Ninsun’s Family Tree

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Family

• Lugalbanda(spouse),Gilgamesh(child)— Marriage

  Lugalbanda the shepherd-king and the goddess Ninsun bore Gilgamesh, who inherited his mother's divine nature and his father's royal blood — two-thirds god and one-third man, king of Uruk.

• Enkidu(child)— Adopted

  Ninsun placed a pendant around Enkidu's neck and declared him her adopted son, binding him as a brother to Gilgamesh before the two departed for the Cedar Forest.

Associated with

• Gilgamesh

  Ninsun, the wise cow goddess and Gilgamesh's mother, prayed to Shamash for her son's protection before the Cedar Forest quest and interpreted his prophetic dreams foretelling the arrival of Enkidu.

• Shamash

  Ninsun climbed to the roof of her temple, burned incense before Shamash, and demanded aloud that the sun god watch over Gilgamesh on the road to the Cedar Forest and guard him through the mountain passes until he returned safely to Uruk.