Inanna's Descent
Into the Netherworld
(Edited & Condensed Version 1.07)
by James W. Bell © 2004
[ For the unedited text, click here. ]
[ For an edited but uncondensed version, click here. ]
1 – Inanna Prepares for the Journey
From the Great Above, the goddess Inanna
Set her mind to the Great Below.
My Lady set her heart on the Netherworld;
She abandoned heaven and earth to descend.
In Uruk, Bad-tibira, Zabalam, Adab, Nippur, Kish,
Agade, Umma, Ur, Kisiga, Girsu, Isin and Shuruppak,
She abandoned her temples
And prepared to descend.
In her hands,
She gathered the seven Mes of office.
On her head,
She placed the shugurra, the crown of the steppe;
And arranged
The dark locks of hair across her forehead.
She tied small lapis-lazuli beads around her neck
And a double strand at her breast.
Gold bracelets she slipped on her wrists
And strapped on breast-shields named,
‘Come hither, man, come hither.’
She wrapped the robe of queen-ship around her body
And daubed her eyes with an ointment of kohl
Called 'Let him come, let him come.'
Taking the lapis measuring rod and line in hand,
Inanna set out for the Netherworld.
II – Inanna’s Instructions to her Vizier
As Inanna walked towards the gate to Kur
With Ninshubur, her faithful vizier,
She spoke to her, saying:
“Ninshubur, my sukkal
Who gives me wise advice,
My warrior who fights by my side,
I am giving you instructions
Which must be followed.
"On this day,
I am descending to Kur, into the Netherworld.
“If I do not return,
Set up a lament for me by the ruins.
Beat the drum for me
In the assembly places,
And circle the houses of the gods.
Tear at your eyes,
At your mouth and your belly,
Dress yourself in a single garment
Like a beggar.
“Go to the temple of Enlil in Nippur,
And, when you enter his holy shrine,
Cry out:
‘Oh, Father Enlil,
Do not let your granddaughter
Be put to death in the Netherworld.
Do not let your bright silver
Be covered with the dust of Kur;
Do not let your precious lapis
Be broken into lumps for the stoneworker;
Do not let your fragrant boxwood
Be chopped into pieces for the woodworker;
Do not let the holy priestess of heaven
Be put to death in the Netherworld.’
“If Enlil will not help you,
Go to Ur, to the temple of Nanna-Sin,
And weep before Father Sin.
If my father will not help you,
Go to Eridu, to the temple of Enki,
And weep before Father Enki.
“Father Enki, the God of Wisdom,
Knows the food of life,
My grandfather knows the water of life;
And the secret of life.
Surely he will not let me die.”
Then Inanna stopped and said:
“Now go, Ninshubur,
But do not forget the words
I have given you.”
III – Inanna Arrives at the Outer Gate
When Inanna arrived at Ganzir,
At the outer gate of the Great Below,
She knocked loudly.
And cried out in a fierce voice:
“Open the door, gatekeeper!
Open the door, Neti!
I would enter alone!”
Neti, the chief gatekeeper of Kur, asked:
“Who are you?”
The goddess answered:
“I am Inanna, Queen of Heaven,
On my way to the east.”
Neti said: “If you are truly Inanna,
Queen of Heaven,
On your way to the East,
Why has your heart led you to the road
From which no traveler returns?”
Inanna answered:
“It’s because of my older sister Ereshkigal;
Her husband, Gugalanna,
the Bull of Heaven, has died.
I have come to witness the funeral rites.
Let the beer of his funeral rites
Be poured into the cup.
Let it be done.”
Neti spoke: “Stay here Inanna,
I will speak to my queen.
I will give Ereskigal your message.”
IV – The Gatekeeper Admits Inanna
Neti, chief gatekeeper of Kur,
Went to the palace of Ereshkigal,
The Queen of the Netherworld,
And said: “My Queen, a maid
As tall as heaven, as wide as the earth,
And as strong as the foundations of the city wall,
Waits at the outer gate.
“She has prepared herself.
She has brought with her
The seven Mes of office
Which she holds in her hands.
On her head, she wears the shugarra,
The crown of the steppe.
Across her forehead,
Her dark locks of hair are carefully arranged.
"Around her neck,
She wears the small lapis beads.
