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THE IDEA OF MAN AND DIVINITY IN ANTIQUITY PART II: Mesopotamian Divination. Some Historical, Religious and Anthropological Remarks

100%

Ulanowski K.

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2014

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tom 15(4)

EN

Divination was a salient characteristic of Mesopotamian civilization. Divination was basedon the idea that to some extent the future is pre-determined; but that the gods, especiallyShamash and Adad (“Shamash, lord of the judgment, Adad, lord of the inspection”), havemade available to man certain indications of the future (omens and portents) in the worldaround him, which can be interpreted (divined) by experts with specialist knowledge. Ea,along with these two gods, was credited as one of the founders of divination. The future ascrystallized in the present was not considered by the Babylonians as solely a creation of thegods but as the result of a dialogue between man and god. The Mesopotamians believedthat the gods wrote the future into the universe, and that this is why the world could beread by those who were wise enough (certain priests and scholars). The organic body wasseen as a text. Specially prepared priests could explain the signs sent down by the gods(in Akkadian, the word pašāru means a multi-layered reading or decipherment of texts).Therefore, even if the gods founded divination, man played a vital role in the process andwas a vital link, a near equal and irreplaceable part of the process as a whole.

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IDEA CZŁOWIEKA I BÓSTWA W STAROŻYTNOŚCI CZĘŚĆ II: Mesopotamian Divination. Some Historical, Religious and Anthropological Remarks

100%

Ulanowski K.

|

2014

|

tom 15(4)

PL

Divination was a salient characteristic of Mesopotamian civilization. Divination was basedon the idea that to some extent the future is pre-determined; but that the gods, especiallyShamash and Adad (“Shamash, lord of the judgment, Adad, lord of the inspection”), havemade available to man certain indications of the future (omens and portents) in the worldaround him, which can be interpreted (divined) by experts with specialist knowledge. Ea,along with these two gods, was credited as one of the founders of divination. The future ascrystallized in the present was not considered by the Babylonians as solely a creation of thegods but as the result of a dialogue between man and god. The Mesopotamians believedthat the gods wrote the future into the universe, and that this is why the world could beread by those who were wise enough (certain priests and scholars). The organic body wasseen as a text. Specially prepared priests could explain the signs sent down by the gods(in Akkadian, the word pašāru means a multi-layered reading or decipherment of texts).Therefore, even if the gods founded divination, man played a vital role in the process andwas a vital link, a near equal and irreplaceable part of the process as a whole.

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Between divinatory and magical practices in Mesopotamia

84%

Ulanowski K.

Przegląd Religioznawczy

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2022

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nr 4/286

187-209

EN

The article deals with the question of where, in Mesopotamian terms, the possible border between divination and magic is. In ancient Mesopotamia, the notions of divination and magic intermingled because they both referred to one conceptual whole and represented one coherent world. Can we define the scope of these concepts and the boundaries between them? More specifically, was divination a magical practice for the Mesopotamians, or to what extent was divination likely magical? One of the earliest modern (1900 AC) works to discuss divination is entitled The Reports of the Magicians and Astrologers of Nineveh and Babylon, which suggests that Western scholars treat magic and astrology (one of the branches of divination) as being on the same level. A comparison of selected divinatory and magical texts serves as a canvas for further research and discussion.