Pub Date : 2014-05-27DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341258
Yitzhaq Feder
This article analyzes the primary terms for purity in Biblical Hebrew, Ugaritic, Sumerian, Akkadian and Hittite. Building on insights from cognitive linguistics and embodiment theory, this study develops the premise that semantic structure—even of seemingly abstract concepts—is grounded in real-world bodily experience. An examination of purity terms reveals that all of them can be related to a concrete sense pertaining to radiance (brilliance, brightness, shininess). The article then traces the semantic development of purity terms in distinct experiential contexts and shows how semantic analysis can elucidate the inner logic of fundamental religious concepts.
{"title":"The Semantics of Purity in the Ancient Near East: Lexical Meaning as a Projection of Embodied Experience","authors":"Yitzhaq Feder","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341258","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341258","url":null,"abstract":"This article analyzes the primary terms for purity in Biblical Hebrew, Ugaritic, Sumerian, Akkadian and Hittite. Building on insights from cognitive linguistics and embodiment theory, this study develops the premise that semantic structure—even of seemingly abstract concepts—is grounded in real-world bodily experience. An examination of purity terms reveals that all of them can be related to a concrete sense pertaining to radiance (brilliance, brightness, shininess). The article then traces the semantic development of purity terms in distinct experiential contexts and shows how semantic analysis can elucidate the inner logic of fundamental religious concepts.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2014-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341258","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65152935","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2014-05-27DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341259
William R. Osborne
Since the mid-twentieth century, scholars have highlighted the similarities between the book of Proverbs and wisdom texts from ancient Egypt, the most recognized being “The Instruction of Amenemope” (ca. 1100 bce). Consequently, some have asserted that this relationship points toward a likely Egyptian provenance and origin of biblical concepts like the Tree of Life in Proverbs 3:17–18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4. Recognizing the undisputable contact with ancient Egypt, the present work argues through the method of comparative study that the Tree of Life in the book of Proverbs should not be interpreted with an ideological antecedent of a divine tree goddess in the New Kingdom period of ancient Egypt.
{"title":"The Tree of Life in Ancient Egypt and the Book of Proverbs","authors":"William R. Osborne","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341259","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341259","url":null,"abstract":"Since the mid-twentieth century, scholars have highlighted the similarities between the book of Proverbs and wisdom texts from ancient Egypt, the most recognized being “The Instruction of Amenemope” (ca. 1100 bce). Consequently, some have asserted that this relationship points toward a likely Egyptian provenance and origin of biblical concepts like the Tree of Life in Proverbs 3:17–18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4. Recognizing the undisputable contact with ancient Egypt, the present work argues through the method of comparative study that the Tree of Life in the book of Proverbs should not be interpreted with an ideological antecedent of a divine tree goddess in the New Kingdom period of ancient Egypt.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2014-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341259","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65153070","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2014-05-27DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341256
J. Z. Wee
In response to the absence of consensus on events narrated in the Lunar Eclipse Myth, this article proposes an interpretation that takes into account the mythological representation of astrological phenomena, the Myth’s meaning in the context of the Utukkū Lemnūtu (“evil demons”) incantation series, as well as its implications concerning royal authority and guilt during the politically unstable conditions of a lunar eclipse. Although human observation alone could not discern the reasons for a lunar eclipse, the Myth suggests that at least some eclipses resulted from malevolent acts of self-will by a group of seven deities or demons (the “Sibitti”) and did not represent the pantheon’s condemnation of royal guilt. By contrast, celestial omens, letters from astrologers, the substitute king ritual, and suilla prayers all envisioned the lunar eclipse as a sign of the gods’ displeasure. Omen verdicts depicting successful acts of treason as divine judgment would have contributed to suspicions and tensions between the king and his courtiers during stressful times of eclipses. In portraying the king as an embodiment of the moon-god and as a fellow victim (together with the pantheon) of the Sibitti, the Lunar Eclipse Myth functioned as royal apology by removing implications of the king’s personal guilt and failure and, hence, the pretext for treason and regime change. Such a radical reinterpretation that contradicted long-held ideas about the lunar eclipse as divine judgment, however, may not have fitted easily with existing traditions. Inter-textual references to the Eclipse Myth are relatively scarce and do not accurately convey meanings original to the Myth itself, suggesting that subtler ways of downplaying royal guilt and safeguarding the king’s status may have been preferred.
