Hepatoscopy and Astrology in Babylonia and Assyria

Author(s): Morris Jastrow, Jr.

Source: Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 47, No. 190 (Sep. - Dec., 1908),
pp. 646-676
Published by: American Philosophical Society
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HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY IN BABYLONIA AND
ASSYRIA.

BY MORRIS JASTROW, JR.

(Read December4, I908.)

In any general studyof the subject of divinationwe must dis-

tinguishbetweentwo formswhich for want of a betterdesignation
we may distinguishas voluntaryand involuntary.Under voluntary
divinationis meant the act of deliberatelyseekingout some object
or meansthroughwhichone mayhope to piercetheunknownfuture,
hidden from the ordinarygaze. The placing of marked arrows
beforethe image of a deity,and accordingto the ones drawnby lot,
to determinewhat the god may have in mindor what his pleasure
may be is an illustrationof voluntarydivinationas practicedamong
the ancientArabs.' Sending out birds selectedfor the purposeand
notingthe directionand mannerof theirflight2 may be instancedas
another procedure of direct divination. Among the Babylonians
and Assyrians,the common method of voluntarydivinationwas
the examinationof the liver of the sacrificialanimal-invariably
for this purpose a sheep-and, according to signs noted in the
various parts of thatorgan, to diagnose the intentionsof the gods
as the arbitersof human fate and as the powers presidingover all
occurrenceson earth.
Involuntarydivination,on the otherhand, restson the interpre-
tation of all mannerof signs and phenomenathat withoutbeing
soughtout forcethemselveson our notice. Preeminentamong such
signs is the observationof the phenomenaof the heavens,primarily
the movementsand aspects of the sun, moon and planets with the
gradual extensionto the observationof clouds,of constellationsand
of single particularlyprominentstars-as practicedby the cultural
1Wellhausen, "Reste ArabischenHeidenthums," p. 126.
2Wissowa, "Religion der R6mer,"p. 457,note 3.
646

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 647

nations of antiquity.3 In addition to this branch of involuntary

divination,we have the significanceattachedto diverseoccurrences
that by theirmore or less unusual or strikingcharacterattractat-
tentionor that for any otherreason were regardedas fraughtwith
some special importance. The interpretation of dreams falls within
this category. Monstrositiesamong human beings and animals
formanothersubdivision,while peculiar actions among animals-
snakes,dogs, ravens,locusts and the like-furtherextendthe scope
of\involuntarydivinationuntil it becomes practicallyboundless.
All the littlemishapsand accidentsof daily life were looked upon
as signs,indicativeof the dispositionof the gods towardsmen,and
in a stilllargersense,as affectingthe generalwelfare,were storms,
floods,swollenstreams,climaticdisturbancesand morethe like.
In orderto differentiate betweenthesetwo methodsof divination
we may designatethe signs derived fromvoluntarydivinationas
omens,and those obtained frominvoluntarydivinationas portents,
while withinthe fieldof involuntarydivinationtwo broad divisions
may be recognized,the one representedby portentsconnectedwith
the phenomenaof the heavens, includingclouds, stormsand rains,
and such as are connectedwithterrestrial phenomena. In grouping
the portentsderived from the observationof the phenomenaof
natureunderthe generalheading of astrology,it mustthereforebe
borne in mind that the termincludesmore than the mere studyof
the stars,but so far at least as Babyloniaand Assyriaare concerned,
thereis no distinctionbetweenthe characterof the interpretations
offeredforthephenomenaof the heavensin thenarrowersense,and
such phenomenaas are merelyassociated with the heavens. For
the Babyloniansand Assyrians,as for the nations of antiquityin
general, heaven is not very far removedfromthe earth.4 It was
supposed to begin wherethe solid earthcame to an end and indeed
the tops of mountainsso frequentlyenvelopedin clouds appear to
have been regarded as borderingon the domain of heaven if not
Dr. J. G. Frazer calls my attention to the fact that astrology in any
proper sense is not found among peoples of primitive culture.
'This view underlies the Biblical story of the building of the Tower
of Babel (Genesis, chapter XI.), as is shown by the circumstance that the
task of building a tower which should reach to heaven is not looked upon
as an impossible task but as a wicked one.

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648 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December+,

actually a part of it. Hence to place the seat of the gods on the
topsof mountains,as was so frequently done by nationsof antiquity,
was equivalentto assigningthemto theheavens.
Confiningourselvesto Babylonia and Assyria,we findthat al-
thoughdivinationthroughthe interpretation of terrestrialphenom-
ena-dreams, monstrosities,actions of animals, mishaps, swollen
streams,etc., etc.-also play a prominentrole and that withinthe
fieldof voluntarydivinationwe have by the side of hepatoscopy(or
divinationthroughthe liver), otherproceduressuch as the interpre-
tationof the actionof oil bubblesin a basin of water,rthe two chief
methodsof divination,formingpart of the officialcult, are Hepa-
toscopyand Astrology.6 Both formswere developedinto elaborate
systemsmarkedby definiterules of interpretation, consistentlyand
logicallyapplied. Extensivecollectionsof omensand portentswere
compiledby Babylonianand Assyrianpriestsattachedto thetemples,
in which all signs noted on the liver of sheep and all mannerof
phenomenaobserved in connectionwith sun, moon, planets, con-
stellationsand stars on the one hand,and withclouds,storms,rains
and floodson theother,were enteredtogetherwiththe interpretation
of the signs. The evidentendeavorof the compilerswas to make
the collectionsas comprehensive as possible so as to provide for all
contingencies,since the purpose of the collectionswas to serve as
guides and handbooksforthepriestsin theirpracticallabors as well
as text-booksin instructing the pupils of the templeschools. As a
consequence,considerableskill and ingenuitywere displayedin ar-
ranging the omens and portentssystematicallyso as to facilitate
theiruse. On the otherhand,whilethe signs notedwere primarily
based on actual cases, the theoreticalfactorenterslargelyintoplay.
This led to many signs being enteredin both classes of divination
5SeeHunger," Becherwahrsagung bei den Babyloniern" (Leipzig, I903).
6 For
detailswithcopioustranslations of textssee the writer's"Religion
Babyloniensund Assyriens,"parts 10 to 14, as well as various articleson
special pointssuch as "The Signs and Names for the Liver in Babylonian"
(Zeitschriftfur Assyriologie,XX., pp. 105-I29); "The Liver in Antiquity
and the Beginningsof Anatomy'" (Universityof PennsylvaniaMedical
Bulletin,January,I9o8, and Trans. of the Phila. College of Physicians,3d
Series, XXIX., pp. I I7-I38); " Sign and Name for Planet in Babylonian"
(PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMER. PHILOS. SOCIETY, XLVII., PP. I4I-I56).

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igo8.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 649

which representsuch as in the opinionof the priestsmightoccur.

Certainrules of interpretation having been devised,based on actual
occurrencesfollowingupon the signs noted, these rules were ap-
plied to contingentcases which might occur; and often in astro-
logical texts, signs are even enteredwhich have no practical sig-
nificanceat all but purely a theoreticalinterestas illustrationsof
the extremesto whichthe systemof interpretation was pushed.
In the case of both methodsthe interpretations have reference
almost exclusivelyto the generalwelfare and not to the individual,
to crops, war, pestilence,victory,defeat, famine,plenty,favorable
or unfavorableclimatic conditionsand the like. The individual
plays a veryminorrole,and when he is introduced,in most cases it
is the king who is directlymentionedor indirectlyreferredto.
Even the welfareof the king is bound up with the welfareof the
countryunderthe view of kingshipwhichcontinuesto hold good till
the end of the Babylonian-Assyrian controland accordingto which
the king's welfare,because of his peculiar relationshipto the gods,
conditionsthe general prosperityand happiness;7 and this applies
also to signs connectedwitha memberof the royalhousehold. It is
because of this bearing of both formsof divinationon the general
welfarethattheyformintegralpartsof the officialcult. Especially
is this the case with the ritesof hepatoscopywhich,as texts from
the days of the Assyrian empire show, formedpart of a regular
ritual.8
More important,however,than this aspect of hepatoscopyand
astrologyin Babylonia and Assyria is the circumstancethat both
methodsrestupon a well-defined theoryand are thereforenot to be
viewed as merelyarbitrarilychosen devices. In the case of hepa-
toscopythe underlyingtheorymay be summedup as follows. The
sacrificialanimal on being accepted by the deity to whom it is
offeredis assimilatedto the deity. The deitybecomes one with it,
muchin thesame way as theone who partakesof an animalbecomes
part of that animal, or the animal part of him. The soul of the
animal is thus put in harmoniousaccord with the soul of the god.
"See J. G. Frazer, "Lectures on the Early Historyof Kingship."
8 See Jastrow,"Religion Babyloniensund Assyriens,"II., pp. I74 seq.
and 300 seq.
PROC. AMER. PHIL. SOC. XIXII. 190 PP, PRINTED FEBRUARY 6, 9gog.

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650 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December
4,

The two agree as two watches regulatedto be in perfectunison.

