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Gula › Who Was
Definition and Origins
Gula (also known as Ninkarrak) is the Babylonian goddess of healing and patroness of doctors, healing arts, and medical practices. She is first attested to in the Ur III Period (2047-1750 BCE). Her name (Gula) means 'Great' and is usually interpreted to mean 'great in healing' while Ninkarrak means 'Lady of Kar,' interpreted as 'Lady of the Wall,' as in a protective barrier, though it has also been taken to mean 'Lady of Karrak,' a city associated with that of Isin. In Sumeria, she was referred to as 'great physician of the black-headed ones' (the Sumerians ). She is commonly referred to in Mesopotamian medical texts and incantations as belet balati, 'Lady of Health,' and as Azugallatu, 'Great Healer.' Her main cult center was at Isin, though her worship would spread across Sumer in the south upwards to Akkad and, eventually, throughout the entire region of Mesopotamia. Her iconography depicts her always with a dog, sometimes seated, and surrounded by stars. She is associated with the underworld and transformation.
Originally Gula was a Sumerian deity known as Bau (or Baba), goddess of dogs. People noticed that when dogs licked their sores, they seemed to heal faster, and so dogs became associated with healing and Bau transformed into a healing deity.When her worship spread from the city of Lagash to Isin, she became known as Ninisina ('Lady of Isin'). Her other names included Nintinugga and Nimdindug, which related to her healing talents, or still others which simply elevated her to patroness of a city. Scholar Jeremy Black notes that many of her names were "originally the names of other goddesses [such as Meme]" whom she assimilated (101). When she was venerated in Nippur, she was known as Ninnibru, 'Queen of Nippur,' and associated with the hero-god Ninurta. She became known as Gula, the great healer, during the latter part of the Old Babylonian Period (2000-1600 BCE) and is best known by this name in the present day.
MYTHOLOGICAL ORIGIN & FAMILY
She was the daughter of the great god Anu, created with his other children at the beginning of time, and her husbands/consorts are variously given as Ninurta, the healer god, and divine judge Pabilsag, or the agricultural god Abu.Scholar Stephen Bertman writes, "Because at least two of these divinities were connected with agriculture, her marriage to them may symbolically reflect the medicinal use of plants" (119). Her sons were Damu and Ninazu, and her daughter Gunurra, all healing deities.
ORIGINALLY GULA WAS A SUMERIAN DEITY KNOWN AS BAU, GODDESS OF DOGS. AS DOGS BECAME ASSOCIATED WITH HEALING, BAU TRANSFORMED INTO A HEALING DEITY.
Damu was the central Sumerian god of healing who combined the magical and 'scientific' approaches to disease. He was associated with the dying and reviving god figure Tammuz (also known as Dumuzi) central to the tales involving Inanna and rebirth; hence he is also associated with transformation and transition. He is frequently mentioned with Gula in incantations for healing. Although Gula was considered the supreme healer, Damu was thought to be the intermediary through which her power reached doctors.
Ninazu, who was associated with serpents (symbols of transformation), the underworld (transition), and healing (transformation), carried a staff intertwined with serpents. This symbol was adopted by the Egyptians for Heka, their god of magic and medicine, and then by the Greeks as the caduceus, the staff carried by Hermes Trismegistus, their god of magic, healing, and writing (associated with the Egyptian god Thoth ). Today, of course, the caduceus is seen in doctor's offices and medical practices around the world as the symbol of Hippocrates, the father of medicine.
DOCTORS IN MESOPOTAMIA
There were two types of doctors in ancient Mesopotamia: the Asu (a medical doctor who treated illness 'scientifically') and the Asipu (a healer who relied upon what modern people would call 'magic'). There were also surgeons and veterinarians who could come from either of these backgrounds. Dentistry was practiced by both kinds of doctors and both may have also presided at births. It is certain that midwives ( sabsutu ) delivered the child, not the doctor, and yet the doctor was paid a fee for providing some kind of service at births, since records make it clear that they were paid more for the birth of a male child than a female. It is possible that the Asipu could have recited prayers to the gods or chants to ward off demons (most notably the demon Lamashtu who killed or carried off infants) or that the Asu could have eased labor pains with herbs but not assisted with the actual birth.
