darwinfish86 t1_ja5uohh wrote
Reply to comment by Trash_Panda_Leaves in 4,500-year-old Sumerian temple dedicated to mighty thunder god discovered in Iraq. by Rifletree
In Sumerian mythology Ningursu's father was the storm god Enlil, so that is likely the connection. That said many of these deities shifted names and roles over the two thousand years or so that they were actively worshipped, and often took on different meanings in different places at different times.
The gods had a lot of overlap in responsibilities; it was not at all like a Dungeons & Dragons pantheon where every deity had a set and specific set of duties and powers. Gods could be as broad and seemingly universal as Enlil (god of storms) or Inanna (goddess of love and war), or they could have very narrow associations, like Enbilulu, god of irrigation. Some gods were servants or family members of other gods, like Ninshubur, Inanna's personal servant/vizier.
Some gods lost their original identity and became syncretized with another deity, like Asaruludu, who was originally the city of Kuara's patron deity but later became merely one of the fifty names of Marduk, patron god of the city of Babylon.
The religion of Sumeria and Mesopotamia is fascinating and deep. I just got interested in it myself when I started building a D&D campaign set in the ancient bronze age. I went down that rabbit hole and still haven't crawled out of it.
Ancient polytheistic religions didn't really work the way movies, pop culture, video games, and fantasy has keyed us to understand them. For a really in-depth overview of how ancient polytheism worked I'd highly recommend A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry: Practical Polytheism, a blog by a professional historian.
seansy5000 t1_ja6juy9 wrote
Has to be one of the best titles for a blog I’ve ever seen.
Edit: changed book to blog
ibetthisistaken5190 t1_ja6tdry wrote
> titles for a book
In the spirit of unmitigated pedantry, I feel I should tell you it’s a blog.
seansy5000 t1_ja7i0zx wrote
Dear lord, of course. Thanks for the heads up!
I_am_oneiros t1_ja7lwo2 wrote
The blog is incredible. It lines up very neatly with the Hindu religious experience.
For example, you have old Gods (devas e.g. Indra who are the primary Gods in the Rigveda), the all powerful Gods (e.g. Vishnu who form the primary pantheon today), local Gods (e.g. specific to one village), situational Gods (e.g. for spring harvest), and deified humans e.g. Rama. The Brahmins are the priestly caste and Hinduism is heavy on rituals.
This in a living breathing religion which varies from place to place is quite a fascinating thing.
ThePencilRain t1_ja81v7y wrote
So where does Elendil fit in here?
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