Like the GreekTheogony, the creation of the world in theEnumaelish begins with the universe in a formless state, from which emergetwo primary gods, male and female:
After the waters of Apsu and Tiamat mix, the gods Lahmu and Lahamu ("slime,mud") emerge. And from this pair come Anshar ("whole sky") and Kishar ("wholeearth"), meaning perhaps "the horizon, the circular rim of heaven and thecorresponding circular rim of earth" (Jacobsen 168). Anshar and Kishargive birth to Anu, the sky god, who in turn begets what one translationcalls "his likeness" (Heidel 18) Ea, the trickster god of the flowing waters,who is familiar to us as Enki. The following genealogical chart summarizesthe creation so far:
Apsu (sweet primeval waters) Lahmu ("slime," "mud") Anshar ("whole sky") Anu ("sky") Nudimmud ("image fashioner"--another name for Ea or Enki). | + Tiamat (salt primeval waters) + Lahamu (perhaps both mean "silt"?) + Kishar ("whole earth"--"horizon"?) + no female partner named |
The young Ea was stronger than his father, and like any youngster hewas fond of running around, playing with some other new gods (his brothers).All this noise and commotion disturbed Tiamat, "roiled Tiamat's belly"(Jacobsen 179). Apsu grew angry, but Tiamat, like many moms, put up withthe noise much better than dad. Thorkild Jacobsen interprets this passagelike this: "with the birth of the new gods, a new principle,movement,activity--has come into the world" (170). Finally, Apsu and his vizierMummu go before Tiamat; Apsu suggests that since the noise keeps him fromsleeping, he will destroy the young gods, "abolish their ways" (Dalley234). Tiamat responds furiously, "How could we destroy / what we (ourselves)have brought into being?" (Jacobsen 171). Despite her objections, Apsuand Mummu plot to do away with the younger gods. However, the clever Eaoverhears them and concocts a plan to defeat them. Ea makes and recitesa magic spell that puts Apsu to sleep and Mummu in a daze. Ea then takesApsu's insignia of power, his belt, his crown, and his "mantle of radiance,"and puts them on himself. He holds Apsu down and kills him. Then he
Unlike theTheogony, which was put together by an individualindependent poet, theEnuma elish was an official ritual text, recitedevery April on the fourth day of the Babylonian New Year festival. Thisfestival went on for eleven days: on the fifth day, a ram was sacrificed,"and the priest who performed the sacrifice [was] sent out into the wilderness,not to return till after the days of the festival [were] over" (Sandars49). On the evening of the fifth day, the king of Babylon would humblehimself before the statue of the chief god Marduk and then would lead aprocession of all the gods outside the city gates and back again. Scholarsare uncertain which rituals were performed in the remaining days of thefestival, but perhaps some sort of "sacred marriage" between the king andthe goddess Ishtar was enacted. On the eighth and eleventh days of thefestival, the gods were summoned to "fix the destinies" of the universe(Sandars 37). Spring was and still is harvest and threshing time in Iraq,while "the summer season, when Tammuz [Dumuzi] died and was mourned" was"the parched 'dead season' of a hot country" (Sandars 45). Since springfloods were unpredictable, theEnuma elish may celebrate the tamingof the waters that make agriculture and life possible in this dry region.
The poem certainly celebrates a god who is new to us, Marduk. He wasoriginally a local Babylonian god who was raised to chief god status whenthe city of Babylon conquered all of Mesopotamia. Earlier versions of thestory may have featured Enlil as the hero, but since this is an officialepic, the official god Marduk must be exalted. (Later, when Assyria conqueredBabylon, the Assyrian scribe simply replaced Marduk's name with that ofhis chief god, Ashur.) Marduk's name means "'son-child' or 'son-of-the-sun'"(Sandars 32) or perhaps "bull calf of the sun." Marduk is more powerfulthan his father, and his physical appearance is impressive: he is verylarge, with four large eyes and four big ears, the better to see and heareverything. Fire blazes from his mouth when he speaks. His proud and dotinggrandfather Anu creates the four winds for Marduk to play with, and soona group of unnamed gods goes to "their mother" Tiamat to complain aboutthe resulting noise and commotion:
At the head of this army, Tiamat places a god named Kingu, whose namemay mean "unskilled labourer" (Sandars 36). Tiamat also makes Kingu hersecond husband and gives him the "Tablet of Destinies," on which the decreesof the gods are written and which symbolize "supreme power over the universe"(Jacobsen 174). Kingu now has the power to fix destinies. According toN. K. Sandars, the Akkadian word for "destiny,"shimtu,
Ea hears of this plot and runs to Anshar with the news. Anshar sendsthe powerful and wise Ea to tell Tiamat to cease and desist, but his missionfails. Next he sends Anu out, but he fails as well. Anshar gnashes histeeth, and the gods sit silently for a while, "tight-lipped." Finally theyspeak: "Will no (other) god come forward? Is fate fixed? / Will no onego out to face Tiamat?" (Dalley 242). Ea has the bright idea to speak tohis mighty son Marduk and see what he can do.
