Ashtart, the Phoenician Great Goddess Roman Ashtart (either "the Star", or "She of the Womb&"), is better known by the name Astarte, the Greek version of Her name. Ashtart is a Semitic Goddess of love and war and the Canaanite Great Goddess who is the cult partner of Ba'al (the King). Semitic describes a group of languages, and by extension, kindred cultures of the Near East and Africa which include Phoenician, Arabic, Hebrew and Assyrian. She is the Deity of the Planet Venus and a Fertility Goddess, and Her cult was known throughout the ancient world for its practice of temple prostitution. She was the main Deity of the cities Sor (more familiarly Tyre), Zidon (Sidon) and Gubla (Byblos), and is frequently shown as an archer either beside or standing on a lion, much like the Babylonian Ishtar , who is quite similar. Snakes and the cypress tree are sacred to Her; and, like the related Arabic Goddess Al-Uzza , whose name, "the Mighty One", is an epithet of Ashtart, the acacia tree is also Hers.

As with many of the other Near Eastern Goddesses of the planet Venus, two of Her aspects are that of the Goddess of War and the Goddess of Love. As Venus the Morning Star, Ashtart is a Goddess of War and Hunting; and as the Evening Star, She is the Goddess of Love, Sex, Fertility and Vitality, depicted as a nude woman. In Her role as Goddess of Love She was honored with sexual rites, especially in the city of Sidon or Zidon, and some of Her priests and priestesses there were chosen from the royal family. In the legends of Ugarit (the modern Ras Shamra on the coast of Syria) of the 14th century BCE, Ashtart is mentioned with the virgin Warrior-Goddess Anath ( Anat ) as restraining the young God Ba'al, who wishes to overthrow the River God, Yam. When Yam is taken captive, Ba'al kills him, and Ashtart rebukes him for the murder, cursing Him with His own name.

She is sometimes called "Ashtart-Name-of-Ba'al" which may refer to Her magical knowledge of His secret name in which His power resides; the idea of a secret or cult name of a Deity, known only to the initiated, was not uncommon in the area: Jehovah is supposed to possess a secret name of power, uttered by Lilith when She left the Garden; and in a legend of Isis, the great Egyptian Goddess, She brings about the downfall of the aging God Ra by speaking his hidden name. Several gold pendants from Ugarit, dating to about 1300 BCE depict Ashtart in a highly stylized manner. From a flat gold plate, roughly teardrop-shaped, Her face and breasts emerge; and Her pubic area is depicted as a triangle with dots, I assume representing hair. There is also, however, what appears to be a stylized tree "growing" from that triangle and which ends just below Her navel. This "tree" is perhaps to be equated with the Near Eastern Tree of Life.

Ashtart was worshipped with the young God 'Adon, son of Malidthu , in the town of Aphek or Aphaca in Palestine, the modern Afka. 'Adon is a title, rather than a name (as is common among the Phoenicians) meaning "Lord", and He may actually be Eshmun, the young God of Health. The site of the town Aphek was known for its stunning beauty, as it was situated high on a cliff from which a river issued to fall in a great torrent. Under the Greek name Adonis (which also means "Lord"), He was a young and very beautiful God with Whom Aphrodite (the Greek equivalant of Athtart) fell in love. Alas, one day while out hunting He was killed by a boar and the Goddess mourned terribly for Him. He represents the young vegetation/crops that are killed in the droughts of the dry season, and the river at Aphek was said to run red with His blood in the rainy season. He had a famous festival in midsummer celebrating His death and resurrection that eventually spread with His worship to Greece, Egypt and Rome, and which was celebrated primarily by women.

For some time Ashtart under the name Ashtoreth seems to have been worshipped side by side with the Hebrew God as His consort; He was early on called Ba'al, a general title meaning "Lord", used in the area to refer to each people's particular patron God, though their real (and sometimes secret) names were different. This fell out of favor in time as the Hebrews transitioned to monotheism. Apparently they had a hard time with this, though, as Jehovah is forever chiding His people for "backsliding" and returning to the worship of Ba'al and Ashtoreth. Ashtoreth in the Bible is worshipped in groves called after Her asherah and may have been honored as a pillar of wood, or as manifest in the grove itself. In one tale from the Biblical book Judges, Jehovah has Gideon destroy his own father's shrines to Ba'al and Ashtoreth, which he does in the middle of the night under cover of darkness, as he was too scared of the repercussions to do it in broad daylight. King Solomon, famous for his great wisdom, was said to have had seven hundred wives, many of whom were from neighboring, Pagan, tribes.

To accommodate their religions, he built for them temples to their Gods, including a sanctuary to Ashtart in Jerusalem. Jehovah, known far and wide for His jealousy, couldn't tolerate this and brought about Solomon's death. On other occasions when the Hebrews reverted to the old religion, Jehovah in a divine fit of pique "gave them over into the hands of their enemies" (also from Judges). Ashtart also had temples in Ascalon in Philistia, about forty miles southwest of Jerusalem, and Beth-shean, or Scythopolis, near the Sea of Galilee. She is also said to be the mother of the maiden Yabarodmay , by Ba'al. The Goddess Athirat-of-the-Sea , who also features in the Ba'al legend, is the wife of El, the Father of the Gods; She has much in common with Ashtart and the two may be aspects of the same Goddess. Some sources make Athirat the Goddess worshipped by the Hebrews as Jehovah's consort; the two are quite confused, both by modern scholars and the ancients. Ashtart's name has many variations depending on the language or city in which She was worshipped.

Some examples: She is Astarte to the Greeks, Ashtoreth or Ashtaroth among the Hebrews, 'Attart or 'Athtart in the city of Ugarit, Astartu in Akkadian. Epithets: "Goddess of Heaven", "Ashtart-Name-of-Ba'al", "Ashtart-of-the-Sky-of-Ba'al", "the Strong One", "Ashtart-of-the-Fields", "Ashtart-of-the-Battle"; and Kbd, "Glory" She is the western Semitic equivilant of the Eastern Semitic Inanna of the Sumerians and Ishtar of the Babylonians; the Greeks identified Her with their Aphrodite, who may have Her origins in Ashtart anyway, as She was believed to have come from the East. Atargatis is confused or equated with Her, and may have originally been the same Goddess; Ba'alat , "the Lady" of Gubla (Byblos) is likely a title for Ashtart. She was equated by the Etruscans with their Mother and Sky Goddess Uni , and is related to Tanit of Carthage.

All art here ©2004-2013 Thalia Took. You are free to borrow the images here for your own personal or religious use. If you use any on your personal non-commercial website, please credit the work to Thalia Took. If you can link back to this site, I'd appreciate it. Always ask permission first for any other requests for use of this art. Obscure Goddess Online Directory text ©2006-2012 Thalia Took, and please do not reproduce it. Questions or comments? E-mail me . Inanna - Ancient History Encyclopedia Inanna by Joshua J. Mark published on 15 October 2010 Inanna is the ancient Sumerian goddess of love, sensuality, fertility, procreation, and also of war . She later became identified by the Akkadians and Assyrians as the goddess Ishtar , and further with the Hittite Sauska , the Phoenician Astarte and the Greek Aphrodite , among many others. She was also seen as the bright star of the morning and evening, Venus , and identified with the Roman goddess.

