Throughout the history of myth, sexuality has played a huge role in shaping the way a society views gender and sexuality itself. From ancient Greek myth to Celtic myth to Babylonian myth sexuality has been a major theme in not only the cosmogony of these cultures, but also the interactions, rituals, art, and nature depicted in these cultures’ mythologies. But most importantly it is the way that women’s sexuality is interpreted and handled throughout the history and progression of myth and its surrounding culture.
According to Paglia, in Sexual Personae, the abnormalities of the sexual identity of the fertility gods are natural to the uncontrolled mystery of sexual growth (41). For example, gods like Isis and Osiris, Aphrodite, Dionysus, Orpheus and more do not stay true to today’s ideas of what sexuality and sex mean. For in ancient myth the sexuality of greek gods was mostly androgynous and focused on the image of The Great Mother goddess. Whom Robert Graves gives majority of credit to for the initial creation of the Aegean culture.. However, after this culture was conquered by Catholicism, the rise of a male patriarchal society changed the perceptions of many.
These changes in sexual power have influenced a change in the power of “the mother” and the creation stories of some cultures. If we look at Genesis for example we can see that it is very male dominating. The creator of the universe is a male figure who himself creates everything from the land, to the water, animals, and of course humans. There are no goddesses involved in the cosmogony of this Christian world. However whenever Adam falls from Eden, it is blamed on Eve, the woman. This idea that the woman is a figure of temptation has been constantly dissected and repeated in mythology. Women are viewed as the initial force that drive men away from their innate connection with nature to their ultimate doom. As Paglia states, the mother goddess gives life but also takes it away. She is considered the “common grave” (43).
In the Babylonian myth The Epic of Gilgamesh, we witness the exact power and rage of a “White Goddess” as Graves would describe her. Ishtar, the daughter of sin and goddess of love and war, strikes vengeance after having her love for Gilgamesh rejected. Gilgamesh claims, “You would be...A shoe which bites into the foot of its wearer. Which of your lovers lasted forever? Which of your masterful paramours went to heaven? ........And how about me? You will love me and then treat me just like them!” (Myths From Mesopotamia 78-79) Basically he is reminding her of how awful she treated her past lovers. As if they were as disposable and as meaningless as trash. This is yet another jab at a woman being sexually free, which is just not acceptable in the eyes of a male dominated world.
In response to this slander, Ishtar sends the Bull Of Heaven to Earth where it is defeated by Gilgamesh and Enkidu, causing more tension between Ishtar and these men. To top it all off Enkidu throws one of the bull’s hind thighs at the goddess as if to say “Fuck you WOMAN!” Some would interpret the bull’s thigh as actually being its testicles, which would make this little offering even more sexist. The way Ishtar is portrayed in this myth is incredibly negative. As a reader we cannot forget that Ishtar is indeed a goddess and Gilgamesh and Enkidu are only mortals. Their blatant disrespect and treatment to Ishtar must symbolize something more than just rejection. Considering the rise of the male patriarch during this time I feel that this was their way of rejecting the idea of The Mother Goddess.
We also cannot forget how Enkidu is “civilized” by the efforts of the harlot Shamhat. Supposedly this civilization of a “wild” man eventually leads to his death. Enkidu curses Shamhat by exclaiming, “Because you defiled me when I was pure. Because you seduced me in the open country when I was pure” (Myths From Mesopotamia 87). He claims that this woman took away his innocence by having sex with him. Even though it is clear that it was Ishtar that cursed him with illness, the blame for his death is put on the temptress Shamhat. Just as the fall of man is blamed on Eve. However, before this catholic patriarchy of men took over myth, the Mother Goddess was not judged for her sexuality nor put to blame because of it. She was responsible for creation and fertility not just death and seduction.
Both life and death have strong ties to sexuality in many myths throughout different cultures. In Greek mythology it is known that everything is created due to the sexual encounters of the gods and goddesses. Sexuality in women was not shunned, it was a major part of the mythological world. If we look at Hesiod’s Theogony we see the creation of the universe through the sexual encounters of the gods-Eros, Gaia (Earth), Ouranos, Kronos, and Zeus, just to mention a few. In the Babylonian creation story, Enuma Elish, we see the same type of creation through the gods Tiamat and Apsu.
