Hittite/Hurrian Mythology REF 1.

2
by Christopher B. Siren cbsiren at alum dot mit dot edu last modified Mar. 13th, 1998: added a bunch of information from the first half of Hoffner. Mar. 9th, 199!: corrected some cross"reference lin#s. $. %ho &ere the 'Hittites'( $$. %hat )eities did they &orship( *. Hittite and Hurrian deities. B. *##adian $mports. C. )emons. ). Mortals. $$$. %hat &as the Hittite cosmolo+y and ho& did they percei,e the structure of the uni,erse( $-. Source material.

I. Who were the 'Hittites'?

)urin+ the second millennium B.C. a +roup of people #no&n as the Hittites, &ho spo#e an $ndo" .uropean lan+ua+e, ruled o,er the '/and of Hatti', in central and eastern *natolia, that peninsula &hich is modern 0ur#ey. 0hey had displaced the pre,ious occupants, the Hattians 1&ho spo#e a non"$ndo" .uropean lan+ua+e2, and ruled from the city of Hattusas near the modern Bo+ha3#oy in northern central 0ur#ey, possibly as early as 1944 B.C. Much of the Cappadocian plateau &as under their control throu+h satellite #in+doms before 1844 B.C. and they en5oyed a thri,in+ trade &ith the *ssyrians. *round 1844 B.C. *nittas and his father 6it#hanas of 7ussara sac#ed se,eral Hittite cities, includin+ Hattusas, thou+h *nittas laid a curse upon that city and trade bro#e off until the foundin+ of the 8ld 7in+dom under 7in+ /abarnas around 1!84 B.C. He and his descendents +reatly e9panded the re+ion of Hittite control, crossin+ the 0aurus mountains and &a+in+ &ar on Syria and *ssyria. 7in+ Mursilis 1:1! 4"1;94 B.C.2, /abarnas' +randson by adoption, brou+ht do&n the 8ld 7in+dom of Babylon " Hamurabi's dynasty. 0his e9panded realm, also stretchin+ to *natolia's &est coast, pro,ed to susceptible to internal po&er stru++les. $n 1; ; B.C., 0elepinus, last #in+ of the 8ld 7in+dom sei3ed control and sacrificed some of the %estern districts and all of the territory east of the 0aurus mountains in fa,or of a more easily mana+ed #in+dom. 0he Hurrians occupied the land bet&een the Hittites and *ssyria, ha,in+ descended from the mountains south of the Caspian Sea. 0hey ruled the #in+dom of Mitanni. $n the late 1;th century B.C. the Hittite empire's be+innin+ is mar#ed by an influ9 of Hurrian names into the royal family. 0udhalyas $ 11< 4 B.C.2 reunited %estern *natolia under Hittite rule, and retoo# *llepo but lost the Blac# Sea coast to the 7as#a tribes. *fter some difficulty &ith the Mittani the Hittites resur+ed under 7in+ Suppilulimas around 13<<"13 ta#in+ a firmer hold on Syria. %ith .+ypt, they dominated the lands of Canaan and the /e,ant durin+ the 1 44's. 0heir prosperity came to a sudden end &hen the in,asion of the Sea 6eoples coincided &ith increasin+ trouble from the 7as#as. %hile Hittite culture continued throu+h about =44 B.C., the .mpire &as shattered into se,eral #in+doms and pressures such as the +ro&in+ *ssyrian .mpire helped #eep it from unitin+ a+ain. 0he Hittites &ere a patriarchal, hi+hly a+ricultural society. 0hey had rich iron deposits &hich they mined and traded &ith the *ssyrians. 0hey also used it for &eaponry and &ere rather successful in the use of a three"man chariot. 0hrou+h trade and con>uest the lan+ua+es and cultures of their nei+hbors

seeped into Hittite society. Babylonian and Hurrian deities &ere &orshiped alon+"side or assimilated &ith the nati,e Hittite deities. 0his mer+in+ of cultures and free use of forei+n lan+ua+es is rather fortuitous. 6arallel Hittite and *##adian treaties and similar te9ts helped in crac#in+ the Hittite hiero+lyphic code. ?nfortunately, &hile the ability to translate Hittite hiero+lyphics has impro,ed, the pronunciation of se,eral Hittite ideo+rams, and hence their transcription into .n+lish, remains elusi,e. 8ften, as in the case &ith the Storm"+od, &e must resort to a descripti,e name, or else use the appropriate Hurrian or *##adian name. 8ne place to find out more about the Hittites is Hatti " Homeland of the Hittites

II. What Deities did they worship?

0he Hittites had an abundant number of local cult deities and sets of local pantheons. *s the +o,ernment became more centrali3ed, particularly durin+ the imperial period around 1<44 " 1 44 B.C., there &ere efforts to e>uate many of these local deities and form a state pantheon. Such a pantheon &as headed by the %eather"+od@Storm"+od, &ho also represented the mountains, and his consort " usually the earth +oddess, &ho &as also attached to the &aters of ri,ers and the sea. 0he Hittites themsel,es &rite of 'the thousand +ods of Hatti', and more than ei+ht"hundred such names ha,e been disco,ered. 1Considerably fe&er &ill be dealt &ith here.2 0he associated myths ha,e both Hittite and Hurrian content, &ith the ori+in of many suspected to be Hurrian. 0he 7umarbis"?llu#ummis myth is chief amon+ the Hurrian tales and the $lluyan#as stories and missin+ +od myths of 0elipinus and the missin+ Storm"+od are thou+ht to be more Hattic. 0here also e9ist fra+ments of a Hittite ,ersion of the Ail+amesh epic and many *##adian deities &ere &orshiped outri+ht. )oubtless the Hatti left their mar# in Hittite reli+ion as &ell. Bou &ill notice that many of the names carry an optional 's' as a suffi9, &hich comes from the nominati,e case endin+ for Hittite.

