Inanna

Colour - Red, White and Black
Animals - All Wild Animals, Bulls
Element - Earth
Stones - Carnelian, Coral, Agate, Amber, Brown Jasper
Plants - Vanilla, Almond, Oriental Lily, Bergamot
Direction - North
Rituals - Primal Forces of Birth, Light and Death, Underworld
Journeying, Dark Moon Magick

She is the sister of the underworld goddess Ereschkial and of the sun
god Utu. Inanna first descends from heaven to Earth. Next, she descends
into the deepest caverns of the psyche, is stripped bare, and sinks into
the primal, dark vortex of the Underworld. Finally, she integrates the
shadow, comes into her power, and ascends back to the Upperworld. She is
at once fascinating and compelling, terrifying and repelling. Inanna
demonstrates elasticity of character and has dominion over the entire
scope of human experience. She is, all at once, Queen of Heaven and
Earth, and Queen of the Underworld.

Inanna, Queen of Heaven, was given great gifts by Enki the Wise. Wisdom,
justice, love, the sacred women, and the fruit of the vine. The gift
that saved her from death Enki fashioned from the dirt beneath his
fingernails. A being of light called, Asushunamir. She whose face is
radiant, beautiful in countenance; Asushunamir She, clothed in the
stars, male & female, companion to Inanna; Asushunamir The spell of
Ereshkigal, Queen of the Dead, could not possess this luminescent being.
Yet she was charmed by Asushunamir's beauty, moved by her voice, amused
by her dance. Ereshkigal called for a great feast to be held in her
honour; the best wine, the finest meats, the most sumptuous of fruit.
Ereshkigal dreamed of taking this beautiful being to her bed, and of
keeping her forever with her in the Land of the Dead. But Asushunamir
was careful to pour the wine upon the floor and to eat no food prepared
by the servants of Ereshkigal.

When the Queen of the Dead grew careless from the wine, Asushunamir
asked if she might taste the water of life, kept locked in the cellar.
This was the water of which Enki had spoken when Asushunamir came into
the world, the water with which one must be sprinkled to pass through
the seven gates of Irkalla, the water to renew one's life on earth.
Ereshkigal cried out, "Namtar, bring the jug with the water of life. I
shall grant the wish of this charming creature." Later, when Ereshkigal
fell into a deep sleep, Asushunamir made her way to the lampless cell
where Inanna, captive, lay dying. She sprinkled Inanna with the water of
life and, as the drops fell on her inert body

Inanna breathed easily as a child might breathe and then awakened.
Beautiful and once more flowing with the energy of life, Inanna quickly
made her way through the seven gates of Irkalla, ascending to earth,
causing the flowers to grow and restoring the trees to green. People
returned to their planting, their weaving, their making of wine, their
love making, and a great feast was held in honour of the return of
Inanna. Asushunamir was not as fortunate.

Ereshkigal awoke as she was approaching the seventh gate, and neither
her beauty, nor her charm, nor her dancing or songs, could extinguish
the passion that had turned to hate. ``The food of the gutter shall thou
eat,'' cried Ereshkigal, her every word a curse. "The water of the sewer
shall be your drink. In the shadows you shall abide, despised and hated
by even your own kind.'' Having pronounced the curse, Ereshkigal
banished Asushunamir. When Inanna learned of the curse placed upon
Asushunamir, she wept and spoke softly that no one might hear. ``The
power of Ereshkigal is great. No one dares to defy her. Yet I may soften
her curse upon you, as spring arrives to banish winter.

Inanna is here to tell you that a journey to the Underworld is the way
to wholeness for you now. It is time to dance with your shadow, reclaim
what you've denied, embrace your own Dark Sister/Dark Self. You need all
those aspects of yourself that your parents, caregivers, teachers,
society have deemed unacceptable in order to achieve wholeness in your
life. Whether it be your talent, your beauty, your inner vampire, your
anger, your madness, you are required to surrender to the journey and
embrace your dark side. If you are already in the Underworld, the
appearance of Inanna may signal that the time for your return is at
hand. Journeys to the Underworld to embrace your dark side are a law
unto themselves. They take a much time as they need to take- you can't
just fit them into your schedule. When it is time for you to journey,
you will and you will not be done until you return. Take comfort in the
fact that all journeys to the Underworld do end and that you will indeed
return-much different from who you thought you were when you went.

~Invocation~

Oh Lady Look
Sweet wonder from heaven
Of all powers
In whom light appears.

Oh Radiant One
Beloved of Heaven and Earth
Guardian of all greatness
That you hold within

Entwined by the seven powers
Hung over your fingers
My Lady, Guardian Of All.
We ask your blessing.

Bibliography:
(1) Wolkstein, Diane & Kramer, Samuel Noah. Inanna Queen of Heaven and
Earth: Her Stories and Humns from Sumer. New York: Harper, 1983.
(2) In the Hand of the Goddess: Song of the Lioness:Book 2, Vol. 2
Tamora Pierce
(3) The Hebrew Goddess. Raphael Patai, Designed by Merlin Stone


By Niamh Onora