In Egyptian mythology, what ceremony determined whether a dead person could enter the afterlife?

In Egyptian mythology, the Weighing of the Heart determined whether a dead person could enter the afterlife. Anubis placed the deceased person’s heart on a scale and compared it with the feather of Ma’at, the principle of truth and cosmic order.

The heart was considered the center of memory, character, and moral identity. Unlike the brain, it was usually left inside the body during mummification because Egyptians believed it was essential in the next world. The deceased also recited a series of statements known as the Negative Confession before divine judges.

If the heart balanced with the feather, the deceased was judged worthy and could continue toward the blessed afterlife. If it was heavier, Ammit consumed it. Thoth recorded the result, while Osiris presided over the judgment. The ceremony is often called the judgment of the dead, but its more precise name is the Weighing of the Heart.