The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria
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Theophilus G. Pinches >> The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria
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Berosus' narrative fills the gap.
It is noteworthy that this portion of the narrative has been preserved
by Abydenus, George the Syncellus, and Eusebius, in their quotations
from Berosus. According to this Chaldaean writer, there was a woman
named Omoroca, or, in Chaldaean, Thalatth (apparently a mistake for
Thauatth, i.e. Tiawath), whose name was equivalent to the Greek
Thalassa, the sea. It was she who had in her charge all the strange
creatures then existing. At this period, Belus (Bel-Merodach) came,
and cut the woman asunder, forming out of one half the earth, and of
the other the heavens, at the same time destroying all the creatures
which were within her--all this being an allegory, for the whole
universe consists of moisture, and creatures are constantly generated
therein. The deity then cut off his own head, and the other gods mixed
the blood, as it gushed out, with the earth, and from this men were
formed. Hence it is that men are rational, and partake of divine
knowledge.
A second creation.
This Belsus, "who is called Zeus," divided the darkness, separated the
heavens from the earth, and reduced the universe to order. The animals
which had been created, however, not being able to bear the light,
died. Belus then, seeing the void thus made, ordered one of the gods
to take off his head, and mix the blood with the soil, forming other
men and animals which should be able to bear the light. He also formed
the stars, the sun, the moon, and the five planets. It would thus seem
that there were two creations, the first having been a failure because
Belus had not foreseen that it was needful to produce beings which
should be able to bear the light. Whether this repetition was really
in the Babylonian legend, or whether Berosus (or those who quote him)
has merely inserted and united two varying accounts, will only be
known when the cuneiform text is completed.
The concluding tablet.
The tablet of the fifty-one names completes the record of the tablets
found at Nineveh and Babylon. In this Merodach receives the titles of
all the other gods, thus identifying him with them, and leading to
that tendency to monotheism of which something will be said later on.
In this text, which is written, like the rest of the legend, in
poetical form, Merodach is repeatedly called /Tutu/, a mystic word
meaning "creator," and "begetter," from the reduplicate root /tu/ or
/utu/--which was to all appearances his name when it was desired to
refer to him especially in that character. Noteworthy in this portion
is the reference to Merodach's creation of mankind:--
Line 25. "Tuto: Aga-azaga (the glorious crown)--may he make the crowns
glorious.
26. The lord of the glorious incantation bringing the dead to
life;
27. He who had mercy on the gods who had been overpowered;
28. Made heavy the yoke which he had laid on the gods who were
his enemies,
29. (And) to redeem(?) them, created mankind.
30. 'The merciful one,' 'he with whom is salvation,'
31. May his word be established, and not forgotten,
32. In the mouth of the black-headed ones[*] whom his hands have
made."
[*] I.e. mankind.
Man the redeemer.
The phrase "to redeem them" is, in the original, /ana padi-sunu/, the
verb being from /padu/, "to spare," "set free," and if this rendering
be correct, as seems probable, the Babylonian reasons for the creation
of mankind would be, that they might carry on the service and worship
of the gods, and by their righteousness redeem those enemies of the
gods who were undergoing punishment for their hostility. Whether by
this Tiawath, Apsu, Mummu, Kingu, and the monsters whom she had
created were included, or only the gods of heaven who had joined her,
the record does not say. Naturally, this doctrine depends entirely
upon the correctness of the translation of the words quoted. Jensen,
who first proposed this rendering, makes no attempt to explain it, and
simply asks: "Does 'them' in 'to redeem(?) them' refer to the gods
named in line 28 or to mankind and then to a future--how meant?--
redemption? Eschatology? Zimmern's 'in their place' unprovable.
Delitzsch refrains from an explanation."
The bilingual account of the creation. Aruru aids Merodach.
Whilst dealing with this part of the religious beliefs of the
Babylonians, a few words are needed concerning the creation-story
which is prefixed to an incantation used in a purification ceremony.
