Hisconsort，however，wasnamedNin—sun（orNin—gul）。
Lugal—Du—azaga，"thekingofthegloriousseat。"——Thefounderofêridu，"thegoodcitywithintheAbyss，"probablytheparadise（oraparadise）oftheworldtocome。AsitwastheaimofeverygoodBabyloniantodwellhereafterwiththegodwhomhehadworshippeduponearth，itmaybeconjecturedthatthiswastheparadiseinthedomainofêaorAa。
Mama，Mami。——Namesof"theladyofthegods，"andcreatressoftheseedofmankind，Aruru。Probablysocalledasthe"mother"ofallthings。AnothernameofthisgoddessisAma，"mother。"
Mammitum，Mamitum，goddessoffate。
Mur，oneofthenamesofAdduorRammanu（HadadorRimmon）。
NanaorNanaawastheconsortofNeboatBorsippa，butappearsasaformofI？tar，worshipped，withAnuherfather，atErech。
Nin—aha—kuku，anameofêaorAaandofhisdaughterasdeityoftherivers，andthereforeofgardensandplantations，whichwerewateredbymeansofthesmallcanalsleadingtherefrom。Asdaughterofêa，thisdeitywasalso"ladyoftheincantation。"
Nin—azu，theconsortofEre？—ki—gal，probablyas"lordphysician。"HeisprobablytobeidentifiedwithNerigal。
Nin—igi—nagar—si，anamesomewhatmoredoubtfulastoitsreadingthantheothers，designatesêaorAaas"thegodofthecarpenter。"Heseemstohavebornethisas"thegreatconstructorofheaven"or"ofAnu。"
Nin—mah，chiefgoddessofthetempleê—mahinBabylon。ProbablytobeidentifiedwithAruru，andthereforewithZer—pan？tum。
Nin—？ah，adeitywhosenameisconjecturedtomean"lordofthewildboar。"Heseemstohavebeenagodofwar，andwasidentifiedwithNirigorênu—rê？tuandPap—sukal。
Nin—sirsir，êaasthegodofsailors。
Nin—sun，aspointedoutbyJastrow，wasprobablythesameasI？tarorNanaofErech，whereshehadashrine，withthem，inê—anna，"thehouseofAnu。"Herendershername"theannihilatinglady，"[*]
"appropriatefortheconsortofasun—god，"forsuchheregardsLugal—
bandaherspouse。KingSin—gasidofErech（about3000B。C。）referstoherashismother。
[*]Thisisduetothesecondelementofthenamehaving，withanotherpronunciation，themeaningof"todestroy。"
Nun—urra。——êa，asthegodofpotters。
Pap—sukal。——AnameofNin—？ahasthe"divinemessenger，"whoisalsodescribedasgod"ofdecisions。"Nin—？ahwouldseemtohavebeenoneofthenamesofPap—sukalratherthanthereverse。
Qarradu，"strong，""mighty，""brave。"——Thisword，whichwasformerlytranslated"warrior，"isappliedtoseveraldeities，amongthembeingBêl，Nergal，Nirig（ênu—rê？tu），and？ama？，thesun—god。
RagimuandRamimu，namesofRimmonorHadadas"thethunderer。"ThesecondcomesfromthesamerootasRammanu（Rimmon）。？uqamunu。——Adeityregardedas"lordofwatercourses，"probablytheartificialchannelsdugfortheirrigationoffields。
Ura—gala，anameofNerigal。
Ura？，anameofNirig，underwhichhewasworshippedatDailem，nearBabylon。
Zagaga，dialecticZamama。——Thisdeity，whowasagodofwar，wasidentifiedwithNirig。Oneofthistitleswas/bêlparakki/，"lordoftheroyalchamber，"or"throne—room。"
ZaraquorZariqu。——Astherootofthisnamemeans"tosprinkle，"hewasprobablyalsoagodofirrigation，andmayhavepresidedoverceremonialpurification。Heismentionedinnamesasthe"giverofseed"and"giverofaname"（i。e。offspring）。
Theseareonlyasmallproportionofthenamesfoundintheinscriptions，butshortasthelistnecessarilyis，thenature，ifnotthefullcomposition，oftheBabylonianpantheonwilleasilybeestimatedtherefrom。
Itwillbeseenthatbesidestheidentificationsofthedeitiesofallthelocalpantheonswitheachother，eachdivinityhadalmostasmanynamesasattributesandtitles，hencetheirexceedingmultiplicity。Insuchanextensivepantheon，manyofthegodscomposingitnecessarilyoverlap，andidentificationofeachother，towhichthefaith，initsprimitiveform，wasastranger，wereinevitable。Thetendencytomonotheismwhichthiscausedwillbereferredtolateron。
Thegodsandtheheavenlybodies。
Ithasalreadybeenpointedoutthat，fromtheevidenceoftheBabyloniansyllabary，thedeitiesoftheBabylonianswerenotastralintheirorigin，theonlygodscertainlyoriginatinginheavenlybodiesbeingthesunandthemoon。ThisleadstothesuppositionthattheBabylonians，bearingthesetwodeitiesinmind，mayhaveaskedthemselveswhy，ifthesetwowererepresentedbyheavenlybodies，theothersshouldnotbesorepresentedalso。Bethisasitmay，theotherdeitiesofthepantheonweresorepresented，andthefullplanetaryscheme，asgivenbyabilinguallistintheBritishMuseum，wasasfollows：
