INANNA
A
lot about Eve i.e. Inanna is written by Lieutenant Colonel Laurence
Austine Waddell in his books. The
new studies which have come out I am writing it here, excluding
mythology and myths.
![](539px-Ishtar_on_an_Akkadian_seal.jpg)
Goddess
Ishtar on an Akkadian Empire seal, 2350 – 2150 BC. She is
equipped with weapons on her back, has a horned helmet, and is trampling
a lion held on a leash
Symbol
: Hook-shaped knot of reeds, eight-pointed star, lion,
rosette, dove
Inanna
is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess associated with love, beauty,
sex, war, justice and political power. She was originally worshiped
in Aratta and Sumer under the name "Inanna", and was later
worshipped by the Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians under the
name Ishtar. She was known as the "Queen of Heaven" and
was the patron goddess of the Eanna temple at the city of Uruk,
which was her main cult center. She was associated with the planet
Venus and her most prominent symbols included the lion and the eight-pointed
star. Her sukkal, or personal attendant, was the goddess Ninshubur
(who later became the male deity Papsukkal).
Inanna
was worshiped in Sumer at least as early as the Uruk period (c.
4000 BC – c. 3100 BC), but she had little cult before the
conquest of Sargon of Akkad. During the post-Sargonic era, she became
one of the most widely venerated deities in the Sumerian pantheon,
with temples across Mesopotamia. The cult of Inanna/Ishtar, which
may have been associated with a variety of sexual rites, was continued
by the East Semitic-speaking people (Akkadians, Assyrians and Babylonians)
who succeeded and absorbed the Sumerians in the region. She was
especially beloved by the Assyrians, who elevated her to become
the highest deity in their pantheon, ranking above their own national
god Ashur. Inanna/Ishtar is alluded to in the Hebrew Bible and she
greatly influenced the Phoenician goddess Astoreth, who later influenced
the development of the Greek goddess Aphrodite. Her cult continued
to flourish until its gradual decline between the first and sixth
centuries AD in the wake of Christianity, though it survived in
parts of Upper Mesopotamia among Assyrian communities as late as
the eighteenth century.
Etymology
:
![](640px-Inanna_receiving_offerings_on_the_Uruk_Vase,_circa_3200-3000_BCE.jpg)
Inanna
receiving offerings on the Uruk Vase, circa 3200 - 3000 BC
Inanna and Ishtar were originally separate, unrelated deities, but
they were equated with each other during the reign of Sargon of
Akkad and came to be regarded as effectively the same goddess under
two different names.
The
name Ishtar occurs as an element in personal names from both the
pre-Sargonic and post-Sargonic eras in Akkad, Assyria, and Babylonia.
It is of Semitic derivation and is probably etymologically related
to the name of the West Semitic god Attar, who is mentioned in later
inscriptions from Ugarit and southern Arabia. The morning star may
have been conceived as a male deity who presided over the arts of
war and the evening star may have been conceived as a female deity
who presided over the arts of love. Among the Akkadians, Assyrians,
and Babylonians, the name of the male god eventually supplanted
the name of his female counterpart, but, due to extensive syncretism
with Inanna, the deity remained as female, although her name was
in the masculine form.
Origins
and development :
![](255px-Warka_vase_(background_retouched).jpg)
The
Uruk Vase (Warka Vase), depicting votive offerings to Inanna (3200-3000
BC).
As
early as the Uruk period (c. 4000 – c. 3100 BC), Inanna was
already associated with the city of Uruk. During this period, the
symbol of a ring-headed doorpost was closely associated with Inanna.
The famous Uruk Vase (found in a deposit of cult objects of the
Uruk III period) depicts a row of naked men carrying various objects,
including bowls, vessels, and baskets of farm products, and bringing
sheep and goats to a female figure facing the ruler. The female
stands in front of Inanna's symbol of the two twisted reeds of the
doorpost, while the male figure holds a box and stack of bowls,
the later cuneiform sign signifying the En, or high priest of the
temple.
Seal
impressions from the Jemdet Nasr period (c. 3100 – c. 2900
BC) show a fixed sequence of symbols representing various cities,
including those of Ur, Larsa, Zabalam, Urum, Arina, and probably
Kesh. This list probably reflects the report of contributions to
Inanna at Uruk from cities supporting her cult. A large number of
similar seals have been discovered from phase I of the Early Dynastic
period (c. 2900 – c. 2350 BC) at Ur, in a slightly different
order, combined with the rosette symbol of Inanna. These seals were
used to lock storerooms to preserve materials set aside for her
cult.
Various
inscriptions in the name of Inanna are known, such as a bead in
the name of King Aga of Kish circa 2600 BC, or a tablet by King
Lugal-kisalsi circa 2400 BC :
![](BM_91013_Tablet_dedicated_by_Lugal-tarsi.jpg)
"For An, king of all the lands, and for Inanna, his mistress,
Lugal-kisalsi, king of Kish, built the wall of the courtyard."
- Inscription of Lugal-kisalsi.
During the Akkadian period (c. 2334 – 2154 BC), following
the conquests of Sargon of Akkad, Inanna and Ishtar became so extensively
syncretized that they became regarded as effectively the same. The
Akkadian poet Enheduanna, the daughter of Sargon, wrote numerous
hymns to Inanna, identifying her with Ishtar. Sargon himself proclaimed
Inanna and An as the sources of his authority. As a result of this,
the popularity of Inanna/Ishtar's cult skyrocketed.
Worship
:
Inanna's symbol: the reed ring-post
![](Emblem_of_the_Goddess_Inanna.jpg)
Emblem
of goddess Inanna, circa 3000 BCE
![](604px-Wall_plaque_showing_libation_scene_from_Ur,_Iraq,_2500_BCE._British_Museum_(libation_detail).jpg)
Ring
posts of Inanna on each side of a temple door, with naked devotee
offering libations
![](252px-Inanna_ring_posts_on_the_Warka_vase.jpg)
On
the Warka Vase
![](Inanna_symbol_and_cuneiform_logogram,_the_reed_ring_stalk.jpg)
Cuneiform
logogram "Inanna"
Inanna's symbol is a ring post made of reed, an ubiquitous building
material in Sumer. It was often beribboned and positionned at the
entrance of temples, and marked the limit between the profane and
the sacred realms. The design of the emblem was simplified between
3000-2000 BCE to become the cuneiform logogram for Inanna, generally
preceded by the symbol for "deity".
![](Couple_de_musiciens.jpg)
Ancient
Sumerian statuette of two gala priests, dating to c. 2450 BC, found
in the temple of Inanna at Mari
During the Pre-Sargonic era, the cult of Inanna was rather limited,
but, after the reign of Sargon, she quickly became one of the most
widely venerated deities in the Sumerian pantheon. She had temples
in Nippur, Lagash, Shuruppak, Zabalam, and Ur, but her main cult
center was the Eanna temple in Uruk, whose name means "House
of Heaven", The original patron deity of this fourth-millennium
BC city was probably An. After its dedication to Inanna, the temple
seems to have housed priestesses of the goddess. During later times,
while her cult in Uruk continued to flourish, Ishtar also became
particularly worshipped in the Upper Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria
(modern northern Iraq, northeast Syria and southeast Turkey), especially
in the cities of Nineveh, Aššur and Arbela (modern Erbil).
During the reign of the Assyrian king Assurbanipal, Ishtar rose
to become the most important and widely venerated deity in the Assyrian
pantheon, surpassing even the Assyrian national god Ashur.
As
Ishtar became more prominent, several lesser or regional deities
were assimilated into her, including Aya (the wife of Utu), Anatu
(Antu, a consort of Anu), Anunitu (an Akkadian light goddess), Agasayam
(a warrior goddess), Irnini (the goddess of cedar forests in the
Lebanese mountains), Kilili or Kulili (the symbol of desirable women),
Sahirtu (the messenger of lovers), Kir-gu-lu (the bringer of rain),
and Sarbanda (the personification of sovereignty).
