Apu-t, also known as Wepwawet or Upuaut, is the Egyptian jackal-headed god of the underworld, opener of the ways. His name means “opener of the roads,” and he was originally a funerary deity from Asyut, later syncretized with Anubis. In the symbolism of the Perfected Man—the macrocosmic divine body mapped onto the Tree of Life—Apu-t corresponds to the Right Ear, the receptive organ for the highest wisdom.

Position on the Tree of Life

Apu-t as the Right Ear is assigned to Path 32, the thirty-second and final path of the Tree of Life. This path is associated with the Hebrew letter Tau (ת), Saturn, and the material world. The Right Ear, as the last station in the descending sequence of divine body parts, represents the perfected receptivity of the physical realm to the influx of spirit.

Historical context

In Egyptian mythology, Wepwawet was a guide for the dead, often depicted as a jackal or wolf standing on a shrine. The Pyramid Texts describe him as the one who “opens the way” for the king’s ascent to the sky. His role as an opener of passages naturally extends to the ears—the openings through which divine speech is heard. The Pyramid Texts also associate Wepwawet with the “opening of the mouth” ceremony, which restored the senses of the deceased, including hearing. The right ear, in particular, was considered the ear that receives the word of the god, as the right side was linked to the solar, active principle. In the Book of the Dead, Wepwawet is invoked to clear the path for the soul, just as the right ear clears the way for the divine voice.

In the microcosmic anatomy of the Perfected Man, the right ear is the counterpart to the left ear (also Apu-t, on Path 21). Together they form the pair of divine hearing, balancing the receptive faculties of the perfected being. The choice of Apu-t for both ears underscores his function as the opener of all gates of perception.

In Liber 777, at step 32 (Path 32), Apu-t is listed as the correspondence for the Right Ear of the Perfected Man, completing the mapping of the divine body from crown (Nu—the Hair) to foundation (the Eye of Hoor—the Buttocks and Anus). The Right Ear thus stands as the final receptive station before the descent into the material world.