Finding The Art of Ninzuwu in An Ancient Sumerian Deity

Ninzuwu is a state of consciousness that is best described as existing “in love,” or being in the state of divine love. The Art of Ninzuwu is the spiritual practice of cultivating this state of being and how it is exercised in the world. There is no English equivalent of the term. In the Vasuh language, Ninzuwu means Magicians of the Yi Jing, or the mysticism of life and death energies. This definition, however, is more allegorical than literal. While much of this information is covered in the article, What is the Origin of the Term Ninzuwu?, I thought it would be good to illustrate its definition in the Vasuh language and show some examples of its practice in ancient Sumeria.

Understanding the Vasuh Term Ninzuwu

The Vasuh term Ninzuwu is composed of nin, zu, and wu. In order to get a clear idea of the definition of Ninzuwu, we must break down its numerical value, a practice that is used often by Initiates of our tradition. Let us first begin with the term nin.

In simple gematria, nin is equal to 14 + 9 + 14 = 37, or Tuu-Nzu. Tuu-Nzu in Vasuh language means appear. Therefore, the term nin in the Vasuh language means appear. 

Zu is equal to 26 + 21 = 47, or Hmu-Nzu. Hmu-Nzu is the sum of the ninth Vasuh letter Shki. Shki is equal to 19 + 8 + 11 + 9 = 47, or Hmu-Nzu. The term zu in the Vasuh language means Shki. Shki is defined in The Ivory Tablets of the Crow as follows:

“(9th) Shki. It is the ninth letter in the language of the Vasuh, and pertains to putting someone in a jar, or a gate, or a vessel. It can also be used to send death energy into an event, person, or object. Pronounced eek-hss.”

Zu means Shki in the Vasuh language and is the principle of death energy, not in a literal sense, but that which is absorbing and transformational.

Wu is equal to 23 + 21 = 44, or Hmu-Hmu. Hmu-Hmu is the sum of the first Vasuh letter Zhee. Zhee = 26 + 8 + 5 + 5 = 44, or Hmu-Hmu. Thus, we find that the term wu in the Vasuh language means Zhee. Zhee is defined in The Ivory Tablets of the Crow as follows:

“(1st) Zhee. It is the first letter appearing in the Vasuh language. It means light of the goddess. Pronounced eehzz.”

Wu has another correspondence, which is Quf. Quf is equal to 17 + 31 + 6 = 44. In The Ivory Tablets of the Crow, we read the following about Quf:

“Quf agreed with what the fiery ones had spoken concerning the creation of a world that exits in time. He went down to the River of Shadows and dipped his finger in the Egu. With one drop of water he created a dimension that rested between the worlds of death and immortality.”

Quf is a warrior and also a healer. According the Ivory Tablets of the Crow, he is closely associated with the planet Saturn. However, he is prominently known as Owatatsumi-no-Mikoto. In The Yi Jing Apocrypha of Genghis Khan, we read:

“The Lord of the Sea is known, in the ever-existing world, as Quf……Know that the Lord of the Waters was known in ancient times as Watasumi.”

Ninzuwu Cosmology consists an ever-existing world that is not in the sequence of past, present, or future. This ever-existing world is known in Ninzuwu writings as The Day of an Endless Age, but more popularly as Nyarzir. In The Ivory Tablets of the Crow, we read the following concerning Nyarzir:

“Now the Nyarzir exist beyond the worlds of time, and never leave their abode.”

Based on the information we have examined so far, we can conclude that there are certain energies that exist in regions beyond the world of time. One such energy is the Nyarzirian Quf, who is known historically as Owatasumi-no-Mikoto. This is a very interesting correlation as Owatatsumi-no-Mikoto is said to live in the Dragon Palace, or Ryūgū-jō. In a Wikipedia article entitled Ryūgū-jō, we read the following about the Dragon Palace, which closely ties into Nyarzir:

“In some legends, on each of the four sides of the palace it is a different season, and one day in the palace is equal to a century outside its boundaries.”

