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Work #1883

Instructions of Kagemni

Anonymous (attributed to a sage addressing Kagemni)
c. 2300 BCE (original composition); surviving copy c. 1850 BCE (Papyrus Prisse) · Middle Egyptian
Wisdom instruction (sebayt) · Egyptian wisdom literature

The quiet man prospers — one of the oldest surviving moral teachings, counselling restraint, modesty, and self-control

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.

Attribute Instructions of Kagemni
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Non-Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Finite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature not engaged
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Finite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation not engaged
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality not engaged
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Mediated
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Partial
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Active
Observer · Number Singular
Observer · Metaphysical Agency Providential
Observer · Moral Authority Custom
Observer · Theological Method
Energy · Extent not engaged
Energy · Ontological Status not engaged
Energy · Conservation not engaged
Energy · Dispersibility not engaged
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Conserved
Information · Granularity not engaged

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

Instructions of Kagemni

Linear and generational: the old teach the young. Ma'at is eternal; human life is bounded.

Space

Instructions of Kagemni

Finite, socially structured: the court, the table, the tomb.

Matter

Instructions of Kagemni

The body — food, drink, comportment — is the primary site of moral formation.

Observer

Instructions of Kagemni

The pupil learns through mediated instruction; knowledge is partial and must be cultivated.

Energy

Instructions of Kagemni

Not addressed.

Information

Instructions of Kagemni

Wisdom is transmitted from generation to generation through written text; reputation is conserved information.

Internal Tensions

Where each work's argument pulls against itself.

Instructions of Kagemni

Social pragmatism versus cosmic moral authority: are modesty and restraint genuinely virtuous or merely expedient for court success? Silence and deference could be wisdom or the ideology of a hierarchical society suppressing dissent.