Including: "The Hullupu- Tree" "Inanna and the God of Wisdom," "The Courtship of Inanna and Dumuzi," "The Descent of Inanna," and "Seven Hymns to Inanna." Arranged so that the story is told cyclically, as Inanna matures from young woman to queen: her throne is made in (from) The Huluppu-Tree; she is blessed by her great-grandfather-in-law-to-be, Enki, god of wisdom and the Waters; her courtship and honeymoon years with Dumuzi, the shepherd (also referred to as the ox?); her descent (stripping/surrendering of the me, death) into the underworld/encounter with Ereshkigal, the queen of the underworld/her counterpart, and her ascent/bargaining for her return/offering of her husband; and the hymns that praise her, affirming her ascension and rightful placing as goddess. (Dumuzi is eventually caught by the galla, demons who seem unamused by his wily tactics to evade them.)
Yow, must say that "The Courtship of Inanna" and "The Descent of Inanna" eclipsed other sections. The Courtship is incredibly-- if not weirdly-- erotic, and I've been excited to read The Descent since I found out it was probably an inspiration for Notley's Descent of Alette. Listen to this language from The Courtship (and I acknowledge that the choice of the translators certainly must play a significant role in its effect, but still):
(Inanna:)
"...As for me, Inanna,
Who will plow my vulva?
Who will plow my high field?
Who will plow my wet ground?
As for me, the young woman,
Who will plow my vulva?
Who will station the ox there?
Who will plow my vulva?"
Dumuzi replied:
"Great Lady, the king will plow your vulva.
I, Dumuzi the King, will plow your vulva."
Inanna:
"Then plow my vulva, man of my heart!
Plow my vulva!"
Pretty sexy, in an ancient Sumerian shepherd-on-goddess kind of way. But also: you can get a sense of the repetitions, a hint of the long lists of repetitions that characterize these texts. The interesting thing is that there's generally a move to the more specific: "the king... I, Dumuzi the King," or in another section, "Bring...Bring her... Bring my sister. Bring my Geshtinanna, my little sister."
Also, the lists work synecdochically: what's listed is meant to give a taste of the splendor, the variety, the whole-- but they also serve to create odd tensions (what's not listed? why are certain things juxtaposed?) Look here:
Dumuzi spoke:
"Why do you speak about the farmer?
Why do you speak about him?
If he gives you black flour,
I will give you black wool.
If he gives you white flour,
I will give you white wool.
If he gives you beer,
I will give you sweet milk.
If he gives you bread,
I will give you honey cheese.
I will give the farmer my leftover cream.
I will give you the farmer my leftover milk.
Why do you speak about the farmer?
What does he have more than I do?"
So obviously, Dumuzi is countering the hypothetical offers from the farmer with things that he, the shepherd, could get from sheep. But they're not exactly fair trades; Inanna can't eat the wool. And the offers take a sexual turn (honey cheese is referenced again later, by Inanna: "Let the milk of the goat flow into my sheepfold./ Fill my holy churn with honey cheese./ Lord Dumuzi, I will drink your fresh milk.") and then the sexuality becomes a threat, almost: ("I will give the farmer my leftover cream"... boasts? or foreshadowing his infidelity ("He will no longer perform his sweet task/ Among the maidens in the city" in The Return)?
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