Introduction: Magic and Religion
A frequent area of debate are the borders of
religion and magic and if there are indeed any borders at all. It is in trying to establish a distinction
between the two that often causes a conundrum for religious scholars and
anthropologists. Texts and artifacts
often lie in this gray area and scholars are forced by the nature of our
vocabulary to choose how to label them. In
his late 19th century article “Relation between Magic and Religion”,
Harvard professor Crawford H. Toy described the three leading views on magic
and religion as: “…that magic is a degraded form of religion; that it is the
parent of religion; and that the two are independent, mutually unrelated
systems.” However, he went on to explain
why these segregations are not so simple and one must be open-minded to the
gray areas magic and religion derive from.
While magic seems to conjure a certain form of chaos and religion propagating
order, they seem to have sprung up in humanity together. Reverend Witton T. Davies, a professor of
Biblical Literature, also points out magic and religion’s close ties by describing
the parallels between incantation and prayer and burning materials in spells
and religious sacrifices. Davies wrote
that magic may be described as “… the attempt on man’s part to have intercourse
with spiritual and supernatural beings, and to influence them for his benefit.” Indeed, when thinking about it in these terms,
it is quite easy to see the parallel between practicing magic and practicing
religion. For what religion does not
involve itself with the supernatural world in order to either influence it or to
be influenced by it?
The Jewish Incantation Bowls – An Overview
Since first discovered in the middle of the
nineteenth century, the Jewish incantation bowls – simple clay bowls with Aramaic
and Hebrew ink incantations - have perplexed scholars. Questions about the relationship between
magic and religion immediately arise when studying the bowls. Other questions also
emerged, such as, how exactly were the bowls used? What influence do the
surrounding cultures and religions play in their creation and use? Although the
discovery is nearly a century and a half old, the scholarship on the subject is
still in its relative infancy.
This article offers an introduction to the
bowls and a discussion of various questions that are being taken into
consideration by scholars. One of the questions at hand is, what exactly was
the ritual process in using the bowls? One long time theory is that the bowls
were drank out of in order to ingest the words written in them. The consumption of powerful words in a
mystical experience is reminiscent of the book of Ezekiel, when God told
Ezekiel, “Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the
house of Israel.” (Ezekiel 3:1) In
Jeremiah 15:16, the prophet Jeremiah also “eats” the words of God. However, at
the conclusion of this paper, we will see why this theory is not gaining
ground.
The
Jewish incantation bowls – with more than 2,000 found by archaeologists - are
an intriguing look into ancient Jewish magic. They have been found in Iran,
Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey and even one in Egypt. The bowls were
crafted starting in either the 4th or 5th century CE up
until the 7th or 8th century CE. The bowls were identical
to all other commonly used bowls in Sasanian Mesopotamia which has led Professor
Gideon Bohak to conclude that the bowls were bought in large quantities in the
marketplace and then modified to be used for the enchantments. The bowls are made out of clay and were
crudely formed between 8-12 centimeters in circumference with ink incantations
on the inside. Most commonly, the text
was written in a spiraling pattern away from the center. Another fairly common
pattern is the text being splitting the bowl into three equal sections. Rare patterns of text include four equal
divisions, a sun shape, star/flower shape, and man shape. All the bowls found
were completely covered with writing and drawings on the interior and so it
seems an important aspect of the practice was to make use of the entire
available surface. Some had instructions
on the outside of the bowls as to where the owner should place them in the
house.
Some bowls contain figures in addition to the
text and the most common images are those of shackled demons. Dr. Dan Levene describes these drawings in
detail, “Many of the demons thus depicted are identifiable as being female and
possessing feathered bird-like left with claws. In other bowls, there are what
appear to be depictions of fierce angels, much like those described in early
Jewish mystical texts, such as are in the Hekhalot and Merkabah
literature.” Other animal and hybrid
figures were found as well.
While
most of the bowls found were surface finds, many bowls were found in their
archaeological context and the majority of which were placed upside down in the
corners of rooms, in doorway thresholds, and at tent entrances. The website of
the impressive Schøyen Collection, which houses 654 incantation bowls, says the bowls were “demon traps”, in which
demons became trapped underneath the bowls, which explains their unusual
placement. It is interesting to note that some the demonic entities named in
the bowls were previously known as local deities, such as the Mesopotamian
goddess Innana and the shed, from the
Akkadian word for a “protective deity” or “household god,” sheddu. All but a few
incantation bowls are specifically against demons while those outside this
majority contain curses against other human individuals. On a very rare
occasion, the incantation was meant to magically coerce someone to love
another. Many of the bowls are a type of
divorce certificate, separating a demon from the client or clients’ house. In
one bowl, an eggshell was found and believed to be a sacrifice to the trapped
demons. A few discoveries revealed two bowls being bound together, rim to rim,
with either bitumen or ropes.
