The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria
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Theophilus G. Pinches >> The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria
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A long list of gods gives as it were the court of Merodach, held in
what was apparently a heavenly /E-sagila/, and among the spiritual
beings mentioned are /Mina-ikul-beli/ and /Mina-isti-beli/, "what my
lord has eaten," and "what has my lord drunk," /Nadin-me-gati/, "he
who gives water for the hands," also the two door-keepers, and the
four dogs of Merodach, wherein people are inclined to see the four
satellites of Jupiter, which, it is thought, were probably visible to
certain of the more sharp-sighted stargazers of ancient Babylonia.
These dogs were called /Ukkumu/, /Akkulu/, /Ikssuda/, and /Iltebu/,
"Seizer," "Eater," "Grasper," and "Holder." Images of these beings
were probably kept in the temple of E-sagila at Babylon.
Zer-panitum.
This was the name of the consort of Merodach, and is generally read
Sarp(b)anitum--a transcription which is against the native orthography
and etymology, namely, "seed-creatress" (Zer-banitum). The meaning
attributed to this word is partly confirmed by another name which
Lehmann has pointed out that she possessed, namely, /Erua/ or /Aru'a/,
who, in an inscription of Antiochus Soter (280-260 B.C.) is called
"the queen who produces birth," but more especially by the
circumstance, that she must be identical with Aruru, who created the
seed of mankind along with Merodach. Why she was called "the lady of
the abyss," and elsewhere "the voice of the abyss" (/Me-abzu/) is not
known. Zer-panitum was no mere reflection of Merodach, but one of the
most important goddesses in the Babylonian pantheon. The tendency of
scholars has been to identify her with the moon, Merodach being a
solar deity and the meaning "silvery"--/Sarpanitum/, from /sarpu/, one
of the words for "silver," was regarded as supporting this idea. She
was identified with the Elamite goddess named Elagu, and with the
Lahamum of the island of Bahrein, the Babylonian Tilmun.
Nebo and Tasmetum.
As "the teacher" and "the hearer" these were among the most popular of
the deities of Babylonia and Assyria. Nebo (in Semitic Babylonian
Nabu) was worshipped at the temple-tower known as E-zida, "the ever-
lasting house," at Borsippa, now the Birs Nimroud, traditionally
regarded as the site of the Tower of Babel, though that title, as has
already been shown, would best suit the similar structure known as
E-sagila, "the house of the high head," in Babylon itself. In
composition with men's names, this deity occurs more than any other,
even including Merodach himself--a clear indication of the estimation
in which the Babylonians and Assyrians held the possession of
knowledge. The character with which his name is written means, with
the pronunciation of /ak/, "to make," "to create," "to receive," "to
proclaim," and with the pronunciation of /me/, "to be wise," "wisdom,"
"open of ear," "broad of ear," and "to make, of a house," the last
probably referring to the design rather than to the actual building.
Under the name of /Dim-sara/ he was "the creator of the writing of the
scribes," as /Ni-zu/, "the god who knows" (/zu/, "to know"), as
/Mermer/, "the speeder(?) of the command of the gods"--on the Sumerian
side indicating some connection with Addu or Rimmon, the thunderer,
and on the Semitic side with Enu-restu, who was one of the gods'
messengers. A small fragment in the British Museum gave his attributes
as god of the various cities of Babylonia, but unfortunately their
names are lost or incomplete. From what remains, however, we see that
Nebo was god of ditching(?), commerce(?), granaries(?), fasting(?),
and food; it was he who overthrew the land of the enemy, and who
protected planting; and, lastly, he was god of Borsippa.
The worship of Nebo was not always as popular as it became in the
later days of the Babylonian empire and after its fall, and Jastrow is
of opinion that Hammurabi intentionally ignored this deity, giving the
preference to Merodach, though he did not suppress the worship. Why
this should have taken place is not by any means certain, for Nebo was
a deity adored far and wide, as may be gathered from the fact that
there was a mountain bearing his name in Moab, upon which Moses--also
an "announcer," adds Jastrow--died. Besides the mountain, there was a
city in Moab so named, and another in Judaea. That it was the
Babylonian Nebo originally is implied by the form--the Hebrew
corresponding word is /nabi/.
