# Udug

The udug (Sumerian: 𒌜), later known in Akkadian as the utukku, were an ambiguous class of demons from ancient Mesopotamian mythology found in the literature of Sumer, Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia. They were different from the dingir (Anu-nna-Ki and Igigi) and they were generally malicious, even if a member of demons (Pazuzu) was willing to clash both with other demons and with the gods, even if he is described as a presence hostile to humans. The word is generally ambiguous and is sometimes used to refer to demons as a whole rather than a specific kind of demon. No visual representations of the udug have yet been identified, but descriptions of it ascribe to it features often given to other ancient Mesopotamian demons: a dark shadow, absence of light surrounding it, poison, and a deafening voice. The surviving ancient Mesopotamian texts giving instructions for exorcizing the evil udug are known as the Udug Hul texts. These texts emphasize the evil udug's role in causing disease and the exorcist's role in curing the disease.

## Appearance

Only a few descriptions of the udug are known and, according to Gina Konstantopoulos, no pictorial or visual representations of them have ever been identified. According to Tally Ornan, however, some Mesopotamian cylinder seals show a figure carrying a scepter alongside the benevolent guard demoness Lama, which may be identified as the udug. F. A. M. Wiggerman has argued that images of Lama and the udug were frequently used to guard doorways.
In a bilingual incantation written in both Sumerian and Akkadian, the god Asalluḫi describes the "evil udug" to his father Enki:
   O my father, the evil udug [udug hul], its appearance is malignant and its stature towering, Although it is not a god (dingir) its clamour is great and its radiance [melam] immense, It is dark, its shadow is pitch black and there is no light within its body, It always hides, taking refuge, [it] does not stand proudly, Its claws drip with bile, it leaves poison in its wake, Its belt is not released, his arms enclose, It fills the target of his anger with tears, in all lands, [its] battle cry cannot be restrained.
This description mostly glosses over what the udug actually looks like, instead focusing more on its fearsome supernatural abilities. All the characteristics ascribed to the "evil udug" here are common features that are frequently attributed to all different kinds of ancient Mesopotamian demons: a dark shadow, absence of light surrounding it, poison, and a deafening voice. Other descriptions of the udug are not consistent with this one and often contradict it. Konstantopoulos notes that "the udug is defined by what it is not: the demon is nameless and formless, even in its early appearances." An incantation from the Old Babylonian Period (c. 1830 – c. 1531 BC) defines the udug as "the one who, from the beginning, was not called by name... the one who never appeared with a form." One of the udug could be Hanbi. In Sumerian and Akkadian mythology (and Mesopotamian mythology in general) Hanbi or Hanpa (more commonly known in western text) was the god of evil, god of all evil forces and the father of Pazuzu. Aside from his relationship with Pazuzu, very little is known of this figure.