Chapter 8

When Ishtar, Queen of Love, from Earth had flown, With her love fled, and left all nature prone; From Earth all peace with love then fled amain. In loneliness the bull stalked o'er the plain, And tossed his drooping crest toward the sky, In sadness lay upon the green to die; On the far kine looked weary and bereaved, And turned toward the gods, and wondering grieved. The troubled kine then gravely chewed their cud, And hungerless in the rich pastures stood. The ass his mate abandoned, fled away, And loveless wives then cursed the direful day; And loving husbands kiss their wives no more, And doves their cooing ceased, and separate soar; And love then died in all the breasts of men, And strife supreme on earth was reveling then.

The sexes of mankind their wars divide, And women hate all men, and them deride; And some demented hurl aside their gowns, And queens their robes discard and jewelled crowns, And rush upon the streets bereft of shame, Their forms expose, and all the gods defame. Alas! from earth the Queen of Love has gone, And lovers 'void their haunts with faces wan And spurn from them the hateful thought of love, For love no longer reigns, all life to move. An awful thrill now speeds through Hades' doors, And shakes with horror all the dismal floors; A wail upon the breeze through space doth fly, And howling gales sweep madly through the sky; Through all the universe there speeds a pang Of travail. Mam-nu-tu[1] appalled doth hang Upon her blackened pinions in the air, And piteous from her path leads Black Despair, "The queen in chains in Hades dying lies, And life with her," they cry, "forever dies!" Through misty glades and darkened depths of space, Tornadoes roar her fate to Earth's sweet face; The direful tidings from far Hades pour Upon her bosom with their saddest roar; Like moans of mighty powers in misery, They bring the tale with awful minstrelsy. And Earth her mists wrapped round her face in woe, While icy pangs through all her breast deep flow. Her bosom sobbing wails a mighty moan, "Alas! forever my sweet queen hath flown!" With shrieks of hurricane, and ocean's groan, And sobbing of the winds through heights unknown, Through mountain gorges sweep her wails of woe, Through every land and seas, her sorrows flow: Oh, moan! oh, moan! dear mountains, lakes, and seas! Oh, weep with me dear plants, and flowers, and trees! Alas! my beauty fading now will die! Oh, weep, ye stars, for me in every sky! Oh, Samas, hide thy face! I am undone! Oh, weep with me Ur-ru,[2] my precious son. Let all your notes of joy, my birds, be stilled; Your mother's heart with dread despair is filled:

"Come back, my flowerets, with your fragrant dews; Come, all my beauties, with your brightest hues; Come back, my plants and buds and youngling shoots! Within your mother's bosom hide your roots. Oh, children, children! Love hath fled away, Alas! that life I gave should see this day! Your queen lies dying in her awful woe, Oh, why should she from us to Hades go?"

Wide Nature felt her woe, and ceased to spring, And withered buds their vigor lost, and fling No more their fragrance to the lifeless air; The fruit-trees died, or barren ceased to bear; The male plants kiss their female plants no more; And pollen on the winds no longer soar To carry their caresses to the seed Of waiting hearts that unavailing bleed, Until they fold their petals in despair, And dying, drop to earth, and wither there. The growing grain no longer fills its head, The fairest fields of corn lie blasted, dead. All Nature mourning dons her sad attire, And plants and trees with falling leaves expire. And Samas' light and moon-god's soothing rays Earth's love no more attracts; recurring days Are shortened by a blackness deep profound That rises higher as the days come round. At last their light flees from the darkened skies, The last faint gleam now passes, slowly dies. Upon a blasted world, dread darkness falls, O'er dying nature, crumbling cities' walls. Volcanoes' fires are now the only light, Where pale-faced men collect around in fright; With fearful cries the lurid air they rend, To all the gods their wild petitions send.

[Footnote 1: "Mam-nu-tu," goddess of fate.]

[Footnote 2: "Ur-ru," the moon-god.]

COLUMN III

PAPSUKUL, THE GOD OF HOPE, AND HERALD OF THE GODS, FLIES FROM THE EARTH AND INTERCEDES FOR THE RELEASE OF ISHTAR, AND HEA GRANTS HIS PRAYER

O Hope! thou fleeting pleasure of the mind, Forever with us stay, our hearts to bind! We cling to thee till life has fled away; Our dearest phantom, ever with us stay! Without thee, we have naught but dread despair, The worst of all our torments with us here; Oh, come with thy soft pinions, o'er us shine! And we will worship thee, a god divine: The _ignis fatuus_ of all our skies That grandly leads us, vanishes and dies, And we are left to grope in darkness here, Without a ray of light our lives to cheer. Oh, stay! sweet Love's companion, ever stay! And let us hope with love upon our way! We reck not if a phantom thou hast been, And we repent that we have ever seen Thy light on earth to lead us far astray; Forever stay! or ever keep away!

