Etymology: As Tarhun, the name means “The Conqueror”

Also Spelled: 𒀭𒅎 (cuneiform), Teshup, Teššup, and Tešup

Also Called: Tarhun, Tarhunt, Tarhunzas, Tesheba (Urartian)

Teshub is the Hurrian god of the sky, thunder, and storms. He is best known for his slaying of the dragon Illuyanka.

There are several different storm and weather gods throughout the Anatolian region (modern Turkey) that are all very similar. During the religious reforms of Muwatalli II’s reign in the New Kingdom of the 13^th century B.C.E. the various Hurrian and Hittite pantheons and deities were combined and identified with major Hittite deities. Teshub’s worship would carry forward into the Urartu kingdom as Tesheba.

Hurrian Depictions

In the art and reliefs found, Teshub is shown holding a triple thunderbolt and a weapon, often a double-headed ax or mace.

Teshub’s sacred bull is seen in the horns on his crown. His horses, Seri and Hurri would either pull Teshub’s chariot or he rode them. Similarly, this chariot would be pulled by bulls.

With the mixing of Hurrian and Hittite theology, Teshub is indistinguishable from his Hittite counterpart Tarhun. Exceptions to this are when Teshub is shown with his wife Hebat. In the Kingdom of Urartu when he is known as Tesheba, he is shown standing on a bull.

Near Yazilikava, the ancient capital of the Hittites, there is a rock sanctuary that depicts Teshub as the lead god as he steps on the bowed necks of two mountain gods. Other depictions show Teshub holding a lituss or long crook.

Parentage and Family

Grandparent

Alalu – Great Grandfather

Grandparent

Anu – His father and representing the sky.

Parents
This one is s a bit gross, but the genitals that Kumarbi swallowed when he bit them off of either Enlill or Anu.
Spouse

Arinniti – A sun goddess, she is married to Teshub in Hittite texts and myth.

Hebat – The goddess of beauty, fertility, and royalty. She is paired with Teshub in the Hurrian texts and myths.

Siblings

Aranzah, the personification of the Tigris River, Tashmishu – brothers through Kumarbi.

Ullikumm – A stone giant, they can be considered a half-brother.

Šuwaliyat – A Hittite storm or wind god mentioned in the “Ullikummi Song” who accompanies Tarḫunna (Teshub). He is mentioned as the older brother and vizier to Tarḫunna.

Children

With Hebat, Teshub has the following children –

Sarruma, a mountain god, and Inara, goddess of wild animals.

With Arinniti, Teshub has the following children –

Telipinu, a fertility god

Birth Of A God

The Song of Kumarbi or Kingship in Heaven is the title given to a Hittite version of the Hurrian Kumarbi myth, dating to the 14th or 13th century B.C.E. It is preserved on three tablets, but only a small fraction of the text is legible and able to be translated.

In this story, Teshub is born when Kumarbi bites off the genitals to his father, Anu. It is a story that has strong similarities to the succession of Uranus, Cronus, and Zeus in Hesiod’s Theogony.

Overthrowing Kumarbi

Knowing that history repeats itself and how Kumarbi overthrew his father Anu, just as he had overthrown his father Alalu; Kumarbi seeks out the goddess of the Sea (no name given) to see what to do to prevent his own demise.

The Sea tells Kumarbi to copulate with a rather large boulder, which then becomes pregnant and gives birth to a stone giant by the name of Ullikummi.

Once Ullikummi is born, he is taken to the Underworld and placed upon the shoulders of Ubelluris, the giant that holds up the earth. There, Ullikummi rises up like a pillar out of the sea. He is huge, some 9,000 leagues tall and 9,000 leagues in circumference.

Just huge. Worse, Ullikummi keeps on growing.

This worries the other gods who look to the trickster god Ea for advice on what to do. Ea says that Teshub should take the copper knife that had been used to split the heaven and earth at the beginning of time. Using the copper knife, Teshub sunders Ullukummi from Ubelluris, thus defeating him.

With Kumarbi defeated, Teshub then takes his place as the new King of Heaven.

