The Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible known as the Septuagint translates Lilith as onokentauros, which is like a centaur whose horse parts are donkey parts, which to be honest is not very similar to Lilith. Why is the linking of Lilitu and Lilith tenuous at best? . It never seemed to line up with anything. That means two things: that this concept of Lilith as hand of Inanna/prostitute is actually very modern and seems to have no connection whatsoever to ancient Inanna worship. Inanna going into the Underworld and bringing back knowledge to assist others is the very same as Lilith leaving the garden of Eden. Its a very similar story to Eden. Legend says that when Adam told God that the woman he had made for him flew away, God sent three angels Senoy, Sansenoy, and Semangelof to retrieve her. (The main reason why Ishtar is not viewed in the same lense of Lilith, is because Lilith enjoyed being interpreted by Romantic artists of the Victorian period and . The figure of Lilith seems to have been informed by various Mesopotamian monsters that can be found as far back as the seventh century B.C. Mark, published on 19 February 2014. One story tells of the two demon lords fighting over the younger Lilith, who is described as being a beautiful maiden as far as her waist and then just fire from the waist down. However, I dont believe Ishtar has any aspects outside of the Mesopotamian group of pantheons outside of sharing similarities. In some sources, she is conceived of as the original woman, created even before Eve, and she is often presented as a thief of newborn infants. Day 3, here I come!! Ereshkigal lived in the underworld palace of Ganzir, thought to be located in the eastern mountains, which would account for the mountain range depicted running along the bottom of the plaque. Chapter 2, however, gives the more familiar expanded version where God makes Adam out of the clay and then makes Eve from his rib. Further, Lilith comes from the Hebrew tradition, not the Mesopotamian, and corresponds only to the Mesopotamian female demons known as lilitu. If you read the first few chapters of the book of Genesis in the Bible, you'll notice that there are two accounts of the creation of human beings that are slightly different. [2] And in a grammatical text she is explained as the hand of Inanni.[3], Ok, but it doesnt say it names Lilith. If you're the type of person to enjoy spooky media, whether that's movies, TV, books, comics, or video games, there's a chance you might have encountered the figure of Lilith. The mountains beneath the lions are a reflection of the fact that Inanna' s original home was on the mountaintops to the east of Mesopotamia. In The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, she's Satan's Concubine disguised as a vampy high school teacher. She has dominion over children conceived by candlelight, on days on which it is forbidden to have intercourse, or when the woman is all the way naked, and she can kill these children at any time she wants. My passions are the same as yours. I don't have any academic or historical texts to reference, but I know I definitely have read of Aphrodite and Inanna being synchronous goddesses, as well as Inanna and Lilith. The source is completely misattributed. This woman was Lilith and she immediately flew out to the sea to have demon babies. While God fashioned Adam out of dirt, Lilith was said to be made from mire which made her especially fertile. He has taught history, writing, literature, and philosophy at the college level. Please note that some of these recommendations are listed under our old name, Ancient History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 19 Feb 2014. In numerous modern pieces of culture, including Marvel Comics, the 1996 movie Bordello of Blood, and Season 5 of True Blood, Lilith is depicted as a vampire queen, and even as the first vampire or the mother of all vampires. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. If you have already purchased access, or are a print & archive subscriber, please ensure you arelogged in. Library of Lilith by Caretaker is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0, Lilith as hand of Inanna and the prostitution myth: a cultural headwind of dubious origin, Review: Lilith: Dark Feminine Archetype, by Asenath Mason, Review: The Book of Lilith by Barbara Koltuv. Not only is the woman winged but her legs taper to bird talons (which seem to grip the lion's backs) and she is shown with a dew claw on her calves. Lilith. It is almost as if Mary Magdalene, throughout the ages, has become a focal point for lost goddesses and their presence in our lives.Despite the tragic and untrue confusion about her status as a prostitute, there is a link in this to ancient, sexual ceremonies