Ningishzida (
Sumerian:
DNIN-G̃IŠ-ZID-DA, possible meaning "Lord
f theGood Tree") was a
Mesopotamian deity
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 ...
of
vegetation
Vegetation is an assemblage of plant species and the ground cover they provide. It is a general term, without specific reference to particular taxa, life forms, structure, spatial extent, or any other specific botanical or geographic characte ...
, the
underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwor ...
and sometimes war. He was commonly associated with snakes. Like
Dumuzi, he was believed to spend a part of the year in the land of the dead. He also shared many of his functions with his father
Ninazu
Ninazu ( sux, ) was a Mesopotamian god of the underworld of Sumerian origin. He was also associated with snakes and vegetation, and with time acquired the character of a warrior god. He was frequently associated with Ereshkigal, either as a s ...
.
In myths he usually appears in an underworld setting, though in the myth of
Adapa
Adapa was a Mesopotamian mythical figure who unknowingly refused the gift of immortality. The story, commonly known as "Adapa and the South Wind", is known from fragmentary tablets from Tell el-Amarna in Egypt (around 14th century BC) and from fi ...
he is instead described as one of the doorkeepers of the sky god Anu.
Name
Thorkild Jacobsen
Thorkild Peter Rudolph Jacobsen (; 7 June 1904 – 2 May 1993) was a renowned Danish historian specializing in Assyriology and Sumerian literature. He was one of the foremost scholars on the ancient Near East.
Biography
Thorkild Peter Rudolph Ja ...
proposed that the
Sumerian name ''Ningishzida'' can be explained as "lord of the good tree." This translation is still accepted by other Assyriologists today. Various syllabic spellings are known, including ''
dNi-gi-si-da'', ''
dNin-nigi-si-da'', ''
dNin-ki-zi-da'' and ''
dNin-gi-iz-zi-da''.
While "
nin" can be translated as "lady" in some contexts, it was grammatically neutral in Sumerian and can be found in the names of many deities, both male (Ningishzida,
Ninazu
Ninazu ( sux, ) was a Mesopotamian god of the underworld of Sumerian origin. He was also associated with snakes and vegetation, and with time acquired the character of a warrior god. He was frequently associated with Ereshkigal, either as a s ...
,
Ninurta, etc.) and female (
Ninlil
Ninlil ( DINGIR, DNIN (cuneiform), NIN.LÍL; meaning uncertain) was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as the wife of Enlil. She shared many of his functions, especially the responsibility for declaring destinies, and like him was regarded as a senio ...
,
Ninkasi
Ninkasi was the Mesopotamian goddess of beer and brewing. It is possible that in the first millennium BCE she was known under the variant name Kurunnītu, derived from a term referring to a type of high quality beer. She was associated with both ...
etc.).
Ningishzida could also be called Gishbanda ("little tree").
Functions
Ningishzida's titles connect him to plants and agriculture. He was frequently mentioned in connection with grass, which he was believed to provide for domestic animals. The death of vegetation was associated with his annual travel to the underworld. The "tree" in his name might be
vine
A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themsel ...
according to some Assyriologists, including
Wilfred G. Lambert, and an association between him and alcoholic beverages (specifically
wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
) is well attested, for example one text mentions him alongside the beer goddess
Ninkasi
Ninkasi was the Mesopotamian goddess of beer and brewing. It is possible that in the first millennium BCE she was known under the variant name Kurunnītu, derived from a term referring to a type of high quality beer. She was associated with both ...
, while one of his titles was "lord of the innkeepers."
Like his father Ninazu, he was also associated with snakes, including the mythical
mushussu,
ushumgal and
bashmu and in one case
Nirah
Nirah was a Mesopotamian god who served as the messenger (''šipru'') of Ištaran, the god of Der. He was depicted in the form of a snake.
Name and character
The name Nirah means "little snake" in Sumerian. It could be written with the lo ...
. He was also an underworld god, and in this role was known as the "chair bearer (or chamberlain) of the underworld." Frans Wiggermann on the basis of these similarities considers him and his father to be members of the group of "
Transtigridian snake gods," who according to him shared a connection with the underworld, justice, vegetation and snakes. A further similarity between Ningishzida and his father was his occasional role as a warrior god, associated with victory (and as a result with the goddess
Irnina
Irnina was the Mesopotamian goddess of victory. Her name additionally functioned as a title of other deities.
As an independent deity
In the ''An-Anum'' god list, Irnina appears among the courtiers of Ningishzida, a god associated with snakes a ...