How old the worship of Tasmetum, his consort, is, is doubtful, but her
name first occurs in a date of the reign of Hammurabi. Details
concerning her attributes are rare, and Jastrow regards this goddess
as the result of Babylonian religious speculations. It is noteworthy
that her worship appears more especially in later times, but it may be
doubted whether it is a product of those late times, especially when
we bear in mind the remarkable seal-impression on an early tablet of
3500-4500 B.C., belonging to Lord Amherst of Hackney, in which we see
a male figure with wide-open mouth seizing a stag by his horns, and a
female figure with no mouth at all, but with very prominent ears,
holding a bull in a similar manner. Here we have the "teacher" and the
"hearer" personified in a very remarkable manner, and it may well be
that this primitive picture shows the idea then prevailing with regard
to these two deities. It is to be noted that the name of Tasmetum has
a Sumerian equivalent, namely, /Kurnun/, and that the ideograph by
which it is represented is one whose general meaning seems to be "to
bind," perhaps with the additional signification of "to accomplish,"
in which case "she who hears" would also be "she who obeys."
Samas and his consort.
At all times the worship of the sun in Babylonia and Assyria was
exceedingly popular, as, indeed, was to be expected from his
importance as the greatest of the heavenly bodies and the brightest,
without whose help men could not live, and it is an exceedingly
noteworthy fact that this deity did not become, like Ra in Egypt, the
head of the pantheon. This place was reserved for Merodach, also a
sun-god, but possessing attributes of a far wider scope. Samas is
mentioned as early as the reign of E-anna-tum, whose date is set at
about 4200 B.C., and at this period his Semitic name does not,
naturally, occur, the character used being /Utu/, or, in its longer
form, /Utuki/.
It is worthy of note that, in consequence of the Babylonian idea of
evolution in the creation of the world, less perfect beings brought
forth those which were more perfect, and the sun was therefore the
offspring of Nannara or Sin, the moon. In accordance with the same
idea, the day, with the Semites, began with the evening, the time when
the moon became visible, and thus becomes the offspring of the night.
In the inscriptions Samas is described as "the light of things above
and things below, the illuminator of the regions," "the supreme judge
of heaven and earth," "the lord of living creatures, the gracious one
of the lands." Dawning in the foundation of the sky, he opened the
locks and threw wide the gates of the high heavens, and raised his
head, covering heaven and earth with his splendour. He was the
constantly righteous in heaven, the truth within the ears of the
lands, the god knowing justice and injustice, righteousness he
supported upon his shoulders, unrighteousness he burst asunder like a
leather bond, etc. It will thus be seen, that the sun-god was the
great god of judgment and justice--indeed, he is constantly alluded to
as "the judge," the reason in all probability being, that as the sun
shines upon the earth all day long, and his light penetrates
everywhere, he was regarded as the god who knew and investigated
everything, and was therefore best in a position to judge aright, and
deliver a just decision. It is for this reason that his image appears
at the head of the stele inscribed with Hammurabi's laws, and legal
ceremonies were performed within the precincts of his temples. The
chief seats of his worship were the great temples called E-babbara,
"the house of great light," in the cities of Larsa and Sippar.
The consort of Samas was Aa, whose chief seat was at Sippar, side by
side with Samas. Though only a weak reflex of the sun-god, her worship
was exceedingly ancient, being mentioned in an inscription of
Man-istusu, who is regarded as having reigned before Sargon of Agade.
From the fact that, in one of the lists, she has names formed by
reduplicating the name of the sun-god, /Utu/, she would seem once to
have been identical with him, in which case it may be supposed that
she personified the setting sun--"the double sun" from the magnified
disc which he presents at sunset, when, according to a hymn to the
setting sun sung at the temple at Borsippa, Aa, in the Sumerian line
Kur-nirda, was accustomed to go to receive him. According to the list
referred to above, Aa, with the name of Burida in Sumerian, was more
especially the consort of Sa-zu, "him who knows the heart," one of the
names of Merodach, who was probably the morning sun, and therefore the
exact counterpart of the sun at evening.
Besides Samas and Utu, the latter his ordinary Sumerian name, the sun-
god had several other non-Semitic names, including /Gisnu/,[*] "the
light," /Ma-banda-anna/, "the bark of heaven," /U-e/, "the rising
sun," /Mitra/, apparently the Persian Mithra; /Ume-simas/ and Nahunda,
Elamite names, and Sahi, the Kassite name of the sun. He also
sometimes bears the names of his attendants Kittu and Mesaru, "Truth"
and "Righteousness," who guided him upon his path as judge of the
earth.
[*] It is the group expressing this word which is used for Samas in
the name of Samas-sum-ukin (Saosduchinos), the brother of Assur-
bani-apli (Assurbanipal). The Greek equivalent implies the
pronunciation /Sawas/, as well as /Samas/.
Tammuz and Istar.
