At an early point in Egyptian history, Anubis ruled the underworld, a powerful position in the pantheon because the Egyptian culture so heavily emphasized death and the afterlife. This position was usurped, however, by Osiris, a god that the ancients found more sympathetic as their judge after death, possibly because Osiris had a man-head like their own. Even after his "demotion," Anubis still held considerable power for the Ancient Egyptians. His divine duties included the following: * He cared for the bodies of the dead, guiding souls across the stony western desert to the Paradise of Osiris. * He observed the weighing of the deceased's heart against the feather of Maat (Truth) and reported his findings to the jury of the gods. * He became the patron of embalmers, for he had made the first mummy by caring for Osiris' body after this god's death.
死亡之書(Book of the dead)
死亡之書(Book of the dead)就是古埃及所流傳下來的一種陪葬物品，它們一般都被鏤刻或書寫在金字塔或墳墓的壁上，有的則印在棺槨或鏤於精美的石棺之上或寫用水生植物紙莎草芯製成長長的紙卷（Papyrus）上隨死者喪葬。它實際就是死者去冥國的指南，每一篇的內容多半是祈禱或辯解，保護亡靈避免各種困厄、幫助死者逢兇化吉渡過往來世的困難航程，平安地到達“真理的殿堂”，順利地應付審判，安然到達極樂世界“蘆葦之野”得到永生的咒語。不過在最早的時候只有法老才有資格得到永生，因為根據古埃及宗教觀念，法老是人間的神。金字塔文就是專為法老所作的咒文，刻寫在古王朝五六兩王朝國王的金字塔墓室壁上。中王朝時代開始，一般貴族官員類的棺木就可以刻上似金字塔的咒文，作為死者的護身符。而到了新王國時代，這些咒文又改成寫於莎草紙上，作為一種陪葬品，即所的死者之書(Book of the dead)。新王國時代，”死亡之書”由二十七篇組成，每篇長短不一各有題目，是書記官為亡靈所作的經文，上面抄錄下冗長的《跨越死亡之國度》（又稱《白晝來臨之書》"The Spells for Coming Forth by Day"）符文的片段，並配以插圖，包括咒語、贊美詩、冗長的開釋、各類禮儀真言、神名等。由Book of the dead中我們可以看到古埃及社會中一般的社會規範和道德標準，因此Book of the dead不但是一份宗教文件，也是有關社會和思想的重要史料。
一般是經歷數個過程： 製成木乃伊、葬禮 （mummification, the funeral and the Opening of the Mouth ceremony） 進入死後的世界 審判 到達 Fields of Peace
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