below. When it came to more private matters, a Sumerian remained devout. Although the gods preferred justice and mercy, they had also created evil and misfortune. A Sumerian had little that he could do about it. Judging from Lamentation records, the best one could do in times of duress would be to "plead, lament and wail, tearfully confessing his sins and failings." Their family god or city god might intervene on their behalf, but that would not necessarily happen. After all, man was created as a broken, labor saving, tool for the use of the gods and at the end of everyone's life, lay the underworld, a generally dreary place. (Wolkstein & Kramer 1983: pp.123-124)It is notable that the Sumerians themselves may not have grouped four primary deities as a set and that the grouping has been made because of the observations of Sumerologists. An, god of heaven, may have been the main god of the pantheon prior to 2500 BC., although his importance gradually waned. It seems likely that he and Ki/Ninhursag were the progenitors of most of the gods. His primary temple was in Erech. He and Enlil give various gods, goddesses, and kings their earthly regions of influence and their laws. Ki is likely to be the original name of the earth goddess, whose name more often appears as Ninhursag (queen of the mountains), Ninmah (the exalted lady), or Nintu (the lady who gave birth). It seems likely that she and An were the progenitors of most of the gods. She is the mother goddess and assists in the creation of man. There she added constructive criticism to Enki as he shaped several versions of man from the heart of the clay over the Abzu. In Dilmun, she bore eight new trees from Enki. When he then ate her children, she cursed him with eight wounds. After being persuaded by Enlil to undo her curse, she bore Enki eight new children which undid the wounds of the first ones. Most often she is considered Enlil's sister, but in some traditions she is his spouse inst...
