ENLIL, the "wind god," was the principal god of the Sumerian pantheon and poliad god of Nippur, the religious center of the country. Enlil was also guardian god of the temple Ekur ("mountain house") and the husband of Ninlil, or Sud. Together with An and Enki, Enlil was the third member of the great triad of the Sumerian pantheon and a permanent member of the assembly of the gods. When the cosmos was divided, Enlil took the earth for himself, while An ruled the sky and Ereshkigal was given the underworld. Enlil is the elder brother of Enki, whom he entrusted with the task of putting the world in order. After the great Flood, Enlil and An gave Ziusudra (the hero of the flood) "life, like (that of) a god." The Moon god (Nanna-Sin, Ashimbabbar), Nergal, Ninazu, and Enbilulu were born from Enlil's union with Ninlil. In the...