What is the name of the ancient Egyptian underworld? The answer is the Duat. In ancient Egyptian mythology, the Duat was the realm associated with death, the deceased, and the gods who governed the passage into the afterlife.
The Duat was not simply an Egyptian version of Hell. It was generally imagined as a mysterious, often subterranean or otherworldly region containing divine beings, dangers, gates, waterways, and places where the dead could be judged or renewed. Descriptions vary because different funerary texts present the realm in different ways.
A central myth describes the sun god Ra travelling through the Duat each night. In his ram-headed form, he sailed from west to east, confronting threats such as the serpent Apep. His successful journey brought sunrise and symbolized the recurring cycle of death, regeneration, and cosmic order.
The Duat is detailed in works including the Coffin Texts, Book of the Dead, Book of Gates, Book of Caverns, and Amduat. It is often confused with Aaru, the Field of Reeds, which was a blessed destination for the justified dead rather than the name of the entire underworld.