Sumerian Mythology
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1 Inanna Research Script
INANNA RESEARCH SCRIPT (to be cut and shaped for performance) By Peggy Firestone Based on Translations of Clay Tablets from Sumer By Samuel Noah Kramer 1 [email protected] (773) 384-5802 © 2008 CAST OF CHARACTERS In order of appearance Narrators ………………………………… Storytellers & Timekeepers Inanna …………………………………… Queen of Heaven and Earth, Goddess, Immortal Enki ……………………………………… Creator & Organizer of Earth’s Living Things, Manager of the Gods & Goddesses, Trickster God, Inanna’s Grandfather An ………………………………………. The Sky God Ki ………………………………………. The Earth Goddess (also known as Ninhursag) Enlil …………………………………….. The Air God, inventor of all things useful in the Universe Nanna-Sin ………………………………. The Moon God, Immortal, Father of Inanna Ningal …………………………………... The Moon Goddess, Immortal, Mother of Inanna Lilith ……………………………………. Demon of Desolation, Protector of Freedom Anzu Bird ………………………………. An Unholy (Holy) Trinity … Demon bird, Protector of Cattle Snake that has no Grace ………………. Tyrant Protector Snake Gilgamesh ……………………………….. Hero, Mortal, Inanna’s first cousin, Demi-God of Uruk Isimud ………………………………….. Enki’s Janus-faced messenger Ninshubur ……………………………… Inanna’s lieutenant, Goddess of the Rising Sun, Queen of the East Lahamma Enkums ………………………………… Monster Guardians of Enki’s Shrine House Giants of Eridu Utu ……………………………………… Sun God, Inanna’s Brother Dumuzi …………………………………. Shepherd King of Uruk, Inanna’s husband, Enki’s son by Situr, the Sheep Goddess Neti ……………………………………… Gatekeeper to the Nether World Ereshkigal ……………………………. Queen of the -
Inanna Quiz ___1. Ninshubur Is: (A
Inanna Quiz _____ 1. Ninshubur is: (a) Inanna’s sister (b) Inanna’s beloved husband (c) Inanna’s faithful servant (d) queen of the gods 2. Which three deities is Ninshubur to ask for help? _________________ , ____________________, and _________________________ _____ 3. When Inanna goes to the underworld, why does she say she has come? (a) to the funeral rites of her brother in law (b) to receive secret knowledge (c) to mount a challenge to Ereshkigal’s power (d) to experience death so that she may understand what it is to be human _____ 4. Which is NOT an image Inanna calls up to evoke the effect of death? (a) becoming wood for the woodcutter (b) facing torment and mockery in the underworld (c) being shattered like stone by a stonecutter (d) being covered by dust _____ 5. Which of the following is NOT among the me: (a) the shugurra crown (b) a lapis necklace (c) a measuring rod and line (d) a cloak of darkness _____ 6.The god who knows the water of life and the secret of life is: (a) Enki (b) Inanna (c) Nanna (d) Ninshubur _____ 7. When Ereshkigal hears of Inanna’s appearance, she is: (a) happy to see her (b) resentful of the gods for trapping her in the underworld (c) angry enough to set a trap for Inanna (d) ready to beseech Enki to intercede on her own behalf _____ 8. In mourning for Inanna, Ninshubur does NOT: (a) beat a drum (c) walk around the houses of the gods (c) shave off her long black hair (d) dress like a beggar _____ 9. -
Humbaba Research Packet.Pdf
HUMBABA Research Packet Compiled by Cassi Schiano and Christine Scarfuto CONTENTS: History of the Epic of Gilgamesh Summary of the Epic (and the Twelve Tablets) Character Info on Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and Humbaba Brief Historical Info: Babylon Ancient Rome The Samurai Colonial England War in Afghanistan 1 History of The Epic of Gilgamesh The Epic of Gilgamesh is epic poetry from Mesopotamia and is among the earliest known works of literature. The story revolves around a relationship between Gilgamesh (probably a real ruler in the late Early Dynastic II period ca. 27th century BC) and his close male companion, Enkidu. Enkidu is a wild man created by the gods as Gilgamesh's equal to distract him from oppressing the citizens of Uruk. Together they undertake dangerous quests that incur the displeasure of the gods. Firstly, they journey to the Cedar Mountain to defeat Humbaba, its monstrous guardian. Later they kill the Bull of Heaven that the goddess Ishtar has sent to punish Gilgamesh