If, therefore,one can read the soul of the animal,one entersat the
same time into the inner being of the god. Now according to a
view widespread still among people living in a state of primitive
culture,the seat of life is in the liver,which is not only the organ
of emotionalactivitybut of intellectualfunctionsas well,the source
of all emotionshigh and low, of thought,will and all manifestations
of what we ordinarilycall soul life.9 From this point of view the
liver is the seat of life and of the soul, as the ancients conceived
vitalityand its inwardand outwardphenomena.
The combinationof thesetwo conceptions(i) of the liveras the
seat of the soul and (2) of the assimilationof the soul of the sacri-
ficialanimal to the soul of the deityto whom it is offeredand who
acceptsit, leads to the conclusionthatif one is able to read the soul
of the animal as revealed in the conditionof the liver and of the
signs thereon,the soul including,therefore, the will and intentionof
the deityis revealed. Throughthe liverof the sacrificialanimalone
entersas it were into the workshopof the gods. The mindof the
god is reflectedin the liverof the sacrificialanimal like an image in
a mirror-to use the figureintroducedby Plato in an interesting
passage of theTimaeus10bearingon divinationthroughthe liver.
As forthe systemof interpretation of the signs notedit revolves
largely around a more or less natural association of ideas. The
chief parts of the liver to which attentionwas directedbeing the
rightand left lower lobes, the upper lobe with its two appendices,
the larger one known as the processuspyramidalisand the smaller
9For further details regarding this view of the liver which also under-
lies hepatoscopy among the Etruscans, Greeks and Romans see Jastrow, " Re-
ligion Babyloniens und Assyriens," II., pp. 213 seq. In a special article
(shortly to be published) on "The Liver as the Seat of the Soul " I have set
forth the historical development of the location of the soul in the liver, in
the heart and in the head successively. The second stage, though reached by
the Babylonians and Assyrians, never found expression in Hepatoscopy,
whereas among the Romans from a certain period on, the heart and occa-
sionally the lungs and even the milt were also examined. The third stage
was reached too late for incorporation into the divination rites, but in phre-
nology as an extra-officialpseudo-scientific form of divination we have the
outward expression of the belief which placed the soul in the brain.
1O?7I C.

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 651

one as the processus papillcaris,the gall-bladder,the cystic duct,

the hepatic duct, the commonbile-duct,the hepatic vein and the
"liver gate" (porta hepatis). A swollen gall-bladderwas inter-
pretedas pointingto an enlargementor increase of power, a long
cysticduct to a long reign,a depressionin the liver gate to a de-
crease in power and so forth. Through the furtherdistinctionbe-
tweenrightand left,the formerrepresenting the favorableside, the
latter the unfavorableside, the signs in question referredto the
king's side or to the enemy'sside, as the case mightbe. Besides the
parts of the liver,markingson the liver-holes, lines, and depres-
sions-due largelyto thetraceson theliversurfaceof thesubsidiary
ductsand veins,were accordeda special significance. Accordingto
the shape of these markings,frequentlyfantasticallypicturedas
weaponsof thegods, an interpretation, likewisebased on association
of ideas, was offeredand in this way the fieldof hepatoscopywas
furtherextended. No two liverswere ever exactlyalike,and it will
readilybe seen how in the course of time the collectionsof signs
with theirinterpretation would grow to huge proportions,and the
opportunity thusgiven fortheimaginationand fancyof thedivining
priest-the baru'or " inspector''l as he was called, to roam over a
boundlessterritory.To the creditof the Babylonianand Assyrian
priestsbe it said that so far as the evidencegoes, theyapplied the
elaborate and complicated system devised by them logically and
consistently. They did not hesitateto announce to the kings an
unfavorableresultof the examinationof the signs. Groupingall
the signs noted together,if the unfavorablesigns predominated,a
secondsheepwas offeredand theliverexamined,and if the resultof
this diagnosis was also unfavorable,the omens were taken for a
third time. The frequencywith which in officialreportsto the
kings unfavorableprognostications are set forth12warrantsthe con-
"The underlying stem is the common term for "to see." The bdrfi
as " the seer" was the one who by means of an " inspection" foretold the
future. The term was extended also to the "inspector" of the heavens or
the astrologer. In Hebrew we have as an equivalent ro'eh and in an article
"Rb'jh and Hbzjh" (Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. XXVIII., part I)
I have tried to show that the r6'jh like the bdriuwas originally an " inspector"
of some object through which the future was divined.
'Jastrow, o. C., II., p. 287 seq. for examples.

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 652 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December4

clusionthatthe divinerswere far removedfromresortingto decep-

tion and to trickydevices such as are reportedof augurs among
Greeks and Romans.13 Indeed the mere circumstancethathepatos-
copyprevaileduninterruptedly fromtheearliestto thelatestperiods,
and thaton all importantoccasions it was resortedto as the official
means of ascertainingthe will and intentionsof the gods, is a testi-
monyto the conscientiousmannerin which the priestsmust have
carriedout theirtasks.
In passing fromhepatoscopyto astrology-the termalways used
in the larger sense above pointedout15-we pass also fromthe do-
main of popular and to a large extentprimitivebeliefsto a domain
of speculation that in comparison justly merits the designation
scientific.Astrologyin Babylonia and Assyria rests on the identi-
ficationof theheavenlybodieswiththegods of thepantheon. While
in the case of the personificationof the sun and moon as deitieswe
are still withinthe provinceof popular and primitiveconceptions,
we pass beyondthis provincein the extensionof such personifica-
tionto theplanetsand stars. It lies in the natureof animism,which
is certainlyto be regardedas a stage in the developmentof religious
beliefs,even if it is not admittedto be the starting-point of such
development,not to distinguishsharplybetweenthe manifestation
of a personifiedpower and the seat of that power. The sun is at
once the sun-godand the seat of thatgod; and the same applies to
the moon. Both, accordingly,have their places in the heavens.
Storms,rains,thunderand lightninglikewisecome fromtheheavens
and hence the gods representing the personificationof thesepowers
also have their seats in the heavens. Such conceptionsare a
directoutcomeof popularand primitivemethodsof thought,and we
may perhaps go a step fartherand assume that by analogy othIer
powers whose manifestations proceededfroma hiddensource were
assignedto theheavens,but thisstep is far removedfromthe identi-
ficationof all the starswithdeitiesand still fartherfromDroiectino,
'lSee, e. g., the anecdotes related by Polyaenus, " Strategicon," IV.,
20,
and Frontinus, " Strategematicon," I., XI., 15. Compare also Hippolytus,
Refutatio, IV., 40.
"4The earliest reference occurs in the inscriptions
of Gudea (c. 2500
B. C.), the latest in the inscriptions of Nabonidus, the last king of
Baby-
lonia. See Jastrow, o. c., II., p. 273 and 247 seq.
15 See above, p. 647.

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x908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 653

the seats of all gods and goddesses on to the heavens. Again, the
influenceof moon and sun, as well as stormswiththeiraccompany-
ing phenomena,on the fate,welfareand happinessof mankindwas
so apparentas to forceitselfupon the notice even of people living
in a stateof primitiveculture;and whenwe pass to thehigherstages
of nomadic,semi-nomadicand agriculturallife, the dependenceof
the country'sprosperityand of the individual'swelfare upon 'sun,
moon and climaticconditionswould be correspondingly increased.
The observationof the movementsand aspects of sun and moon
would followas a naturalconsequence,and we may suppose thatat
a comparativelyearly stage in cultural developmentcrude and
sporadicattemptsmightbe made on the basis of empiricalobserva-
tions to select the favorablemomentfor such actions as the under-
takingof a journey,for huntingor war, for the plantingof seeds,
forthe gatheringof the harvestor even for the pairingof domesti-
cated animals. The influenceof the planets and stars, however,
would be less obvious and indeed until a comparativelyadvanced
stage of intellectualdevelopmentwould not be recognizedat all.
Astrologyin thepropersense,therefore, is not foundamongpeoples
of primitiveculture16who at the most are guided by certain
empiricalconsiderationsin theirenterprises.
The projectionof the seats of all the gods on the heavens can
only have arisen in people's minds as the outcome of theoretical
speculation. This, to be sure, representsmerelythe extensionby
analogyof the primitiveconceptionof sun,moon and storms,but an
extensionwhich for the very reason that it is neitherobvious nor
the result of actual experience,lies outside of the range of early
thought. The views of Cumont17 and Boll'8 may,therefore,be un-
hesitatingly acceptedthatastrologyeverywhere representsa scientific
view of the universe-scientificof course in a relativesense, and in
comparisonwith the conceptionsthat underliehepatoscopyor with
the significanceattachedto universaloccurrenceson earthor to the
16See above,p. 647, note 3.
Les Religions Orientalesdans le Paganisme Romain" (Paris, I907),
17

pp. 197,seq.
"'Die Erforschungder antikenAstrologie" (Neue Jahrbiicher
fiir das
Klassische Altertum,I., Abt.,Bd. XXI.), p. io8 seq.

