Witchcraft in Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt Flashcards
Who is Pazuzu?
A mesopotamian demon, known as the demon of the wind
Why are pazuzu amulets worn?
to protect against Lamashtu, who was another demon that would steal/eat babies
it was also worn as a protector against plagues and spirits
Who were the two types of magic practitioners in Ancient Mesopotamia?
Ashipu and Asu
What is the Ashipu?
an exorcist/magician, later became highly regarded and worked in temples, turned incantation into prayers, reinforced temple themes and ideas
What is the Asu?
a physician or herbalist, related to more practical and visible injuries, later gained a negative connotation
What was the traditional Mesopotamian Witch?
early form was correlated with rural beliefs/practices from the Ashipu and Asu as they operated in harmony with each other and helped the community through magical ability and medical knowledge
When did the division of magic in Mesopotamia occur?
After urbanization in Mesopotamia
What did the division of magic in Mesopotamia lead to?
The Ashipu became involved in temples and states and the Asu became associated with witches and viewed as illegitimate magic practitioners
The ashipu and asu became opponents
What was the gender divide in Mesopotamia?
witches were female practitioners while Ashipu were exclusively male
What was a result of the gender divide in mesopotamia?
female healers became stigmatized by institutional male healers
What is the kassapu?
the new mesopotamian witch, the word derives from Kispu which references black magic
What are the two distinctions of the witch
- a powerful supernatural malevolent force that can operate in the cosmos and challenge the gods
- a superhuman who intrudes on the social order
How did people in ancient mesopotamia view witches (kassapu)
they introduce chaos into the cosmos and the human realm
they can control/curse/influence victims through stolen objects from the person via contact magic
How did people view the Ashipu
powerful and respectable people who were almost similar to the gods and could contain the chaos that the witch introduces
What was the cause of many afflictions, illnesses and general problems?
Witches Curses
What is an example of a witches curse in mesopotamia
economic breakdown, relationship problems, loss of rank
What were curses held responsible for in Mesopotamia?
curses were held responsible for digestive tract issues/ issues with the lower part of the body/sexual dysfunctions (emphasis on food, drink, sex)
How were Witches Curses counter-acted?
The Ashipu would provide counter curses and incantations, as well as amulets
victims of curses would bring their problem and accusations before a divine court and hope the gods would rule in their favour
What is the Maqlu?
the largest Mesopotamian text against witchcraft
What does the Maqlu include?
8 tablets with about 100 incantations and rituals against witches and witchcraft
descriptions of anti witchcraft rituals
What were the 4 sections in the Maqlu?
- judgement of the witches
- victims liberation from the curse
- extinguishes any leftover bad magic
- disposal and exlusion of the witches body and spirit
What would happen during the anti witch rituals performed by the ashipus?
was perceived to be in a cosmic setting
would burn figurines of the witches
counter the curse
purify the victim and place protection
what was the goal of anti witchcraft ceremonies?
to protect the victim and expel the witch
What were the two ways witches were destroyed?
- physical destruction of their person
- controlling/destroying their ghost from the cosmos
How did the Ashipu physically destroy the witch?
punished and sentenced them to death by method of burning so their bodies couldnt be resurrected
How did the Ashipu control/destroy the witches ghost?
- denied the witches ghost entry to the netherworld, denying peace in death
- later rituals were done to force the ghost into the netherworld which gave ashipus better control over them
What were the three major periods in Ancient Egypt?
Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, New Kingdom
How is the Old Kingdom of Ancient Egypt identified?
- Time of great building and art, the last Pharaoh was Pepi ii
- two classes of people emerged: Priests and Artisans
How is the Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt identified?
- initially a time of social turbulence
- Egypt comes together at the end of this period after a time of instability
- recovered from social disorder
How is the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt identified?
- temples and priesthoods organize became more powerful and prevalent
- most famous Pharaohs reigned during this period, construction and military conquests occurred
How were magicians viewed in ancient egypt?
respected and found in temple, not seen as deceitful as only the Pharaoh could accuse a person of trickery
What were the two types of magicians in Ancient Egypt?
- trained priests from established temples
- untrained people who used magic but weren’t affiliated with an institution
What were the classes of magicians?
High priest, middle priest, lower class priest
Magician Priests (high priests)
defined hierarchy and designated by Pharaoh
would officiate important ceremonies
what were magician-priests responsible for in Egypt?
cared for oracles, temples, libraries, protected the Pharaoh and the community
Who could perform miracles?
Magicians, the better the miracle the more powerful you were
What did the middle class/specialized priests do?
they had specialized duties and roles, such as the priest of hours, performed rituals, astrologers
What did the average magician priest do?
performed duties similar to specialized priests, usually helped the public
Tale of Eucrates
think of fantasia or strega nona
What did magician healers deal with
unseen illnesses such as fevers
who were the Wabu
magician healers
who performed magical ailments for unseen illnesses
Sekhmet’s (god associated with medicine) priests
What is an amulet?
an object worn or carried by a person for magical benefit
What were amulets used for?
protection against practical concerns, evil spirits, other forms of magic outside of Egyptian magic
what aspects were important in making the amulet work?
material and colour- got their power by invoking the gods
Eye of Horus
most popular amulet in ancient egypt
worn to maintain good health
Life Amulet (Ankh)
most popular egyptian amulet today but wasnt popular then, symbolized continuing life
The Scarab
symbolized continual life, likely related to the Khepri deity who represented continual existence
Why were words seen as powerful in ancient egyptian magic?
words had magical association, saying something could make it become true
What is the Rosetta Stone
stone with three languages, the greek on it helped people decode the hieroglyphs
What is the Ba?
the mobile spirit of the person, retained their personality and character
was the spirit that had to travel to the netherworld to get judged
What is the Ka?
the spiritual double, let you walk, talk, smell, see,etc..
the ka separated from the body but stayed close by and needed food and drink to stay alive
what are the death stages in ancient egypt
protection of the body
journey to the netherworld
judgement of the gods
existence in the new world
What is the book of the dead
a collection of papyrus scrolls that contained spells, incantations, prayers, hymns and ritual instructions
What were wax figurines used for?
if you couldn’t be mummified they would represent you
rich people had one for everyday of the year so they wouldn’t have to work
