The pantheon of the Sumerian gods is one of the oldest known . Within Mesopotamian mythology we can find an enormous wealth from which it is very likely that other polytheistic civilizations drank, such as the case of the Greeks and even the Egyptians, not to mention the diverse cultures like that. Ethics.
Now, how much influence does the Sumerians have in other cultures, and how much did they influence this civilization? It is a fairly complex response, since it is lost in the future of time.
Recall that the Sumerians were implanted in areas of Asia Minor for many years, beginning their settlements now about 5500 years ago. Undoubtedly, long before the writing made an appearance to record its passage through the world and its culture, his beliefs were deeply rooted .
Mesopotamian mythology is one of the oldest, richest and most unknown in the history of mankind . Precisely because of its great wealth and ingenuity, it is worth it that we are interested in it and that we offer a small review of the splendid pantheon of the Sumerian gods.
The Sumerian gods
Obviously, performing an exhaustive analysis of the Sumerian gods is practically impossible today. First, because around the Sumerian myths and legends not much was written until well past centuries. Second, because we have not received enough equity. Third, because their own mythology varied according to oral tradition, the passing of the years, the authors themselves, etc. That is to say, we will not find an equal pantheon in the year 3500 BC in Mesopotamia which was 1000 years later.
Thus, our intention is to offer a humble guide in which to collect much of the mythology of these powerful archaic gods of great antiquity. Thanks to these brush strokes we can better understand the relationship of this town with the cosmos . Moreover, it will also serve us to understand our own relationship with current divinities and with our own world. These are our ancestors, hence the importance of knowing about them and keeping their legacy as alive as possible.
Mesopotamian mythology and the Sumerian gods
As we have mentioned, the pantheon of Sumerian gods is not compact and solid . We have already commented that this civilization, in force for thousands of years, changed a lot over the years. Obviously, their gods suffered various variations equally. That is to say, that the role of each one was evolving according to the society of the time.
Remember that the polytheistic pantheons used to justify every thing that happened around them with a god . If we approach Greek mythology, we observe that even rivers and lakes were considered as gods, both Oceánidas and nymphs. That is, every fact of nature with some relevance was associated with a deity.
Something similar can be found in the Sumerian pantheon. Here, there are divinities that could be worshiped in one of their city-states, a political way in which this civilization was erected, and which the Greeks also inherited.
However, a very important deity for a particular city-state could be totally unknown in another . That is, each locality of the time could develop its own pantheon or interpret the history of its gods.
In the past, and more at this time, because we can go back even 5000 years in the past or more, communications were quite basic. It was especially the Romans who manufactured and built roads that linked all their enormous kingdom and extension. However, prior to that, coexistence outside the cities and their closest surroundings were very limited.
The Sumerian gods and their kinships
That is, that the Sumerian gods, especially in their early days, varied according to the fate of the city in which they were worshiped. Thus, according to the power of a particular place, such a deity became so famous.
For example, when Babylon succeeded in seizing power and being the kingdom that unified many territories, it was Marduk, their chief god, who would be worshiped in many cities. Interestingly, before this fact, it was a totally irrelevant deity outside its small space of influence.
In the same way, the relationship between deities was evolving and changing . That is to say, Sumerian gods that initially ran several cities and that a priori could not know anything, ended up participating in one another's lives. It all depended on relationships between cities, as we have seen. that is, once Babylon seized power in multiple territories, they also imposed their culture and customs.
Sumerian Gods Division
At this point, it is convenient to make a clear differentiation to understand the pantheon of Sumerian gods. To make clear the idiosyncrasy of their divinities, we must differentiate between the Sumerians themselves and the Semites .
Indeed, many of the Sumerian gods subsequently adapted to Semitic beliefs. First it was the Akkadians, and then the Babylonians, the Assyrians, the Arameans and, finally, the Chaldeans .
According to the people they came to the regions and installed their power, they did not always impose their own deities. On many occasions they adopted the Sumerian gods, who entered their own mythology.
In this way, the mythological heritage of the area was enriched, growing both through internal and external influences. All this created a pantheon in constant change and evolution.
We can find both gods of the neighboring towns and the Sumerians themselves. Some were alien to the Semitic and also Sumerian tradition, but they ended up influencing the area that concerns us today. In these cases, it is worth noting names like the goddess Shala, a maternal divinity. There are also others such as Dagan or Adad, both deities focused on fertility and the elements.
