Atra-Hasis Totally Explained

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The 18th century BCE Akkadian Atra-Hasis epic, named after its human hero, contains both a creation myth and a flood account, and is one of three surviving Babylonian flood stories. The oldest known copy of the epic of Atrahasis can be dated by colophon (scribal identification) to the reign of Hammurabi's great-grandson, Ammi-Saduqa (1646–1626 BCE), but various Old Babylonian fragments exist; it continued to be copied into the first millennium. The Atrahasis story also exists in a later fragmentary Assyrian version, the first one having been rediscovered in the library of Ashurbanipal, but because of the fragmentary condition of the tablets and ambiguous words, translations had been uncertain.
W. G. Lambert and A. R. Millard, Cuneiform Texts from Babylonian Tablets in the British Museum, London (1965) published many additional texts belonging to the epic, including an Old Babylonian copy (written around 1650 BCE) which is our most complete surviving recension of the tale. These new texts greatly increased knowledge of the epic and they served as the foundation for the first English translation of the Atrahasis epic in something approaching entirety, by Lambert and Millard (Atrahasis: The Babylonian Story of the Flood, Oxford, 1969). A further fragment has been recovered in Ugarit.
The surviving Atrahasis epic is written on three tablets in Akkadian, the language of ancient Babylon.

Synopsis

Tablet I contains a creation myth about the Sumerian gods Anu, Enlil and Enki, gods of sky, wind and water, "when gods were in the ways of men" according to its incipit. Following the casting of lots, heaven is ruled by Anu, earth by Enlil, and the freshwater sea by Enki. Enlil assigned junior gods to do farm labor and maintain the rivers and canals, but after forty years they rebelled and refused to do hard labor. Instead of punishing the rebels, Enki, who is also the kind, wise counselor to the gods, suggested that humans be created to do the work. The mother goddess Mami is assigned the task of creating humans by shaping clay figurines mixed with the flesh and blood of a slain god. The under-god Weila or Aw-ilu, was slain for this purpose. After ten months, a specially made womb breaks open and humans are born. Tablet I continues with legends about overpopulation and plagues. Atrahasis is mentioned at the end of Tablet I.
Tablet II begins with more overpopulation of humans and the god Enlil sending first famine and drought at formulaic intervals of 1200 years to reduce the population. In this epic Enlil is depicted as a nasty capricious god while Enki is depicted as a kind helpful god, perhaps because priests of Enki were writing and copying the story. Tablet II is mostly damaged, but ends with Enlil's decision to destroy mankind with a flood and Enki bound by an oath to keep the plan secret. Tablet III of the Atrahasis Epic contains the flood story. This is the part that was adapted in the Epic of Gilgamesh, tablet XI. Tablet III of Atrahasis tells how the god Enki warns the hero Atrahasis ("Extremely Wise") of Shuruppak, speaking through a reed wall (suggestive of an oracle) to dismantle his house (perhaps to provide a construction site) and build a boat to escape the flood planned by the god Enlil to destroy mankind. The boat is to have a roof "like Apsu" (a fresh water marsh next to the temple of Enki), upper and lower decks, and to be sealed with bitumen. Atrahasis boards the boat with his family and animals and seals the door. The storm and flood begin. Even the gods are afraid. After seven days the flood ends and Atrahasis offers sacrifices to the gods. Enlil is furious with Enki for violating his oath. But Enki denies breaking his oath and argues: "I made sure life was preserved." Enki and Enlil agree on other means for controlling the human population.

Literary inheritance

The Epic of Atrahasis provides additional information on the flood and flood hero that's omitted in Gilgamesh XI and other versions of the Ancient Near East flood story. According to Atrahasis III ii.40-47 the flood hero was at a banquet when the storm and flood began: "He invited his people...to a banquet... He sent his family on board. They ate and they drank. But he (Atrahasis) was in and out. He couldn't sit, couldn't crouch, for his heart was broken and he was vomiting gall."
   Atrahasis tablet III iv.6-9 clearly identify the flood as a local river flood: "Like dragonflies they [deadbodies] have filled the river. Like a raft they've moved in to the edge [ofthe boat]. Like a raft they've moved in to the riverbank."
   The flood story in the Epic of Gilgamesh, Chapter XI was paraphrased or copied verbatim from the Epic of Atrahasis. But editorial changes were made, some of which had long-term consequences. The sentence quoted above from Atrahasis III iv, lines 6-7: "Like dragonflies they've filled the river." was changed in Gilgamesh XI line 123 to: "Like the spawn of fishes, they fill the sea." We can see the myth-maker's hand at work here, changing a local river flood into an ocean deluge.
   Other editorial changes were made to the Atrahasis text in Gilgamesh that removed any suggestion that the "gods" may have been people with human feelings and needs. For example, Atrahasis OB III, 30-31 "The Anunnaki (the senior gods) [weresitt]ing in thirst and hunger." was changed in Gilgamesh XI, 113 to "The gods feared the deluge." Sentences in Atrahasis III iv were omitted in Gilgamesh, for example "She was surfeited with grief and thirsted for beer" and "From hunger they were suffering cramp."
   The Akkadian determinative dingir, which is usually translated as "god" or "goddess" can also mean "priest" or "priestess" although there are other Akkadian words (for example ēnu and ēntu) that are also translated priest and priestess. The English noun "divine" would preserve the ambiguity in dingir.

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