- Younger brother Bata lived with his older brother Anpu and his wife farming
- One day Bata went back to grab more seeds and Anpu's came onto him, asking him to stay with her, but when he refused, she told Anpu later that night that Bata had struck her
- Anpu wanted to kill his brother but when it was revealed what really happened, Bata journeyed away to the valley of the acacia and Anpu slew his wife instead
- The gods pitied Bata and made a beautiful wife for him to love, to whom he told the secret of his soul residing in the acacia tree, but she was taken by the king and his soldiers chopped the tree down
- Anpu journeyed to find Bata but he was already dead when he found him, but he searched for Bata's soul and poured it into a jar of water for Bata to drink and come back to life
- Bata, now a sacred bull, went to his wife at the palace where she had him killed and then he became two Persea trees, which she had chopped down so that she would not feel guilty about telling his secrets
- She then became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was actually Bata, and he became the new king, judged her before all men, reigned 30 years and made Anpu his heir
- It would be interesting to change the beginning of the story to a modern-day affair or to expand on the cruelty of the wife when she kept "killing" Bata
(Acacia Tree where Bata's soul was)
- Nefer-ka-ptah met a priest who told him of the Book of Thoth that would allow him to enchant the world, understand every language, and know the thoughts of everyone and everything
- His father grants him the royal barge and he sets off with his wife Ahura and son Mehab to find the book
- He sails river to the gap in the river where the iron box holding the book was surrounded by snakes, scorpions, and the serpent that no man except for him was ever able to kill
- Thoth was furious when he learned that Nefer-ka-ptah and Ahura both read the book and learned all the spells
- Ra granted Thoth vengeance and Nefer-ka-ptah, Ahura, and Mehab all fell into the river at different times and were buried properly as royalty
- Instead of Nefer-ka-ptah dying, it would be interesting to see him and Thoth have a great battle over who is more powerful and understands the earth better
- Two brothers knew of a secret stone that could be moved so they could enter the king's treasure chamber and steal his riches
- However, one day, one was trapped inside and one brother had to cut the head off the other and run so that they would not be identified
- The king sent his daughter to stealthily identify him through several questions and when she had, she grasped his arm to seize him but it was actually his brother's arm
- So the king was so impressed that he pardoned him and gave his daughter to him in marriage
- Could expand on the relationships of the brothers at the beginning and give them a reason for stealing all of the treasure such as paying for food for their family or for an orphanage
(The King's treasure that was stolen)
Bibliography:
Link to Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie.
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