Today's Topics: 

You have your first test next Monday. Here is the Study Guide.

Enlil and Ninlil

In this story, we see a very young Enlil and Ninlil, both deities of the wind. We see shades of the Enki and Ninhursag story here when we consider the lusty virulence of both Enki and Enlil in these two stories. Similarly, Ninlil is warned by her mother, much as Uttu is warned by Ninhursag, to stay away from the lusty male force. Although properly warned, Ninlil disobeys her mother's advice and bathes in the river, drawing the attention of Enlil, who offers the most direct pick-up line in world literature: "I want to have sex with you!" Ninlil explains that she is a virgin. They have been "intended" to each other, much as we saw with Inanna and Dumuzi.

Enlil inseminates Ninlil before their wedding day, impregnating her with the seed of Suen (or Sin or Nanna, the moon). After this, we see an interesting reaction from the Anunnaki: they send Enlil to the Underworld for punishment. What is unusual here is that the Underworld does not typically have an association with punishment. The Underworld is not Hell, which is reserved for punishment in Western traditions. What we probably see here is that the Underworld is being used to teach Enlil a lesson.

Because the Anunnaki punish Enlil for being "ritually impure," we learn from this that Enlil violated a social standard (a law), not a natural one. Nature tells us to have lots of sex, but our societies impose limits. Enlil's violation of social standards will be punishable by judges, rather than by "acts of God," which will be the predominant mentality of the readings from Unit 2: The Age of Aries, where societal law rose higher than natural law. We also see here that at least 50 gods are more powerful than Enlil, as Enlil immediately obeys their judgment. Eventually, the Babylonians would elevate Enlil to a higher position as head of the pantheon, replacing An (Anu in Babylonian).

As Enlil heads toward the Underworld, Ninlil follows, as she is pregnant with their child. During the next several paragraphs, we see Enlil disguising himself as the gatekeeper and the boat driver, magically impregnating Ninlil simultaneously with three separate pregnancies. In real life, a pregnant woman cannot become additionally pregnant, so the actions here are Divine. This illustrates Ninlil's powers as a birth goddess, because she can continually become pregnant while already carrying a child, a feat that no mortal woman could accomplish. Ninlil will give birth in the Underworld to Nanna (the moon god), who will marry Ningal (a moon goddess) who will birth the sun, Utu, as well as Inanna and her sister Ereshkigal.

In this creation story of the Underworld family, we see that the moon came first, not the sun. When people begin to think about mythology, sun worship often comes to mind. However, in a desert culture that bets unbearably hot in the summer, the sun doesn't get a lot of worship. In fact, we see Utu denying help to Inanna in The Huluppu-Tree story, perhaps showing little reliance on the sun than what might be expected. We won't see a powerful sun god characterized until Unit 2, where we will see the Babylonian counterpart, Shamash, take an active role in helping heroes to accomplish great feats.

The Kur, the Underworld mountain, connected by the Apsu under the surface, asks for Ereshkigal to be the Queen of the Underworld, but Enki attacks the Kur to rescue the goddess. You should noticew a parallel to the opening scene on page 4 of The Huluppu-Tree, where we see Enki descending into the Underworld in his boat, facing a brutal attack. Although Enki defeats the Kur (water is more powerful than rock, over time), the Kur still cannot relinquish Ereshkigal. Much like how Enki isn't so much the god of the water as he is the water, perhaps now Ereshkigal has become synonymous with the Underworld. After all, how does one bring the Underworld back to the surface? If you could, the moment that you did would mean that the Underworld would no longer be under the world. It can't be done. Death is permanent.

In their infinite wisdom, the gods decide to throw a party for Ereshkigal that they know she cannot attend. She sends Namtar, her vizier (this is an Arabic word meaning "advisor"), in her place, and he is immediately honored by all the gods except for one -- Nergal. Well, this wasn't his best political move, because Namtar tells Ereshkigal, who then sends him back to seize Nergal. Enki assures Nergal that he will be well armed in battle, having given Nergal seven demons to accompany him to the Underworld. Once inside, he launches a surprise attack with the demons, locking the doors and trapping everyone inside. He seizes Ereshkigal and threatens to kill her (just as she threatened to kill him earlier). However, Ereshkigal offers him a hand in marriage, with the power that comes with it. Suddenly, he likes what he hears and he kisses Ereshkigal, accepting her offer to be a ruler of the Underworld. This is perhaps a better position than he could have received with the Anunnaki.

Nergal and Ereshkigal

In this story, we see a longer (and later) version of the episide that occurred at the end of Enlil and Ninlil. Ereshkigal has been selected as Queen of the Underworld, even though Enki's battle against the Kur was vistorious. You should note that the names of characters in this story reflect the Babylonian names, since this is a Babylonian story. Therefore, An becomes Anu, Enki becomes Ea, Inanna becomes Ishtar, and Kur becomes Kurnugi ("The Land of No Return").

Anu declares a celebration in honor of Ereshkigal, but unfortunately she can't attend since she is locked into the Underworld. Therefore, a series of messengers, usually advisors to the gods, are allowed to take the long stairway to Heaven and the Underworld, back and forth. Entering the Underworld, one must pass through a series of seven gates that serve as the checkpoints into and out of the Kur, each gate guarded by a different guard.

