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{{short description|Character in the Epic of Gilgamesh and epithet of deities}} |
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{{Mesopotamian myth|expanded=4}} |
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'''Siduri''', or more accurately '''Šiduri''' (pronounced '''Shiduri'''), is a character in the ''[[Epic of Gilgamesh]]''. She is described as an [[Alewife (trade)|alewife]]. The oldest preserved version of the composition to contain the episode involving her leaves her nameless, and in the later standard edition compiled by [[Sîn-lēqi-unninni]] her name only appears in a single line. She is named '''Naḫmazulel''' or '''Naḫmizulen''' in the preserved fragments of [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]] and [[Hittite language|Hittite]] translations. It has been proposed that her name in the standard edition is derived from an epithet applied to her by the Hurrian translator, ''šiduri'', "young woman." An alternate proposal instead connects it with the [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] personal name Šī-dūrī, "she is my protection." In all versions of the myth in which she appears, she offers advice to the hero, but the exact contents of the passage vary. Possible existence of [[Biblical]] and [[Ancient Greek literature|Greek]] reflections of the Šiduri passage is a subject of scholarly debate. |
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'''Siduri''' is a character in the [[Epic of Gilgamesh]]. She is an "[[Alewife_(trade)|alewife]]", a wise female divinity associated with [[fermentation (food)|fermentation]] (specifically beer<ref>Hartman, L. F. and Oppenheim, A. L., (1950) ''Supplement to the Journal of the American Oriental Society'', 10.</ref> and wine<ref>{{cite book|last=Sandars|first=N.|title=The Epic of Gilgamesh|year=1960|publisher=Penguin Books Ltd, London, England|isbn=978-0140441000|url=https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Epic_of_Gilgamesh.html?id=3vxdAvP19pwC}}</ref>). |
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In other contexts, the epithet ''šiduri'' could refer to various goddesses, including [[Hurrian religion|Hurrian]] [[Allani]], [[Išḫara|Ishara]] and [[Allanzu]], as well as [[List of Mesopotamian deities|Mesopotamian]] [[Ishtar]]. However, equating Ishtar with the alewife from the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' is regarded as incorrect. |
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In the earlier Old Babylonian version of the Epic, she attempts to dissuade [[Gilgamesh]] in his quest for [[immortality]], urging him to be content with the simple pleasures of life.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ackerman|first=Susan|title=When Heroes Love: The Ambiguity of Eros in the Stories of Gilgamesh and David|year=2005|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn= 978-0231132602|pages=130–131|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ATKodvnYS4EC&pg=PA144&dq=siduri+gilgamesh&hl=en&sa=X&ei=CttvUeTZBcnfOem0geAJ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=siduri%20carpe%20diem&f=false}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=George|first=A.R.|title=The Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic: Introduction, Critical Edition and Cuneiform Texts|year=2003|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0198149224|page=498|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=21xxZ_gUy_wC&pg=PA498&dq=siduri+tablet+X&hl=en&sa=X&ei=bOBvUbGHMYvSPM_rgOAP&ved=0CDsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=siduri%20tablet%20X&f=false}}</ref> |
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==Name== |
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In the later Akkadian (also referred to as the "standard") version of the Epic, Siduri's role is somewhat less important. The above quotation is omitted, and it is left to the flood hero [[Utnapishtim]] to discuss issues of life and death. Siduri, nonetheless, has a long conversation with Gilgamesh, who boasts of his exploits and is forced to explain why his appearance is so haggard. When he asks for help in finding Utnapishtim, Siduri explains the difficulties of the journey but directs him to Urshanabi, the ferryman, who may be able to help him cross the subterranean ocean and the ominous "waters of death". |
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The name Šiduri (<sup>d</sup>SI-''du-ri'') is often transcribed as Siduri, but based on alternate orthographies from outside the ''[[Epic of Gilgamesh]]'' [[Andrew R. George]] concludes that the spelling ''Šiduri'' (read Shiduri) is more accurate.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=149-148}} The alewife is nameless in the preserved Old Babylonian fragments of the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', and even in the standard edition only a single line directly refers to her as Šiduri.{{sfn|George|2003|p=148}} Her name is preceded by the [[dingir]] sign, so-called "divine [[determinative]],"{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} and it is assumed that she should be understood as a deity.{{sfn|George|2003|p=498}} |