A Mesopotamian Tablet with Gynaecological Recipe Against Miscarriage
A pregnant woman and one who was in labor wore special amulets to protect her unborn child from Lamashtu and to invoke the protection of another demon called Pazuzu ('demon' did not always carry the connotation of evil that it does in the modern day and could be a benevolent spirit). Although modern-day scholarship sometimes refers to the Asipu as a 'witch doctor' and the Asu as a 'medical practitioner,' the Mesopotamians regarded the two with equal respect. Scholar Robert D. Biggs notes:
There is no hint in the ancient texts that one approach was more legitimate than the other. In fact, the two types of healers seem to have had equal legitimacy, to judge from such phrases as, 'if neither medicine nor magic brings about a cure,' which occur a number of times in the medical texts. (1)
The significant difference between the two types was that the Asipu relied more explicitly on the supernatural, while the Asudealt more directly with the physical symptoms the patient presented with. Both types of healers would have accepted a supernatural source for illness, however, and the Asu should not be considered more 'modern' or 'scientific' than the Asipu.
These doctors operated out of the temples and treated patients there but more frequently made house calls. The city of Isin, as cult center for Gula, is thought to have served as a training center for physicians, who were then sent to temples in various cities as needed. There is no evidence of private practice per se, although kings and the more affluent had their own physicians. The doctor was always associated with some temple complex.
Women and men could both be doctors, though, as scholar Jean Bottero notes, "Women scribes or copyists, exorcists or experts in deductive divination [the Asipu and Asu ] could be counted on the fingers of one hand" (117). Still, there were more female physicians in Sumer than elsewhere, and it was no accident that it was the Sumerians, with their high regard for women, who first envisioned a female deity of healing.
ILLNESS & THE GODS
Illness and disease were thought to come from the gods as a punishment or a wake-up call to the individual. The gods had created human beings as their co-workers and so cared for them and provided for their happiness. Even so, as Bottero points out, humans had a tendency toward sin and sometimes needed correction in the form of illness or affliction to turn them back to the right path. Sickness might have other supernatural causes, however, such as demons, evil spirits, or the angry dead. It was entirely possible for an innocent to fall sick, through no fault of their own, and for the doctors to perform every incantation correctly and apply the proper medicines, and yet that person still die.
Doctor's Medical Recipe from Babylon
Even if one god intended only the best for the sick person, another god could have been offended and would refuse to be placated, no matter what offerings were made. To further complicate the situation, one also had to consider that it was not the gods causing the problem but, instead, a ghost whom the gods allowed to cause the trouble to rectify some wrong, or simply an evil spirit, demon, or an angry ghost. Biggs writes:
The dead – especially dead relatives – might also trouble the living, particularly if family obligations to supply offerings to the dead were neglected. Especially likely to return to trouble the living were ghosts of persons who died unnatural deaths or who were not properly buried - for example, death by drowning or death on a battlefield.(4)
Medical books from the library of Ashurbanipal make it clear, however, that doctors had an impressive amount of medical knowledge and applied this regularly in caring for their patients and appeasing the gods and the spirits of the dead. This knowledge, it was thought, came from Gula as a gift from the gods. In the same way that they had sent the affliction, for whatever reason, they also provided the means for a cure. Gula was frequently called upon for help in conception, especially when it was thought some supernatural entity was interfering, and appears in inscriptions invoking fertility. Whether the disease was caused by a god, ghost, or evil spirit, the healing powers of Gula could usually restore the patient to health. She was not always so kind and solicitous, however, and was just as well known for her violent temper.
GULA AS PUNISHER & PROTECTRESS
The goddess is almost as frequently invoked in curses as she is in healing. She was thought to be able to bring earthquakes and storms when she was angered, and among her epithets is 'Queen of the Tempest' and 'She Who Makes Heaven Tremble.'A tablet from the reign of Nebuchadnezzar I (1125-1104 BCE) invokes Gula as a protectress for a memorial. It was customary, whenever a king erected a monument, to add a curse to the inscription on anyone who would deface or remove it, calling upon the gods to punish the transgressor in all kinds of ways. The inscription on Nebuchadnezzar I's memorial reads in part how, if anyone should deface or remove it, "May Ninurta, the king of heaven and earth, and Gula, the bride of E-Sharra, destroy his landmark and blot out his seed" (Wallis Budge, 126). She is also mentioned in other inscriptions in the same way.
Terracotta Plaque Dedicated to Gula
People thought to appease her through worship at her temples where dogs roamed freely about and were well cared for as her sacred companions. Bertman writes, "Her sacred animal was the dog and ceramic models of dogs were dedicated to her at her sanctuaries by those who had been blessed by her tender mercies" (119). The famous Nimrud Dogs, ceramic statuettes found in the 1950's CE at the city of Nimrud, are among the best-known examples of amuletic figures dedicated to Gula.
Her healing powers were as greatly respected as her temper was feared, and her other epithets include 'Healer of the Land,' 'She Who Makes the Broken Whole Again' and 'The Lady Who Restores Life.' It was Gula, after the Great Flood, who breathed life into the new creatures created by the gods to animate them. Through this act, and her care for humans afterwards, she was considered a kind of Mother Goddess, along the same lines as Ninhursag who actually created the bodies of human beings.
Worship at Gula's temples, shrines, and sanctuaries would have been the same as that of any Mesopotamian god or goddess: the priests and priestesses of the temple complex would have taken care of her statue and inner sanctum, and the people would have paid their respects in the outer courtyards, where they would have met with the clergy, had their needs addressed, and left their gifts of supplication or thanks. There were no temple services such as one would recognize in the modern day.
Model Clay Dogs from Nineveh
One significant difference between rites at her temples and at those of other deities was the dogs who somehow took part in the healing rituals, though precise details of what they did are unclear. They may have played a part in ritual sacrifice as there were over thirty dogs buried beneath the ramp leading to Gula's temple at Isin. These dogs may have simply been temple dogs, however, who were honored with burial at the entrance. Ceramic figures like the Nimrud Dogs were buried at doorways and thresholds, often inscribed with Gula's name, for protection against harm. These figurines have been found at a number of sites besides Nimrud, most notably at Nineveh, and inscriptions make clear that burying dog figures - or in this case actual dogs - was a powerful charm in protecting a home from evil.
Female deities lost much of their prestige during the reign of Hammurabi (1792-1750 BCE) and afterwards when male gods dominated the theological landscape, but Gula continued to be worshiped in the same way and with the same respect. Her transformative powers associated her with agriculture (another of her epithets is 'Herb Grower'), and so she was worshiped in hopes of a good harvest, as well as for childbearing and good health in general. Veneration of the goddess continued well into the Christian period, and in the Near East, she was as popular as many better-known deities like Isis and Athena. Her cult declined as Christianity became more entrenched in the minds of the people until, by the end of the first millennium CE, she had been forgotten.
Enlil › Who Was
Definition and Origins
Enlil (also known as Ellil and Nunamnir) was the Sumerian god of the air in the Mesopotamian Pantheon but was more powerful than any other elemental deities and eventually was worshiped as King of the Gods. He was the son of the god of the heavens Anu (also known as An) and, with Anu and Enki (god of wisdom), formed a triad which governed the heavens, earth, and underworld or, alternately, the universe, sky and atmosphere, and earth. After Anu, Enlil was the most powerful of the Mesopotamian gods, keeper of the Tablets of Destiny which contained the fates of gods and humanity, and considered an unstoppable force whose decisions could not be questioned.
The city of Nippur was the central seat of Enlil's worship at the temple known as 'the Mountain House,' but he was also honored in Babylon and other cities. He was the only god with direct access to Anu, who controlled the universe, and was highly respected for this position, but at the same time, his decisions seem to be final without regard to Anu, and so it can seem unclear what Anu's influence over Enlil was.
Although his name translates as 'Lord of Air,' he was clearly considered much more than a sky god. He is referred to as 'Father of the Black-headed People' (the Sumerians ) and 'Father of the Gods' in some inscriptions, but other ancient texts make clear that Enki conceived of creating human beings and the gods were either born of Anu and Uras (Heaven and Earth) or, according to the Babylonian Enuma Elish, from Apsu and Tiamat (Fresh and Salt Water) or their children Anshar and Kishar (also Heaven and Earth). Scholar Stephen Bertman tries to clarify Enlil's position, writing :
If Anu was the heavenly chairman of the board, Enlil was the heavenly corporation's CEO, or chief executive officer. His cosmic headquarters were based at Nippur. His executive assistant was his son Nuska. Enlil/Ellil was a family man, married to Ninlil (also called Sud), and with her he raised a brood that included - among others - the moon-god Nanna /Sin, the sun-god Utu-Shamash, the weather god Ishkur/Adad, and the love-goddess Inanna / Ishtar. (118)
Although that explanation may clarify somewhat, Enlil is also sometimes referred to as the son of Enki and Ninki (Lord and Lady Earth and not Enki, the god of wisdom) while Enki, the god of wisdom, is established as the twin brother of Ishkur/Adad, which would make him obviously another son of Enlil, which he was not. Further, although Inanna is frequently depicted as a daughter of Enki, she is also mentioned as Enlil's child. All of these seeming contradictions stem from Mesopotamia 's long history and the different cultures which adopted Sumerian gods and made them their own with additions and alterations to their stories. Sometimes these changes expand upon or continue older stories, but often different scribes in various eras simply rewrote the tales to suit their purposes.
Worship of Enlil dates from the Early Dynastic Period I (c. 2900-2700 BCE) at Nippur and firmly from the time of the Akkadian Empire (2334 - c. 2083 BCE) down until he was absorbed and assimilated into the god Marduk during the reign of Hammurabi of Babylon (1792-1750 BCE). Even after that time, however, he continued to be widely honored throughout Mesopotamia, and so it is not surprising that different stories, from different regions and various eras, should depict him with different characteristics and details. His importance as the supreme god for hundreds of years is reflected in the roles he plays in Mesopotamian myths.
ENLIL & NINLIL
In the early myth known as Enlil and Ninlil, Enlil is seen as a young god living in the city of Nippur before the creation of human beings. Nippur is an urban center of the gods in this story and governed by divine law. Ninlil (also known as Sud) is a young and beautiful goddess who is attracted to Enlil as he is to her. Ninlil's mother, Nisaba (goddess of writing and scribe of the gods), cautions her against going to bathe in the river and encouraging the advances of young Enlil, warning her against the dangers of losing her virginity. Ninlil ignores this advice, however, goes to the river, and is seduced by Enlil. She becomes pregnant and gives birth to the moon god Nanna. Enlil must then go to Nisaba and ask for her daughter's hand in marriage.
IN THE MYTH OF ANZU, ENLIL WAS VIEWED AS THE EPITOME OF KINGSHIP, ACTING AS A MEDIATOR BETWEEN THE HIGHER POWERS & THE MORTAL WORLD.
Afterwards, as Enlil is walking through the city, he is arrested by the other gods for being ritually impure and exiled from the city to the underworld. The charge against him seems to have nothing to do with Ninlil's seduction, however. Ninlil is also arrested and exiled and follows him out of the gates but at some distance behind him. Enlil speaks to each of the keepers of the gates or important personages of the underworld instructing them not to tell Ninlil where he has gone if she should ask. He then disguises himself as each one, and when Ninlil approaches and asks where Enlil has gone, he says he will not tell her.Ninlil offers him sex for information, and he agrees although each time this happens, he tells her nothing. In this way, they give birth to the deities Nergal, Ninazu, and Enbilulu, gods of war, healing, and canals, respectively. In other myths, however, these three gods have different parents and Ninazu, especially, is more commonly known as the son of Gula, goddess of healing. The hero-god Ninurta is also sometimes represented as one of their children though, in the best-known myths, he is the son of Ninhursag and Enlil.
The story ends in praise for Enlil for his virility, and the myth is thought to celebrate the fertility of the earth. The two young deities, defying the laws which would keep them apart, join together to produce life, and even when they are banished to the underworld, they cannot be separated and continue the creative act. Enlil as the rebel who defies the laws of the gods to pursue his own desires changes in other myths into the authority who wields the power of divine law and whose judgments cannot be questioned.
ENLIL & THE ANZU BIRD
In the Babylonian Myth of Anzu (early 2nd millennium BCE), Enlil is seen as the supreme god who holds the Tablets of Destiny, sacred objects which legitimized the rule of a supreme god and held the fates of the gods and humanity. Scholar EA Wallis Budge relates one version of the myth:
The Zu bird [also known as the Anzu], the symbol of storm and tempest, was a god of evil who waged war against Enlil, the holder of the "Tablets of Fate", whereby he ruled heaven and earth. Zu coveted this tablet and determined to take it and rule in his stead. Zu watched his opportunity and, one morning when Enlil had taken off his crown and set it down on a stand, and was washing his face with clean water, Zu snatched the Tablet from him and flew away with it into the mountains. Anu called on the gods to go out against Zu and take the Tablet from him but one and all refused and the affairs of heaven and earth fell into disorder. (111)
In this particular version of the myth, the hero Lugalbanda retrieves the tablets, while in others it is Ninurta or Marduk who are the champions. In each version, however, Enlil is shown as the legitimate king of the gods, authorized to act by the Tablets of Destiny and fully supported by the supreme god Anu. In this light, Enlil was viewed as the epitome of kingship, acting as a mediator between the higher powers and the mortal world. Even so, even Enlil could have a bad day and lose his patience as recorded in the myth of the Great Flood known as The Atrahasis.
