Marduk's Cosmic Victory: Babylonian Creation Myth Revealed on Tablet - Essay Sample

Introduction

"The cuneiform text at the top of the tablet and on its reverse reveals that this is more than just a map on the Earth's surface: It is a comprehensive diagram of the Babylonian cosmology with the inhabited world as its manifestation. The tantalizing fragments speak of the creation myth of the battle between the Babylonian gods Marduk and Ti'amat. In Babylonian mythology, Marduk's victory over what the tablet calls' ruined gods' led to the foundation of heaven and Earth, humanity and language all centered on Babylon created 'on top of the restless sea'..." p.1 It is interesting to establish how the maps of the world came into existence through human discoveries. Plans existed several decades ago, and because of religion among another type of wars, the tablets which carried the information on programs was almost ruined but later discovered by the archeologists. I am fascinated that in the old time's people had known more profound about humanity, heaven, and language, and I suppose this is the information that has been passed down from one generation to another.

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"One of the paradoxes of maps is that although map makers have been creating them for thousands of years, our study and understanding of them is still in its infancy. It was only in the nineteenth century in Europe that the academic discipline of geography came to existence coinciding with the professionalization of the mapmaker who was re-designated with the more scientific title of 'cartographer.'" p.11 The subject of understanding maps is complex, and it will take long before full comprehension among the scholars is established. It is fascinating how plans were created thousands of years back, yet its studies are still at the initial stages of the research. It means despite the period that maps have been in existence; full knowledge has not been obtained.

Chapter One

The Passage From the Text PG# Response

"The first thing one has to investigate is the Earth's shape, size, and position concerning its surroundings so that it will be possible to speak of its known part, how large it is and what it is like and under which parallels of the celestial sphere each of the localities are known. The geography that resulted was many things simultaneously: a topographical account of the latitude and longitude of more than 8,000 locations in Europe, Asia, and Africa; an explanation of the role of astronomy in geography; a detailed mathematical guide for making maps of the Earth and its region;" p.19 For one to learn about the Earth and the world around them, there is a need to first know the size, shape, and position of it. From the text, it is evident that there is a connection between math and geography, as explained by Ptolemy. In this regard, I can establish that mathematics is the core subject that is used to understand the geography of the world better.

"This unprecedented specter of a spherical, glittering, ideal world, viewed by the immortal soul in a moment of spiritual transcendence, would be adopted in a range of subsequent global geographical imaginings particularly, within the Christian tradition of salvation and spiritual ascendancy." p.28 Does it mean that there is a relationship between science and religion? From the passage, it is has been mentioned that Christianity bases its imaginations regarding the ideal world on geography. Because the author states that the immoral views the Earth as spherical and glittering then does it mean that geography and the spiritual world have a close correlation. Also, if Christians base the aspect of spiritual ascendency on geography, then what brings the variation between the two bodies; geography and religion (Christianity).

Chapter Two

The Passage From the Text PG# Response

"The story of Al-idrisi's relationship with Roger II and the creation of his maps is not one of the Muslim East encountering the Christian West on equal terms. Instead, it reveals a world where these geopolitical distinctions were only just beginning to develop, and where dynastic conflicts and religious divisions ensured that the labels' Muslim' and 'Christian' were fluid categories characterized by schism, conversion, and apostasy rather than unconditional doctrinal belief." p.56 Roger II was one leader who ensured that the Christians and Muslims lived harmoniously with one another. However, when he died, the peaceful coexistence among the religious groups was shaken because his followers could not entirely fit in his shoes of leadership. The aspect of Muslims being on the East and the Christians being on the West could be one way through which territorial boundaries in maps were demarcated.

"Suhrab's diagrams provide an insight into the possible shape and orientation of Al-ma' mun's Map, although the improved calculations on the size of the Earth undertaken subsequently by the Caliph's scholars indicate that further progress was being made in mapping the Earth. In response to the Caliph's reported wish 'to know the size of the earth surveyors were dispatched into the Syria desert to measure the sun's angle of elevation in relation to the cities of Palmyra and Raqqa.." p.61 The text gives a lead that religion will play a part in the geographical mapping of the world. The Muslim leaders had the passion of knowing more about the size and shape of the Erath an in this regard they involve surveyors to help them in mapping. It is important to note that Caliph had done it before and it was followed up by Suhrab.

