Mesopotamian apotropaic figure
Lahmu
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![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Lahmu%2C_Nineveh%2C_900-612_BCE.jpg/220px-Lahmu%2C_Nineveh%2C_900-612_BCE.jpg) Lahmu, the protective spirit from Nineveh, 900-612 BCE, Mesopotamia.
British Museum
.
|
|
Parents
| Abzu
and
Tiamat
(Enuma Elish) or Anu's ancestors such as Dari and Duri (Anu theogony)
|
---|
Consort
| his sister
Lahamu
(Enuma Elish)
|
---|
Children
| Anshar
and
Kishar
(Enuma Elish) or
Alala
and Belili (Anu theogony)
|
---|
La?mu
(
??
????
or
??????
,
d
la?-mu,
lit.
'
hairy one
'
) is a class of
apotropaic
creatures from
Mesopotamian mythology
. While the name has its origin in a
Semitic
language, Lahmu was present in
Sumerian
sources in pre-
Sargonic
times already.
[1]
Iconography and character
[
edit
]
La?mu is depicted as a bearded man wearing a red garment (
tillu
)
[2]
and usually with six curls on his head.
[3]
Some texts mention a
spade
as the attribute of Lahmu.
[4]
The artistic representations are sometimes called "naked hero" in literature.
[5]
Lahmu were associated with water. They were generally believed to be servants of
Enki
/Ea (and later on of his son
Marduk
as well), and were described as the doorkeepers of his temple in
Eridu
and possibly as the "guardians of the sea" known from some versions of
Atra-hasis
. Some texts list as many as 50 Lahmu in such roles. It's possible they were originally river spirits believed to take care of animals, both domestic and wild.
[6]
Apotropaic creatures such as Lahmu weren't regarded as demonic, and in fact protected the household from demons, though myths may depict them as defeated and subsequently reformed enemies of the gods. At the same time, they weren't viewed as fully divine, as their names were rarely, if ever, preceded by the
dingir
sign ("divine determinative") and they do not wear horned tiaras (a symbol of divinity) in art.
[7]
In apotropaic rituals, Lahmu was associated with other monsters, for example
Mushussu
,
Bashmu
(a type of mythical snake),
Kusarikku
(bison-men associated with
Shamash
) or
Ugallu
.
[8]
As a cosmological being
[
edit
]
In god lists a singular Lahmu sometimes appears among the ancestors of
Anu
, alongside a feminine counterpart (
Lahamu
), following the primordial pair Duri and Dari (eternity) and other such figures and preceding
Alala
and Belili.
[9]
Assyriolgist Frans Wiggermann, who specializes in the study of origins and development of Mesopotamian apotropaic creatures and demons, assumes that this tradition had its origin in
northern Mesopotamia
.
[10]
Lahmu and Lahamu aren't necessarily siblings in this context. Long lists of divine ancestors of
Enlil
or Anu from some god lists were at least sometimes meant to indicate that the gods worshiped by the Mesopotamians weren't the product of incestuous relationships.
[11]
In
Enuma Elish
, compiled at a later date and relying on the aforementioned tradition, Lahmu is the first-born son of
Abzu
and
Tiamat
. He and his sister
La?amu
are the parents of
Anshar
and
Kishar
, parents of Anu and thus ancestors of Ea and Marduk according to this specific theogony.
[12]
Both of them bestow 3 names upon Marduk after his victory.
[13]
However, Lahmu - presumably of the same variety as the apotropaic rather than cosmological one - also appears among Tiamat's monsters.
[14]
A fragmentary Assyrian rewrite of Enuma Elish replaced Marduk with
Ashur
, equated with
Anshar
, with Lahmu and Lahamu replacing Ea/Enki and
Damkina
.
Wilfred G. Lambert
described the result as "completely superficial in that it leaves the plot in chaos by attributing
Marduk's part to his great-grandfather, without making any attempt to iron out the resulting confusion."
[15]
Disproven theories
[
edit
]
![[icon]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg/20px-Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg.png) | This section
needs expansion
. You can help by
adding to it
.
(
December 2021
)
|
19th and early 20th century authors asserted that Lahmu represents the zodiac, parent stars, or constellations.
[16]
[17]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 164-165
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 54
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. xiii
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 49; 86
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. xi
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 164-166
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 165
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 143-145
- ^
W. G. Lambert
,
Babylonian Creation Myths
, 2013, p. 424
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 154-155
- ^
W. G. Lambert
,
Theogony of Dunnu
[in:]
Babylonian Creation Myths
, 2013, p. 389: "The history of these two [theogonies] shows that steps were sometimes taken quite specifically to avoid the implication of incest, which was socially taboo."
- ^
W. G. Lambert
,
Babylonian Creation Myths
, 2013, p. 417
- ^
W. G. Lambert
,
Babylonian Creation Myths
, 2013, p. 119
- ^
F. Wiggermann,
Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts
, 1992, p. 145-150
- ^
W. G. Lambert
,
Babylonian Creation Myths
, 2013, p. 4-5
- ^
Hewitt, J.F.
History and Chronology of the Myth-Making Age
. p. 85.
- ^
W. King, Leonard.
Enuma Elish Vol 1 & 2: The Seven Tablets of Creation; The Babylonian and Assyrian Legends Concerning the Creation of the World and of Mankind
. p. 78.
Sources
[
edit
]
- Michael Jordan,
Encyclopedia of Gods
, Kyle Cathie Limited, 2002
- Black, Jeremy and Green, Anthony,
Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia
, University of Texas Press, Austin, 2003.