So, what happens next!?!

That we don’t know as the last tablet that the story is written on is broken off. We can maybe guess by looking at similar myths like the Babylonians and the Greeks for how things might have progressed.

Illuyanka Versus Teshub

This is the story that Illuynak is best known from. It’s pretty much his only appearance in Hittite mythology. This myth was rediscovered by archeologists and historians in 1930 in the Catalogue des Textes Hittites 321. Less than a hundred years ago with this post. An English translation of the text wouldn’t see publication until 1982 done by Gary Beckman. This translation is not yet in the public domain that I am aware of. These cuneiform tablets were found at Çorum-Bogazköy, the old Hittite capital of Hattusa.

In both myths, it is noted that Illuyanka threatens the whole of creation with destruction and why it is that Teshub needs to battle him.

1^st Myth – Illuyanka’s Defeat At A Feast

This story begins with one of Teshub or Tarhun’s (Hittite or Hurrian) priests telling the story at the New Year’s festival of Purulli. In the story, Teshub and the serpent Illuyanka fight within the city of Kiškilušša. As they fight, Illuyanka defeats Teshub.

Defeated, Teshub approaches the other gods and asks his daughter Inara for help. Inara sets about to prepare a feast with lots of alcohol, namely wines and beer. That done, Inara traveled to the city of Ziggaratta where she asks the hero Ḫupašiya to help her with a task. Ḫupašiya agrees only if Inara will have sex with him. Since there’s a job to do, Inara agrees and invites Ḫupašiya and his sons to the feast.

At the feast, Inara has Ḫupašiya hide before inviting Illuyanka and his sons to the feast. As Illuyanka and his sons consume all the food and become drunk, Ḫupašiya comes out of hiding and ties up the mighty dragon with some rope.

Teshub enters back into the story by slaying Illuyanka.

Meanwhile, Inara instructs Ḫupašiya to stay within a house on a rock in Tarukka. She tells Ḫupašiya that he is to never look out of the house windows as he is to stay hidden from his wife and children. Eventually, after twenty days, Ḫupašiya looks out a window and on seeing his family, demands to be let go.

Inara asks Ḫupašiya why he looked out the window.

Now, this is where the text for the story is damaged and it’s unclear what we missed and why, where it can be read again, Inara has decided to travel to Kiškilušša to give her house and underground spring to the king.

This event though is where the New Year’s festival of Purulli originates.

Second Myth – This section begins with the invocations for strong, heavy rain. Illuyanka defeats Teshub, taking his eyes and heart.

In the aftermath of this defeat, Teshub marries the daughter of a poor man, where they have a son. This son grows up and marries Illuyanka’s daughter.

Teshub continually asks his son to request his eyes and heart back from Illuyanka. Eventually, Illuyanka relents and gives them to Teshub’s son to bring back to him.

Restored, Teshub heads down to the sea where he battles against Illuyanka, only to find his own son having sided with the dragon. The son begs Teshub to kill him too to which, he obliges.

The text then is unclear what happens next. We know that Teshub was about to do something, but this is where the text is damaged.

The rest of the text that can be read, details the different cults, their priests of the various gods, and their merits and revenues.

Hedammu – In Hurrian-Hittite mythology, this is the sea-dragon, son of Kumarbi and Šertapšuruḫi. Hedammu is basically the Hurrian version of Illuyanka.

The Myth Of Telipinu

In this myth, following the pairing of Teshub and Arinniti, they have a son by the name of Telipinu who is a fertility god and storm god like his father before him.

Telipinu was known for having a temper and one day, waking up in a foul mood, one not helped by putting his boots on the wrong feet, he stormed off into the steppes. Eventually, Telipinu wore himself out and he fell asleep in a meadow.

As Telipinu slept, all the plants and trees died from lack of water, and animals and humans alike stopped giving birth. The land had become lifeless and barren. Greatly concerned, the sun goddess, Arinniti sends out an eagle to look for her son. Then Teshub sets out in search of his missing son to no avail, even after trying to smash in the door to Telepinu’s house.

It is the great mother goddess, Hannahanna who sends out a bee to find Telepinu. The bee finds the sleeping Telepinu and sets about stinging him on the hands and feet to wake him. Then the bee smears wax on the hands and feet, causing Telepinu to finally wake. However, Telepinu is still angry.

Arinniti suggests that someone go help Telepinu with moving. The text for this part of the myth is fragmented. We do know that Telepinu is brought back by an eagle and that the goddess of healing, Kamrusepas heals him.

Twelve rams are sacrificed, and torches are lit, then put out. Presumably by the person that Arinniti called for. This man casts a spell, banishing all the evils caused by Telepinu down to the underworld.

Telepinu returns to his house where he takes care of the king and queen. A pole is set up whereon a sheep fleece is hung. This fleece symbolized all the grain, meat, wine, cattle, livestock, numerous children, and long life.

Jason & The Argonauts – Greek Connections

For some background, the Hittite Empire was active in the 18th century B.C.E. Anatolia, modern-day Turkey. After the 12^th century B.C.E., Hittite culture began to decline, continuing with smaller city-states to around the 8^th century B.C.E.

Scholars know that the Mycenaean Greeks were in contact with the Hittites and interacted with them. The belief is that elements of Hittite mythology found their way into Greek myths. Two scholars, Jan N. Bremmer and Volkert Haas both argue that the story of Teshub slaying the dragon Illuyanka has a strong influence on the story of Jason and the Argonauts. Notably between Jason, Medea, and the Gold Fleece.

Bremmer and Volkert both identify the Golden Fleece with a sacred kursa sack, made of fleece. At every Purulli, the New Year’s festival, the story of Teshub’s slaying the dragon is retold. This annual pageant would include representatives for Teshub and his wife, conducting a sacred marriage.

In this respect, the kursa, among the Hittites held strong symbolisms as representing a deity’s power, protection over a place, and influence such as abundance and fertility.

It is strongly noted that there is no mention of a kursa in Teshub’s myth with slaying the dragon. There is one mentioned in the Myth of Telepinu. It could be that what we see in the story of Jason and the Argonauts could be the merging of two different myths and stories together.

This is merely one idea among many of just exactly what the Golden Fleece is meant to be or represent.

Hesiod’s Theogony – The Greek Connections

Scholars have noted a similarity between the Hurro-Hittite Song of Kumarbi and Hesiod’s Theogony, a Babylonian Creation Epic. Especially between the characters of Uranus, Cronus, and Zeus from the Greek mythos with those of the Hurrian creation myth with Alalu, Anu, and Kumarbi.

Particularly with the progression of successors. Both the deities of Anu and Uranus are noted as having names that mean “Sky.” Likewise, Kumbari was a Grain-Deity and Cronus likely was one as well. It brings the line of succession to Teshub (or Teššub) and Zeus who are both Storm-Deities.

Another similarity is seen in how both Anu and Ouranos both have their genitals cut or bitten off. Either way hurts immensely… This is seen as removing themselves from heaven and the source from where other divinities originate.

Anu also warns Kumarbi that there will be consequences for what he has done. Again, a similar motif is seen in the Greek story where Ouranos tells the Titans that they too will pay a toll for castrating him.

Syno-Deities

Adad – Canannite/Mesopotamian

Also known as Hadad, he is a similar storm and weather god.

Indra – Indian

The leader of the Devas and God of storms, thunder, and war. He was seen as a defender of the people against evil.

Jupiter – Roman

The Roman god of the sky and thunder, he is equated with Teshub.

Tarḫunna – Hittite

The Hittite god of thunder, lightning, and the weather, he is equated with Teshub.

Tarḫunz – Luwian

The Luwian God of the sky, thunder and lightning, he is equated with both Teshub and Tarḫunna.

Taru – Hattian

A similar storm and weather god.

Zeus – Greek

The Greek god of the sky and thunder, he is equated with Teshub. It’s easy to see in Hesiod’s Theogony the strong connection and similarities between the Hittite and Greek myths.