{"title":"Grieving with the Moon: Pantheon and Politics in The Lunar Eclipse","authors":"J. Z. Wee","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341256","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341256","url":null,"abstract":"In response to the absence of consensus on events narrated in the Lunar Eclipse Myth, this article proposes an interpretation that takes into account the mythological representation of astrological phenomena, the Myth’s meaning in the context of the Utukkū Lemnūtu (“evil demons”) incantation series, as well as its implications concerning royal authority and guilt during the politically unstable conditions of a lunar eclipse. Although human observation alone could not discern the reasons for a lunar eclipse, the Myth suggests that at least some eclipses resulted from malevolent acts of self-will by a group of seven deities or demons (the “Sibitti”) and did not represent the pantheon’s condemnation of royal guilt. By contrast, celestial omens, letters from astrologers, the substitute king ritual, and suilla prayers all envisioned the lunar eclipse as a sign of the gods’ displeasure. Omen verdicts depicting successful acts of treason as divine judgment would have contributed to suspicions and tensions between the king and his courtiers during stressful times of eclipses. In portraying the king as an embodiment of the moon-god and as a fellow victim (together with the pantheon) of the Sibitti, the Lunar Eclipse Myth functioned as royal apology by removing implications of the king’s personal guilt and failure and, hence, the pretext for treason and regime change. Such a radical reinterpretation that contradicted long-held ideas about the lunar eclipse as divine judgment, however, may not have fitted easily with existing traditions. Inter-textual references to the Eclipse Myth are relatively scarce and do not accurately convey meanings original to the Myth itself, suggesting that subtler ways of downplaying royal guilt and safeguarding the king’s status may have been preferred.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2014-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341256","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65153216","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2014-05-27DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341255
T. J. Lewis
This study explores the identity and function of the mostly unnoticed figure of Shaʿtiqatu, a creature who plays a pivotal role in the story of the Ugaritic King Kirta. The exploration of this under appreciated figure is situated in the context of Ugaritic apotropea and within the better documented Mesopotamian cultural backdrop. A counterpart article provides the philological and epigraphic analysis to the Shaʿtiqatu Narrative found in ktu 1.16.5.10–1.16.6.14.1
{"title":"The Identity and Function of Ugaritic Shaʿtiqatu: A Divinely Made Apotropaic Figure","authors":"T. J. Lewis","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341255","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341255","url":null,"abstract":"This study explores the identity and function of the mostly unnoticed figure of Shaʿtiqatu, a creature who plays a pivotal role in the story of the Ugaritic King Kirta. The exploration of this under appreciated figure is situated in the context of Ugaritic apotropea and within the better documented Mesopotamian cultural backdrop. A counterpart article provides the philological and epigraphic analysis to the Shaʿtiqatu Narrative found in ktu 1.16.5.10–1.16.6.14.1","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2014-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341255","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65153101","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2013-01-01DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341243
M. Lynch
Abstract In this article I consider the strengths and weaknesses of theories regarding the mention of prophets’ sārtum u sissiktum (hair and hem) in prophetic texts from Mari. I suggest that royal correspondents sent along the prophets’ sārtum u sissiktum because they were part of the material locus of divine revelation, functioning as proxy omens. As such, they offered royal diviners an efficient and material means of cross-checking prophetic omens through extispicy-derived omens in order to discern divine directives for the security and success of the kingdom. Moreover, the sārtum u sissiktum constituted two data points within a larger divinatory system that discerned the divine will primarily through material and observable media.
在这篇文章中，我考虑了关于提到先知sārtum u sissiktum(头发和下摆)的理论的优缺点。我认为，皇家通讯员将先知的sārtum u sisissiktum发送给他们，因为他们是神圣启示的物质轨迹的一部分，作为代理预兆。因此，他们为皇家占卜者提供了一种有效的物质手段，通过存在性衍生的预兆来交叉检查预言预兆，以辨别王国安全和成功的神圣指示。此外，sārtum u sissiktum在一个更大的占卜系统中构成了两个数据点，该系统主要通过材料和可观察的媒介来识别神圣的意志。
{"title":"The Prophet’s šārtum u sissiktum “Hair and Hem” and the Mantic Context of Prophetic Oracles at Mari","authors":"M. Lynch","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341243","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341243","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract In this article I consider the strengths and weaknesses of theories regarding the mention of prophets’ sārtum u sissiktum (hair and hem) in prophetic texts from Mari. I suggest that royal correspondents sent along the prophets’ sārtum u sissiktum because they were part of the material locus of divine revelation, functioning as proxy omens. As such, they offered royal diviners an efficient and material means of cross-checking prophetic omens through extispicy-derived omens in order to discern divine directives for the security and success of the kingdom. Moreover, the sārtum u sissiktum constituted two data points within a larger divinatory system that discerned the divine will primarily through material and observable media.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2013-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341243","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65152377","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2013-01-01DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341249
T. Abusch
AbstractThe book of Jonah concludes with a puzzling rhetorical question by God, connecting plants, animals, and the people of Nineveh (4:10–11). This essay attempts to explain the logic of this rhetoric and to lay out its precise force, thereby clarifying the literary message of the book.
{"title":"Jonah and God: Plants, Beasts, and Humans in the Book of Jonah (An Essay in Interpretation)1","authors":"T. Abusch","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341249","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341249","url":null,"abstract":"AbstractThe book of Jonah concludes with a puzzling rhetorical question by God, connecting plants, animals, and the people of Nineveh (4:10–11). This essay attempts to explain the logic of this rhetoric and to lay out its precise force, thereby clarifying the literary message of the book.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2013-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341249","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65152471","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2013-01-01DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341246
Margo Kitts
Abstract This essay explores the river battle of Iliad 21 in terms of the Near Eastern mythological motif known as the Chaoskampf, wherein an order-promoting storm deity prevails over a water deity associated with chaos. The first section outlines four notable features of the protean Chaoskampf traditions in ancient Near Eastern literature, from Mesopotamia to the Levant to Anatolia. The second section traces these four features into the Iliad’s river battle and explains their presence by proposing cross-traditional mythopoesis, confluent with other cultural exchanges as established in recent decades. Understanding this part of the Iliad as influenced by West Asian traditions will help to explain why it is Hephaistos, not storm god Zeus, who unleashes his fire upon the menacing river god. The role of Hephaistos is examined against the roles of Ugaritic Kothar-wa-Hasis and Hittite-Hurrian Ea in their respective Chaoskampf myths.
{"title":"The Near Eastern Chaoskampf in the River Battle of Iliad 21 1","authors":"Margo Kitts","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341246","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341246","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This essay explores the river battle of Iliad 21 in terms of the Near Eastern mythological motif known as the Chaoskampf, wherein an order-promoting storm deity prevails over a water deity associated with chaos. The first section outlines four notable features of the protean Chaoskampf traditions in ancient Near Eastern literature, from Mesopotamia to the Levant to Anatolia. The second section traces these four features into the Iliad’s river battle and explains their presence by proposing cross-traditional mythopoesis, confluent with other cultural exchanges as established in recent decades. Understanding this part of the Iliad as influenced by West Asian traditions will help to explain why it is Hephaistos, not storm god Zeus, who unleashes his fire upon the menacing river god. The role of Hephaistos is examined against the roles of Ugaritic Kothar-wa-Hasis and Hittite-Hurrian Ea in their respective Chaoskampf myths.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2013-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341246","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65152421","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2013-01-01DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341244
A. Miglio
Abstract This article treats KTU2 1.82: 1–7, an Ugaritic incantation. It deals, first, with matters of epigraphy, philology, morpho-syntax and lexicography. Thereafter, it discusses the contributions of this incantation to understanding Ugaritic mythology and religion. In particular, it assesses the relationship of KTU2 1.82: 1–7 to the Ugaritic Baʕlu Cycle.
{"title":"A Study of the Serpent Incantation KTU2 1.82: 1–7 and its Contributions to Ugaritic Mythology and Religion","authors":"A. Miglio","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341244","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341244","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This article treats KTU2 1.82: 1–7, an Ugaritic incantation. It deals, first, with matters of epigraphy, philology, morpho-syntax and lexicography. Thereafter, it discusses the contributions of this incantation to understanding Ugaritic mythology and religion. In particular, it assesses the relationship of KTU2 1.82: 1–7 to the Ugaritic Baʕlu Cycle.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2013-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341244","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65152383","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2013-01-01DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341248
G. Beckman
AbstractAn edition of the earliest ritual from Kizzuwatna to be imported into Hittite Anatolia. As such, it is the forerunner of the wave of Hurrian influence that would reshape the Hittite state cult during the empire period (14th–13th c. B.C.E.). Although the southern ruler to whom it is attributed undoubtedly carried out his worship in Hurrian, the present version is written in Hittite, but the text includes numerous Hurrian technical terms. It remains unclear why a rite centering on the Storm-god Tessup of the Kizzuwatnaean capital was still relevant in Hattusa two centuries after its composition.
{"title":"The Ritual of Palliya of Kizzuwatna (CTH 475)","authors":"G. Beckman","doi":"10.1163/15692124-12341248","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15692124-12341248","url":null,"abstract":"AbstractAn edition of the earliest ritual from Kizzuwatna to be imported into Hittite Anatolia. As such, it is the forerunner of the wave of Hurrian influence that would reshape the Hittite state cult during the empire period (14th–13th c. B.C.E.). Although the southern ruler to whom it is attributed undoubtedly carried out his worship in Hurrian, the present version is written in Hittite, but the text includes numerous Hurrian technical terms. It remains unclear why a rite centering on the Storm-god Tessup of the Kizzuwatnaean capital was still relevant in Hattusa two centuries after its composition.","PeriodicalId":42129,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2013-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/15692124-12341248","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"65152429","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2013-01-01DOI: 10.1163/15692124-12341253
A. Archi
AbstractThrough ritualization mankind satisfies some of its most profound needs. In 3rd millennium BC Ebla, ritual strategies for survival took a cyclical pattern according to the alternation of the seasons. The major gods were objects of a yearly renewal. The ritual concerning the royal wedding epitomized survival through generations. The royal couple sat on “the thrones of their fathers” in the mausoleum: a ritual which consecrated “a new king, a new queen”. Every year this rite was commemorated on the same month in the same place. The canonical celebrations in the main sanctuaries in the core of the kingdom, organized according to months, ritualized the territory of Ebla itself.
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