When Papsukul beheld in man's abodes The change that spread o'er blasted, lifeless clods, And heard earth's wailing through the waning light, With vegetation passing out of sight, From the doomed world to Heaven he quickly flies, While from the earth are rising fearful cries. To Samas' throne he speeds with flowing tears, And of the future dark he pours his fears. To Sin, the moon-god, Pap-su-kul now cries O'er Ishtar's fate, who in black Hades lies; O'er Earth's dire end, which with Queen Ishtar dies; To Hea he appeals with mournful cries:

"O Hea, our Creator, God and King! Queen Ishtar now is lying prone. To Earth, our godly queen again, oh, bring! I trust thy love, O Holy One! To all the gods who reign o'er us on high I pray! thus Hope thine aid implores, Release our queen! To Hades quickly fly! Thy Pap-su-kul with faith adores.

"The bull hath left the lowing kine bereaved, And sulking dies in solitude; The ass hath fled away, his mates hath grieved, And women are no more imbued With love, and drive their husbands far away, And wives enjoy not their caress; All peace and love have gone from earth this day, And love on earth knows not its bliss.

"The females die through all the living world, Among all beasts, and men, and plants; All love from them on earth have madly hurled, For blissful love no more each pants; And Samas' light is turned away from Earth, And left alone volcanoes' fire; The land is filled with pestilence and dearth, All life on earth will soon expire."

When Hea heard the solemn chant of Hope, From his high throne he let his sceptre drop, And cried: "And thus, I rule o'er all mankind! For this, I gave them life, immortal mind; To earth's relief, my herald shall quick go, I hear thy prayer, and song of Ishtar's woe."

"Go! At-su-su-namir, with thy bright head! With all thy light spring forth! and quickly speed; Towards the gates of Hades, turn thy face! And quickly fly for me through yonder space. Before thy presence may the seven gates Of Hades open with their gloomy grates; May Allat's face rejoice before thy sight, Her rage be soothed, her heart filled with delight; But conjure her by all the godly names, And fearless be,--towards the roaring streams Incline thine ear, and seek the path there spread. Release Queen Ishtar! raise her godly head! And sprinkle her with water from the stream; Her purify! a cup filled to the brim Place to her lips that she may drink it all. The herald as a meteor doth fall, With blazing fire disparts the hanging gloom Around the gates of that dark world of doom."

COLUMN IV

RELEASE OF ISHTAR--HER ATTEMPTS TO BRING TO LIFE TAMMUZ, HER FIRST LOVER

When Allat saw the flaming herald come, And his bright light dispelling all her gloom, She beat her breast; and at him furious foams In rage, and stamping shakes all Hades' domes, Thus cursed the herald, At-su-su-namir: "Away! thou herald! or I'll chain thee here In my dark vaults, and throw thee for thy food The city's garbage, which has stagnant stood, With impure waters for thy daily drink, And lodge thee in my prison till you sink From life impaled in yonder dismal room Of torture; to thy fate so thou hast come? Thine offspring with starvation I will strike!"

At last obedient doth Allat speak: "Go, Namtar! and the iron palace strike! O'er Asherim[1] adorned let the dawn break! And seat the spirits on their thrones of gold! Let Ishtar Life's bright waters then behold, And drink her fill, and bring her then to me; From her imprisonment, I send her free." And Namtar then goes through the palace walls, And flings the light through all the darkened halls, And places all the spirits on their thrones, Leads Ishtar to the waters near the cones. She drinks the sparkling water now with joy, Which all her form doth cleanse and purify. And he at the first gate her robe returns, And leads her through the second; where he turns, And gives her bracelets back;--thus at each door Returns to her her girdle, gems; then o'er Her queenly brow he placed her shining crown. With all her ornaments that were her own, She stands with pride before the seventh gate, And Namtar bows to her in solemn state:

"Thou hast no ransom to our queen here paid For thy deliverance, yet thou hast said Thy Tammuz thou didst seek within our walls, Turn back! and thou wilt find him in these halls. To bring him back to life the waters pour Upon him; they thy Tammuz will restore; With robes thou mayst adorn him and a crown Of jewels, and thy maid with thee alone Shall give thee comfort and appease thy grief. Kharimtu, Samkha come to thy relief!"

