Today's Topics: 

Day of the Woman

Today's class was dubbed "The Day of the Woman" because we examined the beauty and power of womanhood through the Inanna readings. 

In these next few readings, we will see a very clear distinction made between nature and society.  Recall that nature typically has a feminine slant in mythology, while society wears the mantle of masculinity.  This occurred from the early development of civilizations.  The earliest peoples lived in tightly knit families.  As the population grew, these families formed clans, and them communities, and then villages.  Before the age of the major population centers, people had to provide for their own needs themselves.  Later on, societies will assist people by pooling together individuals to perform certain duties in the community so that the labor could be distributed better.

Early cultures were very dependent on the land for food, and so they became farmers, establishing one plot of land as their home.  This was an improvement from the previous generations who were hunters and gatherers, combing the land and sea for sustinance. 

These four Inanna stories are sequenced to reveal a more personal facet of growth: the growth of an individual from a child into adulthood. The Inanna stories show the growth of a girl to a woman, and then to a full goddess.  These stories were written earlier in the culture's history, when farming and the feminine were praised.  Since Inanna (the Goddess of both Love and War) was ultimately a fertility goddess, these four stories explain her growth and development from a fearful, ignorant girl, to an experienced, wise, and potent woman.  However, she will battle against her society repeatedly, just as we will see Gilgamesh battle against Nature later in the semester.

I displayed many images of stone etchings and statuettes of women made by early cultures. I made references to these pictures throughout the day in class: Inanna Pictures.
 

The Huluppu Tree

The collection of stories in the Inanna text are arranged from Inanna's childhood through her adult years as a powerful goddess of love and war.  Although these four stories were not written to be placed into this sequence, Diane Wolkstein, the editor of the Inanna text, found that this arrangement allows us to see the growth and development of Inanna from a little girl to a powerful goddess.  Therefore, the first story, "The Huluppu Tree," will show Inanna in her youngest form, a pre-pubescent girl.  On page 5, Inanna finds a little tree floating in the Euphrates River.  She rescues it and plants it in her holy garden (of Eden).  She yearns for the day when this tree will become mature and she will be able to use the wood to make her throne and her marriage bed.

Inanna, as a girl, had many fears.  Page 5 tells us that she feared "the word of the Sky God, An" as well as the "word of the Air God, Enlil."  In other translations, we might find the word "word" to more accurately indicate her "fate."  In other words, Inanna feared her fate that her parents had always told her about -- that one day she would become a woman and rule over the land.  Although she is eager to sit on a throne and bark out orders, she is afraid of the changes that will take place in her body as she enters womanhood for the first time.

I often ask the men and women in class to reflect on their pre-teen years.  I ask the guys if they had ever feared puberty.  Most give me a blank stare.  Why would a guy fear puberty, which implies greater height, strength, and power?  Most boys are indifferent to puberty, and young men reluctantly accept the fact that our voices and bodies change in awkward ways.  Women, on the other hand, go through a different transformation than do the men.  A girl who becomes a woman during the advent of her first menstruation suddenly bears a great burden.  She can now become pregnant and assume the responsibilities of a woman, caretaker, etc.  Several women have commented in class over the years about how they heard the "horror stories" from their older sisters and friends who complained about aches and pains associated with the cycles.  In other words, girls have many more fears of womanhood than boys have about manhood.  This is important.

On page 6, we see that the tree is growing up, but not fast enough for Inanna.  Over the course of time, the tree has also collected a group of unwanted visitors -- the serpent at the roots, the lion-headed Anzu bird at the top (whose wings can stir great whirlwinds), and a strange, sexually charged woman, Lilith, lodged in the trunk of the tree.  All three of these symbols represent Inanna's fears of womanhood.  I strongly urge you to consult pages 141-142 of your Inanna text.  You will find a critical essay by Diane Wolkstein that explains these symbols quite well, and all of the critical essays contained in the back of the text serve as "Cliff's Notes" to the myths.

