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Assyro-Babylonian religion
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The pre-Christian religions of Babylonia and Assyria are the earliest attestation of Ancient Semitic religion, in particular Mesopotamian mythology. Evolving out of earlier Religions of the Ancient Near East, they were centered on the cult of regional patron deities, such as Marduk at Babylon, Ishtar at Agade, or Sin at Ur and Harran.
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- Further information: DINGIR
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It has been suggested that Family tree of the Babylonian gods be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) |
The following is a list of Assyrian deities:
- Assur / Anshar, patron of Assur
- Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, patroness of Nineveh
- Adramelech
- As Shalla, the Assyrian goddess of grain
- Anasas, god of medicine
- Nishraeli
- Nisroch, god of agriculture
- Nimrud
- Oannes
- Nabu
- Samnuha
- Kubaba
The religion of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (sometimes called Ashurism by Modern Assyrians) centered around the god Assur, patron deity of the city of Assur, besides Ishtar patroness of Niniveh. The Assyrians adopted Christianity in the course of the 1st to 3rd century AD,[1] the last recorded worship of Ashur dating to AD 256.[2][3] However, the Assyrian religion did exist in some form until the 10th century in Harran,[4] and into 18th century in Mardin.[5]
Assyrian religion was an evolution of the ancient polythiestic Sumero-Akkadian religion into henotheism. The process of Ashur taking over the roles of over Gods runs parallel with the expansionist policies of the Assyrian Empire[6]. As the Assyrians extended their domain over lands, it was important that the local peoples acknowledge the Assyrian King as the King of their lands as well. However, Kingship at the time was linked very closely with the idea of divine mandate[7]. That is to say, that the Assyrian King, whilst not being a God himsef, was acknowledged as the chief servant of the chief God, Ashur. In this manner, the King's authority was seen as absolute so long as the High Priest reassured the peoples that the Gods or in the case of the henotheistic Assyrians, the God was pleased with the current ruler.[7] For the Assyrians who lived in Assur and the surrounding lands, this was the norm. For the conquered peoples, this was novel, especially to smaller city-states. In time, Assur was promoted from being the local deity of Assur to the Overlord of the vast Assyrian domain[7], with worship to be conducted in his name throughout the lands of the Assyrians. With the worship of Assur across much of the Fertile Crescent, the Assyrian King could command the loyalty of his fellow servants of Assur.
Ashur, the patron deity of the eponymous capital from the Late Bronze Age was in constant rivalry with the patron deity of Babylon, Marduk. In Assyria, Ashur eventually superseded Marduk even in his role as husband of Ishtar.
The ancient Assyrians believed Ashur to be the "Sky Axle" or "he who makes the world turn" based on the ancient Sumerian deity referred to as Anshar of the same likeness. Gradually over time his status was elevated to the leader of the Gods by his worshipers. Some believe that the belief gradually formed the basis of monotheism and ultimately of the Abrahamic religions.[citation needed] (see also Urmonotheismus)
- Further information: Panbabylonism
Many of the stories of the Tanakh,[8] and the Qur'an are believed to have been based on, influenced by, or inspired by the legendary mythological past of the Near East. The Enuma Elish in particular has been compared to the Genesis creation story. The story of Esther in particular is traced to Babylonian roots. The New Testament is also significantly indebted to the Mesopotamian myth of the reborn god (see Christ as myth).[citation needed]
- Religions of the Ancient Near East
- Ancient Semitic religion
- Babylonian mythology
- Middle Eastern mythology
- Canaanite religion
- É (temple)
- ^ Iraqi Assyrians: Barometer of Pluralism. Middle East Quarterly. Retrieved on Summer 2003. “Modern Assyrians trace their heritage to the ancient Mesopotamians who converted from paganism to Christianity in the three centuries after Christ.”
- ^ Brief History of Assyrians. AINA Assyrian International News Agency.
- ^ Parpola, Simo (1999). Assyrians after Assyria (HTML) (English). Assyriologist. Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies, Vol. XIII No. 2,. “The gods Ashur, Sherua, Istar, Nanaya, Bel, Nabu and Nergal continued to be worshiped in Assur at least until the early third century AD; the local cultic calendar was that of the imperial period; the temple of Ashur was restored in the second century AD; and the stelae of the local rulers resemble those of Assyrian kings in the imperial period.”
- ^ Parpola, Simo (1997). State Archives of Assyria, Vol.9: Assyrian Prophecies (English). Assyriology. University of Helsinki. “In Harran, the cults of Sin, Nikkal, Bel, Nabu, Tammuz and other Assyrian gods persisted until the 10th century AD and are still referred to in Islamic sources. Typically Assyrian priests with their distinctive long conical hats and tunics are depicted on several Graeco-Roman monuments from Northern Syria and East Anatolia.”
- ^ Parpola, Simo. Assyrian Identity in Ancient Times and Today (PDF) (English). Assyriology 17. Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies. “From the third century AD on, the Assyrians embraced Christianity in increasing numbers, even though the Assyrian religion persisted in places like Harran at least until the tenth, in Mardin even until the 18th century AD.”
- ^ Bertman, Stephen (2005). Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. New York: Oxford UP, p. 117.
- ^ a b c Bertman, Stephen (2005). Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. New York: Oxford UP, p. 66.
- ^ Assyria (HTML) (English). Jewish Encyclopedia. “The official and to some extent the popular religion of Judah was greatly affected by Assyrian influence, especially under Ahaz and Manasseh.”