Now Ishtar lifts her eyes within a room Prepared for her, and sees her maidens come, Before a weird procession wrapped in palls, That soundless glide within and fills the halls. Before her now they place a sable bier Beside the fount; and Ishtar, drawing near, Raised the white pall from Tammuz's perfect form. The clay unconscious, had that mystic charm Of Beauty sleeping sweetly on his face,-- Of agony or sorrow left no trace: But, oh! that awful wound of death was there With its deep mark;--the wound, and not the scar.

When Ishtar's eyes beheld it, all her grief Broke forth afresh, refusing all relief; She smote her breast in woe, and moaning cried, Nor the bright waters to his wound applied: "O Tammuz! Tammuz! turn thine eyes on me! Thy queen thou didst adorn, before thee see! Behold the emeralds and diamond crown Thou gavest me when I became thine own! Alas! he answers not: and must I mourn Forever o'er my love within this bourne? But, oh! the waters from this glowing stream! Perhaps those eyes on me with love will beam, And I shall hear again his song of love. Oh, quickly let these waters to me prove Their claim to banish death with magic power!"

Then with her maids, she o'er his form doth pour The sparkling drops of life-- "He moves! he lives! What happiness is this my heart receives? O come, my Tammuz! to my loving arms!"

And on breast his breathing form she warms; With wondering eyes he stares upon his queen, And nestling closed his eyes in bliss again.

[Footnote 1: "Asherim," literally "stone stakes" or "cones," the symbols of the goddess Asherah or Ishtar (Sayce), but Calmet says that the god Ashima is a deity of very uncertain origin, and that the name "Ashima" may be very well compared with the Persian "asuman" ("heaven"); in "Zend," "acmano," so Gesenius in his Man. Lex., 1832. This also, according to the magi, is the name of the angel of death, who separates the souls of men from their bodies, Cal. Dic., p. 106. Cones are to be seen in the British Museum which are probably of the character which represented Elah-Gabalah, the sun-god, adored in Rome during the reign of Heliogabalus. The symbol and worship came from Hamath in Syria.]

COLUMN V

TAMMUZ IS RESTORED TO LIFE BY THE WATERS OF LIFE--HIS SONG OF LOVE

The nectared cup the queen placed to his lips, And o'er his heaving breast the nectar drips, And now his arms are folded round his queen, And her fond kisses he returns again; And see! they bring to him his harp of gold, And from its strings, sweet music as of old His skilful hands wake through the sounding domes; Oh, how his Song of Love wakes those dark rooms!

"My Queen of Love comes to my arms! Her faithful eyes have sought for me, My Love comes to me with her charms; Let all the world now happy be! My queen has come again!

Forever, dearest, let me rest Upon the bosom of my queen! Thy lips of love are honeyed best; Come! let us fly to bowering green! To our sweet bower again.

O Love on Earth! O Love in Heaven! That dearest gift which gods have given, Through all my soul let it be driven, And make my heart its dearest haven, For Love returns the kiss!

Oh! let me pillow there within Thy breast, and, oh, so sweetly rest, My life anew shall there begin; On thy sweet charms, oh, let me feast! Life knows no sweeter bliss.

Oh, let me feast upon thy lips, As honey-bird the nectar sips, And drink new rapture through my lips, As honey-bee its head thus drips In nectarine abyss!

O Love, sweet queen! my heart is thine! My Life I clasp within mine arms! My fondest charmer, queen divine! My soul surrenders to thy charms, In bliss would fly away.

No dearer joy than this I want; If love is banished from that life There bodyless, my soul would pant, And pine away in hopeless grief, If love be fled away.

If Love should hide and fold her wings In bowers of yonder gleaming skies, Unmeaning then each bard oft sings Of bliss that lives on earth and dies,-- I want such love as this.

I want thy form, thy loving breast, Mine arms of love surrounding thee, And on thy bosom sweetly rest, Or else that world were dead to me. No other life is bliss.

If it is thus, my queen, I go With joy to yonder blissful clime; But if not so, then let me flow To soil and streams through changing time, To me would be more bliss.

For then, in blooming flowerets, I Could earth adorn, my soul delight, And never thus on earth could die; For though I should be hid from sight, Would spring again with joy!

And sing as some sweet warbling bird, Or in the breezes wave as grain, As yellow sun-birds there have whirred On earth, could I thus live again, That beauteous world enjoy!

