When Ay heard this he said hastily, “Do not believe Horemheb, Pharaoh Akhenaten, my dear son, for falsehood speaks under his tongue and he is lusting for your power. Be reconciled with the priests of Amun and declare war, but do not put Horemheb in command and instead give it to some old, tested warrior who has studied in the old writings the arts of war as practiced in the times of the great Pharaohs, a man in whom you can place full trust.”
Horemheb said, “Did we not now stand in Pharaoh’s presence, priest Ay, I would hit my hand against your dirty mouth. You measure me by your own measure, and betrayal speaks under your tongue, for you have in secret already negotiated with the priests of Amun and made peace with them behind Pharaoh’s back. But I will not fail the boy whose weakness I once shielded with my shoulder cloth in the desert by the mountains of Thebes, but my goal is the greatness of Egypt, and I am the only one left who can save it.”
Pharaoh Akhenaten asked them, “Have you spoken?” And they answered with one voice, “We have spoken.” Then Pharaoh said, “I must stay awake and pray before I make my decision. But summon all the people together tomorrow, all those who love me, both high and low, lords and servants — call even the quarrymen from their town, for I will speak through them to all my people and reveal to them my decision.”
They did as he commanded and bade the people assemble the next day, Ay in the belief that he would be reconciled with Amun and Horemheb in the hope that he would declare war on Aziru and the Hittites. All that night, Pharaoh stayed awake and prayed and paced incessantly through his rooms, taking no food and speaking to none, so that as his physician I was concerned for him. On the following day, he was carried before the people, and before the people he sat on his throne, and his face was clear and radiant as he raised his hands and spoke to the people from his throne, saying:
“Because of my weakness, there is now famine in the land of Egypt, and because of my weakness, the enemy threatens our borders for be aware that the Hittites are now preparing to invade Egypt from Syria, and soon the enemy’s feet will be treading the black soil. All this comes to pass because of my weakness — because I have not clearly heard the voice of my god or performed his will. But
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now my god has revealed himself to me. Aten has appeared to me, and his truth burns in my heart so that I am no longer either weak nor doubting. I overthrew the false god, but in the infirmity of my purpose, I allowed other gods to reign by the side of the only Aten, and their shadows have darkened Egypt. Therefore, on this day, all the old gods of the land of Kem must fall, and the light of Aten may prevail as the only light throughout the land of Kem. On this day, all old gods must fall, and may Aten’s kingdom on earth begin.”
When the crowds heard this, a ripple of horror ran through them, and many raised their arms and prostrated themselves before Pharaoh. But Pharaoh Akhenaten raised his voice and continued with strong voice, shouting, “You who love me, go now and overthrow all old gods in the land of Kem: break down their altars, smash their images, pour away their holy water, pull down their temples, expunge their names from all inscriptions, enter the very tombs to expunge their names so that Egypt may be saved. Eminent men, grasp clubs in your hands — sculptors, exchange your chisels for axes — builders, take your sledge hammers and go forth into every land, every city and village to overturn the old gods and efface their names. Thus I will liberate Egypt from the power of evil.”
Then many started fleeing from him aghast, but Pharaoh drew a deep breath, and his face glowed in exaltation, and he cried and said, “May Aten’s kingdom come on earth. From this day forward, let there be neither slave nor lord, neither master nor servant, but let all be equal and free in the sight of Aten, and no one shall be bound to till the land of another nor grind another’s mill, but each man shall choose the work he will do and be free to come and go as he pleases. Pharaoh has spoken.”
And there was no further stirring amongst the multitude, but everyone stood silent and stared at him, and deadly silence fell over Akhetaten, and I felt the smell of death in my nostrils. But while the people stared at Pharaoh Akhenaten, he grew in their sight, and the shining ecstasy in his countenance dazzled them, and his power went
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