AkuSinthemoonSinBi？ebi？ama？thesun？ama？
DapinuUmun—sig—êaJupiterMerodachZib[*]Dele—batVenusI？tarLu—limLu—bat—sag—u？SaturnNirig（acc。toJensen）
BibbuLubat—gudMercuryNeboSimutuMu？tabarruMarsNergalm？tanuAlltheabovenamesofplanetshavetheprefixofdivinity，butinotherinscriptionsthedeterminativeprefixisthatfor"star，"
/kakkabu/。
[*]ThisisapparentlyaSumeriandialecticform，theoriginalwordhavingseeminglybeenZig。
MoonandSun。
Unfortunately，alltheaboveidentificationsoftheplanetswiththedeitiesinthefourthcolumnarenotcertain，namely，thosecorrespondingwithSaturn，Mercury，andMars。Withregardtotheothers，however，thereisnodoubtwhatever。Thereasonwhythemoonisplacedbeforethesunisthatthesun，asalreadyexplained，wasregardedashisson。Itwasnoteworthyalsothatthemoonwasaccreditedwithtwootheroffspring，namely，Ma？uandMa？tu——sonanddaughterrespectively。As/ma？u/means"twin，"thesenamesmustsymbolisethetwohalves，or，aswesay，"quarters"ofthemoon，whowerethusregarded，inBabylonianmythology，ashis"twinchildren。"
JupiterandSaturn。
ConcerningJupiter，whoisintheabovecalledDapinu（Semitic），andUmun—sig—êa（Sumerian），ithasalreadybeennotedthathewascalledNibiru——accordingtoJensen，Merodachashewhowentaboutamongthestars"pasturing"themlikesheep，asstatedintheBabylonianstoryoftheCreation（orBelandtheDragon）。ThisisexplainedbyhimasbeingduetothecomparativelyrapidandextensivepathofJupiterontheecliptic，anditwouldseemprobablethatthenamesofSaturn，/Kaawanu/and/Sag—u？/（theformer，whichisSemiticBabylonian，meaning"steadfast，"orsomethingsimilar，andthelatter，inSumerian，"head—firm"or"steadfast"——"phlegmatic"），toallappearanceindicateinlikemannerthedeliberationofhismovementscomparedwiththoseoftheplanetdedicatedtothekingofthegods。
Venusatsunriseandsunset。
Afragmentofatabletpublishedin1870givessomeinterestingparticularsconcerningtheplanetVenus，probablyexplainingsomeasyetunknownmythologicalstoryconcerningher。Accordingtothis，shewasafemaleatsunset，andamaleatsunrise；I？tarofAgadé（AkadorAkkad）atsunrise，andI？tarofErechatsunset：I？tarofthestarsatsunrise，andtheladyofthegodsatsunset。
Andinthevariousmonths。
I？tarwasidentifiedwithNin—si—annainthefirstmonthoftheyear（Nisan=March—April），withthestarofthebowinAb（August—
September），etc。InSebat（January—February）shewasthestarofthewater—channel，Ik？，whichwasMerodach’sstarinSivan（May—June），andinMarcheswanherstarwasRabbu，whichalsobelongedtoMerodachinthesamemonth。Itwillthusbeseen，thatBabylonianastronomyisfarfrombeingasclearaswouldbedesired，butdoubtlessmanydifficultieswilldisappearwhenfurtherinscriptionsareavailable。
StarsidentifiedwithMerodach。
ThesamefragmentgivesthecelestialnamesofMerodachforeverymonthoftheyear，fromwhichitwouldappear，thattheastrologerscalledhimUmun—sig—êainNisan（March—April），DapinuinTammuz（June—
July），NibiruinTisri（September—October），？arru（thestarRegulus），inTebet（December—January），etc。ThefirstthreearenamesbywhichtheplanetJupiterwasknown。
Asfortheplanetsandstars，soalsofortheconstellations，whichareidentifiedwithmanygodsanddivinebeings，andprobablycontainreferences，intheirnamesanddescriptions，tomanylegends。InthesixthtabletoftheCreation—series，itisrelatedofMerodachthat，aftercreatingtheheavensandthestationsforAnu，Bêl，andAe，"Hebuiltfirmlythestationsofthegreatgods——
Starstheirlikeness——hesetupthe/Lumali/，Hedesignatedtheyear，heoutlinedthe（heavenly）forms。
Hesetforthetwelvemonthsthreestarseach，Fromthedaywhentheyearbegins，……forsigns。"
AspointedoutbyMr。RobertBrown，jr。，whohasmadeastudyofthesethings，the"threestars"foreachmonthoccurononeoftheremainsofplanispheresintheBritishMuseum，andarecompletedbyatabletwhichgivestheminlist—form，inonecasewithexplanations。Untiltheseareproperlyidentified，however，itwillbeimpossibletoestimatetheirrealvalue。ThesignsoftheZodiac，whicharegivenbyanothertablet，areofgreaterinterest，astheyaretheoriginalsofthosewhichareinuseatthepresenttime：——
