take it that the record faithfully represents the
relations of the Sumerians to their gods, and the important place which
worship and ritual occupied in the national life.

Moreover, the inscriptions of Gudea furnish much valuable information
with regard to the details of Sumerian worship and the elaborate
organization of the temples. From them we can reconstruct a picture of
one of these immense buildings, with its numerous shrines and courts,
surrounded by sacred gardens and raising its ziggurat, or temple tower,
high above the surrounding city. Within its dark chambers were the
mysterious figures of the gods, and what little light could enter would
have been reflected in the tanks of sacred water sunk to the level of
the pavement. The air within the shrines must have been heavy with the
smell of incense and of aromatic woods, while the deep silence would
have been broken only by the chanting of the priests and the feet of
those that bore offerings. Outside in the sunlight cedars and other rare
trees cast a pleasant shade, and birds flew about among the flowers and
bushes in the outer courts and on the garden terraces. The area covered
by the temple buildings must have been enormous, for they included the
dwellings of the priests, stables and pens for the cattle, sheep, and
kids employed for sacrifice, and treasure-chambers and storehouses and
granaries for the produce from the temple lands.

We also get much information with regard to the nature of the offerings
and the character of the ceremonies which were performed. We may mention
as of peculiar interest Gudea's symbolical rite which preceded the
making of the sun-dried bricks, and the ceremony of the installation of
Ningirsu in the presence of the prostrate city. The texts also throw
an interesting light on the truly Oriental manner in which, when
approaching one deity for help, the cooperation and assistance of other
deities were first secured. Thus Gudea solicited the intercession of
Ningirsu and Gatumdug before applying to the goddess Nina to interpret
his dream. The extremely human character of the gods themselves is also
well illustrated. Thus we gather from the texts that Ningirsu's temple
was arranged like the palace of a Sumerian ruler and that he was
surrounded by gods who took the place of the attendants and ministers
of his human counterpart. His son was installed in a place of honour and
shared with him the responsibility of government. Another god w