The Seven Great Monarchies Of The Ancient Eastern World Volume I Part 7

Gula was worshipped in close combination with her husband, both at Larsa and Sippara. Her name appears in the inscriptions connected with both places; and she is probably the "Anammelech," whom the Sepharvites honored in conjunction with Adrammelech, the "Fire-King." In later times she had also temples independent of her husband, at Babylon and Borsippa, as well as at Calah a.s.shur.

The emblem now commonly regarded as symbolizing Gula is the eight-rayed disk or orb, which frequently accompanies the orb with four rays in the Babylonian representations. In lieu of a disk, we have sometimes an eight-rayed star and even occasionally a star with six rays only. It is curious that the eight-rayed star became at an early period the universal emblem of divinity: but perhaps we can only conclude from this the stellar origin of the worship generally, and not any special pre-eminence or priority of Anunit over other deities.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PAGE 84]

VUL, OR IVA

The third member of the second Triad is the G.o.d of the atmosphere, whose name it has been proposed to render phonetically in a great variety of ways. Until a general agreement shall be established, it is thought best to retain a name with which readers are familiar; and the form Vul will therefore be used in these volumes. Were Iva the correct articulation, we might regard the term as simply the old Hamitic name for "the air,"

and ill.u.s.trate it by the Arabic _heva,_ which has still that meaning.

The importance of Vul in the Chaldaean mythology, and his strong positive character, contrast remarkably with the weak and shadowy features of Ura.n.u.s, or AEther, in the cla.s.sical system. Vul indeed corresponds in great measure with the cla.s.sical Zeus or Jupiter, being, like him, the real "Prince of the power of the air," the lord of the whirlwind and the tempest, and the wielder of the thunderbolt. His standard t.i.tles are "the minister of heaven and earth," "the Lord of the air," "he who makes the tempest to rage." He is regarded as the destroyer of crops, the rooter-up of trees, the scatterer of the harvest. Famine, scarcity, and even their consequence, pestilence, are a.s.signed to him. He is said to have in his hand a "flaming sword," with which he effects his works of destruction; and this "flaming sword," which probably represents lightning, becomes his emblem upon the tablets and cylinders, where it is figured as a double or triple bolt. [PLATE XIX., Fig. 4.] Vul again, as the G.o.d of the atmosphere, gives the rain; and hence he is "the careful and beneficent chief," "the giver of abundance," "the lord of fecundity."

In this capacity he is naturally chosen to preside over ca.n.a.ls, the great fertilizers of Babylonia; and we find among his t.i.tles "the lord of ca.n.a.ls," and "the establisher of works of irrigation."

There is not much evidence of the worship of Vul in Chaldaea during the early times. That he must have been known appears from the fact of his name forming an element in the name of Shamas-Vul, son of Ismi-dagon, who ruled over Chaldaea about B.C. 1850. It is also certain that this Shamas-Vul set up his worship at a.s.shur (Kileh-Sherghat) in a.s.syria, a.s.sociating him there with his father Ana, and building to them conjointly a great temple. Further than this we have no proof that he was an object of worship in the time of the first monarchy; though in the time of a.s.syrian preponderance, as well as in that of the later Babylonian Empire, there were few G.o.ds more venerated.

Vul is sometimes a.s.sociated with a G.o.ddess, Shala or Tala, who is probably the Salambo or Salambas of the lexicographers. The meaning of her name is uncertain; and her epithets are for the most part obscure.

Her ordinary t.i.tle is sacrat or sharrat, "queen," the feminine of the common word sar, which means "Chief," "King," or "Sovereign."

BAR, NIN, or NINIP.

If we are right in regarding the five G.o.ds who stand next to the Triad formed of the Moon, the Sun, and the Atmosphere, as representatives of the five planets visible to the naked eye, the G.o.d Nin, or Ninip, should be Saturn. His names, Bar and Nin, are respectively a Semitic and a Hamitic term signifying "lord" or "master." Nin-ip, his full Hamitic appellation, signifies "Nin, by name," or "he whose name is Nin;" and similarly, his full Semitic appellation seems to have been Barshem, "Bar, by name," or "he whose name is Bar"--a term which is not indeed found in the inscriptions, but which appears to have been well known to the early Syrians and Armenians, and which was probably the origin of the t.i.tle Ba.r.s.emii, borne by the kings of Hatra (Hadhr near Kileh-Sherghat) in Roman times.

