Upon waking, the first thing I did was write this down. As I wrote in my journal I wondered what this could mean – not just for myself and the rest of the dreams I’ve had prior to this one, but for the collective? Could this dream be the key I needed to unlock a much deeper understanding of myself and my place within the cosmos? Would it help me to further understand my purpose in this life? Could I share this with the collective?
The country that she traveled to that began with a “P” was Punt. To this day scholars debate on its location and whether or not it was real or mythological. Did I know about Punt before the dream? I did not know it existed until the morning of. Have I dreamt of its location since having the dream? No. Have I asked to be shown? Of course! Will it be revealed in the near or distant future? The question to ask is, “Is it necessary for me to know or for the location to be known?” I am okay with not knowing because the focus of my inquiry is not centered on Hatshepsut.
She also stated in my dream that she was a Sheshu-Hor – which loosely translates to “Follower of Horus”, and can be simply understood to be a holy order that contained the esoteric knowledge of the civilization from its earliest conception. Hatshepsut was a priestess both as a Queen and Pharaoh; I’ve concluded the information presented from the dream to be accurate.
When I look at Hatshepsut I am looking at a representation of destiny and purpose, and I ask these questions [amongst many others]: What was it that inspired Hatshepsut to take hold of what she deemed to be her destiny? How did her closest advisor, Senenmut, know what to look for in order to assist her? Why did those after her disagree with her actions to the point of wanting to erase her existence?
I was surprised at the number of assumptions made by many scholars, past and present, around Hatshepsut’s actions: that she usurped the throne or was creative in her taking of something that belonged to Thutmose III, or that of a male. She was so adamant in the dream that it was her birthright, that it was necessary to reorient how I looked at the dreams I’ve had before and after this one, and how I approached my search for clarity. Could my dreams provide more clues to support my search for uncovering more details to her claim? My viewpoint shifted away from looking at the ancient Egyptian mythology through the discipline of Egyptology, and settled upon an exploration of my prior dreams that utilized mythological themes from the ancient Egyptian civilization. I wanted to know why this was her birthright without imposing any assumptions I had about kingship. This allowed my inquiry to take a more intuitive and organic approach, allowing myself to follow the process as it unfolded. Comparing themes between the two sources – dreams and mythology – would illuminate aspects of Hatshepsut’s actions in ways that would not have been previously explored.
In my search, I found two statements that support the idea that she was well within her right to be pharaoh: one attributed to Hatshepsut at the temple of Mut:
“Oh, ye who see my monument in the course of years, and converse of what I have done, beware of saying ‘I know not, I know not, why these things were done”,
And the other from Senenmut [also at the temple of Mut], her foremost advisor and head priest:
“I have access to every book of the priests, I do not ignore what has happened since the beginning of time”.
To fully understand these statements, one would need to uncover the origins of their beliefs – uncover the same source of knowledge that Senenmut had access to. If, as a collective, we are able to look beneath the layer of the superficial, and identify what is being communicated, we would be better able to reconstruct our collective backstory; allowing this experience to open up fresh avenues for our evolutionary process.
In understanding Hatshepsut’s actions, all I needed to do was look at my previous dream journal entries and wait for another dream to reveal how to weave all of the pieces together. I felt, that all I needed was one key – only one explanation, and I would be able to give voice to her actions in ways she could not. I waited two weeks and three days before I dreamt of what I determined to be the key to not only understanding Hatshepsut’s actions, but the premise of the ancient Egyptian belief system, and the essence of their mythology.
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Imagine if we applied this process of inquiry to all aspects of life: What fresh avenues for discovery could we allow to open up before us? What deep rigid structures are we engaged in that could be transformed by the possibility of what could be? What is it that we are not seeing clearly?
What is it that inspires us to use our discernment to its maximum potential? How does this bring to light that which is hidden and how does it help us in our lives right now? Why is this important?
Dreams reveal details or aspects about things that would otherwise remain hidden, both for the individual and the collective. If we can learn the language of dreams in the same form it was created – and not out of the limitations of the mind – perhaps we can integrate the wisdom from the past with our efforts in the present for the creation of a more inclusive world we so desire and crave for.
End of the sequel. Read Part 1
(Meet Mago Contributor, Alaya A. Dannu)
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Resources
Benson, Margaret, Janet Gourlay, and Percy E Newberry. The Temple Of Mut In Asher. London: Murray, 1899.
Galán, J., Bryan, B. and Dorman, P. (n.d.). Creativity and innovation in the reign of Hatshepsut. Chicago: The Oriental Institute, 2014
Krippner, S. (2009). Anyone who dreams partakes in shamanism. Paper presented as a keynote address at the Annual Convention of the International Association for the Study of Dreams, Chicago, IL, June 26-28, 2009.
Teeter, Emily. “Hatshepsut And Her World”. AJA 110.4 (2006): 649-653. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.