Ishtar is the Mesopotamian goddess of love and war. Her Sumerian name is Inana (sometimes spelled Inanna). As I mentioned in my Intro, I’m not actually sure who Ishtar’s father is; various stories and tablets list multiple gods as her father. Some of these tablets openly contradict one another, with a possible father from one tablet being Ishtar’s consort in another. Whoever he is, Ishtar’s father is definitely one of the more important gods in the Mesopotamian pantheon. Ishtar also has a sister: Ereshkigal, queen of the Underworld.
There’s an interesting story that revolves around Ishtar and Ereshkigal. For some reason, Ishtar decides that she wants to go to the Underworld. Rather than politely asking her sister if she can come and visit, Ishtar demands entrance, threatening to break down the gates of hell if she is not allowed in. (This is pretty much par for course with Ishtar. She isn’t exactly a sweet, kind goddess...)
Ereshkigal is understandably infuriated by Ishtar’s threats. She tells her servants to allow Ishtar to enter, but to do so in the most humiliating manner possible. At each of the seven gates of the Underworld, Ishtar is forced to remove a piece of clothing - leaving her stark naked by the time she passes through the last gate. (I imagine this looking rather like Cersei Lannister’s walk of shame in A Dance With Dragons. This is interesting, because Cersei and Ishtar have another thing in common - the Lannister crest and the symbol of Ishtar are both lions. Was this deliberate on George R. R. Martin’s part?)
Ishtar is quite peeved by the time she comes face to face with her sister. She insults Ereshkigal without thinking of the consequences. The Underworld goddess immediately orders Ishtar to be tortured and killed as punishment. (No love lost in that relationship!)
With the goddess of love dead, all mortal beings on earth stop having sex. Ea, king of the gods, is quite worried by this development. He sends an emissary to the Underworld to ask for Ishtar’s life to be returned to her. Ea makes sure to warn the emissary to follow the proper protocol and to be very respectful of Ereshkigal.
Ereshkigal is angered by the emissary’s request, but she can find no fault in his actions. This prevents her from denying his request. Ereshkigal grudgingly brings Ishtar back to life. The goddess ascends from the Underworld, with a piece of her clothing being returned to her at each of the seven gates.
The story does not end there; to be returned to the world of the living, Ishtar must find someone to take her place in the Underworld. To ensure that Ishtar complies with this rule, Ereshkigal sends an enforcer squad of demons along with her.
To Ishtar’s credit, she does not damn the first person she sees. Every person she runs into turns out to be a true friend, someone who honestly grieved for her while she was dead. In growing desperation, Ishtar returns home - where she finds her husband Tammuz (also called Dumuzi) seated on her throne with dry eyes. He had not mourned her passing. As revenge for his lack of compassion, Ishtar turns him over to the demons, who drag him back to the Underworld as her replacement.
Luckily, Tammuz had someone in his life who mourned for him. His sister Belili (Sumerian: Geshtinanna) was so struck with grief by his passing that she begged to be allowed to take his place. The gods eventually decided to split the year between the two siblings - each would spend six months in the Underworld per year, leaving the other to live freely during that time.
As you can probably tell from this story, Ishtar is not the most loving of goddesses - which seems strange for a goddess of love. She hates her sister, has a seemingly loveless marriage with Tammuz...perhaps it would be more accurate to call Ishtar a sex goddess than a love deity. Scholars believe that prostitution was a form of worship at Ishtar’s temple, which might back up this idea of sex rather than love. (Such a thing was not uncommon; the Greek goddess Aphrodite had a temple where one could worship by buying a prostitute.)
I’ll talk a little bit more about Ishtar and her many conquests in a few posts, when we get into the Epic of Gilgamesh. Until then, I’d love to know what you think of her! Feel free to comment below or email me. If you missed my special post on Valentine’s Day, you can check it out here - it talks about Lovesick, my second book, which is coming out this November!
I plan on doing three posts dealing with the Epic of Gilgamesh, beginning on Friday. The first will talk about Gilgamesh and Enkidu; the second, Gilgamesh’s response to Ishtar propositioning him; the third, Gilgamesh and his search for eternal life. I hope to see you then!
Showing posts with label Ereshkigal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ereshkigal. Show all posts
Monday, February 16, 2015
Monday, February 9, 2015
Ereshkigal and Nergal: Another Underworld Romance
Yes, those really are the names of two of the Mesopotamian gods. No, I’m not making this up.
I know I said in my Intro that I would mostly be calling the gods by their Akkadian names. The name Nergal is actually what the Sumerians called the god (his Akkadian name is Erra), but the tablet that contains the story of these two deities is called Nergal and Ereshkigal, so I’m sticking with the name Nergal to avoid confusion.
