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Die mesopotamische Religion

Mar 26, 2024
Hey guys, after another slightly longer summer creative break, I'm back to my old self and this time I'd like to serve you a little treat from my religious palette after we already looked at ancient Egyptian

religion

a few months ago. If we take a quick turn today in the Middle East, also called the Near East, taking a look at the so-called Mesopotamian

religion

, as well as in my video on ancient Egypt, I recommend that you watch my religious trology, especially part 2, beforehand and Avoid any ambiguity that may arise beforehand. Clarifying the religious world in ancient Misopotamia is not only special and extremely interesting in itself but, together with the ideas of ancient Egypt, forms the stories and spiritual foundations of the Abrahamic religion with Judaism. , Christianity or Islam, which we will analyze in detail in future videos.
die mesopotamische religion
Before getting directly into the topic, I would first like to explain what the term Mesopotamia really means and how this region can be broadly divided historically. It owes its name to the ancient Greeks, who called the country between the rivers the region of present-day Iraq and northern Syria, which meant the home of the Sumerians, Arcadia and the Babylonians, as the place of origin of the oldest known civilizations of humanity, in addition to the In ancient Egypt, of course, the two rivers that we are talking about here are the two rivers Euphrates and Tigris. The first settlements were built along them and they grew together into different empires over more than 3,000 years.
die mesopotamische religion

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die mesopotamische religion...

