Sin (god)

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Sin (mostly written as d 30) is the god of the moon in Mesopotamian mythology and is considered the Akkadian equivalent of the Sumerian moon god Nanna . He is the firstborn son of Enlil and Ninlil , as well as the father of the astral deities Šamaš (sun) and Ištar (Venus). His two main cult centers were Harran in the north and Ur in the south of Mesopotamia. Its most famous sanctuary is the ziggurat in Ur .

presentation

The manifestations were varied and changed over time. The attribute of the moon god Sin is the horizontal crescent moon. This led to the idea that “Nanna-Sin” travels across the sky in a boat. This probably had to do with the fact that the crescent moon in the Orient moves horizontally across the sky and looks like a boat. The crescent moon was also considered to be the horns of the celestial bull or a bow .

The following scene comes from the 3rd millennium BC. BC more often on cylinder seal images: You can see a god with a crown of horns , the symbol of divinity. He is represented sitting on a throne with the crescent moon above his head or standing in a crescent boat. In his hands he holds a crescent moon and a paddle or a human head. Attributes such as the crescent moon standard or the crescent moon as well as the bull and the club are reliable references to the moon god in later times.

cult

Sin enjoyed in many cities in southern Mesopotamia, such as B. Babylon and Nippur , cultic veneration. His main place of worship was in the city of Ur, where his main shrine was Ekišnugal . Sin has been worshiped here under the name Nanna since early Sumerian times. The role of the so-called en priestesses of the moon god was reserved only for royal daughters, including Sargon's daughter Enḫeduanna , who was the first priestess to hold this office.

Another cult center was later built in Harran in northern Mesopotamia , the main temple Eḫulḫul . The moon god of Harran (( DEUS) LUNA + Mì-sa, (DEUS) hà + ra / i-na, ha + ra / i-na-wa / i-ni-sa (URBS) ) is also often used in Luwian inscriptions invoked, for example in the late Hittite rock inscription of Karaburna .

The moon god also had meaning in the ancient South Arabian Hadramaut in today's Yemen , where he was also worshiped under the name Sin. Otherwise he corresponded to the local moon deities Almaqah in Saba , Wadd in Ma'in and Amm in Qataban . Since Sin was often depicted on coins as an eagle and thus as a sun animal, there is uncertainty as to whether he should not be regarded as a sun god .

Myths

Sin and Gi-Sin

According to an Assyrian myth, Sin fell in love with the cow Gi-Sin. He gave her water, grazed her on the green meadow in fresh grass and slept her in the shape of a bull. When the cow was born, she had extreme birth problems, the calf was stuck ("the door was locked, the bolt was pushed") and the cow turned in pain and was close to death. Sin sent two of An's daughters down to earth to assist her. One carried the water of childbirth ( amniotic fluid ), the other carried oil in a jug and the water of childbirth. Sin anointed the cow's forehead with the oil and sprinkled the amniotic fluid on her entire body, and the cow could give birth normally. This myth was probably recited when a woman had trouble giving birth: just as Gi-Sin had a normal confinement, so should the young woman have a normal confinement. Other versions of this myth are from around 1300 BC. Chr. From Hattuša (KUB 4 13) and a Middle Assyrian clay tablet (Rm 376). Other, more recent versions come from Aššur ( KAR 196 = BAM 248) and Nineveh (revers K 2413, AMT 67 No. 1, obvers BAM , K 82 10, K 3485 + 10443).

literature

  • M. Kerebernik: Mondgott In: Reallexicon of Assyriology and Near Eastern Archeology. Volume 8, De Gruyter, 1995, pp. 361-62.
  • Jacques Ryckmans: The Old South Arab Religion. In: Werner Daum: Yemen, Umschau, Frankfurt / Main, ISBN 3-7016-2251-5 ; Pp. 111-115
  • Gabriele Theuer: The moon god in the religions of Syria-Palestine: With special consideration of KTU 1.24. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2000, ISBN 3-525-53745-X

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ John David Hawkins , Kubaba at Karkamiš and elsewhere. Anatolian Studies 31, 1981, 147-176
  2. ^ Hermann von Wissmann : On the history and regional studies of Old South Arabia. (Eduard Glaser Collection, No. III = Austrian Academy of Sciences, Philosophical-Historical Class, Meeting Reports, Volume 246) Böhlaus, Vienna 1964, p. 106
  3. ↑ Jacques Ryckmans, Die Altsüdarabische Religion , (see Lit.), p. 112
  4. ^ Line 56, WG Lambert, A Middle Assyrian medical text. Iraq 31/1, 1969, 32
  5. ^ WG Lambert, A Middle Assyrian medical text. Iraq 31/1, 1969, 33
  6. ^ WG Lambert, Anatolian Studies 16, 1966, 283ff