#emesh

🌷☀️Emesh 2025 ☀️🌷

March 20, 2025

Happy Spring Equinox!

Gods on altar: Inana, Ĝeštinana, Dumuzid

This is a modern festival celebrating arrival of Spring & Summer. I had to localize the practice/meaning of Emesh and its relationship to Dumuzid link

Lady with grain stems caught in her hair, Lady with strong hands for kneading dough, Lady with strong arms for the dough-shovel, Lady with sun-darkened skin and oven-fires caught in her eyes, Lady whose finery is a worker's tunic, Lady whose perfume is sweetwort and honey, Your voice is the music of flowing beer, Your laughter the chuckle of a clay bottle. Come home from your circling dance around the fire, Passing hand to hand and lips to lips! Come home from the young lioness's roaring tavern, From the kissing of wounds, from the heat of the sun. Ninkasi who gladdens the heart, come home! You are expected, awaited, beloved. Your strong hands have browned like good bread in the sun, And they slide over the pale skin of a fine noblewoman. Her milk-pale skin like fine holy linen, Her slender arms like slim reeds full of grace. Fingers calloused from the churning dough-shovel Twine with long digits like fragile spiders, Graceful ivory combs that spin long hair into art. She is quiet where you are joyful, She is delicate where you are vivacious, Yet her skill speaks with a voice as complex as poetry, As colorful as a tavern tale And just as clever in her transformation. Press your glad mouth to her buttoned lip, Lady. Let Uttu weave your black, barley-flecked hair. Lahar and Ashnan look upon you and smile, Emesh and Enten break bread under your roof, For what has more beauty than such perfect union Of a glad heart and a beautiful wife?

May Uttu be praised, may the name of Ninkasi be honey on my lips, And for the pen of her servant may Nisaba be praised.

☀️🌷 Emesh 2025 ☀️🌷

Celebrated March 28, 2025

Happy Spring Equinox!

Gods on Altar: Inana, Dumuzid (black beads), Ĝeštinana (white beads)

Here is the full altar set up pre-ritual on the actual Spring Equinox — Link

I gave praise prayer to Inana, a prayer of joy for Dumuzid, and a lament for Ĝeštinana. I supplicated for global food security. Did readings for foundation of Emesh, one for Inana & Dumuzid's initial marriage, and one for their reunion. I played a recording of historical-informed Spring & Summer by Vivaldi. A libation was poured out for Dumuzid & Ĝeštinana separately as one is ascending and one is descending. The food offering was cut peaches. Dumuzid's black beads were placed on Inana his wife and will stay for the duration of Spring/Summer. Ĝeštinana's white beads are on Gugal-ana, My Queen Ereškigal's husband for now. It seemed the most appropriate place. The beads will switch at the Fall Equinox— Enten (Winter).

This is a modern ritual celebrating the arrival of Emesh (Sumerian Summer). There were historical festivals of Dumuzid's dying cult but I have found nothing I could use as a basis. [Edit: within Mesopotamian proper there seems to be no evidence of any "rising" cult based on Ayali-Darshan Noga, so this is fully based on Inana's descent]

•Literature used

All literature is altered to remove missing pieces or to fill them in with logical conclusions

Inana’s Descent ETCSL 1.4.1 Line 403-410

Disputation between Summer and Winter, with the seasons swapped ETCSL 5.3.3

A Babble to Inana ETCSL 4.07.1

Dumuzid’s Wedding as found in The Harps That Once by Thorkild

Hymn to Inanna as Warrior, Star, and Bride, found in The Harps That Once by Thorkild

•Original Writing

Praise for the Return of Dumuzid — Link

Lamentation for Ĝeštinana — Link

Emesh Prayer for Global Food Security — Link

•Music

The Spring & Summer historical informed performance of Vivaldi that I used — Link

•Information

I localized this practice to celebrate my Spring/Summer and the arrival of Dumuzid because Spring/Summer is the planting and growing season in my region. Unlike Sumer which was the exact opposite; Dumuzid would die at this time in their climate and agriculture cycle. I did ask the Diĝirene in ritual to allow me to swap them.

"Lord Dumuzid, you wield no hoe yet heap up piles of grain, a farmer whose grain is in hundreds of piles, a shepherd whose sheep is laden with wool. It is you we sing to today.

Dumuzid you are seized by Galla and descend to Kur for half the year.

Dumuzid you separate from your wife and descend to Kur for half the year.

It is truly a painful time; a lamentable time.

Great shepard, husband of Inana, who lays out a splendid table for his wife, we welcome your return.

Dumuzid we welcome your return to the Land of the Living and are gladdened by the fertility it brings!

Dumuzid, your wife eagerly awaits you.

Your wife, Holy Inana, eagerly awaits you.

This is truly a joyous time; a cheerful time.

May we rejoice unceasingly at your return!

Lord Dumuzid praising you is sweet."

— By IzkurEreškigal

🔹Notes

OCtober 2020 Day 19 Cleric

Okay so think I’m caught up now, today the prompt was cleric, and the closest to a holy man I have is emesh, a literal god.

Got a spell book and a magic wand, attached with straps to keep everything together.

I went for a more cartoony look but I think it came out nice, I really enjoy drawing emesh, he can be difficult in some ways, but in a good challenging way!

🖋Grim Emesh v.1✒ 🕧[TIME LAPSE ]🕛

Music: