Records of the Past, 2nd series, Vol. I, ed. by A. H. Sayce, [1888], at sacred-texts.com

(Texts: All Artifacts, Color Coding, & Writings in Bold Type With Italics Inside Parenthesis, are Added by Editor R. Brown, not the Authors, Translators, or Publishers!)

(gods in blue)

FIRST TABLET OF THE STORY OF THE CREATION

Obverse

1. At that time the heaven above had not yet announced,
2. or the earth beneath recorded, a name;
3. the unopened deep was their generator,
4. Mummu (Mercury)–Tiamat (original Earth) (the chaos of the sea) was the mother of them all.
5. Their waters were embosomed as one and
6. the corn-field was unharvested, the pasture was un-grown.
7. At that time the gods had not appeared, any of them;
8. by no name were they recorded, no destiny (had they fixed).
9. Then the (great) gods were created,
10. Lakhmu (Mars) and Lakhamu (Venus) issued forth (the first),
11. until they grew up (when)
12. An-sar (Saturn) and Ki-sar (Jupiter) were created.
13. Long were the days, extended (was the time, until)
14. the gods Anu (Uranus), (Bel (Nibiru) and Ea (Neptune) were born),
15. An-sar (Saturn) and Ki-sar (Jupiter) (gave them birth).

The rest of the tablet is lost.

Footnotes

133:1 Or ” first-born,” if we adopt Delitzsch’s reading ristu instead of la patû.

133:2 This is shown to be the signification of istenis by S 1140, 8.

133:3 Gipara; see W.A.I., V. i. 48-50. Nirba kân yusakhnapu giparu ’sippâti summukha inbu, “the corn-god continuously caused the cornfield to grow, the papyri were gladdened with fruit;” S 799, 2. Ana gipâri eltu erubbi (Accadian mi-para-ki azagga imma-dan-tutu), “to the holy cornfield he went down.” The word has nothing to do with “clouds” or “darkness.”

THIRD TABLET OF THE STORY OF THE CREATION

Obverse

17. “The gods have marched round her, all of them;
18. up to those whom thou hast created at her side I have gone.”
19. When they were gathered (?) beside her, Tiamat (full Earth) they approached.
20. The strong one (Merodach (Nibiru)), the glorious, who desists not night or day,
21. the exciter to battle, was disturbed in heart.
22. Then they marshaled (their) forces; they create darkness.
23. “The mother of Khubur, the creatress of them all,
24. I pursued with (my) weapons unsurpassed; (then) did the great snake(s) bite.
25. With my teeth sharpened unsparingly did I bite.
26. With poisoned breath like blood their bodies I filled.
27. The raging vampires I clothed with terror.
28. I lifted up the lightning-flash, on high I launched (it).
29. Their messenger Sar-baba ……
30. Their bodies were struck, but it pierced not their breasts.
31. I made ready the dragon, the mighty serpent and the god Lakha(ma) (Venus),

32. the great reptile, the deadly beast and the scorpion-man,
33. the devouring reptiles, the fish-man and the gazelle-god,
34. lifting up (my) weapons that spare not, fearless of battle,
35. strong through the law which (yields?) not before the foe.
36. The eleven-fold (offspring), like him (their messenger), were utterly (overthrown?).
37. Among the gods her forces
38. I humbled the god Kingu (Moon) in the sight (of his consort?), the queen.
39. They who went in front before the army (I smote?),
40. lifting up (my) weapons, a snare for Ti(amat) (original Earth).

Footnotes

134:1 I’skhuru-si.

134:2 Khubur is identified with ’Su-edin on the eastern side of the Babylonian plain in W.A.I., ii. 50, 51. Professor Delitzsch suggests that the expression ummu Khubur may be the origin of the name Omorôka assigned by Berôssos to Tiamat.

134:3 Ittaqur from naqaru. In Hebrew the verb is used especially of piercing the eyes.

134:4 The usumgalli or “solitary monsters” were fabulous beasts who were supposed to devour the corpses of the dead, and were therefore not exactly vampires which devoured the living, but corresponded rather with one of the creatures mentioned in Is. xiii. 21, 22; xxxiv. 14.

134:5 Umtas[sir].

135:1 According to the 9th tablet of the Epic of Gisdhubar, “the scorpion-men” guard the gate between “the twin mountains” through which the sun passes at its rising and setting. The fish-man was Oannes, afterwards identified with Ea (Enki), who brought wisdom and culture to Chaldæa out of the Persian Gulf.

135:2 Dapruti (see W.A.I., v. 16, 80) from the same root as diparatu, “a flame.”

135:3 The gazelle-god was identified by the later mythology of Babylonia, sometimes with Ea the god of Eridu, sometimes with Bel (Enlil) the god of Nipur: see my Lectures on the Religion of the Ancient Babylonians, pp. 283 seq.

