EATING TRANSGRESSIONS: ABDOMINAL SYMPTOMS OF DIVINE PUNISHMENT AND METAPHOR IN MESOPOTAMIAN MEDICINE. (December 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Howe, Adam
• Is Part Of: Iraq. Volume 84(2022)
• Page Start: 129
• Page End: 139
• Publication Date: 2022-12
• Subjects: Iraq -- Antiquities -- Periodicals; 935.005
• DOI: 10.1017/irq.2022.13
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0021-0889

Abstract

Abstract : This article examines the conceptualization of medical symptoms of transgression and divine punishment in the Mesopotamian exorcistic corpus, with a focus on the association between māmītu and abdominal illness. It first demonstrates the metaphorical, and sometimes more literal, associations between taboo violations and eating, before situating the concept of māmītu within the context of broken oaths and transgressions against divine order. It then outlines the symptoms and treatments of māmītu in order to demonstrate a strong connection with the abdomen and digestive tract. Finally, within the context of the use of metaphor and analogy in Mesopotamian medicine, it suggests that the association between eating and transgression may have provided a reason for attributing abdominal symptoms to the punishment of transgression in the form of māmītu . The resulting case study provides insights into the intellectual frameworks by which Mesopotamian exorcists conceptualized the workings of illness and the body, especially in terms of the relationship between language and reality.