Category Archives: Civil War
Cadmus
Pronunciation: CAD-muss
Alternate Spelling: Κάδμος Kadmos
Etymology: “From the East” or “He Who Excels”
In Greek mythology, Cadmus is the name of the legendary founder and first king of Thebes. He is distinguished by being one of Greece’s first heroes who slew monsters long before the birth of the mighty Heracles.
Parentage and Family
Parents
Father – King Agenor of Tyre
Mother – Queen Telephassa of Tyre
Alternatively, Phoenix and Perimede are given as Cadmus’ parents.
Siblings
Phoenix – No, not the legendary fire bird that resurrects itself in flames, but his brother who returns to Tyre to rule where the region is renamed to Phoenicia.
Cilix – Brother, the city of Cilicia is named after him.
Europa – Sister, abducted by Zeus
Consort
Harmonia – Wife, depending on the accounts given, she is either the daughter of Zeus and Electra or Ares & Aphrodite.
Children
Agave – Daughter, with her sisters Autonoe and Ino, she unknowingly killed her son Pentheus. She marries first the Spartoi Echion and then later King Lycotherses of Illyria whom she also murders in order to hand over the kingdom to her father.
Autonoe – Daughter, her son, Actaeon was killed by his hounds.
Illyrius – Youngest son and child born, from whom the Illyrians are descended.
Ino – Daughter, was driven mad by Hera leapt to her death to the sea with her only surviving son. Instead of dying, Ino becomes a sea goddess.
Polydorus – Eldest son, inherits the throne in Thebes, carrying on the family dynasty.
Semele – Daughter, she is killed later by Hera after a liaison with Zeus. In some stories, she is the mother of Dionysus. The controversy will say that Semele was raped from an unknown assailant and the blame is placed on Zeus in an effort to try keeping some dignity
Nephew
Thasus – The son of Cilix. In some accounts, he is also Cadmus’ brother. The island of Thassos is named after him.
Grandson
Pentheus – the son of Agave and the Spartoi Echion, he becomes king of Thebes after Polydorus.
Cadmus’ Lineage – Divine Heritage
I feel it’s worth mentioning that through Telephassa’s line, Cadmus and all of his siblings are the grandchildren of Nilus, the god of the Nile River and Nephele, a cloud nymph. Through their father Agenor, again, Cadmus and his siblings are the grandchildren of the sea god Poseidon and Libya, the goddess or personification of ancient Libya in North Africa.
During Mycenaean Greek, Poseidon is the head of the Greek pantheon, it is later during what most think of as ancient Greece when we have more concrete records and writing, that Zeus is the head of the pantheon. I feel that Cadmus’ myth does show where some of these changes to try giving Zeus more prominence start getting put in.
Fifth generation divinity! That’s gotta count for something though!
As early culture heroes, Cadmus and a few others some of the founding members are who get the ball rolling for Greek culture.
First King Of Thebes
Part of Cadmus’ claim to fame is that he’s the first king and founder of Thebes. A Grecian dynasty that stayed in power for quite some time. By Greek myths, this dynasty ruled Thebes for many generations, even during the time of the Trojan War.
His history goes back far enough to when oral history was getting passed on from one generation to the next before getting written down.
Antique Powerhouse – As far as Greek antiquity goes; Thebes did rival the ancient cities of Athens and Sparta. Come the time of Alexander the Great, when he set his sights on Thebes in 335 B.C.E., the city fell and never reclaimed its ancient glory.
Historical Conflicts – The Grecian historian, Herodotus (who lived between 484 B.C.E. and 425 B.C.E.) wrote about Cadmus, chronically him down. Herodotus writes down that he believes Cadmus to have lived some 1600 years before him, placing the timeline for Cadmus in 2000 B.C.E. With so much myth and legend interwoven into Cadmus’ story, how much is history and how much is a tall tale turned to legend that we aren’t sure if there really was a Cadmus.
Once again, Herodotus is to have seen and described the Cadmean writing inscribed on some tripods within the temple of Apollo at Thebes. Tripods that are to date back to when Laius, Cadmus’ great-grandson lived. The inscriptions effectively read as: “Ἀμφιτρύων μ᾽ ἀνέθηκ᾽ ἐνάρων ἀπὸ Τηλεβοάων in English “Amphitryon dedicated me don’t forget the spoils of the battle of Teleboae.”
Further confusion for how much myth and legend there is versus actual history comes from a later Roman writer, Ovid in his Metamorphosis. There are certainly a lot of additions and his versions of the myths are what many are familiar with when thinking of Greco-Roman mythology.
Hittite Connection – More like a controversy. There is a letter from the King of Ahhivawa to the Hittite King where a Cadmus is mentioned as the father of the Ahhivawa people. It is known that this is the term for the Achaeans in the Mycenaean Greek era and mentioned in Homer’s works. It’s not accepted by scholars that this is evidence of the actual Cadmus of mythology.
Cadmeia – This is the acropolis in Thebes named so in honor of Cadmus.
Fun Fact – Cadmeia is supposed to be the original name of the city before becoming Thebes. The name change came about a couple generations later during the reign of Amphion and Zethus who wanted to change the city’s name to honor his wife Thebe.
Al-Qadmus – The name of a Syrian city that is named after Cadmus.
Thebes – There is a city called Thebes in Egypt, no they are not the same city, they just happen to share the same name.
What’s In A Name?
