A second characteristic feature of the Babylonian religion is that it is based on natural phenomena. The myths are nature myths. The story of the original creation was in a way the prototype of what happened every year. The earth is covered with water from the winter rains (state of chaos). The spring sun (Marduk) fights with and overcomes the water (Tiamat); the earth appears, green things of all kinds and life are produced. The story of the flood may have referred to the annual inundation, with perhaps the added element of severe winds and a tidal wave from the south. Such inundations have occurred in historic times. Ishtar’s descent into the lower world marks the autumn when everything is dry and has been burned up by the fierce summer sun. Ishtar goes to seek the water of life, which in the Babylonian world was a most appropriate metaphor, because water actually was the life of the country. Without it the land was arid and desolate as to-day; with it, its luxuriant vegetation caused the region about Babylon to be called the garden of the gods (Karaduniash).
The creation legend as we have it must have been written after the consolidation of the empire with Babylon as its capital, because in the story Marduk, although one of the younger gods, is made the champion and leader of the others. The tablets on which the legend is contained now usually go by the name of enuma elish, “when above,” from the opening words. The opening lines of the story relating the creation of the gods, and the latter part telling of the creation of animals and man, we have already seen. The version of creation given here is practically the one Berosus gives of the Babylonians, which is found in Eusebius and which he quotes from Polyhistor (see Appendix A).
In the beginning was chaos, consisting of a watery mass. Only two beings existed—Apsu, the Deep, and Tiamat, the universal mother. These two represent the two formative elements from whose union the gods were created. First Lakhmu and Lakhamu were born, then Anshar and Kishar, and after a long interval the other great gods. Tiamat, after having brought forth the gods, conceived a hatred for them and created a large number of monsters to aid her in a battle against them and gave the command to her son Kingu. She bore: “giant snakes, sharp as to teeth, and merciless—with poison she filled their bodies as with blood.” Anshar sends his son Anu against Tiamat, but he is afraid to face her. After Ea also has been sent in vain, Marduk offers to take up the fight, but first demands to be recognised by the other gods as their champion. Anshar summons the great gods to a feast, informs them of all that has taken place, and calls on them to appoint Marduk as their defender. The gods do so and hail him with the following words (the translation of the Assyrian texts is based upon that of Jensenh in his Cosmologie der Babylonier):
Thou art the most honoured among the great gods
Thy fate has no equal, thy decree is Anu.
Marduk, thou art most honoured among the great gods
Thy fate has no equal, thy decree is Anu.
From now on thy word shall not be altered,
To put up and to lower, shall be in thy hand;
What goes out of thy mouth shall be established
Thy decree shall not be resisted.
No one among the great gods shall overstep thy boundary
........
Marduk, thou our avenger,
We give thee dominion over the whole world.
To test his powers the gods place a garment before Marduk and tell him to bid it disappear and come back again at his word. When he has accomplished this prodigy the gods are pleased and exclaim “Marduk is king.” The avenger after equipping himself for the fray goes out to meet Tiamat and her host, taking with him his thunderbolt, spear, and net; he is followed by seven winds, which he has created. We take up the story again at the point where Marduk challenges Tiamat to battle:
“Stand! I and thou let us fight together—”
When Tiamat heard these words
She became like one demented, and lost her senses.
Then cried out Tiamat wild and loud
Her limbs trembled to their very foundations,
She said an incantation, and spoke a formula,
And of the gods of battle, she asked their weapons.
They drew near, Tiamat and Marduk, wise among the gods,
They advanced to battle, came near to fight—
Then the lord spread out his net and surrounded her.
He let loose the evil wind that was behind him.
When Tiamat opened her mouth to its full extent,
He sent the evil wind into it, so that she could not close her lips.
Filled her belly with terrible winds
Her heart was … and she opened wide her mouth.
He seized the spear and pierced through her belly
Cut through her inward parts, and pierced her heart.
He overcame her and destroyed her life,
Threw down her body and stood upon it.
When he had killed Tiamat, the leader,
Her might was broken and her host scattered
And the gods, her helpers, who went at her side
Trembled, were afraid, and turned back.
After Marduk had dealt with the minor rebels
He returned to Tiamat, whom he had conquered
He cut her in two parts like a fish
He put up one half of her as a cover for the heavens,
Placed before it a bolt and established a watchman—
And commanded him not to let her waters come forth.
The rest of the legend deals with the creation and has been mentioned elsewhere. Professor Gunkeli (in his Schöpfung und Chaos) in speaking of this myth says that Tiamat’s offspring, the monsters of the sea, are the stars in the constellations of the zodiac. The stars are the children of the night. Marduk is the spring sun, who fights with the waters, finally subdues them, and brings forth vegetation. This story of Marduk and his fight with the dragon is sometimes identified with the Christ story. The Babylonians also appear to have celebrated a festival at the new year, when the sun turned back from the equator and left the constellation of the water-man. This may be said to mark the birth of spring. Three months later when the god has grown sufficiently strong he fights with the waters (Tiamat Sin) and conquers.
The Babylonians pictured the earth as a cone-shaped mountain surrounded by water. Over this was stretched the dome of heaven behind which was the heavenly ocean and the home of the gods. In the dome were two gates through which Shamash the sun-god passed out in the morning and entered at night. The moon and stars were within the dome, and did not pass through it as did the sun. Underneath the thick crust of the earth’s surface the space was all filled with water, and within the crust was Arallu, the home of the dead and land of “no return.” This was supposed to be surrounded by seven walls. Although the real home of the gods was beyond the dome of heaven, they usually lived on the earth and had their council-chamber on the mountain of sunrise, near the gate through which Shamash came out in the morning.
The Babylonian gods are very human. They are born, live, love, fight, and even die, like the people on the earth. The conception is wholly materialistic. Alfred Jeremiask says of this religion: “A practical streak runs through the religion of the inhabitants of the Euphrates valley. Their gods are gods of the living; they are in active intercourse with them as helpers in every action, as rescuers from all evil. The whole religious interest centres on the necessities of this world. There is no room for the anxious reflection and philosophising as to the whence, and whither of the soul, which is so characteristic of the Egyptians. With death comes an end of strength and life, of hope and comfort. Hence their religion as such has little to do with conceptions of another world.”
The names of the chief gods have been already mentioned. Besides the ilani rabuti, the great gods, there were a hosts of smaller ones, and a large number of good and evil spirits. Sickness and disease were supposed to be brought by demons, the children of the under-world who performed the bidding of Allatu and Nergal, the rulers over hades. Allatu’s chief messenger was Namtar, the demon of pestilence. The Annunaki likewise did her errands of destruction. The Babylonians lived in constant terror of offending some of these divinities, and a large part of their literature was devoted to magical formulas and prayers for aid and protection. Before undertaking any deed it was customary to find out whether or not the omens were favourable. Certain days were particularly unlucky and on them nothing could be done. The 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th days of every month were among the unlucky ones. The later Jewish sabbath is thus seen to have been originally an unlucky day rather than a holy day. Hugo Winckler has suggested an ingenious theory for the fact that thirteen has always been considered an unlucky number. In order to make the Babylonian calendrical system of lunar months agree with the solar year, it was necessary to insert an extra month. This thirteenth month was regarded as being in the way and disturbing calculations. So thirteen came to be regarded as a superfluous, unlucky number. Another sign of the zodiac was appointed for this extra month, and this was the sign of the raven.