#asušunamir

[transtheology]

Hi, I'm a multigender trans intersex person (bigender transmascfem androgyne, sometimes agender) and I've been feeling a calling towards some kind of occult / pagan / witchcraft practice but am having a very hard time finding anything that will honor both my multigenderness and my intersex body/variation. I was wondering if you knew of any resources or specific practices that might be accepting of this? I had a friend tell me to try out Wicca but it seemed to be very binary-focused in everything I read. Thank you so much for your time!

Wicca is definitely pretty binary focused. Its also diverse and there are many different ways of practicing Wicca, but the fundamental theology is based in a strict binary of the Mother Goddess and the Horned God, and a lot of its beliefs are based on this balance of male/female. As a result much of early Wicca (and some modern Wicca) was very homophobic & gender-sex essentialist (there's also Dianic Wicca, which is goddess-centric and therefore very popular with TERFs). There are trans Wiccans & Wiccan paths which are less binary (or less strict about it), but I wouldn't blame you for not wanting to engage with it.

With Witchcraft, there's a lot more room because "witchcraft" itself isn't its own spiritual tradition as much as a practice or skill you can engage in. In a very general sense Witchcraft is "doing x thing to get y result (through some spiritual/supernatural/mystical method)," so how much you get into cissexism and binary thinking is really dependent on how you see things. For example, a Wiccan might have a very binary view of magic & spiritual energy, but another person might not consider gender at all when doing magic.

A lot of European & WANA (West Asia North Africa) polytheism has some genderfuckery somehwere in its mythology. Inanna/Ishtar in Sumerian/Akkadian/Assyrian polytheism is one example: you might be aware that She had transfeminine devotees called the gala, and she was described as having the ability to "turn a man into a woman and a woman into a man." She has a myth where she descends into the Underworld to confront her sister Ereškigal and gets trapped there. To get her out, Enlil/Ea creates either two sexless beings (gala-tura and kur-jara), or one androgynous being/eunuch (Asušunamir) to save her.

There's also Cybele/Magna Mater in Rome, who also had transfeminine devotees called galli. In Greek polytheism, there is Dionysus, who was heavily associated with gender non-conformity, having been raised as a girl in some versions & having the epithet Androgynos. Aphrodite has the form Aphroditus, who has a beard penis and was worshipped by male and female devotees through crossdressing rituals, and generally her role as Aphrodite Pandemos, a love goddess for all people, has made her popular with queer polytheists. There is also Hermaphroditus, the child of Aphrodite and Hermes, who became intersex/genderqueer when he joined bodies with the nymph Salmacis; a pool formed where this happened that was said to have the ability to androgynize anyone who bathed in it. They were, as you can imagine, heavily associated with androgyny and the union of male and female. In Norse Heathenry, Loki has been seen as an androgynous figure; he transforms into a woman/female animal in multiple myths, and in the Hyndluljóð he eats the heart of a woman and gives birth to several creatures.

There are definitely other deities who have androgynous aspects who I'm forgetting, but in general you can find a lot of genderqueerness throughout polytheist religion. Although there are still transphobic & intersexist witches/pagans/polytheists, and those who use ancient patriarchal practices to justify their behavior. In general I'd recommend seeking out specifically trans & intersex pagans/polytheists/witches and learning from their practices to see what calls to you. Even beyond ancient practices, a lot of modern trans & intersex polytheists worship modern, specifically trans forms of otherwise binary deities. so don't feel the need to limit yourself to just what people in the past practiced. I hope this was helpful.

[sag-dab-sar]

Asušunamir

Once upon a time I came across this claim on a mood board

"Asushunamir: Mesopotamian/Assyrian intersex goddex of queers, justice and transformation. Said to be the most beautiful being made of light who wore clothes made of stars."

I had never heard of a deity called Asushunamir, so I went looking.

I did a Google search specifically because it is what a person on Tumblr might do if they wanted more info. So I thought it important to look them up if I'm going to confirm or debunk.

I did find sources on them when I wrote this post originally, a few years ago, that confirmed the above quote; but a search now did not turn up much other than "Non-binary spirit who helped Inanna (or Ishtar/Inanna) escape the underworld" Which the non-binary spirit is accurate; the Inanna part is not accurate. Still better than the non-binary goddex thing. I want to edit and upload this post anyways because sooner or later the claim may spread again.

