Ancient Chaldea was undoubtedly the birthplace of that mysterious
science of astrology which was destined to exert such influence upon
the European mind during the Middle Ages, and which indeed has not yet
ceased to amuse the curious and flatter the hopes of the credulous.
Whether any people more primitive than the Akkadians had studied the
movements of the stars it would indeed be extremely difficult to say.
This the Akkadians or Babylonians were probably the first to attempt.
The plain of Mesopotamia is peculiarly suited to the study of the
movements of the stars. It is level for the most part, and there are
few mountains around which moisture can collect to obscure the sky.
Moreover the climate greatly assists such observations.
[Illustration: Procession of Gods Rock-relief at Malatia (Anti-Taurus
range). Order from right to left: Asshur, Ishtar, Sin, En-lil, Shamash,
Adad and Ishtar of Arbela. From _Religious Belief and Practice in
Babylonia and Assyria_, by Prof. Jastrow (G.P. Putnam's Sons.).]
Like most primitive people the Babylonians originally believed the
stars to be pictures drawn on the heavens. At a later epoch they were
described as the 'writing of heaven'; the sky was supposed to be a
great vault, and the movements observed by these ancient astronomers
were thought to be on the part of the stars alone. Of course it would
be noticed at an early stage that some of the stars seemed fixed while
others moved about. Lines were drawn between the various stars and
planets, and the figures which resulted from these were regarded as
omens. Again, certain groups or constellations were connected with
such lines which led them to be identified with various animals, and
in this we may observe the influence of animism. The Babylonian zodiac
was, with the exception of the sign of Merodach, identified with the
eleven monsters forming the host of Tiawath. Thus it would seem that
the zodiacal system as a whole originated in Babylonia. The knowledge
of the Chaldean astronomers appears to have been considerable, and it
is likely that they were familiar with most of the constellations known
to the later Greeks.
Legend of the Origin of Star-Worship and Idolatry
The following legend is told regarding the origin of astrology by
Maimonides, the famous Jewish rabbi and friend of Averroes, in his
commentary on the _Mischnah_:
"In the days of Enos, the son of Seth, the sons of Adam erred with
great error: and the council of the wise men of that age became
brutish; and Enos himself was of them that erred. And their error
was this: they said,--Forasmuch as God hath _created these stars and
spheres to govern the world_, and hath set them on high, and hath
imparted honour unto them, and they are ministers that minister before
Him, it is meet that men should laud and glorify and give them honour.
For this is the will of God that we laud and magnify whomsoever He
magnifieth and honoureth, even as a king would honour them that stand
before him. And this is the honour of the king himself. When this
thing was come up into their hearts they began to build temples unto
the stars, and to offer sacrifice unto them, and to laud and magnify
them with words, and to worship before them, that they might, in their
evil opinion, obtain favour of their Creator. And this was the root of
idolatry; for in process of time there stood up false prophets among
the sons of Adam, which said, that God had commanded them and said
unto them,--Worship such a star, or all the stars, and do sacrifice
unto them thus and thus; and build a temple for it, and make an image
of it, that all the people, women and children, may worship it. And
the false prophet _showed them the image_ which he had feigned out of
his own heart, and said that _it was the image_ of that star which was
made known to him by prophecy. And they began after this manner to make
images in temples, and under trees, and on the tops of mountains and
hills, and assembled together and worshipped them; _and this thing was
spread through all the world_ to serve images, with services different
one from another, and to sacrifice unto and worship them. So, in
process of time, the glorious and fearful Name was forgotten out of the
mouth of all living, and out of their knowledge, and they acknowledged
Him not. And there was found on earth no people that knew aught, save
images of wood and stone, and temples of stone which they had been
trained up from their childhood to worship and serve, and to swear by
their names; and the wise men that were among them, the priests and
such like, thought that there was no God save the stars and spheres,
for whose sake, and _in whose likeness_, they had made these images;
but as for the Rock Everlasting, there was no man that did acknowledge
Him or know Him save a few persons in the world, as Enoch, Methusaleh,
Noah, Shem, and Heber. And in this way did the world work and converse,
till that pillar of the world, Abram our father, was born."
Speculations of the Chaldeans
To arrive at a proper comprehension of Babylonian religious doctrines
it is necessary to understand the nature of the astrological
speculations of the ancient Chaldeans. They recognized at an early
period that eternal and unchangeable laws underlay planetary motion,
and seem to have been able to forecast eclipses. Soon also did they
begin to identify the several heavenly bodies with the gods. Thus the
path of the sun was known as the 'way of Anu,' and the course of the
moon and planets they determined with reference to the sun's ecliptic
or pathway. It is strange, too, that they should have employed the same
ideograph for the word 'star' and the word 'god,' the only difference
being that in the case of a god they repeated the sign three times. If
the sun and moon under animistic law are regarded as gods, it stands to
reason that the stars and planets must also be looked upon as lesser
deities. Indeed, poets still use such an expression regarding them as
'the host of heaven,' and we frequently encounter in classical authors
the statement that the stars in their courses fought for such and such
a person. This is tantamount to saying that the stars possess volition,
and even although omens were looked for out of their movements, it
may have been believed that these were the outcome of volition on the
part of the stars themselves as deities or deific individuals. Again
we can see how the idea that the gods reside in 'heaven'--that is,
the sky--arose from early astrological conceptions. The gods were
identified in many cases with the stars, therefore it is only natural
to suppose that they resided in the sky-region. It is, indeed, one of
the most difficult matters for even an intelligent and enlightened man
in our enlightened age to dissociate the idea of God from a residence
in the sky or 'somewhere up there.'
The idea of space, too, must have assisted in such a conception as the
residence of the gods in the upper regions of air. The earth would not
be large enough for them, but the boundless vault above would afford
them plenty of space in which to dwell. Again, the sun and moon being
gods, it would be only natural for the other deities to dwell beside
them, that is, in the 'heaven of Anu,' as the Babylonians called the
sky. It has been suggested that the conception of a pantheon dwelling
in the sky originated in theological processes forwarded by a school or
priesthood, but there is no reason to suppose that this was so, and the
possibilities are easily covered by the circumstances of the animistic
theory.
Planets identified with Gods
Jupiter, the largest of the planets, was identified with Merodach,
head of the Babylonian pantheon. We find him exercising control over
the other stars in the creation story under the name Nibir. Ishtar was
identified with Venus, Saturn with Ninib, Mars with Nergal, Mercury
with Nabu. It is more than strange that gods with certain attributes
should have become attached to certain planets in more countries than
one, and this illustrates the deep and lasting influence which Semitic
religious thought exercised over the Hellenic and Roman theological
systems. The connexion is too obvious and too exact not to be the
result of close association. There are, indeed, hundreds of proofs to
support such a theory. Who can suppose, for example, that Aphrodite is
any other than Ishtar? The Romans identified their goddess Diana with
the patroness of Ephesus. There are, indeed, traces of direct relations
of the Greek goddess with the moon, and she was also, like Ishtar,
connected with the lower world and the sea. The Greeks had numerous and
flourishing colonies in Asia Minor in remote times, and these probably
assisted in the dissemination of Asiatic and especially Babylonian lore.
The sun was regarded as the shepherd of the stars, and Nergal, the
god of destruction and the underworld, as the 'chief sheep,' probably
because the ruddy nature of his light rendered him a most conspicuous
object. Anu is the Pole Star of the ecliptic, Bel the Pole Star of
the equator, while Ea, in the southern heavens, was identified with
a star in the constellation Argo. Fixed stars were probably selected
for them because of their permanent and elemental nature. The sun
they represented as riding in a chariot drawn by horses, and we
frequently notice that the figure representing the luminary on Greek
vases and other remains wears the Phrygian cap, a typically Asiatic
and non-Hellenic head-dress, thus assisting proof that the idea of the
sun as a charioteer possibly originated in Babylonia. Lunar worship,
or at least computation of time by the phases of the moon, frequently
precedes the solar cult, and we find traces in Babylonian religion
of the former high rank of the moon-god. The moon, for example, is
not one of the flock of sheep under guidance of the sun. The very
fact that the calendar was regulated by her movements was sufficient
to prevent this. Like the Red Indians and other primitive folk, the
Babylonians possessed agricultural titles for each month, but these
periods were also under the direct patronage of some god or gods. Thus
the first month, Nizan, is sacred to Anu and Bel; and the second, Iyar,
to Ea. Siwan is devoted to Sin, and as we approach the summer season
the solar gods are apportioned to various months. The sixth month is
sacred to Ishtar, and the seventh to Shamash, great god of the sun.
Merodach rules over the eighth, and Nergal over the ninth month. The
tenth, curiously enough, is sacred to a variant of Nabu, to Anu, and
to Ishtar. The eleventh month, very suitably, to Ramman, the god of
storms, and the last month, Adar, falling within the rainy season, is
presided over by the seven evil spirits.
None of the goddesses received stellar honours. The names of the months
were probably quite popular in origin. Thus we find that the first
month was known as the 'month of the Sanctuary,' the third as the
'period of brick-making,' the fifth as the 'fiery month,' the sixth as
the 'month of the mission of Ishtar,' referring to her descent into the
realms of Allatu. The fourth month was designated 'scattering seed,'
the eighth that of the opening of dams, and the ninth was entitled
'copious fertility,' while the eleventh was known as 'destructive rain.'
We find in this early star-worship of the ancient Babylonians the
common origin of religion and science. Just as magic partakes in some
measure of the nature of real science (for some authorities hold that
it is pseudo-scientific in origin) so does religion, or perhaps more
correctly speaking, early science is very closely identified with
religion. Thus we may believe that the religious interest in their
early astronomy spurred the ancient star-gazers of Babylonia to acquire
more knowledge concerning the motions of those stars and planets which
they believed to be deities. We find the gods so closely connected with
ancient Chaldean astronomy as to be absolutely identified with it in
every way. A number was assigned to each of the chief gods, which would
seem to show that they were connected in some way with mathematical
science. Thus Ishtar's number is fifteen; that of Sin, her father, is
exactly double that. Anu takes sixty, and Bel and Ea represent fifty
and forty. Ramman is identified with ten.
It would be idle in this place to attempt further to outline
astrological science in Babylonia, concerning which our knowledge is
vague and scanty. Much remains to be done in the way of research before
anything more definite can be written about it, and many years may pass
before the workers in this sphere are rewarded by the discovery of
texts bearing on Chaldean star-lore.