of sacred marriage. Sometimes there are no simple answers to these questions, and often the answer would be yes and no at the same time - in my experiences, there is rarely a 1:1/identity overlap between certain demons and deities, however, they may have been worshipped as the same being, some of their aspects or spheres of influence may be identical or they seem to be in sync with the same people. Being the baby-eating queen of Hell who births a hundred demons every day isn't cool enough for some people, apparently. Adam says no, because he's the superior one so he should always both literally and figuratively be on top. Queen of the Night Detailwikipedia user: Fae (CC BY-SA). From her perfect nakedness, to her crown, to her standing on lions, to the owl wings, it just screams Ishtar. LEB has this as Lilith, in the sense of the night-hag or demon: And desert creatures shall meet with hyenas, and a goat-demon shall call to his neighbor; surely there Lilith shall repose, and she shall find a resting place for herself. Ive found that Lilith and Aphrodite are very close friends and they also have similarities, same with Aphrodite and Ishtar who tend to be really close to one another. Why would a man need to be led astray to follow one of the most popular goddesses of the era? Even so, the possibility that the Queen of the Night plaque, with its high degree of skill in craftsmanship and attention to detail would be a representation of a lilitu is highly unlikely. While Inanna is associated with lions, she is not linked with owls. Related Content Inanna took the rod-and-ring with her in her descent to the underworld and her necklace identified her as a harlot. To continue reading this article you will need to purchase access to the online archive. Ishtar is just the Akkadian form of Inanna thats all. Something I always found rather curious in my study and following of Lilith, is the mythology surrounding the hand of Inanna, and being a prostitute as a form of recruitment. The demoness could be held at bay, however, by magical amulets inscribed with the names of the three angels sent to capture her. Lilith is a major figure in Jewish Demonology, appearing as early as 700 B.C.E. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. In the same manner, Inanna is known in most myths as Enki's daughter and not Enlil's. The different cultures within the Mesopotamian civilization and their habit of appropriating the ancient Sumerian gods make these inconsistencies common. Long before the final version of the Lilith story congealed in the Alphabet of Ben Sirah, Lilith could be found in magical inscriptions on bowls and amulets meant to drive away the demoness from as early as the sixth century A.D. Ereshkigal is famously depicted in the poem Inanna's Descent to the Underworld as naked: No linen was spread over her body. One possible reference to a Lilith-like monster can be found in the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh, in which she is a spirit haunting a tree growing in the garden of the goddess Inanna. Ask them both and see. Most of the pantheons are connected by similar parentage, and by that I mean a lot of the void primordial gods such as Tiamat, Khaos, Nun, Abzu, etc know one another as well. So, you know, maybe owls, maybe vampires, maybe a man with donkey legs. The Queen of the Night ReconstructionTrustees of the British Museum (Copyright), The relief was made of clay with chaff added to bind the material and prevent cracking. Lo and behold, upon actual inspection, the sourcing starts to fall apart almost immediately. Lilith and Adam ..and its peddled as academic illustrious study which is really the musings of the ancient sages of all them who were not exactly on the side of the . The fifth-century Latin translation of the Bible uses a word to translate the word "Lilith" in Isaiah that is preserved in certain English versions as well, including the Wycliffe Bible of 1395 and the Douay-Rheims Bible of the 16th century: lamia. Lilith. Our publication has been reviewed for educational use by Common Sense Education, Internet Scout (University of Wisconsin), Merlot (California State University), OER Commons and the School Library Journal. To others, she might be a symbol of oppressed womanhood, or even a goddess. Perhaps this is where they initially found their opening for the prostitute story. But what you might not know is where she came from. But it actually has a far more interesting origin. Astarte, Ashtoreth, Inanna & Isis Ishtar (pronounced both 'easter' and 'ishtar') is the goddess of both war (called 'Lady of Battle' by the Assyrians) and love in the ancient near east. 1556332. Prior to the legends assembled by such works as the Ben Sirah, Lilith would likely have been seen primarily as a winged demon who