The bowls contain about two hundred Aramaic
quotes from the Hebrew Bible and nearly half of which constitute the earliest
written forms of theses verses as they were not found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. However,
the bowls’ inscriptions of Bible verses possibly defy the Talmud, which
condemns the recitation of biblical verses for magical purposes. These bowls
certainly provide a glimpse into the world of Sasanian Jewish mysticism. According
to incantation bowl expert Shaul Shaked, “The bowls also have the earliest
examples of Hekhalot or Jewish mystical texts, as well as part of the Shema
prayer or extracts from the Mishna.” Additionally,
they provide us with the only remaining Jewish epigraphic material from
Babylonia during this time. See figures below for examples of the Jewish
incantation bowls.
Although multiple other types of magical
artifacts have been found from the same time period - amulets written on metal
lamellae (thin sheets of lead, bronze, silver, or gold ), aggressive and erotic spells written on
metal lamellae or on clay sherds, magical gems, magical papyri, books of magic,
and inscribed human skulls – the incantation bowls are by far the most
numerous. In addition to the inarguably
magical items as mentioned above, Witton Davies speculated in 1898 that that
the Jewish traditions of phylacteries, tassels, and mezuza were originally to
fend off demons and were only later rationalized as being laws of God. He also
speculated that moonlets worn around necks of women and camels and the bells at
bottom of high priest’s garments may have been protection against demons. Dr.
Wellhausen called these sort of magical demon protections “Gegenzauber” (countercharm).
In Continuity
and Innovation in the Magical Tradition, Shaul Shaked dissects definable
parts of a standard incantation and solidifies terminology used for each
category such as formula, spell, and segments. He defines formula as “…an ideal structure of a text which the
practitioner aims at reproducing.” A
spell is defined as a “building block” for the incantation, each with a
different formula. A subdivision of each spell is called a segment. “The term invocation means a direct appeal to
different powers or person, sometimes with a supplication that they should act
in a manner sought by the practitioner or the client.” Shaked also contends
that the repetition of spells and backwards spells suggests that the practitioners
may have had a lack of confidence in his incantation and that he was in a sense
doubling up on the protection.
Influences
There is no doubt that the surrounding
non-Jewish environment influenced the Jewish creators of the bowls. It is also
true that the Jews may have had a counterinfluence on those that surrounded
them as well. Although unusual, contemporary Christian incantation bowls have
also been found in the same upside-down position from the same period and
locations. See figure 4 below. Zoroastrian
bowls from this time period were also found upside down and under floors and in
thresholds as well. See figure 5 below.
However, out of the various religious groups
using incantation bowls at the time, those from Jewish authors are in the
majority. The incantation bowls do not provide us with the names of their
authors; however, most of the client names on the bowls were Persian. Each
bowl was uniquely created for a particular owner. Some people owned multiple
bowls, created by practitioners with different languages and cultures. Bohak
points out that the authors can be identified as Jewish from their use of
“Jewish terms, concepts, and stories… and passages from the rabbis’ Mishnah.” In
addition to Persian owners, several of the bowls have been inscribed for people
with the prefix “rabbi.” Rabbis also appear in the text of the bowls, called
upon as exorcists to quell the offending demon at hand. This is surprising
considering the negative view the Talmud had regarding magic and condemned it
as being dangerous. Verses from the Tanakh also condemn magical practices.
Although it is nearly impossible for the Jews in
Babylonia to have been completely isolated from outside cultural influences,
the Talmud focuses almost solely on rabbinic issues and has little to say about
the surrounding cultures. For this
reason, and that the study of ancient Iran has played a small role in North
American academics in the past, a large majority of Talmudic studies have been
insular or placed against the background of the Greco-Roman world. Shaul
Shaked, a prolific author on the subject at hand, also noted that scholars, for
various reasons, “can only manage to reconstruct a small portion of variegated
religious heritage of ancient Iran.” While noting the relevance of these
issues, Dr. Jason Mokhtarian in his book Rabbis,
Sorcerers, Kings, and Priests contends that it is significantly important
to take into consideration the Sasanian and Zoroastrian cultures when studying
the rabbis and the Talmud in the Sasanian Empire of Babylonia, 224-650 C.E. Though
bowls have been found with multiple religious motifs and languages, they had a
confined use within this time and geography.
