Izmia's Quest Notes - Chapter 1: Divine Foods

 Izmia opened her book and continue her lecture.

She was at chapter 1.

"CHAPTER ONE - DIVINE FOODS

Alright, the journey begins with the exploration of the different myths regarding divine foods in myths and legends of ancient times.

Here's what we will study:

- The Summerian Shem-an-na

- The Egyptian Mefket/Mefkat/Mfkzt

- The Greek Ambrosia

- The Hindu Soma

- The Jewish Manna

I - The Summerian Shem-an-na

in Sumerian and Mesopotamian mythology, there is a divine food called shem-an-na or "food of life" that was believed to grant immortality to the gods who consumed it. Shem-an-na can translate in two ways. First, it can means "Spice of the Divine Man" and, secondly, "Highward Firestone".

Both translation transmit the same concept of a substance coming from above, of something transcendant and divine.

It is also the first time a "stone" is associated with some kind of food. During our journey, this association will come back, especially in the myths surrounding the Holy Grail.

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, a Sumerian literary work considered one of the earliest surviving great works of literature, the hero Gilgamesh seeks out the secret of immortality from Utnapishtim, a survivor of the great flood. Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh that there is a plant that can grant immortality, but it is guarded by a serpent. Gilgamesh manages to obtain the plant, but a serpent steals it from him, thus depriving Gilgamesh of his chance at immortality.

In later Mesopotamian mythology, shem-an-na is described as a divine food that was produced in the heavenly abode of the gods, Eridu. It was said to be guarded by the god Enki and was only consumed by the gods, as it was believed that consuming it would grant them eternal life.

The Shem-an-na was also linked with the goddess Ishtar in Mesopotamian mythology. Ishtar was often depicted as the goddess of fertility, love, and war, and was sometimes associated with the sacred marriage ritual that was performed in ancient Mesopotamia. In some depictions, shem-an-na was said to be one of the gifts given by Ishtar to her lovers as a symbol of her divine power.

Additionally, in some Mesopotamian texts and iconography, shem-an-na was depicted as a pinecone-shaped bread or cake. The pinecone was a symbol of fertility and regeneration in ancient Mesopotamia and was associated with the god Enki, who was said to have brought the shem-an-na to the world of humans. The bread or cake made from the shem-an-na was believed to have mystical properties that could heal the sick and grant eternal life to those who consumed it.

In iconography, the pinecone cake was given to the King by priests dressed in fish-themed costumes called the Apkallu. Those pinecone cakes were also linked the sacred Tree of Life, sometimes depicted as its fruits.

The exact recipe of the shem-an-na is not known. Specialists agrees that it should have been a special ritual food given to the King of Sumer and its court and was of high quality and highly nutritious.

II - The Egyptian Mefket/Mefkat

"Mefkat" is sometimes translated as "celestial beer" and was believed to be a divine beverage that bestowed immortality and rejuvenation upon the gods and, by extension, upon the pharaohs who were considered to be divine themselves. According to some texts, "mefkat" was one of the offerings that was presented to Hathor, who was a goddess of beauty, fertility, and motherhood, as well as a protectress of the dead and the patroness of the afterlife.

While the precise nature of "mefkat" is not entirely clear, it is often associated with the concept of transformation and regeneration, and it was believed to have a purifying and revitalizing effect on the gods and the pharaohs who consumed it. Some scholars have suggested that "mefkat" may have been a kind of psychedelic or visionary substance, although this is a matter of debate.

"Mefkat" is mentioned in some versions of the Book of the Dead. In particular, it is mentioned in Chapter 17, which is known as the "Chapter of the Transformation into a Lotus." This chapter describes the deceased's transformation into a lotus flower and his or her eventual rebirth in the afterlife.

In some versions of the text, the deceased is said to drink "mefkat" in order to achieve this transformation and to be reborn in the afterlife. The precise nature of the "mefkat" mentioned in the Book of the Dead is not entirely clear, but it is often associated with the concept of transformation and regeneration, and it was believed to have a purifying and revitalizing effect on the gods and the pharaohs who consumed it.

