The Problem: Once upon a time, a long time ago, the gods in the heavens wanted to rid themselves of the evil goddess Tiamat. Although every good god agreed that this was a great plan, no one wished to battle the evil goddess Tiamat, as she was very powerful.  The Good Guys: In desperation, Ea, the wise water god, decided that Marduk had the best chance of defeating the evil goddess. True, Marduk was young, but he had many powerful skills and was very quick witted. Ea asked Marduk if he would be willing to challenge the evil goddess Tiamat on behalf of all the Good Gods. Marduk’s Terms: If he took the job, Marduk knew he would have quite a fight on his hands. Marduk thought it over. He told Ea he would try to conquer evil if the good gods agreed to his terms. The good gods had to promise to reward Marduk with the permanent position of Chief of the Gods if he battled the evil goddess Tiamat and won. Ea’s Tricky Plan: Ea knew he could not make such a deal on his own. Something of such importance would need the approval of the entire Assembly of the Gods. Ea was pretty sure that a lot of the gods would not be happy about this, especially the older ones who typically teamed up so their collective vote often ruled the day. Ea decided to throw a banquet and invite the entire Assembly to the party. He really went all out to lull the gods into a peaceful and happy state. Ea had his servants serve mounds of pancakes, a most favorite and sought after food in ancient Mesopotamia. He ordered many huge vases, brimming with delicious date wine, be placed on the floor around the banquet table. Each god was given a tube (somewhat like a very long straw) to use to drink from the vases of wine. He had musicians play soft music on their pipes, accompanied by the bleating of live sheep, which was thought to be a most restful sound. The combination of pancakes and date wine and the bleating of sheep put all the good gods in such a great mood that the entire Assembly agreed to Marduk’s terms. Besides, the gods really did not think the boy had a chance. The Battle:  Marduk armed himself with a bow and several arrows, a thunderous club, a net of storms, and a saw-toothed lightning dagger. He went in search of Tiamat. Rolling his thunder and storms before him, Marduk fought one monster after another that the evil goddess Tiamat kept creating and throwing in his way. Each time he killed a monster, he moved closer to the evil goddess Tiamat. One day, he got close enough to catch her in his nets! Tiamat howled with fury. Before she could conjure yet another monster, Marduk shot an arrow down her howling throat, and killed her!   The mighty Marduk took his club and split Tiamat’s body in half. He placed half of her body in the sky and made the heavens. He posted guards to make sure she did not escape and gave them twinkling lights to show that all was well. He created the moon to guard the heavens, and set it moving back and forth, on endless patrol. With the other half of Tiamat's body he made the land. From each of her eyes, he set a river flowing. One eye made the Tigris River. The other eye watered the Euphrates River. He planted fields of grain and vegetables, and blessed the land with rain and cows and forests and orchards. Why humans were first put on the earth: Marduk told the gods who had supported Tiamat that they had to work the fields and tend the canals as punishment. These gods soon complained of all the work they had to do. They burnt their spades and baskets in protest.  Marduk, with an eye on the future, offered the gods a deal. If they agreed to recognize Marduk for all time as the Chief of all the gods, he would release them and find others to do the work in their place. That’s how humans were first put upon the earth. Marduk created humans to do the work, to till and hoe, to tend the canals and animals, and to worship all the gods at festivals.  Chief of the Assembly of Gods: Impressed, and as promised, the gods awarded Marduk with the permanent position of first Chief, leader of the Assembly of all the Gods. To this day, Marduk’s symbol is the saw-toothed lightening dagger that he holds in his belt, his trusty weapon that still helps him keep order in the heavens.     Note: The truly interesting thing about this creation myth is not how consent was obtained from the Assembly,  but rather that consent was necessary, even among the gods.   Ancient Mesopotamian gods and goddesses Free Presentations in PowerPoint format  Free Clip Art Return to Ancient Mesopotamia for Kids