The Levante coast is also included. that is, the strip of land along the eastern Mediterranean on which the states of Israel and Lebanon are located today, thus forming together with Mesopotamia a common culture and habitat that is also known as the Fertile Crescent due to its lush soil, but it is the starting point. One of the Mesopotamian cultures is southern Iraq, in the Persian Gulf, where the first Sumerian city-states emerged, independent cities similar to the ancient Greek polis, which in cuneiform writing can be described as, for example, Uhr or lagash. The classical writing used in Mesopotamia can be dated to at least 3500 BC.
die mesopotamische religion
What is interesting about the Sumerian people is that compared to the remaining and later peoples of this region, they do not use a native Semitic language, but that Sumerian is still considered an isolated language to this day. This in turn raises the question of the original origin of the Sumerians, which has not yet been conclusively answered. One of the most famous kings is the deified Gilgermesh, who probably lived in the early 3rd millennium BC. and whose events are described in detail in the so-called Epic of Gilgamesh. In general, it can be said that most Mesopotamian achievements, whether in religion technology or culture, can be traced back to the Sumerians, but their weakness can be seen in their political disunity, which ultimately leads to the Sumerian city-states were conquered by the famous King Sargon at the end of the third millennium and incorporated into his Kardian empire, in which the Sumerian language would also be used. be displaced by the Arcadian, although it would continue to be used in the religious sphere for the next 2000 years.
die mesopotamische religion
However, this first great Mesopotamian empire became civil again after about 150 years and the independent Demomeric city-states even experienced a brief revival for a short time. The next 1,500 years, that is, approximately between 2000 and 500 BC, the newly founded city-state of Babylon dominated the region and, with some delay, its northern rival, Assyria, which developed throughout centuries until they became powerful and rich. Both countries should be familiar to anyone who knows the Bible, and over time their influence here also spread to the Levant and from them emerged famous kings, such as the Babylonian Nebuchadnezzar II or the Assyrian Saint Herib and just like ancient Egypt , these two can also be divided chronologically into an old, a middle and a new empire, which were characterized by wars and mutual conquests, with the Neo-Assyrian Empire finally fighting against which at the end of the 7th century BC.
C. New Babylon lost and conquered its capital, Nineveh. which is located near present-day Iraqi Mosul, so Syria itself was removed from the map. Before that, the Assyrians managed to expand their reach to such an extent that today in history they are known as the first great known empire. However, not even half a century later, the same fate befell Babylon, located near present-day Baghdad, but in this case it was the Persians who rose up in the east under the command of their king Cyrus II who struck the mortal blow to the Neo-Babylonian Empire and at the same time Therefore, these events can also be considered as the end of the Mesopotamian religion: with the Persians, of course, their deities also arrived in Mesopotamia and 200 years later, with Upper Babylon to through Alexander.
During the Great Age, Greek influences also arrived. Furthermore, in the 1st century AD, Christianity and then Islam took regional dominance. In this video, our interest lies in the belief system prior to these events we just mentioned, but why am I really talking about the Mesopotamians? religion all the time and not, for example, Sumerian or Babylonian religion, the answer to this is simply that all of these religions are practically one and the same. The biggest difference is only made by the different names of gods among the Sumerians. and the later Arcadian language, as well as individual deities only in some cities were worshiped because they were the city gods that all these city-states had in common, but the fact that they were ruled by a priestly prince who acted as king In In Sumerian it was referred to as n, meaning something like her, and in later times as lugal, meaning the great one.
In humans, this role of the king can best be compared to that of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh, as this role was analogous to the Egyptian deities in his religious power as high priest and therefore as representative of the gods and could also claim a right of omnipotence over every person and every thing. It is very similar to the Mesopotamian, since this great pantheon was also permanently present in the daily lives of the people. In the center was the storm god and father of the gods Enlil, which means something like the lord of the wind. In front of him is his brother and rival, the god of wisdom Enki or in Arcadio He, as the lord of the earth, he is not only the flock of knowledge and secrets but at the same time the lord of cunning. .
While Enlil is assigned to the air, Enki, on the other hand, is considered the place of fresh and underground water of the depths and is the third important deity. Mention Inana or perhaps better known by her Arcadian name, the interesting thing about her is that, In addition to her importance as a goddess of love, she was also a central figure in royalty, which is why she is not only considered the owner or queen of heaven but also, like the Egyptian king god Horus, as a falcon of the gods, we take these three important deities, the pantheon was also rich in a number of others that I have already announced for the Egyptian gods that we will take.
If we examine these beings more closely individually, it is more important to understand that also in this world of gods a distinction was made between the primordial gods, beings that symbolize primordial forces, and the next generation of gods in the civilized world. These in turn were created by the Anuna, the Divine Council of Elders or Those Who Came from Heaven were also the leaders of the Akkadian period, but people often spoke of the Anonaki, who are now translated as gods of the underworld. It is said that these families of gods resided in the so-called Ducu Mountain.