'Mid safflower-fields or waving cane, Or in the honeysuckles lie, In forms of life would breathe again, Enjoy Earth's sweetest revelry, And ever spring again!

Each life to me new joys would bring, In breast of beast or bird or flower, In each new form new joys would spring, And happy, ever, Love would soar! Triumphant filled with joy!

In jujube or tamarisk Perhaps would come to life again, Or in the form of fawns would frisk 'Mid violets upon the plain; But I should live again!

And throb beneath the glistening dew, In bamboo tufts, or mango-trees, In lotus bloom, and spring anew, In rose-tree bud, or such as these On Earth return again!

And I should learn to love my mate, In beast or singing bird or flower, For kiss of love in hope could wait; Perhaps I then would come that hour, In form I have again!

And love you say, my queen, is there, Where I can breathe with life anew? But is it so? My Love, beware! For some things oft are false, some true, But I thee trust again!

We fly away! from gates away! Oh, life of bliss! Oh, breath of balm! With wings we tread the Silver Way, To trailing vines and feathery palm, To bower of love again."

COLUMN VI

ESCAPE OF TAMMUZ FROM HADES--HIS DEATH IN THE CLOUDS--FUNERAL PROCESSION OF THE GODS--ISHTAR'S ELEGY OVER THE DEATH OF TAMMUZ--HIS REVIVAL IN HADES, WHERE HE IS CROWNED AS THE LORD OF HADES--ISHTAR'S RETURN BRINGS LIGHT AND LOVE BACK TO EARTH.

But see! they pass from those dark gates and walls, And fly upon the breeze from Hades' halls, Hark! hark! the sounding harp is stilled! it falls From Tammuz's hands! Oh, how its wailing calls To you bright _zi-ni_[1] flying through the skies, See! one sweet spirit of the wind swift flies And grasps the wailing harp before it ends Its wail of woe, and now beneath it bends, With silent pinions listening to its strings, Wild sobbing on the winds;--with wailing rings The conscious harp, and trembles in her hands. A rush of pinions comes from myriad lands, With moanings sends afar the awful tale, And mourners brings with every whispering gale. And see! the queen's companion fainting sinks! She lays him on that cloud with fleecy brinks! And oh! his life is ebbing fast away! She wildly falls upon his breast, and gray Her face becomes with bitter agony. She tearless kneels, wrapt in her misery And now upon his breast she lays her head, With tears that gods, alas! with men must shed; She turning, sobs to her sweet waiting maids, Who weeping o'er her stand with bended heads: "Assemble, oh, my maids, in mourning here, The gods! and spirits of the earth bring near!"

They come! they come! three hundred spirits high, The heavenly spirits come! the I-gi-gi! From Heaven's streams and mouths and plains and vales, And gods by thousands on the wings of gales. The spirits of the earth, An-un-na-ci, Now join around their sisters of the sky. Hark! hear her weeping to the heavenly throng, Imploring them to chant their mournful song:

"With your gold lyres, the dirge, oh, sing with me! And moan with me, with your sweet melody; With swelling notes, as zephyrs softly wail, And cry with me as sobbing of the gale. O Earth! dear Earth! oh, wail with thy dead trees! With sounds of mountain torrents, moaning seas! And spirits of the lakes, and streams, and vales, And Zi-ku-ri of mountains' trackless trail, Join our bright legions with your queen! Oh, weep With your sad tears, dear spirits of the deep! Let all the mournful sounds of earth be heard, The breeze hath carried stored from beast and bird; Join the sweet notes of doves for their lost love To the wild moans of hours,--wailing move; Let choirs of Heaven and of the earth then peal, All living beings my dread sorrow feel! Oh, come with saddest, weirdest melody, Join earth and sky in one sweet threnody!"

Ten thousand times ten thousand now in line, In all the panoplies of gods divine; A million crowns are shining in the light, A million sceptres, robes of purest white! Ten thousand harps and lutes and golden lyres Are waiting now to start the Heavenly choirs.

And lo! a chariot from Heaven comes, While halves rise from yonder sapphire domes; A chariot incrusted with bright gems, A blaze of glory shines from diadems. See! in the car the queen o'er Tammuz bends, And nearer the procession slowly wends, Her regal diadem with tears is dimmed; And her bright form by sorrow is redeemed To sweeter, holier beauty in her woe; Her tears a halo form and brighter flow.

