- Tablets of Destiny
In
Mesopotamia nmythology , the Tablet of Destinies (not, as frequently misquoted in general works, the 'Tablets of Destiny') was envisaged as a clay tablet inscribed withcuneiform writing, also impressed withcylinder seal s, which, as a permanent legal document, conferred upon the godEnlil his supreme authority as ruler of the universe.In the
Sumerian poem'Ninurta and the Turtle' it is the godEnki , rather than Enlil, who holds the tablet. [ [http://etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk] ] Both this poem and the AkkadianAnzû poem concern the theft of the tablet by the birdImdugud (Sumerian) orAnzû (Akkadian). [cf. [http://www.pantheon.org/articles/z/zu.html] ] [J. Black and A. Green, Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia: An Illustrated Dictionary, London: British Museum Press 1992, s.v. "Tablet of Destinies"] Supposedly, whoever possessed the tablet ruled the universe. [ [http://www.antiqillum.com/texts/2_BS/2_BS_Ver_5_Part_One.htm] ] In theBabylonian "Enuma Elish ",Tiamat bestows this tablet on Qingu (in some instances spelled "Kingu ") and gives him command of her army.Marduk , the chosen champion of the gods, then fights and destroysTiamat and her army. Marduk reclaims the Tablet of Destinies for himself, thereby legitimating his rule among the gods, but turns it over to Anu as a gift in Tablet V of the epic.The tablet can be compared with the concept of the Me, divine decrees.
References
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