Vampire thread - Nergal/Gidim/Lilitu/Lamaštu

** Refined July 31 **

Posted by us4-he2-gal at
groups.yahoo.com/group/TabletofDestiny/message/6397



As for the Vampire post, this is a novel way to launch an initiative
Sylt ;] I admire your scope here and style, you've touched on
everything I know of as yet in terms of leads to vampirism in
Sumerian sources. However we're missing my favorite part that is the
discussion which - you like anyway. But discussion on all 8 leads at
once would be far too chaotic so, I suggest 1 lead at a time, and to
attempt to affirm their relevance if at all possible. Ultimately for
classification as a vampiric entity I prefer instances of actual
blood drinking because the question to me is not how many creatures
in Mesopotamian were cannibalistic or parasitic, but which were
vampiric? So I would follow Cynsanity on the need for actual blood
drinking for classification. I notice as well there have been some
excellent posts and materials suggested for Lilitu demons, I plan to
review that in detail though sequentially due to the above reason. So
it will be gotten to!

I was just reading recently about Nergal in Diana Katz "The image of
the netherworld in Sumerian sources" one of her points about Nergal
I'd never taken into account was that in the
third millennium Sumer was divided into north and south on the
concepts of the netherworld. In the north, at Emeslam temple Nergal/
Meslamtaea represented the north Sumerian netherworld pantheon. And
at the same time in the south, from the egida temple, Ereškigal and
Ninazu headed the south Sumerian netherworld pantheon. "The two
religious streams merged into one only in the second millennium, but
it seems the constituents of the northern pantheon became more
pronounced." So the marriage of Nergal and Ereškigal, the merging of
their cults and the north/south netherworld pantheons seems to have
occurred only after the Sumerians had ceased as a cultural entity.
Certainly their marriage and the myth "Nergal and Ereskigal" is not
only a later text, but as I come to realize, a realization of a later
concept of netherworld deities and powers.
- Due to recent demand (COLLEGEGUY!) for information on
Nergal,. I've expanded what I was going to quote from Katz book - I'm
now looking at her bio of Nergal on page 405. Its impossible to
sum this level of detail without robing it of its direction, but Ive
managed to stop short of typing it verbatim. This post attempts to
cover Katz research on the origin of Nergal, the next post will
hopefully get into more of his character.

Nergal in Early Dynastic Sumer - Kiš.Unu

Within the same authors massive write up on Nergal on pg 405,
the earliest attestation of the name Nergal is given as
^dKiš.Unu, found in the ED III god-lists from Fara, Abu-
Salabikh and Ebla. There is a hymn from that same era associating
this deity with the netherworld, and one scholarly suggestion is
that the deities name also applies to his city, thus Kiš.Unu is also
the name of Nergal's first cultic center..The appearance of the name
in a cycle of hymns, if it does relate to Nergal, suggests he was
important already in ED times, and in a list from Ebla he appears
after Enlil, Enki and Inana. Something in Katz' epigraphic
circling, which id have to type verbatim to detail, leads me to
believe Kiš in this instance is read 'bull' and refers to Nergal, and
Unu is to be read 'residence' so the name of the city -and the deity
evidently would mean 'residence of the bull' [Kiš.Unu]. Evidently this is a
sometime convention in the Sumerian literature for instance the name
Larsa was sometimes rendered Ud.Unu^ki, Ud meaning for example Sun/
light and referring to Utu - Larsa was the residence of the sun
[Utu]. So although some have theorized the city Kiš.Unu equates to
Kutha, Nergal's residence since the time of Naramsin, Katz suspects
Nergals cult was moved to Kutha in the Old Akkadian [Sargonic]
period, on the basis that Kutha was standardly written phonetically: gú-
du₈-a^ki and never refereed by geographical name, while other cities
such as Larsa continued to be called such as Ud.Unu^ki, this would be in sharp contrast to the writing of Nergal's first attested cult centre, Kiš.Unu. ( There are no
indicators of what Nergals divine properties might have been in Kiš.Unu)

In the Sargonic period

The earliest manifestation of Nergal in Sargonic period is in the
Temple Hymns, specifically hymn 36: etcsl t.4.80.1

(E-ĝiškešda-kalama wr. [é-g̃iš-kéš-da-kalam-ma]
(Mešlamta-ea wr. [^dmeš₃-lam-ta-e₃-])
(Mešlam wr. [meš₃-lam-ma])
(Ud-šuš wr. [ud-šu₂-[uc]])

" 457-466. O E-ĝiškešda-kalama (House which is
the bond of the Land), bull …… great strength among the gods,
terrifying wild cow, wild bull which causes lament, Gudua, your quay
is a low quay which bestows water, your interior is artfully built,
your mace is a …… mace released from heaven, your platform is a
lustrous platform spreading over Mešlam. Your prince, the mighty god,
the sovereign of Mešlam, the fierce god of the underworld, the
sovereign of Ud-šuš (Sunset), Nergal, Mešlamta-ea, has erected a
house in your precinct, and taken his seat upon your dais.
467. 10 lines: the house of Nergal in Gudua."


Based on the fact that the E-mešlam is not specified in the
hymn, and that this hymn deviates in a number of ways from the
structure of the other temple hymns, combined with the fact Katz has
found E-giškešda-kalama on a temple list which lists elsewhere the E-
meslam..The author suggests that they are two different temples, and
that the hymn in the Sargonic or Old Akkadian period was to this
original temple, E-giškešda-kalama , but that the extent version of the text we
have had been altered somewhat (possibly a result of being recopied in O.B times to
reflect Nergal's later position in Meslam).
"This means that in the Old Akkadian period E-giškešda-kalama was a temple of
Nergal and Hymn no.36 was dedicated to it.
The significant deviations from the fixed structure
suggest that in the long period of transmission
from Old Akkadian to Old Babylonian periods, the
hymn was modified to suit the contemporary
religious trend."
Katz suggests that E-giškešda-kalama was the name of Nergal's
early temple in Kiš.Unu, which was perhaps a district in Mešlam or a
chapel of the Emešlam. When Naramsin promoted Nergal's status, his
move to Emešlam probably took place - this would have occurred not
long after the writing of the Temple Hymns by Sargon's daughter. The
fact that the name of Mešlamta-ea is found beside Nergals in the
Temple Hymn, and not in the list of epiphets in previous lines,
indicates to Katz that "rather then one god with two names,
Mešlamta-ea is regarded as an individual deity next to Nergal in
Emeslam.' In her write up of Mešlamta-ea (equally long and complex)
she states Mešlamta-ea's name meant 'lad who comes out of the almond
tree" and that he was an incarnation of the young dying god.
From the time of Naramsin onward however, Nergal is firmly
linked to the city of Kutha. Naramsin at that time is known to have
refered to Nergal as 'maškim-lugal' an epiphet which proposes his war-
like character. Further, Naramsin effectively "brought Nergal to the
fore, and his military achievement accentuated Nergals warlike
charactor." Naramsin credited Nergal and Damu with the success of his
campaign into Armanum and Ebla and for his domination of the lands up
to the "Upper Sea" [Mediterranean]. Although the cult of Nergal is
not attested in Southern Sumer in this period, Katz believes it is
possible to mark this point and time and space as the elevation of
Nergal, and this was a direct result of socio-political environment,
particularly Naramsin's reform which was sparked by a great revolt, in
which Kutha took part in:
"In the framework of this reform, and as a preparation for his
own deification, Naramsin elevated the status of Nergal and presumably
transfered his cult to Emešlam, the main temple of Kutha where he
became the counterpart to Meslamtaea."

The UrIII period and beyond:

From the UrIII period a pair of dedication inscriptions from
Sulgi's reign address first Nergal in Akkadian and secondly
Mešlamta-ea in Sumerian. By way of explanation the author suggests the
presence of "two ethnic groups within one community,each worshiped
its own traditional god, rather than one god with two names." A
number of Sulgi hymns underscore Nergal's warlike quality although a
link to the netherworld is "merely implied."
Katz points to a line in the Death or Ur-Nammu as the point in which Nergal is introduced to
the south Sumerian literary tradition as an explicit netherworld
deity in the line which refers to him as the "Enlil of the
Netherworld" (although the authors reads this to mean that he has
power over life and death via his war aspect, rather then implying
that he is the ruler of the netherworld, which at this time in the
south was still considered to be Ereškigal).
Finally in Katz article on Nergal there is a good sum of the
transaction of the cult location on pg.427:
When Naramsin transfered the cult of Nergal from Kiš.Unu to Emešlam
- "Since old religious traditions cannot cease abruptly and vanish,
certainly not in a complex society, both deities [Nergal and
Meslamtaea] were worshiped in parallel until the Ur III period. The
offering-lists of that period prove that the cult of Meslamtaea did
not decline, and that of Nergal did not flourish before the Old
Babylonian period. It is not surprising, however, that, in the eighth
year of šusin, Meslamtaea recieved offerings with Laz and
šubula [wife of Nergal in O.B lists]. After two centuries of sharing
their major cult center, half a century after Sulgi promoted Nergal
in Southern Sumer, and at the twilight of Sumerian hegemony,
Meslamtaea attained the identity of Nergal." This is the point the
author designates as the merging of the two entities, though
contradictions can be found for a singular entity before this point
and multiple afterwords.

Next post I hope to finish summing some of the point on Nergal,
probably getting into some of the meat of his character which
hopefully will prove helpful for the vampire question. cheers.

Posted by us4-he2-gal2 at
groups.yahoo.com/group/TabletofDestiny/message/6407


My last input regarding Nergal as a vampire:

In the last post Nergal II, I mentioned a line from Su-ilisu hymn to
Nergal (from the Isin period) which read ""25-28. In the west, Utu
has shone forth for you, and an awe-inspiring dais has been erected
for you! Nergal, you, lord, are one who has the power to carry off
and to bring back (?)! In the east, lord, ……, you are imbued with a
terrible great awesomeness; Nergal, your praise and renown are such
as to unleash awe and terror!" -
Still a curiousity..It sounded to me as though this may
refer to some sort of ability to bring back from the netherworld, at
for example the place of sunrise. I dont fully understand how that
could be, it does touch quite closely on the Sisig thread however,
particularly when its noted that in some versions of the Epic of
Gilgamesh, it is not Utu who Enki commands to raise Enkidu from the
netherworld but Nergal... i.e Dalley's translation of the Epic of
Gilgamesh Akkadian version, pg123 "He spoke to to the warrior [Ukur],
'Warlike young man [Ukur], You must open a hole in the Earth now (?),
So that the spirit [of Enkidu can come out of the Earth like a gust
of wind]."
Ukur Dalley explains as being a name of Nergals. Soo..Im not sure
we needed yet another twist there in regards to Sisig, but it does
possible help to explain the above Su-ilisu line, this possibly
suggests that at some point Nergal took over a prerogative previously
assigned to Utu, and perhaps this text in the Isin period is an early
record of that.

Moving on to the question of Nergals Vampiric identification -
that being explicitly does he DRINK blood in Mesopotamian or
specifically Sumerian sources:

Reading through M. Cohens "Cultic Calenders of the Ancient Near East"
would seem to substantiate Katz ruling on the state of his
sacrificial cult in south Sumer. There are a few reference's to a
'festival of Nergal' one occurring in O.B Mari for example, but very
scanty detail associated with these, indicators of a washing of
Nergals cultic statue, and that in some incarnations of the
observance a chariot was used to transport the statue of Nergal, and
offerings were made. Absent is any unusual or conspicuous detail on
blood -human or animal- that would be interesting to us here.
Indicators from "Erra and Ishum" (Oxford World Classics/Dalley 2000
pg.300) clearly point to a blood thirstiness in the latter
incarnation of Nergal to match earlier sources, but a definitive lack
of blood drinking at least in this line "You [Erra/Nergal] have made
their blood flow like water in the drains of public square's. You
have opened their veins and let the river carry off their blood.
Ellil has cried "Woe!" and clutched his heart. [He has risen up from]
his dwelling. An irredeemable curse is set in his mouth, He has sworn
not to drink the river's waters, He shuns their blood and will not
enter into Ekur."
So taking into account the texts surveyed in the last post Nergal
II, and what cultic references i can draw on, and his descriptions
among the various scholars, I can find only one line that possibly
alludes to blood-drinking in any strict sense of the word. That is of
again, the line Sylt touched on, and Cyn touched on, the line from Su-
ilisu's hymn from the Isin period, reading:
"13-16. Warrior with head held high, respected lord, son who rises up
to protect his father, Nergal, angry sea, inspiring fearsome terror,
whom no one knows how to confront, youth whose advance is a hurricane
and a flood battering the lands, Nergal, dragon covered with gore,
drinking the blood of living creatures!"

