readx;? Legend has it that at the beginning of the primeval period, the world was in chaos, there was no sky, no earth, only an ocean and a sea. Pen Fun Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 There is a salty water in the sea, called Tiamat, and a sweet water, called Apsu, which represent the yin and yang natures respectively, and they continue to meet in the ocean, giving birth to several gods, and when Anshar and Kishar are born, they give birth to the god of heaven Anu and the god of the earth Aia, so that the first generations of gods appeared in the universe.

As the gods proliferated and the gods became conflicted, Tiamat and Apsu increasingly felt that their power was shrinking, and they decided to punish the gods. However, Apsu was not satisfied with Tiamat's plan and was determined to wipe out the gods.

When the gods learned of this secret news, they led the god Ea to kill Apsus, and the god Aea became the head of the gods.

Soon the god Ea was pleased with his noble son, Martuk, who was born different, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and a strong body, and the god Ea gave him all wisdom and strength.

Later, in order to avenge his father's father, the son of Apsus began to challenge the gods of heaven and earth, and Tiamat also went to help. The gods lost their first battle against them and decided to let Marduk show his might. Martuk gladly agreed, and became the ruler of the gods, and he lived up to his expectations, fought valiantly, annihilated the invaders in one fell swoop, and cut off Tiamat's waist with his own hands, and made the sky out of her upper body, and the earth out of her lower body. He then slew one of Tiamat's auxiliary gods, created humans out of his blood, and made it his duty to serve the gods. Thus Martuc finally established the kingdom of Babylon, and he became Lord of Heaven and King of the Gods.

This myth is one of the more representative works in Babylonian literature, which not only shows the Babylonians' concern for the creation of the world and the origin of mankind, and their worship of nature, but also reflects the political unity of the countries in the two river basins, the transformation of religion from polytheism to monotheism, and also shows the historical process of the transition of Babylonian society from matriarchy to patriarchy, and the transformation of primitive society into slavery. In the poem, Tiamat represents the feminine world, she is dissatisfied with the power of the gods, and wants to punish the gods, and the god Eah, who represents the masculine world, is not afraid of the power of her ancestors, and takes the throne first. Matuk, the son of Eah, inherited his father's business and became the leader of the masculine world, he was brave and tenacious, indomitable, and finally defeated Tiamat, the mother of God, after a desperate struggle, embodying the strength and greatness of the masculine.

This story is somewhat similar to the story of Gaia, the mother of the earth, and Zeus, the lord of the gods, in ancient Greek mythology, and it shows the process of history moving forward, reflecting the reality of the Babylonian kingdom's continued unification and power in the valley of the two rivers, as well as the centralized political system and the religious concept of divine kingship.

As the Babylonians became conquerors and rulers throughout the two rivers and nearby regions, their national and local gods expanded their sacred status and power accordingly.

Prior to this, the military democracy of the Heavenly Kingdom gradually evolved into an absolute monarchy controlled by the presiding god. The intervention of the gods in the world and the affairs of society was greatly strengthened. Religion requires that human beings religiously renounce all human initiative and absolutely believe in and rely on the arrangement and intervention of species.

Correspondingly, the emphasis on human guilt, praying for God's forgiveness of sins, and the atonement for God's sins are thus more expressed.

The whole evolution of the ancient Babylonian religion vividly and prominently reflects the historical process of religion as the superstructure of society, from the clan religion or tribal religion of the primitive era to the national religion or state religion of the slavery era.

The priest is the attendant of the temple and is responsible for presiding over rituals, festivals, prayers, divination, etc. They were one of the most special classes of the ancient Mesopotamian nation.

The Mesopotamians paid attention to the blessings and pleasures of the world, and built temples to worship the gods and maintain a good relationship with the gods, so as to bless the wind and rain and the peace of the country and the people. Therefore, temples are often the best buildings in a country after royal palaces. For the construction of temples, all ethnic groups are willing to spend a lot of money. The Tower of Babel described by Herodotus in his writings is the most representative temple. Since there were too many temples to count, the number of priests as the attendants of the temples was naturally staggering. Not only were they numerous, but they were also powerful.

In Mesopotamia, the royal power of the state was limited by three kinds: law, nobility, and priesthood. Among them, the priests were the most powerful. The king is the spokesman of God, and his power is granted by God, and God's representatives are priests. In the eyes of the common people, if the king did not receive the scepter from the priests, he could not be called justifiable. When priests authorize kings on behalf of God, there are usually solemn ceremonies. Under this theocracy, priests had great privileges.

Moreover, the priests were an important economic force in the state, and they controlled and managed the wealth of the temple. Because of the place of religion in the life of the nation, the temples of Mesopotamia amassed an incalculable amount of wealth. The king generally allocates a part of the land as temple property and designates areas for rent and taxation. If a foreign war is won, the place where prisoners of war and booty are delivered first is the temple. Coupled with the various offerings that the people vied to offer, the temple was not only full of food, vegetables, and fruits, but also had a large amount of gold and silver treasures. The priests, as stewards of wealth, rented land, ran banks, and engaged in commercial activities, increasing the value of the temple's property. Therefore, the priests gained wealth and power because of God, and became a privileged class in society.

Priests are mostly from prestigious families, their professions are hereditary, and their titles are passed down from generation to generation. They are also often among the few who have a monopoly on cultural knowledge in the state. In the schools run by the temple, the priest was both the director and the teacher, instilling religious ideas in the students, and thus a class with a monopoly of ideas.

There were also different levels of priesthood, with the high priests presiding over major rituals and the ordinary priests performing their duties according to their ranks. For example, Kalu and Nanu are responsible for leading the chant, Nisaku is responsible for presiding over the libre, Namke is responsible for cleaning, and Banu is responsible for the exorcism ceremony. In addition, there were priests who specialized in divination and interpretation of omens, who were responsible for asking the gods for good fortune, interpreting dreams, reading physiognomy, and astrological prediction.

The ancient Babylonians demarcated the position of the sun in the twelve months of the year, i.e., the signs of the zodiac, according to the locations represented by the constellations on the zodiac. Ancient Babylonian texts also record observations of meteors, comets, and other celestial variations.

The ancient Babylonians systematically recorded the date and direction of Venus's appearance. The Babylonian Astronomical Compendium "Plough Star", periodically dated to 1000 B.C., records 18 constellations:

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