phoenicianphaith-blog

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Female “Pillar Figurine”

North Syrian, ca. 2750-1900 B.C.

Place made: Syria             

Terracotta

Princeton University Art Museum

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for @fyeahmyths summer myth event, day 10: african pairing

Baal Hammon and Tanit, revered by the people of Carthage and with roots in Phoenician mythology, they are the chief deities of the Berber people of North Africa. Tanit is a moon goddess and her consort, Baal Hammon, a weather god, is also responsible for the fertility of vegetation.

“I swam, the sea was boundless, I saw no shore./Tanit was merciless, my prayers were answered./O you who drown in love, remember me.” Margaret Atwood, from “The Blind Assassin”

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Hey there! I'm not sure if we've met already, but I wanted to say thanks for the follow! I'm always excited to meet other people interested in Canaanite polytheism! 😸

yeah this blog is pretty dead because not enough people are interested in Canaanite polytheism... i mostly use africanlanguagesareprettydank.tumblr.com 

just warning you lol. :-D

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A Prayer to Ba’al (KTU 1.119.26'-36')

This Ugaritic hymn to Ba’al, embedded within a ritual of animal sacrifice, resembles other ANE wartime prayers for divine favor, whether in the Bible or in Mesopotamian ritual.  Note the tidy poetic structure: it begins and ends by framing the situation, with two stanzas of promised gratitude as its center.

I’ve hesitated about posting this for a while, for two reasons.  First, I have a gut feeling that there might be something more encoded in it (cf. my footnotes).  Second, I spent time trying to make it singable to modern melodies; although I did end up writing a different version, set to “Let It Be” (”O Ba’al”), I worry that the result is silly rather than inspiring.  So this is the unmusical translation; let me know if anyone actually wants to see the song version!

When the mighty one attacks your gate, the warrior, your walls, you shall lift up your eyes to Ba’al.

O Ba’al: If you drive the mighty one from our gate, the warrior from our walls:

A bull, O Ba’al, we will consecrate; a vow, Ba’al, we will fulfill; a firstborn [1], Ba’al, we will consecrate; a flesh sacrifice, Ba’al, we will fulfill.

A feast, Ba’al, we will prepare; the sanctuary, Ba’al, we will ascend; the path of Ba’al(’s temple), we will walk.

Then Ba’al will listen to your prayer.

He will drive the mighty one from your gate, the warrior from your walls.

Keep reading

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Just woke up from a dream in which I was writing a poem about Baal Hadad while working behind the jellyfish touchpool at work. Here’s what I remember of it:

“A strong bull.

Beautiful Mindful Fertile Minful [as in Min, the Kemetic deity??]

A poem about a god I’ve never met A dream about a god I never knew. But that’s okay. I like reading poems about Obama’s butt too”

I’m? ? screaming?? What is that last line even?

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Phoenician silver ring with an amethyst cabochon, dated to the 6th century BCE. Source: Trinity Antiques. 

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Sins are the reason why we don’t spend time with the Qur'aan!

The righteous Caliph, `Uthmaan Ibn `Affaan said:

“If our hearts become pure, we would never have gotten tired from (reading/listening to) the Word of Allaah (i.e. the Qur’aan).”

[Some have narrated the statement of `Uthmaan as: “If our hearts become pure, we would never get tired of the Word of our Lord.” Another narration: “If your hearts become pure, you would not have gotten tired of the Word of your Lord”]

[Sharh Kitaab al-Ibaanah (31/14)]

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The last Caliph: Abdülmecid II, 1922-1924

via reddit

Keep reading

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A small green stamp with an Kufic (early Arabic) inscription recording the sale and delivery of olive oil.

Cast out of green glass.

Made in the 720s for an Islamic olive oil salesman in Cairo, within the Umayyad Caliphate.

Currently held at the British Museum.

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‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “There is no religion except with a jamaa’ah, and there is no jamaa’ah except with a ruler, and there is no ruler except with hearing and obeying (him).”

[Reported by ad-Daarimee in his Sunan, 1/69, via Mu’aamalah al-Hukkaam, p. 5, of Shaykh ‘Abd as-Salaam ibn Barjis aal ‘Abd al-Kareem] (via umaribnalkhattab)

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why isn't mutah a thing in sunni islam

Because old man Caliph Umar thought he could add and remove stuff from what had already been established in Islam before the Prophet’s death, so he decided to remove Mu'tah and other stuff from the religion that the Prophet had introduced. The result of Umar’s rulings caused a lot of companions to be sort of angry with him, such as his son. However, despite the disputes among them, all of the schools of Sunni Islam accept Umar’s verdicts as legitimate. Shi'as do not consider Umar to be reliable and we do not see him as a person with any sort of authorative to add and remove from the religion, so we don’t accept his rulings.

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The Caliph of Constantine Ali-Hamed Followed by his Escort (1845) Theodore Chasseriau

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The Umayyad Caliphate, 65-132 H/685-750 AD, Unnamed ruler, time of ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan,  al-Basra mint, 79 H/ 698-699 AD, Silver Dirham,  2.87 g / 26.5 mm 

Obverse

Field: la ilah illa / allah wahdahu / la sharik lahu “no god but God, unique, He has no associate”

Margin: bism allah duriba hadha’l-dirham bi’l-basra fi sana tisa‘ wa sab‘in “in the name of God this dirham was struck in al-Basra in the year nine and seventy”

Reverse

Field: allah ahad allah / al-samad lam yalid / wa lam yulad wa lam yakun / lahu kufuwan ahad “God is one, God is eternal, He does not beget nor is He begotten and there is none like unto Him”  Sura 112 (al-Ikhlas)

Margin: muhammad rasul allah arsalahu bi’l-huda wa din al-haqq li-yuzhirahu ‘ala al-din kullihi wa law kariha al-mushrikun “Muhammad is the messenger of God who sent him with guidance and the religion of truth that he might make it supreme over all other religions, even though the polytheists may detest it” Sura 9 (al-Tawba), v. 33

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The coins of the Umayyad caliphate have been the subject of some of my work recently, and I thought I would share one example with you, along with a highly entertaining story about how these coins came to appear in this way: namely, how they developed as aniconic (imageless) coins, featuring only text and, specifically, lines from Islamic religious texts, a form that would remain for at least 7 centuries.

The earliest Umayyad coins, struck after the islamic conquest of Persia and Syria, were simply imitations of the local currencies. There had not previously been extensive use of coinage in the Arabian peninsula, and there was little incentive for the conquerors to institute innovative designs.

According to a medieval Arab historian, Ibn al-Athir, this was the reason that the Caliph, Abd al-Malik, decided to change the coinage within the caliphate to look like the example shown above:

Ibn al-Athir,  Mention of Striking the Islamic Dirhams and Dinars: Year 76 AH  Translated by Fawzan Barrage

“In this year ‘Abd al-Malik b. Marwan Struck Dinars and Dirhams and he was the first to innovate them in an Islamic manner and that benefited people. The reason for this innovation was that he ['Abd al-Malik] ordered that paper shipments to the Romans be stamped with [a Koranic Aya] "qul huwa Allahu Ahad” and that mention the Prophet PBUH be made with the date.That displeased the Roman King who wrote back: “You have made certain innovations which if you don’t rescind, you will find    our Dinars struck with a mention of your prophet that will displease you.” That was a threat that 'Abd al-Malik would not accept. He sent for Khalid bin Yazid bin Muawiyah to consult him. Khalid’s council was: “Forbid their Dinars and strike a new coinage which mentions Allah”. And thus the Dinars and Dirhams were struck.”

As ever, the best reason to innovate is out of pure spite for bigoted, irritating people who think they rule the world.