All Comments on 'Invoking the Goddess'

Not very Babylonian.

Very well written indeed, Ms. Delasalle. Judeorotica is correct in that certain elements are ahistoric, but for what it is I enjoyed a lot (ouch, though!). Because Judeorotica did not bother to expand upon his criticism at all, I thought perhaps you might like to know what elements in particular are problematic from a strictly historical perspective in case you decide to write any more stories set in this time and place. If you intentionally fudged things or are not interested in knowing, you need not read any more, but I just thought I'd throw them out there.

1: The rite you are referring to, I believe, is the annual "Sacred Marriage" performed for the sake of Babylon/Sumer's fertility, yes? This actually did not in any way involve the priesthood of the Sun God, as far as I know. The participants would have been the High Priestess of Ishtar (who I presume is the Goddess you mention) and the King, chosen one of En-Lil the wind god, as the two of them together were symbollically supposed to represent more than any other mortals the body and animating force of Nature's fertility.

2: The rite itself (the main event on top of Ishtar's ziggurat) did not involve multiple partners--just the Priestess and the King. It was customary for a general orgy to follow downstairs afterwards, of course, but I'm not sure whether either of them would have participated. I'm not even sure whether the High Priestess (who held that position for many years and wouldn't have been "chosen" before the rite) was still required to perform lowly prostitutional duties--she was expected (and generally quite willing) to have lots of sex, but I don't think commoners were included in this, at least not just because they paid a tax for it.

this story showed excellent imagination!