Baal cycle
Encyclopedia
The Baal cycle is a Ugarit
ic cycle of stories about the Canaan
ite god Baal
, also known as Hadad
the god of storm and fertility. They are written in Ugaritic
, a language written in a cuneiform
alphabet, on a series of clay tablet
s found in the 1920s in the Tell
of Ugarit
( modern Ras Shamra), situated on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria
, a few kilometers north of the modern city of Latakia
, far ahead of the now known coast.
is lost, but we first hear of Kothar-and-Khasis, the craftsman of the gods being summoned to El
, who resides at the confluence of the rivers and the two oceans. El tells him to build a palace for Yam, and to do so quickly in case Yam should take hostile action. When Athtar
hears of this, he takes a torch down, the purpose of which is not known due to the damaged text, but he is confronted by Shapash, who tells him that El is to bestow royal power on Yam, and so opposition is useless. Athtar then complains that he has no place or court, and that he now fears defeat at the hands of Yam. Shapash suggests the reason to be that he has no wife, perhaps meaning he is too young. The text following is lost and resumes with El sitting in his banquet hall. Here he is addressed by the other deities, who complain that Yam is being put to shame, though the damaged text makes the reason unclear, though it is clear the reason is connected to his palace. The gods threaten that unless this situation is resolved they will wreak destruction. El gives them curdled milk, apparently a mark of esteem. El calls that his son's name hitherto has been Yaw, a personal name. El then proclaims that his name should be 'darling of El'. However, he informs Yam that he would have to drive his rival Baal from his throne and the seat of his dominion. Following this there is a banquet. When the story resumes, Kothar-and-Khasis has arrived under the sea and tells Yam that he has risen presumptuously to his position, and that Baal cannot stand idly by. He threatens that Yam will be destroyed by a magic weapon. Yam then sends word to El, on the mount of Lel, El's abode, demanding the surrender of Baal and his henchmen. However, Baal, upon hearing this on the mount of Lel attacks the envoys, though Anat
and Athtart hold him back. When the story resumes, Baal has already started to battle Yam, but is in despair due to the power of Yam, and the fierce sea-creatures. Kothar-and-Khasis assures Baal that he will be victorious and will win a kingdom without end, and fetches two divine clubs for Baal's use. He gives them magic names, and strikes Yam the first two times himself. Baal then drags out Yam and finishes him off. Then Athtart tells Baal to scatter his rival, which he does, and then he cries out that Yam is dead, and that he shall be King.
When the text resumes Baal complains to Anat that he hasn't a house, nor a court like other gods, meaning that he has to live in the dwelling of his father El and Athirat. Anat thus makes a threat against El, threatening to make his grey hair run with blood unless he allows Baal to have a palace. The earthquakes at her feet cause El to be exposed from his chamber. Though the text following is lost, it is clear this attempt was unsuccessful, so Baal dispatches Qodesh-and-Amrur, the attendant of Athirat, to deliver a message to Kothar-and-Khasis, whose home is in Egypt. When the text continues, Qodesh-and-Amrur delivers Baal's message, which is that Kothar-and-Khasis should fashion gifts for Athirat, presumably so she will support Baal's bid for a palace. He enters his forge, and produces magnificent pieces of furniture, a pair of sandals, and a decorated table and bowl.
When the text continues we see Athirat performing her woman's work by the seashore, when she then sees Baal and Anat approaching. She wonders whether he has come to kill all her sons and kinsfolk, perhaps a reference to the Hittite myth of Elkunirsa where the storm-god boasts of having killed the many sons of Athirat. However, her anger subsides when she sees the gifts, and so supports Baal in his bid, and she calls upon Qodesh-and-Amrur to cast a net into the sea so she may have provisions to entertain the guests with. He does so, and when the text continues we see Anat encouraging Baal as they come closer to Athirat, reminding that he will have an eternal kingdom. However, Baal is still anxious. They persuade Athirat of their case.
She proceeds to El's abode, and makes her case. Reluctantly, he gives his assent for a house to be built for Baal. Baal is then instructed to collect cedar-wood, bricks and precious metals in order to build his house. Kothar-and-Khasis builds him a palace, but Baal insists that it is built without windows, in case that his daughters may escape, or that Yam may come again and trouble him. The work is completed and Baal rejoices. When the text resumes, Baal recalls his triumph over Yam, and then marches out taking many cities his own. He then consents to having windows to his Palace, and does so by thundering them out. While sitting in his palace he asks himself whether anybody would resist his power, and if anybody should, he should send word to Mot, god of death, to deal with them. He sends two messengers to Mot
inviting him to a feast and to acknowledge his sovereignty. In the ending, which is lost, Mot makes his reply.
When the text continues, two deities, presumably Gupn and Ugar arrive at El's abode, and they announce to him that they have been searching for Baal, but found him dead by the bank of the river of the dead. El then descends from his throne and sits on the ground, and mourns, strewing dust on his head, wears clothes of sackcloth, shaves of his beard and beats his chest in grief. Anat too wears sackcloth when she finds the fake dead body. Shapash aids Anat in burying Baal upon Mount Zephon, and Anat slaughters large numbers of oxen, sheep, goats and asses as a memorial. Anat returns to El, and tells Athirat and her family (many of whom were on the side of Mot) that they can rejoice since Baal was dead. El asks Athirat who can he appoint in Baal's place, and she suggests Athtar. Athtar seats himself on Baal's throne, but is not tall enough, confirming El's suspicion that he is too weak for the position.
When the text recontinues, Anat is searching in the netherworld for the shade of her brother. She demands that Mot restores him to her. However, Mot answers that he had searched for him over the earth, wher he found him at the entrance of his domain, and then he simply ate him. Anat continues her search, until she loses patience, and she seizes Mot, and attacks him, attacking him with a sword, shaking him, burning him, crushing him, then throwing his remains to the birds. When the text recontinues Anat returns to El and announces that Mot is dead. El then has a dream which tells him that Baal lives. Shortly after Baal returns. However, soon Mot resurrects, and complains to Baal of the treatment he has received. He demands that Baal surrenders one of his brothers over to him. When Mot has returned, Baal sends messengers telling him that he will banish him, and if he is hungry, he may eat the servants of Baal. However, this fails to please Mot, and so the two gods fight on Mount Zephon until exhausted. Shapash arrives and warns Mot that fighting Baal is useless, and El is now on Baal's side and will overturn Mot's throne. Mot is afraid, and so declares that Baal is king.
Ugarit
Ugarit was an ancient port city in the eastern Mediterranean at the Ras Shamra headland near Latakia, Syria. It is located near Minet el-Beida in northern Syria. It is some seven miles north of Laodicea ad Mare and approximately fifty miles east of Cyprus...
ic cycle of stories about the Canaan
Canaan
Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan...
ite god Baal
Baal
Baʿal is a Northwest Semitic title and honorific meaning "master" or "lord" that is used for various gods who were patrons of cities in the Levant and Asia Minor, cognate to Akkadian Bēlu...
, also known as Hadad
Hadad
Haddad was a northwest Semitic storm and rain god, cognate in name and origin with the Akkadian god Adad. Hadad was often called simply Ba‘al , but this title was also used for other gods. The bull was the symbolic animal of Hadad. He appeared as a bearded deity, often shown as holding a club and...
the god of storm and fertility. They are written in Ugaritic
Ugaritic language
The following table shows Proto-Semitic phonemes and their correspondences among Ugaritic, Arabic and Tiberian Hebrew:-Grammar:Ugaritic is an inflected language, and as a Semitic language its grammatical features are highly similar to those found in Classical Arabic and Akkadian...
, a language written in a cuneiform
Cuneiform script
Cuneiform script )) is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. Emerging in Sumer around the 30th century BC, with predecessors reaching into the late 4th millennium , cuneiform writing began as a system of pictographs...
alphabet, on a series of clay tablet
Clay tablet
In the Ancient Near East, clay tablets were used as a writing medium, especially for writing in cuneiform, throughout the Bronze Age and well into the Iron Age....
s found in the 1920s in the Tell
Tell
A tell or tel, is a type of archaeological mound created by human occupation and abandonment of a geographical site over many centuries. A classic tell looks like a low, truncated cone with a flat top and sloping sides.-Archaeology:A tell is a hill created by different civilizations living and...
of Ugarit
Ugarit
Ugarit was an ancient port city in the eastern Mediterranean at the Ras Shamra headland near Latakia, Syria. It is located near Minet el-Beida in northern Syria. It is some seven miles north of Laodicea ad Mare and approximately fifty miles east of Cyprus...
