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Hanbi
In Sumerian and Akkadian mythology (and Mesopotamian mythology in general) Hanbi or Hanpa (more commonly known in western text) was the lord of evil, lord of all evil forces ( Udug) and the father of Pazuzu. Aside from his relationship with Pazuzu, very little is known of this figure. Some have connected Hanbi to Helel, the Jewish name generally equated to Lucifer in Christian thought. However, Hanbi's characteristic of being a shadow born in the underworld, different from the Sumerian gods ( Dingir) of the underworld, would make him more similar to the concept of the Jewish shedim and se'iri or the Islamic shaitan. See also * List of Mesopotamian deities Deities in ancient Mesopotamia were almost exclusively Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic. They were thought to possess extraordinary powers and were often envisioned as being of tremendous physical size. The deities typically wore ''melam'', a ... References Mesopotamian gods Mesopotamian demons Evil gods P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Udug
The udug (), later known in Akkadian as the utukku, were an ambiguous class of demons from ancient Mesopotamian mythology found in the literature of Sumer, Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia. They were different from the dingir ( Anu-nna-Ki and Igigi) and they were generally malicious, even if a member of demons (Pazuzu) was willing to clash both with other demons and with the gods, even if he is described as a presence hostile to humans. The word is generally ambiguous and is sometimes used to refer to demons as a whole rather than a specific kind of demon. No visual representations of the udug have yet been identified, but descriptions of it ascribe to it features often given to other ancient Mesopotamian demons: a dark shadow, absence of light surrounding it, poison, and a deafening voice. The surviving ancient Mesopotamian texts giving instructions for exorcizing the evil udug are known as the ''Udug Hul'' texts. These texts emphasize the evil udug's role in causing disease and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mesopotamian Gods
Deities in ancient Mesopotamia were almost exclusively Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic. They were thought to possess extraordinary powers and were often envisioned as being of tremendous physical size. The deities typically wore ''melam'', an ambiguous substance which "covered them in terrifying splendor" and which could also be worn by heroes, kings, giants, and even demons. The effect that seeing a deity's ''melam'' has on a human is described as ''ni'', a word for the "Paresthesia, physical creeping of the flesh". Both the Sumerian language, Sumerian and Akkadian languages contain many words to express the sensation of ''ni'', including the word ''puluhtu'', meaning "fear". Deities were almost always depicted wearing horned caps, consisting of up to seven superimposed pairs of ox-horns. They were also sometimes depicted wearing clothes with elaborate decorative gold and silver ornaments sewn into them. The ancient Mesopotamians believed that their deities lived in Heaven, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pazuzu
In ancient Mesopotamian religion, Pazuzu () is a demonic deity who was well known to the Babylonians and Assyrians throughout the first millennium BCE. He is shown with "a rather canine face with abnormally bulging eyes, a scaly body, a snake-headed penis, the talons of a bird and usually wings". He was believed to be the son of the god Hanbi. He was usually regarded as evil, but he could also sometimes be a beneficent entity who protected against winds bearing pestilence and he was thought to be able to force the demoness Lamashtu, his rival, back to the underworld. Amulets bearing his image were positioned in dwellings to protect infants from Lamashtu and pregnant women frequently wore amulets with his head on them as protection from her. As an Apotropaic magic, apotropaic entity, he is considered as both a personification of a destructive and dangerous wind, but also as a repellant to other demons, one who safeguards the home from their influence. In particular he protects ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sumerian Religion
Sumerian religion was the religion practiced by the people of Sumer, the first literate civilization found in recorded history and based in ancient Mesopotamia, and what is modern day Iraq. The Sumerians widely regarded their divinities as responsible for all matters pertaining to the natural and social orders of their society. Overview Before the beginning of kingship in Sumer, the city-states were effectively ruled by theocratic priests and religious officials. Later, this role was supplanted by kings, but priests continued to exert great influence on Sumerian society. In early times, Sumerian temples were simple, one-room structures, sometimes built on elevated platforms. Towards the end of Sumerian civilization, these temples developed into ziggurats—tall, pyramidal structures with sanctuaries at the tops. The Sumerians believed that the universe had come into being through a series of cosmic births such as gods. First, Nammu, the primeval waters, gave birth to Ki ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mesopotamian Demons
Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of the modern Middle East. Just beyond it lies southwestern Iran, where the region transitions into the Persian plateau, marking the shift from the Arab world to Iran. In the broader sense, the historical region of Mesopotamia also includes parts of present-day Iran (southwest), Turkey (southeast), Syria (northeast), and Kuwait. Mesopotamia is the site of the earliest developments of the Neolithic Revolution from around 10,000 BC. It has been identified as having "inspired some of the most important developments in human history, including the invention of the wheel, the planting of the first cereal crops, the development of cursive script, mathematics, astronomy, and agriculture". It is recognised as the cradle of some of the world's earli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shaitan
Iblis (), alternatively known as Eblīs, also known as Shaitan, is the leader of the devils () in Islam. According to the Quran, Iblis was thrown out of heaven after refusing to prostrate himself before Adam. He is often compared to the Christian Satan, since both figures were cast out of heaven according to their respective religious narratives. In his role as the master of cosmic illusion in Sufi cosmology, he functions in ways similar to the Buddhist concept of Mara. Iblis embodies the cosmic veil supposedly separating the immanent aspect of God's love from the transcendent aspect of God's wrath. He entangles the unworthy in the material web hiding the underlying all-pervading spiritual reality. Islamic theology (''kalām'') regards Iblis as an example of attributes and actions which God punishes with hell (''Nār''). Regarding the origin and nature of Iblis, there are two different viewpoints. According to one, Iblis is an angel, and according to the other, he is the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Islam
Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world's Major religious groups, second-largest religious population after Christians. Muslims believe that Islam is the complete and universal version of a Fitra, primordial faith that was revealed many times through earlier Prophets and messengers in Islam, prophets and messengers, including Adam in Islam, Adam, Noah in Islam, Noah, Abraham in Islam, Abraham, Moses in Islam, Moses, and Jesus in Islam, Jesus. Muslims consider the Quran to be the verbatim word of God in Islam, God and the unaltered, final revelation. Alongside the Quran, Muslims also believe in previous Islamic holy books, revelations, such as the Torah in Islam, Tawrat (the Torah), the Zabur (Psalms), and the Gospel in Islam, Injil (Gospel). They believe that Muhammad in Islam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dingir
''Dingir'' ⟨⟩, usually transliterated DIĜIR, () is a Sumerian word for 'god' or 'goddess'. Its cuneiform sign is most commonly employed as the determinative for religious names and related concepts, in which case it is not pronounced and is conventionally transliterated as a superscript ⟨d⟩, e.g. The Sumerian cuneiform sign by itself was originally an ideogram for the Sumerian word ''an'' ('sky' or 'heaven');Hayes, 2000 its use was then extended to a logogram for the word ('god' or 'goddess')Edzard, 2003 and the supreme deity of the Sumerian pantheon Anu, and a phonogram for the syllable . Akkadian cuneiform took over all these uses and added to them a logographic reading for the native '' ilum'' and from that a syllabic reading of . In Hittite orthography, the syllabic value of the sign was again only ''an''. The concept of divinity in Sumerian is closely associated with the heavens, as is evident from the fact that the cuneiform sign doubles as the ideogram f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shedim
''Shedim'' (; singular: ''šēḏ'') are spirits or demons in Judaism, demons in the Tanakh and Jewish mythology. Shedim do not, however, correspond exactly to the modern conception of demons as evil entities as originated in Christian demonology, Christianity. While evil spirits were thought to cause maladies, shedim differed conceptually from evil spirits. Shedim were not considered evil demigods, but the gods of foreigners; further, they were envisaged as evil only in the sense that they were ''not God''. They appear only twice (and in both instances in the plural) in the Tanakh, at Psalm 106:37 and Song of Moses, Deuteronomy 32:17. In both instances, the text deals with child sacrifice or animal sacrifice. Although the word is traditionally derived from the root ( ''shuḏ'') that conveys the meaning of "acting with violence" or "laying waste," it was possibly a loanword from Akkadian language, Akkadian, in which the word ''shedu'' referred to a spirit that could be eith ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akkadian Literature
Akkadian literature is the ancient literature written in the East Semitic languages, East Semitic Akkadian language (Assyrian people, Assyrian and Babylonian language, Babylonian dialects) in Mesopotamia (Akkadian Empire, Akkadian, Assyria and Babylonia) during the period spanning the Middle Bronze Age to the Iron Age (roughly the 25th to 4th centuries BC). Drawing on the traditions of Sumerian literature, the Akkadians, Assyrians and Babylonians compiled a substantial textual tradition of mythological narrative, legal texts, scientific works, letters and other literary forms. Conversely, Akkadian also influenced Sumerian literature. Literature in Akkadian society Most of what we have from the Assyrians and Babylonians was inscribed in cuneiform (script), cuneiform with a metal stylus on tablets of clay, called ''laterculae coctiles'' by Pliny the Elder; papyrus seems to have also been utilised, but not been preserved. There were libraries in most towns and temples in Sumer, Akk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
