Afterlife myths

Ishtar's Descent to the Underworld.

Characters 👥

Ishtar

Ereshkigal

Dumuzi

Good-looks

Papsukkal

Gatekeeper

Sin/King Ea

Namator

Goddess of fertility, sexual love, and war

Purposefully travels to the underworld and is only allowed to return to the living realm if she finds a substitute

Lover of Ishtar who spends half the year in the underworld as her substitute.

Referred to as the Mistress of Earth

Keeps Ishtar prisoner in the underworld and strips her of her possession.

Created by Sin/King Ea with the task of going to Ereshkigal and returning Ishtar.

Watches the seven gates into the underworld.

Strips Ishtar of her belongings as she passes through each gate.

Vizier to Ereshkigal who releases 60 diseases of the eye, arm, feet, head, heart, and body onto Ishtar.

Vizier of the gods who goes to Sin/King Ea and asks for help on how to release Ishtar

Father of Ishtar and creator of Good-looks

Cursed by Ereshkigal

Homeric Hymn to Demeter

Characters 👥

Demeter

Hades

Zeus

Hermes

Persephone

Keleos, Metaniera, and Demophoon

Isis and Osiris

Goddess of the crops and land

Mother of Persephone

Daughter of Zeus and Persephone

Is kidnapped by Hades and taken to the underworld, where she spend 1/3 of the year.

God of the sky and king of the Olympians

Father of Persephone who allows Hades to take Persephone

Kidnaps Persephone and takes her to the underworld

Is sent by Zeus to bring Demeter back to Olympus. Also goes and returns Persephone to her mother Demeter

Mortal family who take in Demeter and appoint her as a babysitter to their child Demophoon.

Once the Mother Metaniera, finds out that Demeter is putting her child in the fire, she intervenes.

Cursed by Demeter to annual internal conflict and ordered to construct an alter and temple for Demeter

Descent

Change

Outside Help

Release

Ishtar journey to the underworld and ask the gatekeeper to let her in. The gatekeeper goes to Ereshkigal, the mistress of Earth, who is furious with Ishtar's arrival but lets the gatekeeper open the gates for Ishtar and treat her according to the ancient rites. At each door, seven in total, the gatekeeper strips Ishtar of her possessions. Her great crown, Ishtar's rings from her ear, the beads around her neck, the toggle-pins at her breast, the girdle of birth-stones around Ishtar's waist, the bangles on her wrists and ankles, and the pride garment of her body are all taken by the gatekeeper. As they pass through each door, Ishtar ask "Gatekeeper, why have you taken away the [article of clothing]?" The Gatekeeper vaguely answers, "Go in, my lady. Such are the rites of the Mistress of Earth." He later returns all of these possessions when Ishtar leaves the underworld

During her time in the underworld, Ishtar is tormented by 60 diseases that Ereshkigal has ordered her vizier Namator to release upon her body. The mortal world experiences wierd phenomenons that worries the vizier of the great gods, Papsukkal, who goes to Sin/King Ea for guidance. Sin/King Ea creates the god Good-lokes who he sends to Ereshkigal.

Sin/King Ea creates the god Good-looks who he sends to Ereshkigal. Good-looks is unable to move Ereshkigal and gets cursed.

Ishtar is finally released when her lover, the god Dumuzi takes her place in the underworld

The goddesses, Isis and Demeter, become care takers of mortal infants of ruling families. They both try to give the child immortality by placing it in the fire but are found out by the mothers. Demeter and Isis cast aside their disguise and display their divine appearance, cursing the family and punishing them.

Kidnap

Hades, with the permission of Zeus, erupts out from the underworld in a chariot and takes Persephone while she was picking flowers to the underworld.

Demeter's Reaction

Involvement of Zeus through Hermes

Tie to the Underworld

Demeter becomes furious with the gods for allowing her daughter to be taken and so leave Olympus and descends to the mortal world. She disguises herself and becomes the caretaker of Demophoon, feeding him ambrosia and placing him in the fire. Demophoon's mother Metaniera is terrified by what Demeter has done and so take her son away from Demeter. Demeter is upset and courses the family and their followers.

Hermes is sent by Zeus to return Demeter to Olympus. While she was gone, crops died, famine rampaged, and droughts ruined the land. Demeter refused to return unless her daughter was returned to her. Hermes went to see Hades and told him to bring Persephone back to her mother.