. Hittite and Hurrian deities.

*lalu1s2 He &as the #in+ in hea,en in olden days and *nus &as the first amon+ the +ods. *nus ser,ed as his cupbearer for 9 years before defeatin+ him and dispatchin+ him to under the earth. *nu1s2 1*##adian in ori+in2 %hile *lalus &as #in+ in hea,en, *nus &as more po&erful. He ser,ed as *lalus' cup bearer for nine years and then defeated him, dispatchin+ him to under the earth. He too# his seat on the throne and had 7umarbis as his cupbearer. /i#e&ise, after nine years 7umarbis rebelled, chased *nus " &ho fled in the s#y li#e a bird, and bit off and s&allo&ed his phallus. $n this act *nus had some re,en+e by impre+natin+ 7umarbis &ith the Storm"+od, the *ran3ahus 10i+ris2 ri,er, and 0asmisus. He then hid himself in hea,en. He ad,ised the Storm"+od on the places &here he mi+ht e9it 7umarbis. *fter the Storm"+od's birth, they plotted to destroy 7umarbis and, &ith his other children, apparently succeeded. 7umarbi1s2 " 'the father of all +ods' accordin+ to the Hurrians. He is sometimes e>uated &ith .nlil and )a+an. His city is ?r#is. He thin#s &ise thou+hts and carries a staff. He ser,ed as *nus's cup"bearer for nine years and then rebelled, chased *nus, and bit off and s&allo&ed his phallus, thereby becomin+ impre+nated &ith the Storm"+od, the *ran3ahus 10i+ris2 ri,er, and 0asmisus. %ith that ne&s, he spat out *ran3ahus and 0asmisus of on Mount 7an3uras. 0he Storm"+od be+ins to e9it throu+h 7umarbis's 'tarnassus', causin+ him to

moan in pain. He as#s *yas to +i,e him his son to de,our, &hich he does. *yas has 'poor' ma+ic &or#ed on him and his 'tarnassus' is secured, so the Storm"+od e9its throu+h his '+ood place' instead. He is then presumably defeated by the Storm"+od, *nus, and his offsprin+. )urin+ a plot to o,erthro& the Storm"+od, he lay &ith a Coc# as if it &ere a &oman. He instructs $mbaluris, his messen+er to send a messa+e to the Sea, that 7umarbis should remain father of the +ods. 0he Sea hosts a feast for him and later 7umarbis' Coc# +i,es birth to ?lli#ummis. 7umarbis announces that his son &ill defeat the Storm"+od, his city 7ummiya, his brother 0asmisus and the +ods from the s#y. He char+es $mbaluris to see# out the $rsirra deities to hide ?lli#ummis from the Sun"+od, the Storm"+od, and $shtar. $mbaluris He is 7umarbis' messen+er. He is sent to &arn the Sea that 7umarbis' must remain the father of the +ods. Mu#isanus He is 7umarbis' ,i3ier Hannahanna1s2 1Dintu, Mah2 " the mother of all the +ods. She is associated &ith Aulses. *fter 0elepinu disappears, the Storm"+od complains to her. She sends him to search himself and &hen he +i,es up, she dispatches a bee, char+in+ it to purify the +od by stin+in+ his hands and feat and &ipin+ his eyes and feet &ith &a9. She recommends to the Storm"+od that he pay the Sea"+od the bride"price for the Sea"+od's dau+hter on her &eddin+ to 0elipinu. *pparently she also disappears in a fit of an+er and &hile she is +one, cattle and sheep are stifled and mothers, both human and animal ta#e no account of their children. *fter her an+er is banished to the )ar# .arth, she returns re5oicin+. *nother meeans of banishin+ her an+er is throu+h burnin+ brush&ood and allo&in+ the ,apor to enter her body. *fter $nara consulted &ith her, she +a,e her a man and land. Soon after, $nara is missin+ and &hen Hanna hanna is informed thereof by the Storm"+od's bee, she apparently be+ins a search &ith the help of her Eemale attendant a. She appears to consult &ith the Sun"+od and the %ar" +od, but much of the te9t is missin+. ?pelluri 1?belluris2 Similar to *tlas, this +iant carries the &orld on his shoulders. 0he olden +ods built the earth and hea,en upon him thou+h he did not notice, e,en &hen those t&o &ere separated &ith a clea,er. 8n the direction of 7umarbis' messen+er $mbaluris, the $ssira deities place ?lli#ummis on his ri+ht shoulder &here the child +ro&s. .a inter,ie&s him, in search of ?lli#ummis and ?pelluri admits to a small pain on his shoulder, althou+h he can't identify &hich +od is causin+ it. Storm@%eather"+od 1Hurrian's 0eshub, 0aru, /u&ian's 0arhun1t2 " '0he Con>ueror'2, '0he #in+ of 7ummiya', '7in+ of Hea,en, /ord of the land of Hatti'. He is chief amon+ the +ods and his symbol is the bull. *s 0eshub he has been pictured as a bearded man astride t&o mountains and bearin+ a club. He is a +od of battle and ,ictory, especially &hen the battle is &ith a forei+n po&er. *s 0aru, he is the consort of %urusemu. He

