The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria Part 75

A phase of sacrifice is represented by the libations of oil and wine to which frequent references are found in the historical texts. It appears to have been customary to anoint the foundation stones of temples and palaces with oil and wine. Over the thresholds, too, and over the stones--bearing commemorative or votive inscriptions--libations of oil, honey, and wine were poured.

Nebopola.s.sar[1486] speaks of placing sweet herbs under the walls, and Nabonnedos[1487] pours oil over the bolts and doors, as well as on the thresholds of the Shamash temple at Sippar, and fills the temple with the aroma of frankincense. Much importance was attached to this rite, and the kings take frequent occasion to adjure their successors who may in the course of restoring edifices come across stones bearing the record of former builders, to anoint these stones with oil and offer sacrifices.[1488] Thus, Nabonnedos,[1489] when he finds the inscription of Ashurbanabal in the Shamash temple at Sippar, carefully obeys the injunction. The rite bears all the marks of great antiquity. The instances of its occurrence in the Old Testament--notably in the case of Jacob's act of pouring oil over the holy stone at Bethel[1490]--confirm this view; and the interpretation for the rite suggested by Robertson Smith[1491] that the oil was originally the fat of the sacrificed animal smeared over an object or a person, as a means of investing them with sanct.i.ty, accounts satisfactorily for the invariable juxtaposition in the cuneiform texts of sacrificial offerings with the anointing of the inscribed stones.

We have no evidence that the rulers of Babylonia and a.s.syria were anointed with oil on their installation, though it is not improbable that such was the case. The use of the oil in this case is but a modification of the same rite, which, it is to be noted, loses some of its ancient force by the spread of the custom in the Orient of unguents as a part of the toilet.[1492] The use of odorous herbs, which, we have seen, were placed under the walls, and of honey and wine, which were poured over bolts,[1493] is also directly connected with the sacrificial cult.

The libation in its purer form appears in the custom of the a.s.syrian kings of pouring wine over the animal slain by them in the hunt. The act is intended to secure divine favor towards a deed which involved the destruction of something that by all ancient nations was held sacred, namely, life. Even a despot of a.s.syria felt that to wantonly destroy life could not be safely undertaken without making sure of the consent of the G.o.ds. Significantly enough, Ashurbanabal offers his libations after the lion or bull hunts to Ishtar as the "G.o.ddess of battle."[1494]

The animal is sanctified by being devoted to a G.o.ddess, just as the victims in a battle const.i.tute the conqueror's homage offered to the G.o.ds who came to his a.s.sistance.

Sacrifices with libations are so frequently represented on the seal cylinder that this testimony alone would suffice to vouch for the importance attached to this rite in the cult. One of the most archaic specimens of Babylonian art[1495] represents a wors.h.i.+pper, entirely naked, pouring a libation into a large cup which stands on an altar.

Behind the altar sits a G.o.ddess who is probably a or Malkatu, the consort of the sun-G.o.d. The naked wors.h.i.+pper is by no means an uncommon figure in the early Babylonian art,[1496] and it would appear that at one time it was customary to remove one's garments preliminary to stepping into the G.o.d's presence, just as among the Arabs the cult of the Caaba in Mecca was conducted by the wors.h.i.+ppers at an early period without their clothes.[1497] The custom so frequently referred to in the Old Testament to remove one's shoes upon entering sacred territory,--a custom still observed by the modern Muslim, who leaves his shoes outside of the Mosque,--may be regarded as an indication that at an earlier period people removed their garments as well as the sandals. It may be that the order to take off the sandal alone, as recorded in the Old Testament, is nothing but a euphemistic phrase (suggested by a more refined age) to strip oneself. Certainly, when we find that in the days of Saul, the seers went about naked, there can no longer be any doubt that there was a time when the Hebrews, too, like the Arabs and Babylonians, entered the holy presence naked.

The inst.i.tution of daily sacrifices is vouched for in the case of the larger religious centers like Babylonia, Borsippa, Sippar, Cuthah, as well as Nineveh for the late periods. Nebuchadnezzar, for example, tells us[1498] that he provided for a sacrifice of six lambs daily in the temple E-s.h.i.+dlam at Cuthah, sacred to Nergal and Laz; while for Nabu's temple at Borsippa, the daily sacrifices were arranged on a still larger scale, and included two fattened bulls of perfect form, sixteen smaller animals, besides offerings of fish, birds, leek, various kinds of wine, honey, cream, and the finest oil,--all intended, as the king tells us, for the table of Nabu and his consort. No doubt the daily official sacrifices at Marduk's temple were even more elaborate. The custom of regular sacrifices in the larger temples may be traced back to an early period. The technical terms for such sacrifices are _sattuku_ and _ginu_. Both terms convey the idea of being "fixed," perpetual,[1499]