The original text is Sumerian (dialectic), and is provided with a
Semitic translation. In this inscription, after stating that nothing
(in the beginning) existed, and even the great cities and temples of
Babylonia were as yet unbuilt, the condition of the world is briefly
indicated by the statement that "All the lands were sea." The renowned
cities of Babylonia seem to have been regarded as being as much
creations of Merodach as the world and its inhabitants--indeed, it is
apparently for the glorification of those cities by attributing their
origin to Merodach, that the bilingual account of the creation was
composed.. "When within the sea there was a stream"--that is, when the
veins of Tiawath had been cut through--Eridu (probably = Paradise) and
the temple E-sagila within the Abyss were constructed, and after that
Babylon and the earthly temple of E-sagila within it. Then he made the
gods and the Annunnaki (the gods of the earth), proclaimed a glorious
city as the seat of the joy of their hearts, and afterwards made a
pleasant place in which the gods might dwell. The creation of mankind
followed, in which Merodach was aided by the goddess Aruru, who made
mankind's seed. Finally, plants, trees, and the animals, were
produced, after which Merodach constructed bricks, beams, houses, and
cities, including Niffer and Erech with their renowned temples.
We see here a change in the teaching with regard to Merodach--the gods
are no longer spoken of as "his fathers," but he is the creator of the
gods, as well as of mankind.
The order of the gods in the principal lists.
It is unfortunate that no lists of gods have been found in a
sufficiently complete state to allow of the scheme after which they
were drawn up to be determined without uncertainty. It may,
nevertheless, be regarded as probable that these lists, at least in
some cases, are arranged in conformity (to a certain extent) with the
appearance of the deities in the so-called creation-story. Some of
them begin with Anu, and give him various names, among them being
Ansar and Kisar, Lahmu and Lahame, etc. More specially interesting,
however, is a well-known trilingual list of gods, which contains the
names of the various deities in the following order:--
EXTRACTS FROM THE TRILINGUAL LIST
/Obverse/
Sumer. Dialect Sumer. Standard Common Explanation
(Semit. or Sumer.)
1. Dimmer Dingir Ilu God.
2. U-ki En-ki E-a Ea or Aa.
3. Gasan(?)-ki Nin-ki Dawkina Dauke, the consort of Ea.
4. Mu-ul-lil En-lil-la Bel The God Bel.
5. E-lum A-lim Bel
6. Gasan(?)-lil Nin-lil-la dam-bi sal Bel's consort.
7. U-lu-a Ni-rig Enu-restu The god of Niffer.
8. U-lib-a Ni-rig Enu-restu
9-12 have Enu-restu's consort, sister, and attendant.
13. U-sab-sib En-sag-duga Nusku Nusku
14-19 have two other names of Nusku, followed by three names of his
consort. A number of names of minor divinities then follow. At
line 43 five names of Ea are given, followed by four of
Merodach:--
48. U-bi-lu-lu En-bi-lu-lu Marduk Merodach
49. U-Tin-dir ki En-Tin-dir ki Marduk Merodach as "lord of Babylon."
50. U-dimmer-an-kia En-dinger-an-kia Marduk Merodach as "lord god of heaven and earth."
51. U-ab-sar-u En-ab-sar-u Marduk Merodach, apparently as "lord of the 36,000 steers."
52. U-bar-gi-si Nin-bar-gi-si Zer-panitum Merodach's consort.
53. Gasan-abzu Nin-abzu dam-bi sal "the Lady of the Abyss," his consort.
The remainder of the obverse is mutilated, but gave the names of Nebo
in Sumerian, and apparently also of Tasmetum, his consort. The
beginning of the reverse also is mutilated, but seems to have given
the names of the sun-god, Samas, and his consort, followed by those of
Kittu and Mesarum, "justice and righteousness," his attendants. Other
interesting names are:
