Retelling Book of Overthrowing Apep
Egyptian
Introduction
This is the Mythopouch retelling of the Book of Overthrowing Apep, also called the Book of Overthrowing Apophis. It is a modern educational reading of the ancient Egyptian ritual preserved in the Bremner-Rhind Papyrus, written for readers aged 15 and up.
The retelling presents the ritual struggle against Apep, the serpent of chaos, through the sequence of spitting, trampling, binding, cutting, burning, felling and the destruction of wax figures. It also includes the creation material embedded within the Apep text. It is original Mythopouch wording and is not the ancient Egyptian text or a translation.
What this retelling is
The retelling is arranged as twelve chapters:
1. The Serpent of Chaos
2. The Spell of Spitting
3. The Spell of Trampling
4. The Binding
5. The Knife
6. The Fire
7. The First Felling
8. Be Ye Annihilated
9. The Lord of All
10. Imprisoned in the Arms of Aker
11. The Wax Figures
12. Tested a Million Times
The complete retelling is 9 pages including the title, contents and source-note pages. The chapter structure and explanatory wording are modern Mythopouch presentation. Ritual violence is presented in its historical and religious context rather than as practical instruction.
How to use it with the Sources page
Use Book of Overthrowing Apep (Sources) when you want the historical source context. The downloadable file is a newly typeset public-domain historical source reader based on E. A. Wallis Budge's work, with his 1910 British Museum edition as the controlling witness.
Use this Retellings page when you want the same ritual presented as a modern continuous educational reading. The retelling follows the sequence of ritual actions, Apep's role as the enemy of Ra, the creation section embedded in the text, the use of wax figures and the repeated destruction of the serpent and his hostile powers.
The source reader and retelling are separate works: the first presents historical source material and publication context; the second is original Mythopouch explanatory wording for readers aged 15 and up.
Summary
A modern 15+ Mythopouch retelling of the Book of Overthrowing Apep in twelve chapters, covering Apep, ritual destruction, Ra, creation, Aker and the wax-figure rites.
Copyright Note
Mythopouch original educational wording and layout. Copyright Mythopouch 2026. The ancient Egyptian Book of Overthrowing Apep is public-domain source material. The public historical source reader is based on E. A. Wallis Budge's public-domain works, with the 1910 British Museum edition as the controlling witness. No modern copyrighted translation is reproduced or distributed.