Fertile Crescent myth series
Mesopotamian
Levantine
Arabian
Mesopotamia
Primordial beings
The great gods
Demigods & heroes
Spirits & monsters
Tales from Babylon
7 Gods who Decree
4 primary: Semitic gods refers to the gods or deities of peoples generally classified as speaking a Semitic language. ... // For the Derek Sherinian album, see Mythology (Derek Sherinian album). ... Image File history File links Palm_tree_symbol. ... Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq, Syria and Turkey. ... In the Levantine pantheon, the Elohim are the sons of El the ancient of days (olam) assembled on the divine holy place, Mount Zephon (Jebel Aqra). ... Arabian mythology is the ancient beliefs of the Arabs. ... Mesopotamia refers to the region now occupied by modern Iraq, eastern Syria, southeastern Turkey, and Southwest Iran. ... The apsû (also known as abzu or engur) was the name for the mythological underground freshwater ocean in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology. ... In Sumerian mythology, the Annuna, the fifty great gods, whose domain appears to be principally but not exclusively the underworld. ... The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem from Babylonia and is among the earliest known literary works. ... In Sumerian mythology, the utukku were a type of spirits or demons that could be either benevolent or evil. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Mesopotamian mythology. ... Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq, Syria and Turkey. ... Anu Enlil Ki Enki	3 sky: In Sumerian mythology and later for Assyrians and Babylonians, Anu (see also An) was a sky-god, the god of heaven, lord of constellations, king of gods, spirits and demons, and dwelt in the highest heavenly regions. ... Enlil (𒀭𒂗𒆤 DEN.LÍL lord of the open field) was the name of a chief deity in Sumerian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (or Ki) was the earth and mother-goddess. ... Ishtar Sin Sama

Enki (𒀭𒂗𒆠 ^DEN.KI "lord of the earth") was a deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology, originally chief God of the city of Eridu. Ishtar is the Assyrian and Babylonian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate northwest Semitic goddess Astarte. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Shamash or Sama, was the common Akkadian name of the sun-god in Babylonia and Assyria, corresponding to Sumerian Utu. ... Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq, Syria and Turkey. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Mesopotamian mythology. ... Eridu (or Eridug) was an ancient city seven miles southwest of Ur . ...

The name Enki is misleading because he was god of the waters and not of earth. The exact meaning of his name is not sure: the common translation is "Lord of the Earth": the Sumerian en is translated as a title equivalent to "lord"; it was originally a title given to the High Priest; ki means "earth"; but there are theories that ki in this name has another origin, possibly kig of unknown meaning, or kur meaning "mound". The name Ea is of Sumerian origin and was written by means of two signs signifying "house" and "water". The Sumerian language ( EME.GIR15 native tongue) of ancient Sumer was spoken in Southern Mesopotamia from at least the 4th millennium BCE. Sumerian was replaced by Akkadian as a spoken language around 1800 BCE, but continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until...

His attributes

Enki as portrayed in various cylinder seals, courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum

Enki was the deity of crafts (=gašam), water (=a, ab), intelligence (=gestú (literally = ear)) and creation (Nudimmud, from "dim mud", to engender, to shape). Image File history File links Enki4. ... Image File history File links Enki4. ... Gilgamesh and Enkidu, cylinder seal impression from Ur III, with oldest type of pictographic cuneiform The Cylinder seals in ancient times, were used to put an impression in clay. ... The centre of the museum was redeveloped in 2000 to become the Great Court, with a tessellated glass roof by Buro Happold and Foster and Partners surrounding the original Reading Room. ... Arts and crafts comprise a whole host of activities and hobbies that are related to making things with ones own hands and skill. ... Water is a chemical substance that is essential to all known forms of life. ... Intelligence is the mental capacity to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend ideas and language, and learn. ... Most of todays monotheistic religions, especially Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, hold the belief that the universe was created by a Supreme Being. ...

The main temple of Enki was called é-engur-a, the "house of the lord of deep waters"; or é-abzu, the "house of Abzu", the under ground area of sweet waters (most probably the sumerians explanation of groundwater). It was in Eridu, which was then located in the wetlands of the Euphrates valley not far from the Persian Gulf. He was the keeper of the holy powers called Me, the gifts of civilised living. Eridu (or Eridug) was an ancient city seven miles southwest of Ur . ... The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name, Arabic: الفرات Al-Furat, Armenian: ÔµÖƒÖ€Õ¡Õ¿ Yeá¹—rat, Hebrew: פְּרָת Perath, Kurdish: Ferat, Azeri: FÉ™rat, Old Persian: Ufrat, Syriac: ܦܪܘܬ or ܦܪܬ Frot or Prâth, Turkish: Fırat, Akkadian: Pu-rat-tu) is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (the other being the... It has been suggested that Persian Gulf States be merged into this article or section. ... In Sumerian mythology, a me (Sumerian, (IPA: ) or Å‹e (IPA: ) or parsu (Akkadian) is one of the decrees of the gods foundational to those social institutions, religious practices, technologies, behaviors, mores, and human conditions that make civilization, as the Sumerians conceived of it, possible. ... Cities are a major hallmark of human civilization. ...

Enki is also the master shaper of the world, God of wisdom and of all magic. He is the lord of the Apsu (Akkadian, Abzu in Sumerian, hence Greek and English Abyss) , the fresh-water ocean of groundwater under the earth. Personification of wisdom (Greek Σοφια) in Celsus Library in Ephesos, Turkey Detail from the Allegory of Wisdom and Strength by Paulo Veronese (c. ... This article refers to the magical system of Aleister Crowley and Thelema. ... In Sumerian mythology Abzu or Apsu was the god of fresh water, also representing the primeval water and sometimes the cosmic abyss. ... Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of geologic formations. ... Earth (IPA: , often referred to as the Earth, Terra, the World or Planet Earth) is the third planet in the solar system in terms of distance from the Sun, and the fifth largest. ...

Early royal inscriptions from the third millennium speak of "the reeds of Enki". Reeds were an important local building material, used for baskets and containers, and collected outside the city walls, where the dead or sick were often carried. This links Enki to the kur or underworld of Sumerian mythology. (2nd millennium – 3rd millennium – 4th millennium – other millennia) The third millennium is the third period of one thousand years in the Common Era. ... // In the study of mythology and religion, the underworld is a generic term approximately equivalent to the lay term afterlife, referring to any place to which newly dead souls go. ... Chaldean mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian, Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies, although Chaldea did not comprehend the whole territory inhabited by those peoples. ...

His symbols included a goat and a fish, symbols at the opposite ends of the year (Pisces and Capricorn) which later combined into a single beast, the Capricorn, which became one of the signs of the zodiac. Enki in Sumerian astronomy also represented the planet Mercury, known for its ability to shift rapidly, and its proximity to the Sun, Sumerian Utu, Akkadian Shamash, the God of Justice. Species See Species and subspecies The goat is a mammal in the genus Capra, which consists of nine species: the Ibex, the West Caucasian Tur, the East Caucasian Tur, the Markhor, and the Wild Goat. ... A giant grouper at the Georgia Aquarium Fish are aquatic vertebrates that are typically cold-blooded; covered with scales, and equipped with two sets of paired fins and several unpaired fins. ... Symbol of Pisces Pisces is an astrological sign, which is associated with the constellation Pisces. ... Capricornus ( or , Unicode: ♑), a name meaning Horned Goat or That which has horns like a goats in Latin, is one of the constellations of the zodiac. ... Capricorn may refer to: The constellation Capricornus, one of the constellations of the zodiac The astrological sign Capricorn represented by this constellation The Tropic of Capricorn Tropic of Capricorn is also the name of a novel by Henry Miller Capricorn, a character and villain of the Ink trilogy by Cornelia... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. ... In Sumerian mythology, Utu is the offspring of Nanna and Ningal and is the god of the sun and of justice. ... Shamash or Sama, was the common Akkadian name of the sun-god in Babylonia and Assyria, corresponding to Sumerian Utu. ... J.L. Urban, statue of Lady Justice at court building in Olomouc, Czech Republic Justice is the ideal, morally correct state of things and persons. ...

Enki's symbol is the caduceus (2 serpents on an eagle winged stick) is one of the most ancient of symbols. The symbolism in the caduceus reflects the Kabbalah Tree of Life ^{[citation needed]}.

The caduceus connects Enki with Apollo in Greek mythology(and Poseidon in many ways); Moses (Numbers 21:8, 9) and Jesus Christ (who becomes The Caduceus - anyone who looks upon Him is healed, John 3:14). Lycian Apollo, early Imperial Roman copy of a fourth century Greek original (Louvre Museum) In Greek and Roman mythology, Apollo (Ancient Greek , Apóllōn; or , Apellōn), the ideal of the kouros, was the archer-god of medicine and healing, light, truth, archery and also a bringer of death... Neptune reigns in the city centre, Bristol, formerly the largest port in England outside London. ... Moses with the Tablets, 1659, by Rembrandt This article is about the Biblical figure. ...

Enki, the creator of Humankind

In Sumerian myth, Enki lay asleep in the depths of the primeval ocean, unable to hear the lament of the gods as they complained about the difficulty of cultivating wheat and making bread. Eventually the primeval sea, Nammu brought the gods' tears to Enki. Enki, as the god of wisdom, was expected to devise a solution, so he solicited Nammu and the birth-goddess Ninmah to use clay to form the first men, who would toil and farm so that the gods could relax. [2] Chaldean mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian, Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies, although Chaldea did not comprehend the whole territory inhabited by those peoples. ... In Sumerian mythology, Nammu is probably the first of the ancient deities of Sumer — at least in the process of creation, if not in actual chronology. ... In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (or Ki) was the earth and mother-goddess. ...

