| Fertile Crescent myth series |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Mesopotamian | |
| Levantine | |
| Arabian | |
| Mesopotamia | |
| 7 gods who decree | |
| The great gods | |
| Demigods & heroes | |
| Spirits & monsters | |
| Tales from Babylon | |
| Primordial Beings | |
The apsû (also known as abzu or engur, 
) was the name for fresh water from underground aquifers that was given a religious quality in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology. Ancient Semitic religion spans the Polytheistic religions of the Semitic speaking peoples of the Ancient Near East. The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian Akkadian Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris 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 This is a sub-article to Pre-Islamic Arabia Arabian mythology comprises the ancient Pre-Islamic beliefs of the Arabs Prior to the Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely corresponding In Sumerian mythology and later for Assyrians and Babylonians Anu (also An; (from Sumerian *An = sky heaven was a sky-god The Anunna are the fifty great gods of Sumerian mythology. Some of them are associated with specific cities while others bear a strong resemblance to the functions of patron The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem from Ancient Mesopotamia and is among the earliest known works of literary fiction. In Sumerian mythology, the utukku were a type of Spirit or Demon that could be either benevolent or evil Babylonian mythology is a set of stories depicting the activities of Babylonian deities, Heroes and Mythological creatures While these stories In Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is the sea personified as a Goddess, and a monstrous embodiment of Primordial chaos. Laḫmu (also romanized Lakhmu) is a deity from Akkadian mythology, first-born son of Apsu and Tiamat. Lahamu was the first-born daughter of Tiamat and Apsu in Akkadian mythology. In Akkadian mythology, Anshar (also spelled Anshur) which means "sky pivot" or "sky axle" is a Sky God. In the Akkadian epic Enuma Elish, Kishar is the daughter of Lahmu and Lahamu, the first children of Tiamat and Apsu Mummu Vizier of primeval gods Apsu, the fresh water and Tiamat, the salt water An aquifer is an underground layer of Water -bearing Permeable rock or unconsolidated materials ( Gravel, Sand, Silt, or Clay Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian Akkadian Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris Mesopotamian mythology is the collective name given to Sumerian Akkadian Assyrian and Babylonian mythologies from the land between the Tigris Lakes, springs, rivers, wells, and other sources of fresh water were thought to draw their water from the apsû.
The Sumerian god Enki (Ea in the Akkadian language) was believed to have lived in the apsû since before human beings were created. Sumer ( Sumerian: sux-Latn [[Ki (earth ki]]-[[EN (cuneiform en]]-'''ĝir15''', Akkadian: Šumeru; possibly Biblical Shinar God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology His wife Damgalnuna, his mother Nammu, his advisor Isimud and a variety of subservient creatures, such as the gatekeeper Lahmu, also lived in the apsû. Damgalnuna was a mother goddess in Mesopotamian mythology She first appears as a consort of Enlil in Sumerian times and as Mesopotamian traditions progress becomes In Sumerian mythology, Nammu (more properly Namma) is the Sumerian creation goddess Isimud (also Isinu; Usumu ( Akkadian) is a minor god, the messenger of the god Enki in Sumerian mythology. Laḫmu (also romanized Lakhmu) is a deity from Akkadian mythology, first-born son of Apsu and Tiamat.
In the city Eridu, Enki's temple was known as E-abzu ("the abzu temple") and was located at the edge of a swamp, an apsû. Eridu (URUNUNKI; Sumerian:eridug Akkadian: ?) from the Sumerian for 'mighty place' is modern Tell Abu Shahrain, Iraq [1]
Certain tanks of holy water in Babylonian and Assyrian temple courtyards were also called apsû or abzu (Black and Green 1992). Holy water can also refer to water that has been blessed, such as by a Priest, and is considered Holy. Babylon was a City-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which can be found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq Early history The most Neolithic site in Assyria is at Tell Hassuna, the center of the Hassuna culture Typical in religious washing, these tanks may be regarded as precursors to the washing pools of Islamic mosques, or the baptismal font in Christian churches. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. A "mosque" in English refers to all types of buildings dedicated for Islamic worship although there is a distinction in Arabic between the smaller privately owned mosque and the larger In Christianity, baptism ( Greek, "immersing" "performing Ablutions " is the ritual act with the use of water by which one is admitted Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings
Contents |
As a deity
- Main article: Enûma Elish
Apsû is depicted as a deity only in the Babylonian creation epic, the Enûma Elish, of which our surviving copy is from the library of Assurbanipal (died 630 BCE) but which is a millennium older. The akk Enûma Eliš is the Babylonian Creation myth (named for its Incipit) See also List of deities A deity is a Postulated Preternatural or Supernatural Being, who is always A creation myth is a supernatural mytho-[[religion religious]] story or explanation that describes the beginnings of humanity, Earth, life, and An epic is a lengthy Narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation The akk Enûma Eliš is the Babylonian Creation myth (named for its Incipit) Ashurbanipal ( Akkadian: Aššur-bāni-apli, " Ashur has made a son" or "Ashur created an heir" (b In this story, he was a primal being made of fresh water and a lover to another primal deity, Tiamat, who was a creature of salt water. In Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is the sea personified as a Goddess, and a monstrous embodiment of Primordial chaos. The Enuma Elish begins:
When above the heavens did not yet exist nor the earth below, Apsu the freshwater ocean was there, the first, the begetter, and Tiamat, the saltwater sea, she who bore them all; they were still mixing their waters, and no pasture land had yet been formed, nor even a reed marsh. . .
Many think that Abzu/Apsu or Engur/Enkur was the original divinity later known as Enki. Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology Joseph Campbell follows the mainstream in a sociopolitical reading: "Such a mythology represents an actual historical substitution of cult. Joseph John Campbell ( March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American Mythology Professor, Writer . . . "[2] The main intention of the cosmic genealogy was to effect a refutation of the claims of the earlier theology in favor of the gods and moral order of the later one. In Akkadian and neo-Babylonian times, Enki was identified as Ea, in this guise become the "conqueror" of apsû, in a way uncharacteristic of the nature of the earlier god. Enki ( Sumerian: dENKI(G 𒂗𒆠 was a Deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Babylonian mythology After Ea tore off Apsû's tiara and carried away his splendor, he killed Apsû, he set up his dwelling upon the dead god. This is considered as the origin of the apsû where Ea lives in myths set during later time periods. The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" Marduk, though called "firstborn son of the apsû" is actually Ea's (Enki's) son, not Apsû's; the title is meant to be taken metaphorically, as Marduk was the first "child" born in the apsû. Marduk ( Sumerian spelling in Akkadian: AMARUTU 𒀫 𒌓 "solar calf" perhaps from MERI Metaphor (from the Greek: μεταφορά - metaphora, meaning "transfer" is language that directly compares seemingly unrelated subjects Others consider it (i. e. Engur/Enki) to demonstrate the older association of apsû and Enki, which would suggest that Abzu may have been the original name by which the divinity of Enki later became known.
References
- Jeremy Black and Anthony Green, 1992. Gods, Demons, and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia: an illustrated dictionary, s. v. "abzu, apsû". ISBN 0-292-70794-0
Notes
- ^ Eridu in Sumerian Literature, Margaret Whitney Green, pages 180-182, Ph. D. dissertation, University of Chicago, 1975.
- ^ Campbell, The Masks of God: Occidental Mythology 1964, p 76. Campbell's further assertion, that a matriarchal culture was overtaken by a patriarchal one, however, is fiercely debated.
See also
Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely correspondingDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic