The Creation of the Universe. There exists no single Mesopotamian text solely devoted to the topic of creation. Rather, there are many, often conflicting, accounts embedded within larger works. None is similar to the account in Genesis in the Hebrew Bible, with its ordered creation culminating in the formation of mankind. Perhaps the mostdetailed Mesopotamian creation account is to be found in the so-called Babylonian Genesis, Enuma elish. The poem opens with the creation of the first gods, male and female, from the mixing of the waters of the primeval ocean, Tiamat, with the primeval fresh waters, Apsu, her consort. As a result of this union, a second generation of gods is born. Their clamor is disturbing to Tiamat and Apsu. When Apsu and his vizier Mummu attempt to destroy the young gods, one of them, Ea, magically defeats Apsu and Mummu. On Apsu's...