It is worth noting, however, that the Book of the Dead is a collection of spells and prayers that were intended to guide the deceased through the afterlife and into the realm of the gods. It is not a comprehensive source of information about ancient Egyptian religion or mythology, and there are many aspects of Egyptian culture and belief that are not mentioned in the text.

In iconography, the Mefkat is also depicted as a conic bread looking like a miniature pyramid, evoking also the legendary Benben Stone, said to reside in the Temple of Heliopolis. We will talk about the Benben Stone in a later chapter.

Just like the shem-an-na, the exact recipe of the mefket bread isn't known. Egyptologists supposed that it was a ritual food offered to Pharaoh and his court and was of a high quality and highly nutritious.

III - The Greek Ambrosia

Ambrosia is very closely related to the gods' other form of sustenance, nectar. The two terms may not have originally been distinguished, though in Homer's poems nectar is usually the drink and ambrosia the food of the gods; it was with ambrosia that Hera "cleansed all defilement from her lovely flesh", and with ambrosia Athena prepared Penelope in her sleep so that when she appeared for the final time before her suitors, the effects of years had been stripped away, and they were inflamed with passion at the sight of her. On the other hand, in Alcman, nectar is the food, and in Sappho and Anaxandrides, ambrosia is the drink. A character in Aristophanes' Knights says, "I dreamed the goddess poured ambrosia over your head—out of a ladle." Both descriptions could be correct, as ambrosia could be a liquid considered a food (such as honey).

The consumption of ambrosia was typically reserved for divine beings. Upon his assumption into immortality on Olympus, Heracles is given ambrosia by Athena, while the hero Tydeus is denied the same thing when the goddess discovers him eating human brains. In one version of the myth of Tantalus, part of Tantalus' crime is that after tasting ambrosia himself, he attempts to steal some to give to other mortals. Those who consume ambrosia typically have ichor (the blood of the gods), not blood, in their veins.

This looks like an early version of the Fall of Lucifer ! Especially when merge with the myth of Prometheus who wanted to give fire to mortal, disobeying the Olympians.

Both nectar and ambrosia are fragrant, and may be used as perfume: in the Odyssey Menelaus and his men are disguised as seals in untanned seal skins, "and the deadly smell of the seal skins vexed us sore; but the goddess saved us; she brought ambrosia and put it under our nostrils." Homer speaks of ambrosial raiment, ambrosial locks of hair, even the gods' ambrosial sandals.

Among later writers, ambrosia has been so often used with generic meanings of "delightful liquid" that such late writers as Athenaeus, Paulus and Dioscurides employ it as a technical term in contexts of cookery, medicine, and botany. Pliny used the term in connection with different plants, as did early herbalists.

In this way, Ambrosia looks eerily similar to the later Philosopher's Stone and the Elixir of Life. After all, both of those central concepts in Alchemy is highly inspired by Greek mythology.

In some versions of Greek mythology, it is said that the broken horn of the goat Amalthea could produce ambrosia, as well as other miraculous substances.

According to these versions of the myth, after Amalthea died or was transformed into a constellation, her broken horn was preserved and became known as the Cornucopia, or "horn of plenty." This horn was said to be able to produce an endless supply of food and drink, including ambrosia, which was the food of the gods.

While this connection between Amalthea's horn and ambrosia is not a central part of the myth, it is sometimes mentioned in stories and has become a popular image in art and literature. The idea of the horn of plenty, or the Cornucopia, as a symbol of abundance and nourishment, has also become an important part of many cultural traditions.

Additionally, some modern ethnomycologists, such as Danny Staples, identify ambrosia with the hallucinogenic mushroom Amanita muscaria: "it was the food of the gods, their ambrosia, and nectar was the pressed sap of its juices", Staples asserts.

However, that seems unlikely. Ambrosia is not supposed to be something found in the Mortal Realm, but exclusively something found in the Realm of the Immortals.

W. H. Roscher thinks that both nectar and ambrosia were kinds of honey, in which case their power of conferring immortality would be due to the supposed healing and cleansing powers of honey, and because fermented honey (mead) preceded wine as an entheogen in the Aegean world; on some Minoan seals, goddesses were represented with bee faces (compare Merope and Melissa).