MonthSignEquivalentNisan（Mar。—Apr。）TheLabourerTheRamIyyar（Apr。—May）/Mulmula/andtheBullofheavenTheBullSivan（May—June）/Sib—zi—anna/andthegreatTwinsTheTwinsTammuz（June—July）/Allul/or/Nagar/TheCrabAb（July。—Aug。）TheLion（ordog）TheLionElul（Aug。—Sep。）TheEarofcorn（？）TheearofCorn（Virgo）
Tisri（Sep。—Oct。）TheScalesTheScalesMarcheswan（Oct。—Nov。）TheScorpionTheScorpionChisleu（Nov。—Dec。）/Pa—bil—sag/TheArcherTebet（Dec。—Jan。）/Sahar—ma？/，theFish—kidTheGoatSebat（Jan。—Feb。）/Gula/TheWater—bearerAdar（Feb。—Mar。）TheWaterChannelandtheTailsTheFishesParallelsinBabylonianlegends。
The"bullofheaven"probablyreferstosomelegendsuchasthatofthestoryofGilgame？inhisconflictwiththegoddessI？tarwhenthedivinebullwaskilled；/Sib—zi—anna/，"thefaithfulshepherdofheaven，"suggeststhatthisconstellationmayrefertoTammuz，thedivineshepherd；whilst"thescorpion"remindsusofthescorpion—menwhoguardedthegateofthesun（？ama？），whenGilgame？wasjourneyingtogaininformationconcerninghisfriendEnki—du，whohaddepartedtotheplaceofthedead。SirHenryRawlinsonmanyyearsagopointedoutthatthestoryoftheFloodoccupiedtheeleventhtabletoftheGilgame？series，correspondingwiththeeleventhsignoftheZodiac，Aquarius，ortheWater—bearer。
Otherstar—names。
Othernamesofstarsorconstellationsinclude"theweaponofMerodach’shand，"probablythatwithwhichheslewthedragonofChaos；"theHorse，"whichisdescribedas"thegodZ？，"Rimmon’sstorm—bird——Pegasus；"theSerpent，"explainedasEre？—ki—gal，thequeenofHades，whowouldthereforeseemtohavebeenconceivedinthatform；"theScorpion，"whichisgivenas/I？haratantim/，"I？haraofthesea，"adescriptiondifficulttoexplain，unlessitrefertoherasthegoddessofthePh？niciancoast。Manyotheridentifications，exceedinglyinteresting，awaitsolution。
Howthegodswererepresented。Oncylinder—seals。
Manyrepresentationsofthegodsoccur，bothonbas—reliefs，boundary—
stones，andcylindricalandordinaryseals。Unfortunately，theiridentificationgenerallypresentsmoreorlessdifficulty，onaccountoftheabsenceofindicationsoftheiridentity。Onasmallcylinder—
sealinthepossessionoftheRev。Dr。W。HayesWard，MerodachisshownstridingalongtheserpentinebodyofTiawath，whoturnsherheadtoattackhim，whilstthegodthreatensherwithapointedweaponwhichhecarries。Another，publishedbythesamescholar，showsadeity，whomheregardsasbeingMerodach，driveninachariotdrawnbyawingedlion，uponwhoseshouldersstandsanakedgoddess，holdingthunderboltsineachhand，whomhedescribesasZer—pan？tum。Anothercylinder—sealshowsthecorn—deity，probablyNisaba，seatedinflouncedrobeandhornedhat，withcorn—stalksspringingoutfromhisshoulders，andholdingatwofoldearofcorninhishand，whilstanattendantintroduces，andanotherwithathreefoldearofcornfollows，amancarryingaplough，apparentlyasanoffering。Onanother，abeautifulspecimenfromAssyria，I？tarisshownstandingonanAssyrianlion，whichturnshisheadasiftocaressherfeet。Asgoddessofwar，sheisarmedwithbowandarrows，andherstarisrepresenteduponthecrownofhertiara。
Onboundary—stones，etc。
Ontheboundary—stonesofBabyloniaandtheroyalmonolithsofAssyriatheemblemsofthegodsarenearlyalwaysseen。Mostprominentarethreehornedtiaras，emblematic，probably，ofMerodach，Anu，andBêl（theolder）。Acolumnendinginaram’sheadisusedforêaorAe，acrescentforSinorNannar，themoon—god；adiscwithraysfor？ama？，thesun—god；athunderboltforRimmonorHadad，thegodofthunder，lightning，wind，andstorms；alampforNusku，etc。Abird，perhapsahawk，stoodforUtu—gi？gallu，adeitywhosenamehasbeentranslated"thesouthernsun，"andisexplainedinthebilingualinscriptionsas？ama？，thesun—god，andNirig，oneofthegodsofwar。TheemblemofGal—alim，whoisidentifiedwiththeolderBêl，isasnarlingdragon’sheadformingtheterminationofapole，andthatofDun—a？agaisabird’sheadsimilarlyposed。Onaboundary—stoneofthetimeofNebuchadnezzarI。，about1120B。C。，oneofthesignsofthegodsshowsahorse’sheadinakindofshrine，probablytheemblemofRimmon’sstorm—bird，Z？，theBabylonianPegasus。
Otherdivinefigures。
