EATING TRANSGRESSIONS: ABDOMINAL SYMPTOMS OF DIVINE PUNISHMENT AND METAPHOR IN MESOPOTAMIAN MEDICINE

Abstract

This article examines the conceptualization of medical symptoms of transgression and divine punishment in the Mesopotamian exorcistic corpus, with a focus on the association betweenmāmītuand abdominal illness. It first demonstrates the metaphorical, and sometimes more literal, associations between taboo violations and eating, before situating the concept ofmāmītuwithin the context of broken oaths and transgressions against divine order. It then outlines the symptoms and treatments ofmāmītuin order to demonstrate a strong connection with the abdomen and digestive tract. Finally, within the context of the use of metaphor and analogy in Mesopotamian medicine, it suggests that the association between eating and transgression may have provided a reason for attributing abdominal symptoms to the punishment of transgression in the form ofmāmītu. The resulting case study provides insights into the intellectual frameworks by which Mesopotamian exorcists conceptualized the workings of illness and the body, especially in terms of the relationship between language and reality.