"Motivation of Babylonian Gods"

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Motivations of Babylonian Gods All around the world, people worship many different gods and have many different beliefs. In some cultures, people of one religion worship more than one god, but do they hold some in higher regards than others? Are certain gods better than other gods? In both Enuma Elish and The Epic of Gilgamesh, the gods are powerful and successful in their own ways, but Marduk is the better of the two because he cares for his “family” and fellow gods and helps them out. Gilgamesh’s only does what he does because he is selfish and wants the fame and glory for his achievements, suggesting that better gods are selfless. In ancient Babylon, Marduk is not only the king of all gods because he is the strongest and most powerful, but because he is also admired and looked up to by his fellow gods. Marduk fought Tiamat to save them from her wrath when and he killed her, but his actions also led to the creation of “mankind from his [Quingu’s] blood./ Imposed the toil of the gods on man and released the gods from it” (P. 53, 33-34). He makes it so that all of the gods’ work will be done for them by man, and because of this, Marduk is made king of all gods and is respected and worshiped by everyone. He is selfless and cares for his people, which pays off for him and earns him rule over everything and everyone, but also establishes him as the “main” god for an entire civilization. On the other hand, Gilgamesh is only a king who already abuses his power and is not well-received by his people. His accomplishments, such as seeking out to kill Humbaba, are motivated by his desire to become eternally famous. “Should I fall, I will have established my fame” (P.83, 90). This shows that his desire for fame is so strong that he would put his own life and the life of his best friend on the line to achieve it. It is even shown later that he is also afraid of his death;

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