THE ATRAHASIS
In The Atrahasis (c. 17th century BCE), the elder gods live a life of leisure while forcing the younger gods to do all the work in maintaining the universe. The younger gods have no time for themselves, and so Enki proposes they make lesser creatures who will work for them. When they can find no suitable material to make these new beings out of, the god We-llu (also known as llawela) volunteers to be sacrificed and is killed. The mother goddess Ninhursag then kneads his flesh, blood, and intelligence into clay to create 14 human beings: seven male and seven female.
The Atrahasis III Tablet
Enlil finally cannot tolerate the noise anymore and decides to decrease their population. He sends a drought, a pestilence, and a famine upon the people, but each time they appeal to their creator Enki for help and he secretly informs them what to do to save themselves and return balance to the earth. Enlil cannot understand what is happening since somehow everything he sends against the creatures seems to simply help them multiply more abundantly, and so he decides to destroy them all in a great flood.
He convinces the other gods of the necessity of his plan and sets it in motion. Enki disagrees but can do nothing to change Enlil's decree once it has been made. Enki travels to earth to whisper to the sage Atrahasis about what is coming and tells him to build an ark and load two of every kind of animal into it to save them and himself. Atrahasis does as he is told, the flood comes, and life on earth is destroyed.
Enlil almost instantly regrets his decision, and the gods mourn the passing of their creatures, but none of them can do anything about the situation. Enki then tells Atrahasis to open the ark and make a sacrifice to the gods, and he does so. The sweet smell of the sacrifice reaches the heavens and Enlil, although only just upset about his flood, is furious that a human somehow survived. He turns on Enki who explains himself and invites the gods to join him in accepting the sacrifice. As they eat, Enki proposes a new plan by which they will create new creatures who will be less fertile and have shorter lifespans, and Enlil agrees. Human beings are created to experience infertility, mortality, and daily threats to their existence. Although Enki is regarded as the creator, since humanity was his idea, nothing could move ahead without Enlil's consent, and so he was regarded as the great father of men and women.
WORSHIP & ASSIMILATION WITH MARDUK
Enlil continued to be worshiped up through the reign of Hammurabi when the Babylonian god Marduk, son of Enki, became supreme. Marduk, hero of the Enuma Elish, was represented as defeating the forces of chaos, creating human beings and the earth they lived on, and establishing law and agriculture. The most important qualities of Enlil (and some of Enki's) were absorbed into Marduk, who then became the king of the gods not only for the Babylonians but, as the son of Assur, of the Assyrians.
From the Early Dynastic Period until Hammurabi's reign, Enlil was worshiped at his temple in Nippur, the most important religious site in southern Mesopotamia other than Eridu (associated with Enki). According to scholar Jeremy Black, Enlil was so powerful and awe-inspiring that "the other gods might not even look upon his splendour" (76). From Nippur, his worship spread north to Akkad and throughout Sumer, with temples at Kish, Lagash, Babylon, and other cities. Worship of Enlil, as with other Mesopotamian gods, focused on the temple and temple complex which served multiple purposes for the community.
There were no temple services, as one would understand them today, but the temple still served as an integral aspect of every city. People would worship Enlil by bringing offerings with supplications or in thanks for gifts given, and the god's statue and inner sanctum would be cared for by the high priest. As was customary throughout Mesopotamia and Egypt, none but the high priest could enter the presence of the god or commune with him in the temple, and most people's interactions with their deities were through private rituals at home or public festivals.
Diorite Mortar
Once Enlil was absorbed into Marduk, his worship declined but he was still honored in shrines in many cities, and even in Babylon it was understood that Enlil and Anu had willingly conferred their power and blessings on Marduk. Enlil's temples were still active during the time of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (912-612 BCE) when the gods Assur, Marduk, and Nabu were considered the supreme deities. According to scholar Adam Stone, "Enlil's power was clearly remembered for even [these gods] were referred to as the 'Assyrian Enlil' or the 'Enlil of the gods'" (2).
After the fall of the Assyrian empire in 612 BCE, Enlil suffered the fate of many Mesopotamian gods associated with Assyrian rule: his statues were destroyed and his temples sacked. Gods who had managed to transcend their association with Assyriain the minds of the people, like Marduk, lived on, and in transferring Enlil's qualities to the younger god, Enlil survived under that name until c. 141 BCE, by which time veneration of Marduk had declined and Enlil was forgotten.
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