From earliest days Man lifted his eyes to Heavens for divine guidance.

These decisions, we read in the Tale of Etana, were made by the Gods. Employing scientific knowledge of geometry for layout and astronomy for orientation,

The Gods traced out a city;
Seven Gods laid its foundations.
The city of Kish they traced out,
and there the seven Gods laid its foundation,
A city they established, a dwelling place;
but a Shepherd they withheld.

The twelve rulers at Kish who had preceded Etana were not yet given the Sumerian royal-priestly title EN.SI - "Lordly Shepherd" or as some prefer "Righteous Shepherd." The city, it appears, could attain this status only when the Gods could find the right man to build a ziggurat stage-temple there and, by becoming a king-priest, be given the title EN.SI.

Who would be "their builder, the one to build the E.HURSAG.KALAMMA," the Gods asked - build the "House" (ziggurat) that shall be "Mountain head for all the lands"? The task to "look for a king in all the lands, above and below," was assigned to Inanna/Ishtar. She found and recommended Etana - a humble shepherd... Enlil, "he who grants kingship," had to make the actual appointment.

We read that "Enlil inspected Etana, the young man whom Ishtar had nominated. 'She sought and she found!' he cried. 'In the land shall kingship be established; let the heart of Kish be glad. Etana, with the permission of the God Utu/Shamash who was in charge of the spaceport, was carried aloft by an "eagle."