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654 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December 4,

mishaps and accidentsof daily life. Indeed, one may safely go a

step furtherand set up a contrastbetweenhepatoscopyand astrology
corresponding to the differencenowadaysbetweenthepopularviews
of the universewhichare still so largelycontrolledby superstitious
beliefs and crude speculations-instance the hold that astrology,
phrenology,chiromancy,clairovoyance,dreams and belief in the
power of ghosts still have upon the masses,-and those held by
scientificthinkers. The astrologicalsystemof Babylonia and As-
syria, which is the earliest known to us, might be described as
taking the place in antiquitythat in moderntimes is taken by the
"Darwinian " theoryof evolutionin so far as it is the productof
the schools and not of popular conceptions.
It may reasonably be supposed that the recognitionof the
regular movementsof the planets and that withincertainperiods
theypass througha well-definedcourse as do the sun and moon,
was the decisive step which led to the departurefrom along the
lines of popular conceptions. With the planets thus placed on a
par with sun and moon, it was a natural sequence to regard them
also as gods, or, what amountedto the same thing,as the seats of
gods, and to endow them with the power to control occurrences
on earth. In the oldest astrologicaltexts,as a matterof fact,we
findthe five planets already identifiedwith the chief gods of the
Babylonian-Assyrianpantheon,Jupiterbeing known as Marduk,
Venus as Ishtar, Saturn as Ninib, Mercury as Nebo and Mars
as Nergal.19 This identification in itselfis sufficient
to establishthe
advanced characterof the entireastrologicallore, for the gods in
question, according to the popular conceptionsand even in the
officialcult,stand in no connectionwith the stars. Marduk, Ninib
and Nergal are originallysolar deities. Nebo appears originallyto
have been a waterdeity,20 while Ishtar is the earthgoddess,the sym-
bol and personification of fertility
in general. In thusbeingidentified
with the planets,the original characterof the deitiesin questionis
entirelylost sight of. The identification, therefore,representsa
break with popular conceptionsand with the traditionsthat had
" Sternkunde und
19Kugler, Sterndienst in Babel," I., p. 8 with the cor-
rections on pp.22I and 286.
Tastrow.o. c., I., P. III8.

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 655

gatheredaround these deities. In view of this, it is clear that in

dealing with Babylonian-Assyrian astrologywe have to do withthe
theoriesof the theologiansor priestsas the representatives of ad-
vanced and abstractthought,and not withpopular notions. More-
over,thechoiceof thedeitiesin questionand theorderin whichthey
are enumeratedwhen introducedas equivalentsof the planets are
furtherindicationsof the speculativespiritwhichled to theiriden-
tificationwith the planets,and also of the timewhen this identifica-
tiontook its rise. Jupiter-Marduk is always mentionedfirstand this
precedenceis evidentlya reflection of the periodwhen Marduk was
regardedas the head of the pantheon,i. e., the period after Ham-
murabiwith whom as the unifierof the Euphrateanstates,the city
of Babylonas the capital of the empireassumes the definiteposition
it continuedto hold till the destructionof the neo-Babylonianking-
dom by Cyrus in 539 B. C. The pantheonas constitutedduringor
afterthe days of Hammurabiassigns to Marduk as the patrondeity
of Babylonthe firstposition. Marduk takes the place held by Enlil
of Nippurand subsequently, as would appear,by Ninib.21 The other
great gods of the pantheon,as foundin the Hammurabiperiod,are
preciselythe ones identified withthe remainingfourplanets,Ishtar,
Ninib,Nebo and Nergal togetherwith Sin the moon-god,Shamash
the sun-god and Adad-Ramman the storm-god. The basis upon
which Babylonian-Assyrian astrologyrests thus assumes the defi-
nite formationof a pantheonand moreoverthe particularformof
thepantheonthatmarkstheHammurabiperiod,i. e., after2000 B. C.
This does not necessarilymean that astrologydates in Babylonia
fromthisperiod,for it is possiblethattherewas an earlierseriesof
identificationof gods with planets,but that the astrologicaltexts
knownto us do not revertto originalsolder thanthe days of Ham-
murabi. There are indeed referencesin the inscriptionsof Gudea
which would point to the practiceof interpreting the signs of the
heavensat thisearlierperiod22and it may well be thereforethatthe
priestslong beforeHammurabihad startedon the course of specu-
lation which culminatedin placing the seats of all the gods in the
starryfirmament.But whateverthe age of Babylonian-Assyrian
21 See Jastrow, o. c., I., p. 452 seq.
2"See Jastrow, o. c., II., p. 423.

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656 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December
4,

astrologymay be, it must have involved the dissociationof the

gods identifiedwith planetsand stars fromtheiroriginalcharacter
as solar,agricultural,wateror chthonicdeities,and it is also reason-
able to assume thatit is subsequentto the period when,by a process
of selection,certaindeities,thoughoriginallylocal in character,were
differentiatedfromthe manyotherlocal gods and became members
of a definitely constitutedpantheonconsistingof a limitednumber
of great gods and of a largernumberof minordeities.
Before passing on to anotherphase of the subject, it may be
properto pointout the more specificfactorsinvolvedin the identi-
ficationof the planets with certaingods-all confirmatory of the
general thesis that astrology representsa system devised in the
schools, and that its very artificialcharacter is indicativeof its
" and not a " popular" product. Marduk was
being a " scientific
identified withJupiterby the naturalassociationwhichled to assign-
ing the head of the pantheonto the most strikingof the planets
knownto the ancients.'3 In the case of Venus it was probablyher
double characteras morningand evening star that suggested the
identificationwith Ishtar, who as the goddess of fertilitylikewise
presentstwo aspects in the two divisionsof the year-the producer
of life and vegetationin the springand summer,and the one who
withdrawsher favorsin the fall and winter.24The dark-redcolor
of Mars appears to have been the factorwhichpromptedthe identi-
ficationwith Nergal, the god of the burningsummersolstice,of
pestilenceand death. Nebo becoming in the pantheon of Ham-
murabi the son of Marduk,25a natural association of ideas would
lead to assigninghim to the smallestof the planets. There would
=See Kugler,0. c., p. I4, note i.
'This double characterof Ishtar underliesthe famousmythcommonly
known as Ishtar's descent into the lower regions. See Jensen," Keilin-
schriftlicheBibliothek,"VI., I, pp. 8o-9i. The destructivecharacterof Ishtar
appearsalso in the mythof the slayingof Tammuz and in the othercapacity
of Ishtar as a goddess of war. See Jastrow,o. c., I., pp. 82 seq.
25 See Jastrow,o. c., I., p. I20. As a concessionto the predominance of
the Nebo cult in the days of the neo-Babyloniandynasty,we findin the
astronomicaltexts of the latest period (after 400 B. C.) a change in the
order of the planets,Nebo-Mercuryassumingthe thirdplace, i. e., after
Marduk and Ishtar,insteadof Ninib-Saturnwho is assignedto the fourth
place. See Kugler,o. c., p. I3.

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 657

thus remain for Ninib the planet Saturn whose large size would
have been regardedas appropriatefor a solar deityonce occupying
the positionthatafterwardswas assumed by Marduk.
The planets thus representingthe great gods of the pantheon,
the prominentfixedstarswere associatedwiththe minordeitiesand
while in the case of many of the stars occurringin the purelyas-
tronomicaltexts which belong to the later and latest periods of
Babylonianculture,26 no definiteassociationwithspecificdeitieswas
worked out, yet it is to be borne in mind that all the stars were
regardedas gods in a logical and consistentextensionof the prin-
ciple whichgave rise to astrologyas a systemof divination. It is
one of the many meritsof Hugo Winckler27to have demonstrated
as one of the tenetsof the Babylonian-Assyrian conceptionof the
universea perfectcorrespondence betweenoccurrenceson earthand
phenomenain heaven.27a Earth and heaven stand related to each
other as a reflectionin a mirrorto the original which is reflected.
Since all thathappensis due to the gods, it followsfromthe specu-
lativeview whichplaces the gods in the heavensthatoccurrenceson
earthare preparedin the heavens. What one sees in the heavensis
thereforethe activityof the gods preparingthe events on earth.
The constantlychangingaspect of the starryuniversethus findsa
natural explanation. The movementsof sun, moon and planets as
well as the ever-varyingaspects of clouds and all otherphenomena
of a strikingcharacterwere the externalsymptomsof the never-
' See Kugler," Sternkunde," p. 2 and elsewherewhose views have been
acceptedby Boll, Eduard Meyer,Schmidtand many others. See Jastrow,
II., p. 432, note i, whereI have set forthmy own positionon the important
questionas to the age of astronomyin Babyloniaand Assyria with an en-
deavorto do justice to bothsides of the burningproblem.
= " Himmels und Weltenbild der Babylonier " (Leipzig,
i893, 2"O Auflage)
and numerousothermonographsof this scholar. See Jastrow,o. c., II., p.
4I8, note 2.
27a The same view prevails among the Indians of Mexico accordingto

Preuss "Die Astralreligionin Mexico in vorspanischerZeit und in der

Gegenwart"(Transactionsof the 3d InternationalCongressfor the History
of ReligionsI., p. 36 seq.). It is to be noted that also among the Mexican
Indians the astral cult includedthe worshipof stormand rain deities (1. c..
p. 38 seq.). Preuss is mistaken,however,in regardingthis astral religionas
"primitive." On the contrary, it betraysall the earmarksof a cult devised
by priestson the basis of elaboratecosmicalspeculations.