/Reverse/
8. U-libir-si En-ubar-si Dumu-zi Tammuz
9. Sir-tumu Sir-du ama Dumuzi-gi the mother of Tammuz
12. Gasan-anna Innanna Istar Istar (Venus) as "lady of heaven."
20. Nin-si-anna Innanna mul Istar the star (the planet Venus).
21. Nin Nin-tag-taga Nanaa a goddess identified with Istar.
23. U-sah Nina-sah Pap-sukal the gods' messenger.
24. U-banda Lugal-banda Lugal-banda
26. U-Mersi Nin-Girsu Nin-Girsu the chief god of Lagas.
27. Ma-sib-sib Ga-tum-duga Bau Bau, a goddess identified with Gula.
Four non-Semitic names of Gula follow, of which that in line 31 is the
most interesting:--
31. Gasan-ti-dibba Nin-tin-guua Gula "the lady saving from death."
33. Gasan-ki-gal Eres-ki-gala Allatu Persephone.
36. U-mu-zi-da Nin-gis-zi-da Nin-gis-zida "the lord of the everlasting tree."
37. U-urugal Ne-eri-gal Nerigal Nergal.
42. Mulu-hursag Galu-hursag Amurru the Amorite god.
43. Gasan-gu-edina Nin-gu-edina (apparently the consort of Amurru).
In all probability this list is one of comparatively late date, though
its chronological position with regard to the others is wholly
uncertain--it may not be later, and may even be earlier, than those
beginning with Anu, the god of the heavens. The important thing about
it is, that it begins with /ilu/, god, in general, which is written,
in the standard dialect (that of the second column) with the same
character as that used for the name of Anu. After this comes Aa or Ea,
the god of the earth, and his consort, followed by En-lilla, the older
Bel--Illinos in Damascius. The name of Ea is repeated again in line 43
and following, where he is apparently re-introduced as the father of
Merodach, whose names immediately follow. This peculiarity is also
found in other lists of gods and is undoubtedly a reflection of the
history of the Babylonian religion. As this list replaces Anu by
/ilu/, it indicates the rule of Enki or Ea, followed by that of
Merodach, who, as has been shown, became the chief divinity of the
Babylonian pantheon in consequence of Babylon having become the
capital of the country.
CHAPTER IV
THE PRINCIPAL GODS OF THE BABYLONIANS AND ASSYRIANS
Anu.
The name of this divinity is derived from the Sumero-Akkadian /ana/,
"heaven," of which he was the principal deity. He is called the father
of the great gods, though, in the creation-story, he seems to be
described as the son of Ansar and Kisar. In early names he is
described as the father, creator, and god, probably meaning the
supreme being. His consort was Anatu, and the pair are regarded in the
lists as the same as the Lahmu and Lahame of the creation-story, who,
with other deities, are also described as gods of the heavens. Anu was
worshipped at Erech, along with Istar.
Ea.
Is given as if it were the /Semitic/ equivalent of /Enki/, "the lord
of the earth," but it would seem to be really a Sumerian word, later
written /Ae/, and certain inscriptions suggest that the true reading
was /Aa/. His titles are "king of the Abyss, creator of everything,
lord of all," the first being seemingly due to the fact that Aa is a
word which may, in its reduplicate form, mean "waters," or if read
/Ea/, "house of water." He also, like Anu, is called "father of the
gods." As this god was likewise "lord of deep wisdom," it was to him
that his son Merodach went for advice whenever he was in doubt. On
account of his knowledge, he was the god of artisans in general--
potters, blacksmiths, sailors, builders, stone-cutters, gardeners,
seers, barbers, farmers, etc. This is the Aos (a form which confirms
the reading Aa) of Damascius, and the Oannes of the extracts from
Berosus, who states that he was "a creature endowed with reason, with
a body like that of a fish, and under the fish's head another head,
with feet below, like those of a man, with a fish's tail." This
description applies fairly well to certain bas-reliefs from Nimroud in
the British Museum. The creature described by Berosus lived in the
Persian Gulf, landing during the day to teach the inhabitants the
building of houses and temples, the cultivation of useful plants, the
gathering of fruits, and also geometry, law, and letters. From him,
too, came the account of the beginning of things referred to in
chapter III. which, in the original Greek, is preceded by a
description of the composite monsters said to have existed before
Merodach assumed the rule of the universe.
The name of his consort, Damkina or Dawkina, probably means "the
eternal spouse," and her other names, /Gasan-ki/ (Sumerian dialectic)
and /Nin-ki/ (non-dialectic), "Lady of the earth," sufficiently
indicates her province. She is often mentioned in the incantations
with Ea.
The forsaking of the worship of Ea as chief god for that of Merodach
seems to have caused considerable heartburning in Babylonia, if we may
judge from the story of the Flood, for it was on account of his
faithfulness that Utnipistim, the Babylonian Noah, attained to
salvation from the Flood and immortality afterwards. All through this
adventure it was the god Ea who favoured him, and afterwards gave him
immortality like that of the gods. There is an interesting Sumerian
text in which the ship of Ea seems to be described, the woods of which
its various parts were formed being named, and in it, apparently, were
Enki (Ea), Damgal-nunna (Damkina), his consort, Asari-lu-duga
(Merodach), In-ab (or Ines), the pilot of Eridu (Ea's city), and
Nin-igi-nagar-sir, "the great architect of heaven":--
"May the ship before thee bring fertility,
May the ship after thee bring joy,
In thy heart may it make joy of heart . . . ."
Ea was the god of fertility, hence this ending to the poetical
description of the ship of Ea.
Bel.