As for the power of this particular line here to serve our
purpose's..Im ultimately doubtful. It certainly evokes the right
imagery, but I'm not sure it can be taken a face value in that way.
After reviewing an article on "Sumerian Similes" by S. Kramer
(Journal of the American Oriental Society v. 89 1969) I would say
this line falls close to such a categorization. Kramer treats
similes related to the dragon or 'Usumgal' (unfortunately not
referring to this particular instance):
"The mythological creatures and monsters in similes are
....(Dragon): Inanna filled the (inimical) land with venom like an
Usumgal; weapons pour venom into the enemy '"like an Usumgal prepared
to bite" ; weapons devour corpses "like an Usumgal" ; Enmerkers
herald is said to travel as swiftly "as an Usumgal seeking his prey
in the steppe."

The closest mirror to what we have with Nergal is the 3rd simile, one
example of which can be found at etcsl:
Ninurta's return to Nibru: a šir-gida to Ninurta: c.1.6.1
"Now I have reestablished my heroic strength in the mountains. On my
right, I bear my Mows-down-a-myriad. On my left, I bear my Crushes-a-
myriad. I bear my Fifty-toothed-storm, my heavenly mace. I bear the
hero who comes down from the great mountains, my No-resisting-this-
storm. I bear the weapon which devours corpses like a dragon, my
agasilig axe. I bear my ……."

Simile is of course a vary common poetic device used by the
Sumerians, and seems dependent on the setup 'like a' ...there are 590
result for a search for the english 'like a' nearly all if not all
are examples of simile. Whether our Nergal line is a simile..im not
sure. It doesn't contain "like a" but I believe 'drinking the blood of
living creatures' is a behavior borrowed from the dragon, the one
covered with gore. So while Sulgi may be fast because his is "like a
mountain goat running to its shelter" (Kramer) perhaps the line
should be Nergal is savage because 'he is [like a] dragon covered in
gore, drinking the blood of living creatures'. In other words what
might be meant by the line, is an illustration of Nergal's savageness
via comparison to the observed habits of what is -universally-
construed as a deadly and fearsome creature.
So although I haven't yet been able to factor in references from
the incantation series regarding Nergal, I would say due to
significant lack of indicators of Nergals blood-drinking -and the
question of how literally the one source can actually be taken- I
would opt to remove Nergal for the list of Vampiric entities in
Sumer. Of course, barring the objection or the counter-point of any
parties following this thread.
Cheers

First of all, I know I have been very quiet, but that's the start of
the semester... and stuff like that :/ So, I am working on things for
here, but my internet-activity isn't that high at the moment.

I have posted an article by Lambert on the subject of Nergal's name;
for those who are interested, I also uploaded scans from my 'Manuel
d'Epigraphie Akkadienne' so that you can actually compare the signs he
mentions (I don't have the other sign lists he's referring to, and
can't scan stuff in the library, high-tech-institute that we are...),
but if interested, I can dig up the rest of the arguments about the
name of Nergal.

That said, on to the topic at hand.

Ryversylt, I find your conclusions, while ingenuitive, a little bit
flawed. You assume resp. suggest a phonetic reading of the name, and
whilst that is perfectly acceptable, it seemed to me as if you are
dismissing the cuneiform writing for the name. Although not every sign
does have a specific image as basis for it, most of them do; I was
taught that, if a word or term in general, or especially names, do not
make much sense grammatically at first glance, to use the "good old
Sumerological practice" (in the words of my professor) of looking as
the single signs that make up the term, or in this case name, and try
to get some sort of meaning from them.

Whilst the name Nergal might very well phonetically transcribe to your
first suggestion of Nir-Gal, the cuneiform signs used to write the
name point to a different direction.

The article by Lambert (should be in the files section if I didn't
screw it up) mentions archaic writings of the deity's name with the
sign KISH. He is addressing the issue in the essay, and I have not yet
looked into that, so I will confine myself to the writing I am
familiar with and which has been used from EDIII on.

d.(n)GIR3.URU.GAL

I have scanned the sign GIR3, so that you can look at it if you don't
have a sign-list at hand. As my keyboard is incapable of making it
possible for me to use special characters for correct transcription, I
will write the sign as NGÌR, as the initial phonem is the specifically
Sumerian /ng/ phonem and not a /g/.

The sign NGÌR is, as is commonly held (and after staring at that sign
for a lot of the past years, I can't say anything against that) to be
the depiction of a bull's head. This seems to be the oldest form of
the sign. Considering the fact that the bull was seen as a mighty,
wild, furious beast, I think that this might be a hint as to why the
sign is used in the deity's name. Also, consider the older tradition
of Ereshkigala's husband being Gugalanna (GU4-GAL-AN-A(K)), the "Great
Bull of Heaven".
Another reading for NGÌR is PIRING, lion (probably also mountain lion,
but that's a matter of context and still disputed). Nergal's weapon is
a double-headed mace with lions' heads, and in those few cylinder
seals that are tentatively connected to him, he is portrayed with his
foot (I think it is the right foot, but I would have to look the seals
up) resting upon a lion, his lion-headed double-mace in one hand.
Iconographically, that would make sense.
The sign is also used to denote the deity Shumugan (sem. Shakkan),
Lord of Wild Beasts; earliest renderings of that deity show him as a
giant spotted feline, probably a leopard. I don't think that this is
entirely accidental. However, I digress.
There is also, of course, the reading NÈ, strength, force. If you look
at the scan I provided of the relevant page, you might notice the
entry "d.NÈ-IRI11-GAL" for Nergal; I am using the 196*-edition of
Labat's 'Manuel' (as somehow, every newer edition mysteriously
vanished from the library, and thus, had to copy that). In the
meantime, there have been advances in regard to the reading of
Nergal's name; the entry reflects the old notion that the name is to
be read purely phonetically, with which most scholars these days
disagree.

Besides from that, consider that the EME.GIR word "EN" can also be
"NE" in the EME.SAL dialect (don't quote me on the indices, though, I
currently have no Emesal-book close to me to look it up). That would
indeed be handy - then again, the question arises: If that is indeed
so (yes, I am doubting myself until I look it up), why is the name of
Nergal partly written in the women's tongue? However, thinking of the
fact that male deities had female ENs, and vice versa, that might shed
some light on it. I'll look it up, though.

URU (or ERI, or IRI, or ERI, or ÜRÜ, whatever you prefer) usually
means "city". The reading of it as URUGAL in this specific case (which
was one of the terms for the Netherworld) has been proposed, with GAL
as a Mater Lectionis.
Whether Mater Lectionis or not, we definitely have a city here.

By merely looking at the signs, we can come to several conclusions:

- "Bull of the Great City"
- "Bull of the Netherworld"
- "Lion of the Great City"
- "Lion of the Netherworld"
- "Lord of the Great City"
- "Lord of the Netherworld"
- "Strength/Force of the Great City"
- "Strength/Force of the Netherworld"

Given that Nergal's association with the Netherworld is rather late, I
think that the reading of URUGAL-gal as Netherworld can be ruled out.
However, I'm no great expert, so maybe something will come up in the
future that contradicts my personal opinion.

As the reading NÈ seems to be directly related to the concept of the
Bull (cuneiform sign) and that of the Lion, I dare say that it's very
likely that the /NE/ part of Nergal's name (phonetically speaking)
encompasses all of the three concepts. I hope that makes sense.



>
> Looking into another of his names yields:
>
> MEŠ.LAM.TA.È.A
> MEÅ : I'm still having a little trouble with this element. I suspect it
> translates to something like "place" or "Location"
>
> lam: n., abundance, luxuriance; almond tree; netherworld [LAM archaic
> frequency: 47; concatenates 3 sign variants].
> v., to grow luxuriantly; to make grow luxuriantly (la, 'abundance' +
> to be).
> ta, dá: n., nature, character [TA archaic frequency: 34; concatenates
> 6 sign variants].
> prep., from; to; for; by means of (ablative-instrumental noun suffix
> and verbal prefix; as a noun suffix can be a locative with remote
> deixis, as in an-ta and ki-ta).
>
> è: (cf., éd).
>
> éd, è; i: to go out, emerge; to send forth; to lead or bring out; to
> rise; to sprout; to be or become visible; to appear as a witness (the
> final d appears in marû conjugation) [ED2 archaic frequency: 12;
> concatenates 2 sign variants].
>
> a, e4: n., water; watercourse, canal; seminal fluid; offspring;
> father; tears; flood.
> interj., alas!.
> prep., locative suffix - where; in; when - denotes movement towards
> or in favor of a person.
> def. article, nominalizing suffix for a noun or noun clause,
> denoting 'the'.
> MEŠ(Place?) LAM (Netherworld) TA (By means of) È (Come forth) A (The)
>
> He and his twin were guardians of the gate to the Netherworld. They
> guarded the place where the dead came forth into the netherworld. In
> that context the name makes sense.
>
> If taken element by element you would get a confusing name that might
> have to do with sprouts or living things, but I believe my translation
> makes a little more sense over all.

MES is usually translated as "youth", "young man", "young warrior" and
the like. Consider MES-KALAM-DÙG. LAM is generally translated as
"tree" (a special kind of tree, but no one has any idea what tree,
although I might find something if I dig through the library long
enough on a free day).

Also, consider that, in the text "Ishum and Erra", the cult statue of
Marduk has to be carved out of the "MESLAM"-tree. Without doing the
tremendous work of rolling over to my desk, removing the canvas and
taking the actual cuneiform and translation, I remember that this
MESLAM-tree is supposed to have its roots in the Abzu and its branches
up in the Heavens of the Gods. When I last talked about this to my
teachers, they agreed with me that this seems an awful lot like an
Axis Mundi metaphor.

In my opinion, Meslamta'ea should be analysed like this:

MES-LAM-TA È.A
(-ta being the Ablativus Separativus postposition, and È.a being a
hamtu-participle)

Depending on the interpretation of the MES-LAM as either a
word-linking ("Tree-youth" or something akin to that) or a reference
to that enigmatic MESLAM-tree, we would get either

"From the tree-youth he arose"
or
"From the MESLAM-tree he arose"

Personally, I think the latter one would make more sense, especially
when taking that quite possible Axis Mundi connection into account. As
the MESLAM-tree, with its roots in the Abzu and its branches in
Heaven, connects the world as such (the realm of the living and the
dead) with the Heaven in which the DINGIRANNA (DINGIR-AN-A(K)) dwell;
the nature of Nergal himself is a rather worldly one (in my words:
rather Malkuth-based) - plague, war, destruction, the burning sun etc.
-, but he is a son of Enlil, and thus one of the DINGIRANNA, the
heavenly Gods. However, his "functions" are VERY closely related to
death, which is inevitably connected to the Netherworld.
In this interpretation, Nergal would not be bound to one of the realms
- Heaven, world of the living, Netherworld - but be part of all three
of them, in a way transcending the limits of each.