The iGO gods who carried out menial work in this world for them were subordinate to them. Rather, the gods had to be specifically realized by Enki of the people, who consequently took over the work of the ego. This creation took place through holy words, which one or another of you have probably already read in the Bible. Another biblical parallel is the destiny or Tables of laws with the name I that are issued as a divine law from the end and are also used by him to keep the world in order and protect it from chaos. He also teaches humanity the language to civilize them along with divine rules.
If we look at the Mesopotamian deities. If we compare them with the Egyptian deities, we immediately realize that animal heads are missing here and that the gods are preferably anthropomorphic, that is, they have human form. The male deities actually resemble Mesopotamian kings in their depiction, also wearing a royal robe and crown. In addition to a long application, only the individual attributes identify them as deities, the most concise are the helmets with horns analogous to the horns of the Egyptian solar gods, in addition each god has a unique mark that identifies it, such as the throne in Envil the water pitchers or streams of water in Enki or the eight-pointed star of Venus in Inana.
In this sense, I would also like to talk about the so-called jinn, that is, divine beings who serve as assistants to the gods themselves, but these are typically decorated with animal tributes such as bird heads or swings similar to animal bodies and. Strictly speaking, the gods also have animal characteristics, such as sometimes wings on the back similar to those of jinn or, in rarer cases, directly animal abdomens Mesopotamian Gods Condition Rails This aspect is reinforced by the fact that in many Representations also appear depicted on ships moving in the sky, as in the imagination of ancient Egypt.
Another thing that the Mesopotamian and Egyptian gods have in common is their connection to a place of worship. , which they also do at the same time. As for the power of the city gods, only the important rice gods had, in addition to their main place of worship, additional temples in other cities, for example in Enlil, who, in addition to his main temple, Nippur. , they had additional places of worship in Lagash or in Curical or in Inana in Uhr, as well as in Uruk, in this context it is also interesting. With the rise of city-states like Babylon, their city-god also became more important, as in this case. the god Martuk, who as son of the father of the gods Enlil, rose to become the most important deity under Babylonian rule, as did the Babylonian rivals, the Assyrians.
The god of the city Asur from the city of the same name. He was equated with Ende and therefore had a special position within him. If we look at the temples themselves, we immediately notice that these rectangular halls were always in an elevated position and probably had a connection with the heavenly gods. that in the Sumerian era a type of temple called a ziggurat was created, that is, a stepped pyramidal building with the holy of holies at the top, which is mentioned here as a classic form of the Mesopotamian temple. He draws a parallel with ancient culture in this Fall to the Egyptian pyramids that were associated with the original mound of the ancient Egyptian religious world.
In relation to this, ziggurats translate as heavenly hills or mountains of the gods. Among them is probably the Babylonian ziggurat of the city god of Marburg, which most of you probably know under the name of the Bubble Tower. You should know it from the Bible, although in later paintings it was incorrectly depicted as a tower with a circular base. Unfortunately today only the foundations remain. This building can best be compared, for example, to the restored ruins of the god Nana's ziggurat in the city. Understandably, these temples and the associated cult were led by a clergy. , although I have already mentioned before that the king as high priest comes from the top of the priestly hierarchy, but there was also the office of high priestess, which takes place in an annual fertility ritual of the so-called divine weddings that symbolically marry the king. , the marriage of the goddess Inana to the initially mortal but later shepherd god Du Mut was considered a union of heaven and earth.
There were also other festivals, especially sacrificial festivals, to ensure a cargo supply, worthy of various harvests. festivals or the fishing festival where you look for the garden. As you can see, the concept of sacrifice was not only something that was known to the ancient Egyptians, but also something that was well known. In Mesopotamia, porridge was also used in the cult of the dead, especially for the king of high dignitaries or influential citizens, for example in the form of a libation on the topic of the cult of the dead, as well as the afterlife and the idea of ​​the soul, but I would like to delve deeper into this area in a later video.
There is comparatively little reliable knowledge and therefore it is necessary to further discuss this topic. However, it can be said with certainty that it is definitely a Mesopotamian idea of ​​an underworld in which the souls of the deceased are described as relatively passive. Of course, this also exists in this framework. For the hymn of the city temple, prayers, textsmagic and religious hymns. of Quiché and since the origin of the gods was supposed to be in the sky, this may undoubtedly have been one of the main reasons for observing them more closely, which in turn led the people of this region to be pioneers of astronomy and those who have already commented in my religious videos that before there was no separation between astronomy and astrology, the celestial view always had a magical aspect, for example as an oracle, since the stars themselves have a reference to the gods and must reflect The significance of the discovery in the world of the Babylonians in astrology, for example, can be judged by the fact that we still use the zodiac that was invented then, that is, the zodiac consisting of twelve zodiac signs also dates back only to the Babylonian era, but it is probably much older. of older origin.
