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Mesopotamian Gods and Demons
• Polytheistic: multiple gods
• Anthropomorphic: attributing human form or
qualities to gods, animals, and other nonhuman forms
-The people of Mesopotamia believed that their world was
controlled by gods and goddesses, demons and monsters.
-There were hundreds of gods who were responsible for
everything in the world, from rivers and trees to making
bread and pottery.
-Each city was protected by its own special god or goddess
and their family. Large temples were built in the centre of the
city for these gods to live in. Priests looked after the gods
with special rituals. There were also smaller temples
throughout the city where ordinary people could make
offerings.
-Demons were created by the gods with human bodies and
animal or bird heads. They could be either evil or good.
Monsters were a mixture of animals and birds.
Adad (Ishkur)
• Adad (Ishkur)
Adad is the god of storms. He is usually shown
carrying a lighting fork, symbolising his power
over the storm forces of nature.
• The Babylonian and Assyrian god Adad was
known to the Sumerians as Ishkur, and is often
shown with a lion-dragon or bull. Adad's wife was
the goddess Shala.
Amurru (Martu)
• Amurru (Martu)
Amurru is the god of nomadic peoples and
their flocks. His symbols are a gazelle and a
shepherd's crook.
• He became important when nomadic people
called the Amorites moved into Babylonia
from around 2100 B.C.
Anu (An)
• Anu (An)
Anu is the sky god. He is the supreme ruler of all the
gods. His symbol is the horned cap.
• Mesopotamian myths tell the story of how the earth
was separated from heaven at the beginning of time. In
these myths, heaven becomes Anu's home.
• Anu controls shooting stars, called 'kishru'. Anu is also
in charge of the Bull of Heaven who can be sent to
earth to avenge the gods.
• Although Anu is an important Mesopotamian god,
there are no known pictures of him.
Anzu (Imdugud)
• Anzu (Imdugud)
• Anzu is a giant bird with a lion's head. It is so
huge that whirlwinds and storms are caused
when it flaps its wings. In one story Anzu
steals the tablet of destiny on which the
supreme god writes the fate of the universe.
Anzu is eventually killed by the god Ninurta
who returns the tablet to its rightful owner.
Apkallu fish
• Apkallu fish
• This is a 'wise man' or 'sage'. Babylonian tradition
says that there were seven Apkallu who lived at
the beginning of time before the flood. They were
sent by the god Ea to teach wisdom to humans.
They are shown as humans with wings. Some
have the head of a bird, while others don't have
wings and are dressed in the skin of a fish.
• They protected people and sometimes hold a
bucket and cone for purifying.
Apkallu griffin
• Apkallu griffin
• This is a 'wise man' or 'sage'. Babylonian tradition
says that there were seven Apkallu who lived at
the beginning of time before the flood. They were
sent by the god Ea to teach wisdom to humans.
They are shown as humans with wings. Some
have the head of a bird, while others don't have
wings and are dressed in the skin of a fish.
• They protected people and sometimes hold a
bucket and cone for purifying.
Apkallu human
• Apkallu human
• This is a 'wise man' or 'sage'. Babylonian tradition
says that there were seven Apkallu who lived at
the beginning of time before the flood. They were
sent by the god Ea to teach wisdom to humans.
They are shown as humans with wings. Some
have the head of a bird, while others don't have
wings and are dressed in the skin of a fish.
• They protected people and sometimes hold a
bucket and cone for purifying
Apsu (Abzu)
• Apsu (Abzu)
• Apsu was one of the oldest gods along with
his wife Tiamat. He was sent to sleep by the
god Ea and became the freshwater ocean on
which the earth was believed to float. Apsu
became the home of Ea.
Ashur
• Ashur
• Ashur is the principal Assyrian god. He
appears as a man wearing a horned cap.
• Ashur is the main god of the first Assyrian
capital city, also called Ashur. He became more
important when the Assyrians conquered
Mesopotamia.
• Ashur is sometimes shown riding on a snakedragon.
Bull-man
• Bull-man
• The Bull-man is a demon. He is a man above
the waist and a bull below the waist. He also
has the horns and the ears of a bull.
• The Bull-man helps people fight evil and
chaos. He holds the gates of dawn open for
the sun god Shamash and supports the sun
disc. He is often shown on cylinder seals.
Bull of Heaven
• Bull of Heaven
• The Bull of Heaven is the constellation we call
Taurus. He is controlled by the sky god Anu. The
Bull of Heaven appears in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
After Gilgamesh upsets the goddess Ishtar, she
convinces her father Anu to send the Bull of
Heaven to earth to destroy the crops and kill
people. However, Gilgamesh and Enkidu kill the
Bull of Heaven.
• The gods are angry that the Bull of Heaven has
been killed. As punishment for killing the bull
Enkidu falls ill and dies.
Dumuzi
• Dumuzi
• Dumuzi is a shepherd god who represents the harvest
season but also became a god of the underworld thanks to
the goddess Ishtar.
• Dumuzi was the husband of Ishtar. She decided to visit her
sister Ereshkigal, queen of the underworld. Anybody who
went to the underworld could not leave. Even gods had to
stay there. Ishtar went through the seven gates leading to
the underworld and found that she couldn't escape.
• The other gods became worried when Ishtar didn't return.
The god of wisdom Ea tricked Ereshkigal into returning
Ishtar to life but someone had to take her place in the
underworld.
• Ishtar chose her husband, the shepherd Dumuzi. Demons
carried him off to the underworld. However, he was
allowed to spend half of the year on earth. That is why he
represents the yearly cycle of death and rebirth of the
crops on earth.
Ea (Enki)
• Ea (Enki)
• Ea is the god of the fresh waters known as 'apsu' on which the
Earth floats. He is a god of wisdom, farming, building, magic
and arts and crafts. Ea appears as a bearded man surrounded
by flowing water.
• Ea is attended by a god with two faces called Usmu (Isimud).
• Ea's symbols are the goat-fish and a sceptre with a ram's
head.
• Many Mesopotamian myths emphasise the fun-loving and
mischievous nature of Ea.
• One Sumerian myth is called 'Inanna and Enki' (the Sumerian
names for Ishtar and Ea). In the beginning of this story, Enki
controls the 'me' which are the rules of the universe.
• One day, Enki and Inanna get drunk and she tricks him into
giving her the 'me'. When Enki realises that he has given the
'me' away, he tries to recover then from Inanna. But Inanna
takes the 'me' back to her city. It is too late for Enki to get
them back.
Ellil (Enlil)
• Ellil (Enlil)
Ellil is one of the most important gods of Mesopotamia.
Ellil is so powerful that the other gods can't even look
at him. He is therefore only shown as a horned cap.
• Ellil's main city is Nippur. Kings from all over
Mesopotamia sent offerings to him there.
• Ellil is the father of many other important
Mesopotamian gods and goddesses.
• Ellil guards the 'tablets of destiny'. These are cuneiform
tablets on which he writes the fate of everything on
earth.
Ereshkigal (Allatu)
• Ereshkigal (Allatu)
• Ereshkigal is the Sumerian goddess of the underworld.
• Ereshkigal was a cunning and clever goddess who ruled
over the underworld.
• When Inanna (the Sumerian name for the goddess
Ishtar) ventured into the underworld, Ereshkigal forced
her to take off a piece of clothing at each of the seven
gates before she reached her. Ereshkigal knew that if
Inanna arrived naked, she would be stripped of her
special powers.
Gula
• Gula
• Gula was a goddess of healing, a patroness of
doctors and a constellation. She often appears
as a woman with stars and her dog.
• People dedicated small statues of dogs to Gula
because they believed it would help them
avoid, or recover from, illness.
Human-headed bulls
• Human-headed bulls
• Human-headed bulls are protective creatures.
They are found decorating objects dating
mainly from around 3000-1800 B.C. and later
are replaced by the lamassu guardian figures.
Humbaba (Huwawa)
• Humbaba (Huwawa)
• Humbaba is a monster in the Epic of
Gilgamesh who guards the cedar forest in the
Lebanon mountains. He is a giant human and
is sometimes shown with lion's claws, long
hair, and a monstrous, hairy face. Humbaba is
killed by the hero Gilgamesh and his friend
Enkidu who journey to the forest to cut down
cedar trees.
Ishtar (Inanna)
• Ishtar (Inanna)
Ishtar is the morning and evening star (the planet
we call Venus), and the goddess of love and war.
She is shown as a woman standing on a lion,
generally holding several weapons.
• Ishtar was sometimes thought to be the daughter
of the moon god Sin. Since the lunar month
usually has 30 days, Sin's sacred number is 30. As
Ishtar was Sin's daughter, her sacred number is
15.
Lama
• Lama
• Lama is a goddess people prayed to for their
own personal protection. She appears as a
woman in a long, tiered skirt. Lama is often
shown on cylinder seals leading people into
the presence of important gods and
goddesses.
Lamashtu
• Lamashtu
• Lamashtu is an evil demon who preys upon
unborn and newborn children. She had a hairy
body, a lioness' head with donkey's teeth and
ears, long fingers and fingernails and the feet of a
bird with sharp talons. She is often shown
standing or kneeling on a donkey, nursing a pig
and a dog, and holding snakes.
• Pregnant women often wore amulets of Pazuzu,
the demon who fought against Lamashtu.
Lamassu
• Lamassu
• A lamassu was a human-headed winged bull
or lion. Huge sculptures of lamassus guarded
Assyrian palace doorways and city gates. They
were there to frighten away the forces of
chaos.
Marduk
• Marduk
• Marduk is the city god of Babylon. When Babylon became the
capital of Babylonia (from about 1500 B.C.), Marduk became more
important. Marduk is sometimes called 'Bel' which means 'lord'.
• Marduk's symbols are a spade and the Mushhushshu snake-dragon.
• In Babylonian mythology, Marduk is called upon to fight an army of
demons led by the goddess Tiamat.
• He goes into battle when the other gods agree to elect him as their
leader. He hunts down Tiamat, kills her and is crowned as the
supreme god.
• The citizens of Babylon celebrated a New Year festival, during which
the king would kneel before a statue of Marduk and vow that he
was a good ruler.
Mushhushshu
• Mushhushshu
• The mushhushshu protects many of the
supreme gods. Its name means 'furious snake'.
Gods like Marduk, Ashur, Ellil and Nabu all
rode on a mushhushshu dragon.
Nabu
• Nabu
• Nabu was the god of scribes and the patron of
writing and wisdom. In Assyrian and NeoBabylonian times, Nabu was sometimes
associated with irrigation and agriculture. Nabu
rides on the back of a Mushhushshu snakedragon. Nabu's most important temple was at
Borsippa, near Babylon.
• The symbol of Nabu is a wedge, which stands for
either a cuneiform sign or a stylus.
Nergal
• Nergal
• Nergal is a warrior and underworld god. His
symbol is a mace, often decorated with lionheads. Nergal lives in the underworld with his
wife Ereshkigal. He uses forest fire, fevers and
plague as weapons against humans.
Ninhursag
• Ninhursag
• Ninhursag is an important Sumerian goddess
who is often called 'mother of the gods'.
Ninhursag was important in early
Mesopotamian mythology but she does not
appear in the mythology of later periods.
Ninurta
• Ninurta
• Ninurta is a god of war. He is often shown
holding a bow and arrow and a sickle sword.
Ninurta is sometimes shown running on the
back of a monster with a lion's body and
scorpion's tail, which is chasing after a lion
monster with a bird's wings, feet and tail.
Pazuzu
• Pazuzu
• Pazuzu is a demon who protected humans
against plague and evil forces. He has a human
body with the feet and claws of an eagle, and
the head of a monster. Pazuzu is especially
strong at fighting against the powers of the
malicious goddess Lamashtu.
Scorpion people
• Scorpion people
• Scorpion people have a human head and body
but their lower half is like a bird with a
scorpion's tail. Scorpion people served the sun
god Shamash and were powerful protectors
against demons.
• In the Epic of Gilgamesh, a terrifying scorpionman and scorpion-woman guard the gate of
the mountain where the sun rises.
Shamash (Utu)
• Shamash (Utu)
Shamash is the sun god. He is also the god of truth
and justice because he can see everything.
Shamash holds a knife with a jagged edge so that
he can cut his way through the mountains at
dawn.
• Shamash's symbol is a disc, sometimes with sunrays, or a winged disc.
• He was thought to travel in a boat, but from
about 1000 B.C. his symbol became a horse, and
later, a chariot.
Sin (Nanna)
• Sin (Nanna)
Sin is the moon god. His symbols are the
crescent moon, the bull, and a tripod (which
may be a lamp-stand).
• Sin had a beard made of lapis lazuli and he
rides on a winged bull.
• The lunar month usually has 30 days, so Sin's
sacred number is 30.
Tiamat
• Tiamat
• In the Babylonian Epic of Creation, Tiamat is an
angry goddess, who decides to destroy the other
gods. She creates a vast army of demons. The
other gods decide that Tiamat should be killed,
but they are all afraid. Marduk agrees to kill
Tiamat if he is made supreme god. Marduk kills
Tiamat and, to make heaven and earth, cuts her
body in half. From her eyes flow the rivers Tigris
and Euphrates.
Ugallu
• Ugallu
• The Ugallu has a human body with the head of
a lion and the feet of a bird. He is a demon
who protects people against evil demons and
illnesses
Usmu (Isimud)
• Usmu (Isimud)
• Usmu is an official of the god Ea. He has two
faces. Usmu acts as a messenger and is
sometimes shown bringing a bird-man before
Ea.
The 'Queen of the Night'
• The 'Queen of the Night‘
• The 'Queen of the Night' wears a headdress and carries the
rod and ring symbols. She also has drooping wings and birdlike feet. She is shown standing on top of two lions, with an
owl on either side.
• We know she is a goddess because of her horned crown and
the symbols she holds in her hands. However, there are
several goddesses that she could be. Some experts believe
that she is Ishtar, the goddess of love and war. But drooping
wings were associated with the Underworld. She could be
Ereshkigal, the goddess of the Underworld. However, we do
not know exactly what Ereshkigal looked like.
• The 'Queen of the Night' could also be Lilitu, who is associated
with owls. Lilitu is not a goddess, she is a demoness who
made it difficult for women to have children. Lilitu appears in
the Bible as Lilith.
• Although we do not know exactly who she is, we have called
her the 'Queen of the Night' because of her drooping wings,
the owls on either side of her and because the background of
the plaque was once black.