Just some thoughts...

cyn

[***Admin note- For the sake econimizing some space here, as oppose to posting it, Ill just mention my reply to this is at the bottem of
groups.yahoo.com/group/TabletofDestiny/message/6465]

Hello all. I'm still reviewing the Possible Vampiric entities in Sumer, so far we've looked at Nergal, I then went into an aside about Blood ritual in Mesopotamia, Hopefully this post will bring the Gidim/Etemmu into question. This is more less a sketch rather then the a final attempt to link blood drinking to the gidim. Ghosts in Mesopotamia are something I've always thought about, but have been difficult to pin down for me in that the literature does not provide a detailed accounting besides a descent or two, and most scholarly works I own dont dwell on the matter of gidim - even books specifically on the Sumerian netherworld. So here is what I can pull together on the topic - first I have a definition I found via books.google which I think is excellent:

Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible by Karel van der Toorn, Pieter Willem van der Horst, and Bob Becking
[under "Eţemmu" an entry I believe that was written by T. Abusch given that his name appears at the bottom. In most cases I have not been able to reproduce the special charactors for this article]


Eţemmu
"I. Eţemmu is the main term for 'ghost' in Akkadian. It is the primary Akkadian equivalent or translation of Sum gidim, from which word it may derive. The term etemmu seems to underlie th biblical 'ittim [first i is accented] in Isa 19:3, where however the final mem is treated as if it were the Hebrew marker of the masculine plural.
II. Eţemmu is a spirit, more properly a ghost. Wind imagery is associated with ghosts (and demons) - note the use of lil [accented i] for 'ghost' (->Lilith). Ghosts are heard, felt and especially seen, particularly in dreams. Ghosts are also designated by or associated with 'divinity'/ Of particular significance is the etiology of etemmu found in the Old Babylonian Atrahasis epic I 206-230. There, mankind is created from a mixture of clay and the flesh and blood of a slain god. This god's name is We-ilu, and he is characterized as one who has temu, 'understanding, intelligence' or perhaps even 'psyche'. Note the similarity in sound and the punning between awilu and we-ila and between we-e..tema and eţemmu. Thus, when alive, mankind receive both its life and the name awilu, 'man', from this god (a)we-ilu. But also because of this god and man's divine origin, mankind survives after death in the form of a ghost, and this too is signaled by a name; for this text implicitly treats eţemmu, 'ghost', as having been formed from the combination of the We of the god's name and his temu.
After death, what remains is the lifeless body and some form of intangible, but visible and audible 'spirit'. The body must be buried; otherwise, the ghost will have no rest and will not find its place in the community of the dead, usually associated with the netherworld. In addition, the dead are to be the recipients of ongoing mortuary rites, which include invocations of the name of the deceased, presentation of food and libation of water. In this way the dead are cared for and their memory is preserved. The dead may be remembered as individuals for up to several generations and then become part of the ancestral family (etem kimti). It needs always to be emphasized that Mesopotamian burial and mortuary rituals as well as beliefs about the dead are not simply an autonomous area of religious life; they also reflect social structure and psychological experience. In any case, care for the dead may provide an occasion for the maintenance of social bonds. The living and dead maintain a permanent relationship and form an ongoing community. Dead and living kin in Mesopotamia are Dependant upon each other and therefore their relationship will naturally reflect or express both hostility and love.
Normally the dead body was buried and burial allowed for the preservation and maintenance of the deceased's identity after death and for his continued connection with both the living and dead members of the family. Burial is crucial, for if a corpse is left unburied and/or is destroyed by animals, fire, or the like, the dead person cannot be integrated into the structured community of the dead and thereby into the ongoing and
continuous community of the living and the dead. He loses his human community and human identity. This is not the only fate of those who do not receive burial immediately after death. The same fate awaits the dead who are disinterred and whole skeletal remains are destroyed. In some cases, the remains are so totally transformed and disintegrated that the dead loses all vestiges of human identity.
The unburied or disinterred may become roaming and troublesome ghosts; more important, some texts suggest that they are relegated to the formless and chaotic world sometimes associated with steppe and winds, and may even become part of the demonic world that is neither human nor god, male nor female. Hence gidim/eţemmu may become associated with the demonic class udug/utukku and even be so designated.
Lack of burial and/or destruction of the body often occur accidentally and belongs psychologically together with the fear of death; such treatment of the body may also be imposed as a punishment for a crime. It is among the most dreadful sanctions of Mesopotamian society."

[Here might be some explanation of the 'burnt burials' found in the proximity of the Royal tombs of Ur by Wooley, burnt burials apparently being present in some 2% or approx 13 graves he unearthed. Wooley described "There is no cremation here. The body was laid in the grave in the ordinary way and in the traditional attitude. Then, it would seem, a fire was lit in the grave closest to the head of the dead man and allowed to burn itself out before the earth was flung back into the grave shaft. Nearly always the marks of burning were confined, so far as we can see, to the skull and its immediate neighborhood. "]

Abusch continues:

" Information about the condition of the dead is found in a variety of sources. Particularly worthy of note are a) rituals, especially therapeutic ones, that deal with ghosts and their effects on humans, b) 'descents' to the netherworld, and c) curses that describe the various evils which may befall human beings.
a) Magical and medical texts that deal with ghosts usually focus on those ghosts who plague the living. The topos of a restless and troublesome ghost is particularly prevalent. Ghosts who plague the living may either belong to one's own family or be strangers who have attached themselves to the victim. These ghosts are often said to have not been provided with mortuary rites or, even worse, to have not received a proper burial in the first place. Mention must also be made of the dead who have led unfulfilled lives and are drawn back to the world of the living, either out of envy or malice, or out of the desire to complete 'unfinished business'. Various physical and psychological symptoms are attributed to ghostly seizures in therapeutic texts. Notable, in addition, is the frequent mention of visions of the dead, often in dreams. Some therapeutic texts prescribe material cures (e.g. potions, salves); others operate more in the magical and symbolic realms and try to rid the victim of the ghost either by providing the ghost with proper burial and/or mortuary treatment or by performing some other form of expulsion.
In other instances, ghosts - usually the family manes (eţem kimti) - are invoked to help the living by taking one or another form of evil down to the netherworld. Of great interest, especially in view of the aforementioned biblical passage (and similar passages which mention the ob and yid-de oni though not the iţţim), are attempts to raise the dead for purposes of necromancy. One designation of the necromancer is mušēli eţemmi.
b) Among the 'descents' , pride of place should perhaps go to the descent of Enkidu to the netherworld in the Sumerian Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Netherworld (//Gilg. Tablet XII) and in the later Gilg. Tablet VII. In the former - which represents an early text- the state of the dead is described in terms of and related to the human support system (e.g number of children), the manner death and the treatment of the body. In the main, the dead are pale imitations of the living - they are human in form but seem to lack animation and energy. In later descriptions, by contrast, the vision of the dead is more horrific and shows us a netherworld inhabited by monsters and demons and dead who no longer looks human. Here, mention should be made especially of 'The Netherworld Vision of an Assyrian Prince' as a late text which exhibits the horrific vision of the netherworld. (SAA 3 [1989] no.32).
Equally illuminating historically as regards changes in the idea of the netherworld is the graphic description of the dead and of the netherworld in th opening lines of the Descent of Ishtar. To the dark house, dwell-
ing of Erkalla's god/ To the house which those who enter cannot leave / On the road where traveling is one-way only / To the house where those who enter are deprived of light / Where dust is their food, clay their bread / They see no light, they dwell in darkness / They are clothed like birds, with feathers / Over the door and the bolt, dust has settled. (S. Dalley, Myths from Mesopotamia [Oxford/New Yord 1989] 155:4-11) Here I would make several historical observations. Firstly, it is significant that the older Descent of Inana (from which Descent of Ishtar derives) does not focus upon or even contain this type of description. Moreover, in the later text, the dead are described as birds and not humans. Furthermore, the description of the netherworld in the later text is itself a alter image, one that has been superimposed upon the earlier vision of the netherworld as a city which is entered through the gates and in which the dead are housed or even imprisoned. Its secondary nature is clear from the fact that the house of the dead is here described as one whose door and bolt are covered with dust, for the earlier image - an image which is even used of Ishtars own descent later in the text- is that of gates through which the dead constantly go and which therefore would not be covered by dust. This image of the dusty netherworld and with it the image of the dead as birds would seem to derive from that of a tomb or even a ruin and/or a cave. More than the earlier text, these later versions serve to draw a sharper line and a greater contrast between the living and the dead.
c) Often, texts whose purpose is to maintain or protect the 'status quo' (e.g. to boundary stones, treaties, laws, building and tomb inscriptions, etc.) include sanctions in the form of curses. Notable among these curses are various threats associated with death: death itself, denial of burial, destruction of the corpse, deprivation of rites which provide care for the dead. Most powerful are those curses which seem to suggest that the transgressor will not only suffer death but will also be excluded, one way or another from the organized community of the dead.
On occasion, it appears that the transgressor is punished whether he is dead of alive; he does not escape retribution. Thus, the living criminal is killed, his ghost made to wander, and even his remains destroyed. For his part, the criminal who had died before being punished is deprived of mortuary rites; moreover, his burial may be reversed by exhumation and, occasionally, his remains destroyed. His ghost, too, is this excluded from the community of the dead and made to wander. (Passages such as CH rev xxxvii, 34-40 and VTE 476-477 -- "above, among the living, may he (Shamash)/ they (the great gods) uproot him/you; below, in the earth, may he/they deprive his/your ghost of water" -- may stipulate not only two sequential punishments for the same person, but also two separate, parallel punishments for either eventuality). The etemmu, then, does not escape punishment and may even lose its human identity. In this construction, as I understand it, the criminal must not only be killed but must also be kept from being integrated or reintegrated into the netherworld. For the netherworld and the heavens form a connected structure or even a continuum, and if the criminal were allowed to remain in the netherworld, he would find a place in the cosmic state.
This approach to sanction involves the exclusion of the transgressor from the organized cosmos of the divine, the living, and the dead. It forms one of the underlying principals of Sargonid treaty ideology and explains the 'vengeful' behavior of Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal to the corpses and skeletons of those who violated their treaty obligations. It operates no less in the symbolic sphere as evidenced, for example, by the anti-witchcraft ceremony Maqlu ('Burning'). Maqlu took place at the time of the annual reappearance of ghosts in Abu. One of its central purposes was to ensure that all witches be expelled and kept outside the organized social and cosmic community. 'Live' witches were judged and destroyed; 'dead' witches were captured and expelled. Thus, all witches were to be prevented from having a proper burial. They were deprived of burial in order to prevent them from finding a place in the netherworld and consequently the cosmic state.
III. In the Hebrew Bible the 'ittim are mention in Isa. 19:3: in an oracle again Egypt it is stated that Yahweh will "frustrate the spirit of Egypt and destroy their plans". In a reaction to this prophecy of doom the Egyptians are expected to intensify their divinatory practices among which are "the consulting of mediums and the asking of the 'ittum for advice".



An excellent entry I think, valuable in many places.. I particularly like his mention of necromancy, insight into the expeling and destroying of bodies and ghosts, though his ideas regarding the tangibility/visibility of ghosts will conflict with what I quote from Katz below.
I also like that that he's pointed out the 3 main sources for detail of the gidim. It's definitely true, so far as I can see, that the main body of literature itself is sparse in detailing the gidim, at least a search for 'gidim' at etscl with reveal no particular wealth of information.. So since of Abusch's sources b) descents are known already to us and in c) I could hardly add anything about curses at this time, I'll attempt to speak on a). so far as I can tell gidim was featured as an agent of illness in the incantations only as early as the O.B. period [Cunningham 1997]

- An idea of their effect on the victim might be gleaned from 'paper13.pdf' by Erica Couto-Ferreira who referenced medical and incantation texts:

"Symptoms produced by the action of the eEemmu [Etemmu/Gidim]
The main symptoms that ghosts produced are terror, panic and fright, as they usually appear once and again before their victims. Many of the medical prescriptions dealing with ghosts intended to cure the patient by making them disappear. [the ghosts I believe]
There is also an affection called "the hand of the ghost" ($u-gidim-ma), that avoids concluding identification. The symptoms described include changes of body temperature, convulsions, paralysis, ringing ears, delirium, vertigo, vomits. It could refer to some kind of epilepsy, or also to serier cases of infection, although it is hard to propose and conclusive interpretation."
[ Black and Green pg.102 comment that the hand symbolizes control or seizure i.e 'hand of Samas' 'hand of Ishtar' 'hand of the ghost'. They state 'small models of hands, made from stone, bone or shell, were common amulets in the Early Dynastic Period, and are known occasionally from later periods." But don't specify the significance.]

There's also some instance's of symptoms cited in CAD pg.400 under "[etemmu] as cause of disease": "if his epigastruium is hot, and his intestines inflamed, (this is) "seizure" by a ghost" also "if, in the grip of a ghost, a man's temples hurt" and "incantation for the case (that) in the grip of a ghost a man's neck hurts."

-Incantation against ghost found in "From Distant Days" pg.409 By B. Foster. From an undetermined period probably post O.B.

"The ghost which has set upon me, keeps harassing me,
and [does not quit me] day or [nig]ht,
Be it a stranger ghost,
Be it a forgotten ghost,
Be it a ghost without a name,
Be it a ghost who has no one to provide for it,
Be it a ghost of someone who [has no one to invoke its name],
Be it a ghost of someone killed by a weapon,
Be it a ghost of someone who died for a sin again a god
or for a crime against a king
[Place] it [in the care of the ghosts of its family],
May it accept this and let me go free!"

-Instance's of 'evil ghost' and 'ghost' in "Forerunners to Udughul" by M..J. Geller:
I'll quote just the lines that feature the 'evil ghost' or the 'ghost'. Lines mentioning the evil ghost seem most often to be in association with either the seven, or the galla-demon.