There’s not a clear consensus on what Cadmus’ name means. Some scholars have put forward the idea that it might have a Semitic root of QDM meaning “East.” In Arabic, QDM is a verb meaning: “to come.” Then, in Hebrew, qedem means: “east,” “front” and “ancient.” Then there is the ver qadam meaning: “to be in front.” The Greek word kekasmai means: “to shine.” All this conjecture means that Cadmus translates as either “He who excels” or “From the east.”
I’d say we’re really close, there is a clue with Cadmus being from Tyre and his brother returning to rule there and the region becoming Phoenicia. Scholars studying the region and languages note that there are cognates between the Phoenician and Hebraic language.
The Alphabet – It’s Greek To Me!
Speaking of writing, Cadmus is who gets the credit by the ancient Greek historians for introducing the Phoenician alphabet where it would get adapted to become the Greek alphabet.
Herodotus goes as far as to say that Cadmus founded Thebes long before the events of the Trojan War, placing it during the Aegean Bronze Age. It’s a chronology that’s dubious as it conflicts with when both the Phoenician and Greek alphabets are to have originated.
The earliest known Greek inscriptions that involve Phoenician letters don’t appear until the late 9th and 8th century B.C.E. The belief is that the Phoenician alphabet didn’t develop until 1050 B.C.E., after the Bronze Age.
The Homeric depictions of the Mycenaean Greek (think really ancient Greek) doesn’t mention much about writing. The only reference to any Homeric writing is the phrase “grammata lygra” meaning: “baneful drawings.” This is a connection to the Bellerophontic letter, in which Proteus sent a sealed message with the hero Bellerophon to King Iobates who one reading the missive had instructions to kill the hero.
At any rate, there are several examples of Greek writing known as Linear B found in Thebes that seems to give credence to Cadmus as the inventor and bringer of writing to the Greeks. In Modern-Day Lebanon, Cadmus is still revered and accepted as the originator.
Once again, it’s just Cadmus’ legend that goes so far back that there are doubts and questions about the existing records for just how accurate any of it is.
Going To Find His Sister
All legends have their beginning.
Cadmus’ story begins when he and his brothers are sent by their parents, the King Agenor and Queen Telephassa to go find his sister Europa and bring her back to Tyre after she had been abducted by the god Zeus. Further, Cadmus and his brothers are told not to return without their sister.
Unable to find their sister, Cadmus’ brothers Phoenix and Cilix gave up in their quests. The region of Phoenicia is named after Phoenix and the city of Cilicia is named after Cilix. Here, it can go either way, either Cadmus was unsuccessful in finding his sister or Cadmus very wisely chose not to go up against Zeus.
He very likely decided not to press his luck and instead went to Samothrace, an island known to be sacred to the “Great Gods” or Kabeiroi.
On his journey to Samothrace, Cadmus was not alone. For his mother, Telephassa and his nephew Thasus were also present. Thasus is noted for naming the nearby island of Thasos after himself. It is at Samothrace, that Cadmus meets and marries Harmonia, the daughter of Electra and Zeus. Though, some accounts will say that Cadmus abducted Harmonia away the same way that Zeus did with Europa.
I can’t see that ending well though…
Wedding Vows
It will get confusing, as some accounts have Cadmus and Harmonia marrying on Samothrace or meeting later after the founding of Thebes and marrying then.
Bridal Gifts With A Curse
I mentioned things not ending well right? I did.
Some of Harmonia’ bridal gifts were a peplos (a type of dress) gifted by Athena and a necklace made by Hephaestus. This necklace will become known as the Necklace of Harmonia and it would bring misfortune to anyone who had it. Sure, the necklace will make any woman who wears it eternally young and beautiful. Eventually, the curse takes hold and Harmonia’s home city of Thebes faces civil unrest and misfortunes.
At first glance, that seems unusual, I’ll cover this further down.
The Founding Of Thebes
This is perhaps the story that Cadmus is best known for in his saga. As Cadmus and his mother continued their journey and search for Europa, the two settled in a place called Thrace. It is here, that Telephassa died of grief for her missing daughter. After performing the funeral rites for his mother, Cadmus sought out the Oracle of Delphi for help.
It is here, that Cadmus is told to stop his quest and search for Europa (thanks to the gods), and instead, Cadmus is to now follow a cow.
???
Not just any cow, this one has a half-moon on her flank and Cadmus is to follow her until she finally comes to a rest, exhausted. The spot where the cow rests is where Cadmus is to build a town in a land known as Boeotia along the banks of the river Cephisus.
Alrighty then!
With the exhausted cow, Cadmus decided to sacrifice it to Athena as thanks for the cow guiding him. While making his preparations, Cadmus sent off his companions, Deileon and Seriphus to get some water from the Ismenian spring. While the two were there, the guardian of the spring, a water-dragon belonging to Ares rose up and slew both Deileon and Seriphus.
Chaoskampf & Spartoi
On discovering what had happened, Cadmus then slew the dragon. It has been noted that this is a notable trait of culture heroes to slay a dragon and the whole order triumphing over chaos.
The dragon-slaying story usually ends here. However, a couple of different things will happen here. First, Athena appears to Cadmus and gives him half of the dragon’s teeth, instructing our stalwart hero to plant them. (The other half of the teeth will appear later in the story of Jason and the Argonauts). As Cadmus plants each tooth on the Aonian plain; from each tooth springs up a fully armed warrior. Fearing for his life, Cadmus threw a stone in amongst the warriors and they began to fight each other. Each thinking the stone had been thrown by another warrior. These warriors fought until there were only five of them left standing. Sometimes, depending on who’s telling the story, Athena instructed Cadmus to leave only five Spartoi living. These five remaining warriors’ names were: Chthonius, Echion, Hyperenor, Pelorus and Udeus who would become the founders of Thebes’ noble families. At Cadmus’ instructions, these five helped him to found and build the city of Thebes.
