Death in ancient Egypt was understood as a transition of the soul from the earthly plane to the afterlife, a rebirth, not a conclusion. After death, the soul passed through judgment by the god Osiris and, if justified by a life well-lived, was welcomed to the paradise of the Field of Reeds.
After leaving the body - which was laid to rest in a tomb and provided with grave goods for the next life - the soul was guided by the god Anubis to the Hall of Truth to await judgment and was attended there by various deities including Nephthys, Qebhet, Selket and sometimes Hathor and Isis, who provided cool water. The god Thoth presented the record of one’s life to Osiris who conferred with the 42 Judges to determine one’s fate. If the heart of the soul was found lighter than the white feather of Ma’at, one moved on to paradise; if the heart was heavier, it was dropped to the floor and devoured by the monster Amut (also given as Ammit) and one ceased to exist, the worst fate imaginable for an ancient Egyptian.
Works such as the Coffin Texts and the Egyptian Book of the Dead provided the soul with instruction on what to expect and how to navigate the afterlife to reach the Field of Reeds and, once arrived, the soul was greeted by all those who had gone before and lived eternally in the presence of the gods, having regained all one thought had been lost.
