Station: [22] Nabataean Religion

For a long time, the Nabataeans pursued a nomadic lifestyle in a relatively large territory and encountered their gods in the natural world: in springs, certain rocks, mountains, in natural phenomena such as rain, thunder and the heavenly bodies. Their religion was strongly localised. That’s why current knowledge about the subject is fragmentary.

That situation changed as a result of cultural contacts -- and the development of the city of Petra into a political and religious centre for the Nabataeans. The god Dushara rose from being a local deity in Petra to being the chief god worshipped by the Nabataeans. Other deities such as Al-Lat or Al-Uzza might also be worshipped. Al-Uzza, the Most Mighty, appears to have been a patron goddess of Petra. However, the Nabataeans didn’t develop a pantheon in the Greek or Roman style, with interrelationships between the gods.

Deities were not only worshipped in temples, but at many sites in and around Petra, for example at what’s known as bétyles. These are recesses cut into the rock and decorated with symbols signifying a divine presence. Up to fifteen hundred of these bétyles have been recorded in Petra, but the absence of inscriptions means they can rarely be assigned to a specific deity. The city’s main temple was the Qasr Bint Firaun, where the Nabataeans’ most important deities, Al-Uzza and Dushara, are thought to have been worshipped. The temple’s modern name, "Palace of the Pharaoh's Daughter", is misleading.

The Egyptian goddess Isis had two small sanctuaries just outside the city, and some rock-cut shrines are also dedicated to her. A great many figurines of Isis and her son Harpocrates also show they were worshipped in Petra. Depictions of Isis mourning her brother and husband Osiris are unusually prominent.