Evil ghost:
p.21 "While the [evil ghost] and evil Galla seized his body," {As part of the Seven}

p.29 "Evil Udug, [evil Ala-demon, evil ghost, evil bailiff],
[do not approach] my body,
[do not pass] before me."

p.31 "The evil ghost, which is let loose in the street, makes a man into a corpse."

p.45 {The seven} "Evil Udug, evil Ala, Evil ghost, evil Galla demon, Dimme, Dima, Dimme-Lagab demons be you adjured by heaven, be you adjured by earth." {note This is what Cunningham refers to as Text 90, Dimme-Lagab = Ahhazu}

p.55 "and the evil ghost and evil Galla-demon [do not sleep]" {second association between Galla/Gidim}

p.63 "so that the evil ghost and evil Galla-demon may depart;" {third}

p.65 "and the evil ghost or evil Galla-demon block the man walking at night in the thoroughfare, an overpowering storm sparing nothing." {4th}

p.73 "The evil Udug, evil Ala, evil ghost and evil Galla-demons came out of the Netherworld."

p.75 "When the strong copper drum - the ['Hero of Heaven'] -
[may boom out its fearsome] noise
(it is) so that the evil Udug or Ala-demon, [evil ghost or Galla-
demon withdraw from his body remove their body).
With semes-flous, [which is unpleasant for a ghost],
[encircle] the bed's location.
O evil Udug or Ala-demon, [evil ghost, or Galla-demon, may you not approach] the man!"

pg.79 "The evil Udug [and evil Ala-demons stood opposite a man.
and the evil ghost [is set against a man.]"

Ghost:
pg. 37 "Whether you are the ghost coming from the Netherworld,
whether you are the wraith that has no resting place."

pg.75 "With semes-flour, {which is unpleasant for a ghost]" {quoted above}

pg.81 Speaking to evil Udug, evil Ala-demon, Evil ghost and evil Galla-demon:
"Indeed, your leather bag is taken (away),
and your food offering is taken away.
Your place is not in the East,
your station is not in the West,
but your food is the food of ghosts,
and your drink is the drink of wraiths."

So that is a survey of the instance of gidim in what is probably a small sampling of the O.B incantation texts available. For the most part, I would say they are considerably vague beyond specifying that a ghost might "seize" a man. What the fact that the gidim seems to act in concert with the galla may say for the nature of that seizure would be an interesting question to pursue, but for now I would say that the gidim may cause any number of the above listed symptoms.. one interpretation of the word gidim [from the Holloran lexicon] is that the word gidim breaks down to "gig, 'to be sick', + dìm, 'sickness demon'" dim perhaps also being a part of dimme [Lamastu] or dim-me-lagab [Ahhazu], other members of the seven as they sometimes appear.

General interest notes:
Finally there is another observation id noticed on the subject, pertaining to the way the gidim is formed after death. From Katz 2003 pg.197 is an excellent description of death in Sumerian belief - she also at the same time touches on the question of 'the living soul in Sumer' which had been pondered at tod, and at the same time introduces a concept I hadn't been aware of:
pg.197
"In principal the idea is simple, the difference between life and death is the difference between a lively human being and his motionless corpse. Thus, the breath that stops after death makes the difference; it appears as the element that animates the body and endows it with the human faculties, speech, senses, and emotions- namely, with a soul. After death, during the performance of the funerary ritual the soul is released from the body to ensure the continuation of its existence as a spirit of the netherworld. Then the body is interred to perish.[note 3] The soul that leaves the body during the ritual to become a dead spirit is designated im [meaning] "wind." This wind image indicates that the soul was actualized in the breath. Since it was perceived as the gust of air, the soul was intrinsically alive and constituted a separate entity. The breath is unseen but can be felt, and so the soul is as tangible and concrete as the body. Thus, a human being was composed of two elements: a solid and visibly body, and the ethereal soul, which would later become the dead spirit. Since after the death the spirit is merely a transformed form of the living soul, it also retains traits of human nature, the basic human physical and emotional needs. Being an actual animated entity the spirit remains as effective as the living soul. At the same time, the ethereal invisible form of the spirit makes it the perfect cause of inexplicable inauspicious happenings. The conceptual link between form and essence is demonstrated by the incantations against evil spirits."

[note 3]- According to Atra-hasis I 215 (Lambert and Millard, 1969) the spirit etemmu is the product of the godly material in the construction of humankind. This explains the immortality of the soul and its survival in the realm of the dead. Wether this later text reflects contemporary ontological speculation or retains an older Sumerian concept is questionable. In two partly preserved myths of creation, "The Hymn of the Hoe" and "Eridu Genesis" humankind seems to have sprouted like vegetation. A third, the myth "Enki and Ninmah" is closer to the idea of Atra-Hasis in as much as humankind was fashioned from clay (see Hallo and Lawson Younger, 11997, 509-13, and 516-18 resp., with previous literature). One may argue that the animation of the clay during nine months of pregnancy in the womb of the birth goddess is the source of godly component in human beings. However, the various mythical explanations of the creation of humankind imply that there was no one accepted concept on the issue. It seems likely, therefore, that the idea of nine-months pregnancy was based one the human experience of birth with no ontological intentions, and that the concept of Atra-Hasis is really a late philosophical development that was not shared by the Sumerians. The essence of soul and spirit is studied in Abusch, 1998. In a general sense I agree with his conclusion. However, I doubt that some detailed observations about the meaning of soul reflect the common belief in the UrIII and Old Babylonian periods."

Thus Katz is the first researcher I know of to use the term Living soul in reference to Mesopotamian beliefs, though still not providing explicitly supporting texts (which we may have proved on tod, to be a futile effort). But the new concept, new to me,is the im - further instances from Katz work are:

in a note on pg 208-
32. "Noteworthy is TIM 6, 10,1-9 (SS 7), which differentiates between im and gidim. Wilcke maintains that im designates the spirit at the time of death, whereas gidim the spirit in the netherworld. (Wilcke, 1988, 254)..."
pg. 202 note 10 -
"...This possibly implies that the ritual for the 'messenger' was the initial funeral rite for a man who body was missing (as also implied by line 48, which designates the spirit im rather than gidim)." [As in his body is missing and the spirit is designated im because it had not descended to the netherworld as a result].
pg 81-
" However, if it marks the place where his body was cast, far away from Sumer, then kur is either "mountainous area" or even "foreign land." This possibility is suggested by the designation of the spirit by im rather then gidim."

So Katz makes a case for the existence of the concept of Living soul in Sumer, and further that after the breath left the body, it would exist first as im, then if it descended to the netherworld -as funeral rituals would have- it was called gidim. Still to follow: sources which may contribute to the gidim as possibly vampiric entity.

[p.s. Though this is not related to the gidim, Id found another reference that indicates the netherworld deities as flesh eaters/blood drinkers, pg 169 of the same book points out a line from "The Instructions of Suruppak" which reads "On an unknown road at the edge of kur, the gods of the kur are man-eaters." Ill add it to the list.]

***Posted by Cynsanity at
groups.yahoo.com/group/TabletofDestiny/message/6389

The enigmatic figure of Lilith is sure to provoke different associations with nearly everyone - occultists, vampires, roleplayers, historians etc.
some claim her to be the mother of all demons, some to be the mother of all vampires. some claim other things.

in this posting, I will try to refrain from occult references in order to keep this a purely historical and philological article, whoever is interested in a discussion, please let your voice(s) be heard.

where to start?

it is well-known that in ancient Sumer, the goddess Inana(k) was worshipped as the queen of the sky (her name comes from the Sumerian construction *nin-an-ak, which litteraly means 'lady of the sky'); she was associated with the planet venus, and her dual nature as the morning- resp. evening star was well known at that time.
during the reign of the dynasty of Akkad, Inana(k) was fused with the semitic goddess Ishtar in such a profound way that it is nigh to impossible to distinguish between those two goddesses. Ishtar, as a semitic goddess, was not only the lady of love and sex and fertility (as Inana(k) had been), but also the lady of war and death.

an example from a hymn to Inana/Ishtar:

At your battle-cry, my lady, the foreign lands bow low. When humanity comes before you in awed silence at the terrifying radiance and tempest, you grasp the most terrible of all the divine powers. Because of you, the threshold of tears is opened, and people walk along the path of the house of great lamentations. In the van of battle, all is struck down before you. With your strength, my lady, teeth can crush flint. You charge forward like a charging storm. You roar with the roaring storm, you continually thunder with Iškur. You spread exhaustion with the stormwinds, while your own feet remain tireless. With the lamenting balag drum a lament is struck up.
My lady, the great Anuna gods fly from you to the ruin mounds like scudding bats. They dare not stand before your terrible gaze. They dare not confront your terrible countenance. Who can cool your raging heart? Your malevolent anger is too great to cool. Lady, can your mood be soothed? Lady, can your heart be gladdened? Eldest daughter of Suen, your rage cannot be cooled!
(Inana B, lines 20 - 41)

here, the war-like character of the 'compound-goddess' can clearly be seen. please bear in mind the parts I underlined, this will be important later.

in one of the earliest dated versions of the epic of Gilgamesh (the correct reading of his name seems to be Bilgames [Selz in passim ], a female entity is mentioned who dwells in the sacred tree of Inana/Ishtar. she is described as having the wings and the claws of an owl, but otherwise looking like an alluring woman. the name given to her in this (Sumerian) composition is 'kisikillila' (*ki.sikil-líl-ak), which means 'maiden/young woman/pure woman (evtl. virgin?) of the wind'.

in later versions of this small myth, written in Akkadian, we come across the 'Ardat-Lilî'.
according to my CDA (see literature below), page 182:
lîlu, f. lilîtu, and ardat lilî - storm demons.

here, the 'LÍL' of Sumerian, which can mean wind, storm, breath, odem etc. is still recognised for what it is, the logogram for said Sumerian word.

we can identify the kisikillila as belonging to Inana/Ishtar through the Sumerian symbolism. in the tree she occupied, there also dwelt a snake (in Sumerian, Inana(k) is written with the logogram DINGIR.MÙSH, DINGIR being the 'divine determinative', MÙSH meaning 'snake' - think kundalini...) and an Imdugud/Anzu, a being which originally was part of the storm-god's (Ishkur) entourage, but later became a general apotropaic being, well fitted to the semitic perception of Inana/Ishtar.
nonetheless, the kisikillila was seen as merely a lesser, more destructive aspect of Inana/Ishtar, not as a full-blown aspect. in latter times (around 1800 BCE) it became demonised.

However, as Sumerian died out as a spoken language roughly 2000 BCE, a lot of the sumerograms weren't recognised for what they originally were, as Akkadian (resp. its two main dialects, Babylonian and Assyrian) replaced Sumerian as a spoken language. as it was with Latin in the middle ages, hardly anyone could really speak it, but nearly all of the cultic and religious hymns/songs/texts were written in (often poor) Sumerian.

in the Syrian area, the goddess we today know as Ishtar was worshipped under the name of 'Ashtart(e)', her male counterpart being 'Ashtar' (the -t- infix refers, in old semitic languages, to the female form of the noun).

those people who later came to invent monotheism as we know it, were acquainted with the Gods and Goddesses of Babylonia/Assyria (Diaspora, for example). also, earlier, these people received a steady influx of west-semitic groups, such as the Amorites, who brought their beliefs with them. as such, the 'Iraelites' were subject to a broad religious influence.

when the philosophy of Zoroatrism (roughly 700 or 600 BCE, no one is really sure about that) reached the Levante and the Libanon/Antelibanon, the people who would later embrace a strict monotheism were exposed to a dualistic view of the world. everything that was needed its counterpart.

ever wondered why the prophets in the old testament go into nearly hysterical fits when raging against the erecting of 'stones' on high places, or against 'idols'? originally, the monotheistic god JHVH was imagined as having a female companion - Asherah (read the stories about Solomon). although appearing as a male name at first when only versed in really old semitic languages, the language of ancient Hebrew developed without much contact to the outside. they soon lost the -t- - female infix. thus, Asherah is the female form, and she became the consort of JHVH, the 'god of the gods' (old semitic il ilu, which can easily be rendered into Ellil, which was the semitic version of Enlil - the hypothesis goes that Ellil was incorporated into the Sumerian pantheon when the first semitic settlers came to Sumer, and the Sumerians changed the name so that they could make any sense of it - but that's just a sidenote, and has yet to be proven).

so, in the beginning, that what we see as the first monotheism in the world wasn't a monotheism at all, but could be called 'monojahwism' - the worship of JHVH alone (including, in the beginning, his female counterpart Asherah), but still recognising that other gods exist.

with the 'deutoronomic revolution', a part of the priesthood scholars of the ancient near east and ancient biblical studies like to call the 'JHVH alone!'-movement, gained power (probably around the time of Joshija). complete with a patriarchal system of life, the female part of their god was demonised.

'Asherah's and 'Lilith's were the first to fall to that regime. both are etymologically connected to Ishtar (and her appearance as the Lilitu, the original kisikillila), and were both identified with the worst aspects of female existance.

here I want to note that Inana/Ishtar NEVER was a mother goddess. she embodied the female force per se, but not the life-giving mother aspect. although she had sex with nearly every male major god of the pantheon, she never gave birth, and was always considered to be ritually pure (that is, a ki.sikil).