and suggest a comparison with the Pentateuchal inst.i.tution of the _tamid_,[1500] _i.e._, the daily sacrifice. Whenever the kings in their inscriptions mention the regular sacrifices, it is in almost all cases with reference to their reinst.i.tution of an old custom that had been allowed to fall into neglect (owing to political disturbances which always affected the temples), and not as an innovation. Innovations were limited to increasing the amounts of these regular sacrifices. So, for example, Nabubaliddin restores and increases the _gine_ of the great temple E-babbara at Sippar.[1501] But regular sacrifices do not necessarily involve daily offerings. The same terms, _ginu_ and _sattuku_, are applied frequently to monthly offerings, and except in the large religious centers, regular sacrifices were in all probabilities brought on certain days of each month, and not daily. The days thus singled out, as will be shown further on, differed for various sanctuaries. It would be important if we could determine the share in these regular sacrifices taken by the people at large, but the material at hand does not suffice for settling the question. There are frequent references to t.i.thes in the clay tablets forming part of the archives of temples, and monthly tributes are also mentioned. We certainly may conclude from these references that the people were taxed in some way for the support of the temples. Ashurbanabal in one place speaks of reimposing upon the population of the south the provision for the _sattuku_ and _ginu_ due to Ashur and Belit[1502] and the G.o.ds of a.s.syria; but, for all that, it is not certain that the regular sacrifices at the temples partook of a popular character. One gains the impression that, except on the occasions when the people came to the sanctuaries for individual purposes, the ma.s.ses as such had but comparatively little share in it. In this respect the cult of the Hebrews, which has so many points in common with the Babylonian ritual as to justify the hypothesis that the details of sacrificial regulations in the priestly code are largely derived from practices in Babylonian temples, was more democratic. Closely attached as the Babylonians were to their sanctuaries, the regular sacrifices do not appear to have been an active factor in maintaining this attachment. A more decidedly popular character is apparent in the votive offerings made to the temples. These offerings cover a wide range. Rulers and people alike felt prompted to make gifts to the sanctuaries on special occasions, either as a direct homage to the G.o.ds or with the avowed purpose and hope of securing divine favor or divine intercession.

The statues of themselves which the rulers from the days of Gudea[1503]

on were fond of erecting were dedicated by them as offerings to the G.o.ds, and this avowed aim tempers, in a measure, the vanity which no doubt was the mainspring of their action. The statues were placed in the temples, and from Gudea[1504] we learn of the elaborate ceremonies connected with the dedication of one of the king's colossal blocks of diorite. For seven days all manual labor was interrupted in Lagash.

Masters and slaves shared in the festivities. The temple of Nin-girsu is sanctified anew by purification rites, and the statue is formally presented to the G.o.d amidst sacrifices and offerings of rich gifts. The account given in the Book of Daniel[1505] of the dedication of Nebuchadnezzar's statue may be regarded as an equally authentic picture of a custom that survived to the closing days of the Babylonian monarchy, except that we have no proof that divine honors were paid to these statues.[1506] The front, sides, and back of Gudea's images were covered with inscriptions, partly of a commemorative character, but in part, also, conveying a dedication to Nin-girsu. Similarly, the steles of the a.s.syrian kings, set up by them either in the temples or on the highways beyond the confines of a.s.syria, and which had images of the rulers sculptured on them in high relief, were covered with inscriptions, devoted primarily to celebrating the deeds of the kings; but, since the victories of the armies were ascribed to the a.s.sistance furnished by the G.o.ds, an homage to Ashur or some other deity was involved in the recital. That the G.o.ds were accorded a minor share of the glory was but in keeping with the pride of the a.s.syrian rulers, who were less affected than the rulers of the south by the votive character of the statues.

