{"id":4349,"date":"2026-04-27T10:36:47","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T10:36:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/tiamat\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T14:26:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:26:22","slug":"tiamat","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/tiamat\/","title":{"rendered":"Tiamat"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"4349\" class=\"elementor elementor-4349 elementor-2078 elementor-bc-flex-widget\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-10fdade e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"10fdade\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-herohlft0 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"herohlft0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c3ceb64 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"c3ceb64\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-96ae5e1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"96ae5e1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tiamat, Goddess of the Mesopotamian Tradition<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e45238a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e45238a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Primeval saltwater dragon, mother of all gods, embodiment of chaos.<\/strong> Tiamat is the oldest force in the Mesopotamian cosmos, not evil but primary, the chaotic saltwater mass from which all life flowed and to which it returns.<\/p><p>The *Enuma Elish* tells of her defeat by Marduk, yet this battle is not a simple victory of good over evil but the birth of order out of chaos, Tiamat is broken apart, and her body becomes the universe.<p>Tiamat appears in the Enuma Elish as the primeval dragon of saltwater chaos.<\/p><p>Tiamat is a goddess of the Mesopotamian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, embodying the saltwater chaos before creation.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-klsbdg01 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"klsbdg01\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-klshtm01 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"klshtm01\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-pill-row\"><span class=\"iwg-klasse-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"God \/ Goddess: Personified supreme power in the pantheon of a culture, with clear areas of responsibility, forces of nature, fate, war, fertility. Venerated through cults, sacrifices and temple institutions.\">Goddess<\/span><a href=\"\/en\/mesopotamia\/\" class=\"iwg-kultur-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Cradle of documented religion, Sumer, Akkad, Babylon, Assyria (ca. 3500 BCE to 330 BCE).\">Mesopotamia<\/a><a href=\"\/en\/anti-gods\/\" class=\"iwg-tradition-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Powers of chaos and cosmic adversaries, opponents in the dualism of religious history.\">Anti-God<\/a><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3f74855 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3f74855\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1c30362 elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"1c30362\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;exclude_headings_by_selector&quot;:[],&quot;no_headings_message&quot;:&quot;Es wurden keine \\u00dcberschriften auf dieser Seite gefunden.&quot;,&quot;headings_by_tags&quot;:[&quot;h2&quot;,&quot;h3&quot;],&quot;marker_view&quot;:&quot;bullets&quot;,&quot;minimize_box&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;fas fa-circle&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;,&quot;rendered_tag&quot;:&quot;&lt;svg class=\\&quot;e-font-icon-svg e-fas-circle\\&quot; viewBox=\\&quot;0 0 512 512\\&quot; xmlns=\\&quot;http:\\\/\\\/www.w3.org\\\/2000\\\/svg\\&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=\\&quot;M256 8C119 8 8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248S393 8 256 8z\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/path&gt;&lt;\\\/svg&gt;&quot;},&quot;minimized_on&quot;:&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;hierarchical_view&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;min_height&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]}}\" data-widget_type=\"table-of-contents.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-toc__header-title\">\n\t\t\t\tTable of Contents\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--expand\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Open table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-down\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--collapse\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Close table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-up\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" class=\"elementor-toc__body\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__spinner-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"elementor-toc__spinner eicon-animation-spin e-font-icon-svg e-eicon-loading\" aria-hidden=\"true\" viewBox=\"0 0 1000 1000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M500 975V858C696 858 858 696 858 500S696 142 500 142 142 304 142 500H25C25 237 238 25 500 25S975 237 975 500 763 975 500 975Z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-herorght0 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"herorght0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-heroimg00 iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"heroimg00\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/goetter_mesopotamien_tiamat-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-4350\" alt=\"Tiamat - Gods from the Mesopotamian tradition, historical-illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/goetter_mesopotamien_tiamat-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/goetter_mesopotamien_tiamat-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/goetter_mesopotamien_tiamat-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/goetter_mesopotamien_tiamat.webp 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-32917199 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"32917199\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-26e916cb e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"26e916cb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-253a40d4 