By Jim
Today we’re going to talk about the Utukku. These pesky little buggers with animal heads, claws and horns have
been popping up through history in various forms since there’s been history; Demon, Vampire, Restless Dead;
the Utukku has been in all. So lets start at the beginning…
Lets face it, no one wanted to be a Sumerian, sure their history ranged from the 5th to the 3rd Millennia BC
(Yes Millennia) and they probably invented the wheel and, well, writing but for a chunk of that time they were
looking north and wishing they could be Akkadians (Hey it was good enough for The Rock) or to the future
waiting to be Babylonians. Why did it suck to be Sumerian? Easily answered, their religion was far less
concerned with praising their numerous, fickle gods as it was distracting them from any involvement with
humanity (Pay no attention to that Civilization behind the curtain.). Back in the day, the Utukku were a demon
ghostly kind of thing, the spirit of those not properly buried who returned to pester the living. Keeping in mind
that being a Sumerian sucked, pester takes on a whole new meaning. These things possessed the living and
made them commit crimes; they spread disease and sucked the lives out of young children (although that may
have been cats).
Now our buddy Dwayne Johnson’s people (aka The Akkadians) believed that there were only seven of these
guys running around (see why it was better to be an Akkadian). Admittedly these seven were really really bad.
They were the Underworld’s messenger boys and the Akkadian Underworld was not to be trifled with.
The Utukku are still with us, even recently, Prague had figures in white coveralls with tire prints on their backs
placed at around the city handing out flyers warning about traffic and pedestrian safety. Trying to use images of
the restless dead to help save the living. For more on then check out
http://www.abcprague.com/2007/09/21/utukku-warned-against-dangerous-behaviour-on-the-roads
Pesky Little Buggers: The Utukku