Both Babylonians and a.s.syrians, however, unite in making images of the G.o.ds as a distinct homage, and in giving elaborate presents of gold, silver, precious stones, costly woods, and garments to the sanctuaries as votive offerings to the G.o.ds. These presents were used in the decoration of temples and shrines, as well as of the statues of the G.o.ds or as direct contributions to the temple treasury. Celebrations of victories were chosen as particularly appropriate occasions for making such votive offerings. So Agumkakrimi, upon bringing back to E-Sagila the statues of Marduk and Sarpanitum that had been taken away by ruthless hands, bestows rich gifts upon the temples and describes[1507]

at great length the costly garments embroidered with gold and studded with precious stones that were hung on Marduk and his consort. Equally vivid is the description of the high, conical-shaped caps, made of lapis lazuli and gold, and decorated, furthermore, with various kinds of stones, that were placed on the heads of the deities. Garments for the statues of the G.o.ds appear to have been favorite votive offerings at all times. Nabubaliddin, in restoring the cult of Shamash at Sippar, makes provisions for an elaborate outfit of garments,[1508] specifying different garments for various periods of the year. It would appear from this that for the various festive occasions of the year, the garments of the G.o.ds were changed, much as in other religions--including the Catholic Church--the officiating priests are robed in different garments on the various festive or solemn occasions.

Votive tablets or discs of lapis lazuli, agate, turquoise, gold, silver, copper, antimony, and other metals with dedicatory inscriptions were deposited in the temples. What particular purpose they served we do not know. As a specimen of the more common formula on these tablets, a lapis lazuli tablet of Nippur may be chosen. It is offered by a Ca.s.site king, and reads[1509] as follows:

To Bel His lord Kadashman-Turgu For his life Presented.

A k.n.o.b-shaped object[1510] of fine limestone contains a dedication in similar phrases to Marduk. It is offered by Bel-epush, who is probably identical with a Babylonian ruler of this name in the seventh century,--a contemporary of Sennacherib:[1511]

To Marduk, his lord Bel-epush for the preservation of his life Made and presented.

Kings, however, do not appear to be the only ones for whom these votive offerings were prepared. A dedication to a personage otherwise unknown and to all appearances a layman reads:[1512]

To Ea,[1513] his lord, Bel-zir, Son of Ea-Ban, For the preservation of his life Made and presented.

The formulas are thus seen to be conventional ones, though occasionally the inscription is somewhat longer. So, for example, n.a.z.i-Maruttash, another Ca.s.site king, puts a little prayer on a votive offering:

[To Bel, his lord]

n.a.z.i-Maruttash, Son of Kurigalzu, To hearken to his supplication, To be favorable to his prayer, To accept his entreaty, To lengthen his days, [He made and presented].

This inscription appears, as Dr. Hilprecht informs us,[1514] on an ax made of imitation lapis lazuli.[1515] Other votive inscriptions are found on rings and on k.n.o.bs of ivory or magnesite.[1516] These various designs no doubt all had some symbolical significance. The ring suggests some ultimate connection between votive offerings and amulets. The seal cylinders, we know, although put to practical use in impressing the design on a clay tablet as a subst.i.tute for a personal signature, were also regarded as amulets, and this accounts for the frequency with which scenes of religious wors.h.i.+p were introduced as designs on the cylinders.

The ring is distinctly an amulet in Babylonia as elsewhere, and hence it is by no means improbable that the custom of carrying little inscribed tablets, discs, or k.n.o.bs about the person as a protection against mischances preceded the use of such tablets as votive offerings to be placed in a temple.

A very common votive object in Babylonia, especially in the earlier period, was the clay cone. Such cones were found in large numbers at Lagash, while at Nippur Peters came across what may be safely regarded as a magazine where such cones (and other votive objects) were manufactured in large numbers.[1517] The cones of Gudea bear conventional inscriptions of a votive character addressed to Nin-girsu.

In other temples, other G.o.ds were similarly remembered. It has been customary to regard these cones as phallic symbols;[1518] but it should be noted that not only is the evidence for this lacking, but that what we know of the popular practices of the Babylonians does not warrant us in a.s.suming any widespread phallic symbolism. The point of the cones suggests rather that the objects were intended to be stuck into the ground or into walls. At Lagash De Sarzec found, besides cones, a large number of copper statuettes[1519] of G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses and of animals,--chiefly bulls,--all terminating in a sharp point or attached to a cone-shaped object. Others again are clearly human figures, either male personages holding the cone in their hands,[1520] or females holding baskets on their heads,--the customary att.i.tude of making an offering. These curious statuettes frequently bear inscriptions of a votive character, and there can be no doubt that they were used to be stuck into some substance. At one place, De Sarzec found a series set up in concentric circles[1521] in the corners of an edifice and under the floor. Heuzey is of the opinion that these statuettes thus arranged were to serve as a warning for the demons, but it is more in keeping with the general character of the Babylonian religion to look upon these objects simply as votive offerings placed at various parts of a building as a means of securing the favor of the G.o.ds. The cone, I venture to think, is merely the conventionalized shape of a votive object originally intended to be stuck into some part of a sacred building. The large quant.i.ty of cones that have been found at Lagash, Nippur, and elsewhere is an indication of their popular use. It is not improbable that at one time, and, at all events, in certain temples, the cones and statuettes represented the common votive offerings with which wors.h.i.+ppers provided themselves upon entering the sacred precinct. To facilitate the reproduction of the statuettes, moulds were used,--another indication of the widespread use of these objects. Clay figures of G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses were also made in moulds or modelled by hand and served as votive offerings. At Nippur, the images represent chiefly Bel and Belit,[1522]

either separately or in combination; but figurines of Ishtar have also been found.[1523] In some the G.o.ddess is represented as suckling a child. Often she is pictured as naked, clasping her b.r.e.a.s.t.s or her womb.

The att.i.tude which was suggested by the character of the G.o.ddess as the promoter of fertility appears to have been too obscene to a more refined age, and, accordingly, we find in later times the s.e.xual parts suppressed or the figure properly clothed. The character of these figurines varied naturally with each religious center, and even in the same center modifications were introduced.

Whether these clay figurines, cones, and metallic statuettes were also placed by individuals in their dwellings, like the "plague"

tablets,[1524] we cannot as yet definitely say, but it is more than likely that such was the case. The _teraphim_ familiar to us from the references in the Old Testament,[1525] and evidently used as talismans, belong to the cla.s.s of votive offerings under consideration. The figurines and cones, and also (though to a smaller degree) the copper statuettes, thus introduce us to the popular phases of the cult. As symbols of homage they appear to have survived to a late period, and their use as talismans did not materially affect their character as offerings, made by the people upon seeking the sanctuaries. The more costly objects, as vases,[1526] artistically worked weapons, handsome "seas" bowls, altars, and statues of the G.o.ds and other furniture for the temples were left to the rulers. Such offerings were made with great pomp. They were formally dedicated by large processions of priests, with the accompaniment of hymns and music. The kings of a.s.syria presented the captured G.o.ds as votive gifts pleasing to their deity.[1527] They bring back with them from their campaigns the beams of the edifices that they destroyed and offer them to Ishtar.[1528] Upon coming to Babylonia, they do not fail to bring presents of gold, silver, precious stones, copper, iron, purple, precious garments, and scented woods to Marduk and Sarpanitum, to Nabu and Tashmitum, and the other great G.o.ds.[1529] The first fruits of extensive groves are offered by Ashurnasirbal to Ashur and the temples of his land.[1530] The rulers of a.s.syria vie with the kings of Babylonia in presenting gardens[1531] and lands to the G.o.ds as votive offerings; but for all that, in ancient Babylonia and a.s.syria, as among other peoples of antiquity, the more fervent religious spirit was manifested in the small tokens of the ma.s.ses, whose attachment to the temples was of a different order from that which prompted the rulers of the north and south to a display, in which vanity and the desire to manifest their power play a larger part as one generation succeeds the other.

Festivals.

We have seen[1532] that in the developed system of the Babylonian religion, every day of the year had some significance, and that certain days in each month--so, _e.g._, the 7th, 14th, 19th, 21st, and 28th--had a special significance. It has also been pointed out that in different religious centers, the days singled out for special significance differed. In view of this, we must be prepared to find that the festival days were not the same in all parts of Babylonia, nor necessarily identical in the various periods of Babylonian and a.s.syrian history.

The common name for festival was _isinnu_. If we may judge from the use of _a.s.sinnu_ as a general name for priest,[1533]--a servant of a deity,--the underlying stem appears to signify simply 'to serve.'

Another name that reveals more as to the character of the Babylonian festivals is _tas.h.i.+ltu_, which is used as a synonym for 'joy, delight.'

The festivals were indeed joyous occasions, marked by abundance of offerings and merry-making, though, as we shall see, the somber note in the rejoicings was not absent. The kings dedicate their temples and palaces amidst manifestation of rejoicing. They pray that the G.o.ds may occupy the dwellings prepared for them "in joy and jubilance,"[1534] and the reference to festivals in the historical texts are all of such a character as to make us feel that the Babylonian could appreciate the Biblical injunction to "rejoice"[1535] in the divine presence, on the occasions set apart as, in a peculiar sense, sacred.

