Nature of the Universe: Life, Death, and the Gods

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Power of Visual Representation Visual representation was important in Mesopotamian religion (Kramer & Maier 1989). This theme trickled down to Western Culture via the Near-East. It remains visible even today, albeit in a modified form, with such staples of Catholicism as the crucifix or the breaking of bread in Judeo-Christian ritual. To better understand the Sumerian world view, it may is helpful to illustrate with the modern analogy of Christian icanography. When Christians take communion, they imagine -- or believe, depending on one's religious bent -- that they are eating the body of Christ when they eat a bread-like wafter. Likewise, when they drink the wine that was blessed, they are drinking the blood of Christ. The Sumerain conception of religious representation was not very different. Who they worshipped, why, and with what, however, was different. When early archaeologists unearthed temple sites throughout Mesopotamia -- including Sumer -- they were puzzled by the presence of large numbers of statuettes or figurines of animals and people. The many mysterious figurines that were unearthed at many major temples are striking examples of their religious, iconography, practices, and beliefs. The climate of Sumer was not forgiving. It demanded that the Sumerians work and work hard in order to thrive there. And thrive they did, as the many archaeological sites in the area have proven, but these prosperous cities came at a price: human labor. The irrigation ditches did not build and maintain themselves -- although they were watched over by gods. The fields required men to farm them just as the irrigation ditches required constant manpower to keep them running efficiently. These basic tasks of living, needless to say, dominated much of the Sumarians' lives. But what about their religious obligations? They still needed to show the gods their reverence, and the more piety they showed their patron gods, the more reward -- or less punishment -- they hoped to receive. Something needed to give. That was where the figurines fit in. What was so puzzling about the figurines unearthed at the temple sites was, first, their enormous quantity, too many and too small to be the center of worship, and two, the fact that most of the figurines did not appear to be gods. That is, there were no outward signs -- such as horned helmets/crowns -- to indicate that they portrayed divine beings. In fact, many of them seemed to be arranged in a pattern that mimicked worshipers at temple. These were the clues archaeologists needed to unlock the key to these mysterious figurines. They were people! Their postures were also indicative of this, as they had their hands clasped across their abdomen -- a sign of piety, much like folding one's hands today. The Sumerians believed that if they could not attend the temple and worship their gods every moment, perhaps they could offer a substitute. These figurines where the substitutes, left in place of the worshipers so that they might complete their daily toil. As far as experts can ascertain, these figurines were believed to be just as potent as having the persons they represented worship at the temple all day (TIME). This swap of the authentic for the visual representation was not limited to people. It was why Mesopotamians believed the cylinder seals that they wore around their necks as amulets could ward off evil spirits or bring good fortune to the wearer. Each seal, each amulet contained a visual representation of a mythical event or personage. This representation, alone, invoked magical power. Animal figurines were also uncovered in many temples. Again, too numerous to be objects of worship themselves. These animal figurines appear to have been offerings to the gods. At the temple of Innana in Uruk, large numbers of animal figurines and carvings were unearthed. Archeologists speculate that these representations were used to "stand in" for the authentic animals. "Although live animals would certainly have been regularly sacrificed at the temple, the carvings functioned as permanent reminders of the donors devotion to the goddess" (TIME). A. Leo Oppenheim wrote a chapter titled "Why a 'Mesopotamian Religion' Should Not Be Written." In this chapter he revealed the results of an intensive investigation he had conducted on what was "central" to private and cult practices. He concluded that the image was the focal point of both. "The care and feeding of the divine image, most often in human shape, were major duties of the priests, for the deity was thought to be present in the image. Images became the focus of sacrificial activities, and they were carried in ceremonies and processions. Meals were servedt o them. In certain rituals the mouths of the images were 'opened' and 'washed'" (Kramer & Maier 1989). Below are examples of visual representations (captions are not mine; all photos are from the source designated "TIME" in Sumerian Bibliography): Notice the pious posture. The clasping of hands as such was a show of respect and submission to the gods.                                   Death, Dumuzi, and Ritual Invocation "The visual representations of gods, demons, and sacred objects were thought to posses magic" (Kramer & Maier (1989). One of the more interesting practices -- if only because it relates to one of the oldest and best preserved Sumerian myths -- is that of the Dumuzi "substitution" ritual. Here, priests burned figurines of, Dumuzi, the beleaguered ex-husband of Inanna, as a substitute for mortals who were dying or near death -- recall that for every being who exits the nether world, another being must take its place. Dumuzi was the ideal deity for just such a ritual (Kramer & Maier). Not only was he chosen as Inanna's substitute that she might ascend from the Underworld, but he was carried down to Underworld by demons. Sickness, colds, insomnia: all human ailments were attributed to the work of demons or evil spirts. These demons were, themselves, the ailments which manifested themselves in humans. The majority of demons or "supernatural beings of the second rank" who "[threw] themselves on anyone . . . without any other motive than their own fantasy or wickedness" were given names of Sumerian origin (Bottéro 1992). But being second class gods, they were often conceived as following a higher plan: "They became like the gendarmes of the gods, charged with the execution of their decisions, and with the bringing of evil and miserable punishments to those who had offended the gods' authority by some 'sin,' by some transgression of their own will" (Bottéro 1992). There is a clear correlation between the idea that these "demon" maladies and the Greek conception of free will. If you recall from class, the Greeks believed the muses to be inspiration from the gods. The very meaning of the word inspiration entails a loss of free will. Spirit is the ethereal embodiment of human existence, the soul. 'In' is a prefix used to imply a taking over of, a manipulation of, or an alteration of. Therefore, by "inspiration," the spirit, the soul, the free will of an individual is manipulated by the gods through the handiwork of muses. The conceptualization of maladies as demons derives itself from the same world view. It is fitting that, in order to defeat these demons, to overcome malady and stave off death, the Sumerians would do what Inanna did: provide the Underworld with a substitute death. The result is the Dumuzi substitution ritual. By burning a figurine of Dumuzi was, as we've discovered about the power of visual representation, the equivalent of burning Dumuzi himself and sending back down to the Underworld again.