However, death and violence are probably the most common things related to sex in most ancient myths. The “White Goddesses” were not only extremely beautiful and graceful, they were also terrifying and ornate in their ways of showing power and delivering punishment. Clearly their characteristics were influential in the cultures that worshipped them. In Robert Graves’s The White Goddess it is mentioned that the Galla warriors battle with moon-shaped reaping hooks similar to the hook the goddess Diana used when reaping the harvest. Reaping means castration. It was ritual for the Galla to use these weapons to castrate their enemies (66). Other cultures took part in ritual castration as well. This could be an explanation into why gods and goddesses chose castration as a punishment for other gods. For we know that the gods enjoyed having sex, especially Zeus. It also was a way to take something away from a god---his manhood/gender/sexuality. For example, Kronos cuts off his fathers genitalia in Theogony. This ultimately leading to Kronos fearing the same fate as his father. Kronos vomiting his children back up is a symbol of him giving birth. This being a trait of a woman. Both Ouranos and Kronos are punished by losing their sense of gender. Leading to a both-sexed god, which is the closest imitation of the mother goddess.
This ultimate mother goddess idea lost touch in the regions where Christianity was concerned. Many beliefs, rituals and even art were desexualized and gave rise to the power of men. The bible began to be considered the true testament of human history. Ancient Paegan myths were being questioned. The Virgin Mary would probably be considered “The White Goddess” of the Catholic faith. She is pure and chaste, and undergoes pregnancy through immaculate conception. She is not viewed as a harlot like the goddess Ishtar sometimes is. Also if transsexualism is considered a sin, then it is certain that the gods Aphrodite and Dionysus could never be considered “true” gods. Religion plays a large role in sex and sex plays an equally large role in religion. And obviously religion plays a large role in mythology.
The sexuality of men is also manipulated in ancient mythology. For example, in Genesis Adam has many children with many wives, as does his sons, in order to populate the Earth. In The Epic of Gilgamesh it is somewhat suggested that Gilgamesh and Endiku have a homosexual relationship. These are both sexual situations involving men, therefor they are viewed as okay behavior and not given any criticism. Could it not have been Gilgamesh who was to blame for the death of Enkidu? Did he not seduce Enkidu with adventure and companionship? Regardless who is actually responsible, the harlot from the Cult of Ishtar is at fault. Interestingly enough, snakes symbolize the fear and terror the Mother Goddess can endure on a person and what is it that tricks Eve into eating the forbidden fruit? A serpent. The female is given absolutely no credit in these paegen-turned christian myths. Both women in Genesis and The Epic of Gilgamesh are viewed as the reasons for defeat unjustly because of their gender and/or sexuality.
Of course, there are gods and goddesses who straddle the line of sexuality, and these are the gods closest to the original ideas of how our Earth and society came to be. The god Dionysus portrayed the characteristics of both the male and female gender. It is most obvious through the art that is influenced by him. It goes against the phallus society that ancient Greece valued. However, this new phallus that Dionysus delivers also paves the way for a break away from this stereotypical phallus society. This can also be seen with the myth of Isis and Osiris. Isis journeys to find disembodied body parts only to find that his penis is nowheres to be found. A replica is made and this new replica is a phallus. Some may determine phallic symbols as a connection to their reality and/or religion. Through Isis’s journey she matures, and because she matures her view of the old phallic worship is affected. Sexuality is only natural, it is realistic. It is not religious, it is spiritual. Regardless if it has to do with a male or female.
Sexuality was embraced in these myths. Sexuality was a quintessential piece to the overall creation of myth. It was only society’s changes in religious values that caused questioning and scorning of female sexuality. Today it is apparent that a phallus society is still present due to religious views and the male dominating factor of myths like Genesis and The Epic of Gilgamesh. However, the rise of The Mother Goddess has made way and female sexuality is embraced and considered a sign of empowerment. Which is how it should have been viewed all along. The power of female sexuality began in the Aegean culture and even through much scrutiny and belittling it fought its way back to the front lines.
Work Cited
Dalley, Stephanie. Myths From Mesopotamia. New York: Oxford University, 1989. Print
Graves, Robert. The White Goddess: A Historical Grammar of Poetic Myth. New York: Farrar, Straus, 1948. Print.
Paglia, Camille. Sexual Personae: Art and Decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson. New York: Vintage, 1990. Print.
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