Defective as our knowledge of the ancient Babylonian festivals still is, the material at our disposal shows that at a comparatively early period, there was one day in the year on which a festival was celebrated in honor of a G.o.d or G.o.ddess that had a more important character than any other. In the developed zodiacal system of Babylonia each month is sacred to a deity.[1536] This system was perfected under the direct influence of the theological schools of Babylonia, but so much of it, at all events, rests upon ancient traditions which a.s.signs a month to each G.o.d; and since Marduk is not accorded the first place, but takes his position in a group of solar deities, and since, moreover, these solar deities have a position in the calendar which accords with their specific solar character,[1537] we may proceed a step further and a.s.sume with some confidence that the Babylonian scholars were guided--in large part, at least--by ancient traditions in parceling out the months as they did. Anu, Bel, and Ea, it is true, may have been a.s.signed to the first three months because of the preeminent position of these three G.o.ds as a special triad; but even here the antiquity of the triad furnishes a guarantee that the a.s.sociation of some month with some deity belongs to a very ancient period of Babylonian history. This being the case, it would be natural that the first day of the month sacred to a deity would be regarded as his or her festival _par excellence_, and in the case of the cult of a deity spreading beyond its original limits, this festival would a.s.sume a more general character. On this day the people would come from all parts of the district within which the cult was carried on, to pay their homage to the G.o.d or G.o.ddess. In the days of Gudea, we find Bau occupying this superior rank. Her festival had a.s.sumed such importance as to serve for reckoning the commencement of the year.

Hence it became known simply as the day of zag-muku,[1538] that is, the New Year's Day.[1539] Whether this festival of Bau was recognized as the New Year's Day throughout Babylonia, we do not know, but it must have been observed in a considerably extensive district, or Gudea would have made the attempt to give some festival connected with his favorite deity Nin-girsu this character. As it is, he can only combine Bau's festival with the cult of Nin-girsu, by making the New Year's Day the occasion of a symbolical marriage between the G.o.d and the G.o.ddess. Nin-girsu is represented as offering marriage gifts to Bau,[1540] on the Zagmuku. How early Bau came to occupy so significant a rank has not been ascertained.

It is her quality as the 'great mother,' as the G.o.ddess of fertility and abundance,[1541] rather than any political supremacy of the district in which she was wors.h.i.+pped, that const.i.tutes the chief factor in giving Bau this preeminence, just as we have found in the case of the other great G.o.ddesses of Babylonia,--Nina, Nana, Ishtar,--specific traits and not political importance lending them the significance they acquired.

At one time we may well suppose that the festival of En-lil at Nippur, which brought wors.h.i.+ppers from all parts of Babylonia, was recognized as a 'New Year's Day,' and we may some day find evidence that at a still earlier period the first day of a month sacred to some other G.o.d,--Sin or Shamash or Nana-Ishtar of Erech,--was recognized in some districts as the starting-point for the year; but to an agricultural community, the spring, when the seeds are sown, or the fall, after the harvest has been gathered, are the two most natural periods for reckoning the beginning of the year. Since we know that at the time when Babylon acquired her supremacy the year began in the spring, the conservatism attaching to religious observances makes it more than probable that Bau's festival also fell in the spring.

After the ancient religious and political centers of the south yielded their privileges to Babylon, it was natural for the priests of Marduk to covet the honor of the New Year's festival for the new head of the pantheon. Accordingly, we find the Zagmuku transformed into a Marduk festival. That it did not originally belong to Marduk follows from the fact that it was celebrated in the month of Nisan,--the first month,--whereas the month sacred to Marduk was Arakh-shamna (or Marcheshwan),--the eighth month. The deliberate transfer of the Zagmuku to Marduk is also indicated by the fact that the festival of Nisan has another name by which it is more commonly designated,--Akitu.[1542] The name seems to have been originally a general term for a festival, and it is natural that Marduk's festival should have come to be known as _the_ festival, just as among the Hebrews the annual fall pilgrimage to the sanctuary at Jerusalem became known as _the_ Hag,--the pilgrimage _par excellence_. To distinguish it from other festivals, Marduk's festival is sometimes spoken of as the "great" or the "lofty" Akitu. The first day was properly the Zagmuku, whereas the Akitu itself extended at least over the first eleven days of Nisan[1543] and may indeed have lasted the entire month; but Zagmuku was also used for the festival period. The New Year's Day was marked by a solemn procession. The union of Nabu and Marduk was symbolized by a visit which the former paid to his father, the chief of the Babylonian pantheon. In his s.h.i.+p, magnificently fitted out,[1544] Nabu was carried along the street known as Ai-ibur-shabu,[1545] leading from Borsippa across the Euphrates to Babylon.