&as the child of *nus and 7umarbis " concei,ed alon+ &ith 0asmisus and the *ran3ahus 10i+ris2 ri,er &hen 7umarbis bit off and s&allo&ed *nus' phallus. He is, ho&e,er, considered .a's son in the myth of ?lli#ummis. He is informed by *nus of the possible e9its from 7umarbis, and tries to e9it throu+h 7umarbis's 'tarnassas', causin+ him +reat pain. %ith the 'tarnassas' bloc#ed, he e9its throu+h 7umarbis' '+ood place'. He plots &ith *nus, 0asmisus, and *ran3hus to destroy 7umarbis, and apparently succeeds sei3in+ #in+ship in hea,en. He sent rain after the fallen Moon"+od@7ash#u &hen he fell from hea,en. *lerted to the imminent arri,al of the Sun"+od, &ho in some myths is his son, he has 0asmisus prepare a meal for their +uest and listens to his report about the sudden appearance of the +iant ?lli#ummis. He and 0asmisus then lea,e the #untarra and are led to Mount Ha33i by his sister, $shtar, &here they behold the monstrous creature. He loo#s upon 7umarbis' son &ith fear and $shtar chides him. /ater, emboldened, he has 0asmisus prepare his bulls and &a+on for battle, and has him call out the thunderstorms, li+htnin+ and rains. 0heir first battle resulted in his incomplete defeat. He dispatches 0asmisus to his &ife, Hebat, to tell her that he must remain in a 'lo&ly place' for a term. %hen 0asmisus returns, he encoura+es the Storm"+od to see# .a in the city *b3u@*psu and as# for the 'tablets &ith the &ords of fate' 10ablets of )estiny( 'me'(2. *fter .a clea,es off ?llu#ummis' feet, he spurs 0asmisus and the Storm"+od on to battle the crippled +iant. )espite the diorite man's boastin+, the Storm"+od presumably defeats him. He fou+ht &ith the )ra+on $lluyan#as in 7is#ilussa and &as defeated. He called the +ods for aid, as#in+ that $naras prepare a celebration. She does so and &hen the dra+on and his children ha,e +or+ed themsel,es on her feast, the mortal Hupasiyas binds him &ith a rope. 0hen the Storm"+od, accompanied by the +ods, sets upon them and destroys them. $n another ,ersion of that myth, he looses his eyes and heart to $lluyan#as after his first battle. He then marries a poor mortal &oman and marries their son to $lluyan#as dau+hter. He has the son as# for his eyes and heart. %ith their return, he attac#s the dra+on a+ain. %hen his son sides &ith $lluyan#as, the Storm"+od #ills them both. %hen his son, 0elepinus, is missin+ he despairs and complains to the Sun"+od and then to Hannahannas, &ho tells him to search for him himself. *fter searchin+ 0elepinus' city he +i,es up. $n other ,ersions of this myth, it is the Storm"+od &ho is missin+. 8ne is almost e9actly the same, and in another, he 5ourneys to the )ar# .arth in his an+er, and is returned &ith the help of his mother " here %uruntemu@.resh#i+al@the Sun"+oddess of *rinna. He sends 0elipinu to reco,er the Sun"+od &ho had been #idnapped by the Sea"+od. 0he Sea"+od is so intimidated that he +i,es 0elipinu his dau+hter in marria+e but demands a bride"price from the Storm"+od. *fter consultin+ &ith Hannahanna, he pays the price of a thousand sheep and a thousand cattle. He notices his dau+hter, $nara, is missin+ and sends a bee to Hannahanna to ha,e her search for her. Seris 1Serisu2

0his is one of the bulls sacred to the Storm"+od. $n preparation for battle, the Storm"+od has 0asmisus anoint his horns &ith oil and dri,e him up Mount $m+arra &ith 0ella and the battle &a+on. 0ella 1Hurris2 0his is another bull sacred to the Storm"+od. $n preparation for battle, the Storm"+od has 0asmisus plate his tail &ith +old and dri,e him up Mount $m+arra &ith Seris and the battle &a+on. *ran3ahas " 0he 0i+ris ri,er deified. * child of *nus and 7umarbis, he &as the brother of the Storm"+od and 0asmisus, spat out of 7umarbis' mouth onto Mount 7an3uras. /ater he colludes &ith *nus and the Storm"+od to destroy 7umarbis. 0asmisus * child of *nus and 7umarbis, he is concei,ed alon+ &ith the Storm"+od and *ran3ahus. 0he brother of the Storm"+od and *ran3ahus, he &as spat out of 7umarbis upon Mount 7an3uras. /ater he colludes &ith *nus and the Storm"+od to destroy 7umarbis. He ser,es as the Storm"+od's attendant. He spies the Sun"+od approachin+ and informs the Storm"+od that this ,isit bodes ill. *t the Storm"+od's command he has a meal set up for their ,isitor. *fter the Sun"+od's tale, he and the Storm"+od depart and are met by $shtar, &ho ta#es them to Mt. Ha33i near ?+arit, &here they can see ?lli#ummis. 0he Storm"+od has him ta#e his bulls up Mt. $m+arra and prepare them for battle. He is also ordered to brin+ forth the storms, rains, &inds, and li+htnin+. *fter their defeat, he is dispatched by the Storm"+od to Hebat, to tell her that he must remain in a 'lo&ly place' for a term. He returns and encoura+es the Storm"+od to see# .a in the city *b3u@*psu and as# for the 'tablets &ith the &ords of fate' 10ablets of )estiny( 'me'(2. *fter .a clea,es off ?llu#ummis' feet, he spurs 0asmisus and the Storm"+od on to battle the crippled +iant. Su&aliyattas He is a &arrior +od and probably the brother of the Storm"+od. Hebat 1Hurrian name2 1Hepit, Hepatu2 0he matronly &ife of the Storm"+od. She is sometimes depicted standin+ on her sacred animal, the lion. *fter the Storm"+od and *stabis' failed attac#s on ?lli#ummis, the +iant forced her out of her temple, causin+ her to lose communication &ith the +ods. She frets that ?lli#ummis may ha,e defeated her husband and e9presses her concern to her ser,ant 0a#itis, char+in+ him to con,ene the assembly of the +ods and brin+ bac# &ord of her husband. 6resumably she is brou+ht &ord of his defeat. 0asmisus ,isits her in the hi+h &atchto&er, tellin+ her that the Storm" +od is consi+ned to a 'lo&ly place' for a len+th of time. She is the mother of Sharruma. %urusemu, 1%uruntemu(2, 'Sun Aoddess of *rrina', 'mistress of the Hatti lands, the >ueen of hea,en and earth', 'mistress of the #in+s and >ueens of Hatti, directin+ the +o,ernment of the 7in+ and Fueen of Hatti' 0his +oddess is later assimilated &ith Hebat. She made the cedar land. She is the primary +oddess in *rrina, &ith 0aru as her consort. She is a +oddess of battle and is associated &ith Hittite military ,ictory. She is the mother of the Storm"+od of Deri#, and thereby possibly associated &ith .resh#i+al. She aids in returnin+ him from the under&orld.

Sharruma 1Hurrian name2, 'the calf of 0eshub' 0he son of 0eshub and Hebat, this +od is symboli3ed by a pair of human le+s, or a human head on a bull's body. He is later identified &ith the %eather"+od of Deri# and Gippalanda. 0a#itis He is Hebat's ser,ant. *fter Hebat &as dri,en from her temple he is told of her concern for her husband and char+ed &ith con,enin+ the assembly of the +ods and returnin+ &ith &ord of her husband's fate. Me33ullas She is the dau+hter of the Storm"+od and the Sun"+oddess of *rinna. She has influence &ith her parents. Gintuhis She is the +randdau+hter of the Storm"+od and the Sun"+oddess of *rinna. 0elepinu1s2 'the noble +od' *n a+ricultural +od, he is the fa,orite and firstborn son of the Storm"+od. He 'harro&s and plo&s. He irri+ates the fields and ma#es the crops +ro&.' 1Aurney p. 1132 He flies into a ra+e and storms off, losin+ himself in the steppe and becomin+ o,ercome &ith fati+ue. %ith his departure, fertility of the land, crops and herds disappears and famine besets man and +od. Hannahannas's bee finds him, stin+s his hands and feet, and &ipes his eyes and feet &ith &a9, purifyin+ him. 0his further infuriates him, and he &rec#s further ha,oc &ith the ri,ers and by shatterin+ houses and &indo&s. .,entually, the e,il and malice is remo,ed throu+h ma+ic by 7amrusepas, but not before 0elepinus thunders &ith li+htnin+. 0elepinus returns home, restorin+ fertility and tendin+ to the life and ,itality of the royal family. His prosperity and fertility is symboli3ed by a pole suspendin+ the fleece of a sheep. $n other ,ersions of this myth, the Storm"+od or the Sun"+od and se,eral other +ods are missin+ instead. He is as#ed by his father to reco,er the Sun"+od from the Sea"+od, and so intimidates the Sea" +od that he is +i,en his dau+hter as a bride. ?lli#ummi1s2, the diorite man He is born of 7umarbis and the Coc#. 0his +od is made entirely of diorite. He &as born to be used as a &eapon to defeat the Storm"+odand his allies. 7umarbis had him deli,ered to the $rsirra deities to #eep him hidden from the Storm"+od, the Sun"+od, and $shtar. *fter the $rsirra deities presented him to .llil, they placed him on the shoulder of ?pelluri &here he +ro&s an acre in a month. *fter fifteen days he +ro&s enou+h so that he stands &aist deep in the sea &hen the Sun"+od and he notice each other. *lerted by the Sun"+od, the Storm"+od e,entually prepares for battle atop Mount $m+arra, yet their first battle results in an incomplete ,ictory. He dri,es Hebat from her temple, cuttin+ off her communication &ith the other +ods. *stabis leads se,enty +ods on attac# a+ainst him, attemptin+ to dra& up the &ater from around him, perhaps in order to stop his +ro&th. 0hey fall into the sea and he +ro&s to be 9444 lea+ues tall and around, sha#in+ the hea,ens, the earth, pushin+ up the s#y, and to&erin+ o,er 7ummiya. .a locates him and cuts off his feet &ith the copper #nife that separated the hea,en from the earth. )espite his &ounds he boasts to the Storm"+od that he &ill ta#e the #in+ship of hea,en. 6resumably, he is none"the"less