The date of the rise of the myth of Tammuz is uncertain, but as the
name of this god is found on tablets of the time of Lugal-anda and
Uru-ka-gina (about 3500 B.C.), it can hardly be of later date than
4000 B.C., and may be much earlier. As he is repeatedly called "the
shepherd," and had a domain where he pastured his flock, Professor
Sayce sees in Tammuz "Daonus or Daos, the shepherd of Pantibibla,"
who, according to Berosus, ruled in Babylonia for 10 /sari/, or 36,000
years, and was the sixth king of the mythical period. According to the
classic story, the mother of Tammuz had unnatural intercourse with her
own father, being urged thereto by Aphrodite whom she had offended,
and who had decided thus to avenge herself. Being pursued by her
father, who wished to kill her for this crime, she prayed to the gods,
and was turned into a tree, from whose trunk Adonis was afterwards
born. Aphrodite was so charmed with the infant that, placing him in a
chest, she gave him into the care of Persephone, who, however, when
she discovered what a treasure she had in her keeping, refused to part
with him again. Zeus was appealed to, and decided that for four months
in the year Adonis should be left to himself, four should be spent
with Aphrodite, and four with Persephone, and six with Aphrodite on
earth. He was afterwards slain, whilst hunting, by a wild boar.
Nothing has come down to us as yet concerning this legend except the
incident of his dwelling in Hades, whither Istar, the Babylonian
Venus, went in search of him. It is not by any means unlikely,
however, that the whole story existed in Babylonia, and thence spread
to Phoenicia, and afterwards to Greece. In Phoenicia it was adapted to
the physical conditions of the country, and the place of Tammuz's
encounter with the boar was said to be the mountains of Lebanon,
whilst the river named after him, Adonis (now the Nahr Ibrahim), which
ran red with the earth washed down by the autumn rains, was said to be
so coloured in consequence of being mingled with his blood. The
descent of Tammuz to the underworld, typified by the flowing down of
the earth-laden waters of the rivers to the sea, was not only
celebrated by the Phoenicians, but also by the Babylonians, who had at
least two series of lamentations which were used on this occasion, and
were probably the originals of those chanted by the Hebrew women in
the time of Ezekiel (about 597 B.C.). Whilst on earth, he was the one
who nourished the ewe and her lamb, the goat and her kid, and also
caused them to be slain--probably in sacrifice. "He has gone, he has
gone to the bosom of the earth," the mourners cried, "he will make
plenty to overflow for the land of the dead, for its lamentations for
the day of his fall, in the unpropitious month of his year." There was
also lamentation for the cessation of the growth of vegetation, and
one of these hymns, after addressing him as the shepherd and husband
of Istar, "lord of the underworld," and "lord of the shepherd's seat,"
goes on to liken him to a germ which has not absorbed water in the
furrow, whose bud has not blossomed in the meadow; to the sapling
which has not been planted by the watercourse, and to the sapling
whose root has been removed. In the "Lamentations" in the Manchester
Museum, Istar, or one of her devotees, seems to call for Tammuz,
saying, "Return, my husband," as she makes her way to the region of
gloom in quest of him. Eres-e-gala, "the lady of the great house"
(Persephone), is also referred to, and the text seems to imply that
Istar entered her domain in spite of her. In this text other names are
given to him, namely, /Tumu-giba/, "son of the flute," /Ama-elaggi/,
and /Si-umunnagi/, "life of the people."
The reference to sheep and goats in the British Museum fragment
recalls the fact that in an incantation for purification the person
using it is told to get the milk of a yellow goat which has been
brought forth in the sheep-fold of Tammuz, recalling the flocks of the
Greek sun-god Helios. These were the clouds illuminated by the sun,
which were likened to sheep--indeed, one of the early Sumerian
expressions for "fleece" was "sheep of the sky." The name of Tammuz in
Sumerian is Dumu-zi, or in its rare fullest form, Dumu-zida, meaning
"true" or "faithful son." There is probably some legend attached to
this which is at present unknown.
In all probability Istar, the spouse of Tammuz, is best known from her
descent into Hades in quest of him when with Persephone (Eres-ki-gal)
in the underworld. In this she had to pass through seven gates, and an
article of clothing was taken from her at each, until she arrived in
the underworld quite naked, typifying the teaching, that man can take
nothing away with him when he departs this life. During her absence,
things naturally began to go wrong upon the earth, and the gods were
obliged to intervene, and demand her release, which was ultimately
granted, and at each gate, as she returned, the adornments which she
had left were given back to her. It is uncertain whether the husband
whom she sought to release was set free, but the end of the
inscription seems to imply that Istar was successful in her mission.