Oneofthefinestofalltherepresentationsofdivinitiesisthatofthe"Sun—god—stone，"foundbyMr。HormuzdRassamatAbu—habbah（theancientSippar），whichwasoneofthechiefseatsofhisworship。Itrepresentshim，seatedinhisshrine，holdinginhishandastaffandaring，hisusualemblems，typifyinghispositionasjudgeoftheworldandhisendlesscourse。ThepositionofMerodachassun—godisconfirmedbythesmalllapis—lazulirelieffoundbytheGermanexpeditionatthemoundknownasAmranibn’Ali，ashealsocarriesastaffandaring，andhisrobeiscoveredwithornamentalcircles，showing，inallprobability，hissolarnature。InthesameplaceanothersmallreliefrepresentingRimmonorHadadwasfound。Hisrobehasdiscsemblematicalofthefiveplanets，andheholdsineachhandathunderbolt，oneofwhichheisabouttolaunchforth。Merodachisaccompaniedbyalargetwo—horneddragon，whilstHadadhasasmallwingeddragon，typifyingtheswiftnessofhiscourse，andanotheranimal，bothofwhichheholdswithcords。
CHAPTERV
THEDEMONS：EXORCISMSANDCEREMONIES
Goodandevilspirits，godsanddemons，werefullybelievedinbytheBabyloniansandAssyrians，andmanytextsreferringtothemexist。
Naturallyitisnotinsomecaseseasytodistinguishwellbetweenthespecialfunctionsofthesesupernaturalappearanceswhichtheysupposedtoexist，buttheirnatureis，inmostcases，easilyascertainedfromtheinscriptions。
Toallappearance，theBabyloniansimaginedthatspiritsresidedeverywhere，andlayinwaittoattackmankind，andtoeachclass，apparently，aspecialprovinceinbringingmisfortune，ortormenting，orcausingpainandsickness，wasassigned。Allthespirits，however，werenotevil，eventhosewhosenameswouldsuggestthattheircharacterwassuch——thereweregood"liersinwait，"forinstance，aswellasevilones，whoseattitudetowardsmankindwasbeneficent。
The/utukku/。ThiswasaspiritwhichwassupposedtodothewillofAnu，thegodoftheheavens。Therewasthe/utukku/oftheplain，themountains，thesea，andthegrave。
The/al？/。Regardedasthedemonofthestorm，andpossibly，initsorigin，thesameasthedivinebullsentbyI？tartoattackGilgame？，andkilledbyEnki—du。Itspreaditselfoveraman，overpoweringhimuponhisbed，andattackinghisbreast。
The/êdimmu/。Thisisgenerally，butwrongly，read/êkimmu/，andtranslated"theseizer，"from/êkemu/，"toseize。"Inreality，however，itwasanordinaryspirit，andthewordisusedforthewraithsofthedeparted。The"evil/êdimmu/"wasapparentlyregardedasattackingthemiddlepartofaman。
The/gallu/。AsthiswordisborrowedfromtheSumerian/galla/，whichhasadialecticform，/mulla/，itisnotimprobablethatitmaybeconnectedwiththeword/mula/，meaning"star，"andsuggestingsomethingwhichisvisiblebythelightitgives——possiblyawill—o’—
the—wisp，——thoughothersareinclinedtoregardthewordasbeingconnectedwith/gala/，"great。"Inanycase，itsmeaningseemstohavebecomeverysimilarto"evilspirit"or"devil"ingeneral，andisanepithetappliedbytheAssyriankingA？？ur—bani—aplitoTe—umman，theElamitekingagainstwhomhefought。
The/？lulimnu/，"evilgod，"wasprobablyoriginallyoneofthedeitiesofTiawath’sbrood，uponwhomMerodach’sredemptionhadhadnoeffect。
The/rabisu/isregardedasaspiritwhichlayinwaittopounceuponhisprey。
The/labartu/，inSumerian/dimme/，wasafemaledemon。Thereweresevenevilspiritsofthiskind，whowereapparentlyregardedasbeingdaughtersofAnu，thegodoftheheavens。
The/labasu/，inSumerian/dimmea/，wasapparentlyaspiritwhichoverthrew，thatbeingthemeaningoftherootfromwhichthewordcomes。
The/ahhazu/，inSumerian/dimme—kur/，wasapparentlysocalledas"theseizer，"thatbeingthemeaningindicatedbytheroot。
The/lilu/，inSumerian/lila/，isgenerallyregardedas"thenight—
monster，"thewordbeingreferredtotheSemiticroot/l？l/or/layl/，whencetheHebrew/layil/，Arabic/layl/，"night。"Itsorigin，however，isSumerian，from/lila/，regardedasmeaning"mist。"Totheword/lilu/theancientBabyloniansformedafeminine，/lil？thu/，whichenteredtheHebrewlanguageundertheformof/lilith/，whichwas，accordingtotherabbins，abeautifulwoman，wholayinwaitforchildrenbynight。The/lilu/hadacompanionwhoiscalledhishandmaidorservant。