In later Akkadian or Babylonian Cosmology there were six generations of Gods that led to the creation of the Younger (Igigi) divinities of the Anunaki (Anu = heaven, Na = And, Ki = Earth). In the seventh generation (Akkadian "Shappatu" hence the Hebrew Shabbath => English Sabbath), the younger Gods went on strike, put down their tools and refused to keep the creation working. In the Babylonian creation myth the Enuma Elish, Abzu, the water lord, threatens to take back the creation with a universal flood, but Enki averts the threat by imprisoning Abzu beneath the Earth. Kingu, his son, informs his mother, Abzu's wife, the serpentine Tiamat (Ti = Life, Ama = mother, Biblical tehwom = the deeps), and in anger she threatens to take back the whole of creation. The Gods gather in terror, but Enlil (his place in the Enuma Elish is later taken by Enki's son Marduk) subdues and slays Tiamat with the arrows of his winds which he shoots down her throat. Akkadian language city of Akkad or Agad Akkadian Empire Sargon of Akkad the Amarna letters and Amarna Letters EA 296(Yahtiru) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Babylonia was an ancient state in Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... // Cosmology, from the Greek: κοσμολογία (cosmologia, κόσμος (cosmos) order + λογια (logia) discourse) is the study of the Universe in its totality, and by extension, humanitys place in it. ... Igigi was a Babylonian King who ruled from 2257 to (unknown) BCE. He fought for the power in Akkad after the death of Shar-kali-sharri. ... Divinity has a number of related uses in the field of religious belief and study. ... The Anunaki, from Anu = Heaven/Sky, na = and, Ki = Earth, was the name given to the Sumerian, and later Babylonian pantheon. ... Hebrew redirects here. ... The shabbos table is set: two covered challahs, a kiddush cup, two candles, and flowers. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... This article concerns the Sabbath in Christianity. ... Enûma Elish is the creation epic of Babylonian mythology. ... Kingu, also spelled Qingu, was a demon in Babylonian mythology, and the consort of the goddess Tiamat before she was slain by Marduk. ... Tiamat is a mother goddess in Babylonian and Sumerian mythology, and a central figure in the Enûma Elish creation epic. ... Tehwom in the Bible means the depths or the deeps. It is cognate with Babylonian Tiamat, the creatrix Goddess of Salt Water, who with her freshwater partner Apsu/Abzu, was the original creators of the Babylonian cosmos, mother and father of Lahm and Lahmu. ... Marduk (Sumerian spelling in Akkadian: AMAR.UTU solar calf; Biblical: Merodach) was the Babylonian name of a late generation god from ancient Mesopotamia and patron deity of the city of Babylon, who, when Babylon permanently became the political center of the Euphrates valley in the time of Hammurabi (18th century...

But the problem created by the "strike of the Gods" remains, how is creation to continue? Enki proposes that the Gods make humankind as their servant, and give humans the task of keeping creation going. It is agreed, and Enki forms humanity out of the red earth (Hebrew Adamah), mingled with the red blood of the God Kingu, slain for his part in Tiamat's attack. Enlil fills his lungs with air (Hebrew ruach, Greek pneuma, Latin spiritus), and humans are alive. In this way, Humanity is given the task of maintaining the balance of nature and keeping the created order in place. Michelangelos The Creation of Adam, a fresco on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, shows God creating Adam, with Eve in His arm. ... In Rabelais Pantagruel, Ruach is the Isle of Winds. ... Pneumatology refers to the study of spiritual beings and phenomena, especially the interactions between humans and God. ... The English word spirit comes from the Latin spiritus, meaning breath. ...

Another myth, "Enki and Adapa", tells of how humanity loses the chance at immortality. Adapa, who is Abgallu (Ab = Water, Gal = Great, Lu = Man) (Akkadian Apkallu), Enki's advisor, to the first king of Eridu, Allulim, inadvertently breaks the wings of the South Wind, Ninlil (See Lilith) (Nin = Lady, Lil = Air), daughter of Anu (the Heavens) and wife to Enlil, King of the Gods. In terror at the thought of their retribution, Adapa seeks the advice of Enki. Enki advises that Adapa make a deep and sincere atonement, but advises Adapa to eat nothing given to him by the Gods, as he will probably be given the food of death, out of their anger at his deeds. Adapa takes Enki's advice, but the Gods, so impressed by the sincerity of Adapa's sorrow and grief as to what he did, offered instead the fruit of immortality. Adapa remembering Enki's words, refuses, and so misses out on the chance of eternal life. Ninlil, first called Sud, is the daughter of Nammu and An in Sumerian mythology. ... It has been suggested that Lilith (Qliphoth) be merged into this article or section. ... In Polytheistic systems that are slowly evolving towards monotheism, there is a tendency for one divinity, usually a male, to achieve pre-eminence as King of the Gods. This tendency is paralleled with the growth of hierarchical systems of power, in which a monarch eventually comes to assume ultimate authority...

Enki, restorer of balance

Enki was not perfect, as god of water he had a penchant for beer and as god of semen he had a string of incestuous affairs. In the epic Enki and Ninhursag, he and his consort Ninhursag had a daughter Ninsar. When Ninhursag left him he came upon and then had intercourse with Ninsar (Lady Greenery) who gave birth to Ninkurra (Lady Fruitfulness or Lady Pasture). A selection of bottled beers A selection of cask beers Beer is the worlds oldest [1] and most popular [2] alcoholic beverage, selling more than 133 billion litres (35 billion gallons) per year. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (or Ki) was the earth and mother-goddess. ... Ninmu, The goddess of plants. ...

A second time, he had intercourse with Ninkurra, who gave birth to Uttu (= Weaver or Spider). In Sumerian mythology, Utu is the offspring of Nanna and Ningal and is the god of the sun and of justice. ...

A third time Enki succumbs to temptation, and attempts seduction of Uttu. Upset about Enki's reputation, Uttu consults Ninhursag, who, upset at the promiscuous nature of her spouse, advises Uttu to avoid the riverbanks. In another version of this myth Ninhursag takes Enki's semen and plants it in the earth where seven plants rapidly germinate. With his two-faced servant and steward Isimud, Enki finds the plants and immediately starts consuming their fruit. Unaccountably he falls ill in his jaw, his teeth, his mouth, his throat, his limbs and his rib. The Gods are at a loss to know what to do, until Ninhursag's sacred fox fetches the Goddess.