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"253a40d4\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1200c304 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1200c304\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tiamat<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-159dcf9a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"159dcf9a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-48cee66f elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"48cee66f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">At a Glance: Tiamat<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3f50d82c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3f50d82c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Type:<\/strong> Mesopotamian primeval <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span>, dragon goddess of primal chaos, opponent of Marduk<br><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the gods of a religion or culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">Pantheon<\/span>: Babylon (central as antagonist in the Enuma Elish)<br>Function: saltwater primeval sea, mother of all gods, counter-power to cosmic order<br>Main attributes: dragon form, divided body shape (heaven and earth made from her body), eleven <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites characteristics of various living creatures in itself.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid being<\/span> helpers<br>Main <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span> sites: none of her own, antagonist in the Babylonian creation <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A transmitted narrative about gods, origins and the order of the world.\" tabindex=\"0\">myth<\/span><br>Opponent: Marduk (defeats her in the Enuma Elish)<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-18613602 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"18613602\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-262b8a9f elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"262b8a9f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Classification<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-46dcb7d e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"46dcb7d\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-61d3ab3 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"61d3ab3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-117c166 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"117c166\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Period of the Texts<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-73997a0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"73997a0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tiamat is the central antagonist of the Babylonian creation epic <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> (12th century BCE, the main manuscript is Neo-Assyrian). She has a precursor in the Sumerian tradition as <em>Nammu<\/em> (primeval sea).<\/p><p>The main flourishing of Tiamat <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the transmitted divine narratives of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">mythology<\/span> is the Neo-Babylonian period, when the Enuma Elish was recited at every New Year festival (Akitu) in the Esagila <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A building serving the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temple<\/span>, and each spring the cosmic victory of Marduk over Tiamat was <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritually<\/span> renewed.<\/p><p>In later traditions she was very rarely directly venerated; in the 19th and 20th centuries she was intensively received by <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span> and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Collective term for teachings that claim a hidden knowledge accessible only to initiates.\" tabindex=\"0\">esotericism<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d47b156 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d47b156\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ff38c2b elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"ff38c2b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Area of Distribution<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4e49fcc elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4e49fcc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tiamat has no cult sites of her own; she is a mythological figure, not an object of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span>. Her presence was nonetheless given at every Babylonian Akitu festival, where the <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> was recited and her defeat by Marduk was <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritually<\/span> renewed.<\/p><p>In Christian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Transitional epoch between antiquity and the Middle Ages, roughly the 3rd to 7th century.\" tabindex=\"0\">late antiquity<\/span> she was mirrored as a \u201edragon antagonist\u201c in the apocalyptic tradition (Revelation 12). In modern reception (especially after Robert Graves and feminist religious history) she appears as a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> of the suppressed feminine primal power.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-db03c39 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"db03c39\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-229a87b e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"229a87b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f471fc elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1f471fc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Source Situation<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-36b1201 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"36b1201\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Central sources: <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> (creation epic, 7 tablets, the main source), precursors in Sumerian creation myths.