The ancient Sumerians saw man as an integral part of this cosmic society. Mankind was created to be the servants of the gods. Man and nature were inex- tricably linked. The gods could not exist without man, but neither could man exist without his gods.

A few of the stories

One of the central myths, The Saga of Inanna is a basic nature story, this time ex- plaining the role of the seasons. It begins with the marriage between the Goddess of Love and the God of Spring. The metaphor of their marriage signifies the rebirth of all the creative powers of spring while their union blesses the land with fertility and abundance. To the Sumerians, this marriage is one of the most important and power- ful unions of their beliefs.

In The First Days story is a creation myth. It deals with the creation of all life, and the reason behind creation. Nammu, the Great Mother Goddess of All, is alone in the Deep Abyss. Even six thousand years ago man was asking the first question, “Where did we come from?” In this story, man is trying to answer the unanswerable. The Warrior King is a tale about the importance and purpose of the river. Without water the people will die. It also tries to explain and rationalize the violent birth of a mountain through volcanic activity.