Inanna and Enki- Mesopotamian EventEvent"Theft of the Me"
Also known as: Inanna and the Me and Inana and Enki
Description
Inanna visited Enki at Eridu and plied him with beer until, drunk, he gifted her the Me, the divine decrees governing all aspects of civilization. She fled with them by boat to Uruk, and despite Enki sending Isimud and monsters to recover them, she kept them all.
Mythology & Lore
The Me
The Me were the divine decrees governing every aspect of civilization, from kingship and priesthood to writing and weaving. Enki, god of wisdom, guarded them at his temple in Eridu.
The Feast
Inanna traveled from Uruk to Eridu, arriving at Enki's temple, the E-Abzu. Enki, delighted by her visit, sat down with her to a great banquet. Inanna plied him with beer until he became thoroughly intoxicated. As the beer loosened his judgment, he began offering Inanna the Me. First lordship and godship. Then the arts of love, then truth, then the holy purification rites. He could not stop. Inanna accepted each with the ritualized response: "I will take them!" By the time Enki passed out, she had them all.
The Flight
Inanna loaded the Me onto the Boat of Heaven and set sail for Uruk. When Enki awoke sober and realized what he had done, he dispatched his vizier Isimud with sea monsters and the fifty Lahmu of the subterranean waters to intercept her at each of seven stopping points between Eridu and Uruk.
Ninshubur, Inanna's loyal sukkal, fought them off at every stop. Neither monsters nor giants could take the boat.
The Arrival at Uruk
Inanna arrived with the Boat of Heaven intact. The city erupted in feasting as the Me were unloaded at the quayside. Enki, unable to recover what he had freely given, reconciled with Inanna and accepted the transfer.