An Alû demon clothed my body as a garment,
Sleep covered me like a net.
They were staring, but my eyes could did not see,
They were open, but my ears could not hear.
Numbness had seized my entire body,
Paralysis had fallen upon my flesh.
Stiffness had apprehended my arms,
Debility had fallen on my legs,
My feet forgot mobility.
In many cultures, sleep paralysis (SP) has been associated with a demonic attack. In Mesopotamia, it was known as Alû. An interesting parallel between ancient Babylonian beliefs and the modern understanding of SP was drawn by researcher Alan Lenzi from Switzerland. He analyzed the poem Ludlul bēl nēmeqi, originally titled I will praise the lord of wisdom (according to its opening words). However, scholars often refer to it as The Poem of the Righteous Sufferer.
However, the researcher explicitly states that he does not equate the demon Alû with SP, nor does he diagnose SP in the main character. He is only interested in understanding the poem within its ancient context and comparing it to contemporary knowledge. Furthermore, the ancient texts themselves likely considered the demon Alû responsible for a broader range of ailments. But when various works mention Alû attacks, they consistently occur in a person’s bed.
The scholar adds that he is not the first to associate the demon Alû with SP. Lenzi mentions other well-known works, such as those by Erasmus Darwin, Guy de Maupassant, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Ernest Hemingway, which likely describe SP. Researchers also find a scene depicting SP in Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov.
Have you come across any works of art that provide an accurate description of phase states (lucid dreaming, SP, etc.)?
The monograph was published in June 2023 and is available on the website of the University of Zurich.
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