The Creation Stories from Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt had three major creation stories that related to each other. They were born out of three different areas or cities including Memphis (Old Kingdom capital of Egypt), Heliopolis (the city of the sun god Re/Ra) and Hermopolis. This summary focuses on the initial creation of Atum-Re, the birth of the gods representing elements of the earth, and the installation of the first Pharaoh Osiris and his son Horus’s battle with Set(h).

In the beginning of the Heliopolitan creation story, there was only darkness and the waters of chaos. Then, a mound emerged from the water, similar to the receding Nile in Egypt after flooding season, on top of which was the first created god, Atum-Re. He then spat forth Shu (god of air and supporter of the sky) and vomited up Tefnut (goddess of moisture, dew and rain). From the union of Shu and Tefnut, Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky) were born. Geb and Nut then gave birth to Osiris, Isis, Nepthys, and Seth. A decision had to be made about who the pharaoh, or king, on Earth would be. Geb decided it would go to his oldest son, Osiris. Seth was unhappy because he wanted to be king, so he trapped Osiris, cut him into pieces, and threw him in the Nile river. Isis was greatly upset at the loss of her husband, so with the help of Anubis (god of the dead), they gathered the pieces of Osiris and resurrected him. 

The Family of Osiris

 Osiris on a lapis lazuli pillar in the middle, flanked by Horus on the left and Isis on the right 

(22nd dynasty, Louvre, Paris). 

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons. Public Domain

The son of Osiris and Isis was Horus, the falcon-headed god who would be the god over kingship and the pharaoh. Horus had the gods proclaim him as the next king, then attacked his uncle Seth. Although during the battle Seth tears out Horus’ eye, Horus eventually defeats Seth. (If you have seen the Disney movie The Lion King, you may recognize the similarities between the two stories). What is both particularly interesting and one of the main points in telling this story beyond the creation interests, is that Horus doesn’t put his eye back in, but rather gives it to his father Osiris—now in the underworld, the land of the dead—in order to help Osiris become alive again in the next world and become a spiritual person, or soul. 

Vision

This story is fascinating in a number of ways. One way is just the story itself and the battle between the forces of good and evil. More importantly for our purposes, it teaches the importance of vision for the leader, the pharaoh in Egypt, which was one of the longest lasting civilizations in the history of the world.

The importance of vision in the animal world can not be overestimated. In a 2018 study published in Trends in Ecology & Evolution, a team of researchers state that “humans have higher visual acuity than most members of the animal kingdom, who “see the world with much less detail than we do.”

This research highlights an important connection with the unique role played by Egyptian pharaohs. First, the pharaoh embodies Horus, and if you know anything about birds of prey (falcons, eagles, and so on), their remarkable vision gives them the uncommon ability to fly high above the earth’s landscape and see things in the grand picture of things. These birds of prey are also the only creatures that can see better than humans. For example, if average human vision is 20/20, birds of prey are 20/5. Thus, we get a term like “eagle eye.”

Second, the responsibilities of the pharaoh, king, or leader included the necessity of maintaining a vision not only of the present (in the bird of prey way), but also of the past. Horus, by giving his eye to the previous king, Osiris, had a deep understanding of the past. Thus, to move forward as a strong leader requires a vision of both the past and present, which then fosters a vision for the future. In a similar way, the artist, composer, playwright, author, CEO, and so on must likewise have a dual vision (knowledge) of what has come before and what is currently happening so they can provide their vision for the future. 

The Mesopotamian Creation Story

In comparison to the Egyptian creation story presented above, the Mesopotamian creation story may be considered even stranger on its surface. There was a husband and wife team to begin with: Absu (god of freshwater) and Tiamat (goddess of salt water). They had a bunch of kids who were known as the “younger gods.” These kids began acting immature, making a lot of noise, so Absu decided to kill them off. Tiamat, with her protective motherly instincts, learned what he was going to do and tells Ea, head of younger gods, about Absu’s plan. Ea then takes matters into his own hands and kills Absu. This brings out the more vengeful Tiamat, and she creates a demon army with Kingu as her main champion. Some of the younger gods try their might against this army but are ultimately unsuccessful. Finally, there is a new god born named Marduk. He is special because he has eyes around his head, as well as the ability to speak magical words. Marduk agrees to fight Tiamat and to become the hero of the younger gods if they promise to make him their future king if successful. In addition, he would be given the Tablets of Destiny. The younger gods conceded to Marduk’s demand since they were not having any luck of their own. 

Chaos Monster and Sun God. 

Photo Credit: Wikipedia Public Domain

After Marduk goes to battle with Tiamat, defeating her and her army, he is then made king and given the Tablets of Destiny. This restored order to the chaos being created by the forces of darkness and the dragon Tiamat. If you think about what makes a good leader or a good CEO or a good artist, what do they need? They have to have the ability to speak in magical ways and have a directed vision like Marduk. Could the same be said about Captain Moroni or Elon Musk or Michaelangelo? An example from our day from the Management Study Guide states, “True leaders have a vision, that is, they have a potential to view the present as it is and to invent a future culminating out of the present. A leader with a vision can foresee the future and can remain in the present” (ManagementStudyGuide.com).

Summary

I hope you find it interesting and quite amazing that over 4000 years ago, when these stories were developed and recorded, the Egyptians and Mesopotamians had figured out what was truly important for a leader. Horus and Marduk, the great heroes of the earliest creation stories, both had vision.