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Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth: Her Stories and Hymns from Sumer
A fresh retelling of the ancient texts about Ishtar, the world's first goddess. Illustrated with visual artifacts of the period.
With the long-awaited publication of this book, we have for the first time in any modern literary form one of the most vital and important of ancient myths: that of Inanna, the world's first goddess of recorded history and the beloved deity of the ancient Sumerians.
The stories and hymns of Inanna (known to the Semites as Ishtar) are inscribed on clay tablets which date back to 2,000 B.C. Over the past forty years, these cuneiform tablets have gradually been restored and deciphered by a small group of international scholars. In this groundbreaking book, Samuel Noah Kramer, the preeminent living expert on Sumer, and Diane Wolkstein, a gifted storyteller and folklorist, have retranslated, ordered, and combined the fragmented pieces of the Cycle of Inanna into a unified whole that presents for the first time an authentic portrait of the goddess from her adolescence to her completed womanhood and godship. We see Inanna in all her aspects: as girl, lover, wife, seeker, decision maker, ruler; we witness the Queen of Heaven and Earth as the voluptuous center and source of all fertile power and the unequaled goddess of love.
Illustrated throughout with cylinder seals and other artifacts of the period, the beautifully rendered images guide the reader through Inanna's realm on a journey parallel to the one evoked by the text. And the carefully wrought commentaries providing an historical overview, textual interpretations, and aannotations on the art at once explicate and amplify the power, wonder, and mystery embedded in these ancient tales.
Inanna--the world's first love story, two thousand years older than the Bible--is tender, erotic, frightening, and compassionate. It is a compelling myth that is timely in its rediscovery.
"A great masterpiece of universal literature."--Mircea Eliade
With the long-awaited publication of this book, we have for the first time in any modern literary form one of the most vital and important of ancient myths: that of Inanna, the world's first goddess of recorded history and the beloved deity of the ancient Sumerians.
The stories and hymns of Inanna (known to the Semites as Ishtar) are inscribed on clay tablets which date back to 2,000 B.C. Over the past forty years, these cuneiform tablets have gradually been restored and deciphered by a small group of international scholars. In this groundbreaking book, Samuel Noah Kramer, the preeminent living expert on Sumer, and Diane Wolkstein, a gifted storyteller and folklorist, have retranslated, ordered, and combined the fragmented pieces of the Cycle of Inanna into a unified whole that presents for the first time an authentic portrait of the goddess from her adolescence to her completed womanhood and godship. We see Inanna in all her aspects: as girl, lover, wife, seeker, decision maker, ruler; we witness the Queen of Heaven and Earth as the voluptuous center and source of all fertile power and the unequaled goddess of love.
Illustrated throughout with cylinder seals and other artifacts of the period, the beautifully rendered images guide the reader through Inanna's realm on a journey parallel to the one evoked by the text. And the carefully wrought commentaries providing an historical overview, textual interpretations, and aannotations on the art at once explicate and amplify the power, wonder, and mystery embedded in these ancient tales.
Inanna--the world's first love story, two thousand years older than the Bible--is tender, erotic, frightening, and compassionate. It is a compelling myth that is timely in its rediscovery.
"A great masterpiece of universal literature."--Mircea Eliade
227 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
78 people are currently reading
4132 people want to read
About the author
Diane Wolkstein
42 books36 followersDiane Wolkstein was a folklorist and author of children's books. She also served as New York City's official storyteller from 1968–1971.
As New York's official storyteller, Wolkstein visited two of the city's parks each weekday, staging hundreds of one-woman storytelling events. After successfully talking her way into the position, she realized "there was no margin for error," she said in a 1992 interview. "I mean, it was a park. [The children would] just go somewhere else if they didn't like it."
She also had a radio show on WNYC, Stories From Many Lands, from 1968 until 1980, and she helped create the Storytelling Center of New York City.
Wolkstein authored two dozen books, primarily collections of folk tales and legends she gathered during research trips. She made many visits to China, Haiti and Africa.
Wolkstein was born in Newark, New Jersey and grew up in Maplewood, New Jersey. Her father Henry was an accountant and her mother Ruth was a librarian. She received a bachelor's degree from Smith College and a master's degree in education from Bank Street College of Education. While living in Paris, she studied mime under Étienne Decroux.
Wolkstein was in Taiwan to research a book of Chinese folk stories when she underwent emergency surgery for a heart condition. She died in the city of Kaohsiung at the age of 70.
As New York's official storyteller, Wolkstein visited two of the city's parks each weekday, staging hundreds of one-woman storytelling events. After successfully talking her way into the position, she realized "there was no margin for error," she said in a 1992 interview. "I mean, it was a park. [The children would] just go somewhere else if they didn't like it."
She also had a radio show on WNYC, Stories From Many Lands, from 1968 until 1980, and she helped create the Storytelling Center of New York City.
Wolkstein authored two dozen books, primarily collections of folk tales and legends she gathered during research trips. She made many visits to China, Haiti and Africa.
Wolkstein was born in Newark, New Jersey and grew up in Maplewood, New Jersey. Her father Henry was an accountant and her mother Ruth was a librarian. She received a bachelor's degree from Smith College and a master's degree in education from Bank Street College of Education. While living in Paris, she studied mime under Étienne Decroux.
Wolkstein was in Taiwan to research a book of Chinese folk stories when she underwent emergency surgery for a heart condition. She died in the city of Kaohsiung at the age of 70.
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February 11, 2013Basically this book is about the most awesome woman who ever lived. One day she was leaning against a tree and she looked down at herself, specifically her genitals, and said, "Wow, I am amazing." So she decided to go visit the God of Wisdom, who concurred that she was the most awesome woman who had ever lived and brought her beer and butter cake, and they partied. And during the party, he gave her every gift he could think of, and after receiving each one, she was like, "Yes, I deserve this, I will take it." He gave her beauty and power and lots of talents and strengths, capped by the ability to be decisive. After she left, the God of Wisdom sobered up and was like, "Why did I give this girl all that stuff?" and sent a bunch of monsters to take it back. But she was like, "Haha, sucks to be you, I have all of the gifts" and used them to evade the monsters and triumph over everyone and prove how awesome she was. Then she shared her gifts with the people of Sumer, and proclaimed that she was awesome and had an awesome boat. END.
All of these stories are highly life-affirming. Inanna knows what she wants, then gets it. Even when she goes down to the underworld and becomes a decaying corpse hung up on a hook on the wall (very Texas Chainsaw Massacre!), you know that somehow she's going to work it, and work it she does (too bad about her insensitive husband, though).
A++, girl power done right.
All of these stories are highly life-affirming. Inanna knows what she wants, then gets it. Even when she goes down to the underworld and becomes a decaying corpse hung up on a hook on the wall (very Texas Chainsaw Massacre!), you know that somehow she's going to work it, and work it she does (too bad about her insensitive husband, though).
A++, girl power done right.
August 22, 2024
Inanna (also known as Ishtar) was an ancient Mesopotamian goddess. She was, as the title says, Queen of Heaven but also of Earth. And she was one of the most important deities in ancient times. This book gives us a collection of stories and hymns from ancient times dedicated to Inanna, after which we get some essays where the experts in the field and authors of this book give us some more background information about ancient Sumer, and discuss how to interpret these stories and what we can learn from these texts.
Since the translations of the stories are the main selling point of this book, I want to be as brief as possible about them. But I do want to say that these stories are very much worth reading. It gives you a sense of what the Sumerians were like and what they considered important. From an entertainment and modern perspective, the writing style of the stories may sometimes come across as a bit repetitive. But the content of the stories is still as fascinating now as it was when it was written. The descent of Inanna is the story that stood out most to me. And reading about how it was found and eventually translated gives you a real sense of just how much time and effort went into bringing this ancient story back to life again.
The essays start off by saying the ancient Sumer was the cradle of civilization, because a lot of important historical firsts happened in ancient Sumer. This ranges from agriculture, engineering, writing and technology to culture, religion and even gender equality. This really is very interesting if you ask me, as it demonstrates just how much our modern society is still influenced by things that happened or were invented thousands of years ago. And it’s more proof that history can be so incredibly fascinating when you tell it right. Though I also can’t help but hope that there might be more ancient stories like these that are just waiting to be found and told again.
Since the translations of the stories are the main selling point of this book, I want to be as brief as possible about them. But I do want to say that these stories are very much worth reading. It gives you a sense of what the Sumerians were like and what they considered important. From an entertainment and modern perspective, the writing style of the stories may sometimes come across as a bit repetitive. But the content of the stories is still as fascinating now as it was when it was written. The descent of Inanna is the story that stood out most to me. And reading about how it was found and eventually translated gives you a real sense of just how much time and effort went into bringing this ancient story back to life again.