In brief, the serpent represents life, particularly the changes that we go through in life, such as from an asexual being to a sexual one.  The bird represents the dominance of the outside forces that weigh down on women and prevent them from exploring the true pleasures of life.  Lilith is the fabled first bride of Adam, who refused to mate with him because she demanded equality, which he refused to give her.  Lilith dwells in the woods and screams wildly, suggesting the untethered sexuality bursting forth from her body.  There is a lovely picture of her on page 6.

To rectify this problem, she asks Utu, the sun god, for help, but he refuses.  Why?  Well, how can Dad help his daughter when she has her first menstrual cycle?  Dad will defer to Mom or another trusted female to assist his daughter with her feminine issues.  Inanna must find another to "make it better."  She finds her cousin Gilgamesh, a mighty warrior, who swings a 450-pound axe.  He hews down the huluppu tree, carves out a bed and a throne for her, as well as a crown and scepter for him.  Page 9 depicts a carving of Inanna and Gilgamesh enjoying a little lunch together, sitting around the remnants of the huluppu tree.

Why does Inanna, a mighty woman, need a man to help her out?  Well, she really doesn't, but this scene establishes a couple of things.  First, Gilgamesh will become the great hero of Uruk, and we will read about his exploits during the next few sessions.  Chasing away these demons (intermediaries standing between Inanna and her goals) is his first heroic act, so he begins to make a name for himself here.  Also, when we were younger and afraid of monsters living under our beds, the guidance and assistance of an older sibling can help to make it all better (unless you have sadistic siblings!).  Remember that Inanna is just beginning to understand that she has power, so perhaps she doesn't even know that she doesn't need Gilgamesh.
 

Inanna and the God of Wisdom

The opening scene is very direct and graphic, but it is also a beautiful depiction of Inanna arriving in her full splendor of womanhood.  She leans against an apple tree, because an apple is one of those sexual symbols that we saw from the Enki and Ninhursag story.  (For your information, the apple tree was a common symbol in Mesopotamia, but not in Israel.  When we recall the Genesis creation story, we often refer to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil as the "apple tree," which provides the "apple" that Eve gives to Adam.  Keep in mind that the "apple" is not mentioned in Genesis, only the "fruit."  The references to the apple come from Mesopotamia, not Jerusalem.)  Inanna leans against the apple tree, exposing her sexual organs into the open air.  She is revelling in her new state of womanhood -- she has arrived!  Watch out!

Here are a few pictures that I displayed that show Inanna as a ripe, fertile woman, ready to procreate and nurture her children:
http://www.inanna.de/inanna567.jpg
http://www.pantheon.org/areas/gallery/mythology/middle_east/mesopotamian/inanna.jpg

This story is a simple one.  First, recall that Inanna had previously asked Enki for her powers in the story Enki and ther World Order. At the time, Inanna was too young to receive her powers, but now she has rrived into womanhood. Inanna has a celebratory meal with Enki, the god of the sweet waters, where they drink lots and lots of beer.  While in a state of intoxication, Enki, the god of wisdom and keeper of the holy me (pronounced "may"), hands over his powers to Inanna, one by one.  First he gives her high priesthood (page 14), then Truth and the holy priestess of heaven (judgment) (page 15).  Pages 16-18 list the dozens of other powers that Inanna gained from her grandpa, including some bizarre powers, such as deceit, treachery, the kissing of the phallus, slanderous speech, etc.  Many students were shocked to see "the art of prostitution" as one of her many gifts.