As we can see, there are clear similarities to the Greek pantheon . As with monotheistic religions, since they all seem to have a similar origin, and this is demonstrated in their sacred books, the same applies to polytheists. In the end, it seems a kind of quest to respond through faith to what is not understood.
The most important Sumerian gods of the pantheon
At this point, and after the extensive explanation of the idiosyncrasy of this unique pantheon, we reached the moment to deepen the most important deities. As is logical, over almost 3000 years, they varied a lot, but to this day some names have arrived that may sound like you.
Anu
Also known as An, he is the god of heaven . In fact, this word, An, in Sumerian, means just that, honey. That is, for them heaven was something sacred. The same god protected them from all evil.
In this case, you can't talk about Anu if you also name Enlil and Enki . The three put together what is known as the Sumerian Triad. These names correspond to the three most important gods of this archaic pantheon.
However, the figure of Anu also changed throughout the history of the Sumerian empire . It is believed that, initially, about the year 2500 a. C., this was the only god, the chief of the pantheon.
This fact was changing and evolving over the years. Subsequently, it would be Enlil who would replace him. But neither said change lasted throughout the Sumerian domain. Then, other regional and local gods would replace him. Some of them were Marduk and Ashur, but neither were they the only ones.
Be that as it may, Anu always had an important role, even though he was not the principal. In all the Sumerian pantheons it appeared as a kind of demiurge or primordial god. His is the origin of the Universe although they did not get to define, or have not reached us, their specific characteristics.
The astronomical ancestry of Anu
Anu was astronomically associated with The Path of An, also called the Way. This association was located in the area of Ecuador in the celestial vault. Then, this region was associated with the space between the two tropics. That was the situation of this deity over the sky of Sumer.
In addition, there are more curious details about this Sumerian god. For example, that he was associated with the number 60, which was sacred to that civilization . He also had his own ideogram with a cuneiform character that added the word dingir in his own language. This word was used to describe the word god, which was also known in Akkadian as illum.
Anu was represented as a star, since the Sumerians were great astronomers. They watched the starry sky and saw it as something sacred where their deities were located. In fact, they were also excellent astrologers, although they mixed magic and science.
Subsequently, at the time of the Cassita era, Anu was represented by a crown that had seven pairs of horns. However, for the Sumerians nothing negative was associated with the horn, rather the other way around, it was something of the greatest and most important deities of its time.
It should also be noted that in the time of the Babylonian tradition Anu was united with a goddess, Antu . In addition, the center where his main cult was produced was Uruk, an ancient city almost sacred to the Sumerians.
Enlil
We continue with the pantheon of Sumerian gods and now we focus on another of the most important, Enlil . In this case, we speak of the supreme deity also for the Akkadians, and that symbolized the god of heaven, storms and wind.
If we look closely at Enlil, we can find a kind of supreme Sumerian-Akkadian god that might well resemble Zeus . In fact, it is likely that the Hellenic culture drank from these Babylonian waters, just as the Romans later made the Greek pantheon to name J piter as their great deity, although in their society the Gods did not have the almost exaggerated weight that they did have in the more Eastern cultures, such as Babylonians, Armenians, Greeks, etc.
In this case at hand, it must be added that Enlil has proposed various origins for his name :
- One of the possibilities states that it would come from the Sumerian compound word En L l. In meaning Lord, and He would mean storm. That is, Lord of the Storm or Lord of the Wind. It is even interpreted as God of the Wind or God of the Storm.
- Another of the ideas about the name of this deity directly connects with a kind of submergence of the root il, coming from the Semitic, and which means God. In fact, it would be the same that gives rise to Allah, and Him, which means both Lord God. As we know, in these beliefs are the origins of the Jewish, Islamic and Christian monotheistic religions. It is possible that this Sumerian deity also drank from these sources, but they are so old and with so little documentation, that it can only be interpreted and knowledge becomes confusing.
In the tradition of the Akkadians, this deity became known as Ellil .
In fact, there is a poem by Atrahasis that tells how Enlil tries to annihilate humanity up to three times . This is due to the noisy habits of individuals.
Interestingly, in the last of the attempts, Enlil tries to end Earth and human life in it through a flood . As we know, this flood is present in all traditional ancient religions.