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The [[etymology]] of the name is a matter of debate, with two theories being presently regarded as plausible.{{sfn|Krebernik|2011a|p=459}} According to [[Wilfred G. Lambert]], it is likely derived from the ordinary [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] personal name Šī-dūrī, known from the [[Ur III period]], which he interpreted as "she is my wall (metaphorically: protection),: but a second proposal, already acknowledged as a possibility by Lambert, connects it with the Hurrian word ''šiduri'', "young woman."{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} A [[Lexical lists|Mesopotamian lexical text]] lists the term ''šiduri'' as a synonym of Akkadian ''ardatu'', likewise referring to a young woman.{{sfn|Krebernik|2011a|p=459}} Andrew R. George considers it possible that the Akkadian personal name was a Hurrian [[loanword]] provided with an Akkadian [[folk etymology]].{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} |
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Several scholars suggest direct borrowing of Siduri's advice by the author of Ecclesiastes.<ref>e.g. Van Der Torn, Karel, "Did Ecclesiastes copy Gilgamesh?", BR, 16/1 (Feb 2000), pp. 22ff</ref> The advice given by Siduri has been seen as the first expression of the concept of [[Carpe diem]] although some scholars see it urging Gilgamesh to abandon his mourning, "reversing the liminal rituals of mourning and returning to the normal and normative behaviors of Mesopotamian society."<ref>{{cite book|last=Ackerman|first=Susan|title=When Heroes Love: The Ambiguity of Eros in the Stories of Gilgamesh and David|year=2005|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn= 978-0231132602|pages=130–131|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ATKodvnYS4EC&pg=PA144&dq=siduri+gilgamesh&hl=en&sa=X&ei=CttvUeTZBcnfOem0geAJ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=siduri%20carpe%20diem&f=false}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Perdue|first=Leo G.|title=Scribes, Sages, and Seers: The Sage in the Eastern Mediterranean World: The Sage in the Mediterranean World|year=2009|publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co KG|isbn=978-3525530832|page=57|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=L1Lrt1ZM2CIC&pg=PA57&dq=Siduri+%22carpe+diem%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hO9vUeWGKIzXPKPCgfgF&ved=0CD0Q6AEwADgK#v=onepage&q=Siduri%20%22carpe%20diem%22&f=false}}</ref> |
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[[Gary Beckman]] notes that in [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]] and [[Hittites|Hittite]] translations of the epic known from fragments from [[Hattusa]], the alewife bears an ordinary Hurrian given name, Naḫmazulel or Naḫmizulen, but she is referred to as ''šiduri''.{{sfn|Beckman|2003|p=51}} He proposes that this term, functioning in this context as an epithet, was later reinterpreted as a given name in the standard Babylonian version.{{sfn|Beckman|2003|p=51}} Naḫmazulel's name is written with the dingir sign too.{{sfn|Krebernik|2011a|p=459}} |
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Siduri has been compared to the Odyssey's [[Circe]]. Like Odysseus, Gilgamesh gets directions on how to reach his destination from a divine helper. In this case she is the goddess Siduri, who, like Circe, dwells by the sea at the ends of the earth. Her home is also associated with the sun: Gilgamesh reaches Siduri's house by passing through a tunnel underneath Mt. [[Mashu]], the high mountain from which the sun comes into the sky. West argues that the similarity of Odysseus's and Gilgamesh's journeys to the edges of the earth are the result of the influence of the Gilgamesh epic upon the Odyssey.<ref>[[Martin Litchfield West|West, Martin.]] ''The East Face of Helicon: West Asiatic Elements in Greek Poetry and Myth. (Oxford 1997) 402-417.</ref> |
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===The epithet ''šiduri'' in other sources=== |
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Siduri's name means "young woman" in [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]], and may be an epithet of [[Ishtar]].<ref>Abusch, T. (1993) Gilgamesh's Request and Siduri's Denial. Part I: The Meaning of the Dialogue and Its Implications for the History of the Epic. ''The Tablet and the Scroll; Near Eastern Studies in Honor of William W. Hallo'', 1–14.</ref> |
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In Hurrian sources, the epithet ''šiduri'' was applied to various goddesses, including [[Allanzu]] (a daughter of [[Hebat]]),{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} [[Allani]]{{sfn|Wilhelm|2014|p=346}} and [[Išḫara|Ishara]].{{sfn|Bachvarova|2013|p=303}} |
