BAAL

baal, a semitic word, which primarily signifies lord, owner or inhabitant,[9] and then, in accordance with the semitic way of looking at family and religious relations, is specially appropriated to express the relation of a husband to his wife and of the deity to his worshipper. in the latter usage it indicated not that the god was the lord of the worshipper, but rather the possessor of, or ruler in, some place or district. in the old testament it is regularly written with the article, _i.e._ "_the_ baal"; and the baals of different tribes or sanctuaries were not necessarily conceived as identical, so that we find frequent mention of baalim, or rather "_the_ baalim" in the plural. that the israelites even applied the title of baal to yahweh himself is proved by the occurrence of such names as jerubbaal (gideon), eshbaal (one of saul's sons) and beeliada (a son of david, 1 chron. xiv. 7). the last name appears in 2 sam. v. 16 as eliada, showing that el (god) was regarded as equivalent to baal; cf. also the name be'aliah, "yahweh is _baal_ or lord," which survives in 1 chron. xii. 5. however, when the name baal was exclusively appropriated to idolatrous worship (cf. hos. ii. 16 seq.), abhorrence for the unholy word was marked by writing _b[=o]sheth_ (shameful thing) for _baal_ in compound proper names, and thus we get the usual forms ishbosheth, mephibosheth. the great difficulty which has been felt by investigators in determining the character and attributes of the god baal mainly arises from the original appellative sense of the word, and many obscure points become clear if we remember that when a title becomes a proper name it may be appropriated by different peoples to quite distinct deities. baal being originally a title, and not a proper name, the innumerable baals could be distinguished by the addition of the name of a place or of some special attribute.[10] accordingly, the baals are not to be regarded necessarily as local variations of one and the same god, like the many virgins or madonnas of catholic lands, but as distinct _numina_. each community could speak of its own baal, although a collection of allied communities might share the same cult, and naturally, since the attributes ascribed to the individual baals were very similar, subsequent syncretism was facilitated. the baal, as the head of each worshipping group, is the source of all the gifts of nature (cf. hos. ii. 8 seq., ezek. xvi. 19); as the god of fertility all the produce of the soil is his, and his adherents bring to him their tribute of first-fruits. he is the patron of all growth and fertility, and, by the "uncontrolled use of analogy characteristic of early thought," the baal is the god of the productive element in its widest sense. originating probably, in the observation of the fertilizing effect of rains and streams upon the receptive and reproductive soil, baalism becomes identical with the grossest nature-worship. joined with the baals there are naturally found corresponding female figures known as asht[=a]r[=o]th, embodiments of asht[=o]reth (see astarte; ishtar). in accordance with primitive notions of analogy,[11] which assume that it is possible to control or aid the powers of nature by the practice of "sympathetic magic" (see magic), the cult of the baals and asht[=a]r[=o]th was characterized by gross sensuality and licentiousness. the fragmentary allusions to the cult of baal peor (num. xxv., hos. ix. 10, ps. cvi. 28 seq.) exemplify the typical species of dionysiac orgies that prevailed.[12] on the summits of hills and mountains flourished the cult of the givers of increase, and "under every green tree" was practised the licentiousness which in primitive thought was held to secure abundance of crops (see frazer, _golden bough_, 2nd ed. vol. ii. pp. 204 sqq.). human sacrifice (jer. xix. 5), the burning of incense (jer. vii. 9), violent and ecstatic exercises, ceremonial acts of bowing and kissing, the preparing of sacred mystic cakes, appear among the offences denounced by the israelite prophets, and show that the cult of baal (and astarte) included the characteristic features of heathen worship which recur in various parts of the semitic world, although attached to other names.[13] by an easy transition the local gods of the streams and springs which fertilized the increase of the fields became identified with [v.03 p.0089] the common source of all streams, and proceeding along this line it was possible for the numerous baals to be regarded eventually as mere forms of one absolute deity. consequently, the baal could be identified with some supreme power of nature, _e.g._ the heavens, the sun, the weather or some planet. the particular line of development would vary in different places, but the change from an association of the baal with earthly objects to heavenly is characteristic of a higher type of belief and appears to be relatively later. the idea which has long prevailed that baal was properly a sky-god affords no explanation of the local character of the many baals; on the other hand, on the theory of a higher development where the gods become heavenly or astral beings, the fact that ruder conceptions of nature were still retained (often in the unofficial but more popular forms of cult) is more intelligible. a specific baal of the heavens appears to have been