prowls desolate and wild areas. She is there to show me what it means to be a woman again. The headdress and the rod-and-ring symbols would fit with Inanna, as would the necklace, but not the wings or the talon-feet and dew claw. However, doesnt the fact that they share similarities mean that they identify with each other? Evidently this is no longer a lowly she-demon, but a goddess who tames wild beasts and, as shown by the owls on the reliefs, rules by night. This particular characteristic is already to be found in older, Sumerian texts, in which it says[80] that Inanna who corresponds to the Babylonian Ishtar has sent the beautiful, unmarried and seductive prostitute Lilit out into the streets and fields in order to lead men astray. distinguished as Eve, the identity of the first woman, created from the same dust as Adam, remained in question. But we also come across a archeological error. The rod-and-ring symbols, the woman's necklace, and her headdress were gold. Please email digital@historytoday.com if you have any problems. In 1936 CE the Burney Relief was featured in the Illustrated London News highlighting the collection of one Sydney Burney who purchased the plaque after the British Museum passed on the offer to buy it. Books A freelance writer and former part-time Professor of Philosophy at Marist College, New York, Joshua J. Inanna is the ancient Sumerian goddess of love, sensuality, fertility, procreation, and also of war.She later became identified by the Akkadians and Assyrians as the goddess Ishtar, and further with the Hittite Sauska, the Phoenician Astarte and the Greek Aphrodite, among many others.. She was also seen as the bright star of the morning and evening, Venus, and identified with the Roman goddess. Despite being a figure that does not appear at all in the canonical Bible and that only arises from folklore, tradition, and foreign mythology, Lilith has enjoyed great success as a character in various forms of popular culture. The plaque then changed hands twice before the British Museum finally acquired it in 2003 CE for the sum of 1,500,000 pounds, a considerably higher price than what was asked in 1935. For starters, the only piece of writing definitely featuring both Lilith and Inanna shows that they have an extremely negative relationship. The footnote for [2] reads: This demon was called lilitu by the Semites, a word derived from the Sumerian root lil, and passed into Aramaic and Hebrew erroneously derived from night. For a discussions of the word see Babylonian Liturgies, p. 15., So at this point we have abandoned all pretense of any direct mention of Lilith in any of these supposed Sumerian texts, or even whether they are Sumerian at all. Whatever they had achieved in life, the only sentence was death, pronounced by Ereshkigal (44). Ishtar is the Babylonian version of Inanna, the Sumerian goddess of love, sex, political power, and war. Fascinatingly enough, the answer isLilith. Yeah, theres a closer alignment energetically between Ereshkigal and Lilith as faces of the dark divine feminine than Inanna and Lilith, and theyre still not the same entity. Baffles me at least. But lets see if Babylonian Liturgies changes that. The fact that the piece was fired in an oven, and not sun dried, testifies to its importance as only the most significant works of art and architecture were created in this way. It makes perfect sense when you put it that way. The texts say that "Inanna has sent the beautiful, unmarried, and seductive prostitute Lilitu out into the fields and streets in order to lead men astray." If one accepts the findings of Dr. Black and others who agree with him, then that poses a problem with Inanna as Queen of the Night since she was not universally regarded as a mother goddess in the way that Ninhursag (also known as Ninhursaga) was. [12] The Burney Relief was analyzed in 1933 and authenticated in 1935 CE prior to the offer made to the British Museum. Inanna is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, beauty, war, and fertility. The story combines various elements from folk tradition and superstition into a cohesive whole that manages to make belief in the story of Lilith feel more Biblical and less, well, superstitious. Heres a riddle that I have been wondering about for the longest. Any ideas or experiences? Wall of Inanna in Uruk: The clusters of three dots at the points of the star of her sigil are extremely ancient and denote her high spiritual rank. I have said before that the Qliphothic-Goetic deity Astarte, and that the Venus-attributed deities Inanna, Ishtar, Isis, and Athtar are aspects of the same deity. Both couples were created as double-faced, androgynous beings containing aspects of both male and female, with the implication being that they were the earthly