On page 166, notice that Kakka, Anu's messenger, enters the underworld and is greeted by Ereshkigal who, on three occasions, offers him "peace." Remember that the Underworld is not Hell. It is not a place of punishment, but rather the necessary abode of the dead. The Underworld does not pose harm.

Ereshkigal then sends her servant, Namtar, to the heavens to receive her gifts. When Namtar enters Heaven, he is acknowledged and respected by all the gods, except Nergal, who refused to kneel. We don't know why. This makes Namtar mad, and he tells Ereshkigal about Nergal's behavior.

Perhaps to make it up to Ereshkigal, Nergal will walk down the stairway and present Ereshkigal with a throne, which he makes by cutting down several varieties of trees and painting it to look like it is made of gold, silver, and gems. Some may look at this throne and recognize that it bears a false impression: it looks like gold, but it's really wood. Some may think that Nergal's throne is a cheap imitation; however, a closer inspection reveals deeper symbolism. The chair is not cheap, since it is crafted with several types of wood and decorations. Time and effort certainly were applied here. The throse of the Underworld, being made of wood, reflects the essence of what the Kur is all about: that trees, once living, were now dead, but they still have a place and a value, despite their deceased condition.

Ea then instructs Nergal on how to behave in the Underworld: don't accept any gifts: accepting a gift from the Underworld means that you accept the Underworld, meaning that you have chosen to stay there forever. One of the Underworld rules is that no escape is possible, at least for mortals, and the gods tend to escape either because of their power, their cleverness, or their bargaining. Among the gifts that Nergal is supposed to avoid is Ereshkigal's naked body.

Nergal passes through the seven gates and greets Ereshkigal, who offers him all the gifts that Ea foreshadowed. Nergal rejects each one ... until Ereshkigal takes off her clothes and entices him to make love to her. For six days they make love, but on the seventh Nergal wakes up in the middle of the night and is afraid of what he has just done. He runs out of the Underworld, telling the gatekeeper that Ereshkigal sent him away. This is apparently a lie, a clever way to escape.

At the bottom of page 171, the gods call Nergal the "Son of Ishtar," implying that he has changed into a fertility god due to his relationship with Ereshkigal. Ishtar (Inanna) has long been associated with Ereshkigal beyond merely being sisters. Scholars have suggested that Inanna (Ishtar) and Ereshkigal are actually the same character, but each possessing an opposite aspect of the other: Inanna with life and Ereshkigal with death. In the heavens, Ea sprinkles Nergal with magic water that changes his appearance, since everyone knows that the Underworld will come looking for him.

When Ereshkigal awakens, she asks the gatekeeper where Nergal went, and she learns that her lover has escaped. She calls for his immediate arrest and sends Namtar to Heaven to seize Nergal. If she can't get Nergal back, she threatens to raise all the dead to become living again! Up in Heaven, however, Namtar cannot recognize Nergal's changed appearance, and he returns to the Underworld alone ... until Ereshkigal sends him back up the long stairway to heaven to get Nergal, who is now bald and crouching in the fetal position.

Namtar convinces Nergal to meet his fate, and Nergal arms himself. Entering the seven gates, Nergal fights his way into the Underworld, but immediately seizes Ereshkigal and jumps in bed with her, apparently happy to be back. In Enlil and Ninlil, notice that Nergal seemed prepared to kill Ereshkigal until she relented and vowed to share rulership with him.

Therefore, the rules of the Underworld have been upheld, and Ereshkigal has a husband who is bound to the Kur forever. This suggests that the Underworld is really a place of life, not death, since life goes on down there, albeit in a different capacity.

Announcements:

Test Reminders

See the Study Guide for details. You will be asked to provide written answers to six total questions that cover the Age of Taurus unit. The test is open-book and open-note, so bring all of your materials.

Remember that the best answers begin with a clear answer to the question and are well-supported by discussion and references to the readings that defend your thesis. Since I will be asking you questions that are open-ended and that test your comprehension, there will be many possible answer directions that can be strong. There is no multiple-choice, and I will not ask you any objective questions (such as "Who is Inanna's father?"). I want to see how you are assessing the mythological motifs in this literature.

I am not interested in tricking you. I will ask you big, obvious questions that pertain to the most important ideas from this unit. Your careful articulation of your understanding will determine your grade, not knowledge of randomly selected nit-picky answers. You can predict many of these questions by simply looking st the Study Guide. I will ask you about some of the concepts listed in the terminology listing, and I will ask you about as many stories as possible. You may be asked to answer a question about one particular story, whereas other questions will ask you to discuss what you like from the whole unit. I also may ask you a question that is inspired by Campbell's The Power of Myth, but all questions will relate to the literature selections, not Campbell's text.

I will pass back and review Quiz 2 on Wednesday and collect Quiz 3. I will return and review Quiz 3 before we begin the test on Monday, so all quizzes for this unit must be submitted by the test day.

Extended Office Hours

Next week I will be available for additional office hours, allowing you opportunities to come and see me. The hours will be an open-door policy, and I will not take any appointments. Stop by, knock on the door (HU 139), and come on in. Of course, I will gladly answer questions via e-mail as well. Here are the additional hours:

 

MON 30 JAN:		11:00 AM - 1:45 PM
WED 1 FEB:		11:00 AM - 1:45 PM
THU 2 FEB:		9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Due Next Time:

 

Etana (Dalley, 189-202); READING GUIDE (121-123)

Adapa (Dalley, 182-188); READING GUIDE (124-126)

Quiz 3