Individuals
who went against the traditional gender binary were heavily involved
in the cult of Inanna. During Sumerian times, a set of priests known
as gala worked in Inanna's temples, where they performed elegies
and lamentations. Men who became gala sometimes adopted female names
and their songs were composed in the Sumerian eme-sal dialect, which,
in literary texts, is normally reserved for the speech of female
characters.
During the Akkadian Period, kurgarru and assinnu were servants
of Ishtar who dressed in female clothing and performed war dances
in Ishtar's temples. Gwendolyn Leick, an anthropologist known
for her writings on Mesopotamia, has compared these individuals
to the contemporary Indian hijra (hijda).
According
to the early scholar Samuel Noah Kramer, towards the end of the
third millennium BC, kings of Uruk may have established their legitimacy
by taking on the role of the shepherd Dumuzid, Inanna's consort.
This ritual lasted for one night on the tenth day of the Akitu,
the Sumerian new year festival, which was celebrated annually at
the spring equinox.
Women
across the ancient Near East worshipped Ishtar by dedicating to
her cakes baked in ashes (known as kaman tumri). A dedication
of this type is described in an Akkadian hymn. Several clay cake
molds discovered at Mari are shaped like naked women with large
hips clutching their breasts. Some scholars have suggested that
the cakes made from these molds were intended as representations
of Ishtar herself.
(The
ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region
roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern
Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran, northeastern Syria and Kuwait),
ancient Egypt, ancient Iran (Elam, Media, Parthia and Persia), Anatolia/Asia
Minor and the Armenian Highlands (Turkey's Eastern Anatolia Region,
Armenia, northwestern Iran, southern Georgia, and western Azerbaijan),
the Levant (modern Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, and Jordan),
Cyprus and the Arabian Peninsula. The ancient Near East is studied
in the fields of Ancient Near East studies, Near Eastern archaeology
and ancient history.
The
history of the ancient Near East begins with the rise of Sumer in
the 4th millennium BC, though the date it ends varies.)
Iconography
:
Symbols :
![](533px-Kudurru_Melishipak_Louvre_Sb23_n02.jpg)
The
eight-pointed star was Inanna/Ishtar's most common symbol. Here
it is shown alongside the solar disk of her brother Shamash (Sumerian
Utu) and the crescent moon of her father Sin (Sumerian Nanna) on
a boundary stone of Meli-Shipak II, dating to the twelfth century
BC.
![](640px-Pergamon_Museum_Berlin_2007112.jpg)
Lions
were one of Inanna/Ishtar's primary symbols. The lion above comes
from the Ishtar Gate, the eighth gate to the inner city of Babylon,
which was constructed in around 575 BC under the orders of Nebuchadnezzar
II.
Inanna/Ishtar's most common symbol was the eight-pointed star,
though the exact number of points sometimes varies. Six-pointed
stars also occur frequently, but their symbolic meaning is unknown.
The eight-pointed star seems to have originally borne a general
association with the heavens, but, by the Old Babylonian Period
(c. 1830 – c. 1531 BC), it had come to be specifically associated
with the planet Venus, with which Ishtar was identified. Starting
during this same period, the star of Ishtar was normally enclosed
within a circular disc. During later Babylonian times, slaves who
worked in Ishtar's temples were sometimes branded with the seal
of the eight-pointed star. On boundary stones and cylinder seals,
the eight-pointed star is sometimes shown alongside the crescent
moon, which was the symbol of Sin (Sumerian Nanna) and the rayed
solar disk, which was a symbol of Shamash (Sumerian Utu).
Inanna's
cuneiform ideogram was a hook-shaped twisted knot of reeds, representing
the doorpost of the storehouse, a common symbol of fertility and
plenty. The rosette was another important symbol of Inanna, which
continued to be used as a symbol of Ishtar after their syncretism.
During the Neo-Assyrian Period (911 – 609 BC), the rosette
may have actually eclipsed the eight-pointed star and become Ishtar's
primary symbol. The temple of Ishtar in the city of Aššur
was adorned with numerous rosettes.