Marduk promises Anshar, "You shall soon set your foot on the neck ofTiamat!" Pleased with this answer, Anshar urges Marduk to set out rightaway and "quell Tiamat with your pure spell" (Dalley 243). But Marduk hasone condition--the gods must convene a meeting and proclaim Marduk topdog (or god):
Somewhat like Zeus freeing the Hundred-handers, Marduk prepares weaponsfor the coming battle. He makes a bow, fletches arrows, grabs a mace, throwslightning before him, fills his body with flame, makes a net "to encircleTiamat within it," gathers the four winds "so that no part of her couldescape" (Dalley 251), creates seven nasty new winds such as the whirlwindand tornado, and raises up his mightiest weapon, the "rain-flood" (Heidel39). Then he sets out for battle, mounting his storm-chariot drawn by fourhorses with poison in their mouths. In his lips he holds a spell and inone hand he grasps "a herb to counter poison" (Dalley 252). Kingu and therebel gods are "confused" and afraid when they see Marduk in his chariot.Marduk raises up his rain-flood weapon and challenges Tiamat to singlecombat. Tiamat loses her temper, accepts the challenge, and advances, allthe while shouting spells. Marduk encircles Tiamat with his net, blowsher up with his winds, and shoots "an arrow which pierced her belly, /Split her down the middle and slit her heart" (Dalley 253). After standingon Tiamat’s corpse, he easily defeats the rebel gods, capturing most ofthem and smashing their weapons. He ties the arms of the monsters and leadsthem away with nose-ropes. He grabs the Tablet of Destiny away from Kinguand fastens it to his own breast. Marduk then proceeds to create the universefrom Tiamat’s body:
Marduk returns from creating the universe, leading the captive godsand monsters before the gods. He presents the Tablet of Destiny to Anuand them makes statues of the eleven monsters, setting them up "at thedoor of Apsu" (Dalley 257). The gods are extremely pleased with Marduk,so they arrange a reception for him at which they all come forward to kisshis feet. They invest Marduk with the regalia of his office--such as thecrown, the sceptre, and "the mantle of radiance"--and they proclaim himking of the gods of heaven and earth. Marduk proclaims that he will createhis own dwelling-place between the skies of heaven and the waters of theApsu and invites the gods to stop by on their way up or down. He decidesto name his new dwelling-placeBabylon, which means "gate of god."The gods bow down to him, repeating their praises and promising to obeyhis command.
Now Marduk decides to "perform miracles"—he outlines his plan to Ea:
Marduk invites the gods to a big feast in his new home. At the feast,all destinies are fixed, including "the seven destinies of the cult." Mardukgives the bow that slew Tiamat to the gods, and Anu is so pleased thathe makes the bow an honorary god and gives it (her) a seat at the assemblyof gods. The gods swear fealty to Marduk, "by touching their throats withoil and water" (Jacobsen 182). After Anshar orders the worship of Mardukby "the black-headed people," the gods confirm Marduk’s kingship and masteryby chanting his fifty names.
1. What physical picture can you conjure up from the meanings (waters,mud, silt, whole sky and earth, sky) of the names of the gods at the beginningof the Babylonian Creation Epic? In terms of nature, what do you thinkEa's conquest of Apsu and Mummu means?
2. Why do you think Tiamat decides to aid the opponents of noise thesecond time but not the first time?
3. Think of some similarities and differences between the rise of Zeusin Hesiod'sTheogony and the rise of Marduk in this epic. For example,in what ways are Tiamat and Kingu like or unlike Kronos and Typhoios? Whodo you think is more powerful, Marduk or Zeus? Why?
4. Name some similarities and differences between the Norse creationstory and theEnuma elish. For example, in what ways is Ymir likeand unlike Tiamat? In what ways is Kingu like and unlike Kvasir? How isKingu like or unlike Prometheus?
5. Why do you suppose the gods are depicted as getting drunk when theymake the decision to give Marduk supreme power?
6. When Marduk makes the constellation appear and disappear, do youthink he creates something out of nothing? Notice the emphasis on the king’swordsas absolute law: "May your utterance be law, your word never be falsified" (Dalley 250).
7. What do you think the defeat of Tiamat might mean? (Notice the windsvs. water and male vs. female symbolism.)
8. Compare the type of god used to make man in this epic with the kindof god used inAtrahasis. Do we get a different view of the relationshipbetween men and gods? Compare and contrast with the attitude of God towardshis creation in Genesis.
9. Why do you think the city of Babylon created right after mankind?Why do you suppose Zeus didn't get a similar city in theTheogony?
10. Which aspects of this myth seem to refer to natural events and whichto ritual? What charter elements can you find?
Works Cited
The Esagila(Temple of Marduk), or the Tower of Babel: http://www-lib.haifa.ac.il/www/art/babel.html
Exploring AncientWorld Cultures: The Near East: http://eawc.evansville.edu/nepage.htm
ChristopherSiren’s Sumerian Myth site: http://pubpages.unh.edu/~cbsiren/sumer-faq.html
ChristopherSiren’s Babylonian Myth site: http://pubpages.unh.edu/~cbsiren/assyrbabyl-faq.html
Oriental Institute,University of Chicago: http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/default.html
[Authoritative, impeccable scholarship, if a bit puzzling tonavigate--check out their ABZU index to Ancient Near Eastern Resourceson the web.]
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