Caparisoned with pearls, ten milk-white steeds Are harnessed to her chariot that leads; On snow-white swans beside her ride her maids, They come! through yonder silver cloudy glades! Behind her chariot ten sovereigns ride; Behind them comes all Heaven's lofty pride, On pale white steeds, the chargers of the skies. The clouds of snowy pinions rustling rise! But hark! what is that strain of melody That fills our souls with grandest euphony? Hear how it swells and dies upon the breeze! To softest whisper of the leaves of trees; Then sweeter, grander, nobler, sweeping comes, Like myriad lyres that peal through Heaven's domes. But, oh! how sad and sweet the notes now come! Like music of the spheres that softly hum; It rises, falls, with measured melody, With saddest notes and mournful symphony. From all the universe sad notes repeat With doleful strains of woe transcendent, sweet; Hush! hear the song! my throbbing heart be still! The songs of gods above the heavens fill!

"Oh, weep with your sweet tears, and mourning chant, O'er this dread loss of Heaven's queen. With her, O sisters, join your sweetest plaint O'er our dear Tammuz, Tammuz slain. Come, all ye spirits, with your drooping wings, No more to us sweet joy he brings; Ah, me, my brother![2]

Oh, weep! oh, weep! ye spirits of the air, Oh, weep! oh, weep! An-un-na-ci! Our own dear queen is filled with dread despair. Oh, pour your tears, dear earth and sky, Oh, weep with bitter tears, O dear Sedu, O'er fearful deeds of Nin-azu; Ah, me, my brother!

Let joy be stilled! and every hope be dead! And tears alone our hearts distil. My love has gone!--to darkness he has fled; Dread sorrow's cup for us, oh, fill! And weep for Tammuz we have held so dear, Sweet sisters of the earth and air; Ah, me, my sister!

Oh, come ye, dearest, dearest Zi-re-nu, With grace and mercy help us bear Our loss and hers; our weeping queen, oh, see! And drop with us a sister's tear. Before your eyes our brother slain! oh, view; Oh, weep with us o'er him so true; Ah, me, his sister!

The sky is dead; its beauty all is gone, Oh, weep, ye clouds, for my dead love! Your queen in her dread sorrow now is prone. O rocks and hills in tears, oh, move! And all my heavenly flowerets for me weep, O'er him who now in death doth sleep; Ah, me, my Tammuz!

Oh, drop o'er him your fragrant dewy tears, For your own queen who brings you joy, For Love, the Queen of Love, no longer cheers, Upon my heart it all doth cloy. Alas! I give you love, nor can receive, O all my children for me grieve; Ah, me, my Tammuz!

Alas! alas! my heart is dying--dead! With all these bitter pangs of grief Despair hath fallen on my queenly head, Oh, is there, sisters, no relief? Hath Tammuz from me ever, ever, gone? My heart is dead, and turned to stone; Ah, me, his queen!

My sister spirits, O my brothers dear, My sorrow strikes me to the earth; Oh, let me die! I now no fate can fear, My heart is left a fearful dearth. Alas, from me all joy! all joy! hath gone; Oh, Ninazu, what hast thou done? Ah, me, his queen!"

To Hades' world beyond our sight they go, And leave upon the skies Mar-gid-da's[3] glow, That shines eternally along the sky, The road where souls redeemed shall ever fly. Prince Tammuz now again to life restored, Is crowned in Hades as its King and Lord,[4] And Ishtar's sorrow thus appeased, she flies To earth, and fills with light and love the skies.

[Footnote 1: "Zi-ni," pronounced "Zee-nee," spirits of the wind.]

[Footnote 2: "Ah, me, my brother, and, ah, me, my sister! Ah, me, Adonis (or Tammuz), and ah, me, his lady (or queen)!" is the wailing cry uttered by the worshippers of Tammuz or Adonis when celebrating his untimely death. It is referred to in Jer. xxii. 18, and in Ezek. viii. 14, and Amos viii. 10, and Zech. xii. 10, 11. See Smith's revised edition of "Chal. Acc. of Genesis," by Sayce, pp. 247, 248.]

[Footnote 3: "Mar-gid-da," "the Long Road." We have also given the Accadian name for "The Milky Way." It was also called by them the "River of Night."]

[Footnote 4: "Lord of Hades" is one of the titles given to Tammuz in an Accadian hymn found in "C.I.W.A.," vol. iv. 27, 1, 2. See also translation in "Records of the Past," vol. xi. p. 131.]

TABLET VII--COLUMN I