EASTER OR ISHTAR

 

" All is fair in love and war"

Love and war are two very different yet very similar terms. But just how close are these two words?

What if I tell you that there is a goddess who represents both love and war?

Yes, you heard me correct!

 Her name is Ishtar.

She was a goddess of the very first civilization of the world, THE MESOPOTAMIAN CIVILIZATION.

She is not only the goddess of love and war but also fertility, destruction, death, justice, enmity, etc. Being the goddess of so many contradictory terms, her character is often seen as complex as that of the universe. She is also sometimes regarded as the  Queen of the Universe.

Her fierceness on the battlefield is captivating, along with her attire. It is said that even on a battlefield she used to be in her best attire like she was visiting her lover she wore a dashing and fashionable costume in form of armour, her jewellery was a part of her armour and weapons, she is always seen wearing a crown showing her superiority over others. 

You can say she was the eye-catcher of every battle. A goddess so fierce and determined to bring justice was also capable of loving so strongly that it will make you shiver with fear. Her love story was a tragedy just like all famous love stories but to think it was the first love story ever created had its own dark twist.

Ishtar's lover was Tammuz, their affectionate love and courtship was one of a kind but it was deemed to end in tragedy.

It is said that the goddess went to visit the underworld where her sister the Queen of Underworld resides, to show her compassion for the demise of her brother in law.  But her form was not anywhere near that of grief, she was instead dressed like in a battlefield. Her sister thought she was coming to conquer the underworld her ambitious nature was always feared by gods, so Ereshkigal ( the Queen of Underworld) devised a cunning plan to strip Ishtar of her power. 

According to Mesopotamian mythology, one has to pass through seven gates to enter the underworld and at each gate, she had to undressing one item of her wearing and thus gradually getting stripped of her power. In the end, it is seen that she stood completely naked in front of her sister, totally stripped off her powers and Ereshkigal took the opportunity and killed her.

No! the story does not end here.

After the death of Ishtar, the world went on a rampage with infertility, lack of intimacy and cease of a love affair. In this scenario Ea the God of wisdom made a master plan to revive Ishtar from Underworld. His plot did succeed but as the ancient Mesopotamian saying goes 

"No one comes from Underworld unmarked"

The hole created in the underworld by taking Ishtar back to the upper world needed to be filled, Ishtar chose to substitute her place in the underworld with the one who is least faithful to her.

The first person she visited was her handmaiden, but she saw her wearing rags and still grieving, so she left her and visited her two sons she was satisfied to see them both grieving like this the last person she visited was her husband Tammuz.

If you think that Tammuz was a mess and killed himself then nope you are wrong.

Ishtar was appalled to see her husband sitting on the throne peacefully with no sign of grief on his face of his clothes. She became enraged with his behaviour and order to take him as her substitute in the underworld.

Do you see why I told you there is a dark twist in her love story?

Does it make her a villain, someone who is able to sacrifice her loved ones for her sole purpose?

I don't think so, Ishtar is the goddess of Love and War, two forces so strong that they can solely destroy or build a life. She is a symbol of the balance of the universe, For her, a battle can only be just if all the warriors are loyal to their kingdoms and as the Goddess of justice, she found her own husband unfaithful.

Ishtar was the patron goddess Eanna temple of Uruk. Underworld left a mark on her but if she was evil then she wouldn't be a patron goddess. Ishtar is associated with the planet Venus ( which is also the Roman goddess of love synonymous with Aphrodite but Ishtar's character is a lot more complex than Aphrodite).  Innana and Astarte are two other names synonymous with Ishtar. 

The famous symbols of Ishtar included the lion and the eight-pointed star, a symbol that has shown its face in many other mythologies.

Ishtar's revenge has been scorned upon by many historians deeming her as a fickle-minded person but on the other side her complex character is what made her more interesting and connecting, she teaches the lesson that unfaithfulness in a bond as sacred love is a crime itself whose punishment should be as cruel as death.

 In this context, we must remember that she is also the goddess of justice and as the Queen of the universe it is her duty to maintain the harmony between good and evil and the factor she chose for her substitute in the underworld is loyalty. So Tammuz wouldn't have ended there if he had shown his grief over losing her. Thus Tammuz was not a victim just guilty.

# factopedia01- The character of Wonder woman is said to be inspired by Ishtar.

Now, many people will be thinking why I am rambling about Ishtar, an ancient mesopotamian goddess of fertility on Good Friday?

Well to answer your questions let us recall some facts about Easter.

Why is Easter celebrated?

Easter is celebrated to remember the resurrection of Christ from death. The so-called Easter egg is seen as a form of new life and has been synchronized with the Christian legend to represent new life. 

The resurrection of Christ stand victoriously as proof of him being the son of god and sends the message of the success of his faith even after his death.

In meantime, Judas the infamous betrayer was burned with guilt, he even tried to return the money back to the governor. In the end, when he couldn't carry the guilt anymore he committed suicide.

If by now you have connected the dots then bravo.

But if you haven't then let me do it for you.

Now, if you remember someone else who also came back from death. Someone who was also wronged by her loved ones. Someone who judged people on the basis of loyalty and faith. Someone who stood as the symbols of balance.

Yes, I am talking about Ishtar, the ancient goddess. 

The legend of Ishtar was moulded into Easter to create an umbrella religion for all. To unite the people of Europe with a single religion and thus Ishtar's story and resurrection of Jesus gave birth to Easter.

It is sad to see that  Goddess Ishtar's worship was later seen as satanic when it originally paved way for one of the most important faiths of Christianity "Easter". Now it's time to ask yourself will you only talk about Easter or also remember the original goddess with it.

                                Blue rose belles

                                    ( Archie)