Post by Rik Wallin on Mar 30, 2007 9:03:51 GMT -6
Sumerian Religion and Ritual
Source Lost...
The Sumerian religion, which was not considered separate from secular life, consumed almost all of daily life. The Sumerians were surrounded by and carried around figurines of the gods and goddesses everyday for protection. The elemental forces around us (forces of nature) were actually human to the Sumerians. The Sumerians had a great fear for the gods and thought their fate depended on them. As a result, much of their daily lives were devoted to propitiating and honoring the gods. However, the Sumerian people didn't believe in life after death-immortality was only for the gods. They believed their souls went to the underworld after their death. One of the key concepts of Sumer life was their belief in something called me (pronounced may). Me is a set of universal laws that ruled over everything. The Sumerians believed that they were created to be servants to the gods. Everyone must be submissive and obey the decisions made by their gods, no matter how unjust the laws may be. So, essentially, they had no free will. They never, it is believed, questioned the hardships or suffering bestowed on them from the almighty gods. Me existed for things like fear, strife, "the troubled heart", natural destruction such as floods and destruction of cities. The gods weren't expected to help the common man. When a man needed help, he turned to a lower level of the divine- a personal god. He addressed all his prayers to the "father who begot him".
Because of this servant relationship, it was essential that the Sumerian man honor the gods daily. This was accomplished through attending and participating in various religious ceremonies and rituals.
There were a tremendous number of rituals that the Sumerians followed. The temples, which were the center of the religious and economic life of the Sumerians, were often the place of many sacrifices to the gods. There were offering tables, statues of important officials, and "cult-statues" in the temples which were the places of many offerings and prayers. A hierarchy of priests relating to ritual was common to each city. The kalu-priests were in charge of temple chants; baru-priests read the omens; and other priests were in charge of ritual "ablutions". In every temple of every city, sacrifices were made to the gods on a daily basis. "Libations" of water, beer, vegetables, meats were often offered while incense was burned. The ceremonies were conducted only by priests and the common man usually had very little part in these ceremonies.
Spells and charms were taken very seriously because they helped drive life. Through ritual and prayer, the Sumerians could win the support and "control" the power of the gods and goddesses. The gods often appeared in person to the people of the city. Statues of gods were often carried through the city in a procession. An example of one of these rituals from the book The Quest for Sumer by Leonard Cottrell follows:
"...after the statue of the god Anu has left the chapel called Aemenna and has reached the Exalted Gate, all the masmasu-priests shall recite three times the incantation (entitled) Sarru ittasa...After the blessing, the masmasu- priests shall again recite four times the incantation Sarru ittasu as far as the Street of the Gods. The urigallu-priest, the masmasu-priests, the eribbitu-priests, and the brewers, who are harnessed to the cross-beam (supporting the moving statue of Anu), shall bless Anu with the blessing entitled Anu rabu same u ersetu likrabuka."
Some rituals were carried out to the extreme, such as the ritual of the Washing the Mouth. The example of this ritual is again from the book The Quest for Sumer:
"You shall draw the curtains shut. On the bull you shall perform the rite of Washing the Mouth. You shall whisper through a reed tube into the bull's left ear the incantation entitled "Alpu ilittu Zi attama." You shall purify the bull, using a brazier and a torch. You shall draw a ring of zisurra-flour around the bull. Standing at its head, you shall sing Nitugki niginna to the accompaniment of a bronze halahlattu....Then you shall cut out open that bull and start a fire with cedar. You shall burn the bull's heart with cedar, cypress and mashatu-flour before the kettledrum. You shall remove the tendon of the left shoulder and shall bury the body of the bull wrapped in a single reed. You shall throw some gunnu-oil on it and arrange it so that its face points to the west..."
A sequence of religious festivals was held each month to celebrate the completion of one of the phases of the moon and other natural occurrences. The biggest annual celebration was the New Year's festival (celebrated in the Spring) which celebrated the critical time of harvest when everything depended on a turn of the tide. This time of year was very tense for these Sumerian farmers and many rituals that occurred during this festival conveyed that same feeling. This New Year holiday also centered around the "Sacred Marriage" which was a dramatization of the legend of the marriage of the god Dumuzi to the goddess Inanna. The repetition of this ritual reassured the Sumerians of their fate in the future. The reading of the creation myth also occurred at this time. On the fifth day of the festival, a number of other rituals were carried out. The temple was blessed at this time by sprinkling it with water and holy oil. A sheep was then decapitated and the bloody body was held up to the building to remove any impurity that still remained. The sheep was then thrown into the river as the scapegoat. After this was done, the king of the city then came to the festival for the first time and entered the temple where he performed a ritual which demonstrated his humbleness and servitude to the gods. Later that day, the king then participated in the ritual sacrifice of a bull. The ritual ended with the "decreeing of the fate" of the king for the new year.
"Away to the east the red arc of the sun is just beginning to rise over the rim of the plain, and if we strain our eyes we may see far off the walls and towers of other cities, gilded by the level rays. There is a sound of chanting...High above them the voice of the sangu intones the final prayer, while incense drifts up into the cloudless sky. The ceremony is over. The New Year has begun."
Source Lost...
The Sumerian religion, which was not considered separate from secular life, consumed almost all of daily life. The Sumerians were surrounded by and carried around figurines of the gods and goddesses everyday for protection. The elemental forces around us (forces of nature) were actually human to the Sumerians. The Sumerians had a great fear for the gods and thought their fate depended on them. As a result, much of their daily lives were devoted to propitiating and honoring the gods. However, the Sumerian people didn't believe in life after death-immortality was only for the gods. They believed their souls went to the underworld after their death. One of the key concepts of Sumer life was their belief in something called me (pronounced may). Me is a set of universal laws that ruled over everything. The Sumerians believed that they were created to be servants to the gods. Everyone must be submissive and obey the decisions made by their gods, no matter how unjust the laws may be. So, essentially, they had no free will. They never, it is believed, questioned the hardships or suffering bestowed on them from the almighty gods. Me existed for things like fear, strife, "the troubled heart", natural destruction such as floods and destruction of cities. The gods weren't expected to help the common man. When a man needed help, he turned to a lower level of the divine- a personal god. He addressed all his prayers to the "father who begot him".
Because of this servant relationship, it was essential that the Sumerian man honor the gods daily. This was accomplished through attending and participating in various religious ceremonies and rituals.
There were a tremendous number of rituals that the Sumerians followed. The temples, which were the center of the religious and economic life of the Sumerians, were often the place of many sacrifices to the gods. There were offering tables, statues of important officials, and "cult-statues" in the temples which were the places of many offerings and prayers. A hierarchy of priests relating to ritual was common to each city. The kalu-priests were in charge of temple chants; baru-priests read the omens; and other priests were in charge of ritual "ablutions". In every temple of every city, sacrifices were made to the gods on a daily basis. "Libations" of water, beer, vegetables, meats were often offered while incense was burned. The ceremonies were conducted only by priests and the common man usually had very little part in these ceremonies.
Spells and charms were taken very seriously because they helped drive life. Through ritual and prayer, the Sumerians could win the support and "control" the power of the gods and goddesses. The gods often appeared in person to the people of the city. Statues of gods were often carried through the city in a procession. An example of one of these rituals from the book The Quest for Sumer by Leonard Cottrell follows:
"...after the statue of the god Anu has left the chapel called Aemenna and has reached the Exalted Gate, all the masmasu-priests shall recite three times the incantation (entitled) Sarru ittasa...After the blessing, the masmasu- priests shall again recite four times the incantation Sarru ittasu as far as the Street of the Gods. The urigallu-priest, the masmasu-priests, the eribbitu-priests, and the brewers, who are harnessed to the cross-beam (supporting the moving statue of Anu), shall bless Anu with the blessing entitled Anu rabu same u ersetu likrabuka."
Some rituals were carried out to the extreme, such as the ritual of the Washing the Mouth. The example of this ritual is again from the book The Quest for Sumer:
"You shall draw the curtains shut. On the bull you shall perform the rite of Washing the Mouth. You shall whisper through a reed tube into the bull's left ear the incantation entitled "Alpu ilittu Zi attama." You shall purify the bull, using a brazier and a torch. You shall draw a ring of zisurra-flour around the bull. Standing at its head, you shall sing Nitugki niginna to the accompaniment of a bronze halahlattu....Then you shall cut out open that bull and start a fire with cedar. You shall burn the bull's heart with cedar, cypress and mashatu-flour before the kettledrum. You shall remove the tendon of the left shoulder and shall bury the body of the bull wrapped in a single reed. You shall throw some gunnu-oil on it and arrange it so that its face points to the west..."
A sequence of religious festivals was held each month to celebrate the completion of one of the phases of the moon and other natural occurrences. The biggest annual celebration was the New Year's festival (celebrated in the Spring) which celebrated the critical time of harvest when everything depended on a turn of the tide. This time of year was very tense for these Sumerian farmers and many rituals that occurred during this festival conveyed that same feeling. This New Year holiday also centered around the "Sacred Marriage" which was a dramatization of the legend of the marriage of the god Dumuzi to the goddess Inanna. The repetition of this ritual reassured the Sumerians of their fate in the future. The reading of the creation myth also occurred at this time. On the fifth day of the festival, a number of other rituals were carried out. The temple was blessed at this time by sprinkling it with water and holy oil. A sheep was then decapitated and the bloody body was held up to the building to remove any impurity that still remained. The sheep was then thrown into the river as the scapegoat. After this was done, the king of the city then came to the festival for the first time and entered the temple where he performed a ritual which demonstrated his humbleness and servitude to the gods. Later that day, the king then participated in the ritual sacrifice of a bull. The ritual ended with the "decreeing of the fate" of the king for the new year.
"Away to the east the red arc of the sun is just beginning to rise over the rim of the plain, and if we strain our eyes we may see far off the walls and towers of other cities, gilded by the level rays. There is a sound of chanting...High above them the voice of the sangu intones the final prayer, while incense drifts up into the cloudless sky. The ceremony is over. The New Year has begun."