known among the hittites in the time of rameses ii., and considerably later, at the beginning of the 7th century, it was the title of one of the gods of phoenicia. in babylonia, from a very early period, baal became a definite individual deity, and was identified with the planet jupiter. this development is a mark of superior culture and may have been spread through babylonian influence. both baal and astarte were venerated in egypt at thebes and memphis in the xixth dynasty, and the former, through the influence of the aramaeans who borrowed the babylonian spelling bel, ultimately became known as the greek belos who was identified with zeus. of the worship of the tyrian baal, who is also called melkart (king of the city), and is often identified with the greek heracles, but sometimes with the olympian zeus, we have many accounts in ancient writers, from herodotus downwards. he had a magnificent temple in insular tyre, founded by hiram, to which gifts streamed from all countries, especially at the great feasts. the solar character of this deity appears especially in the annual feast of his awakening shortly after the winter solstice (joseph. _c. apion._ i. 18). at tyre, as among the hebrews, baal had his symbolical pillars, one of gold and one of smaragdus, which, transported by phantasy to the farthest west, are still familiar to us as the pillars of hercules. the worship of the tyrian baal was carried to all the phoenician colonies.[14] his name occurs as an element in carthaginian proper names (hanni_bal_, hasdru_bal_, &c.), and a tablet found at marseilles still survives to inform us of the charges made by the priests of the temple of baal for offering sacrifices. the history of baalism among the hebrews is obscured by the difficulty of determining whether the false worship which the prophets stigmatize is the heathen worship of yahweh under a conception, and often with rites, which treated him as a local nature god; or whether baalism was consciously recognized to be distinct from yahwism from the first. later religious practice was undoubtedly opposed to that of earlier times, and attempts were made to correct narratives containing views which had come to be regarded as contrary to the true worship of yahweh. the old testament depicts the history of the people as a series of acts of apostasy alternating with subsequent penitence and return to yahweh, and the question whether this gives effect to actual conditions depends upon the precise character of the elements of yahweh worship brought by the israelites into palestine. this is still under dispute. there is strong evidence at all events that many of the conceptions are contrary to historical fact, and the points of similarity between native canaanite cult and israelite worship are so striking that only the persistent traditions of israel's origin and of the work of moses compel the conclusion that the germs of specific yahweh worship existed from his day. the earliest certain reaction against baalism is ascribed to the reign of ahab, whose marriage with jezebel gave the impulse to the introduction of a particular form of the cult. in honour of his wife's god, the king, following the example of solomon, erected a temple to the tyrian baal (see above). this, however, did not prevent him from remaining a follower of yahweh, whose prophets he still consulted, and whose protection he still cherished when he named his sons ahaziah and jehoram ("yah[weh] holds," "y. is high"). the antagonism of elijah was not against baalism in general, but against the introduction of a rival deity. but by the time of hosea (ii. 16 seq.) a further advance was marked, and the use of the term "baal" was felt to be dangerous to true religion. thus there gradually grew up a tendency to avoid the term, and in accordance with the idea of ex. xxiii. 13, it was replaced by the contemptuous _b[=o]sheth_, "shame" (see above). however, the books of deuteronomy and jeremiah (cf. also zeph. i. 4) afford complete testimony for the prevalence of baalism as late as the exile, but prove that the clearest distinction was then drawn between the pure worship of yahweh the god of israel and the inveterate and debased cults of the gods of the land. (see further hebrew religion; prophet.) bibliography.--w. robertson smith, _relig. semites_, 2nd ed. pp. 93-113 (against his theory of the introduction of baal among the arabs see m. j. lagrange, _etudes d. relig. sem._ pp. 83-98). for the reading "baal" in the amarna tablets (palestine, about 1400 b.c.) see knudtzon, _beitr. z. assyriol._ (1901), pp. 320 seq., 415; other cuneiform evidence in e. schrader's _keilinsch. u. alte test._ 3rd ed. p. 357 (by h. zimmern; see also his _index_, sub voce). on _baal-shamem_ (b. of the heavens) m. lidzbarski's monograph (_ephemeris_, i. 243-260, ii. 120) is invaluable, and this work, with his _handbuch d. nordsemit. epigraphik_, contains full account of the epigraphical material. see baethgen, _beitr. z. semit. religionsgesch._ pp. 17-32; also the articles on baal by e. meyer in roscher's _lexikon_, and g. f. moore in _ency. bib._ (on _beltane_ fires and other apparent points of connexion with baal it may suffice to refer to aug. fick, _vergleich. worterbuch_, who derives the element _bel_ from an old celtic root meaning shining, &c.) (w. r. s.; s. a. c.) [1] cf. its