In this story she typifies the faithful wife, but other legends show
another side of her character, as in that of Gilgames, ruler of her
city Erech, to whom she makes love. Gilgames, however, knowing the
character of the divine queen of his city too well, reproaches her
with her treatment of her husband and her other lovers--Tammuz, to
whom, from year to year, she caused bitter weeping; the bright
coloured Allala bird, whom she smote and broke his wings; the lion
perfect in strength, in whom she cut wounds "by sevens"; the horse
glorious in war, to whom she caused hardship and distress, and to his
mother Silili bitter weeping; the shepherd who provided for her things
which she liked, whom she smote and changed to a jackal; Isullanu, her
father's gardener, whom she tried, apparently, to poison, but failing,
she smote him, and changed him to a statue(?). On being thus reminded
of her misdeeds, Istar was naturally angry, and, ascending to heaven,
complained to her father Anu and her mother Anatu, the result being,
that a divine bull was sent against Gilgames and Enki-du, his friend
and helper. The bull, however, was killed, and a portion of the animal
having been cut off, Enki-du threw it at the goddess, saying at the
same time that, if he could only get hold of her, he would treat her
similarly. Apparently Istar recognised that there was nothing further
to be done in the matter, so, gathering the hand-maidens, pleasure-
women and whores, in their presence she wept over the portion of the
divine bull which had been thrown at her.
The worship of Istar, she being the goddess of love and war, was
considerably more popular than that of her spouse, Tammuz, who, as
among the western Semitic nations, was adored rather by the women than
the men. Her worship was in all probability of equal antiquity, and
branched out, so to say, in several directions, as may be judged by
her many names, each of which had a tendency to become a distinct
personality. Thus the syllabaries give the character which represents
her name as having also been pronounced /Innanna/, /Ennen/, and /Nin/,
whilst a not uncommon name in other inscriptions is /Ama-Innanna/,
"mother Istar." The principal seat of her worship in Babylonia was at
Erech, and in Assyria at Nineveh--also at Arbela, and many other
places. She was also honoured (at Erech and elsewhere) under the
Elamite names of Tispak and Susinak, "the Susian goddess."
Nina.
From the name /Nin/, which Istar bore, there is hardly any doubt that
she acquired the identification with Nina, which is provable as early
as the time of the Lagasite kings, Lugal-anda and Uru-ka-gina. As
identified with Aruru, the goddess who helped Merodach to create
mankind, Istar was also regarded as the mother of all, and in the
Babylonian story of the Flood, she is made to say that she had
begotten man, but like "the sons of the fishes," he filled the sea.
Nina, then, as another form of Istar, was a goddess of creation,
typified in the teeming life of the ocean, and her name is written
with a character standing for a house or receptacle, with the sign for
"fish" within. Her earliest seat was the city of Nina in southern
Babylonia, from which place, in all probability, colonists went
northwards, and founded another shrine at Nineveh in Assyria, which
afterwards became the great centre of her worship, and on this account
the city was called after her Ninaa or Ninua. As their tutelary
goddess, the fishermen in the neighbourhood of the Babylonian Nina and
Lagas were accustomed to make to her, as well as to Innanna or Istar,
large offerings of fish.
As the masculine deities had feminine forms, so it is not by any means
improbable that the goddesses had masculine forms, and if that be the
case, we may suppose that it was a masculine counterpart of Nina who
founded Nineveh, which, as is well known, is attributed to Ninos, the
same name as Nina with the Greek masculine termination.
Nin-Gursu.
This deity is principally of importance in connection with the ancient
Babylonian state of Lagas, the home of an old and important line of
kings and viceroys, among the latter being the celebrated Gudea, whose
statues and inscribed cylinders now adorn the Babylonian galleries of
the Louvre at Paris. His name means "Lord of Girsu," which was
probably one of the suburbs, and the oldest part, of Lagas. This deity
was son of En-lila or Bel, and was identified with Nirig or Enu-restu.
To all appearance he was a sun-deity. The dialectic form of his name
was /U-Mersi/, of which a variant, /En-Mersi/, occurs in an
incantation published in the fourth volume of the /Cuneiform
Inscriptions of Western Asia/, pl. 27, where, for the Sumerian "Take a
white kid of En-Mersi," the Semitic translation is "of Tammuz,"
showing that he was identified with the latter god. In the second
volume of the same work Nin-Girsu is given as the pronunciation of the
name of the god of agriculturalists, confirming this identification,
Tammuz being also god of agriculture.
Bau.