The first building that would-be built-in Thebes was a shrine dedicated to the Moon goddess Selene. The acropolis of Thebes would be called Cadmeia.
Hellanicus’s Version
In his writings, when Cadmus planted the dragon’s teeth, only five warriors sprang up from the ground. There was no fighting it out among them. In addition, Hellanicus has Zeus step in to save Cadmus from the Ares’ wrath as the war god wanted to kill the mortal. And the Spartoi, Echion marries Cadmus’ daughter Agave and their son, Pentheus succeeds Cadmus to become king.
Ovid’s Metamorphosis
In this version of the myths with the Roman names for the gods in it, a voice (presumably Mars) speaks out to Cadmus, after he slays the giant serpent, that he too shall become one.
Ares’ Dragon & Eight Years Servitude
Slaying the dragon also held another problem to it. This dragon or drakon was a servant to the god of war, Ares; add, in some versions, the drakon is a son of Ares. Either way, Ares’ isn’t too pleased.
As restitution for this deed, Cadmus meets Ares’ demands by serving the war god for an “everlasting year” or eight years. At the end of this period, Cadmus marries Harmonia, the daughter of Aphrodite and Ares.
Sidenote: Yeah, I know, the marriage has been mentioned up above. It is a conflict of the narrative and it really depends on who’s telling the story.
The narrative that places Harmonia’s marriage to Cadmus here, as the daughter of Ares is meant to symbolize the coming of harmony and an end to war.
Harmonia would bear Cadmus several children, Agave who married Echion, one of the Spartoi, they would have a son named Pentheus. Cadmus and Harmonia’s other children are three daughters, Autonoe, Ino and Semele who would be the mother of Dionysus. There two sons are Polydorus and Illyrius from whom the Illyrians descend.
Something Rotten In Thebes
Married and the City of Thebes founded, no matter how divinely ordained this was, peace and harmony wouldn’t last.
Due to the cursed necklace that Harmonia received, she and Cadmus’ family would soon see misfortune befall them and a series of civil unrest. Eventually, Cadmus would abdicate his throne to his grandson, Pentheus.
Cadmus would go with Harmonia to Illyria to fight a war brewing over there as they took the side of the Enchelii. From there, Cadmus would go on and found the city of Lychnidus and Bouthoe.
Draconic Transformation
Despite leaving Thebes and establishing other cities, misfortune continued to plague and follow Cadmus. It got so bad that Cadmus cried out that all this had to because of his slaying Ares’ dragon, if the gods were so obsessed with its death, why not turn him into one.
At that pronouncement, Cadmus begins to grow scales and to change into a serpent. Horrified by this transition of her husband, Harmonia begged the gods to change her too so she could share in Cadmus’ fate.
Variations to this ending are that both Cadmus and Harmonia are changed into snakes when they died. Both snakes watched over their tombs while their souls were sent by Zeus to the Elysian Fields.
Famous Grecian playwright Euripides’ in his The Bacchae, has Cadmus given a prophecy from Dionysus that both he and his wife will be turned into snakes before getting to enjoy an eternity of bliss in the Elysian Fields.
The First Earthly Marriage
If you were paying attention to the above narrative and Cadmus’ story, I noted that there are two different timelines to when he marries Harmonia and each one has a side not for who her parentage is.
I think it’s worth noting and remembering Cadmus’ Divine Lineage connecting him to Poseidon and thus a demigod. The story of Cadmus and the ruling, royal family of Thebes is likely a very old story, dating back to Mycenaean Greece and it is during Mycenaean Greece that Poseidon is the head of the Pantheon, not Zeus.
Zeus will become head of the Greek Pantheon during the era thought of as Ancient Greece when we have written records being kept that chronicle historical accounts.
It’s an important distinction and one seen in the conflicting timeline of when Cadmus is to have married Harmonia and who her parentage is to be.
Where Cadmus marries Harmonia on the island of Samothrace with Zeus and Electra given as her parents seems more like the later changes to the story to have Zeus hold a more prominent role within it.
Following a timeline for after Cadmus’ eight years of servitude to Ares and then marrying Harmonia with both Ares and Aphrodite as her parents seems far more likely the correct lineage. It would explain too so much better why Hephaestus would gift Harmonia a cursed necklace.
Knowing the backstory between Hephaestus, Aphrodite and Ares, the cursed necklace that is given to Harmonia makes more sense. Hephaestus was angry at Aphrodite for her affair with Ares and yes, he makes the necklace a means to punish Aphrodite’s infidelity by placing a curse on the child that resulted from hers and Ares’ affair.
Thus, all the misfortunes that Cadmus and Harmonia suffer are from the necklace, not slaying the dragon. Afterall, Cadmus had already paid penance to Ares and then is rewarded his daughter for marriage. It’s even in Harmonia’s name, harmony, there was to be an end to the strife and conflicts.
I do find it curious that there are versions of Cadmus’ story where the Necklace of Harmonia is not mentioned at all or having been made by Hephaestus. The misfortunes that befall Cadmus are attributed to the dragon that was slain. It makes no sense to have Ares forgive Cadmus after several years of servitude and giving his daughter to marry.