Ninhursag relents and takes Enki's Ab (water, or semen) into her body, and gives birth to Gods of healing of each part of the body. The last one - Ninti, Sumerian = Lady Rib, is also a pun on Lady Life, a title of Ninhursag herself. The story symbolically reflects the way in which life is brought forth through the addition of water to the land, and once it grows, water is required to bring plants to fruit. It also counsels balance and responsibility, nothing to excess.

Ninti, is given the title of the mother of all living, and was a title given to the later Hurrian Goddess Kheba. This is also the title given to Eve (= Hebrew Chavvah), the Aramaic Hawwah, who was supposedly made from the Rib of Adam, in a strange reflection of the Sumerian myth. The word Hurrian may refer to: An ancient people of the Near East, the Hurrians. ... Statue of Ceres, the Roman goddess of the agriculture A goddess is a female deity, in contrast with a male deity known as a god. Many cultures have goddesses, sometimes alone, but more often as part of a larger pantheon that includes both the conventional genders and in some cases... The mother goddess of the Hurrians. ... Michelangelos The Creation of Eve, a fresco on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, shows God creating Eve from the side of Adam. ...

Enki, Confuses Earth's Languages

From the Sumerian epic entitled "Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta." There, in a speech of Enmerkar, an incantation is pronounced that has a mythical introduction. Kramer's translation is as follows:

Once upon a time there was no snake, there was no scorpion,
There was no hyena, there was no lion,
There was no wild dog, no wolf,
There was no fear, no terror,
Man had no rival.

In those days, the lands of Subur (and) Hamazi,
Harmony-tongued Sumer, the great land of the decrees of princeship,
Uri, the land having all that is appropriate,
The land Martu, resting in security,
The whole universe, the people in unison
To Enlil in one tongue [spoke].

(Then) Enki, the lord of abundance (whose) commands are trustworthy,
The lord of wisdom, who understands the land,
The leader of the gods,
Endowed with wisdom, the lord of Eridu
Changed the speech in their mouths, [brought] contention into it,
Into the speech of man that (until then) had been one.

Enki, Champion of Humankind

According to Sumerian mythology, Enki also assisted humanity to survive the Deluge designed to kill them. In the Legend of Atrahasis Enlil, the jealous king of the Gods sets out to eliminate humanity, whose noise is offensive to his ears. He successively sends drought, famine and plague to eliminate humanity, but Enki thwarts his half-brother's plans by teaching Atrahasis irrigation, granaries and medicine. Humans again proliferate a fourth time. Enraged Enlil, convenes a Council of Deities and gets them to promise not to tell humankind that he plans their total annihilation. Enki, doesn't tell Atrahasis, but tells of Enlil's plan to the walls of Atrahasis' reed hut, thus covertly rescuing the man Atrahasis, or Ziusudra by either instructing him to build some kind of a boat for his family, or by bringing him into the heavens in a magic boat. After the seven day Deluge, the flood hero, Utnapishtim, Atrahasis or Ziusudra frees a swallow, a raven and a dove in an effort to find if the flood waters have receded. On the boat landing, a sacrifice is organized to the Gods. Enlil is angry his will has been thwarted yet again, and Enki is named as the culprit. As God of what we would call ecology, Enki explains that Enlil is unfair to punish the guiltless Atrahasis for the sins of his fellows, and secures a promise that the Gods will not eliminate humankind if they practice birth control and live within the means of the natural world. The threat is made, however, that if humans do not honour their side of the covenant the Gods will be free to wreak havoc once again. This is apparently the oldest surviving source of the Noah's Ark biblical tale and other parallel Middle Eastern Deluge myths. The 18th century BC Akkadian Atra-Hasis epic, named after its human hero, contains both a creation and a flood account, and is one of three surviving Babylonian flood stories. ... Enlil (𒀭𒂗𒆤 DEN.LÍL lord of the open field) was the name of a chief deity in Sumerian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim (also known as the Sumerian character Ziusudra) is the wise king of the Sumerian city state of Shuruppak who, along with his wife, whose name was not mentioned in the story, survived a great flood sent by Enlil to drown every living thing on... In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim (also known as the Sumerian character Ziusudra) is the wise king of the Sumerian city state of Shuruppak who, along with his wife, whose name was not mentioned in the story, survived a great flood sent by Enlil to drown every living thing on... The 18th century BC Akkadian Atra-Hasis epic, named after its human hero, contains both a creation and a flood account, and is one of three surviving Babylonian flood stories. ... Utnapishtim, whose name means he found life or he who saw life, is also known as Atrahasis, meaning the exceptional wise one. In the Akkadian sources, a wise citizen of Shurrupak on the banks of the Euphrates, or Ziusudra in the Sumerian poems. ... Covenant, in its most general sense, is a word for a solemn promise or similar undertaking. ... This article is about the vessel described in the Hebrew scriptures. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... The Deluge by Gustave Doré. The story of a Great Flood sent by a deity or deities to destroy civilization as an act of divine retribution is a widespread theme in myths. ...

His portrayal

Enki was considered a god of life and replenishment, and was often depicted with two streams of water emanating from his shoulders, one the Tigris, the other the Euphrates. Alongside him were trees symbolising the male and female aspects of nature, each holding the male and female aspects of the 'Life Essence', which he, as apparent alchemist of the gods, would masterfully mix to create several beings that would live upon the face of the earth.

