Gods, Demons & Immortals
whose Names Start with 'M'
The immortals of ancient Sumer.
by James W. Bell © 2002-3
Mami (see Nintu)
Mamitu
Mamitu was originally an Akkadian oath goddess but became a goddess of fate and ultimately descended into the Great Below to become a judge in the Netherworld with the Anunnaki. In some traditions, she was considered to be the consort of Nergal. Mamitu had no known temples, shrines or sanctuaries.
Mamu
A little known Sumerian god or goddess of dreams, a child of Shamash, born with shifting gender. The god/goddess had no known temples, shrines or sanctuaries in the 27th century BCE.
Manzat (also Manzit)
Manzat was an Elamite goddess who was Simut's wife.
Marduk (also Asarhuli)
Biblical Connection: In the Bible, Marduk is known as Bel (not Baal - click here for the comparison between Baal and Bel.).
Isaiah 46:1; Jeremiah 50:2, 51:44.
Click here for 'Bel and the Dragon,' a book of the Apocrypha, also known as Chapter 14 of the Greek Book of Daniel
Marduk, first known as Asarhuli, born in Kuara on the coast of the Lower Sea, was the son of Enki. He married the goddess Sarpanitu and was made tutelary diety of the city of Babil (Babylon) where he built his the E.sagil Temple, 'High Temple.'
Marduk was a relatively unimportant god in Sumerian times. But later, when Hammurapi became lugal (king) of Babil, the city known to the Greeks as Babylon, became the greatest city of Babylonia. After that, Marduk became the supreme god of Babylonia.
His icon was the snake-dragon.
Martu (Amurru in Akkadian)
Martu, a son of Anu, was god of the Amurru, the desert nomads (from present-day Saudi Arabia). His wife was Belet-seri, 'Lady of the Desert.' *[ In my stories, Martu was a angry god, striking back against cities of the expanding Sumerian civilization that were gradually encroaching on the desert. ]*
Martu, a god of the nomads called the Amurru, was worshipped in tents on the desert and had no known temples, shrines or Sanctuaries in Sumer.
For a translationg of the Sumerian story, 'The Marriage of Martu,' click here.
Meslamta-ea
Meslamta-ea, 'He Who Comes Forth from Meslam (a temple in Kutha),' an Akkadian god, was a brother of Sin and also the twin brother of Lugal-irra. Together, Meslamta-ea and Lugal-irra are known as guards, especially for protecting doorways. Usually, Meslamtea-ea is considered to be an Underworld god. In one tradition, he and Lugal-irra guard the doorway to the Netherworld where they dismember the dead as they enter.
To read a translation of a Sumerian hymn to Nergal from Oxford University in which Nergal is proclaimed as great a guardian as Meslamta-ea (spelled 'Meclamta-eda' in the translation), click here.
Meslamta-ea's primary temple was the E.meslam, 'House of the Warrior of the Netherworld,' at Kutha in Akkad. In Sumer, there was a temple, the E.meslammelamilla, 'E.meslam Which Bears Radiance,' at the village of Durum near Uruk which was dedicated to the Divine Twins (Meslamtea-ea and Lugal-irra).
Misharu
Misharu, the son of Shamash and Aya, was the Sumerian god of justice. His brother was Kittu, the Sumerian god of truth.
Hammurabi laws consisted mostly of ‘misharu acts’ to correct economic and social injustices for which truth (kittum) had no remedy. For a detailed overview of Hammurabi’s reign and his code, click here.
Misharu had no known temples, shrines or sanctuaries.
Mummu
Mummu was a god who served as Abzu’s sukkal (vizier) in Heaven before the Earth was formed. When the younger gods made a commotion and annoyed Abzu, Mummu advised him to kill them all. Enki, one of the younger gods, foiled the plot by putting Abzu to sleep and bringing him down from Heaven to create the Earth. When he did, he also brought Mummu along. For safekeeping, Enki imprisoned both Mummu and Abzu beneath his temple in Eridu, called the E.abzu.
For a Babylonian account of the event, click here.
Mummu had no known temples, shrines or sanctuaries.
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