Utu
Utu is the Sumerian sun god, the Akkadian Shamash, the son of Nanna and Ningal and the brother of Inanna, who comes out of the eastern mountain, crosses the sky seeing everything and goes down into the underworld at night.
The Sun value here is native, not an overlay: Utu is the sun, and the grimoire already carries the Akkadian form of the same god as Shamash, so this entry is the Sumerian account from Larsa and the Sumerian hymns rather than a second god. The zodiac values Leo and Libra, the tarot cards and the sabbats Litha and Ostara are modern Western overlays, and the Jupiter and Mars values are overlay too; the weekday Sunday follows the Hellenistic planetary week. The tradition's own account, the eastern mountain, the saw and the judgement, is primary, and the entry should be read alongside shamash rather than instead of it.
Correspondences
- Planetary Correspondence
- Sun
Offerings
- Offerings
- BeerBreadDatesIncenseWaterA white lambFirst fruits
Sacred timing
- Sacred Timing
Symbols and forms
- Alternate Names
- ShamashThe SunBabbar
- Gender Expression
- Masculine
- Titles
- The SunLord of JusticeJudge of the Living and the DeadHe Who Rises from the Mountain
- Symbols
- Sun discThe sawRaysThe mountain of the eastThe scales
Practice
- Invocation Approach
- ToneThe light that sees everythingAddressUtuShamashThe SunRelationshipThe judge who sees what is done in the darkWarningHis justice is not merciful and the sources do not pretend it isResonanceThose seeking justice travellers those who need to be seen
- Modern Practice
Utu is called on for justice, for oaths and for seeing what has been hidden, and by travellers and by those who need to be seen. The justice is the older kind, which is not the same as mercy, and the entry does not promise otherwise.
Nature and meaning
- Domain
- The sunJusticeJudgementThe travellerDivinationThe underworld journeyLight
- Mythology Summary
Utu is the Sumerian sun god, the Akkadian Shamash, the son of Nanna and Ningal and the brother of Inanna, who comes out of the eastern mountain, crosses the sky seeing everything and goes down into the underworld at night. His temples were the Ebabbar at Larsa and at Sippar, and he is the god of justice, of the traveller and of divination, the patron of the baru priests who read the signs. In the Gilgamesh epic he helps Gilgamesh and Enkidu against Humbaba and hears Gilgamesh's lament afterwards, and the Sumerian hymns call him the judge of the land.
Details
- Correspondences
- ColorsGoldYellowWhiteRedScentsFrankincenseCedarCopal whiteMetalsGoldBronzeElectrumAnimalsLionEagleBullHorse
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