Inanna is one of the candidates cited as the subject of the Burney Relief (better known as The Queen of the Night), a terracotta relief dating from the reign of Hammurabi of Babylon (1792-1750 BCE) although her sister Ereshkigal is the goddess most likely depicted. Through the work of the Akkadian poet and high priestess, Enheduanna (2285-2250 BCE) daughter of Sargon of Akkad (who conquered Mesopotamia and built the great Akkadian Empire ) Inanna was notably identified with Ishtar and rose in prominence from a local vegetative deity of the Sumerian people to the Queen of Heaven and the most popular goddess in all of Mesopotamia. The historian Gwendoly Leick writes: Inanna was the foremost Sumerian goddess, patron deity of Uruk . Her name was written with a sign that represents a reed stalk tied into a loop at the top. This appears in the very earliest written texts from the mid-fourth millenium B.C.

She is also mentioned in all the early god lists among the four main deities, along with Anu, Enki , and Enlil. In the royal inscriptions of the early Dynastic Period, Inanna is often invoked as the special protectress of kings. Sargon of Akkad claimed her support in battle and politics. It appears that it was during the third millenium that the goddess acquired martial aspects that may derive from a syncretism with the Semitic deity Ishtar. Inanna's main sanctuary was the Eanna (`House of Heaven') at Uruk, although she had temples or chapels in most cities (89). The goddess appears in ancient Mesopotamian myths in which she brings knowledge and culture to the city of Uruk.

The goddess appears in many ancient Mesopotamian myths, most notably Inanna and the Huluppu-Tree (an early creation myth), Inanna and the God of Wisdom (in which she brings knowledge and culture to the city of Uruk after receiving the gifts from the god of wisdom, Enki, while he is drunk), The Courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi (the tale of Inanna’s marriage to the vegetation-god), and the best known poem The Descent of Inanna (c. 1900-1600 BCE) in which the Queen of Heaven journeys to the underworld. Besides these works and short hymns to Inanna, she is also known through the longer, more intricate hymns written by Enheduanna: Inninsagurra, Ninmesarra, and Inninmehusa, which translate as 'The Great-Hearted Mistress’, The Exaltation of Inanna’, and 'Goddess of the Fearsome Powers’, all three powerful hymns which influenced generations of Mesopotamians in their understanding of the goddess and elevated her status from a local to a supreme deity. Her personal ambition is attested to in a number of the works which feature her. Dr.

Jeremy Black writes: Remove Ads Advertisement Violent and lusting after power, she stands beside her favourite kings as they fight. In a Sumerian poem, Inanna campaigns against Mount Egih. Her journey to Eridu to obtain the meh and her descent to the underworld are both described as intended to extend her power (108). This ambition can also be seen through her manipulation of Gilgamesh in the tale of the Huluppu Tree: when she cannot handle the problem of the pests which infest the tree, and fails to find help from her brother Utu, she attracts the attention of Gilgamesh who takes care of the situation. In the famous Sumerian/Babylonian poem The Epic of Gilgamesh (c. 2700 - 1400 BCE) Inanna appears as Ishtar and, in Phoenician mythology , as Astarte. In the Greek myth The Judgment of Paris , but also in other tales of the ancient Greeks, the goddess Aphrodite is traditionally associated with Inanna through her great beauty and sensuality.

Inanna is always depicted as a young woman, never as mother or faithful wife, who fully aware of her feminine power confronts life boldly and without fear of how she will be perceived by others, especially by men. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, as Ishtar, she is seen as promiscuous, jealous, and spiteful. When she tries to seduce Gilgamesh, he lists her many other lovers who have all met with bad ends at her hands. Enraged at his rejection, she sends the husband of her sister Ereshkigal, Gugulana (the Bull of Heaven) to destroy Gilgamesh's realm. Gugulana is then killed by Enkidu, the best friend and comrade-in-arms of Gilgamesh, for which he is condemned by the gods to die. Enkidu's death is the catalyst for the famous quest Gilgamesh undertakes to discover the meaning of life. Inanna, then, is central to the story of one of the greatest of ancient epics. She is often shown in the company of a lion, denoting courage, and sometimes even riding the lion as a sign of her supremacy over the 'king of beasts’.

In her aspect as goddess of war, Inanna is depicted in the armor of a male, in battle dress (statues frequently show her armed with a quiver and bow) and so is also identified with the Greek goddess Athena Nike . She has been further associated with the goddess Demeter as a fertility deity, and with Persephone as a dying-and-reviving god figure, no doubt a carry-over from her original incarnation as a rural goddess of agriculture. Remove Ads Advertisement Although some writers have claimed otherwise, Inanna was never seen as a Mother Goddess in the way that other deities, such as Ninsurhag, were. Dr. Jeremy Black notes: One aspect of [Inanna's personality] is that of a goddess of love and sexual behaviour, but especially connected with extra-marital sex and - in a way which has not been fully researched - with prostitution. Inanna is not a goddess of marriage, nor is she a mother goddess. The so-called Sacred Marriage in which she participates carries no overtones of moral implication for human marriages (108).

Rather, Inanna is an independent woman who does as she pleases, quite often without regard for consequences, and either manipulates, threatens, or tries to seduce others to fix the difficulties her behaviour creates. There are no poems, tales, or legends which in any way portray her differently and none which depict her in the role of the Mother Goddess. In the Mesopotamian pantheon Inanna is the daughter of the sky-god An, but also is depicted as the daughter of the moon-goddess Ningal and her consort Nanna. Alternately, she is the daughter of the god of wisdom Enki and sister to Ereshkigal (goddess of the underworld) and Utu the sun god. She is also sometimes referenced as the daughter of the Supreme God of the Air, Enlil. Her husband Dumuzi transforms in time into the dying-and-reviving god Tammuz and, annually at the autumn equinox, the people would celebrate the sacred marriage rites of Inanna and Dumuzi (Ishtar and Tammuz) as he returned from the underworld to mate again with her, thus bringing the land to life.

The Sacred Marriage of Inanna and Dumuzi was central to the fertility of the land and was re-enacted at important festivals (such as the Akitu Festival at Babylon) by the king and a priestess having sexual intercourse or, perhaps, only symbolically mating in a kind of pantomime. Ishtar, Great Goddess of Love and War Yhi I am on a journey of Love. Ishtar is the Babylonian Goddess of love and war, embodied in the two aspects of the planet Venus--as Evening Star, She brings lovers to celebration and bed; and as the Morning Star, She brings the fiery sword of War. She represents one of the many faces of the ancient near eastern Great Goddess, among them the Phoenician's Asherat or Ashtoreth (in Greek Astarte) and Anat, Sumerian Inanna, Anatolian Kybele, and Greek Aphrodite, most of Whom share legends of dying and resurrected lovers. As Goddess of love and sex, Ishtar is the force that draws mates together and brings fertility, both for humans and animals. She is Goddess of courtesans, and She Herself took many lovers.

As Goddess of war, Ishtar takes part in battle and is shown standing on the back of a lion bearing bow and arrows. She was known for a fiery and fickle temper which usually spelled doom for Her lovers. One of Ishtar's lovers was the grain God Tammuz. He died young (as the grain is cut just as it reaches the perfection of ripeness), and some legends imply that Ishtar had a hand in His death. But Ishtar was inconsolable and determined to fetch Him back from the Underworld. At each of the seven gates of the Land of the Dead, Ishtar, like Inanna, was required to give over an article of clothing or jewelry until finally She came naked and humbled before Her sister Queen Ereshkigal, Who then imprisoned Ishtar. The world mourned for the lost Goddess of love, and Her father Sin the moon God sent an envoy armed with powerful magic which successfully rescued Her. Tammuz was eventually also brought back to live in the land of the Gods. The descent of Ishtar was celebrated annually in Babylonian lands. Ishtar in a reading indicates courage and commitment, of rebirth and the death that must precede it.

In this dark journey, remember, you will always carry your own light. Epithets: The Star of Lamentation, Lady of Battles, Courtesan of the Gods To read Her tale, go here. This design is available on prints. Tales Astarte and Ishtar - WHEN THE GODDESS CALLED MY NAME ASTARTE AND ISHTAR GODDESSES OF LOVE Astarte was, perhaps, the most important Goddess that was worshipped by the Phoenicians. Her name, when translated, means �Enduring Star,� and indeed she was identified with the evening star. In one of her aspects she was known as Ashera, and the Hebrew Tribe of Asher took that name to use as their own. In Sumeria, she took on the name Inanna, while to the Babylonians she was known as Ishtar. Astarte was concurrently a Sun Goddess and a Moon Goddess.

When she was in her aspect as a Sun Goddess, the �Queen of the Morning Star,� she became a Goddess of War, and then, when she took on her role as a Moon Goddess, the �Queen of the Evening Star,� she became a Goddess of Passionate Love, who had an extensive cult following. Astarte was one of the three Canaanite Goddesses of Fertility. Pregnant women would carry plaques and figurines of her wherever they went, and they would often burn incense in her honor as a way of ensuring that their children would have healthy births. In her aspect as a Moon Goddess, Astarte became the symbol of the female principle, and the Egyptians, Hittites and Canaanites all worshipped her. It was while she was in that particular aspect, that Astarte became associated with the Greek Goddesses, Selene, Artemis and Aphrodite. Since Astarte was an extremely ancient Goddess in the Near and Middle East, she was closely identified with such other ancient Goddesses, such as Hathor, Isis, Frega, Dande and Irdrani.

Astarte was also known by the title �Our Lady of Byblos.� Byblos is a city, which lies on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, in the country that is now known as Lebanon. During that period, however, it was known as the City of the Great Mother. Egyptian records indicate that in as early as 1500 B.C.E., Byblos was a prosperous trading center, and that Astarte was one of its most important patrons of learning. Her priestesses set aside a large area in her temple, to be used as a great library, and then they filled it with volumes of papyrus scrolls. The Greeks were the first people to call papyrus by the term �byblos,� and that term eventually evolved into meaning any holy book, including the Bible. Legend also tells us that this may be how and where the Bible got its name. As the "Queen of the Stars," or the "Heavenly Virgin,� Astarte was believed to rule the "spirits who lived in heaven as light," which was another way of saying, �all the stars in the sky,� which attested to her worship�s widespread following.

Astarte has often been described as a beautiful woman wearing a crown of myrtle leaves upon her head. She drove a chariot that was drawn by seven lions, and she was accompanied wherever she went by doves. Many other Goddesses were also associated with birds, which were used as a means of traveling to the Underworld, or Otherworld. Not that many, however, used doves. During one of their digs, archeologists discovered a completely different image of Astarte, inscribed upon some ancient reliefs and seals. This image depicted Astarte holding the sacred Lotus in one hand, while in her other hand she held two entwined serpents. Many symbols have been associated with Astarte. The planet Venus, which is also known as the Evening Star, was one of her major symbols, and it was for that reason that she became known as the �Goddess of Light.� Another of Astarte�s symbols was the crescent moon, which is representative of the Divine Feminine. Many people believe that Astarte was a Great Mother Goddess.

That is probably due to the fact that she wore a headpiece made from cow horns, with a solar disc placed between them, similar to the headpiece worn by the ancient Egyptian Goddess Hathor. The Lotus has always been an extremely important symbol, which has been associated with a variety of different Goddesses. The Lotus is a flower which has existed since as far back in time as mankind can remember, and it is considered to be a universal symbol, connected to the Great Mother Goddess. Indeed, the Lotus has played an important role in a variety of different periods and cultures. Known as the "flower of light," lotus petals were been believed to represent the sun�s rays, while its stem was believed to represent an umbilical cord. The belief that the Lotus� stem might represent an umbilical cord is indicative of the fact that all life stems from, or is born from, the Great Mother. Throughout time, the Lotus has been associated with creative and regenerative powers, and it stands upon its merits as one of the most powerful symbols that the world has ever known.

Another symbol that was unique to Astarte was papyrus, which the merchants of Byblos would sell to the Greeks, as well as to other traders from the entire Mediterranean region. Papyrus was of great importance to the entire world, and to the growth of civilization as we know it today. That is because papyrus was the foundation and basis necessary for the production of paper. Without papyrus and the paper it was used to produce, civilization's growth may have taken a totally different turn. Astarte was known by a variety of different titles, which included the Great Mother Goddess, but there is a certain phrase, which sums her up quite beautifully: "She was the Mother of the Sun, Daughter of the Moon, Ruler of the Stars and Keeper of the Earth. In the beginning, Astarte was the whole." Ishtar was the Great Mother Goddess of the Babylonian and Assyrian Empires, and the counterpart of the Phoenecian Goddess Astarte. The Babylonians believed that Ishtar was the personification of the Great Mother, the Goddess of Fertility and the Queen of Heaven. She was usually portrayed naked, with large protruding breasts, or as a mother, holding or feeding a child at her breast.

Ishtar has appeared in many different forms throughout the ancient Semitic world. She was known as Athtar in Arabia, Astar in Abyssinia (which is now known as Ethiopia), and Ashtart or Astarte in Canaan and Phoenicia (which area now encompasses Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Syria.) Ishtar was usually depicted full faced and naked, except for some ornamental jewelry which she wore, and she also appeared holding her breasts in her hands. Her thighs were rounded, which was considered to be extremely feminine in that particular culture, while her legs, from her knees down through her ankles to her feet, were pressed closely together. Inanna, another aspect of Ishtar, was a Goddess of Sensual and Sexual Love, and her followers practiced what has been referred to as �sacred prostitution.� Ishtar was also known as the Lady of Battles, and it was in this particular aspect that she sported a full beard, which fell all the way to her breasts. She also rode in a chariot which was similar to Astarte�s and like Astate's, it was also drawn by seven lions. Ishtar's symbols were the Moon, Venus, the eight-pointed star, a lion and a scorpion.

In her aspect as the Goddess of Love, Ishtar was similar to the Greek Goddess Aphrodite because she frequently caused her lovers, but especially her beloved consort, Tammuz, great harm. Since Ishtar was believed to be the Babylonian version of Venus, then her lover, Tammuz, took on the role of the Babylonian version of Adonis. Ishtar�s temples existed throughout Babylonia, and her cult following was, indeed, strong. Every woman in Babylon believed that it was her sacred duty to honor Ishtar by sitting in one of her temples, at least one time during her lifetime, and making love with the first man who cast some coins in her lap. Ishtar had a destructive side to her as well, and the Assyrians looked upon her as their Goddess of Hunting and War. It was in this aspect that she carried a bow, a quiver of arrows and a sword. Ishtar also had two masculine aspects, Athtar and Astar. Since they were masculine, these aspects of the Goddess were actually considered to be Gods. In Babylonia, Ishtar had another aspect, Ishtar of Erech, who was a Goddess of Venus, the Evening Star.

Although historians are not completely certain, they believe that Ishtar may actually have also had two addtional aspects, one male and one female, that were identified with the Morning Star. The male was known as Ishtar of Akkad, while the female was known as Annunit of Akkad. Ishtar was also considered to be a Fertility and Harvest Goddess, and it was for that reason that she was honored in both the Spring and the Fall. She was also associated with water: providing it in adequate amounts, as well as in excessive ones. Likenesses of Ishtar, as a Fertility and Harvest Goddess, frequently show her sitting, surrounded by flowers and grain, while she appears to be pouring a never-empty jug of water. It was also in this aspect that people prayed to Ishtar for fertility, so that she might grant them a bountiful harvest and assure their ability to conceive children. Although temples were erected in which people could worship Ishtar, it would have been just as appropriate, if not more so, for them to worship her outside, beneath the evening sky, bathed in moonlight.

