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Ancient Egyptian Medicine
Ancient Egyptian medicine, it is important to note, is made up of what we would call rational treatments and magic. This is a modern division of ancient Egyptian medicine and certainly the ancient Egyptians themselves would not thought this way. Both rational and magic would have been used together and overlapped.
Magic in Medicine
Magic works by bringing about a desired effect by the use of rituals and spells, this could be done over distance and the patient need not necessarily be present. Magic in the ancient Egyptian concept has three main parts.
1. Spells and Incantations
The ancient Egyptians believed in the power of the sound of spoken words and that it had an effect upon the real world. Once words were spoken, they could not be contracted or taken back and the caster would have to know a sort of antidote spell, which would reverse or neutralise the original spell. This all stems from the importance of the word, a theme that is also found in the Bible, but also very much an ancient Egyptian belief.
In the creation myths, everything came into existence through two things; what the heart thought and the tongue spoke. You conceptualise the idea, speak the words and it comes into reality. So spells that bring about the healing of people are very important and also very potent. The spell could also be accompanied by the second part, the ritual.
2. Ritual
This would be a series of acts or gestures, which could be carried out on the patient or a figurine. So working on the figurine could effect long distance healing and the results would affect the patient. There were elements that could help and facilitate this process, which would have their own magical strengths and powers. Elements such as wine, water and oil would have life-giving properties.
Also within the ritual, the magician or doctor might use amulets, which were pieces of sacred jewellery that had magical properties that would assist the healing process. The third element was the person that performed the magic.
3. The Magician
This was the person who held the powers to heal; originally during the Pre-dynastic Period this would have been the chieftain of the village. Over the centuries this was gathered into the person of the king, who was the supreme magician, this power was delegated downwards to the priests and in particular the priest doctors.
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