Babylon

“Noblemen, esteemed merchants and commanders of my armies!”

Ninus let his eyes wander over the assembly in the speaker’s arena, nodding into the direction of the addressees. The king of Babylon was of average height with a square face, broad forehead and coarse, auburn hair. He wore a robe of azure brocade fringed with golden thread, but the flowing gown did little to give elegance to his rigid stature underneath. He was a fighting man, his body a solid mass of hardened muscle with wide shoulders and a thick, ropey neck. As Commander in Chief he wore his horned helmet at all times.

“Ever since the great flood, that scattered our forefathers into all the directions of the universe, we have nurtured the dream of being one great nation and one great people once again. And here we are; right now; with our ancestors smiling upon us, as we declare the goal achieved and the promise realized. Erech, Accad, Rehoboth-Ir and Calneh are now under Babylon’s sovereignty, Calah and Resen have bowed to the power of our superior military strength, and Nineveh has become sister city to Babylon.

He closed his eyes for a moment, envisaging the Plains of Shinar and their endless expanse of flatlands. It was where his relentless will for conquest sprung, from the land itself, giving him definition of who he was; its shimmering horizon feeding him alluring notions of who he could be. As a man he was the embodiment of the sheer brute force that had created his empire, but as a god he would be so much more. He let the notion sink in, savoring it, before he opened his eyes again and continued.

“I called upon you to follow me into battle; then I called upon you again to crush the resistance within Babylon’s own walls. And today I am calling upon you once more, so that we can shape another realm; one that is still ours to claim. As you all know, Akitu, our New Year Festival, is upon us, and in accordance with our tradition we will thank and honor our gods for the renewal of life for the first nine days. But on the tenth day we will turn our eyes toward a god whom we have not yet worshipped, indeed whom we have yet to fully discover.”

Once again he paused, assuring himself that he had the gathering’s full attention. “It is only appropriate that we begin to pay tribute to this god, who has helped us to achieve our goal of uniting the city-states under the banner of Babylon. From the onset of our conquest this god has favored Babylon, lending his vision and might to our righteous cause.”

There was an air of surprise, and some of the men looked at each other in discomfort. But the king was not to be stopped.

“I have therefore decided to declare this god patron over Babylon, and he shall reside in the temple above the newly built ziggurat, which is nearly complete. He will be known as Bel, Lord over gods and men, and he shall reign supreme. He shall be worshipped on the tenth day of the Akitu Festival every year with processions, ceremonies and sacrifice. And on the night of the tenth day he shall engage the rites of renewal with a virgin bride chosen for him just for the one night, to purify the lands and bring forth another year of flowering and ripening.”

Ninus looked around his audience with a smile. He could read by their facial expressions that they understood he was embarking on the road to self deification, and that their astonishment was complete.

“My dear friends,” Ninus opened his arms in an inviting gesture. “Great things have already come to pass, and even greater things are about to happen. It calls for a celebration Babylon has not seen the like of before, and you are herewith invited to join me on the twelfth and last day of the Festival in my royal residence, for a great banquette, music and entertainment.”

There was some commotion behind the king as the people in his entourage opened up a passage to let his chief advisor approach.

“My king,” Daon stepped in front of the king, laying his hand on his chest. “I have received two important messages.”

“Speak,” the king responded.

“The foreman of the ziggurat builders has informed me that the construction of the top-temple cannot proceed until the external feature wall has been put in place.”

The king nodded. “And the other message?”

“The Great Master has stabilized the properties of the feature wall.”

There was an immediate change in the king’s behavior, and as though he had forgotten about his speech, he turned away from his audience.

“Balasu,” he addressed one of his attendants. “Where is the one we are looking for?”

“We haven’t located him as yet,” Balasu responded. “But my men are searching every part of the city as we speak.”

The king frowned with indignation. “Then pay a visit to the father. Tell him that I need to speak to him.”

“It shall be done.” Balasu, too, laid his hand on the chest before he turned and left.