Of course, it’s easy to assume the Greek gods are perpetuating their pettiness. We have lots of stories of mortals being punished by the gods. If Hephaestus is keeping mums about the curse he placed on the necklace, of course, no one knows why bad things keep happening to Cadmus and Harmonia.
By Diodorus’ account of this story, Cadmus’ marriage to Harmonia is significant in that it was the first one celebrated on Earth and one wherein the gods are to have come, bringing gifts. There was supposed to be an end to conflicts and war, alas it could not last.
East Meets West – Another idea for Cadmus and Harmonia’s wedding is that it may be symbolic of the Eastern, Phoenician learning combining with the Western, Grecian love of beauty.
Fertility God – The Samothracian Connection!
The island of Samothrace is one of the places that Cadmus, his mother, and nephew are said to have stopped at in their search for a missing Europa.
There is a small Pantheon of the Great Gods whose members have been equated or identified with several of the Greek deities. One such god, is Kadmilus, a fertility god identified with the god Hermes. There are also a pair of Underworld deities, Axiokersos (Hades) and Axiokersa (Persephone) whose marriage gets equated to Cadmus and Harmonia courtesy of Diodorus Siculus’ trying to connect the island’s local myths to the overall Greek myths.
I can see it too, the similar-sounding names of Kadmilus and Cadmus.
Zeus Versus Typhon
In Nonnus’ Dionysiaca where he recounts the story of Zeus battling the monstrous serpentine monster known as Typhon, Zeus asks the hero Cadmus to help him by recovering his lightning bolts with playing his pipes, to play a tune. Zeus promises Cadmus that if he helps, that he will receive the hand of Harmonia in marriage.
The Dionysiaca is written in the 5th century C.E. and reflects plenty of time to have rewritten the myths. This is the only myth to involve Cadmus with Pan, playing the pipes to distract Typhon so this fearsome monster can be defeated.
Earlier versions of this story have where it’s Hermes and Aeigipan (Pan) stealing back Zeus’ tendons, no mention of the thunderbolts.
Once again, if we are confusing Cadmus with Kadmilus, the Samothracian deity identified with Hermes. I can see the confusion.
However, yes Nonnus is equating Hermes with Kadmilus and thus Cadmus in the episode where Hermes comes in disguise as a mortal to announce that Zeus has decreed a marriage of Harmonia with Cadmus.
That’s just confusing if you can’t keep it straight.
Draco Constellation
The story of Cadmus slaying the dragon is sometimes cited as being one of many myths associated with this constellation.
Tiamat
Etymology: Mother of Life
Alternate Spellings & Other Names: Tiahamtu, Baau, Bis-Bis, Hubar, Mammu-Tiamat, Omorca, Omoroka, Tamtu, Tauthe, Tehom, Thalass, Thalassa, Thalatth, Thamte, Thlavatth, Tiawath, Tisalat, Ummukhubar, Θαλάττη Thaláttē (Greek)
Epithets: Mummu Hubur (Mother of Monsters) or “Ummu-Hubur, Who Formed All Things”
Tiamat is an ancient, primordial mother goddess often represented as a draconic personification of the oceans and saltwater from whom all life springs forth from.
Attributes
Animal: All aquatic animals, Dragons, Sharks
Element: Water
Sphere of Influence: Chaos, Creation
Mesopotamian Depictions
Classically, the image of Tiamat is that of a large, primordial dragon who symbolizes the saltwater ocean, the element of Chaos from which all life originates.
Surprisingly, when looking at the Enûma Elish, Tiamat is described as having a tail, thighs, a lower half of the body, belly, udder, ribs, neck, and head. It’s not a clear enough description aside from the tail is that of a dragon. The udder though, makes me think of a cow?
I came across one description, that in her role as creatrix, Tiamat is described as a glistening woman. When connected later to her chaotic element, Tiamat is then shown as a dragon.
More modern authors and sources go with describing Tiamat as a sea serpent or dragon. This connection holds up with Tiamat giving birth to dragons and serpents.
For those familiar with Dungeons & Dragons, Tiamat is a multi-headed dragon, with each head representing a different chromatic dragon race in the game.
Hellenistic Iconography – There’s a relief found in the temple of Bel in Palmyra that shows Marduk and Nabu slaying Tiamat who is represented with a woman’s body and snake legs.
Older Than Time
Not quite.
The oldest reference to Tiamat is an Akkadian incantation dating to the first millennium B.C.E. Once the Enuma Elish was composed, Tiamat begins to be found in several religious texts. However, it must be noted those works refer back to the Enuma Elish. An almost obscure historian, Berossus also writes about Tiamat in the 3rd century B.C.E.
When You Stare Into The Abyss…
This turned out to be a fascinating bit to find. Looking at the Sumerian word, “ti” means “life” and “ama” means “mother.” So Mother of Life or Mother of All could be good translations for Tiamat’s name.
Going by the Akkadian word for the sea, it is tâmtu or ti’amtum. It has also been noted that the long vowel â in tamtu is a contraction of the vowels i and a. This word is a proper form for addressing a person or deity. So… Tiamat, tâmtu is: “O’sea!”
Taking this further for how ancient languages likely influenced each other, there are some scholars who see a connection to the Hebraic word Tehom that means ‘the Deep” or “Abyss,” especially as used in the Torah or Old Testament in the book of Genesis. It makes sense, tehom is a cognate to the Akkadian tamtu and the Ugaritic t-h-m and all share similar meanings. It’s not hard to see how these words would also be found as a root word and meaning to the Babylonian Tiamat.