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 658 JASTROW--HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December4,

ceasing divineactivity. The theoryof the correspondencebetween

heaven and earth was carriedby the theologiansof the Euphrates
Valley to its logical consequences. Myths and legends were so
shaped under the influenceof the theoryas to admit of a double
interpretation,the one having referenceto the movementsand as-
pects of the heavenlybodies, the other to occurrenceswhose scene
is placed on earth. A seriesof acts of creationon earthis counter-
balanced by a correspondingseries in the heavens.28 The heavens
were divided off into districtswith mountains,rivers and cities
correspondingto those on earth. The famous GilgameshEpic-a
compositetale withalmostequal proportionsof naturemyth,legen-
dary lore and dimned historicaltraditions-admits likewise of a
double interpretation,the scenes applyingequally to the movements
of heavenlybodies and to eventson thisglobe;28a and the same holds
good forsuch tales as thestoryof Etana and-theAdapa mythwhich,
besides betrayingthe work of theological schools in making the
tales the medium of conveyingdoctrinalteaching,29are so con-
structedas to conformwith the fundamentalprincipleof a corre-
spondencebetweenheaven and earth.
Corresponding,therefore,to the theoryunderlyingBabylonian-
Assyrian hepatoscopyas above set forth,we have in the case of
astrologylikewise a theorywhich lifts the endeavor to divine the
futurethroughthe observationof the planetsand starsbeyondmere
caprice and arbitraryguesswork. Grantedthe underlyingassump-
tionthatthereis a perfectcorrespondence betweenheavenand earth,
it follows that if one can grasp the meaning of the aspects and
movementsof the heavenlybodies one can recognizeclearlywhat
the gods are doing, and hence what the futureis to be, which,
since it is in the hands of the gods, is merelythe outcomeof their
activityas revealed in the heavens. Astrologyis, therefore,like
hepatoscopya means of enteringinto the workshopof the divine
28
See Zimmern," Biblischeund BabylonischeUrgeschichte"(3te Auflage,
Leipzig, I903).
28a See
Kugler, die Sternenfahrtdes Gilgamesch(Stimmenaus Maria-
Laach, I904. Heft. 4).
'See Jastrow,"Religion of Babylonia and Assyria" (Boston, i898),
pp. 519-555, and in greaterdetail in the writer'snext volume. "Temples,
Mythsand Cults of Babyloniaand Assyria."

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 659

will and intention. Through the planets and stars or ratherin the
planetsand stars one sees the gods at work and if one knows what
theyare contriving,one knows what occurrenceswill take place on
earth. Again, as in the case of hepatoscopy,past experienceand
associationof ideas are the two main factorsinvolvedin the system
of interpretationgradually devised by the Babylonian-Assyrian
b&r$tpriests or " inspectors" in their capacity as astrologersor
" inspectors" of theheavens. A favorableeventor a favorableout-
come of a crisis followingupon certain aspects of the heavenly
bodies would be made the basis of a favorableprognosticationon
anotheroccasion when the same conditionspresentedthemselves;
and theprognostication would be made withoutreferenceto the par-
ticular event followingupon the original observation. It was not
the event that was of importancebut merely the circumstance
whetherit was favorableor unfavorable. On the basis of this ex-
periencephenomenawere enteredas pointingto favorableor un-
favorable occurrences,and these entriesserved as a guide to the
priestsin the task imposedupon themof diviningthe future. But
while the principleof post hoc propterhoc enteredlargelyinto the
formationof collectionsof astrologicalomens-as it did in the col-
lectionsof hepatoscopicalomens30-thenaturalor artificialassocia-
tionof ideas was evena moreprominentfactor. Normal conditions
as a rule were interpretedas favorable. Thus, if the moon and sun
appeared in conjunctionat the proper time,a favorableprognosti-
cationwas indicated. If the conjunctiontookplace at a timeearlier
or later than the expected momentit forbodeddisaster of some
kind. Again, by a perfectlylogical association,in case the new
moon was seen on thefirstday of the month,i. e., was not obscured
by clouds, the omen was of a favorable character; if, however,
clouds obscuredit so that the new moon was not visible,difficulties
of some kind mightbe expected. Days were enteredas favorable
or unfavorableaccording to these and numerousother indications
and thoughin the case of a specificinquiryof the gods recourse
was had to hepatoscopyin order to ascertainwhat a deityhad in
mind with regard to the particularsituationin question,the signs
s See Jastrow,"Religion Babyloniensund Assyriens,"II., p. 251 seq., for
examples.

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660 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December
4,

involuntarilyforcedon one's notice by conditionsprevailingin the

heavenswere not and could not be neglected. A few examplesfrom
astrologicaltextswill sufficeforour purposes. Thus we read in an
officialreportof the Assyrianperiod:31
"If the moon is seen on the firstday, good faithand stable conditions
in the land. If the firstday is abnormallylong,the king will have a long
reign."
The prognostication is clearlybased on a natural associationof
ideas. From the fact that the new moon is visible on the day set
for it, the conclusionis drawn that as the moon kept good faith,
as it were,so the king may expectthose entrustedwithany mission
to be faithfuland that his subjects in general will be loyal. By
a stillclearerassociationlong days pointto a long reign.
Anotherreportstates:32
" If the moonis seen out of the expectedtime,priceswill be low.' The
moon was seen withthe sun on the twelfthday. If moon and sun are seen
togetherat an abnormaltime,a strongenemywill oppressthe land,but the
king of Babyloniawill accomplishthe overthrowof his enemy."
The normal period when moon and sun should be seen at the
same time in the heavens is on the fifteenth day-the momentof
opposition. The barui-priest reports,however,that the appearance
of moon and sun took place already on the twelfthday-earlier,
therefore,than was expected. The abnormal conditionpoints to
some m;isfortune and two omens thatare to be regardedas extracts
fromactual collectionsare introduced, the one referringto economic
conditions,the other to political affairs,and thoughboth are un-
favorable,yet in the second instanceit is added that ultimatelythe
enemywill be overthrown. In the case of such specificprognosti-
cationswe are perhapsjustifiedin concludingthattheyrest on past
experience. In otherwords,on some occasion when sun and moon
were seen togetherin the heavens earlier than the fourteenthor
fifteenth
day of the month,prices went down or an enemyentered
the land but was eventuallyvanquished. The occurrenceswere
81Thompson,"Reports of the Magicians and Astrologersof
Nineveh
and Babylon" (London, I9oo), Vol. I., No. I.
32 O. c., No. I I9.
3Low prices were regardedas an unfavorableconditionin Babylonia
and Assyria.

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 661

accordinglyenteredas unfavorablein the collections,and when the

same conditionsagain took place, the fact was reportedto the king
who would thusbe warnedeitheragainst undertakingan expedition
or at least would be preparedforsome disasteror discomfiture.
To even partiallyenumeratethe phenomenanoted in the astro-
logical collectionswould carryus too far,and it will easily be seen
how in the course of time the collectionswould grow to huge pro-
portions.34Halos around the moon or sun, moon and sun eclipses,
thunderin certain monthsor on certain days, one planet or the
other standingwithinthe halo around the moon,the appearanceof
Venus or some otherplanet at the heliacal risingor at some other
point in its course,,the appearanceof the moon's hornsor crescent,
the positionor appearance of a certainplanet or of a certainstar
are amongthephenomenaenteredand heretheprognostications vary
accordingto the season of the year,accordingto the monthor day
of the month.35
Without losing sight of the purely artificialcharacterof the
systemof interpretation devised by the Babyloniantheologians,one
should not withholdone's meed of praise for the consistencywith
which the elaborate systemwas carried out for a long stretchof
centuries,as well as forthe patiencedisplayedin the compilationof
the extensivecollectionsof omensof whichonlyportionshave come
down to us. Moreover,the Babylonian-Assyrian astrologyshows
thateven a superstition can harboran exalted idea, forthe resultof
the continuousobservationof the movementsand aspectsof planets
and starsmusthave been to impressat all eventsthepriestswiththe
realizationof the reignof law in the universe; and it is, assuredly,
a decided gain to realize that even the activityof the gods is under
the sway of a fixed order. In strikingcontrastto hepatoscopy
whichrestsupon the arbitrarynatureof the gods and merelyaims
to fathomtheircaprice,astrologystartswiththe recognitionof the
4The best known of such astrological collections in Ashurbanapal's
famous library is a series known from the opening words as "When Anu and
Enlil " and comprising more than seventy tablets. See Jastrow, o. c., II.,
p. 424, notes 3 and 4, and copious examples beginning p. 458.
85In their ambition to make the collections as complete as possible, the
bdri'-priestseven enter phenomena that never occurred, and some that never
could have occurred.

