Dream interpretation is a form of divination where dreams are interpreted to predict the future. This form of divination was used in many parts of the world, including ancient Mesopotamia, and is still in use today. One can learn about the interpretation of dreams in ancient Mesopotamia from literature, in particular from the famous epic poem "Gilgamesh and Atrahasis" and "The Assyrian Book of Dreams".
Egyptian "Book of Dreams".
Photo: British Museum
Atrahasis
Dreams and their functions are described in the literature of ancient Mesopotamia. Usually dreams were used as a means of predicting impending doom. In the Mesopotamian version of Atrahasis, the protagonist Atrahasis ("extremely wise") is warned in a dream of a devastating flood. Atrahasis's dreams were sent to him by the gods. In one part of the text, Atrahasis offers a gift to the god Ea in order to receive a dream from the deity.
“Let the irrigation water take him, let the river carry him, Promotional video:
Let the gift be laid before Ea, my god, Let Ea look at him and think of me!
So that I can dream at night."
Cuneiform Tablet with the Epic Poem of Atrahasis, British Museum
Photo: Public Domain
Enkidu's Dream
Dreams as a warning of impending doom are described in another work of ancient Mesopotamian literature, in the legend of Gilgamesh. In this legend, Enkidu (friend of Gilgamesh) sees a dream in which the gods decide that he must die as punishment for his participation in the murder of the heavenly bull and Huwawa. Enkidu also dreams of being seized and carried down to the underworld.
“He (the man described by Enkidu in the preceding lines) grabbed me, dragged me down into a dark house, the abode of the god Erkalla, Into a house that those who entered cannot leave.
On a one-way road
To a house where those who remain are deprived of light
Where dust is their food, and clay is their bread."
In accordance with this dream, Enkidu falls ill and eventually dies.
“From the day he saw this dream, his [power] was exhausted.
Enkidu lay there first day, then [second day]
[Enkidu's disease] while he was lying in bed [getting worse, his body weakened]."
Enkidu
Photo: CC BY-SA 3.0
Dumuzi's dream
Another example of a dream that carries ominous messages is found in the text known as "Dumuzi's Dream." The legendary king Dumuzi, who lived before the Flood, dreams of his own death. Unlike Enkidu's dream, his dream is filled with metaphors, and the king had to call his sister Gestin-anu to help him interpret the dream. This is Dumuzi's dream:
“In my dream, the reed rose for me, the reed continued to grow for me; the lonely reed shook its head to me; the double cane was separated from me. Tall trees in the forest rose above me. Water was poured over my sacred (coals), my shepherd's stick disappeared. The owl (?) Took the lamb from the sheepfold, the falcon caught the sparrow on the reed fence, my goats dragged their dark beards in the dust for me, and my rams scratched the ground with their thick feet for me. Dumuzi was dead and the sheepfold was bewitched."
Gestin-ana interpreted her brother's dream in this way: “The reeds rising for you, which continued to grow for you, are bandits who rise against you from ambush. The lone reed shaking its head at you is your mother who gave birth to you. Two reeds, of which one was separated from you, it is you and me, one will be separated from you. The tall trees in the forest rising above you are evil people grabbing you in the palace. The water that is poured on your sacred coals means that the sheepfold will become a house of silence."
Inanna and Dumuzi's wedding
Photo: Public Domain
Dream interpreters
The ancient inhabitants of Mesopotamia took their dreams seriously. Among them were professional dream interpreters. One of the most famous books interpreting dreams is the so-called Assyrian book of dreams, written on clay tablets and found in the library of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal in Ninelia. One of the tablets says that if in a dream a person runs away several times, it means that he / she will lose everything that he / she has.
