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=== Mesopotamia === {{Further|Ancient Mesopotamian underworld#Demons}} [[File:Dumuzi aux enfers.jpg|thumb|left|Ancient Sumerian [[cylinder seal]] impression showing the god [[Dumuzid the Shepherd|Dumuzid]] being tortured in the [[Kur|Underworld]] by ''[[gallu|galla]]'' demons]] [[Mesopotamia]]n demonology had a strong influence on later [[Judaism|Hebrew]] and [[Christianity|Christian]] concepts of demons,<ref name="Russell, Jeffrey Burton 1987. p. 92">Russell, Jeffrey Burton. The devil: Perceptions of evil from antiquity to primitive Christianity. Cornell University Press, 1987. p. 92</ref> with ''[[shedu]]'' from [[Chaldea]]n mythology being an example.<ref name="JE-shedim">{{harvnb|Hirsch|Gottheil|Kohler|Broydé|1906}}.</ref> The demons of Mesopotamia were generally hostile spirits of lesser power than a deity.<ref name="Russell, Jeffrey Burton 1987. p. 92"/> Since both nature and culture were in constant change, neither were considered part of a divine cosmos.<ref name="Russell, Jeffrey Burton 1987. p. 88">Russell, Jeffrey Burton. The devil: Perceptions of evil from antiquity to primitive Christianity. Cornell University Press, 1987. p. 88</ref> According to the Babylonian creation epic ''[[Enūma Eliš]]'', both gods and demons are the children of [[Tiamat]], the goddess of [[Chaos (cosmogony)|primordial chaos]].<ref>Russell, Jeffrey Burton. The devil: Perceptions of evil from antiquity to primitive Christianity. Cornell University Press, 1987. p. 88-89</ref> The demons were engendered by Tiamat as an act of revenge in reaction to the gods slaying her primordial partner [[Abzu]].<ref name="Russell, Jeffrey Burton 1987. p. 88"/> In the Babylonian tale of the Great Flood, since the gods promised to never flood humanity again, the demoness Lamaštu was installed instead and given the task of killing humans in order to avoid excessive multiplication.<ref name="Maul, S. 2006">Maul, S. (., Jansen-Winkeln, K. (., Niehr, H. (., Macuch, M. (., & Johnston, S. I. (. (2006). Demons. In Brill's New Pauly Online. Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1574-9347_bnp_e309270</ref> Some demons were the evil spirits of those who died in misery, while other demons were nature demons causing harm by carrying plagues and nightmares, and causing headaches and storms.<ref name="Maul, S. 2006"/><ref name="Russell, Jeffrey Burton 1987. p. 92"/> People could protect themselves from demons by wearing amulets, using magic, or seeking refuge amongst another demon or deity.<ref name="Russell, Jeffrey Burton 1987. p. 92"/><ref name="Maul, S. 2006"/> On an ontological level, in early Semitic history, deities and demons often shed into another, as the distinction was of no importance for the believer.<ref>Introduction: Angels and Their Religious and Cosmological Contexts p. 17</ref> The [[Kur|underworld]] was home to many demonic beings,{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=180}} sometimes referred to as the "offspring of ''arali''".{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=180}} These demons ascend from the underworld and terrorize mortals.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=180}} One class of demons that were believed to reside in the underworld were known as ''[[Gallu|galla]]'';{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=85}} their primary purpose appears to have been to drag unfortunate mortals back to Kur.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=85}} They are frequently referenced in magical texts,{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|pages=85–86}} and some texts describe them as being seven in number.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|pages=85–86}} Several extant poems describe the ''galla'' dragging the god [[Dumuzid]] into the underworld.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=86}} Like many other Mesopotamian demons ''galla'' could also fulfill a protective role.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=86}} In a hymn from King [[Gudea]] of [[Lagash]] ({{circa}} 2144 – 2124 BCE), a minor god named Ig-alima is described as "the great ''galla'' of [[Girsu]]".{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=86}}
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