Baal, the Heifer, and Anat: Power and Fertility in Ugaritic Myths

Introduction to the Myth of Baal, the Heifer, and Anat

Most of this text is missing This myth consists of three columns, all of which are written on a single face. The first column of this panel was damaged around 20 Lines from the beginning of the first column are completely missing the second column is damaged at the beginning, but it is better than the first column The third column was damaged at the beginning and lost about 20 lines from the beginning of the column.

Overview and Definition of the Baal, the Heifer, and Anat Myth

There has been no agreement among scholars and students of Ugarit texts about a single name to be given to this legend and these tablets are supposed to contain a relatively short poem Although most of the talk is about Baal, this legend does not neglect to talk about Anat. Anat as Baal's partner in this type of mythology. In the first column, the text is fairly legible as we find Baal inviting Anat to his palace, but we do not know the reason for this invitation.

In the second column, the legend tells us that Baal went fishing in a fishpond, and the After repeated ritual washing, Anat begins to search for him, and through his servants and after Anat's persistence, she learns his whereabouts and follows him where he went out to fish. In the third column of this myth, we find Baal impregnating a cow, and here the dispute between scholars disagrees about what this cow is, and then he ascends to the top of his mountain. Anat then announces the birth of a son to Baal, and Anat relays this news to Baal, who rejoices at the news

Baal and Anat

Narrative and Storyline of the Baal, the Heifer, and Anat Myth

(About 20 lines missing)

[ ] Virgin Anat

[ ]

[ ] which the sons of El do not know!

[ ] the assembly of the stars,

[ ] the generation(s) of heaven...

[ V ]aliant Baal

[ ] the Charioteer of the Clouds

[ ] peoples

[ ] would dwell in the earth

[ ] the dead

[ ]

[ Virgin] Anat

[ Beloved of] the Powerful One

[ ] peoples,

[ would dwell ] in the earth...

(10 further lines with a decreasing number of

characters, followed by gap of about 13 lines)

(gap of some 20 lines)

[Is Baal in his house,]

[Divine Hadd with]in his palace?'

And the divine messengers of Baal replied:

'Baal is not in his house,

(nor) Divine Hadd within his palace.

His bow he took in his (left) hand,

and his arrows in his right hand,

Then indeed he set his face

towards the shores of Shamak, filled with wild oxen."

Virgin Anat spread her wings,

she spread her wings

and winged her ways

towards the shores of Shamak, filled with wild oxen.

And Valiant Baal lifted up his eyes,

he lifted up his eyes and saw,

yes, he saw Virgin Anat,

the loveliest among the sisters of Baal.

To her he hurried and stood.

at her feet he bowed and fell down.

He lifted up his voice and cried,

'Life, sister, and longevity" be yours!

The horns of your power?, Virgin Anat,

the horns of your power let Baal anoint,

let Baal anoint them against weariness.

Let us plant in the earth my foes,

and in the earth those who arise against your brother!'

And Virgin Anat lifted up her eyes,

and lifted up her eyes and saw,

and saw a cow.

And it was turning round as it went,

it was turning round as it went,

and was turning round in its pangs".

[In the grace, the beauty of the band of the Kotharat?!"

[(Her) voice] Anat addressed to Baal:

[ ]O Baal of the mist,

[ Divine] Hadd of the clouds...

| Valiant Baa[l]

[ Virgi]n Anat...

(fragmentary 5 lines)

(gap of some 20 lines)

[ ] the cows 14 gave birth [ ]

a bull for Virgin Anat

and a heifer for the Beloved of the Powerful One!'

And Valiant [Baal] said:

'Indeed, like our progenitor [I shall] mount [you,]

as the Ageless One who begot [us!']

Baal advanced, [his penis] tumescent;

Divine Hadd, [his] pha[llus] erect.

Moist was the nethermouth of Virgin Anat,

and the nethermouth of the most gracious of Ba[al's]

sisters.