135:4 Kingu was the husband of Tiamat.

FOURTH TABLET OF THE STORY OF THE CREATION

Obverse

1. So he established for him (i.e. Merodach (Nibiru)) the shrine of the mighty;
2. before (?) his fathers for a kingdom did he found (it).
3. Yea, thou art glorious among the great gods;
4. thy destiny is unrivaled; thy gift-day is (that of) Anu (Uranus).
5. O Merodach (Nibiru), thou art glorious among the great gods;
6. thy destiny is unrivaled; thy gift-day is (that of) Anu (Uranus).
7. Since that day unchanged is thy command.
8. High and low entreat thy hand:
9. may the word that goes forth from thy mouth be established; untroubled is thy gift-day.
10. None among the gods has surpassed thy power
11. at the time when (thy hand) founded the shrine of the god of the sky.
12. May the place of their gathering (?) become thy home!
13. “O Merodach (Nibiru), thou art he who avenges us;
14. we give thee the sovereignty, (we) the hosts of all the universe!
15. Thou possessest (it), and in the assembly (of the gods) mayest thou exalt thy word!
16. Never may thy weapons be broken; may thine enemies tremble!
17. O lord, be gracious to the soul of him who putteth his trust in thee,

18. and destroy the soul of the god who has hold of evil.”
19. Then they set in their midst his saying unique;
20. to Merodach (Nibiru) their first-born they spake:
21. “May thy destiny, O lord, go before the god of heaven;
22. may he confirm (?) the destruction and creation of all that is said.
23. Set thy mouth; let it destroy his word:
24. turn, speak unto it, and let him lift up his word (again).”
25. He spake and with his mouth destroyed his word;
26. he turned, he spake unto it and his word was re-created.
27. Like (the word) that issues from his mouth the gods his fathers saw it:
28. they rejoiced, they approached Merodach (Nibiru) the king.
29. They bestowed upon him the scepter (and) throne and reign;
30. they gave him a weapon unsurpassed, consuming the hostile.
31. “Go” (they said), “and cut off the life of Tiamat (Earth);
32. let the winds carry her blood to secret places.”
33. The gods his fathers also hear the report of Ea (Neptune):
34. “A path of peace and obedience is the road I have caused (him) to take.”
35. There was too the bow, as his weapon he prepared (it);
36. he made the club swing, he fixed its seat;
37. and he lifted up the sacred weapon which he bade his right hand hold.
38. The bow and the quiver he hung at his side;

39. he set the lightning before him;
40. with a glance of swiftness he filled his body.
41. He made also a snare to enclose the dragon of the sea.
42. He seized the four winds that they might not issue forth, any one of them,
43. the south wind, the north wind, the east wind (and) the west wind.
44. His hand brought the snare near the bow of his father Anu (Uranus).
45. He created the evil wind, the hostile wind, the storm, the tempest,
46. the four winds, the seven winds, the whirlwind, the unending wind;
47. and he caused the winds which he had created to issue forth, the seven of them,
48. confounding the dragon Tiamat (Earth), as they swept after him.
49. Then the lord lifted up the deluge, his mighty weapon.
50. He rode in the chariot of destiny that retreats without a rival.
51. He stood firm and hung the four reins at its side.
52. (He held the weapon?) unsparing, that overfloods her panoply.
53. ……… their teeth carry poison.
54. …… they sweep away the learned.
55. …… might and battle.
56. On the left they open their ……
57. …… fear ……
58. With the lightning-flash and … he crowned his head.
59. He directed also (his way), he made his path descend, and
60. humbly he set the … before him.
61. By (his) command he kept back the …
62. His finger holds the …

63. On that day they exalted him, the gods exalted him,
64. the gods his fathers exalted him, the gods exalted him.
65. Then the lord approached; he catches Tiamat (Earth)by her waist;
66. she seeks the huge bulk (?) of Kingu (Moon) her husband,
67. she looks also for his counsel.
68. Then the rebellious one (Tiamat (Earth)) appointed him the overthrower of the command of Bel (Nibiru).
69. But the gods his helpers who marched beside him
70. beheld (how Merodach (nibiru)) the first-born held their yoke.
71. He laid judgment on Tiamat (earth)(but) she turned not her neck.
72. With her hostile lip(s) she announced opposition.
73. (Then) the gods (came) to the help of the lord, sweeping after thee:
74. they gathered their (forces) together to where thou vast.
75. (And) the lord (launched) the deluge, his mighty weapon;
76. (against) Tiamat (Earth), whom he requited, he sent it with these words:
77. “(War) on high thou hast excited.
78. (Strengthen?) thy heart and muster (thy troops) against the god(s).
79. …… their fathers beside (thee).
80. …… thou hast opposed
81. …… to (thy) husband.
82. ……… lordship (?)
83. …………thou seekest.

