Moses and Monotheism
Encyclopedia
Moses and Monotheism, 1939 by Sigmund Freud
, ISBN 978-0394700144 (originally appearing in German in 1937 as: Der Mann Moses und die monotheistische Religion) is a book where Freud hypothesizes that Moses
was not Jewish, but actually born into Ancient Egypt
ian nobility and was perhaps a follower of Akhenaten
, an ancient Egyptian monotheist
, or perhaps Akhenaten himself. The book consists of three parts and is an extension of Freud's work on psychoanalytic theory
as a means of generating hypotheses about historical events. Freud had similarly employed psychoanalytic theory to history in his much earlier work, Totem and Taboo
. As well as in his ever-expanding library on the subject, Freud's interest in Egypt manifested itself in an impressive collection of ancient Egyptian artefacts. A selection of the smaller bronzes were permanently on display on his desk both in Vienna and London.
In Moses and Monotheism, Freud contradicts the Biblical
story of Moses with his own retelling of events claiming that Moses only led his close followers into freedom during an unstable period in Egyptian history after Akhenaten and that they subsequently killed Moses in rebellion and later combined with another monotheistic tribe in Midian based on a volcanic God. Freud explains that years after the murder of Moses, the rebels regretted their action thus forming the concept of the Messiah as a hope for the return of Moses as the Saviour
of the Israelites. Freud said that the guilt
from the murder of Moses is inherited through the generations; this guilt then drives the Jews to religion
to make them feel better.
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
, ISBN 978-0394700144 (originally appearing in German in 1937 as: Der Mann Moses und die monotheistische Religion) is a book where Freud hypothesizes that Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
was not Jewish, but actually born into Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
ian nobility and was perhaps a follower of Akhenaten
Akhenaten
Akhenaten also spelled Echnaton,Ikhnaton,and Khuenaten;meaning "living spirit of Aten") known before the fifth year of his reign as Amenhotep IV , was a Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt who ruled for 17 years and died perhaps in 1336 BC or 1334 BC...
, an ancient Egyptian monotheist
Monotheism
Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one and only one god. Monotheism is characteristic of the Baha'i Faith, Christianity, Druzism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Samaritanism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.While they profess the existence of only one deity, monotheistic religions may still...
, or perhaps Akhenaten himself. The book consists of three parts and is an extension of Freud's work on psychoanalytic theory
Psychoanalytic theory
Psychoanalytic theory refers to the definition and dynamics of personality development which underlie and guide psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapy. First laid out by Sigmund Freud, psychoanalytic theory has undergone many refinements since his work...
as a means of generating hypotheses about historical events. Freud had similarly employed psychoanalytic theory to history in his much earlier work, Totem and Taboo
Totem and Taboo
Totem and Taboo: Resemblances Between the Mental Lives of Savages and Neurotics is a book by Sigmund Freud published in German in 1913 under the title Totem und Tabu: Einige Übereinstimmungen im Seelenleben der Wilden und der Neurotiker...
. As well as in his ever-expanding library on the subject, Freud's interest in Egypt manifested itself in an impressive collection of ancient Egyptian artefacts. A selection of the smaller bronzes were permanently on display on his desk both in Vienna and London.
In Moses and Monotheism, Freud contradicts the Biblical
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
story of Moses with his own retelling of events claiming that Moses only led his close followers into freedom during an unstable period in Egyptian history after Akhenaten and that they subsequently killed Moses in rebellion and later combined with another monotheistic tribe in Midian based on a volcanic God. Freud explains that years after the murder of Moses, the rebels regretted their action thus forming the concept of the Messiah as a hope for the return of Moses as the Saviour
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
of the Israelites. Freud said that the guilt
Guilt
Guilt is the state of being responsible for the commission of an offense. It is also a cognitive or an emotional experience that occurs when a person realizes or believes—accurately or not—that he or she has violated a moral standard, and bears significant responsibility for that...
from the murder of Moses is inherited through the generations; this guilt then drives the Jews to religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
to make them feel better.
Further reading
- Assmann, Jan (1998), Moses the Egyptian: The Memory of Egypt in Western Monotheism Harvard University Press.
- Chaney, Edward (2006). 'Egypt in England and America: The Cultural Memorials of Religion, Royalty and Religion', Sites of Exchange: European Crossroads and Faultlines, eds. M. Ascari and A. Corrado. Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi.
- Chaney, E, 'Freudian Egypt', The London Magazine (April/May 2006), pp. 62-69.
- Chaney, E, 'Moses and Monotheism, by Sigmund Freud’, 'The Canon', THE (Times Higher Education), 3-9 June 2010, No. 1,950, p. 53.
- Rice, E. (1990) Freud and Moses: The Long Journey Home. Albany, New York: State University of New York.
- Yerushalmi, Y. H. (1991) Freud's Moses. New Haven: Yale University Press.
- Paul, Robert A. (1996) Moses and civilization: The meaning behind Freud's myth ISBN 0300064284
- Rice, Emanuel (1999) Freud, Moses, and the Religions of Egyptian Antiquity: A Journey Through History Psychoanalytic Review, 1999 Apr;86(2):223-243. PMID 10461667
See also
- AtenismAtenismAtenism, or the Amarna heresy, refers to the religious changes associated with the eighteenth dynasty Pharaoh Amenophis IV, better known under his adopted name, Akhenaten...
- Joseph and His BrothersJoseph and His BrothersJoseph and His Brothers is a four-part novel by Thomas Mann, written over the course of 16 years. Mann retells the familiar stories of Genesis, from Jacob to Joseph , setting it in the historical context of the Amarna Period...
- Judaism and ancient Egyptian religion
- OsarsephOsarsephOsarseph is a legendary figure of Ancient Egypt who has been equated with Moses. His story was recounted by the Ptolemaic Egyptian historian Manetho in his Aigyptiaca ; Manetho's work is lost, but the 1st century AD Jewish historian Josephus quotes extensively from it.The story depicts Osarseph as...
External links
- Moses and Monotheism text at archive.org