Inanna and her flock of underworld demons walk on towards the city of Uruk. Just outside the walls they find King Dumuzi, Inanna's husband, sitting on his magnificent throne under the fragrant apple trees. Dumuzi wears his crown and other symbols of his authority. When he sees Inanna he doesn't get up to greet her or show any signs of grief or relief. He simply says "Where have you been?"
Inanna points her finger at her husband, partner in all things. She turns to the demons and says, "Take him. Take Dumuzi away." The demons seize him and beat him. Dumuzi wails. He cries out to his brother-in-law, Utu, the God of Justice. "Utu, I am the husband of your sister," he begs. "I am the one who brought wedding gifts, the one who serves dutifully. You are a merciful god. Please turn me into a snake so that I can get away."
Utu heard Dumuzi and decided to help him. He turned King Dumuzi into a snake, and the demons could not hold him... Dumuzi slipped away.
Sounds like relations between the sexes have always been rocky. Recall that Inanna was motivated, in part, to visit Ereshkigal because the honeymoon phase with Dumuzi was over. Is Inanna just taking revenge for neglect, or does she know something now, by virtue of her three days hanging on a hook, that might be valuable to Dumuzi? We'll pick up the thread of Dumuzi's fate after the New Year. More to come on the great goddess of Heaven and Earth.
