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Religions of Antiquities
Stories describing the creation of the world are prominent in many cultures around the world. These creation stories describe how gods and deities created the world using supernatural powers that they possessed. The creation narrative, however, cannot be explained with a single myth or story with different societies in the world having their description of how creation took place. Creation accounts all over the world tell how man came to be and his purpose on earth. Two of the earliest accounts of creation are the Egyptian and Mesopotamian accounts of the origin of the planet. This paper will compare the two accounts of creation.
To begin with, Enuma Elis is one of the most famous epics that describe the creation and can be traced back to old Babylon. The legend plays an essential lesson in understanding how early Babylonians viewed the world. This creation epic also describes how the world was created starting with the battle between gods and the creation of man and his primary purpose of serving the Mesopotamian gods. Moreover, the epic also contains a long passage praising Marduk. Although it is not clear what the religious activity the passage was for, the Enuma Elis portrays Marduk as the most powerful among Mesopotamian deities.
Additionally, Egypt is another ancient civilization that has many ancient texts and epics that have also attempted to explain the origin of the earth. The Egyptian creation myth can be traced back to the old kingdom which is believed to have existed between 2780-2250 BC. Creation epics have been found in different places such as tomb wall decorations, writings, pyramid texts, and tablets. The Egyptian creation myths also form the earliest religious accounts in the world and describe the work of the many Gods found in the Egyptian culture. Many theories are explaining how the world was created in different regions in Egypt due to the hundreds of gods that were worshipped in different parts of Egypt. Therefore, the world was created differently depending on the area.
However, despite the variance in creation accounts in Egypt, various themes can be seen in most of the creation myths. To start with, life is thought to have emerged from a boundless, lifeless sea as when the sun was rising for the first time in an early age known as zep tepi. Many accounts have credited different gods for creating the world, but the most people attributed it to eight primordial gods known as Ogdoad, transcendent god Amun, thoughtful goddess Ptah and the god Atum and his children. Despite a large number of gods and creation accounts, the different cosmogonies were complimentary of each other in various theories of the Egyptian understanding of creation (Foutz).
Jewish Religion
Moreover, modern-day Middle East is reflective of the rich religious history that is associated with the religion. The best case studies showing the effects of religious differences in the middle east is the earth cam in the western wall. From the camera, it is possible to see the people taking part in religious prayers. Men and women are seen dressed in modest clothes which is one of the requirements when visiting the wall. Additionally, the people are seen facing the wall each in their own space which is common when praying in the western wall also known as the Wailing Wall. The wall is the most religious Jewish site and attracts millions of believers from all over the world. The term western wall is used for the narrow section of the wall of Jerusalem where Jewish people come to pray. It is also commonly known as the Wailing Wall because of the how Jewish mourned the destruction of the temples while facing the wall. During the reign of the Roman Catholic Church, Jews were entirely prohibited from entering Jerusalem which is primarily why they chose the wall as it was the nearest to the holy temple.
Work Cited
Foutz, Scott David. Theology Website: E-text Index: Egyptian Myth: The Creation Epic, www.theologywebsite.com/etext/egypt/creation.shtml.