Enuma Elish Creation Myth

Myths are a narrative projection of the sense of cultures’ sacred past and there significant relationship with the deeper powers of the surrounding world and universe. A myth is a projection of an aspect of a culture’s soul. A creation myth is a cosmogony, a narrative that describes the original ordering of the universe. Cosmogony is a term that derives from the Greek word kosmos (order), and genesis (birth); hence, a culture’s cosmogony or creation story describes how its cosmos (order and existence) was established. Mesopotamian myths can be divided into five categories: 1) creation stores of the universe, 2) creation stories of humankind, 3) stories of the underworld, 4) stories of the universal flood, and 5) stories of a hero and his

A common vehicle found by cultures to address and explain their values and worldviews is through myths. Myths are stories that allow for meaning and order into a culture’s existence, and Mesopotamia is an ancient civilization that is has five categories of myths. The creation of the universe is one category and the Enuma Enlil is a prominent story within Mesopotamia. This Mesopotamian creation story, Enuma Elish, was first a theogeny - the begetting of the gods – with the generation of Apsu, Tiamat and their descendants. The new gods (the youngest descendants) bring different principles of undertaking into the world, which contrasts sharply with the older forces (the primordial gods). However, the primordial gods’ resistance to change leads to a theomachy – a battle of the gods – whereby the newer gods overthrow the older in a succession motif. In the first round of the theomachy, on one end, Ea (the wise and clever) overcomes wicked Apsu by a spell. Ea’s wisdom and cleverness is contrasted with Apsu’s brutish lust to destroy, which can be compared to the common folktale motif of: the clever and tricky dragon-slayer facing off against a dull and stupid opponent. On the other end, Tiamat manages to be both beneficient and malevolent, first opposing her Apsu’s destructive plans, but when he is killed she herself becomes the dragon (physically and figuratively). In the final rounds of the theomachy, through the repetition of the succession motif, Tiamat is demolished by her offspring Marduk, who then becomes the ruler of the world. All in all, this creation myth is a medium to explain the beginnings, as well as conveys the Mesopotamian sense of identity by revealing the way this society regards itself in relation to the