὶ χώρῳ,
πέμψον δαίμονα τοῦτον ἐμοὶ μεσάταισι ἐν ὥραις
νυκτός, ἐλευσόμενον προστάγμασι σῆς ὑπ’ ἀνάγκης,
οὗπερ ἀπὸ σκήνους κατέχω τόδε λείψανον ἐν χερσὶν ἐμαῖς,
15 ἵν’, ὅσα θέλω ἐν φρεσὶ ἐμαῖς, πάντα μοι ἐκτελέσῃ,
πραΰς, μειλίχιος μηδ’ ἀντία μοι φρονέοιτο.
μηδὲ σὺ μηνίσῃς ἐπ’ ἐμαῖς ἱεραῖσιν ἐπῳδαῖς

A ταῦτα γὰρ αὐτὸς ἔταξας ἐν ἀνθρώποισι δαῆναι

νήματα Μοιράων καὶ σαῖς ὑποθημοσύνῃσι.
20 κλῄζω δ’ οὔνομα σόν, Ὧρ’, ὂν Μοιρῶν ἰσάριθμον

175
On this deity, typical of the magical milieu, see Delatte 1914 (and
Delatte in DD, 42–9); Preisendanz 1926; Bonner 1950, 164–5, 297–8,
no. 267; Meeks 1991; Berlandini 1993; Saragoza 2009.
176
I.10–16.

99