The street was handsomely paved,[1546] and everything was done to heighten the impressiveness of the ceremony. The visit of Nabu marked the homage of the G.o.ds to Marduk; and Nabu set the example for other G.o.ds, who were all supposed to a.s.semble in E-Sagila during the great festival. We have already pointed out that the cult of Nabu at Borsippa at one time was regarded with greater sanct.i.ty than the Marduk wors.h.i.+p in Babylon. As a concession to the former supremacy of Nabu, the priests of E-Sagila, carrying the statue of Marduk, escorted Nabu back to Borsippa. The return visit raises the suspicion that it was originally Marduk who was obliged to pay an annual homage to Nabu.

However this may be, the double ceremony became to such an extent the noteworthy feature of the Zagmuku or Akitu that when the chroniclers wish to indicate that, because of political disturbances, the festival was not celebrated, they use the simple formula:

Nabu did not come to Babylon.

Bel [_i.e._, Marduk] did not march out.[1547]

The Akitu festival brought wors.h.i.+ppers from all parts of Babylonia and a.s.syria to the capitol. Kings and subjects alike paid their devotions to Marduk. The former approached the divine presence directly, and, seizing hold of the hands of Marduk's statue, were admitted into a kind of covenant with the G.o.d. The ceremony became the formal rite of royal installation in Babylonia. "To seize the hands of Bel" was equivalent to legitimizing one's claim to the throne of Babylonia, and the chroniclers of the south consistently decline to recognize a.s.syrian rulers as kings of Babylonia until they have come to Babylon and "seized the hands of Bel."[1548] That this ceremony was annually performed by the kings of Babylonia after the union of the southern states is quite certain. It marked a renewal of the pledge between the king and his G.o.d. The a.s.syrian kings, however, contented themselves with a single visit. Of Tiglathpileser II.[1549] and Sargon,[1550] we know that they came to Babylonia for the purpose of performing the old ceremony; and others did the same.

The eighth and eleventh days of the festival month were invested with special sanct.i.ty. On these days all the G.o.ds were brought together in the "chamber of fates" of Marduk's temple. In symbolical imitation of the a.s.sembly of the G.o.ds in Ubshu-kenna,[1551] Marduk sits on his throne and the G.o.ds are represented as standing in humble submission before him, while he decrees the fates of mankind for the coming year. The Zagmuku festival in its developed form has striking points of resemblance to the Jewish New Year's Day. On this day, according to the popular Jewish tradition, G.o.d sits in judgment with a book before Him in which He inscribes the fate of mankind. Nine days of probation are allowed, and on the tenth day--the Day of Atonement--the fates are sealed. The Jewish New Year is known as Rosh-hash-shana,[1552] which is an exact equivalent of the Babylonian _resh shatti_ (or zag-muku). A difference, however, between the Babylonian and the Jewish festival is that the latter is celebrated in the seventh month. It is not correct, therefore, to a.s.sume that the Hebrews borrowed their Rosh-hash-shana from the Babylonians. Even after they adopted the Babylonian calendar,[1553] they continued to regard the seventh month--the harvest month--as the beginning of the year. That among the Babylonians the seventh month also had a sacred character may be concluded from the meaning of the ideographs with which the name is written.[1554] The question may, therefore, be raised whether at an earlier period and in some religious center--Nippur, Sippar, or perhaps Ur--the seventh month may not have been celebrated as the Zagmuku. At all events, we must for the present a.s.sume that the Hebrews developed their New Year's Day, which they may have originally received from Babylonia, independently of Marduk's festival, though, since the Rosh-hash-shana does not come into prominence among the Jews until the period of the so-called Babylonian exile, the possibility of a direct Babylonian influence in the _later_ conceptions connected with the day cannot be denied.[1555]

Of the other festivals of the Babylonians and a.s.syrians but few details are known. Several references have already been made to the Tammuz festival.[1556] Originally a solar festival, celebrated in the fourth month at the approach of the summer solstice, it became through the a.s.sociation of ideas suggested by the mourning of Ishtar for her lost consort Tammuz a kind of 'All Souls' Day,' on which the people remembered their dead. Dirges were sung by the wailing women to the accompaniment of musical instruments; offerings were made to the dead, and it is plausible to a.s.sume that visits were paid to the graves. The mourning was followed by a festival of rejoicing, symbolizing the return of the solar-G.o.d. The Tammuz festival appears to have had a strong hold upon the ma.s.ses, by reason of the popularity of the Tammuz myth; nor was it limited to the Babylonians. Among the Phoenicians the cult of Tammuz, known by his t.i.tle Adon (whence Adonis), was maintained to a late period, and the Hebrews, likewise, as late as the days of Ezekiel,[1557]

commemorated with rites of mourning the lost Tammuz. The calendar of the Jewish Church still marks the 17th day of Tammuz as a fast, and Houtsma has shown[1558] that the a.s.sociation of the day with the capture of Jerusalem by the Romans represents merely the attempt to give an ancient festival a worthier interpretation. The day was originally connected with the Tammuz cult. Eerdmans[1559] has recently endeavored to show that the festival of Hosein, celebrated by the s.h.i.+tic sect of Mohammedanism in memory of the tragic death of the son of Ali, is in reality a survival of the Babylonian-Phoenician Tammuz festival. The spread of the Tammuz-Adonis myth and cult to the Greeks[1560] is but another indication of the popularity of this ancient Semitic festival.

