Editing Qingu (section)

==Mythology==
===''Enūma Eliš''===
Qingu is first mentioned in the ''Enūma Eliš'' when [[Tiamat]] appoints him as the leader of her army of monsters and affixes the [[Tablet of Destinies (mythic item)|tablet of destinies]] to his chest, elevating him to a position of "Anuship",{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=59}} ''<sup>d</sup>a-nu-ti''.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=80}} While this term is derived from the name of the god [[Anu]], when applied as a title to other deities, including Qingu, it can be understood as a generic designation for the rank of a [[supreme deity]] instead.{{sfn|Krul|2018|p=141}} A variant of this passage instead refers to Qingu's position as that of "lordship" (''e-nu-ti'').{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=81}} The text directly states that the tablet was not Qingu's rightful possession,{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=93}} though it is not explained how it was obtained by Tiamat.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=83}}

Qingu subsequently uses his new position to declare destinies for Tiamat's children.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=67}} It is not clear if he is himself one of them, as no direct statement is given about his origin.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=287}} Gösta Gabriel notes that he effectively "appears out of nowhere", and that he is only defined as Tiamat's spouse.{{sfn|Gabriel|2024|p=182}} Wilfred G. Lambert suggests that lack of an explicit reference to his origins might indicate that the compilers of the ''Enūma Eliš'' incorporated a figure with no preexisting connection to Tiamat into the narrative from a separate source.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=287}} It is sometimes nonetheless assumed that he was regarded as a son of Tiamat and [[Apsu]].{{sfn|Leeming|2005|p=229}}

Marduk defeats Qingu after vanquishing Tiamat, and takes back the tablet of destinies.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=93}} It is later presented to Anu.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=101}} Qingu is subsequently killed after the assembly of the gods concludes that the conflict between them and Tiamat was instigated by him.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=111}} However, no mention of Qingu making her rebel as suggested in this passage is found in the preceding sections of the text.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=287}} Qingu's blood is then used by [[Ea (god)|Ea]] to create mankind.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=113}}

====Parallels with other myths====
{{ill|Manfred Krebernik|de}} notes that the sections of the plot focused on Qingu have their forerunners in myths focused on [[Enlil]] and [[Ninurta]] describing the theft of the tablet of destiny.{{sfn|Krebernik|2008|p=178}} According to Wilfred G. Lambert, Qingu's improper acquisition of the tablet of destinies and its later recovery offer a particularly close parallel to the plot of the ''Epic of [[Anzû]]''.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=451}} Selena Wisnom also compares Qingu to Anzû.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=23}} However, she points out that while Anzû is portrayed as difficult to defeat for Ninurta due to possessing the tablet, in Qingu's case the object only serves as an abstract symbol of his position, and no similar hardships arise for Marduk.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=78}} A further possible parallel is that Qingu is elevated to the rank of Anuship, while Anzû by stealing the tablet has a claim to "Enlilship" (''enlilūtu''), an analogous term derived from the name of Enlil rather than Anu.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=81}}

Wisnom notes that Qingu can also be compared to the "plant-stone" (<sup>na<sub>4</sub></sup>U<sub>2</sub>),{{efn|Possibly to be identified as [[Emery (rock)|emery]].{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=141}}}} the leader of the army of stones from ''[[Lugal-e]]'', as both of them are secondary obstacles compared to the central antagonists of the respective narratives, Tiamat and [[Asag]].{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=23}} Furthermore, the scene of Qingu's appointment might constitute an allusion to the creation of the "plant-stone" and his appointment as a leader among Asag's stone offspring.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|pp=141-142}}

No other sources connect Qingu with the creation of mankind.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=455}} Ryan D. Winters notes that he is absent from a short list of gods who appear in a similar role in different myths included in ''An = Anum'' (tablet VI, lines 209-216), and on this basis concludes this motif cannot predate the end of the [[Old Babylonian period]].{{sfn|Lambert|Winters|2023|p=230}} Wilfred G. Lambert assumed that the compilers of the ''Enūma Eliš'' might have placed him in a role originally played by a different god.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=455}} Comparisons have been made between the scene of his death and the section of ''[[Atra-Hasis|Atrahasis]]'' dealing with the creation of mankind, which involves the killing of the god [[Geshtu-E|Wē]].{{sfn|Krebernik|2008|p=178}} Selena Wisnom notes that after the Old Babylonian period he was replaced in this role by [[Alla (Mesopotamian god)|Alla]], whose name might be a pun on the word ''al'', "[[Hoe (tool)|hoe]]", and thus a reference to his role as a worker god. On this basis she suggests Qingu's placement in a similar role reflected the etymological connection between his name and the word "work".{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=125}} However, she states he and Alla cannot be considered direct equivalents, as Qingu plays a more active role in the narrative before being killed.{{sfn|Wisnom|2020|p=126}}

===Other sources===
While no independent myth dealing with the defeat of Qingu has survived, due to scarcity of texts linking him with Tiamat other than the ''Enūma Eliš'' it is presumed that he was initially the antagonist of such a narrative.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=453}} References to defeat of Qingu without any allusions to Tiamat are known, and following a late exercise tablet from [[Ur]] reflect a tradition in which he was burned.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=222-223}} An exegetical commentary on a ritual involving [[Mullissu]] similarly explains the burnt offering of a sheep as an allusion to Qingu's demise in a fire.{{sfn|Pongratz-Leisten|2015|p=428}} Two sources, the tablets KAR 307 and LKA 73, state that Qingu was defeated alongside his sons, though they disagree about their number, with the former giving 7 and the latter 40.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=222}} KAR 307 states that during a ritual they were represented by a bull and a sheep thrown from a roof, while LKA 73 instead has them represented by oil and honey placed on a weapon.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=222}} The latter text also contains an allusion to an unknown myth involving [[Ea (god)|Ea]] giving an unidentified gift to Qingu.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=224}}

The myth referred to as ''The Defeat of Enutila, [[Enmesharra|Enmešarra]], and Qingu'' by Wilfred G. Lambert,{{efn|The title has been subsequently adopted by other authors.{{sfn|Pongratz-Leisten|2015|p=429}}{{sfn|Reynolds|2024|p=131}}}} which is only known from two Late Babylonian fragments, one from [[Borsippa]] and one from [[Sippar]],{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=326}} mentions the defeat of Qingu at the hands of an unknown deity or deities.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=329}} Due to the large number of deities involved in the plot, Lambert suggests that it was the result of a process of scholarly compilation of multiple different compositions belonging to the same genre.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=327}} The events are said to take place in [[Babylon]], with direct references made to the temples Eturkalamma (as well as the deity it was dedicated to, [[Ishtar]] of Babylon), Eguzalimmaⱨ and Ezidagišnugal.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=326}} Qingu is described as the "director of the host of Eguzalimmaⱨ".{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=329}} Since this temple is associated with [[Ningishzida]] in the [[Topography|topographical]] text ''[[Tintir = Babylon]]'' (tablet IV, line 13), Lambert assumed that in this context Qingu was either equated with him or portrayed as his subordinate.{{sfn|Lambert|2013|p=498}}