defeated. Sun"+od 1of Hea,en2 6robably an *##adian import, this +od is one of 5ustice and is sometimes the #in+ of all +ods. *n ally of the Storm"+od, he notices the +iant ?lli#ummis in the sea and ,isited the Storm"+od, refusin+ to eat until he reports his ne&s. *fter he has done so, the Storm"+od proclaims that the food on the table shall become pleasant, &hich it does, and so the Sun"+od en5oys his meal and returns to his route in hea,en. %hen 0elepinus disappears, brin+in+ a famine, he arran+es a feast, but it is ineffecti,e in assua+in+ their hun+er. *t the Storm"+od's complaint, he dispatches an ea+le to search for the +od, but the bird is unsuccessful. *fter the bee disco,ers 0elepinus, he has man perform a ritual. $n another ,ersion of the missin+ +od myth, he is one of the missin+ +ods. He #eeps se,eral sheep. *t the end of the day, he tra,els throu+h the nether"&orld. He &as #idnapped by the Sea"+od and released &hen 0elipinu came for him. $n a lon+er ,ersion of that story, the Sea"+od cau+ht him in a net, possibly puttin+ him into a 7u#ubu",essel &hen he fell. )urin+ his absence, hahhimas 1Erost2 too# hold. Hapantallis He is the Sun"+od's shepherd. Moon"+od 1Hurrian 7ash#u2 He fell upon the '#illamar', the +ate comple9, from hea,en and disappeared. Storm"+od@0aru rain" stormed after him, fri+htenin+ him. Hapantali &ent to him and uttered the &ords of a spell o,er him. %hile #no&n to besto& ill omens, he can be appeased by sheep sacrifice. 0he Sea, the %aters She is told by $mbaluris that '7umarbis must remain father of the +odsH'. Struc# &ith fear by this messa+e, she ma#es ready here abode and prepares to act as hostess for a feast for 7umarbis. 0his feast may ha,e ser,ed as a meetin+ of Mother"+oddesses &ho deli,ered 7umarbis' child by the Coc#, ?lli#ummis. 0he Sea"+od He >uarreled and #idnapped the Sun"+od of Hea,en. %hen 0elipinu came to reco,er the Sun" +od, the Sea"+od &as so intimidated that he also +a,e him his dau+hter. he later demanded a bride"price for her of the Storm"+od, and &as e,entually +i,en a thousand cattle and a thousand sheep. $n another ,ersion, he cau+ht the Sun"+od in a net as he fell, and may ha,e sealed him in a Kukubu",essel, allo&in+ Hahhimas 1Erost to ta#e hold of most of the other +ods. He >uestions the fire in its role in one of 7amrusepa's healin+ spells. $naras )au+hter of the Storm"+od and +oddess of the &ild animals of the steppe. *fter the Storm"+od's initial defeat by $lluyan#as, she follo&s his re>uest to set up a feast. She recruits Hupasiayas of Gi+aratta, to aid in re,en+e on $lluyan#as, by ta#in+ him as a lo,er. She then sets about lurin+ $lluyan#as and his children to a feast. *fter the dra+on and his children +or+e themsel,es on her

meal, Hupasiayas binds him &ith a rope. 0hen the Storm"+od sets upon them and defeats them. She then +i,es Hupasiayas a house on a cliff to li,e in, yet &arns him not to loo# out the &indo&, lest he see his &ife and children. He disobeys her, and seein+ his family be+s to be allo&ed to +o home. Aurney speculates that he &as #illed for his disobedience. She consults &ith Hannahanna, &ho promises to +i,e her land and a man. She then +oes missin+ and is sou+ht after by her father and Hannahanna &ith her bee. $lluyan#as " the )ra+on. He defeated the Storm"+od in 7is#ilussa. /ater he &as lured from his lair &ith his children by a &ell dressed $naras &ith a feast. *fter they &ere too en+or+ed to +et into their lair a+ain, the Storm"+od, accompanied by the other +ods, #illed him. $n another ,ersion of the myth, he defeated the Storm"+od and stole his eyes and heart. /ater, his dau+hter married the son of the Storm"+od. *ctin+ on the Storm"+od's instruction, his son as#ed for the eyes and heart. %hen these &ere returned to him, the Storm"+od ,an>uished $lluyan#as, but sle& his son as &ell &hen the youth sided &ith the dra+on. 0he ritual of his defeat &as in,o#ed e,ery sprin+ to symboli3e the earth's rebirth. Hedammu He is a serpent &ho lo,ed $shtar. $rsirra deities 0hese +ods &ho li,e in the dar# earth are char+ed by 7umarbis throu+h $mbaluris to hide ?lli#ummis from the s#y +ods, the Sun"+od, the Storm"+od, and $shtar. 0hey are also char+ed &ith placin+ the child on the shoulder of ?pelluri. /ater they accept the child and deli,er it to .llil, before placin+ it on ?pelluri's ri+ht shoulder. Hapantalliyas@Hapantalli He too# his place at the Moon"+od's side &hen he fell from hea,en on the +ate comple9 and uttered a spell. 7amrusepa1s2 17atah3i&uri2 She is the +oddess of ma+ic and healin+. She &itnessed and announced the Moon"+od's fall from hea,en on to the +ate comple9. *fter 0elepinus has been found, yet remains an+ry, she is set to cure him of his temper. She performs an elaborate ma+ical ritual, remo,in+ his e,il and malice. $n another tablet, she performs the spell of fire, &hic remo,es ,arious illnesses, chan+in+ them to a mist &hich ascends to hea,en, lifted by the )ar# .arth. 0he Sea"+od >uestions the fire on its role. *stabis 1Gamama, *##adian Dinurta2 He is a Hurrian &arrior +od. *fter the Storm"+od's first attac# on ?lli#ummis is unsuccessful, he leads se,enty +ods in battle &a+ons on an attac# on the diorite +iant. 0hey try to dra& the &ater

a&ay from him, perhaps in order to stop his +ro&th, but they fall from the s#y and ?lli#ummis +ro&s e,en lar+er, to&erin+ o,er the +ate of 7ummiya. ?liliyassis He is a minor +od &ho, properly attended to, remo,es impotence. 7urunta( 0his +od's symbol is the sta+. He is associated &ith rural areas. 7ubaba She is the chief +oddess of the Deo"Hittites, she became Cybebe to the 6hry+ians and Cybele to the Comans. Barris He is a +od of pestilence. * festi,al &as held for him e,ery autumn. Hasamelis He is a +od &ho can protect tra,elers, possibly by causin+ them to be in,isible. Gashapuna He is the chief +od of the to&n of 7astama, held in +reater re+ard there than the Storm"+od, possibly +ainin+ such influence throu+h dra&in+ lots &ith the other +ods. Galiyanu She is the &ife of Gashapuna. Galiyanu She is the concubine of Gashapuna. 6apaya 8ne of the deities &ho sat under the Ha&thorn tree a&aitin+ the return of 0elipinus. $stustaya 8ne of the deities &ho sat under the Ha&thorn tree a&aitin+ the return of 0elipinus. Miyatan3ipa 8ne of the deities &ho sat under the Ha&thorn tree a&aitin+ the return of 0elipinu. 1S2he( also sat under th ippiyas tree &hen Hannahanna found the huntin+ ba+. Eate"+oddesses 0hey &ere amon+ the deities &ho sat under the Ha&thorn tree a&aitin+ the return of 0elipinu. $n one myth, they and the Mother"+oddesses are missin+. )ar#"+oddess 8ne of the deities &ho sat under the Ha&thorn tree a&aitin+ the return of 0elipinu. 0utelary"deity, 1Sumerian /amma2 8ne of the deities &ho sat under the Ha&thorn tree a&aitin+ the return of 0elipinu.

?ru3imu * deity in,ol,ed in returnin+ the lost Storm"+od of Deri#. Hahhimas 1Erost2 %hen the Sea"+od captures the Sun"+od, he ta#es hold of the other +ods and of the land's plants and animals, paraly3in+ them. He is half"brother to Hasamili's brothers and spares them from his +rip.

