Nabu

Also known as : Nebo

Nabu is the Babylonian lord of wisdom and writing, introduced to Mesopotamia by the Amorites, a powerful Western Semitic nation. Nabu originally served as Marduk’s scribe, but they were incorporated into the Baby lonian pantheon as father (Marduk) and son (Nabu). Nabu is the official spokesman for the Babylonian pantheon and eventually became the Assyrian Empire’s primary deity.

Nabu engraves each person’s destiny on the tablets of sacred record. He is the ultimate editor of the Babylonian equivalent of the Book of Life. Although fate is decreed by the deities, Nabu has authorization to increase or diminish anyone’s life span. His name may be related to the Hebrew word navi, meaning “prophet.”

References to Nabu in the Bible (Isaiah 46:1 and Jeremiah 48:1) indicate his prominence in the Babylonian pantheon and his fame throughout the Middle East.

ICONOGRAPHY:

Statues depict him as a dignified bearded man wearing a horned cap

Clay writing tablet, a writing stylus, a wedge (for cuneiform writing)

Winged dragon

PLANET:

Mercury

Sacred site:

The center of his veneration was in Borsippa on the Euphrates River, now in modern Iraq. His temple in Babylon (Iraq) has been restored. Semiramis built Nabu a temple in Nimrud (Calah), now near Mosul, modern Iraq.

SEE ALSO:

Mari (2); Nisaba; Semiramis

SOURCE:

Encyclopedia of Spirits: The Ultimate Guide to the Magic of Fairies, Genies, Demons, Ghosts, Gods & Goddesses – Written by : Judika Illes Copyright © 2009 by Judika Illes.

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