From "Kemetian Philosophy" topic:
quote:
Phrases like "man know thyself" were known to the Greeks (in Greek, qnothiseauton) from Socrates, however these words appear on the outside of Kemetian temples for the benefit of the neophytes.
and rasol responded...
quote:
Is there a standing (specific) temple in Egypt where this famous 'Greek' saying is referenced?
If course it would automatically be pre Thales 550 AD (to whom it is attributed).
And what is the exact phrase in mdw ntr?
You know, I think we may be inadvertently falling into a syndrome of factual overkill. Here's what I mean; you have someone who is not convinced that the earth is a sphere, even a photo from space is not enough to sway this individual, so you waste time in even attempting to provide any further evidence...
Minimal factual evidence
a) relevant example:
To describe the ethnic identity of the Ancient Egyptians, it is sufficient to provide an individual with the ethnographic documentation they provided as well as their own self-description. Any need to provide other evidence (bio-sciences, etc) is only collaborative evidence to any person of average intelligence (how much does one have to see in order to see). So, it is a waste of time to proceed any further with "information overkill" with the "earth is flat" individual. However, this practice becomes a habit and spills over into other areas...
Who said what first...
This is a good example of "Information overkill"; the expressions "eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow you shall die" or "know thyself" are not in and of themselves either unique expressions or particularly profound ones. These are types of statements which were probably common folk expressions going back into the earliest stages of human languages. Kemetian society, being older than Greece, it is certain that these common expressions were used in Kemet prior to their being used in Greece (or medieval England, for that matter).
(Do you actually believe that Aesop originated all of his fables? More likely, these were folk tales told around African fires long before there was even a TaSeti...)
So in Kemet, these common expressions would be:
a) Sa, rekh tu! - "Man, know yourself!" ( z(j) rh tw); (it's like, do this now!)
b) Sa, s.rekh.ek tu - "Man, you should know yourself" ( z(j) s.rh.k tw)
Also, there's a tendency to forget that folk or common wisdom is the foundation for the so called wisdom of the "sage." Wisdom is not the exclusive property of the elite or ruling classes...
[This message has been edited by Wally (edited 15 March 2005).]
posted 
Knowing how to utilise it with wisdom and surgical precision is 'my' problem - Sa, rekh tu!