Like the first of the
cylinders, it concludes with a prayer to Ningirsu on behalf of the
temple, ending with the similar refrain, "O Ningirsu, glorify it!
Glorify the temple of Ningirsu after its construction!" The first
cylinder, as we have seen, records how it came about that Gudea decided
to rebuild the temple E-ninnu in honour of Ningirsu. It describes how,
when the land was suffering from drought and famine, Gudea had a dream,
how Nina interpreted the dream to mean that he must rebuild the temple,
and how Ningirsu himself promised that this act of piety would restore
abundance and prosperity to the land. Its text ends with the long
description of the sumptuous manner in which the patesi carried out the
work, the most striking points of which we have just summarized. The
narrative of the second cylinder begins at the moment when the building
of the temple was finished, and when all was ready for the great god
Nin-girsu to be installed therein, and its text is taken up with a
description of the ceremonies and rites with which this solemn function
was carried out. It presents us with a picture, drawn from life, of the
worship and cult of the ancient Sumerians in actual operation. In view
of its importance from the point of view of the study and comparison of
the Sumerian and Babylonian religious systems, its contents also may be
summarized.
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