Festivals in Ancient Mesopotamia: Courting the Goodwill of the Gods
Festivals in ancient Mesopotamia honored the patron deity of a city-state or the primary god of the city that controlled a region or empire. The earliest, the Akitu festival, was first observed in Sumer in the Early Dynastic period (circa 2900-2350/2334 BCE) and continued through the Seleucid period (312-63 BCE) along with other religious celebrations.
As there was no concept of separation of religion and politics, festivals also served a political purpose in uniting a king's subjects in honoring his god and, in the case of the Akitu festival, legitimizing the king's rule through a public demonstration of the patron god's approval of his reign. Festivals were celebrated throughout the year for several reasons, including:
New Year
gods' birthdays and incidents from their lives
ceremonial mourning (such as the rites of the god Tammuz)
memorable events (such as a military victory)
sowing and reaping (harvest festivals)
a monarch's coronation
birth of royal children
completion and dedication of a palace, temple, or city
All of these were explicitly or implicitly associated with the patron god of the city or with the Mesopotamian pantheon generally, as the gods were understood as the true monarchs and the king as simply their steward. In order to maintain his authority, the king needed to court the goodwill of the gods, and although they made their approval clear through military victories, bountiful harvests, and prosperous trade, events such as the Akitu festival provided an annual opportunity for the divine to continue its relationship with the ruling house or withdraw its favor.
Evidence for the continuance of Mesopotamian festivals becomes sparse after the Seleucid period, but those of the Parthian Empire (247 BCE to 224 CE) and Sassanian Empire (224-651) are thought to have been influenced by them. The Akitu festival is the oldest observance of a New Year's celebration in the world, and other festivals held throughout the year, although little or nothing is known of many of their details, are also thought to have established celebratory traditions later adopted by other civilizations.
The Nature of Mesopotamian Festivals
The gods were understood to have created order out of chaos, providing people with all they needed in their lives, and, although human beings were expected to honor them daily by living in accordance with their will, festivals marked days purposefully set aside for giving thanks. Scholar Stephen Bertman explains:
The greatness of the gods and their manifold blessings were celebrated on special holy days and festivals. The most important of these sacred occasions in a community honored its local god, who was its patron and protector. But on a larger scale across their country, the people of Mesopotamia also expressed their gratitude in common for the fertility of their land whose bounty sustained their lives and derived from divine favor.
The greatest of these agricultural holidays was called, in Sumerian, the Akiti, and in Akkadian, the Akitu, a word of uncertain meaning that may in fact be pre-Sumerian ... In some communities, like Babylon, the ceremonies were conducted once a year immediately after the barley harvest in March at the time of the spring equinox (barley was Mesopotamia's chief grain). In other communities, like Ur, there were two celebrations a year, one at the time of the harvest and the other in September when new seed was sown.
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In the Early Dynastic period, these festivals were observed independently by each Sumerian city-state in honor of its god, and while this practice was continued during the Akkadian period (circa 2350/2334-2154 BCE), they were observed throughout Sumer in honor of the divine triad of Akkad, the gods An (Anu), Enlil, and Enki, as well as Ishtar (derived from the Sumerian Inanna). Among the earliest rites were those observed for the dying and reviving god figure, Tammuz, known by scholars today as rituals of ceremonial mourning in which the god dies and returns to life, ensuring fertility and prosperity. These festivals followed the same basic paradigm as those observed earlier by Sumerian kings and served the same purpose: to honor the gods, legitimize the king's rule, and unite the people in religious belief and practice.
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