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Enuma Elish

Tablet IV
Mesopotamian trans. Leonard William King • c. 12th-7th century BCE
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They prepared for him a lordly chamber
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Before his fathers as prince he took his place
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"Thou art chiefest among the great gods
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"Thy fate is unequalled, thy word is Anu!
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"O Marduk, thou art chiefest among the great gods
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"Thy fate is unequalled, thy word is Anu!
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"Henceforth not without avail shall be thy command
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"In thy power shall it be to exalt and to abase
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"Established shall be the word of thy mouth, irresistible shall be thy command
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"None among the gods shall transgress thy boundary
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"Abundance, the desire of the shrines of the gods
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"Shall be established in thy sanctuary, even though they lack (offerings
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"O Marduk, thou art our avenger!
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"We give thee sovereignty over the whole world
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"Sit thou down in night, be exalted in thy command
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"Thy weapon shall never lose its power, it shall crush thy foe
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"O lord, spare the life of him that putteth his trust in thee
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"But as for the god who began the rebellion, pour out his life."
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Then set they in their midst a garment
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And unto Marduk their first-born they spake
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"May thy fate, O lord, be supreme among the gods
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"To destroy and to create; speak thou the word, and (thy command) shall be fulfilled
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"Command now and let the garment vanish
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"And speak the word again and let the garment reappear!"
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Then he spake with his mouth, and the garment vanished
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Again he commanded it, and the garment reappeared
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When the gods, his fathers, beheld (the fulfilment of) his word
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They rejoiced, and they did homage (unto him, saying), " Marduk is king! "
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They bestowed upon him the sceptre, and the throne, and the ring
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They give him an invincible weapon, which overwhelmeth the foe
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"Go, and cut off the life of Tiamat
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"And let the wind carry her blood into secret places."
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After the gods his fathers had decreed for the lord his fate
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They caused him to set out on a path of prosperity and success
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He made ready the bow, he chose his weapon
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He slung a spear upon him and fastened it
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He raised the club, in his right hand he grasped (it
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The bow and the quiver he hung at his side
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He set the lightning in front of him
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With burning flame he filled his body
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He made a net to enclose the inward parts of Tiamat
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The four winds he stationed so that nothing of her might escape
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The South wind and the North wind and the East wind and the West wind
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He brought near to the net, the gift of his father Anu
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He created the evil wind, and the tempest, and the hurricane
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And the fourfold wind, and the sevenfold wind, and the whirlwind, and the wind which had no equal
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He sent forth the winds which he had created, the seven of them
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T o disturb the inward parts of Tiamat, they followed after him
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Then the lord raised the thunderbolt, his mighty weapon
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He mounted the chariot, the storm unequalled for terror
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He harnessed and yoked unto it four horses
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Destructive, ferocious, overwhelming, and swift of pace
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were their teeth, they were flecked with foam
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They were skilled in , they had been trained to trample underfoot
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mighty in battle
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Left and [right
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His garment was , he was clothed with terror
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With overpowering brightness his head was crowned
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Then he set out, he took his way
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And towards the [rag]ing Tiamat he set his face
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On his lips he held
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he grasped in his hand
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Then they beheld him, the gods beheld him
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The gods his fathers beheld him, the gods beheld him
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And the lord drew nigh, he gazed upon the inward parts of Tiamat
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He perceived the muttering of Kingu, her spouse
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As (Marduk) gazed, (Kingu) was troubled in his gait
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His will was destroyed and his motions ceased
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And the gods, his helpers, who marched by his side
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Beheld their leader's , and their sight was troubled
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But Tiamat , she turned not her neck
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With lips that failed not she uttered rebellious words
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" thy coming as lord of the gods
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"From their places have they gathered, in thy place are they!"
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Then the lord [raised] the thunderbolt, his mighty weapon
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And against] Tiamat, who was raging, thus he sent (the word
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"[Thou] art become great, thou hast exalted thyself on high
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"And thy [heart hath prompted] thee to call to battle
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" their fathers
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" their thou hatest
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"[Thou hast exalted King]u to be [thy] spouse
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"[Thou hast . . . ] him, that, even as Anu, he should issue decrees
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" thou hast followed after evil
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"And [against] the .gods my fathers thou hast contrived thy wicked plan
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"Let then thy host be equipped, let thy weapons be girded on!
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"Stand! I and thou, let us join battle!"
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When Tiamat heard these words
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She was like one possessed, she lost her reason
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Tiamat uttered wild, piercing cries
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She trembled and shook to her very foundations
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She recited an incantation, she pronounced her spell
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And the gods of the battle cried out for their weapons
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Then advanced Tiamat and Marduk, the counsellor of the gods
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To the fight they came on, to the battle they drew nigh
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The lord spread out his net and caught her
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And the evil wind that was behind (him) he let loose in her face
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As Tiamat opened her mouth to its full extent
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He drove in the evil wind, while as yet she had not shut her lips
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The terrible winds filled her belly
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And her courage was taken from her, and her mouth she opened wide
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He seized the spear and burst her belly
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He severed her inward parts, he pierced (her) heart
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He overcame her and cut off her life
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He cast down her body and stood upon it
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When he had slain Tiamat, the leader
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Her might was broken, her host was scattered
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And the gods her helpers, who marched by her side
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Trembled, and were afraid, and turned back
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They took to flight to save their lives
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But they were surrounded, so that they could not escape
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He took them captive, he broke their weapons
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In the net they were caught and in the snare they sat down
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The ... of the world they filled with cries of grief
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They received punishment from him, they were held in bondage
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And on the eleven creatures which she had filled with the power of striking terror
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Upon the troop of devils, who marched at her
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He brought affliction, their strength [he
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Them and their opposition he trampled under his feet
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Moreover, Kingu, who had been exalted over them
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He conquered, and with the god Dug-ga he counted him
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He took from him the Tablets of Destiny that were not rightly his
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He sealed them with a seal and in his own breast he laid them
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Now after the hero Marduk had conquered and cast down his enemies
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And had made the arrogant foe even like
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And had fully established Anshar's triumph over the enemy
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And had attained the purpose of Nudimmud
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Over the captive gods he strengthened his durance
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And unto Tiamat, whom he had conquered, he returned
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And the lord stood upon Tiamat's hinder parts
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And with his merciless club he smashed her skull
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He cut through the channels of her blood
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And he made the North wind bear it away into secret places
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His fathers beheld, and they rejoiced and were glad
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Presents and gifts they brought unto him
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Then the lord rested, gazing upon her dead body
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While he divided the flesh of the ..., and devised a cunning plan
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He split her up like a flat fish into two halves
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One half of her he stablished as a covering for heaven
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He fixed a bolt, he stationed a watchman
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And bade them not to let her waters come forth
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He passed through the heavens, he surveyed the regions (thereof
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And over against the Deep he set the dwelling of Nudimmud
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And the lord measured the structure of the Deep
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And he founded E-shara, a mansion like unto it
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The mansion E-shara which he created as heaven
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He caused Anu, Bêl, and Ea in their districts to inhabit