The/namtaru/wasapparentlythespiritoffate，andthereforeofgreaterimportancethanthosealreadymentioned。ThisbeingwasregardedasthebelovedsonofBêl，andoffspringof/Ere？—ki—gal/orPersephone，andhehadaspousenamed/Hu？—bi—？aga/。Apparentlyheexecutedtheinstructionsgivenhimconcerningthefateofmen，andcouldalsohavepowerovercertainofthegods。
The/？êdu/wereapparentlydeitiesintheformofbulls。Theyweredestructive，ofenormouspower，andunsparing。Inagoodsensethe/？êdu/wasaprotectingdeity，guardingagainsthostileattacks。Erechandthetempleê—kurawereprotectedbyspiritssuchasthese，andtooneofthemI？um，"theglorioussacrificer，"waslikened。
The/lamassu/，fromtheSumerian/lama/，wassimilarincharactertothe/？êdu/，butisthoughttohavebeenofthenatureofacolossus——awingedman—headedbullorlion。Itisthesecreatureswhichthekingsplacedatthesidesofthedoorsoftheirpalaces，toprotecttheking’sfootsteps。InearlyBabyloniantimesagodnamedLamawasoneofthemostpopulardeitiesoftheBabylonianpantheon。
Aspecimenincantation。
Numerousinscriptions，whichmayberegardedasdating，intheirorigin，fromaboutthemiddleofthethirdmillenniumbeforeChrist，speakofthesesupernaturalbeings，andalsoofotherssimilar。OneofthemostperfectoftheseinscriptionsisalargebilingualtabletofwhichaduplicatewrittenduringtheperiodofthedynastyofHammurabi（before2000B。C。）exists，andwhichwasafterwardsprovidedwithaSemiticBabyloniantranslation。Thisinscriptionreferstotheevilgod，theevil/utukku/，the/utukku/oftheplain，ofthemountain，ofthesea，andofthegrave；theevil/？êdu/，theglorious/al？/，ordivinebull，andtheevilunsparingwind。Therewasalsothatwhichtakestheformofaman，theevilface，theevileye，theevilmouth，theeviltongue，theevillip，theevilbreath；alsotheafflicting/asakku/（regardedasthedemonoffever），the/asakku/
whichdoesnotleaveaman：theafflicting/namtaru/（fate），thesevere/namtaru/，the/namtaru/whichdoesnotquitaman。Afterthisarementionedvariousdiseases，bodilypains，annoyances，suchas"theoldshoe，thebrokenshoe—lace，thefoodwhichafflictsthebodyofaman，thefoodwhichturnsineating，thewaterwhichchokesindrinking，"etc。Otherthingstobeexorcisedincludedthespiritofdeath，peoplewhohaddiedofhunger，thirst，orinotherways；thehandmaidofthe/lilu/whohadnohusband，theprinceofthe/lilu/
whohadnowife，whetherhisnamehadbeenrecordedorunrecorded。
Themethodofexorcisingthedemonscausingallthesethingsiscurious。Whiteandblackyarnwasspun，andfastenedtothesideandcanopyoftheafflictedperson’sbed——thewhitetothesideandthetoporcanopy，theblacktothelefthand——andthen，apparently，thefollowingwordsweresaid：——
"Evil/utukku/，evil/al？/，evil/êdimmu/，evil/gallu/，evilgod，evil/rabisu/，/labartu/，/labasu/，/ahhazu/，/lilu/，/lilithu/，handmaidof/lilu/，sorcery，enchantment，magic，disaster，machinationwhichisnotgood——maytheynotsettheirheadtohishead，theirhandtohishand，theirfoottohisfoot——maytheynotdrawnear。Spiritofheaven，mayestthouexorcise，spiritofearth，mayestthouexorcise。"
Butthiswasonlythebeginningoftherealceremony。ThegodAsari—
alim—nunna（Merodach），"eldestsonofêridu，"wasaskedtowashhiminpureandbrightwatertwiceseventimes，andthenwouldtheevillier—
in—waitdepart，andstandaside，andapropitious/？êdu/andapropitious/labartu/resideinhisbody。Thegatesrightandlefthavingbeenthus，sotosay，shutclose，theevilgods，demons，andspiritswouldbeunabletoapproachhim，whereverhemightbe。"Spiritofheaven，exorcise，spiritofearth，exorcise。"Then，afteraninvocationofêrê？—ki—galandI？um，thefinalparagraphwaspronounced：——
"Theafflictedman，byanofferingofgraceInhealthlikeshiningbronzeshallbemadebright。
Asforthatman，？ama？shallgivehimlife。
Merodach，first—bornsonoftheAbyss，Itisthinetopurifyandglorify。
Spiritofheaven，mayestthouexorcise，spiritofearth，mayestthouexorcise。"
Ritesandceremonies。
Asmaybeexpected，theBabyloniansandAssyrianshadnumerousritesandceremonies，theduecarryingoutofwhichwasnecessaryfortheattainmentofthegracedemanded，orfortheefficacyofthethankstenderedforfavoursreceived。
PerhapstheoldestceremonyrecordedisthatwhichUt—napi？tim，theChald？anNoah，madeonthe/zikkurat/orpeakofthemountainafterthecomingforthfromtheshipwhichhadsavedhimandhisfromtheFlood。ThePatriarch’sdescriptionofthisceremonyisshort：——