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662 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December4,

fact that the gods as representedby the planets and stars act in
concert. The phenomenaof the heavens suggestunited action in
place of individualcaprice,and the general regularityof the move-
mentsof heavenlybodies must soon have suggestedto the priests
the view that divinegovernmentof the universerests at least to a
large extentupon law and order. We may properlyassume thatthis
aspect of astrologyby which, throughconstant observation,the
permanentimpressionof awe and reverencefor the grandeur of
heavenly phenomena was deepened, was an importantfactor in
maintainingthe faith in the stars as manifestationsof the divine
will and of the intentionsof the gods towards mankind. The
Babylonianbaru^-priest could reecho the sentimentof the Psalmist
(i9, i-2) who, carriedaway by the sight that greetedhim in the
heavens, exclaimed, "The heavens declare the glory of God and
the firmanentsheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth
speech and night unto night shewethknowledge." To the barfi-
priestthe heavens spoke by day and night,and it was his privilege
to interpretto othersthe knowledgerevealed to him.
Attentionhas alreadybeen directed 36 to the factthatin the case
of bothhepatoscopyand astrologythe interpretations of the omens
have referenceexclusivelyto the public welfare,to the condition
of thecrops,to pestilence,to war or victoryand thattheintroduction
of the king likewisefalls withinthiscategory. More than this,the
interpretations in both systemsare substantiallythe same, so that a
dependenceof one systemupon theotherbecomesat least a probable
hypothesis. A detailedstudy6f the two systemsleads indeed tg a
confirmation of thisthesisand since hepatoscopy,as has been shown,
is an outcomeof popular conceptionsand exists in full force in the
earliestperiodof Babylonianhistory,it is reasonableto supposethat
it was thefirstto be developedand thattheastrologicalsystemrepre-
sentsan adaptationof theprinciplesunderlyingthe interpretation of
signson theliverto signsnotedin theheavenlybodies. The " scien-
tific" view of theuniversethatis closelyboundup in theastrological
systemrepresents, as is obvious,a laterstage in culturaldevelopment
than the popular" conceptionupon which hepatoscopyrests. In
"
36See above, p. 649.

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 1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 663

the name given to the planets in Babylonia we have, I ventureto

think,a directproof of this dependenceof astrologyupon hepa-
toscopy. It has always been a puzzle to scholarsthat the common
designationfor planet should have been a compoundideograph,37
the two elementsof whichsignify" sheep" and " dead." Attempts
to furnisha satisfactoryexplanationhave failed and the interpreta-
tionofferedby Babylonianscribesas " causing thedeathof cattle,'"38
while confirmingthe divisionof the sign into the two elementsin
question,is purelyfancifuland is of value chieflyas showingthatthe
real originof the designationhad already in ancienttimesbecome
obscured. Through a syllabary(II. Rawlinson, P1. 6, 4 c-d) we
learn that the compoundsign (Lu-Bat) is to be read bi-ib-buand
the contextin which the word occurs39is sufficient to show that it
is one of the names for " sheep." This, moreover,is confirmed
by the fact that the firstelement,Lu, with or withoutthe addition
of the sign for " male " designatesthe " sheep." Now, the second
element(Bat) has also the forceof te'rtu, "omen,"40the explanation
3 Lu-Bat. For a full discussion see a special article by the writer
"The Sign and Name for Planet in Babylonian" in the PROCEEDINGS OF THE
AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, VOl. XLVII., pp. I4I-I55. It is also to be
noted that while all the planets are designated as Lu-Bat or bibbu, there are
two, Mercury and Saturn, to whom the designation is specially applied. On
the reason for this as well as for the explanation of the Babylonian names
for Mercury (Lu-Bat Gu-Ud) and Saturn (Lu-Bat Sag-Us) see the article
just referred to, in which on p. i42 a reference should have been added to
Zimmern, "Keilinschriften u. das alte Testament," p. 622, seq.
38 mus-mit bu-lim (V.
Rawlinson, P1. 46, Nr. i (rev.), 41), in which
equation Lu is entered as the equivalent of bulu "cattle" and Bat as III.,
I of mdtu "cause the death" or "kill." The artificalcharacter of the expla-
nation is revealed by the unwarranted extension of Lu in the general sense
of " cattle," nor can Bat without some furtherqualifying prefix mean " cause
to die" but merely "to die" or "to be dead." Lu-Bat could have the
force of "sheep that is dead" or "sheep that is killed,". but never "sheep
(or 'cattle') that kill."
' It is followed by a-tu-du
"goat" and sap-pa-ru "mountain goat."
Note also that 1. I, a-b Lu = kir-ru-a common term for "lamb." Dr. Rui-
dolf Eisler finds in the double sense of the Semitic stem amar "word" and
" sheep" a further support for the thesis here set forth (" Origin of the
Eucharist," p. Io-an address before the Third International Congress for
the History of Religions at Oxford, Sept. i8, I908.)
40See II., Rawlinson, P1. 27, No. 2, 46 obv. c-d. Ur-Bat= ter-tum sa
ha-se-e, i. e., "omen of the liver," the firstelement (Ur) being the common

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064 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December
4,

forwhichis to be soughtin the circumstancethatthroughthe sacri-

ficial animal, killed for the purpose, an omen was secured. The
combinationLu-Bat, " dead sheep," is thereforeintendedto convey
thenotionof a " sacrificialsheep,"offeredto the deityas a means of
securing an " omen." So prominentis the part played by hepa-
toscopyin the Babylonian-Assyrianreligionas shown not merely
by the extensive omen texts, dealing specificallywith divination
throughthe liver,41but by the frequentallusions to the rite in his-
toricalinscriptionsthat one is temptedto set up the thesisthat the
originalpurposeof sacrificeamong the inhabitantsof the Euphrates
Valley was to ascertainthroughthesacrificialanimalwhatthe future
had in store or what the gods had in mind,-this purpose taking
precedenceof otherviews of sacrificesuch as tributeor alliancewith
the deity.42However thismaybe, the animal,so far as the evidence
goes, invariablychosenforpurposesof divinationwas the " sheep,"43
and thereis one instance44in which the combinationLu and Bat
occurs in a " liver" divinationtext to designate the "sacrificial
sheep" theliverof whichis to be examinedas a meansof divination.
It is withthisuse of the termthatI proposeto connectthe designa-
tion Lu-Bat for "planet." The sheep being the commonanimal
of divination,the termacquired the general force of an " omen"
precisely as in Latin we have auspicium, originally an augury
through" bird observation,"i. e., the notingof the flightof birds,
becomingthegenerictermforany kindof an augury-because of the
prominenceof " bird observation" as a means of divination. Still
ideographfor"liver" (see Jastrow,"Signs and Names fortheLiverin Baby-
lonian,"in Zeits. fiurAssyr.,XX., p. io0, seq. and p. I27) and the combina-
tion thus having the forceof "liver omen." The associationleading from
"dead " to "omen " thus becomes intelligible, since the "dead" or " sacri-
ficed" animal is the mediumfor procuringan omen.
41Over i,ooo of the circa 30,000 fragmentsof the royal Library of
Ninevah are "liver" divinationtexts. See Jastrow,"Religion Babyloniens
und Assyriens,"II., p. 211, note I, and p. 222, note 2.
'See Jastrow,o. c., II., p. 2I7.
43 So, e. g., in the
case of the officialreportsto AssyrianKings, in the
prayersconnectedwiththe divinationriteas well as in the omencollections.
See Jastrow,o. C., II., pp. 28I, 289, 30I, 307, 308, etc.; " Cun. Texts," XX., P1.
I, I; Boissier,"Documents assyriensrelatifsaux Presages," p. 97, II.
' Boissier,1. c., p. 2I2, 27. Lu(Nita) Bat (u) =
immeru mitu.

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x908.] IN BABYLONlA AND ASSYRIA. 665

more strikingis the analogy offeredby the usage in Greek where

the word for bird, Opvtsor 0Lwo's, 'has acquired the force of
" omen."45 The planets,accordingly,were called " sheep" because
thepurpose forwhichtheywere observedwas to serve as " omens,"
and this view is confirmed by a statementof Diodorus (Bibl. Hist.
II., 30) that the Babylonians (or " Chaldeans" as he calls them)
called the planets pvpsL, " interpreters," because " theyreveal (or
" interpret)the intentionof the gods to men." The termused by
Diodorus accuratelyreproducesthe forceof Lu-Bat in the sense of
an " omen" or " interpretation " of the will and purposeof thegods.
If thisexplanationbe admitted,we would thushave a directevidence
of the dependenceof astrologyupon hepatoscopy,in accord with
thereasonableassumptionon a priorigroundsof theriseof astrology
subsequentto hepatoscopy. The justificationfor thus assuming a
bond unitingastrologyand hepatoscopyis furnishedby the evidence
for an analogous conditionamong the Etruscans whose methodof
hepatoscopyhas many points in common with the Babylonian-
Assyrianrite.4G On the famousbronzemodel of a liver foundnear
Piacenza47 and which,dating fromabout the thirdcenturyB. C.,
was used as an object lesson forinstruction in hepatoscopy,precisely
as the clay model of a liver dating fromthe Hammurabiperiod was
used in a Babyloniantempleschool,48we findthe edge of the liver
dividedintosixteenregionswiththe names of the deitiesinhabiting
them,correspondingto divisionsof the heavens in which the gods
have theirseats, while on the reverseside thereis a line dividing
"6See the passage in the Birds of Aristophanes11.7I9-22 to whichmy
colleague Prof. Lambertondirectedmy attentionand Xenophon,Anabasis,
III., 2, 9, whichDr. R. G. Kent, of the Universityof Pennsylvania,kindly
pointedout to me.
" See Thulin," Die EtruskischeDisciplin,"I. (G6teborg,1905), p. xii, seq.
47 It is sufficientfor our purposes to referto two recenttreatiseson
thisremarkable object (a) Thulin," die Gotterdes MartianusCapella und der
Bronzelebervon Piacenza" (Giessen,I906), and Korte," die Bronzelebervon
Piacenza," in Mitt. d. Kais. Deutsch. Arch. Instituts(Romische Abteilung),
XX., pp. 349-379.
48 Published in " Cun. Texts," VI., Pls. i and 2 (with photograph).
See Boissier's firstattemptat an interpretation, "Note sur un Monument
babyloniense rapportanta l'Extispicine" (Geneve, I899). I hope ere long
to publishthe resultsof mystudyof the inscription on thisobject.
49 See Korte,1. c., p. 356.