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''Šiduri'' is also attested as an epithet of [[Ishtar]] in three Mesopotamian sources, ''[[Hymn to the Queen of Nippur]]'', the god list ''[[An = Anum]]'' (tablet IV, line 4) and the incantation series ''[[Šurpu]]''.{{sfn|Krebernik|2011a|p=459}} According to Wilfred G. Lambert, it most likely only started to be applied to this goddess as an epithet in the [[Middle Babylonian period]], and originally designated a distinct figure.{{sfn|Krebernik|2011a|p=459}} He concluded Šiduri as described in the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' cannot be Ishtar.{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} ''Šurpu'' refers to Šiduri as a goddess of wisdom, which, according to Andrew R. George, might indicate a connection with the ''Epic of Gilgamesh''.{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} |
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The form of Ishtar referred to as Šiduri was Šarrat-Nippuri (Akkadian: "Queen of [[Nippur]]," [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]] form Ungal-Nibru is also attested{{sfn|Asher-Greve|Westenholz|2013|p=102}}) worshiped in the E-baradurgarra temple in Nippur.{{sfn|Krebernik|2011|p=76}} She is first attested in sources from the [[Kassite period]].{{sfn|Krebernik|2011|pp=76-77}} Šarrat-Nippuri should not be confused with [[Nin-Nibru]] (Sumerian: "lady of Nippur," Bēlet-Nippuri in Akkadian), a title of the spouse of [[Ninurta]], which could be applied to [[Gula (goddess)|Gula]] or [[Ninimma]].{{sfn|Asher-Greve|Westenholz|2013|p=102}} |
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An unnamed alewife who corresponds to Šiduri{{sfn|George|2003|p=148}} appears already in an Old Babylonian version of the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' which likely originated in [[Sippar]].{{sfn|George|2003|pp=274-275}} When she meets [[Gilgamesh]], who mourns after the death of [[Enkidu]], she suggests that instead of pursuing immortality, he should accept that death is the ultimate fate of mankind and instead enjoy his life on earth and start a family.{{sfn|George|2003|p=279}} He does not react to this advice, but rather asks her to direct him to [[Utnapishtim]].{{sfn|George|2003|p=275}} Bendt Alster interpreted the alewife's advice as the first recorded occurrence of the ''[[carpe diem]]'' theme.{{sfn|Alster|2008|p=57}} Andrew R. George notes that it has been interpreted as a display of [[hedonistic]] philosophy, but he disagrees with this assumption and argues that the passage simply states that a man should be content with the position allotted to him in life.{{sfn|George|2003|p=275}} Susan Ackerman argues the alewife urges Gilgamesh to abandon his mourning, "reversing the liminal rituals of mourning and returning to the normal and normative behaviors of Mesopotamian society."{{sfn|Ackerman|2005|p=131}} |
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At least one scene recorded on the same tablet, in which the sun god [[Shamash]] warns Gilgamesh about the futility of his quest for immortality, has no parallel in later versions,{{sfn|George|2003|p=273}} but his advice closely parallels that later given by the alewife.{{sfn|George|2003|p=275}} |
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The so-called "Standard Babylonian" version of the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' introduces Šiduri in the first line of tablet X.{{sfn|George|2003|p=498}} It is possible that she can also be identified with a nameless person who is described watching Gilgamesh from afar in the final lines of tablet IX.{{sfn|George|2003|p=498}} She lives in a tavern close to the edge of the ocean.{{sfn|George|2003|p=498}} She hides her face behind a veil, which would be unusual for a Babylonian alewife, and most likely is supposed to make her appear more mysterious to the readers.{{sfn|George|2003|p=498}} She initially mistakes Gilgamesh for a potentially troublesome big game hunter, barricades the door and hides on the roof.{{sfn|George|2003|p=498}} The hero at first threatens to strike the door, but after Šiduri inquires about his whereabouts he introduces himself, describes his various deeds, such as defeating Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven,{{sfn|George|2003|p=679}} and in response to her question about his state explains that he is in poor condition because of his grief caused by Enkidu's death, and implores her to tell him how to reach Utnapishtim.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=498-499}} The alewife explains the road is difficult and leads both through the ocean and more distant "Waters of Death," and suggests Gilgamesh should seek the help of [[Urshanabi]], Utnapishtim's boatman, whose boat takes him to his destination.{{sfn|George|2003|p=499}} However, advice unrelated to the journey itself which she offers in the older version is absent.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=274-275}} |