<\/p><p>Secondary literature: Lambert, <em>Babylonian Creation Myths<\/em> (standard edition); Heidel, <em>The Babylonian Genesis<\/em>; Bott\u00e9ro, <em>La plus vieille <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religion<\/span>. En M\u00e9sopotamie<\/em>; Black\/Green, <em>Gods, <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">Demons<\/span> and Symbols<\/em>. Comparative (dragon-slaying <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring element of content in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span>): Watkins, <em>How to Kill a Dragon<\/em> (Indo-European dragon-slaying pattern).<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3ae0637c e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"3ae0637c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-31d07739 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"31d07739\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Name and Variants<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b7642947 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"b7642947\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a086266 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a086266\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tiamat is depicted as a gigantic, serpentine and draconic figure, with scales, wings and a terrifying dragon mask. Her skin is dark blue or greenish, the color of the salt sea.<\/p><p>She wears no crown, since crowns derive from humans and gods; rather, she herself is primordial substance. In later depictions she is shown with several heads or a hydra-like form. Her breath is poison, her roar shakes the worlds.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-709a44a8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"709a44a8\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2f585873 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2f585873\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Characteristics<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-70621c12 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"70621c12\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4296eb49 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4296eb49\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tiamat was not venerated as a goddess in the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The era of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BCE to 600 CE.\" tabindex=\"0\">classical<\/span> sense; there was no <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A building serving the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temple<\/span> and no priesthood. Yet in cosmic and philosophical contexts she was presented as that from which order must come.<\/p><p>Each year at the New Year festival (<em>Akitu<\/em>) the <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> was recited, and Marduk was <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The petitioning or invoking address to a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invoked<\/span> anew as victor over Tiamat. This recitation was a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of events through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magical<\/span> <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span> for the renewal of the world and for defense against a relapse into chaos. Tiamat represents the cosmic threat that must be defeated eternally.<\/p><p><strong>Appearance and Symbolism<\/strong><\/p><p><em>Tiamat<\/em> is depicted as a huge, seven-headed or many-headed dragon or sea monster with shining scales that shimmer in the colors of water, blue, green, white. She has mighty wings, claws and teeth, the size of a mountain.<\/p><p>Her body is a sea itself. She breathes fire and poison. <em>Tiamat<\/em> is beautiful in her wildness, but repellent in her strangeness. Water and the sea are her symbols. Her eyes glow with primal intelligence, not moral but instinctive and cosmic.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-44e71476 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"44e71476\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3c1fc3f0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3c1fc3f0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Profile: Tiamat<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-84f33b8e e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"84f33b8e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-hqkdc67p elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"hqkdc67p\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The most important aspects of Tiamat at a glance. The following fields summarize origin, function, appearance, veneration, symbols and cultural parallels.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c1 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qh9oavvu iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"qh9oavvu\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-awzx8k2k elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"awzx8k2k\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tradition<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-x6rowhv0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"x6rowhv0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> Tiamat is the primeval mother, the salty primeval sea, the source of all gods together with the fresh-water god <em>Apsu<\/em> (her consort). When the young gods (Anu, Enki, later Marduk) disturb the peace, Apsu wants to kill them, but Enki kills him first.<\/p><p>Tiamat swears revenge, forges an army of eleven <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites characteristics of various living creatures in itself.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid being<\/span> demons (among them Mu\u0161hu\u0161\u0161u dragons, lion-men, scorpion-men) and chooses Kingu as general. Marduk offers himself as the hero, is given command over all the gods, kills Tiamat in single combat and makes heaven and earth from her body, the cosmic order arises from Tiamat&#8217;s body.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8e3o4kxs iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"8e3o4kxs\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-08rkdgov elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"08rkdgov\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tiamat's Sphere<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-uwjelx8s elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"uwjelx8s\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tiamat is the mythological embodiment of the chaos that precedes cosmic order. Mother of all gods (theogonic function), but at the same time a threat to order, she must be defeated so that the world can come into being.