Oannes. (Ancient Greek). Musarus Oannes, the Annedotus, known in the Chaldean "legends", transmitted through Berosus and other ancient writers, as Dag or Dagon, the "man-fish".

Oannes came to the early Babylonians as a reformer and an instructor. Appearing from the Erythrean Sea, he brought to them civilisation, letters and sciences, law, astronomy and religion, teaching them agriculture, geometry and the arts in general. There were Annedoti who came after him, five in number (our race being the fifth ) - "all like Oannes inform and teaching the same"; but Musarus Oannes was the first to appear, and this he did during the reign of Ammenon, the third of the ten antediluvian Kings whose dynasty ended with Xisuthrus, the Chaldean Noah (See "Xisuthrus").

Oannes was "an animal endowed with reason whose body was that of a fish, but who had a human head under the fish’s with feet also below, similar to those of a man, subjoined to the fish’s tail, and whose voice and language too were articulate and human" (Polyhistor and Apollodorus). This gives the key to the allegory. It points out Oannes, as a man and a "priest", an Initiate. Layard showed long ago (See Nineveh) that the "fish’s head" was simply a head gear, the mitre worn by priests and gods, made in the form of a fish’s head, and which in a very little modified form is what we see even now on the heads of high Lamas and Romish Bishops. Osiris had such a mitre. The fish’s tail is simply the train of a long stiff mantle as depicted on some Assyrian tablets, the form being seen reproduced in the sacerdotal gold cloth garment worn during service by the modern Greek priests.

This allegory of Oannes, the Annedotus, reminds us of the "Dragon" and "Snake-Kings "; the Nagas who in Buddhist legends instruct people in wisdom on lakes and rivers, and end by becoming converts to the good Law and Arhats. The meaning is evident. The " fish" is an old and very suggestive symbol in the Mystery-language, as is also "water". Ea or Hea was the god of the sea and Wisdom, and the sea serpent was one of his emblems, his priests being "serpents " or Initiates. Thus one sees why Occultism places Oannes and the other Annedoti in the group of those ancient "adepts" who were called "marine" or "water dragons" - Nagas. Water typified their human origin (as it is a symbol of earth and matter and also of purification), in distinction to the "fire Nagas" or the immaterial, Spiritual Beings, whether celestial Bodhisattvas or Planetary Dhyanis, also regarded as the instructors of mankind.

The hidden meaning becomes clear to the Occultist, once he is told that "this being (Oannes) was accustomed to pass the day among men, teaching; and when the Sun had set, he retired again into the sea, passing the night in the deep, "for he was amphibious", i.e., he belonged to two planes: the spiritual and the physical. For the Greek word amphibios means simply "life on two planes", from amphi, "on both sides", and bios, "life". The word was often applied in antiquity to those men who, though still wearing a human form, had made themselves almost divine through knowledge, and lived as much in the spiritual supersensuous regions as on earth. Oannes is dimly reflected in Jonah, and even in John, the Precursor, both connected with Fish and Water.

(See also: Oannes, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Lord Byron's poem The Destruction of Sennacherib ("The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold...") is a retelling of the story contained in 2 Kings. This entry incorporates text from the public domain Easton's Bible Dictionary, originally published in 1897. ...

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Sennacherib, Sennacherib - Sennacherib's account, Sennacherib - Isaiah's account, Sennacherib - The disaster according to Herodotus, Sennacherib - Detailed analysis, Sennacherib - In popular culture

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Their presence in the region predates the Islamic conquest, as they are one of the few remaining indegenous inhabitants of Mesopotamia (Beth Nahrain in Syriac). They are not purely descended from the Biblical Chaldeans of Babylonia. Chaldeans are Christian, and are one of the first people to be converted to that religion by Thomas the Apostle shortly after the death of Christ. They originally belonged to the Assyrian Church of the East until 1552 when part of the church split and joined in full communion with Rome forming the Chald ...

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Chaldeans, Chaldeans - Past, Chaldeans - Present, Chaldeans - Future

Read more here: » Chaldeans: Encyclopedia II - Chaldeans - Past

Originally the patron god of the city of Assur, when this city became the centre of a growing and independent district, Assur was naturally advanced to the same position in the north that Marduk occupied in the south. The religious predominance of the city of Babylon served to maintain for Marduk, recognition even on the part of the Assyrian rulers, who, in the political side likewise, conceded to Babylonia the form at least of an independent district even when, as kings of Assyria, they exercised absolute control over it. They appointed the ...

