Witchcraft and Magic in Europe, Volume 1: Biblical And Pagan Societies (Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe)

The oldest roots of the European concepts of witchcraft and magic lie in the Hebrew and other cultures of the ancient Near East and in the Celtic, Nordic and Germanic Societies of the North and West. The authors of this volume survey three crucial aspects of this earliest phase of development. These are the role of magical incantations and rituals against witchcraft in Mesopotamia in the last three millennia BC, the attitudes to witchcraft and magic in the Old Testament and in later Jewish tradition, and the beliefs and legends associated with trolldomor (witchcraft) in pre-Christian Scandanavia. Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 6 Illustrations......Page 10 General Introduction......Page 12 PART 1: WITCHCRAFT AND MAGIC IN ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA......Page 20 Mesopotamia: The Land, its People and History......Page 22 Earliest History and First Settlements......Page 23 The Akkadians: Babylonians and Assyrians......Page 24 The First Millennium: The Neo-Assyrian Empire......Page 26 Mesopotamia under Foreign Rulers: Persians and Greeks......Page 28 The Sumero-Babylonian Pantheon......Page 29 Ethics......Page 30 Magic......Page 32 Akkadian Literature......Page 34 Canonization......Page 35 Babylonian Tradition in Assyria......Page 36 The Magical Texts......Page 37 Mesopotamian Magic, State of Research......Page 41 A Literary Example of Witchcraft......Page 42 Laws against Witchcraft......Page 44 The Witch......Page 47 How Witchcraft Manifests Itself......Page 49 Diagnosis......Page 51 Characteristic Symptoms......Page 52 Methods......Page 54 Contagious Magic......Page 55 Magic Knots......Page 56 Evil Magic with Images......Page 57 Messages of Witchcraft: zikurudû......Page 60 The Evil Eye......Page 61 Medical Treatment of Witchcraft......Page 62 The Exorcist's Rituals against Witchcraft......Page 65 Maqlû......Page 69 Zikurudû......Page 72 Luck and Misfortune......Page 75 The Power of Precious Stones......Page 78 Amulets......Page 80 Amulets for the Protection of Babies......Page 85 Love Charms......Page 86 Potency Incantations......Page 89 Therapy......Page 90 Diseases and Demons......Page 91 Expelling Demons by Offering a Substitute......Page 92 The Ritual for the Substitute King......Page 97 Ghosts......Page 100 Evil Portents and Apotropaic Rituals......Page 103 Divination......Page 106 Necromancy......Page 107 Astrology......Page 109 Mesopotamian Magic after the Fall of Babylon......Page 112 Abbreviations for Publications of Cuneiform Texts......Page 115 PART 2: MAGIC IN ANCIENT SYRIA-PALESTINE - AND IN THE OLD TESTAMENT......Page 118 The Social-Historical Problem......Page 120 Constructing Syrian-Palestinian History......Page 123 Material History......Page 128 Settlement Pattern and Social Structure......Page 130 The Patronage Principle......Page 131 The Common Proprium of Magic and Religion......Page 134 The Problem of Definition......Page 135 The Production of New Magic......Page 137 The Role of Stories......Page 139 Magic and Empiricism......Page 140 The Biblical Understandings of Magic......Page 141 The Evolutionary Picture......Page 143 Other Forms of Divination than Prophecy......Page 148 The Role of Women in Israelite and Judaean Magic......Page 155 Active Magic......Page 158 Witchcraft, Sorcery and Cursing......Page 160 Witchcraft and Gender......Page 161 Self-cursing: The Oath......Page 162 Another Self-curse: The Ordeal......Page 163 The Status of Magic in Ancient Syria—Palestine......Page 164 The Practitioners......Page 167 Abbreviations......Page 168 Notes......Page 173 Bibliography......Page 174 D......Page 186 J......Page 187 P......Page 188 Z......Page 189 Cover 1 Contents 6 Illustrations 10 General Introduction 12 PART 1: WITCHCRAFT AND MAGIC IN ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA 20 Introduction 22 Mesopotamia: The Land, its People and History 22 Earliest History and First Settlements 23 The Sumerian City-States 24 The Akkadians: Babylonians and Assyrians 24 The First Millennium: The Neo-Assyrian Empire 26 Mesopotamia under Foreign Rulers: Persians and Greeks 28 Religion 29 The Sumero-Babylonian Pantheon 29 Ethics 30 Purification 32 Magic 32 The Literary Tradition 34 Sumerian Literature 34 Akkadian Literature 34 Canonization 35 Babylonian Tradition in Assyria 36 First Millennium 37 The Magical Texts 37 Mesopotamian Magic, State of Research 41 Witchcraft 42 A Literary Example of Witchcraft 42 Laws against Witchcraft 44 The Witch 47 How Witchcraft Manifests Itself 49 Diagnosis 51 Characteristic Symptoms 52 Methods 54 Contagious Magic 55 Magic Knots 56 Evil Magic with Images 57 Messages of Witchcraft: zikurudû 60 The Evil Eye 61 Anti-Witchcraft Rituals 62 Medical Treatment of Witchcraft 62 The Exorcist's Rituals against Witchcraft 65 Maqlû 69 Zikurudû 72 Magic 75 Luck and Misfortune 75 The Power of Precious Stones 78 Amulets 80 Amulets for the Protection of Babies 85 Love Charms 86 Potency Incantations 89 Therapy 90 Diseases and Demons 91 Expelling Demons by Offering a Substitute 92 The Ritual for the Substitute King 97 Ghosts 100 Evil Portents and Apotropaic Rituals 103 Divination 106 Necromancy 107 Astrology 109 Mesopotamian Magic after the Fall of Babylon 112 Abbreviations for Publications of Cuneiform Texts 115 PART 2: MAGIC IN ANCIENT SYRIA-PALESTINE - AND IN THE OLD TESTAMENT 118 The Social-Historical Problem 120 Constructing Syrian-Palestinian History 123 Material History 128 Settlement Pattern and Social Structure 130 The Patronage Principle 131 The Common Proprium of Magic and Religion 134 The Problem of Definition 135 The Production of New Magic 137 The Role of Stories 139 Magic and Empiricism 140 The Biblical Understandings of Magic 141 The Evolutionary Picture 143 Pseudo-evolution: The Tradition of 'Priestly' Divination 148 Other Forms of Divination than Prophecy 148 The Role of Women in Israelite and Judaean Magic 155 Active Magic 158 Witchcraft, Sorcery and Cursing 160 The Evil Eye 161 Witchcraft and Gender 161 Self-cursing: The Oath 162 Another Self-curse: The Ordeal 163 The Status of Magic in Ancient Syria—Palestine 164 The Practitioners 167 Abbreviations 168 Notes 173 Bibliography 174 Index 186 A 186 B 186 C 186 D 186 E 187 F 187 G 187 H 187 I 187 J 187 K 188 L 188 M 188 N 188 O 188 P 188 Q 189 R 189 S 189 T 189 U 189 V 189 W 189 Y 189 Z 189

In the ancient Near East, the art of influencing the natural course of events by means of spells and other ritual forms was universal. The social and political role of magic is apparent, too, in the competition to achieve precedence over rival systems of ritual practice and belief. Within a region filled with petty kingdoms competing for power, the Jews of ancient Palestine maintained control over adherents by developing distinct ritual practices and condemning as heretical those of nearby cults. Texts from Mesopotamia reveal a striking number of incantations, rituals, and medical recipes against witchcraft, attesting to a profound fear of being bewitched. Magical rituals were also used to maintain harmony between the human and divine realms.

The roots of European witchcraft and magic lie in Hebrew and other ancient Near Eastern cultures and in the Celtic, Nordic, and Germanic traditions of the continent. For two millennia, European folklore and ritual have been imbued with the belief in the supernatural, yielding a rich trove of histories and images.

Witchcraft and Magic in Europe combines the traditional approaches of political, legal, and social historians with a critical synthesis of cultural anthropology, historical psychology, and gender studies. The series, complete in six volumes, provides a modern, scholarly survey of the supernatural beliefs of Europeans from ancient times to the present day. Each volume of this ambitious six-volume series contains the work of distinguished scholars chosen for their expertise in a particular era or region.

The roots of European witchcraft and magic lie in Hebrew and other ancient Near Eastern cultures and in the Celtic, Nordic, and Germanic traditions of the continent. For two millennia, European folklore and ritual have been imbued with the belief in the supernatural, yielding a rich trove of histories and images.Witchcraft and Magic in Europe combines the traditional approaches of political, legal, and social historians with a critical synthesis of cultural anthropology, historical psychology, and gender studies. The series, completed with three new volumes, provides a modern, scholarly survey of the supernatural beliefs of Europeans from ancient times to the present day. Each volume of this ambitious six-volume series contains the work of distinguished scholars chosen for their expertise in a particular era or region.In the ancient Near East, the art of influencing the natural course of events by means of spells and other ritual forms was universal. The social and political role of magic is apparent, too, in the competition to achieve precedence over rival systems of ritual practice and belief. Within a region filled with petty kingdoms competing for power, the Jews of ancient Palestine maintained control over adherents by developing distinct ritual practices and condemning as heretical those of nearby cults. Texts from Mesopotamia reveal a striking number of incantations, rituals, and medical recipes against witchcraft, attesting to a profound fear of being bewitched. Magical rituals were also used to maintain harmony between the human and divine realms. The eighteenth century saw the end of witch trials everywhere. The authors chart the process of and reasons for the decriminalization of witchcraft, but also challenge the widespread assumption that Europe then became "disenchanted." Here for the first rime are surveys of the social role of witchcraft in European communities, as well as a full treatment of Victorian supernaturalism and of the continued importance of witchcraft and magic as topics of debate among intellectuals and other writers. In Antiquity, the land between Euphrates and Tigris, with the classical Greek name of Mesopotamia (today approximately Iraq), was for a very long period a powerful state with an enormous influence, not only in political affairs but also in the areas of science, technology, literature and religion. Here the oldest roots of European concepts of witchcraft and magic are surveyed, examining magical incantations and rituals against witchcraft in Mesopotamia, attitudes to it in the Old Testament and later Jewish tradition, and beliefs and legends in pre-Christian Scandinavia.