{{Short description|Mesopotamian god}} '''Ilawela''' (formerly variously transcribed as '''Geshtu-(E)''', '''Geshtu''', '''Gestu''', or '''We-ila''')<ref>Dalley, Stephanie (2000) ''Myths from Mesopotamia: Creation, the Flood, Gilgamesh, and Others'', revised edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 4</ref> is, in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology, a minor god of intelligence. In the Atra-Hasis Epic<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Mark |first1=Joshua |title=The Atrahasis Epic: The Great Flood & the Meaning of Suffering |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/article/227/the-atrahasis-epic-the-great-flood--the-meaning-of/ |encyclopedia=World History Encyclopedia}}</ref> he was sacrificed by the great gods and his blood was used in the creation of mankind:
{{Quote|text=Ilawela who had intelligence,<br>They slaughtered in their assembly.<br>Nintu mixed clay<br>With his flesh and blood.<br>They heard the drumbeat forever after.<br>A ghost came into existence from the god’s flesh,<br>And she (Nintu) proclaimed it as his living sign.<br>The ghost existed so as not to forget (the slain god). […]<br>You have slaughtered a god together with his intelligence.<br>I have relieved you of your hard work.<br>I have imposed your load on man.<ref>Dalley, Stephanie (2000) ''Myths from Mesopotamia: Creation, the Flood, Gilgamesh, and Others'', revised edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 15–16</ref>}}
==See also== *Qingu
== References == {{Reflist}} *Michael Jordan, ''Encyclopedia of Gods'', Kyle Cathie Limited, 2002
Category:Mesopotamian gods Category:Killed deities Category:Knowledge gods