- May 2021
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clas3209.files.wordpress.com clas3209.files.wordpress.com
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These events could have been used to mark times of worship and, most important, to control a calendar, and certainly convert the city of Petra, “a place of awe-inspiring crystallization of natural beauty and the unique artistic creation of the Nabataean will” into “a gift from their gods, shaped by the supernatural and holding a holy meaning”
This reasoning could also suggest that the Nabataeans were more complex than one would give credit. Furthermore, religious signifigance to the city of Petra would also make it a moral sin to attack it. Very interesting in general!
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undoubtedly points towards the importance of astral elements in Nabataean religion.
Wooo!
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Light and shadow effects
Long story short: More math. Math shows relationship between the sky and Nabataean religion
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reinforcing the astral character of the religion and showing that the equinox and perhaps the solstices were important for their time-keeping.
It makes sense that the Nabetaeans were interested in such dates, both for religion ad for practicality. Practicality, as there were different settlements across Nabataea that revolved around farming, as well as being "masters of water". Connecting practicality with religion would make sense, from an anthropologists point of view.
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The last surviving inscription in the Nabataean language dates from 356 A.D., a quarter of a millennium earlier than the arrival of Islam but the Nabataean divinities were certainly worshiped in the region; the sanctuary of Al Uzza at Wadi Hurad was destroyed by Khalid Ibn al Walid at the commandment of Mohammed immediately after the capture of Mekka.
(screams internally) Destruction of other sanctuaries suck
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This histogram is similar to the one discovered for neighbouring cultures with a strong astral component in their religion, such as ancient Egypt [Belmonte, Shaltout and Fekri 2009] and shows a series of significant peaks. Significance is estimated by the following procedure.
Similar Astral ginifigance patterns between the Nabetaean culture and the Egyptian culture. This makes sense, as both are fairly close to each other geographically. Furthermore, trade is bound to happen, and with trade comes cultural exchanges.
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The data sample includes 92% of the temples known, including those in Petra and in other Nabataean settlements of the kingdom such as el Qsar, Dhat Ras, Tannur, Dharih or Wadi Ramm (fig. 2). In Petra, data includes temples plus the majority (~80%) of the accessible highplaces (open-air altars carved on the rock in the top of cliffs and conspicuous mountains), including the best known at Djebel Madbah (fig. 2a), and a few of the most representative monuments excavated and sculpted in the sandstone walls. Although the number of rock-cut chambers present in the last census of the city is quite high [Lehme 2003] not all of them had a marked religious character. Our intention was selecting those architecturally significant for which a religious character behind its mortuary use has been definitely proven such as Ad Deir or Monastery, the Urn Tomb (fig. 2c) or the most controversial of them, Al Khazna or Treasury (fig. 3d) [Stewart
Long story short: We looked all over the Nabataean region, and inspected any suspect religious sites.
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archaeological confirmation of suspected astronomical activities by the Nabataeans relating to religious practice
Long story short, based on the sites of the religious temples, what did the sky show? How does this relate to Nabataean religion?
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tatistical analysis of orientations
Ewww math
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Dushara has sometimes been identified with the Greek gods Zeus, Dionysus or Ares, although the latter is a less common association.
Possible, as cultural exchanges are bound to happen. However, is this a modern connection, or is there evidence of such connection? History is a "story"; So did previous historians make history sound nice,
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his name is never found, whilst many inscriptions in Nabataean script have been found mentioning the goddess Al Uzza. Her name means “the Most Powerful” and she was the personification of the evening star, the planet Venus, identified with the Greek Aphrodite and the Cananaean Astarte, and also with the Egyptian goddess Isis.
I wonder if they are one and the same, or perhaps two different deities? How complex were the Parthenon? Is there a significance between their portrayal and Nabataean society (probably was). How exactly did this happen?
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the main goddess was Allat, meaning simply “the Goddess”. With a hypothetical solar character (since Sams, the sun, was a female divinity in pre-Islamic Arabia), she has been identified with Athena or Atargatis
YEAH FEMALE GODDESS! It is interesting that the Sun was considered a feminine Goddess, as usually the Sun is consisted masculine.
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Archaeological evidence suggests that he was a deity related to the cult of the deceased.
Perhaps there is a conceptual ritual that the Western World may not understand. It is curious to look into how the dead connected to religion, let alone how the GOds connected to the dead. Was it like Greece? Or entirely it's own customs?
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“He of Shara”, Shara being the mountain range to the east of Petra
This is interesting. It is common for mountains to be associated with the sky. I wonder if this is true of the Nabataean religion; Mountains are the closet landmass to the sky. Possible connection?
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he principal male divinity was the god Dushara or Dushares, very probably an astral god with a hypothetical lunar or solar character.
This suggests that the Nabataeans's religion was heavily based on the sky. It's interesting then that the statues were just stone blocks. Perhaps it is because they thought it was futile to accurately portray the Divine, similar to modern religions today?
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mixture of elements from pre-Islamic Arabs with Hellenistic, Egyptian and other Middle Eastern influences
The anthropologist in me wants to scream. The author claims there was a "singular culture" but then here explains how the Nabatean religion was a mixture if elements from other cultures! While I may be a student, there is some inconsistencies so far. However, I'm more inclined to believe this is accurate as it is more realistic give the Nabatean towns being as diverse as they are.
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the Nabataeans, a people of presumably Arab lineage, developed a singular and sophisticated culture in the harsh lands of Arabia Petraea (to the southeast of Palestine and Syria in antiquity) at the frontiers of the Hellenistic world
The Nabataeans did NOT develop a singular and sophisticated culture. Other (more recent) resources suggested that Nabataean culture was an amalgamation of other surrounding cultures that had connections to the Nabatea region.
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This was the capital of their kingdom for generations and represented the high point of their civilization, although the Nabataean genius was also present in many other sacred buildings scattered across their lands
Considering the fact that the true "limit" of the Nabataean influence is extremely hard to map out, most historians really refer to Petra for "pure" Nabataean rituals and culture. I think it's kinda unfair, as really, nothing in the world (expecially a trade heavy place like Petra) is "pure". But that's my (student) opinion
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light and shadow effects, perhaps connected with the bulk of Nabataean mythology,
The Nabataeans may have played with architecture to have multiple effects depending on the sun, which means lots of math, and lots of planning. I other words, lots of care was taken into account when planning the city of Petra, especially concerning their religion.
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possibly a trace of the astral nature of the Nabataean religion.
In layman's terms, how did the Nabataean religion connect to the astronomy? Did they believe in an astral plane, a another realm of existence for the divine? What were their rituals to connect to this other realm of existience?
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- Oct 2020
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anth1300.commons.gc.cuny.edu anth1300.commons.gc.cuny.edu
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same literal meaning but diff er in socialmeaning
I always found it curious that "social meaning" is a new term we have (at least to me) Phrases like "Nah, we straight" are not quite metaphors, but can (and should) only be used in specific social situations. Otherwise, you sound like a fool. Literally.
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