PROC. AMER. PHIL. SOC. XLVII. 190 QQ, PRINTED FEBRUARY 8, I909.

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666 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December
4,

the liver into "day" and " night."49 Professor K6rte, in a study
of this remarkableobject,summingup the resultsof manyyears of
research,explains this by showingthat the liver was regardedas a
microcosmreflecting the macrocosm,50 or, in otherwords, the liver
of the sacrificialanimal frombeing originallya reflectionof the
soul or mind of the god to whom the animal was offered,was
broughtinto connectionwiththe observationof the heavenlybodies
revealingtheintentionof thegods actingin concert. This combina-
tion of hepatoscopywith astrologylikewisepointsto the lattersys-
tem of divinationas the later one, dependentin some measureupon
the earliermethodof diviningthroughtheliver.
This leads us to the last two points to be consideredhere, the
relationshipof Babylonian-Assyrian astrologyto astronomyand the
spread of astrology from the Euphrates Valley to other peoples.
While astrologyeven in its most primitivephases assumes some
knowledgeof astronomy, it standsto reason thatsince the sole pur-
pose for whichthe planetsand stars were observedwas as a means
of securingomens,therecould be no genuineinterestin astronomical
lore, pure and simple. As the scope of astrologyincreased,more
stars were added to the fieldof observation,with each succeeding
ages furtherdetailsof themovementsof theplanetswere noted,and
groups of stars were combinedinto constellationsof a more or less
fancifulcharacter. It became necessaryfor purposesof instruction
in astrologyto systematizeand synthesizethe knowledgethus ac-
quired fromempiricalobservation. In the course of time a con-
siderablebodyof " school" literaturethustook shape in the formof
lists of stars,withattemptsto locate themand to set forthsome of
the phenomenaconnectedwiththem.51For thepracticalpurposeof
regulatingthe calendar furtherpedagogical aids were devised,and
'IK6rte (p. 362) expresseshimselfas follows"Die Leber, der Sitz des
Lebens nach antikerAuffassung, erscheintals ein Abbilddes Weltganzeniin
kleinen. Wie dieses ist sie in eine rechteund in eine linke Halfte, eine
Tages-und Nachtseitegeteilt. Die Trennungslinieentsprichtder Ost-
Westlinie des Weltalls. Wie das Himmelsgew6lbeist ihr Rand in i6
Regionengeteilt,in denen G6tterwaltenund Zeichen geben k6nnen."
1As examplesof such lists see II. Rawlinson,P1. 49, Nos. I, 3, 4; III.
Rawlinson,P1. 57, No. 6, and the texts enteredin the Index to Bezold's
" Catalogueof the CuneiformTablets of the KouyunjikCollection,"p. 2096.
These listsin theroyallibraryof Ninevehrevertto olderBabylonianoriginals.

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g908 1 IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 667

thus at a comparatively earlyage the seeds for a genuinescienceof

astronomywere planted. The fact, however, is significantthat,
with perhaps some exceptions,we have in the libraryof Ashur-
banapal, representingto a large extentcopies fromolder originals,
no textsthatcan properlybe called astronomical.52For this reason
a reaction has set in among Assyriologists against the view
formerlyheld that astronomywas cultivatedat an early period in
Babyloniaand Assyria.53 It is certainlysignificantthattheastronom-
ical tabletsso far foundbelongto the latestperiodand in factto the
age followingupon the fall of the Babylonianempire.54While we
must be warned against pressingthe argumentex silentiotoo far,
still there is sufficient
evidence to warrantthe conclusionthat the
mostgloriousperiodof Babylonianastronomyfalls in the fourthto
the second centuriesbeforethisera, thatis to say, withinthe period
of the Greek occupation of the Euphrates Valley. According to
Kugler,55the oldest dated genuinelyastronomicaltabletbelongs to
the seventhyearof Cambyses,i. e., 522 B. C., althoughit shows evi-
dence of havingbeen revisedon the basis of an older original. We
also findevidenceof changes both in the astronomicalterminology
and in theorderof the planetsafterc. 400 B. C.,56 so thatwhile we
are justifiedin goingback to the neo-Babyloniandynastyas thepoint
of departurefor the beginningsof a genuineastronomicalscience,
it would be rash to go much fartherback than this. At all events,
I K. 9794 appearsto be purelyastronomical. See
Bezold, o. c., Vol. V.,
p. xxv. and iii., p. I039; also Jeremias," das Alter der babylonischen Astro-
nomie" (Leipzig, i9o8), p. 2I.
" For a fuller discussionof the recent literatureon the subject see
Jastrow,0, C., II., pp. 232-434. Kugler,in " Kulturhistorische
Bedeutungder
BabylonischenAstronomie"(Vereinsschrif ten der Gorres-Gesellschaft, I907,
III., pp. 38-50), maintainsthe late origin of Babylonianastronomy. His
views have been acceptedby Boll, " die Erforschungder AntikenAstrologie"
in Neue Jahrbiicher fur das Klassische Altertum,I. Abteilung,Bd. XXI.,
pp. I03-I26) and others, while Jeremias (" das Alter der babylonischen
Astronomie ") and theadherentsof theWincklerschoolclingto theview that
astronomytook its rise in the early period of Babylonianhistory, For a
generalsummaryof our presentknowledgeof Babylonianastronomy, on the
basis chieflyof Kugler's researches,see the two articlesby Schiaparelliin the
Rivista di Scienza, III., pp. 2I3-259, and IV., pp. 24-54.
'See Kugler," Sternkundeund Sterndienstin Babel," I., p. 2.
66Sternkunde,p. 6i.
56 0. C., pp. I2, I3, 22, 62, etc.

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668 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December4,

it is not untilwe reach the days of the Seleucidian and Arsacidian

dynastiesthat we findastronomicalcalculationsof the movements
and of the positionof the moon and planetsin full swing.
It can hardlybe regardedas accidentalthatthe flourishingperiod
of Babylonian astronomyshould thus be coincidentwith the time
when, accordingto definiteevidence,Babylonian astrologypassed
over intoGreece. " The conquestof Alexander,"as Bouche-Leclercq
terselyputs it, " threwdown the barriershithertoseparatingraces
and civilizations."57To Berosus,the" Chaldaean " priestwho wrote
in Greeka historyof Babyloniaand Assyria,the Greeksthemselves
ascribetheintroduction of astrologyintotheirmidst. Settlingin the
island of Cos, the home of Hippocrates,Berosus himselftaughtthe
Babyloniansystemto thestudentswhomthe fameof thegreatphys-
ician had attractedto thatplace.58 The fragmentspreservedof the
writingsof Berosus,59few as they are, sufficeto show that he
gatheredhis materialdirectfromthe sources,and thereis therefore
no reason to questionthat he followedconscientiously the methods
laid down in the Babylonian collections of astrological omens.
While it is of course possible and indeed probablethatthroughthe
contactwith the Persians the Greeksmay have heard of the Baby-
lonian systemof diviningthe futurethroughthe stars,it is certain
thatastrologydid not take a definitehold on the Greeksand become
part of theirintellectualoutfituntil the days of Berosus, i. e., till
about the beginningof the third centuryB. C. A few centuries
sufficedto transformBabylonian astrologyunder the influenceof
the Greek spirit from the character of an "oriental religion"
which as Bouche-Leclercq60recognized it had at the time of its
adoption,into the appearance of a science. Already advanced stu-
dents of astronomy,the Greek physicistscombinedastrologywith
the prinfciplesand speculationsof mathematicsand broughtit into
accord with the currentsystemsof philosophyuntil it became a
genuine expression of the Greek spirit and an integral part of
Greek culture. A featurewhich the Greeks introducedand which
'L'Astrologie Grecque," p. 35.
5Vitruvius, de Architectura, IX., 6. See -also Bouche-Leclercq, o. c.,
pp. 2 and.37.
5 Cory, "Ancient Fragments," pp. 5I49.
60
O. C., p. I.