Owatatsumi-no-Mikoto was also the bestower of the Tide Jewels, which were magical gems used by the gods of the sea, to control the tides. They were also reported to the magical jewels of the Naga kings. The Art of Ninzuwu’s Opening of the Sea Ceremony is an initiatory version of the Tide Jewels.

In order for one to practice Yi Jing alchemy, or be a Magician of the Yi Jing, they must be in tune with Nyarzir, the ever-existing world. Their consciousness must exist above the cycle of life and death to implement these aspects of consciousness into their experience. The Ivory Tablets of the Crow, states:

“The fiery ones calculated the times that the veils opened and closed,”

The fiery ones are described in The Ivory Tablets of the Crow as fire angels. Concerning the Soul of Fire, we read:

“This formulae was given to me when I first made my oath to The Fountain of All that Dwells Beyond This World. It is very simple, but must be said one day after another for twenty-one days. It is called the ooh-zz-nn-eehzz-ooh-zz-nn, eek-hss-eehzz-eh-ph, , the Soul of Fire, known to the ancient by the names of many goddesses, and it takes up residence in the flesh.”

The Soul of Fire, in the passage cited above, is said to be named, Nzu-Zhee-Nzu (Fire) Shki-Zhee-Phe (Angel), fire angel. The Fire Angel spoken of in this text is Johuta, a term that means purification song, emphasizing the state which our consciousness must exist to transform. Fire is a force of purification. In the process of cultivating purity we become like fire being able to heal and destroy. Thus, the legacy of Ninzuwu is not simply a magician who uses life and death energies in the literal sense of the term, but one who has transcended the cycle of life and death consciousness in order to embrace what is real. This is why we say that Ninzuwu is a term that has no English equivalent.

Amazingly, what we find in the term nin-zu-wu is the first and ninth letters of the Vasuh language. The Soul of Fire itself. Ninzuwu = 128, or 14 + 9 + 14 + 26 + 21 + 23 + 21. 128 is a number that is the exact double of the amount of hexagrams appearing in the Yi Jing. The number 128 represents the dual aspects of the 64 hexagrams.

The Sumerian Deity Ninazu A Practitioner of the Art of Ninzuwu

The Art of Ninzuwu, or the cultivation of Ninzuwu consciousness is found in working with zu (Shki) and wu (Zhee). The practical application of this cultivation is expressed in the Art of Ninzuwu’s esoteric martial arts and healing practices. Interestingly, there is a Sumerian deity with a name similar to Ninzuwu, Ninazu.

Ninazu is a Sumerian deity of the underworld, who was the husband of Ereshkigal before Nergal. His name means “water knower.” Ninazu compares greatly with the Art of Ninzuwu, as a divine healer and warrior. Maskim Hul: Babylonian Magick by Michael Ford, describes Ninazu as follows:

“Ninazu is an ancient Mesopotamian god, associated with the Usumgallu serpent-dragon and the Mushussu serpent-dragon. Ninazu’s name has original meaning of “Lord Physician”,..A title of Ninazu is “King of the Sword” who is able to “fill men with venom”

Ninazu was also said to be an agricultural deity. There a few ancient Mesopotamian texts that emphasize this fact. In an article written by Kathryn Stevens, published by The AMGG Project, under the title Ninazu, we read:

“Another characteristic Ninazu shares with other gods with whom he is often grouped is an association with snakes. In Ur III and Old Babylonian incantations he is named ‘king of the snakes’ (see van Dijk 1969, esp. 542-3) and the logogram ^dMUŠ (‘divine snake’) is given as a spelling of his name in the god list An = Anum (Litke 1998: 191, l. 240). Given this, it is likely that both Tišpak and Ningišzida inherit their connection with the ‘lion-dragon’ or ‘snake-dragon’ (mušḫuššu) from Ninazu; the mušḫuššu is linked to his centre Enegi, and the dragon (ušumgal) associated with him in a first millennium incantation may be the same creature (see furtherBlack and Green 1998: 137; Wiggermann 1995: 457).

Despite his name, Ninazu was not a major healing deity; except for third and second-millennium incantations against snake bite he appears rarely in the medical corpus.”