Who Was the Sumerian God Enki?

Who Was the Sumerian God Enki?

The Sumerians were noted for their worship of many gods. Among them was Enki, a god known for being the patron deity of the city of Eridu.

Enki is depicted in many pieces of Sumerian art and literature, including the Babylonian creation epic the Enuma Elish, The Epic of Gilgamesh, and others. Due to his prominence in such works, it is fair to assume he played a large role in Sumerian culture. Much about Enki remains shrouded in mystery, and begs further exploration.

The God Enki

Enki, a god known for his inherent worth, represented healing, fertility, and creation in Sumerian culture. His intelligent magic often included trickery to benefit the good of the human race.

Son of a sky god, Enki was thought to reign over the Earth and high heavens. As a leader of the Anunna gods in Sumeria, it is believed Enki inhabited the Earth nearly 400,000 years ago.

Sumerian King's List

Enki’s Various Names

Enki was known by a variety of names, including Enkig, Ea, Nissiku, and Nudimmud. The names come with a variety of translations, such as “Prince,” “Lord of the Earth,” and “Creator.”

Gift of Fertility & Creation

In Sumerian culture, Enki is heavily connected to the concepts of fertility and creation. This is often represented by water.

Ancient images of Enki show rivers flowing from his masculine shoulders. The rivers depicted are thought to be the Euphrates and Tigris rivers that flow through Mesopotamia and signify his gift of fertility to the land. According to legend, the rivers were formed from his semen, which further supports his ties to the concept of fertility.

In addition, other symbols associated with Enki are the goat and the fish, which also signify fertility or fertileness.

One Sumerian lore depicts Enki as the founder of Eridu, possibly Mesopotamia’s first city, thus establishing the beginning of life on Earth. The spiritual site of Eridu has been compared to the Judeo-Christian concept of the Garden of Eden.

In addition to his contributions to creation, Enki is noted for his divine crafts and arts that represent spirituality. It is said he came to Earth to share knowledge of the afterlife with humans.

Link to the Annunaki

The Anunna or Anunnaki were beings of higher consciousness and advanced technology. According to legend, these gods or extraterrestrials came to Earth in search of gold. In one Babylonian story, the elder gods enjoyed a leisurely life while the younger gods worked away mining gold.

The intelligent yet mischievous Enki suggested the gods create other beings to mine the gold for them. The Annunaki were thought to be clone masters who sought to clone lesser beings, such as the human race, to do their work. Control of human beings is still thought to be happening under Annunaki gods today.

Although Enki contributed to the concept of cloning, which could be considered manipulation of the human race, he was well-intended and provided humans with information on how to restore balance to the Earth after devastating droughts and famine. Enki was drawn to forgiveness, compassion, and humanity.

Enki Family Lineage

Enki had a substantial cosmic family line. His immediate family included a father figure, mother, brother, wife, and four sons. An additional eight children were born later, as mentioned in a folk tale. The names and relations of Enki’s family members vary throughout ancient texts.

Sumerian mythology referred to Enki’s father as Anu, meaning “sky god,” while Babylonian text uses the name Apsu, defined as “primordial father.” Enki’s mother, Nammu, was a goddess from the highest heavens. She was depicted as the female force who gave birth to the heavens and the Earth.

Enki was the twin of Adad, a god of weather and storms. Enki had another brother Enlin, who was thought to be an adversary, often causing trouble for Enki to creatively repair.

Enki later married the goddess Ninhursag, who is also known by the names Ninmah, Damgalnuna, and Damkina. Together they had four sons: Asarluhi, god of magical knowledge; Enbhlulu, god of dikes and canals; Adapa, human sage; and Marduk, god of magical knowledge.

In the tale Enki and Ninhursag, it is said Enki and his wife had eight more children in an effort to cure Enki after he became seriously ill. The eight offspring with healing powers included:

  • Abu – god of plants and growth
  • Nintulla – god of precious metals
  • Ninsitu – goddess of healing
  • Ninkasi – goddess of beer
  • Nanshe – goddess of divination, dream interpretation, social justice, and fertility
  • Azimua – goddess of healing
  • Emshag – god of fertility
  • Ninti – goddess and giver of life

Power and Humanity

Enki was a very powerful god and had the assistance of mystical beings at his service. Legends describe an assortment of creatures such as mermaids, giants, and even demons that aided Enki in his earthly endeavors. Although he could call upon both destructive and caring existences, Enki favored humanity and social justice. He was known for his intelligence, wisdom, and gift for divine arts and crafts. Enki’s knowledge of rituals included exorcism as well as healing prayers and chants.

An important figure in mythological history, Enki remains one of the greatest Sumerian legends and one of the most complex Sumerian gods. As such, one can spend a significant amount of time delving into the history and mystery of Enki. Continue to explore this fascinating mythical being on your own, and enjoy the journey.



The City of Eridu is the Oldest on Earth, It's Largely Unexplored

The City of Eridu is the Oldest on Earth, It’s Largely Unexplored

Over the past decade, there have been a number of archeological revelations pushing back the timeline of human evolution and our ancient ancestors’ various diasporas. Initially, these discoveries elicit some resistance as archeologists bemoan the daunting prospect of rewriting the history books, though once enough evidence is presented to established institutions, a new chronology becomes accepted.

But this really only pertains to the era of human development that predates civilization — the epochs of our past in which we were merely hunter-gatherers and nomads roaming the savannahs. Try challenging the consensus timeline of human civilization and it’s likely you’ll be met with derision and rigidity.

Conversely, someone of an alternative persuasion may profess stories of ancient civilizations, such as Atlantis or Lemuria, with speculative mythology recounting a lost, golden age in human history that was surely responsible for building the pyramids and other wonders of the world. They point to the writings of Solon and Plato as evidence for these ancestors’ existence, which is exciting but difficult to corroborate without physical proof. 

Researcher Matt LaCroix seems to find himself somewhere in the middle of these two perspectives. While he says he’s fascinated by the Athenian clues detailing the destruction of Atlantis, he finds more compelling evidence in ancient Mesopotamia, or what academia already acknowledges as “the cradle of civilization.” 

It’s here we find the ruins of the most ancient city on Earth that we have physical proof of — the city of Eridu. This archaic metropolis is well-documented in historical texts covering ancient Sumer and the Babylonian empire, but there’s also a mythological component to Eridu that may imply human civilization is far older than we believe — significant orders of magnitude older.

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