From my blog,
Corrente.
Like all cultures, the culture of ancient Mesopotamia is rich, complex, and contains plenty of different versions of each set of myths across the four millennia of its history for which we have literature. The mythic cycle of Dumuzi is no exception. He's understood as the Shepard whose fields of new grass lie in the near desert, perhaps a representation of the integration of "civilized" city cultures and those of the desert dwelling "newcomers." He is the husband of Inanna, who is the goddess of sex, lust and battle(lust) and symbolic wife of kings. His sister is the goddess of the grape, and she both loves and laments him in song.
He is a lover, a trickster, and in one set of myths, goes down into the underworld to die for the sins of others, only to be raised up to a seat of honor after many trials and lamentations.
Corssposted at Corrente.
Whatever you may think about religion and religious beliefs, one thing is clear: it's always been with us. Since well before humans were writing and building cities, they have been involved in some kind of ritual and worship of supernatural forces. Among the oldest forms of religious belief and ritual is the myth of the Dying God. Since this is the season when we Christmas warriors are battling it out with the followers of Santa and his Dead and Reborn Son, I thought it would be a good time for a post on my favorite Dying God, Dumuzi.
I'm not going to argue that Dumuzi is the first dying god, but he's right up there with the very earliest of them. Worshipped in ancient Mesopotamia (Iraq) since the earliest days for which we have texts, he continues to fascinate. He also has many qualities which would make a winger wince, to realize how unoriginal their Christ mythology seems in comparison. Dumuzi is one of the original "Holy Shepards" and is worth a closer look as you gird yourself for a skirmish on the Christmas War frontier.
Like all cultures, the culture of ancient Mesopotamia is rich, complex, and contains plenty of different versions of each set of myths across the four millennia of its history for which we have literature. The mythic cycle of Dumuzi is no exception. He's understood as the Shepard whose fields of new grass lie in the near desert, perhaps a representation of the integration of "civilized" city cultures and those of the desert dwelling "newcomers." He is the husband of Inanna, who is the goddess of sex, lust and battle(lust) and symbolic wife of kings. His sister is the goddess of the grape, and she both loves and laments him in song. He is a lover, a trickster, and in one set of myths, goes down into the underworld to die for the sins of others, only to be raised up to a seat of honor after many trials and lamentations.
Ancient Mesopotamians loved to drink and have sex. Better still, they made those activities part of their ritual and worship. Here's Dumuzi and a young Inanna, flirting like horny bunnies:
"He came up to me, he came to me, the Lord, companion of [the sky father god].
He came to me, he took my hand, Dumuzi embraced me."
(But Inanna isn't easy, and rebuffs him slightly)
"Where now, Wild Bull! Let me go, that I can go home!
What stories could I tell my mother (goddess)?"
(Dumuzi doesn't give up, and makes a sly suggestion.)
"I will teach you, Inanna...the wiles of women.
I will teach you.
I was out on the street, walking with my friend, making (merry and) music.
(You) danced for me, we sang and time went by.
Use this as an excuse for your mother. As for us: let us have fun in the moonlight!
Let me prepare for you a pure, sweet, princely bed!
Let me loosen your combs, let me have a sweet time with you, in joy and plenty!"
The text breaks off, but we know that eventually the young lovers get to hook up, complete with family approval. Here's Inanna's mother, meeting Dumuzi back at the young goddess' home:
"My lord, you are indeed worthy of the holy (Inanna's) lap (pussy)!
Son-in-law of Suen, lord Dumuzi, you are indeed worthy!"
But it's not all fun and games for this god. Inanna has a foolish moment, and seeks to challenge her sister, goddess of the underworld. It doesn't go so well for her there, and in order to escape a doom in hell, Inanna has to find someone to take her place. While she was gone, Dumuzi basically sat around and got drunk, playing pipes and otherwise not seeming to care that his bride has been mysteriously absent. As Inanna and the deputies of hell are walking about the earth looking for her replacement, they come across him, lazing about in his sheepfold:
"The deputies surged into his fold,
pouring out milk of his seven churns.
All seven they were rushing at him,
as if he were the interloper,
and began by striking the Shepard
in the face with his flutes and pipes."
Inanna's pretty pissed:
"She looked at him, and it was the look of death.
She spoke to (the deputies) and it was a word of (divine) wrath.
She cried out to them, and the word was `Guilty!'
`Take this one along!'
Holy/Terrible Inanna gave the Shepard Dumuzi into their hands."
Dumuzi's faithful sister helps him partially escape his fate in hell, eventually convincing Inanna that they should split time there, six months each. These myths were understood in the context of the seasons, and there were many rituals concerning Dumuzi's descent and return. In other mythic cycles, Dumuzi is trapped in hell for good, but the efforts of his sister and mother raise him up from hapless shade to judge in hell (judges were very respected in Mesopotamian society and akin to rulers). In still other myths, Dumuzi "sleeps" for part of the year, and only worship and praise will awake him, and return his holy presence to the sap of trees, plants of the fields and reeds. His "sap" was often understood as semen, which Mesopotamians believed had divine characteristics, sort of like Christ's blood in the Chalice had.
There are just so many fascinating mythic cycles of the Dying/Returning God. The tales of Jesus the Christ are only the latest addition in a truly ancient narrative of human/god characters whose deaths and rebirths are tied to the seasons. The dark of the year and shortening of the sun, along with seasonal variations like snow, cold, and unproductive fields and herds must have been pretty scary to our ancestors in some ways. But they are also aspects of life upon which much profound thought and ink has been spilled; all things must end, and yet life goes on. Nothing is forever, and yet birth and rebirth are eternal. Myths about gods who die and return help us express those mysteries.
In this season of the West's dying god, I hope you'll consider other tales, and their similarities and differences. I also hope you'll remember that despite their lack of technology, the ancients were no slouches when it came to imagination, contemplation of the mysteries, and ritual. It's actually kind of sad, to see today's fundies prefer to war with us over the incorrect placement of priorities, instead of joining us in a review and celebration of the richness of human culture and imagination. But in the spirit of the season, I enjoin you to raise a glass of date-beer and have some hot, hot sex, in honor of one of the older gods of this time of year. Do your part in the War on (fundie) Christmas.
You can read more about Dumuzi and Inanna in Jacobsen's "The Treasures of Darkness" and Leick's "Sex and Eroticism in Mesopotamian Literature."
*Alster, B. and Geller, M.J., 1990 Cunieform Texts from the British Museum 58, line 40 (London).