That may have been due to the fact that Ishtar, in her aspect as a Goddess of Love, was believed to be the daughter of the Sky God, Anu, and a Fertility Goddess, Anat. It is interesting to note as well, that when Ishtar appeared in her aspect as the Goddess of Battles, she was believed to be the daughter of a Moon God named Sin. Ishtar was never lacking in romantic interests, and her consorts included Assur, the God of War, Marduk, the Sun God, Nebo the God of Writing, and the most important one of all: Tammuz, the dying and resurrecting God of Vegetation. One of Ishtar's holy days was associated with Yule, and it is believed that she created the Evergreen Tree out of her sorrow and love for Tammuz. A story exists which is often associated with Ishtar in her aspect as the Goddess of Fertility. Every Fall, Ishtar descended into the Underworld to search for her beloved Tammuz.

When she left to go down into the Underworld, the Earth displayed the cold, stark barreness of Winter, and it remaining that way until she returned, three months later, bringing with her the rebirth and growth that is associated with the season of Spring. This tale clearly touches on the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, in which Demeter�s daughter, Persephone, was required to spend three months of the year in the Underworld with her husband Hades, bringing forth the barrenness of winter with her descent, and the beauty and growth of Springtime with her return to the world above. Tablets were discovered, in various excavation sites, which tell of Ishtar's great love for Tammuz, his assassination by Izdubar, the Goddess of Despair, and Ishtar's search for her beloved, which took her through the Seven Gates of Hades. In the end, Ishtar finally did free Tammuz from the Underworld, creating a beautiful tale of enduring passion and everlasting love. Astarte and Ishtar were Mother Goddesses who ruled the Waters, the Stars and the Fates.

They were primary Goddesses of Creation, as well, and while they may have ruled over their own, separate and distinct cultures, each one of them was actually a manifestation of the other; and both of them will always be remembered, because they were such powerful feminine forces and truly amazing Goddesses of Love. Kinaʻani: Oh My Goddess-es: Identities of Inanna, Astarte, Ishtar, ‘Athtartu, ‘Anatu, and Athiratu Oh My Goddess-es: Identities of Inanna, Astarte, Ishtar, ‘Athtartu, ‘Anatu, and Athiratu 15 Ra'shu Yeni (month), Shanatu 84 (year) Astarte Syriaca by Dante Gabriel Rosetti, 1877 If I had a pinch of gold dust for every time a site on the internet or a Pagan book said Inanna, Astarte, Ishtar, ‘Anat, and Asherah are all the same goddess, or “aspects” of the same goddess, I’d be pawning my way to the crown jewels by now. There is a great deal of misinformation regarding who these ancient goddesses are and they are often confused.

So let’s unravel this tangle. We’ll explore who is whom, how these goddesses interconnect or don’t, and the reasons they became grouped together to the point of losing individuality. The Goddesses Inanna, also Inana Sumerian goddess of sexuality, warfare, and the morning and evening star. She is depicted as having wings, and sometimes she is shown with lions. She often wears a hat with horns; the horns symbolize her power. Ishtar is Inanna’s name in Akkadian, another Mesopotamian language different from Sumerian. Inanna is the daughter of the god of the heavens, An, in one tradition and the daughter of the moon god Nanna in another, or even the daughter of the gods Enlil or Enki. In most traditions, she is the underworld goddess Ereshkigal’s sister. She has many lovers, one of who is Dumuzi. Inanna and Ishtar bear a “Queen of Heaven” title. Neither she nor Ishtar are in any way “mother goddesses” nor do they care one whit for marriage. Inanna typically has wings, weapons, and is pictured with stars. Ishtar, Ištar See Inanna.

Ishtar approaches Gilgamesh, in the Epic of Gilgamesh, asking him to become her lover but he refuses her. Battles are considered her “playgrounds.” Ishtar is pictured with lions, stars, or star-disks, and a horned helmet. Ishtar is a Babylonian and Assyrian goddess.Ishtar comes from the Assyrian and Babylonian pantheon. The Assyrians and Babylonians inherited much of Sumerian culture, but their language is from a different language family than Sumerian which sets them apart from the Sumerians. Athiratu, Athirat,ʼAthirat, ʼAtiratu This Canaanite goddess is the queen of her pantheon. Although a mother, she is not a “mother goddess” in the classic sense, for she is measured by her responsibilities outside this title. She is in no way an “earth mother” for she sees to the workings of the universe with her consort Ilu (later called El in Hebrew).

Ancient texts from the city of Ugarit (circa 1200 BCE) portray Athirat as early middle aged and of significantly greater rank than ‘Anatu and ‘Athtartu--these two goddesses perform due homage to her when in her presence. Athirat's iconography includes ibex and trees, especially the date palm. She becomes Asherah in Hebrew lore. Athirat was never Baʻlu Haddu (Baʻal Hadad)’s consort, but always Ilu’s. There is a Hittite text which talks of a goddess Ashertu trying to catch Baʻal’s eye, however this comes from a different culture and is the only mention of this matter. Athiratu carries a “queen” title. She is associated with ibex or oryx and date palm trees. See Accept No Substitutes: The Goddess Athirat's Imagery for more information and for a contrast between her ancient depictions and some of the erroneous modern images. She is associated with marriage and appropriate duties of women and wives. Athirat has connections to the sun or daytime, but not with stars. Proper order concerns her, but not warfare.

Athirat, and later Asherah (Israelite) and Tanit (Carthaginian/North African) are associated with the kappu, the palm of hand sign: The Palm of the Phoenix: The Kappu Symbol in NatibQadish. Technical Stuff: Athiratu’s name begins with the Ugaritic ʼa/ʼalpu letter which is typically dropped from writing her name--it's usually shown as an apostrophe with its tips facing left ( ʼ ) instead of right ( ʻ ). This becomes important later because these two different tail-wagging apostrophes, although they don't look important to English speakers, actually indicate two different letters in Ugaritic and Hebrew, and represent different sounds that English speakers have a hard time hearing, distinguishing, or reproducing. The apostrophe with its tips facing left ( ʼ ) represents and ʼalef in Hebrew א and an ʼalpu in Ugaritic: The letter ʼalpu in Ugaritic The apostrophe with tips facing right ( ʻ ) represents an ʻayin in Hebrew ע and an ʻenu in Ugaritic: The letter ʻenu in Ugaritic.

Just to make matters more complicated, sometimes in English translations, the ʼalpu/ʼalef letter ( ʼ ) is left out entirely, and the ʻenu/ʻayin ( ʻ ) is only occassionally written down and sometimes with the wrong apostrophe or one that has no indication of shape such as a ( ' ). Why is this gobbledygook important? Because it means that Athirat's name actually begins with a different letter than that of the other goddesses with whom she is often confused: the names do not all begin with the English letter "A" despite appearances. ‘Anatu, ‘Anat She is the Canaanite goddess of warfare and probably hunting as well. Early scholars saw her as the consort of Baʻlu Haddu (Baʻal Hadad) the Canaanite storm god, but it is more likely that the two did not have sexual relations and that she is a virgin goddess. Some scholars have translated and tweaked the ancient Canaanite texts from Ugarit to make her appear more sexual than she actually is. For further explanation, see Neal Walls’s book The Goddess Anat in Ugaritic Myth or see Peggy L.

