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chaos that reigned in the beginning of time. This earlier Marduk, however, was effaced by the reflex of the political development through which the Euphrates valley passed and which led to imbuing him with traits belonging to gods who at an earlier See also:

period were recognized as the heads of the pantheon. There are more particularly two gods—See also:

Ea and See also:

Bel—whose See also:

POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers and attributes pass over to Marduk. In the See also:

case of Ea the See also:

TRANSFER (from Lat. transferre, to bear across, carry over)

transfer proceeds pacifically and without involving the effacement of the older god. Marduk is viewed as the son of Ea. The See also:

FATHER

father voluntarily recognizes the superiority of the son and hands over to him the See also:

CONTROL (Fr. contrdle, older form contre rolle, from Med. Lat. contra-rotulus, a counter roll or copy of a document used to check the original; there is no instance in English of the use of " control " in this, its literal, meaning)

control of humanity. This association of Marduk and Ea, while indicating primarily the passing of the supremacy once enjoyed by See also:

ERIDU

Eridu to Babylon as a religious and political centre, may also reflect an See also:

early dependence of Babylon upon Eridu, not necessarily of a political character but, in view of the spread of culture in the Euphrates valley from the See also:

south to the See also:

north, the recognition of Eridu as the older centre on the See also:

PART

part of the younger one. At all events, traces of a cult of Marduk at Eridu are to be noted in the religious literature, and the most reasonable explanation for the existence of a god Marduk in Eridu is to assume that Babylon in this way paid its See also:

HOMAGE (from homo, through the Low Lat. hominaticum, which occurs in a document of 1035)

homage to the old See also:

settlement at the head of the See also:

Persian Gulf.

While the relationship between Ea (q.v.) and Marduk is thus marked by See also:

HARMONY (Gr. dpµovia, a concord of musical sounds, dpA'ew to join; &plan midi (sc. TeXvil)

harmony and an amicable See also:

ABDICATION (Lat. abdicatio, disowning, renouncing, from ab, from, and dicare, to declare, to proclaim as not belonging to one)

abdication on the part of the father in favour of his son, Marduk's absorption of the See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power and prerogatives of Bel of See also:

NIPPUR

Nippur was at the expense of the latter's See also:

PRESTIGE

prestige. After the days of Khammurabi, the cult of Marduk eclipses that of Bel (q.v.), and although during the five centuries of Cassite control in Babylonia (c. 1750-1200 B.C.), Nippur and the cult of the older Bel enjoy a period of See also:

RENAISSANCE, THE

renaissance, when the reaction ensued it marked the definite and permanent See also:

TRIUMPH (triumphus)

triumph of Marduk over Bel until the end of the Babylonian See also:

EMPIRE

empire. The only serious 'See also:

RIVAL

rival to Marduk after 1200 B.C. is See also:

Assur (q.v.) in See also:

ASSYRIA

Assyria. In the south Marduk reigns supreme, and his supremacy is indicated most significantly by making him the Bel, " the See also:

lord," See also:

PAR (Lat. par, equal)

par excellence. The old myths in which Bel of Nippur was celebrated as the See also:

hero were transformed by the priests of Babylon in the See also:

INTEREST

interest 2The name Mordecai denotes "belonging to Maduk." of the Marduk cult with the See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief role assigned to their favourite. The See also:

HYMNS

hymns once sung in the See also:

temple of Bel were re-edited and adapted to the cult of Babylon. In this See also:

PROCESS

process the older Bel was deliberately set aside, and the See also:

CLIMAX, JOHN (c. 525–600 A.D.)

climax was reached when the See also:

CONQUEST

conquest of the See also:

monster Tiamat, symbolizing the chaos prevailing in primeval days, was ascribed to Marduk instead of, as in the older See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form of the epic, to Bel. With this stroke Marduk became the creator of the See also:

WORLD

world, including mankind—again setting aside the far older claims of Bel to this distinction. Besides absorbing the prerogatives of Ea and Bel, Marduk was also imbued with the attributes of other of the See also:

