Class 8 Notes - The Kumarbi Cycle, Hittite Mythology. Dr. Frame PDF

Preview

Summary

The Kumarbi Cycle, Hittite Mythology. Dr. Frame...

Description

Reading: The Kumarbi Cycle (Hittite Mythology), Lebrun -

Kumarbi was often described as king of the gods - In Hittite religion, not placed at the peak of the divine hierarchy but rather remained a foreign god, imagined to have eventually been conquered by the storm god, the great god of the Hittites - Sometimes inserted after the group of storm gods, other times relegated to the end of the list after ancestral gods

-

Purely Anatolian mythological texts honor a god and attract him for a festival or great feast, reminding him of the necessity of for example renewing benevolence in the coming year - Foreign mythological texts are songs and poems recited independently of ritual or festival activities, with the goal of entertaining or educating

-

Theogony or Heavenly Kingship of Kumarbi - Relating in epic mode the divine battles to seize power in the heavens - Myths gave the Hittites a basic religious framework and defined the function and kinship of certain gods, gave explanatory shape for the gods’ hierarchy - This myth in particular offered a religious and cultural credo regarding the origin and precedence of the storm god Teshub - Provided the basis for the composition of other mythic tales that became a logical continuation of it divided into several episodes

-

Begins with the narration of succession of four gods on the heavenly throne - Each king served and then was dethroned by the successive king - Alalu → Anu → Kumarbi → Teshub - To dethrone Anu, Kumarbi engulfed his manhood, in this process Anu impregnated him with the storm god and the river Aranzakh and god Tashmishu - Anu and Ea ensure Kumarbi has a successful delivery, Kazal is born as storm god - Kumarbi tells Ea he will want to devour his own children so gives Kumarbi something to make him ill and gets humans’ aid - Birth of mysterious god Kazal from Kumarbi’s head is reminiscent of how Athena was born from her father’s head

-

Song of Ullikummi

-

-

-

From the union of Kumarbi with a mountain was born a monstrous offspring with meaningful Hurrian name Ullikummi, “destroyer of Kmmi” which was the holy city of Teshub located near Mount Casius Enlil says the creature represents an evil deed of Kumarbi so the Irshirra gods, who Kumarbi asked to protect him, place the little monster on the right shoulder of Uliperri (ancient god) and he grows at an astonishing rate The sun god finds out about this creature and visits the storm god, the two of them join Ishtar and Ishtar decides to seduce the monster Then there is a sea battle between seventy gods led by Ashtabi, the Hurrian war god, and Ullikummi Teshub is defeated and exiled and goes before Ea with brother Tashmishu Ea underlines the gravity of the situation and the disastrous consequences for the gods if Ullikummi succeeds in destroying humankind Ea mutilates Ullikummi by using the ancient saw that separated heaven from earth to cut off his feet and distance him from the source of his power Teshub enters combat and defeats Ullikummi This myth shows how gods of foreign origin became important during the Empire period and were represented within Hittite theology, acquiring a place in the Hittite pantheon (like Ishtar and Ea)

Reading: Gods, Heroes, and Monsters -- Song of Hedammu -

Kumarbi decides to create a rival to Tarhun and arranges a marriage between himself and Shertapshuruhi, daughter of the Sea God, product of which is ravenous sea snake Hedammu - Kumarbi attempts to conceal his son and arranges from a nursemaid but Anzili spies the monster and reports the existence of a rival to her brother Tarhun - Anzili is called on to seduce the monster and goes to the seaside to show him her beautiful naked body and administer some type of potion - We do not know the ending but assume the sis-bro team is successful in vanquising Hedammu

February 18th -

Anatolia is modern day Turkey, where the classical world meets the near eastern world Succession myth: god struggles with rivals for supremacy

-

Kumarbi cycle: story above - Kumarbi has sex with a massive rock and their son is Ullikummi, a blind and

deaf stone monster -

Hesiod, theogony - Ouranos: created by Gaia (earth) who becomes his spouse, he hates their kids - Kronos: originally a god of harvest/agriculture, castrates father Ouranos at his mother Gaia’s instigation, eats his children that his sister Rhea bears - Zeus: son of Kronos and Rhea who Rhea manages to prevent Kronos eating, makes his father disgorge his siblings and after a major war overthrows him...