Day's article "Hebrew Bible Goddesses and Modern Feminist Scholarship" in Religion Compass, 6-6-2012, pg 301. We know for certain that ‘Anat is young, adolescent, unmarried, belligerent, intensely loyal, and violent. She is a “tomboy”: she dresses in men’s clothing and plays a male warrior role. Ancient Canaanite iconography portrays her as young and having small breasts. Her name is more correctly written ‘Anatu or ‘Anat rather than “Anath,” as is sometimes seen translated in older resources. An Ugaritic scribe would write her name beginning with the letter ʻenu. Further technical stuff: Her name ends in an Ugaritic letter that has no cognate in Hebrew. The Hebrew letter tav (ת) absorbed the sounds of both a hard “t” and a “th” sound which were originally different letters in Ugaritic.

‘Anatu’s name ends in the Ugaritic cuneiform sign for the hard “t,” not in the Ugaritic sign for “th.” Therefore, her name should read ‘Anatu or ‘Anat but not “Anath.” In the Canaanite texts from Ugarit, she is portrayed as a separate being entirely from ‘Athtartu and Athiratu. ‘Athtartu, ‘Athtart She is the goddess of justice, treaties, fairness, and possibly hunting in her earliest appearances in Canaanite-Ugaritic texts. No mention is ever made of her sexuality in the early Canaanite texts. In later times, she adopted some connections with animal husbandry. She has a connection to the morning or evening star, and she has a brother named ‘Athtaru. In the Canaanite texts from Ugarit, she a separate being entirely from ‘Anatu and Athiratu, although she goes on a hunt with her friend ‘Anatu. Sometimes she is later conflated with the Egyptian goddess Qudshu which represents a composite Semitic goddess.

In artwork that depicts her, she is often naked and quite young with small breasts; some of her images are simple flat inverted conical shapes with a stylized face, small upraised breasts, and a pubic triangle. Her name over time is changed to ‘Athtart and ‘Ashtart, and later it gets morphed into the name Ashtoreth. Note that her name begins with an ‘enu letter . Her name is likely linguistically related to Ishtar, however the role of the Assyrian/Babylonian goddess is different from that of ‘Athtartu in the Canaanite-Ugaritic pantheon. The Akkadian language which the Babylonians and Assyrians spoke was in the same language family as Ugaritic and Hebrew: there are similarities, but the languages and cultures are as different from one another as English is to German. Astarte Astarte is a later Greek name. Although Astarte embodies many of the attributes of ‘Athtartu, Astarte also picks up more sexual and warlike attributes as well. She is arguably a later conflation of Canaanite ‘Anatu and ‘Athtartu, with the Babylonian/Assyrian goddess Ishtar.

Astarte carries a “Queen of Heaven” title. Aphrodite The Greek goddess of love. Sometimes the Greeks would conflate a Greek goddess with another locale's goddess to promote good relations or to firmly root themselves in another's local culture. Aphrodite, although a separate goddess in her own right, often got associated and conflated with ancient Near Eastern goddesses like ‘Athtartu and Astarte. Tanit A Carthaginian goddess. Carthage, once a Phoenician colony, reached its height around Roman times. The Phoenicians, like the Israelites, were a daughter-culture of the Canaanites. Tanit was associated with the morning/evening star, and she was a protective goddess. Naturally she became associated with ‘Athtartu, Astarte, and Ishtar, although a goddess in her own right, but she may very well be a goddess indigenous to North Africa who became conflated with ‘Athtart, ‘Anat, Athirat, and Astarte. Tanit carries a “Queen of Heaven” title.

The popular Sign of Tanit looks like a triangle with a circle atop it and a horizontal line running between where the circle and triangle meet: it vaguely resembles the icon often used to depict Women’s Room today. It is important to note that Tanit is not strictly a "lunar goddess," she is in charge of cosmos--the moon as well as the stars and planets. Some Pagans try to portray her as a "triple moon goddess" but this is erroneous. More often the Tanit, and her signature sign-of-Tanit, are accompanied by both lunar crescent and an eight-pointed star or solar disk. The "Queen of Heaven" in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament could be any one of these deities aforementioned who are associated with the "Queen of Heaven" title, or she could be another candidate altogether. Some suggest that the biblical Queen of Heaven might well be Asherah. But that's another debate for another time. Cursory Clarification of Cultural Terms Sumer, Assyria, and Babylonia are in Mesopotamia (i.e. the Middle East). Sumer is the older culture of the three and its inhabitants spoke Sumerian, a language which does not clearly belong to any related language family.

The Babylonians and Assyrians spoke Akkadian, a Semitic language which is in the same language family as Hebrew, Arabic, Ugaritic, and Canaanite dialects: keep in mind that having a language in the same language family does not mean they automatically understood each other. English and German are in the same language family together. French and Spanish are in the same language family together.But this doesn't mean that a native speaker of English automatically understand German, nor does it mean that if you learn French, you'll automatically know Spanish. Babylonian and Assyrian cultures were related more to one another than to their parent culture, the Sumerians. Most scholars consider the Ugaritans as exemplary of Canaanite culture; Ugarit was a city on the northernmost end of what was considered “Canaan.” Canaan was not one empire, nation, or state; the term is descriptive of an area of independent, sometimes interdependent, city-states. The Canaanite culture and the cultures of Mesopotamia (Sumer, Babylonia, and Assyria) are different.

Ugaritic, the language of Ugarit, and the Canaanite dialects are in the same language family as Akkadian. The Canaanites are considered Near Eastern (also called “Levantine”) for they live closer to the Mediterranean Sea than the Middle Eastern cultures. The Canaanite culture is different from the Mesopotamian cultures (Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians). The Phoenicians and the Israelites are two very divergent daughter-cultures of the Canaanites. The Phoenicians were urban, coastal, and polytheistic, while the Israelites were rural, pastoral, and becoming increasingly monotheistic over time. They are both related to the earlier Canaanite culture of the Bronze Age, but by the Iron Age and later they begin to take on their own distinct cultural personalities. These cultures are still in the same geographic area of Canaan and also considered Near Eastern/Levantine. The Carthaginians (also described by the adjective “Punic”) come from the city of Carthage in northern Africa. The Phoenician city (originally Canaanite city) of Tyre founded the Carthaginian colony.

Carthaginians have cultural elements in common with their parent culture (Phoenicia) and their grand-parent culture (Canaan), but still have some differing elements. Carthage has very little in common with the Middle Eastern cultures. Greek culture is not related to the Middle Eastern or Near Eastern cultures at all, although there were occasional cross-cultural exchanges. And now that I’ve made your head spin around like that kid on the movie The Exorcist, I shall return to the original topic. Mistaken Identities? Yes, and No... So why are all these goddess often put together into a confusing lump? We are looking through layers of history, layers of scholarship, and layers of historical scholarship such as what actually happened versus what these several ancient cultures believed themselves, the research or recollections of scholars who wrote about matters later, the scholars who wrote about what the previous scholars had said, as well as the various biases of different cultures and various biases of the scholars themselves. Historians in Classical times (Greek and Roman times, starting roughly 200 years after Canaanite times) often labeled a Near Eastern or Middle Eastern goddess with the name of their own local goddesses to promote a quick understanding of their audience.