There are many reasons why the surrounding
cultures of the Jewish incantation bowls should not be dismissed. While the
Talmud may attempt to isolate the rabbis from their neighboring cultures, in
reality the rabbis and the Jewish people were not isolated. Along with sharing
geography and community, they shared this mysterious practice of incantation
bowls. In addition to other religions having their own incantation bowls,
Jewish practitioners also used the names of pagan gods and the Christian Holy
Trinity. Levene wrote about the fascinating discovery of three texts, written
in Jewish Aramaic, Syriac, and Mandaic, but all containing nearly the same
formula. However, Mokhtarian also points out that too much enthusiasm for
comparative studies can be disadvantageous and result in an unfortunate filter
of over-interconnection. It is often the case that comparative studies result
in the exploitation of similarities while diminishing the importance of
differences.
However, symbolic influence should not be overlooked
at as well. We know that imagery was used throughout rabbinic Judaism, despite
the Talmudic laws against it. The Tannaim (Mishnaic rabbi sages) prohibited
symbols and forms of mysticism that they judged to be pagan but did not oppose ones
they felt were appropriately Jewish. Similarly, they distinguished amulets to
be either outlawed or appropriate. Unfortunately, we do not know if the
incantation bowls were deemed appropriate or if they were condemned by the
Tannaim. Avigail Manekin Bamberger makes a very interesting note in her article
“Naming Demons: The Aramaic Incantation Bowls and Gittin”: “Although the
incantation bowls are not mentioned explicitly in the Talmud, the use of
amulets is mentioned in several places in rabbinic literature, and the bowls
refer to themselves as amulets, as can be seen from a common formula that
appears on a number of them: הדין קמיע – ‘this amulet.’” Jacob Neusner, in his book Early Rabbinic Judaism, proposed the
theory that the destruction of the temple in 70 CE caused some Jewish people to
reach out to pagan symbolism despite Tannaitic law. Neusner contended that the
influence of Hellenization contributed to the use of pagan symbology and that
the circle of influence of the rabbis may have shrunk during this time. Perhaps
it is within this vacuum of shrinking rabbinic influence that made room for
incantation bowls.
A Question of Transmission
Whether the spells cast in the bowls
originated from an oral or written tradition is another question not answered
yet. No magical instruction books were found in Babylonia, but the fact that
the Babylonian Talmud includes sections regarding magic spells gives us an
indication that these books may have existed there. (The Mishna has little to
offer regarding magic, divination, and demonology, but the Talmud and other
post-biblical writings delve into these subjects with much more detail.) Jewish magical formula instruction texts from
other parts of the Jewish world were found, dating from the 4th to 7th
centuries CE. The Oxyrhynchus Inscription,
appearing to be a part of a collection of spells like the Babylonian
incantation bowls, is further evidence of that the incantations may have been
transmitted textually. The Oxyrhynchus inscription, dating from 5th-6th
century in Egypt, is believed by Mark Geller to be part of a recipe collection
since the first part of the inscription seems to be addressing the demon
Shemhaza while the second part, after a few indecipherable lines, is in regard
to a dog bite. (This is not an
uncontested opinion though, as Gideon Bohak believes that the format and fold
lines suggest that the lines are all part of one spell.) However, this does not exclude the
possibility that spells were handed down orally and, while some of the
incantations’ authors were finely literate, some struggled with handwriting and
spelling, perhaps suggesting an oral background to the text. Also, the repeated mistakes in biblical
verses should be taken into consideration when contemplating an oral
transmission.
Laboratory Testing
Moïse Schwab, in his 1917 article “Amulets and
Bowls with Magic Inscriptions”, states that people would drink from the bowls to
protect themselves from the demons making them sick. However, we do not have
the evidence to conclusively concur with this hypothesis. While it is
uncontested that the writings in the bowls are magical incantations, exactly
how the bowls were used and why they are so different from other magical
amulets is still in debate a century later. As mentioned previously, a current
primary theory is that they were traps for demons. While this does seem to make
sense considering the figures, the spells, and their upside-down placement
within homes, conclusive evidence is still lacking. At the very least, one
should question why apparently ordinary bowls were used as opposed to a “trap”
that was custom built. It is plausible for both theories to be true as one
could easily imagine a person drinking or eating from the enchanted bowl to ingest
the power of the spell as well as placing it under the floor for the purpose of
a trap. However, further laboratory testing would be needed to discover if food
residue were in the bowls. A common method of residue testing uses a mass
spectrometer. Unfortunately, though, this testing requires scraping material
from the clay which would damage the inscriptions.