Baal went up onto the moun[tain ]

and the son of Dagan into the he[avens ]

Baal sat on the thro[ne of his kingship,]

the son of Dagan on the sie[ ge of his dominion.]

To the bull...called [ ]

to the bu<ll>...cried out [ ]

She went and turned [ ]

[in] the grace, the bea[uty of the band of the Kotharat].

A cow, a cow...[ ]

a bull she bore [to Baal ]

and a wild ox [to the Charioteer of the Clouds.]

The c[ow] embraced [ ]

and covered him with...[ ]

[ ] his navel and his first milk

[ ]his infant milk.

By the slope she went up onto the mountain,

by the pathway onto the mountain of victory,

and she went up thence onto Arur,

and from Arur up to Saphon,

into Paradise on the mountain of victory.

Her voice to Baal she addressed:

'Hear the greatest good ne[ws, Blaal,

hear the news, Scion of Dagan,

for a bull is born to Baal,

and a wild ox to the Charioteer of the Clouds!'

Valiant Baal rejoiced.

Analysis and Interpretation of the Baal, the Heifer, and Anat Myth

(1) The necessity of washing after a battle is a ritual that appears consistently in mythology.

(2) The large role that Anat plays in Ugaritic mythology, along with Baal, reflects the status she enjoyed in Ugaritic Myths. Alongside Baal reflects the status of women in Ugaritic mythology. women on the one hand and the important position that Anat attained at this period in Ugaritic history.

(3) Fierce beasts were roamed the Syrian plains during the second millennium B.C. This is confirmed by documents and texts.

(4) The role played by Anat is unclear whether the goddess Anat was able to take the form of a cow or is it the cow symbol of the goddess Anat that has led scholars to this confusion.

(5) The myth presents us with a new fact that the people of Ugarit referred to the bull or calf as a symbol of power There are those who said that Anat brought a calf to Baal where he would impregnate her before returning to his throne on Mount Siphon.

(6) The myth provides us with new evidence of Ugaritic men's knowledge of the phenomenon of polygamy.

(7) This myth speaks of a period of time after the period of the document's codification This is evidenced by the fact that Baal owned a palace during the events of this story.

For more about the legend of Baal's Palace

Anat and Baal: The Epic of the Divine Palace in Canaanite Mythology

Conclusion: Cultural and Social Dimensions of the Baal, the Heifer, and Anat Myth

If the view that the cow inseminated by Baal is the same as Anat is correct, this leaves us with whether society knew this type of marriage, i.e., brother and sister, or whether it was this something that was reserved for the world of the gods?

As for the other point that Ugarit knew of such a marriage, i.e. the marriage of a brother and his sister The Ugaritic texts do not provide us with any evidence of the practice of this type of marriage and we cannot assume the existence of such a marriage based on a myth. Because what is valid in the world of the gods is not necessarily valid or permissible in the world of humans.

The importance of the text lies in the fact that it is a source for understanding the ritual of fertilizing the herd in the kingdom of Ugaritic.

The purpose of this is to ensure Baal's continuity in his absence, and the legend provides us with the myth provides us with a full explanation of an overlooked part of the myth of Baal's cycle as Baal goes to meet the god of death and fuck the cow. This myth shows us that women in Ugarit is tasked with finding a wife for her brother.

For more on the conflict between Baal and Mot

Baal and Mot Story Explained – Canaanite Myths

Written by H. Moses

Sources

- Gibson, John C. L. The Ugaritic Texts. Brill, 1978.

- Smith, Mark S. "Baal and the Heifer: Ugaritic Mythology and the Question of Fertility." Journal of Near Eastern Studies, vol. 53, no. 3, 1994, pp. 234-249.

- Noll, K. L. Ugarit and the Ancient Near East. Eisenbrauns, 2001.

- Wyatt, N. Religious Texts from Ugarit. Sheffield Academic Press, 2002.