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Andrew R. George suggests that the change in advice given by the alewife was one of the innovations introduced by [[Sîn-lēqi-unninni]],{{sfn|George|2003|p=32}} a scribe who according to a [[Neo-Assyrian Empire|neo-Assyrian]] catalog of [[cuneiform]] texts and their authors was believed to be responsible for preparing the standard edition of the ''Epic of Gilgamesh''.{{sfn|George|2003|p=28}} An even later source anachronistically considers him a contemporary of Gilgamesh, but in reality he was most likely active in the [[Kassite period]].{{sfn|George|2003|p=29}} |
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Tzvi Abusch's proposal that a third, not preserved, version of the scene involved Šiduri proposing marriage to Gilgamesh is not substantiated.{{sfn|Beckman|2018|p=902}} |
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There is a long scholarly tradition of arguing that the older version of the Šiduri passage inspired the advice for a good life known from [[Ecclesiastes]]{{sfn|Samet|2015|pp=376-377}} (9: 7-9).{{sfn|George|2003|p=275}} This theory was originally formed by [[Bruno Meissner]] in 1902.{{sfn|Samet|2015|p=376}} It is still supported by some researchers today, for example Nili Samet.{{sfn|Samet|2015|pp=378-379}} However, a direct connection between these two texts is not universally accepted in [[Biblical studies]] or in Assyriology, and Samet acknowledges it has been often argued that both passages simply reflect "a common theme in world literature."{{sfn|Samet|2015|p=377}} Andrew R. George notes that the content of both passages is similar, but finds a direct connection unlikely, as the alewife only offers Gilgamesh advice in Old Babylonian fragments, but not in the later versions of the epic.{{sfn|George|2003|p=275}} |
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The Classicist [[Martin Litchfield West]] suggested that the encounter between Gilgamesh and the alewife in the Old Babylonian version inspired the meeting between [[Circe]] and [[Odysseus]] in the ''[[Odyssey]]''.{{sfn|West|1997|p=408}} He incorrectly{{sfn|George|2003|p=149}} referred to Šiduri as portrayed in the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' as a "form of Ishtar" to try to reconcile the differences between her and Circe, especially the association with wild animals exhibited only by the former.{{sfn|West|1997|p=408}} Andrew R. George disagrees with West's proposals regarding direct connections between the myths of Gilgamesh and the ''Odyssey'' and considers it implausible that Greek authors were familiar with the standard Babylonian edition of the latter.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=55-57}} He notes it is more likely that Greeks were influenced by a western, [[Phoenicia]]n literary tradition, which unlike Mesopotamian cuneiform texts does not survive, making it impossible to evaluate if among the stories passed on to Greeks this way were any versions of the ''Epic of Gilgamesh''.{{sfn|George|2003|p=57}} He also points out that in some cases similarities between these texts might be the result of reliance on similar mythologems rather than direct influence of one on the other.{{sfn|George|2003|p=57}} George's position regarding the connections between Greek and Mesopotamian literature is also supported by Gary Beckman.{{sfn|Beckman|2018|p=902}} |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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<References/> |
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===Bibliography=== |
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{{refbegin|35em}} |
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*{{cite book|last=Ackerman|first=Susan|title=When Heroes Love: The Ambiguity of Eros in the Stories of Gilgamesh and David|publisher=Columbia University Press|series=Gender, theory, and religion|year=2005|isbn=978-0-231-13260-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nrGrAgAAQBAJ|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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*{{cite book|last=Alster|first=Bendt|editor-last=Perdue|editor-first=Leo G.|title=Scribes, Sages, and Seers: The Sage in the Eastern Mediterranean World|chapter=Scribes and Wisdom in Ancient Mesopotamia|publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht|series=Forschungen zur Religion und Literatur des Alten und Neuen Testaments|year=2008|isbn=978-3-525-53083-2|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L1Lrt1ZM2CIC&dq=Siduri+%22carpe+diem%22&pg=PA57|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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*{{cite book|last1=Asher-Greve|first1=Julia M.|last2=Westenholz|first2=Joan G. |url=https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/135436/1/Asher-Greve_Westenholz_2013_Goddesses_in_Context.pdf |title=Goddesses in Context: On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources|year=2013|isbn=978-3-7278-1738-0}} |
