Legitimising magic : strategies and practices in ancient Mesopotamia / edited by Nils P. Heessel, Elyze Zomer.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Heessel, Nils P., editor.

Zomer, Elyze, 1987- editor.

Series:

Ancient magic and divination ; 21.

Ancient magic and divination, 1566-7952 ; volume 21

Language:

English

German

Subjects (All):

Magic, Assyro-Babylonian.

Magic--Iraq.

Magic.

Witchcraft--Iraq.

Witchcraft.

Divination--History.

Divination.

Iraq.

Genre:

History

Physical Description:

ix, 210 pages ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Leiden ; Boston : Brill, [2024]

Language Note:

Seven contributions in English with one in German.

Summary:

"As magic is a powerful means to influence the natural world and human beings, and is deeply connected to the divine sphere, persons using it are in constant need to justify its use. The ambivalence of magic to serve both well-wishing and ill-wishing aims puts the practitioners ever at risk. This volume illuminates the strategies adopted to legitimise the practice of magic and analyses how these justifications are phrased and formulated in cuneiform texts, thereby revealing the underlying principles and unexplained axioms of using magic in the Ancient Near East"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

"I am the messenger of the great Gods" : Some thoughts on a legitimising statement

Agency in the Hittite Ritual texts and its relationship with legitimizing magic

Abjection and authority : situating aggressive magic and witchcraft in Mesopotamia

Negotiating with Evil : the rhetorical strategy of epiplexis in Mesopotamian Magic

Bang a gong (demons gone) : The mighty copper and magic with automatic consent

Der Mythos als Wirkstrategie in den Beschwörungen

The art of the āšipu in narrative poetry

Naturalizing the supernatural : Magic, ritual, and everyday life in Ancient Mesopotamia.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Legitimising magic

ISBN:

9789004687400

9004687408

OCLC:

1395537875