What is the Influence of Sumerians on Abrahamic Religions?

I see the three heavenly religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) as transitional religions. It seems that the Sumerians had a belief system that would be the starting point of all three religions. I believe that as research on the Sumerians deepens, my opinion in this direction will become stronger. I have tried to convey to you in the following lines the similarities between the Sumerian belief system and these three great religions, the heavenly religions, the verses and expressions in the Torah, the Bible and the Quran and the expressions in the tablets left over from the Sumerians, the similarities in practices, and their comparisons as much as possible. Let's face it, this is a very complicated topic. There is a need for religious scholars to conduct comprehensive research and make comparisons by looking at the Sumerian beliefs and the books of the three monotheistic religions. As a footnote, "Is it a coincidence that Abrahamic religions emerged in the Middle East?" I would like to start my article by asking the question and stating that it cannot be a coincidence that there has always been turmoil, war and conflict in this geography throughout history, as it is today.

Who are the Sumerians? Sumerian Faith

The Sumerians migrated from Asia at least 6,000 years ago and settled in Southern Iraq, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and established a large and deep-rooted civilization there, traces of which have survived to our time. The most important invention of this civilization is that they invented a script according to their language. This writing, which was invented almost 5,000 years ago, started by drawing a picture of the object to be described, and was developed through centuries of effort, making it capable of writing anything desired. Neighboring nations at the time of the Sumerians and the Babylonians, Assyrians, Hittites, Hurrians and Urartians who came later took this writing, which is called cuneiform today because the lines that make up the writing resemble nails, and wrote their own languages. Ugarit and Persians also benefited from this by writing letters. This text was written on soft clay plates, which we call tablets, and since they were dried in the sun and in ovens, they could remain underground for thousands of years without rotting. These tablets were unearthed during excavations that started in the last century, their writings were read in a short time, their languages were deciphered, and thus the completely forgotten 3,000-year history of the Sumerians and the Middle Eastern nations was revealed. Facts have now replaced the information and documents conveyed with assumptions.

Sumerian Religion Was a Monotheistic Religion

Literary texts are of great importance among Sumerian documents. These reflect the imagination, worldview, social order and religious beliefs of the Sumerians. This literature, which covers various subjects such as poems, philosophers, elegies, epics, legends and proverbs, has had a great impact on the nations of the Middle East. This effect is especially seen in both polytheistic and monotheistic religions. This issue will be touched upon in the last part of the article, and comments will be left to the discretion of you, the readers.

Sumerian religion was a polytheistic religion. Every object seen and felt in the world had a god. The gods had human appearance, but were immortal and had superhuman powers. Like humans, they had families consisting of children and spouses. These families were gathered under a chief god, such as a king. Gods, like humans, could love, be sad, angry, jealous, fight, do evil, get sick, or even get injured. The earth, sky, water and air gods were creators, and the others were administrator gods. The Sumerians developed many stories about this world of gods, wrote poems, composed hymns, organized ceremonies and recorded all of these in writing, ensuring that they have survived to our time.

It is an undeniable fact that the religions of the Sumerians, along with their literature, influenced later nations. The polytheistic religion they founded gradually turned into monotheism, forming the basis of today's religions. However, in the meantime, other gods do not disappear completely and continue to exist in the form of angels, demons and demons in these religions. The common points in all three religions are as follows: God's creative and destructive power, judgment, fear of God, pleasing God with sacrifices, hymns, prayers and incense, being of good morals, honest and fair, respecting elders and children, social justice and cleanliness. Cleanliness was very important in Sumerians. Those who went to the temple, prayed, and sacrificed had to be physically clean. In an elegy they wrote for the cities destroyed by their enemies, it is stated: The Karabas people (Sumerians) can no longer wash for the ceremony, it has become their fate to like the dirty.

There is also a proverb: "Don't touch food with unwashed hands." Newly constructed buildings were subjected to a religious cleaning before entering them. Just as kings had palaces, gods must also have houses. For this purpose, magnificent temples and stepped towers were built on their sides. Later, these houses of God became synagogues, churches and mosques. 

He gave what. Sumerian temple schools turned into madrasahs in Islam. The half moon above mosques and minarets is the symbol of the Sumerian moon god! Sumerian kings were considered God's representatives on earth. This belief continued through the Pope in Christianity and the Caliph in Islam.

Sumerian Laws

Sumerian law formed the basis of Hammurabi's law, and from it Hz. The law of Moses and the law of Islam were influenced. Hz. The rules in the Law of Moses, such as respect for parents, you shall not kill anyone, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, you shall not covet your neighbor's wife and property, are the same in the Sumerian Law. However, the Sumerian Law was more humane. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth punishments were not used.

Unfortunately, the tablets on which the Sumerian laws are written are very broken, and perhaps there are some that have not yet been unearthed from the ground. Therefore, a full comparison cannot be made. However, there is no doubt that the laws made later by the Semites (Arabs and Jews) were based on Sumerian laws. As a clear example of this, we can show the incident between the Prophet Abraham's wife and his concubine. According to Sumerian law, when the concubine of a barren woman given to her husband gives birth to a child, he cannot be arrogant towards his wife, and if he tries to do so, he will be punished.

Comparison of the Expressions in the Sumerian Religion with the Expressions in the Books of the Three Heavenly Religions

According to what is written in the Torah and the Quran, Sarah, the barren wife of the Prophet Abraham, gave her concubine Hagar to her husband in order to have a child. When the concubine gives birth to a child and begins to think of herself as superior, she is taken to the desert with her son Ishmael and thrown away by her husband. According to the Torah, the eldest son is given a special share of the inheritance, and if the children wish, they can receive this share while the father is alive. The same rule exists in Sumer: Lipit-Iştar 32. (Mebrure Tosun, Kadriye Yalvaç, Sumer, Babylon, Assyrian Laws and Ammi Saduqa Edict (Ankara 1975), p. 69. Hammurabi law art. 165.