!. ""adian I#ports$
*nu See section *. *ntu 1See *ssyro"Babylonian *ntu2 *nu's female counterpart, imported to the Hitties throu+h the Hurrians. .llil 1See *ssyro"Babylonian .llil2 He is presented &ith ?lli#ummis by the $rsirra deities and declares that the child &ill brin+ the mi+htiest battles and an a&esome ri,al to the Storm"+od. /ater, .a and presumably the Storm" +od present before him a case a+ainst 7umarbis' for his creation of ?lli#ummis. He counters &ith 7umarbis' +ood record of &orship and sacrifice and is in turn countered &ith .a's testimony describin+ ?lli#ummis. Dinlil 1See *ssyro"Babylonian Dinlil .llil's &ife. She &as imported by &ay of the Hurrians. /el&anis 1/il&ani, .resh#i+al, sometimes assimilated &ith $shtar2, 'Sun of the .arth' Aoddess of the earth and the nether"&orld, appeasement of her throu+h sheep sacrifices helps remo,e threats from e,il omens. .resh#i+al 0his +oddess is the mother of the Storm"+od. She plays a role in returnin+ him from the under&orld by openin+ the +ates of the )ar# .arth. *yas 1.a2 He is the #eeper of the 'old tablets &ith the &ords of fate' 10ablets of )estiny( 'me'(2. 0he ?lli#ummis myth has him as the father of the Storm"+od. He attends 7umarbis and fetches that +od's son to be de,oured as a means of relea,in+ 7umarbis pains from the Storm"+od. He ad,ises 7umarbis to ha,e e9perts &or# 'poor' ma+ic to aid him in his distress, brin+in+ bulls and sacrifices of meal. 0his ma+ic helps secure 7umarbis's 'tarnassus'. He is pre,ailed upon by the Storm"+od follo&in+ his defeat by ?lli#ummis. He and presumably the Storm"+od present a case a+ainst 7umarbis' for his creation of ?lli#ummis before .llil. Cebuttin+ .llil's defense that 7umarbis is &ell beha,ed re+ardin+ &orship and sacrifices, .a proclaims that ?lli#ummis '&ill bloc# off hea,en and the +ods holy houses.' He see#s out ?pelluri, and after inter,ie&in+ him, locates ?llu#ummis feet on ?pelluri's shoulder. He char+es the olden +ods to deli,er the copper #nife &ith &hich they se,ered hea,en from earth, in order to

cut throu+h ?llu#ummis' feet. He then spurs 0asmisus and the Storm"+od on to fi+ht the crippled +iant. 0ap#ina1Hurrian2 1)am#ina2 .a's &ife, imported from the *##adians by &ay of the Hurrians. Shaush#a 1Hurrian2 1$shtar2 She ta#es the form of a &in+ed female standin+ on a lion. She spies her brothers, the Storm"+od and 0asmisus, lea,in+ the #untarra follo&in+ &ord of the appearance of ?lli#ummis. She leads them by hand, up Mount Ha33i, from &hich they can ,ie& the +iant. %hen the Storm"+od is ,e9ed and fearful at the site of 7umarbis' son, she chides him. /ater, she ta#es up her +al+alturi@harp and sin+s to the blind and deaf ?lli#ummis, but her folly is e9posed to her by a +reat &a,e from the sea, &ho char+es her to see# out her brother &ho is yet to be emboldened to the ine,itable battle. She &as lo,ed by the serpent Hedammu. Dinatta Shaush#a's attendant. 7ulitta Shaush#a's attendant.

%. De#ons
-arious rituals &ere performed to call upon demons for protection or to dri,e a&ay baneful deities summoned by sorcerers. *lau&aimis 6roperly propitiated &ith ritual, libation, and +oat sacrifice, this demon dri,es a&ay e,il sic#ness. 0arpatassis 6roperly propitiated &ith ritual and the sacrifice of a buc#, this demon sta,es off sic#ness and +rants lon+, healthy life.

D. Mortals
Hupasiya1s2 He is a resident of Gi++aratta. He is recruited by $naras to aid in defeatin+ $lluyan#as. He a+rees to her plan after ellicitin+ her promise to sleep &ith him. %hen $lluyan#as and his children are +or+ed on $naras's feast, he ties them up for the Storm"+od to #ill. he is set up in a house by $naras &ith the instructions not to loo# out the &indo& &hile she is a&ay, lest he see his family. He does, and be+s to +o home. Here the te9t is bro#en and some researches assume that he is #illed.

III. %os#ology and the stru&ture o' the uni(erse.

$ ha,en't found as much about this as $ &ould li#e: 0he olden +ods built hea,en and earth upon ?pelluri. 0hey had a copper #nife &hich they used to clea,e the hea,en from the earth, after &hich they stored it in ancient storehouses and sealed them up " only to open them and retrie,e it for use on ?lli#ummis. 7untarra house 0he house of the +ods in hea,en. 0he )ar# .arth, i.e. the ?nder&orld. $t has an entrance &ith +ates. $t holds bron3e or iron palhi",essels &ith lead lids. 0hat &hich enters them, perishes &ithin and doesn't return. 0elipinu and Hannahanna's an+er is banished there.