The deity who is mentioned next in order in the list given above is
the "older Bel," so called to distinguish him from Bel-Merodach. His
principal names were /Mullil/ (dialectic) or /En-lilla/[*] (standard
speech), the /Illinos/ of Damascius. His name is generally translated
"lord of mist," so-called as god of the underworld, his consort being
/Gasan-lil/ or /Nan-lilla/, "the lady of the mist," in Semitic
Babylonian /Beltu/, "the Lady," par excellence. Bel, whose name means
"the lord," was so called because he was regarded as chief of the
gods. As there was considerable confusion in consequence of the title
Bel having been given to Merodach, Tiglath-pileser I. (about 1200
B.C.) refers to him as the "older Bel" in describing the temple which
he built for him at Assur. Numerous names of men compounded with his
occur until the latest times, implying that, though the favourite god
was Merodach, the worship of Bel was not forgotten, even at Babylon--
that he should have been adored at his own city, Niffur, and at Dur-
Kuri-galzu, where Kuri-galzu I. built a temple for "Bel, the lord of
the lands," was naturally to be expected. Being, like Ea, a god of the
earth, he is regarded as having formed a trinity with Anu, the god of
heaven, and Ea, the god of the deep, and prayer to these three was as
good as invoking all the gods of the universe. Classification of the
gods according to the domain of their power would naturally take place
in a religious system in which they were all identified with each
other, and this classification indicates, as Jastrow says, a deep
knowledge of the powers of nature, and a more than average
intelligence among the Babylonians--indeed, he holds it as a proof
that, at the period of the older empire, there were schools and
students who had devoted themselves to religious speculation upon this
point. He also conjectures that the third commandment of the Law of
Moses was directed against this doctrine held by the Babylonians.
[*] Ordinarily pronounced /Illila/, as certain glosses and Damascius's
/Illinos/ (for /Illilos/) show.
Beltis.
This goddess was properly only the spouse of the older Bel, but as
/Beltu/, her Babylonian name, simply meant "lady" in general (just as
/Bel/ or /belu/ meant "lord"), it became a title which could be given
to any goddess, and was in fact borne by Zer-panitum, Istar, Nanaa,
and others. It was therefore often needful to add the name of the city
over which the special /Beltu/ presided, in order to make clear which
of them was meant. Besides being the title of the spouse of the older
Bel, having her earthly seat with him in Niffur and other less
important shrines, the Assyrians sometimes name Beltu the spouse of
Assur, their national god, suggesting an identification, in the minds
of the priests, with that deity.
Enu-restu or Nirig.[*]
Whether /Enu-restu/ be a translation of /Nirig/ or not, is uncertain,
but not improbable, the meaning being "primeval lord," or something
similar, and "lord" that of the first element, /ni/, in the Sumerian
form. In support of this reading and rendering may be quoted the fact,
that one of the descriptions of this divinity is /assarid ilani
ahe-su/, "the eldest of the gods his brothers." It is noteworthy that
this deity was a special favourite among the Assyrians, many of whose
kings, to say nothing of private persons, bore his name as a component
part of theirs. In the bilingual poem entitled /Ana-kime gimma/
("Formed like Anu"), he is described as being the son of Bel (hence
his appearance after Bel in the list printed above), and in the
likeness of Anu, for which reason, perhaps, his divinity is called
"Anuship." Beginning with words praising him, it seems to refer to his
attitude towards the gods of hostile lands, against whom, apparently,
he rode in a chariot of the sacred lapis-lazuli. Anu having endowed
him with terrible glory, the gods of the earth feared to attack him,
and his onrush was as that of a storm-flood. By the command of Bel,
his course was directed towards E-kur, the temple of Bel at Niffur.
Here he was met by Nusku, the supreme messenger of Bel, who, with
words of respect and of praise, asks him not to disturb the god Bel,
his father, in his seat, nor make the gods of the earth tremble in
Upsukennaku (the heavenly festival-hall of the gods), and offers him a
gift.[+] It will thus be seen that Enu-restu was a rival to the older
Bel, whose temple was the great tower in stages called E-kura, in
which, in all probability, E-su-me-du, the shrine of Enu-restu, was
likewise situated. The inscriptions call him "god of war," though,
unlike Nergal, he was not at the same time god of disease and
pestilence. To all appearance he was the god of the various kinds of
stones, of which another legend states that he "determined their
fate." He was "the hero, whose net overthrows the enemy, who summons
his army to plunder the hostile land, the royal son who caused his
father to bow down to him from afar." "The son who sat not with the
nurse, and eschewed(?) the strength of milk," "the offspring who did
not know his father." "He rode over the mountains and scattered
seed--unanimously the plants proclaimed his name to their dominion,
among them like a great wild bull he raises his horns."
