‘Anwat
(among the Arabians)
‘Anat ‘Ashtart
(among the Syrians)
‘Attar’atta
(in the Aramaic tongue)
‘Anta ‘Antu
(so named in Akkadia)
‘Anat ‘Anath ‘Anata
(so named in Ugarit)
Anit Anti Antit Anant Antart Anatanta
(so named in Egypt)
she who is
The Maiden Who Lives on the Mountain of ‘Inbib
(batalat, sexually free, owned by no man)
but also
Heifer to the Bull of Ba’al
(mother of seventy calves)
and
Qadashu
(holy one of love)
but also
The Destroyer
(she wades through hip-deep blood and piss)
(she slew Yahm of the Abyss and Mot of the Pit)
but also
The Weaver of the Purple
(she crushes the murex in her hands)
but also
The Self-Anointed
(balsam on forehead, throat, wrists, belly she leads the sacrifice)
but also
The Refreshing Dew
(glistening in the early morning)
Lady
Many-Named
Who is the Strength of Life
and the Mother of Nations
[Author’s Note: Anat is an ancient Canaanite Goddess whose worship spread throughout the Levant, north into Anatolia, and south into Egypt. She is a fierce Goddess of war, hunting, loyalty, sexuality, and revenge.]
[Written by Rebecca Buchanan.]
