Ishtar

<h4 >Gods and planets</h4>

<p >In Mesopotamian astrology planet-names reflected association with dominant deities. For example, the basic association of the planet Mars was with the ill-boding war-god <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nergal" title="Nergal" >Nergal</a>, by which it was referred to as the ‘star of Nergal’. Likewise the basic association of Saturn was with the destructive god <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninurta" title="Ninurta" >Ninurta</a>, Jupiter the creative god <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marduk" title="Marduk" >Marduk</a>, Venus the fertility goddess <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar" title="Ishtar" >Ishtar</a>, Mercury the scribe god <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabu" title="Nabu" >Nabu</a>, the Sun the revealing god <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamash" title="Shamash" >Shamash</a>, and the Moon the measuring god <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sin_(mythology)" title="Sin (mythology)" >Sin</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_astrology#cite_note-13" >[14]</a></sup>

The movements of the sun, moon and five planets were regarded as representing the activity of the five gods in question, together with the moon-god Sin and the sun-god Shamash, in preparing the occurrences on earth. If, therefore, one could correctly read and interpret the activity of these powers, one knew what the gods were aiming to bring about.<sup class="Template-Fact" >[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" >citation needed</a></i>]</sup>

The influence of Babylonian planetary lore appears also in the assignment of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Week-day_names" title="Week-day names" class="mw-redirect" >days of the week</a>to the planets, for example Sunday, assigned to the sun, and Saturday, the day of Saturn.<sup class="Template-Fact" >[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" >citation needed</a></i>]</sup></p>

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<b >Ishtar</b> (pronounced <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:IPA_for_English" title="Wikipedia:IPA for English" >/</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Wikipedia:IPA for English" >ˈɪʃtɑːr</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:IPA_for_English" title="Wikipedia:IPA for English" >/</a>; <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transliteration" title="Transliteration" >Transliteration</a>: <sup ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DINGIR" title="DINGIR" class="mw-redirect" >D</a></sup><i >IŠTAR</i>; <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akkadian" title="Akkadian" class="mw-redirect" >Akkadian</a>: 𒀭𒈹; <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumerian_language" title="Sumerian language" >Sumerian</a> 𒀭𒌋𒁯) is the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyria" title="Assyria" >Assyrian</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylonia" title="Babylonia" >Babylonian</a> goddess of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fertility" title="Fertility" >fertility</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War" title="War" >war</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love" title="Love" >love</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex" title="Sex" >sex</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-WilkinsonKramer-p24_0-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-WilkinsonKramer-p24-0" >[1]</a></sup> She is the counterpart to the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamian_mythology" title="Mesopotamian mythology" class="mw-redirect" >Sumerian</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inanna" title="Inanna" >Inanna</a> and to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognate" title="Cognate" >cognate</a> north-west <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semitic" title="Semitic" >Semitic</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goddess" title="Goddess" >goddess</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astarte" title="Astarte" >Astarte</a>.

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<h2 >Characteristics</h2>

<p >Ishtar was the god of love and war above all associated with sexuality: her <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_(religious_practice)" title="Cult (religious practice)" >cult</a> involved <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_prostitution" title="Sacred prostitution" >sacred prostitution</a></p>

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;<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-1" >[2]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-2" >[3]</a></sup> her holy city <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uruk" title="Uruk" >Uruk</a> was called the "town of the sacred courtesans"; and she herself was the "courtesan of the gods".<sup id="cite_ref-Guirand-p58_3-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-Guirand-p58-3" >[4]</a></sup> Ishtar had many lovers; however, as Guirand notes,</p>

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<p>"Woe to him whom Ishtar had honoured! The fickle goddess treated her passing lovers cruelly, and the unhappy wretches usually paid dearly for the favours heaped on them. Animals, enslaved by love, lost their native vigour: they fell into traps laid by men or were domesticated by them. 'Thou has loved the lion, mighty in strength', says the hero <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilgamesh" title="Gilgamesh" >Gilgamesh</a> to Ishtar, 'and thou hast dug for him seven and seven pits! Thou hast loved the steed, proud in battle, and destined him for the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halter" title="Halter" >halter</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goad" title="Goad" >goad</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whip" title="Whip" >whip</a>.' Even for the gods Ishtar's love was fatal. In her youth the goddess had loved <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tammuz_(deity)" title="Tammuz (deity)" >Tammuz</a>, god of the harvest, and—if one is to believe Gilgamesh—this love caused the death of Tammuz.<sup id="cite_ref-Guirand-p58_3-1" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-Guirand-p58-3" >[4]</a></sup></p>

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</blockquote>

<p>

Ishtar was the daughter of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sin_(mythology)" title="Sin (mythology)" >Sin</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anu" title="Anu" >Anu</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Guirand-p58_3-2" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-Guirand-p58-3" >[4]</a></sup> 

She was particularly worshipped at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyria" title="Assyria" >Assyrian</a> cities of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineveh" title="Nineveh" >Nineveh</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashur" title="Ashur" >Ashur</a> and<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbela" title="Arbela" >Arbela</a><sup class="plainlinks noprint Inline-Template" >[<i><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://toolserver.org/_{dispenser/cgi-bin/dab_solver.py?page=Ishtar&editintro=Template:Disambiguation_needed/editintro&client=Template:Dn}" >disambiguation needed <img src="/60e0a7ba-d744-5a6a-9b6f-c28b37d9d160.gif"/></a></i>]</sup> (Erbil).<sup id="cite_ref-Guirand-p58_3-3" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-Guirand-p58-3" >[4]</a></sup></p>

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Besides the lions on her gate, her symbol is an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Kudurru_Melishipak_Louvre_Sb23_Ishtar-star.jpg" title="File:Kudurru Melishipak Louvre Sb23 Ishtar-star.jpg" >eight-pointed star</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-4" >[5]</a></sup></p>

Ishtar holding her weapon, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre_Museum" title="Louvre Museum" class="mw-redirect" >Louvre Museum</a></div>

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One type of depiction of Ishtar/Inanna</div>

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The lion was her symbol (detail of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar_Gate" title="Ishtar Gate" >Ishtar Gate</a>)</div>

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<p > 

In the Babylonian <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheon_(gods)" title="Pantheon (gods)" >pantheon</a>, she "was the divine personification of the planet <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus" title="Venus" >Venus</a>".<sup id="cite_ref-Guirand-p58_3-4" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishtar#cite_note-Guirand-p58-3" >[4]</a></sup>

<ul >

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angrboda" title="Angrboda" class="mw-redirect" >Angrboda</a></li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gingira" title="Gingira" >Gingira</a></li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishta-deva" title="Ishta-deva" class="mw-redirect" >Ishta-deva</a></li>

</ul>

Ishtar

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