Why prostitution?  Well, remember that Inanna is represented in the night sky as Venus.  The planet Venus is best viewed very early in the morning (called the "morning star") or very late in the evening (the "evening star").  As the morning star, Inanna/Ishtar/Venus represents fertility and rebirth (and often war).  Venus is the brightest light in the sky, save the sun and moon.  In the evening, however, she would appear in the western sky, often placed inside of particular constellations, including the constellations that depict men.  When these stars dipped under the horizon, Venus was said to be taking a new lover to bed.  After disappearing from view (into the Underworld), nobody knew what actions Venus and her consort might be up to.  This is where we gain the reference to Venus in the evening sky as "the lady of the evening."  This makes sense when we see that one of many names for a prostitute is a "lady of the evening."  Here are some pictures of Inanna as both the morning and evening stars:

Inanna as the Morning Star (Goddess of War): http://www.inanna.de/morning.jpg
Inanna as the Evening Star (Goddess of Love): http://www.inanna.de/evening.jpg

On page 19, after Enki wakes up, he looks around for all of his me, but cannot find them.  His advisor informs Enki that he had donated all of his powers to his daughter the night before, and he must be too drunk to remember.  Enki sends six types of demons/monsters after Inanna to retrieve the powers.  They are depicted on pages 21 and 23 -- the enkum-creatures and the lahama monsters, amongst others.  After several failed attempts, Enki allows Inanna to keep those powers, especially after he learns that she has used some of them to establish temples and houses of worship in the holy city of Uruk.  Inanna places the holy me in her "Boat of Heaven."  In our next unit on Egypt, we will see the boat of heaven described as a vessel that transports the sun and the sun god's retinue.  In the Mesopotamian culture, however, Inanna's "boat" is really her vagina.  She is collecting the godly powers and applying them to her feminine nature, thus creating the all-powerful woman.  The creatures that Enki sends to retrieve the me cannot penetrate the boat, because Inanna will not allow them inside, perhaps demonstrating that she is learning to take back control over her body.

When Inanna arrives back in Uruk, the celebrations begin.  Inanna helps to "restore" Uruk back into the hands of woman, and the powerful Inanna teaches the women of Uruk all about their powers.  Women are the keepers of sexual power, and it is up to them to determine how and when they use it.  Since women were considered to be more closely connected with nature (and men with society), we can see how men and women view their sexuality differently.  Social critics of our generation often suggest that today's women do not use their sexual powers to their potential, since our culture/society values different attributes about love, sex, and marriage than did the Mesopotamians.  Notice further that Inanna arrives in Uruk with the power of reproduction -- a welcome blessing to a land decimated by famile, disease, and natural catastrophes.
 

The Coutrtship of Inanna and Dumuzi

In The Courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi, we see Inanna prepared to take a husband, Dumuzi, which will complete her ascent into womanhood.  Although Inanna is not an Earth Mother goddess, she still represents fertility and has earthly ties.  She is descended from the moon god and moon goddess, so she is fully vested in her feminine qualities (mutability, connection to nature, etc.).  Because of this, she is consistently associated with the earth and its cycles, especially pertaining to agriculture.

On page 30, Utu, the sun god and brother, tells Inanna that the harvest is here, and that he will be bringing her the grains and fruits of the fields.  Utu will bring Inanna some flax, an ancient grain that resembles wheat, so that it can be transformed into something valuable to human beings, crushed into flour or threaded into linen sheets.  Inanna asks her brother who will do all of this work, and Utu says that he will do it all.  By harvesting the grain and creating a sheet of cloth, Utu establishes an interesting metaphor that pertains to both farmers and new brides.  The linen cloth was used to clean the newly harvested grains.  Two people would gather the wheat in the middle, grab hold of the corners, and thrust the grain into the air, allowing the wind to carry away the husks and the chaff (the inedible parts).  Once the parts have been separated, then the workers can transform it into whatever thay need.  This cloth is also represents the bed sheet on a marriage bed.  It was dyed white and kept clean, as is a virgin.  The newlyweds would consummate their marriage together on the fine linen sheets, which would have been examined by the parents afterward to deternine if the couple actually participated in their marriage duties (blood on the sheets caused by the breaking of the hymen), and also to make sure that the woman was a virgin.  (And you thought your parents were nosy!)