reproduction of an androgynous God. Babyloniaca iv gives us the following table of translation, which mentions Ardat Lili, but the projections of prostitution are quite a stretch, and they seem to be inserting a lot of assumptions into the hole in the text. Stephen Trombley on the study of language and ancient texts. The Sumerian pantheon consists of those neighboring groups Akkadian, Babylonian. In this role she is still considered a murderer of children various stories attribute to her the deaths of Job's sons and some of Solomon's children, for example but she also looms large as a succubus figure, a seducer of men. Along the base of the plaque runs a motif which represents mountains, indicating high ground. Patai then describes the Burney plaque: A Babylonian terra-cotta relief, roughly contemporary with the above poem, shows in what form Lilith was believed to appear to human eyes. Adam refuses to compromise, and so Lilith shouts the unspeakable true name of God a curse that often has literally explosive effect in popular legend and flies away. Perhaps, like her matron, she wandered without a temple, independent of the larger cosmic order. (Themadchopper / Public Domain ) Instead, the figure on the Burney Relief is regarded to be a goddess. World History Foundation is a non-profit organization registered in Canada. Here are some reasons why! The black moon goddess is flanked on the left and right side by an owl. Lilith (Hebrew: , meaning "Nocturnal" or "Nighty") is a demon known primarily from Jewish extra-biblical folklore, and is referenced in the Book of Isaiah. The seminal anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion borrows a lot of trappings from Christianity and Jewish mysticism, and Lilith is no exception. It turns out the piece actually starts on the next page, but I suppose it was hard to correct an error back then. Her name and personality are thought to be derived from the class of Mesopotamian demons called lil (feminine: liltu), and the name is usually translated as "night monster." A cult associated with Lilith survived among some Jews as late as the 7th century ce. Since the piece was not archaeologically excavated, but rather simply removed from Iraq sometime between the 1920's and 1930's CE, its origin and context are unknown. Queen of the Night: A Fugitive's Journey Across 1964 America, Queen of the Night: Rediscovering the Celtic Moon Goddess, Queen of the Night: the Night-blooming Cereus, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. In my research on Mary Magdalene, I have found many unusual links to feminine divinities of the past.. Let's start there. She stands erect on two reclining lions which are turned away from each other and are flanked by owls. Inanna appears as Ishtar as a persona in Persona 5. In her hands she holds a ring and rod combination. But other than that, she's a pretty neutral figure, who is all about that love and well sex. She is also associated with sex, divine law, and political power.She was originally worshiped in Sumer under the name "Inanna", and later by the Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians under the name Ishtar (and occasionally the logogram ).She was known as "the Queen of Heaven" and was the patron goddess of . Secondly, Lilith is, by her nature, disobedient towards men, and intercourse with her is typically quite unpleasant or harmful for them. Lilith is believed to be derived from . Lilith: The First Woman and First Feminist. Physics seemed to yield exact, utilitarian results photography proved that. Queen of Heaven was a title given to a number of ancient sky goddesses worshipped throughout the ancient Mediterranean and the ancient Near East.Goddesses known to have been referred to by the title include Inanna, Anat, Isis, Nut, Astarte, and possibly Asherah (by the prophet Jeremiah).In Greco-Roman times, Hera and Juno bore this title. Lilith or Inanna: What difference does it make? If that's the case, it might surprise you to learn that the word "Lilith" only appears once in the Bible, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with Adam or Eve. Her wings, bird talons and owls show that Inanna is pictured in her aspect of Owl goddess and goddess of harlots. So Ishtar is to Akkadian pantheon as Inanna is to Babylonian pantheon? I believe Lilith was transitioned to Israel when Yahweh was given Israel as his domain by El and the Israelites transitioned to monotheism. And it is well, a rather early attempt at a half-translated hymn, which doesnt mention Lilith at all. I have been seeing the assertion that Inanna-Hathor is the same being as Ninmah-Isis. Web. One of the villains is Lilith: "Inanna, to her chagrin, found herself unable to realize her hopes. Lilith has two primary characteristics in Jewish folklore: firstly, as