The goddess Asherah is the most important goddess of this generation, she is the primary consort of the god El and serves as the Great Mother Goddess in the Canaanite pantheon.
Asherah's origins in Mesopotamia
Asherah's origins extend to the Mesopotamian Valley, she was called (Ashat Ammori). The contracts of sale and purchase mentioned her in the formula (Ashratum Ammi), that is, Ashratum is my mother. She had her own temple in Babylon.The Amorites introduced her to the Babylonian cults, so in the time of Hammurabi she became the wife the god (Anu), the god of the sky, and entered the names of people such as Abdi Asherta and Oban Asherah
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| Asherah |
Status of Asherah in Ugarit
In Ugarit, she occupied the position of the Great Mother Goddess, and her name was (Rabt Athart Yem), which means (the goddess of Yem Athira)
Because she is the goddess of water and because her name refers to walking, one of her qualities was walking on water, and this is supported by the fact that her servant and messenger (Qadesh) is called the fisherman of the sea or the fisherman of Asherah. There is no doubt that this goddess has something to do with the sea.
Asherah has other synonymous names such as (Asherah, Atherah) and has another name, Eilat (Elah), which we find as an ancient name for the port of Aqaba, where the name of this city was Elah.
Ashira is the Canaanite mother goddess, and Ashtara is the virgin goddess, the goddess of love and beauty, the goddess of playfulness, which is an extension of the qualities of the goddess Ishtar ... Therefore, Ashira appears in some images and sculptures as a mother goddess and a patroness of animals and nature, holding plants in her hands and feeding the wild animals that climb on her body, while her naked breasts and breasts show the breast of the goddess, which is a sign of fertility in addition to being the nurse of the new gods.
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| Asherah, the Mother Goddess |
Asherah in the Nabataeans
The Nabataean texts do not mention anything about Ashira, but we see it in the Nabataean environment, specifically among the gods of Taima, as it forms part of the triad of Taima, where Shalim is the sun god and symbolized by the bull, Asherah his wife and represents the moon, and Shangla their daughter and represents Venus. As for the Nabataeans, the name Dushara, the god of the Nabataeans, is related to it, as the word (Shara) is associated with walking during the night or on the water, and we believe that (Shara) is the masculine (Sareeh), which is the goddess Asherah.Asherah in the Hebrew
Asherah is mentioned in the Old Testament texts as (the mast), which is a column of wood with a special sanctity. The word mast, which appears in these texts, is taken from the name Asherah or Asira, that is, the one who walks at night. For example, it says in the book of Exodus, “Destroy their altars, break their monuments, and cut down their masts.
And in the book of Judges, and it was that night that the Lord said to him, “Take the bullock of your father's cattle and a second bullock of seven years old, and destroy the altar of Baal that is in your father's house, and cut down the pole that is there.”)
And it is written in the book of I Kings, “Now send and gather all Israel to Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of the pole, who eat at Jezebel's table.)
She is also depicted as a goddess of debauchery, prostitution, and the destruction of the houses of the unfortunate at the house of the Lord, where women used to weave houses for the mast.
This indicates that this goddess was occasionally worshipped by the Jews and honored under the name (Sariah). The mast of wood or stone was one of her symbols.
Titles of Asherah
Creator of the gods: She is called so because she, along with El Singban (70 gods), is the most important Canaanite goddess and is also called “Mother of the Gods”.
Mother: It is an Amorite title originating from (Ashratum Ammi) the mother's clan.
Elah (Elatu, Elat) means goddess as a transcendent symbol of the female goddess.
Lady of the Amorites: It is an Amorite title (Ashat Amorite) and this goddess was the great goddess of the Amorites.
Goddess of Yam: It is an Ugaritic title Rabat Athart Yem, and it is believed that this goddess walked on water, and that she has a great relationship with the sea and water.
Sea fish: She is the protector of fishermen for her relationship with the sea.
The mast: It is a Hebrew title in the Old Testament, which was referred to through various symbols such as an idol, a tree, and a pillar (the mast) erected at the entrance to the temple and may have alluded to the male organ).
Myths of Asherah:
Although this goddess is one of the greatest Canaanite goddesses, her role in Ugaritic mythology was not large and commensurate with her importance:
1- In the myth of building the house of Baal. Ashira appears waiting for her two sons Baal and Anat, naked in front of the sea, wrapping her spindle and throwing her clothes to the sea, then arranging the pots on the window and praying to the god (El) far from her to return her son and daughter, then she is surprised by their return and is afraid and confused at first, but she rejoices when they offer her gold and silver, and this offering is a request to her to intercede with her to intercede with the god (El) to allow Baal to build his house or palace, which El strongly refused, and she agrees to this and asks her servant and minister Kadesh to saddle her donkey to travel to El, who lives in an isolated house at the source of the two rivers, and he welcomes her and offers her food and drink, so she offers him her request to build a house for Baal, and El agrees to this.
He welcomes her and offers her food and drink.
*- At the feet of El, she bowed down and fell to the ground
*- She prostrated herself and honored him.
*- As for El, when he saw her
*- He was relieved and laughed.
*- He put his feet on a chair and began to rub them.
*- his fingers, then he raised his voice and shouted:
*- Why did the goddess Asherah come to the sea?
*- Why did the creator of the gods come?*- You are hungry, you are hungry because you have traveled)
*- and thirsty you thirsted because you traveled.*- Here is food and drink. Food
*- On the table, eat and drink.
Wine by the golden cup, drink the blood of AlDalia. Behold, the love of (male) El the kingarouses lust in you, and the love of the bull arouses you")
The myth of Baal's death
At the end of the myth, a clan appears at the death of Baal as his enemy. Baal's sister and wife, Anat, tells the god El.
At the feet of El, she bowed, fell to the ground, prostrated and honored him
Then she raised her voice and called out: Rejoice now
Asherah, her sons, the goddess and her clan, for the conqueror Baal is dead, for the prince, the lord of the land, has perished.
the earth. El raised his voice.".
- The legend of the Hittite weather god of Canaanite origin, which states that this god visited the god (El) in his house and did not find him, so Atherah receives him in her boudoir and seduces him, but he resists her and complains to her husband, and tells her accusations to him how he became unable to satisfy her lusts, so El gets angry with her and asks the weather god to lure her, seduce her, and then humiliate her.)
This myth and the first myth shed light on the cold relationship. This myth and the first myth shed light on the cold relationship between the goddess Asherah and the god El due to El's old age, isolation, and weak sexual powers.