The Case For Pazuzu
Another slandered mythical figure
Pazuzu is a strange example of pop culture influencing the popularity of mythical figures, as while The Exorcist is responsible for many people knowing the name, it paints essentially the exact opposite picture of the figure it belongs to.
Pazuzu’s function in Ancient Mesopotamian religion was as a protective figure, both warding off evil’s approach and exorcising it. As the king of the evil wind (lilû) demons he is called upon to protect human from his subjects, the most infamous being Lamashtu, a demoness who preys on mothers and young children. So the role that made Pazuzu famous to modern audiences is essentially the exact opposite of what Pazuzu represented in the culture that made him.
While there is evidence that Pazuzu’s power had to be carefully directed, mainly the presence of other figures known to restrain evil on the back of Pazuzu amulets (in other words the side facing the wearer) there are no definitive examples of him actually harming humans I can find. Even ultimately benevolent figures can have malicious acts attributed to them, its a little thing known as nuance, but Pazuzu’s status as an active threat to humans appears entirely hypothetical (or debatable)1, something to prevent rather than something that happened.
Despite his function being about protecting the home, the mythology gives him the opposing element of being someone who belongs in the wilderness as a wind demon. He is only a guest, even if a welcome and long term one. He belongs in the mountains and wilds.
The appearance of Pazuzu is notably consistent in physical representations, combining many distinct animal features. He has a canine head, four wings, a scaled body, talons, the tail of a scorpion, and many other mixed animal body parts (like the snake head on his penis). This makes him easy to recognize when he appears. Often he’s depicted by just his head, like in amulets.
There are two main components that seem to have gone into creating Pazuzu’s appearance and role. Depictions of Humbaba’s head have similar powers to depictions of Pazuzu’s head, while the rest of Pazuzu’s body seems to borrow from depictions of the West Wind, a minor figure that Pazuzu quickly surpassed in fame. Some online sources claim Humbaba is Pazuzu’s brother but this appears to be misinformation as no texts, ancient or academic, ever allude to such a direct connection between them.
In the grand scheme of things Pazuzu is a fairly minor (though popular even in his own time) figure in Ancient Near Eastern cultures, but he also has an element of mystery. Scholars have traced his origins to the Iron Age, but find that he simply appeared out of nowhere at some day, there is no definitive answer to how he came about.
Pazuzu has only one stated family member in our sources, his father Hanpu, of whom we know nothing else. One interpretation of the name Hanpu is that since it means the limping one it could be a reference to the West Wind, whom Pazuzu is partially based on. Others have suggested that both the names Hanpu and Pazuzu derive from the names of historical kings as a potential explanation for their origin.
Coming back to the modern day and depictions there, it feels like a total mischaracterization to cast Pazuzu as a complete villain. For all his potential to be dangerous, he was trusted to protect children and characterized “...as a scary but in essence well meaning traveler.” (Wiggermann, “Reallexikon” 373)
Not only is what we know about Pazuzu compelling, it’s also open ended enough to inherently offer flexibility in how writers portray him. Even academics have different views on how dangerous he was to humans. As another example, some have portrayed Pazuzu and Lamashtu as having previously been in a romantic relationship, which has no basis in the mythology yet also doesn’t violate any of their core traits, and they can just as easily be portrayed as more straightforward enemies.
Hanpu also represents another area where Pazuzu is open to the inventions of a modern creative, since little is stated about him in known sources beyond being Pazuzu’s father, including the specifics of their father-son relationship.
As a king it would also not be difficult to imagine Pazuzu with the sort of royal court divine and human kings of his era had, even if no such thing is mentioned in sources. Or the apparent lack of mentions of a royal court for him could be interpreted as the absence of one. And that absence could be expanded on as a source of characterization for a particular author’s version of him.
Despite the genre being responsible for ruining his reputation, Pazuzu can work in horror as he naturally is. Just make the actual monster one of his subjects while he’s the guardian people run from because he looks like a monster. There’s horror to be had with incorrectly identifying the danger.
The duality of being a fearsome wanderer of the wilds and domestic guardian calls to mind the classic Wild West hero, who arrives as a stranger and departs having saved the day. Pazuzu would fit neatly into a ‘monster of the week’ type serial as a cool monster fighting wanderer.
And its easy to cast Pazuzu as a romantic figure, the combination of fearsome appearance, danger, and protective role carry the sort of appeal that makes Beauty and the Beast so enduring. Paranormal romance may no longer be the hot new trend but it is still around.
Also since Pazuzu amulets and the like were mass produced, we would simply be going full circle if we started making Pazuzu plushies that restock your pepsi and beat the shit out of the monsters under your bed. Making him cute might weaken his effect, but it could be balanced out by giving him a gun. If I ever do merchandise for this newsletter I’d certainly consider that for one of the items.
While I’ve focused on the potential for sympathetic and heroic portrayals due to my own preference, antagonistic Pazuzu portrayals can in fact be done well. In the video game Devil Survivor Pazuzu plays a somewhat antagonistic role, where he will end up killing a potential ally of the player if the player does not manipulate events to instead direct Pazuzu and his summoner to save a different character and potential ally. It works because it understands the nuance of his danger.
I think it’s amazing that we’re able to keep telling stories about ancient characters like Pazuzu, but it loses something when they’re written in ways that have little in common with ancient depictions. So I hope I’ve shown that you can faithfully depict Pazuzu while still putting your own spin on things.
Sources
Wiggermann, Frans A. M. (2005), "Pazuzu", Reallexikon der Assyriologie
Wiggermann, Frans (2007-01-01). "The Four Winds and the Origins of Pazuzu". Academia.edu.
Wiggermann, Frans. “The Mesopotamian Pandemonium.” SMSR 77/2 (2011): n. pag. Print.
There’s debate over whether certain parts of the ritual invoking Pazuzu are spoken by him or to him. I feel they make more sense being spoken by Pazuzu as it forbids the listener from entering the house where the speaker enters, which matches how Pazuzu iconography is placed in the home to keep other demons out.
Thanks, I didn't know any of this. But I anyway prefer to call the Exorcist demon Captain Howdy :)