Reverse

1. (Against) the gods my fathers thou has directed thy hostility.
2. Thou harnesser of thy companions, may thy weapons reach their bodie(s).
3. Stand up, and I and thou will fight together.”
4. When Tiamat (Earth) heard this,

5. she uttered her former spells, she repeated her command.
6. Tiamat (Earth) also cried out vehemently with a loud voice.
7. From its roots she strengthened (her) seat completely.
8. She recites an incantation, she casts a spell,
9. and the gods of battle demand for themselves their arms.
10. Then Tiamat (Earth) attacked Merodach (Nibiru) the chief prophet of the gods;
11. in combat they joined; they met in battle.
12. And the lord outspread his snare (and) enclosed her.
13. He sent before him the evil wind to seize (her) from behind.
14. And Tiamat (original Earth) opened her mouth to swallow it.
15. He made the evil wind enter so that she could not close her lips.
16. The violence of the winds tortured her stomach, and
17. her heart was prostrated and her mouth was twisted.
18. He swung the club, he shattered her stomach;
19. he cut out her entrails; he overmastered (her) heart;
20. he bound her and ended her life.
21. He threw down her corpse; he stood upon it.
22. When Tiamat (current Earth) who marched before (them) was conquered,
23. he dispersed her forces, her host was overthrown,
24. and the gods her allies who marched beside her
25. trembled (and) feared (and) turned their backs.
26. They escaped and saved their lives.
2 7. They clung to one another fleeing helplessly.
28. He followed them and shattered their weapons.
29. He cast his snare and they are caught in his net.
30. Knowing (?) the regions they are filled with grief.
31. They bear their sin, they are kept in bondage,
32. and the elevenfold offspring are troubled through fear.
33. The spirits as they march perceived (?) the glory (of Merodach (Nibiru)).
34. His hand lays blindness (on their eyes).
35. At the same time their opposition (is broken) from under them;

36. and the god Kingu (Moon) who had (marshaled) their (forces)
37. he bound him also along with the god of the tablets (of destiny in) his right hand.
38. And he took from him the tablets of destiny (that were) upon him.
39. With the string of the stylus he sealed (them) and held the … of the tablet.
40. From the time when he had bound (and) laid the yoke on his foes
41. he led the illustrious enemy captive like an ox,
42. he established fully the victory of An-sar (Saturn) over the foe;
43. Merodach (Nibiru) overcame the lamentation of (Ea (Neptune)) the lord of the world.
44. Over the gods in bondage he strengthened his watch, and
45. Tiamat (new Earth) whom he had bound he turned head backwards;
46. then the lord trampled on the underpart of Tiamat (Earth).
47. With his club unbound he smote (her) skull;
48. he broke (it) and caused her blood to flow;
49. the north wind bore (it) away to secret places.
50. Then his father (Ea (Neptune)) beheld (and) rejoiced at the savor;
51. he caused the spirits (?) to bring a peace-offering to himself.

52. So the lord rested; his body he feeds.
53. He strengthens (his) mind (?), he forms a clever plan,
54. and he stripped her of (her) skin like a fish, according to his plan;
55. he described her likeness and (with it) overshadowed the heavens;
56. he stretched out the skin, he kept a watch,
57. he urged on her waters that were not issuing forth;
58. he lit up the sky; the sanctuary (of heaven) rejoiced, and
59. he presented himself before the deep, the seat of Ea (Neptune).
60. Then the lord measured (Tiamat (Earth)) the offspring of the deep;
61. the chief prophet made of her image the house of the Firmament.
62. Ê-sarra which he had created (to be) the heavens
63. the chief prophet caused Anu (Uranus), Bel (Nibiru) and Ea (Neptune) to inhabit as their stronghold.

_________

64. [First line of the next tablet:] He prepared the mansions of the great gods.
65. [Colophon.] One hundred and forty-six lines of the 4th tablet (of the series beginning:) “When on high unproclaimed.”
66. According to the papyri of the tablet whose writing had been injured.
67. Copied for Nebo (Nabu) his lord by Nahid-Merodach, the son of the irrigator, for the preservation of his life
68. and the life of all his house. He wrote and placed (it) in Ê-zida.

Footnotes

136:1 These are the last two lines of the Third Tablet.

136:2 ’Sigar. In W.A.I., v. I, 12, we read that the 12th of Iyyar was the ’sigar or “festival” of the goddess Gula (Bau).

136:3 Literally “the covering of heaven” (nalbas same).

136:4 Literally “may they open.”

137:1 Literally “pour out.”

137:2 The “saying,” or “Word,” is regarded as having a real existence which could be created, destroyed, and re-created by Merodach. The “Word” is similarly personified in Zech. ix. 1.

137:3 We have here the same idea as in the “burden” of the Hebrew prophets, the Assyrian verb “to lift up” being nasu, the Hebrew nasâ, whence massâ, “a burden” or “oracle.”