At her breast,
She wears a double strand.
“She has gold bracelets on her wrists
And wears breast-shields named,
‘Come hither, man, come hither.’
She is wrapped in the robe of queen-ship
And her eyes are outlined
With an ointment of kohl
Called: 'Let him come, let him come.'”
When Ereshkigal heard this,
She slapped her thigh and bit her lip.
She took the matter
Into her heart and dwelt on it.
Then she spoke:
"Come, Neti, my chief gatekeeper of Kur,
Heed my words:
Bolt the seven gates of the Netherworld.
“Then, one by one, open each gate a crack.
Let Inanna enter.
As she enters, remove her royal garments.
Let the holy priestess of heaven
Enter bowed low.”
Neti heeded the words of his queen.
He bolted the seven gates of the underworld.
He opened the outer gate
And said to the maid:
“Come, Inanna, enter.”
V – Inanna Enters the Netherworld
When Inanna entered the first gate,
The shugurra, the crown of the steppe,
Was removed from her head.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
When she entered the second gate,
From her neck the small lapis beads were removed.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
When she entered the third gate,
From her breast
The double strand of beads was removed.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
When she entered the fourth gate,
From her chest the breast plate
Called 'Let him come, let him come!' was removed.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
When she entered the fifth gate,
From her wrists the gold bracelets were removed.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
When she entered the sixth gate,
From her hand
The lapis measuring rod and line were removed.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
When she entered the seventh gate,
From her body the royal robe was removed.
Inanna asked, “What is this?”
She was told, “Quiet, Inanna,
The ways of the Netherworld are perfect.
They may not be questioned.”
Naked and bowed low,
Inanna entered the throne room.
VI – Inanna Is Sentenced and Killed
Ereshkigal rose from her throne
As Inanna approached.
When Inanna tried to seize the throne,
The Annunaki, judges of the Netherworld,
Entered and surrounded her,
They passed judgment against her.
The Anunnaki fastened on Inanna
The eye of death.
They spoke against her the word of wrath.
They uttered against her the cry of guilt.
Thjey struck her.
Inanna was turned into a corpse,
A piece of rotting meat,
Hung from a hook on the wall.
VII – Ninshubur Seeks Help for Inanna
When, after three days and three nights,
Inanna had not returned,
Ninshubur set up a lament for her by the ruins.
She beat the drum for her in the assembled places.
She circled the houses of the gods.
She tore at her eyes; she tore at her mouth and belly.
She dressed herself in a single garment like a beggar.
Alone, she set out for Nippur and the temple of Enlil.
When she entered the holy shrine, she cried out:
“O Father Enlil,
Do not let your granddaughter
Be put to death in the underworld.
Do not let your bright silver
Be covered with dust.
Do not let your precious lapis
Be broken into bits for the stoneworker.
Do not let your fragrant boxwood
Be chopped into pieces for the woodworker.
Do not let the holy priestess of heaven
Be put to death in the Netherworld.”
Father Enlil answered angrily:
“My granddaughter was the supreme goddess
In the Great Above.
But Inanna craved the Great Below as well.
She who has received
The Mes of the Netherworld
Never returns.
She who goes to the Dark City stays there.”
Father Enlil would not help.
Ninshubur went to Ur
And sought the temple of Nanna-Sin.
When she entered the holy shrine,
She cried out: “Oh Father Sin,
Do not let your youngest daughter
Be put to death in the Netherworld.
Father Nanna answered angrily:
'My daughter was the supreme goddess
In the Great Above.
But Inanna craved the Great Below as well.
She who has received the Mes of the underworld
Never returns.
She who goes to the Dark City stays there.”
Father Nanna would not help.
Ninshubur went to Eridu
And sought the temple of Enki.
When she entered the holy shrine, she cried out:
“O Father Enki, do not let your granddaughter
Be put to death in the underworld.”
Father Enki asked: “What has happened?
What has my granddaughter done?
Inanna, Queen of All the Lands!
Holy Priestess of Heaven!
What has happened?
I am troubled, I am grieved.”
VIII - Enki Sends Help to Inanna
From under his fingernail
Father Enki brought forth dirt.
He fashioned the dirt into a kurgarra,
A creature neither male nor female.
From under the fingernail of his other hand
He brought forth dirt.
He fashioned the dirt into a galatur,
A creature neither male nor female.
He gave the food of life to the kugarra.
He gave the water of life to the galatur, saying:
“Go to the Netherworld,
Enter the doors like flies.
Ereshkigal, the Queen of the Netherworld,
Is moaning
With the cries of a woman about to give birth.
“No linen is spread on her body.
Her breasts are uncovered.
Her hair swirls about her head like leeks.
“When she cries, 'Oh! Oh! My inside!’
Cry also, ‘Oh! Oh! Your inside!'
When she cries: 'Oh! Oh! My outside!'
Cry also 'Oh! Oh! our outside!'
The queen will be pleased.
“Ereshkigal will offer you a gift.
Ask her only for the corpse,
The one that hangs from the nail on the wall.
One of you will sprinkle the food of life on it.
The other will sprinkle the water of life.
Inanna will arise.”
The kurgarra and the galatur
Heeded Enki's words.
And set out for the underworld.
Like flies,
They slipped through the cracks of the gates.
Like flies,
They entered the throne room
Of the Queen of the Underworld.
No linen was spread on her body.
Her breasts were uncovered.
Her hair swirled around her head like leeks.
Ereshkigal was moaning:
“Oh! Oh! My inside!”
They moaned.
“Oh! Oh! Your inside!”
She moaned:
“Oh! Oh! My outside!”
They moaned;
“Oh! Oh! Our outside!”
Ereshkigal stopped.
And looked at them.
She asked: “Who are you,
Moaning with me?”
“If you are gods, I will bless you.
If you are mortals, I will give you a gift.
I will give you the water-gift,
The river in its fullness.”
The kugarra and galatur answered:
“We do not wish it.”
Then Ereshkigal said:
“'I will give you the grain gift,
The fields in harvest.”
The kugarra and galatur said:
“We do not wish it.”
Finally, Ereshkigal said:
“Speak then! What do you wish?”
They answered:
“We wish only for the corpse
That hangs from the hook on the wall.”
Ereshkigal said:
“The corpse is that of your queen,
It belongs to Inanna.”
They said:
“Whether it belongs to our queen,
Or whether it belongs to our king,
That is what we wish.”
The corpse was given to them.
The kugarra sprinkled the food of life on the corpse.
The galatur sprinkled the water of life on the corpse.
Inanna arose.
IX - Inanna Returns to the Great Above
Inanna was about to ascend
When the Annunaki, the judges of the Netherworld,
Seized her.
They said:
“No one ascends from the Netherworld unmarked.
If Inanna wishes to return from the Netherworld,
She must provide someone to take her place,
We will send the galla demons with her
To make sure she does."
As Inanna ascended from the Netherworld,
Galla demons
Surounded her on every side.
The galla were demons
Who knew no food,
Who knew no drink,
Who ate no offerings,
Who drank no libations,
Who accepted no gifts.
They enjoyed no lovemaking.
And had no sweet children to kiss.
They tear the wife
From the husband's arms,
They tear the child
From the father's knees,
They steal the bride
From her marriage home.
The demons clung to Inanna.
The small galla
Who accompanied Inanna
Were like reeds the size
Of low picket fences.
The large galla
Who accompanied Inanna
Were like reeds the size
Of large picket fences.
The one who walked in front of Inanna
Was not a minister,
Yet he carried a scepter.
The one who walked behind her
Was not a warrior,
Yet he carried a mace.
Ninshubur, dressed in a soiled sackcloth,
Was waiting outside the palace gates.
When she saw Inanna
Surrounded by the galla
She threw herself in the dust at Inanna's feet.
The galla said: “Walk on Inanna,
We shall take Ninshubur in your place.”
Inanna cried: “No!
Ninshubur is my constant support.
She is my sukkal
Who gives me wise advice.
She is my warrior
Who fights by my side.
She did not forget my words.
She set up a lament for my by the ruins.
She beat the drum for me at the assembly places.
She circled the houses of the gods.
She tore at her eyes, at her mouth and belly.
She dressed herself like a beggar.
“Alone, she set out for Nippur
And the temple of Enlil.
She went to Ur
And the temple of Nanna-Sin.
She went to Eridu
And the temple of Enki.