use as a noun of relation _e.g._ a _ba'al_ of hair, "a hairy man" (2 kings i. 8), _b._ of wings, "a winged creature," and in the plural, _b._ of arrows, "archers" (gen. xlix. 23), _b._ of oath, "conspirators" (neh. vi. 18). [2] compounds with geographical terms (towns, mountains), _e.g._ baal of tyre, of lebanon, &c., are frequent; see g. b. gray, _heb. proper names,_ pp. 124-126. baal-berith or el-berith of shechem (judg. ix. 4, 46) is usually interpreted to be the baal or god of the covenant, but whether of covenants in general or of a particular covenant concluded at shechem is disputed. the [greek: balmarkos] (near beirut) apparently presided over dancing; another compound (in cyprus) seems to represent a baal of healing. on the "baal of flies" see beelzebub. [3] the general analogy shows itself further in the idea of the deity as the husband (_ba'al_) of his worshippers or of the land in which they dwell. the astarte of gabal (byblus) was regularly known as the _ba'alath_ (fem. of _baal_), her real name not being pronounced (perhaps out of reverence). [4] see further clermont-ganneau, _pal. explor. fund quart. stat._, 1901, pp. 239, 369 sqq.; buechler, _rev. d'etudes juives_, 1901, pp. 125 seq. [5] the extent to which elements of heathen cult entered into purer types of religion is illustrated in the worship of yahweh. the sacred cakes of astarte and old holy wells associated with her cult were later even transferred to the worship of the virgin (_ency. bib._ col. 3993; rouvier, in _bull. archeol._, 1900, p. 170). [6] the sanctuary of heracles at daphne near antioch was properly that of the semitic baal, and at amathus jupiter hospes takes the place of heracles or malika, in which the tyrian melkart is to be recognized (w. r. smith, _rel. sem._ 2nd ed. pp. 178, 376). see further phoenicia. baalbek (anc. _heliopolis_), a town of the buka'a (coelesyria), altitude 3850 ft., situated e. of the litani and near the parting between its waters and those of the asi. pop. about 5000, including 2000 metawali and 1000 christians (maronite and orthodox). since 1902 baalbek has been connected by railway with rayak (rejak) on the beirut-damascus line, and since 1907 with aleppo. it is famous for its temple ruins of the roman period, before which we have no record of it, certain though it be that heliopolis is a translation of an earlier native name, in which baal was an element. it has been suggested, but without good reason, that this name was the baalgad of josh. xi. 17. heliopolis was made a _colonia_ probably by octavian (coins of 1st century a.d.), and there must have been a baal temple there in which trajan consulted the oracle. the foundation of the present buildings, however, dates from antoninus pius, and their dedication from septimius severus, whose coins first show the two temples. the great courts of approach were not finished before the reigns of caracalla and philip. in commemoration, no doubt, of the dedication of the new sanctuaries, severus conferred the _jus italicum_ on the city. the greater of the two temples was sacred to jupiter (baal), identified with the sun, with whom were associated venus and mercury as [greek: sumbomoi theoi]. the lesser temple was built in honour of bacchus (not the sun, as formerly believed). jupiter-baal was represented locally as a beardless god in long scaly drapery, holding a whip in his right hand and lightning and ears of corn in his left. two bulls supported him. in this guise he passed into european worship in the 3rd and 4th centuries a.d. the extreme licence of the heliopolitan worship is often animadverted upon by early christian writers, and constantine, making an effort to curb the venus cult, built a basilica. theodosius erected another, with western apse, in the main court of the jupiter temple. when abu ubaida (or obaida) attacked the place after the moslem capture of damascus (a.d. 635), it was still an opulent city and yielded a rich booty. it became a bone of contention between the various syrian dynasties and the caliphs first of damascus, then of egypt, and in 748 was sacked with great slaughter. in 1090 it passed to the seljuks, and in 1134 to jenghiz khan; but after 1145 it remained attached to damascus and was captured by saladin in 1175. the crusaders raided its valley more than once, but never took the city. three times shaken by earthquake in the 12th century, it was dismantled by hulagu in 1260. but it revived, and most of its fine moslem mosque and fortress architecture, still extant, belongs to the [v.03 p.0090] reign of sultan kala[=u]n (1282) and the succeeding century, during which abulfeda describes it as a very strong place. in 1400 timur pillaged it, and in 1517 it passed, with the rest of syria, to the ottoman dominion. but ottoman jurisdiction was merely nominal in the lebanon district, and baalbek was really in the hands of the metawali (see lebanon), who retained it against other lebanon tribes, until "jezzar" pasha, the rebel governor of the acre province, broke their power in the last half of the 18th century. the anarchy which succeeded his death in 1804 was only ended by the egyptian occupation (1832). with the treaty of london (1840) baalbek became really ottoman, and since the settlement of the lebanon (1864) has attracted great numbers of tourists. [illustration] the ruins were