According to legend, the worst punishment for an Olympian would be to be cut off of his supply of Ambrosia, making him mortal again.

IV - The Hindu Soma

The Soma is a mythical substance that has been mentioned in ancient Indian scriptures, particularly in the Rigveda. The Rigveda is one of the oldest texts in the world and is considered to be a significant part of Hinduism. The Soma is often described as a divine plant, which is believed to have mystical and healing properties.

According to Hindu mythology, the Soma plant was brought to Earth by the gods, and it was guarded by a dragon. The plant is described as having white flowers and being very tall, and its juice is said to have a very unique taste and smell.

The juice of the Soma plant was used in ancient Vedic rituals and was believed to be a powerful hallucinogen. It was often consumed during fire sacrifices and was believed to bring the drinker closer to the gods. The juice was also believed to have healing properties and was used to cure various diseases.

In the Rigveda, the Soma is often associated with Indra, the god of thunder and war. Indra is described as drinking the Soma to gain strength and power, and it is believed that the plant played a significant role in his battles against demons.

The exact identity of the Soma plant is unclear, and there have been many different theories about what it might be. Some scholars believe that it might have been a type of mushroom, while others believe that it might have been a type of plant that is now extinct.

In modern times, some people have attempted to recreate the Soma drink using various plant extracts, but there is no consensus on whether these recreations accurately reflect the properties of the original Soma plant. Nonetheless, the myth of the Soma remains an important part of Hindu mythology and continues to be studied and debated by scholars and enthusiasts alike.

The Soma is extremely similar to the Ambrosia.

This is extremely logical. Yes, after all, both Hinduism and ancient Greece came from a common cultural ground, the Indo-European civilization.

The Egyptian and the Mesopotamian civilizations also came from the Indo-Europeans.

Finally, we will study the myth of the Manna from the Jewish Manna.

V - The Jewish Manna

The myth of Manna is a biblical story found in the book of Exodus in the Old Testament. According to the myth, when the Israelites were wandering in the desert after escaping from slavery in Egypt, God provided them with food called manna.

The word "manna" means "what is it?" in Hebrew, and this reflects the mysterious nature of the food. The manna was described as a small, round, white substance that appeared on the ground each morning like dew. The Israelites were instructed to gather it up and use it as their daily food.

The story of the manna begins in Exodus 16. The Israelites had been traveling through the wilderness for about a month and were running out of food. They began to complain to Moses and Aaron, saying that they would have been better off staying in Egypt where they had plenty to eat.

In response to their complaints, God promised to provide them with bread from heaven. He told Moses that the Israelites would receive manna each morning and that they should gather enough for each day, except on the sixth day when they should gather enough for two days since the seventh day was to be a day of rest.

So the next morning, the Israelites woke up to find the ground covered in a fine, flaky substance. They asked each other, "What is it?" and Moses explained that it was the bread that God had promised them.

The Israelites gathered the manna and found that it tasted like honey. They ate it every day for 40 years until they reached the Promised Land. However, they were not allowed to gather the manna on the Sabbath, and any manna that was left over from the previous day would spoil and become full of worms.

The myth of the manna has been interpreted in different ways by different religious traditions. Some see it as a miraculous provision by God, while others see it as a symbol of the importance of relying on God for sustenance. The manna has also been seen as a precursor to the Eucharist in Christianity, where bread is seen as a symbol of Christ's body.

The Manna is also referenced in the Book of Revelations and is associated with a white stone, given by God to the ones who will survive the End of Days.

Interestingly, the association of a celestial stone and a celestial food is the center of the myth of the Lapis Exilis, as described in the poem Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach.

And, as we know, this "Stone of Exile"... is one of the many forms of the legendary Holy Grail.

Conclusion:

The myth of the Divine Food that gives immortality or transmute a mortal into a God is a common theme in myths and legends.

All those myths became the roots of the Alchemy and the concept of the Elixir of Life and the Philosopher's Stone.

As we have seen, stones were sometimes associated with a substance that prolong life to the point of Immortality.

But the Philosopher's Stone concept have also its roots in all the mythical stones that appeared in Human History. Those stones will be the center of the next chapter."

Izmia closed her book.

Yes, she was getting somewhere with all this.