In character and attributes the cla.s.sical G.o.d whom Nin most closely resembles is, however, not Saturn, but Hercules. An indication of this connection is perhaps contained in the Herodotean genealogy, which makes Hercules an ancestor of Ninus. Many cla.s.sical traditions, we must remember, identified Hercules with Saturn; and it seems certain that in the East at any rate this identification was common. So Nin, in the inscriptions, is the G.o.d of strength and courage. He is "the lord of the brave," "the champion," "the warrior who subdues foes," "he who strengthens the heart of his followers;" and again, "the destroyer of enemies," "the reducer of the disobedient," "the exterminator of rebels,"

"he whose sword is good." In many respects he bears a close resemblance to Nergal or Mars. Like him, he is a G.o.d of battle and of the chase, presiding over the king's expeditions, whether for war or hunting, and giving success in both alike. At the same time he has qualities which seem wholly unconnected with any that have been hitherto mentioned. He is the true "Fish-G.o.d" of Berosus, and is fig ured as such in the sculptures. [PLATE XIX., Fig. 5.] In this point of view he is called "the G.o.d of the sea," "he who dwells in the sea," and again, somewhat curiously, "the opener of aqueducts." Besides these epithets, he has many of a more general character, as "the powerful chief," "the supreme,"

"the first of the G.o.ds," "the favorite of the G.o.ds," "the chief of the spirits," and the like. Again, he has a set of epithets which seem to point to his stellar character, very difficult to reconcile with the notion that, as a celestial luminary, he was Saturn. We find him called "the light of heaven and earth," "he who, like the sun, the light of the G.o.ds, irradiates the nations." These phrases appear to point to the Moon, or to some very brilliant star, and are scarcely reconcilable with the notion that he was the dark and distant Saturn.

Nin's emblem in a.s.syria is the Man-bull, the impersonation of strength and power. [PLATE XIX., Fig. 6.] He guards the palaces of the a.s.syrian kings, who reckon him their tutelary G.o.d, and give his name to their capital city. We may conjecture that in Babylonia his emblem was the sacred fish, which is often seen under different forms upon the cylinders. [PLATE XIX., Fig. 7.]

The monuments furnish no evidence of the early worship of Nin in Chaldaea. We may perhaps gather the fact from Berosus' account of the Fish-G.o.d as an early object of veneration in that region, as well as from the Hamitic etymology of the name by which he was ordinarily known even in a.s.syria. There he was always one of the most important deities. His temple at Nineveh was very famous, and is noticed by Tacitus in his "Annals;" and he had likewise two temples at Calah (Nimrud), both of them buildings of some pretension.

It has been already mentioned that Nin was the son of Bel-Nimrod, and that Beltis was both his wife and his mother. These relationships are well established, since they are repeatedly a.s.serted. One tablet, however, inverts the genealogy, and makes Bel-Nimrod the son of Nin, instead of his father. The contradiction perhaps springs from the double character of this divinity, who, as Saturn, is the father, but, as Hercules, the son of Jupiter.

BEL-MERODACH.

Bel-Merodach is, beyond all doubt, the planet Jupiter, which is still called Bel by the Mendaeans. The name Merodach is of uncertain etymology and meaning. It has been compared with the Persian _Mardak,_ the diminutive of _mard,_ "a man," and with the Arabic _Mirrich,_ which is the name of the planet Mars. But, as there is every reason to believe that the term belongs to the Hamitic Babylonian, it is in vain to have recourse to Arian or Semitic tongues for its derivation. Most likely the word is a descriptive epithet, originally attached to the name Bel, in the same way as _Nipru,_ but ultimately usurping its place and coming to be regarded as the proper name of the deity. It is doubtful whether any phonetic representative of Merodach has been found on the monuments; if so, the p.r.o.nunciation should, apparently, be _Amardak,_ whence we might derive the Amordacia of Ptolemy.

The t.i.tles and attributes of Merodach are of more than usual vagueness.

In the most ancient monuments which mention him, he seems to be called "the old man of the G.o.ds," and "the judge;" he also certainly has the gates, which in early times were the seats of justice, under his special protection. Thus he would seem to be the G.o.d of justice and judgment--an idea which may have given rise to the Hebrew name of the planet Jupiter, viz. _sedek,_ "just.i.tia." Bel-Merodach was worshipped in the early Chaldaean kingdom, as appears from the Tel-Sifr tablets. He was probably from a very remote time the tutelary G.o.d of the city of Babylon; and hence, as that city grew into importance, the worship of Merodach became more prominent. The a.s.syrian monarchs always especially a.s.sociate Babylon with this G.o.d; and in the later Babylonian empire he becomes by far the chief object of worship. It is his temple which Herodotus describes so elaborately, and his image, which, according to the Apocryphal Daniel, the Babylonians worshipped with so much devotion.

Nebuchadnezzar calls him "the king of the heavens and the earth," "the great lord," "the senior of the G.o.ds," "the most ancient," "the supporter of sovereignty," "the layer-up of treasures," etc., and ascribes to him all his glory and success.

We have no means of determining which among the emblems of the G.o.ds is to be a.s.signed to Bel-Merodach; nor is there any sculptured form which can be certainly attached to him. According to Diodorus, the great statue of Bel-Merodach at Babylon was a figure "standing and walking." Such a form appears more often than any other upon the cylinders of the Babylonians; and it is perhaps allowable to conjecture that it may represent this favorite deity. [PLATE XIX., Fig. 8.]

ZIR-BANIT.

Bel-Merodach has a wife, with whom he is commonly a.s.sociated, called Zir-banit. She had a temple at Babylon, probably attached to her husband's, and is perhaps the Babylonian Juno (Hera) of Diodorus. The essential element of her name seems to be Zir, which is an old Hamitic root of uncertain meaning, while the accompanying _banit_ is a descriptive epithet, which may be rendered by "genetrix." Zir-banit was probably the G.o.ddess whose worship the Babylonian settlers carried to Samaria, and who is called Succoth-benoth in Scripture.

NERGAL.

Nergal, the planet Mars, whose name was continued to a late date, under the form of Nerig in the astronomical system of the Mendaeans, is a G.o.d whose character and attributes are tolerably clear and definite. His name is evidently compounded of the two Hamitic roots _nir,_ "a man," and _gala,_ "great;" so that he is "the great man," or "the great hero." He is the special G.o.d of war and of hunting, more particularly of the latter. His t.i.tles are "the king of battle," "the champion of the G.o.ds,"

"the storm ruler," "the strong begetter," "the tutelar G.o.d of Babylonia,"

and "the G.o.d of the chase." He is usually coupled with Nin, who likewise presides over battles and over hunting; but while Nin is at least his equal in the former sphere, Nergal has a decided pre-eminence in the latter.

We have no distinct evidence that Nergal was worshipped in the primitive times. He is first mentioned by some of the early a.s.syrian kings, who regard him as their ancestor. It has, however, been conjectured that, like Bil-Nipru, he represented the deified hero, Nimrod, who may have been worshipped in different parts of Chaldaea under different t.i.tles.

The city peculiarly dedicated to Nergal was Cutha or Tiggaba, which is constantly called his city in the inscriptions. He was worshipped also at Tarbisa, near Nineveh, but in Tiggaba he was said to "live," and his shrine there was one of great celebrity. Hence "the men of Cuth," when transported to Samaria by the a.s.syrians, naturally enough "made Nergal their G.o.d," carrying his worship with them into their new country.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE 20]

It is probable that Nergal's symbol was the Man Lion. [PLATE XX.] Nir is sometimes used in the inscriptions in the meaning of "lion;" and the Semitic name for the G.o.d himself is "Aria"--the ordinary term for the king of beasts both in Hebrew and in Syriac. Perhaps we have here the true derivation of the Greek name for the G.o.d of war, _Ares,_ which has long puzzled cla.s.sical scholars. The lion would symbolize both the fighting and the hunting propensities of the G.o.d, for he not only engages in combats upon occasions, but often chases his prey and runs it down like a hunter. Again, if Nergal is the Man-Lion, his a.s.sociation in the buildings with the Man-Bull would be exactly parallel with the conjunction, which we so constantly find, between him and Nin in the inscriptions.

Nergal had a wife, called Laz, of whom, however, nothing is known beyond her name. It is uncertain which among the emblems of the G.o.ds appertains to him.

ISHTAR, or NANA.

Ishtar, or Nana, is the planetary Venus, and in general features corresponds with the cla.s.sical G.o.ddess. Her name Ishtar is that by which she was known in a.s.syria; and the same term prevailed with slight modifications among the Semitic races generally. The Phoenician form was Astarte, the Hebrew Ashtoreth; the later Mendaean form was Ashtar. In Babylonia the G.o.ddess was known as Nana, which seems to be the Naneea of the second book of Maccabees, and the Nani of the modern Syrians. No satisfactory account can at present be given of the etymology of either name; for the proposal to connect Ishtar with the Greek (Zend _starann,_ Sanscrit _tara,_ English _star,_ Latin _stella_), though it has great names in its favor, is not worthy of much attention.

Ishtar's aphrodisiac character, though it can scarcely be doubted, does not appear very clearly in the inscriptions. She is "the G.o.ddess who rejoices mankind," and her most common epithet is "Asurah," "the fortunate," or "the happy." But otherwise her epithets are vague and general, insomuch that she is often scarcely distinguishable from Beltis.

She is called "the mistress of heaven and earth," "the great G.o.ddess,"

"the queen of all the G.o.ds," and again "the G.o.ddess of war and battle,"

"the queen of victory," "she who arranges battles," and "she who defends from attacks." She is also represented in the inscriptions of one king as the G.o.ddess of the chase.

The worship of Ishtar was wide-spread, and her shrines were numerous.