for spurning her advances. The latter part of the epic focuses on Gilgamesh's distressed reaction to Enkidu's death, which takes the form of a quest for immortality. Gilgamesh attempts to learn the secret of eternal life by undertaking a long and perilous journey to meet the immortal flood hero, Utnapishtim. Ultimately the poignant words addressed to Gilgamesh in the midst of his quest foreshadow the end result: "The life that you are seeking you will never find. When the gods created man they allotted to him death, but life they retained in their own keeping." Gilgamesh, however, was celebrated by posterity for his building achievements, and for bringing back long-lost cultic knowledge to Uruk as a result of his meeting with Utnapishtim. -
Marten Stol WOMEN in the ANCIENT NEAR EAST
Marten Stol WOMEN IN THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST Marten Stol Women in the Ancient Near East Marten Stol Women in the Ancient Near East Translated by Helen and Mervyn Richardson ISBN 978-1-61451-323-0 e-ISBN (PDF) 978-1-61451-263-9 e-ISBN (EPUB) 978-1-5015-0021-3 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- NoDerivs 3.0 License. For details go to http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc-nd/3.0/ Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A CIP catalog record for this book has been applied for at the Library of Congress. Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data are available on the Internet at http://dnb.dnb.de. Original edition: Vrouwen van Babylon. Prinsessen, priesteressen, prostituees in de bakermat van de cultuur. Uitgeverij Kok, Utrecht (2012). Translated by Helen and Mervyn Richardson © 2016 Walter de Gruyter Inc., Boston/Berlin Cover Image: Marten Stol Typesetting: Dörlemann Satz GmbH & Co. KG, Lemförde Printing and binding: cpi books GmbH, Leck ♾ Printed on acid-free paper Printed in Germany www.degruyter.com Table of Contents Introduction 1 Map 5 1 Her outward appearance 7 1.1 Phases of life 7 1.2 The girl 10 1.3 The virgin 13 1.4 Women’s clothing 17 1.5 Cosmetics and beauty 47 1.6 The language of women 56 1.7 Women’s names 58 2 Marriage 60 2.1 Preparations 62 2.2 Age for marrying 66 2.3 Regulations 67 2.4 The betrothal 72 2.5 The wedding 93 2.6 -
Women in the Ancient Near East: a Sourcebook
WOMEN IN THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST Women in the Ancient Near East provides a collection of primary sources that further our understanding of women from Mesopotamian and Near Eastern civiliza- tions, from the earliest historical and literary texts in the third millennium BC to the end of Mesopotamian political autonomy in the sixth century BC. This book is a valuable resource for historians of the Near East and for those studying women in the ancient world. It moves beyond simply identifying women in the Near East to attempting to place them in historical and literary context, follow- ing the latest research. A number of literary genres are represented, including myths and epics, proverbs, medical texts, law collections, letters and treaties, as well as building, dedicatory, and funerary inscriptions. Mark W. Chavalas is Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, where he has taught since 1989. Among his publications are the edited Emar: The History, Religion, and Culture of a Syrian Town in the Late Bronze Age (1996), Mesopotamia and the Bible (2002), and The Ancient Near East: Historical Sources in Translation (2006), and he has had research fellowships at Yale, Harvard, Cornell, Cal-Berkeley, and a number of other universities. He has nine seasons of exca- vation at various Bronze Age sites in Syria, including Tell Ashara/Terqa and Tell Mozan/Urkesh. ROUTLEDGE SOURCEBOOKS FOR THE ANCIENT WORLD HISTORIANS OF ANCIENT ROME, THIRD EDITION Ronald Mellor TRIALS FROM CLASSICAL ATHENS, SECOND EDITION Christopher Carey ANCIENT GREECE, THIRD EDITION Matthew Dillon and Lynda Garland READINGS IN LATE ANTIQUITY, SECOND EDITION Michael Maas GREEK AND ROMAN EDUCATION Mark Joyal, J.C. -
Mesopotamian Culture
