Enki and Ninhursag

   An ancient Mesopotamian myth and epic poem about the highly productive sexual relations between Enki, god of freshwaters and wisdom, and his wife, Damgalnuna, or Ninhursag, an earth goddess. Their union ultimately results in the creation of many other gods, as well as various plants. The setting is the primeval region of Dil-mun, a paradise on which the biblical Garden of Eden may have been based. The primary theme of the work is fertility and the notion that it springs ultimately from the bodies and loins of selected divinities. Some aspects of the tale, including brazen incest among the gods, may seem strange and somewhat disconcerting to modern Western readers; to the ancient Mesopota-mians, however, such ideas were perfectly acceptable within the context of divine creation.

   As the story begins, Enki and Ninhur-sag fall in love, and she enjoys watching him create rivers to irrigate Dilmun and make it more lush and livable. The following passage captures the carefree, romantic mood of the lovers:

   Ninhursag rejoiced in Enki's mighty prowess and said to him: "Beloved, the powerful touch of your sweet waters, the essence of Mother Nammu that lies deep within you, transformed the land, my stony body. I feel the power of life throbbing within to be revealed throughout my very depths as I give joyously birth and sustenance to the marshes and reed-beds, that from now on will shelter fish, plant, beasts and all that breathes. Thus I call myself Nintur, the lady who gives birth, the Womb of the Damp Lands by the riverbanks." Enki replied: "Nin-hursag, dearest Nintur, beloved, how can anyone quite compare to you? I cannot resist your wild, sweet ways, so lie with me one more time and fill my body, heart, soul and mind with endless delights! For me you will forever be my fierce Damgalnuna, my Great Spouse, passionate and very much loved!"

   The product of Enki and Ninhursag's lovemaking is a daughter, Ninsar. Ninsar grows to maturity in just nine days. And while Ninhursag is away on a trip, Enki is taken with his daughter's beauty and impregnates her. She gives birth to a daughter named Ninkurra. Like her mother, Ninkurra grows up in a mere nine days; and as he did with Ninsar, Enki makes love to his new granddaughter. The result is Enki's great-granddaughter, Uttu. He has sex with her, too, but this time no child results. Instead, Ninhursag, who has found out what has happened in her absence, ensures that Enki's sperm produces eight varieties of plants. Enki eats the plants, which angers Ninhursag, and she leaves in a huff. But a clever fox convinces her to return. She makes love with Enki again, and the experience causes him pain in eight parts of his body. A new god is born for each of the eight pains, and Enki makes one of these deities the ruler of Dilmun.

   See also: Damgalnuna; Enki