I asked a few experts previously mentioned
above - Dr. Jason Mokhtarian, Dr. Shaul Shaked, and Martin Schøyen – if testing
had been done on the bowls to determine if they once held food, oil, or wine.
Dr. Mokhtarian, who is a current scholar on
Sasanian Jewish society, said that he was unaware of anyone doing this sort of
testing, but does not believe that the bowls were used for food or drink.
Dr. Shaul Shaked also doubted they were used
for food and expanded on the subject. He said that while studying the bowls in The
Schøyen Collection, he had never come across any evidence of food residue in
the bowls and that laboratory testing would most likely damage the inscriptions,
as mentioned above. In his letter, he
said that in the Islamic period, metal bowls with incised incantations were
sometimes drank out of, but that it is unlikely practitioners would have done
that with the Jewish bowls, considering the was used for the incantations. Dr.
Shaked felt a more important test would be on the material of the bowls
themselves and compare it with earth samples from the area to determine if a
precise location of production could be discovered. Neutron activation analysis
could find trace elements in clay to produce this study. Another possible test is
petrographic analysis, which can look at the physical composition of clay. However,
Dr. Shaked pointed out that the logistics for such a large-scale project are
not practical at the moment because of security risks in the Middle East.
Martin Schøyen stated that none of the 654
bowls in his collection were tested for food substances. He felt that perhaps
food residue might be found if the bowls had been used prior to the
inscriptions being made; however, conservation of the bowls would have
destroyed this evidence. He also said that bowls that have not gone through the
conservation process may show signs of ash, because some archaeologists in the
Middle East – not impressed by the bowls – used them as ash trays.
In summary, a few of the leading bowl scholars
of today believe that the potential damage to the inscriptions and the
difficult logistics are not worth the risk of doing further testing at the
moment.
Conclusion
The bowls leave us with a unique and
challenging view of Jewish life in the Sasanian Empire. As we can see, the
questions far outweigh the answers. We are thwarted by the rudimentary and
destructive practices of previous archaeologists and by the political climate
of today’s world. We live in a time where chemical analysis can give us grand
and conclusive results, but the price of destroying the antiquities is just too
high. Despite the obstacles, there is no doubt that there will be important
progress in the days to come, as scholars around the world peer into an ancient
culture where emerging rabbinics and Jewish magic collide.
REFERENCES:
- Bamberger, Avigail Manekin. “Naming Demons: The Aramaic Incantations Bowls and Gittin.”
TheGemara.com. Accessed May 19th, 2017. http://thegemara.com/naming-demons-
the-aramaic-incantation-bowls-and-gittin/
- Bohak, Gideon. Ancient Jewish Magic. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2008.
- “Ceramic Residue Analysis.” Molecular Archaeology. Accessed May 19th, 2017.
https://sites.google.com/site/moleculararchaeology/home/ceramic-analysis
- “Christian Incantation Bowl.” The Schøyen Collection. Accessed May 6th, 2017.
http://www.schoyencollection.com/palaeography-collection-introduction/aramaic-
hebrew-syriac/4-6-15-manichaean/ms-1928-54
- Currid, John D. Doing Archaeology in the Land of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books,1999.
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http://www.jstor.org/stable/20184172.
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- “Incantation Bowl to Ward Against Demons.” The Schøyen Collection. Accessed May 5th, 2017. http://www.schoyencollection.com/magical-literature-introduction/asian-african- american-magic/incantation-bowl-ms-2053-198
- “Introduction: Magical Literature.” The Schøyen Collection. Accessed May 5th, 2017.
http://www.schoyencollection.com/magical-literature-introduction
- Levene, Dan. “Curse or Blessing: What’s in the Magic Bowl?” The Ian Karten Lecture, 2002.
- Levene, Dan. Jewish Aramaic Curse Texts from Late-Antique Mesopotamia. Leiden, UK: Brill, 2013.
- Mokhtarian, Jason Sion. Rabbis, Sorcerers, Kings, and Priests. University of California Press, 2015.
- Neusner, Jacob. Early Rabbinic Judaism. Leiden, UK: E. J. Brill, 1975.
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- Shaked, Shaul. “Transmission and Transformation of Spells: The Case of the Jewish Babylonian Aramaic Bowls.” In Continuity and Innovation in the Magical Tradition, edited by Gideon Bohak, Yuval Harari, and Shaul Shaked, 188-218. Boston, MA: Brill, 2011.
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