( modern Ras Shamra), situated on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, a few kilometers north of the modern city of Latakia
Latakia
Latakia, or Latakiyah , is the principal port city of Syria, as well as the capital of the Latakia Governorate. In addition to serving as a port, the city is a manufacturing center for surrounding agricultural towns and villages...
, far ahead of the now known coast.
Basic Synopsis
The Baal Cycle series of stories are summarized thus:- YamYam (god)Yam, from the Canaanite word Yam, meaning "Sea", also written "Yaw", is one name of the Ugaritic god of Rivers and Sea. Also titled Judge Nahar , he is also one of the 'ilhm or sons of El, the name given to the Levantine pantheon...
wants to rule over the other gods and be the most powerful of all - Baal-Hadad opposes Yam and slays him
- Baal-Hadad, with the help of AnatAnatAnat, also ‘Anat is a major northwest Semitic goddess.-‘Anat in Ugarit:In the Ugaritic Ba‘al/Hadad cycle ‘Anat is a violent war-goddess, a virgin in Ugarit though the sister and lover of the great Ba‘al known as Hadad elsewhere. Ba‘al is usually called the son of Dagon and sometimes the son of El....
h and AthiratAsherahAsherah , in Semitic mythology, is a Semitic mother goddess, who appears in a number of ancient sources including Akkadian writings by the name of Ashratum/Ashratu and in Hittite as Asherdu or Ashertu or Aserdu or Asertu...
, persuades ElEl (god)is a Northwest Semitic word meaning "deity", cognate to Akkadian and then to Hebrew : Eli and Arabic )....
to allow him a palace - Baal-Hadad commissions Kothar-wa-KhasisKothar-wa-KhasisKothar-wa-Khasis is a Canaanite god whose name means "Skillful-and-Wise" or "Adroit-and-Perceptive" or "Deft-and-Clever". Another of his names means "Deft-with-both-hands". Kothar is smith, craftsman, engineer, architect, and inventor...
to build him a palace. - King of the gods and ruler of the world seeks to subjugate Mot
- Mot kills Baal-Hadad
- Anath brutally kills Mot, grinds him up and scatters ashes
- Baal-Hadad returns to Mount Saphon
- Mot, having recovered from being ground up and scattered, challenges Baal-Hadad
- Baal-Hadad refuses; Mot submits
- Baal-Hadad rules again
Baal and Yam
The beginning of the story of the battle between Baal and YamYam (god)
Yam, from the Canaanite word Yam, meaning "Sea", also written "Yaw", is one name of the Ugaritic god of Rivers and Sea. Also titled Judge Nahar , he is also one of the 'ilhm or sons of El, the name given to the Levantine pantheon...
is lost, but we first hear of Kothar-and-Khasis, the craftsman of the gods being summoned to El
El
EL, El or el may refer to:* El , a Semitic word for "God"; also a senior god mentioned in the Ugarit and Ebla texts found in ancient Syria.* El , a letter of the Cyrillic alphabet* El , the letter L...
, who resides at the confluence of the rivers and the two oceans. El tells him to build a palace for Yam, and to do so quickly in case Yam should take hostile action. When Athtar
Attar (god)
Attar, also known as Athtar, Astar, and Ashtar is the god of the morning star in western Semitic mythology. In Canaanite legend he attempts to usurp the throne of the dead god Baal but proves inadequate. In semi-arid regions of western Asia he was sometimes worshipped as a rain god. His female...
