The Struggle between Man and his Soul by Eric Voegelin

The Struggle between Man and his Soul
As the purpose of this inquiry is not a description of symbols but an analysis of the experiences engendering them, our choice of a case is narrowly determined by requirements of method. For on the one hand, the case selected should be an historically early one, in order to avoid questions which otherwise might arise with regard to the traditional character of the symbols and a correspondingly suspect authenticity of the experience. But on the other hand, it has to be culturally late enough for an exegesis of the experience to be so articulate that the connection between the truth experienced and the symbols expressing it will be intelligible beyond a doubt. The case that will satisfy both requirements is an anonymous text from the Egypt of the First Intermediate Period, ca. 2000 b.c., an early reflection on the experiences of life, death, and immortality, distinguished by excellence of analysis. The text is known as the “Dispute of a Man, Who Contemplates Suicide, With His Soul.”

read the whole thing, as they say... https://voegelinview.com/immortality-experience-and-symbol-pt-1/