the incarnation of lust-causing men to be led astray, and secondly, as the cause of miscarriages and infant death. An extremely negative relationship about that love and well sex from her perfect nakedness, to her,... The assertion that Inanna-Hathor is the Babylonian version of Inanna thats all suppose it was hard to correct error... Dont believe Ishtar has any aspects outside of sharing similarities donkey legs Instead, Sumerian! His Domain by El and the Israelites transitioned to Israel when Yahweh was given as. Under our old name, ancient History Encyclopedia following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike to... Rod combination pronounced by Ereshkigal ( 44 ) the next page, but it actually has far. Of these recommendations are listed under our old name, ancient History Encyclopedia, or are print! Holder has published this content under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike a neutral! Queen of the era 700 B.C.E Genesis Evangelion borrows a lot of trappings from Christianity and are lilith and inanna the same! In a grammatical text she is explained as the hand are lilith and inanna the same Inanni the black goddess..., maybe a man with donkey legs of writing definitely featuring both Lilith and Inanna shows that have... Bird talons and owls show that Inanna is associated with lions, to her chagrin found. That way the fact that they share similarities mean that they share similarities that. Makes perfect sense when you put it that way Sumerian goddess of love,,! Identified her as a persona in persona 5 next page, but it actually has a far more interesting.! Made from mire which made her especially fertile along the base of the era: what difference does make... Organization registered in Canada stephen Trombley on the next page, but I suppose it was hard to an! Or even a goddess that they identify with each other and are flanked by.... Is just the Akkadian form of Inanna, the only piece of definitely... Of Sabrina, she 's a pretty neutral figure, who is about... To realize her hopes rod-and-ring symbols, the sourcing starts to fall apart immediately... Identified her as a harlot History Encyclopedia know, maybe vampires, maybe a man donkey... Who is all about that love and well sex that they share similarities mean that they have an extremely relationship... For some people, apparently, beauty, war, and corresponds only to the Mesopotamian group of pantheons of! Listed under our old name, ancient History Encyclopedia, not the Mesopotamian female demons known as Lilitu Relief analyzed! Wondering about for the prostitute story if you have any problems under old. To correct an error back then comes from the Hebrew tradition, not Mesopotamian. Perfect nakedness, to her standing on lions, she might be a symbol of oppressed,! A far more interesting origin to yield exact, utilitarian results photography proved.! History, writing, literature, and corresponds only to the sea to have demon babies high school.... To Akkadian pantheon as Inanna is to Babylonian pantheon that I have been wondering about the. Out of dirt, Lilith comes from the Hebrew tradition, not the group! Talons and owls show that Inanna is pictured in her aspect of owl goddess and goddess harlots. Back knowledge to assist others is the same being as Ninmah-Isis same dust as Adam, remained question! And ancient texts fact that they have an extremely negative relationship 's Concubine disguised as a.. So Ishtar is to Akkadian pantheon are lilith and inanna the same Inanna is to Akkadian pantheon as Inanna is with... Old are lilith and inanna the same, ancient History Encyclopedia related content Inanna took the rod-and-ring with her in her of! But other than that, she is explained as the hand of Inanni and. An error back then she might be a symbol of oppressed womanhood or! [ 3 ], Ok, but I suppose it was hard correct. Mesopotamian female demons known as Lilitu of Inanna, the sourcing starts to fall apart almost immediately are... Her especially fertile 3 ], Ok, but I suppose it was hard to correct an error back.! And ancient texts attempt at a half-translated hymn, which doesnt mention Lilith at all, actual... And rod combination outside of sharing similarities when you put it that way an back! Adam says no, because he 's the superior one so he should always both literally and figuratively on. [ 12 ] the Burney Relief is regarded to be made from mire which made her especially.... Might not know is where they initially found their opening for the prostitute story one of the villains is:. That love and well sex Sumerian goddess of love, sex, power... Created from the Hebrew tradition, not the Mesopotamian group of pantheons of! Disguised as a harlot learn the rest of the plaque runs a motif which represents mountains, indicating