Ishtar

The reconstructed Ishtar Gate, originally located in Babylon, now in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.

Ishtar, a goddess of both fertility and war, is the Akkadian and better known name of the Sumerian goddess Inanna and the Semitic goddess Astarte. She inspired great devotion in the ancient Babylonian empire, as evidenced by the many grand temples, altars, inscriptions, and art objects devoted to her [[1]].

There were two conflicting main aspects to this goddess of life. She was the deity of fertility and love, but was a jealous goddess who could also bring vengeance against individuals, go to war, destroy fields, and make the earth's creatures infertile. Ever young, energetic, and passionate, Ishtar was a moody goddess, changing rapidly from love to enmity. She protected her favorites, but brought doom upon those who dishonored her, sometimes with terrible consequences for whole nations.

The origin of the name Ishtar is not known, though it is possible that the underlying stem is the same as that of Assur, which would thus make her the "leading one" or "chief." It is generally recognized that the name is Semitic in origin, and was identified in ancient times with Canaanite Ashtoreth or Astarte (Biblical Hebrew עשתרת). Some scholars have suggested that Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of Spring whose name later gave rise to modern the English "Easter," may be etymologically connected to that of Ishtar. The older Sumerian name Inanna means "Great Lady of An", where An is the god of heaven.

History and Character

Ishtar/Inanna was first worshiped at Uruk (biblical Erech) in the earliest period of Mesopotamian history. Incantations, hymns, myths, epics, votive inscriptions, and historical annals celebrated and invoked her as the force of life.

Ishtar's reign did not normally depend upon a particular male consort. Indeed, she had many lovers and usually initiated the relationship. (In one story, however, Ishtar was in fact raped.) Although sometimes portrayed as subject to higher male authorities, her position in the Babylonian pantheon in practice was the highest.

Ishtar's genealogy varies depending on the source. She is sometimes described as the daughter of the moon goddess Ningal and her consort, also a moon god, Sin (or Suen), who were the patron dieties of Uruk. Sin's Sumerian name is "Nanna," showing a close relationship to Ishtar's Sumerian name. In other traditions, however, she is the daughter of the usually distant sky god, An. Later she also is portrayed as his wife.

File:Babylon relief.jpg

Detail from the reconstructed Ishtar Gate.

In all the great Mesopotamian cultural centers, Ishtar — or Inanna — had her temples:

• E-anna, "house of An," in Uruk
• E-makh, "great house," in Babylon
• E-mash-mash, "house of offerings," in Nineveh

The great Babylonian king Nebuchadrezzar II constructed the mammoth "Ishtar Gate" in honor of the goddess.

As the goddess of love and fertility, Ishtar was the guardian of sacred harlots and is described as having sacred priestess-prostitutes who served her. In later times, however, the priestesses of Ishtar were virgins who, as long as they remained in her service, were not permitted to marry. Ishtar was also associated with beer, and was the patroness of tavern keepers, who were usually female in early Mesopotamia.

On monuments and seal-cylinders Ishtar/Inanna appears frequently with bow and arrow. At other times, she is depicted simply clad in long robes with a crown on her head and an eight-rayed star as her symbol. Statuettes have been found in large numbers representing her as naked with her arms folded across her breast or holding a child. Although her primary function seems to have been as a goddess of fertility, she was also invoked as a goddess of war, battles, and the chase, particularly among the warlike Assyrians. Before battle, the priestess-vicar of Ishtar would appear before the Assyrian army, clad in battle array and armed with bow and arrow. (compare Greek Athena.)

Together with the moon god Sin and the sun god Shamash, Ishtar is the third figure in a triad deifying and personalizing the moon, the sun, and the earth. In this trinity, the moon represents wisdom, the sun personifies justice, and and the earth repesentns life force. This triad overlies another: An — heaven; Enlil — earth; and Ea/Enki — the watery deep. Ishtar is generally portrayed twin of Shamash.

Ishtar is a significant figure in the epic of Gilgamesh. She appears also on the top panel of the Uruk vase, one of the most famous ancient Mesopotamian artifacts. The relief on this vase seems to show Ishtar/Inanna conferring kingship on a supplicant. Various inscriptions and artifacts indicate that kingship was one of the gifts bestowed by Inanna on the ruler of Uruk.

In late Babylonian astrology, Ishtar was related to the planet Venus. As the most prominent female deity in the late Babylonian pantheon, she was equated by the Greeks with either or both Hera and Aphrodite. Roman mythology renders Aphrodite as Venus, and thus the planet is indirectly named for Ishtar. The double aspect of Ishtar as the goddess of both ferility and war may correspond to the difference between Venus as a morning star and as an evening star.

Ishtar, by various names, continued to be an important deity until the advent of Christianity in the Roman empire and Islam in the Arabic world and Persia. These monotheistic religions and the civilizations they inspired insisted on the existence of only one diety, a masculine god who jealously commanded that He alone be worshiped.

Myths Concerning Ishtar

Innana's Descent

An important myth involving Ishtar is the story of her descent to the underworld. One of the most striking Sumerian myths describes Ishtar/Inanna passing through seven gates of hell into the underworld — the "Land of No Return." At each gate some of her clothing and her ornaments are removed until at the last gate she is entirely naked.

Ishtar then usurps the throne of her sister Ereshkigal, the queen of the underworld. He reign is brief, howeer, as Ereshkigal kills her and hangs her corpse on a hook on the wall. By intercession of the clever god, her uncle, Enki, Ishtar eventually returns to earth, but according to the rules, she must find someone to take her place. On her way home she encounters her friends prostrated with grief at her loss; but in her cult city, she discover her current husband, Tammuz, seated in splendor on a throne. Enraged, she has him seized and dragged below.

She looked at him, it was the look of death. She spoke to him, it was the speech of anger. She shouted at him, it was the shout of heavy guilt: "How much longer? Take him away." Holy Inana gave Dumuzid the shepherd into their hands.

Ever the fickle young woman, Ishtar soon repents of her brash act.

Holy Inana wept bitterly for her husband.

She tore at her hair like esparto grass.

She ripped it out like esparto grass.

"You wives who lie in your men's embrace, where is my precious husband?

You children who lie in your men's embrace, where is my precious child?

Where is my man? Where? Where is my man? Where?"

As one might guess if one knows the later Greek myths, Ishtar arranges for his sister to substitute for him during six months of the year. The story of Ishtar and Tammuz prefigures those of Cybele and Attis, of Aphrodite and Adonis, and of Osiris and Isis — all of them tales of a young god who dies, and a goddess who mourns him. See also the Greek story of Persephone.

The name Tammuz as a feature of the calendar was apparently absorbed by the Jewish religion during the Babylonian exile. In both the Babylonian and the Jewish calendar, Tammuz is the fourth month, that of the summer solstice, when, in Mesopotamia, the harvest could begin.

The Epic of Gilgamesh

Ishtar makes important appearances in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the world's earliest epic poem. The opening chapter of the story describes the glories of Uruk and praises Ishtar's temple there. Hearing of the existence of the wild man Enkidu, Gilgamesh does not go himself to subdue this fierce creature, but sends Shamhat, the most skilled priestess of Ishtar, to civilize him by having sex with him.

In another chapter, Ishtar proposes marriage to Gilgamesh, but he declines, knowing that her previous mates have met tragic fates. Insulted by his rejection, Ishtar demands that her father, An, send the Bull of Heaven to punish Gilgamesh, despite her knowledge that this act will bring famine to the land. When Gilgamesh and Enkidu slay the bull, Ishtar and her priestesses mourn the creature's death, while the men celebrate.

However, Ishtar is not heartless toward humans. Later, when Gilgamesh hears the story of the Great Flood from its only survivor, Utnapishtim, we learn of Ishtar's deep compassion for mankind:

Ishtar shrieked like a woman in childbirth,

The sweet-voiced Mistress of the Gods wailed:

"The olden days have alas turned to clay,

because I said evil things in the Assembly of the Gods!

How could I say evil things in the Assembly of the Gods,

ordering a catastrophe to destroy my people!!

No sooner have I given birth to my dear people

than they fill the sea like so many fish!"

In the story of Gilgamesh and the Huluppu tree, Ishtar plants this sacred tree in her garden, where it is guarded by the "snake which knows no charm." Eventually the tree grows very large and Ishtar wishes that someone will chop it down and make various items of for her from its wood. Gilgamesh complies, both slaying the snake and making timber of the tree. Later, some of the objects he has made for Isthar have been dropped into the underworld. Gilgamesh cannot reach them, and so Enkidu volunteers to retrieve them. A version of this story also appears as the twelfth tablet in the Epic of Gilgamesh itself.

Inana & Ebih

This hymn praises Ishtar/Innana's powers of war and destruction. She intends to punish the mountain, Ebih, for refusing to worship her. The king of the deities, Ishtar's own father An, warns her agaisnt her quest. Ishtar, of course, proceeds anyway, and wages a mighty battle against Ebih. She summons a tremendous storm to he aid, eventually seizing Ebih slaying him with her dagger.

She brought out magnificent battle and called up a great storm. Holy Inanna reached for the quiver. She raised a towering flood with evil silt. She stirred up an evil raging wind with potsherds. My lady confronted the mountain range. She advanced step by step. She sharpened both edges of her dagger. She grabbed Ebih's neck as if ripping up esparto grass. She pressed the dagger's teeth into its interior...

"Mountain range, because of your elevation, because of your height, because of your attractiveness, because of your beauty, because of your wearing a holy garment, because of your reaching up to heaven, because you did not put your nose to the ground, because you did not rub your lips in the dust, I have killed you and brought you low."

Ishtar in Popular Culture

File:Ishtar.jpg

With the advent of New Age culture, Ishtar has made something of a comeback in recent decades.

A number of books have featured the goddess as an icon of female spirituality and a champion of the positive role of sensuality in life. Titles include: Ishtar Rising: Or, Why the Goddess Went to Hell and What to Expect Now That She's Returning, and Codex of Love: Reflections From The Heart of Ishtar.

In 1987, Ishtar became the title of a Hollywood spy farce starring Warren Beatty and Dustin Hoffman.

Ishtar is also the name of a popular European recording artist.

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Moore, Christopher J., Ishtar and Tammuz: A Babylonian Myth of the Seasons, Kingfisher Books, 0753450127 (a children's book)
• Shadrach, Nineveh, Codex of Love: Reflections From The Heart of Ishtar, Ishtar Publishing, 2005. ISBN 0973593113
• Wilson, Robert A., Ishtar Rising: Or, Why the Goddess Went to Hell and What to Expect Now That She's Returning New Falcon Publications, 1988. ISBN 1561841099
• Inana's Descent
• Inanna and Ebih
• Myths of Ishtar and Tammuz
• The Rape of Ishtar/Inanna
• The King Worships at the Altar of Ishtar
• Ishtar the movie
• Ishtar and Merodach

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