The 5 C's of History

The 5C's of history entails the concept of change over time, contingency, causality, context, and complexity. The C's were established to give account a more in-depth understanding among the scholars of the discipline. They seek to answer the pertinent questions that researchers and historians ask. From the introduction of the passage, the C of change over time is evident where Rassam is following on the steps of the English Assyriologists while also making new changes in his discoveries regarding the tablet which belong to 2500 years ago (p.1). Although the tablet is an icon of world maps today, a lot of things have changed over time to create a more meaningful understanding of the message. For instance, information on the tablets was translated, and in contemporary society, maps are kept in soft and on some hard copy materials such as papers and not stone tablets. It is, therefore, an indication of change over time in history. The C of context is depicted by the explanation of the cuneiform text on the tablets where the author state that does show not only the Map of the Earth but also the account of the history of the Babylonians. It implies, therefore, that the maps have been developed in the context of the cosmology of a group of people. The C of causality is shown by the origin of human mapping history which states that although the Babylonians are recognized for their mapping system were not the originators of the geography of maps as they followed the Upper Paleolithic period which can be traced back to over 25,000 years ago(p.3). It gives the primacy of causes of establishment of maps in the human mapping history. Similarly, the C of contingency can be depicted by the way in which the history of mapping is traced back to several years ago ranging from the upper Paleolithic period to the eighteenth and nineteenth century and to today's ways of mapping which are advanced and still going through a period of discovery. The C of complexity have been depicted by the in which historians use years, nostalgia and diverse chronicles to obscure the clear understanding of the context for instance before the interpretation of the tablets it was not possible to understand what was written on them. Also, the use of memories such as the past years of a given king such as Roger II has also been used to make it more complicated.

5'C in Chapter One

In chapter one, the C of change over time is illustrated by the transformation and changes that took place from the classical periods down to the time of the Greek world. The text explains that there was a political shift in the geography of the ancient world. It also reveals that there was a transformation from a small Insular Greek to the time of prominent dynasties (p.17). The C of causality is shown by the changes that led to the development of great wealth and power within dynasties such as the Ptolemic dynasty. The establishment of technology, trade science, and culture was also as a result of the Ptolemic rise in power. In this regard, the cause of development and significant changes was caused by upgrades from different spheres. Additionally, the C of context is seen in the explanations of the creation of humanity. The meaning of understanding is used on arguments by a group of scholars who offered a scientific evidence to decipher the concept of nature (p.25). It is in the context of establishing the truth that the quality of humanity was determined.

The C of complexity is also shown by the aspect of trying to put together a piece of Greek geography where the authors have to depend on memorial reconstruction and reportage by writers known as the doxographers. It is tracing back of several other writings to establish another. Similarly, there is the use of chronicles and memories to build a phenomenon. There is also the mention of past elites such as Hippolytus, Plutarch, Diogenes, among others all this with different histories, making it the text complex.

In chapter two, the use of C of complexity is evident right from the first paragraph where the use of chronicles of years and nostalgia of the past events of Roger II are depicted. It begins by looking at the recent history of the king and his relationship with the different religions it intertwines history and activities as well as religious groups, which makes it hard to understand easily. Similarly, it also depicts the use of C of causality in regard to the conflicts between the Christians and the Muslims. It states that after the death of Roger II, the religious groups began to fight one another. The cause of their conflict is because a king who was good at bringing religious harmony among groups and hence avoiding conflicts had died. In this case, the purpose of religious wars among the Muslims and Christians was the dead the king Roger II (p.54).

The C of context is seen from the establishment of an accurate size of the Earth's surface, the context surrounding the establishment of the right size is the inaccuracies made by different geographers such as Ptolemy and Suhrab among others. Maps were compared, and details highlighted, and eventually, the correct size was obtained (p.62). The polishing up on the issue of mapping of the Earth took time with several changes resulting from new discoveries and eventually the arrival at a harmonized size of the Earth's surface. In this case, the difference over time C can is evident as studies were transformed gradually to arriving at the right figures.

Works Cited

Andrews, Thomas & Burke, Flannery. What Does It Mean To Think Historically?

Brotton, Jerry. A History of the World in 12 Maps. Penguin, 2013.Retrieved from https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/january-2007/what-does-it-mean-to-think-historically 2007