As a side note, the Greek Septuagint uses the word “abyssos” or Abyss when translating tehom.
Speaking of Greek, Tiamat was called Thalatte in the Hellenistic Babylonian Berossus’ first volume of Universal History. The name Thalatte is a variation to the Greek’s word for the sea of Thalassa. Later, in other translations, Tiamat’s name is altogether replaced for Thalassa as the Akkadian sources for Enuma Elish used the more common word for sea as both names of Thalassa and Tiamat had become synonymous.
Parentage and Family
Consort
Apsu – Or Abzu, Primordial God of Freshwater
Kingu – Or Qingu, her consort after Apsu’s death, also her son and general of her army.
Children
Lachmu and Lachamu – The first pair of gods born. From them, all of the other gods within the Mesopotamian pantheon come.
Monstrous Children & Demon – After the death of Apsu, Tiamat creates a host of monstrous children, among whom dragons and serpents are but a few.
Grandchildren
Anšar and Kišar – Through Lachmu and Lachamu.
Igigi – Ultimately the second and third generation of gods.
Babylonian Mythology
In this mythology, Tiamat is a primordial, monstrous sea goddess depicted as a dragon. She represents the formless chaos from which life began. It is with her consort, Apsu, the primordial god of freshwater that the first generation of gods are born.
Enuma Elish
This an ancient epic creation poem written in the 18th century B.C.E. (1700 to 2000 B.C.E. are other estimated guesses) when the city of Babylon becomes the political capital of Mesopotamia. It’s largely written to show Marduk’s birth, many of his heroic deeds and how Ea (Enki) steps down to allow Marduk, in a relatively peaceful transfer of power to become the king and head of the pantheon.
The Enuma Elish begins at the start of time, when the universe is nothing more than chaos with freshwater represented by Apsu and saltwater (or the abyss) represented by Tiamat, a dragoness. The male and female principles, not unlike the concept seen in the Japanese Yin & Yang. The joining of these two primordial deities would see the creation of all the other gods and other beings. Their most notable children are Lachmu and Lachamu along with others who become the other gods and goddesses, known as the Anunnaki. The other children of Apsu and Tiamat are giant sea serpents, dragons, snakes, storm demons, fish-men, scorpion-men
While Tiamat loved all her children, Apsu on the other hand didn’t care for them, saying they were too noisy, keeping him up all night and unable to get any work done during the day. Apsu’s response to this problem was to kill his children, specifically the younger, Igigi deities.
A horrified Tiamat told her eldest son, Enki (later version its Ea) of what Apsu has planned. Enki decided that the best plan for dealing with this was to capture and put Apsu into a deep sleep and then kill him. From Apsu’s corpse, Enki then creates his home, the earth and the marshy region of Eridu.
Kingu, one of Tiamat and Apsu’s sons, soon to be consort to Tiamat is upset and goes to report what happened. This further horrifies Tiamat who wasn’t expecting for Enki to just up and kill Apsu. As a result, she decided to wage war on her own children. The mighty Tiamat raised up an army of chaos consisting of twelve monsters: Bašmu, “Venomous Snake,” Ušumgallu, “Great Dragon,” Mušmahhu, “Exalted Serpent,” Mušhuššu, “Furious Snake,” Lahmu, the “Hairy One,” Ugallu, the “Big Weather-Beast,” Uridimmu, “Mad Lion,” Girtablullû, “Scorpion-Man,” Umu dabrutu, “Violent Storms,” Kulullû, “Fish-Man,” and Kusarikku, “Bull-Man” who are all led by Kingu (Quingu) as the general of this army.
This has Enki and the other gods worried about what to do. That is, until Marduk steps forward, saying he will lead everyone in this war. Marduk has one condition, that is that he be named as the new king of the pantheon. Enki agrees and Marduk leads the Anunnaki to battle.
Marduk prepares his weapons consisting of bow and arrows, a mace, lightning as he is a storm god, flames and a net. Gathering up the four winds, Marduk encircles and nets the mighty Tiamat to prevent her from escaping him. New winds are created by Marduk such as whirlwinds and tornadoes. As he is a storm god, Marduk brings down a fierce flood of rain. It’s a battle between a storm god and a primordial goddess of chaos and the sea, it’s epic as Marduk rides in his storm-chariot pulled by four horses who have poison in their mouths. Spellcasting and an herbal antidote as Marduk faces off against one of the mightiest dragons known in mythology.
After Marduk finally slays Tiamat with an arrow to her stomach, he then goes after Tiamat’s son, Kingu who oversaw the army and wears the Tablets of Destiny over his chest. Marduk makes short work of Kingu in single combat, claiming the tablets and establishing himself as the new head of the pantheon.
This is a lot of power that Marduk has now accumulated and he sets about to create the universe. But didn’t that already exist? He’s at least making a new one as Marduk takes the two halves of Tiamat’s corpse to create the heavens and the earth, completing the work started by Enki. From Tiamat’s eyes, the Tigris and Euphrates rivers flow.
With Kingu’s blood, Marduk mixes it with the earth to create the first humans who would be the servants of the Igigi (the younger Mesopotamian gods). The creation of humans would allow the gods the leisure time and the time to focus on higher purposes, taking care of human needs as humanity basically did the grunt work. All humans would need to do is respect and give heed to the will of the gods living in Eridu with Marduk ruling overall as a benevolent god.