Note on my spelling: Inanna is Inana; Asushunamir is Asušnamir; Ereshkigal is Ereškigal. I do not change the spelling of direct quotes, if I do it is indicated by brackets.

🔹Asušunamir is not related to Inana🔹

Many websites claim their origin is connected to Inana and Enki or "Ištar/Inana". However, Asušunamir is not Sumerian. Therefore, they have nothing to do with Inana, Enki, or Sumerian culture even if the myth originated from Sumer.

Asušunamir is very specifically Akkadian. This is important because, like many websites state, their only real appearance is in the Descent Myth. That is to say, Istar's Descent not Inana's Descent. Which surprisingly are very different.

In Inana's Descent Enki creates two beings not one.

Here is the excerpt from the direct translation of Inana's Descent from the ETCSL [1] :

“Then Enki answered Nincubura: “What has my daughter done? She has me worried. What has Inana done? She has me worried. What has the mistress of all the lands done? She has me worried. What has the hierodule of An done? She has me worried.” (1 ms. adds 1 line: Thus father Enki helped her in this matter.) He removed some dirt from the tip of his fingernail and created the kur-jara. He removed some dirt from the tip of his other fingernail and created the gala-tura. To the kur-jara he gave the life-giving plant. To the gala-tura he gave the life-giving water.”

This is the translation given in the book "Inanna: Queen of Heaven and Earth" by Wolkenstein and Kramer. Which I heavily dislike and discourage the use of but it may be the version most Mesopotamian Polytheists use for Inana so I will add it [2]:

“Father Enki said. ‘What has happened? What has my daughter done? Inanna! Queen of all the lands! Holy Priestess of heaven! What has happened? I am troubled. I am grieve. 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 galatur, a creature neither male nor female. He gave the food of life to the kurgarra. He gave the water of life to the galatur.”

The book “Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Mythology” by Assyriologist Gwendolyn Leick gives us this info [3]:

“from the dirt of his finger nails creates two beings. The kur.gar.ra and the gala.tur.ra (persons who formed part of Inanna’s cult personnel, maybe some sort of transvestites) Enki […] gives them the Plant and Water of life”

Expanding on the cult-personnel bit the Assyriologist Thorkild Jacobsen makes this foot note in his translation [4]:

“What Enki creates is two types of professional mourners […] kurgarû was a member of the cult personnel around Inanna at Uruk.”

In Inana’s Descent Myth they sneak their way through cracks in Kur’s (Underworld) seven gates.

Ereškigal is preforming typical mounring expressions that were common in Mesopotamian cultures. In lines 226-235 & lines 254-262 of the ETCSL entry she is described unflatteringly as laying down and lamenting the death of her unnamed children

The mother who gave birth, Erec-ki-gala, because of her children, was lying there.

In addition lines 236-245 & lines 263-272 she's described as troubled with a painful heart & liver.

They sympathize with her; when she moans “oh my heart,” they join in “You are troubled, oh mistress, oh your heart.” Lamenting with someone was seen as an act of kindness.

Thus after they have sympathized with her she offers them a river full of water or a field full of grain as a thank you. They refuse and request the corpse “hanging on the hook,” which is Inana.

🔹Origin in Ištar's Descent🔹

This is vastly different compared to what Ereškigal is doing in Ištar’s Descent; she is not lamenting. It is also very different then the way Asušunamir’s gets Ištar back. Here is a direct-ish translation by E. A. Speiser [5]:

“Ea in his wise heart conceived an image; and created Asushunamir, an enuch: “Up, Asushunamir, set thy face to the gate to the Land of No Return; the seven gates of the Land of No Retuen shall be opened for thee. Ereshkigal shall see thee and be rejoiced at thy presence. When her heart has calmed, her mood is happy, let her utter the oath of the great gods. (Then) lift up thy head, paying mind to the life-water bag: “Pray, Lady, let them give me the life-water bag. That water therefrom I may drink” (Foot note 89). As soon as Ereshkigal heard this, she smoter her thigh bit her finger: “Thou didst request of me a thing that should not be requested. Come Asushunamir, I will curse thee with a mighty curse! The food of the city’s gutters will be thy food, The sewers of the city shall be thy drink, The shadow of the wall shall be thy station, The threshold shall be thy habitation, the besotted and the thirsty shall smite thy cheek!” Ereshkigal opened her mouth to speak, saying (these) words to Namtar, her vizier: “Up Namtar, knock ar Egaligina, Adorne the thresholds with coral-stone, Bring forth the Annunaki and seat (them) on thrones of gold, sprinkle Ishtar with the water of life and take her from my presence!” [Footnote 89: The scheme evidently suceeds as Ereshkigal, distracted by the beauty of Asušunamir, “His appearance is brilliant,” does not recover until it is too late]”

In this version we see Ea (emphasis that Ea is Akkadian not Sumerian) creates a spirit being of dazzling beauty. They distract and make happy Ereškigal long enough that she agrees to a trap that will give them possession of Ištar (apparently she is the "life water bag"?) so she can escape Kur. These two myths are tremendously different, so any source mixing them up demonstrates a lack of reliability.

Leick gives this information on Asušunamir in the “Ishta’s Descent” dictionary entry, which helps clarify [3]:

“…Ea who creates Asušunamir [...] Having pleased Ereškigal by his presence, he is to demand the ‘waterskin’ hanging on the wall, a metaphor for Ištar’s corpse. Ereškigal gets very angry at the request and curses Asušunamir, making him a social outcast.”

Asušunamir has little information available compared to the two beings in Inana’s myth. I cannot find him in the majority of books I own.

🔹Some digging for real sources🔹

Asušunamir does not have their own entry in “A Dictionary of Ancient Near East Mythology” by Leick; “Illustrated Dictionary Gods, Demons, and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia” by Black; "A Handbook of Gods & Goddess of the Ancient Near East" by Stuckey. Suggesting they are not a large figure anywhere in Mesopotamia.

I checked the indexs of 9 different academic books on Mesopotamia, ANE, or Sumerian (outdated or not) and they do not have an index entry in a single one of them.

Books I own which I checked for an index entry:

Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion by Thorkild Jacobsen

Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia by Jean Boretto

The Ancient Gods by E.O. James

Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization by Paul Kriwaczek

The Ancient Near East Volume 1 by Amėlie Kuhrt

Mesopotamia by Gwendolyn Leick

The Sumerians by Samuel Noah Kramer

A History of the Ancient Near East by Wiley Blackwell

Dictionaries of Civilizations: Mesopotamia, Assyrians, Sumerians, Babylonians by Enrico Ascalone

I searched Google Scholar but found them only in relation to Ištar’s Descent Myth.

I searched “Asushunamir” on Google Books, and also found no reliable source that say they are a God. Only more mention of them solely in relation to Ištar’s Descent Myth.

My Search in Google Books turned up the following:

Greek Myths and Mesopotamia by Charles Penglase— The author is described as classical scholar in a journal article book review; otherwise mentioned simply as an “author” elsewhere. The author mentions in a footnote that Asušunamir may be a homosexual or male prostitute.

Parallel Myths by J F Beirlein—The author seems to have no credentials beyond "author." The book gives a retelling that describes him as “making him far more beautiful than any “male” on earth.” Otherwise just a retelling of the myth.

Gay Witchcraft: Empowering the Tribe by Christopher Penczak | Neo-pagan author, I’ve read his books I’m not considering this to be even remotely historical reliable.

Storytelling: An Encyclopedia of Mythology and Folklore by Josepha Sherman— Anthropologist and Folklorist claims Asušunamir means “good looking.” I don’t know Akkadian so can’t confirm or deny.

Queer Spirits: A Gay Man’s Myth Book by Will Roscoe | Author is LGBT Activist with a PhD in the “History of Consciousness.” I also won’t be considered his theories on the meaning of Asušunamir reliable, unless he has heavy citations. However, I do not have access to the full pages so I see only a few lines.

Essentially all books are the myth itself in translation in some form or another; with an occasional comment. None claim they are a god or being of high significance.