In character Enki is not a joker or trickster God, he is never a cheat, although fooled he is not a fool. Enki uses his magic for the good of others when called upon to help either a God, a Goddess or a Human. Enki is always true to his own essence as a masculine nurturer. He is fundamentally a trouble-shooter God, and avoids or disarms those who bring conflict and death to the world. He is the mediator whose compassion and sense of humour breaks and disarms the wrath of his stern half-brother, Enlil, king of the Gods. He is the Challenger who tests the limits of Inanna in the myth Enki and Inanna and the Me and then concedes graciously his defeat by the young goddess of Love and War, by strengthening the bonds between Eridu and her city of Uruk. So he becomes the Empowerer of Inanna. Joker card, lower left. ... The trickster figure Reynard the Fox as depicted in an 1869 childrens book by Michel Rodange. ... Look up cheat in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A fool can refer to: A foolish person. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... It has been suggested that Idiot compassion be merged into this article or section. ... Enlil (𒀭𒂗𒆤 DEN.LÍL lord of the open field) was the name of a chief deity in Sumerian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... Inanna was one of the most revered of goddesses among later Sumerian mythology. ... Eridu (or Eridug) was an ancient city seven miles southwest of Ur . ... Uruk (Sumerian Unug, Biblical Erech, Greek Orchoë and Arabic وركاء Warka), was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates, on the line of the ancient Nil canal, in a region of marshes, about 140 miles (230 km) SSE from Baghdad. ... EmPower is a line of products by Astronics Advanced Electronic Systems for providing power to aircraft seats. ...

He is the lord of the Apsu (Akkadian, Abzu in Sumerian, hence Greek and English Abyss) , the fresh-water ocean of groundwater under the earth. In Sumerian mythology Abzu or Apsu was the god of fresh water, also representing the primeval water and sometimes the cosmic abyss. ... Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of geologic formations. ... Earth (IPA: , often referred to as the Earth, Terra, the World or Planet Earth) is the third planet in the solar system in terms of distance from the Sun, and the fifth largest. ...

Enki has been said to be:

"The most complete and modern mirror of masculine wholeness in Mesopotamia and world religion. His values and attributes are timeless, and it is not surprising to see that He is one of the most beloved gods of Mesopotamia. How can He be so whole? Because in Him the passionate and joyous Lover, the Mystic, the Strategist, the Sorcerer, the Divine Manager, the Keeper of World Order and Rescuer of Humankind and Gods alike are all One.

Enki is ... the gallant, impetuous, energetic Lord of Wisdom, the Seeker after truth, and Master Adept in sorcery, enchantment and seduction." [3]

Enki's Influence

Enki and later Ea were apparently depicted, sometimes, like Adapa, as a man covered with the skin of a fish, and this representation, as likewise the name of his temple E-apsu, "house of the watery deep", points decidedly to his original character as a god of the waters (see Oannes). Of his cult at Eridu, which goes back to the oldest period of Mesopotamian history, nothing definite is known except that his temple was also associated with Ninhursag's temple which was called Esaggila = "the lofty sacred house" (E = house, Sag = sacred, Ila = High (or (Akkadian) = Ila (Goddess))), a name shared with Marduk's temple in Babylon, pointing to a staged tower or Ziggurat (as with the temple of Enlil at Nippur, which was known as Ekur ("Kur" = mountain "E" = house), and that incantations, involving ceremonial rites in which water as a sacred element played a prominent part, formed a feature of his worship. This seems also implicated in the epic of the hieros gamos or sacred marriage of Enki and Ninhursag, which seems an etiological myth of the fertilisation of the dry ground by the coming of irrigation water (from Sumerian = 'A, Ab' = water, or semen). The early inscriptions of Urukagina in fact go so far as to suggest that the divine pair, Enki and Ninki, were the progenators of seven pairs of Gods, including Enki as God of Eridu, Enlil of Nippur and Su'en (or Sin) of Ur, and were themselves the children of An (sky, heaven) and Ki (earth) [4]. The pool of the Abzu at the front of his temple, was adopted also at the temple to Nanna (Akkadian Sin) the Moon, at Ur, and spread throughout the Middle East. It remains, as the sacred pool at Mosques, and as the Baptismal font in Christian Churches. Oannes, was the name given by the 3rd century BC Babylonian writer Berossus to a mythical being who taught mankind wisdom. ... This article does not discuss cult in its original sense of religious practice; for that usage see Cult (religious practice). ... Dur-Untash, or Choqa Zanbil, built in 13th century BC by Untash Napirisha and located near Susa, Iran is one of the worlds best-preserved ziggurats. ... Enlil (𒀭𒂗𒆤 DEN.LÍL lord of the open field) was the name of a chief deity in Sumerian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... The city of Nippur [nipoor] (Sumerian Nibru, Akkadian Nibbur) was one of the most ancient of all the Babylonian cities of which we have any knowledge, the special seat of the worship of the Sumerian god, Enlil, ruler of the cosmos subject to An alone. ... The epic is a broadly defined genre of poetry, and one of the major forms of narrative literature. ... Jupiter and Juno, by Agostino Carracci Hieros Gamos (Greek ιερός γάμος, holy wedding) or Hierogamy (Greek ιερογαμία, again holy wedding) means a coupling (sometimes marriage) of a god and a man or a woman, often having a symbolic meaning and generally conducted in the spring. ... Matrimony redirects here. ... Etiology (alternately aetiology, aitiology) is the study of causation. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Eridu (or Eridug) was an ancient city seven miles southwest of Ur . ... Enlil (𒀭𒂗𒆤 DEN.LÍL lord of the open field) was the name of a chief deity in Sumerian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... The city of Nippur [nipoor] (Sumerian Nibru, Akkadian Nibbur) was one of the most ancient of all the Babylonian cities of which we have any knowledge, the special seat of the worship of the Sumerian god, Enlil, ruler of the cosmos subject to An alone. ... This article is about sin in the context of morality. ... UR, Ur, or ur can refer to several things: The City of Ur Úr (letter) of the Ogham alphabet Ur (rune) ᚢ of the runic alphabets Royal Game of Ur Ur, the first known continent Ur- is a German prefix. ... Nanna is the name of two deities: God of the moon in Sumerian mythology and Nanna, the wife of Balder in Norse mythology There is also a kind of Corsican music called nanna. ... Akkadian language city of Akkad or Agad Akkadian Empire Sargon of Akkad the Amarna letters and Amarna Letters EA 296(Yahtiru) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... This article is about sin in the context of morality. ... UR, Ur, or ur can refer to several things: The City of Ur Úr (letter) of the Ogham alphabet Ur (rune) ᚢ of the runic alphabets Royal Game of Ur Ur, the first known continent Ur- is a German prefix. ... A mosque is a place of worship for followers of the Islamic faith. ... Baptismal font in Magdeburg Cathedral, Germany A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for the baptism of children and adults. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Christianity. ... St. ...

