{"collection":"Ancient Near East","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/ane/ishtar.htm","path":"ane/ishtar.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/ane/ishtar.htm","text":"DESCENT OF THE GODDESS ISHTAR INTO THE LOWER WORLD\n[From The Civilization of Babylonia and Assyria, M. Jastrow, 1915]\nTo the land of no return, the land of darkness,\nIshtar, the daughter of Sin directed her thought,\nDirected her thought, Ishtar, the daughter of Sin,\nTo the house of shadows, the dwelling, of Irkalla,\nTo the house without exit for him who enters therein,\nTo the road, whence there is no turning,\nTo the house without light for him who enters therein,\nThe place where dust is their nourishment, clay their food.'\nThey have no light, in darkness they dwell.\nClothed like birds, with wings as garments,\nOver door and bolt, dust has gathered.\nIshtar on arriving at the gate of the land of no return,\nTo the gatekeeper thus addressed herself:\n\"Gatekeeper, ho, open thy gate!\nOpen thy gate that I may enter!\nIf thou openest not the gate to let me enter,\nI will break the door, I will wrench the lock,\nI will smash the door-posts, I will force the doors.\nI will bring up the dead to eat the living.\nAnd the dead will outnumber the living.\"\nThe gatekeeper opened his mouth and spoke,\nSpoke to the lady Ishtar:\n\"Desist, O lady, do not destroy it.\nI will go and announce thy name to my queen Ereshkigal.\"\nThe gatekeeper entered and spoke to Ereshkigal:\n\"Ho! here is thy sister, Ishtar ...\nHostility of the great powers ...\nWhen Ereshkigal heard this,\nAs when one hews down a tamarisk she trembled,\nAs when one cuts a reed, she shook:\n\"What has moved her heart [seat of the intellect] what has stirred her liver [seat of the emotions]?\nHo there, does this one wish to dwell with me?\nTo eat clay as food, to drink dust as wine?\nI weep for the men who have left their wives.\nI weep for the wives torn from the embrace of their husbands;\nFor the little ones cut off before their time.\nGo, gatekeeper, open thy gate for her,\nDeal with her according to the ancient decree.\"\nThe gatekeeper went and opened his gate to her:\nEnter, O lady, let Cuthah greet thee.\nLet the palace of the land of no return rejoice at thy presence!\nHe bade her enter the first gate, which he opened wide, and took the large crown off her head:\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove the large crown off my head?\"\n\"Enter, O lady, such are the decrees of Ereshkigal.\"\nThe second gate he bade her enter, opening it wide, and removed her earrings:\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove my earrings?\"\n\"Enter, O lady, for such are the decrees of Ereshkigal.\"\nThe third gate he bade her enter, opened it wide, and removed her necklace:\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove my necklace? \"\n\"Enter, O lady, for such are the decrees of Ereshkigal.\"\nThe fourth gate he bade her enter, opened it wide, and removed the ornaments of her breast:\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove the ornaments of my breast? \"\n\"Enter, O lady, for such are the decrees of Ereshkigal.\"\nThe fifth gate he bade her enter, opened it wide, and removed the girdle of her body studded with birthstones.\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove the girdle of my body, studded with birth-stones?\"\n\"Enter, O lady, for such are the decrees of Ereshkigal.\"\nThe sixth gate, he bade her enter, opened it wide, and removed the spangles off her hands and feet.\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove the spangles off my hands and feet?\"\n\"Enter, O lady, for thus are the decrees of Ereiihkigal.\"\nThe seventh gate he bade her enter, opened it wide, and removed her loin-cloth.\n\"Why, O gatekeeper, dost thou remove my loin-cloth ?\"\n\"Enter, O lady, for such are the decrees of Ereshkigal.\"\nNow when Ishtar had gone down into the land of no return,\nEreshkigal saw her and was angered at her presence.\nIshtar, without reflection, threw herself at her [in a rage].\nEreshkigal opened her mouth and spoke,\nTo Namtar, her messenger, she addressed herself:\n\"Go Namtar, imprison her in my palace.