There are seven clay tablets with the enumaelic poem used freely. The Arcadian translation means as the sky was not yet mentioned above, this is the Mesopotamian creation myth that describes the origin of the world and the gods. According to the fact that at the beginning only fresh water and its companion Tiamat existed salt water, these two primordial gods can be found in reference to the ancient Egyptian creation myth, now better identified with the urflupp, where Tiermarkt in its representation as a visual The serpent can also be seen as a Mesopotamian equivalent of Apophis, chaos personified and enemy of the gods, together they witness the absurd Tiermarkt now blurred the primeval sky and Keyshard the primeval Earth of whose connections the Sky Father Arno and Mother Earth emerge and only in the next generation will the later gods be born in Horsak, the chief Enlil of the entire northern sky, his brother Enki, lord of the southern sky, and the goddess of fertility and motherhood, who which occurs in several stories either as the wife of Enki or in the form of Nill as wife of Annel On in the enomaelish gives birth to Anki the god of justice Marduk who in turn became the father of the god of justice NABU wisdom, but as ninil she is the mother of the in urta god of agriculture and In the Mercadian sense, the moon god is another of his sons, Nergal, who together with his wife Reschkigal becomes the ruler of the underworld.
The last generation also mentions the sons of the moon god, namely the aforementioned inana or isstar, the sun god Utu or also called shamach and optionally the time god addat. As you can see, here the pantheon, similar to the Egyptian one, follows a single family tree, which could continue here for a while. a long time, but that would only take unnecessary time and would not necessarily be more useful for understanding this mythology. However, the creation story is most exciting in the world in which the gods turn absolutely and animalistically against their parents. In this context, Enki first absurdly kills the sweet water of God and thus becomes himself the lord of the fresh water, fighting against them he finally kills them, forms heaven and earth from their lifeless sky and thus rises to become the new king of the gods.
If you've already seen my video on Egypt, then you should already be familiar with a similar constellation that ultimately leads to a war of the gods, namely Horus' fight against his evil uncle for the throne of Egypt. Actually, it should have been more than clear. After these and many other examples I mentioned that these two mythologies have an unusual connection in their ideas - this is how the parallel is, I could name many more, it would be the world tree or tree of life that occurs in both cultures. For the Egyptians this would be the ischet tree and for Mesopotamia it would be the sacred eridu tree, this eridu was already considered by the Sumerians to be the oldest city in the world in which the history of humanity began if we now consider that the biblical Garden of Eden is actually inspired by the peridoo, so the famous biblical tree of knowledge also takes on a completely new meaning, as I already indicated at the beginning of this video that the ideas of ancient Egypt also incorporated a number of Mesopotamian ideas into the Jewish world of beliefs. but its prominence in the Bible and Torah is, in my opinion, very surprising, which is why Enki creates this first from clay, the water of the absolute and the Holy Word of the people.
Man is called an adapter who, as an immortal, is initially offered divine fruits, but he rejects them and is rewarded with wisdom from the sky god Anu but with mortality. In this context, expulsion from paradise also plays a certain role. Let's continue looking at the figure of the Sumerian. King CEO Sudra in the so-called epic of Hasis or that of utnar pishtim in the epic of Gilgamesh, both figures were a great ark to save people from a great flood catastrophe that was started by Emil to end humanity, but which was also tested. to be a historical person or event later literarily processed in one way or another in the Bible, for example, one legend tells how the Kardian king Sargon was exposed to a reed head when he was a baby and thrown down a river.
She found her husband In the process, she initially grew up as a conventional worker until she eventually became a great king of Ascension, but the honor of parting the sea and keeping the divine tablets of law was still reserved only for a god. In this case, this is attributed to the Babylonian city god, Mardog. The city of Babylon and several other Mesopotamian cities even appear literally in the Bible when the episode of the exile of the Jews in Babylon occurred, we remain in Babylon, so probably all of you know the so-called Babylonian language effect. as punishment from God for the construction of the Tower of Babel.
In Mesopotamian mythology, for example, it is Enki who took the people's language by force and continues to confuse mythological figures about how the female demon ruled time and made her way into the world. The Jewish writings, for example as an interpretation as the rebellious first wife of Adam, who flees and becomes the mother of demons as punishment, finally I would like to give you a small example that occurs after the emerging Christianity that is specifically reflected in the attributes. that are attributed to Jesus Christ in Mesopotamia, but it is the already mentioned Inana who has characteristics of a sun god similar to the Egyptian stories, such as the dove as an identifying symbol or its healing activities for the sick Episode nailed to the tree cub with the purpose of experiencing the death and because he is reborn on the third day, his journey through the underworld is also described in detail in this framework since these many small examples simply serve as a small appetizer because in the future we will be in the context of Judaism and Christianity goes much deeper into this matter, but for this time I would say that if I cut to this point so that you can properly digest what I heard, my next video will be less theoretical for a change. and instead it will be about something.
There will be more to think about, so until then, as always, stay tuned. Feel free to post your ideas, opinions or suggestions for improvement in the comments column or at the email address provided. Until next time, I will have the honor

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