137:4 The badhdhu was the name of the weapon sacred to Merodach. From the sculptures it would appear to have been a kind of boomerang.

138:1 Here we have a curiously weakened form, kisti instead of qasti.

138:2 Or if we correct the text and read makhri la galidta, “that fears not a rival.”

139:1 Read ip-qid.

141:1 The primæval god of the Firmament.

141:2 The meaning of the blood of Tiamat is shown by the two contradictory Babylonian legends of the creation which Berôssos, the Chaldean historian, has amalgamated together:—”Bêlos (Merodach) came and cut the woman (Tiamat) asunder, and of one half of her he formed the earth, and of the other half the heavens, and at the same time destroyed the animals within her (in the abyss). All this was an allegorical description of nature. For, the whole universe consisting of moisture, and animals being continually generated therein, the deity above mentioned (Bêlos) cut off his own head; upon which the other gods mixed the blood, as it gushed out, with the earth, and from thence men were formed. On thisaccount it is that they are rational and partake of divine knowledge.” Similarly, according to Philon Byblios, Phœnician cosmology declared that the blood of Uranos or Baal-samaim, when mutilated by his son Kronos near the rivers and fountains, flowed into them and fertilised the earth.

142:1 “Its” in the original.

142:2 Ê-Sarra.

142:3 Ê-Zida, “the constituted house,” was the great temple of Nebo in Borsippa, now represented by the Birs-i-Nimrud. The copy of the text deposited in it by Nahid-Merodach was probably made in the Persian age.

Fifth Tablet of the Story of the Creation

Obverse

1. He prepared the twin mansions of the great gods.
2. He fixed the stars, even the twin-stars, to correspond with them.
3. He ordained the year, appointing the signs of the Zodiac over (it).
4. For each of the twelve months he fixed three stars,
5. from the day when the year issues forth to the close.
6. He founded the mansion of (the Sun-god) the god of the ferry-boat, that they might know their bonds,
7. that they might not err, that they might not go astray in any way.
8. He established the mansion of Bel and Ea along with himself.
9. Moreover he opened the great gates on either side,
10. he strengthened the bolts on the left hand and on the right,
11. and in the midst of it he made a staircase.
12. He illuminated the Moon-god that he might be porter of the night,
13. and ordained for him the ending of the night that the day may be known,
14. (saying:) “Month by month, without break, keep watch in thy disk.
15. At the beginning of the month light up the night,
16. announcing thy horns that the heaven may know.
17. On the seventh day, (filling thy) disk
18. thou shalt open indeed (its) narrow contraction.
19. At that time the sun (will be) on the horizon of heaven at thy (rising).
20. Thou shalt cut off its …

21. (Thereafter) towards the path of the sun thou shalt approach.
22. (Then) the contracted size of the sun shall indeed change (?)
23. … seeking its path.
24. … descend and pronounce judgment.

The rest of the obverse and the first three lines of the reverse are destroyed.

Reverse

4. [First line of the next tablet:] When the assembly of the gods had heard him.
5. Fifth tablet of the (series beginning) “When on high.”
6. The property of Assur-bani-pal the king of hosts, the king of Assyria.

Footnotes

143:1 Lu-masi, literally “the twin oxen,” of which seven were reckoned.

143:2 Mizrâta, which is the same word as the mazzarôth of Job xxxviii. 32.

144:1 The mutilated condition of the tablet makes the translation of this line extremely doubtful. There may be a reference in it to the star Al-tar or Dapinu.

The Seventh Tablet of the Story of the Creation

Obverse

1. At that time the gods in their assembly created (the beasts).
2. They made perfect the mighty (monsters).
3. They caused the living creatures (of the field) to come forth,
4 the cattle of the field, (the wild beasts) of the field and the creeping things (of the field).
5. (They fixed their habitations) for the living creatures (of the field).
6. They distributed (in their dwelling-places) the cattle and the creeping things of the city.
7, (They made strong) the multitude of creeping things, all the offspring (of the earth).
8. …… in the assembly of my family.
9. …… Ea the god of the illustrious face.
10. … the multitude of creeping things did I make strong.
11. … the seed of Lakhama did I destroy.

The rest is lost.

Footnotes

145:1 Yuzahi(zu).

The Following Fragment (K 3449) Belongs to the Story of the Creation, but its Position is Uncertain

Obverse

1. The snare which they had made the gods beheld.
2. They beheld also the bow, how it had been stored up.
3. The work they had wrought they lay down,
4. and Anu lifted (it) up in the assembly of the gods.
5. He kissed the bow; it …
6. and he addressed the arch of the bow, (saying) thus:
7. “The wood I stretch once and yet again.
8. The third time is the … of the star of the bow in heaven.
9. I have established also the position of …
10. Since the fates” …

……………

Footnotes

146:1 Istenumma.