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Babylonian and Assyrian religion, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The impact of Hammurabi, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The old regional gods, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The rise of Marduk, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The cult of Anu, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The triads, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The rivalry between Assur and Marduk, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Chronology, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Astral theology, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Religious practice and rituals, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Ethics, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Later influence

Read more here: » Babylonian and Assyrian religion: Encyclopedia II - Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The rivalry between Assur and Marduk

Originally the patron god of the city of Assur, when this city became the centre of a growing and independent district, Assur was naturally advanced to the same position in the north that Marduk occupied in the south. The religious predominance of the city of Babylon served to maintain for Marduk, recognition even on the part of the Assyrian rulers, who, in the political side likewise, conceded to Babylonia the form at least of an independent district even when, as kings of Assyria, they exercised absolute control over it. They appointed the ...

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Mesopotamian religion, Mesopotamian religion - The impact of Hammurabi, Mesopotamian religion - The old regional gods, Mesopotamian religion - The rise of Marduk, Mesopotamian religion - The cult of Anu, Mesopotamian religion - The triads, Mesopotamian religion - The rivalry between Assur and Marduk, Mesopotamian religion - Chronology, Mesopotamian religion - Astral theology, Mesopotamian religion - Religious practice and rituals, Mesopotamian religion - Ethics, Mesopotamian religion - Later influence

Read more here: » Mesopotamian religion: Encyclopedia II - Mesopotamian religion - The rivalry between Assur and Marduk

Sometime during the early part of the Assyrian invasion, Hezekiah met with his military staff concerning the possibility that Jerusalem may fall under siege. The staff immediately oversaw preparations for the Assyrian onslaught. In an effort to deprive the enemy of water, the Jews blocked the springs outside the city. Workers then dug a 533-meter tunnel to the Spring of Gihon, providing the city with fresh water. Additional siege preparations included fortification of the existing walls, construction of towers, and the erection of a new, rei ...

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Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem, Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem - Hezekiah's reforms, Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem - Jerusalem besieged, Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem - The hexagonal prism and other sources, Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem - Sennacherib's end

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The total population of Chaldo-Assyrians is estimated at 2.5 million worldwide. There are today an estimated 100,000 living in the United States. Major populations of Chaldeans are found around Detroit and San Diego, while Assyrians are concentrated around Chicago and Los Angeles. There are approximately 500,000-750,000 Syriac speakers in Iraq; many of those living in the United States also speak the language. Much hostility against Iraqi Christians still exists from Muslim Iraqis, especially in the period following the fall of Saddam ...

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Chaldeans, Chaldeans - Past, Chaldeans - Present, Chaldeans - Future

Read more here: » Chaldeans: Encyclopedia II - Chaldeans - Present

Sennacherib first recounts several of his previous victories, and how his enemies had become overwhelmed by his presence. He was able to do this to Great Sidon, Little Sidon, Bit-Zitti, Zaribtu, Mahalliba, Ushu, Akzib and Akko. After taking each of these cities, Sennacherib installed a puppet leader named Ethbaal as ruler over the entire region. Sennacherib then turned his attention to Beth-Dagon, Joppa, Banai-Barqa, and Azjuru, cities th ...

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Sennacherib, Sennacherib - Sennacherib's account, Sennacherib - Isaiah's account, Sennacherib - The disaster according to Herodotus, Sennacherib - Detailed analysis, Sennacherib - In popular culture

Read more here: » Sennacherib: Encyclopedia II - Sennacherib - Sennacherib's account

As with many canonical books, the Book of Jonah has had a long and varied interpretive history. This history spans from ancient rabbinic interpretations to "post modern" reader-response interpretations. The interpretative styles of Jews, Christians, Muslims, and atheists have all been employed to understand the story of Jonah. This section will consider how these various groups have interpreted Jonah throughout time. < ...

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Book of Jonah, Book of Jonah - Outline of book, Book of Jonah - Narrative, Book of Jonah - Setting, Book of Jonah - Characters, Book of Jonah - Plot, Book of Jonah - Interpretive history, Book of Jonah - Early Jewish interpretation, Book of Jonah - Early Christian interpretation, Book of Jonah - Islamic interpretation, Book of Jonah - Modern interpretation, Book of Jonah - Bibliography

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Catholics list the book of Tobit among the "historical books" of the Bible, but most scholars regard it more as a religious novel with certain historical elements. Many of the historical details in the book contradict what is known about the history of the period from extra-Biblical sources. In the past, Catholic Bible scholars have provided a variety of ways for explaining these apparent discrepancies. The book is also closely related to Jewish wisdom literature. Nowhere is this clearer than in Tobit's instructions to Tobias before h ...

