The Mesopotamian Pantheon: The Essential (Anu, Enlil, Enki, Marduk, Ashur, Inanna, Ereshkigal, Nabu)

The Mesopotamian pantheon is based on the Sumerian model, but the aspects of deities change from place to place and from era to era. So the gods of the Mesopotamian region were not uniform in names, power, provenance or status, and sometimes several gods become one or one divides into several. Collectively, these deities are the Anunnaki or the “royal ones”. Anu was the somewhat distant Mesopotamian father god, an embodiment of heavens and a member of the triad of deities completed by Enlil and Enki. His consort and feminine counterpart was Antu and from their union were born the Anunnaki. In a Babylonian version, Anu was born of the primordial couple Anshar and Kishar, and his cult center was in Uruk. If at first he was the most powerful of the gods, he lost some of his importance over the centuries, giving way to the gods Enlil, Marduk and the goddess Inanna. Enlil was the Mesopotamian god of the atmosphere and a member of the triad of divinities who ruled Heaven, Earth and the Underworld. He was the only god besides Anu who could bestow the important elements of the Sumerian concept of divine order upon other divinities. The god Enlil was often prayed to in hopes of a fair weather for a good harvest, he was invoked to bless his cities to ensure prosperity and abundance. Enki was one of the most prominent Mesopotamian gods known in Sumer and was further developed by the Akkadians. Nabu was the Babylonian god of writing and wisdom, son of Marduk and grandson of the god of wisdom. In Mesopotamian religion, Marduk is the Babylonian King of the gods, the hero who defeated the forces of chaos and brought order to the universe.