Ashtar
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Ashtar is a Demon in the Megami Tensei franchise.
Profile
Origin
Athtar or Ashtar[a] is a Semitic deity associated with the planet Venus and irrigation.[1] His name is the masculine form of the name of Ashtart, and Ashtar and Ashtart may have originally signified Venus in its roles as the morning star and the evening star, respectively.[1][2] However, despite the etymological relationship between their names, there is no attested direct evidence of the two deities having any connection.[2]
In South Arabia, Athtar was worshiped as the supreme deity of the heavens and head of the pantheon.[1]
In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, Athtar is a son of El and Athirat, though the fragmentary nature of the text makes Athtar's role difficult to interpret. He is described as "minute in strength" but "intelligent". In one passage, Athtar chooses to go into the underworld in pursuit of Yamm, though this is not further elaborated upon in the extant fragments. Later, after Baal's death at the hands of Mot, Athtar is suggested by Athirat as Baal's replacement, and El agrees. Athtar finds himself to be too short for Baal's throne on Mount Ṣapon, and ultimately declines ruling from Mount Ṣapon, instead deciding to rule over the underworld[3] or the earth.[4]
In Moab, Ashtar was identified with their national god Chemosh.[5][6]
Design
Gameplay
Compendium
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Game Appearances
Shin Megami Tensei II
Ashtar is one half of the true form of Astaroth. If Aleph brings Astaroth to Binah Town, then he will split apart into Ashtar and Ishtar.
Nomenclature
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
 Japanese
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アシュター Ashutā | Ashtar |
Notes
- ↑ ʿAštar (Ashtar) is the Canaanite form of Proto-Semitic *ʿAṯtar (Athtar). The form ʿAṯtar was retained in Ugarit and in South Arabia.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Athtar—An Overview", The Myth of Cosmic Rebellion: A Study of Its Reflexes in Ugaritic and Biblical Literature (1996), Hugh Rowland Page, Jr.. Published by E. J. Brill. pp. 51-59. ISBN-13: 978-90-04-10563-8. doi:10.1163/9789004275898
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "‛Athtart in Late Bronze Age Syrian Texts", Transformation of a Goddess: Ishtar – Astarte – Aphrodite (2014), Mark S. Smith. Published by Academic Press Fribourg. pp. 33-86. ISBN-13: 978-3-7278-1748-9.
- ↑ "Athtar—A Reconsideration of Ugaritic Data", The Myth of Cosmic Rebellion: A Study of Its Reflexes in Ugaritic and Biblical Literature (1996), Hugh Rowland Page, Jr.. Published by E. J. Brill. pp. 60-109. ISBN-13: 978-90-04-10563-8. doi:10.1163/9789004275898
- ↑ "The key to the problem here is the precise nuance recognized of arṣ in line 65. While it is sometimes ambiguous, and can mean either 'earth' or 'underworld,' I think that here it is univocal, and has the former sense. Page translated it as 'Underworld,' that is, the latter sense, understanding an implicit rejection of Athtar's claims with regard to Baal's throne." "The Concept and Purpose of Hell: Its Nature and Development in West Semitic Thought", Nicolas Wyatt. Numen, 56(2/3), pp. 161-184.
- ↑ "West Semitic Deities with Compound Names", George A. Barton. Journal of Biblical Literature, 20(1), pp. 22-27. Published June 1, 1901. doi:10.2307/3268988
- ↑ "Kemosh, the god of the Moabites, is referred to on the Moabite Stone as Ashtar-Kemosh. Ashtar in Canaan was the god of the morning star, so that Kemosh may have been associated with astral deities." The Book of Jeremiah (1980), J. A. Thompson. Published by William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. p. 477. ISBN-13: 978-1-4674-2303-8.