Editing Maat (section)

===Funerary texts===
Egyptians were often entombed with [[Ancient Egyptian funerary texts|funerary texts]] in order to be well equipped for the afterlife as mandated by [[ancient Egyptian funerary practices]]. These often served to guide the deceased through the afterlife, and the most famous one is the ''Book of the Dead'' or [[Papyrus of Ani]] (known to the ancient Egyptians as ''The Book of Coming Forth by Day''). The lines of these texts are often collectively called the "Forty-Two Declarations of Purity".{{sfnp|Budge|1898}} These declarations varied somewhat from tomb to tomb as they were tailored to the individual, and so cannot be considered a canonical definition of Maat. Rather, they appear to express each tomb owner's individual practices in life to please Maat, as well as words of absolution from misdeeds or mistakes, made by the tomb owner in life, which could be declared as not having been done, and through the power of the written word, wipe particular misdeed from the afterlife record of the deceased. Many of the lines are similar, however, and paint a very unified picture of Maat.{{sfnp|Budge|1898}}

The doctrine of Maat is represented in the declarations to Rekhti-merti-f-ent-Maat and the 42 Negative Confessions listed in the Papyrus of Ani. The following are translations by [[E. A. Wallis Budge]].{{sfnp|Budge|1898}}