At this point you’re probably wondering who Ereshkigal and Nergal are. Ereshkigal is the Mesopotamian goddess of the Underworld; her sister, Ishtar, is the goddess of love. (This will be relevant later.) Nergal is a god who is sometimes associated with pestilence or the sun. Their story is probably my favorite in Mesopotamian mythology. It is almost exactly the reverse of the Greek tale of Hades and Persephone - for in it, Ereshkigal lures Nergal to the Underworld, seduces him, and intices him to stay with her as her consort.
Interested? I hope so! This post was written specially for this week, since it fits rather nicely with the upcoming holiday of Valentine’s Day. The story of these two gods is very much a traditional romance tale (though at times it can read a bit like an erotic romance novel!). Unfortunately, a lot of the tablet Nergal and Ereshkigal is damaged or missing, so we don’t know the whole story. Here is the parts of the tale that we do know:
The Mesopotamian gods are having a huge party when Anu, father of the gods, realizes that his daughter Ereshkigal is not present. Her duties prevent her from leaving the Underworld, just as his duties prevent him from traveling to see her. Not wanting his daughter to miss out on the fun, Anu sends a messenger to the Underworld.
The messenger gives Ereshkigal her father’s regards, and asks her to send her vizier to the party to choose a present for the goddess. Ereshkigal is pleased by this and immediately sends Namtar, her vizier, to the party. Once there, all of the gods are very respectful of Namtar - all, that is, save for Nergal. Nergal refuses to kneel before the vizier even though all of the other gods are doing so. He is admonished for his lack of respect by his father, Ea. As a punishment, Ea sends Nergal down to the Underworld. He is very clearly warned that he must not sit on a chair, eat, or bathe while there. Most important of all, Nergal must not, under any circumstances, have sex with Ereshkigal.
Care to guess which of those rules Nergal breaks?
To his credit, Nergal actually lasts a while before he forgets Ea’s warnings. He remembers not to sit, refuses to eat or drink, and won’t let the servants bathe him. Unfortunately, the god loses all self-control when Ereshkigal puts on a pretty dress and starts flirting with him. They immediately retire to her bedchamber...where they stay for the next six days.
Yeah.
On the seventh day, Nergal remembers that he wasn’t supposed to sleep with Ereshkigal. He flees back to heaven, where an irritated Ea ritually cleanses Nergal in the hopes of preventing Ereshkigal’s minions from recognizing him.
This is very wise of Ea. When Ereshkigal hears that Nergal has left her, she is furious. (Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned...especially when that woman rules over hell!) She sends Namtar to her father with a message. Ereshkigal points out that she has never been like other girls. Her sister, Ishtar, always had a man on her arm - but Nergal was Ereshkigal’s first lover. She then loses her calm and warns Anu that if Nergal is not returned to her, she will open the gates of hell and allow the dead to eat the living.
The Walking Dead...Mesopotamian style.
Anu is understandably nervous at Ereshkigal’s threat. He allows Namtar to search amongst the gods for Nergal. Unfortunately, Ea’s ritual cleansing worked; Namtar is unable to recognize Nergal, and must return to Ereshkigal empty-handed.
Equally unfortunate is the fact that the tablet is damaged here, leaving us unsure of what happens next. When the story can be read again, Nergal is furious with Ereshkigal - and, for some reason, he is storming the gates of hell. Nergal fights his way through the seven gates single-handedly, and pushes through to the courtyard of the queen. He stands before Ereshkigal and laughs mockingly, before seizing the goddess by the hair and dragging her from her throne.
Just when you’re sure something terrible is going to happen, Nergal pulls Ereshkigal to him and kisses her passionately! The duo then retire to her bedchamber, where they stay for another seven days.
I’m not making this up.
The last part of the tablet is mostly illegible, but it seems to show Anu making Nergal the king of the Underworld. Other Mesopotamian tablets back up this idea, since they show Nergal ruling over the dead alongside Ereshkigal.
Whatever the case, I hope you enjoyed reading about Ereshkigal and Nergal! Their story cracks me up; I love that romance novels existed even in the Mesopotamian times. I also adore the similarities to the Greek story of Hades and Persephone - though the Greeks definitely have the more family-friendly version!
As always, please post below or email me with any comments or thoughts you have. I’ll be back on Friday with another special Valentine’s Day post - this one dealing with Ereshkigal’s sister Ishtar, goddess of love and war! See you then!
