The Labbu Myth, “The Slaying of Labbu”, or possibly: the ''Kalbu'' Myth – depending on the reading of the first character in the antagonist's name (which is always written as KAL and may be read as: ''Lab'', ''Kal'', ''Rib'' or ''Tan''); is an ancient

Mesopotamian Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

creation epic with its origin no later than the Old Babylonian period. It is a folktale possibly of the Diyala region, since the later version seems to feature the god Tišpak as its protagonist and may be an allegory representing his replacement of the

chthonic The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...

serpent-god

Ninazu Ninazu ( sux, ) was a Mesopotamian god of the underworld of Sumerian origin. He was also associated with snakes and vegetation, and with time acquired the character of a warrior god. He was frequently associated with Ereshkigal, either as a ...

at the top of the

pantheon Pantheon may refer to: * Pantheon (religion), a set of gods belonging to a particular religion or tradition, and a temple or sacred building Arts and entertainment Comics *Pantheon (Marvel Comics), a fictional organization * ''Pantheon'' (Lone St ...

of the city of

Eshnunna Eshnunna (modern Tell Asmar in Diyala Governorate, Iraq) was an ancient Sumerian (and later Akkadian) city and city-state in central Mesopotamia 12.6 miles northwest of Tell Agrab and 15 miles northwest of Tell Ishchali. Although situated in the ...

. This part is played by

Nergal Nergal ( Sumerian: d''KIŠ.UNU'' or ; ; Aramaic: ܢܸܪܓܲܠ; la, Nirgal) was a Mesopotamian god worshiped through all periods of Mesopotamian history, from Early Dynastic to Neo-Babylonian times, with a few attestations under indicating hi ...

in the earlier version. It was possibly a precursor of the Enûma Eliš, where Labbu – meaning "Raging One" or "lion", was the prototype of

Tiamat In Mesopotamian religion, Tiamat ( akk, or , grc, Θαλάττη, Thaláttē) is a primordial goddess of the sea, mating with Abzû, the god of the groundwater, to produce younger gods. She is the symbol of the chaos of primordial crea ...

and of the Canaanite tale of

Baal Baal (), or Baal,; phn, , baʿl; hbo, , baʿal, ). ( ''baʿal'') was a title and honorific meaning "owner", "lord" in the Northwest Semitic languages spoken in the Levant during antiquity. From its use among people, it came to be applied t ...

fighting Yamm.

Synopsis

Extant in two very fragmentary copies; an Old Babylonian one and a later

Assyrian Assyrian may refer to: * Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia. * Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire. ** Early Assyrian Period ** Old Assyrian Period ** Middle Assyrian Empire ** Neo-Assyrian Empire * Assyri ...

from the

Library of Ashurbanipal The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal, named after Ashurbanipal, the last great king of the Assyrian Empire, is a collection of more than 30,000 clay tablets and fragments containing texts of all kinds from the 7th century BC, including texts in var ...

, which have no complete surviving lines – the Labbu Myth relates the tale of a possibly leonine but certainly serpentine monster: a fifty-league long

Bašmu Bašmu or Bashmu ( akk, 𒈲𒊮𒉣𒇬, bašmu; cuneiform: MUŠ.ŠÀ.TÙR or MUŠ.ŠÀ.TUR, "Venomous Snake") was an ancient Mesopotamian mythological creature, a horned snake with two forelegs and wings. It was also the Akkadian name ...

(^muš''ba-aš-ma'') or sixty-league long Mušḫuššu (MUŠ-ḪUŠ), depending on the version and reconstruction of the text. The opening of the Old Babylonian version recalls that of

The Epic of Gilgamesh The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins w ...

The cities sigh, the people...
The people decreased in number,...
For their lamentation there was none to...

The vast dimensions of Labbu are described. The sea (''tāmtu'') has given birth to the dragon (line 6). The fragmentary line: "He raises his tail..." identifies him according to Neil Forsyth as a precursor of a later adversary; the dragon of

Revelation In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities. Background Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...

12:4, whose tail swept a third of the stars of heaven, and cast them down to earth. In the later version, Labbu is created by the god

Enlil Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Ba ...

who "drew picture ofthe dragon in the sky" to wipe out humanity whose raucous noise has been disturbing his sleep, a recurring motif in Babylonian creation epics. Whether this refers to the

Milky Way The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye. ...

(Heidel 1963) or a comet (Forsyth 1989) is not clear. The gods are terrified by the apparition of this monstrous creature and appeal to the moon god Sin or the goddess Aruru who addresses Tišpak/Nergal to counter the threat and "exercise kingship", presumably over Eshnunna, as a reward. Tišpak/Nergal raises objections to tangling with the serpent but – after a gap in the narrative, a god whose name is not preserved provides guidance on military strategy. A storm erupts and the victor, who may or may not be Tišpak or Nergal, in accordance with the advice given, fires an arrow to slay the beast. The fragments of the epic are not part of a

cosmogony Cosmogony is any model concerning the origin of the cosmos or the universe. Overview Scientific theories In astronomy, cosmogony refers to the study of the origin of particular astrophysical objects or systems, and is most commonly used ...

as noted by Forsyth; since the cities of men are already in existence when the narrative takes place. Frans Wiggerman interpreted the myth's function as a way of justifying Tishpak's ascension to status of king, "as a consequence of his 'liberation' of the nation, sanctioned by the decision of a divine council."

Principal publications

* plates 34-35 of tablet Rm 282 (line art) * plate 6 of tablet VAT 9443 (line art) * (translation) * (translation) * (translation) * (translation) * (transliteration and translation) * (translation)

References

{{Reflist Akkadian literature Mesopotamian legendary creatures Mythological aquatic creatures Dragons