The old Zagmuku festival in honor of Bau and the Tammuz festival, celebrated in spring and summer, respectively, are also closely a.s.sociated with agricultural life. The spring as the seedtime is, as we have seen, a natural period for beginning the calculation of the New Year, while a first harvest of the wheat and barley is reaped in Babylonia at the time of the summer solstice. We should expect, therefore, to find a third festival in the fall, at the close of the harvest and just before the winter rains set in. The seventh month--Tishri--was a sacred month among the ancient Hebrews as well as among the Babylonians, but up to the present no distinct traces of a festival period in Tishri have been found in Babylonian texts. We must content ourselves, therefore, with the conjecture, above thrown out, that an Akitu was originally celebrated in this month at some ancient religious center of the Euphrates Valley. Further publications of cuneiform texts may throw light upon this point. The unpublished material in European and American museums harbors many surprises.

In Ashurbanabal's annals[1561] there is an interesting reference to a festival celebrated in honor of the G.o.ddess Gula, the G.o.ddess of healing,[1562] on the twelfth day of Iyyar, the second month. The festival is described ideographically as Si-gar,[1563] but from the fact that the same ideographs are used elsewhere to describe a day sacred to Sin and Shamash,[1564] it would appear that Si-gar is not a specific appellation, but a general name again for festival. This month Iyyar and this particular day, as a "favorable one," is chosen by Ashurbanabal for his installation as king of a.s.syria. The same month is selected for a formal pilgrimage to Babylonia for the purpose of restoring to E-Sagila a statue of Marduk that a previous a.s.syrian king had taken from its place,[1565] and Lehmann is probably correct in concluding[1566] that this month of Iyyar was a particularly sacred one in a.s.syria, emphasized with intent perhaps by the kings, as an offset against the sacredness of Nisan in Babylonia.

Festivals in honor of Ninib were celebrated in Calah in the months of Elul--the sixth month--and Shabat--the eleventh month.[1567] The sixth month, it will be recalled, is sacred to Ishtar.[1568] Ninib being a solar deity, his festival in Elul was evidently of a solar character.

From Ashurbanabal,[1569] again, we learn that the 25th day of Siwan--the third month--was sacred to Belit of Babylon, and on that day a procession took place in her honor. The Belit meant is Sarpanitum in her original and independent role as a G.o.ddess of fertility. The statue of the G.o.ddess, carried about, presumably in her s.h.i.+p, formed the chief feature of the procession. Ashurbanabal chooses this "favorable" day as the one on which to break up camp in the course of one of his military expeditions. We would naturally expect to find a festival month devoted to the G.o.d Ashur in a.s.syria. This month was Elul--the sixth month.[1570]

The choice of this month lends weight to the supposition that Ashur was originally a solar deity.[1571] The honors once paid to Ninib in Calah in this month could thus easily be transferred to the head of the a.s.syrian pantheon. Although in the calendar the sixth month is sacred to Ishtar, her festival was celebrated in the fifth month, known as Ab.[1572] This lack of correspondence between the calendar and the festivals is an indication of the greater antiquity of the latter.

In the great temple to Shamash at Sippar, there appear to have been several days that were marked by religious observances.

Nabubaliddin[1573] (ninth century) emphasizes that he presented rich garments to the temple for use on six days of the year,--the 7th day of Nisan (first month), 10th of Iyyar (second month), 3rd of Elul (sixth month), 7th of Tishri (seventh month), 15th of Arakh-shamna (or Marcheshwan, eighth month), and the 15th of Adar (twelfth month). These garments are given to Shamash, to his consort Malkatu, and to Bunene.[1574] Since from a pa.s.sage in a Babylonian chronicle[1575] it appears that it was customary for Shamash on his festival to leave his temple, we may conclude that the garments were put on Shamash and his a.s.sociates, for the solemn procession on the six days in question.

