At each of the seven gates of the underworld, inanna removed part of her. Thus begins one of the most famous sumerian myths of all time, with one of the most famous introductory passages of all time. It identifies some of the functions that may be fulfilled in our. Jastrow, 1915 the sumerian poem, the descent of inanna c. The underworld itself may also be thought of as divided into layers. Descent of inanna wolkstein kramer from the great above she opened her ear to the great below. An archetype of feminine selfdiscovery and transformation. Descent of inanna inanna and the mes according to one story. During the dark of the year, we are to turn inward, our most introspective work is to be accomplished at this time. Inannas descent into the underworld parallels shamanic crisis narratives in presenting a symbolic dismemberment of the goddess. Venus, the descentascent of inanna and the 7 gates cosmic. Neither enlil nor inanna s father nannar, the moon god of ur, will help her because she has craved the below, and because those who choose the underworld do not return. All these preparations though were not useful to her during her journey into the underworld or kur.
The poem begins famously with the lines, from the great above she opened her ear to the. Inanna, lady of heaven and earth history of a sumerian goddess. We descend, not because we want to, but because we must. Maybe inanna s most famous myth is about her descent into the underworld. Inannaishtars most famous myth is the story of her descent into and return from kur, the ancient sumerian underworld, a myth in which she attempts to conquer the domain of her older sister ereshkigal, the queen of the underworld, but is instead deemed guilty of hubris by the seven judges of the underworld and struck dead. Pdf an exegesis of inanna and ishtars descent to the.
From the great heaven inana set her mind on the great below. The lilitu was antecedent to lilith, the first wife of adam, vilified in later jewish texts ausubel the epic deals with a rivalry between the cities of. Inanna ishtar s descent into the underworld posted on sep 9 2011 the descent of inanna ishtar is similar to the descent of ganga into the underworld. She had fallen in love with gilgamesh, that great king, but he had spurned her advances. Text from inanna, queen of heaven and earth by diane wolkstein soundtrack by patreon. The poem tells a strange story of the goddess inannas journey from her own realm on earth to the underworld. In order to enter the underworld she must prepare herself, purify herself, by giving up one piece of her clothing or jewellery at each of the 7 gates she passes. My mistress abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld. A guided meditation following inanna as she journeys into the underworld and returns again. Neti, the chief gatekeeper of the nether world, honored the word of his queen. She abandoned the office of en, abandoned the office of lagar, and descended to the underworld.
The descent of inanna is a metaphor for the experience of being stripped to ones coreof facing loss or depressionof relinquishing the outer symbols of ones ego power and attachments to gain ones true unadorned inner strength. This later akkadian version was the best known version to those who. Her stories and hymns from sumer see other formats. Her descent to the underworld is a valuable story at any time of the year but even more so here as the wheel turns fully into the dark of the year. Tales from the underworldchapter oneinnanaishtarereshkigal. My descent into the underworldfollowing the footsteps of.
Brown, not the authors, translators, or publishers. Pdf inannas descent to the underworld by johanna stuckey. Ninshubur succeeds in getting enki to secure her release. In sumerian, the word for ear and wisdom are the same. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The descent of inanna a sumerian hero story during the times of gilgamesh that explores the descent into, and ascent from hell. Mar 09, 2016 descent of the goddess ishtar into the lower worldfrom the civilization of babylonia and assyria, m. My lady abandoned heaven and earth to descend to the underworld. Inannas descent to the nether world the electronic text corpus of sumerian literature texts. This is when the goddess ruled the heavens, the earth and the underworld. Jan 02, 2017 the descent of inanna known also as inannas descent to the netherworld underworld is a piece of work in the literary corpus of ancient mesopotamia.
Inana abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld. In the form of the myth underlying the tammuz liturgies, the imprisonment of the god in the underworld is a principal motive of the myth and is the cause of inannas descent into the underworld. Inannas twin brother was ututhe god of the sun and justice who was later known as shamash in ttee semitic languages. The new novel i am working on is a retelling of the inanna myth. The story begins when inanna, the goddess of fertility, decides to descend into the underworld to visit her sister, ereshkigal allatu, queen of the underworld, likely with the intent of trying to seize the underworld for herself. Inanna is also mentioned several times in the epic of gilgamesh. Beliefs concerning the descent into the underworld are often connected with the concept of a threelayer cosmos, according to which the human world is located midway between the realm of spirits above and the realm of the dead below the underworld.
