Adno'b is the heart-soul, most important of the seven souls: the one who will testify before the goddess Maat in the underworld Hall of Judgment after death. Like all of the souls, Adno'b is considered part of each individual person's spiritual anatomy, but is often discussed as a single being; similarly, stories about Adno'b often criss-cross back and forth between myths about an individual being and descriptions of the functioning of a person's heart-soul. Adno'b is pictured as a tiny dancer treading a constant rhythm in the midst of the body, the Essential and Universal Self keeping the rhythm of life in the midst of the cosmos. This is the image upon the Devil card of the Tarot. Eridu, reputedly the earliest city of Mersu, is said to be Adno'b for the whole of the empire, having been given that position, and the wisdom to go along with it, by Enki.
Adno'b is considered to be the cause of all mortality. Adno'b once seduced the south wind. In the course of their sadomasochistic coupling (described in great detail in the ancient epics,) Adno'b broke the south wind's wings. He was summoned for punishment by the supreme god An. Enki had told Adno'b that he would be offered the bread and water of death. Meanwhile, though, the two gatekeepers of heaven, Dumuzi and Ningiszida, had interceded with An on Adno'b's behalf, causing a change of heart. An instead offered the heart-soul the bread and water of eternal life. Adno'b refused, thus losing the chance of immortality.
Adno'b is known as "The Lord of the Gates of Matter," "The Sage (or Wise Man) of Eridu," "The Diamond in the Night," and "The Eye of Set." He is the Guardian of the 26th tunnel of the Tree of Death in magical teachings, where his particular magic is that of the "evil eye," or malediction and curses. An improper relationship with Adno'b is considered to be the cause of priapism.
See also: Heart.
Game Statistics
Besides various magics that interact with Adno'b -- banishing him from a person's body, communicating with him, healing his relationship with the rest of the person, and so forth -- Adno'b has no game statistics. Though he could be considered a deity, his place as part of a person's spiritual anatomy means that interaction with him comes not as part of the priest class, but rather as part of one of the incarnum-using classes. In those terms, Adno'b is the heart chakra, which interacts with the magic of vests, vestments, and shirts.
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