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Book of Tobit, Book of Tobit - Narrative, Book of Tobit - Significance, Book of Tobit - Date of composition, Book of Tobit - External references

Read more here: » Book of Tobit: Encyclopedia II - Book of Tobit - Significance

The book was originally written in Aramaic, but the original was lost, so that the surviving Greek translation is considered the standard text of the work. The text exists in Greek, Latin, Syriac, and Judæo-Aramaic manuscripts, besides two late Hebrew translations of the Middle Ages. It appears that Jerome's version for the Vulgate was made from an Aramaic text available to him. It is generally believed that the book was written in the second century BC, on the basis of the scrupulous attention to ritual details and the stress laid upon giving alms, but there is no Messianic ...

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Book of Tobit, Book of Tobit - Narrative, Book of Tobit - Significance, Book of Tobit - Date of composition, Book of Tobit - External references

Read more here: » Book of Tobit: Encyclopedia II - Book of Tobit - Date of composition

The earliest mention of Babylon is in a dated tablet of the reign of Sargon of Akkad (24th century BC short chr.), who made it the capital of his empire. Over the years its power and population waned. From around the 20th century BC, it was occupied by Amorites (nomadic Semitic tribes), flooding southern Mesopotamia from the the west, until it became the capital of Hammurabi's empire (ca. 18th century BC). From that time onward, it continued to be the capital of Babylonia, though during the 440 years of domination by the Kassites (1595-1155 BC), the city ...

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Babylon, Babylon - History, Babylon - Assyrian period, Babylon - Beautification of Babylon by Nebuchadrezzar II, Babylon - Babylon under the Persians, Babylon - Hellenic period, Babylon - Archaeology of Babylon

Read more here: » Babylon: Encyclopedia II - Babylon - History

Street preaching frequently takes on a form of protest at public gatherings. Among today's best known practitioners of preaching-as-protest are Operation Rescue, Westboro Baptist Church (Topeka), and Bob Enyart. The tactics of these groups range from peaceful civil disobedience to flamboyant taunting of their opponents. Many street preachers also hand out tracts or leaflets to passersby. Invariably, many of the tracts are quickly discarded, and this ha ...

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Open-air preaching, Open-air preaching - Open-Air Preaching within Christianity, Open-air preaching - Open-Air preaching as protest, Open-air preaching - One-On-One preaching, Open-air preaching - Open-Air preachers in Hollywood, Open-air preaching - The John 3:16 Guy, Open-air preaching - Roadside religious displays

Read more here: » Open-air preaching: Encyclopedia II - Open-air preaching - Open-Air preaching as protest

The site flourished from about 5050 to 4300 BCE. This period of time is sometimes referred to as the Halafian period. The Halafian culture was succeeded in northern Mesopotamia by the Ubaid culture. In 894 BCE, the Assyrian king Adad-nirari II recorded it in his archives as a tributary Aramaean city-state. After a short period of independence, Semiramis sacked the city in 808 BCE and reduced the surrounding area ...

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Tell Halaf, Tell Halaf - Discovery and excavation, Tell Halaf - History, Tell Halaf - Economy, Tell Halaf - Culture, Tell Halaf - Architecture, Tell Halaf - Pottery

Read more here: » Tell Halaf: Encyclopedia II - Tell Halaf - History

Because of a malaria outbreak during flood season at Balkh, the regional capital was shifted in the 1870s to Mazar-e Sharif. In 1911, the Encyclopedia Britannica described a settlement of about 500 Afghan settlers, a colony of Jews and a small bazaar set in the midst of a waste of ruins and acres of debris. Entering by the west (Akcha) gate, one passed under three arches, in which the compilers recognized the remnants of the former Friday Mosque (Jama Masjid). The outer walls, mostly in utter disrepair, were estim ...

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Balkh, Balkh - Balkh in 1911, Balkh - Balkh today, Balkh - Ancient ruins of Balkh, Balkh - History of Balkh

Read more here: » Balkh: Encyclopedia II - Balkh - Balkh in 1911

Although the cat cult was an significant religious movement by the birth of the New Kingdom it gained new importance when Shoshenq I developed Bubastis, chief centre of worship for the goddess Bast, located east of the Nile Delta, into an important city. At the same time, Bast developed into an immensely popular and important deity representing fertility, motherhood, protection and the benevolent aspects of the sun - along with Sekhmet, she was known as the Eye of Ra. The cult of the cat garnered a huge following and thousands of pilgrims journeyed each year to Bubastis to ce ...

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Cats in Ancient Egypt, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in other religions, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in everyday life in Ancient Egypt, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in Egyptian mythology, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Bubastis and the Cult of the Cat, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Funerary traditions, Cats in Ancient Egypt - The decline of cat-worship

Read more here: » Cats in Ancient Egypt: Encyclopedia II - Cats in Ancient Egypt - Bubastis and the Cult of the Cat

However part, in the northwest, became Roman. Under the Tetrarchy, this was divided into two provinces, called Osrhoene (around Edessa; roughly the modern-day border between Turkey and Syria) and Mesopotamia (a bit more northeast). During the time of the Persian Empire of Sassanids, their much larger share of Mesopotamia was called Dil-i Iranshahr meaning "Iran's Heart" and the metropol Ctesiphon (facing ancient Seleukia across the Tigris), the capital of Persia, was situated in Mesopotamia. Since the early calip ...