Religions' Approach to the Adultery Incident

Although the Arab custom of stoning women who commit adultery is in the Torah (Deuteronomy 13-23), there is no such punishment in the Quran. There are four verses regarding the punishment of adultery. These:

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Bring four witnesses from among yourselves against those of your women who commit adultery. If they testify, keep those women in your homes until death takes them or Allah opens a way for them. Punish both of you who commit adultery! If they repent and behave themselves, stop punishing and tormenting them, because Allah is the most accepting of repentance and the most merciful.

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Strike each man and woman who commits adultery with a hundred lashes. Let a group of believers witness them!

A man who commits adultery can only marry a woman who is an adulterer or an idolater, and a woman who commits adultery can only marry a man who is an adulterer or an idolater.

The punishment of stoning existed in ancient Sumerian times, but for a different reason. B.C. In the social reform text written by Lagash King Uruinimgina (Urukagina) in the 2200s, it is stated that, as in the past, women and thieves who tried to take two husbands would be stoned with stones on which these evil deeds were written. This subject of stoning is not included in the laws written later.

There are no articles regarding adultery in the Sumerian laws, probably due to their brokenness. However, it is found in the code of Hammurabi. Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian Laws, p. 198 Article 129. If a man's wife is caught lying with another man, they shall tie them up and throw them into the water. If the woman's husband lives, the king will keep him alive.

If a man is caught using force to force his wife, who lives in another man's father's house, into her bosom, that man will be killed and the woman will be free.

The issue of virginity seems to be important in Sumer. The tablets on which Sumerian laws are written have many broken and illegible parts. Two readable articles prove this. In one of them, the one who forcibly broke the bond of a slave had to pay 5 shekels (approximately 40 grams) of silver. In the other case, when a woman who married as a widow divorces her husband, she can receive half the compensation that a woman who married as a daughter would receive.

In the Torah, the rule is stricter. When a girl gets married and it is proven that she is not a virgin, she is stoned to death (see Deuteronomy 22: 13-21). However, there is no subject of virginity in the Quran.

Forced rape was also discussed in Sumer. "If a free man's daughter is raped on the road, if her parents did not know that she was on the road, and if the girl tells them 'I was raped', the parents will forcefully give her to the man as his wife." (The Ancient Near East Supplementary Texts and pictures Relating to old Testament, Edited by James B. Pritchard, Princton 1969, p. 90 article 7).

Forced rape was even the subject of Sumerian legend. Even though God Enlil was the head of the gods, he was exiled to the underworld by the council of gods because he cheated and raped his wife before marriage (S.N. Kramer, The Sumerians, 146-147).

The same incident is recorded in the Torah (see: Deuteronomy 22: 28-29): "If a man sleeps with a young woman who is a girl and is not betrothed, and they find them, the man must pay the young woman's father 50 shekels (shekel is a unit of weight measurement that passed from Sumerian to Akkadian).

) will give silver and the woman will be his wife". If a man sleeps with an engaged girl in the city, both of them are stoned to death.

There is no this subject in the Quran.

The goddess, who protects social justice in Sumer, judges people once a year for their good or bad actions and punishes the bad ones. This belief entered Islam on the fifteenth of Shaban month as Berat Kandili.

Apart from their main names, the Sumerian gods also had other names according to their attributes. The Babylonians took a step towards the idea of a single god by giving 50 of these names to their newly created god Marduk.

The 99 names given to Allah in Islam seem to be a continuation of the same tradition.

Dead, Cemeteries

According to the Sumerians, the dead go to a dark, irreversible underground world called Kur. This continues as Sheol in the Torah, Hades in Greek, hell in the Bible, and the afterlife in Islam. According to the Sumerians, there is no resurrection here. But the underworld is a very active place with its gods, priests and shadows of the dead. In some special cases, shadows can be brought to the surface from here. Upon Gilgamesh's call, the shadow of his friend Enkidu appears and the two friends talk. In Torah Samuel I:28, Samuel's shadow emerges from underground at the request of King Saul. History Begins in Sumer, p. 133-134.

In Sumer, if food and sacrifices are not offered to the souls of the underground dead, they come to the surface and cause discomfort to people. Crying and whining too much about the dead disturbs them. The prayers and sacrifices made for the dead in Islam must be a continuation of this belief. We also have a saying: "Do not disturb the soul of the dead by crying too much."

After the Babylonian captivity, under the influence of the Persians, the Zoroastrian religion introduced heaven, hell and the bridge of Sirat, where the dead will be resurrected: Hayrullah Örs, Musa ve Judaism, (Istanbul 1966), p. 361.

In the Torah, Elohim was angry that people acted like gods and created many languages so that they could not understand each other. In Sumer, the god of wisdom got angry with the god of air, and while people spoke only one language, they created many languages so that they could not understand each other.

Chosen People, View of Women

The Sumerians wrote that they were a superior people chosen by the gods. Yahweh in the Torah and Allah in the Quran made the Israelites a superior nation: Deuteronomy 14.6, Sura 45: 16; 2:27).

Sumerians compared women to a field. The same expression is found in both the Torah and the Quran. In the Quran, "your women are a field for you; you may enter your field as you wish." written (Surah 2: 223). Commentators have interpreted this in various ways. See Turan Dursun, Din Bu 3 (Istanbul 1991), p. 27-28.

In Sumer, the gods say "be" and everything happens. The same phrase is mentioned in the Quran as "Allah says be alone", sura 36: 82.

Sumerians believed that all events in the world were written in the stars in the sky. It is said in the Quran that it is written on the "protected tablet" in the sky (Sura 22:2). Sumerians believed that people's fate was written on bricks, so we say it is written on a person's forehead.

