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Enki (; Sumerian: ) is a god in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Akkadian and Babylonian mythology. He was originally patron god of the city of Eridu, but later the influence of his cult spread throughout Mesopotamia and to the Canaanites, Hittites and Hurrians. He was the deity of crafts (''gašam''); mischief; water, seawater, lakewater (''a'', ''aba'', ''ab''), intelligence (''gestú'', literally "ear") and creation (''Nudimmud'': ''nu'', likeness, ''dim mud'', make beer). He was associated with the southern band of constellations called ''stars of Ea'', but also with the constellation AŠ-IKU, ''the Field'' (Square of Pegasus).〔(Origins of the ancient constellations: I. The Mesopotamian traditions ) by J.H. Rogers〕 Beginning around the second millennium BCE, he was sometimes referred to in writing by the numeric ideogram for "40," occasionally referred to as his "sacred number."〔Jeremy A. Black, Jeremy Black, Anthony Green, Tessa Rickards, ''Gods, demons, and symbols of ancient Mesopotamia'' (1992), University of Texas Press, p. 145.〕〔Benjamin R. Foster, Chpt. 4 "Mesopotamia" from ''A Handbook of Ancient Religions'' edited by John R. Hinnells (2007), Cambridge University Press, p. 174.〕〔W. Röllig, "Götterzahlen", ''Reallexikon der Assyriologie'', III (1957-1971), p. 500.〕 The planet Mercury, associated with Babylonian ''Nabu'' (the son of Marduk) was in Sumerian times, identified with Enki. A large number of myths about Enki have been collected from many sites, stretching from Southern Iraq to the Levantine coast. He figures in the earliest extant cuneiform inscriptions throughout the region and was prominent from the third millennium down to Hellenistic times. The exact meaning of his name is uncertain: the common translation is "Lord of the Earth": the Sumerian ''en'' is translated as a title equivalent to "lord"; it was originally a title given to the High Priest; ''ki'' means "earth"; but there are theories that ''ki'' in this name has another origin, possibly ''kig'' of unknown meaning, or ''kur'' meaning "mound". The name Ea is allegedly Hurrian in origin while others 〔Huffmon, Herbert B. (1965), "Amorite Personal Names in the Mari Texts: A Structural and Lexical Study". (Baltimore, Maryland: The Johns Hopkins Press)〕〔Noah Kramer, Samuel and John Maier, (1989), "Myths of Enki, the Crafty God" (New York and Oxford. Oxford University Press)〕 claim that his name 'Ea' is possibly of Semitic origin and may be a derivation from the West-Semitic root *hyy meaning "life" in this case used for "spring", "running water." In Sumerian E-A means "the house of water", and it has been suggested that this was originally the name for the shrine to the god at Eridu. ==Attributes== The main temple to Enki is called ''E-abzu'', meaning "abzu temple" (also ''E-en-gur-a'', meaning "house of the subterranean waters"), a ziggurat temple surrounded by Euphratean marshlands near the ancient Persian Gulf coastline at Eridu. He was the keeper of the divine powers called ''Me'', the gifts of civilization. His image is a double-helix snake, or the Caduceus, sometimes confused with the Rod of Asclepius used to symbolize medicine. He is often shown with the horned crown of divinity dressed in the skin of a carp. Considered the master shaper of the world, god of wisdom and of all magic, Enki was characterized as the lord of the Abzu (Apsu in Akkadian), the freshwater sea or groundwater located within the earth. In the later Babylonian epic ''Enûma Eliš'', Abzu, the "begetter of the gods", is inert and sleepy but finds his peace disturbed by the younger gods, so sets out to destroy them. His grandson Enki, chosen to represent the younger gods, puts a spell on Abzu "casting him into a deep sleep", thereby confining him deep underground. Enki subsequently sets up his home "''in the depths of the Abzu''." Enki thus takes on all of the functions of the Abzu, including his fertilising powers as lord of the waters and lord of semen.〔Leick, Gwendolyn (2001), "Mesopotamia: the invention of the city" (Penguin) p.20〕 Early royal inscriptions from the third millennium BCE mention "the reeds of Enki". Reeds were an important local building material, used for baskets and containers, and collected outside the city walls, where the dead or sick were often carried. This links Enki to the ''Kur'' or underworld of Sumerian mythology. In another even older tradition, Nammu, the goddess of the primeval creative matter and the mother-goddess portrayed as having ''"given birth to the great gods,"'' was the mother of Enki, and as the watery creative force, was said to preexist Ea-Enki.〔Dalley, S (1989), "Myths of Mesopotamia" (Oxford, NY), p.50〕 Benito states "With Enki it is an interesting change of gender symbolism, the fertilising agent is also water, Sumerian ''"a"'' or ''"Ab"'' which also means "semen". In one evocative passage in a Sumerian hymn, Enki stands at the empty riverbeds and fills them with his 'water'".〔Benito, C.A. (1969) "Enki and Ninmah" and "Enki and the World Order" (dissertation, Uni of Philadelphia)〕 This may be a reference to Enki's hieros gamos or sacred marriage with Ki/Ninhursag (the Earth) (see below). His symbols included a goat and a fish, which later combined into a single beast, the goat Capricorn, recognised as the Zodiacal constellation Capricornus. He was accompanied by an attendant Isimud. He was also associated with the planet Mercury in the Sumerian astrological system. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Enki」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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