Editing Enlil (section)

==Worship==
[[File:Ruins from a temple in Naffur.jpg|thumb|right|Modern photograph of the ruins of the [[Ekur]] temple at Nippur]]
[[File:Ekur plan.svg|thumb|Floor plan of the Ekur temple in Nippur]]
{{rquote|right|Enlil who sits broadly on the white dais, on the lofty dais, who perfects the decrees of power, lordship, and princeship, the earth-gods bow down in fear before him, the heaven-gods humble themselves before him...|Sumerian hymn to Enlil, translated by [[Samuel Noah Kramer]]{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=120}}}}
[[File:Cuneiform inscription on a diorite mortar stating that this was an offering from Gudea to Enlil. From Nippur, Iraq. 2144-2124 BCE. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul.jpg|thumb|Cuneiform inscription on a diorite mortar from Nippur stating that this was an offering from [[Gudea]] to Enlil ({{circa}} 2144–2124 BC)]]

Enlil was the patron god of the Sumerian city-state of [[Nippur]]{{snf|Hallo|1996|pages=231–234}} and his main center of worship was the [[Ekur]] temple located there.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|pages=74 and 76}} The name of the temple literally means "Mountain House" in ancient Sumerian.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=74}} The Ekur was believed to have been built and established by Enlil himself.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=74}} It was believed to be the "mooring-rope" of heaven and earth,{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=74}} meaning that it was seen as "a channel of communication between earth and heaven".{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=53}} A hymn written during the reign of [[Ur-Nammu]], the founder of the [[Third Dynasty of Ur]], describes the E-kur in great detail, stating that its gates were carved with scenes of [[Imdugud]], a lesser deity sometimes shown as a giant bird, slaying a lion and an eagle snatching up a sinner.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=74}}

The Sumerians believed that the sole purpose of humanity's existence was to serve the gods.{{sfn|Janzen|2004|page=247}}{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=123}} They thought that a god's statue was a physical embodiment of the god himself.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=94}}{{sfn|Nemet-Nejat|1998|page=186}} As such, [[Cult image|cult statues]] were given constant care and attention{{sfn|Nemet-Nejat|1998|pages=186–187}}{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=94}} and a set of priests were assigned to tend to them.{{sfn|Nemet-Nejat|1998|pages=186–188}} People worshipped Enlil by offering food and other human necessities to him.{{sfn|Janzen|2004|page=247}} The food, which was ritually laid out before the god's cult statue in the form of a feast,{{sfn|Nemet-Nejat|1998|pages=186–187}}{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=94}} was believed to be Enlil's daily meal,{{sfn|Janzen|2004|page=247}} but, after the ritual, it would be distributed among his priests.{{sfn|Janzen|2004|page=247}} These priests were also responsible for changing the cult statue's clothing.{{sfn|Nemet-Nejat|1998|page=186}}

The Sumerians envisioned Enlil as a benevolent, fatherly deity, who watches over humanity and cares for their well-being.{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=119}} One Sumerian hymn describes Enlil as so glorious that even the other gods could not look upon him.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=76}}{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=121}} The same hymn also states that, without Enlil, civilization could not exist.{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=121}} Enlil's [[epithet]]s include titles such as "the Great Mountain" and "King of the Foreign Lands".{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=76}} Enlil is also sometimes described as a "raging storm", a "wild bull", and a "merchant".{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=76}} The Mesopotamians envisioned him as a creator, a father, a king, and the supreme lord of the universe.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=76}}{{sfn|Kramer|1963|pages=119–121}} He was also known as "Nunamnir"{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=76}} and is referred to in at least one text as the "East Wind and North Wind".{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=76}}

Kings regarded Enlil as a model ruler and sought to emulate his example.{{snf|Grottanelli|Mander|2005|page=5,162a}} Enlil was said to be supremely just{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=120}} and intolerant towards evil.{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=120}} Rulers from all over Sumer would travel to Enlil's temple in Nippur to be legitimized.{{snf|Littleton|2005|pages=480–482}} They would return Enlil's favor by devoting lands and precious objects to his temple as offerings.{{snf|Littleton|2005|page=482}} Nippur was the only Sumerian city-state that never built a palace;{{sfn|Janzen|2004|page=247}} this was intended to symbolize the city's importance as the center of the cult of Enlil by showing that Enlil himself was the city's king.{{sfn|Janzen|2004|page=247}} Even during the Babylonian Period, when [[Marduk]] had superseded Enlil as the supreme god, Babylonian kings still traveled to the holy city of Nippur to seek recognition of their right to rule.{{snf|Littleton|2005|page=482}}

Enlil first rose to prominence during the twenty-fourth century BC, when the importance of the god [[Anu|An]] began to wane.{{snf|Schneider|2011|page=58}}{{sfn|Kramer|1963|page=118}} During this time period, Enlil and An are frequently invoked together in inscriptions.{{snf|Schneider|2011|page=58}} Enlil remained the supreme god in Mesopotamia throughout the Amorite Period,{{snf|Schneider|2011|pages=58–59}} with Amorite monarchs proclaiming Enlil as the source of their legitimacy.{{snf|Schneider|2011|pages=58–59}} Enlil's importance began to wane after the Babylonian king [[Hammurabi]] conquered Sumer.{{snf|Schneider|2011|page=59}} The Babylonians worshipped Enlil under the name "Elil"{{snf|Coleman|Davidson|2015|page=108}} and the [[Hurrian religion|Hurrians]] syncretized him with their own god [[Kumarbi]].{{snf|Coleman|Davidson|2015|page=108}} In one Hurrian ritual, Enlil and Apantu are invoked as "the father and mother of [[Išḫara]]".{{sfn|Archi|1990|page=114}} Enlil is also invoked alongside Ninlil as a member of "the [[Anunnaki#Hurrian and Hittite|mighty and firmly established gods]]".{{sfn|Archi|1990|page=114}}

During the Kassite Period ({{circa}} 1592–1155 BC), Nippur briefly managed to regain influence in the region and Enlil rose to prominence once again.{{snf|Schneider|2011|page=59}} From around 1300 BC onwards, Enlil was syncretized with the Assyrian national god [[Ashur (god)|Aššur]],{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=38}} who was the most important deity in the Assyrian pantheon.{{snf|Black|Green|1992|page=37}} Then, in 1230 BC, the [[Elamites]] attacked Nippur and the city fell into decline, taking the cult of Enlil along with it.{{snf|Schneider|2011|page=59}} Approximately one hundred years later, Enlil's role as the head of the pantheon was given to [[Marduk]], the [[national god]] of the Babylonians.{{snf|Schneider|2011|page=59}}