Meanings Attributed to Numbers

The number 7 is very important for the Sumerians, such as passing 7 days, crossing 7 mountains, 7 lights, 7 trees, 7 doors. Likewise, the number 7 is found abundantly in the Torah and the Quran. According to Islam, heaven has 7 gates; The Sumerian Underworld also has 7 gates.

Sumerians sacrificed animals to make their gods happy, to make a request from them, to get rid of diseases, or in return for vows they made. These sacrifices had to be free of injury or disease, and the body of the victim had to be cleansed. Sacrifices were sacrificed by priests with special prayers. The victim's right hip and internal organs were presented to the god, and the rest was distributed to those around. In Islam, sacrifices are sacrificed under the same conditions. However, it is not mandatory for the teacher to cut it. The victim's right hip and internal organs are left to the victim's owner instead of the god, and the rest is distributed.

According to the king tombs of Ur during the Erhane period of Sumer, kings and queens were buried with their soldiers and those around them. However, despite all kinds of sacrifices being written in the texts, there is no human sacrifice. On the other hand, human sacrifice was made in Israel and Greece. I read in a book that it also happened among Arabs, and that Muhammad's grandfather said, "If I have ten sons, I will sacrifice one of them to God (or gods)." Prophet Abraham, who came from Mesopotamia, abolished this primitive custom.

According to the school tablets, the Sumerians had 6 days of work and a 7th day of rest. This was passed down to the Jews as Sabbat. It is stated in the Ten Commandments, "Think of the Sabbath, see it as a holy day!". They work for 6 days and the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to God. According to the Jews, God created the world in 6 days and rested on the seventh day. The fact that today is Saturday was also passed down from the Babylonians. The Babylonians believed that every month of every month They would hold a celebration on the 7th day (Shapatu). This was a day that expressed sadness and self-discipline and was dedicated to the planet Saturn (Saturday, a day name coming from the planet Saturn, that is, Saturday). Saturn was the symbol of evil forces.

was its representative. Jews changed the meaning of today and made it joyful. They spend Saturday praying to God, reading books, and having various entertainments, and they do not do the slightest work. Today was converted into Friday and accepted into Islam with more relaxed rules.

Special God Belief, Protector God Concept

According to Sumerian writers and theologians, every person and family had a personal god, or in other words, a good angel who acted as a divine father. This was determined by a fortune telling, a dream, or by making an agreement directly with the visible god. Its duty is to ask the chief gods for a healthy and long life for the person to whom it belongs and to convey his wishes to the assembly of gods. In the Torah (Genesis 31:53). "May the God of Abraham and Lahore and the God of the fathers judge between us!" It is said. This is a reflection of the personal god of the Sumerians, Abraham's God, he makes a covenant with Abraham that he will recognize him and make him his God, and he confirms it by being circumcised.

Quran Duration 86:41

"There is no one who does not have a protector and controller over him." It is said that this reflects the special gods of individuals in the Sumerians.

God's punishment and national disaster:

Yahweh is angry with the Israelites and their neighboring enemies attack them. It is also stated in the Quran that Allah was angry with people and destroyed cities. Likewise, the weather god, angry with the Akkadian king, destroys Akkad and even Sumer by bringing down enemy Guti from the mountains like swarms of locusts. Sumerian gods have a place in the sky called duku where they gather. According to Islamic belief, Allah sits on the Throne above the seven heavens. Duration 7:54, 9:3, 11:7, 25:59, 32:11, 56:4.

According to the Quran (sura 42:51), Allah communicates to a person only through revelation, behind a curtain, or by sending a messenger to inform him of what he wishes.

In the Torah, God and individuals (other than the prophets, such as Moses' brother, his slave, Abraham's wife) talk to each other, or angels in human form bring news from God or convey God's wishes in dreams.

From Sumer, the god speaks from behind the wall (Enki, the god of wisdom, told Ziusudra, Noah's counterpart, from behind the wall that the Flood would happen.) or the gods inform people about the things they will do in dreams. Apart from these, people learn the will of the gods through fortune telling and prophecy.

It is understood that the hymns, proverbs and idioms in the Torah originate from the Sumerians. Sumerian proverbs are told to the Flood hero Ziusudra by his father Shuruppak, and in the Torah they are told to Solomon by his father David. In the Quran, advice is given by Luqman to his son, whose name is not given. Much has been studied about the identity of Luqman, some say that he was a prophet, some say that he was given a long life by God because he was very religious, and that his knowledge increased throughout his life. He lived for 560 years and his name was Lubad, which means immortal, like the Sumerian Ziusudra. He appears as Ahiciar in Aramaic literature and Planudes in Byzantium. These are all based on the Sumerian Ziusudra (Paul Lunde, Aesop of the Arabe, Aramco 1974 March-April, P. 2 ff.).

The Effect of Dreams

From Sumer, dreams are interpreted as messages from God. The influence of some of these dreams can be seen in the Torah and the Quran. The most interesting of these is the dream of Jacob's son Joseph. When Yusuf said, "In my dream, we were tying sheaves in the middle of the field. My sheaf stood up. Your sheaf surrounded it and they bowed down to my sheaf." His brothers asked, "Will he be king over us?" they said. When Joseph says in his second dream that the sun, the moon and 11 stars bow down to him, his brothers decide to kill him (Genesis 97:7, 9, Sura 12:4).

Likewise, when Sargon, who was working for the Sumerian King Urzababa, told the king the dream he had, the king wanted to kill Sargon out of fear that he would become king in my place. Uerrold S. Cooper, Sargon and Joseph, Dream come True. Biblical and related Studies, Presented to Samuel lwery (Indiana) p. 333-35.

Temple Construction, Magnificent Places of Worship

The method followed in the construction of Sumerian temples and palaces is stated in the hymns written about them. To start building, God must first suggest it. This is often reported in dreams. After this, building materials and craftsmen are collected. Cleaning ceremonies are held before and after the construction begins. The magnificence of these structures is praised and the story of their dedication is told. In some hymns, the person who has it done is rewarded by being blessed by God. The same path is followed in the Torah.

