Sumer, or the ‘land of civilized kings’, flourished in Mesopotamia, now modern-day Iraq, around 4500 BC. Sumerians created an advanced civilization with its own system of elaborate language and writing, architecture and arts, astronomy and mathematics. Their religious system was a complex one comprised of hundreds of gods. According to the ancient texts, each Sumerian city was guarded by its own god; and while humans and gods used to live together, the humans were servants to the gods.
The Tablet of Nippur: Discovering the Ancient Sumerian Texts
As one of the earliest known written creation stories, the Sumerian creation legend holds significant importance offering valuable insights into the religious, political, and cultural aspects of ancient Mesopotamia.
The Sumerian creation myth can be found on a tablet in Nippur, an ancient Mesopotamian city founded in approximately 5000 BC. The creation of Earth (Enuma Elish) according to the Sumerian tablets begins like this:
When in the height heaven was not named,
And the earth beneath did not yet bear a name,
And the primeval Apsu, who begat them,
And chaos, Tiamut, the mother of them both
Their waters were mingled together,
And no field was formed, no marsh was to be seen;
When of the gods none had been called into being,
And none bore a name, and no destinies were ordained;
Then were created the gods in the midst of heaven,
Lahmu and Lahamu were called into being...The texts mention that at some point the gods mutinied against their labor.
When the gods like men
Bore the work and suffered the toll
The toil of the gods was great,
The work was heavy, the distress was much.
The figures can be identified as gods by their pointed hats with multiple horns. The figure with streams of water and fish flowing from his shoulders is Ea (Sumerian Enki), god of subterranean waters and of wisdom. Behind him stands Usimu, his two-faced vizier (chief minister). At the centre of the scene is the sun-god, Shamash (Sumerian Utu), with rays rising from his shoulders. He is cutting his way through the mountains in order to rise at dawn. To his left is a winged goddess, Ishtar (Sumerian Inanna). The weapons rising from her shoulders symbolise her warlike characteristics. (Public Domain)
The Unity of God and Man: How the First Human Came into Existence
Anu, the god of gods, agreed that their labour was too great. His son Enki, or Ea, proposed to create man to bear the labour, and so, with the help of his half-sister Ninki, he did. A god was put to death, and his body and blood was mixed with clay. From that material the first human being was created, in likeness to the gods.
You have slaughtered a god together
With his personality
I have removed your heavy work
I have imposed your toil on man.
…
In the clay, god and man
Shall be bound,
To a unity brought together;
So that to the end of days
The Flesh and the Soul
Which in a god have ripened –
That soul in a blood-kinship be bound.
This first man was created in Eden, a Sumerian word which means ‘flat terrain’. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Eden is mentioned as the garden of the gods and is located somewhere in Mesopotamia between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
Adapa, the first human being in ancient Sumerian Texts failed to answer the question of “the bread and water of life” Anu. (AAref/Adobe Stock)
Initially human beings were unable to reproduce on their own, but were later modified with the help of Enki and Ninki. Thus, Adapa was created as a fully functional and independent human being. This ‘modification’ was done without the approval of Enki’s brother, Enlil, and a conflict between the gods began. Enlil became the adversary of man, and the Sumerian tablet mentions that men served gods and went through much hardship and suffering.
- Garden of Eden Depicted in Ancient Greek Religious Art
- Divine, Forbidden and Dangerous? Magic Apples in Ancient Mythology
Adapa, with the help of Enki, ascended to Anu where he failed to answer a question about ‘the bread and water of life’.
Opinions vary on the similarities between this creation story and the biblical story of Adam and Eve in Eden. While Adapa was granted great wisdom and knowledge by Enki, he unknowingly rejected the gift of immortality when offered the "bread and water of life. Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden of Eden and instructed not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. However, they were tempted by the serpent and ate the forbidden fruit, leading to their expulsion from paradise.
Overall, the Sumerian creation myth holds significant importance as one of the earliest known written creation stories, offering valuable insights into the religious, political, and cultural aspects of ancient Mesopotamia.
Top image: Sumerian chaos monster and sun god. Source: Public Domain
Note: Ancient Sumerian translations were taken from William Bramley’s book, The Gods of Eden.
By John Black
References
Sumerian creation myth. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumerian_creation_myth
1902. Enuma Elish - The Epic of Creation. Available at: https://www.sacred-texts.com/ane/enuma.htm
Sumerian Myths of Origins. Available at: https://www.sacred-texts.com/ane/sum/sum07.htm
Sumerian Deities. Available at: http://www.sarissa.org/sumer/sumer_g.php
Comments
Dividing Tiamat
Permalink
dividing Tiamat in half is not the Milly Way dividing north galactic from south galactic. The horizon divides Tiamat the uper world of sky from lower world of earth soil ground (though that also includes Lower sky under the earth). A rebonr planet or star rise on the divide that splits Tiamat. For Mars the Marduk date splitting Tiamat in 7 days is 2009bc July 8. The 7 days are correctly 360-day calendar and 7 of 52 years (364 of 360-day in a 359-year span back to the Flood as creation). However, other versions of 7 also exist just for Mars as 7x 156 tun and 7x 156 haab, as well as the 205-year Marduk which is 208 tun (so 7x 208 tun = 1456 tun or 1435 Julian). Why stop at Milky Way divided in upper and lower, maybe the whole sphere of all galaxies has an upper and lower where most galaxies too are in an exploding ring around the center. Reminds me of Hindu how they have taken 1200 years and made it 432,000 years
Marduk and Jupiter
Permalink
Furthermore from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nibiru_%28Babylonian_astronomy%29
“Nibiru has been associated with the area of Libra: The Nibiru constellation rose in the month of Tišritum, around autumnal equinox, however Nibiru was also a name for the planet Jupiter[8] when observed in the month of Tišritum. In the MUL.APIN, Nibiru is identified as Jupiter:
When the stars of Enlil have been finished, one big star – although its light is dim – divides the sky in half and stands there: that is, the star of Marduk (MUL dAMAR.UD), Nibiru (né-bé-ru), Jupiter (MULSAG.ME.GAR); it keeps changing its position and crosses the sky”.
“One big star” – or planet - cannot divide the sky in two halves and “stand there” and at the same time “changing its positions and crossing the sky”.
There is only ONE celestial or starry object, which fits to the explanation above and this is the whitish crescent and seemingly revolving contours of the Milky Way “although its light is dim”.
This figure revolves around the celestial point, Nibiru, and as this Milky Way contour mythologically resembles the “great male god in the Sky”, called Marduk in the Babylonian mythology/astronomy, this figure of course is equal to the Roman supreme god Jupiter and subsequently, this myth has nothing to do with planets at all. Link - http://native-science.net/NorthPole.Centre.htm
Regards
Ivar Nielsen
Natural Philosopher
Nibiru - The highest point . . .
Permalink
In reply to Nibiru (Nebo) versus Marduk by Richard Schiller (not verified)
Richard Schiller,
I think scholars mistake the Nibiru myth when thinking of the "highest point" on the ecliptica as summersolstice, just as this is told in - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nibiru_%28Babylonian_astronomy%29 -
"Nibiru (in cuneiform spelled dné-bé-ru or MULni-bi-rum) is a term of the highest point of the ecliptic".
If not having other candidates to "the celestial highest point", scholars of course can use the ecliptica and thus interpret Nibiru as one of the planets, but it isn´t a planet.
More:
"Nibiru, which is said to have occupied the passageways of heaven and earth, because everyone above and below asks Nibiru if they cannot find the passage. Nibiru is Marduk's star which the gods in heaven caused to be visible. Nibiru stands as a post at the turning point. The others say of Nibiru the post: "The one who crosses the middle of the sea (Tiamat) without calm, may his name be Nibiru, for he takes up the center of it". The path of the stars of the sky should be kept unchanged".
This undoubtedly sets Marduk´s Nibiru to be the celestial pole star "as a (highest) post standing at the turning point" and not a planetary motion on the ecliptica.
The Nibiru myth deals with a concrete mytho-cosmogonical order and not with any periodically disasterous event..
Nibiru (Nebo) versus Marduk
Permalink
The planet Mars is very elliptical so that artificial 780-day rising dates become absent Mars. Have you never notice in Babylon a century of Nebo names then Marduk names then Nebo names.
Marduk Plus 3600
Permalink
The date for Nibiru becoming Marduk in Adam's year 2401am (Egyptian year 745 since Noah's global Flood) is 1625bc November 29 (in 360-day calendar Noah's new year 1356 = Adams 2412am). This artificial date of rising Mars represents 60 days after Nibiru (Terah TAU Marduk) of Sep 30 as solar conjunction, and it is 60 days before Harran Syria Marduk of 1624bc Jan 28 whose Mayan Marduk is 20 days later on Feb 17. ONLY Haran Syria Marduks on a 360-day new year produce Mayan Marduk new year tuns 20 days later. The Nibiru and Marduk in prediction came in 1913 (Mayan 1911, and Terah TAU in 1915). The 1914 new year is new year 6001 on May 12 as Noah's 4945 or 20 days later Mayan 5100 tun.