The essays start off by saying the ancient Sumer was the cradle of civilization, because a lot of important historical firsts happened in ancient Sumer. This ranges from agriculture, engineering, writing and technology to culture, religion and even gender equality. This really is very interesting if you ask me, as it demonstrates just how much our modern society is still influenced by things that happened or were invented thousands of years ago. And it’s more proof that history can be so incredibly fascinating when you tell it right. Though I also can’t help but hope that there might be more ancient stories like these that are just waiting to be found and told again.
April 14, 2018
I really enjoyed the stories themselves, but I wasn't a huge fan of the commentary.
Some of the information contained in the commentary (such as water and semen being the same word in Sumerian), really should have been given in footnotes so I could have known it as I read it, instead of having to re-interpret passages after the fact.
There are also moments that I thought she was stretching a bit far with some of her conclusions. For instance, there's a section where she gives 4 lines, with an item created per line - then states that this symbolizes completeness since there are 4 cardinal directions and 4 sides on a square. But she gives no other context for this statement... Perhaps there's more material she leaves out - this being a common theme in Sumerian, perhaps, or a square being a significant geometrical shape in their art, etc. But just stating that a list of 4 items must be complete because there's 4 directions seems like really sloppy thinking unless you can back that up with additional supporting passages.
For an alternate explanation, a quick google search shows that the number 4 was represented by one wider triangle on bottom, which is topped by 3 smaller wedges. It looks a bit like a tree. So maybe there's 4 items made from the tree because the number 4 itself looks like a tree.
Or maybe there's something significant about the number 2 and you have two people giving 2 gifts each, and it's only coincidental that it adds up to 4.
Wolkstein could be right in everything she says, for all I know. But she just didn't back up many of her statements very well.
Some of the information contained in the commentary (such as water and semen being the same word in Sumerian), really should have been given in footnotes so I could have known it as I read it, instead of having to re-interpret passages after the fact.
There are also moments that I thought she was stretching a bit far with some of her conclusions. For instance, there's a section where she gives 4 lines, with an item created per line - then states that this symbolizes completeness since there are 4 cardinal directions and 4 sides on a square. But she gives no other context for this statement... Perhaps there's more material she leaves out - this being a common theme in Sumerian, perhaps, or a square being a significant geometrical shape in their art, etc. But just stating that a list of 4 items must be complete because there's 4 directions seems like really sloppy thinking unless you can back that up with additional supporting passages.
For an alternate explanation, a quick google search shows that the number 4 was represented by one wider triangle on bottom, which is topped by 3 smaller wedges. It looks a bit like a tree. So maybe there's 4 items made from the tree because the number 4 itself looks like a tree.
Or maybe there's something significant about the number 2 and you have two people giving 2 gifts each, and it's only coincidental that it adds up to 4.
Wolkstein could be right in everything she says, for all I know. But she just didn't back up many of her statements very well.
June 29, 2016
Radiant Inanna, from an Akkadian cylindrical stone seal, 2334-2154 bce
39. Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth : Her Stories and Hymns from Sumer translated by Diane Wolkstein & Samuel Noah Kramer
Art compiled by Elizabeth Williams-Forte
Published: 1983. Original from various time periods, roughly 2000 bce.
format: 226 page paperback
acquired: borrowed from Library
read: June 24-26
rating: 5 stars
In the first days, in the very first days,Something special happened here. This is more than a translation of ancient literature. This is really an interpretation, a work of art, Diane Wolkstein's recreation. There is some kind synergy at play.
In the first nights, in the very first nights,
in the first years, in the very first years,
The source is, of course, the Cuneiform fragments found throughout the southern Iraq and other parts of the Middle East. The literary fragments, which include The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Babylonian Enuma Elish: The Seven Tablets of the History of Creation and many other mythological elements also preserve, in pieces here and there, elements of the story of the goddess Inanna. She is known elsewhere as Ishtar and in the bible is referred to as Astarte, and her worship, there severely forbidden, to the Astarte poles.
Four stories about Inanna, and seven short hymns to her, are reconstructed. The Huluppu-Tree, where Inanna rescues the tree, then needs the help of Gilgamesh to get rid of it's pollutants, like (the biblical) Lilith, who built a home in her tree. Inanna and the God of Wisdom, where she gets drunk with Enki, the God of Wisdom, and then essentially steals all his wisdom, in the form of Me (pronounced like May). Enki sobers up, but can't recover his Me. Then, heavily sexual, is The Courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi (Dumuzi is biblical Tammuz). Finally is there is the three part story, The Descent of Inanna, where Inanna is drawn into the underworld. There, she is stripped of all possessions, all clothing and killed, or trapped in the underworld as a corpse. She is rescued, but must find a replacement. She eventually offers up Dumuzi.
The reconstruction of these stories from fragments was a major effort, and Samuel Noah Kramer played a large role in this. But what Wolkstein does is something different. She hashed over all the possible meanings, and then comes up with her own interpretation. So, the translation becomes an interpretation and her own creation. It's somehow raw, fundamental, and beautiful. It's exceptionally well done.
It's also very feminist. "Rejoicing at her wondrous vulva", Inanna is not an underling, ruled by a Zeus-like head god, but very much her own. She evolves in the stories from uncertainty, to a savvy sexual power, to a goddess affecting fertility and the seasons and, in many ways, the daily lives of her worshipers.
In her introduction, Wolkstein recreates a conversation with Kramer, providing some insight into how she approaches this work:
"In the first line of 'The Descent of Inanna,' 'From the Great Above she set her mind to the Great below,' what exactly does 'mind' mean?"(She ends up translating "From the Great Above she opened her ear to the Great Below")
"Ear," Kramer said.
"Ear?"
"Yes, the word for ear and wisdom in Sumerian are the same. But mind is what is meant."
"But—I could say 'ear'?"
"Well, you could."
"Is it opened her ear or set her ear?"
"Set. Set her ear, like a donkey that sets its ear at a particular sound."
As Kramer spoke, a shiver ran through me. When taken literally, the text announces the stories direction: From the Great Above the goddess opened (set) her ear, her receptor for wisdom, to the Great below.
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November 16, 2014"He put his hand in her hand.
He put his hand to her heart.
Sweet is the sleep of hand-to-hand.
Sweeter still the sleep of heart-to-heart."
p.43
That's my personal favorite stanza in the poems :-)
This is a rich, textured, complex text - both the translated poems from ancient Sumer, but also the commentary. I enjoyed it. It makes so much more sense than the very cryptic version I read on-line more than a year ago. I'm also glad to have read more of the context of the Inanna's Descent story we use in Birthing From Within classes.
I want to tell Inanna's story many more times so I get it more and more deeply!
He put his hand to her heart.
Sweet is the sleep of hand-to-hand.
Sweeter still the sleep of heart-to-heart."
p.43
That's my personal favorite stanza in the poems :-)
This is a rich, textured, complex text - both the translated poems from ancient Sumer, but also the commentary. I enjoyed it. It makes so much more sense than the very cryptic version I read on-line more than a year ago. I'm also glad to have read more of the context of the Inanna's Descent story we use in Birthing From Within classes.
I want to tell Inanna's story many more times so I get it more and more deeply!
June 1, 2020
My therapist suggested I learn about the Sumerian goddess Innana, so I picked up this book. I'll let you, dear reader, determine why she might have thought it would do me good.
Inanna gets her great grandfather, the sky, so drunk that he offers her all the sacred elements of culture, loads them up in the boat of heaven, and then sees her off. When he sobers up, he regrets the decision, but it's too late: She's brought culture (everything from the truth to hairdos, from the tavern to justice, from the art of prostitution to the art of kindness) to the Sumerians, and it's theirs for keeps.
Somewhere along the way, she picks up the art of women and allure. Good thing, too, because her family is getting pretty pushy about bringing a bridegroom to that sacred bed Gilgamesh carved for her. She's got her eyes on the farmer, but her brother is insistent about this shepherd Dumuzi. She balks at first, but then falls hard for him. She and Dumuzi exchange some pretty hot banter:
"My untilled land lies fallow. Who will station the ox there?"
"I, Dumuzi, will plow your vulva."
"Then plow my vulva, man of my heart!"
But, don't worry, Dumuzi's "plowing" involves significant foreplay, even though at his lap "stood the rising cedar."
But as the old story goes, this early infatuation dissipates into day-to-day kingship and goddess stuff, and Inanna decides to go visit her sister, Ereshkigal, in the underworld. Turns out Ereshkigal hasn't loved being relegated to that dismal place, and she greets Inanna by murdering her and hanging her from a hook on the wall to become a piece of rotting meat.
With the help of her servant, her children, and her grandfather, the god of Wisdom, Inanna escapes, but she has to find someone to replace her. She decides to choose her ungrateful husband, Dumuzi, who's so caught up in being king that he doesn't even really notice her absence.
Will he make it out of the underworld?
You'll have to read the book to find out.
Or Google it.
Inanna gets her great grandfather, the sky, so drunk that he offers her all the sacred elements of culture, loads them up in the boat of heaven, and then sees her off. When he sobers up, he regrets the decision, but it's too late: She's brought culture (everything from the truth to hairdos, from the tavern to justice, from the art of prostitution to the art of kindness) to the Sumerians, and it's theirs for keeps.
Somewhere along the way, she picks up the art of women and allure. Good thing, too, because her family is getting pretty pushy about bringing a bridegroom to that sacred bed Gilgamesh carved for her. She's got her eyes on the farmer, but her brother is insistent about this shepherd Dumuzi. She balks at first, but then falls hard for him. She and Dumuzi exchange some pretty hot banter:
"My untilled land lies fallow. Who will station the ox there?"
"I, Dumuzi, will plow your vulva."
"Then plow my vulva, man of my heart!"
But, don't worry, Dumuzi's "plowing" involves significant foreplay, even though at his lap "stood the rising cedar."
But as the old story goes, this early infatuation dissipates into day-to-day kingship and goddess stuff, and Inanna decides to go visit her sister, Ereshkigal, in the underworld. Turns out Ereshkigal hasn't loved being relegated to that dismal place, and she greets Inanna by murdering her and hanging her from a hook on the wall to become a piece of rotting meat.
With the help of her servant, her children, and her grandfather, the god of Wisdom, Inanna escapes, but she has to find someone to replace her. She decides to choose her ungrateful husband, Dumuzi, who's so caught up in being king that he doesn't even really notice her absence.
Will he make it out of the underworld?
You'll have to read the book to find out.
Or Google it.
May 17, 2012
Wonderful myths, well organized, and well presented, by that I mean that Wolkstein did a fine job of explaining the process that yeilded the book, and with that understanding you can take away a good sense of how Inanna (and her cognative forms) were regarded by the ancients. It's a quick read, but that also allows for repeated readings and focusing on particular excerpts.
I also recommend it to those interested in and studying feminism. Often in femminist discussion the question lingers "how did we come to this?" Inanna, Queen of Heaven exposes us to a time when goddesses were not reserved for the occult. Her descent into the underworld is very similar to the journey of Horus, the trials of Herakles, but in some ways more meaningful and feminine when you consider her motive for descent and who she finds in the underworld. Also it's worth mentioning how the Babylonian equivalent (Ishtar) was defeated in the Epic of Gilgamesh, and the heavanly woman subdued.
see also: Shekinah.
I also recommend it to those interested in and studying feminism. Often in femminist discussion the question lingers "how did we come to this?" Inanna, Queen of Heaven exposes us to a time when goddesses were not reserved for the occult. Her descent into the underworld is very similar to the journey of Horus, the trials of Herakles, but in some ways more meaningful and feminine when you consider her motive for descent and who she finds in the underworld. Also it's worth mentioning how the Babylonian equivalent (Ishtar) was defeated in the Epic of Gilgamesh, and the heavanly woman subdued.
see also: Shekinah.
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March 10, 2022This was my third stop on my quest to read the religious texts of the world, and like my other stops along the way I’m not going to give a star rating.
This one was a little outdated. Or, well, a lot. Most of the stories and hymns in this book were translated before Enheduanna’s name was found, so she doesn’t appear at all, even if some (if not most) of the words are hers.
The translation was good and easy to read. I liked hearing Inanna’s descent again a lot.
I will say, I would have preferred a different layout to the commentaries and notes, but it was fine.
And the inclusion of various Sumerian art throughout the text was a nice touch.
This one was a little outdated. Or, well, a lot. Most of the stories and hymns in this book were translated before Enheduanna’s name was found, so she doesn’t appear at all, even if some (if not most) of the words are hers.
The translation was good and easy to read. I liked hearing Inanna’s descent again a lot.
I will say, I would have preferred a different layout to the commentaries and notes, but it was fine.
And the inclusion of various Sumerian art throughout the text was a nice touch.
June 8, 2018
" We are transported into another realm-the timeless realm of the gods, the soul, the origins of life" said by Diane Wolkstein
Yes! I only recently discovered Mesopotamian/Sumerian mythology and I think it is my favourite type of mythology. The Gods in Greek mythology sometimes seem like squabbling teenagers and the Ancient Egyptian ones Cold and distant. The Ancient Sumerian Gods seem so human and real, yet very spiritual. The cultures seems so rich.
I suggest everyone read Inanna's Hymms as well as the epic of Gilgamesh.
Yes! I only recently discovered Mesopotamian/Sumerian mythology and I think it is my favourite type of mythology. The Gods in Greek mythology sometimes seem like squabbling teenagers and the Ancient Egyptian ones Cold and distant. The Ancient Sumerian Gods seem so human and real, yet very spiritual. The cultures seems so rich.
I suggest everyone read Inanna's Hymms as well as the epic of Gilgamesh.
January 23, 2016
This book has both the actual myths, translated from cuneiform tablets, and interpretations of the myths, which make it a well-rounded collection. There are also essays on the translation process, the images used throughout, and extensive end notes. Good for someone causally interested in Inanna, as well as those with more scholarly intentions.
August 26, 2017
The goddess Inanna is a much more admirable supernatural being than most of the jerks you meet in mythology. Wolkstein's translations and glosses grabbed me and transported me to ancient Sumer and I liked it there, at least among the gods. The bit where Inanna hooks up with Dumuzi is sexy in a nice way. The essay where she puts the Inanna stories in the context of other myths and legends got a little confusing. Kramer seems like a great guy, staring at bits of ceramic in museum backrooms half his life and figuring out what it all means. Throughout the book there are images from museum pieces that Kramer explains in notes in the back, and those are awesome. I'd look at one of the pictures, and be like, "cool," and then read what Kramer thinks is going on in there, look at it again, and it's epic. Lion-headed thunder birds tormenting people, naked goddess standing on lion backs, priest-kings and high priestesses in ritual embraces... and lots of wavy lines and rosettes. Any one of them would make a kick-ass belt buckle. I wish I'd gotten a taste of this back in the 70s and 80s when they were feeding me the Iliad, the Odyssey, Beowulf, and the Christian stuff like King Arthur and Narnia. Wondering now if there isn't some Iraqi Wagner out there with an Inanna opera?
December 24, 2025
was told taylor swift has been referencing this book. lies and heresy.
inanna is totally awesome though to be honest let’s go inanna! zero doubts about her self worth love it. need to be hanging out, look at my vag, decide i’m actually lit, and then have the king bestow all his power upon me. hello.
make me think of my grandma a lot. miss you gal i bet you loved inanna
inanna is totally awesome though to be honest let’s go inanna! zero doubts about her self worth love it. need to be hanging out, look at my vag, decide i’m actually lit, and then have the king bestow all his power upon me. hello.
make me think of my grandma a lot. miss you gal i bet you loved inanna
February 28, 2014
Too bad this didn't make it into the Bible like the other myths from Mesopotamia. wonderful insight into a world we hardly know
August 21, 2018
It was interesting to see how Sumer mythology plays out, and to see how their gods are.
August 2, 2011
Inanna is such a magical goddess of Sumeria who brings grace and life to all she touches. This collection captures her essence though stories of how she became a Goddess, her courtship to Dumuzi, her descent into the Underworld and other tales from the age. They authors also collected a series of hymns sung in praise to Inanna that walk through seven different aspects of the Goddess from day break through sunset. There is scholarly essays that follow that take a look into Sumeria and different aspects of the society which I chose not to read, instead immersing myself in the lore and magic weaved by such an early power feminine figure. For what it is worth the editors of the book are 3 very different Sumerian experts that combine well together for such an important study. Recommended if you are into either ancient society, powerful yet very feminine goddesses or just enjoy a series of sweet tales to set your imagination soaring.
February 14, 2023
You gotta stay tell you read the authors commentary on the text for this book cause Holly hell that's when it gets good.
My favorite quote is on page 139 and it says...
"but in line 13, ereshkigal receives her domain and her fate. And that which is assigned to Ereshkigal, the house of death, of darkness, of decay, of dust, is the same realm that awaits all humankind. The flow of creation is brought to a hault, for though man's name has been "fixed" what purpose is there in life and awareness if it is all to be undone in the house of decay? Who will attempt to understand death and thus find meaning in life?"
My favorite quote is on page 139 and it says...
"but in line 13, ereshkigal receives her domain and her fate. And that which is assigned to Ereshkigal, the house of death, of darkness, of decay, of dust, is the same realm that awaits all humankind. The flow of creation is brought to a hault, for though man's name has been "fixed" what purpose is there in life and awareness if it is all to be undone in the house of decay? Who will attempt to understand death and thus find meaning in life?"
