This semester I am taking a course on Ancient Mesopotamia, and it is absolutely fascinating to catch a glimpse of the ancient world through the eyes of the Sumerians. I had such a hard time picking just one god to post about since they are all so interesting. This week, I will introduce you all to Enki (thank you to Alex for suggesting a Mesopotamian god for this post!).
For reference, Sumerian was the language spoken by southern Mesopotamians whereas Akkadian was the language spoken by northern Mesopotamians. I am assuming that “Babylonian” means a language in southern Mesopotamia at a later date in Mesopotamian history because Babylonia was in Sumer (southern Mesopotamia); I am not 100% sure about this.
Names: Enki (𒀭𒂗𒆠; Sumerian), Ea (Akkadian). He is also sometimes known as Nudimmud (Babylonian), Enkig, or Niššiku.
Region: Mesopotamia. Enki is most associated with the southern Mesopotamian city, Eridu, which is in modern-day Iraq.
God of: Enki is the god of magic, wisdom, freshwater, mischief, crafts, and healing (to name a few). He is also the creator of humanity.
Appearance: Enki is usually depicted as a bearded man, wearing a horned cap and long robes. Often, he is surrounded by flowing water.
Origin Story: Enki is the son of An in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology, but later Babylonian texts state Enki is the son of Apsu and Tiamat. Enki is also known to be the son of Nammu, the primordial mother goddess. He has a twin brother named Adad (Ishkur) who is the god of weather and storms. Other than that, there’s not much of an origin story for Enki.
Associations and other important information: Two of Enki’s associations that I think are most interesting are with exorcisms and cleaners. Enki is associated with exorcisms as he retains all of the knowledge used by diviners (bārû) and priests (ašipū) to rid of evil. In a recent homework assignment, an incantation calls Ea “the exorcist.” Also, because Enki is associated with the abzu (apsû; freshwater), he is also the patron deity of cleaners (yes, people who clean).
Enki first appears in ancient sources from the Early Dynastic Period IIIa, around 2600-2350 BCE; however, shrines at Eridu have been recently excavated and date back to 5400 BCE. Enki is the father of several important Mesopotamian gods and goddesses such as Marduk, Nanshe, and Inanna. He is also the father of Abu, Nintulla, Ninsitu, Ninkasi, Azimua, and Emshag.
Enki is accredited with being the creator of humanity and is an important character in the Enuma Elish (the Babylonian Creation Epic), The Epic of Gilgamesh, and Atrahasis (Babylonian version of the Flood). Within the Enuma Elish, Enki murdered his father after he complained of the younger gods being too noisy which set off a battle between the gods vs Tiamat with her consort and band of monsters. His son, Marduk, helped the gods to victory with the help of Enki. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Enki agrees to the *spoiler alert* death of Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s best friend, because Enkidu refused to consort with Ishtar (similar to Aphrodite where she is the god of love and sex, but Ishtar is also the goddess of war). Though it was Ishtar’s fault, Enki agrees to let Enkidu die because Enkidu must not think of himself as higher than a god and his death will encourage Gilgamesh to explore the meaning of life. Lastly, Enki within Atrahasis essentially saves humanity when the god Enlil sends a flood onto humanity after a series of plagues. Enki speaks to a wise man named Atrahasis (Babylonian Noah) and gives him instructions to build an ark and bring aboard a male and a female of every kind of animal. In the end, humanity is saved but humans suffer shorter lifespans and infertility in return.
References:
- http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/amgg/listofdeities/enki/
- https://www.ancient.eu/Enki/
- Abusch, Tzvi. “Witchcraft Literature in Mesopotamia.” The Babylonian World, edited by Gwendolyn Leick, Routledge, 2007, pp. 382.
Wow that was a lot of strange words that definitely were not English (xD)… any who, I found the similarities between Mesopotamian deities and some other deities and religious figures quite interesting (i.e. Noah). It’s almost as if a lot of these religions believe in some of the same things, except they use different names for different people and deities, and there are many other differences of course.
Your Mesopotamian class sounds so freaking cool! DId you take it as a gen ed? Also, as for I really vibe with Enki and his relationship with freshwater and cleanliness haha. I was thinking when reading the blog that it would be interesting to compare some of the different gods/goddesses from different cultures/regions who rule/ represent similar things… and then you brought up the comparison with Aphrodite! I think it is just so fascinating how completely different beliefs can still have similarities.