She is often called "the queen of Babylon," and must certainly have had a temple in that city. She had also temples at a.s.shur (Kileh-Sherghat), at Arbela, and at Nineveh. It may be suspected that her symbol was the naked female form, which is not uncommon upon the cylinders. [PLATE XXI., Figs. 1, 2.] She may also be represented by the rude images in baked clay so common throughout the Mesopotamian ruins, which are generally regarded as images of Mylitta. Ishtar is sometimes coupled with Nebo in such a way as to suggest the notion that she was his wife.

This, however, can hardly have been her real position in the mythology, since Nebo had, as will presently appear, another wife, Varamit, whom there is no reason to believe identical with Ishtar. It is most probable that the conjunction is casual and accidental, being due to special and temporary causes.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE 21]

NEBO.

The last of the five planetary G.o.ds is Nebo, who undoubtedly represents the planet Mercury. [PLATE XXI., Fig. 3.] His name is the same, or nearly so, both in Babylonian and a.s.syrian; and we may perhaps a.s.sign it a Semitic derivation, from the root _nibbah,_ "to prophesy." It is his special function to preside over knowledge and learning. He is called "the G.o.d who possesses intelligence," "he who hears from afar," "he who teaches," or "he who teaches and instructs." In this point of view, he of course approximates to Hoa, whose son he is called in some inscriptions, and to whom he bears a general resemblance. Like Hoa, he is symbolized by the simple wedge or "arrowhead," the primary and essential element of cuneiform writing, to mark his joint presidency with that G.o.d over writing and literature. At the same time Nebo has, like so many of the Chaldaean G.o.ds, a number of general t.i.tles, implying divine power, which, if they had belonged to him only, would have seemed to prove him the supreme deity. He is "the Lord of lords, who has no equal in power," "the supreme chief," "the sustainer," "the supporter," "the ever ready," "the guardian over the heavens and the earth," "the lord of the constellations," "the holder of the sceptre of power," "he who grants to kings the sceptre of royalty for the governance of their people." It is chiefly by his omission from many lists, and his humble place when he is mentioned together with the really great G.o.ds, that we know he was mythologically a deity of no very great eminence.

There is nothing to prove the early--worship of Nebo. His name does not appear as an element in any royal appellation belonging to the Chaldaean series. Nor is there any reference to him in the records of the primeval times. Still, as he is probably of Babylonian rather than a.s.syrian origin, and as an a.s.syrian king is named after him in the twelfth century B.C., we may a.s.sume that he was not unknown to the primitive people of Chaldaea, though at present their remains have furnished us with no mention of him. In later ages the chief seat of his worship was Borsippa, where the great and famous temple, known at present as the Birs-Nimrud, was dedicated to his honor. He had also a shrine at Calah (Nimrud), whence were procured the statues representing him which are now in the British Museum. He was in special favor with the kings of the great Babylonian empire, who were mostly named after him, and viewed him as presiding over their house. His symbol has not yet been recognized.

The wife of Nebo, as already observed, was Varamit or Urmit--a word which perhaps means "exalted," from the root on, "to be lifted up." No special attributes are ascribed to this G.o.ddess, who merely accompanies her husband in most of the places where he is mentioned by name.

Such, then, seem to have been the chief G.o.ds worshipped by the early Chaldaeans. It would be an endless as well as an unprofitable task to give an account of the inferior deities. Their name is "Legion;" and they are, for the most part, too vague and shadowy for effective description. A vast number are merely local; and it may be suspected that where this is the case the great G.o.ds of the Pantheon come before us repeatedly, disguised under rustic t.i.tles. We have, moreover, no clue at present to this labyrinth, on which, even with greater knowledge, it would perhaps be best for us to forbear to enter; since there is no reason to expect that we should obtain any really valuable results from its exploration.

A few words, however, may be added upon the subject of the Chaldaean cosmogony. Although the only knowledge that we possess on this point is derived from Berosus, and therefore we cannot be sure that we have really the belief of the ancient people, yet, judging from internal evidence of character, we may safely p.r.o.nounce Berosus' account not only archaic, but in its groundwork and essence a primeval tradition, more ancient probably than most of the G.o.ds whom we have been considering.

"In the beginning," says this ancient legend, "all was darkness and water, and therein were generated monstrous animals of strange and peculiar forms. There were men with two wings, and some even with four, and with two faces; and others with two heads, a man's and a woman's on one body; and there were men with the heads and horns of goats, and men with hoofs like horses, and some with the upper parts of a man joined to the lower parts of a horse, like centaurs; and there were bulls with human heads, dogs with four bodies and with fishes' tails, men and horses with dogs' heads, creatures with the heads and bodies of horses, but with the tails of fish, and other animals mixing the forms of various beasts.

Moreover there were monstrous fish and reptiles and serpents, and divers other creatures, which had borrowed something from each other's shapes; of all which the likenesses are still preserved in the temple of Belus.