November 25, 2020
The text is okay, but the commentary is useless. There are probably better translations of these poems by now.
April 29, 2023
This is an intriguing book on an important subject. The translation is well done and has a powerful poetic quality, and there are many excellent illustrations (though alas in black and white) which are also given an explanatory appendix. I think it manages to combine the scholarly and the poetic very effectively.
Inanna may or may not be the goddess Ishtar (it’s likely they were originally distinct) and it’s hard to tease out the origins of the myth from later accretions. Originally, it may have been a kind of dramatic portrayal of the apparent disappearance of the moon for three days of the month. But of course this only touches on one aspect of a multi layered story: it is also interpreted as an archetypical Jungian transformation story, or a feminist challenge to patriarchy, or a dramatic rationalisation of astronomical and/or seasonal phenomena. These many overlapping possibilities of interpretation are not mutually contradictory and illustrate the perennial fascination of an entity whose origins stretch into the distant past – possibly even as a historical figure associated with Ur – and to the present day – as a component of modern Wiccan rituals. And, of course, elaborate statues in Roman Catholic churches of the Queen of Heaven surrounded by stars make it obvious that the attributes of Inanna and the mother of Jesus have become merged.
There are problems. The book was published in 1983 at a time when “virtually all” Babylonian cuneiform texts had been translated. That is not the case today: at least, according to a Youtube lecture I watched of Professor Andrew George speaking at the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East in 2016. In that lecture George claims that there are so many texts and so few Assyriologists that even if all of them do nothing but translate and publish for the rest of their lifetimes, there will still be plenty of unpublished texts left. (It’s true that a great many will probably be rather dull – the equivalent of laundry lists and such like).
Inanna was a Sumerian moon goddess, but much more than that. Here, Diane Wolkstein (her own Christian name – if one may use such a term in this context – itself the Greek version of Inanna) has collaborated with the distinguished Assyriologist Samuel Noah Kramer to produce something which is both more than mere poetry and more than merely a dry academic discussion of an aspect of ancient myth. Wolkstein is the Yin to Kramer’s Yang, with fascinating results. Whether one is an Assyriologist, a poet, a feminist, a Jungian, anyone who has experienced injustice, or desire, or psychological change – in other words, anyone at all - there is a great deal here which is of direct and interesting relevance.
Inanna may or may not be the goddess Ishtar (it’s likely they were originally distinct) and it’s hard to tease out the origins of the myth from later accretions. Originally, it may have been a kind of dramatic portrayal of the apparent disappearance of the moon for three days of the month. But of course this only touches on one aspect of a multi layered story: it is also interpreted as an archetypical Jungian transformation story, or a feminist challenge to patriarchy, or a dramatic rationalisation of astronomical and/or seasonal phenomena. These many overlapping possibilities of interpretation are not mutually contradictory and illustrate the perennial fascination of an entity whose origins stretch into the distant past – possibly even as a historical figure associated with Ur – and to the present day – as a component of modern Wiccan rituals. And, of course, elaborate statues in Roman Catholic churches of the Queen of Heaven surrounded by stars make it obvious that the attributes of Inanna and the mother of Jesus have become merged.
There are problems. The book was published in 1983 at a time when “virtually all” Babylonian cuneiform texts had been translated. That is not the case today: at least, according to a Youtube lecture I watched of Professor Andrew George speaking at the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East in 2016. In that lecture George claims that there are so many texts and so few Assyriologists that even if all of them do nothing but translate and publish for the rest of their lifetimes, there will still be plenty of unpublished texts left. (It’s true that a great many will probably be rather dull – the equivalent of laundry lists and such like).
Inanna was a Sumerian moon goddess, but much more than that. Here, Diane Wolkstein (her own Christian name – if one may use such a term in this context – itself the Greek version of Inanna) has collaborated with the distinguished Assyriologist Samuel Noah Kramer to produce something which is both more than mere poetry and more than merely a dry academic discussion of an aspect of ancient myth. Wolkstein is the Yin to Kramer’s Yang, with fascinating results. Whether one is an Assyriologist, a poet, a feminist, a Jungian, anyone who has experienced injustice, or desire, or psychological change – in other words, anyone at all - there is a great deal here which is of direct and interesting relevance.
May 29, 2025
Inanna is generally considered the world’s first goddess. Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth is a collection of stories and hymns about Inanna. In this collection, Inanna is portrayed as a queen and as the goddess of love. In this book, we see Inanna as a young teenager who eventually matures into a strong, wise, and beautiful woman.
Before reading this collection of myths, I did not know anything about Inanna, except that she was the goddess of love. After reading her myths, I found her to be one of mythology’s most compelling characters. I love how she tricked Enki into giving her laws and powers. I also loved how Inanna was courted by Dumuzi. I thought their wedding was very beautiful and passionate. My favorite myth was Inanna’s journey to the underworld. Throughout her harrowing journey, she had to sacrifice a part of herself until she finally reached its depth. I also like how Inanna got revenge on her uncaring husband. I also hear the hymns that sing her praises. Thus, Inanna was a very fascinating and strong goddess.
Overall, this was a very fascinating and extremely readable collection of myths surrounding the goddess, Inanna. These myths gave me a glimpse into the Sumerian world and their religion. Inanna was heavily worshipped in the city of Uruk. Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth shows how important Inanna was in Sumerian culture. This book is a must read for fans of mythology! With the over saturation of Greek mythology, hopefully there will be more studies about this Sumerian goddess of love! Move over Aphrodite! Inanna is the more alluring goddess of love! I recommend this for fans of Athene, Isis of the Ancient World, and Pele!
Before reading this collection of myths, I did not know anything about Inanna, except that she was the goddess of love. After reading her myths, I found her to be one of mythology’s most compelling characters. I love how she tricked Enki into giving her laws and powers. I also loved how Inanna was courted by Dumuzi. I thought their wedding was very beautiful and passionate. My favorite myth was Inanna’s journey to the underworld. Throughout her harrowing journey, she had to sacrifice a part of herself until she finally reached its depth. I also like how Inanna got revenge on her uncaring husband. I also hear the hymns that sing her praises. Thus, Inanna was a very fascinating and strong goddess.
Overall, this was a very fascinating and extremely readable collection of myths surrounding the goddess, Inanna. These myths gave me a glimpse into the Sumerian world and their religion. Inanna was heavily worshipped in the city of Uruk. Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth shows how important Inanna was in Sumerian culture. This book is a must read for fans of mythology! With the over saturation of Greek mythology, hopefully there will be more studies about this Sumerian goddess of love! Move over Aphrodite! Inanna is the more alluring goddess of love! I recommend this for fans of Athene, Isis of the Ancient World, and Pele!
June 7, 2025
I love studying mythology, and the myths of ancient Mesopotamia are fabulous. Anyone interested in reading a little about these myths should definitely read this book on inanna, the epic of Gilgamesh and the epic of creation. inanna is such an example of feminine beauty, strength, sensuality, and wiles all in one. It is so cool to learn a little about this first goddess in recorded history, and appreciate her significance on several ancient peoples. I liked Wolkstein's essay at the end discussing the meaning of some of the stories like how the huluppu tree is inanna as a maiden coming to age, but Kramer's historical context that he provides on the literature and culture in his essays were the best.
As for the myths, the marriage rite of dummuzi is quite erotic, like an ancient song of Solomon. I use that comparison cause the abstract meaning of both works are identical. in the marriage rite the king of uruk marries the goddess creating a sacred contract between man and divine. in the song of Solomon, the Israelites embodied as jerusalem are establishing a marriage contract with God. In Inanna's descent to the underworld, a perfect myth of the shamanic journey of death and rebirth, the oldest type of myth, is found. Inanna's descent depicts the ancient perspective on what a rite of passage is supposed to look like, sadly very few modern people ever go through a rite of passage which is what prevents them from ever growing up. Ancient cultures understood the significance to the human psyche that rite of passages provide, and Inanna's descent is a classic example.
I loved this book. I'm thrilled that my wife read it with me and she loved it through a feminist eye.
As for the myths, the marriage rite of dummuzi is quite erotic, like an ancient song of Solomon. I use that comparison cause the abstract meaning of both works are identical. in the marriage rite the king of uruk marries the goddess creating a sacred contract between man and divine. in the song of Solomon, the Israelites embodied as jerusalem are establishing a marriage contract with God. In Inanna's descent to the underworld, a perfect myth of the shamanic journey of death and rebirth, the oldest type of myth, is found. Inanna's descent depicts the ancient perspective on what a rite of passage is supposed to look like, sadly very few modern people ever go through a rite of passage which is what prevents them from ever growing up. Ancient cultures understood the significance to the human psyche that rite of passages provide, and Inanna's descent is a classic example.
I loved this book. I'm thrilled that my wife read it with me and she loved it through a feminist eye.
July 17, 2025
After reading the rather disappointing new translation by Kim Echlin, I happened to find a pristine first edition copy of this version which I had unfavorably compared it to. I can now reconfirm it: yes, this is the way to experience Inanna and her Cycle of stories.
Diane Wolkstein is not a Sumerologist but she had a Big Guy of em, Samuel N. Kramer, in constant collaboration and the result of the frequent asking him questions of a linguistic and philological character, documented briefly in the short introduction, has the result of a verse translation that is at once accurate to the Sumerian, edited thoroughly to both remove and keep repetition where it is an intentional storytelling tool (for this Wolkstein has an excellent eye), and thoroughly engaging and poetic entirely on its own terms, far above the stiffness of Echlin or the dedication to philological, tasteless translation of the ETCSL. The way the poems have been ordered and structured also make for an incredible linear narrative: this is, in brief, the way to experience these poems.
The only flaw with this book? It does not include other stories, presumably because Wolkstein deemed them outside of the strict "Cycle" which has a clear intentionality and continuity between the stories (i.e. Dumuzi's Dream is clearly related with the Descent of Inanna for there are textual similarities too strong to take as coincidence). This makes the book's narrative overwhelmingly tight, but it also makes the reader miss on other sides of Inanna present in other stories: the warrior Inanna of Inanna and Ebih and Akkadian Ishtar's reflection on the self and ecstatic dance in the Agushaya Hymn, the bizarre story of Dumuzi's murder in Inana and Bilulu, and perhaps above all, one that would've fit right here with Wolkstein's editorializing (a word about that in a minute), is a broken and fragmentary hymn where Inanna cries to Utu that she knows nothing of kissing and sex and men and begs him to take her to the mountains to initiate her by the eating of an herb from the trees there, a perfect cognate with the Garden of Eden (and a 1:1 parallel with Dumuzi's sexual initiation of his sister Geshtinanna, by showing her animals copulating in the mountains).
That lack, a purely negative fault i.e. of an absence rather than the presence of something bad, is genuinely the only flaw I can name on this book.
As for the essays after the Inanna narrative, the two ones by Kramer are perfectly fine but very simple and with nothing new if you've read a bit on the matter - it is nonetheless useful for the general public unacquainted with Sumerology. The second essay of his just seems to be a continuation, I noted, of a part of his Sumerian Mythology where he describes the arduous process of how the translation of Inanna's Descent that today everyone may read came about over decades and multiple countries.
Diane Wolkstein's long interpretative essay: I expected it to be bad, for she unironically quotes Robert Graves' The White Goddess of all things, potentially the least credible book on mythology yet written, in her introduction, but in actuality it is excellent. Although it deeps into Jungianism far too often for me, Wolkstein has an excellent storyteller's eye for spotting theme, parallelisms and character dynamics and makes points which seem to me entirely correct that I had never noticed before, i.e. that Gilgamesh's interactions with Inanna in the huluppu-tree tale are symbolically sexual which is why Utu refuses to help her when they are consistently shown as extremely close: as to not commit incest. She once again comments on an aspect I have previously commented on, namely that Inanna appears as the first shoujo manga-type brother-complex girlie with Utu - Wolkstein points out that Inanna, among her suitors, only picks Dumuzi when he compares himself to her brother, and there is the extremely close, borderline (or potentially actually since the ending is broken off) incestuous behavior they engage in.
She also pointed out the excellent parallels between Inanna losing everything willingly going down into the underworld, and Dumuzi equally progressively losing everything as terrible harpies and demons hunt him down and torture him. It is, in short, an excellent essay and very much worth reading for its excellent analysis of the narrative, despite my misgivings about the Jungianism that keeps popping up.
To conclude I'll just say this: I've always said that the Inanna Cycle is such a characteristically "young girl/woman" story (something Wolkstein points out in ways I had never noticed too) that you still find most of its patterns in the greatest of shoujo manga from the 90s, like Angel Sanctuary and its very Inanna-esque protagonist (kinda) Alexiel, or even Sailor Moon which likewise focus on a spoiled princess boycrazy teen girl that becomes a rather godlike celestial queen through much of the same beats and motifs. That a story this ancient can be so directly compared to stories this recent (and beloved), well, is that not most remarkable? Regrettably, no definitive edition of the full Inanna Cycle exists as of speaking, and it would take a quality translator of Sumerian who also knows his way around the mythology and history of ancient Mesopotamia, like Sophus Helle perhaps, but as of speaking, this is still the way to experience it and the finest literary rendering of the poems around. Diane Wolkstein gets full credit for the excellence of her translation and for the thoughtfulness of her ordering and editorializing of the poems into a narrative.
Diane Wolkstein is not a Sumerologist but she had a Big Guy of em, Samuel N. Kramer, in constant collaboration and the result of the frequent asking him questions of a linguistic and philological character, documented briefly in the short introduction, has the result of a verse translation that is at once accurate to the Sumerian, edited thoroughly to both remove and keep repetition where it is an intentional storytelling tool (for this Wolkstein has an excellent eye), and thoroughly engaging and poetic entirely on its own terms, far above the stiffness of Echlin or the dedication to philological, tasteless translation of the ETCSL. The way the poems have been ordered and structured also make for an incredible linear narrative: this is, in brief, the way to experience these poems.
The only flaw with this book? It does not include other stories, presumably because Wolkstein deemed them outside of the strict "Cycle" which has a clear intentionality and continuity between the stories (i.e. Dumuzi's Dream is clearly related with the Descent of Inanna for there are textual similarities too strong to take as coincidence). This makes the book's narrative overwhelmingly tight, but it also makes the reader miss on other sides of Inanna present in other stories: the warrior Inanna of Inanna and Ebih and Akkadian Ishtar's reflection on the self and ecstatic dance in the Agushaya Hymn, the bizarre story of Dumuzi's murder in Inana and Bilulu, and perhaps above all, one that would've fit right here with Wolkstein's editorializing (a word about that in a minute), is a broken and fragmentary hymn where Inanna cries to Utu that she knows nothing of kissing and sex and men and begs him to take her to the mountains to initiate her by the eating of an herb from the trees there, a perfect cognate with the Garden of Eden (and a 1:1 parallel with Dumuzi's sexual initiation of his sister Geshtinanna, by showing her animals copulating in the mountains).
That lack, a purely negative fault i.e. of an absence rather than the presence of something bad, is genuinely the only flaw I can name on this book.
As for the essays after the Inanna narrative, the two ones by Kramer are perfectly fine but very simple and with nothing new if you've read a bit on the matter - it is nonetheless useful for the general public unacquainted with Sumerology. The second essay of his just seems to be a continuation, I noted, of a part of his Sumerian Mythology where he describes the arduous process of how the translation of Inanna's Descent that today everyone may read came about over decades and multiple countries.
Diane Wolkstein's long interpretative essay: I expected it to be bad, for she unironically quotes Robert Graves' The White Goddess of all things, potentially the least credible book on mythology yet written, in her introduction, but in actuality it is excellent. Although it deeps into Jungianism far too often for me, Wolkstein has an excellent storyteller's eye for spotting theme, parallelisms and character dynamics and makes points which seem to me entirely correct that I had never noticed before, i.e. that Gilgamesh's interactions with Inanna in the huluppu-tree tale are symbolically sexual which is why Utu refuses to help her when they are consistently shown as extremely close: as to not commit incest. She once again comments on an aspect I have previously commented on, namely that Inanna appears as the first shoujo manga-type brother-complex girlie with Utu - Wolkstein points out that Inanna, among her suitors, only picks Dumuzi when he compares himself to her brother, and there is the extremely close, borderline (or potentially actually since the ending is broken off) incestuous behavior they engage in.
She also pointed out the excellent parallels between Inanna losing everything willingly going down into the underworld, and Dumuzi equally progressively losing everything as terrible harpies and demons hunt him down and torture him. It is, in short, an excellent essay and very much worth reading for its excellent analysis of the narrative, despite my misgivings about the Jungianism that keeps popping up.
To conclude I'll just say this: I've always said that the Inanna Cycle is such a characteristically "young girl/woman" story (something Wolkstein points out in ways I had never noticed too) that you still find most of its patterns in the greatest of shoujo manga from the 90s, like Angel Sanctuary and its very Inanna-esque protagonist (kinda) Alexiel, or even Sailor Moon which likewise focus on a spoiled princess boycrazy teen girl that becomes a rather godlike celestial queen through much of the same beats and motifs. That a story this ancient can be so directly compared to stories this recent (and beloved), well, is that not most remarkable? Regrettably, no definitive edition of the full Inanna Cycle exists as of speaking, and it would take a quality translator of Sumerian who also knows his way around the mythology and history of ancient Mesopotamia, like Sophus Helle perhaps, but as of speaking, this is still the way to experience it and the finest literary rendering of the poems around. Diane Wolkstein gets full credit for the excellence of her translation and for the thoughtfulness of her ordering and editorializing of the poems into a narrative.
Want to read
September 12, 2020There's a scanned copy here:
https://archive.org/details/input-com...
-- not as nice as the actual book, but it's all there, sfaict. I don't recommend trying their EPUB format, an OCR scanned copy that's full of scanning errors.
Sadly, our county library had a copy, but it's lost.
https://archive.org/details/input-com...
-- not as nice as the actual book, but it's all there, sfaict. I don't recommend trying their EPUB format, an OCR scanned copy that's full of scanning errors.
Sadly, our county library had a copy, but it's lost.
March 19, 2024
Creo que los comentarios de esta edición habría que cogerlos con pinzas, y sin duda hay formas más rigurosas de acercarse y acercar a otros los textos, pero para introducirse y empezar a leer no está nada mal.
October 11, 2025
This book was magnificent. The approach to ancient poetry in translation is never easy, but this book feels natural, organic, and easy to understand. The work avoids any unnecessary technical aspects while still providing thoroughly documented commentary and researched information. I loved reading the mythology here. I’m sad to be finished with it.
May 5, 2020
Excellent translation! The notes and analysis in the back of the book provide essential context.
August 30, 2021
This was beautiful. I love the use of repetition in Sumerian poetry. The translator did an excellent job as did the folklorist who compiled these poems together. My favourite part was the courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi.
November 11, 2021
I enjoy reading the thoughts and ideas which were formed thousands of years old. As well as the present book I have been reading Thucydides The Peloponnesian War, dealing with events taking place in the decades prior to 400 BCE. And I find it very readable; it is amazing to think that Thucydides was inventing most of these ways in which facts are presented as history.
This tale is over 4,000 years old, probably nearer to 5,000 years. It is not, in fact, a single story but a series of lyrical ballads collected and patched together during the last century and retold in modern language. I read most of this in Swedish as I found the translation, from English, generally good with an easy flow; and the book was available in Swedish at the library. I suspect ancient Sumerian was very different from both English and Swedish so there is probably not much to choose from there. Diane Wolkstein took the texts translated from Sumerian by Samuel Noah Kramer and "revised" them, pulling together fragments and in some cases adding missing blocks of text.
The ancient Sumerians were more brilliant than they knew. Instead of writing on papyrus or leather, for example, they wrote on clay tablets which did not rot and decay but hardened and preserved. Viewing the source materials for these texts I can but admire the scholars who not only learned a long dead language but learned a long dead system of writing which may be more or less permanent but seems to be very challenging to read. At the end of the book Diane Wolkstein interprets the texts she has revised, making a coherent story of the life of the goddess, from a young girl through a developing woman into motherhood and widowhood and adulthood. I'm not sure I really accept this. Gods and goddesses are usually static, with little if any growth. Then again, long back, way back, things may have been different and my modern interpretation defective, based on less ancient texts.
This is a deceptively simple story. The repetition of phrases with only slight variation lulls the reader into easy acquiescence of a tranquil tempo. But this is misleading. The most famous of these poems, and rightly so, is Inanna's Descent into the Underworld. Here is adventure, drama, devastating loss and a "eucatastrophe", Mr Tolkien's expression, a turn of events from the disastrous to its opposite, an unheralded escape and release from suffering. Not all suffering...
This story is based on 14 separate cuneiform tablets – fragments of tablets – some of which repeat parts of the tale already known from other fragments and some bring it along a bit further. As Mr Kramer points out in his introduction, the tale was not completed until late in the twentieth century. If indeed it is yet complete.
I have also read a different translation and found it less likeable and not terribly more creditable. There is a comparison below under the section Inanna's Descent to the Underworld
The Huluppu-Tree
"In the first days, in the very first days,
In the first nights, in the very first nights,
In the first years, in the very first years,
In the first days when everything needed was brought into being,
In the first days when everything needed was properly nourished,
When bread was baked in the shrines of the land,
And bread was tasted in the homes of the land,
When heaven had moved away from earth,
And Earth had separated from heaven,
And the name of man was fixed;
When the Sky God, An, had carried off the heavens,
And the Air God, Enlil, had carried off the earth,
When the Queen of the Great Below, Ereshkigal, was given the underworld for her domain..." p. 4
Inanna and the God of Wisdom
"...Inanna placed the shugurra, the crown of the steppe, on her head.
She went to the sheepfold, to the shepherd.
She leaned back against the apple tree.
When she leaned against the apple tree, her vulva was wondrous to behold.
Rejoicing at her wondrous vulva, the young woman Inanna applauded herself..." p. 12, s. 30
One of fundamental term, one not translated, is the word me. This is an exciting word, it describes the fundamentals necessary for civilization. These include hierarchies of religion and politics but also manners and morality and more. Me is very inclusive, some of its many aspects are these:
"...Then Inanna, standing before her father,
Acknowledged the me Enki had given to her:
'My father has given me the me:
He gave me the high priesthood.
He gave me godship.
He gave me the noble, enduring crown.
He gave me the throne of kingship...
He gave me truth.
He gave me descent into the underworld.
He gave me ascent from the underworld... p. 16 s.34
He gave me deceit.
He gave me the rebellious land.
He gave me the art of kindness.
He gave me travel.
He gave me the secure dwelling place... p. 17 s. 36
He gave me the kindling of strife.
He gave me counselling.
He gave me heart-soothing.
He gave me the giving of judgments.
He gave me the making of decisions." p.18 s. 37
Some of these seem peculiar – and not really necessary for building a civilization: "deceit", "the rebellious land", "the kindling of strife" for example. But we have also: "the art of kindness", "counselling", "heart-soothing". And we all desire "the secure dwelling place", and "travel" too.
The Courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi
The brother spoke to his younger sister.
The Sun God, Utu, spoke to Inanna, saying:
'Young Lady, the flax in its fullness is lovely.
Inanna, the grain is glistening in the furrow.
I will hoe it for you. I will bring it to you.
A piece of linen, big or small, is always needed.
Inanna, I will bring it to you.'
'Brother, after you've brought me the flax,
Who will comb it for me?'
'Inanna, I will bring it to you woven'...
'Utu, after you've brought it to me woven,
Who will bleach it for me?'
'Inanna, I will bring it to you bleached'... p. 31 s.48,49.
This was a long time ago, but handicrafts were already well developed.
All of these texts, in English, were retrieved from archive.org
Inanna's Descent to the Underworld
"From the great heaven she set her mind on the great below. From the great heaven the goddess set her mind on the great below. From the great heaven Inanna set her mind on the great below. My mistress abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld. Inanna abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld
She abandoned the office of en, abandoned the office of lagar, and descended to the underworld. She abandoned the E-ana in Unug, and descended to the underworld. She abandoned the E-muc-kalama in Bad-tibira, and descended to the underworld. She abandoned the Giguna in Zabalam and descended to the underworld...
She took the seven divine powers. She collected the divine powers and grasped them in her hand. With the good divine powers, she went on her way. She put a turban, headgear for the open country, on her head. She took a wig for her forehead. She hung small lapis-lazuli beads around her neck.
She placed twin egg-shaped beads on her breast. She covered her body with a pala dress, the garment of ladyship. She placed mascara which is called 'Let a man come, let him come' on her eyes. She pulled the pectoral which is called 'Come, man, come' over her breast. She placed a golden ring on her hand. She held the lapis-lazuli measuring rod and measuring line in her hand.
Inanna travelled towards the underworld..."
This was translated by? "Thunderwolf"? from the Inanna & Dumuzi Wordpress pages. I found the whole cycle of Inanna's story on this site. The translator is anonymous but seems to show authenticity. I may be wrong.
Compare the above with the translation by Noah Kramer and Diane Wolkstein:
"From the Great Above she opened her ear to the Great Below.
From the Great above the goddess opened her ear to the Great Below.
From the Great Above Inanna opened her ear to the Great Below.
My Lady abandoned heaven and earth to descend to the underworld.
Inanna abandoned heaven an earth to descend to the underworld.
She abandoned her office of holy priestess to descend to the underworld.
In Uruk she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld.
In Badtibira she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld.
In Zabalam she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld.
In Adab she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld..."
She gathered together the seven me.
She took them into her hands.
With the me in her possession, she prepared herself:
She placed the shugurra, the crown of the steppe, on her head,
She arranged the dark locks of hair across her forehead,
She tied the small lapis beads around her neck,
Let the double strand of beads fall to her breast,
And wrapped the royal robe around her body.
She daubed her eyes with ointment called "Let him Come, Let him come,"
Bound the breastplate called "Come, man, come!" across her chest,
Slipped the gold ring over her wrist,
And took the lapis measuring rod and line in her hand..." p. 52, 53 s. 68, 69.
