Tiamat

See also: Tiamat (homonymy)

Tiamat is a divinity Mésopotamie nne. In the Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is an enormous dragon female which personifies salt water of the oceans where reign the chaos.

She is also and before all the mother of all that exists, also including the gods themselves. Her husband is Apsû, the personification of the fresh water abysses which lie under the ground. From their union, salt water of the sea and fresh water of the abysses are born the first two gods. They are Lachmu and Lachamu, parents of Ansar and Kisar, grandparent of An U and Ea.

In the account epic of " creation; Enûma Elish ", more or less writes 2000 years before J. - C., their descendants started to irritate Tiamat and Apsu which decided to kill their offspring. Ea, when he discovered their stratagem, undertook to kill Apsu during its sleep. Tiamat fell into an unverifiable rage when she learned how death from her husband and desired to avenge it. It created an army of monstrous creatures which were directed by her new Kingu husband, who is also his son.

Thereafter, Tiamat was demolished by the young god Marduk who had come in the world in the abysses from the sea from fresh water. Marduk split its body into two: of its chest and its head it created the skies, of its legs and lower extremities it created the ground. De Tiamat water come in clouds and its tears became the source of the Tigris and Euphratus (the Tigre and the Euphrate). Kingu also perishes him, and of its blood Marduk created the first men.

" The abîme" (in Hebrew " Tehom ") with the whole beginning of the Genesis is a term derived from Tiamat.

See too

Mythology mésopotamienne

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