So we see the linen cloth as a dual symbol, pertaining both to the agricultural realm as well as marriage.  Therefore, when Inanna asks at the bottom of page 31 "Who will go to bed with me?" she is asking Utu who her husband will be.  His response is simple -- marry the shepherd Dumuzi.  However, Inanna does not wish to marry Dumuzi, since he is a shepherd, not a farmer.  She complains about her dislike for the feel of wool, and she wonders how she can appreciate a man who does not work the earth (the body of the mother, that is), as does a farmer.  Poor Dumuzi is standing right there, listening to Inanna reject him before ever speaking a word.  Disrespected!

A powerful symbol is at play here.  Inanna, being so closely tied to the fertility cycles, understands agrarian ideals much more than shepherding.  She is looking for someone much like herself, perhaps because she sees this as a more natural fit.  Don't we seek out people who share similar values and interests?  Dumuzi finally speaks and says that he can offer Inanna more and better things than can the farmer.

The duality working here is simple -- Inanna is at a crossraods of the duality between nature and society.  The farmer represents the ties to nature, but the shepherd reveals the attitudes of the society (this is your typical "nature vs. nurture" argument).  The shepherd is more powerful than the farmer because he has more control.  A farmer must hope that the gods provide the rain and the appropriate growing conditions.  The shepherd gets to fight off the hungry wolves, herd the sheep and goats into pens and enclosed areas (called sheepfolds), and be more free from one plot of land.  Obviously, shepherding is not more or less important than farming, but the responsibilities of these occupations reveals their connections to either nature (farming) or society (shepherding).  By rejecting Dumuzi, Inanna is really rejecting submission into society, much like she rejected the concept of growth into adulthood in The Huluppu Tree.

However, Dumizi convinces Inanna that they are a good match.  He make an appeal on page 34 to sit and discuss their differences, and they compare the power and influence of their families.  What they discover is that they are both different, but that they need the qualities of the other to make each one complete.  Sure, nature will work against society, and society against nature, but together thay can achieve a balance and harmony that allow both to flourish.  After their argument, they fall deeply in love (or lust?).  On page 35, Ningal, Inanna's mother, convinces Inanna to take Dumuzi's hand in marriage, because he will play the roles of father and mother to her, offering both protection and nurturing.  Inanna listens to her mother's wisdom, perhaps because they share the experience of womanhood together, and Inanna can trust her mother's advice more easily than the words from Utu.  However, Inanna will put Dumuzi to the test.

On their wedding day, Inanna dresses in her finest raiment before asking Dumuzi an important question, "Who will plow my wet ground?"  Notice that Inanna refers to her body as the Earth, and her lover will be the one who tills the soil, opening it up to receive the seed of life, then covered, nurtured, and harvested.  Inanna uses these agricultural terms because they represent her essence.  When Dumuzi answers ("I will plow ...") on page 37, the land begins to sprout and flourish with new life everywhere.  Perhaps the season of Spring has arrived and the world is maturing.  Perhaps Inanna is really asking whether Dumuzi will take care of her.  After all, a farmer must tend to the field every day hands-on.  The shepherd leaves the house, enters the distant pasture, does his job, and then returns home each night.  Maybe Inanna is seeking a constant companion rather than someone who is perpetually leaving the homestead and disappears over the hills.

Notice also how the metaphor of the plow is working here.  The plow is an invention of society, and it is used to assist people with their labors in the fields (nature).  The union of these two characters symbolizes the harmony created between Nature and Society, whereby both sides become stronger due to the assistance and greatness of the other.  Before the plow, people tilled the land by hand, using garden tools, such as the hoe.

On page 40, Inanna explains that she has walked into the forest, kneeling by an apple tree (another growth and fertility archetype), and "poured out plants from my womb."  Here, Inanna is presenting herself as a fertile, life-bearing goddess.  The season of Spring has arrived in full bloom, with conception and birth occurring everywhere.  Again, please view these actions metaphorically, not literally.  On page 42, we see another reference to the linen sheet on their wedding bed, representing a culmination of the harvest (by processing the grains into cloth) and the union of man and woman.  They hold each other and share the pleasures of their marriage with wild abandon -- they make love fifty times!

