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CHAPTER 2: Bygone Religions
Chapter Objectives
After reading this chapter, the student should be able to:
• List the major deities of Mesopotamia and discuss their impact on later religious cultures.
• Analyze the origins of Greek gods and explain the intermingling of various religious cultures
when conquering societies affect local belief systems.
Chapter Summary
Many major deities arose from the ancient Mesopotamian region. Ishtar was a near
universally worshipped female deity of the Sumero-Akkadian and her greatest rival was Marduk
of Babylon. The Babylonian myths and epics lend themselves to study through the varied but
rich cuneiform inscriptions left behind. Many of the myths have parallels with later religious
traditions (e.g. Hebrews). The role of sacrifice, magic, divination and astrology in Babylonian
worship are discussed in the context of the precise and accurate instruments they developed.
are explored. The failure of latter phases of the Roman period and the rise of the Imperial cult to
provide a cohesive social force are explored briefly.
Chapter Outline
I. Mesopotamia
A. The Sumero-Akkadian Pantheon
1. Ishtar, a Universal Goddess
2. Marduk of Babylon
B. The Babylonian Myths and Epics
1. The Creation
D. Divination and Astrology
II. Greece
A. The Gathering of the Gods in Early Hellas
B. The Mingled Pantheon
C. Interaction with the Gods
D. The Complex Functions of the Major Deities
1. Zeus
2. Hera
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III. Rome
A. The Religion of Early Rome
B. The Religion of the Home
C. The Religion of the State
1. Jupiter
IV. Europe Beyond the Alps
A. The Celts
1. The Druids
2. Nature Divinities and Fertility Rites
V. Mesoamerica: the Maya
A. The Shape of the World
B. The Shape and Feel of Time
C. Priests, Royalty, and Peasant
Discussions Questions
1. Cosmology is the study (or argument) of first cause. How is this question addressed or
recognized in the primal religions from Babylonian to Greek and Roman? What similarities
can be found? Do the differences reflect increasing sophistication or something else?