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*{{cite book|last=Bachvarova|first=Mary R.|title=Gods, heroes, and monsters: a sourcebook of Greek, Roman, and Near Eastern myths|chapter=The Hurro-Hittite Song of Release (Destruction of the City of Ebla)|chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/4668136|publisher=Oxford University Press|publication-place=New York|year=2013|isbn=978-0-19-064481-9|oclc=967417697}} |
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*{{cite book|last=Beckman|first=Gary|title=Hittite Studies in Honor of Harry A. Hoffner Jr. on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday|chapter=Gilgamesh in Ḫatti|chapter-url=https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/handle/2027.42/77471|publisher=Penn State University Press|date=2003|pages=37–58 |doi=10.1515/9781575065434-006|hdl=2027.42/77471 |isbn=9781575065434 }} |
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*{{cite journal|last=Beckman|first=Gary|title=Review: Male and Female in the Epic of Gilgamesh: Encounters, Literary History, and Interpretation by Tzvi Abusch|journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society|publisher=American Oriental Society|volume=138|issue=4|year=2018|issn=0003-0279|doi=10.7817/jameroriesoci.138.4.0901|pages=901–903|hdl=2027.42/148150 |doi-access=free}} |
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*{{cite book|last=George|first=Andrew R.|url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/1603/|title=The Babylonian Gilgamesh epic: introduction, critical edition and cuneiform texts|publisher=Oxford University Press|publication-place=Oxford New York|year=2003|isbn=0-19-814922-0|oclc=51668477}} |
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*{{citation|last=Krebernik|first=Manfred|entry=Šarrat-Nippur, UN-gal-Nibru|encyclopedia=Reallexikon der Assyriologie|year=2011|entry-url=http://publikationen.badw.de/en/rla/index#10456|language=de|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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*{{citation|last=Krebernik|first=Manfred|entry=Šiduri|encyclopedia=Reallexikon der Assyriologie|year=2011a|entry-url=http://publikationen.badw.de/en/rla/index#10748|language=de|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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*{{cite journal|last=Samet|first=Nili|title=The Gilgamesh Epic and the Book of Qohelet: A New Look|journal=Biblica|publisher=Peeters Publishers|volume=96|issue=3|year=2015|issn=0006-0887|jstor=43922737|pages=375–390|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/43922737|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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*{{cite book|last=West|first=Martin L.|title=The East Face of Helicon: West Asiatic Elements in Greek Poetry and Myth| publisher=Clarendon Press | year=1997 | isbn=978-0-19-159104-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fIp0RYIjazQC|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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*{{citation|last=Wilhelm|first=Gernot|entry=Unterwelt, Unterweltsgottheiten C. In Anatolien|encyclopedia=Reallexikon der Assyriologie|entry-url=http://publikationen.badw.de/en/rla/index#12107|year=2014|language=de|access-date=2022-05-06}} |
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{{refend}} |
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{{Epic of Gilgamesh}} |
{{Epic of Gilgamesh}} |
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[[Category:Mesopotamian goddesses]] |
[[Category:Mesopotamian goddesses]] |
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[[Category:Wisdom goddesses]] |
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[[Category:Hurrian deities]] |
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[[Category:Characters in the Epic of Gilgamesh]] |
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Siduri, or more accurately Šiduri (pronounced Shiduri), is a character in the Epic of Gilgamesh. She is described as an alewife. The oldest preserved version of the composition to contain the episode involving her leaves her nameless, and in the later standard edition compiled by Sîn-lēqi-unninni her name only appears in a single line. She is named NaḫmazulelorNaḫmizulen in the preserved fragments of Hurrian and Hittite translations. It has been proposed that her name in the standard edition is derived from an epithet applied to her by the Hurrian translator, šiduri, "young woman." An alternate proposal instead connects it with the Akkadian personal name Šī-dūrī, "she is my protection." In all versions of the myth in which she appears, she offers advice to the hero, but the exact contents of the passage vary. Possible existence of Biblical and Greek reflections of the Šiduri passage is a subject of scholarly debate.