hears of this, he takes a torch down, the purpose of which is not known due to the damaged text, but he is confronted by Shapash, who tells him that El is to bestow royal power on Yam, and so opposition is useless. Athtar then complains that he has no place or court, and that he now fears defeat at the hands of Yam. Shapash suggests the reason to be that he has no wife, perhaps meaning he is too young. The text following is lost and resumes with El sitting in his banquet hall. Here he is addressed by the other deities, who complain that Yam is being put to shame, though the damaged text makes the reason unclear, though it is clear the reason is connected to his palace. The gods threaten that unless this situation is resolved they will wreak destruction. El gives them curdled milk, apparently a mark of esteem. El calls that his son's name hitherto has been Yaw, a personal name. El then proclaims that his name should be 'darling of El'. However, he informs Yam that he would have to drive his rival Baal from his throne and the seat of his dominion. Following this there is a banquet. When the story resumes, Kothar-and-Khasis has arrived under the sea and tells Yam that he has risen presumptuously to his position, and that Baal cannot stand idly by. He threatens that Yam will be destroyed by a magic weapon. Yam then sends word to El, on the mount of Lel, El's abode, demanding the surrender of Baal and his henchmen. However, Baal, upon hearing this on the mount of Lel attacks the envoys, though Anat
Anat
Anat, also ‘Anat is a major northwest Semitic goddess.-‘Anat in Ugarit:In the Ugaritic Ba‘al/Hadad cycle ‘Anat is a violent war-goddess, a virgin in Ugarit though the sister and lover of the great Ba‘al known as Hadad elsewhere. Ba‘al is usually called the son of Dagon and sometimes the son of El....
and Athtart hold him back. When the story resumes, Baal has already started to battle Yam, but is in despair due to the power of Yam, and the fierce sea-creatures. Kothar-and-Khasis assures Baal that he will be victorious and will win a kingdom without end, and fetches two divine clubs for Baal's use. He gives them magic names, and strikes Yam the first two times himself. Baal then drags out Yam and finishes him off. Then Athtart tells Baal to scatter his rival, which he does, and then he cries out that Yam is dead, and that he shall be King.
The Palace of Baal
A description of the Palace of Baal follows. It begins with a description of a banquet thrown in honour of Baal on Mount Zephon (modern-day Jebel Aqra). When the text resumes, we see Anat closing the door of her mansion and meeting her servants in a valley where there are two cities, which possibly represent Ugarit and its port. She kills the guards and warriors, and then drives away the townspeople. She then slaughters the guards and warriors in her palace, ending with a peace-offering. When the text resumes again, Baal is addressing his messengers, picturing his sister Anat sitting with her lyre and singing of her affection for him and his daughters. The messengers are told to perform a specific rite, and she will give them an important communication for Baal, the secret of the lightning. Together, Anat and Baal will search for the secret on the hill of Zephon. She replies that she would only perform the rite if Baal should set his thunderbolt in the sky and flash his lightning. She then joins Baal at Zephon.When the text resumes Baal complains to Anat that he hasn't a house, nor a court like other gods, meaning that he has to live in the dwelling of his father El and Athirat. Anat thus makes a threat against El, threatening to make his grey hair run with blood unless he allows Baal to have a palace. The earthquakes at her feet cause El to be exposed from his chamber. Though the text following is lost, it is clear this attempt was unsuccessful, so Baal dispatches Qodesh-and-Amrur, the attendant of Athirat, to deliver a message to Kothar-and-Khasis, whose home is in Egypt. When the text continues, Qodesh-and-Amrur delivers Baal's message, which is that Kothar-and-Khasis should fashion gifts for Athirat, presumably so she will support Baal's bid for a palace. He enters his forge, and produces magnificent pieces of furniture, a pair of sandals, and a decorated table and bowl.
When the text continues we see Athirat performing her woman's work by the seashore, when she then sees Baal and Anat approaching. She wonders whether he has come to kill all her sons and kinsfolk, perhaps a reference to the Hittite myth of Elkunirsa where the storm-god boasts of having killed the many sons of Athirat. However, her anger subsides when she sees the gifts, and so supports Baal in his bid, and she calls upon Qodesh-and-Amrur to cast a net into the sea so she may have provisions to entertain the guests with. He does so, and when the text continues we see Anat encouraging Baal as they come closer to Athirat, reminding that he will have an eternal kingdom. However, Baal is still anxious. They persuade Athirat of their case.
