He Babylonian Story Of Creation

In the beginning, there was Chaos, a huge, boundless, watery mass. Apsu was the fresh water, and Tiamat was the salt water. Their children brought order to the world. Anu took charge of the heavens, Enlil ruled the air and later the earth, and Ea controlled the waters and the abyss that they believed surrounded the earth. Apsu and Tiamat plotted to destroy their revolutionary offspring. In the fierce struggle that ensued, Ea killed Apsu and laid the ancient deity to rest beneath the earth.

The earth rejoiced in its new order, and Ea returned to his temple at Eridu. There his son, the learned Marduk, was born. Yet, all was not well, for Tiamat raged within herself at the loss of Apsu. To avenge his death, she created an army of 11 horrible monsters, with the invincible Kingu as leader.

Ea summoned the gods to a banquet. As the music flowed, the question of how to defeat Tiamat arose. Young Marduk offered to meet Tiamat in hand-to-hand combat, but he had one condition. If he was successful, he was to have supreme authority over all the gods. Despite their eagerness to see Tiamat defeated, the gods decided to test Marduk's powers and commanded him to make a particular constellation of stars disappear and then reappear. When Marduk succeeded, the gods eagerly accepted this condition.

Armed with a net, the four winds, a thunderbolt, a storm, and weapons the gods had given him, Marduk snared Tiamat before she could use any of her magic powers. Tiamat opened her mouth to engulf the upstart god in flames, but Marduk filled her gaping jaws with one of the winds. As the wind rushed through Tiamat's form, swelling and distending it, Marduk pierced her swollen body with a spear and killed her. Chaos was dead, and order and organization reigned.

The world was ready to be created. Marduk stood above Tiamat's body and cut it in half. With one part, he made the vault of heaven; with the other, he created the earth.

The world again rejoiced in its new order. Then, the gods realized they needed people to sacrifice to them. After much discussion, Marduk summoned the imprisoned Kingu. From his blood, Marduk fashioned the human race. To express their gratitude for the gift of humans, the gods built a shrine and temple honoring Marduk (see page 26) at Babylon, Marduk's favorite site.

NOTE: This version of the creation tale is from Hammurabi's time (c. 1750 B.C.), when Marduk was worshiped as the chief god. It was found on the Seven Tablets of Creation, large portions of which are preserved in London's British Museum. As several tablets are broken, historians must make educated guesses about the missing text. (Similar cuneiform tablets are at right.)

By Rosalie F. Baker