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35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Worth more than just a cursory glance, December 6, 2004
This review is from: Moses and Akhenaten: The Secret History of Egypt at the Time of the Exodus (Paperback)
Before I begin my review, in response to Richard Lewis' review: before you begin laughing at the idea of Atenism being the first monotheistic religion, I suggest you read your history books. Most historians (in fact, I can't think of any who dispute it) agree that Atenism is at the very least the first case of monotheism that can be supported with archeological evidence. If you had read the Hymn to Aten, you would have come upon the lines: "O Sole God, whose powers no other possesseth" and "The Living Aten, there is none other than he." Akhenaten was actually adamant that no other gods be worshipped under his reign (What on earth are your sources that Ma'at was worshipped?). Polytheism slowly began to emerge in Armana when Smenkhare was installed as co-regent as a political compromise. But, certainly at the beginning of his rule, no other gods were worshipped publically in cities controlled by the Pharaoh (Thebes was not under the religious control of the pharaoh after the capital was moved to Akhetaten, now Tell el-Amarna). Even Donald Redford, a well-known critic of Akhenaten, views Atenism as the first monotheistic religion. O and worshipping many gods and goddesses as manifestations of one god while more sophisticated than, say, Greek polytheism, does not qualify as true monotheism.
I just don't want people who are unfamiliar with the subject matter to think that it's a shocking claim (it's very well accepted). What is shocking and deserving of scrutiny is his claim that Moses and Akhenaten were the same person. Osman does a good job of providing some very compelling circumstantial evidence. For example, the transliteration of the Ancient Hebrew "Adonai" to "Aten" and the tracing of "Moses" to the Egyptian word "Mos". Its also compelling that Akhenaten's grave has never been found (a fact echoed in my other reading). In any case, I find Ahmed Osman remarkably inconsistent as a scholar. His arguments range from very cohesive and clear (even when covering uncharted territories) to frustratingly convoluted and obtuse. I would have given this a lower rating for that reason except that I think his central idea is one worthy of a lot of attention. The parallels are very powerful between Moses' and Akheanaten's life stories. Ahmed does an excellent job establishing an overlapping chronology for their lives. I also think his re-intepretation of biblical symbols at the end of Moses' life is interesting. In the end, this is just a theory, but one that very well may be true.
And, because of this, I think it's tragic that Osman published "In the House of Pharaohs" claiming that Jesus and Tutankhamen were the same person. That's just ridiculous. i haven't even read that book, but Tutankhamen was a polytheist who died at the age of 19. Way to completely discredit yourself as a serious Egyptologist. Anyone who wants to read more about Tutankhamen, Akhenaten's son, should read The Murder of Tutankhamen by Bob Brier, easily one of the best books written on this subject.
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34 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Composite review of two books - 'Act of God' and 'Out of Egypt', July 13, 2006
This review is from: Moses and Akhenaten: The Secret History of Egypt at the Time of the Exodus (Paperback)
I thought it prudent to do a generic review of the two books so at least they can be compared as they are dealing with the same topics. The two books are `Act of God' by Graham Philips and `Out of Egypt' by Ahmed Osman. They should be read concurrently.
[*NB: Out of Egypt seems to be out of print hence not listed on Amazon. As my review dealt with Moses and Akhenaten, I have placed my review here even though I have not read Osman's book, 'Moses and Akhenaten. Will get hold of it soon!]
The two authors of their respective books do talk about the same topic of the origins of the Bible stories of Moses and Pharoah (Osman also talks about Christianity) but they have different interpretations of the events and identities of the persons involved. At the outset both books seem to furnish the reader with evidence for their theories and convincingly so. But when the two books are compared, they are diametrically opposed.
1. Identity of Moses:
- Philip's view: It was a prince called `Tuthmosis' whose account in Egyptian literature is spurious and not much is said about him. He was the elder brother of Akhenaten and rightful heir to the throne before he mysteriously disappears. Both Moses and Akhenaten shared the similar views about the one deity. Some of the Atenists joined the Israelites during the Exodus
- Osman's view: Moses was Akhenaten. Because they shared the same religious beliefs they must have been the same person
2. Identities of other peoples
- Philip's view: The other peoples such as David, Joshua, Tutenkhamun etc. are as accepted by the conventional thought
- Osman's view: Tutenkhamun was Jesus. He was killed on Mt. Sinai by Pinhas. Osman argues that the New testament also claims that the Roman soldier who killed Jesus on the cross was Pinhas. Hence the real physical Jesus (Titenkahmun) was confused with the spiritual Jesus of the New Testament. Tuthmosis III was David. Aye was Joseph of Arimathea. Amonhotep III was Solomon
3. Cause of River Nile Turning Red
- Philip's view: Mt. Thera erupted and blocked sunlight. Iron Oxide spewed out and gave the Nile the reddish colour. Because of the catastrophe, plagues ensued and fish died on the Nile.
- Osman's view: The Nile turning red is seasonal. During the season of Inundation, the Nile waters turn reddish. If the events took place in the Eastern Delta this suggests late Summer. The plagues were natural occurrences during the course of the Egyptian year.
4. Origin and meaning of the name, `Moses'
- Philip's view: It is from the Egyptian word, `Mosis' or Mos, meaning `son'. Many people thought that the Hebrew name of Moshe was given to Moses because it means `to draw', and he was drawn out of the water. Philips makes a good point that Egyptians did not use Hebrew. So `Mos' was used which means `son'. The woman who adopted Moses brought him up as a son and a part of the Royal household. `Mos' is used as an adjunct to `Tuth'. Hence the name `Tuthmosis'. So the shady character, Tuthmosis (Akhenaten's older brother) was Moses who led the Israelites out of Egypt.
- Osman's view: Similar to Philips. He also refers to the Hebrew `Moshe' (to draw). But Osman understands `Mos' to mean son in context of a rightful heir, i.e. royalty. As Akhenaten was the rightful heir of Amonhotep III, therefore Akhenaten is Moses.
Summary
You can see how the two different authors are diametrically opposed to each other, yet they seem to furnish their theories with evidence. I came across Graham Philip's book by the suggestion of an Atheist who seemed to be convinced by his investigative research. But as the reader can judge, theories are not proof! The conspiracy theories further become ludicrous when other authors try to link the Pyramids with alien contact (Robert Temple,`The Sirius Mystery' or Peter Lemesurier, 'Gods of the Dawn').
I believe that the best book on the Hebrews and the Egyptians is by the late Maurice Bucaille (well known for his classic, `The Bible, the Quran and Science'), a French doctor and Egyptologist, who gives a very objective account of the Israelites and sheds some interesting light on the Bible and the Quran. The name of this book is, `The Hebrews in Egypt'. This book makes more sense than the portfolio of exotic theories that surround the pyramids, the Jews and the ancient Egyptians. Unfortunately this book is not available at Amazon. Visit a Muslim bookstore.
By Hasan Ali Imam
Ex-Parliamentary Candidate, Conservative Party
UK
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28 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intriguing, November 11, 2004
This review is from: Moses and Akhenaten: The Secret History of Egypt at the Time of the Exodus (Paperback)
I have always been fascinated with the stories of both of these men. I am a Christian, so I am aware that believing any of this is going to be met with criticism. However, this book makes great sense to me, and explains some of the mystery surrounding both of these men. One needs to read the book about Joseph as well, for a fuller understanding.
I find it entirely believable that they are the same man. If out of the blue a Pharaoh ascends the throne, and changes the religion to monotheism, and then that same Pharaoh disappears from history mysteriously, but we suddenly have Moses and he is taking a stand against the house(s) of Pharaoh in the name of the One God, how can one not have an open mind to the possibility?
There are writings between the Bible and those of Ahkenaten that have been noted as being similar. I find this idea of them being the same person much easier to swallow than Moses coming after Ahkenaten and "borrowing" these same writings and including them in the Bible.
Furthermore, if Ahkenaten was deemed the "heretic" Pharaoh, then how did Moses have access to these sayings/writings to
enlist them in the Scripture?
I do not buy "hook, line and sinker" everything that was written, but the case for this is very very strong, and deserves to be heard and analyzed without prejudice.
It helps to be informed to the Bible story and the historical record for the eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. As I read this book,
I realized that I was already familiar with the majority of the information, I just simply never completed the connection.
Please give it an opportunity. After reading the book, I have spoken to a number of sincere Christians regarding the possiblity of this being true, and they were fairly persuaded.
I highly recommend reading the book, and forming your own opinion, with equal research to the known facts. They are available.
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