Egyptian Mythology: The Chaos God Apep & The Hall of Two Truths
Apep Attacks Ra’s Solar Barge Nightly in the Duat: In Egyptian mythology, each night, the serpent god Apep (Jack) attempts to consume the sun god Ra's solar barge (Mesektet) in the Duat (underworld/Gold Room) to destroy creation and restore chaos. As the barge navigates the darkness, the chaos god Set (Grady), often assisted by Bastet or Ra in cat form, valiantly spears and defeats Apep, allowing the sun to rise again. The scene where Grady spills the tray of Advocaat drinks onto Jack is symbolic of Set spearing Apep in the primordial waters of the Duat (underworld). The three cocktail glasses on Grady’s waiter’s tray are shaped like a spear and there is another larger white spear symbol on the tray. The lady walking by as Grady spills the drinks on Jack is symbolic of the goddess Ma’at. To the right, as this is happening, there is an image of Ammit formed out of the large green plant near the wall under the balloons. The two giant chandeliers hanging in the Gold Room represent the scales of justice in the Weighing of the Souls ceremony (Cosmic Balance). While Apep’s heart is not weighed against Ma’at’s feather because he is nonhuman, Jack and any other mortal would be subject to this process. Apep is an archetype for Jack in this scene.
Hall of Two Truths: In Egyptian mythology, the Hall of Two Truths (Gold Room) is the judgment venue where souls are judged for cosmic balance. The goddess Ma’at represents truth, justice, and order, personified by her ostrich feather against which hearts are weighed. If the heart is heavier than the ostrich feather (unbalanced), the monster Ammit devours it, causing non-existence.
The Hall of Two Truths (or Hall of Maat) contains 42 divine judges. These judges, also known as the Assessors of Maat, represented the 42 nomes (districts) of Egypt and were tasked with listening to the deceased recite the "Negative Confession" to prove their innocence of 42 specific sins. This is why Grady had advocaat on his tray because it is the drink of lawyers and this scene represents the Hall of Truths. Osiris (Lloyd) is the supreme judge and ruler over the Weighing of The Heart ceremony and he delivers the final judgement. Jack can be seen pleading his case to Lloyd in an earlier scene in the Gold Room. There are also images in the opening credits of Apep attacking a figure that resembles Hallorann.
Apep’s Hypnotic Gaze: In Egyptian mythology, Apep (or Apophis) used a "magical gaze" that acted as a hypnotic, paralyzing glare designed to freeze Ra and his protectors, preventing the sun’s journey. Apep's death was not a final event but a violent, repetitive, and chaotic nightly ritual where he was split in two or burned, only to reform. Because Apep was the embodiment of chaos and resided in the underworld (Duat), he could not be permanently killed. When Apep gained the upper hand, he sometimes swallowed Ra's sun boat, which the Egyptians interpreted as a solar eclipse—a terrifying, short-lived, and purely chaotic crisis where the world risked ending. At the end of The Shining, Kubrick shows the cyclical nature of chaos and order by showing Jack (Apep) frozen in the snow in the early daytime, then it shows Jack (Apep) having the upper-hand during the night in the Overlook Hotel July 4th Ball 1921 photo. In other words, Order/Ma’at has the upper hand during the morning and day while chaos (Apep) has the upper hand during the night.