Ishtars journey into the underworld fairy tales of the world. The first reading shall be socially focused, whereby the text will. Inannas descent to the underworld by johanna stuckey 20150802, 3. Neither enlil nor inannas father nannar, the moon god of ur, will help her because she has craved the below, and because those who choose the underworld do not return. Oct 25, 2014 her descent to the underworld is a valuable story at any time of the year but even more so here as the wheel turns fully into the dark of the year. Since the time of the sumerians, there have been several profound collapses, yet global civilization has obviously been on the rise. So they encouraged their writers to take a second look at inannas transcendence from the underworld.
In the epic of gilgamesh, inanna demands the bull of heaven to use it to destroy gilgamesh and enkidu. The poem tells a strange story of the goddess inanna s journey from her own realm on earth to the underworld. Pdf the primary focus of this paper shall be on the representations of the goddesses inanna and her. The descent of inanna to the underworld by deanne quarrie. The text of the poem clearly states inannas intention of journeying to the underworld to attend the funeral of her brotherinlaw, specifies her sisters displeasure at her visit, further specifies how the annuna of the dead pass judgment against inanna and how, after that, she is killed by ereshkigal through the word of wrath and. Jan 14, 2010 inanna is also mentioned several times in the epic of gilgamesh. This is the story of inanna, the ancient myth that predates the male gods, such as zeus. The reason she went to the land of the dead is not completely clear, but she is often said to.
Jun 25, 20 my mistress abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld. Descent of the goddess ishtar into the lower worldfrom the civilization of babylonia and assyria, m. Inanna abandoned heaven and earth to descend to the underworld. There was a lot on the descent thats the dramatic part, colonomos recalls. Inannas way bears testimony to the life force th at flows in and through each one of us and that will continue to flow when any one of us has returned our bodies to the dust from which we were created. This story isnt about gilgamesh however, it instead follows inanna. In a myth called the descent of ishtar to the underworld, the fertility goddess decides to visit kurnugia the land of no return, where the dead live in darkness, eat clay, and are clothed like birds with wings.
She abandoned the office of en, abandoned the office of lagar, and descended. Exploring the underworld local poets delve into the myth. Based on their behavior they could be afforded better treatment or positions in the underworld. Other articles where the descent of ishtar to the underworld is discussed. There are numerous wellknown myths from ancient times which describe a heroine or heros descent into the underworld.
Jul 23, 2016 a guided meditation following inanna as she journey s into the underworld and returns again. Interpretation of inannas descent myth halexandria. Download inannas way ruth krall 2016 inannas wayruthkrall2016. Funeral rites 453 chapter 24 kurgarra, galatura and assinnu 487 chapter 25 who is the goddess on the burney relief. From the great above the goddess oepned her ear to the great below. Inannaishtars descent into the underworld posted on sep 9 2011 the descent of inannaishtar is similar to the descent of ganga into the underworld. Inannas descent to the nether world mythinterpretations. In a confrontation with ereshkigal, the queen of the underworld, she is. Inannas descent is a story of the goddess searching for the meaning of life, love and death. The descent of inanna known also as inannas descent to the netherworld underworld is a piece of work in the literary corpus of ancient mesopotamia. Ishtar was the lady of the gods, the goddess of fertility.
Inanna abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld. Descent of ishtar to the nether world inanna and ebih inanna and enki the transfer of the arts of civilization from eridu to erech inannas descent to the nether world. My descent into the underworldfollowing the footsteps of inanna helen demetriou. Lxrian descent of ishtar inannas counterpart is a much shorter uersion of the same. Both refuse to meddle in the exacting ways of the underworld. The death and rebirth are fairly clear to be read, but of particular interest is that after inannas death, and preparing for rebirth, ereshkigal is in pain with the cries of a woman about to give birth. It is vital that we enter the darkness as did inanna, bare and bowed low. Interpretation of inannas descent myth from the great above inanna opened her ear to the great below. The oldest known myth is babylonian and was written on clay tablets in the third millennium b. Healing with myth this essay analyses the use of ancient myths in modernday western therapy. Chapter 22 inannas descent to the underworld i 439 chapter 23 inannas descent to the underworld ii.