That is to say, probably several thousand years ago there were several epidemics or crises, including a rise in sea level or heavy torrential rains that gave rise to the legend of the universal flood . Subsequently, each culture, both Sumerian and Semitic, for example, adapted those made in their collective imagination. Hence the tradition of believing that they were divine punishments, because their technology and science were not able to analyze the true origin of the catastrophe that put their lives at risk.
The astronomical ascendant of Enlil
Obviously, this god also had his own astronomical ascendant. In this case it was associated with the Enlil Road, which was a region of the sky that was located north of the celestial equator. Sometimes it could coincide with the Tropic of Cancer.
In addition, this deity was also associated with the Pleiades, a group of young stars that can be seen with the naked eye. In Sumerian, his name was that of Mul-Mul.
It was also initially associated with the planet J piter, which is a star of great brightness in the terrestrial sky. In fact, it is the most luminous star that we can observe, only behind the Sun, the Moon and Venus.
However, finally J piter was assimilated by the great Babylonian god, Marduk, so this association only occurred in origin, many centuries ago in the long time of the Sumerian empire.
It also had the number 50 associated . According to the Babylonian tradition, he was attached to the goddess Ninlil, and they were parents of many children, also known as deities. Among them, we can highlight Adad, Ninurta, Nergal, Zabada or Pabilsag.
The most important center of worship that Enlil had was located in the city of Nippur . This was where the E-kur was located, which means in Sumerian the house of the mountain. In this area the most important temple dedicated to this god of vital importance had been erected for a good time in the Sumerian civilization.
EA
Let us now see another of the great gods of the Sumerian pantheon, called EA, but also known as Enki . Perhaps by this middle name it is much more popular, because for quite some time it was a basic deity in the area.
EA was the god of wisdom and the arts, but he was also considered as the Abzu, that is, deity of the underground waters. Curious this divine power, right? However, for the Sumerians, the liquid element was under the mainland and, according to their beliefs, was the origin of everything in the world. This detail is basic to understand the great power that was granted to this deity.
In addition, according to the time, he was also considered as lord of water, not only underground, but of all who was on Earth as well. In addition, it was associated with fertility, something not surprising given its union with the liquid element, always a symbol of life and purification.
Among the Sumerian tradition we also find this god as the great protector of humanity . In fact, he is in charge of contacting and notifying the Atrahasis, also known as the Utanpishtim, which was the true origin of the Noah myth, which can be observed in the Christian Bible, and which is a legend of which also Other ancient religions, both monotheistic and polytheistic, will be recorded, hence it is considered that the Universal Flood could be a real fact and there are theories that affirm how it could be produced.
In the case of the Sumerians, as we said, EA or Enki is in charge of advising Atrahasis, who would be the one to build a ship in which all the animals on Earth will be saved, as well as their family, during the time last the imminent flood caused by Enlil, another of the important gods in the Sumerian pantheon, as we have already commented.
The astronomical ancestry of EA or Enki
Let us now see how we have seen with all Sumerian deities what is the ancestry of this powerful god of this ancient pantheon of gods of yesteryear. Astronomically, it is associated with Aquarius, the constellation that for them was known as Gula, which in that extinct language means El Grande, one of the epithets that always accompanied Enki.
But this was not the only astronomical ascendant of the god, as it was also associated with Capricorn, in this case known as Suhurmash, which means Sumerian Goat-fish.
Associated with the Tropic of Capricorn, the Path of Ea was also known in the terrestrial skies, in the southern zone, near the celestial equator.
Ea representations
Throughout the many incarnations of this Sumerian god, he has been considered mostly as the son of Anu, but also as the husband of Damgalnun, another goddess of this rich pantheon.
Usually, in the iconography of this vast archaic empire, it was depicted in the masculine form. It used to appear pouring water, or carrying the liquid element. Sometimes the jets of water arose from his shoulders and even incorporated little fish that swam inside.
Then, Cassita era came, and Ea's representations changed again. In this case, the traditional crown of seven pairs of horns predominated . It was also placed on an altar, in the same way as with the other two great Sumerian deities, Anu and Enlil.
He also came to be represented on an altar, but in this case having a goat head. But this was not always the chosen animal, because a turtle was also observed, and even by a goat-fish. In addition, the most curious of all these representations had a combination of all these animals, both real and imaginary.