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Mesopotamia, Mesopotamia - City states and Imperial glory, Mesopotamia - Later history, Mesopotamia - List of links

Read more here: » Mesopotamia: Encyclopedia II - Mesopotamia - Later history

List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Palaeolithic. Berekhat Ram, Israel Zhoukoudian, China List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Mesolithic. Abu Hureyra, Syria List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Neolithic. Atlit Yam, Israel Çatalhöyük, Turkey Göbekli Tepe, Turkey J ...

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List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Europe, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Palaeolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Mesolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Neolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Bronze Age, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Iron Age, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Roman/Greek Period, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Early Medieval, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Medieval, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Asia, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Palaeolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Mesolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Neolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Bronze Age, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Iron Age, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Greek and Roman Period, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Early Medieval, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Medieval, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Africa, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Palaeolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Iron Age, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Greek and Roman Period, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Americas, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Neolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Australia and Oceania, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Palaeolithic, List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Classical Period

Read more here: » List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age: Encyclopedia II - List of archaeological sites sorted by continent and age - Asia

The title means "When above." (Sumerian and Akkadian works were typically referred to by their first few words.) The epic names three primeval gods: Apsu, the fresh water, Tiamat, the salt water, and their son Mummu, apparently the mist. Several other gods are created, and raise such a clamor of noise that Apsu is provoked (with Mummu's connivance) to destroy them. Ea (Nudimmud), at the time the most powerful of the gods, intercepts the plan, puts Apsu to sleep and kills him, and shuts Mummu out. Ea then begets a ...

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Enûma Elish, Enûma Elish - Summary, Enûma Elish - Comparisons with Genesis

Read more here: » Enûma Elish: Encyclopedia II - Enûma Elish - Summary

No professional archaeologist has ever been able to work at Balkh. The earlier Buddhist constructions have proved more durable than the Islamic period buildings. The Top- Rustam is 50 yd (46 m) in diameter at the base and 30 yd (27 m) at the top, circular and about 50 ft (15 m) high. Four circular vaults are sunk in the interior and four passages have been pierced below from the outside, which probably lead to them. The base of the building is constructed of sun-dried bricks about 2 ft (600 mm) square and 4 or 5 in (100 to 130 mm) thi ...

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Balkh, Balkh - Balkh in 1911, Balkh - Balkh today, Balkh - Ancient ruins of Balkh, Balkh - History of Balkh

Read more here: » Balkh: Encyclopedia II - Balkh - Ancient ruins of Balkh

Feline reverence is not peculiar to Ancient Egyptian civilisation. Muslim theology maintains that the prophet Muhammad once found a cat sleeping on his robe; instead of waking it, he cut a hole through his robe so as not to disturb the animal. This reverence can be found in ancient Indian texts, where records of cats involved with human society can be found in two ancient Indian great epics, the Ramayana and Mahabharata, circa 500 BCE. As the Hindu and Parsee religions respected all forms of life and were especially sympathetic towards cats, ...

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Cats in Ancient Egypt, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in other religions, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in everyday life in Ancient Egypt, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in Egyptian mythology, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Bubastis and the Cult of the Cat, Cats in Ancient Egypt - Funerary traditions, Cats in Ancient Egypt - The decline of cat-worship

Read more here: » Cats in Ancient Egypt: Encyclopedia II - Cats in Ancient Egypt - Cats in other religions

There are some reasons for believing that the oldest seat, and possibly the original seat, of the Anu cult was in Uruk, as that is where the earliest records show Inanna, Ishtar's Sumerian counterpart, had her most prominent cult centre. Anu remained more or less of an abstraction during the various periods of the Babylonian-Assyrian religion, and took little part in the active cult of the temples. Associated with Anu was a pale reflection, a consort, Antum, perhaps assigned to him under the influence of the widely prevalen ...

See also:

Babylonian and Assyrian religion, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The impact of Hammurabi, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The old regional gods, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The rise of Marduk, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The cult of Anu, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The triads, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The rivalry between Assur and Marduk, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Chronology, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Astral theology, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Religious practice and rituals, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Ethics, Babylonian and Assyrian religion - Later influence

Read more here: » Babylonian and Assyrian religion: Encyclopedia II - Babylonian and Assyrian religion - The cult of Anu