The Obituary
Enki, known to the Akkadians as Ea, was the Sumerian god of fresh water, wisdom and crafts, dwelling in the Abzu, the underground freshwater ocean beneath his city Eridu. The cunning problem-solver of the gods, he helped fashion humankind from clay and, against Enlil’s decree, warned the flood hero to build a boat and preserve life. Honored for nearly three thousand years across Mesopotamia, his rites dwindled under Persian and Greek domination and ended in the early centuries CE. The god of wisdom passed out of memory along with the temples that once invoked him.
Worth remembering
- Dwelling in the Abzu, the underground freshwater ocean, he was the clever problem-solver of the gods, devising humankind from clay mixed with divine blood.
- When Enlil sent the flood, Enki whispered the warning to the flood hero through a reed wall, telling him to build a boat and save the seed of life.
Sources
- Enki (Akkadian Ea) was the Sumerian god of fresh water, wisdom, crafts and creation, whose cult center was Eridu. Wikipedia
- Enki warns the flood hero (Ziusudra/Atrahasis) to build a boat, preserving humanity against Enlil's wrath. World History Encyclopedia
A graveyard tradition: leave a stone to show you came, and remembered.