"Humbaba and Pazuzu as Precursors to Iblis"
Sahib Iblis
Sahib Iblis
10 March 2022, revised 8 February 2024
I consider possible analogies between Humbaba and Pazuzu on one hand and the role of Iblis in the context of his narrative, on the other hand.
I consider possible analogies between Humbaba and Pazuzu on one hand and the role of Iblis in the context of his narrative, on the other hand.
In Mesopotamian myth, the demonic giant Humbaba is given the role of steward or warden over the Cedar Forests by the gods. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Humbaba is slain by Gilgamesh and his friend, Enkidu, to attain notoriety.
At some point, Humbaba was given an apotropaic role in Mesopotamian culture. Disembodied heads as terracotta masks were placed in households, driven by the conviction that the face of Humbaba would deter the unwelcome.
The figure of Pazuzu and his role in myth may have been influenced by Humbaba. It is also possible that Pazuzu was a proto-Djinn and precursor to Iblis. Begin with a contrast in appearance, starting with this description of Pazuzu:
At some point, Humbaba was given an apotropaic role in Mesopotamian culture. Disembodied heads as terracotta masks were placed in households, driven by the conviction that the face of Humbaba would deter the unwelcome.
The figure of Pazuzu and his role in myth may have been influenced by Humbaba. It is also possible that Pazuzu was a proto-Djinn and precursor to Iblis. Begin with a contrast in appearance, starting with this description of Pazuzu:
The exception seems to be Pazuzu, who is described in ancient texts as "the son of Hanbu and king of the wind demons." He stands on two legs and has human arms ending in claws, with two pairs of wings, a scorpion's tail, a snake-headed erect penis, and a horned, bearded head with bulging eyes and snarling canine mouth.This description is similar to the depiction of Iblis in certain miniatures, including the image of Iblis in the Annals of al-Tabari. There, Iblis is depicted as a winged figure, with clawed hands and feet, a tail, and a horned and bearded head.
In that depiction of Iblis, his head is out of proportion to his body, mirroring Pazuzu in this respect. His large head is elongated, and like portrayals of Pazuzu, offers an impression of simian and canine features fused in an awful apex.
"Shaitan yuajih shaitan": "Devil confronts devil"
In ancient Mesopotamia, Pazuzu represented vermin, drought, and famine - evils imperiling humanity on a tribal level. By contrast, night spirits such as Lamashtu carried out petty and small scale evils, such as eating children.
The above expression is used in the film, The Exorcist. It recalls Pazuzu's disdain for Lamashtu and other night spirits. Terracotta masks representing Pazuzu were placed in homes, as Pazuzu was feared by rivals like Lamashtu.
This role made Pazuzu an unlikely warden over mothers, infants, and children. In The Four Winds and the Origins of Pazuzu, its author claims Humbaba may have influenced Pazuzu, who also spurned outsiders and interlopers.
This role made Pazuzu an unlikely warden over mothers, infants, and children. In The Four Winds and the Origins of Pazuzu, its author claims Humbaba may have influenced Pazuzu, who also spurned outsiders and interlopers.
As a domestic spirit Pazuzu takes up the functions of his Bronze Age predecessor Humbaba [or brother, on some accounts], and like Humbaba’s, Pazuzu’s apotropaic power resides in his head, in its malformed inhuman ugliness deterring unwelcome visitors.
The role of Humbaba and Pazuzu in deterring and repulsing outsiders is echoed by the role of Iblis in his act of refusing fealty and rejecting what he saw as an outsider. In repudiating humanity, in the form of Adam, Iblis presents a variation of the theme of Humbaba and Pazuzu. Though there are no sources linking Humbaba or Pazuzu to Iblis, the territorial and tribal animosity of Iblis echoes their roles.