This goddess at all times played a prominent part in ancient
Babylonian religion, especially with the rulers before the dynasty of
Hammurabi. She was the "mother" of Lagas, and her temple was at
Uru-azaga, a district of Lagas, the chief city of Nin-Girsu, whose
spouse she was. Like Nin-Girsu, she planted (not only grain and
vegetation, but also the seed of men). In her character of the goddess
who gave life to men, and healed their bodies in sickness, she was
identified with Gula, one of those titles is "the lady saving from
death". Ga-tum-duga, whose name probably means "making and producing
good," was also exceedingly popular in ancient times, and though
identified with Bau, is regarded by Jastrow has having been originally
distinct from her.
Eres-ki-gal or Allatu.
As the prototype of Persephone, this goddess is one of much importance
for comparative mythology, and there is a legend concerning her of
considerable interest. The text is one of those found at Tel-el-
Armana, in Egypt, and states that the gods once made a feast, and sent
to Eres-ki-gal, saying that, though they could go down to her, she
could not ascend to them, and asking her to send a messenger to fetch
away the food destined for her. This she did, and all the gods stood
up to receive her messenger, except one, who seems to have withheld
this token of respect. The messenger, when he returned, apparently
related to Eres-ki-gal what had happened, and angered thereat, she
sent him back to the presence of the gods, asking for the delinquent
to be delivered to her, that she might kill him. The gods then
discussed the question of death with the messenger, and told him to
take to his mistress the god who had not stood up in his presence.
When the gods were brought together, that the culprit might be
recognised, one of them remained in the background, and on the
messenger asking who it was who did not stand up, it was found to be
Nerigal. This god was duly sent, but was not at all inclined to be
submissive, for instead of killing him, as she had threatened, Eres-
ki-gal found herself seized by the hair and dragged from her throne,
whilst the death-dealing god made ready to cut off her head. "Do not
kill me, my brother, let me speak to thee," she cried, and on his
loosing his hold upon her hair, she continued, "thou shalt be my
husband, and I will be thy wife--I will cause you to take dominion in
the wide earth. I will place the tablet of wisdom in thine hand--thou
shalt be lord, I will be lady." Nerigal thereupon took her, kissed
her, and wiped away her tears, saying, "Whatever thou hast asked me
for months past now receives assent."
Eres-ki-gal did not treat her rival in the affections of Tammuz so
gently when Istar descended to Hades in search of the "husband of her
youth." According to the story, not only was Istar deprived of her
garments and ornaments, but by the orders of Eres-ki-gal, Namtar smote
her with disease in all her members. It was not until the gods
intervened that Istar was set free. The meaning of her name is "lady
of the great region," a description which is supposed to apply to
Hades, and of which a variant, Eres-ki-gal, "lady of the great house,"
occurs in the Hymns to Tammuz in the Manchester Museum.
Nergal.
This name is supposed to mean "lord of the great habitation," which
would be a parallel to that of his spouse Eres-ki-gal. He was the
ruler of Hades, and at the same time god of war and of disease and
pestilence. As warrior, he naturally fought on the side of those who
worshipped him, as in the phrase which describes him as "the warrior,
the fierce storm-flood overthrowing the land of the enemy." As pointed
out by Jastrow, he differs from Nirig, who was also a god of war, in
that he symbolises, as god of disease and death, the misery and
destruction which accompany the strife of nations. It is in
consequence of this side of his character that he appears also as god
of fire, the destroying element, and Jensen says that Nerigal was god
of the midday or of the summer sun, and therefore of all the
misfortunes caused by an excess of his heat.
The chief centre of his worship was Cuthah (/Kutu/, Sumerian /Gudua/)
near Babylon, now represented by the mounds of Tel Ibrahim. The
identity with the Greek Aries and the Roman Mars is proved by the fact
that his planet was /Mustabarru-mutanu/, "the death-spreader," which
is probably the name of Mars in Semitic Babylonian.
Amurru.
Although this is not by any means a frequent name among the deities
worshipped in Babylonia, it is worthy of notice on account of its
bearing upon the date of the compilation of the tablet which has been
taken as a basis of this list of gods. He was known as "Lord of the
mountains," and his worship became very popular during the period of
the dynasty to which Hammurabi belonged--say from 2200 to 1937 B.C.,
when Amurru was much combined with the names of men, and is found both
on tablets and cylinder-seals. The ideographic manner of writing it is
/Mar-tu/, a word that is used for /Amurru/, the land of the Amorites,
which stood for the West in general. Amorites had entered Babylonia in
considerable numbers during this period, so that there is but little
doubt that his popularity was largely due to their influence, and the
tablet containing these names was probably drawn up, or at least had
the Semitic equivalents added, towards the beginning of that period.
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