, the personification of it). However, not all of their functions overlapped, as unlike Ninazu, Ningishzida never appears in the role of a divine healer.
According to Frans Wiggermann, Ningishzida's diverse functions can be considered different aspects of his perception as a "reliable god," well attested in Mesopotamian texts.
The constellation
Hydra could serve as his symbol, though it was also associated with Ishtaran and Ereshkigal.
Worship
The worship of Ningishzida is attested for the first time in the
Early Dynastic III period. His main cult center was Gishbanda, likely a rural settlement located somewhere between
Lagash
Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...
and
Ur. His main temple was known simply as E-Gishbanda, "house of Gishbanda," and it was commonly listed alongside the main temple of his father Ninazu, E-Gidda.
He also had a temple in Lagash, the E-badbarra, "house, outer wall." Yet another one was built in Girsu by Gudea, though its name is unknown. This ruler considered him to be his personal god. In one of his inscriptions, Ningishzida is named a participant in a festival celebrating the marriage between
Ningirsu
, image= Cropped Image of Carving Showing the Mesopotamian God Ninurta.png
, caption= Assyrian stone relief from the temple of Ninurta at Kalhu, showing the god with his thunderbolts pursuing Anzû, who has stolen the Tablet of Destinies from E ...
and
Bau. In another, he is credited with helping Gudea with building new temples. In a later incantation which served as a part of temple renovation rituals, referred to as ''The First Brick'' by Wilfred G. Lambert, Ningishzida is mentioned in a similar context alongside many other deities, such as
Lisin
Lisin was a Mesopotamian deity initially regarded as a goddess and addressed as ''ama'', "mother," who later came to be regarded as a god and developed an association with fire. The name was also applied to a star associated with Nabu. Lisin's s ...
, Gukishbanda,
Kulla Kulla may refer to:
*Kulla (god), god of builders in the Mesopotamian mythology. He is responsible for the creation of bricks and restoration of temples.
*Kulla (goddess), an alternate name of Ukulla, a goddess regarded as the wife of the Mesopot ...
,
Lahar and Ninshar.
In Ur he was worshiped in the temple E-niggina, "house of truth," known from an inscription of
Sin-Iqisham stating it was rebuilt during his reign. He is attested in offering lists from that city from the Ur III and Old Babylonian periods, sometimes alongside Ningubalaga. In later sources, up to the reign of the Persian emperor
Darius I, he sometimes appears in
theophoric names
A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or God's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that deit ...
, likely due to association with Ninazu, who retained a degree of relevance in the local pantheon. Much like in the case of his father, some of them used the dialectical Emesal form of his name, Umun-muzida. It is presumed that the cause of this was the role lamentation priests, who traditionally memorized Emesal compositions, played in the preservation of cults of underworld gods in Ur.
As early as in the Ur III period Ningishzida was introduced to
Uruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...
. He was also present in Kamada, possibly located nearby, as attested in documents from the reign of
Sin-kashid. During the reign of Marduk-apla-iddina I he was worshiped in a chapel in the Eanna complex, originally built during the reign of Old Babylonian king Anam.
He continued to appear in theophoric names from
neo-Assyrian
The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew t ...
,
neo-Babylonian
The Neo-Babylonian Empire or Second Babylonian Empire, historically known as the Chaldean Empire, was the last polity ruled by monarchs native to Mesopotamia. Beginning with the coronation of Nabopolassar as the King of Babylon in 626 BC and bein ...
and
Hellenistic
In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
Uruk, though only uncommonly.
Ningishzida was also worshiped in
Isin, which was primarily the cult center of the medicine goddess
Ninisina
Ninisina ( Sumerian: "Mistress of Isin") was a Mesopotamian goddess who served as the tutelary deity of the city of Isin. She was considered a healing deity. She was believed to be skilled in the medical arts, and could be described as a divine ph ...
, but had multiple houses of worship dedicated to underworld deities as well, with the other examples being
Nergal,
Ugur, and an otherwise unknown most likely chthonic goddess Lakupittu who according to
Andrew R. George was likely the tutelary deity of
Lagaba Lagaba was a city in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now southern Iraq). It is the place of origin of many illicitly excavated clay tablets,Oded Tammuz, The location of Lagaba. ''Revue d'Assyriologie et d'Archeologie Orientale'' 90: ...
near Kutha.
Further locations where he was worshiped include
Umma
Umma ( sux, ; in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, formerly also called Gishban) was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell J ...
,
Larsa
Larsa ( Sumerian logogram: UD.UNUGKI, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossos and connected with the biblical Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the cult ...
