zeynab khosravi; Behrouz Afkhami
Abstract
Physical activity is the motif of most archaeological evidence in ancient Mesopotamia, but the origins, functions, and values of physical activity are not well known in the whole of ...
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Physical activity is the motif of most archaeological evidence in ancient Mesopotamia, but the origins, functions, and values of physical activity are not well known in the whole of ancient Mesopotamian culture. The basic questions of research are that in what process of the people living in ancient Mesopotamia, various types of physical activity have emerged? And what functions and values have they had in the structure of society? Data of research has been collected to do desk study from archaeological, historical, and mythological sources and have been studied by the qualitative method of descriptive-analytical. Based on a holistic view of the culture, the purpose of this paper is to examine various types of physical activity in the structure of the Mesopotamian society from the Initial Urbanization to the end of the New Babylonian period. This study reveals that each of the ritual, martial and entertainment activities have protected the Mesopotamian man against all kinds of injuries, including mental-physical, and has brought him life and security. Physical activity is associated with power and religion, and the majority of them are projected into the world of the gods and the meaning of ritual physical activity is based on mythology. Myths, as the beliefs of ancient peoples, legitimized the king's martial and entertainment activities and emphasized important physical activities in the process of Mesopotamian human life, and reflected the common values of society