Inanna/Ishtar
was associated with lions, which the ancient Mesopotamians regarded
as a symbol of power. Her associations with lions began during
Sumerian times; a chlorite bowl from the temple of Inanna at Nippur
depicts a large feline battling a giant snake and a cuneiform inscription
on the bowl reads "Inanna and the Serpent", indicating
that the cat is supposed to represent the goddess. During the Akkadian
Period, Ishtar was frequently depicted as a heavily armed warrior
goddess with a lion as one of her attributes.
Doves
were also prominent animal symbols associated with Inanna/Ishtar.
Doves are shown on cultic objects associated with Inanna as early
as the beginning of the third millennium BC. Lead dove figurines
were discovered in the temple of Ishtar at Aššur, dating
to the thirteenth century BC and a painted fresco from Mari, Syria
shows a giant dove emerging from a palm tree in the temple of Ishtar,
indicating that the goddess herself was sometimes believed to take
the form of a dove.
As
the planet Venus :
Inanna was associated with the planet Venus, which is named after
her Roman equivalent Venus.Several hymns praise Inanna in her role
as the goddess or personification of the planet Venus.
Inanna
in her aspect as Anunitu was associated with the eastern fish of
the last of the zodiacal constellations, Pisces. Her consort
Dumuzi was associated with the contiguous first constellation, Aries.
![](388px-Ishtar_Eshnunna_Louvre_AO12456.jpg)
Babylonian
terracotta relief of Ishtar from Eshnunna (early second millennium
BC)
![](263px-Deesse_au_vase_(Mari).jpg)
Life-sized
statue of a goddess, probably Ishtar, holding a vase from Mari,
Syria (eighteenth century BC)
![](Winged_goddess-AO6501-IMG_0638-black.jpg)
Terracotta
relief of Ishtar with wings from Larsa (second millennium BC)
![](Naked_woman_holding_her_breasts-Sb_7742-IMG_0880-black.jpg)
Statuette
of woman clutching her breasts, possibly representing Ishtar, from
Susa (c. 1300 – c. 1100 BC)
![](283px-Ishtar_-_stele_of_Shamsh-res-usur,_governor_of_Mari_and_Suhi.jpg)
Stele
showing Ishtar holding a bow from Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum (eighth
century BC)
![](457px-IshtarDamascusMuseum.jpg)
Hellenized
bas-relief sculpture of Ishtar standing with her servant from Palmyra
(third century AD)
Character
:
![](640px-Seal_of_Inanna,_2350-2150_BCE.jpg)
Ancient
Akkadian cylinder seal depicting Inanna resting her foot on the
back of a lion while Ninshubur stands in front of her paying obeisance,
c. 2334 – c. 2154 BC
The Sumerians worshipped Inanna as the goddess of both warfare and
love. Unlike other gods, whose roles were static and whose domains
were limited, the stories of Inanna describe her as moving from
conquest to conquest.
Inanna
was also worshipped as one of the Sumerian war deities. One of her
hymns declares: "She stirs confusion and chaos against those
who are disobedient to her, speeding carnage and inciting the devastating
flood, clothed in terrifying radiance. It is her game to speed conflict
and battle, untiring, strapping on her sandals." Battle itself
was occasionally referred to as the "Dance of Inanna".
![](640px-Ea_(Babilonian)_-_EnKi_(Sumerian).jpg)
Akkadian
cylinder seal from c. 2300 BC or thereabouts depicting the deities
Inanna, Utu, Enki, and Isimud
![](300px-Ishtar_descent_to_the_Underworld_BM_ME_K.162.jpg)
Copy
of the Akkadian version of Ishtar's Descent into the Underworld
from the Library of Assurbanipal, currently held in the British
Museum in London, England
![](271px-Ishtar_vase_Louvre_AO17000-detail.jpg)
Depiction
of Inanna/Ishtar from the Ishtar Vase, dating to the early second
millennium BC (Mesopotamian, Terracotta with cut, moulded, and painted
decoration, from Larsa)
![](577px-British_Museum_Queen_of_the_Night.jpg)
The
"Burney Relief", which is believed to represent either
Ishtar or her older sister Ereshkigal (c. 19th or 18th century BC)
Later
influence :
In antiquity :
![](450px-Aphrodite_und_Adonis_-_Altar_2.jpg)
The
Greek myth of Aphrodite and Adonis, shown here on this altar from
the Greek city of Taras in Magna Graecia, dating to c. 400-375 BC,
is derived from the Mesopotamian myth of Inanna and Dumuzid.
