Anu

Deities

Tradition · Sumerian Mesopotamian
Alternate Names
AnAnumFather of the GodsLord of Heaven
Gender Expression
Masculine
Titles
Lord of HeavenFather of the GodsKing of the GodsHe of the Eanna
Domain
The skyHeavenKingshipAuthorityThe power to decreeThe stars
Planetary Correspondence
Uranus
Secondary Planets
JupiterSaturn
Elemental Correspondence
AirAether
Zodiac Affinity
AquariusSagittarius
Correspondences
Colors
BlueGoldWhiteGrey
Scents
FrankincenseCedarMyrrh
Metals
GoldElectrumSilver
Animals
BullEagleSerpent
Sacred Timing
Sabbats
Hours
MidnightNoonThe cold hour before dawn
Offerings
BeerBreadWaterIncenseA bullFirst fruits
Invocation Approach
Tone
The authority that delegates
Address
AnuFather of the GodsLord of Heaven
Relationship
The king who rules by not intervening
Warning
He is remote and he answers by authorising someone else
Resonance
Those holding office those who have to decree
Symbols
The horned crownThe skyThe bullThe eannaThe staff and ring
Mythology Summary

Anu, Sumerian An, is the sky itself and the highest authority of the Mesopotamian pantheon, the father of the gods, whose temple the Eanna, House of Heaven, stood at Uruk; the Sumerian and Akkadian god lists put him at the head of the triad with Enlil and Ea. He is remote: in the Gilgamesh epic he grants Ishtar the Bull of Heaven, in Atrahasis and in Enuma Elish the work is done by his descendants, and kingship descends from heaven at his gift. The other gods act under his authority; he does not act himself.

Modern Practice

Anu is called on for authority, for the power to give an order and have it stand, and for the sky itself. He is not a warm patron - the tradition does not ask him for favours so much as approach him with the deference due to an office - and the entry keeps that distance.

Related Deities
EnkiMardukInannaNannaTiamat

Referenced by 1

Every entry that names Anu, grouped by the system it comes from.

☥ Deities 1