That doesn’t sound like it will end well and I’m sure there’s another story concerning that.
Side Note: Early versions of this story have Anu, later replaced by Enlil and then in the last version, it is Marduk who gets the promise from the other gods about becoming head of the pantheon.
Marduk’s version dates from the first dynasty of the Babylonians, whereas the other versions are much older. Even then, depending on the version of the creation myth, it is solely Marduk involved in all of it and there’s no mention of Enki at all. Scholars who look at when the Enuma Elish was written generally believe that it represents political and religious propaganda meant justify and install Marduk as the head of the Babylonian pantheon as the city-state rose to political power in the region.
As for Apsu, the Enuma Elish is the first time he’s treated as a deity. Before, he’s just a concept, what they called the freshwater found beneath the earth in the aquifers.
Mother Of Gods & Monsters
If this were Greek mythology, I would say that sounds like Echidna who is infamous for giving birth to several monsters or Gaia with the numerous monstrous children that she gave birth to that were later imprisoned in Tartarus.
The first children that Tiamat gives birth to are those gods who will become part of the collective Mesopotamian pantheon. It is after the death of her consort Apsu, that Tiamat gives birth to a host of monstrous creatures, some of whom are dragons and serpents to go after her first group of children, the gods. Some of Tiamat’s monstrous children also become the signs of the zodiac.
As the mother of all creation, Tiamat’s mating with Apsu is seen as a Sacred Marriage. It more a poetical explaining the creation of life and in the ancient Mesopotamian mythology, where the saltwater sea met and mixed with the freshwater sea in the Persian Gulf. One notable region in the area is Bahrain, which means “two seas” in Arabic. It’s thought by some scholars that Bahrain might be the site Dilmun and corresponding with the original Sumerian creation story.
Anunnaki – These are the first generation of gods that Apsu and Tiamat gave birth to at the beginning of the creation. Now, depending on which of the Mesopotamian mythologies you follow, Akkadian, Babylonian, Sumer, their number can vary and it’s inconsistent. Lahmu and Lahamu, meaning “hairy” are the firstborn, from there, the other gods are born.
Igigi – These are the second and third generations of gods born. Who were meant to be servants to the Anunnaki. When Apsu decides to kill their children for being too noisy, some retellings will explain it to mean, it’s the Igigi he plans to kill. And it’s the Igigi for whom Tiamat gets angry and decides to retaliate against. The Igigi in their victory, will then create humans to be their servants.
Chaoskampf
The struggle against Chaos; this is a familiar motif found throughout the world in many different regions and mythologies of a culture hero or god going up against a creature of chaos. This creature is often shown as and takes the form of a great serpent or dragon. This is the familiar Knight slaying the Dragon seen in many European mythologies. Parallels to this concept are even found in other cultures.
It is no different for the myth of Tiamat with her connection as a primordial goddess of Goddess. With her death, either Anu, Enlil or Marduk establishes order and with her corpse, creates the heavens and the earth.
Tiamat’s story is very likely the origin of the hero slaying the dragon motif where she becomes a symbol of not just chaos, but evil. There’s a commentary that suggests that the female deities of Mesopotamian mythology are older than the male deities. This would then strongly suggest that the hero slaying the dragon is the establishment of monotheistic patriarchal religions over matriarchal religions.
The only other goddess who is likely older than Tiamat is the Sumerian goddess Nammu, who is also a primordial goddess of the sea.
Canaanite Mythology
Scholars tend to agree that Tiamat originates with later Babylonian mythology. Looking at Tiamat’s connection with the sea, scholars do note a similarity in Levantine mythology between the sea god Yamm and Baal.
As the story goes, from the Ras Shamra and other Ugarit texts that have been translated, Baal and Yamm weren’t the best of buddies and their conflicts are symbolic of the short Syrian winters with the conflicting weather of rain, hail and tides. Baal and Yamm were fighting over who would take over as head of the pantheon after El is stepping down. El had told Yamm he would get to take charge and Baal wasn’t happy with the news.
Yamm keeps on sending messengers to Baal about this edict and Baal is having none of it. With the aid of Kothar creating some magical clubs, Baal eventually defeats Yamm.
Baal’s conquering of Tannin and defeating Yam has been seen as being similar to the myths of Zeus defeating the Titans to become King of the Gods or when Zeus usurps Poseidon as King of the Gods from Mycenean Greece to the more well-known Ancient Greece.
Jumping back to the Judaic mythology, scholars have noted that a passage in the book of Isaiah parallels the Baal Cycle. In the Ugaritic passage for the Baal Cycle, Tannin is described as “the encircler.” The other description given is “the mighty one with seven heads.” It gets debated between the Ugaritic and Hebraic texts if this is three separate figures being described or if these are epitaphs of Lotan or Leviathan.
Me, being a lover of mythology, “the encircler” makes me think of Norse mythology and the Midgard serpent Jormungand. And the seven heads, D&D anyone and the evil dragon goddess of chaos, Tiamat?
Biblical Connections?
That seems very likely. Given the close proximity of the cultures in the Mesopotamian and Canaanite regions, it stands to reason that elements of each culture might cross over.
Some scholars take note of the similarity with the Book of Genesis chapter 1:2 “Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” And the comparison to the story of Tiamat’s and Apsu’s procreation with the mixing of saltwater and freshwater to give birth to the first gods and life in a universe where nothing else existed.