Tacitus the Roman historian called this process interpretatio graeca when foreign deities were "translated" by being given Greek deity names and equivalents. He called the process interpretatio romana when the deities were translated or given as Roman deity equivalents. For instance, Philo of Byblos uses primarily Greek names (interpretatio graeca) and may not even include the native name, therefore it is difficult knowing which deity he’s talking about. Of course, with conflations of goddesses over time, we have a more difficult problem sorting out which attributes originally belonged to which ancient goddesses. In addition, there are changes in one language itself over time, as well as in another language which is trying to render the same divine name. For instance, is Astarte the same as ‘Athtartu? In some respects, yes, if you connect changes over time and different cultural outlooks, but if you compare the later Astarte with the original ‘Athtartu, you can see quickly that they have distinctly different personalities. Time is fluid, and thus so is the change in understanding the deities.

I find it useful to tighten a focus on one particular point in time and in one particular culture, while still trying to study and understand the differences further afield in time and culture. In times closer to our own, Victorian scholars didn’t have the Ugaritic texts we do today, since the texts were excavated in the late 1920’s. Spearheaded by James G. Frazer, influenced by Freud and Jung, and firmly rooted in the philosophical Romantic movement, the Myth and Ritual school of thought sought to find universal patterns and archetypes. In addition to this school of thought, scholars often sought to try to “prove” the Bible so they would tweak extra-biblical information (texts, archaeological finds, and so on) to support biblical narrative; and sometimes they had a prurient fascination with exotic sex so they tended to classify most goddesses as “fertility goddesses.” (For more information, see my blog post Orgies-R-Us: Sex, Lies, and Prostitution in Canaanite Religion ).

Combine these problems and the similarity of many of these goddesses’ names when we look at them in English, and later scholars often didn’t know who was whom or sometimes, as in the matters of goddesses, may not have cared. Indeed, later scholars often stilted translations of Ugaritic texts in favor of biblical bias, earlier scholarship, or both, though this problem is finally diminishing as more and more scholars become aware of this bias. Another problem many of us face is a common New Age idea that all goddesses are “aspects” or “facets” of one goddess: with this concept, there is a tendency to ignore differences then take the original conflations and compound them further with conflations that were not present in the ancient world. A visual example of this is a modern candleholder which depicts Isis, Diana, Kali, and Inanna in an absurdly loving sisterly embrace. Inanna might laugh at Diana’s virginity while Kali tried to eat Isis’s babies. Take a look. They are not all one, and it is alright. For More Information: Attridge, Harold W. and Robert A. Oden, Jr. Philo of Byblos: The Phoenician History.

The Catholic Biblical Association of America, Washington, DC, USA, 1981. Binger, Tilde. Asherah: Goddesses in Ugarit, Israel, and the Old Testament. Sheffield Academic Press, Ltd., Sheffield, England, UK, 1997. Black, Jeremy and Anthony Green. Gods, Demons, and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia. University of Austin Press, Austin, TX, USA, 1992. Walls, Neal H. The Goddess Anat in Ugaritic Myth. The Society of Biblical Literature, Scholars Press, Atlanta, GA, USA, 1992. Marsman, Hennie J. Women in Ugarit and Israel: Their Social and Religious Position in the Context of the Ancient Near East. E.J. Brill, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2003. Photo credits: All images are my own except the Astarte Syriaca by Dante Gabrielle Rosetti, 1877. Please do not reproduce my work without permission and without proper credit. The image of Astarte Syriaca is over one hundred years old, and to the best of my knowledge is in public domain.

Posted by The word "Easter" is a tranliteration of the Greek word - Astarte or the Mesopotamian - ISHTAR, or the Hebrew form - Ashtoreth. These words are names for the pagan Goddess of "fertility." The Old Testament is repleat with warnings from God, to His people, to stay clear of the Goddess of Ashtoreth. You may remember that this was one of the major sins of Gideon's father...he had an altar built to this Goddess. God instructed Gideon to destroy it. Sadly, this same altar still exists in many churches as EASTER, complete with the celebration of "fertility" with bunnies and eggs, baskets and flowers. The resurrection of Jesus often takes a back seat in many "Christian" homes and churches to the celebration of the "spring season" through the Goddess of "Easter" or Ishtar. ASHTORETH Astarte (from Greek (Astárte)) is the name of a major goddess as known from Northwestern Semitic regions, cognate in name, origin and functions with the goddess Ishtar in Mesopotamian texts.

Another transliteration is 'Ashtart; other names for the goddess include Hebrew or Phoenician (transliterated Ashtoreth), Ugaritic 'Athtart, transliterated Atirat), and Akkadian dAs-tar-tú (also Astartu). Ashtart was connected with fertility, sexuality, and war. Ashtart was accepted by the Greeks under the name of Aphrodite Her name is the second name in an energy chant sometimes used in Wicca: "Isis, Astarte, Diana, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna." *********************************************************************** "Asherah" the Greek form of this word from the Septuagint is "Astarte", who is the Babylonian goddess of the sea, sea being symbolic of people, and consort of the god El. She was the mother of several gods, including Ba'al, the Babylonian god of the sun. The Roman Catholic Church adopted the Asherah worship and named it EASTER around 155 A.D. According to the CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA, Easter was named after a pagan goddess of the Anglo-Saxons named Eostre, the goddess of the dawn.

Many historians believe that the evidence is strong that Eostre is the same as ISHTAR or ASHTORETH. A great controversy arose between the Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church in 325 A.D. on whether to celebrate Easter on Sundays or on whatever day the Jewish Passover fell upon. Unfortunately, the Greeks lost a lot of followers and the Catholics contended that keeping Easter on Sundays would stimulate the practices of both the Christian world and the pagan worshipers. Hence, since the original practice of Asherah worship we now have in our time the celebration of Easter, a counterfeit holiday to the true Christian festival of the Passover which was instituted in the Bible and completed in the New Testament when Christ died on the cross as our Passover Lamb. THE BUNNY and THE EGG The rabbit is well known as a sexual symbol of fertility. In various parts of the world, religions which developed from Babel also associate the rabbit with periodicity, both human and lunar (Egypt, China, etc.). As you may remember, the Mother Goddess Semiramis (Easter) is associated with the Moon. In other words, the Easter bunny symbolizes the Mother Goddess.

Annual Spring time fertility rituals are associated worship of the Mother Goddess and Tammuz, the reincarnation of her husband. Most children and families who color or hide Easter eggs as part of their Resurrection Sunday tradition have no knowledge of the origin of these traditions. Easter egg activities have become a part of Western culture. Many would be surprised and even dismayed to learn where the traditions originated. The egg was a sacred symbol among the Babylonians. They believed an old fable about an egg of wondrous size which was supposed to have fallen from heaven into the Euphrates River. From this marvelous egg - according to the ancient story - the Goddess Astarte (Easter) was hatched. And so the egg came to symbolize the Goddess Easter. The idea of a mystic egg spread from Babylon to many parts of the world. In Rome, the mystic egg preceded processions in honor of the Mother Goddess Roman. The egg was part of the sacred ceremonies of the Mysteries of Bacchus. The Druids used the egg as their sacred emblem. In Northern Europe, China and Japan the eggs were colored for their sacred festivals.