,
Kuara,
Nippur,
Babylon,
Eshnunna
Eshnunna (modern Tell Asmar in Diyala Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian (and later Akkadian) city and city-state in central Mesopotamia 12.6 miles northwest of Tell Agrab and 15 miles northwest of Tell Ishchali. Although situated in th ...
and
Kisurra
Kisurra (modern Tell Abu Hatab, Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian '' tell'' (hill city) situated on the west bank of the Euphrates, north of Shuruppak and due east of Kish.
History
Kisurra was established ca. 2700 BC, ...
. From most of them evidence is only available from the Ur III or Old Babylonian periods, though in Babylon he still had a small cult site in
Esagil
The Ésagila or Esangil ( sux, , ''"temple whose top is lofty"'') was a temple dedicated to Marduk, the protector god of Babylon. It lay south of the ziggurat Etemenanki.
Description
In this temple was the statue of Marduk, surrounded by ...
in the neo-Babylonian period. A single object inscribed with a dedication to Ningishzida is also known from
Susa, though it might have been brought there as booty from some Mesopotamian polity.
Associations with other deities
Ningishzida was the son of Ninazu and his wife Ningiridda. One of the only references to goddesses breastfeeding in Mesopotamian literature is a description of
Ningirida
Ningirida was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as the wife of Ninazu and mother of Ningishzida. Little is known about her character beyond her relation to these two gods.
Name and character
The correct reading of Ningirda's name relies on the syll ...
and her son. His sisters were Amashilama and Labarshilama.
References to Ningishzida as a "scion" of
Anu are probably meant to indicate the belief in a line consisting out of Anu,
Enlil, Ninazu and finally Ningishzida, rather than the existence of an alternate tradition where he was the son of the sky god.
Multiple traditions existed regarding the identity of Ningishzida's wife, with the god list ''
An = Anum
''An = Anum'', also known as the Great God List, is the longest preserved Mesopotamian god list, a type of lexical list cataloging the deities worshiped in the Ancient Near East, chiefly in modern Iraq. While god lists are already known from the ...
'' listing two,
Azimua Azimua, also known as Ninazimua, was a Mesopotamian goddess regarded as the wife of Ningishzida.
Name
Ninazimua is the original spelling of the name of this goddess, attested in sources from the Ur III period. Later the NIN sign was usually omitt ...
(elsewhere also called Ninazimua) and Ekurritum (not attested in such a role anywhere else), while other sources favor
Geshtinanna
Geshtinanna was a Mesopotamian goddess best known due to her role in myths about the death of Dumuzi, her brother. It is not certain what functions did she fulfill in the Mesopotamian pantheon, though her association with the scribal arts and dr ...
, identified with
Belet-Seri. However, Azimua shared Gesthinanna's role as an underworld scribe,and her name could also function as a title of Geshtinanna, attested in contexts where she was identified as Ningishzida's wife. At the same time, Belet-Seri could also function as an epithet of
Ashratum, the wife of
Amurru Amurru may refer to:
* Amurru kingdom, roughly current day western Syria and northern Lebanon
* Amorite, ancient Syrian people
* Amurru (god)
Amurru, also known under the Sumerian name Martu, was a Mesopotamian god who served as the divine perso ...
, or of her Sumerian counterpart Gubarra, in at least one case leading to conflation of Amurru and Ningishzida and to an association between the former and Azimua and Ekurritum. In one case Ekurritum was simply identified as an alternate name of Ashratum as well. The tradition in which Gesthinanna was Ningishzida's wife had its origin in Lagash, and in seals from that city she is sometimes depicted alongside a mushussu, symbol of her husband, to indicate they're a couple. One inscription of Gudea refers to her as Ningishzida's "beloved wife."
Ningishzida's
sukkal was
Alla, a minor underworld god, depicted as a bald beardess man, without the horned crown associated with divinity. Wilfred G. Lambert notes that he was most likely another
Dumuzi-like deity whose temporary death was described in laments. He is also attested in lists of so-called "seven conquered Enlils," deities associated with
Enmesharra Enmesharra (Enmešarra, Sumerian: "Lord of all me's") was a Mesopotamian god associated with the underworld. He was regarded as a member of an inactive old generation of deities, and as such was commonly described as a ghost or resident of the ...
. Another deity also identified as Ningishzida's sukkal was Ipahum or Ippu, a
viper
The Viperidae (vipers) are a family of snakes found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipers), hinged fangs tha ...
god, also known as the sukkal of his father Ninazu. Other deities who belonged to his court include Gishbandagirizal, Lugalsaparku, Lugalshude, Namengarshudu, Usheg and Irnina.
Ningishzida could be associated with Dumuzi, on account of their shared character as dying gods of vegetation. A lamentation text known as "In the Desert by the Early Grass" lists both of them among the mourned deities. The absence of both of them was believed to take place each year between mid-summer and mid-winter. The association is also present in astrological treatises. Some lamentations go as far as regarding Ningishzida and Dumuzi as one and the same. As dwellers of the underworld, both of them could be on occasion associated with
Gilgamesh
sux, , label=none
, image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg
, alt =
, caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assy ...
as well.
Another temporarily dying god Ningishzida could be associated with was
Damu
Damu ( sux, 𒀭𒁕𒈬) was a Mesopotamian god. While originally regarded as a dying god connected to vegetation, similar to Dumuzi or Ningishzida, with time he acquired the traits of a god of healing. He was regarded as the son of the medic ...
.
In some inscriptions of Gudea, Ningishzida was associated with Ningirsu, with one of them mentioning that he was tasked with delivering gifts for the latter's wife Bau. Such a role was customarily associated with trusted associates and close friends in ancient Mesopotamian culture, indicating that despite originally being unrelated, these two gods were envisioned as close to each other by Gudea.
Mythology
In the Middle Babylonian myth of
Adapa
Adapa was a Mesopotamian mythical figure who unknowingly refused the gift of immortality. The story, commonly known as "Adapa and the South Wind", is known from fragmentary tablets from Tell el-Amarna in Egypt (around 14th century BC) and from fi ...
, Ningishzida is one of the two doorkeepers of Anu's celestial palace, alongside Dumuzi. This myth appears to indicate that these two gods are present in heaven rather than underworld when they are dead, even though other Sumerian and Akkadian myths describe Ningishzida's journey to the underworld. Little is known about the circumstances of his annual return, though one text indicates an unidentified son of
Ereshkigal was responsible for ordering it.
A reference to Ningishzida is present in the ''
Epic of Gilgamesh
The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins with ...
''. The eponymous hero's mother
Ninsun
Ninsun (also called Ninsumun, cuneiform: dNIN.SUMUN2; Sumerian: ''Nin-sumun(ak)'' "lady of the wild cows") was a Mesopotamian goddess. She is best known as the mother of the hero Gilgamesh and wife of deified legendary king Lugalbanda, and appea ...
mentions to
Shamash that she is aware her son is destined to "dwell in the land of no return" with him. In another Gilgamesh myth, ''Death of Gilgamesh'', the hero is promised a position in the underworld equal to that of Ningishzida.
Gallery
File:Serpent god Ningishzida on the libation vase of Gudea, circa 2100 BCE.jpg, Ningishzida on the libation vase of Gudea, circa 2100 BCE
File:Girsu Gudea libation vase.jpg, The "libation vase of Gudea" with the dragon Mušḫuššu
The ''mušḫuššu'' (; formerly also read as or ) or mushkhushshu ( or ), is a creature from ancient Mesopotamian mythology. A mythological hybrid, it is a scaly animal with hind legs resembling the talons of an eagle, lion-like forelimbs, a ...
, dedicated to Ningishzida, circa 2100 BCE ( short chronology). The caduceus-like symbol (right) is interpreted as a representation of the god himself. Inscription: "To the god Ningiszida, his god, Gudea, Ensi (governor) of Lagash, for the prolongation of his life, has dedicated this"
File:Name of God Ningishzida on an inscription on a statue of Lagash ruler Ur-Ningirsu.jpg, The name Ningishzida inscribed on a statue of Ur-Ningirsu.
File:Seal of Gudea, led by Ningishzida.jpg, Seal of Gudea depicting him being led by Ningishzida (figure with snakes emerging from his shoulders)
File:Detail, headless statue dedicated to the Sumerian deity Ningishzida, 2600-2370 BCE. Iraq Museum.jpg, Detail, headless statue dedicated to Ningishzida, 2600-2370 BCE. Iraq Museum
The Iraq Museum ( ar, المتحف العراقي) is the national museum of Iraq, located in Baghdad. It is sometimes informally called the National Museum of Iraq, a recent phenomenon influenced by other nations' naming of their national museum ...
.
References
Bibliography
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External links
Ancient Mesopotamian Gods and Goddesses: Ningišzida (god)ETCSLsubcorpus: balbales and hymns to Ninĝišzida
{{Authority control
Mesopotamian gods
Nature gods
Snake gods
Underworld gods