[*] /Enu-restu/ is the reading which I have adopted as the Semitic
Babylonian equivalent of the name of this divinity, in consequence
of the Aramaic transcription given by certain contract-tablets
discovered by the American expedition to Niffer, and published by
Prof. Clay of Philadelphia.
[+] The result of this request is not known, in consequence of the
defective state of the tablets.
Many other interesting descriptions of the deity Nirig (generally read
Nin-ip) occur, and show, with those quoted here, that his story was
one of more than ordinary interest.
Nusku.
This deity was especially invoked by the Assyrian kings, but was in no
wise exclusively Assyrian, as is shown by the fact that his name
occurs in many Babylonian inscriptions. He was the great messenger of
the gods, and is variously given as "the offspring of the abyss, the
creation of Ea," and "the likeness of his father, the first-born of
Bel." As Gibil, the fire-god, has likewise the same diverse parentage,
it is regarded as likely that these two gods were identical. Nusku was
the god whose command is supreme, the counsellor of the great gods,
the protector of the Igigi (the gods of the heavens), the great and
powerful one, the glorious day, the burning one, the founder of
cities, the renewer of sanctuaries, the provider of feasts for all the
Igigi, without whom no feast took place in E-kura. Like Nebo, he bore
the glorious spectre, and it was said of him that he attacked mightily
in battle. Without him the sun-god, the judge, could not give
judgment.
All this points to the probability, that Nusku may not have been the
fire-god, but the brother of the fire-god, i.e. either flame, or the
light of fire. The sun-god, without light, could not see, and
therefore could not give judgment: no feast could be prepared without
fire and its flame. As the evidence of the presence of the shining
orbs in the heavens--the light of their fires--he was the messenger of
the gods, and was honoured accordingly. From this idea, too, he became
their messenger in general, especially of Bel-Merodach, the younger
Bel, whose requests he carried to the god Ea in the Deep. In one
inscription he is identified with Nirig or Enu-restu, who is described
above.
Merodach.
Concerning this god, and how he arose to the position of king of all
the gods of heaven, has been fully shown in chapter III. Though there
is but little in his attributes to indicate any connection with Samas,
there is hardly any doubt that he was originally a sun-god, as is
shown by the etymology of his name. The form, as it has been handed
down to us, is somewhat shortened, the original pronunciation having
been /Amar-uduk/, "the young steer of day," a name which suggests that
he was the morning sun. Of the four names given at the end of chapter
III., two--"lord of Babylon," and "lord god of heaven and earth,"--may
be regarded as expressing his more well-known attributes. /En-ab-sar-
u/, however, is a provisional, though not impossible, reading and
rendering, and if correct, the "36,000 wild bulls" would be a
metaphorical way of speaking of "the 36,000 heroes," probably meaning
the gods of heaven in all their grades. The signification of /En-
bilulu/ is unknown. Like most of the other gods of the Babylonian
pantheon, however, Merodach had many other names, among which may be
mentioned /Asari/, which has been compared with the Egyptian Osiris,
/Asari-lu-duga/, "/Asari/ who is good," compared with Osiris Unnefer;
/Namtila/, "life", /Tutu/, "begetter (of the gods), renewer (of the
gods)," /Sar-azaga/, "the glorious incantation," /Mu-azaga/, "the
glorious charm," and many others. The last two refer to his being the
god who, by his kindness, obtained from his father Ea, dwelling in the
abyss, those charms and incantations which benefited mankind, and
restored the sick to health. In this connection, a frequent title
given to him is "the merciful one," but most merciful was he in that
he spared the lives of the gods who, having sided with Taiwath, were
his enemies, as is related in the tablet of the fifty-one names. In
connection with the fight he bore also the names, "annihilator of the
enemy," "rooter out of all evil," "troubler of the evil ones," "life
of the whole of the gods." From these names it is clear that Merodach,
in defeating Tiawath, annihilated, at the same time, the spirit of
evil, Satan, the accuser, of which she was, probably, the Babylonian
type. But unlike the Saviour in the Christian creed, he saved not only
man, at that time uncreated, but the gods of heaven also. As "king of
the heavens," he was identified with the largest of the planets,
Jupiter, as well as with other heavenly bodies. Traversing the sky in
great zigzags, Jupiter seemed to the Babylonians to superintend the
stars, and this was regarded as emblematic of Merodach shepherding
them--"pasturing the gods like sheep," as the tablet has it.
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