Asherah or Astarot was the goddess of fertility, sexuality and, for some of the peoples, of war. It was venerated by the Phoenicians, especially the Canaanites. The Egyptians also worshiped this deity and, although the way of representing it was different from that of the Phoenicians, they held the same beliefs.
Ashera was known by a great diversity of names according to different civilizations that paid homage to the goddess and asked her not to lack food.
Representation of the Goddess Ashera standing on a lion. Source: wikimedia.
She was considered the mother goddess, believing that she was the one who had engendered the gods, in addition to having 70 children with him, a god who was associated as her husband. Other legends assure, however, that the goddess was paired with Baal.
As the goddess of fertility and sexuality, offerings were based on the placement of food, animal or human sacrifices, and sometimes on ceremonies associated with pagan rituals.
Also, being the goddess of war, soldiers used to deliver their armor in the Asheran temples as a sign of gratitude for the battles won.
Etymology
Asherah was revered in various ancient civilizations where polytheism was common. According to the location it received different names. For example, the Canaanites called it Astoret, while in Mesopotamia, specifically the Akkadians, they called it Ashratum or Ashratu.
The equivalent of the name Astoret in Greek is Astarte. In turn, the Hittites used various names to designate the goddess, among them: Aserdu, Asherdu or Asertu.
The deity for the inhabitants of Ugarit received the names of Athirat or Ashera and, according to the Hebrew scriptures, it was known as Ashtarot, Astoret or Astartes.
However, despite the various names under which she was known, she was the same goddess regarded as a mother. According to certain writings, it was associated in some cultures with the Goddess Astarte.
At times Asherah was called Elath, meaning "the Goddess." It was also associated with "She who walks in the sea" or was known as holiness (Qudshu).
Origin
On the origin of the goddess there are various conceptions depending on the civilization in question. For example, for the Canaanites, Astoret was the same goddess Inanna, the twin sister of Utu, the Sun God of the Sumerians. In turn, her father was Nanna, known as the God of the Moon.
According to the Egyptian civilization, she was the daughter of the God Ra known as the God of the Sun in Egypt, while others claimed that her father was the God of artisans, whose name was Ptah.
Despite the differences between the names that were given to the goddess Ashera, there was a point at which most of the religions practiced by the different civilizations converged as it was associated with the great mother.
Attributes
There are many attributes that are conferred on the deity, which vary from one culture to another, as well as the way in which it is represented.
One of the attributes of the goddess was the lion. It is associated with this animal in view of the fact that in various pictorial representations that have been found from that time, the deity appeared, devoid of clothing, standing on a lion.
On the other hand, in the Old Testament, the representation of Asherah in which allusion was made that the pagans worshiped him was based on a wooden object.
In Egyptian culture, the attributes of the goddess Ashera were related to horses, because, according to mythology, this was her favorite animal.
In some representations the goddess is exposed with a lunar disk in her hand, a star within a circle to refer to Venus or even with a dolphin.
The Phoenicians depicted her on carved tree trunks, while in other cultures she is depicted as a woman with exaggerated genitalia.
It can appear completely naked, covering some parts of your body such as the genitals or breasts. You can also see sculptures in which the goddess is shown with her head covered in a similar way to the Egyptians.
The goddess Ashera in different civilizations
The conception of the goddess, according to the element it represents, is similar to most of the civilizations of the time despite the diversity of names with which it was designated.
However, there are differences with respect to the sentimental partner of the goddess Ashera who, for the inhabitants of Ugarit, received the name of El, with whom she would have had 70 children.
In contrast, the Akkadians claimed that she was married to Anu, recognized as the God of Heaven to the Mesopotamians. In turn, the Phoenicians came to associate it on a sentimental level with Baal.
The "Mother Goddess", as she was known, was represented in various forms and cults according to each of the civilizations that worshiped her.
The faithful believers of the goddess Ashera permanently paid tributes to her, placed offerings in her honor and attended the temples in order to obtain help so that everything went well in their lives.
References
- Astarte. Taken from ecured.cu
- Encyclopedia Britannica. Asherah. Semitic Goddess. Taken from britannica.com
- Geller, Prof. (2016). Astarte. Taken from mythology.net
- Hadley, J. (2,000). The cult of Asherah in ancient Israel and Judah: the evidence for a Hebrew Goddess. Taken from academia.edu
- Wikipedia.org. Astarte. Taken from Wikipedia.org