In other contexts, the epithet šiduri could refer to various goddesses, including Hurrian Allani, Ishara and Allanzu, as well as Mesopotamian Ishtar. However, equating Ishtar with the alewife from the Epic of Gilgamesh is regarded as incorrect.
The name Šiduri (dSI-du-ri) is often transcribed as Siduri, but based on alternate orthographies from outside the Epic of Gilgamesh Andrew R. George concludes that the spelling Šiduri (read Shiduri) is more accurate.[1] The alewife is nameless in the preserved Old Babylonian fragments of the Epic of Gilgamesh, and even in the standard edition only a single line directly refers to her as Šiduri.[2] Her name is preceded by the dingir sign, so-called "divine determinative,"[3] and it is assumed that she should be understood as a deity.[4]
The etymology of the name is a matter of debate, with two theories being presently regarded as plausible.[5] According to Wilfred G. Lambert, it is likely derived from the ordinary Akkadian personal name Šī-dūrī, known from the Ur III period, which he interpreted as "she is my wall (metaphorically: protection),: but a second proposal, already acknowledged as a possibility by Lambert, connects it with the Hurrian word šiduri, "young woman."[3]AMesopotamian lexical text lists the term šiduri as a synonym of Akkadian ardatu, likewise referring to a young woman.[5] Andrew R. George considers it possible that the Akkadian personal name was a Hurrian loanword provided with an Akkadian folk etymology.[3]
Gary Beckman notes that in Hurrian and Hittite translations of the epic known from fragments from Hattusa, the alewife bears an ordinary Hurrian given name, Naḫmazulel or Naḫmizulen, but she is referred to as šiduri.[6] He proposes that this term, functioning in this context as an epithet, was later reinterpreted as a given name in the standard Babylonian version.[6] Naḫmazulel's name is written with the dingir sign too.[5]
In Hurrian sources, the epithet šiduri was applied to various goddesses, including Allanzu (a daughter of Hebat),[3] Allani[7] and Ishara.[8]
Šiduri is also attested as an epithet of Ishtar in three Mesopotamian sources, Hymn to the Queen of Nippur, the god list An = Anum (tablet IV, line 4) and the incantation series Šurpu.[5] According to Wilfred G. Lambert, it most likely only started to be applied to this goddess as an epithet in the Middle Babylonian period, and originally designated a distinct figure.[5] He concluded Šiduri as described in the Epic of Gilgamesh cannot be Ishtar.[3] Šurpu refers to Šiduri as a goddess of wisdom, which, according to Andrew R. George, might indicate a connection with the Epic of Gilgamesh.[3]
The form of Ishtar referred to as Šiduri was Šarrat-Nippuri (Akkadian: "Queen of Nippur," Sumerian form Ungal-Nibru is also attested[9]) worshiped in the E-baradurgarra temple in Nippur.[10] She is first attested in sources from the Kassite period.[11] Šarrat-Nippuri should not be confused with Nin-Nibru (Sumerian: "lady of Nippur," Bēlet-Nippuri in Akkadian), a title of the spouse of Ninurta, which could be applied to GulaorNinimma.[9]
An unnamed alewife who corresponds to Šiduri[2] appears already in an Old Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh which likely originated in Sippar.[12] When she meets Gilgamesh, who mourns after the death of Enkidu, she suggests that instead of pursuing immortality, he should accept that death is the ultimate fate of mankind and instead enjoy his life on earth and start a family.[13] He does not react to this advice, but rather asks her to direct him to Utnapishtim.[14] Bendt Alster interpreted the alewife's advice as the first recorded occurrence of the carpe diem theme.[15] Andrew R. George notes that it has been interpreted as a display of hedonistic philosophy, but he disagrees with this assumption and argues that the passage simply states that a man should be content with the position allotted to him in life.[14] Susan Ackerman argues the alewife urges Gilgamesh to abandon his mourning, "reversing the liminal rituals of mourning and returning to the normal and normative behaviors of Mesopotamian society."[16]