On pages 44-45, Inanna explains to her new husband his "fate."  At the top of 45, look closely at the first four lines.  Amongst other things, Inanna places herself into four different roles in their marriage.  First, she says that she will be Dumuzi's "leader" in battle.  But then, she mentions that she will be his "armor-bearer," "advocate," and "inspiration."  The role of leader (male force) seems to be in opposition to her next three roles of servitude (feminine forces).  How can she be both leader and follower simultaneously?  Remember that Inanna was the representation of the planet Venus, which appears both  in the morning and evening (as the "morning star" and "evening star").  As the morning star, Inanna (or Ishtar, Venus, etc.) displays boldness and passion, which are two fierce qualities associated with war.  In the evening, she slips peacefully over the horizon, going to bed with the other stars and constellations in the sky.  In this form, she was associated with love as "the lady of the evening."  Therefore, Inanna is both a leader and a follower.  She will provide Dumuzi with his reason for fighting (playing the role of protector) and lovemaking.  Essentially, these two characters are carving out their roles in their marriage, just as we all do (who will wash the dishes, take out the garbage, etc.?).  The story ends with the land in full bloom.

Dumuzi, however, asks to be "set free" in the last stanza of the poem.  Why?  Dumuzi claims to be headed to the palace, perhaps to lead the people, as kings do. However, Dumuzi is also a shepherd, which means that he must leave the house and travel to his sheepfold after "plowing the field."  He'll be back later, and will make love to Inanna once again, but now the realities of life kick in, and the honeymoon appears to be over.  Perhaps Inanna's initial fears had some merit after all.  She'll get Dumuzi in the next story!

One final note here: Joseph Campbell discusses how men and women were cultured differently in mythological times.  Since Nature ushers a girl into maturity by starting her feminine cycles, you should recognize that the change from girl to woman happens to the girl.  She does not ask for it, and she cannot control its advent.  Boys, on the other hand, have no one single moment when they suddenly become men.  Sure, this does occur at times, such as when a father unexpectedly dies and the oldest son assumes more leadership in the family, but generally speaking, a boy becomes a man only when his society forces him into this new world of responsibilities.

Campbell discusses several initiation rites used by tribal peoples (see pages 101-104, amongst others).  Often, the boys are ripped away from their mothers' arms, taken away into the forest, and mutilated by the adult male tribe members.  A boy may have to endure circumcision, bodily mutilations, such as tattooing, burning, or piercing of the flesh.  When the boy returns from his ordeal, he looks different, feels differently, and therefore must act differently by assuming a new role in the tribe, such as going on the hunt, taking a wife, etc.  Today, boys are circumcised a few hours or days after their births, so we guys never get to consciously experience the ritual into adulthood, also called "twice born" by Campbell (the origin of the Christian phrase "born again").  All people, men and women alike, must endure a second birth, often most evident as the passage from childhood to adulthood.  As you continue to read The Power of Myth, you will recognize that people become reborn over and over again, such as becoming parents, changing careers, enduring life's obstacles, etc.
 

The Debate Between Hoe and Plough

In Sumerian culture, agriculture allowed them to establish a stable home, develop the land, and pass it down to their children. Their wealth gained from this new way of living allowed them an abundance of free time to develop art, writing, and culture. However, the surrounding cultures were mostly nomadic, meaning that they struggled each day for their food. Mainly shepherding cultures, these nomads often would encroach upon Sumer whenever the land failed to provide them with healthy pastures to graze their sheep and goats. Eventually, this competition for resources led to thousands of years of war in the region.

The hoe essentially argues that it is the more versatile tool, used throughout the year to perform a variety of tasks, from canal building to brick making, temple building and repair work, as well as gardening. The plough arrogantly aligns himself with the kings and the upper classes, as only the very rich could afford to purchase a plough after they had been invented. It is the plough that addresses this class distinction, by the way, as it criticizes the plough for being used at the "poor man's hand." The hoe, however, claims that this tool is universal and therefore better. After arguing that the plough is a high-maintenance tool, always breaking, hoe is declared the winner. This decision is arbitrary, of course, as the plough certainly revolutionized the region. However, the decision to place the hoe on top demonstrates the Sumerians' appreciation for a tool that can be used by everyone to do almost anything.

