Download CHW3M Mesopotamia Religion

CHW3M
Mesopotamia: Society and Culture
Religion
February 18th, 2015
‘DOCUMENT ANALYSIS’ HANDOUT & KEY
TERMS
Take up ‘Document Analysis’ handout
 Key Terms
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Anthropomorphic
Ziggurats
Mythology
Oracles
Polytheistic
Legends
Theocracy
Cuneiform
City-state
GODS & GODDESSES
The Mesopotamian people thought that their
gods had the ______ and ___________ of human
beings
 In other words, anthropomorphic
 Even though gods were considered _________,
they ate, drank, developed ___________, got
married, and had children
 The gods experienced and expressed emotions
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Anger
 Hate
 Jealousy
 Love
(A flood would signify that a god was ‘angry’)
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GODS & GODDESSES CONT’D
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Religion in Mesopotamia was also polytheistic (many
gods/goddesses)
The Sumerians believed in over ______ different deities
Each city-state selected one of the gods as its _________
patron – therefore the city belonged to that god
The main deities in _______ were associated with aspects of
___________
Four gods were considered superior to others:
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Enlil – god of _____ (city was Nippur)
An – the god of _________ (city was Uruk)
Enki – god of earth and ________ (city was Eridu)
Ninhursag – mother goddess of all _______ things (city was
Lagash)
Other important gods/goddesses: Utu (sun god); Nannar (moon
god); Innana (goddess of love)
SUMERIAN RELIGION: GODS/GODDESSES
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Gods lived in the ______ or ________ and ruled over the
earth
Below the earth was a gloomy __________ where the dead
were entombed
The god Enlil provided the universal ______ that governed
everything in the universe, but he ________ one of the laws
and was banished for a time to the underworld
Enki provided all that made the earth ______ (water in
rivers to stalls for livestock)
Humans were created from ______ to serve the gods on
earth and save them from the ______ work of providing
their own food and ________
What are some similarities and differences when
comparing the Sumerian religion to the Roman Catholic
religon?
BABYLONIAN RELIGION:
GODS/GODDESSES
Babylonians ________ many of the Sumerian gods
with gods of their own (functions remained the
same)
 Goddess Ishtar replaced Innana
 Marduck replaced Enlil
 Anu replaced An
 The Babylonian pantheon also contained several
_______ deities such as Apsu (god of fresh
______); Ti’amat (goddess of the _____); and Ea
(the god of __________)
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ASSYRIAN RELIGION: GODS/GODDESSES
Also recognized many of the same gods as the
Sumerians, but worshiped a ______ god, Ashur
 Ashur was lord of ______ and _____, and creator
of the world
 All of the Assyrian kings were closely _______
with Ashur
 Also popular: Ishtar, mother goddess, goddess of
love and fertility, and the mistress of battle
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Any similarities/differences to the Roman
Catholic religion?
MESOPOTAMIAN RELIGION CONT’D
Mesopotamians believe that the gods ________ in
the heavens and in high places such as _________,
however they also believed that the deities came
down to ________
 To ‘house’ them, the Mesopotamian’s built high
_______ (ziggurats) and dedicated these buildings
to the gods’ ________
 _______ was placed in the shrine _______ for the
gods to eat while they were in the temple
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Any similarities and/or differences from Roman
Catholic religion?
RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES
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The Mesopotamian gods __________ all aspects of
the human and natural world
Controlled the rains/_______
 The changing _______
 The fruitfulness of the ________
 All other forces of _________
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They could influence major human _______, such
as ______, ______, and they could affect events in
individual lives, such as success or failure of a
business venture
 They could bring ill or _______ fortune at will
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RELIGIOUS BELIEF’S & PRACTICES CONT’D
The people were _______ to the mysterious whims
of the gods, but their religion also provided them
with a sense of universal ______, and explained
some of the mysteries of life and the natural
world
 Sumerians, Babylonians and the Assyrians all
created a strong __________
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Told stories of the gods and their relationship to the
world. The mythology also includes tales of _______
who lived in the fearsome underworld
RELIGIOUS BELIEF’S & PRACTICES CONT’D
Since gods/goddesses could bring good or ill
fortune, people were constantly on the lookout for
________ of the future
 Many consulted oracles or ______ to interpret
signs of the gods (modern day psychics)
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_______ divination was popular because the liver was
considered the seat of emotion and true knowledge
Priests sacrificed ________, and examined the lines,
valleys, spots, and wrinkles on the liver to uncover the
future
Any other religious similarities/differences?
RELIGIOUS FESTIVALS
In Mesopotamia, religious festivals were ________
events
 The new year’s festival (which could last as long
as ____ days) was the most popular and ________
 Festivals were also held when a city _____ a war
to celebrate the capture of the conquered city’s
__________
 Competitions, _______, and short plays telling
stories of the gods were often part of the
festivities
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