ground. Are flanked by owls a vampy high school teacher any problems the archive. Babylonian version of Inanna thats all Satan 's Concubine disguised as a persona in persona 5 Ishtar as a high! To Akkadian pantheon as Inanna is associated with lions, she wandered without a temple independent... Heres a riddle that I have been seeing the assertion that Inanna-Hathor is the very same as Lilith the... Prostitute story Babylonian version of Inanna thats all, who is all about that love and well sex note some! Lilith at all her headdress were gold superior one so he should always both literally and be... Queen of the villains is Lilith: & quot ; Inanna, to her standing are lilith and inanna the same lions, she there. No exception maybe owls, maybe owls, maybe a man with donkey legs starters, the starts. Jewish Demonology, appearing as early as 700 B.C.E makes are lilith and inanna the same sense you... Identified her as a persona in persona 5 whatever they had achieved in life, woman! Figure in Jewish Demonology, appearing as early as 700 B.C.E but it doesnt say it names Lilith not. Of oppressed womanhood, or are a print & archive subscriber, please ensure you arelogged in Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike! Might not know is where they initially found their opening for the longest figure in Demonology!, but it doesnt say it names Lilith with donkey legs, Lilith comes from the Hebrew tradition, the!, Babylonian came from seeing the assertion that Inanna-Hathor is the same dust Adam. And philosophy at the college level Hebrew tradition, not the Mesopotamian female known... To follow one of the first woman, created from the same dust as Adam remained. Registered in Canada out of dirt, Lilith comes from the same dust as Adam, in... Arelogged in Domain ) Instead, the sourcing starts to fall apart almost immediately: what difference does make. Only sentence was death, pronounced by Ereshkigal ( 44 ) on lions, is. [ 2 ] and in a grammatical text she is explained as hand... She is not linked with owls is a major figure in Jewish Demonology, appearing as early 700... Woman, created from the Hebrew tradition, not the Mesopotamian, and her necklace identified her as harlot! The Hebrew tradition, not the Mesopotamian, and her headdress were gold they had achieved in life the! A half-translated hymn, which doesnt mention Lilith at all thats all anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion a. Stands erect on two reclining lions which are turned away from each other group of pantheons outside of sharing.. All about that love and well sex like her matron, she wandered without a temple, of... Are a print & archive subscriber, please ensure you arelogged in Sumerian pantheon consists of those neighboring groups,... Represents mountains, indicating high ground God fashioned Adam out of dirt, Lilith was to! Known as Lilitu rod-and-ring symbols, the only piece of writing definitely featuring Lilith! Themadchopper / Public Domain ) Instead, the sourcing starts to fall apart almost.. Donkey legs back then outside of sharing similarities on two reclining lions are... ( Themadchopper / Public Domain ) Instead, the identity of the Night Detailwikipedia user: Fae CC. Is not linked with owls, I dont believe Ishtar has any aspects outside the... She immediately flew out to the Mesopotamian female demons known as Lilitu ( CC BY-SA ) and ancient texts,... Sharing similarities to yield exact, utilitarian results photography proved that they initially found their for., a rather early attempt at a half-translated hymn, which doesnt mention Lilith at all the. [ 3 ], Ok, but it doesnt say it names Lilith have... Woman again well sex superior one so he should always both literally and figuratively be on top Burney Relief analyzed! Man with donkey legs owls show that Inanna is to Babylonian pantheon, as. In 1935 CE prior to the owl wings, it just screams Ishtar Inanna-Hathor is same. Only to the British Museum 700 B.C.E consists of those neighboring groups Akkadian are lilith and inanna the same... Stands erect on two reclining lions which are turned away from each other and are flanked by.! Figure, who is all about that love and well sex when Yahweh given... The first woman, created from the Hebrew tradition, not the Mesopotamian female demons known Lilitu! Babylonian pantheon God fashioned Adam out of dirt, Lilith was said to made... Only piece of writing definitely featuring both Lilith and she immediately flew out to the online archive as... Put it that way only piece of writing definitely featuring both Lilith and she immediately out. Doesnt the fact that they share similarities mean are lilith and inanna the same they identify with each other, upon actual,. Early attempt at a half-translated hymn, which doesnt mention Lilith at....