<\/p><p><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">Symbol<\/span> of the unordered primal power, of the saltwater primeval sea (in contrast to the fresh water of Apsu, which is fertile). In the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and the doctrines of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theological<\/span> consolidation of the Babylonian pantheon, her death justifies Marduk&#8217;s kingship, a politically motivated creation narrative.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-jm2n74ec iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"jm2n74ec\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8vufse4c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8vufse4c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Appearance<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-mwb9u015 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"mwb9u015\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> Tiamat is not described unambiguously; some passages point to an anthropomorphic female figure, others to a huge dragon or serpent body. Scholarship tends toward a hybrid dragon-human figure.<\/p><p>In pictorial depictions of the modern era she is almost always portrayed as a dragon with feminine symbolism (large serpent body, several heads, claws, wings). Direct images of Tiamat are absent from the Babylonian glyptic tradition; the Mu\u0161hu\u0161\u0161u dragon images (e.g. on the Ishtar Gate) are her helpers, not herself.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-37ss2yr6 iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"37ss2yr6\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3v0wp3wx elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3v0wp3wx\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Function<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-w3247g2m elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"w3247g2m\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Sphere of effect:<\/strong> Tiamat has no <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span> of her own, but her presence was given at every Babylonian New Year festival (Akitu); the Enuma Elish was recited there, the Marduk victory <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritually<\/span> renewed. In personal <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span> she was not invoked (only Marduk as victor).<\/p><p>In modern <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Collective term for teachings that claim a hidden knowledge accessible only to initiates.\" tabindex=\"0\">esoteric<\/span> reception (from the 19th century) she is received as \u201emother goddess,\u201c \u201edragon mother,\u201c \u201eprimal woman\u201c; in feminist religious history as a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> of suppressed feminine primal power. In modern pop culture she is present as a dragon in games, novels and films.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0qpjal9w iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"0qpjal9w\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6ndoih0o elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6ndoih0o\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tiamat's Defense<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6684tyh9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6684tyh9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Dragon form, serpent body, several heads, claws, wings (in modern depiction), divided body (mythologically, heaven and earth were made from her halves). Helpers: eleven <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites characteristics of various living creatures in itself.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid being<\/span> demons (Mu\u0161hu\u0161\u0161u, Lahamu serpent, Bashmu, U\u1e63umgallu, etc.). <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to the divine and thereby withdrawn from everyday use.\" tabindex=\"0\">Sacred<\/span> element: saltwater. Sacred number: 11 (her <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites characteristics of various living creatures in itself.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid beings<\/span>).<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3lfi7x32 iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3lfi7x32\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0kg99ga1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0kg99ga1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Counterparts<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-n0fum6kp elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"n0fum6kp\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Apsu<\/em> (Mesopotamia, consort, fresh-water primeval god), <em>Nammu<\/em> (Sumer, Sumerian precursor goddess), <em>Lotan\/Leviathan<\/em> (Phoenician-Hebrew, chaos dragon), <em>Vritra<\/em> (Hinduism, dragon, defeated by Indra, shared Indo-European dragon-slaying root), <em>Typhon<\/em> (Greece, chaos monster, defeated by Zeus), <em>Jormungand<\/em> (Germanic, world serpent, fought by Thor), <em>Yamata-no-Orochi<\/em> (Japan, eight-headed dragon, defeated by Susano-o), <em>Apophis<\/em> (Egypt, chaos serpent).<\/p><p>Watkins&#8217; Indo-European dragon-slaying <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring element of content in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span> finds in Tiamat one of its most famous examples.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7533bc7a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"7533bc7a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2447d18d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2447d18d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Practical Defense<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d5d0260c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d5d0260c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-341be2ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"341be2ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Warding off evil: of signs and objects intended to keep harmful influences away.\" tabindex=\"0\">Apotropaic<\/span> Rituals<\/strong><\/p><p>Tiamat as the primeval saltwater dragoness (Enuma Elish I, 1-150) was not directly venerated; she is the power of primal chaos to be subdued, whose corpse is split by Marduk into heaven and earth (Enuma Elish IV, 105-145).<\/p><p>Apotropaic anti-Tiamat rituals are found in the Maql\u00fb <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A linguistic ritual intended to summon or bind a power.\" tabindex=\"0\">incantation<\/span> series as protection against dragon-like illness demons (cf. Bott\u00e9ro, Foster). At the New Year festival <em>ak\u012btu<\/em> the subduing of Tiamat was repeated cultically.<\/p><p><strong>Incantation Texts<\/strong><\/p><p>The reading of the Enuma Elish on tablets IV-V (Marduk&#8217;s victory) on the fourth day of the ak\u012btu was a central <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Magical or ecclesiastical exclusion; also the binding of a power through a formula.\" tabindex=\"0\">ban<\/span> act. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The pleading or conjuring address of a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invocation<\/span> \u201eTiamtu lalkaltu\u201c (Tiamat, be broken!) is found in anti-storm incantations from Nineveh (Hee\u00dfel, <em>Babylonisch-assyrische Diagnostik<\/em>).<\/p><p><strong><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, misfortune-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">Amulets<\/span> and Protective Symbols<\/strong><\/p><p>Marduk symbols (spade, dragon head) as protection against Tiamat; the mu\u0161\u1e2bu\u0161\u0161u dragon is depicted as a subdued counter-<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> on Babylonian city gates (Ishtar Gate, Berlin).<\/p><p>Apotropaic tablets bearing Marduk&#8217;s name were placed under door thresholds to protect against Tiamatic powers. The eight-spoked sun wheel (Marduk&#8217;s solar <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span>) replaces Tiamat&#8217;s chaos waters with ordered creation.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5a584676 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"5a584676\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6d0757bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6d0757bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tiamat, Parallels in Other Cultures<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-60563f68 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"60563f68\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5a93fdd6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5a93fdd6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Tiamat resembles the Leviathan of Hebrew <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the transmitted divine narratives of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">mythology<\/span>, a primeval saltwater serpent that battles God. With the Egyptian Apophis (chaos serpent) she shares the role of the eternal chaos antagonist.<\/p><p>The Indian Vritra and the Norse J\u00f6rmungandr are similar cosmic serpents. Tiamat is unique, however, in that her defeat is not her annihilation but her transformation into the universe itself; she is both, enemy and mother at once.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp397d784 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp397d784\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp715d1bb elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp715d1bb\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Saltwater Sea: Tiamat's Role in the Primeval Age of the Enuma Elish<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp78a1cf7 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp78a1cf7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp94e8c6d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp94e8c6d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the Babylonian creation epic <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> Tiamat stands at the beginning of all things. Before the world there exist only two primeval waters: Apsu, the sweet groundwater, and Tiamat, the salty sea. Their waters are mingled together, a state preceding any order. From this mingling the first gods emerge.<\/p><p>The name <em>Tiamat<\/em> is connected with the Semitic word for sea; linguistically there is a kinship to the Hebrew <em>tehom<\/em>, the \u201eprimeval flood\u201c or \u201edeep\u201c mentioned in the first chapter of Genesis. This linguistic proximity has led to long discussions about the relationship between Mesopotamian and biblical conceptions of creation.<\/p><p>In the epic the conflict begins because the noise of the young gods disturbs Apsu and Tiamat. Apsu wants to destroy the gods but is forestalled and killed by the wisdom god Ea. Tiamat at first remains inactive, but is then urged to war by some of the gods. She rises as an avenger.<\/p><p>Scholarship debates whether Tiamat was originally conceived as a personal goddess or rather as an impersonal cosmic substance. The texts waver: at times she appears as an acting mother figure, at times more as the sea itself.<\/p><p>This duality is not a contradiction of the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, but points to the difficulty of capturing a cosmic primal power in language at all. Tiamat is at once person and element, mother of the gods and the chaos that must be overcome.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp4dee1d5 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp4dee1d5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpea74fec elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cpea74fec\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Single Combat with Marduk and the Creation of the World<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp1507b78 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp1507b78\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp6defbf1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp6defbf1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The climax of the <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> is the battle between Tiamat and <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/marduk\/\">Marduk<\/a>. Tiamat has created an army of eleven monsters, among them serpents, dragons and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites characteristics of various living creatures in itself.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid beings<\/span>, and has appointed her new consort Kingu as commander, to whom she gives the <em>Tablets of Destiny<\/em>, the insignia of supreme power.<\/p><p>Marduk advances armed with wind, storm and flood. When Tiamat opens her maw, he drives the winds inside, so that they swell her body, and pierces her with an arrow. After her death he splits her body into two halves.<\/p><p>From one he forms the vault of heaven and sets bolts in place so that the water does not stream out; from the other, the earth. From her eyes he lets the rivers Euphrates and Tigris spring forth, from other body parts mountains and springs.<\/p><p>The world here does not arise from nothing but from the divided body of a defeated primeval being. This type of creation narrative, in which the parts of the world are formed from a slain cosmic being, has parallels in other mythologies, for instance in the Norse account of the giant Ymir.<\/p><p>The theological statement of the process is important: order arises from the overcome chaos, and it remains made of it. The heaven is Tiamat&#8217;s body. The chaos has not vanished without trace but has passed into the structure of the world. This conception gives Babylonian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Conception of the structure and order of the world within a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">cosmology<\/span> its particular tension.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp879b046 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp879b046\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp3a61d80 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp3a61d80\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Chaoskampf Myth: Tiamat in Comparative Research<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpf03eede e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpf03eede\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp81f1c08 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp81f1c08\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The battle against Tiamat is the best-known Mesopotamian example of a widespread narrative pattern that scholarship calls <em>Chaoskampf<\/em> (combat against chaos): a deity of order defeats a chaotic primeval being, often associated with water or dragons, and from this victory the ordered world or rule emerges.<\/p><p>Related narratives are found in the West Semitic world, for instance the battle of the weather god Baal against the sea <em>Yam<\/em> in the texts of Ugarit, and in Greek <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the transmitted divine narratives of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">mythology<\/span> the battle of Zeus against Typhon.<\/p><p>Traces appear in the Hebrew Bible as well: in several places, above all in the Psalms and in Job, allusion is made to a battle of God against sea monsters such as <em>Rahab<\/em> or the <a href=\"\/en\/leviathan\/\">Leviathan<\/a>.<\/p><p><span data-nosnippet>The term <em>Chaoskampf<\/em> goes back to the theologian Hermann Gunkel, who in 1895, in his work <em>Sch\u00f6pfung und Chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit<\/em>, worked out the connections between Babylonian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the transmitted divine narratives of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">mythology<\/span> and biblical texts. His theses set off a debate that continues to this day.<\/span><\/p><p>More recent scholarship has become more cautious. It emphasizes that a linguistic similarity such as that between <em>Tiamat<\/em> and <em>tehom<\/em> does not yet prove direct literary dependence.<\/p><p>The cultures of the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Epoch of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">Ancient<\/span> Near East probably shared a common stock of narratives from which each developed its own version. In this picture Tiamat is not the source of all related myths, but a particularly extensively transmitted link in a broad tradition.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp89c5abb e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp89c5abb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp2ffef82 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp2ffef82\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tiamat in Modern Reception: from Cuneiform Text to Dragon Queen<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpf6f8e9a e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpf6f8e9a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpebb5771 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cpebb5771\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The rediscovery of Tiamat began in the 19th century. The clay tablets of the <em>Enuma Elish<\/em> were found in the excavations at Nineveh, and the British Assyriologist George Smith made them known in the 1870s. With that, a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A transmitted narrative about gods, origins and the order of the world.\" tabindex=\"0\">myth<\/span> forgotten for more than two millennia returned to awareness.<\/p><p>In scholarly literature Tiamat has since been treated as a key figure of Mesopotamian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Conception of the structure and order of the world within a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">cosmology<\/span>. In popular reception, however, she has had a career of her own, partly detached from the sources. Widespread is the depiction as a mighty dragoness.<\/p><p>The ancient texts themselves do not describe Tiamat unambiguously as a dragon; they speak of her rather as sea and mother. The dragon form is largely a modern elaboration, fed by the circumstance that Tiamat commands an army of dragons and serpents.<\/p><p>Particularly formative was the role-playing game <em>Dungeons &amp; Dragons<\/em>, which from the 1970s introduced Tiamat as a five-headed dragon queen of evil. Through this and similar games, along with novels, comics and computer games, the name is known to a large public that is hardly familiar with the Babylonian original.