Sumerian god houses were built for the god, and statues of that god and his family were placed inside. Sculptures and pictures of Jesus and Mary in churches are an extension of this custom.

Among the Sumerians, priestesses entered the temples with their dowry as the bride of the god. This continues in Christianity. Carrying the statue of Mary in ceremonies reflects the procession of statues of gods in Sumerian ceremonies.

As in Christianity, there were priests who confessed confession in Sumer,

They wore red clothes.

Head covering, Veiling

In Sumerian temples, priestesses performed general female duties. They were considered sacred because they had sex in the name of God, and their heads were covered to distinguish them from other women. Later, B.C. (Before Christ) Around 1500, an Assyrian King obliged married and widowed women to cover their heads with the fortieth article of a law he made. However, it is forbidden for girls, concubines and street prostitutes to cover themselves, there is a penalty if they cover themselves (Prof. Mebure Tosun - Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kadriye Yalvaç. Sümer, Babylon, Assyria Laws and Ammi-adaqu Edict, (Ankara 1975) p. 252 article 40. Thus, it is legitimate They also considered married and widowed women who had sex as temple prostitutes.

This tradition was passed on to the Jews, and when religious Jewish women got married, they shaved their heads and covered their heads with a wig or headscarf. In Christianity, nuns cover their heads in the same way. What is interesting is that until the last time the Torah was written, there were men and women among the Jews who committed prostitution in the name of God.

The Torah says in Deuteronomy 23:18: "There shall not be among the sons of Israel or their daughters who devote themselves to prostitution. Women, you shall not bring the wages of fornication into the temple of the Lord your God for any vow, for both of these are an abomination to the Lord your God." It is written as. Jewish prostitutes used to veil their faces (Torah Numbers 5:8). I've heard that this happens to Arabs too, but I couldn't find any written evidence. Covering herself in Islam was adopted as avoiding men. On the other hand, women covering their heads while reading the Quran or praying in a place without men is a continuation of the Sumerian tradition. Verses about veiling in the Quran:

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O children of Adam! We have sent down to you clothes to cover your ugly parts and clothes to adorn yourself. The dress of Taqwan (faith) is better. O children of Adam! Wear ornamental clothes every time you go to the mosque. Eat, drink but do not waste!

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Allah made shadows for you from His creations. He created shelters for you in the mountains and clothes to protect you from the heat and armor to protect you in battle.

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Tell the believing women to guard their eyes and their chastity. They should not display their ornaments, except for the visible parts. Let them put their headscarves over their collars. They should not show their adornments to anyone other than their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their own sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their own women, the male servants under their control who no longer need women, or their children who are not yet aware of women's secret feminine characteristics. They should not stamp their feet on the ground in order to reveal the adornments they are hiding (what are the "adornments" in this verse? This has been interpreted in various ways. Some say the woman's body is an adornment, while others say the jewelry is an adornment).

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There is no blame on old women who have no hope of getting married and who have lost their children, if they take off their outer garments without showing their ornaments. However, it is better for them to be chaste (here, the "adornment" will be the woman's body.)

Marriage, Having Children, Family Structure

Some Sumerian priestesses were not supposed to have children even if they married. Children accidentally born like this were killed. Because these women were the wives of God, the children born were also considered children of God. The Sumerians did not want a god's child from a mortal. This and a verse in the Quran explains why Jesus is considered the son of God. Quran Sura 3:35-37: "Imran's wife said": "My Lord, I vowed to You what is in my womb as a freed servant. Accept my vow. My Lord, I gave birth to a daughter and named her Mary. I brought her and her descendants to You against the accursed Satan." "I'm treating you." said. His Lord accepted him well and made him grow like a beautiful plant. The Lord assigned Zechariah (his aunt's husband) to take care of him.

Every time Zechariah came to the temple, he would find sustenance there and ask, 'Where does this come from for you?' He would say 'by God'. As understood from this verse, there were temples at that time (it is also written in the Torah and the Bible that there were temples). Mary was a girl dedicated to the temple and raised there. Somehow, according to some books, she became pregnant from her fiancé, Yusuf. The reason why she went and gave birth to him in a remote place must have been because she was afraid that she would be killed as a child of God. Since Jesus was instilled in him as he was growing up that he was the son of God, his coming out saying "I am the son of God" must have caused his death, albeit late.

Starting from ancient times in Mesopotamia until the Neo-Babylonian period, children were given to the temple as an offering or to protect against famine. It seems that this tradition continues in the story of Mary (L.O. Oppenheim, Ancient Mesopotainia, Chicago 1964, p. 107).

How Are Sumerian Legends Explained in the Books of Abrahamic Religions?

Creation:

According to Sumerian legend, the first thing in the universe was a huge, vast water named Goddess Nammu. The goddess raises a huge mountain from that water. His son, the weather god Enlil, splits him in two. Top ü becomes the sky, the sky god takes it, and the bottom, which is the ground, belongs to the earth goddess and the air god. The god of wisdom and the god of air furnish the earth with plants, trees and water. Animals are created and gods are created to manage them all.

Torah Genesis 1:2-9

"The spirit of God was moving on the surface of the waters. Let God make a dome in the middle of the waters and separate the waters," he said, and God built the dome. He separated the water below from the water above, and Allah called the dome the sky and the dry land below "the earth." After this comes the furnishing of the earth with plants and animals.

Quran Duration 21:30

"Do they not know that the heavens and the earth were joined together and We separated them and created all living things from water?"

Here, the Sumerian and Torah stories are very close to each other. The Quran is very superficial. But the main idea is that the sky and the earth were originally adjacent, and that they emerged from the water is the same.