Some representations of Ea appear next to his servant. This also has a name and is considered as another of the gods. His name is Isimud, and he is the deity of both faces. By the way, this man also appears among the Semitic deities, except that under the nomenclature of Usmu.
The number that historically represented Ea was 40 . In addition, the largest temple in which the cult of this deity was practiced was located in E-abzu, in the center of the city of Eridu, at the time of maximum splendor of its power over the Sumerian territory.
Other important Sumerian gods
Seen what are probably the basics in the pantheon of Sumerian gods, let's see others that were also important, although their names never got as bright as those of Anu or Enlil.
WITHOUT
We continue to know various deities of the Sumerian pantheon, and now we focus on Sin, also known as Nannar . In this case, we talk about the moon god. Let's investigate a little more about this powerful character of the antiquity of human civilization.
According to the Sumerian scriptures we know, he is cited on numerous occasions as the son of Enlil, another of the great gods. Generally, it was represented by a crescent moon. In addition, he had the number 30, which was the one that symbolized it.
The case of this deity is curious, since it never had a representative center where its generalized cult was performed, as it did with the gods seen so far. However, although it is not defined, important places and temples of cities of great weight in Sumeria are cited, such as the case of E-Kisnugal, in Ur, where one of the most important and main spaces is located to pray to this deity.
Shamash
We continue to know Sumerian gods, and now we focus on Shamash . Well because his cult was not so widespread, or perhaps because we have not received enough information, we understand that these deities are somewhat less than the views so far.
In the case of Shamash, however, also known as Utu, he was a deity with very important assignments, since he was the god of the Sun and also that of order and that of law. That is, basically some of the elements that handled the destinies of the Sumerian civilization, since the king star gave life to their lands and people and the law and order were important in their cities, perhaps the first to have their own codes legal.
Moreover, according to tradition, it was Shamash who handed Hammurabi the first code of laws known to mankind, and which was written in the famous column. That is to say, that despite the little information, this deity did have great weight in the life of Sumeria.
This god was represented by number 20 . Even so, given the importance of the deity, it must be added that its origin was quite uncertain and varied according to the times. Although the Sumerians, on the other hand, considered him as the son of Nanna, and also was Inanna's brother, it did not happen the same with the Babylonians and the Akkadians. For these last two peoples, this god was taken by the son of Enlil or Anu, according to the time. In fact, she even appeared as Sherida's husband, who was celebrated among the Semites under the name of Aya.
This god was commonly represented by means of an eight-pointed solar disk . However, also the human figure from whose shoulders emanated powerful flames was one of his representations.
Like others, it also had a balance among its symbols, a clear example of its strength over the Sumerian law and the area. He was also represented in the constellation of Libra, which was once considered under the name of Zibanitu.
Ishtar
We continue now with an important god within the Sumerian pantheon, who has even arrived with strength to our days, at least, his name, but of which we do not have much information. The name is Ishtar and she was very adored in her day .
Ishtar, who also appeared in the Sumerian scriptures like Inanna, was a goddess of great power, combining her strength as a deity over war, fertility, beauty, sex and love . Curiously, the Sumerians also associated this type of beings with feminine entities, as happened later among Greeks or Romans such as Aphrodite, Diana, etc.
Ishtar was a very popular goddess among the Sumerians, but also among the Semites. In addition, according to the area where she was worshiped, she received various names. So, it was also known as Teshub, Astart or Anat.
It is very common to find this goddess among the stories, legends and poems of her time. For example, in the famous epic of Gilgamesh it is already named, but we also see it in stories like that of Pastor Dumuzi. Whether as Inanna or as Ishtar, she was a celebrity in her day.
Ishtar is generally known as the goddess of the Moon, hence the name of Nanna, which she also received. However, once again, in a civilization that lasted so many thousands of years, its origins evolved. In other times she was known as Enki's daughter, and also Enlil. In what seemed to be more or less generalized consensus, it was to make her the sister of Ereshkigal, the deity who ruled the Sumerian Underworld.
Usually, Ishtar was associated with the planet Venus . Remember that the Sumerians were great astronomers and astrologers, because for them there was practically no difference. In addition, this planetary relationship endured and was adapted to the Greco-Roman tradition and mythology, where this goddess was associated with the same neighboring world in the Solar System.