“Because of Ninshubur,
My life was saved.
I will never give Ninshubur to you!”
The galla said: “Walk on, Inanna,
We will accompany you to Umma.'
In Umma, at the holy shrine,
Shara the son of Inanna,
Was dressed in a soiled sackcloth.
When he saw Inanna
Surrounded by the galla,
He threw himself in the dust at her feet.
The galla said:
“Walk on to your city, Inanna,
We will take Shara in your place.”
Inanna cried: “'No! Not Shara!
He is my son who sings hymns to me.
He is my son
Who cuts my nails and smoothes my hair.
I will never give Shara to you.”
The galla said:
“Walk on, Inanna,
We will accompany you to Bad-tibira.”
In Bad-tibira, at the holy shrine,
Lulal, the son of Inanna,
Was dressed in a soiled sackcloth.
When he saw Inanna
Surrounded by the galla,
He threw himself in the dust at her feet.
The galla said:
“Walk on, Inanna,
We will take Lulal in your place.”
Inanna cried: “No, not Lulal. He is my son.
He is a leader among men.
He is my right arm. He is my left arm.
I will never give Lulal to you.”
X - The Galla Seize Dumuzi
They Take Inanna's Husband
The galla said:
“Walk on to your city, Inanna.
We will go with you
To the big apple tree that grows in Kullab.”
In Kullab, under the big apple tree,
Dumuzi, the husband of Inanna,
Was dressed in his shining Me garments.
He sat on his magnificent throne.
He did not move.
The galla seized him
By the thighs.
They poured milk
Out of his seven churns.
They broke the reed pipe
Which the shepherd was playing.
Inanna fastened on Dumuzi
The eye of death.
She spoke against him
The word of wrath.
She uttered against him
The cry of guilt.
“Take him away!
Take Dumuzi away!”
The galla,
Who know no food or drink,
Who ate no offerings or drank libations,
Who accepted no gifts,
Seized Dumuzi.
They made him stand up;
They made him sit down.
They beat the husband of Inanna.
They gashed him with axes.
Dumuzi let out a wail.
He raised his hands to heaven,
To Utu, the God of Justice,
And beseeched him:
“O Utu,
You are my brother-in-law,
I am the husband of your sister.
I brought cream
To your mother's house,
I brought milk
To Ningal's house.
I am the one
Who carried food to the holy shrine.
I am the one
Who brought wedding gifts to Uruk
I am the one
Who danced on the holy knees,
The knees of Inanna.
"Utu, you who are a just god,
And a merciful god,
Change my hands
Into the hands of a snake.
Change my feet
Into the feet of a snake.
Let me escape from my demons;
Do not let them hold me.”
The merciful Utu
Accepted Dumuzi's tears.
He changed the hands of Dumuzi
Into snake hands.
He changed the feet of Dumuzi
Into snake feet.
Dumuzi escaped from his demons.
They could not hold him.
He slipped away.
When Dumuzi was gone,
Holy Inanna wept bitterly.
The Queen of Heaven tore at her hair.
“You wives who have your men,
Where is my husband?
Where is my man?”
A fly came to Inanna
And spoke in her ear:
“If I show you where your man is,
What will be my reward?”
The Queen of Heaven answered:
“I will give you a gift of plenty,
And decree it as your destiny.”
The fly took Inanna
To the house of Gestinanna,
To the house of Dumuzi's sister
Where he was hiding.
In turn, Inanna decreed the fly’s destiny:
“In the beer house are many vessels
Where you will dwell happily
Till the end of your days.”
When Inanna went in the house
To find her husband,
Instead, she found Geshtinanna weeping
And asked what happened.
“They came and found Dumuzi,
The galla have taken my brother away,
Down into the Netherworld
Where he is destined to remain forever
In your stead.”
When Inanna heard the words of Dumuzi’s sister
She wept at being the cause of her own loss.
Geshtinanna sought to comfort her.
“My Lady, let me take my brother’s place
For six months out of twelve,
So that, each spring, when they call for me
Your husband will be released.”
Inanna blessed the goodness of Geshtinanna,
She blessed Dumuzi's kind sister.
This is the story of how it happened
That Dumuzi came to be sentenced
To spend six months out of each year
Living below in the Netherworld.
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