brought to european notice by pierre belon in 1555, though previously visited, in 1507, by martin von baumgarten. much damaged by the earthquake of 1759, they remained a wilderness of fallen blocks till 1901, when their clearance was undertaken by the german archaeological institute and entrusted to the direction of prof. o. puchstein. they lie mainly on the ancient acropolis, which has been shored up with huge walls to form a terrace raised on vaults and measuring about 1100 ft. from e. to w. the _propylaea_ lie at the e. end, and were approached by a flight of steps now quarried away. these propylaea formed a covered hall, or vestibule, about 35 ft. deep, flanked with towers richly decorated within and without (much damaged by arab reconstruction). columns stood in front, whose bases still exist and bear the names of antoninus pius and julia domna. hence, through a triple gateway in a richly ornamented screen, access is gained to the first or hexagonal court, which measures about 250 ft. from angle to angle. it is now razed almost to foundation level; but it can be seen that it was flanked with halls each having four columns in front. a portal on the w., 50 ft. wide, flanked by lesser ones 10 ft. wide (that on the n. is alone preserved), admitted to the main court, in whose centre was the high altar of burnt sacrifice. this altar and a great tank on the n. were covered by the foundations of theodosius' basilica and not seen till the recent german clearance. the main court measures about 440 ft. from e. to w. and 370 ft. from n. to s., thus covering about 3-1/2 acres. it had a continuous fringe of covered halls of various dimensions and shapes, once richly adorned with statues and columnar screens. some of these halls are in fair preservation. stairs on the w. led up to the temple of jupiter-baal, now much ruined, having only 6 of the 54 columns of its peristyle erect. three fell in the earthquake of 1759. those still standing are nos. 11 to 16 in the southern rank. their bases and shafts are not finished, though the capitals and rich entablature seem completely worked. they have a height of 60 ft. and diameter of 7-1/2 ft., and are mostly formed of three blocks. the architrave is threefold and bears a frieze with lion-heads, on which rest a moulding and cornice. the temple of bacchus stood on a platform of its own formed by a southern projection of the acropolis. it was much smaller than the jupiter temple, but is better preserved. the steps of the e. approach were intact up to 1688. the temple was peripteral with 46 columns in its peristyle. these were over 52 ft. in height and of the corinthian order, and supported an entablature 7 ft. high with double frieze, connected with the cella walls by a coffered ceiling, which contained slabs with heads of gods and emperors. richard burton, when consul-general at damascus in 1870, cleared an arab screen out of the vestibule, and in consequence the exquisite doorway leading into the cella can now be well seen. on either side of it staircases constructed within columns lead to the roof. the cracked door-lintel, which shows an eagle on the soffit, was propped up first by burton, and lately, more securely, by the germans. the cella, now ruinous, had inner wall-reliefs and engaged columns, which supported rich entablatures. the vaults below the great court of the jupiter temple, together with the supporting walls of the terrace, are noticeable. in the w. wall of the latter occur the three famous megaliths, which gave the name _trilithon_ to the jupiter temple in byzantine times. these measure from 63 to 64 ft. in length and 13 ft. in height and breadth, and have been raised 20 ft. above the ground. they are the largest blocks known to have been used in actual construction, but are excelled by another block still attached to its bed in the quarries half a mile s.w. this is 68 ft. long by 14 ft. high and weighs about 1500 tons. for long these blocks were supposed, even by european visitors, to be relics of a primeval race of giant builders. in the town, below the acropolis, on the s.e. is a small temple of the late imperial age, consisting of a semicircular cella with a peristyle of eight corinthian columns, supporting a projecting entablature. the cella is decorated without with a frieze, and within with pillars and arcading. this temple owes its preservation to its use as a church of st barbara, a local martyr, also claimed by the egyptian heliopolis. hence the building is known as barbarat al-atika. considerable remains of the n. gate of the city have also been exposed. bibliography.--these vast ruins, more imposing from their immensity than pleasing in detail, have been described by scores of travellers and tourists; but it will be sufficient here to refer to the following works:--(first discoverers) m. von baumgarten, _peregrinatio in ... syriam_ (1594); p. belon, _de admirabili operum antiquorum praestantia_ (1553); and _observations_, &c. (1555). (before earthquake of 1759) r. wood, _ruins of baalbec_ (1757). (before excavation) h. frauberger, _die akropolis von baalbek_ (1892). (after excavation) o. puchstein, _fuehrer durch die ruinen v. baalbek_ (1905), (with th. v. luepke) _ansichten_, &c. (1905). see also r. phene spiers, _quart. stat. pal. exp. fund_, 1904, pp. 58-64, and the _builder_, 11 feb. 1905. (d. g. h.)