Tannin – the giant sea monster of Canaanite mythology and the Judiac Torah is sometimes through to be a connection to Tiamat. It has been noted the similarities between Tannin in the Baal Cycle with Marduk defeating Tiamat.
It’s not hard to see a similarity and a possible connection between the two. And, for the longest time, Biblical scholars did think that the Old Testament or Torah referenced the Babylonian myths. That would change with the discovery of texts found in Ras Shamra or Ugarit as it was anciently known. Once the Ugarit texts were translated, it became apparent that the Old Testament references the ancient Canaanite mythology more.
Anzu – Fire Bird?
There is another Mesopotamian monster, born from the waters of Apsu and the Earth. Think of either a Griffin or a lion-headed eagle that can breathe both fire and water. There have been similarities pointed out between the story of Tiamat being slain by Marduk the Sumerian-Akkadian myths where one text has Marduk slaying this monstrous bird and another text where the god Ninurta slays it with arrows.
Akitu Festival – Happy New Years!
This was the ancient New Year’s festival that the Sumerians and Mesopotamian cultures celebrated. This festival occurred sometime during March and April, marking the planting of barley. This festival was presided over by Nabu and Marduk to such a degree, that a text known as the Akitu Chronicle documents a time when the festival couldn’t be observed as Marduk (his physical statue, thus him) wasn’t present in the city of Babylon.
Every year at the Akitu House located outside the city, the Enuma Elish would be recited for the New Year’s festival. There was also involved a ritual slapping of the king. Gotta’ stay humble, I guess. With the Enuma Elish being recited on the fourth day, the battle between Marduk and Tiamat would be a symbolic reenactment of this mythical battle.
Otherwise, as far as any cults or worship of Tiamat go, there really isn’t any.
Tethys – Greek Titaness
In Greek myth, Tethys is a Titaness and primordial goddess of the ocean.
Tethys as Tiamat. She is the wife of Oceanus, the Titan god of the seas. There isn’t much known about their myths and some scholars go so far as to suggest that Tethys is a syno-deity or similar to Tiamat given their age and functions.
Nammu – Sumerian
A primordial goddess of the sea who is often equated with Tiamat. There is not much in the way of surviving texts that attest of her. Her myth is similar in that, with Apsu, the freshwater oceans beneath the earth, she gives birth to the first gods, An (Heaven) and Ki (Earth).
Omoroca – Stargate-SG1
This source claims to be from Chaldean mythology, which works when you remember that that’s the whole of Mesopotamian mythology between 10th to 6th-century B.C.E.
I had a hard time pinning this one down. During the Hellenistic-Greek era, there is a Babylonian scholar by the name of Berossus who wrote a history of Babylonia. He lived during the time of Alexander, the son of Philip. There’s a lot of Babylonian history that he writes, much of which, modern scholars would see as mythology. He’s not very well known beyond that, making his obscurity excellent fodder for a show to draw from.
A quick search of Omoroca brought up a lot of Stargate-SG1 references, which would imply that the writers are drawing on a historical/mythological source. At the very least, a T.V. show is linking Tiamat with Chaldean mythology to make a show’s mythos more in-depth.
With that grain of salt in mind, Omoroca’s myth starts off much like that of Tiamat’s, wherein the beginning, there is nothing, just darkness and the abyss of water wherein numerous hideous beings and creatures dwell. This is an infinite variety of different beings of every description. All of which are recorded in the temple of Belus in Babylon.
The Stargate wiki in question says that a woman by the name of Omoroca ruled over all of them. That Omoroca’s name in Greek is Thalassa, the sea or the Moon. Belus comes and kills her, creating heaven and earth much like Tiamat’s myth.
Once again, a Stargate-SG1 television source and it does work when linking Belus to Bel-Marduk and thus to Tiamat.
Sitchin Time
According to Zecharia Sitchin, the claim is made that the great battle between Tiamat and Marduk is symbolic for the creation of our solar system’s asteroid belt. Sitchin writes that this asteroid belt was once a planet that the Sumerians called Tiamat. Due to an impact, the planet was destroyed, creating the “Great Band” or asteroid belt. The planetary impact responsible is that of the planet Nibiru, associated with the god Marduk.
Babylonian Astronomy
I will call bunk on Sitchin’s ideas.
When you look at the word Nibiru in the Akkadian language, it refers to a crossing or transition point like with rivers. In Babylonian astronomy, Nibiru came to refer to the Equinox, notably, the Autumn Equinox. In their star lore, the term nibiru can refer to any crossing. Tracking the movement of the stars and planets in the heavens as they appear from Earth. The star or planet associated with Marduk is the one we know modernly as Jupiter.
For the Babylonians, the Autumn Equinox occurred in the month of Tisritum, roughly coinciding with between September and October. If we’re following the Greek Zodiac, then the constellation of Libra is prominent. A further fun fact, depending on the time of the year and the location, the planet Mercury could sometimes be called Nibiru.
Some of it is confusing. Mainly it’s understanding how to read and interpret what the Babylonians meant when tracking the night sky.
Cetus – Greek Mythology & Constellation
While many are familiar with the constellation’s connection to the Grecian story of Andromeda and Perseus in its role as the giant sea monster sent by Poseidon to destroy the coast of Aethiopia.
The constellation of Cetus has been identified with Tiamat, the dragon goddess of Chaos. Marking Tiamat’s story one of many that the Greeks likely inherited from the Mesopotamians and retold for their own legends.