But in the earliest form of the myths given by kramer in the ancient near eastern texts relating to the old testament j. Ishtars descent into hades jason and the argonauts. Inanna ishtar s most famous myth is the story of her descent into and return from kur, the ancient sumerian underworld, a myth in which she attempts to conquer the domain of her older sister ereshkigal, the queen of the underworld, but is instead deemed guilty of hubris by the seven judges of the underworld and struck dead. Kodi archive and support file vintage software community software apk msdos cdrom software cdrom software library console living room software sites tucows software library software capsules compilation shareware cdroms cdrom images zx spectrum doom level cd. Inannaishtars descent into the underworld brahma kumaris.
From the great above inanna opened her ear to the great below. Pdf an exegesis of inanna and ishtars descent to the nether world. Inannas descent to the lower world zecharia sitchin index. One of the more significant is the story of inanna, the sumerian goddess, who hearing the call, made her own eventful journey and return. Inannas descent to the underworld by johanna stuckey. It is usually known as the descent of inanna the sumerian queen of heaven and earth. From the great above the goddess opened her ear to the great below.
This later akkadian version was the best known version to those who lived at the time the old testament was written. The death and rebirth are fairly clear to be read, but of particular interest is that after inanna s death, and preparing for rebirth, ereshkigal is in pain with the cries of a woman about to give birth. Inannas descent to the nether world and ishtars descent to the nether world shall undergo four readings. Instead the dreadful vista of life in the underworld. Finally enki, the god of waters and wisdom, hears ninshuburs plea and rescues inanna, using two little mourners he creates from the dirt under his. The ball and mallet had been taken by inannas former lover gilgamesh and fallen deep into the underworld. Jul 30, 2014 the sumerian poem, the descent of inanna c. The reason for this is that the gatekeeper, under instructions from inannas sister, ereshkigal, queen of the underworld, instructed the gatekeeper to make her go through several small and narrow gate opening on.
Note that in the story of inannas descent to the underworld, she mentions she has come to see the funeral of the bull of heaven. Although the descent of inanna is a short work it runs to little over 400 lines, making it a little shorter than a poem like the waste land, it contains many of the elements we associate with epic poetry such as the descent into the. Students of the myth contemplate whether inannas descent is a map into our subconscious, a dire warning of the emergence of patriarchy and earth dominance, or both. The first draft was promising, but leaned heavily on falls from grace. Based on their behavior they could be afforded better treatment or positions in. Over my years of performing, my preparations have become something of a ritual, a path by which i ready myself for the experience of the dance. Of the seven gates of the nether world, he opened their locks, of the gate ganzir, the face of the nether world, he defined its rules.
For example, enki, the god of wisdom, is said to have his ear wide open an unfiltered receptivity. From the great above inanna openend her ear to the great below. Inanna goes through the seven gates to the underworld, divesting herself of something at each gate, until she gives up her life itself in order to enter the inner. Inanna s descent to the underworld most curious is perhaps the story of inanna s descent to the underworld. The descent of inanna is court poetry, to be recited or more likely dramatized for the amusement of the king and his court. She abandoned the eana in unug, and descended to the. From the great heaven the goddess set her mind on the great below. Inanna was about to ascend from the underworld when the annuna, the judges of the underworld, seized her. The story of the descent into the underworld goes a bit like this, although there a a few different yet similar versions. I bowed to inannas wisdom and ereshkigals necessity knowing that death and destruction fuel a new cycle of life. And now, from deep within the inner sanctum, in ningals holy of holies, there came to inannas attentive ears the sounds of great exertion. The descent of inanna from the great above she opened her ear to the great below. In many ancient myths, descent is an integral part of the great feminine round of life and death. Inanna, lady of heaven and earth history of a sumerian.
The perfumed bath, or long luxurious shower, is a purification from the stresses of the day. The descent of ishtar to the underworld mesopotamian. Her husband tammuz, the great love of her youth, had died when he was still very young. In order to enter the underworld she must prepare herself, purify herself, by giving up one piece of her clothing or. Introducing inanna and the descent to the underworld. Ninshubur goes to enlil, the highest god of sky and earth, and to nanna, the moon god and inannas father. The descent of inanna known also as inannas descent to the netherworld underworld is a piece of work in the literary corpus of ancient. Mar 22, 2011 my descent into the underworld following the footsteps of inanna helen demetriou. Inannas descent to the underworld most curious is perhaps the story of inannas descent to the underworld. Who was ishtar and what is her connection to easter.