At least one scene recorded on the same tablet, in which the sun god Shamash warns Gilgamesh about the futility of his quest for immortality, has no parallel in later versions,[17] but his advice closely parallels that later given by the alewife.[14]
The so-called "Standard Babylonian" version of the Epic of Gilgamesh introduces Šiduri in the first line of tablet X.[4] It is possible that she can also be identified with a nameless person who is described watching Gilgamesh from afar in the final lines of tablet IX.[4] She lives in a tavern close to the edge of the ocean.[4] She hides her face behind a veil, which would be unusual for a Babylonian alewife, and most likely is supposed to make her appear more mysterious to the readers.[4] She initially mistakes Gilgamesh for a potentially troublesome big game hunter, barricades the door and hides on the roof.[4] The hero at first threatens to strike the door, but after Šiduri inquires about his whereabouts he introduces himself, describes his various deeds, such as defeating Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven,[18] and in response to her question about his state explains that he is in poor condition because of his grief caused by Enkidu's death, and implores her to tell him how to reach Utnapishtim.[19] The alewife explains the road is difficult and leads both through the ocean and more distant "Waters of Death," and suggests Gilgamesh should seek the help of Urshanabi, Utnapishtim's boatman, whose boat takes him to his destination.[20] However, advice unrelated to the journey itself which she offers in the older version is absent.[12]
Andrew R. George suggests that the change in advice given by the alewife was one of the innovations introduced by Sîn-lēqi-unninni,[21] a scribe who according to a neo-Assyrian catalog of cuneiform texts and their authors was believed to be responsible for preparing the standard edition of the Epic of Gilgamesh.[22] An even later source anachronistically considers him a contemporary of Gilgamesh, but in reality he was most likely active in the Kassite period.[23]
Tzvi Abusch's proposal that a third, not preserved, version of the scene involved Šiduri proposing marriage to Gilgamesh is not substantiated.[24]
There is a long scholarly tradition of arguing that the older version of the Šiduri passage inspired the advice for a good life known from Ecclesiastes[25] (9: 7-9).[14] This theory was originally formed by Bruno Meissner in 1902.[26] It is still supported by some researchers today, for example Nili Samet.[27] However, a direct connection between these two texts is not universally accepted in Biblical studies or in Assyriology, and Samet acknowledges it has been often argued that both passages simply reflect "a common theme in world literature."[28] Andrew R. George notes that the content of both passages is similar, but finds a direct connection unlikely, as the alewife only offers Gilgamesh advice in Old Babylonian fragments, but not in the later versions of the epic.[14]
The Classicist Martin Litchfield West suggested that the encounter between Gilgamesh and the alewife in the Old Babylonian version inspired the meeting between Circe and Odysseus in the Odyssey.[29] He incorrectly[3] referred to Šiduri as portrayed in the Epic of Gilgamesh as a "form of Ishtar" to try to reconcile the differences between her and Circe, especially the association with wild animals exhibited only by the former.[29] Andrew R. George disagrees with West's proposals regarding direct connections between the myths of Gilgamesh and the Odyssey and considers it implausible that Greek authors were familiar with the standard Babylonian edition of the latter.[30] He notes it is more likely that Greeks were influenced by a western, Phoenician literary tradition, which unlike Mesopotamian cuneiform texts does not survive, making it impossible to evaluate if among the stories passed on to Greeks this way were any versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh.[31] He also points out that in some cases similarities between these texts might be the result of reliance on similar mythologems rather than direct influence of one on the other.[31] George's position regarding the connections between Greek and Mesopotamian literature is also supported by Gary Beckman.[24]
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