<\/p><p>For the religious-studies view this layer is to be clearly distinguished from the ancient <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>. The modern dragoness Tiamat is a creation of fantasy culture; the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Epoch of Greek and Roman culture, ca. 800 BCE to 600 CE.\" tabindex=\"0\">ancient<\/span> Tiamat is the personified salt flood, primeval mother and defeated chaos of a Babylonian didactic poem. Both bear the same name but belong to different worlds.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-36dd7469 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"36dd7469\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-13760ab4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"13760ab4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Further Links<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-28c87796 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"28c87796\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5d6538df elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5d6538df\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/marduk\/\">Marduk, victor in the Enuma Elish<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/enki\/\">Enki\/Ea, kills Apsu at the beginning of the myth<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/anu\/\">Anu, her son \/ grandson (if a page exists)<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/mesopotamia\/\">Mesopotamia, pantheon overview<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/anti-gods\/\">Anti-Gods, subcategory<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/gods\/\">Gods, class overview<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-grl4kl40 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"grl4kl40\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bzsbfrmh elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"bzsbfrmh\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Literature (Selection)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2c13224a e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2c13224a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0eymh9ub elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0eymh9ub\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<footer class=\"iwg-literatur\" data-nosnippet=\"true\"><ul><li><span data-nosnippet>Lambert, Wilfred G.: <em>Babylonian Creation Myths<\/em>. Winona Lake 2013.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Heidel, Alexander: <em>The Babylonian Genesis. The Story of Creation<\/em>. Chicago 1951.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Watkins, Calvert: <em>How to Kill a Dragon. Aspects of Indo-European Poetics<\/em>. Oxford 1995.<\/span><\/li><li>Walde, Christine (ed.): <em>Der Neue Pauly<\/em> (entry \u201eTiamat\u201c).<\/li><\/ul><\/footer>\n<p class=\"iwg-bib-more\"><span data-nosnippet>Further standard works in the <a href=\"\/en\/literature\/\">literature index<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-00fb941 e-con-boxed e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"00fb941\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2decbcd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"2decbcd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2>Frequently Asked Questions about Tiamat<\/h2><div class=\"iwg-faq-q\"><h3>Who was Tiamat in Babylonian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the transmitted divine narratives of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">mythology<\/span>?<\/h3><p>Tiamat is the primeval goddess of the saltwater ocean in the Babylonian creation myth Enuma Elish. She and her consort Apsu (freshwater ocean) are the first beings; their mingling creates the first generations of gods. Yet the younger gods are loud and disruptive; Apsu wants to kill them.<\/p><p>Tiamat hesitates, but after Apsu&#8217;s own death (at the hands of Ea) she unleashes an army of dragons and monsters to take revenge. Marduk, the youngest of the gods, finally defeats her in a single battle.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"iwg-faq-q\"><h3>How did Marduk create the world from Tiamat&#8217;s body?<\/h3><p>After Marduk&#8217;s victory over Tiamat he divides her body into two halves: from the upper half he creates the vault of heaven (with stars and the sun&#8217;s path), from the lower half the earth, the mountains, the rivers Euphrates and Tigris (from her eyes).<\/p><p>From the blood of her slain leader Qingu, Marduk mixes clay and creates the first humans, destined to serve the gods. The creation myth has structural parallels to the Genesis account (dividing the waters, separating heaven and earth).<\/p><\/div><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Who was Tiamat in Babylonian mythology?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Tiamat is the primeval goddess of the saltwater ocean in the Babylonian creation myth Enuma Elish. She and her consort Apsu (freshwater ocean) are the first beings; their mingling creates the first generations of gods. Yet the younger gods are loud and disruptive; Apsu wants to kill them.Tiamat hesitates, but after Apsu's own death (at the hands of Ea) she unleashes an army of dragons and monsters to take revenge. 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Tiamat is the oldest force in the Mesopotamian cosmos, not evil but primary, the chaotic saltwater mass from which all life flowed and to which it returns. The *Enuma Elish* tells of her defeat by Marduk, yet this battle [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4350,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Tiamat","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Tiamat: Primeval Dragon and Chaos in the Enuma Elish","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Mother of the gods, embodiment of chaos, her defeat by Marduk and the creation of the world from her body.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_angie_page":false,"gefaehrdungsstufe":"","wesen_kultur":"","wesen_klasse":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[79,86,85],"class_list":["post-4349","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cultures","category-gods","category-mesopotamia"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v28.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ 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