I know I said in my Intro that I would mostly be calling the gods by their Akkadian names. The name Nergal is actually what the Sumerians called the god (his Akkadian name is Erra), but the tablet that contains the story of these two deities is called Nergal and Ereshkigal, so I’m sticking with the name Nergal to avoid confusion.
At this point you’re probably wondering who Ereshkigal and Nergal are. Ereshkigal is the Mesopotamian goddess of the Underworld; her sister, Ishtar, is the goddess of love. (This will be relevant later.) Nergal is a god who is sometimes associated with pestilence or the sun. Their story is probably my favorite in Mesopotamian mythology. It is almost exactly the reverse of the Greek tale of Hades and Persephone - for in it, Ereshkigal lures Nergal to the Underworld, seduces him, and intices him to stay with her as her consort.
Interested? I hope so! This post was written specially for this week, since it fits rather nicely with the upcoming holiday of Valentine’s Day. The story of these two gods is very much a traditional romance tale (though at times it can read a bit like an erotic romance novel!). Unfortunately, a lot of the tablet Nergal and Ereshkigal is damaged or missing, so we don’t know the whole story. Here is the parts of the tale that we do know:
The Mesopotamian gods are having a huge party when Anu, father of the gods, realizes that his daughter Ereshkigal is not present. Her duties prevent her from leaving the Underworld, just as his duties prevent him from traveling to see her. Not wanting his daughter to miss out on the fun, Anu sends a messenger to the Underworld.
The messenger gives Ereshkigal her father’s regards, and asks her to send her vizier to the party to choose a present for the goddess. Ereshkigal is pleased by this and immediately sends Namtar, her vizier, to the party. Once there, all of the gods are very respectful of Namtar - all, that is, save for Nergal. Nergal refuses to kneel before the vizier even though all of the other gods are doing so. He is admonished for his lack of respect by his father, Ea. As a punishment, Ea sends Nergal down to the Underworld. He is very clearly warned that he must not sit on a chair, eat, or bathe while there. Most important of all, Nergal must not, under any circumstances, have sex with Ereshkigal.
Care to guess which of those rules Nergal breaks?
To his credit, Nergal actually lasts a while before he forgets Ea’s warnings. He remembers not to sit, refuses to eat or drink, and won’t let the servants bathe him. Unfortunately, the god loses all self-control when Ereshkigal puts on a pretty dress and starts flirting with him. They immediately retire to her bedchamber...where they stay for the next six days.
Yeah.
On the seventh day, Nergal remembers that he wasn’t supposed to sleep with Ereshkigal. He flees back to heaven, where an irritated Ea ritually cleanses Nergal in the hopes of preventing Ereshkigal’s minions from recognizing him.
This is very wise of Ea. When Ereshkigal hears that Nergal has left her, she is furious. (Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned...especially when that woman rules over hell!) She sends Namtar to her father with a message. Ereshkigal points out that she has never been like other girls. Her sister, Ishtar, always had a man on her arm - but Nergal was Ereshkigal’s first lover. She then loses her calm and warns Anu that if Nergal is not returned to her, she will open the gates of hell and allow the dead to eat the living.
The Walking Dead...Mesopotamian style.
Anu is understandably nervous at Ereshkigal’s threat. He allows Namtar to search amongst the gods for Nergal. Unfortunately, Ea’s ritual cleansing worked; Namtar is unable to recognize Nergal, and must return to Ereshkigal empty-handed.
Equally unfortunate is the fact that the tablet is damaged here, leaving us unsure of what happens next. When the story can be read again, Nergal is furious with Ereshkigal - and, for some reason, he is storming the gates of hell. Nergal fights his way through the seven gates single-handedly, and pushes through to the courtyard of the queen. He stands before Ereshkigal and laughs mockingly, before seizing the goddess by the hair and dragging her from her throne.
Just when you’re sure something terrible is going to happen, Nergal pulls Ereshkigal to him and kisses her passionately! The duo then retire to her bedchamber, where they stay for another seven days.
I’m not making this up.
The last part of the tablet is mostly illegible, but it seems to show Anu making Nergal the king of the Underworld. Other Mesopotamian tablets back up this idea, since they show Nergal ruling over the dead alongside Ereshkigal.
Whatever the case, I hope you enjoyed reading about Ereshkigal and Nergal! Their story cracks me up; I love that romance novels existed even in the Mesopotamian times. I also adore the similarities to the Greek story of Hades and Persephone - though the Greeks definitely have the more family-friendly version!
As always, please post below or email me with any comments or thoughts you have. I’ll be back on Friday with another special Valentine’s Day post - this one dealing with Ereshkigal’s sister Ishtar, goddess of love and war! See you then!
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