Snarly Yow
Also known as: Black Dog, Dog-Fiend, the Werewolf, Vanishing Dog
The Snarly Yow is a local phantom Black Dog found in both Maryland and West Virginia folklore in the United States. Unlike the Black Dog of British folklore, the Snarly Yow is sometimes described not as black, but as a white, headless dog dragging a chain from its neck. It has a red mouth, glowing eyes and over-sized paws and known to be very intimidating in appearance. A few sightings will claim the beast stands on its hind legs or that it can change its size to that of a small pony.
Maryland Legend
The Snarly Yow is often found at a pass where the old National road crosses a brook and canyon. The first stories and sightings of the Snarly Yow date to 1790 where an Inn was built close by in Maryland. There are many stories of people encountering the Snarly Yow either while walking, driving, riding horseback where the phantom dog appears, follows along or chases after the car. Or just simply appears and vanishes. Variations to the stories will tell how the horse becomes spooked and throws the rider, how others have thrown sticks and rocks at the beast or even fired at with a firearm, only to have the objects pass through it. Every story ends with the Snarly Yow just vanishing before their eyes.
“South Mountain Magic” – A book written by Madeleine Vinton Dahlgren in 1882, collected many of these encounters. Dahlgren, a wealthy widow had a summer home on South Mountain where she made it her mission to collect local legends. The most striking feature of her book is that many of the stories about the Snarly Yow are all first-hand accounts ranging from a preacher, to a farmer’s wife and to a mountain man who have all had encounters with the beast.
Dahlgren’s book describes the Snarly Yow as an intimidating and imposing wolf-like creature that could change its size. A dark, black shadowy beast, it would mostly just block the path of any travelers coming through.
“Snarleyyow: or, the Dog-Fiend” – Is a high seas adventure novel written in 1837 by the British Naval Officer Frederick Maryatt. His book clearly features a similar large black dog known for being intimidating and formidable.
Civil War – The Civil War saw many battles, one of which, Battle of Antietam near Sharpsburg, Maryland, that claimed over some 22,000 lives in one day of fighting. A number of ghost stories rose up surrounding this battle and the Snarly Yow is just one of many such phantoms to make their appearance.
A plaque located by the road near Boonsboro, MD for a local battle that happened at South Mountain reads:
“Beware of the “Snarly Yow.” Legend has it that the shadow of a black dog used to prowl the heights of South Mountain. One night, a huntsman, famous as a sure shot, encountered the beast. He aimed and fired his rifle. The shot went right through the animal with no effect. He fired again and again, each shot passing through the shadowy beast. Finally overcome with dread, the huntsman fled.”
Turner’s Gap – A location near South Mountain, it is the sight of a Civil War battle known as “The Midnight Battle.” The Snarly Yow is known to appear here.
20th & 21st Century Encounters – Many of these stories revolve around the Snarly Yow, like any dog, either blocking the road or chasing cars that drive along National Road (Route 40). Drivers will stop, thinking they have hit the apparent dog, only to get out, find nothing is there and when they turn to get back in their vehicle, the Snarly Yow appears, baring its teeth at them before disappearing.
West Virginia Legend
The Snarly Yow is believed to roam the mountains and hills near Harpers Ferry, part of West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle. The stories of the Snarly Yow here begin in the 1700’s when the first Germans settled in the Potomac Valley. The name comes from the Germanic words to describe this creature’s howls and wails.
Civil War – The Civil War saw many battles and the town of Harpers Ferry was greatly contested by both sides, often changing hands. The Snarly Yow, just like in Maryland, is just one of many such phantoms to make their appearance.
Most of the stories regarding the Snarly Yow tell how people have claimed to shot at or run over the creature. Then, either believing the apparent dog to be killed or injured, they discover, when looking back, that the creature standing nearby. A few people report having seen the Snarly Yow standing on it’s hind legs like a human. This ghost hound will appear out of thin air, alter its size and just as quickly as it appeared, vanish. Most often the Snarly Yow will appear along roadsides or in the middle of the road.
Other Areas
Stories of the Snarly Yow have also extended its range to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Georgia and even Hillsboro, Virginia.
British Black Dog
In Europe, particularly in the UK for England and Scotland, there a lot of folklore regarding Black Dogs and several different such individual Black Dogs. Sightings of these dogs have been going on for over 400 years. In British folklore, seeing a Black Dog is often an omen of death. These Black Dogs are often found out in the wilderness along old roads, bridges and pathways. Sometimes the Black Dog is in association with a nearby graveyard that it protects. Like the Snarly Yow, the British Black Dogs have glowing red eyes, are large and able to change their size; suddenly appearing and vanishing. Most Black Dogs encountered in British folklore might protect a family or warn an individual of coming death; with some cases outright heralding it. While some Black Dogs are more vicious than others, it is only if they come into physical contact with someone that they attack, can the Black Dog cause harm in the way of paralysis, death and serious wounds.
The Snarly Yow differs from the British Black Dogs in that it is not an omen of death, it just seems to have a penchant for appearing, blocking the path of travelers as it scares them and then just vanishes. Other than getting startling and scaring people, the Snarly Yow hasn’t ever really hurt anyone, unless you count the time a rider got thrown from their spooked horse and broke their collar bone.
Fallout 76
The latest installment in this video game series is set in West Virginia. The game takes advantage of the state’s wealth of local urban legends, cryptozoology and folklore to adapt many monsters to the game’s post-apocalyptic setting. The Snarly Yow is just one of many such monsters found in the game.
Brickthology 