Before she was reunited with her mother, Persephone ate some pomegranate seeds from the underworld. Persephone would have to return to the underworld for 1/3 of the year and during her stay in the underworld, Demeter would cause plants to stop growing and initiate the change in season.

Izanagi’s Journey to the Underworld

Izanagi and his wife Izanami were the creator gods of Japan. They formed the Japanese islands and gave birth to the many gods. However, Izanami died giving birth to the fire god.

underworld = Yomi

Izanagi enters Yomi in search of his wife. By the time he had arrived, Izanami had eaten the fruit of the dead. She went to speak with the other gods of the dead to see if she could return to the realm of the living. While she did this, she told her husband Izanagi to wait and not to come looking for her.

Izanagi grew impatient and went to go find Izanami. He found her but was shocked to see that her body had already begun to decay and there was a strange light coming from her. Izanami was furious that he disobeyed her and she sent witches and demons after him. When those failed to capture him, she went after him herself. She, however, failed to capture him and cursed the humans, saying that she would take 1000 humans lives a day.

Izanami became the ruler of the dead, while Izanagi became the ruler of the living.

Persephone and Inzanami are forced to stay in the underworld after eating its fruit.

Orpheus and Eurydice

Characters 👥

Orpheus

Eurydice

Apollo

Aristaeus

Son of Apollo and Calliope

Went to the underworld to see his wife, Eurydice

Wife of Orpheus

Shepherd who wanted Eurydice

He chased Eurydice through the woods where she was bitten by a venomous snake

Olympian and father of Orpheus

Change of Seasons

Snake Bite

There are different version on how it started. Eurydice was in the woods (either with nymphs or with Orpheus) and Aristaeus started to chase her. While running from him, Eurydice stepped in a bed of snakes and was bitten. She died from the venom.

Journey to Underworld

With Apollo's help, Orpheus traveled to the underworld. normally no mortal could have travelled to the underworld, but Orpheus was protected by the gods and so could return to the human world.

He approached the rules of the underworld, Hades and Persephone, explained why he was there, and played his lyre. Hades wept, Persephone's heart melted, and Cerberus covered its ears and howled in despair.

The Promise

Hades, moved by Orpheus' playing, promised him that Eurydice would return to the world of the living as long as Orpheus did not look at her. Once they were back into the world of the living he could look at her.

Return

Orpheus made it back into the light before he looked at his wife. Unfortunately Eurydice was still in the dark, so once Orpheus looked at her, she was swept back into the underworld. Orpheus tried to enter the underworld again but his entry was barred. He return to the mortal world, in despair. He later died when a mob of women were angered when he scorned them. They killed him, cut apart his body, and threw him and his lyre into the river.

Anatolian Myth of a Departed God

In this myth, Telipinu becomes upset (reasons unknown) and leaves shortly after his house burns down.

While he is away, crops do not ripen, animals and humans cannot get pregnant, and a drought occurs.

The other gods are finally able to locate Telipinu, after various attempts, when a bee finds him in a meadow and stings him awake.

Once Telipinu returns, everything is restored.

Disappearance results in famine

Capture of Osiris in cabinet

When Osiris comes back from civilizing the world, his brother Typhon fashioned a cabinet for Osiris. Typhon lures Osiris inside, traps him, and throws the cabinet, with Osiris in it, into the river.

Isis' journey to find Osiris

Isis finds the location of Osiris' cabinet through a child. She also find out from this child of another child named Anubis who was the product of an affair between Osiris and Nephthys. Anubis is said to be the protector of the gods. Isis goes to Byblos, where Osiris' cabinet has been used as a column in the king's palace

At the palace, Isis becomes the nurse of the queen's son. Isis attempts to give the child immortality but is stopped by the queen. Isis cuts Osiris' cabinet from the column and sails away down the Phaidros River, drying it up.

Discover of Cabinet

Isis hides the cabinet, but Typhon finds it. He cuts Osiris' body into 14 pieces and distributes them. Isis sets sail on a papyrus boat to find them.

Return

Osiris returns from the dead and trains Horus in battle. he sends Horus after Typhon, who captures and chains him. Two more battles later, Typhon is finally defeated.