W. Fauth demonstrated convincingly in his article from 1986 that it is highly probable that a secondary semantic transfer from Sumerian 'LÍL' (wind, storm, breath, air) to Semitic *ljl 'night' took place during the final demonisation of the Lilitu and her male counterpart, the Lili(m/n) .

in ancient mandaean scripts, the Lilitu is connected to the ruach (female!), which would later be translated as the 'holy ghost' in the bible. her later, demonised aspect resulted from a strongly negatively coloured re-connection to Ishtar/Asherah; in this context, she's explicitely named as the 'Ishtar of Hierodules'; she became the epitome of destructive female sexuality, feeding on male partners till they, eventually, faded away (metaphorically speaking) because of her attention.

Lilitû, since that time, always had a strong connection to the sphere of sexuality and death. in various pre-rabbinic texts, they are connected to the old Sumerian God of the netherworld, Nergal . but already in the neo-babylonian Maqlû-text (which is, rather poorly and most of the time falsely printed in the so-called Simon-'Necronomicon'), the aggressive sexuality of these beings is mentioned.

they can, according to the various texts W. Fauth collected, invade a human beings dreams in order to drain him/her (there are female and male Lilitu/Lilim), haunt their dreams (sleeping dreams and waking dreams).

it was also believed that a Lilitu or Lilim/n was able to enter the body of a young human (read: teenager; Lilitû only being able to 'enter' females, and vice versa) and 'possess' her/him. symptoms of such a possession:
cramps, disorientation, shivering, and the urge to drink human blood or feed on human flesh (the latter case is attested in only two texts Fauth has researched, the majority - 74 - mention only the urge to drink blood).

of course, if an exorcism didn't work, the poor person was stoned to death and burnt afterwards.

***
main literature:
Innsbrucker Sumerisches Lexikon, 1990
A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian, 2nd corrected printing, 2000 (CDA)
Lilits und Astarten in aramaeischen, mandaeischen und syrischen Zaubertexten, 1986 (W. Fauth), in Welt des Orients XVII
Untersuchungen zur Goetterwelt des altsumerischen Stadtstaates von Lagash, 1995 (G.J. Selz) (UGASL)

-Cyn: I find your effort to explain the symbolism, and the connection between the Poets choice of the three entities which infest the Halub tree, very interesting. The choice of these three is something I find curious every time I encounter it. But while one curiosity may be addressed by this explanation another results: that is, if symbolism is employed, why would the poet choose beings associated with Inana to obstruct Inana with? If not for some preference for ‘thematic rhyme’ over logical opposition.
The interpretation of that particular myth as a whole is a task in itself (I do anticipate a looming discussion on Sacred Trees, so tackling the significance of the Halub tree [an important item in the myth] may be pending..) As for the general association made here between Inana and Lilitu, that would do much as far as substantiating an early charactor. This article has a more basic focus, more of an outline, but once this is established Id hope to explore such conceptual simularities.

-The question of the Lilitu is a multi-faceted problem for me. This is one where I believe a sophisticated understanding must be earned, I am determined that it will be. Of course, it is not hard to find articles on the Lilitu..yet I still don’t feel I have a grasp of the early roots of this character, be they vampiric or no. For this to impact the vampire thread then, Id first want to focus on the Sumerian sources, establish what grasp is possible, then move to other more commonly presented aspects of the Lilitu in a follow up post.

R.PATAI/REALLEXIKON

-Daniel: Excellent referencing with R. Patai, I think he’s a good place to start as well. By chance I was also reviewing similar work of his, Specifically his article ‘Lilith’ from “[Journal of American Folklore 1964]”, which is contained within the book your referring to I believe. I’ll respond in detail to those quotes once we get there chronologically speaking (and we will ;]). For now another Patai quote outlines the Akkadian Lilitu, and one Sumerian instance:
“The earliest mention of a she-demon whose name is similar to that of Lilith is found in a Sumerian King list which dates from around 2400 B.C. [/li][li] It states that the father of the great hero Gilgamesh was a Lillu-demon. The Lillu was one of four demons belonging to a vampire-succubae class. The other three were Lilitu (Lilith), a she-demon; Ardat Lili (or Lilith’s handmaiden) , who visited men by night and bore them ghostly children, Irdat Lili, who must have been her male counterpart and used to visit women and beget children by them. Originally these were storm demons, but, because of a mistaken etymology, they came to be regarded as night demons.[2]”


[/li][li] (This was the first time Id taken stock of this factoid, a quick check at etcsl shows the line in question to read: [t.2.1.1]
“Gilgameš, whose father was a phantom (?), the lord of Kulaba, ruled for 126 years”
“112.dgilgamec3 113. ab-ba-ni lil2-la2 114.en kul-ab-ba-ke4 115.mu 126 i3-ak”

ab-ba-ni = father. So His fathers name seems then to be written simply “lil2-la2”.)

In an effort to better understand the Sumerian forerunners of these ‘4’, or even if each had a Sumerian forerunner, I began googleing “lil2-la2” and related Sumerian names. Eventually[3] I found the Reallexikon der Assyriologie entry by Eric Ebeling.
The entry was obviously a trove of information – and I wasn’t about to let the confusion of tongues screw me this time. Besides I have an online German to English dictionary (how hard could it be?)

-The beginning of the Reallexikon article on “Lilu, Lilitu, Ardat-lili”
., Familie von damonischen Geistern, oft – aufgrund nicht ganz sicherer Etymologie – als Sturmdamonen aufgefa-t. Sumerische Entsprechungen: lilu = lu.lil,la, lil,la.en.na; lilitu = munus.lil.la, ki-sikil-lil-la(en.na); ardat lili = ki.sikil.lil.la(.en.na), ki-sikil.UD.DA.kar.ra (alle sum.Namen mit vielen Varianten). Die drei warden haufig zusammen genannt in den Damonenreihen der jungeren sum. Beschworun )z.T.al Untergruppe, oder auch neben den, Bosen Sieben’).

Making use of my Ger.-Eng. Dictionary (and the strategically placed equals signs) I managed to translate:
Lilu = lu.lil.la, lil.la.en.na
Lilitu = munus.lil.la, ki.sikil.lil.la(.en.na)
Ardat lili = ki.sikil.lil.la(en.na), ki.sikil.UD.DA.kar.ra


-G. CUNNINGHAM 1997 p.101/ GELLER 1985 [4]

Thus my attempt to detail the Sumerian precursors had a dubious, yet informative start. Above on this thread, in the survey of the Gidim, I quoted a line from ‘Forerunners to Udug-hul’ , page 45, which Cunningham states being an example of ‘the seven.’ In the same paragraph though he says:
“However, the identities of the seven are not consistent. Thus, for example, Text 75 substitutes for Ahhazu ‘the lil (‘wind’), the occupant of the steppe’ (‘lil-la-tus-edin-na’)
a daimon who is related to Ardat Lili )’young woman of the wind’)”[ii]
Cunninghams corresponding footnotes read:
"Text 75 18 (line number according to the composite edition of Geller 1985) "
[ii] "This daimon’s Sumerian equivalent – ki-sikil-lil-la – is referred to in Text 85 223 line number according to composite edition of Geller 1985). A reference to a third member in this trio of related daimons, munus-lil-la (‘female wind’), is probably to be restored at the beginning of the same line; her Akkadian equivalent, Lilitu, is mentioned in partly bilingual Text 313 1 where she is associated with witchcraft but here the corresponding Sumerian reference is to ‘the evil one’ (‘[hul]-gal’). For the lil see Jacobsen 1989 [271ff; for the three daimons Farber 1987-90 and Scurlock 1991 p151ff.”

The relevant lines from Geller 1985 Text 75 18 I believe read:
“[the Evil Udug] of the steppe [killed] the victim,
as the [evil] Ala covered him like a garment.
While the [evil ghost] and evil Galla seized his body,
And while the [Dimme] and Dima infected his body,
The Lil demons, inhospitable winds of the steppe, swept along,
Approached the distraught man’s side,
And set the grievous asag-disease in his body.”

Here “lil-la-tus-edin-na’ is rendered (if I interpret correctly) “the lil demons, inhospitable winds of the steppe” , the same Cunningham (above) translates “‘the lil (‘wind’), the occupant of the steppe”. The full line is:
“lil-la tus-edin-na i-bu-bu-de-es”.

The relevant lines from Geller 1985 [ii] Text 85 223 read:
"When I would pass along the street, in my going in the thoroughfare,
The evil Udug, evil Ala demon, evil ghost,
Evil Galla, evil Bailiff, Dimme,
Dimme-Lagab, Lil,
(female Lil), and maiden Lil demons,
the evil Namtar, the bitter asag-disease – his serious illness being
virulent-
may they not approach me.”

Here “Lil” is a rendering of lu-lil-la, and “(female Lil)” of what Cunningham indicates should probably read “munus-lil-la” and “maiden Lil demons” a rendering of ki.sikil.UD.DA.kar.ra. Hence according what Ive pilfered from the Reallexikon this incantation contains the three Sumerian precursors of Lilu, Lilitu, and Ardat Lili.

-Given that the Burney relief is an oft debated thing, and the tide of interpretation seems to be swinging toward Inana or Ereskigal, Ill leave off that for now. However there is an additional instance of ki-sikil-lil-la availible that Cyn mentioned above, that is the one from Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Netherworld: [t.1.8.1.4]

Lines 44/45:“In its trunk, the phantom maid built herself a dwelling, the maid who laughs with a joyful heart.

Lines 44/45: “cab-bi-a ki-sikil lil2-la2-ke4 e2 im-ma-ni-ib-du3
ki-sikil zu2 li9-li9 cag4 hul2-hul2”

At first Id thought based on Cunninghams footnote that this must be referring to the Ardat Lili forerunner. After seeing the Reallexikon list, I realize this may refer also to the Lilitu forerunner, as they were evidently both known by ki-sikil-lil2-la2 – I don’t yet see how this is explicit either way. [5]



Ill stop here in order that my post doesn’t seem too long, and to allow for any objections up until this point. Still to come shortly though: 1 or 2 other references, late references, to ki-sikil-lil-la, my continuing un-certainty on the way to interpret that name, but also an attempt to combat that uncertainty (“Unbestrutten is the origin of the Names of sum. Lil, less surely against it its exact meaning (probably about, wind breath, spirit"), CAD and perhaps further required readings..
Cheers.




[2] Bruno Meissner, Babylonia un Assyrian (Heidelberg, 1925), II. 201
[3] first went to psd.museum.upenn.edu/PSD/html/ascii/pageview/p0669.htm
There I gathered that some probably interesting work had been done on ki-sikil-lil2-la2 at AHw 553, which turned out to be by W. von Soden, Akkadisches Handwörterbuch (Wiesbaden
1959-81) most likely in german. Googleing “AHw 553” led to the Reallexikon der Assyriologie, which can be previewed via books.google for the relevant article.
books.google.com/books?id=UqbsSRgBRloC&pg=PA23&lpg=PA23&dq=%22ki+sikil+ud+da+kar+ra%22&source=web&ots=5fkSlJ7Dyi&sig=OXD8CG0PckCUecdovJ31TC_x-x0

[4] The instance of ki-sikil-lil-la in the Udug-hul incantations has actually been mentioned in the public domain before, see particularly bottem (passingover)
forum.darkness.com/lofiversion/index.php/t28063.html

[5] As appalling as it is, no – as disgusting as it is, my ‘Babel Fish’ translation of the Reallexikon entry for Ardat Lili, did provide me with enough of a sense of what was being said, to see that Erich Ebeling seems to believe it’s the Ardat Lili forerunner in that myth:
“(W)ardat lili(m) ist offenbar (als ki.sikil.lil.la) gelegentlich in der sum. Literatur bezeugt. In Gilgames, Enkidu und die Unterwelt” bewohnt sie den Stamm des huluppu-Baumes und wird bei seiner Fallung in die Steppe vertrieben. Die mythologische Bedeutung dieser Textstelle ist noch nicht restlos jekiart; s.a lilu”
Babel Fish would have us believe this translates to:
“(W)ardat lili(m) is obviously (as ki.sikil.lil.la) occasional in sum. Literature testifies. In Gilgames, Enkidu and the underworld "it inhabits the trunk of the huluppu tree and when its falling in quilts driven out. The mythologische meaning of this passage in the text is not yet completely jekiart; S.A. lilu” (A disgrace to automatic german to english web translations everywhere, but a small interpretational tip anyway).

What are the Lil beings?