"Isentforthtothefourwinds，IpouredoutalibationImadeanofferingonthepeakofthemountain：
SevenandsevenIsetincense—vasesthere，IntotheirdepthsIpouredcane，cedar，andscentedwood（？）。
Thegodssmelledasavour，Thegodssmelledasweetsavour，Thegodsgatheredlikefliesoverthesacrificer。"
Followinginthefootstepsoftheirgreatprogenitor，theBabyloniansandAssyriansbecameamostpiousrace，constantlyrenderingtotheirgodsthegloryforeverythingwhichtheysucceededinbringingtoasuccessfulissue。Prayer，supplication，andself—abasementbeforetheirgodsseemtohavebeenwiththemadutyandapleasure：——
"Thetimefortheworshipofthegodswasmyheart’sdelight，ThetimeoftheofferingtoI？tarwasprofitandriches，"
singsLudlulthesage，andallthepeopleofhislandwereonewithhiminthatopinion。
ItisnoteworthythattheofferingoftheChald？anNoahconsistedofvegetableproduceonly，andtherearemanyinscriptionsreferringtosimilarbloodlesssacrifices，anddetailingtheritualusedinconnectiontherewith。Sacrificesofanimals，however，seemtohavebeenconstantlymade——inanycase，offeringsofcattleandfowl，inlist—form，arefairlynumerous。Manyacylinder—sealhasarepresentationoftheownerbringingayounganimal——akidoralamb——
asanofferingtothedeitywhomheworshipped，andintheinscriptionsthesacrificeofanimalsisfrequentlyreferredto。Oneofthebilingualtextsreferstotheofferingofakidorsomeotheryounganimal，apparentlyonbehalfofasickman。Thetextofthis，wherecomplete，runsasfollows：——
"Thefatlingwhichisthe’head—raiser’ofmankind——
Hehasgiventhefatlingforhislife。
Hehasgiventheheadofthefatlingforhishead，Hehasgiventheneckofthefatlingforhisneck，Hehasgiventhebreastofthefatlingforhisbreast。"
Whetherhumansacrificeswerecommonornotisadoubtfulpoint。Manycylinder—sealsexistinwhichtheslayingofamanisdepicted，andtheFrenchAssyriologistMenantwasofopinionthattheyrepresentedahumanofferingtothegods。HayesWard，however，isinclinedtodoubtthisexplanation，andmoreevidencewouldseem，therefore，tobeneeded。Heisinclinedtothinkthat，inthemajorityofcases，thedesignsreferredtoshowmerelythevictimsofdivineangerorvengeance，punishedbythedeityforsomemisdeedorsin，eitherknowinglyorunknowinglycommitted。
IntheAssyriangalleriesoftheBritishMuseum，A？？ur—nasir—apli，kingofAssyria，isseveraltimesshownengagedinreligiousceremonies——eitherworshippingbeforethesacredtree，orabouttopourout，apparently，alibationtothegodsbeforedepartinguponsomeexpedition，andpriestsbringingofferings，eitheranimalorvegetable，arealsorepresented。A？？ur—ban？—apli，whoisidentifiedwith"thegreatandnobleAsnapper，"isshown，inbas—reliefsoftheAssyrianSaloon，pouringoutathank—offeringoverthelionswhichhehaskilled，afterhisreturnfromthehunt。
CHAPTERVI
PROBLEMSWHICHTHESTUDYOFFERS
Monotheism。
AsthematterofBabylonianmonotheismhasbeenpubliclytoucheduponbyFried。Delitzschinhis"BabelundBibel"lectures，afewwordsuponthatimportantpointwillberegardedinallprobabilityasappropriate。Ithasalreadybeenindicatedthatthegivingofthenamesof"thegodshisfathers"toMerodachpracticallyidentifiedthemwithhim，thusleadingtoatendencytomonotheism。Thattendencyis，perhaps，hintedatinaletterofA？？ur—ban？—aplitotheBabylonians，inwhichhefrequentlymentionstheDeity，butindoingso，useseithertheword/？lu/，"God，"Merodach，thegodofBabylon，orBêl，whichmayberegardedasoneofhisnames。Themostimportantdocumentforthismonotheistictendency，however（confirmingasitdoesthetabletofthefifty—onenames），isthatinwhichatleastthirteenoftheBabyloniandeitiesareidentifiedwithMerodach，andthatinsuchawayastomakethemmerelyformsinwhichhemanifestedhimselftomen。Thetextofthisinscriptionisasfollows：——
"……isMerodachofplanting。
Lugal—aki—……isMerodachofthewater—course。
NirigisMerodachofstrength。
NergalisMerodachofwar。
ZagagaisMerodachofbattle。
BêlisMerodachoflordshipanddomination。
NeboisMerodachoftrading（？）。
SinisMerodachtheilluminatorofthenight。？ama？isMerodachofrighteousthings。
AdduisMerodachofrain。
