The Akkadian version of the poem has reached us. According to this myth, King Etana ruled in Kish, which became the capital of Sumer after the flood. He was a God-fearing ruler, he conscientiously performed all cults, and there was no more powerful and courageous king in the area. Etana was gifted with everything, except for one thing - he did not have children to continue the glory of the family. The king grieved greatly that he would not leave anyone on earth after him, that there would be no one to perform funeral rites for him. He turned with prayers to the radiant sun god Shamash (the Akkadian analogue of the Sumerian god Utu).
Shamash heeded the pleas of the unfortunate king and revealed to him that a miraculous “herb of birth” grows in heaven, which gives people numerous offspring. Etana was very surprised how he could get to the sky. Shamash told him where to find a deep hole into which he cast the eagle as punishment. Now his term of imprisonment is coming to an end, and the sun god allows Etana to release him.
The king found this pit. He pulled out a tormented bird with broken wings and torn out claws and healed it. Having recovered, the eagle told Etana his sad story. For a long time he lived in a nest at the top of a huge tree, and a snake found shelter at its roots. They lived together and did not touch each other. But one day evil settled in the eagle’s heart, and he devoured the snake’s cubs. Returning home, the snake discovered that her children were missing, she understood everything and turned to the just god Shamash with a prayer. He took pity on the inconsolable mother and punished the criminal bird.
When Etana told the eagle his plan to reach heaven, he, feeling gratitude to his savior, agreed to help. They flew for a long time, and each time, looking down, the king saw the receding earth. First it was the size of a mountain, then the size of a millstone, and then it became the size of a garden watering can. Thus they reached the throne of An, and Etana obtained the desired herb.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru