Nergal

The Raging King of The Sun

Guardian Angel Underworld

The Annunaki

Nergal - Erra - Meslamtaea

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nergal 

Nergal (Sumerian: 𒀭𒄊𒀕𒃲 dKIŠ.UNU or dGÌR-UNUG-GAL; Hebrew: נֵרְגַל‎, Modern: Nergal, Tiberian: Nērgal; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; Latin: Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations under indicating his cult survived into the period of Achaemenid domination. He was primarily associated with war, death, and disease, and has been described as the "god of inflicted death".

-

He reigned over Kur, the Mesopotamian underworld, depending on the myth either on behalf of his parents Enlil and Ninlil, or in later periods as a result of his marriage with the goddess Ereshkigal. Originally either Mammitum, a goddess possibly connected to frost, or Laṣ, sometimes assumed to be a minor medicine goddess, were regarded as his wife, though other traditions existed, too.

-

His primary cult center was Kutha, located in northern Mesopotamia (Iraq). His main temple was the E-Meslam and he was also known by the name Meslamtaea, "he who comes out of Meslam". Initially he was only worshiped in the north, with a notable exception being Girsu during the reign of Gudea of Lagash, but starting with the Ur III period he became a major deity in the south too. He remained prominent in both Babylonia and Assyria in later periods, and in the Neo-Babylonian state pantheon he was regarded as the third most important god, after Marduk and Nabu.

-

Nergal was associated with a large number of local or foreign deities. The Akkadian god Erra was syncretised with him at an early date, and especially in literary texts they functioned as synonyms of each other. Other major deities frequently compared to or syncretised with him include the Western Semitic god Resheph, who was also a god of war, plague and death, and Elamite Simut, who was likely a warrior god and shared Nergal's association with the planet Mars.

-

Two well known myths focus on Nergal, Nergal and Ereshkigal and Epic of Erra. The former describes the circumstances of his marriage of Ereshkigal, the Mesopotamian goddess of the dead, while the latter describes his rampages and efforts of his sukkal (attendant deity) Ishum to stop them. He also appears in a number of other, less well preserved compositions.

Read More Ereshkigal Queen of The Underworld Irkalla click

-

Functions and attributes

Nergal's role as a god of the underworld is already attested in an Early Dynastic zami hymn dedicated to Kutha, where he is additionally associated with the so-called "Enki-Ninki deities", a group regarded as ancestors of Enlil, who were believed to reside in the underworld. According to a hymn from the reign of Ishme-Dagan, dominion over the land of the dead was bestowed upon Nergal by his parents, Enlil and Ninlil.

-

He was believed to decide fates of the dead the same way as Enlil did for the living. In one Old Babylonian adab song Nergal is described as "Enlil of the kalam (homeland) and kur (the underworld)". He was also occasionally referred to as Enlil-banda, "junior Enlil", usually an epithet of the god Enki.

Read More Enki God of Water Lord of The Earth click

Read More Enlil God of Air Storm King of The Gods click

-

In addition to being a god of the underworld, Nergal was also a war god, believed to accompany rulers on campaigns, but also to guarantee peace due to his fearsome nature serving as a deterrent. In that capacity he was known as Lugal-silimma, "lord of peace". He was also associated with disease. As summed up by Frans Wiggermann, his various domains make him the god of "inflicted death".

-

He played an important role in apotropaic rituals, in which he was commonly invoked to protect houses from evil. Additionally, fragments of tablets containing the Epic of Erra, a text detailing his exploits, were used as amulets.

-

Astral role

Nergal was associated with Mars, a planet like him associated with disease (especially kidney disease) in Mesopotamian beliefs. However, Mars was also associated with other deities: Ninazu (under the name "the Elam star"), Nintinugga, and especially Simut, in origin an Elamite god, whose name in Mesopotamian sources could simply refer to the planet (mulSi-mu-ut, "the star Simut").

-

A number of scholars in the early 20th century, for example Emil Kraeling, assumed that Nergal was in part a solar deity, and as such was sometimes identified with Shamash (Sun of God Lord of Light.) Kraeling argued that Nergal was representative of a certain phase of the sun, specifically the sun of noontime and of the summer solstice that brings destruction, high summer being the dead season in the Mesopotamian annual cycle.

Read More Shamash Sun of God Lord of Light 3 Books of Enoch click

-

For instance, an Old Babylonian adab song contains a description of Nergal serving as a judge at sunset, while another composition calls him the "king of sunset". This association is also present in rituals meant to compel ghosts to return to the underworld through the gates to sunset.

-

Worship and Cult

Nergal's main cult center was Kutha, where his temple E-Meslam was located. Andrew R. George proposes the translation "house, warrior of the netherworld" for its name. A secondary name of the E-Meslam was E-ḫuškia, "fearsome house of the underworld". It is already attested in documents from the reign of Shulgi, don whose orders repair work was undertaken there.

-

Later monarchs who also rebuilt it include Apil-Sin, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal and Nebuchadnezzar II. It continued to function as late as in the Seleucid period. In addition to Kutha, Apak (Apiak) is well attested as a major cult center of Nergal, already attested in documents from the Sargonic period. Its precise location is not known, but it has been established that it was to the west of Marad.

-

Naram-Sin of Akkad was particularly devoted to Nergal, describing him as his "caretaker" (rābisu) and himself as a "comrade" (rū'um) of the god. At the same time, worship of Nergal in the southernmost cities of Mesopotamia was uncommon in the third millennium BCE, one exception being the presence of "Meslamtaea" in Lagash in Gudea's times.

-

This changed during the reign of Shulgi, the second king from the Third Dynasty of Ur. Theological texts from this period indicate that Nergal was viewed as one of the major gods and as king of the underworld.

-

Enlightenment Through Hellfire

Source: https://scarletarosa.tumblr.com/post/673673463388635136/nergal-mesopotamian-god-of-death-war-and-plagues 

-

Nergal, Mesopotamian god of death, war, and plagues

Nergal (Akkadian: Erra/Irra) is the god of the Mesopotamian Underworld, known as Kur (or Irkalla). As the King of Kur, Nergal is the husband of Queen Ereshkigal, the dark lady of death. Nergal and his wife were both known for being war-like, bringing death to mortals before they were even meant to die, as they delighted in the blood-shed and power of death.

-

Nergal has another trait as well, which is his power of spreading pestilence, causing horrible disease wherever he wills it. Thus, he was known as the Lord of Plague by the Mesopotamians. Though despite these acts, neither Nergal or his Queen or evil beings, they simply view things differently and fully embrace their roles of causing death.

-

There are two separate mythical ideas of how Nergal became the husband of Ereshkigal. In one story, he spends seven passionate days with the goddess in her palace, but in another, Nergal attempts to kill her but spares her once Ereshkigal offers to be his wife and share her rulership with him.

-

In either myth, Nergal becomes the co-ruler of Kur alongside Ereshkigal, but must return to the Earth after six months so he may attend to his other duties. In my workings with Nergal and Ereshkigal, they explain that they were actually created together as a perfect match in order to reign in Kur. This is because no kingdom of death can be truly balanced without both a king and a queen (duality), so they came into existence already paired together.

-

His Kingdom: The entire Underworld is an extremely vast place that is continuously growing in size. The kingdom of Kur alone is larger than ten Earths combined. Every kingdom of death known to humans exists in the Underworld; Kur is one of these kingdoms, and it lies beyond a long, empty desert. It is a subterranean domain which features a solemn city of bones.

-

It is very dark here, without any sun. Their palace is majestic and gloomy, made of polished black stone and sits tall at the back-centre of the whole kingdom. Within Kur are very dark places and tall, skeletal warriors who guard the kingdom, among other chthonic entities. Mortals who go to their realm tend to be humans who follow the Mesopotamian religion, or are people of Mesopotamian descent.

-

King Nergal and Queen Ereshkigal rule over all the dead sent to their domain, and task them with various challenges that they must overcome. These are for removing their limitations, making them face the wrongs they did during life, and to overcome anything else that restricts them from transcending into the rest of the spirit world.

Read More Ereshkigal Queen of The Underworld Irkalla click

-

Appearance: A tall and muscular man with short black hair, reddish-black skin, and eyes that are flaming yellow. He wears otherworldly black clothing that changes shape at will, manifesting appendages, mouths, and spikes. He also wields a scythe as his weapon. He is sadistic towards his enemies, and has booming laughter when he slaughters them.

-

Personality: Nergal is serious, confident, highly resilient, aggressive, dominating, and vengeful, with his wife being the only one he fully shows care for. He is also fiercely protective over his family and is territorial. He disregards the loss of life and loves death. He is a mighty and terrifying god, but is approachable towards those who respect him.

-

If one truly seeks to understand death, Nergal and his Queen have great wisdom to share, and will illuminate the seeker in the mysteries of the dead. These teachings however are not easy, for death is always a sacrifice in one way or another, but they will make you stronger. Nergal states that ‘one cannot truly be wise if they do not “die” first, as you must kill your old self in order to be reborn’. 

-

One must also know how to overcome loss, pain, and loneliness, for these things are not only part of life, but will be experienced in the Underworld as well. If you seek to overcome the trials of death, you must first master your own mind, including any unnecessary fears.

-

You shouldn’t be attached to things that are transient; many things that you hold precious in life, such as money, material objects, your appearance, pets, locations, and false beliefs will all be gone one day when you die.

-

You should not be attached to these things, only the things which are eternal; only these are truly important. If one can understand this and accept it, then the Underworld will be easier for them to get through and they can move on to the spirit world beyond.

-

Read More Sebitti The Seven Gods Children of The Anunnaki The Seven Evil Spirits click

Read More Fallen Angels The Nephilim Watchers 1st Book of Enoch click