![](401px-Durga_Temple_Aihole_ADSC_1481.jpg)
Statue
from the Aihole temple of the Hindu goddess Durga, heavily armed
with a lion at her side, slaying the buffalo demon. Durga's warrior
aspects and associations with lions may be derived from Inanna.
The cult of Inanna/Ishtar may have been introduced to the Kingdom
of Judah during the reign of King Manasseh and, although Inanna
herself is not directly mentioned in the Bible by name, the Old
Testament contains numerous allusions to her cult. Jeremiah 7:18
and Jeremiah 44:15–19 mention "the Queen of Heaven",
who is probably a syncretism of Inanna/Ishtar and the West Semitic
goddess Astarte. Jeremiah states that the Queen of Heaven was worshipped
by women who baked cakes for her.
The
Song of Songs bears strong similarities to the Sumerian love poems
involving Inanna and Dumuzid, particularly in its usage of natural
symbolism to represent the lovers' physicality. Song of Songs 6:10
("Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the
moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?")
is almost certainly a reference to Inanna/Ishtar.
The
cult of Inanna/Ishtar also heavily influenced the cult of the Phoenician
goddess Astoreth. The Phoenicians introduced Astarte to the Greek
islands of Cyprus and Cythera, where she either gave rise to or
heavily influenced the Greek goddess Aphrodite. Aphrodite took on
Inanna/Ishtar's associations with sexuality and procreation. Furthermore,
she was known as Ourania, which means "heavenly", a title
corresponding to Inanna's role as the Queen of Heaven.
Early
artistic and literary portrayals of Aphrodite are extremely similar
to Inanna/Ishtar. Aphrodite was also a warrior goddess; the second-century
AD Greek geographer Pausanias records that, in Sparta, Aphrodite
was worshipped as Aphrodite Areia, which means "warlike".
He also mentions that Aphrodite's most ancient cult statues in Sparta
and on Cythera showed her bearing arms. Modern scholars note that
Aphrodite's warrior-goddess aspects appear in the oldest strata
of her worship and see it as an indication of her Near Eastern origins.
Aphrodite also absorbed Ishtar's association with doves, which were
sacrificed to her alone. The Greek word for "dove" was
peristerá, which may be derived from the Semitic phrase perah
Ištar, meaning "bird of Ishtar". The myth of Aphrodite
and Adonis is derived from the story of Inanna and Dumuzid.
Classical
scholar Charles Penglase has written that Athena, the Greek goddess
of wisdom and defensive warfare, resembles Inanna's role as a "terrifying
warrior goddess". Others have noted that the birth of Athena
from the head of her father Zeus could be derived from Inanna's
descent into and return from the Underworld.
The
cult of Inanna may also have influenced the deities Ainina and Danina
of the Caucasian Iberians mentioned by the medieval Georgian Chronicles.
Anthropologist Kevin Tuite argues that the Georgian goddess Dali
was also influenced by Inanna, noting that both Dali and Inanna
were associated with the morning star, both were characteristically
depicted nude, both were associated with gold jewelry, both were
associated with human and animal fertility and dangerous women.
The Hindu goddess Durga may also have been influenced by Inanna.
Like Inanna, Durga was envisioned as a warrior goddess with a fierce
temper who slew demons. Both goddesses were portrayed riding on
the backs of lions and both were associated with the destruction
of the wicked. Like Inanna, Durga.
Traditional
Mesopotamian religion began to gradually decline between the third
and fifth centuries AD as ethnic Assyrians converted to Christianity.
Nonetheless, the cult of Ishtar.
The
cult of Ishtar still existed in Mardin as late as the eighteenth
century. Early Christians in the Middle East assimilated elements
of Ishtar into the cult of the Virgin Mary.
Source
:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Inanna#:~:text=Inanna%20is%
20an%20ancient%20Mesopotamian,
Assyrians%20under%20the%20name
%20Ishtar.