The Babylonian Creation

The text of the Enuma Elish ('When on High' )was closely connected with the observance of the New Year’s Festival at Babylon, and it was recited at the end of the fourth day of this celebration. This Festival lasted from the first to the eleventh of the month Nisan. The Enuma elish was recited in its entirety by the high priest before the statue of Marduk. Later in the course of the festival, the Enuma elish was recited again, or perhaps chanted, on another but undetermined day. The text of the liturgy recounts the creation of the world, and tells us a great deal about the Babylonian conception of reality.