Marduk: The Great God of Babylon
Marduk was the patron god of Babylon who presided over justice, compassion, healing, regeneration, magic, and fairness, although he is also sometimes referenced as a storm god and agricultural deity. He rose to prominence during the reign of King Hammuabi of Babylon (1792-1750 BCE). His temple, the famous ziggurat described by Greek historian Herodotus, is considered the model for the biblical Tower of Babel.
The Greeks associated him with Zeus and the Romans with Jupiter, as he was known as the Babylonian King of the Gods. He is depicted as a human in royal robes, carrying a snake-dragon and a spade. Marduk seems to have originated from a local deity known as Asarluhi, a farmer's god symbolized by the spade, known as a marru, which continued as part of his iconography.
Marduk's name, however, though linked to the marru, translates as "bull-calf", although he was commonly referred to simply as Bel (Lord). Far from the local deity he sprang from, Marduk would become one of the most prestigious gods of the Mesopotamian pantheon.
He was the son of the god of wisdom Enki (also known as Ea, considered a creator god in some myths), who was also associated with fresh, life-giving water. Marduk's association with Enki is no doubt linked to the earlier regional deity Asarluhi, who had the same relationship and shared many of Marduk's characteristics. Marduk's wife was the fertility goddess Sarpanitu (though in some myths his wife is Nanaya), and their son was Nabu, the patron god of scribes, literacy, and wisdom.
From a regional agricultural deity, Marduk took on increasing significance for the city of Babylon (and later the Assyrian and Neo-Assyrian Empire), finally becoming the most important and powerful god of the Babylonian and wider Mesopotamian pantheon and attaining a level of worship bordering on monotheism. He was regarded as the creator of the heavens and earth, co-creator with Enki of human beings, and originator of divine order following his victory over the forces of chaos led by the goddess Tiamat, as told in the Enuma Elish. Once he legitimized his rule, he conferred upon the other gods their various duties and responsibilities and organized both the world and the netherworld.
Marduk in the Enuma Elish
The Babylonian creation myth, Enuma Elish, tells the story of Marduk's rise to power. In the beginning of time, the universe was undifferentiated swirling chaos, which separated into sweet freshwater, known as Apsu (the male principle), and salty, bitter water, known as Tiamat (the female principle). These two deities then gave birth to the other gods. Tiamat loved her children, but Apsu complained because they were too noisy and kept him up at night while distracting him from his work during the day. Eventually, he decided to kill them, and Tiamat, horrified, told her eldest son, Enki, about the plan. Enki then considered the best possible course of action, put his father into a deep sleep, and killed him.
From Apsu's remains, he created his home, the earth, in the marshy region of Eridu. Tiamat never expected her son to kill his father and so declared war on her children, raising up an army of chaos to assist her. At the head of her forces she placed the god Quingu, her new consort, who was victorious over the younger gods in every battle.
At this point in the story, Enki and his siblings begin to despair when the young god Marduk steps forward and says he will lead them to victory if they would first proclaim him their king. Once this is accomplished, Marduk defeats Quingu in single combat and then kills Tiamat by shooting her with an arrow that splits her in two; from her eyes flow the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and from her corpse, Marduk forms the heavens and completes the creation begun by Enki of the earth (in some myths Enki is not mentioned and Marduk is the sole creator of the world).
In consultation with Enki, Marduk then created human beings from the remains of the defeated gods, who had encouraged Tiamat to wage war on her children. The defeated Quingu is executed, and his remains are used to create the first man, Lullu. Marduk then regulates the workings of the world, which includes humanity as co-workers with the gods against the forces of chaos. Henceforth, Marduk decrees, humans will do the work which the gods have no time for, freeing the divine to concentrate on higher purposes and care for human needs. As the gods will care for humans and supply all their needs, humans will respect and heed the will of the gods, and Marduk will reign over all in benevolence.
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⇒ Marduk: The Great God of Babylon