Creation of Man

In Sumer: When the gods, especially the female gods, began to multiply, they complained about the abundance of their work and the difficulty of preparing their food, and they begged Nammu, the sea goddess who created all the gods, to find a solution. He also tells the god of wisdom to show his wisdom and ingenuity. You know wisdom, you make shapes from soft clay and say to the goddess:

Oh my mother! became the creature I will name,

Put the image of the gods on it

Stir up the mud of the bottomless water,

Made of arms and legs.

Oh my mother! Tell the fate of the newborn!

Here he is a human!

During this work, 4 gods are present together: the mother of all gods, the earth goddess, the goddess of birth and the god of wisdom. Torah, Genesis 2:7: "The Lord God formed Adam from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his face the breath of life, and Adam became a living soul."

In the Torah, the creation of man is described in two ways.

Genesis Chapter 1:26, After God created the earth, the sky, the stars, the plants, the animals, "God said, 'Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness! Let him have dominion over everything on the earth. *And God created man in his own image, and he created them male and female. Thus, the last day of creation, the 6th day, ends. According to the Talmud, the name of the woman created with Adam is Lilit. This woman saw herself as equal to Adam, did not listen to his words and became a female demon and started to tease men. She captured a man. It would not let go. Especially the seventh day of the month was a great danger for men. This Lilit is the name of a demon who built a nest in the tree of Inanna, the Sumerian goddess of love, and did not let it be cut. See Hartrnut Schmökel, Das Land Sümer, (Stuttgart 1962) p. 141.

Although human beings were created as "male and female" on the 6th day of creation, as can be seen in the next page, Genesis 2:5-23, it is stated that Adam was created again from clay and the woman was created from his rib.

In the Quran, the creation of man is mentioned in different ways in various surahs:

Sura 23:12, "We created man from filtered clay."

55:14 "Allah created man from mud resembling cooked mud."

3:19 The situation of Jesus in the eyes of God is like the situation of Adam. God created him from soil."

32:7 "He made everything beautiful and created man from clay in the first place."

6:2 "For it is He who created us from clay and decreed the time of death."

15:26 "Indeed, we created man from (cooked) dry mud, shaped from slimy clay." Another translation of this verse is: "We created man from mud, black earth that can be worked." Verses 27-28: Your Lord said to the angels: "I am going to create a human being from clay, from malleable black earth. When I make him and breathe into him from My spirit, fall down in prostration to him." 30-31. Thereupon, all the angels immediately prostrated themselves except Iblis. Allah said: O Iblis! "What prevents you from being with those who prostrate themselves?" 33. He said, "I cannot prostrate to the human being whom You created from mud and black earth that can be worked." He said: 34. Then, get out of there, you are an outcast, in fact, the curse will be on you until the day of judgment.

As can be seen, in all three religions, humans were created from clay. However, in Sumer, the reason for the creation of humans and how they were created were explained in detail.

Adam's Expulsion from Heaven

In Sumer: There is a country called Dilmun, where pure, clean and bright gods live. The land of life unknown to disease and death. But there is no water there. The water god tells the sun god to extract water from the ground and fill it with fresh water. The sun god does as he is told. Thus, Dilmun becomes the garden of the gods with its orchards, fields and meadows. In this garden of paradise, the earth goddess grows 8 plants. When these trees bear fruit, Enki, the god of wisdom, tastes each of them. The earth goddess gets very angry at this, curses the god with death and disappears. The god of wisdom becomes very ill. The other gods find the earth goddess with great difficulty and beg the god of wisdom to heal her. The goddess creates a god for the 8 organs of the god that are sick against the 8 plants. What is interesting is that five of the gods created were goddesses (this is important as it shows the first specialization in medicine). One of the diseased organs is the rib. The name of the goddess who healed him is "the rib Ninti means memory. In this word, Nin is Lady, ti is rib. Another meaning of Ti is Life.

If we translate it in the second sense, the name of the goddess would be "lady of life".

This story is in the Torah, Genesis 2:5-23.

And there was not yet a sapling of the field on the earth, nor a herb of the field yet sprung up; for the Lord God had not sent rain upon the earth, and there were no men to till the ground, and a mist rose up from the earth, and watered all the ground. And the Lord God formed Adam in the dust of the earth, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and he became a living soul. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden towards the east, and placed Adam there, and the Lord God caused every tree to be beautiful in appearance and good for food, and in the midst of the garden it caused the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil to grow from the ground, and to water the garden. A river emerged from Eden and divided from there into four branches (Two of them are Tigris and Euphrates). And the Lord God placed the man there to look after him and to keep him, and the Lord God said to the man, "You may eat from every tree of the garden, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat. If you eat, you will die." He said, and in order not to leave Adam alone, the Lord made all the animals from the ground and brought Adam to give them names. But Adam was alone. The Lord caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep, and he took one of his ribs and made a woman out of her, and brought her to Adam, and Adam said, "Now this is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this shall be called annisa." After this, the snake tricks the woman into eating the forbidden fruit and her conversation with God in the garden comes. God curses the snake. God makes robes for Adam (here Adam is called Adam) and his wife to wear. He expels them from the garden of Eden by punishing the woman by making her have many painful children and by making Adam work with the soil. For some reason, his wife's name has not been mentioned so far. However, at the beginning of Chapter 4 it is written that his wife's name was Eve and that she gave birth to Abel Cain.

As can be seen in the Torah (Bab 1:27), on the sixth and last day of creation, although God created man as male and female, He creates Adam again from the soil of the earth and his wife from his rib. Accordingly, what is told in Chapter 2:4-23 is taken from the Sumerian story.

In the Quran, this subject is explained very superficially and in parts at various times.

In order of duration:

Duration 2:31

Allah taught Adam the names of everything,

Duration 2:32:

"O Adam! Tell the names of things to the angels." said.

