Their End of the Bargain

Unlike Mario Liverani's Uruk: The First City, Francis Joannes devotes a whole chapter in The Age of Empires to the structure of religion and the power it had over the Assyrian kingdom. Joannes goes into detail about not only the organization of the temple, but also how religion pertained to everyday life when diagnosing illnesses, for example. As in all kingdoms, the relationship between the king and the god is absolute; with the king attesting his legitimacy to the divine powers, and the gods blessing his reign with successful campaigns and good fortune. One may think of the king and the gods’ relationship as a form of reciprocated gift exchange. With each ceremony that the town offers in the god’s favor, does the god feel obligated to give the city something in return, namely peace and prosperity. We will look at some of the ways in which Joannes depicts how the Assyrians gave their end of the bargain.

One way to honor the god is to create a statue in his likeness. This statue will then be placed inside a particular temple and guarded by the temple wardens as well the statues of secondary, less important gods. Guarding the, shall we say, “home” of the god runs parallel with the role of the god to protect and guard the city from misfortune. Presenting the god with “regular food offerings” like “bread and pastries, mutton, beef and poultry, and various alcoholic drinks” (182) is a everyday contribution that the townspeople must partake in, four times a day. When accepting the food, the god then reciprocates by blessing the farmers with bountiful crops so that they can not only feed their families but the gods all over again.

The Akitu ceremony is an important purification ritual in which the town is given time to prepare for a renewed visit from the god. This ceremony also sanctifies the relationship between the king and the god in which the king is pardoned from all sins and allowed to start another year of reign with a clean slate.