Unlike the secular government we have today, ancient Egypt intertwined religion with politics, creating a vast network of gods who governed specific parts of Egyptian life. There were gods for the Nile, the sun, the afterlife, and even for chaos and disorder. The Egyptians believed wholeheartedly in their gods and erected tombs, temples, and statues in their favor. For this reason there is no Egyptian word for "religion". The gods were linked to all the activities of daily life, and no Egyptian citizen believed that the gods were fallible. While there were generally slight differences in how the gods interacted with the world, most citizens held the same opinions. There were the main deities, Horus and Amun-Re, and then there were deities of specific aspects of life. An important god is Osiris, god of the afterlife. The afterlife was an essential part of Egyptian society, and embalming a corpse was a grand and ceremonious task that citizens performed. The embalming process was designed to assist the dead in navigating the afterlife and finding peace. There was even a process called “opening the mouth,” which allowed the dead to speak and retain their bodily functions. The gods were the rulers of space and time, and the Pharaoh was believed to be a superior human himself. It was he (or she, in some cases) who spoke to the gods and connected their otherworldly bodies to ordinary people. Pharaoh was undeniable and infallible, because to question Pharaoh would be to question the gods. Ancient Egypt, for the most part, was a theocracy, ruled by one king and one religion. The Pharaoh implemented policies related to taxes, which for the most part included a work task that required citizens to work on whatever was necessary... middle of paper... progress serves to satisfy their religious needs, maintain a civilized hierarchy and keep pace with their evolving views. With more progress meant the ability to accomplish more. This momentum has therefore maintained the need for constant learning and technological advancement. The Egyptians were not people satisfied with their results; there was always a need for something more in their culture. Grand visions for their religious needs only meant that they would have to continue their advancements in engineering. None of this would be possible without a foundation and organization in their structure. Religion was their most basic need, and through the collaboration of masses of people, they were able to make an incredible amount of progress. Their unification is a great example of how civilization can achieve a lot with a unified vision.