http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AsherahI was reading some interesting things about Ba'al. the Assyrian god was El... who is the creator god that some people believe Judaism turned into Elohim. El's wife was Asherah. This character called Ba'al kept the god El in check by castrating him. These religions were deeply lunar, matriarchal and violent. Kind of a mother goddess Gloria Steinem religion before contemporary feminism. El is apparently some kind of Bull who is castrated. Ba'al acts within the control of Asherah who is a woman. Kind of like Hilary Clinton but worse.
Asherah: The Goddess of the Sea and wife of El. An important council to El with a minor association to fertility.
Ba'al was apparently a war god. the bible does not clarify this. he is not the big cheese. kind of funny that the Hebrew word for "Master" comes from Ba'al. like Ba'al Shem Tov.... meaning "Master of the Good Word"
but it is interesting to me that the creator god gets castrated by the "Master". it would seem that women had a lot of power in this theology.
El: The father of all gods and chief creator of all creatures. The authority figure of the gods, El is the chief judge of any dispute amongst the gods but is apparently distant from his human subjects.
Baall: The god of the storm. Baal is responsible for the annual rainfall and fertility cycle of the earth. Baal is often also depicted as the triumphant General and lord of War.
Anat: Sister and wife of Baal. Like the Babylonian Goddess, Ishtar, Anat combines the aspects of the goddess of love and war simultaneously.
Astarte: Another Goddess relating to fertility, strongly resembling Anat.
-All sourced from Boadt, 218
Asherah (Hebrew: אֲשֵׁרָה) in Semitic mythology, is a Semitic mother goddess, who appears in a number of ancient sources including Akkadian writings by the name of Ashratum/Ashratu and in Hittite as Asherdu(s) or Ashertu(s) or Aserdu(s) or Asertu(s). Asherah is generally considered identical with the Ugaritic goddess Athirat (more accurately transcribed as ʼAṯirat).The Book of Jeremiah written circa 628 BC possibly refers to Asherah when it uses the title "queen of heaven" in chapters 7 and 44. For a discussion of "queen of heaven" in the Old Testament, please see Queen of heaven (Antiquity).