She proceeds to El's abode, and makes her case. Reluctantly, he gives his assent for a house to be built for Baal. Baal is then instructed to collect cedar-wood, bricks and precious metals in order to build his house. Kothar-and-Khasis builds him a palace, but Baal insists that it is built without windows, in case that his daughters may escape, or that Yam may come again and trouble him. The work is completed and Baal rejoices. When the text resumes, Baal recalls his triumph over Yam, and then marches out taking many cities his own. He then consents to having windows to his Palace, and does so by thundering them out. While sitting in his palace he asks himself whether anybody would resist his power, and if anybody should, he should send word to Mot, god of death, to deal with them. He sends two messengers to Mot
Mot
In Ugaritic Mot 'Death' is personified as a god of death. The word is cognate with forms meaning 'death' in other Semitic and Afro-Asiatic languages: with Arabic موت mawt; with Hebrew מות ; with Maltese mewt; with Syriac mautā; with Ge'ez mot; with Canaanite, Egyptian Aramaic, Nabataean, and...
inviting him to a feast and to acknowledge his sovereignty. In the ending, which is lost, Mot makes his reply.
Baal and Mot
The final part of the Baal cycle is concerned with Baal's battle against Mot, or death personified. Continuing from the preceding section, Mot concludes his reply to Baal. His reply is that he, like a lion in the desert, hungers constantly for human flesh and blood. By inviting Mot to a meal of bread and wine, Mot is offended, and threatens to cause the heavens to wilt and collapse, breaking Baal into pieces. Mot then will eat him piece by piece. When the text continues, Baal, or a speaker on his behalf admits his fear and dread of Mot. The speaker then tells Gupn and Ugar to go back to Mot and tell him that Baal will be eternally his slave, news to which Mot rejoices. When the text continues Baal complains to El that his dominion is in danger of passing to Mot. He then sends messengers to Sheger and Ithm, who are responsible for Cattle and Sheep, and asks them to provide animals for a feast, to which he will invite Mot. When the texts continue, a messenger from Mot arrives in the divine assembly, demanding to know where Baal is. They both go up to El's house where El asks what has been happening. When the text continues, a speaker who is probably Shapash the sun-goddess addresses Baal. She is advising him to find a substitute in his image, which will be sought out and slain by Mot. She then promises to bury his body, and advises him to go to the two mountains which mark the entrance of the underworld, and to move them aside. Then he is to go down into the earth and hide. He finds a heifer in the fields, and with it has a child, who he dresses in his robes and offers as a gift to Mot.When the text continues, two deities, presumably Gupn and Ugar arrive at El's abode, and they announce to him that they have been searching for Baal, but found him dead by the bank of the river of the dead. El then descends from his throne and sits on the ground, and mourns, strewing dust on his head, wears clothes of sackcloth, shaves of his beard and beats his chest in grief. Anat too wears sackcloth when she finds the fake dead body. Shapash aids Anat in burying Baal upon Mount Zephon, and Anat slaughters large numbers of oxen, sheep, goats and asses as a memorial. Anat returns to El, and tells Athirat and her family (many of whom were on the side of Mot) that they can rejoice since Baal was dead. El asks Athirat who can he appoint in Baal's place, and she suggests Athtar. Athtar seats himself on Baal's throne, but is not tall enough, confirming El's suspicion that he is too weak for the position.
When the text recontinues, Anat is searching in the netherworld for the shade of her brother. She demands that Mot restores him to her. However, Mot answers that he had searched for him over the earth, wher he found him at the entrance of his domain, and then he simply ate him. Anat continues her search, until she loses patience, and she seizes Mot, and attacks him, attacking him with a sword, shaking him, burning him, crushing him, then throwing his remains to the birds. When the text recontinues Anat returns to El and announces that Mot is dead. El then has a dream which tells him that Baal lives. Shortly after Baal returns. However, soon Mot resurrects, and complains to Baal of the treatment he has received. He demands that Baal surrenders one of his brothers over to him. When Mot has returned, Baal sends messengers telling him that he will banish him, and if he is hungry, he may eat the servants of Baal. However, this fails to please Mot, and so the two gods fight on Mount Zephon until exhausted. Shapash arrives and warns Mot that fighting Baal is useless, and El is now on Baal's side and will overturn Mot's throne. Mot is afraid, and so declares that Baal is king.