Normally, Ishtar was represented with a star that sometimes had 8 points, but others were 16. It could also be seen as a naked or dressed woman, just like through the flower or the lion.
The number associated with Innana was 15 and the most important center of worship that existed was the House of Heaven, which was then known as E-ana.
Marduk
We continue to know more deities of the prose Sumerian pantheon. As we have commented, in a reign that lasted several thousand years with various incarnations and centers of power, the gods evolved and varied in importance according to their location and time. That is why we have found many different options, such as Marduk, a paradigmatic deity .
Marduk was the supreme god of Babylon . When this city came to hegemonic power and became the most important of all Mesopotamia, it was its deity that gained great importance throughout the area, although its location remained the nerve center of worship.
When Marduk became the hegemonic god of Mesopotamia, he was assigned a good part of the powers that until then Anu and Enlil had held . As we have observed so far, these names belonged to the most powerful Sumerian deities until Babylon reached the great power that it obtained towards the final phase of the Mesopotamian splendor that lasted several centuries, even millennia.
In all the ancient sources that are looked at, the name of Marduk will appear as an almost omnipresent and omnipotent god . Do not forget that the power of Babylon was excellent, and gave rise to one of the most splendid moments of ancient Mesopotamia.
The main temple in which Marduk was worshiped was the Esagila, a ziggurat that would later serve the monotheistic religions as the basis for the history of the Tower of Babel. We are already talking about a stage very close to the end of the power of Mesopotamia, towards the 7th and 6th century BC. That is, this deity is already connected with what was the germ of modern religions, with only one god, who adapted what who considered their writings paganism with their own versions.
During these neo-Babylonian times we find that Marduk was known as Bel, which meant lord in the Mesopotamian language, and also Bel Marduk, that is, Mr. Marduk.
Various legends were devised around this deity, but the Babylonian epic in which Marduk appears as the creator of the whole world and the supreme god who runs all humans is especially important.
If we study the figure of Marduk in the Merodach Bible, we find that this deity is regarded as the master of wind and storms, and also as the shepherd of the stars.
In most writings and stories about this deity she is considered as the husband of the goddess Sarpanitu . In addition, he is also taken as the son of the god Nabu.
During the Cassita era, we find that Marduk is represented through a hoe that is placed on an altar . Then, male figure charges, able to ride and dominate a kind of snake dragons. These creatures were very popular in Babylon of the time, and can be seen at the Ishtar Gate. In their time they were known as Mushusu.
On an astronomical level, Marduk was associated with the planet Jupiter, the most important of the classical era, which always held the house of the main deity. In this case, since he assumed the powers of the great Enlil, it is obvious that this was the world that should be his figure.
We cannot forget that, later, in the Hellenic world this association would be inherited, although the planet was known to represent Zeus, the main deity of its pantheon. Subsequently, it would be Jupiter himself from the Roman pantheon who would inherit the aforementioned association, and the name would stay that way forever.
Ashur
Also known as Assur, he was the supreme god of the city called Assyria . In fact, it was a kind of ideal representation of the town itself. As we have seen, the Sumerian deities throughout history were closely associated with their areas of worship, hence the power of each population made their gods more or less powerful according to the time they dominated the area.
While the region was under the power and control of the Assyrians, this god was the principal and dominated the pantheon. In this case, as we can imagine, as happened previously with Marduk, Ashur also assumed the powers of Anu and Enlil . That is, he was the supreme god, with all the characteristics that could be expected of him.
However, Assur or Ashur never became as popular as the previous gods were, as we have already said, in names like Enlil, Anu or Marduk.
Lesser Gods of the Sumerian Pantheon
We already know practically all the really important Sumerian gods. But, as we have said repeatedly, a pantheon as extensive as this, belonging to an empire that lasted for thousands of years, is very long. That is why, together with the great deities, we also find others of lesser importance, but it is not worth stopping to remember them.
Let's look at some of them so that the information on this extensive stage of human civilization is perfectly complete.
Adad
Adad was the god of the storm, and also of lightning and wind. This deity was very popular within the Sumerian gods of the pantheon in the Middle East area.
