Ramses built Abu Simbel not just to glorify himself, but to intimidate the Nubians to the south and to assert Egyptian dominance over a hostile land. The courage here is geopolitical. He placed his own face on the border as a psychological weapon. He was saying: “You are not entering Egypt. You are entering me.”
Here is why King Ramses’ courage should still terrify and inspire us today. Let’s set the scene: 1274 BCE. The banks of the Orontes River in modern-day Syria. Ramses is roughly 30 years old—young for a pharaoh, arrogant, and eager to prove himself. The Hittite Empire, a brutal superpower to the north, is threatening Egypt’s borders. king ramses courage
Charge the line. Build the monument. Live so loudly that the future has no choice but to remember your name. Ramses built Abu Simbel not just to glorify
In 1974, his mummy was flown to Paris for preservation. Incredibly, he was issued a valid Egyptian passport (occupation: "King (deceased)"). The French gave him full military honors upon arrival. He was saying: “You are not entering Egypt
So, he smiled through the pain. That is a physical courage we rarely talk about—the courage to simply endure for the sake of others. Let’s talk about Abu Simbel. Ramses ordered two temples carved into a solid sandstone mountain on the Nubian border. The façade features four colossal seated statues of himself, each 66 feet tall.