1. Babylonian Mythology
By Amy Patel

2. Geography Located in Mesopotamia (between Tigris and Euphrates rivers)
Now Iraq
Climate
Hot and dry in the summer
Cold and wet in the winter
Physical Challenges
Drought in the summer
Rivers would occasionally flood
Located between numerous other tribes

3. Map

4. Creation Story
In beginning, there was only water, represented by the primal gods Apsu (male) and Tiamat (female)
They create several other gods that live inside them and make a lot of babel (noise), including Ea (the chief god)
Ea has a son named Marduk
Apsu tries to kill the younger gods, but Ea kills Apsu instead

5. Creation Story continued …
Tiamat attacks some of the younger gods with the help of her new husbands Kingu, some other gods, and 11 monsters she creates
The younger gods decide to give a lot of power to Marduk so he can fight Tiamat
Marduk defeats Tiamat and rips her in half, creating the Earth and the Sky
Marduk also arranges the stars, rivers, mountain, the calendar, etc.

6. Creation Story continued …
The Marduk kills Kingu and uses his blood to create humankind
The gods who allied with Marduk become the chief gods of Babylon (because they made much babel or noise)

7. Story suggests . . . Crime begets crime
Working together is more powerful than working alone
This explains how Babylon got its name and why it was such an important city

8. Major Mythological Characters
Tiamat
The great goddess of sea and chaos
Represents Primordial Chaos
Looks like a winged dragon
Defeated in a battle with Marduk
Her body became the Earth and Sky

9. Characters continued . . . Marduk God of thunderstorms
Ruler of the other Gods
Killed Tiamat the water god to create Earth and Sky
Had four ears and eyes; breathed fire

10. Characters continued . . . Enlil Ishtar Sun god
In charge of earth and air
Also in charge of fate
Caused a great flood
Ishtar
Goddess of love and war
Famously descends to the Underworld
Vengeful and jealous—cruel to her lovers
Tries to kill Gilgamesh when he spurns her advances

11. Story of the Flood
Ea, god of wisdom, and the other gods decide that they want to kill all humans
Enlil is going to flood the world
Ea likes one human named Utnapishtim, so he gives him advice
Utnapishtim builds an ark for him and his wife, as well as “the seed of all living creatures”
They survive the flood and are given immortality

12. Story suggests . . . Gods can be merciful to those they favor.
Angering the gods can have severe consequences.
It explains some major flood that occurred in prehistoric Babylon

13. Visual
Marduk fights Tiamat

14. Visual
Marduk and his pet dragon

15. Sources http://www.pantheon.org/articles/u/utnapishtim.html
history.com/babylonia/BabyloniaBabylonian_Gods htm
myth.com/godpages/enlil.html
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