He was well known to the Canaanites, where he was famous under the name of Hadad . However, in each territory where it had a notable presence, the name varied. Thus, it was known as Buriash for the Cassitas as well as it received the nomenclature of Teshup for the Hurrites.
He was generally considered one of the sons of An, one of the Sumerian gods of great importance. Even so, in other lands he was famous as a descendant of Enlil, which for other traditions was also a deity very present in those distant times.
Adad was married to the mother goddess, known as Shala, who is also considered to have Hurrian origin.
Some of the powers of Adad, which we have seen that resemble those of the Zeus of the Greeks, were subsequently assimilated by the most important Sumerian gods, such as the aforementioned Enlil and An.
This Sumerian deity was represented by a human figure standing on a bull, although it was not always this animal, other times it was a lion. In fact, sometimes it was a mythological animal that mixed both beings.
Generally, Adad was represented with axes, with a wavy fork that represented the rays or by the rays themselves. Por ejemplo, en los tiempos de los Cassita, era la horquilla la que tenía mayor presencia.
La constelación de Tauro, el Toro Celeste, como se consideraba entonces, estaba enteramente dedicada a este dios menor. En sus tiempos se la llamaba Guanna.
Ereshkigal
Nos marchamos ahora hasta el inframundo del panteón sumerio. No se sabe mucho de Ereshkigal, que en su tiempo fue la diosa de lo más oscuro, allá donde reinaba la muerte. Lo que sí es cierto es que esta figura fue asimilada por la mucho más célebre Ishtar, aunque en algunas encarnaciones aparecieron como hermanas. Esta deidad tenía un mensajero, el ministro y también dios Namtar. Por desgracia, no se tiene mucha más información.
Nabu
Aunque fue un dios menor, s que hay que considerarlo como una deidad que ha aguantado muy bien el paso del tiempo . Fue se or en Babilonia de la escritura y la filosof a, e incluso ha sido adaptado como personaje en el mundo de los c mics y el cine actualmente.
Nabu era hijo de Marduk para los babilonios, aunque en su origen fue descendiente de Borsippa, un dios local de una de las ciudades vecinas de la poderosa Babilonia.
Aun as, fue un dios con bastante presencia en el pante n de Mesopotamia. Aqu, adquiri ciertas caracter sticas de Ninurta . As pues, era representado por medio de un c amo, un estilo para escribir en lo alto de un altar o por medio de una figura humanizada que controlaba y montaba a un enorme drag n-serpiente mientras manejaba el estilo de la escritura.
Esta deidad, pese a considerarse menor, tambi n fue importante en su poca. Tanto es as que incluso aparece en la Biblia, el libro sagrado cristiano, bajo el nombre de Nabo.
Seg n los griegos, Nabu era identificado con sus deidades Hermes y Apolo . Tambi n para los romanos se asoci a Mercurio, y, de hecho, este planeta estaba asociado a este dios sumerio tradicionalmente.
Nergal
Nos vamos acercando ya al final de este extenso texto alrededor de los dioses sumerios, enfocados como estamos ahora mismo en los menores. As pues, llega el turno de Nergal, que fue c lebre en aquellos remotos tiempos como el dios de las plagas y del inframundo.
Ya hemos visto que no era esta la nica deidad centrada en el inframundo. Y es que Nergal fue esposo de Ereshkigal, adem s de considerarse hijo de uno de los dioses principales, Enlil.
Esta deidad se representaba por medio de una figura humana con las piernas envueltas en una mortaja, o bien portando espadas o cetros con dos cabezas de le n. Adem s, se asociaba astron micamente al planeta Marte .
El centro m s importante de culto que tuvo este dios se ubic en Kutu, dentro del territorio de Babilonia, y su templo era conocido como E-meslam.
Ningursu
Este dios centraba su poder en una de las muchas ciudades-estado que se ubicaron por toda Sumeria. Concretamente establec a su poder en Lagash, donde era la deidad suprema, aunque a nivel de civilizaci n, se lo considera como menor.
Fue un gran dios guerrero al que se le rend a culto en el templo de E-ninnu. Curiosamente, tambi n se lo consideraba como agricultor y fue posteriormente asimilado por Ninurta, aunque previamente, en tiempos de la poca Cassita, se lo asociaba y simbolizaba como un arado.
