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Dabá, Tell-el See AVARIS.
Dagi (Dagy)(fl. 21st century B.C.E.) Official of the
Twenty-first Dynasty
He served MONTUHOTEP II(r. 2061–2010 B.C.E.)at DEIR
EL-BAHRIon the western shore of the Nile. Dagi was the
superintendent of the southern domains of THEBES, which
was used as an administrative center for the rulers of the
Middle Kingdom (2040–1640 B.C.E.). He was buried in
Thebes, having erected a tomb on the western shore near
the royal necropolis area.
daily royal rites The ceremonies of the divine royal
cult that were listed on the TEMPLEwalls at ABYDOSand
recounted in Egyptian papyri, these were rites dedicated
to the god AMUNand date from the New Kingdom Period
(1550–1070 B.C.E.). The deity was honored by the ruler
or by his priestly representative in the great Theban tem-
ples each day. The god Amun was offered unguents, wine,
incense, and articles of fine clothing and jewelry at the
start of the services. Lavish care was taken of the statues
ofAmun in the temple, reserved in sanctuaries and hid-
den from the view of the noninitiated commoners. Only
the highest-ranking priests and members of the royal
family could enter the sealed chambers of Amun to per-
form the morning greetings, the washing rituals, and the
clothing ceremonies. Each priest knew that he was acting
solely as a substitute for the ruler. It was only in the
name of the pharaoh that such ceremonies could be per-
formed, because the pharaoh alone was the official repre-
sentative who could fulfill the royal obligation designed
to bring about the grace of office in return.
Most New Kingdom (1550–1070 B.C.E.) rulers per-
formed the rites personally when they were in Thebes. In
other temples the same ceremonies were conducted
before other deities. Again, the cult priests were aware
that they were substitutes for the ruler. The pharaoh went
to the temple to “visit his father” each day, a poetic form
for the ceremony. When the pharaoh, or his high-ranking
representative, arrived in the shrine, he was greeted by a
priest wearing a costume representing the god. The dou-
ble crown of Egypt was offered to the king as part of the
ceremony, and a masked priest embraced the royal person
in a fatherly manner.
Dating back to the ancient times, the ritual was
believed to impart to the king the SA-ANKH,the “Life-Giv-
ing Waters,” sometimes called the “Fluids of Life.” The
original concept of the sa-ankhwas part of the cult of
OSIRISand RÉ, although the HORUSrituals at EDFUused
the same tradition. On some occasions the ruler nursed
from the breasts of a statue of HATHOR,ISIS, or SEKHMET.
In this manner he received divine life, a grace that he was
able to extend to the people in turn. MAGICwas thus
achieved, and a pact was acknowledged between the deity
and the ruler and the people. In some eras it was believed
that these ceremonies allowed the ruler not only to
receive divine life but to transmit it back to the god in
return, thus providing a daily mystical communion. Such
rites were designed to give an outward and visible sign of
something spiritually experienced.
See also GODS AND GODDESSES;TEMPLES.
Dakhla One of Egypt’s major OASESin the western, or
LIBYAN DESERT, the oasis of Dakhla was called “the Inner
Oasis” from archaic times and was located directly west