The Debate Between Sheep and Grain

This poem likewise pits a male figure versus a female one. Much like the hoe (a feminine idea) trumps plough (masculine), grain (called a "beautiful girl," "sister," and "Enlil's daughter") is deemed by Enki to be better than sheep (who once again associates himself with kingship, a male trait). Again, this simply reflects the values of the Sumerians who had developed agriculture to amass their wealth, not shepherding.

The first humans are alluded to, and they are naked, acting like animals. Although the gods gave humans both grain and sheep, the humans were originally ignorant of how to use them. That's why they eat like animals rather than baking bread like humans, and they are naked, having no clue how to shear the wool to make clothing.

Sheep is associated with royalty, especially since the wealthy could afford the best clothes. The grain, however, nourishes everybody, and therefore, like the hoe, is something that every Sumerian can be thankful for. The grain calls the sheep a tresspasser in the gardens, reflecting the real-world conflict between these occupations. The grain argues that the administrative tasks of counting sheep all day seem too much work for such a little reward, as the farmer relies on Mother Nature to create the magic to make the crops grow.

At the end, both parties acknowledge that they are doomed to be eaten, so they share the same fate. Each criticizes the other for their manners of death: the grain is pounded into flour, while the sheep are slaughtered in the streets. Enki, however, claims that they should be "sisters," not brothers, although he clearly sides with the grain.

The Song of the Hoe

This praise poem to the hoe is a great example of the clever wordplay employed by these ancient writers. The Sumerian word for hoe is "al," and this letter combination appears in hundreds of Sumerian words. Although all of these words containing this syllable do not represent the same ideas, we can gather them together and determine that most of these words pertain to industry -- the great work ethic of this culture's citizens. Perhaps the most intriguing of the words is "altar," which means both "mighty" and "work," reflecting the idea that the work performed at the altar is mighty. It's amazing that English still uses this word 6,000 years later. Just know that the readings contain lots of creative word play, such as pins and equivocations (one word simultaneously meaning two things).

A Drinking Song

This praise poem praises barley and beer, and for good reason. The Sumerians embraced life, and they enjoyed themselves due to their freedoms and wealth, much like how America is the biggest "fun" culture today. Rather than praising the act of drinking to excess, the Sumerians used beer and wine for celebratory purposes. They grey the barley and grapes, and patiently cultivated them into celebratory fluids. In the last stanza of the poem, you can see many references to joy and happiness. Don't ignore the importance of this. We take our good times for granted because we are very wealthy. We never worry about where our nextmeal is coming from, and we can access nearly everything we need within easy reach. This allows us to celebrate our lives, just as the Sumerians were one of the first cultures to find cultural joy in abundance. This poem is perhaps the very first literary mention of human joy.

Announcements:

You will soon receive a reading guide for the first test, which we will take in two weeks (February 6th).

Due Next Time:

The following readings are due (to be read before entering class on Wednesday). The documents highlighted in dark red are required readings. Please print them, annotate them, and bring them to class.

The remaining titles are supplemental, and are not required to print or read. I will not quiz or test you on them, but reviewing them will give you a deeper and more complete understanding of the concepts introduced in the main required titles.

 

Student Information Form — please fill out and return if you have not yet done so.

Mesopotamian Character Glossary

The Descent of Inanna (Wolkstein, 51-89); READING GUIDE (92-94)

The Descent of Ishtar to the Underworld (Dalley, 154-162); READING GUIDE (95)

Inanna and Ebih (96-99)

Inanna and An (100-101)

READING GUIDES: Joseph Campbell's The Power of Myth

The Power of Myth, chapter 6 (Campbell, 207-230)

Quiz 2 (DUE Wednesday 25 January)