The festivals in Nisan and Elul are distinctly of a solar character. The choice of two other months immediately following Nisan and Elul cannot be accidental. The interval of thirty-three days between the Nisan and Iyyar festivals and thirty-four days between the Elul and Tishri festivals may represent a sacred period.[1576] Tishri, moreover, as has been pointed out, is a sacred month in a peculiar sense. Marcheshwan, it may be well to bear in mind, is sacred to Marduk,--a solar deity,--while the 15th of Adar, curiously enough, is an old solar festival that, modified and connected with historical reminiscences, became popular among the Jews of Persia and Babylonia during the Persian supremacy in the Semitic Orient, and survives to this day under the name of the Purim festival.[1577] At all events, the six days may be safely regarded as connected in some way, direct or indirect, with solar wors.h.i.+ps, and it is natural to find that in so prominent a center of sun-wors.h.i.+p as Sippar, _all_ the solar festivals were properly and solemnly observed.

It is disappointing that up to the present so little has been ascertained of the details of the moon-cult--the great rival to Shamash wors.h.i.+p--in the old cities of Ur and Harran. In the Babylonian calendar, the third month--Siwan--is sacred to Sin, but since, as we have found, the festivals in honor of the G.o.ds do not always correspond to the a.s.signment of the months, we cannot be certain that in this month a special festival in honor of Sin was observed. Lastly, besides the regular and fixed festivals, the kings, and more especially the a.s.syrian rulers, did not hesitate to inst.i.tute special festivals in memory of some event that contributed to their glory. Agumkakrimi[1578] inst.i.tuted a festival upon restoring the statues of Marduk and Sarpanitum to Babylon, and Sargon does the same upon restoring the palace at Calah.[1579] Dedications of temples and palaces were in general marked by festivities, and so when the kings return in triumph from their wars, laden with spoils and captives, popular rejoicings were inst.i.tuted. But such festivals were merely sporadic, and, while marked by religious ceremonies, were chiefly occasions of general jollification combined with homage to the rulers. Such a festival was not called an _isinnu_, but a _nigatu_,[1580]--a 'merrymaking.'[1581] More directly connected with the cult was a ceremony observed in a.s.syria upon the installation of an official, known as the _limmu_, who during his year of service enjoyed the privilege of having official doc.u.ments dated with his name.[1582] The ceremony involved a running[1583] of some kind, and reminds one of the running between the two hills Marwa and Safa in Mekka that forms part of the religious observances in connection with a visit to the Kaaba.[1584] The name of the ceremony appears to have been puru (or buru). To connect this word with the Jewish festival of Purim, as Sayce proposes,[1585] is wholly unwarranted. The character of the Puru ceremony points to its being an ancient custom, the real significance of which in the course of time became lost. Fast days inst.i.tuted for periods of distress might also be added to the cult, but these, too, like the special festivals, were not permanent inst.i.tutions. For such occasions many of the penitential psalms which were discussed in a previous chapter[1586] were composed. To conciliate angered G.o.ds whose temples had been devastated in days of turmoil, atonement and purification rites were observed. So Ashurbanabal[1587] upon his conquest of Babylonian cities tells us that he pacified the G.o.ds of the south with penitential psalms and purified the temples by magic rites; and Nabubaliddin,[1588] incidental to his restoration of the Shamash cult at Sippar, refers to an interesting ceremony of purification, which consisted in his taking water and was.h.i.+ng his mouth according to the purification ritual of Ea and Marduk,[1589] preliminary to bringing sacrifices to Shamash in his shrine. Sippar had been overrun by nomads,[1590] the temple had been defiled, and before sacrifices could again be offered, the sacred edifice and sacred quarter had to be purified. The king's action was a symbol of this purification. Many such customs must have been in vogue in Babylonia and a.s.syria. Some--and these were the oldest--were of popular origin. On the seal cylinders there is frequently represented a pole or a conventionalized form of a tree, generally in connection with a design ill.u.s.trating the wors.h.i.+p of a deity.[1591] This symbol is clearly a survival of some tree wors.h.i.+p[1592] that was once popular. The comparison with the _ashera_ or pole wors.h.i.+p among Phoenicians and Hebrews[1593] is fully justified, and is a proof of the great antiquity of the symbol, which, without becoming a formal part of the later cult, retained in some measure a hold upon the popular mind. Other symbols and customs were introduced under the influence of the doctrines unfolded in the schools of thought in the various intellectual centers, and as an expression of the teachings of the priests. The cult of Babylonia, even more so than the literature, is a compound of these two factors,--popular beliefs and the theological elaboration and systematization of these beliefs. In the course of this elaboration, many new ideas and new rites were introduced. The official cult pa.s.sed in some important particulars far beyond popular practices.

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