Ti？pakisMerodachoffrost（？）。
SigisMerodachofgreenthings（？）。？uqamunuisMerodachoftheirrigation—channel。"
Herethetextbreaksoff，butmusthavecontainedseveralmoresimilaridentifications，showinghowatleastthemorethoughtfuloftheBabyloniansofoldlookeduponthehostofgodswhomtheyworshipped。
Whatmaybethedateofthisdocumentisuncertain，butasthecolophonseemstodescribeitasacopyofanolderinscription，itmaygobackasfaras2000yearsB。C。Thisistheperiodatwhichthename/Yaum—？lu/"JahisGod，"isfound，togetherwithnumerousreferencesto/？lu/asthenamefortheonegreatgod，andisalso，roughly，thedateofAbraham，who，itmaybenoted，wasaBabylonianofUroftheChaldees。Itwillprobablynotbethoughttooventuresometosaythathismonotheismwaspossiblytheresultofthereligioustrendofthoughtinhistime。
Dualism。
Damascius，inhisvaluableaccountofthebeliefoftheBabyloniansconcerningtheCreation，statesthat，liketheotherbarbarians，theyrejectthedoctrineoftheoneoriginoftheuniverse，andconstitutetwo，Tauthé（Tiawath）andApason（Apsu）。Thistwofoldprinciple，however，isonlyapplicabletothesysteminthatitmakesoftheseaandthedeep（forsucharethemeaningsofthetwowords）twopersonages——thefemaleandthemalepersonificationsofprim？valmatter，fromwhichallcreationsprang，andwhichgavebirthtothegodsofheaventhemselves。Asfarasthephysicalconstituentsofthesetwoprincipalsareconcerned，theirtenetsmightbedescribedashaving"materialisticmonism"astheirbasis，butinasmuchastheybelievedthateachofthesetwoprincipalshadamind，thedescription"idealisticmonism"cannotbeappliedtoit——itisdistinctlyadualism。
AndMonism。
Divestedofitsidealisticside，however，therewouldseemtobenoescapefromregardingtheBabylonianideaoftheoriginofthingsasmonistic。[*]Thisideahasitsreflection，thoughnotitsreproduction，inthefirstchapterofGenesis，inwhich，verses2，6，and7，waterisrepresentedasthefirstthingexisting，thoughnotthefirstabodeoflife。ThisdivergencyfromtheBabylonianviewwasinevitablewithamonotheisticnation，suchastheJewswere，regardingastheydidtheDeityasthegreatsourceofeverythingexisting。WhateffectthemovingoftheSpiritofGoduponthefaceofthewaters（v。2）wassupposedbythemtohavehad，isuncertain，butitistobenotedthatitwastheland（vv。11，12）whichfirstbroughtforth，atthecommandofGod。
[*]Monism。Thedoctrinewhichholdsthatintheuniversethereisonlyasingleelementorprinciplefromwhicheverythingisdeveloped，thissingleprinciplebeingeithermind（/idealisticmonism/）ormatter（/materialisticmonism/）。（Annandale。）
Thefuturelife。
ThebeliefinafuturelifeisthenaturaloutcomeofareligiousbeliefsuchastheBabylonians，Assyrians，andmanyofthesurroundingnationspossessed。Ashasbeenshown，aportionoftheircreedconsistedinhero—worship，whichpre—supposesthattheheroesinquestioncontinuedtoexist，inastateofstillgreaterpowerandglory，aftertheconclusionoftheirlifehereuponearth。
"ThegodBêlhatesme——Icannotdwellinthisland，andintheterritoryofBêlIcannotsetmyface。IshalldescendthentotheAbyss；withAamylordshallIconstantlydwell。"Itiswiththesewordsthat，bythecounselofthegodAa，Ut—napi？timexplainedtothosewhoquestionedhimthereasonwhyhewasbuildingtheshiporarkwhichwastosavehimandhisfromtheFlood，andthereisbutlittledoubtthattheauthorofthestoryimpliedthatheannouncedtherebyhisapproachingdeath，orhisdeparturetodwellwithhisgodwithoutpassingthedreadportalsofthegreatleveller。ThisbeliefinthelifebeyondthegraveseemstohavebeenthatwhichwascurrentduringthefinalcenturiesofthethirdmillenniumbeforeChrist——whenamandied，itwassaidthathisgodtookhimtohimself，andwemaythereforesuppose，thattherewereasmanyheavens——placesofcontentmentandbliss——asthereweregods，andthateverygoodmanwasregardedasgoinganddwellingevermorewiththedeitywhichhehadworshippedandservedfaithfullyduringhislifetime。
Gilgame？，thehalf—divinekingofErech，whoreignedduringthehalf—