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x908.1 IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 669

of itselfserved to change the aspect of the Babyloniansystemwas

the perfectionof a methodwherebythe fate of the individualwas
broughtinto connectionwith the stars. The science of genethli-
alogyll or the castingof the individualhoroscopefromthe position
of the stars at the timeof an individual'sbirthis a distinctlyGreek
contribution.The insignificant role that the individualplays in all
phases of divination,exceptin the case of the accidentsand unusual
incidentsthathappen to him and whichwere thereforelooked upon
as signs sent by the gods to the individualas such, preventedthe
rise of the thoughtthat the activityof the gods as shown in the
heavenshad any bearingon the fate of the individual. As we have
seen, astrology,just as hepatoscopy,concerneditselfin Babylonia
and Assyria with the general welfare and the public state. There
was no place in eitherof thetwo great systemsof divinationforthe
individualand we may go a step fartherand assert thatit was con-
traryto the entirespiritof the Babylonian-Assyrian religionto sup-
pose that the gods concernedthemselveswith the individualsuffi-
cientlyto give him as such,throughthe starsor throughthe liverof
a sacrificialanimal,an indicationof what theypurposeddoing.02 It
was different in Greece wherelong beforethe timethat Babylonian
astrologywas assimilatedto Greek culture,the individualhad as-
sertedhimselfto an extentundreamedof in the Euphrates Valley.
Instead of an intellectualoligarchywith all learning confinedto
priestlycircles,correspondingto the concentrationof all political
power in the hands of a few privilegedfamilies,we have in Greece
a republicof letterswithan independenceof thoughtonlysurpassed
by thestrengthof individualismin thepoliticalsphere. Religionhad
long ceased to be the controllingfactoror at least the predominant
61Bouche Leclercq,1. c., p. 49, whilenotingthat thereis no traceof the
applicationof the astrologyto the individualhoroscopein cuneiformtexts,is
disposedto attributethisto the dearthof material. Since he wrotehis great
workthatmaterialhas largelyincreased,and it is perfectly safe to conclude
thatthis phase of astrologyneverexistedin the EuphratesValley.
'If in a few verylate texts (cf. Bouche-Leclercq,1. c., p. 50) we find
entriesof the birthof a child withthe mentionof the aspect of the moon,
planetsand constellations,thisis to be ascribedto Greekinfluenceas Bouche-
Leclercqhimselfsuggests. Some Greekastrologerseven wentso far,accord-
ing to Vitruvius(1. c.), as to cast the horoscopeof an individualfromthe
timeof conception.

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670 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December
4,

factorin Greek civilization. One science afterthe otherhad freed

itself from the thraldomof religious traditionand, accordingly,
astrology,when introducedinto Greece, did not become a part of
the Greek religionbut an elementof Greek science. Passing on to
the Romans63as an integralpart of Greek culture,and becoming
with the spread of Roman authoritythe general possession of the
ancientworld,astrology,because of its indissolubleassociationwith
astronomy, mathematics, and thephilosophicalsystemsof Greece,be-
came part of the heritageof Greece to the world and took on in
time the aspects of a religious cult.63a With the revival of
Greek influencethroughthe intellectualmovementfollowingupon
the rise and spread of Islamism,astrologytook a firmhold on the
choice minds of mediaeval Europe by the side of such a force as
Aristotelianism,64 and continuedto sway men's mindstillthe thresh-
old of modernscientificthought,when it was swept away with so
manyothercherishedtraditionsfromthe broad highwayof science
into the bywayswhere it stillflourishesat the presenttimeand will
no doubt continue to do so for a long time to come. Though
somewhatmore complicatedin its processes,mediaevaland modern
astrologyis practicallyidenticalwiththe formit tookon in Greece.05
Not onlydid Greekastrologymake its way throughoutthe West but
it spread also to the East, for it has been definitely
ascertainedthat
what we findof it in India and even in China is due to the spread of
the sphereof Greekinfluence ;66 and the same holds good forEgypt,

whereit begins to flourishwiththe rise of Hellenisticculture.67

'
Bouch6-Leclercq, 1. c., Chap. XVI., " L'Astrologie dans le Monde Ro-
main " and " Cumont," " Les Religions Orientales dans le Paganisme Romain"
(Paris, i907), Chap VII.
68aSee Cumont, l'Influence religieuse de l'Astrologie dans le Monde Ro-
main (Transactions of the 3d International Congress for the History of
Religions, II., pp. I97-I98).
64 Bouche-Leclercq, pp. 624 seq.

'Compare for example the ideas associated with the planets in a modern
manual of astrology like Ellen H. Bennett's "Astrology" (New York, I897),
pp. 93-Ioo, with Bouche-Leclercq's statement of the Greek views (" L'Astrol-
ogie Grecque," pp. 93-Ioi and 3Ii-326).
' Thibaut, "
Astronomie, Astrologie und Mathematik," in Biihler-Kiel-
horn, " Grundriss der Indo-Arischen Philologie," III., 9, p. I5, and Kugler,
"Kulturhistorische Bedeutung der babylonischen Astronomie," p. 49.
67 It
is one of the many merits of Bouche-Leclercq to have demonstrated

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1908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 671

We thus findthe source of all astrologyin the ancient world

in the system that arose in the Euphrates-Valley; and in view
of this it will be admittedthat the thoroughstudy of Babylonian-
Assyrian astrology is a factor of considerable importance in
tracing the intellectualdevelopmentof mankind. Coming back,
therefore,to our immediate subject we have the curious phe-
nomenon that about coincidentwith the period when a genuine
science of astronomytakes a firm footing in Babylonia, astrol-
ogy begins its triumphantmarch throughoutthe world. It is
temptingto suppose that we have in this phenomenonthe symp-
tom of an " exchange" of influencesthat,while on the one hand
Babylonia gave astrology to Greece, the contact with the scien-
tificspiritof Greece resultedin giving an impetus to astronom-
ical investigationsin Babylonia. The possibility,indeed,of Greek
influenceon Babylonian astronomywas suggested by Bouche-
Leclercq and is favoredby Kugler.68 Since, as now appears, the
creditforthe discoveryof the precessionof the equinoxesrestswith
the Greekastronomer,Hipparch,who announcedit c. I30 B. C., and
since it would indeed appear that in the second centuryB. C. the
Babylonians,accordingto Kugler, were still ignorantof this prin-
ciple,thereis certainlyeveryreasonto supposethatthe Babylonians
were in thisinstancethepupils,and the Greekstheteachers. On the
otherhand, the Greek astronomersseem to have obtainedfromthe
Babyloniansthenames fortheconstellations of the eclipticwhichwe
stilluse at the presenttime. Certainly,forthe beginningsof their
astronomythe Babylonians are not indebtedto the Greeks since
those beginningsreach back beyond the contact of Orient with
in his great work on Greek astrologythe worthlessnessof the traditions
which ascribe Greek astronomyand astrologyto an Egyptianorigin. See
especiallytheimportant note (" L'AstrologieGrecque,"pp. 5I-52) fromwhich
it appearsthat" Chaldean" and " Egyptian" are used almostinterchangeably
by uncriticalGreekand Roman writerswho hand down moreor less fanciful
traditions. Since Boll (" Sphkra," p. I59 seq.) and others have demon-
stratedthe late originof the zodiac of Denderah,the chiefevidencefor the
early introduction of astronomyin Egypthas fallen away; and thereis no
reason for assumingthat astrologyflourishedin Egyptbeforethe Ptolemaic
period.
'Bouche-Leclercq, o. c., p. 50 and Kugler, "Kulturhistorische Bedeutung
der babylonischen
Astronomie,"p. 48.

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672 JASTROW-IIEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December 4,

Occident,but that would not precludethe possibilityof influences

fromthe side of Greeceat a laterstage in the developmentof astro-
nomicallore.
To account for the point of departurefor the unfoldingof a
genuine science as astronomy,independentof merelyempiricalob-
servationsin the interestof astrology,and which as we saw"9dates
fromthe sixth centuryB. C., we have anotherfactorenteringinto
Babylonia about this time that must have exerted a profoundin-
fluence-the appearance of Persia on the scene and with it the
advanced formof faithknownas Zoroastrianismand whichby com-
parison withthe emphaticallypolytheisticconceptionsof the Baby-
lonian religion was superlativelyrationalistic. Contact with a
strangecultureis always attendedby an intellectualstimulus,and
this takes place whetherthe contestbe friendlyor hostile. Though
the Persian rulers even after Darius with whom the full sway
of Zoroastrianismmay be said to begin, maintaineda conciliatory
attitudetowards the gods of Babylonia,Cyrus going so far as to
claim that his conquestof the countrywas in the interestof Mar-
duk,70nevertheless, thepresenceof a totallydifferent religion,recog-
nized as the officialone by the Persian rulers from the days of
Darius on, musthave acted as a disintegrating elementthat led to a
declinein the belief in the Babyloniangods and to a corresponding
weakeningof thehold thattheofficialriteshad on thepeople. I ven-
ture to thinkthat the influenceof Zoroastrianism,bringingin its
wake-as did Christianity and as did Islamism-a wave of intellec-
tual advance,is the factorwhichaccountsforthe definiteseparation
of the studyof the heavenlyphenomenafrombeing merelyan ad-
junct to a systemof divination,to take its positionas a genuineand
independentscience. A furtherimpetusto thenew sciencewas given
by the contactwith Greek culturewith the furtherpossibilityof a
directinfluenceof Greek astronomicaltheoriesand methodson the
investigations of the Babylonianpriests.
The advance of astronomymust, however, have reacted also
on the basic principlewhich we have seen underlay Babylonian-
Assyrianastrology. Though even the baru'-priests, while still com-
a See above,p. 667.
7'Hagen, Cyrus-Textein " Beifragezur Assyriologie,"II., p. 229.