Duration 2:35-37

We said, "O Adam! Stay, you and your wife, in the paradise! Eat abundantly from wherever you want, but do not approach this tree, otherwise you will be among the wrongdoers." Satan tempted them both there and took them out of their place. We said to them, "Go down as enemies to each other, and you will settle on the earth and make ends meet for a while." Adam received orders from his Lord, he fulfilled them, and his Lord accepted his repentance.

Duration: 19-26

O Adam! Stay, you and your spouse, in Paradise and eat wherever you want, except that you do not approach this tree, lest you become wrongdoers." Satan whispered to them to show them their shame: "Your Lord has forbidden you from this tree to prevent you from becoming angels or from staying here forever." Indeed, I advise you. "I am one of those who give," he swore to the two of them. So he made them wrong. When they tasted the fruit from the tree, they saw their shameful parts. They began to cover them with the leaves of heaven. His Lord asked them: "Didn't I forbid you from that tree? Didn't I tell you that Satan was a clear enemy to you?" he called out. They both said, "Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves. If you do not forgive us and have mercy on us, we will be among the losers." He said, "Go down as enemies to each other, and you will settle on earth for a while and make ends meet; there you will live, there you will die, there you will be resurrected."

Duration 20:115-132:

"We had made a promise to Adam before, but he forgot, and we did not find him determined. We said to the angels, 'Prostrate yourself to Adam'. All of them prostrated themselves except Iblis, and he hesitated. 'O Adam! That's right, he is your wife's enemy. Don't let him drive you out of heaven, otherwise you will be miserable. We said, "Indeed, you will neither be hungry nor naked in Paradise; you will neither be thirsty nor exposed to the heat of the sun." But Satan whispered to him and said, "O Adam! "Shall I show you the tree of eternity and a kingdom that will never collapse?" he said. Then, they both ate the fruit of that tree and their shameful parts became visible. They began to cover themselves with the leaves of heaven. Adam rebelled against his Lord. His Lord still chose him and showed him the right path."

As can be seen, this story is quite parallel to each other in Sumer and the Torah. In both of them, there is a garden of God, trees planted, water being extracted from the garden, eating of the forbidden fruit, and damnation. In Sumer, a goddess was created to heal ribs, her name is the lady of ribs. While the story was transferred to the Torah, the woman was created from a rib and her name became Eve, which is the Hebrew equivalent of the second meaning of Sumerian Lady of Life (the lady who makes you live).

There are various verses in different surahs about the gardens of paradise in the Quran. It is only stated in Sura 20:20 that the forbidden tree is the "tree of eternity". Take Satan out of heaven, not a snake Neither the name of Eve nor the fact that she was created from a rib is written.

In Islamic mythology, the creation of Adam and his expulsion from heaven are different (Square Larousse Adam). "Allah ordered His angels named Gabriel, Michael, Azrael and Israfil to bring 7 handfuls of soil from 7 floors. But the earth did not agree to give this soil. Azrael took the soil by force. Allah sent rain on this soil for days, softened it, and the angels kneaded it. And God shaped him. Adam waited for 80 years as formless soil and for 120 years without a soul. After he gained shape and color, the angels were ordered to prostrate to Adam. Only the devil did not listen to this order. That is why he was expelled from heaven. He should eat from the apple tree, which is a measure to distinguish the good from the bad in heaven. It was forbidden to Adam. The devil, angry at being expelled from Paradise, makes an agreement with the snake and gets Adam and Eve expelled from Paradise by making them eat the forbidden fruit. Adam regrets what he did and begs. He is forgiven by Gabriel and sent to Arafat in Mecca. There he meets Eve. Adam He is ordered to build Mecca. Gabriel teaches the pilgrimage ceremony and thus the human race arises. "In this, it is not stated how Eve was created. As can be seen, there is a huge difference between this legend and the Quran. Interestingly, 4 angels assist God in the creation of man. 4 important gods in Sumer. Here is the apple tree in heaven. This tree is a tree that is frequently mentioned in Sumerian legends, especially related to the goddess of love. It was written once in the Quran that this is the tree of eternity. In Sumer, his two-faced vizier Isimut gives the forbidden fruit to Enki, the god of wisdom. The snake in the Torah, the devil in the Quran, and both of them do this in this legend. Here, Gabriel ensures that Adam is forgiven by Allah. In Sumer, with the begging of the gods, the mother goddess heals the god of wisdom.

God of Wisdom, Gabriel's Appearance to the Prophet

In Sumer, Enki, the god of wisdom, brings news to people from other gods. In Islam, Gabriel does the same job. Gabriel's power and qualities of reaching perfection (Meydan Larousse, Gabriel) also fit the God of Wisdom. It is not stated in the Islamic legend how Eve was created. The story of Adam and Eve's children, Abel and Cain:

Torah, Genesis Chapter 4:1

And Adam knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bare Cain, and she also bare his brother Abel. Abel became a sheep shepherd. But Cain became a farmer. And after the days had passed, Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel brought the firstlings of his flock and their fat. And the Lord looked upon Abel and his offering, but he did not look upon Cain and his offering. And Cain became very angry, and the Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry and sullen? If you do good, will he not be exalted? And if you do not do good, sin is lurking at the door. And you are what he wants, but you must prevail over him. And Cain said to Abel his brother. And it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

This subject is again very short in the Quran and these names do not exist.

Surah 5:27-31

"Read to them the true news of Adam's two sons: When they offered a sacrifice and it was accepted from one of them, but it was not accepted from the other. He said, "I swear, I will kill you." And the other will accept it only from those who are pious." said. I swear that if you stretch out your hand to kill me, I will not reach out to kill you. I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds." He said, "I want you to bear both my sin and your own sin and be among those who will be thrown into the fire: This is the punishment of the wrongdoers." Finally, his soul pushed him to kill his brother and he killed him. That's why he became one of the losers. Then God showed him a crow scratching the ground to show him how to bury his brother's body: "Woe to me! "Am I like that crow and unable to bury my brother's body?" he said and became one of those who regretted what he had done.