The conceptual understanding of the early Lil demons, that is their basic form and substance, and ultimately their nature, will likely require additional tactics over and above simple presentations of relevant textual references, like my above two posts. The question becomes more funditmental not 'where is this entity first attested?' or 'what does it do?' but 'what is this entity?'. So to discuss the interpretational offering re-posted above, that is what Cyn had said in terms of Ki-sikil-lil-la as a wind demon and in association with Inana. [note *1]
If I read that post correctly, three key observations were made in support of the possible conceptual relation between Ki-sikil-lil-la and Inana, one of those being the occupants of the Huluppu tree. As for a second, that is the recognition of Inana as a ritually pure entity,
(“ki-sikil [d]inana” as for example from t.1.1.3) there is abundant attestation of ‘Maiden Inana”. I have some indirect indicators that in regards to the use of the term ki-sikil, Leick distinguished between physical virginity, and the state of being free of a man’s control which may apply more directly to Inana, while either meaning might apply to ki-sikil-lil-la (esp. as Ardat lili). This cant be explored further here as I don’t have the book in front of me. Moving on then to Inana’s storm aspect, or her ability to attack with winds, this seems attestable enough as well:

-(Re-posted above)– t.4.07.2 The exaltation of Inana (Inana B)
“You spread exhaustion with the stormwinds [im-ḫul-im-ḫul-da], while your own feet remain tireless. With the lamenting balag drum a lament is struck up.”

t.1.3.2 Inana and Ebih
“She stirred up an evil raging wind with potsherds.”
“im-ḫul zig3-ga šika im-bar-re

t.1.7.7 The Sumanda grass
“she hurled fierce winds at the head of the šumunda grass (saying): "Šumunda grass, your name …….”
62. saĝ-du u2šumunda-ke4 tum9[u18-lu-tum9u18]-/lu\ bi2-in-šub

(mar-uru5 while sometimes rendered as flood or floodstorm, seems here to be rendered wind)
t.4.07.6 - A balbale (?) to Inana (Inana F)
“He [Enlil] gave me battles and he gave me fighting. He gave me the stormwind [mar-uru5] and he gave me the dust cloud.”


Lil2: is it Wind Or Ghost?
So I would recognize those observations on the aspects of Inana, of course in order to establish a true parallel, and for the comparison to hold, corresponding features of ki-sikil-lil-la would also need to be confirmed. Ever since my horrible translation of the Reallexikon entry Ive increasingly recognized an almost tangible ambiguity in the interpretation of lil2 in this particular use, that is whether it pertains to ‘wind’ or ‘ghost’ [*2]. In looking just at the name/entity of Ki-sikil-lil-la, I want to know how some sources suggest wind and others ghost, whether this is some linguistic determination or based on the context of ki-sikil-lil-la’s actions etc. Here are some selected sources which interpret wind:

As Wind:
-Cunningham p.101 (the relevant piece I quoted above he translates Ardat lili as “young woman of the wind”)
- R. Patai quoted above who says “originally these were storm demons”. (his notes indicate he drew on Bruno Meissner 1928 for this)
- I would suspect one or more of your sources Cyn, or all, indicate wind if they are explicit on that.
- At least one of the incantations so far examined (above) is very suggestive of wind stating “The Lil demons, inhospitable winds of the steppe, swept along,”


Unclear:
Somewhere in the middle there is Ebelings Reallexikon entry, which I think is advocating the Lilu as a family of Geistern (ghost/spirit) but for obvious reasons I wont use this line here for either perspective:
-. “Familie von damonischen Geistern, oft – aufgrund nicht ganz sicherer Etymologie – als Sturmdamonen aufgefa-t.”
- ePSD divides “lil2” into two categories ‘Wind, Breeze’ and ‘Ghost’. Under Wind, Breeze they put a link “see ki-sikil lil” indicating which her nature should be understood in this way. Yet the entry as a whole seems to equate lil2 with zaqiqu, “lil2 "wind, breeze; ghost" Akk. Zīqīqu” which they have listed under “ghost”
(http://psd.museum.upenn.edu/epsd/nepsd-frame.html)


As Ghost:
- paper13.pdf (Couto-Ferreira) reads “other demons as lu.lil.la, ki-sikil-lil-la (the Lilu category) will be analyzed in another section, due to their nature, that is, ghosts of people that died before their plans for a lifetime succeeded.”
- at Etcsl, they translate phantom maid in G&Eand the N.W. and they translate phantom for lil2.la2 [Gilgamesh’s father]. Possibly related is their rendering of “lil2-gin7” as phantom, though Im not aware of the function of gin7. (Inana’s descent).
- CAD/Lapinkivi - Daniel (Madness) has supplied me with a very timely Lapinkivi note, thank you, she states “According to the CAD (Z, s. zaqiqu/ziqiqu, 58), the meaning of the Sumerian word lil points to a “phantom,” “ghost,” “haunting spirit” (as in lu-lil-la, ki-sikil-lil-la, lilu, lilitu) rather than to a “wind” which nevertheless is the usual translation.”

The CAD entry for Zaqiqu:

This made me pay closer attention to some CAD photocopies Id made for earlier topics – Of course we have looked at Zaqiqu in another context [*3] additional indication of his importance here, is the fact that at the bottom the CAD entry for Lilu/Lilitu is the hint “for the family of l[ilu] demons, see zaqiqu discussion section.” Because lil2 reportedly = zaqiqu, I suppose it makes sense that this where the nature of ki-sikil-lil-la is touched on in an Assyrian dictionary. The discussion reads:

“The word zaqiqu does not refer to a stormwind or even a wind. The only passages in which sisig and lil correspond to mehu [violent storm] and saru [wind] are those cited in the lex. Section, and these correspondences are not paralleled in bil. Texts. The only instance in which zaqiqu denotes a metrological phenomenon (mng. La-2’) adds significantly the explanation iltanu; “north wind,” i.e, the only wind that was considered charged with supernatural quality (see istanu and manitu). The mng. Of Sum. Lil points likewise to “phantom,” “ghost,” “haunting spirt” (as in lu.lil.la, ki.sikil.lil.la,, see lilu, lilitu) rather than to “wind.” Note also that zaqiqu is to be considered an irregular diminutive (possibly to be posited as zaqiqu, zaqiqu). It is used as a designation of the dream god and also to denote some kind of divine communication in answer to prayers (see mng. 1a-2’). While in other contexts the translation “soul” seems to fit (see mng. 4).
The Akk.zaqiqu, as well as the Sum. Lil, not only denotes the ghosts, etc., that haunt a place in the desert or a ruined city, but these localities themselves, which are sometimes also called in Sum. Edin.lil.la (not “desert of the wind” Jacobsen, JNES 12 168 n.25). “
[At the bottom of the discussion is the line “Oppenheim, Dream-book 234ff.” so I believe these are his words]

Comment:
Although this assessment is strongly worded, I would consider it persuasive but not final. That and I’m accessing to the 1961 version of CAD.
So there is a look at some of the ambiguity of ki-sikil-lil2-la2, there are some who interpret wind, some who are neutral (I could add authors who avoid the issue by translating “demon-maid” etc but that wouldn’t serve any purpose) and those who interpret ghost. It seems both the concepts of wind and ghost were linked in a rather innate and intimate way though at present I would stop short of saying they are the same.
Its worth noting that the connection of the Lilu to Inana may not necessarily be dependent on a shared wind aspect. Daniel’s above post of two weeks ago quoted Lapinkivi apparently in the midst of making the same connection but through a shared aspect of soul/ghost:
“The zaqiqu/ziqiqu “soul, ghost” was also depicted as a bird-like emanation. As a matter of fact, in the more easily interpreted iconography of Inanna/Ištar, she is often depicted with wings. Equally, the demonic and divine features find their explanation in the "soul" aspect of the goddess: the soul in both its sinful and purified states. Note also that Lilitu's position in the tree in the story of Gilgameš and the Huluppu-Tree is in the middle in the trunk, which connects her with Inanna/Ištar, the mediator between gods and men, and with her position in the Mesopotamian Tree of Life.”

The question remains open..




Note 1: In loose support of this there is also the line from a late text quoted in CAD A under Ardat lili “without your (permission, Istar), the e’elu-demon, the lilu-demon and the ardat lili do not affect the sick man.” KAR 357;27
Note 2: lil2 itself being a term I think of as a high priority to understand as thoroughly as possible in all of its uses. I am considerable frustrated by my lack of access to Jacobsen’s article “The lil2 of [d]en-lil2” Behrans et al 1989, I imagine it might contain something similar to the ideas he expressed on pg.169 (1987) in regards to it meaning wind, specifically spring winds.
But seeing as Black&Green state(p.76) “there is no evidence to connect the name Ellil with the lila/lilu or desert wind demon (see Lilitu).” Im proceeding here without it.
Note 3: Particularly relevant from the Sisig thread is a quote from Francesca Rochberg "The word ziququ (zaqiqu) is a designation for the dream god. Its Sumerian equivolent is lil, meaning literally "wind," but having the connotation "Spirit" or "phantom." And Ross’s translation of the Cavigneux/Al-rawi who make mention in ‘note110’ of “the famous gloss of the Royal Sumerian List as-(ba)-ni-lil-la, where lil corresponds also quite close to ziqiqu.” Some of the material in this post may have implications for the zaqiqu/sisig thread..

To add to the above post #15

Pirjo Lapinkivi discusses the concept of the soul in The Sumerian Sacred Marriage, State Archives of Assyria Studies 15, pp. 139-154

The soul was referred to by two words:
GIDIM, eţemmu = "spirit of the dead," "ghost"
AN.ZAG.GAR(.RA)/LIL, zaqīqu/ziqīqu = "soul," "ghost," "phantom"[632]

Living beings (humans and animals) also had
ZI, napištu = "life, vigor, breath"
which was associated with the throat or neck. As breath and coming from one’s throat, ZI was understood as moving air, i.e., wind-life. ZI (napištu) was the animating life force which could be shortened or prolonged.

At death, both eţemmu and zaqīqu/ziqīqu descended to the Netherworld, but when the body ceased to exist, so did the eţemmu, leaving only the zaqīqu.

[632] In addition to its meaning "soul," zaqīqu can mean "haunted place" (edin-lil-la) or even "god of dreams."


Lapinkivi discusses the wind aspect of zaqīqu.
According to the CAD (Z, s. zaqīqu/ziqīqu, 58), the meaning of the Sumerian word lil points to a "phantom," "ghost," "haunting spirit" (as in lu-lil-la, ki-sikil-lil-la, lilû, lilītu) rather than to a "wind," which nevertheless is its usual translation. It is argued that zaqīqu does not refer to wind, since the word lil for šāru is found only in lexical lists. As the lexical lists equate wind (šāru) and ghost (zaqīqu), their association with each other cannot be unfounded.[634] Moreover, zaqīqu derives from the same root as the verb zâqu, "to blow," and the noun zīqu, "a breeze."[635]

According to J. Scurlock, zaqīqu is a sexless, wind-like emanation, probably a bird-like phantom, able to fly about through small apertures, and as such, became associated with dreaming as it was able to leave the sleeping body.[636] The wind-like appearance of the soul is also attested in the Gilgameš Epic XII 83-84, where Enkidu is able to ascend from the Netherworld through a hole in the ground: "(Gilgameš) opened a hole in the Netherworld, the utukku (ghost) of Enkidu came forth from the underworld as a zaqīqu."[637]

[634] CAD Z s.v. zaqīqu, 58: li-il LIL = šāru, silī[tu], za-q[i-qu], lilû Idu II 236ff.; [li-il] [LIL] = zi-qi-q, ša-a-ri Ea IV 7f.
[635] See Oppenheim, The Interpretations of Dreams in the Ancient Near East. With a Translation of an Assyrian Dream Book. TAPS 46, Part 3. Philadelphia. 233-234
[636] Scurlock, "Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Mesopotamian Thought," in Jack M. Sasson et al. (eds.), Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, Vol. III (New York) 1883-1893. Emphasis PL.
[637] See Parpola, The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, SAACT 1. Helsinki; for translation, see George, The Epic of Gilgamesh. A New Translation. London. 194 (ll. 86-87)


Lapinkivi equates šāru[= sisig] with the divine spirit.
In Assyrian personal names, the use of the šāru ("wind," "spirit") of a certain god is well attested: Šar-ilani-ila’I "The Spirit of God is my God,"[639] where šāru is the equivalent of the Hebrew use of ruah of God; (Ţab)-šar-ili/Ištar/Aššur "(Good) is the Spirit of God/Ištar/Aššur;" Ţab-šar-Mullissu/Arbail/Sin "Good is the Spirit of Mullissu/Arbela/Moon;" or Ţab-šar-Nabû "Good is the Spirit of Nabû."[640]

[639] Tallqvist, Assyrian Personal Names. ASSF 43/1. Helsinki. 216
[640] Ibid., 216, 236f.; SAAB 5 11:3; see Parpola, Assyrian Prophecies. SAA 9. Helsinki. LXXXVII n. 69.


Lapinkivi concludes:
That both zaqīqu (ghost, spirit, soul) and napištu (life) were conceived as moving air: wind, breeze or breath (coming from one’s throat). Due to its wind-like nature, the soul was depicted as a bird with wings. Zarpanitu/Ištar was described as giving life to humankind, she was the "breath of people." In iconography, Inanna is depicted with wings, as an owl, and textual evidence also equates her with a bird. It is implied then that Inanna’s own nature was equated with that of the soul.

- Pictured above is a famous Assyrian Lamaštu Plaque, held at the Louvre AO 22205 - From top to bottom is the head of Pazazu; symbols of different gods; A representation of the seven with animal heads; A scene in which the sickman is tended to by two incantation specialists (priests/fish apkallu); Pictured at the bottem Lamaštu is chased by Pazazu -




Dìm-me (akk. Lamaštu) is perhaps unique among the various agents of illness featured in Mesopotamian incantation lore. As is frequently noted, and stated in the texts, she is the daughter of Anu. Her name -together with two closely associated beings- is distinguished with the divine determinative although this is not commonly applied to other figures referred to as 'demons'. Her Sumerian name is written Dìm-me as in the follow ePSD entry:


Textually speaking, Dìm-me rarely appears outside of incantation literature, and is no where attested before the Old Babylonian period. She is listed at ePSD in an Old Babylonian lexical list which features her Sumerian name, this list is available through DCCLT -click here- . Further her name reportedly appears on an Old Babylonian god-list [1] and additionally, Dìm-me makes a rare appearance in the Sumerian literary texts in "A šir-gida to Ninisina (Ninisina A)" available at the Etcsl t.4.22.1 , 46-51:

(In this text, Ninisina speaks to Enlil and An interceding on behalf of the sick man - she presents the case before the senior gods, she tells them:)
"46-51. "The evil demons and the evil demonesses who beset mankind, Dim-me and Dim-mea who enter by night, Namtar and Asag who will not leave a man alone, stand before the man. He is robbed of sleep (?). His god who smites all
1 line unclear"

This section of the šir-gida pertains to Ninisina's role as incantation priest, and illustrates a common arrangement in which a junior god (in this case Ninisina) will present a sufferer's case before a senior god [2]. This instance of Dìm-me therefore, is in no way a departure from this demon's more common place mentions within incantation lore where she is more prominently featured. From these sources as well as from an array of amulets and plaque's (thought to have ritual significance) its possible to derive the typical description given to Lamashtu/Dìm-me: "She is depicted both in incantations and amulets as a animal figure, with beast face, donkey ears and talons of a bird of prey, that suckles a piglet and a dog as an evidence of her unnatural and distorted maternal instinct." [3] Other descriptions from secondary sources mention her capacity to consume human flesh and blood and bone as in the Reallexikon der Assyriologue p.110 "Sie trinkt Menschenblut und frisst Menschenfleisch und knochen."


Incantations against Lamaštu - G. Cunningham 1997 pg.108; Cunningham here says (Pertaining just to those incantations specifically against Lamaštu from the Old Bablyonian period):

" A particular threat to newly born babies appears to have been posed by Lamaštu. In addition to being mentioned in incantations concerned with daimons and illnesses in general, this daimon is subject to 12 incantations. Four of these are in Sumerian - Texts 187, 188, 189 and 306. In addition versions of text 188 are known to incorporate passages in Elamite - Texts 414 and 448. The remaining Lamashtu incantations are in Akkadian - texts 346, 347, 359, 362, 394, and 396."
I have not been able to access TIM 9, but number 63 of that publication appears to be a compendium tablet (Text 187 = TIM 9 63, Text 188 = TIM 9 63, Text 189 = TIM 9 63). Further Text 306 is found in YOS XI 88 - yet van Dijk simply catalogues the text here and gives no Transliteration/Translation. Two of the Akkadian incantations are found in this book however, TEXT 394 (YOS XI 19) and TEXT 396 (YOS XI 20). The latter reads:

She is fierce, she is terrible,
she is a goddess, she is an Amorite
and she is a she-wolf,
the daughter of heaven.
Her ... is the nest ...
...
[...of] the threshold is [her] place.
...she drinks blood,
her...
she strangles babies, the weak(?) ones
she gives water of...to drink.


Some assorted Lamaštu incantations from Benjamin Foster (2005) [4] yield some interesting details, pg.402: "Her feet are those of the Anzu, her hands are unclean, the face of a ravening lion is her face.... She comes in the window, slithering like a serpent, She enters the house, she leaves a house (at will). "Bring me you sons, that I may suckle (them), and your daughters, that I may nurse (them)." This illustrates the "distorted maternal instinct." mentioned above. One of the Old Babylonian Akkadian incantations Foster lists, which (with some digging) can be identified as TEXT 346 [NBC 1265] is particularly interesting:

Anu begot her, Ea reared her, (1)
Enlil doomed her a dog's face.
She is tiny of hands,
She is long of finger, long(er still) of nail.
Her forearms(?) are ... (5) ***
She came right in the front door,
Slithering over the (door)post casing!
She slithered over the (door)post casing,
She has caught sight of the baby!
Seven seizures has she done him in his belly!
Pluck out your nails! Let loose your arms! (10)
Before he gets to you, Ea, the warrior, as sage for the task.
The (door)post casing is big enough for you,
the doors are open,
Come then, be gone into the (door)post casing! (15)
They will surely fill your mouth with dust, your face with sand,
With fine-ground mustard seeds they will fill your eyes!
I exorcise you by Ea's curse; you must be gone! (20)

*** Elsewhere this line is translated "Her forearms(?) are ... smeared (with blood)." [5]



"Gleanings from the Iraq Medical Journals" by J.V. Kinnier Wilson. JNES 27 (1968)

In this article the auther takes a novel approach to understanding illness in Ancient Mesopotamia, by considering the ancient examples in light the medical difficulties of modern day Iraq. This approach could certainly prove revealing about some of the more obscure and peculiar traits of Mesopotamian demons and agents of illness. Specifically relevant is Wilson's interpretation of the above incantation [NBC 1265] which was also published by von Soden 1954. Five slightly dated lines are included in the following portion of Wilsons article:

" For the remainder of this paper I turn to a brief study of two different diseases. The first is typhoid, and our concern is with an Old Babylonian Lamaštu text which was published by von Soden in 1954. In this text Lamaštu is described in the following curious way:

She is small of hand but long of fingers,
Her nails are long and their (?) .. befouled (?)
She has entered through the house door,
slipping past the door pivot,
She has slipped past the door-pivot to kill the child
Seven times on his belly she has struck him.

The text continues with a direct demand to the demon to withdraw her fingernails from the child. At first sight this may not look like anything very specific let alone typhoid. But all attention turns upon the fingernails pressing into the abdomen (imšu) of the child, for in typhoid the diagnosis is never certain until there first appears in the region a sparse rash of "rose-spots." These are two to three mm. in diameter, and the textbook number for such initial lesions is six to ten. In terms of the diagnosis In terms of the diagnosis both the round number of "seven" and the site of the spots serve to distinguish it alike from paratyphoid and from tyhus.
If these minute spots disappear, which are not permanent and disappear on pressure, should be the correct explanation of why Lamaštu was thought to have long nails (or perhaps "claws" is the better word), it would remain to explain the connection with the Iraq journals. Actually, it is here that we may turn to the Bulletin of Health and Vital statistics which has been mentioned. Understandably many Western textbooks present the disease largely from the standpoint of an unprotected person entering a typhoid zone in adult life. Iraq, however, is an area of permanent risk, and the bulletin shows typhoid as a prominent cause of infant death syndrome in the country, even during the first year. The diagnosis with thus meet the requirement, already well established, that Lamaštu was above all responsible for diseases of the young."


Dìm-me/Lamaštu appears elsewhere in incantations including those not specifically aimed against her. In these cases she is sometimes featured as a member of the seven, a good example occurs in FAOS 12 435-437: "Evil Udug, evil Ala, evil ghost, evil Galla demon, Dimme, Dima, Dimme-Lagab demons be you adjured by heaven, be you adjured by earth." [6] In these incantations however, she is referred to in oblique terms, her actions barely distinguishable from the other demons and so little description can be gleaned from them. The last three of the above [^dDìm-me] [^dDìm.a] [^dDìm.me.lagab] (Akk. Lamaštu, Labāşu, Aḫḫazu respectively) are closely associated and are featured together in some incantations forming a "triad" - that in later medical texts Dìm-me is said to cause jaundice, may suggest some overlap of identity within the triad (as elsewhere Aḫḫazu is given as the cause of (or is) jaundice.)




Further reading:
Very important in the development of an understanding of Lamaštu, would be the Lamaštu incantation series (Ive never been able to glimpse) reportedly available in:
-Beschwörungen gegen die Dämonin Lamaštu. F. Kocher.
Also one of the more valuable modern portraits would likly be:
-Wiggermann, F.A.M (2000), "Lamaštu, daughter of Anu. A profile", in Stohl, M., Birth in Babylonia and the Bible. Its Mediterranean Setting. Styx-Brill, Groninhen, pp. 217-252.

Among the Key topics not yet addressed:
- Pazazu
- The nature and function of the Lamaštu Amulets

Notes:
1. Katz 2003 "The image of the Netherworld in Sumerian sources" pg 370 - given as "SLT 124"
2. In the actual incantations of the Old Babylonian period the junior good is most often Asalluḫi. who approaches the senior god, Enki, on behalf of the sick man. In Early dynastic incantations the former position was taken by Ningirimma (Ningirim) and the latter by Enlil - as Ninisina is identical with Gula, its interesting to note here M. Geller's comment "Ningirimma became associated in later literature with the goddess Gula, goddess of healing, and consequently is mentioned in incantations with medical texts, and she appears in ritual and incantation texts with her a-gub-ba 'ritual laver" (BASOR 1987). Im not able to expand on this presently however. Ningirimma is still periodically referred to in later incantation and sometimes dubbed "Mistress of Incantations.'
3. Aetiology of Illness in Ancient Mesopotamia, Erica Couto-Ferreria. Her description of the physical nature of Lamaštu is most relevant later sources as at least on Old Babylonian plaques -while essentially the same- features such as donkey ears were absent.
4. "From Distant Days: Myths,Tales and Poetry of Ancient Mesopotamia" 1995, B. Foster - Good source book however, frustratingly, no identifying information is given for any of the texts. Its likly that since some of the OB Akkadian Lamashtu incantations were featured in B. Foster 1993, that some of those featured in this book are the same.
[5] Available at ETACT
[6] "Forerunners to Udug-hul: Sumerian Exorcistic incantations" Markham J. Geller Faos 12

Nice research xuchilpaba, but I think I should make note of something up at the top of your statement:

"Where is Asherah considered a female side of God?"

As the feminized version of Assur during the period in Assyria when they were moving somewhat towards monotheism. I also think that this may have bled over into contemporary rural Judah and Israel.

I assume you're refering to Lamashtu.

I never heard of Antu before, who might this be?

Post Orientation: The below content may contain a little more literary content and interest then my usual posts do - I have actually reviewed the below for a different board but feel it has enough relevance to be added here on the vampire thread. Among the relevant things in the below to me, are the mention of Lilith and links to Mesopotamian demonology, the information on the fall of Babylon, and also a possible similiarites between the ruins in Mesopotamian lamentations and Isaiah description of the foreseen ruin of Babylon amd Edom.

I have developed an interest in the literary vampire and read up on the folklore and fiction. The below article was inspire by a passage from a Treatise on Vampires written 1746 by a Benedictine monk named Dom Augustine Calmet (who also was a learned biblical commentator.)

---

In Dom Augustine Calmet's Treatise on Vampires and Revenants (1746), the author refers to an occurrence of what he interprets as a vampiric entity in the book of Isaiah. Because Calmet was a Benedictine monk, and was noted as an accomplished Biblical commentator, his observations here are worth looking into I think. The relevant material is from Chap. 16 -'Pretended Vestiges of Vampirism in Antiquity.'


Calmet/ "I own that these terms [lamiae and striae] are found in the versions of the Holy Scripture. For instance, Isaiah, describing the condition to which Babylon was to be reduced after her ruin, says that she shall become the abode of satyrs, lamiae, and strigae (In Hebrew, lilith. This last term, according to the Hebrews, signifies the same thing as the Greeks express by strix and lamioe, where are sorceresses or magicians, who seek to put to death newborn children. Whence comes that the Jews are accustomed to write in the four corners of the chamber of a women just delivered, 'Adam, Eve, begone from hence lilith.' "

Of course, Calmet although an example of the erudite of his time, was writing without the benefit of modern Biblical scholarship.. which makes me wonder what could be said about this passage in the book of Isaiah now?


______________________________




Source material and the Babylonian Context:



I have taken the following description of the Babylonian context from The Illustrated Guide to the Bible. p.35. In examining the tower of Babel, and Babylon in relation to the Old Testament, the authors have explained the following/

"The materials used to build the Tower of Babel were the same as those employed for the construction of the great ziggurat of Babylon and similar ziggurats, according to ancient building inscriptions. The golden age of Babylon arrived when the Assyrian Empire fell in 613 BCE. It became the dominant imperial power of the Near East, and the restoration of the city by Nebuchadrezzar II (602-562 BCE) transformed it into one of the seven wonders of the world in Greek eyes. Babylon fell to the Persian king Cyrus in 539 BCE and while it remained an important city under later Achaemenid, Selucid and Parthian empires, it never again played an independent political role.
Babylon becomes in the Bible much more than a historical reality. After Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and exiled many of its inhabitants (see pp.110-13) it was viewed as the embodiment of all evil, a kingdom of wickedness set against God and his chosen people, a powerful symbol of pride, oppression, wealth, luxury, sexual license and idolatry. As such, Babylon is doomed to final destruction.
In Isaiah 14, the king of Babylon is described, in terms of an ancient myth, as Lucifer, the morning star, who aspired to scale heaven and challenge God himself. For his arrogance, Lucifer is cast into the underworld. The underlying theme of this story - the penalty paid for presumption - is similar to that of the Tower of Babel, as well as to that of the "fallen ones". The book of Isaiah mocks the idols which played so prominent a part in Babylonian religion and sees the city's chief deities, Marduk and Nebo, being carried into captivity (Isaiah 46 1-2). The prophet depicts Babylon as a female prisoner of war, who was once a "lover of luxury" and a practitioner of sorceries and spells, but who is now stripped of all her splendor and forced to sit in the dust (Isaiah 47). For the prophet, the imminent capture of Babylon by Cyrus is evidence that the Persian king is the chosen agent of God's vengeance (Isaiah 45, 1-7).

...The name "Babylon" cam to be applied to any empire that was seen as an enemy of God and the perscutor of his servents." [i.e Babylon in Revelations = Rome]..




The Book of Isaiah (from the Jerusalem Bible)



Isa 13:21

In this book, the prophet Isaiah writes in the time of captivity and is hostile to Babylon. In Isaiah 13, he composes an oracle against Babylon stating that "The day of Yehweh is coming" and he describes the various punishments he forsees for Babylon. Babylon, "the pearl of kingdoms, the jewel and boast of the Chaldaeans, like Sodom and Gomorrah shall be overthrown by god. (13:19). Some relevant lines seem to follow in/

(Isa 13:21-22)

Never more will anyone live there or be born there
from generation to generation.
No Arab will pitch his tent there,
not [sic] shepherds feed their flocks,
But beasts of the desert will lie there*,
and owls fill its houses.
Ostriches will make their houses there
and satyrs have their dances there.


* Note: A footnote in the Jerusalem bible made on this line refers us to Leviticus 16:22; this is a passage that describes the scapegoat rite, and after the goat in infused with the sins of the people, it is lead out to the desert and abandoned. What is implied, is that the term "beasts of the desert" refers to these scape-goats.



Isa 21:9

Another oracle about the falling of Babylon;

"Fallen, fallen is Babylon, and all the images of her gods are shattered on the ground."




Isa 34:11-15 - The End of Edom

In this poem, the destruction of Edom is prophesied. While this locality, Edom, is not Babylon, a note in this Bible informs us that the poem in 34:11 "belongs to the cycle of anti-Babylonian compositions" and so, after Yahweh is prophesied to reduce Edom to ruin, we read lines quite similar to Isa 13:22/


(34:11)
It will be the haunt of pelican and hedgehog,
the owl and the raven will live there;
over it Yahweh will stretch the measuring line of chaos
and the plumb-line of emptiness.

(34:12)
The satyrs will make their home there,
its nobles will be no more,
kings will not be proclaimed there,
all it princes will be brought to nothing.

(34:13)
Thorns will grow in its palaces there,
thistles and nettles in its fortresses,
it will be a lair for jackals,
a lodging for ostriches.

(34:14)
Wild cats will meet hyenas there,
the satyrs will call to each other,
there too will Lilith take cover
seeking rest.

(34:15)
The viper will nest and lay eggs there,
will brood and hatch its eggs;
kites will gather there
and make it their meeting place.




Isa 47: 1-15 - Lament for Babylon

A satirical poem in which Babylon is personified by the idiom of the 'daughter of Babylon', who is to "sit on the ground, dethroned." The prophet emphasizes his stance that the spells and sorceries of Babylon, which characterize it's religious outlook, will be to no avail: "Keep your spells then, and all your sorceries, for which you have worn yourself out since your youth."



_______________________






Discussion: Creatures that Haunt Ruins in the book of Isaiah





Isaiah 13:21 (referring to the ruin of Babylon): Beasts of the Desert, Owls, Ostriches, Satyrs

Isaiah 34:11 (referring to the ruin of Edom): the Pelican, Hedgehog, Owl, Raven, Satyr, Jackels, Ostriches, Wild Cats, Hyenas, Lilith, the Viper (the latter is mentioned 34:17)


It is curious that Calmet had said that in Isaiah in the prophecy of the fall of Babylon it is stated this city should "become the abode of satyrs, Lamia and strigae (ini Hebrew, Lilith). Half a page later, Calmet adds "The Seventy, In Isaiah, translate the Hebrew lilith by lamia." .. (The term here, "the Seventy", refers to seventy Jewish scholars who went to Alexandria in the 3rd century A.D. and translated various biblical works from Hebrew into Greek.) Yet it seems by the above review that the instance of Lilith (= Lamia) should be placed in the prophetic ruin of Edom rather then that of Babylon (?)

In the Anchor Bible (a commentary) there is a section which deals with the zoology of the Bible, or animal names in the bible. I have been curious about the mention of the owl among the ruins and wonder if this may be translated Lamie as well? In refering to the entries for owl in the Anchor Bible, there are several instances and several Hebrew names for this bird/

Owl: (in Hebrew) tahmaš? , kos? [o with circumflex], yanšup , tinšemet, qā'at
(in Akkadian) enšub/pu

A note on yanšup informs us that "the possible Akkadian equivalent enšub/pu (SB) may denote an owl of some sort. It is a bird of ill omen which frequents human habitations."



From a Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible by Van der Toorn, Becking and Van der Horst (1999)

In the discussion on Demons given by the above authors, we read some very interesting insights and I'm finding this commentary invaluable.. The most enjoyable book Ive picked up in weeks *g* .. To start with there is the comment/

"The Septuagint [the work of the seventy] uses daimonion several times in the ancient Near East [i.e Babylonian] sense of the spirits of the desert: it translates the Hebrew se'irim (wild goats, -> satyrs, goat demons; Isa 13:21), and siyyim (desert dwelling wild beats; Isa 13:14), where desert spirits are said to inhabit cities laid to waste (cf. also Bar 4:35). The book of Revelation describes the (future) fallen city of "Babylon" [here a code word meaning Rome] as "a dwelling place of demons and a haunt of every unclean and hateful bird (18:2), recalling the oracle of desert waste in Isa 13 against Mesopotamian Babylon. One of the major functions of such spirits was to bring fatal calamity: so daimon is used to designate a spirit of "famine and disease" (Sib. Or. 3.331)."


Insight into the nature of the Demons/ (Mesopotamian and Hebrew demons are discussed together in the below)

"These spirits occupied the dangerous places: the desert, the lonely wastes, the deserted by ways. -> Rabiṣu, for example, the Croucher of horrible aspect, lay in wait in dark corners and alleys (cf. Gen 4:7). The scapegoat was sent to -> Azazel, a desert demon, on the day of Atonement (Lev 16:8-28). They held power during dangerous situations and times: chiefly at night, during sleep, during a wind storm or an eclipse or the heat of mid-day, and especially in childbirth. -> Lilith, a lascivious female demon, haunted man in his dreams. The desert storm winds were thought to bring calamity and disease (cf. the Babylonian Pazuzu, king of the wind demons). The seven evil gods (cf. Deut 28:22) attacked the moon and caused eclipse, after which "they swept over the land like a Hurricane" (SAGGS 1962: 291). The >Midday demon attack the unwary with vicious ills at the height of the sun. Lamashtu, a terrifying spectre. threatened women and newborns during childbirth and stole suckling infants (cf. the Lamia and Gello of Greece). She was later identified with Lilith, who was the child-stealer in later Jewish folklore.....
..... In contrast to the gods of the upper world, these spirits were often not in human form. The shedu's of Babylon and Assyria (cf. Deut 32:17; Ps 106:37) were depicted as winged bulls. In Isa 34:14 Lilith as a carrion bird finds a nest in the desert wastes, and is joined by wild desert animals, owls and kites."





[The authors next give an explanation of Lilith in Mesopotamian contexts. For this we can refer to the above posts - see reply 11 through 15]




On Lilith/ (Van der Toorn & co. on Lilith)

"The only reference to this demon in the OT occurs in Isa 34:13. The whole chapter describes the prophetic judgment on -> Edom which will become waste land. Then all kinds of demons will dwell there: among them hyenas, tawny owls, vultures and also Lilith. The different versions and ancient translations of the OT are of some interest in this case as we can see how they interpreted "Lilith:. The LXX [the Seventy] gives the translation [onokentauros = Lamia] (cf. also LXX Isa 13:22; 34:11)........ In his commentary Jerome says: "Lamia, who is called Lilith in Hebrew. (...) And some of the Hebrews believe her to be an "[Greek char.], i.e. "fury". Still, there translations and interpretations of Lilith show her ancient connection to Lamashtu. The onokentauros of the LXX reminds us of those amulets where Lamashtu is standing upon a donkey. The Greek name Lamia might ultimately derive from Akkadian Lamashtu.
... Although Isa 34 contains the only biblical reference to Lilith, she occurs fairly often in Jewish and Christian scriptures.."




_______________________________________________




Summing/


It seems that although Calmet specified the passage regarding the ruins of Babylon (Isa 13) as that place in which the Hebrew Lilith occurs, this is more definitively attested in the prophetic ruin of Edom (Isa 34). Van der Toorn and company have explained that "In Isa 34:14 Lilith as a carrion bird finds a nest in the desert wastes" and so one is perhaps able to wonder if Lilith does make an appearence in Isa 13 after all - ? as the owl for example.. (although owl is pluralised here.) In anycase, Isa 34 is the explicit instance.
Calmet does seem to have been quite on the mark with his comparison between the Greek and Hebrew demon, when he had said "strix and lamioe, where are sorceresses or magicians, who seek to put to death newborn children. Whence comes that the Jews are accustomed to write in the four corners of the chamber of a women just delivered, 'Adam, Eve, begone from hence lilith.' " Even though he may not have known it at the time, this observation is proved astute by the information Van der Toorn (& co.) provide; that Lilith assumed the demonic behaviour of Lamashtu who was a very ancient example of the child-killer and devourer. Their speculation that the name Lamia may in fact have derived from Lamashtu adds again to our understanding.

It still remains to investigate or explain possible association with owls, "a bird of ill omen which frequents human habitations" ...

Thanks Xuch - as it happens I did use Humm's site for one element of my post which is to follow below - I used he translation of the Arslan Tash amulet I , which firt niceles into some reading I wa doing. ;] cheers

Nice work. I think the B.relief is Inanna though. And I do not believe that Killi [etc] and Inanna are the same.


I got some more for you.
Remember the hand of Inanna/Ishtar you were telling me about? That curse has something to do with Lilitu, in one passage it says: "Inanna has sent the beautiful, unmarried, and seductive prostitute Lilitu out into the fields and streets in order to lead men astray" That is why Lilitu is called the "hand of Inanna'. <Hurwitz p.58>

This is also true of the hand of Ishtar. So just like a normal Mesopotamian demon; Lilith was sent to do harm by the gods. I've head of Lilitu's connection to Anzu birds (As a strorm demon Lilitu, and Lamashtu's feet is of the Anzu.) and Enlil, but I have problems finding the references to Enlil. Care to help?