GREAT

great gods, such as See also:

ADAD

Adad, See also:

SHAMASH, or AMAS

Shamash, See also:

NERGAL

Nergal and See also:

NINIB

Ninib, so that, more particularly as we approach the days of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, the impression is created that Marduk was the only real deity recognized, and that the other gods were merely the various forms under which he manifested himself. So far as one can speak of a monotheistic tendency in Babylonia it connects itself with this conception that was gradually crystallized in regard to the old solar deity of Babylon. The See also:

HISTORY

history of the city of Babylon can now be traced back to the days of See also:

SARGON

Sargon of Agade (before 3000 B.C.) who appears to have given the city its name.

There is every See also:

REASON (Lat. ratio, through French raison)

reason to assume, therefore, that the cult of Marduk existed already at this early period, though it must always be See also:

BORNE, KARL LUDWIG (1786–1837)

borne in mind that, until the days of Khammurabi, his See also:

jurisdiction was limited to the city of which he was the patron and that he was viewed solely as a solar deity. On monuments and cylinders he is represented as armed with the weapon with which he despatched the monster Tiamat. At times this monster is also depicted lying vanquished at his feet, and occasionally the monster with the See also:

LANCE

lance or the lance alone is reproduced instead of the god himself. In the astral-theological See also:

SYSTEM

system, Marduk is identified with the See also:

PLANET (Gr. ssXavirrns, a wanderer)

planet See also:

JUPITER

Jupiter. As the creator of the world, the New See also:

YEAR

Year's festival, known as Zagmuk and celebrated at the time of the vernal See also:

EQUINOX (from the Lat. aequus, equal, and nox, night)

equinox, was sacred to him. The festival, which lasted for eleven days, symbolized the new See also:

BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

birth of nature—a See also:

REPRODUCTION

reproduction therefore of the creation of the world. The arbiter of all fates, Marduk, was pictured as holding an See also:

ASSEMBLY, UNLAWFUL

assembly of the gods during the New Year's festival for the purpose of deciding the See also:

lot of each individual for the year to come. The epic reciting his wonderful See also:

DEED (in O. Eng. dead, from the stem of the verb " to do ")

deed in despatching the monster Tiamat and in establishing See also:

law and See also:

order in the world in the See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place of chaos was recited in his temple at Babylon known as E-Saggila, " the lofty See also:

house," and there are some reasons for believing that the See also:

RECITAL (from Lat. recitare, to read out, particularly of a public document)

recital was accompanied by a dramatical See also:

REPRESENTATION

representation of the epic. The meaning of the name Marduk is unknown. By a See also:

SPECIES

species of word-See also:

PLAY

play the name was interpreted as " the son of the chamber," with reference perhaps to the sacred chamber of See also:

FATE

fate in which he sat in See also:

JUDGMENT

judgment on the New Year's festival. Ideographically he is represented by two signs signifying " See also:

child of the See also:

day " (or " of the sun ") which is a distinct allusion to his original solar character. Other ideographic signs describe him as the " strong and universal ruler." The name of his See also:

CONSORT (Lat. consors, a companion)

consort was Sarpanit, i.e. the shining or brilliant one—again an allusion to Marduk's solar- traits—and this name was playfully See also:

TWISTED

twisted by the Babylonian priests to mean°" the See also:

SEED (from the root seen in Lat. serere, to sow)

seed-producing" (as though compounded of zer, seed, and banit, producing, which was regarded as an appropriate appellation for the See also:

FEMALE

female counterpart of the creator of mankind and of See also:

LIFE

life in See also:

general.

The punning See also:

ETYMOLOGY (Gr. grvµos, true, and X6yos, "account)

etymology betrays the evident See also:

DESIRE

desire of the priests to see in Marduk's consort a form or manifestation of the great See also:

MOTHER

mother-goddess See also:

ISHTAR

Ishtar (q.v.), just as in Assyria Ishtar frequently appears as the consort of the chief god of Assyria, known as Assur (q.v.). (M.

End of Article: MARDUK (Bib'. MERODACH2)

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