\nSend against her sixty disease, to punish Ishtar.\nEye-disease against her eyes,\nDisease of the side against her side,\nFoot-disease against her foot,\nHeart-disease against her heart,\nHead-disease against her head,\nAgainst her whole being, against her entire body.\"\nAfter the lady Ishtar had gone down into the land of no return,\nThe bull did not mount the cow, the ass approached not the she-ass,\nTo the maid in the street, no man drew near\nThe man slept in his apartment,\nThe maid slept by herself.\n[The second half of the poem, the reverse of the tablet, continues is follows:]\nThe countenance of Papsukal, the messenger of the great gods, fell, his face was troubled.\nIn mourning garb he was clothed, in soiled garments clad.\nShamash [the sun-god] went to Sin [the moon-god], his father, weeping,\nIn the presence of Ea, the King, he went with flowing tears.\n\"Ishtar has descended into the earth and has not come up. The bull does not mount the cow, the ass does not approach the she-ass.\nThe man does not approach the maid in the street,\nThe man sleeps in his apartment,\nThe maid sleeps by herself.\"\nEa, in the wisdom of his heart, formed a being,\nHe formed Asu-shu-namir the eunuch.\nGo, Asu-shu-namir, to the land of no return direct thy face!\nThe seven gates of the land without return be opened before thee,\nMay Eresbkigal at sight of thee rejoice!\nAfter her heart has been assuaged, her liver quieted,\nInvoke against her the name of the great gods,\nRaise thy head direct thy attention to the khalziku skin.\n\"Come, lady, let them give me the khalziku skin, that I may drink water out of it.\"\nWhen Ereshkigal heard this, she struck her side, bit her finger,\nThou hast expressed a wish that can not be granted.\nGo, Asu-sbu-iaamir, I curse thee with a great curse,\nThe sweepings of the gutters of the city be thy food,\nThe drains of the city be thy drink,\nThe shadow of the wall be thy abode,\nThe thresholds be thy dwelling-place;\nDrunkard and sot strike thy cheek!\"\nEreshkigal opened her mouth and spoke,\nTo Namtar, her messenger, she addressed herself.\n\"Go, Namtar, knock at the strong palace,\nStrike the threshold of precious stones,\nBring out the Anunnaki, seat them on golden thrones.\nSprinkle Ishtar with the waters of life and take her out of my presence.\nNamtar went, knocked at the strong palace,\nTapped on the threshold of precious stones.\nHe brought out the Anunnaki and placed them on golden thrones,\nHe sprinkled Ishtar with the waters of life and took hold of her.\nThrough the first gate he led her out and returned to her her loin-cloth.\nThrough the second gate he led her out and returned to her the spangles of her hands and feet\nThrough the third gate he led her out and returned to her the girdle of her body, studded with birth-stones.\nThrough the fourth gate he led her out and returned to her the ornaments of her breast.\nThrough the fifth gate he led her out and returned to her her necklace.\nThrough the sixth gate he led her out and returned her earrings.\nThrough the seventh gate he led her out and returned to her the large crown for her head.\n[The following lines are in the form of an address -apparently to some one who has sought release for a dear one from the portals of the lower world.]\n\"If she (Ishtar) will not grant thee her release,\nTo Tammuz, the lover of her youth,\nPour out pure waters, pour out fine oil;\nWith a festival garment deck him that he may play on the flute of lapis lazuli,\nThat the votaries may cheer his liver. [his spirit]\nBelili [sister of Tammuz] had gathered the treasure,\nWith precious stones filled her bosom.\nWhen Belili heard the lament of her brother, she dropped her treasure,\nShe scattered the precious stones before her,\n\"Oh, my only brother, do not let me perish!\nOn the day when Tammuz plays for me on the flute of lapis lazuli, playing it for me with the porphyry ring.\nTogether with him, play ye for me, ye weepers and lamenting women!\nThat the dead may rise up and inhale the incense.\"","title":"DESCENT OF THE GODDESS ISHTAR INTO THE LOWER WORLD","type":"page"}