古埃及人因為埃及幾乎從來不下雨,無法解釋尼羅河每到7月的泛濫,就以為是天空都是水,然後天上有個洞,7月份就漏到尼羅河了。 這跟李白的”君不見黃河之水天上來“ 何其神似!
尼羅河對埃及人的時間理解也有很大的影響。跟我們現代人的linear time 觀點不同的是,古埃及人認為有2種時間—一種是cyclic, 另一種則是eternity.
"Neheh is the time of cycles. It is associated with the movement of the Sun, the passage of the seasons and the annual flood of the Nile. It repeats; it recurs; it renews.
Djet on the other hand, is time without motion … The term is sometimes translated as ‘eternal’, but it also describes a state of completion. Something in djet time is finished but not past; it exists forever in the present …
Neheh was inspired by the cycles of the river valleys, while djet reflected the desert's timelessness."
他們的這個認知的原因據說是因為地理原因。尼羅河緊挨沙漠。尼羅河每年7月開始的泛濫季, 10月離去,這可不就是cyclic; 而沙漠則是永恒不變,故而eternity.