I). *our&e #aterial$

Aoet3e, *lbrecht IHittite Myths, .pics, and /e+endsI, Ancient Near East Texts Relating to the Old Testament, ed. James 6ritchard, 6rinceton ?ni,ersity 6ress, 6rinceton, 19;;. 0his has been my primary source for the te9ts of the Hittite myths and prayers. Aurney, 8. C. The Hittites, 6en+uin Boo#s, De& Bor#, 1994. Aurney's &or# is a solid o,er,ie& of Hittite history, culture, reli+ion, and mytholo+y. Hoffner, Harry Hittite Myths, Scholars 6ress, *tlanta, Aeor+ia, 1994. $ntended to be a more idiomatic translation, Hoffner's &or# also includes material more recent than Aoet3. $ am replacin+ that material from Aoet3 &ith &hich this conflicts. S.H.Hoo#e Middle Eastern Mythology, 6en+uin Boo#s, De& Bor#,19!3. Hoo#e ta#es a comparati,e and summary approach to Sumerian, Babylonian, Canaanite, Hittite, and Hebre& mytholo+ical material. /aroche, .mmanuel, articles &ithin Mythologies Volume One, Bonnefoy, B,es 1compiler2, 0he ?ni,ersity of Chica+o 6ress, Chica+o, 1991. 0his handful of topically focused articles pro,ides depth in some areas of Hittite and Hurrian reli+ion but lac#s an o,erall picture as Bonnefoy's &or# &as desi+ned for an encyclopedic format. %hile our ser,er set up pre,ents a direct counter for this pa+e, there ha,e been o,er ==,3!9 hits here since its creation in March of 199! &ith the last assessment bein+ on )ecember 1st 444. Copyri+ht 199!, 1998, 1999. 0he Hittites li,ed in &hat is today modern 0ur#ey. 0hey had a +reat empire at around the time the .+yptians had theirs. 0heir ci,ili3ation &as not disco,ered until the 4th Century. ?p until then they &ere only a shado&y people mentioned in the Bible. 0here is a cycle of myths called the 7umarbi cycle that $ found interestin+ and e,en a bit funny. 0he stories ha,e come do&n to us because it is part of Hittite literature, but it is belie,ed they ori+inated &ith another ci,ili3ation: the Hurrians. Briefly, $ &ill relate the stories. 0he +od *lalu &as #in+ of the +ods. * ri,al +od, *nu, &anted to be #in+ so in a battle, he too# it a&ay and assumed control. *nu &as then attac#ed by 7umarbi, the son of *lalu. *nu fle& up into the s#y, but 7umarbi +rabbed him by his an#les and bit off his testicles.

*lthou+h ,ictorious, *nu told him that this probably &as not smart since by s&allo&in+ his testicles 7umarbi &ill no& become pre+nant &ith *nu's son and a,en+er: the storm +od 0eshub. $n time 0eshub did ta#e the throne for himself by defeatin+ 7umarbi. 7umarbi then proceeded in creatin+ a series of +ods@monsters that &ould ta#e do&n 0eshub. 0he first &as /amma. He &as placed on the throne &ith the aid of .a, a +od sympathetic to 7umarbi. But he &as innaffectual, so &as dismissed. 0he ne9t +od &as Sil,er. He &as born not #no&in+ his father and &as considered an orphan. %hen he pressed his mother as to &ho &as his father, she admitted it &as the +od 7umarbi. Sil,er then proceeded to search for his father, a theme that is common in mytholo+y. %hen father and son reunited, Sil,er too# the throne from 0eshub. But Sil,er &as a tyrant, he e,en pulled the sun and moon from the s#y and cast the &orld into dar#ness. He &as >uic#ly +otten rid of. 7umarbi still &anted someone of his o&n line to be #in+. So he married the sea +od's dau+hter and she +a,e birth to a sea monster named Hedammu. He defeated 0eshub in battle and 0eshub's sister thou+ht of a plan. She made herself beautiful and approached Hedammu. He allo&ed her to +et him drun#. 0he tablet brea#s off here, so &e are not sure &hat happens, but probably, in his drun#enness, he &as dispatched by 0eshub or his sister. 7umarbi &ould try a+ain. 0his time he found a hu+e roc# that &as miles lon+. 0he roc# apparently &as female because she had lady parts. He slept &ith her and she +a,e birth to a stone monster. Eor protection he &as placed on the ri+ht shoulder of ?belluri, an *tlas fi+ure &ho holds up the earth and hea,ens. He #ept +ro&in+ and +ro&in+. 8ut of the sea his hei+ht soon reached the hea,ens itself. 0eshub tried to fi+ht him, but &as defeated. 0eshub's sister thou+ht she could seduce the stone +iant, &hose name &as ?lli#ummi, but he &as blind and deaf, so he &ould not notice her. By this time .a had s&itched his alle+iance to 0eshub. 0o help the storm +od, he tra,elled to the bottom of the uni,erse to tal# &ith ?belluri. He as#ed him if he noticed a hu+e stone &ei+ht pressin+ do&n on him. ?belluri mentioned that he did ha,e a pain on his ri+ht shoulder. .a tra,elled to that area and sa& the hu+e ?lli#ummi standin+ there. He noticed that the source of his stren+th &as because he &as attached to the shoulder itself. .a then ad,ised 0eshub to find the ancient copper cuttin+ tool. 0his &as used to separate hea,en from earth in primordial times and is stron+ enou+h to se,er ?lli#ummi from the shoulder of ?belluri. 0he mysterious &eapon &as found after consultin+ some secret boo#s and ?lli#ummi &as cut a&ay from the shoulder. $n all of his thunderin+ ma5esty, 0eshub made a second attac# on ?lli#ummi. ?nfortunately, the tablet brea#s off a+ain and &e do not #no& the conclusion. But it is not a bi+ 5ump to surmise that the &ea#ened ?lli#ummi is defeated. 0his story has parallels &ith other Meditteranian mytholo+ies. $t is belie,ed that the stru++le bet&een 0eshub and his allies, and 7umarbi and his allies, is a battle bet&een celestial bein+s and those of the Dether&orld, &ith 0eshub representin+ the hea,enly bein+s. So, &hat do you thin#((