Based on Ištar’s myth there is zero indication that Asušunamir is a god. They are never listed as a son of Ea even though they are his creation; a lack of being listed would be due to Asušunamir not being a god. There are no depictions of them with the crown of divinity.

There is zip outside of Ištar’s descent.

🔹 All the misinformation seems to come from one place— A modern story written in the 1990s NOT Ancient Mesopotamia.🔹

This story is a creation of Randy Conner not the ancients Mesopotamians

It is found in the book Blossom & Bone, here is the excerpt:

TEXT of the above:

Asushunamir was created by Enki to rescue Inanna from the "Land of No Return." Inanna, Queen of Heaven, was given great gifts by Enki the Wise. Wisdom, justice, love, the sacred women, and the fruit of the vine. The gift that saved her from death Enki fashioned from the dirt beneath his fingernails. A being of light called, Asushunamir. (S)he whose face is radiant, beautiful in countenance; Asushunamir (S)he, clothed in the stars, male & female, companion to Inanna; Asushunamir The spell of Ereshkigal, Queen of the Dead, could not possess this luminescent being. Yet she was charmed by Asushunamir's beauty, moved by (he)r voice, amused by (he)r dance. Ereshkigal called for a great feast to be held in (he)r honor; the best wine, the finest meats, the most sumptuous of fruit. Ereshkigal dreamed of taking this beautiful being to her bed, and of keeping her forever with her in the Land of the Dead.

But Asushunamir was careful to pour the wine upon the floor and to eat no food prepared by the servants of Ereshkigal. When the Queen of the Dead grew careless from the wine, Asushunamir asked if (s)he might taste the water of life, kept locked in the cellar. This was the water of which Enki had spoken when Asushunamir came into the world, the water with which one must be sprinkled to pass through the seven gates of Irkalla, the water to renew one's life on earth. Ereshkigal cried out, "Namtar, bring the jug with the water of life. I shall grant the wish of this charming creature." Later, when Ereshkigal fell into a deep sleep, Asushunamir made (he)r way to the lampless cell where Inanna, captive, lay dying. (S)he sprinkled Inanna with the water of life and, as the drops fell on her inert body, Innana breathed easily as a child might breathe and then awakened. Beautiful and once more flowing with the energy of life, Innana quickly made her way through the seven gates of Irkalla, ascending to earth, causing the flowers to grow and restoring the trees to green. People returned to their planting, their weaving, their making of wine, their love making, and a great feast was held in honor of the return of Inanna.

Asushunamir was not as fortunate. Ereshkigal awoke as (s)he was approaching the seventh gate, and neither (he)r beauty, nor (he)r charm, nor (he)r dancing or songs, could extinguish the passion that had turned to hate. "The food of the gutter shall thou eat," cried Ereshkigal, her every word a curse. The water of the sewer shall be your drink. In the shadows you shall abide, despised and hated by even your own kind." Having pronounced the curse, Ereshkigal banished Asushunamir.

When Inanna learned of the curse placed upon Asushunamir, she wept and spoke softly that no one might here. "The power of Ereshkigal is great. No one dares to defy her. Yet 1 may soften her curse upon you, as spring arrives to banish winter. Those who are like you, my assinnu and kalum and kugarru and kalaturru, lovers of men, kin to my sacred women, shall be strangers in their own homes. Their families will keep them in the shadows and will leave them nothing. The drunken shall smite them, and the mighty shall imprison them. But if you remember me, how you were born from the light of the stars to save me, and through me the earth, from darkness and death, then I shall harbor you and your kind. You shall be my favored children, and I shall make you my priestesses. I shall grant you the gift of prophecy, the wisdom of the earth and the moon and all that they govern, and you shall banish illness from my children, even as you have stolen me from the clutches of Ereshkigal." "And when you dress in my robes, I shall dance in your feet and sing in your throats. No man shall be able to resist your enchantments.

*When the earthen jug is brought from Irkalla, lions shall leap in the deserts, and you shall be freed from the spell of Ereshkigal. Once more you will be called Asushunamir, a being clothed in light. Your kind shall be called Those Whose Faces Are Brilliant, Those Who Have Come to Renew the Light, The Blessed of Inanna."

This isn't even a retelling its just original content that stole some of the Ištar's myth.

First, it uses Inana and Enki instead of Ištar and Ea, which is incorrect. It describes an entire banquet, Ereškigal sleeping, Inana "softening" Ereškigal's curse, somehow connecting Asušunamir to various other non-gendered/binary entities, and claims they are a companion of Inana— literally none of this happens.

This is from the Blossom of the Bone Amazon description:

The first multi-cultural exploration of the sacred experience, roles, and rituals of gay and gender-bending men, from the ancient priests of the goddess to Oscar Wilde and pop music icon Sylvester--a rich tradition of men who have embodied the interrelationship between androgyny, homoeroticism, and the quest for the sacred. Illustrations and photos.

Except the story of Asušunamir presented in the book is a fabrication. Not an actual analysis or "exploration" of Inana or Ištar's cultic servants or priests who could be see at intersex, non-binary, or binary trans. I'm not sure how fabricating history is empowering when you ignore real history that is actually relevant.

🔹Bottom line🔹

Asušunamir is not a god. They are not a part of Ancient Mesopotamian religious cult.

They are in an Akkadian literary myth and that is about it. They are not the most “beautiful being.”

Many Diĝir (Mesopotamian Gods), were described as being the most beautiful, the most powerful, or the most [insert adjective], but it changed from settlment to settlement. The Diĝir of justice is beyond a doubt Utu / Shamash. A Diĝir of queerness in general could be Inana / Ištar and Nanaya. A Diĝir of justice specifically for the disadvantage could be Nanše. For transformation any Diĝir will do, but Enki comes to mind in particular.

🔹Sources for this post🔹

[1] http://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/section1/tr141.htm

[2] Inanna: Queen of Heaven and Earth by Diana Wolkstein and Samuel Noah Kramer

[3] A Dictionary Of Ancient Mesopotamian Mythology by Gwendolyn Leick

[4] The Harps that Once: Sumerian Poetry in Translation by Thorkild Jacobsen

[5] The Ancient Near East and Anthology of Texts and Pictures edited by James B. Pritchard

As always if you bring me primary literature or solid reliable academic sources—an Assyriologist, relevant historian, archeologists, or other individual with ANE credentials— I will review it and amend my statements.

-dyslexic not audio proof read-

[irganj-blog]

ضمن آنکه سرودها و دعاهای تقدیمی به پیشگاه این الهه زیاد نیست و پرستش او احتمالاً دارای همان اهمیت خدای جهان فرودین یعنی نرگال نبود، مسلماً در هزارۀ دوم پیش از میلاد، این الهه نقشی مهم در چندین روایت اسطوره‌شناسی داشته است. در حماسۀ گیل گمش، انکیدو جهان مردگان، ارش کی گال، جهان فرودین را به‌عنوان سهم خود، پس از آفرینش جهان دریافت می‌دارد.در فرود آمدن اینانا، آن الهه، تنها فرمانروای وحشت‌انگیز مردگان است که چشم مرگ را بر روی کسانی که وارد قلمرو او می‌شوند، خیره می‌کند. ارش کی گال خواهر همسان اینانا و از جهاتی، تصویر منفی پیش_ آفرینشی اوست. بدین‌جهت این الهه نمی‌تواند برآید و به نظر می‌رسد که گوگالاناGugalanna ، ترحم می‌کنند..محرومیت جنسی او حتی در گونه اکدی یعنی فرود آمدن ایشتار بیشتر به چشم می‌خورد. جایی که او عاشق اسوشو نمیر Asušunamir خواجه می‌شود که بدان وسیله، بدن اینانا را در آغوش می‌گیرد واو را خوشحال می‌سازد در دورۀ بابلی کهن ارش کی گال را همسر نرگال می‌دانستند و چندین متن دینی به این جفت انلیل و نین لیل جهان فرودین اشاره می‌کردند @irganj @kingbastan #antics #irganj #تمدن #تمدن_فراموش_شده #تمدن_باستان #باستان #باستانشناسی #تاريخي https://www.instagram.com/p/BnO5I52nia7/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=30sxfzmr5ap9