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Article

cosmogonies and theogonies  

Carolina López-Ruiz

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
07 March 2016
Subjects:
  1. Greek Literature
  2. Greek Myth and Religion
Early Greek cosmogonies and theogonies are mainly preserved in the form of hexametric poetry, rarely in systematic accounts, such as Hesiod’s, but more often within texts of broader mythical scope, as in Homer’s Iliad and the Homeric Hymns. The differing assumptions about the origins of and relations among the gods in these poems demonstrate the wide variety of cosmogonic traditions available in the Greek world and the poetic freedom to express or emphasize aspects of them. This is also evident in other sources for Greek theogony/cosmogony, such as the longer of the Homeric Hymns, which focus on specific gods, sometimes including their birth stories and framing their familial relations with other gods and with humans. The strand known as “Orphic” cosmogony or theogony runs parallel to the mainstream epic tradition (not without intersections), and underscores the connection between cosmogonic ideas and spiritual and philosophical movements. These alternative cosmogonies also served as a narrative and theological framework for mystery cults, which revolved around the figures of Demeter, Persephone, and Dionysus (e.

Article

Hesiod  

Jenny Strauss Clay

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
30 July 2015
Subjects:
  1. Greek Literature
  2. Greek Myth and Religion

Hesiod, epic poet from Ascra in Boeotia, usually considered later than Homer, is author of the Theogony and the Works and Days (Erga); other works attributed to him in antiquity include the Catalogue of Women and the Shield of Heracles (Aspis). The Theogony recounts the origins of the cosmos and the genealogy of the gods from the beginning to the establishment of the Olympian order; it is prefaced by a lengthy proem that recounts Hesiod’s meeting with the Muses and a hymn to the goddesses. The genealogical catalogues are interrupted by narratives of the Succession Myth, with antecedents from the Near East. The Works and Days, which also has Near Eastern parallels, is addressed to Hesiod’s brother Perses and advises him how to live in the world Zeus has established for human beings by pursuing justice and practicing agriculture; it also includes advice on sailing, social behavior, and lucky and unlucky days. Famous and influential passages include Hesiod’s encounter with the Muses, the Prometheus-Pandora story, and the Myth of the Five Races.

Article

Babylonian Epic of Creation  

Adrian Cornelius Heinrich

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
21 August 2024
Subjects:
  1. Greek Myth and Religion
  2. Near East
  3. Philosophy
The Babylonian Epic of Creation is a mythological poem in the Babylonian language. According to its incipit, the Epic was known as Enūma eliš, “When on high,” in antiquity. It describes how the world came into being and how Marduk, the divine patron of Babylon, became the king of the gods after defeating the primaeval goddess Tiamat, the matriarch of the first gods and embodiment of the primordial sea. A substantial part of the Epic is dedicated to presenting Marduk’s fifty names in celebration of his divine supremacy.Most likely composed at the end of the 2nd millennium bce during Babylon’s revival under Nebuchadnezzar I, king of Babylon, 1125–1104 bce, the Babylonian Epic of Creation was the most important religious text in Mesopotamia for much of the 1st millennium bce. Besides the large number of preserved cuneiform manuscripts, the popularity of the Epic is attested to by its frequent references in letters and inscriptions, the ideological appropriation and rewriting of the text in its Assyrian recension, as well as the numerous scribal exercise tablets with extracts from the poem. The Enūma eliš was recited and partly reenacted during the Babylonian New Year festival and other cultic rituals in Babylon.