In the Torah and the Quran, there is no mention of Eve's twin children, a boy and a girl. These should be in legends.

In Sumer, this story is seen in two different ways: In one, the shepherd god Dumuzi and the farmer god Enkimdu fall in love with the goddess of love Inanna. Each of them praises their product to Inanna, and as a result, the goddess likes the products of the shepherd god Dumuzi and marries him. Enkimdu accepts this choice in a friendly manner and befriends them.

Another theme in the Sumerian legend is that a god who is angry with someone causes various disasters to the whole country. In Sumer, Inanna, the goddess of love, falls asleep on the edge of a garden. Seeing this, the owner of the garden goes and rapes the goddess. The goddess is angry at this and causes various disasters to the country. This subject is written in a part of the poem, which tells how a gardener, who could not grow anything in his garden because it was too sunny, made the garden useful by planting broad-leaved trees:

One day, my queen, after she had wandered the heavens and the earth, after Inanna had wandered the heavens and the earth, the holy whore (Inanna) approached (the garden) in weariness. He fell into deep sleep. I saw her in the corner of my garden, I raped her, I kissed her, I returned to the corner of my garden. ShaBut the sun rose, The woman looked around in fear, Inanna looked around in fear, Then what a disaster the woman committed! What did Inanna do out of shame! He filled all the wells in the country with blood, the slaves carrying wood could not drink anything but blood, the slaves (women) filling water could not drink anything but blood. (For this entire text: History Begins in Sumer. pp. 59-62). The subject of water turning into blood: Torah, Exodus Chapter 7:14-25:

The Lord said to Moses, "Pharaoh's heart is stubborn, and he does not want to let his people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning, go up to the river, and say to him, 'Let my people go to worship me in the wilderness. The God of the Hebrews has sent me to you, and I will strike the waters of the river with the rod that is in my hand, and "They will turn to blood." Moses did what the Lord said. He struck the waters of the river with his staff. All the water turned to blood. The Egyptians could not find drinking water.

This incident is mentioned in the Quran, Surah 7:132-133:

They said, "No matter what miracle you show to bewitch us, we will not believe you." Then We sent upon them the flood, the locust, the moth, the frogs, and the blood, all separate miracles, and they became arrogant and a guilty nation.

The common point in this incident is that God got angry with a single person in the country (Pharaoh in Egypt) and caused disasters to all people, and one of them was the water turning into blood. So much so that the people cannot find any water to drink other than blood.

Noah's Flood:

It was known that in ancient times, the story of a great flood made by God to destroy people was written only in the first holy book, the Torah. However, when the same story was read on a tablet in the library of the Assyrian King Ashurbanipal, unearthed during the excavations carried out in Nineveh in the last century (1872), it created great surprise and shook this belief to its core. This story, which constitutes the last part of the Gilgamesh epic, was told to Gilgamesh, who was seeking immortality, by Utnapishtim, who survived the Flood and was given immortality by the gods.

Accordingly, briefly: People have increased so much that the gods cannot sleep because of their noise and uproar. Thereupon, the four great gods decide to destroy these people with a flood. The god of wisdom (En1d) is very saddened by the destruction of creatures and humans, and calls out to Utnapishtim, who lives in the city of Shuruppak, from the wall of his house, telling him that the gods have decided to make a flood and that he should build a ship. It gives the description of the ship. The man completes the ship in 7 days as stated. As long as the ship is being built, various animals are slaughtered, white, red and pure wines are drunk in abundance like river water, and festivities similar to New Year's Eve ceremonies are held. Utnapishtim fills the ship with his family, relatives, artists, domestic and wild animals. Meanwhile, he does not forget to buy gold. As soon as the ship's door closes, rain pours down with a violent storm. Not only do the waters pour from the sky, but the gods of the earth also gush out water from the ground. The flood becomes so fierce that even the gods who caused it are afraid. After this apocalypse lasted 6 days and 6 nights, on the seventh day the ship landed on Mount Nisir. After waiting for 7 days, Utnapishtim releases a dove out. He returns because he cannot find a place to stay. Then he sends a swallow, but it too comes back. Finally, when the raven they flew did not return, they went out. Utnapishtim offers sacrifices and libations to the top of the mountain. Sacrifice meats are cooked by placing 7 cauldrons on stoves under which the wood of various trees burns. Hearing their sweet scent, the gods flock in. When Enlil, the god who caused the flood, came and saw the ship and the people, he got very angry and asked, "Who saved them?" My god of wisdom opposes him and calms him down by saying, "Punish those who sin and break the rules, but don't be so harsh and deadly." Thus, Utnapishtim and his wife are placed in the garden of the gods at the mouth of the river with immortal life.

This story was written in Akkadian, a Semitic language. However, the names mentioned in it belonged to another language. Accordingly, this story must have been created by the Sumerians who spoke that language. Indeed, a half-broken tablet later found in the Philadelphia University Museum proved this. On this tablet, the Flood story was written in Sumerian and poetic style. Unfortunately, at least half of the text was missing. However, the parts found are quite illuminating on the subject. In this case, the gods get angry at people and decide to cause a flood. The situation is reported to a person named Ziusudra by a god from behind a wall. These lines are as follows:

Humble, respectful. God Enki, who was attentive to his divine duties every day, said to Ziusudra, "I will speak a word from the wall, keep my word! Listen to what I say! A flood from us will cover the cult centers, the seed of humanity will be destroyed, the word of the assembly of the Gods is the decision, the Kingdom with the orders of An and Enlil , the reign will end."

After this comes the broken part of the tablet. It should have been explained here how to build the ship. In the re-read part of the text, it is seen that the Flood covered the country with all its violence. It is written that it lasted 7 days and 7 nights, and when it was over, Ziusudra made sacrifices to the gods.

Ziusudra threw herself before the king, the gods An and Enlil. They loved him, gave him life like a god, placed him, Ziusudra, the name of Plants, the seed of humanity, protecting, where the sun rises, in the land of Dilmun

The narration of the same event in the Torah: This subject is very long in the Torah (Genesis Chapter 6-9). In it, people are evil and corrupt, so the Lord decides to destroy them. Noah is someone who knows Allah and goes with him. The Lord tells him that he will make a Flood to destroy people, that he should build a ship for himself, and tells him how the ship will be built and what it will contain. Noah does as he is told. The flood is beginning. In this one it takes 40 days. Everything on earth is disappearing. Water decreases only in 150 days. The ark rests on Mount Ararat in the 7th month, and on the 17th day of the month. Noah waits 40 days again. Then he lets a raven out to see if the waters have completely receded. When he comes back, he waits and lets a dove fly. When the pigeon he sent for the third time did not return, they went ashore. Noah sacrifices. When the Lord heard the pleasant smells, he decided not to cause another Flood. He talks to Noah and promises that he will never flood the earth again. Genesis 9:12 And God said: This is the sign of the covenant that I have made between me and you and every living creature that is with you from time to time: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it will be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring a cloud over the earth, the bow will also appear in the cloud.

Noah dies after living 950 years. New humans arise from the surviving creatures and Noah's sons.

As can be seen, these three stories are the same. The gods being angry with people and deciding on the Flood, the proposal to build a ship, the ship being built, the creatures being taken into it, the Flood happening, the people on the ship being saved, the sacrifices, the coming of the god or gods in fear of these.

Distinguished points: In the Babylonian legend, the gods decide to cause a Flood as a result of the increase in noise due to the proliferation of people and this disturbing the Gods. According to the Sumerians and the Torah, these things happen because people are bad. The God of Wisdom who secretly announced this decision in the Sumerian and Babylonian text. Allah Himself in the Torah. The Flood lasts 7 days in Sumer, 6 days and 6 nights in Babylon, ending on the 7th day. They wait 40 days in the Torah and months to get out of the ark. God Enlil, who started the Flood in Babylon, is very angry because they were saved, but the god of wisdom calms him down and the rescue is given immortal life and sent to the garden of the gods. In the Torah, there is only one god who decides on the Flood, saves Noah, regrets what he did, and rewards Noah with long life.

This event is written very superficially in the Quran. In various verses in 29 surahs, most of them are about the faith problems between Noah and his people. The word 'Flood' is used only once. The verses in the surahs about the Flood are as follows:

Duration 7:59: We certainly sent Noah to his people as a messenger. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no god other than Him. Indeed, I fear the punishment that will come upon you." Surah 10:73: yet they denied him. We saved him and those with him on the ship and made them caliphs. And we drowned those who denied Our signs. See what was the end of those who were warned.

Duration 11:36-44:

It was revealed to Noah that none of his people would believe except those who believed. So, do not be saddened by the sins they commit. Build the ship as we have commanded before our eyes, and do not tell me about those who do wrong, for they will surely be drowned. While Noah was building the ship, the leaders of his people mocked him every time they visited. He said, "If you mock us, know that we will mock you just as you mocked us. Until our command came and the waters boiled, we said to Noah, "Load into the ship a pair of each kind and your family and those who believe, except those against whom the judgment has been made. "Very few people had believed with him. Noah said, "Get on the ship; it is by the permission of Allah that it moves and stops." The ship was floating along with those who were among the waves like mountains. Noah said to his son, who was far from the ship, "My son is with us. "Get in there, don't be with the unbelievers!" he called out. His son said, "I will take shelter in a mountain that will protect me from water." Noah said, "There is no protector other than Allah today." A wave came between them. His son also joined the drowning people. "O earth, swallow the water, "O sky, hold back the water!" it was said, the water receded and decreased, the job was finished, the ship landed on Cudi. It was said, "May the nation that committed injustice be far from the mercy of God."

Duration 23:26-29

Noah said, "My Lord, help me against them calling me a liar!" said. Thereupon, We revealed to him as follows: "Build the ship under our watch and as we command, and when our command comes and the water boils, take one pair from each gender and your family, except those against whom the judgment has already been made. Do not beg me for them! For they are They will be drowned in breeze. When you settle in that ship with those with you, say, 'Praise be to Allah, who saved us from the oppressors, and say, Land me in a fertile place, you are the best of hosts!'

Duration 26:117-120

Noah said, "My Lord! My servant has denied me. Judge between me and them, and save me and those who believe with me!" said. Thereupon, we rescued him and those with him in the loaded ship, and drowned the rest in the water.

There are other topics and titles as well. It has now become clear that the Sumerians established a great civilization that believed in a monotheistic religion, at the origins of three great beliefs. Most of the things in the holy books of Abrahamic religions are also included in the Sumerian tablets. There are undoubtedly differences in expression. There are legendary entries. According to our belief, the Quran also talks about some of these, but it talks about them in the simplest, most reasonable way. After all, regardless of our belief, humanity descended from Adam and Eve. Since the first human being, he has believed in God and wanted to establish a bond with God. He wanted to live life on earth, good and bad, in relation to the Gods. He may have created new religions by blending the messages he received from God with his culture over time. The difference between the Sumerians and, for example, the polytheistic culture of life in Africa is that they had a monotheistic religious belief, discourses and rituals. It is understood that this understanding of one God was later reflected in the discourses and expressions in the Torah, the Bible and the Quran, within a similar unity of faith. This shows us that history is in a constant flow, both in faith and religious life. History cannot be written disconnected from religion. In fact, according to many scholars, what we call history is nothing but religious life.

with respectful love