MESOPOTAMIAN CULTURE WORK DONE BY MANUEL D. N. 1ºA MESOPOTAMIAN GODS The Sumerians practiced a polytheistic religion , with anthropomorphic monotheistic and some gods representing forces or presences in the world , as he would later Greek civilization. In their beliefs state that the gods originally created humans so that they serve them servants , but when they were released too , because they thought they could become dominated by their large number . Many stories in Sumerian religion appear homologous to stories in other religions of the Middle East. For example , the biblical account of the creation of man , the culture of The Elamites , and the narrative of the flood and Noah's ark closely resembles the Assyrian stories. The Sumerian gods have distinctly similar representations in Akkadian , Canaanite religions and other cultures . Some of the stories and deities have their Greek parallels , such as the descent of Inanna to the underworld ( Irkalla ) resembles the story of Persephone. COSMOGONY Cosmogony Cosmology sumeria. The universe first appeared when Nammu , formless abyss was opened itself and in an act of self- procreation gave birth to An ( Anu ) ( sky god ) and Ki ( goddess of the Earth ), commonly referred to as Ninhursag . Binding of Anu (An) and Ki produced Enlil , Mr. Wind , who eventually became the leader of the gods. Then Enlil was banished from Dilmun (the home of the gods) because of the violation of Ninlil , of which he had a son , Sin ( moon god ) , also known as Nanna . No Ningal and gave birth to Inanna ( goddess of love and war ) and Utu or Shamash ( the sun god ) . -
505 the Lost Language of Ancient
MEDICINA NEI SECOLI ARTE E SCIENZA, 30/2 (2018) 505-530 Journal of History of Medicine Articoli/Articles THE LOST LANGUAGE OF ANCIENT BABYLONIAN PLANTS: FROM MYTH TO MEDICINE BARBARA BÖCK Instituto de Lenguas y Culturas del Mediterráneo y Oriente Próximo Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Madrid, ES SUMMARY The Sumerian myth of Enki and Ninḫursaga, which conveys Enki’s metaphorical nature as power behind the irrigation of the Mesopotamian marshlands, contains a passage that brings together plants, pains and deities. The raison d’être for the choice of these eight plants has so far escaped scholars. In analysing the evidence for the plants according to cuneiform literary and medical sources the present contribution offers a discussion of their nature and possible connection with the god Enki providing thus an explanation for their choice and shedding light on the storyteller’s motivation for including the episode on plants in the myth. Although Ancient Babylonians did not produce mythological nar- rations or other literary traditions about plants comparable to the Classical world, references to the plant kingdom indeed entered the cuneiform belles-lettres. A rather bizarre passage that brings togeth- er plants, pains and deities and which will be discussed in the present contribution is included in the Sumerian myth about the god of wis- dom and sweet waters, Enki, and Ninhursag, a mother goddess. The narration is also known as “Sumerian Epic of Paradise” as coined by its first editor Stephen Langdon in 19151. The Sumerologist S.N. Kramer observed that it “is one of the more interesting, intricate, Key words: Enki and Ninḫursaga - Enki and Fishes - Aquatic Plants - Medicine and Myth 505 Barbara Böck and imaginative myths in the Sumerian repertoire, but also one of the most enigmatic and frustrating”2. -
Inanna: a Modern Interpretation
The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Honors College Spring 2019 Inanna: A Modern Interpretation Erin Butts University of Maine Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors Part of the Communication Commons, and the Theatre and Performance Studies Commons Recommended Citation Butts, Erin, "Inanna: A Modern Interpretation" (2019). Honors College. 485. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors/485 This Honors Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors College by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INANNA: A MODERN INTERPRETATION By Erin Butts A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for a Degree with Honors (Communications, Theatre) The Honors College The University of Maine May 2019 Advisory Committee: Elizabeth Neiman, Associate Professor of English and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Co-Advisor Mary Jean Sedlock, Lecturer in Theatre, Production Manager, and Technical Director, Co-Advisor Daniel Bilodeau, Chair of Theatre and Dance Julie Lisnet, Instructor of Theatre Jennie Woodard, Preceptor in the Honors College © 2019 Erin H. Butts All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT Sumer has a culture lost to history. Currently, the University of Maine offers no courses about ancient Mesopotamia, one of the first civilizations. Over the years, historians have been translating the cuneiform tablets containing their religion and history. There has been one adaptation of those translations, by Diane Wolkstein in 1983 to bring the stories to a wider audience through a collection of stories around the goddess Inanna. -
Asher-Greve / Westenholz Goddesses in Context ORBIS BIBLICUS ET ORIENTALIS
Zurich Open Repository and Archive University of Zurich Main Library Strickhofstrasse 39 CH-8057 Zurich www.zora.uzh.ch Year: 2013 Goddesses in Context: On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources Asher-Greve, Julia M ; Westenholz, Joan Goodnick Abstract: Goddesses in Context examines from different perspectives some of the most challenging themes in Mesopotamian religion such as gender switch of deities and changes of the status, roles and functions of goddesses. The authors incorporate recent scholarship from various disciplines into their analysis of textual and visual sources, representations in diverse media, theological strategies, typologies, and the place of image in religion and cult over a span of three millennia. Different types of syncretism (fusion, fission, mutation) resulted in transformation and homogenization of goddesses’ roles and functions. The processes of syncretism (a useful heuristic tool for studying the evolution of religions and the attendant political and social changes) and gender switch were facilitated by the fluidity of personality due to multiple or similar divine roles and functions. Few goddesses kept their identity throughout the millennia. Individuality is rare in the iconography of goddesses while visual emphasis is on repetition of generic divine figures (hieros typos) in order to retain recognizability of divinity, where femininity is of secondary significance. The book demonstrates that goddesses were never marginalized or extrinsic and thattheir continuous presence in texts, cult images, rituals, and worship throughout Mesopotamian history is testimony to their powerful numinous impact. This richly illustrated book is the first in-depth analysis of goddesses and the changes they underwent from the earliest visual and textual evidence around 3000 BCE to the end of ancient Mesopotamian civilization in the Seleucid period. -
Desire, Discord, and Death : Approaches to Ancient Near Eastern Myth / by Neal Walls
DESIRE, DISCORD AND DEATH APPROACHES TO ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN MYTH ASOR Books Volume 8 Victor Matthews, editor Billie Jean Collins ASOR Director of Publications DESIRE, DISCORD AND DEATH APPROACHES TO ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN MYTH by Neal Walls American Schools of Oriental Research • Boston, MA DESIRE, DISCORD AND DEATH APPROACHES TO ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN MYTH Copyright © 2001 American Schools of Oriental Research Cover art: Cylinder seal from Susa inscribed with the name of worshiper of Nergal. Photo courtesy of the Louvre Museum. Cover design by Monica McLeod. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Walls, Neal H., 1962- Desire, discord, and death : approaches to ancient Near Eastern myth / by Neal Walls. p. cm. -- (ASOR books ; v. 8) Includes bibliographical references and indexes. ISBN 0-89757-056-1 -- ISBN 0-89757-055-3 (pbk.) 1. Mythology--Middle East. 2. Middle East--Literatures--History and crticism. 3. Death in literature. 4. Desire in literature. I. Title. II. Series. BL1060 .W34 2001 291.1'3'09394--dc21 2001003236 Contents ABBREVIATIONS vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS viii INTRODUCTION Hidden Riches in Secret Places 1 METHODS AND APPROACHES 3 CHAPTER ONE The Allure of Gilgamesh: The Construction of Desire in the Gilgamesh Epic INTRODUCTION 9 The Construction of Desire: Queering Gilgamesh 11 THE EROTIC GILGAMESH 17 The Prostitute and the Primal Man: Inciting Desire 18 The Gaze of Ishtar: Denying Desire 34 Heroic Love: Requiting Desire 50 The Death of Desire 68 CONCLUSION 76 CHAPTER TWO On the Couch with Horus and Seth: A Freudian -
The Mesopotamian Netherworld Through the Archaeology of Grave Goods and Textual Sources in the Early Dynastic III Period to the Old Babylonian Period
UO[INOIGMUKJ[ 0LATE The Mesopotamian Netherworld through the Archaeology of Grave Goods and Textual Sources in the Early Dynastic III Period to the Old Babylonian Period A B N $EEP3HAFTOF"URIALIN&OREGROUNDWITH-UDBRICK"LOCKINGOF%NTRANCETO#HAMBERFOR"URIAL 3KELETON ANDO "URIAL 3KELETONNikki Zwitser Promoter: Prof. Dr. Katrien De Graef Co-promoter: Prof. Dr. Joachim Bretschneider Academic Year 2016-1017 Thesis submitted to obtain the degree of Master of Arts: Archaeology. Preface To the dark house, dwelling of Erkalla’s god, to the dark house which those who enter cannot leave, on the road where travelling is one-way only, to the house where those enter are deprived of light, where dust is their food, clay their bread. They see no light, they dwell in darkness. Many scholars who rely on literary texts depict the Mesopotamian netherworld as a bleak and dismal place. This dark portrayal does, indeed, find much support in the Mesopotamian literature. Indeed many texts describe the afterlife as exceptionally depressing. However, the archaeological study of grave goods may suggest that there were other ways of thinking about the netherworld. Furthermore, some scholars have neglected the archaeological data, while others have limited the possibilities of archaeological data by solely looking at royal burials. Mesopotamian beliefs concerning mortuary practices and the afterlife can be studied more thoroughly by including archaeological data regarding non-royal burials and textual sources. A comparison of the copious amount of archaeological and textual evidence should give us a further insight in the Mesopotamian beliefs of death and the netherworld. Therefore, for this study grave goods from non-royal burials, literature and administrative texts will be examined and compared to gain a better understanding of Mesopotamian ideas regarding death and the netherworld. -
Sumerian Literature; a Preliminary Survey of the Oldest Literature in the World
SUMERIAN LITERATURE; A PRELIMINARY SURVEY OF THE OLDEST LITERATURE IN THE WORLD S. N. KRAMER University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, Oriental Institute, University of Chicago. TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE List of Abbreviations ..................................................... 293 The Significance of Sumerian Literature .......... ........................... 293 Inanna's Descent to the Nether World .......... ............................ 295 Introduction ........................................................ 295 Transliteration ........................................................ 296 Notes on Transliteration . ............................................... 303 Translation ........................................................ 305 Notes on Translation .................................................... 312 Excursus A: The Decipherment of Sumerian ........ ......................... 316 Excursus B: Sumerian Epics and Myths ........... .......................... 318 Plates 1-10 ACKNOWLEDGMENT The author is profoundly grateful to the Board of Managers of the University Mu- seum, to Dr. George C. Vaillant, its director, to Mr. Horace H. F. Jayne, his prede- cessor, and to Professor Leon Legrain, the curator of its Babylonian Section, for their generous cooperation in making this study possible. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AOF Archiv fur Otientforschung (Berlin). PBS X 2 Langdon, S. H. Sumerian Liturgical Texts AS No. 12 Kramer, Samuel N. Lamentation over the (Philadelphia, 1917). Destruction of Ur (Chicago, 1940). RA Revue D'Assyriologie