There is considerable difference in these translations. Who got it right? Noah Kramer was an authority on ancient Sumerian and responsible for discovering and deciphering most of the pottery shards which form the basis of this book. Diane Wolkstein shows us her method in her Introduction when first meeting Noah Kramer:
"I arrived eager and full of questions:
'In the first line of The Descent of Inanna, "From the Great Above she set her mind to the Great Below," what exactly does "mind" mean?'
'Ear,' Kramer said.
'Ear?'
'Yes, the word for ear and wisdom in Sumerian are the same. But mind is what is meant.'
'But—I could say "ear"?'
'Well, you could.'
'Is it opened her ear or set her ear?'
'Set. Set her ear, like a donkey that sets its ear at a particular sound.'
As Kramer spoke, a shiver ran through me. When taken literally, the text itself announces the story's direction: From the Great Above the goddess opened (set) her ear, her receptor for wisdom, to the Great Below..." p. xvi, xvii
Dumuzi's Dream
Dumuzi raised his arms to heaven, to Utu, the God of Justice,
and cried out:
'O Utu, you are my brother-in-law,
I am the husband of you sister.
I am the one who carried food to the holy shrine.
I am the one who brought wedding gifts to Uruk.
I kissed the holy lips,
I danced on the holy knees, the knees of Inanna. p. 81 s. 96,97
"Rise, Dumuzi!
Husband of Inanna, son of Sirtur, brother of Geshtinanna"
Rise from your false sleep!
Your ewes are seized! Your lambs are seized!
Your goats are seized! Your kids are seized!...
Naked, you go with us!"
The churn was silent. No milk was poured.
The cup was shattered. Dumuzi was no more.
The sheepfold was given to the winds. p.83, 84 s.99
from Seven Hymns to Innana Loud Thundering Storm
"Your frightful cry descending from the heavens devours its victims.
Your quivering hand causes the midday heat to hover over the sea.
Your night-time stalking of the heavens chills the land with its dark breeze.
Holy Inanna, the riverbanks overflow with the flood-waves of your heart...
On the seventh day when the crescent moon reaches its fullness,
You bathe and sprinkle your face with holy water.
You cover your body with the long woollen garments of queenship.
You fasten combat and battle to your side;
You tie them into a girdle and let them rest... p. 95, 96 s. 119, 110.
Between the first and last verses above there is a gap. Ms Wolkstein writes:
"In the first twelve lines, all that is mysterious, awesome, and beyond human control or knowledge – both in the external world of the raging storm and in the internal world of the emotions of the heart – is likened to the persona of Inanna.
Unfortunately, the fifty lines that connect the passionate, destructive, troubled Inanna to the composed, magnanimous, and all-knowing Inanna are not decipherable. When the text begins again fifty lines later, 'the crescent moon reaches its fullness.' The implicit comparison between the wild, terrifying Inanna and the dark of the moon suggests that they were both accepted and viewed by the Sumerian as mysterious, awesome, and uncontrollable parts of life. Yet both in heaven and on earth, dark and frightening moments are followed by calm and order: the moon in the heavens grows, lessens, disappears, but then takes its form on the seventh day of each month..." p. 170
There is some confusion astronomically. The fullness of the crescent moon? Apparently this is what astronomers call the "first quarter" which is actually a half moon.
Ms Wolkstein is apparently unaware of the peculiarities of viewing the planet Venus. Inanna is the goddess of earth and heaven, and particularly the planet Venus, the brightest celestial object after the sun and moon. But the hymns The Lady of the Evening and The Lady of the Morning do not refer to Inanna as showing herself twice a day.
Some ancient cultures, including the Greeks, but not the Sumerians, considered Venus to be two planets as it was sometimes visible as the morning star before the rising of the sun while months later it would appear as the evening star becoming visible after sundown.
From Wikipedia: "the ancient Sumerians already knew that the morning and evening stars were the same celestial object. In the Old Babylonian period, the planet Venus was known as Ninsi'anna, and later as Dilbat. The name "Ninsi'anna" translates to 'divine lady, illumination of heaven', which refers to Venus as the brightest visible 'star'." And to Inanna, of course.
The Lady of the Morning
Honoured Counsellor, Ornament of Heaven, Joy of An!
When sweet sleep has ended in the bedchamber,
You appear like bright daylight.
When all the lands and the people of Sumer assemble,
Those sleeping on the roofs and those sleeping by the walls,
When they sing your praises, bringing their concerns to you,
You study their words...
My Lady looks in sweet wonder from heaven.
The people of Sumer parade before the holy Inanna.
Inanna, the Lady of the Morning, is radiant.
I sing your praises, holy Inanna.
The Lady of the Morning is radiant on the horizon.
For those of us privileged to have lived in warmer climes, sleeping on the roof on a hot night is a desire devoutly to be wished, perhaps falling asleep watching Venus follow the sun into the west, or contrariwise, watching the stars wheeling overhead until Venus, the harbinger of morning, appears.
This tale is over 4,000 years old, probably nearer to 5,000 years. It is not, in fact, a single story but a series of lyrical ballads collected and patched together during the last century and retold in modern language. I read most of this in Swedish as I found the translation, from English, generally good with an easy flow; and the book was available in Swedish at the library. I suspect ancient Sumerian was very different from both English and Swedish so there is probably not much to choose from there. Diane Wolkstein took the texts translated from Sumerian by Samuel Noah Kramer and "revised" them, pulling together fragments and in some cases adding missing blocks of text.
The ancient Sumerians were more brilliant than they knew. Instead of writing on papyrus or leather, for example, they wrote on clay tablets which did not rot and decay but hardened and preserved. Viewing the source materials for these texts I can but admire the scholars who not only learned a long dead language but learned a long dead system of writing which may be more or less permanent but seems to be very challenging to read. At the end of the book Diane Wolkstein interprets the texts she has revised, making a coherent story of the life of the goddess, from a young girl through a developing woman into motherhood and widowhood and adulthood. I'm not sure I really accept this. Gods and goddesses are usually static, with little if any growth. Then again, long back, way back, things may have been different and my modern interpretation defective, based on less ancient texts.
This is a deceptively simple story. The repetition of phrases with only slight variation lulls the reader into easy acquiescence of a tranquil tempo. But this is misleading. The most famous of these poems, and rightly so, is Inanna's Descent into the Underworld. Here is adventure, drama, devastating loss and a "eucatastrophe", Mr Tolkien's expression, a turn of events from the disastrous to its opposite, an unheralded escape and release from suffering. Not all suffering...
This story is based on 14 separate cuneiform tablets – fragments of tablets – some of which repeat parts of the tale already known from other fragments and some bring it along a bit further. As Mr Kramer points out in his introduction, the tale was not completed until late in the twentieth century. If indeed it is yet complete.
I have also read a different translation and found it less likeable and not terribly more creditable. There is a comparison below under the section Inanna's Descent to the Underworld
The Huluppu-Tree
"In the first days, in the very first days,
In the first nights, in the very first nights,
In the first years, in the very first years,
In the first days when everything needed was brought into being,
In the first days when everything needed was properly nourished,
When bread was baked in the shrines of the land,
And bread was tasted in the homes of the land,
When heaven had moved away from earth,
And Earth had separated from heaven,
And the name of man was fixed;
When the Sky God, An, had carried off the heavens,
And the Air God, Enlil, had carried off the earth,
When the Queen of the Great Below, Ereshkigal, was given the underworld for her domain..." p. 4
Inanna and the God of Wisdom
"...Inanna placed the shugurra, the crown of the steppe, on her head.
She went to the sheepfold, to the shepherd.
She leaned back against the apple tree.
When she leaned against the apple tree, her vulva was wondrous to behold.
Rejoicing at her wondrous vulva, the young woman Inanna applauded herself..." p. 12, s. 30
One of fundamental term, one not translated, is the word me. This is an exciting word, it describes the fundamentals necessary for civilization. These include hierarchies of religion and politics but also manners and morality and more. Me is very inclusive, some of its many aspects are these:
"...Then Inanna, standing before her father,
Acknowledged the me Enki had given to her:
'My father has given me the me:
He gave me the high priesthood.
He gave me godship.
He gave me the noble, enduring crown.
He gave me the throne of kingship...
He gave me truth.
He gave me descent into the underworld.
He gave me ascent from the underworld... p. 16 s.34
He gave me deceit.
He gave me the rebellious land.
He gave me the art of kindness.
He gave me travel.
He gave me the secure dwelling place... p. 17 s. 36
He gave me the kindling of strife.
He gave me counselling.
He gave me heart-soothing.
He gave me the giving of judgments.
He gave me the making of decisions." p.18 s. 37
Some of these seem peculiar – and not really necessary for building a civilization: "deceit", "the rebellious land", "the kindling of strife" for example. But we have also: "the art of kindness", "counselling", "heart-soothing". And we all desire "the secure dwelling place", and "travel" too.
The Courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi
The brother spoke to his younger sister.
The Sun God, Utu, spoke to Inanna, saying:
'Young Lady, the flax in its fullness is lovely.
Inanna, the grain is glistening in the furrow.
I will hoe it for you. I will bring it to you.
A piece of linen, big or small, is always needed.
Inanna, I will bring it to you.'
'Brother, after you've brought me the flax,
Who will comb it for me?'
'Inanna, I will bring it to you woven'...
'Utu, after you've brought it to me woven,
Who will bleach it for me?'
'Inanna, I will bring it to you bleached'... p. 31 s.48,49.
This was a long time ago, but handicrafts were already well developed.
All of these texts, in English, were retrieved from archive.org
Inanna's Descent to the Underworld
"From the great heaven she set her mind on the great below. From the great heaven the goddess set her mind on the great below. From the great heaven Inanna set her mind on the great below. My mistress abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld. Inanna abandoned heaven, abandoned earth, and descended to the underworld
She abandoned the office of en, abandoned the office of lagar, and descended to the underworld. She abandoned the E-ana in Unug, and descended to the underworld. She abandoned the E-muc-kalama in Bad-tibira, and descended to the underworld. She abandoned the Giguna in Zabalam and descended to the underworld...
She took the seven divine powers. She collected the divine powers and grasped them in her hand. With the good divine powers, she went on her way. She put a turban, headgear for the open country, on her head. She took a wig for her forehead. She hung small lapis-lazuli beads around her neck.
She placed twin egg-shaped beads on her breast. She covered her body with a pala dress, the garment of ladyship. She placed mascara which is called 'Let a man come, let him come' on her eyes. She pulled the pectoral which is called 'Come, man, come' over her breast. She placed a golden ring on her hand. She held the lapis-lazuli measuring rod and measuring line in her hand.
Inanna travelled towards the underworld..."
This was translated by? "Thunderwolf"? from the Inanna & Dumuzi Wordpress pages. I found the whole cycle of Inanna's story on this site. The translator is anonymous but seems to show authenticity. I may be wrong.
Compare the above with the translation by Noah Kramer and Diane Wolkstein:
"From the Great Above she opened her ear to the Great Below.
From the Great above the goddess opened her ear to the Great Below.
From the Great Above Inanna opened her ear to the Great Below.
My Lady abandoned heaven and earth to descend to the underworld.
Inanna abandoned heaven an earth to descend to the underworld.
She abandoned her office of holy priestess to descend to the underworld.
In Uruk she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld.
In Badtibira she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld.
In Zabalam she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld.
In Adab she abandoned her temple to descend to the underworld..."
She gathered together the seven me.
She took them into her hands.
With the me in her possession, she prepared herself:
She placed the shugurra, the crown of the steppe, on her head,
She arranged the dark locks of hair across her forehead,
She tied the small lapis beads around her neck,
Let the double strand of beads fall to her breast,
And wrapped the royal robe around her body.
She daubed her eyes with ointment called "Let him Come, Let him come,"
Bound the breastplate called "Come, man, come!" across her chest,
Slipped the gold ring over her wrist,
And took the lapis measuring rod and line in her hand..." p. 52, 53 s. 68, 69.
There is considerable difference in these translations. Who got it right? Noah Kramer was an authority on ancient Sumerian and responsible for discovering and deciphering most of the pottery shards which form the basis of this book. Diane Wolkstein shows us her method in her Introduction when first meeting Noah Kramer:
"I arrived eager and full of questions:
'In the first line of The Descent of Inanna, "From the Great Above she set her mind to the Great Below," what exactly does "mind" mean?'
'Ear,' Kramer said.
'Ear?'
'Yes, the word for ear and wisdom in Sumerian are the same. But mind is what is meant.'
'But—I could say "ear"?'
'Well, you could.'
'Is it opened her ear or set her ear?'
'Set. Set her ear, like a donkey that sets its ear at a particular sound.'
As Kramer spoke, a shiver ran through me. When taken literally, the text itself announces the story's direction: From the Great Above the goddess opened (set) her ear, her receptor for wisdom, to the Great Below..." p. xvi, xvii
Dumuzi's Dream
Dumuzi raised his arms to heaven, to Utu, the God of Justice,
and cried out:
'O Utu, you are my brother-in-law,
I am the husband of you sister.
I am the one who carried food to the holy shrine.
I am the one who brought wedding gifts to Uruk.
I kissed the holy lips,
I danced on the holy knees, the knees of Inanna. p. 81 s. 96,97
"Rise, Dumuzi!
Husband of Inanna, son of Sirtur, brother of Geshtinanna"
Rise from your false sleep!
Your ewes are seized! Your lambs are seized!
Your goats are seized! Your kids are seized!...
Naked, you go with us!"
The churn was silent. No milk was poured.
The cup was shattered. Dumuzi was no more.
The sheepfold was given to the winds. p.83, 84 s.99
from Seven Hymns to Innana Loud Thundering Storm
"Your frightful cry descending from the heavens devours its victims.
Your quivering hand causes the midday heat to hover over the sea.
Your night-time stalking of the heavens chills the land with its dark breeze.
Holy Inanna, the riverbanks overflow with the flood-waves of your heart...
On the seventh day when the crescent moon reaches its fullness,
You bathe and sprinkle your face with holy water.
You cover your body with the long woollen garments of queenship.
You fasten combat and battle to your side;
You tie them into a girdle and let them rest... p. 95, 96 s. 119, 110.
Between the first and last verses above there is a gap. Ms Wolkstein writes:
"In the first twelve lines, all that is mysterious, awesome, and beyond human control or knowledge – both in the external world of the raging storm and in the internal world of the emotions of the heart – is likened to the persona of Inanna.
Unfortunately, the fifty lines that connect the passionate, destructive, troubled Inanna to the composed, magnanimous, and all-knowing Inanna are not decipherable. When the text begins again fifty lines later, 'the crescent moon reaches its fullness.' The implicit comparison between the wild, terrifying Inanna and the dark of the moon suggests that they were both accepted and viewed by the Sumerian as mysterious, awesome, and uncontrollable parts of life. Yet both in heaven and on earth, dark and frightening moments are followed by calm and order: the moon in the heavens grows, lessens, disappears, but then takes its form on the seventh day of each month..." p. 170
There is some confusion astronomically. The fullness of the crescent moon? Apparently this is what astronomers call the "first quarter" which is actually a half moon.
Ms Wolkstein is apparently unaware of the peculiarities of viewing the planet Venus. Inanna is the goddess of earth and heaven, and particularly the planet Venus, the brightest celestial object after the sun and moon. But the hymns The Lady of the Evening and The Lady of the Morning do not refer to Inanna as showing herself twice a day.
Some ancient cultures, including the Greeks, but not the Sumerians, considered Venus to be two planets as it was sometimes visible as the morning star before the rising of the sun while months later it would appear as the evening star becoming visible after sundown.
From Wikipedia: "the ancient Sumerians already knew that the morning and evening stars were the same celestial object. In the Old Babylonian period, the planet Venus was known as Ninsi'anna, and later as Dilbat. The name "Ninsi'anna" translates to 'divine lady, illumination of heaven', which refers to Venus as the brightest visible 'star'." And to Inanna, of course.
The Lady of the Morning
Honoured Counsellor, Ornament of Heaven, Joy of An!
When sweet sleep has ended in the bedchamber,
You appear like bright daylight.
When all the lands and the people of Sumer assemble,
Those sleeping on the roofs and those sleeping by the walls,
When they sing your praises, bringing their concerns to you,
You study their words...
My Lady looks in sweet wonder from heaven.
The people of Sumer parade before the holy Inanna.
Inanna, the Lady of the Morning, is radiant.
I sing your praises, holy Inanna.
The Lady of the Morning is radiant on the horizon.
For those of us privileged to have lived in warmer climes, sleeping on the roof on a hot night is a desire devoutly to be wished, perhaps falling asleep watching Venus follow the sun into the west, or contrariwise, watching the stars wheeling overhead until Venus, the harbinger of morning, appears.
July 24, 2022
Really loved this. Loved the translations (from a listener/reader perspective, no clue as to the accuracy) and the photo illustration selections and how well they went with the text. I feel as if the door has finally cracked to let me in, just a little, to the light of this glorious Goddess.
August 26, 2018
As someone with very little understanding of Sumerian mythology and religion, this was definitely an interesting introduction. I think I would've liked it if the analysis and context sections after the translated stories and hymns was longer, though.
June 14, 2022
the young woman who loved to laugh wept
oh how she wept!
(yet they would not leave her tree)
oh how she wept!
(yet they would not leave her tree)
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