Abzu

ab = 'water' zû = 'deep', recorded in Greek as Ἀπασών Apasṓn[1]), is the name for fresh water from underground aquifers which was given a religious fertilising quality in ancient near eastern cosmology, including Sumerian and Akkadian mythology.

Thus the divine Mother Earth – on her surface equipped with a bubble of breathable air – was surrounded by Abzû, and her interior harbours the realm of the dead (Irkalla).

The Sumerian god Enki (Ea in the Akkadian language) was believed to have keen eyes and appeared out of the abzû since before human beings were created.

Anchored in the Tablet of Destinies, they founded an organisation to make Mesopotamia fertile through agriculture, but got into a dispute and consequently created the first humans as labour slaves, to peacefully resolve the conflict.

Enraged by the devastation of earth, Tiamat gave birth to monsters whose bodies she filled with "poison instead of blood" and waged war against her traitorous children.

Chaos Monster and Sun God
Chaos Monster and Sun God
The Sumerian Genesis describes how the cosmic freshwater ocean surrounds our planet (created in its midst) on all sides. Salt sea serpent Tiamat is indicated by the green areas, so the sketch shows the same as Babylon's world map , now in side view. A breathable air bubble clings to the Earth's surface, with the Abzû as a roof, like on Athrahasis ' ( "Noah's" ) lifeboat. Other details, such as "Noah's" island Dilmun , are taken from the Epic of Gilgamesh. An important technical detail are the gate sluices built into sky. Through them, the gods around Enlil, who knew very well how to construct irrigation systems, supplied their land Eden with rain, but also unleashed the great flood. It is not unlikely that Abzû, Tiamat, and the flood represent the source of Leviathan , a human-devouring cosmic sea monster.