RETURN OF THE GODDESS - JANUARY 2020

JANUARY 2020 BLOG – INANNA, THE RETURN OF THE GODDESS ARCHETYPE

Dear Reader,

As the 2020 is appearing on the horizon of the new decade, I am reflecting on the many aspects of the Masculine energy as written in my blog in 2019 (see my previous notes). What really became very obvious to me, is that the Feminine Archetype was missing, and it was really missing for several thousand years. So, I was very intrigued by the ancient myths and stories that were very common about 5,000 years ago until the masculine gods and the new religions put aside the Goddess.  

Now, I want to reflect on the return of the Goddess. It seems that she was ‘dormant’ and/or went ‘invisible’ as the masculine deities were busy making wars, conquests and establishing empires. The Christian church dominated everywhere and considered the “myth” of the goddess not sacred and only Mary, the mother of Christ, was venerated. The veneration of the Goddess ISHTAR- INANNA was forbidden and even the follower of Christ, Mary Magdalene was defined as a prostitute. Sex became a sin and only allowed in marriage.

As we approach the new decade, we are experiencing the emergence of the Goddess Archetype. The many feminist movements, movie heroines and female protagonists like, for example, the female warrior called Rey.  She becomes the ‘last jedi ’in the final Star Wars movie.

My feeling is that consciously or not, Rey was based on the ancient Goddess Inanna. Inanna-Ishtar story is very powerful and here is a short description of her in Wikipedia:

 Inanna: mural from 3,000bc

Inanna is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess associated with love, beauty, sex, desire, fertility, war, justice, and political power. She was originally worshipped in Sumer and was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians under the name Ishtar. She was known as the "Queen of Heaven" and was the patron goddess of the Eanna temple at the city of Uruk, which was her main cult centre. She was associated with the planet Venus and her most prominent symbols included the lion and the eight-pointed star. Her husband was the god Dumuzid (later known as Tammuz) and her sukkal, or personal attendant, was the goddess Ninshubur (who later became the male deity Papsukkal).

Inanna was worshipped in Sumer at least as early as the Uruk period (c. 4000 BC – c. 3100 BC), but she had little cult prior to the conquest of Sargon of Akkad. During the post-Sargonic era, she became one of the most widely venerated deities in the Sumerian pantheon, with temples across Mesopotamia. The cult of Inanna-Ishtar, which may have been associated with a variety of sexual rites, was continued by the East Semitic-speaking people who succeeded the Sumerians in the region. She was especially beloved by the Assyrians, who elevated her to become the highest deity in their pantheon, ranking above their own national god Ashur. Inanna-Ishtar is alluded to in the Hebrew Bible and she greatly influenced the Phoenician goddess Astoreth, who later influenced the development of the Greek goddess Aphrodite. Her cult continued to flourish until its gradual decline between the first and sixth centuries AD in the wake of Christianity, though it survived in parts of Upper Mesopotamia as late as the eighteenth century.

Inanna appears in more myths than any other Sumerian deity. Many of her myths involve her taking over the domains of other deities. She was believed to have stolen the Mes, which represented all positive and negative aspects of civilization, from Enki, the god of wisdom. She was also believed to have taken over the Eanna temple from An, the god of the sky. Alongside her twin brother Utu (later known as Shamash), Inanna was the enforcer of divine justice; she destroyed Mount Ebih for having challenged her authority, unleashed her fury upon the gardener Shukaletuda after he raped her in her sleep, and tracked down the bandit woman Bilulu and killed her in divine retribution for having murdered Dumuzid. In the standard Akkadian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh, Ishtar asks Gilgamesh to become her consort. When he refuses, she unleashes the Bull of Heaven, resulting in the death of Enkidu and Gilgamesh's subsequent grapple with his mortality.

 Indian temple of Ishtar

Inanna-Ishtar's most famous myth is the story of her descent into and return from Kur, the ancient Sumerian Underworld, a myth in which she attempts to conquer the domain of her older sister Ereshkigal, the queen of the Underworld, but is instead deemed guilty of hubris by the seven judges of the Underworld and struck dead. Three days later, Ninshubur pleads with all the gods to bring Inanna back, but all of them refuse her except Enki, who sends two beings to rescue Inanna. They escort Inanna out of the Underworld, but the Galla, the guardians of the Underworld, drag her husband Dumuzid down to the Underworld as her replacement. Dumuzid is eventually permitted to return to heaven for half the year while his sister Geshtinanna remains in the Underworld for the other half, resulting in the cycle of the seasons.

This is an amazing story that even the Christian Bible developed the myth of Adam and Eve and the resurrection of Christ based on the goddess story. The name ISHTAR is considered by some historians as the name for EASTER.

The story about Inanna visiting the underworld and stripped naked and then killed may be an indication as to how the Feminine was destroyed and given a sinful image in the Christian religion.

"After she had crouched down and had her clothes removed, they were carried away. Then she made her sister Erec-ki-gala rise from her throne, and instead she sat on her throne. The Anna, the seven judges, rendered their decision against her. They looked at her – it was the look of death. They spoke to her – it was the speech of anger. They shouted at her – it was the shout of heavy guilt. The afflicted woman was turned into a corpse. And the corpse was hung on a hook.

CONCLUSION

The return of the Goddess, as depicted in the journey of Inanna, offers a chance for something to be born, recovered or renewed. Inanna-Ishtar, the Queen of Heaven, was respected as one with every type of talent, deserving adoration, and many powers. She takes the Journey because of a desire for change.

It is a great hope that the return of the Goddess Archetype will manifest in the coming decade, a space for change, peace and a cooperation with all cultures. In the case of climate change, she tells us: “CHANGE OD DIE”! We are given the gift of change and the power to shift our priorities in life.

 The return of the Goddess will be the way!

Here is a link for you to listen to Anna Parker about the story of Mary Magdalene. MUST LISTEN!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!

More modern Inanna-Ishtar