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X908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 673

pletelyenthralledby astrology,must have been impressedwith the

domain of law in the movementsand phenomenaof the heavens,
thereremainedenough scope for caprice in the more unusual phe-
nomenawhichthe imperfectknowledgeplaced outsideof the sphere
of regularlyworking law. With the gradual reductionof this
scope untilthroughastronomicalcalculationseven such phenomena
as eclipsescame withinthe range of recognizedlaw, thebeliefin as-
trologymusthave suffereda decline,at all eventsin themindsof the
betterinformedpriests. Astronomyand astrologypresenteda con-
trastnot unlikethatwhichin moderntimesis frequently represented
by science and religion and though no open conflictensued, the
growthof astronomymust have involvedthe decline of astrology.
If the data of astrologyare all due to the workingsof inevitableand
clearlyrecognizedeternallaws, thereis no room forany spontaneity
on the part of the gods, so far at least as the stars manifestdivine
activity. Every advance in astronomy,therefore,removeda stone
fromthe foundationon whichthe structureof astrologywas reared,
untilthe stabilityof the entirestructurewas endangered. The last
threecenturiesbefore our era representin general a period of de-
cliningfaithin the gods bothin Babyloniaas well as in Greece and
elsewhere. The old orderthroughoutthe ancientworld of cultural
developmentwas passing away, and the growingstrengthof astron-
omy is in itself symptomaticof the new order destined to take
the place of the old. It is no unusual phenomenonto finda great
civilizationhandingover to posterityas a legacy at the periodof its
decay-a superstitioninstead of a real achievement. " The evil
that men do lives after them; the good is oft interredwith their
bones" applies to nations as to individuals,and so it happens that
while the wholesomefruitsof the Babylonian-Assyrian civilization
were not entirelylost,the overripeproductswiththe odor of decay
pervading them were the firstto be exported to other climes.
What becameproverbialamong Greeksand Romans as " Chaldaean
wisdom" is not theastronomyof Babyloniabut the astrologywhich,
afterhavingspentits forcein the soil in which it arose, takes root
elsewhere and soon flourishesmore luxuriantlythan it ever did
in its native heath. We have, however,also seen that in the care
of othersthe originalplant was modifiedthroughthe transferfrom

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674 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December4,

the Orient to the Occident. Astrology in Babylonia declines as

astronomygrows,fortheveryreasonthatastronomyis an outgrowth
of astrology,representingthe evolutionof a science,by the break-
ing away from attachmentto a religion and a cult. In Greece
astronomyarises as do other sciences throughthe growthof the
spiritof investigation.There was so far as we can see no religious
traditionout of whichor in oppositionto whichastronomytook its
rise. There is no antecedent astrology from which astronomy
emerges as the butterfly fromthe chrysalis. Therefore,astrology
comingto the Greeksas a novel conception,withall the forceof an
apparentlypractical application of a scientifictheory,suggesting
the possibilityof a direct communionwith the arbitersof human
fate-fhe consciousgoal or unconscioushope of all religions-it was
capable of being assimilatedto the alreadyfirmlyestablishedastron-
omy. Astrologyas furtherdevelopedby the Greeksbecame merely
one of the phases of astronomy,as is shown by the synonymity
of the two terms,awrpoXoyLa and aorpovo,tua7 -a conditionwhich
persisted till mediaeval scholasticism,which distinguishesmerely
as a matterof definition between" naturalastrology" or theoretical
astronomyand " judicial astrology" or divinationthroughthe stars
as the applicationof the theoryto humanlife.
Lastly, if anothersuggestionbe permitted,the " Chaldaeans"
whom we encounterso frequentlyin Greek and Roman writers
actingas " diviners" on such various occasions,appear to be indeed
Babylonianbari't-priests or the disciplesof thesepriestswho,because
of the declineof faithin astrologyin the centersin whichit arose,
left their homes to seek their fortuneselsewhere. As with the
growthof astronomicallore,the hold of the old systemof astrology
was loosened,the occupationof the bari-priestswas gone. Their
conditionwas notunlikethatof theLevites who,as thepriestsof the
local sanctuariesin Palestine,were deprivedof theirstandingand
livelihoodwiththe declineof these sanctuariesthroughthe gradual
concentration of Jahwehworshipin the centralsanctuaryof Jerusa-
lem. These Levites wanderedto Jerusalemwhere,accordingto the
PriestlyCode, provisionwas made for themby assigningthemto
posts as assistantsto the ko6hanim-the legitimatepriestsof the cen-
"iSee Bouche-Leclercq, o. C., p. 3, note 2.

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X908.] IN BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. 675

tral sanctuary.72The bar-priests of Babyloniain theircapacityas

astrologerswanderedto the West, thereto ply theirtrade forwhich
a marketwas no longer forthcoming in theirown homes. Baby-
lonianastrology,enjoyingthepopularityin Greeceand in theRoman
empire frequentlygranted to a foreignimportationin preference
to a home industry,became the fashionof the Occident duringthe
centuriesthat marked the decline of belief in the gods of Greece
and Rome and that offereda hospitablewelcome to all kinds of
strange faithand mysticcults,untilthe term" Chaldaean" became
synonymouswith "astrologer." In time it was no doubt applied
to the one who divinedthroughthe starsirrespectiveof his origin.72a
Besides astrology,hepatoscopywas also practicedby these " Chal-
daeans,"73but both forms of divination,being derived from an
officialcultand practicedpurelyas a professionthatwas presumably
not withoutprofitsuffered,as was inevitable,a degeneration,with
the resultthat a measure of reproachbecame attachedto the term
" Chaldaean," whichacquired almost the force of tricksterand de-
ceiver. It was neverthelessfortunatethat the termsurvivedas a
fingerpost, directingus to the land in whichthe systemof divination
arose that after strange vicissitudeshas survivedin the form as
modifiedunder Greek influencesand with some additions in the
mediaeval period, to our own days, still findingmany devotees in
circleswhereone would hardlyexpectto encounterthem.74
The degeneratingprocessthroughwhichthe term" Chaldaean"
72 See e. g., Baudissin, Geschichte des
Altestamentlichen Priesterhums
(Leipzig, I889), p. 287.
72a
So, e. g., Teukros, the author of a Greek treatise on astrology, is called
"the Babylonian" evidently in the sense of "astrologer." See the fragments
of this treatise published by Boll (" Sphaera," pp. i6-2i) who places Teukros
in the firstcentury of this era.
7 See the story told by Polyaenus, " Strategicon," IV., 20, of the decep-
tion practised upon the army of Attalus I. of Pergamon by Soudinos " a
Chaldoean augur " who writingthe words " victory of the king " (/3att2C v' d) )
backwards on the palm of his hand, pressed the smooth side of the liver of
a sacrificial animal on his hand, and then held the liver with the significant
words inscribed on it to the gaze of the army, who regarded it as a sign
sent by the gods. See also, above, p. 650, note I3.
74The late Richard Garnett is only one of many examples of men other-
wise abreast with modern thought who cling to the faith in the revelations
of the stars.

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676 JASTROW-HEPATOSCOPY AND ASTROLOGY [December4,

passed mustnot,however,lead us to the conclusion,whichwould be

decidedly false, that astrologywhen it passed over to the West
became whollyat the mercyof professionaltricksters. This is but
one phase of the subject which,seriouslycultivatedby Greekphysi-
cists, became bound up as we have seen with advanced formsof
astronomy,mathematicsand philosophicalspeculation. It is the
old Babylonian astrology directlyimportedby " Chaldaeans" as
professional astrologersthat degeneratedinto a dishonesttrade,
whereas the modificationof the Babylonian systemunder the in-
fluenceof the Greek scientificspiritwas raised to the dignityof a
genuinescience; and beliefin it remainedan integralpart of science
throughoutthe middle ages. In our days when the new scientific
spirit has definitelybroken with astrology,we are witnessinga
process not unlike that which set in when faithin the Babylonian
systemdeclinedin the land of its birth. Whateverjustifiablebasis
(if any) it may have had is entirelyobscuredby those who exploit
it as a profession. The modern" astrologers" are not the Greek
astronomersattachingto their science a divinatoryaspect, but the
old baru'-priests
in a new garb,plyinga tradethatflourishesthrough
the readiness of people to be deceived-a readinessthat amounts
almost to willingness. Why then,it may be asked, search out the
folliesand superstitionsof the past? Bouche-Leclercq75suppliesus
withthe answerwhenhe says " thatit is not a waste of-timeto find
out how otherpeople wasted theirs."
75 i
L'AsfrologieGrecque,"p. ix.

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