Ningishzida
Vemos ahora otro de los dioses sumerios que se consideraba como deidad del inframundo. Fue el hijo de Ninazu y se establec a su forma como la de una serpiente con cuernos, conocida como drag n basmu.
La fama de este dios se debe, primordialmente, a su aparici n en el relato de Gilgamesh . El h roe se encontr con l en el Inframundo, y tambi n con Dumuzi. Es decir, que es una deidad realmente antigua, ya que este relato tiene, como m nimo, unos 4000 a os de historia.
M s tarde, en tiempos de Babilonia, aparecer a como el guardi n de los demonios de los Inframundos sumerios . De hecho, si estudiamos el mito de Adapa, observamos su aparición bajo el nombre de Gishzida, y es quien custodia la entrada al cielo en que se ubica Anu, el gran dios.
Añadir que astronómicamente se asociaba a la constelación Mush, también conocida como Hidra la Serpiente.
Ninhursag
Vamos ya viendo los últimos dioses sumerios menores y nos centramos en la deidad de la Tierra. Esta fue una madre que también representaba la fertilidad . Recibió diversos nombres según la época, como Nintur, Ninmah o Ninhursaga.
Igualmente la encontramos en el mito sumerio de Enki y Ninhursaga, donde el gran dios sumerio tiene una hija con esta deidad a la que posteriormente violará repetidamente para concebir a más dioses.
Esta diosa es representada en forma símbolo omega, considerado como una especie de útero, de ahí que sea compartido con el de otras diosas relacionadas con el sexo y la fertilidad, como el caso de Ishtar.
Ninlil
Nos acercamos ya al fin de nuestro artículo sobre dioses sumerios y nos centramos en Ninlil, que fue esposa de la deidad de importancia llamada Enlil . Sus características eran idénticas, tal como sucede en el panteón sumerio.
Sin embargo, esta diosa era conocida en Asiria como Mullissu, donde era esposa del dios Ashur. Eso sí, en ambos casos se asocia a la constelación del Carro, llamada entonces Margidda.
Ninmah
Otra diosa de la fertilidad que con el paso del tiempo se convertiría en Ninhursag, como ya hemos comprobado. Según la mitología de Sumeria, fue la protagonista en la creación de la humanidad, labor en la que se asocia con Enki . Se representaba astronómicamente en la constelación de la Vela.
Ninurta
Vemos ahora a otro hijo del gran dios sumerio Enlil. Estamos ante una deidad tanto agrícola como guerrera, que era representada con arco, flechas o arado.
Su culto se volvió especialmente popular en los tiempos de los neoasirios, entre los siglos IX y VII aC, dado que era un pueblo bastante belicoso.
El culto se remonta a los tiempos de Sumeria, considerado como hijo de Nippur. Su centro de culto se encuentra en E-shumesha, y astronómicamente era asociado a Saturno.
Pabilsag
Otro dios guerrero procedente de ciudades sumerias como Nippur o Isin que acabaría siendo asimilado en la figura de Ningirsu o Ninurta. Era habitual representarlo con arco y flechas, y en ocasiones aparecía como pareja de Gula, otra diosa. En el firmamento estaba asociado a Sagitario.
Tammuz
Vamos acabando con los últimos dioses sumerios como Tammuz o Dumuzi. Se cree que esta deidad de la regeneración y la fertilidad representó previamente el mito del Adonis griego. Era esposo de Inanna y murió en un viaje hacia el Inframundo.
Encontramos su centro de culto en Uruk, ciudad de Sumeria, y es nombrado ya en la Biblia. Se asoció a Luhunga, la constelación del campesino que hoy es Aries, pudo representar el firmamento y tuvo un mes dedicado, Du'uzu o Duzu, equivalente a junio y julio.
Zababa
Dios local perteneciente a una ciudad-estado, Kish, en tiempos de Sumeria. También era deidad guerrera casado con Ishtar o Inanna. Luego, se asimiló con Ningirsu o Ninurta.
Su templo principal en Kish recibía el nombre de E-meteursag, se simbolizaba con un águila o cetro aguileño y se asociaba a Ti, una constelación actualmente también asociada a un águila.
Y así ponemos fin a este largo artículo dedicado a los dioses sumerios. Esperamos que hayáis disfrutando tanto como nosotros de este recorrido por uno de los panteones más antiguos de la historia humana.