Whether Eridu at one time also played an important political role in Sumerian affairs is not certain, though not improbable. At all events the prominence of "Ea" led, as in the case of Nippur, to the survival of Eridu as a sacred city, long after it had ceased to have any significance as a political centre. Myths in which Ea figures prominently have been found in Assurbanipal's library, and in the Hattusas archive in Hittite Anatolia. As Ea, Enki had a wide influence outside of Sumeria, being equated with El (at Ugarit) and possibly Yah (at Ebla) in the Canaanite 'ilhm pantheon, he is also found in Hurrian and Hittite mythology, as a God of contracts, and is particularly favourable to humankind. Amongst the Western Semites it is thought that Ea was equated to the term *hyy (Life)[5], referring to Enki's waters as life giving. Enki/Ea is essentially a god of civilization, wisdom and culture. He was also the creator and protector of man, and of the world in general. Traces of this view appear in the Marduk epic celebrating the achievements of this god and the close connection between the Ea cult at Eridu and that of Marduk. The correlation between the two rise from two other important connections: (1) that the name of Marduk's sanctuary at Babylon bears the same name, Esaggila, as that of a temple in Eridu, and (2) that Marduk is generally termed the son of Ea, who derives his powers from the voluntary abdication of the father in favour of his son. Accordingly, the incantations originally composed for the Ea cult were re-edited by the priests of Babylon and adapted to the worship of Marduk, and, similarly, the hymns to Marduk betray traces of the transfer of attributes to Marduk which originally belonged to Ea. Assurbanipal in a relief from the north palace at Nineveh There were several Assyrian kings named Assur-bani-pal, also spelled Asurbanipal, Assurbanipal (most commonly), Ashurbanipal and Ashshurbanipal, but the best known was Assurbanipal IV.  Ashurbanipal, or Assurbanipal, (reigned 668 - 627 BCE), the son of Esarhaddon and Naqia-Zakutu... Hattusa (also known as Hattusas or Hattush) was the capital of the Hittite Empire. ... For other uses of the word Archive, see Archive (disambiguation) Archives refers to a collection of records, and also refers to the location in which these records are kept. ... Relief of Suppiluliuma II, last known king of the Hittite Empire The Hittites were an ancient people who spoke an Indo-European language, and established a kingdom centered at Hattusa (Hittite URU) in north-central Anatolia from the 18th century BC. In the 14th century BC, the Hittite empire was... Anatolia lies east of the Bosphorus, between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Anatolia is a peninsula of Western Asia which forms the greater part of the Asian portion of Turkey, as opposed to the European portion (Thrace, or traditionally Rumelia). ... EL or El may mean: Electroluminescence, an optical and electrical phenomenon where a material such as a natural blue diamond emits light when an electric current is passed through it. ... Entrance to the Palace of Ugarit Ugarit (modern site Ras Shamra رأس شمرة; in Arabic) 35°35´ N; 35°45´E) was an ancient cosmopolitan port city, sited on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria a few kilometers north of the modern city of Latakia. ... In Egyptian mythology, Iah was a lunar deity. ... Ebla is not to be confused with Elba. ... Canaanite mythology are the myths and god tales of ancient Canaan. ... Elohim (אֱלוֹהִים , אלהים) is a Hebrew word which expresses concepts of divinity. ... Pantheon may refer to: Buildings: Pantheon, Rome, a temple built in 125 AD to all Roman gods, now a Christian church. ... The word Hurrian may refer to: An ancient people of the Near East, the Hurrians. ... Hittite can refer to either: The ancient Anatolian people called the Hittites; or The Hittite language, an ancient Indo-European language they spoke. ... Marduk (Sumerian spelling in Akkadian: AMAR.UTU solar calf; Biblical: Merodach) was the Babylonian name of a late generation god from ancient Mesopotamia and patron deity of the city of Babylon, who, when Babylon permanently became the political center of the Euphrates valley in the time of Hammurabi (18th century...