The egg was also a symbol of fertility; Semiramis (Easter) was the goddess of Fertility. The Easter egg is a symbol of the pagan Mother Goddess, and it even bears one of her names. If you are Christian, it is not difficult to discern the bizarre deception and confusion that has successfully orchestrated. For example, notice the embarrassing irony in these traditions which are practiced innocently by most people. They are repeated year after year, because they have become traditional and their origin is unknown to many. On the day commemorating Jesus' Resurrection, Americans roll decorated eggs on the White House lawn and pretend the Easter rabbit hid them. The same ritual is practiced at some Christian churches. This must surely given Satan, the Great Deceiver, some twisted delight. He seduced millions into worshipping people and other created things, instead of the true Creator. Through the millennia, humankind has been easily seduced into participating in every type of perversion. The seductive symbols of ancient ungodly religions inspired by Satan have been incorporated into people's everyday lives, even to this day - continuing to obscure the truth of God. Often this happens because we willingly let it happen.

Selfishly and foolishly "all we like sheep have gone astray" Isaiah 53:6 One might wonder if there is a better way for Christians to celebrate Jesus Christ's resurrection, the most important of all Christian holy days. In retrospect, it seems obvious that it would have been a better witness to the world if Christians had not attempted to Christianize pagan celebrations - adopting the name Easter (Ishtar/Semiramis) in remembrance of Christ. Painted eggs and bunnies have obscured Jesus. Attention has been shifted away from spiritual truth and toward materialism (clothing, products and candies with the wrong symbolism). Stores merchandise the name of Easter and sell goods that have nothing to do with Christ's death and resurrection. Christians naively use symbols and practices that unknowingly perpetuate ancient anti-Christ traditions - symbolic customs followed by the same religious cults that inspired the destruction of great numbers of Christians and Jews. Is the Devil laughing at us? Many church bodies recognize the problem and make every effort to keep the focus of Resurrection Sunday totally on Jesus Christ and the Good News that He brought. These same churches also use the term "RESURRECTION SUNDAY" rather than Easter to describe their services, celebrations and activities.

WE DO AT Hickory Hammock Baptist Church! – We also use the term “Resurrection Sunday” rather than “Easter” and we do NOT conduct Easter Egg Hunts or other pagan rooted activities at our church facilities or on our church property. All of this is done and communicated in a decent, respectful manner with the prayer that our membership and those visiting us would come to the true knowledge of these very important matters. Astarte Astarte Astarte is the name of a goddess as known from Northwestern Semitic regions, cognate in name, origin and functions with the goddess Ishtar in Mesopotamian texts. Another transliteration is 'Ashtart; other names for the goddess. According to scholar Mark S. Smith, Astarte may be the Iron Age (after 1200 BC) incarnation of the Bronze Age (to 1200 BC) Asherah. Astarte was connected with fertility, sexuality, and war. Her symbols were the lion, the horse, the sphinx, the dove, and a star within a circle indicating the planet Venus. Pictorial representations often show her naked.

Astarte first appears in Ancient Egypt beginning in the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt along with other deities who were worshipped by northwest Semitic people. She was worshipped especially in her aspect of a warrior goddess, often paired with the goddess Anat. In the Contest Between Horus and Set, these two goddesses appear as daughters of Re and are given in marriage to the god Set, here identified with the Semitic name Hadad. Astarte also was identified with the lioness warrior goddess Sekhmet, but seemingly more often conflated, at least in part, with Isis to judge from the many images found of Astarte suckling a small child.

Indeed there is a statue of the 6th century BC in the Cairo Museum, which normally would be taken as portraying Isis with her child Horus on her knee and which in every detail of iconography follows normal Egyptian conventions, but the dedicatory inscription reads: "Gersaphon, son of Azor, son of Slrt, man of Lydda, for his Lady, for Astarte." Plutarch, in his On Isis and Osiris, indicates that the King and Queen of Byblos, who, unknowingly, have the body of Osiris in a pillar in their hall, are Melcarthus and Astarte (though he notes some instead call the Queen Saosis or Nemanus, which Plutarch interprets as corresponding to the Greek name Athenais). Astarte was accepted by the Greeks under the name of Aphrodite. The island of Cyprus, one of Astarte's greatest faith centers, supplied the name Cypris as Aphrodite's most common byname. Other major centers of Astarte's worship were Sidon, Tyre, and Byblos. Coins from Sidon portray a chariot in which a globe appears, presumably a stone representing Astarte.

In Sidon, she shared a temple with Eshmun. At Beirut coins show Poseidon, Astarte, and Eshmun worshipped together. Other faith centers were Cytherea, Malta, and Eryx in Sicily from which she became known to the Romans as Venus Erycina. A bilingual inscription on the Pyrgi Tablets dating to about 500 BC found near Caere in Etruria equates Astarte with Etruscan Uni-Astre that is, Juno. At Carthage Astarte was worshipped alongside the goddess Tanit. Donald Harden in The Phoenicians discusses a statuette of Astarte from Tutugi (Galera) near Granada in Spain dating to the 6th or 7th century BC in which Astarte sits on a throne flanked by sphinxes holding a bowl beneath her breasts which are pierced. A hollow in the statue would have been filled with milk through the head and gentle heating would have melted wax plugging the holes in her breasts, producing an apparent miracle when the milk emerged.

The Syrian goddess Atargatis (Semitic form 'Atar'atah) was generally equated with Astarte and the first element of the name appears to be related to the name Astarte. Astarte appears in Ugaritic texts under the name 'Athtart', but is little mentioned in those texts. 'Athtart and 'Anat together hold back Ba'al from attacking the other deities. Astarte also asks Ba'al to "scatter" Yamm "Sea" after Ba'al's victory. 'Athtart is called the "Face of Ba'al". Astarte described by Sanchuniathon In the description of the Phoenician pantheon ascribed to Sanchuniathon Astarte appears as a daughter of Sky and Earth and sister of the God El. After El overthrows and banishes his father Sky, as some kind of trick Sky sends to El his "virgin daughter" Astarte along with her sisters Asherah and the goddess who will later be called Ba'alat Gebal, "the Lady of Byblos". It seems that this trick does not work as all three become wives of their brother El.

Astarte bears to El children who appear under Greek names as seven daughters called the Titanides or Artemides and two sons named Pothos "Longing" and Eros "Desire". Later we see, with El's consent, Astarte and Hadad reigning over the land together. Astarte, puts the head of a bull on her own head to symbolize Her sovereignty. Wandering through the world Astarte takes up a star that has fallen from the sky (meteorite) and consecrates it at Tyre. Astarte in Judea The Masoretic pointing in the Hebrew Tanach (bible) indicate the pronunciation as Astoret instead of the expected Asteret, probably because the two last syllables have here been pointed with the vowels belonging to boshet "abomination" to indicate that word should be substituted when reading. The plural form is pointed Astoret. For what seems to be the use of the Hebrew plural form Astoret as the name of a demon, see also Astaroth. Astarte, or Ashtoret in Hebrew, was the principal goddess of the Phoenicians, representing the productive power of nature.

She was a lunar goddess and was adopted by the Egyptians as a daughter of Ra or Ptah. In Jewish mythology, She is referred to as Ashtoreth, supposedly interpreted as a female demon of lust in Hebrew monotheism. The name Asherah may also be confused with Ashtoreth, but is probably a different goddess. Astarte means "she of the womb" in Canaanite and Hebrew. When the Hebrews turned from goddess-worship to a religion centered on the male Yahweh (or Jehovah), her name Athtarath was deliberately mis-rendered as Ashtoreth ("shameful thing") and confused with Asherah (see Monaghan). Depicted variously as a death-dealing virgin warrior, a life-giving mother, and a wanton of unbridled sexuality, her emblems were the moon and the morning and evening stars (the planet Venus). Astarte was a warrior goddess of Canaan and Syria who is a Western Semitic counterpart of the Akkadian Ishtar worshipped in Mesopotamia. In the Egyptian pantheon to which she was officially admitted during the 18th Dynasty, her prime association is with horses and chariots.