mythicalperiod，onlosinghisfriendandcounsellor，Enki—du，setouttofindhim，andtobringhimback，ifpossible，fromtheunderworldwherehewassupposedtodwell。Hisdeath，however，hadnotbeenlikethatofanordinaryman；itwasnotNamtaru，thespiritoffate，whohadtakenhim，noramisfortunesuchasbefallsordinarymen，butNerigal’sunsparinglier—in—wait——yetthoughNerigalwasthegodofwar，Enki—duhadnotfallenonthebattlefieldofmen，buthadbeenseizedbytheearth（apparentlytheunderworldwherethewickedareismeant）inconsequence，seemingly，ofsometrickortrapwhichhadbeenlaidforhim。
Thegodswerethereforeprayed，inturn，tobringhimback，butnoneofthemlistenedexceptêa，whobeggedhimofNerigal，whereuponthelatteropenedtheentrancetotheplacewherehewas——theholeoftheearth——andbroughtforth"thespirit（/utukku/）ofEnki—dulikemist。"
Immediatelyafterthiscomethewords，"Tell，myfriend，tell，myfriend——thelawofthelandwhichthousawest，tell，"andtheanswer，"Iwillnottellthee，friend，Iwillnottellthee——ifItelltheethelawofthelandwhichIsaw，……sitdown，weep。"Ultimately，however，thepersonappealedto——apparentlythedisembodiedEnki—du——
revealssomethingconcerningtheconditionofthesoulsintheplaceofhissojournafterdeath，asfollows：——
"Whomthousawest[die]thedeath（？）[of][*]……[Isee]——
Intheresting—placeof……reposing，purewatershedrinketh。
Whominthebattlethousawestkilled，Isee——
Hisfatherandhismotherraisehishead，Andhiswifeupon[himleaneth？]。
Whosecorpsethouhastseenthrowndownintheplain，Isee——
His/edimmu/intheearthreposethnot。
Whose/edimmu/thousawestwithoutacaretaker，Isee——
Theleavingsofthedish，theremainsofthefood，Whichinthestreetisthrown，heeateth。"
[*]（？）"Thedeathoftherighteous，"orsomethingsimilar？
Itisnaturallydifficulttodecideinapassagelikethis，thedifferenceexistingbetweenaman’s/utukku/andhis/edimmu/，buttheprobabilityis，thattheformermeanshisspiritualessence，whilstthelatterstandsfortheghostlyshadowofhisbody，resemblinginmeaningthe/ka/oftheEgyptians。Toallappearancetheabodedescribedaboveisnottheplaceofthepunishmentofthewicked，butthedwellingofthoseaccountedgood，who，ifluckyinthemanneroftheirdeath，andthedisposaloftheirbodies，enjoyedthehighesthappinessinthehabitationoftheblest。Theotherplace，however，isotherwisedescribed（itoccursintheaccountofI？tar’sdescentintoHades，andintheseventhtabletoftheGilgame？series——thelatterdifferingsomewhat）：——
"UponthelandofNo—return，theregionof……，[Set]Istar，daughterofSin，herear。
ThedaughterofSinsetthenherear……
Uponthehouseofgloom，theseatofIrkalla——[*]
Uponthehousewhoseentrancehathnoexit，[？]
Uponthepathwhosewayhathnoreturn，Uponthehousewhoseenterersaredeprivedoflight，Wheredustistheirnourishment，theirfoodmud，Lighttheyseenot，indarknesstheydwell，Clothedalso，likeabird，inadressoffeathers。
Uponthedoorandboltthedusthathblown。"
[*]OneofthenamesofNergal。
[？]Or"whoseenterergoethnotforth。"
Sevengatesgaveaccesstothisplaceofgloom，andtheporter，asheletthevisitorin，tookfromher（thegoddessI？tarinthenarrative）
ateachanarticleofclothing，until，atthelast，sheenteredquitenaked，apparentlytypifyingthefactthatamancantakenothingwithhimwhenhedieth，andalso，inthiscase，thathehasnotevenhisgooddeedswherewithtoclothehimself，forhadtheyoutweighedhisevilones，hewouldnothavefoundhimselfinthatdreadabode。
OnthearrivalofI？tarinHades，Erê？—ki—galcommandedNamtaru，thegodoffate，tosmiteI？tarwithdiseaseinallhermembers——eyes，sides，feet，heart，andhead。Asthingswentwrongontheearthinconsequenceoftheabsenceofthegoddessoflove，thegodssentamessengertoeffectherrelease。WhenhereachedthelandofNo—
return，thequeenoftheregionthreatenedhimwithallkindsoftorments——thefoodoftheguttersofthecityweretobehisfood，theoil—jarsofthecity（naptha？）hisdrink，thegloomofthecastlehisresting—place，astoneslabhisseat，andhungerandthirstweretoshatterhisstrength。Thesewereevidentlythepunishmentsinflictedthere，butasthemessengerthreatenedwasadivineone，theywereprobablynotputintoexecution，andheobtainedhisdemand，forI？tarwassetfree，receivingbackateachgate，inreverseorder，theclothingandornamentswhichhadbeentakenfromherwhenshehaddescendedthither。ItisuncertainwhetherTammuz，forwhomshehadgonedown，wassetfreealso，butasheisreferredto，itisnotimprobablethatthiswasthecase。