It is, however, as the third figure in the triad (the two other members of which were Anu and Enlil) that Ea acquires his permanent place in the pantheon. To him was assigned the control of the watery element, and in this capacity he becomes the shar apsi, i.e. king of the Apsu or "the deep." The Apsu was figured as the abyss of water beneath the earth, and since the gathering place of the dead, known as Aralu, was situated near the confines of the Apsu, he was also designated as En-Ki, i.e. "lord of that which is below", in contrast to Anu, who was the lord of the "above" or the heavens. The cult of Ea extended throughout Babylonia and Assyria. We find temples and shrines erected in his honour, e.g. at Nippur, Girsu, Ur, Babylon, Sippar and Nineveh, and the numerous epithets given to him, as well as the various forms under which the god appears, alike bear witness to the popularity which he enjoyed from the earliest to the latest period of Babylonian-Assyrian history. The consort of Ea, known as Ninhursag, Ki, Uriash Damkina, "lady of that which is below," or Damgalnunna, "great lady of the waters," originally was fully equal with Ea but in more patriarchal Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian times plays a part merely in association with her lord. Generally, however, Enki seems to be a reflection of pre-patriarchal times, in which relations between the sexes were characterised by a situation of greater gender equality. In his character, he prefers persuasion to conflict, which he seeks to avoid if possible. In Sumerian mythology and later for Assyrians and Babylonians, Anu (see also An) was a sky-god, the god of heaven, lord of constellations, king of gods, spirits and demons, and dwelt in the highest heavenly regions. ... Enlil (𒀭𒂗𒆤 DEN.LÍL lord of the open field) was the name of a chief deity in Sumerian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... Enki was a god in the Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea. ... For other uses, see Assyria (disambiguation). ... UR, Ur, or ur can refer to several things: The City of Ur Úr (letter) of the Ogham alphabet Ur (rune) ᚢ of the runic alphabets Royal Game of Ur Ur, the first known continent Ur- is a German prefix. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (or Ki) was the earth and mother-goddess. ... In Sumerian mythology, Ninhursag (or Ki) was the earth and mother-goddess. ... Patriarchy (from Greek: pater (genitive form patris, showing the root patr-), meaning father and arché meaning rule) is the anthropological term used to define the sociological condition where male members of a society tend to predominate in positions of power; with the more powerful the position, the more likely it... Babylon is the Greek variant of Akkadian Babilu, an ancient city in Mesopotamia (modern Al Hillah, Iraq). ... Feminism is a social theory and political movement primarily informed and motivated by the experience of women. ...

"Ea" and West Semitic deities

In 1964, a team of Italian archaeologists under the direction of Paolo Matthiae of the University of Rome La Sapienza performed a series of excavations of material from the third-millennium BCE city of Ebla. Much of the written material found in these digs was later translated by Dr. Giovanni Pettinato.^[1] Among other conclusions, he found a tendency among the inhabitants of Ebla to replace the name of El, king of the Gods of the Canaanite Pantheon (found in names such as Mikael), with Yah (as in Mikiah). Jean Bottero^[2] and many others have suggested that Yah in this case is a West Semitic (Canaanite) way of saying Ea, Enki's Akkadian name. Paolo Matthiae is Professor of Archaeology and History of Art of the Ancient Near East in the University of Rome La Sapienza; he has been Director of the Ebla Expedition since 1963 -in fact its discoverer-, and has published many articles and books about Ebla, and about the History of... University of Rome La Sapienza (Università della Sapienza) is the most ancient university of Rome, Italy. ... Ebla is not to be confused with Elba. ... Ebla is not to be confused with Elba. ... EL or El may mean: Electroluminescence, an optical and electrical phenomenon where a material such as a natural blue diamond emits light when an electric current is passed through it. ... Canaan (Canaanite: כנען, Hebrew: , Greek: Χαναάν whence Latin: Canaan; and from Hebrew, Aramaic: whence Arabic: ‎). Canaan is an ancient term for a region approximating present-day Israel(94%.) and West Bank and Gaza plus adjoining coastal lands and parts of Lebanon and Syria. ... A pantheon (Greek: παν, pan, all + θεός, theos, god), is a set of all the gods of a particular religion or mythology, such as the gods of Hinduism, Greek mythology, Norse mythology, and Egyptian mythology. ... Akkadian language city of Akkad or Agad Akkadian Empire Sargon of Akkad the Amarna letters and Amarna Letters EA 296(Yahtiru) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Yah, Yahu, or Yaw becomes the God of the Waters, of Yamm (the Sea) and Nahar (the Rivers) in Levantine Mythology, contesting with THE LORD Hadad, the storm God (the Canaanite divinity equivalent to Enlil), for supreme power. It has been suggested that this God - Canaanite Yah (Ea/Enki), unified with the Aramaic "Mother of all Living" - the Goddess Hawwah (Akkadian Ninhursag), into a single androgynous creator divinity, may be the origin of the Tetragrammaton YHWH (Yahweh, from Yah and Hawwah). This would explain Yahweh's role as Creator, the God who made Humankind, and the God who saved Noah from the Flood, all attributes of Enki. Thus it may be that behind Yahweh himself, lies the nature and character of the earlier Sumerian God. Yamm was the god of oceans, seas, rivers and lakes in several old semitic religions, for instance in Phoenicia, Ancient Egypt and for the Canaanites. ... The Nahar is the name of the currency that Chechen separatists planned for Chechen Republic. ... Haddad - בעל הדד - حداد (in Ugaritic Haddu) was a very important northwest Semitic storm god and rain god, cognate in name and origin with the Akkadian god Adad. ...

Some of this article was originally from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. Supporters contend that the Eleventh Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica (1910-1911) represents the sum of human knowledge at the beginning of the 20th century; indeed, it was advertised as such. ...

Enki in popular culture

• In the science fiction book Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson, Enki is portrayed as a proto-hacker or as Stephenson puts it "a neurolinguistic hacker"; his ability to manipulate people through language culminated in him introducing sentience to mankind.
• According to Zecharia Sitchin (q.v.), Enki was an alien genetic engineer responsible for the creation of mankind. His theories are not accepted by the majority of historians, mythologists and scientists.
• Norwegian black metal band Burzum wrote a song called "Ea, Lord of the Depths".
• In the Outlanders series novel Dragoneye by Mark Ellis aka James Axler, Enki appears as a crippled reptilian, the last of the Anunnaki.
• In the show and book Talking Cock, comedian Richard Herring describes Enki in detail, and repeatedly refers to him throughout.
• The largest Plumbing & Irrigation chain in Australia, Reece ,have introduced a range of irrigation products called "Enki", with the outlook of water saving.
• In the Doctor Who Virgin New Adventures novel Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel, the Doctor takes the identity of Enki after being mistaken for the god by Gilgamesh.

Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... A chained book in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University A book is a collection of paper, parchment or other material with text, pictures, or both written on them, bound together along one edge, usually within covers. ... Snow Crash is a science fiction novel written by Neal Stephenson and published in 1992. ... Neal Town Stephenson (born October 31, 1959) is an American writer, known primarily for his science fiction works in the postcyberpunk genre with a penchant for explorations of society, mathematics, currency, and the history of science. ... Hackers are sometimes portrayed as mysterious and strange. ... Neurolinguistics is the science concerned with the human brain mechanisms underlying the comprehension, production, and abstract knowledge of language, be it spoken, signed, or written. ... Sentience is a capacity for basic consciousness—the ability to feel or perceive, not necessarily including the faculty of self-awareness. ... Zecharia Sitchins photograph from The 12th Planet Zecharia Sitchin (born 1922)[1] is a best-selling author (The 12th Planet now in its record 45th printing in the U.S.) of books promoting the ancient astronaut theory of mankinds origins. ... This article is about the musical genre. ... Burzum began in 1987 as a prominent Norwegian black metal solo project of Varg Vikernes (born Kristian Vikernes). ... Outlanders is a series of science-fiction novels published by Gold Eagle, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises. ... Mark Ellis can refer to different people: Mark Ellis: a record producer Mark Ellis: a Major League Baseball player Mark Ellis: a writer This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... James Axler is a pseudonym used by the publishing company Gold Eagle Books, a division of Harlequin Enterprises . ... Ancient Sumerian seal depicting the Annunaki For the fictional Anunnaki from Demon: The Fallen, see Annunaki (White Wolf). ... Print version of the Coxford Singlish Dictionary Talking Cock is a Singaporean satirical and humour website. ... Richard Herring performing his show Someone Likes Yoghurt at the Pleasance Theatre, Edinburgh, during the 2005 Edinburgh Festival Fringe Richard Keith Herring (born July 12, 1967) is an British comedian and writer formerly best known as part of Lee and Herring, a double act with Stewart Lee. ... Doctor Who is a long-running British science fiction television programme (and 1996 television movie) produced by the BBC about the adventures of a mysterious time-traveller known as The Doctor, who explores time and space with his companions, solving problems and righting wrongs. ... The Virgin New Adventures (often referred to simply as NAs within fandom) were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who, which had been cancelled in 1989, continuing the story of the series from where the television programme had left off. ... John Peel (born 1954) is a British writer, best known for his books connected to several television series. ... Gilgamesh, according to the Sumerian king list, was the fifth king of Uruk (Early Dynastic II, first dynasty of Uruk), the son of Lugalbanda, ruling circa 2650 BC. Legend has it that his mother was Ninsun, a goddess. ...

Works cited

References

• Jacobsen, Thorkild (1976) "Treasures of Darkness; A History of Mesopotamian Religion", (Yale University Press, London, New Heaven) ISBN 0-300-02291-3
• Bottero, Jean (2004) "Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia" (University Of Chicago Press) ISBN 0-226-06718-1
• Kramer, Samuel Noah (1998) "Sumerian Mythology: A Study of Spiritual and Literary Achievement in the Third Millennium B.C." (University of Pennsylvania Press; Revised edition) ISBN 0-8122-1047-6
• Kramer, S.N. and Maier, J.R. (1989) "Mayths of Enki, the Crafty God" (Oxford)
• Galter, H.D. (1981) "Der Gott Ea/Enki in der akkadischen Überlieferung" (Graz)

See also

• Mesopotamian mythology
• Mesopotamia
• Ancient Near East
• Capricornus

Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq, Syria and Turkey. ... Mesopotamia refers to the region now occupied by modern Iraq, eastern Syria, southeastern Turkey, and Southwest Iran. ... Overview map of the Ancient Near East The term Ancient Near East or Ancient Orient encompasses the early civilizations predating Classical Antiquity in the region roughly corresponding to that described by the modern term Middle East (Egypt, Iraq, Turkey), during the time roughly spanning the Bronze Age from the rise... Capricornus ( or , Unicode: ♑), a name meaning Horned Goat or That which has horns like a goats in Latin, is one of the constellations of the zodiac. ...

External links

AncientNearEast.Net http://www.ancientneareast.net/religion_mesopotamian/gods/enki_ea.html

Peeter Espak, Ancient Near Eastern gods Enki and Ea: Diachronical Analysis of Texts and Images from the Earliest Sources to the Neo-Sumerian Period : master's thesis / http://www.utlib.ee/ekollekt/diss/mag/2006/b18272897/espakpeeter.pdf