On the stela set up near the sphinx by Amenhotep II celebrating his prowess, Astarte is described as delighting in the impressive equestrian skill of the monarch when he was still only crown prince. In her iconography her aggression can be seen in the bull horns she sometimes wears as a symbol of domination. Similarly, in her Levantine homelands, Astarte is a battlefield goddess. For example, when the Peleset (Philistines) killed Saul and his three sons on Mount Gilboa, they deposited the enemy armor as spoils in the temple of "Ashtoreth". Like Anat, she is the daughter of Re and the wife of the god Seth, but also has a relationship with the god of the sea. From the fragmentary papyrus giving the legend of Astarte and the sea we learn that Yamm, the sea god, demanded tribute from the gods, particularly Renenutet. Her place is then taken by Astarte called, in this aspect, "daughter of Ptah". The story is lost from that point on but one assumes this liaison resulted in the goddess tempering the arrogance of Yamm.

It should also be noted that outside of Egypt, as well as being a warlike goddess, Astarte seems to have had sexual and motherhood attributes and is sometimes identified with Isis. Asherah, Athirat ("Lady Asherah of the Sea", "she who gives birth", "wet-nurse of the gods") (Canaanite and Hebrew). Her name seems to come from a root meaning "straight," perhaps signifying both moral rectitude and the upright trees or pieces of wood in which her essence was believed to dwell. In homes, she was represented by a simple, woman-shaped clay figurine with, instead of legs, a tapered base which was inserted in the floor of the home. She was also depicted as a naked, curly-haired goddess standing on her sacred lion and holding lilies and serpents in upraised hands. According to one source, she was "the force of life, experienced as benevolent and enduring, found in flocks of cattle and groves of trees, evoked in childbirth and in planting time." She was also called Elat ("Goddess"). Her dying-god consort may have been Yahweh.

After the shift among the Hebrews to the worship of the male Yahweh, a centuries-long campaign to stamp out her worship began, in which she was deliberately confused with the more wantonly sexual Astarte. A later, Babylonian form of the Sumerian Inanna , but also identified with Asherah and Astarte. Like Inanna, she loved a dying and reborn vegetation god (Tammuz), whom she descended into the underworld in rescue of after his death. There, she supplicates herself before the queen of the Underworld, Erishkegal (no doubt, the death form of herself). Her emblems were the moon and the morning and evening stars (the planet Venus). Ishtar ("light-giving queen of heaven") (Babylon) Ishtar , also known as Htar (or Inanna in Sumerian mythology), the name of the chief goddess of Babylonia and Assyria, the counterpart of the Phoenician Astarte.

The meaning of the name is not known, though it is possible that the underlying stem is the same as that of Assur, which would thus make her the "leading one" or "chief." At all events it is now generally recognized that the name is Semitic in its origin. Where the name originated is likewise uncertain, but the indications point to Erech where we find the worship of a great mother goddess independent of any association with a male counterpart flourishing in the oldest period of Babylonian history. She appears under various names, among which are Nana, Innanna, Nina and Anunit. As early as the days of Khammurabi we find these various names which represented originally different goddesses, though all manifest as the chief trait the life-giving power united in Ishtar. Even when the older names are employed it is always the great mother-goddess who is meant. Ishtar is the one goddess in the pantheon who retains her independent position despite and throughout all changes that the Babylonian-Assyrian religion undergoes.

Even when Ishtar is viewed as the consort of some chief - of Marduk occasionally in the south, of Assur more frequently in the north - the consciousness that she has a personality of her own apart from this association is never lost sight of. With Adbeel may be identified Idibi'il (-ba'il) a tribe, employed by Tiglath-Pileser IV. ('l33 B.c.) to watch the frontier of Musri (Sinaitic peninsula or Northern Arabia). This is suggested by the fact that Ashurbanipal (7th century) mentions as the name of their deity Atar-Samain (i.e. "Ishtar of the heavens"). We may reasonably assume that the analogy drawn from the process of reproduction among men and animals led to the conception of a female deity presiding over the life of the universe.

The extension of the scope of this goddess to life in general - to the growth of plants and trees from the fructifying seed - was a natural outcome of a fundamental idea; and so, whether we turn to incantations or hymns, in myths and in epics, in votive inscriptions and in historical annals, Ishtar is celebrated and invoked as the great mother, as the mistress of lands, as clothed in splendor and power - one might almost say as the personification of life itself. But there are two aspects to this goddess of life. She brings forth, she fertilizes the fields, she clothes nature in joy and gladness, but she also withdraws her favors and when she does so the fields wither, and men and animals cease to reproduce. In place of life, barrenness and death ensue. She is thus also a grim goddess, at once cruel and destructive. We can, therefore, understand that she was also invoked as a goddess of war and battles and of the chase; and more particularly among the warlike Assyrians she assumes this aspect. Before the battle she appears to the army, clad in battle array and armed with bow and arrow.

In myths symbolizing the change of seasons she is portrayed in this double character, as the life-giving and the life-depriving power. The most noteworthy of these myths describes her as passing through seven gates into the nether world. At each gate some of her clothing and her ornaments are removed until at the last gate she is entirely naked. While she remains in the nether world as a prisoner - whether voluntary or involuntary it is hard to say - all fertility ceases on Earth, but the time comes when she again returns to Earth, and as she passes each gate the watchman restores to her what she had left there until she is again clad in her full splendor, to the joy of mankind and of all nature. Closely allied with this myth and personifying another view of the change of seasons is the story of Ishtar's love for her son and consort Tammuz - symbolizing the spring time - but as midsummer approaches her husband is slain and, according to one version, it is for the purpose of saving Tammuz from the clutches of the goddess of the nether world that she enters upon her journey to that region.

In all the great centres Ishtar had her temples, bearing such names as E-anna, "heavenly house," in Erech; E-makh, "great house," in Babylon; E-mash-mash, "house of offerings," in Nineveh. Of the details of her cult we as yet know little, but there is no evidence that there were obscene rites connected with it, though there may have been certain mysteries introduced at certain centres which might easily impress the uninitiated as having obscene aspects. She was served by priestesses as well as by priests, and it would appear that the votaries of Ishtar were in all cases virgins who, as long as they remained in the service of Ishtar, were not permitted to marry. In the astral-theological system, Ishtar becomes the planet Venus, and the double aspect of the goddess is made to correspond to the strikingly different phases of Venus in the summer and winter seasons. On monuments and seal-cylinders she appears frequently with how and arrow, though also simply clad in long robes with a crown on her head and an eight-rayed star as her symbol.

Statuettes have been found in large numbers representing her as naked with her arms folded across her breast or holding a child. The art thus reflects the popular conceptions formed of the goddess. Together with Sin, the Moon god, and Shamash, the Sun god, she is the third figure in a triad personifying the three great forces of nature - Moon, Sun and Earth, as the life-force. The doctrine involved illustrate, the tendency of the Babylonian priests to centralize the manifestations of divine power in the universe, just as the triad Anu, Bel and ha - the heavens, the earth and the watery deep - form another illustration of this same tendency. Naturally, as a member of a triad, Ishtar is dissociated from any local limitations, and similarly as the planet Venus - a conception which is essentially a product of theological speculation - no though of any particular locality for her cult is present. It is because the cult, like that of Sin and Shamash, is spread over al Babylonia and Assyria, that she becomes available for purposes of theological speculation.

Question: Who is the Greek equivalent to the Phoenician goddess Astarte, and the Babylonian goddess Ishtar?
Answer: APHRODITE