Creation History

Category: General

Posted by: Kenneth

Euhemerus was the Greek scholar who said that the gods were merely deified ancestors.  I believe he was correct.  In this two or three part series, I will present the case that Euhemerus was correct.

Part I - The Simple Proof of Noah to Nimrod

My motive in looking at ancient accounts is to see if other cultures corroborate the Bible or shed more light on passages in the Bible. When it comes to my principles of Euhemerism, the first and most basic one is to identify actions that were unique to certain characters in the Bible that might identify them if spotted in ancient myths.

There are two such anchors that enable me to make the identifications with confidence: Noah's nakedness exposed, and Nimrod as the founder of Nineveh.

1. Ham's exposure of Noah's nakedness.

From the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 70a:18-19:

Rav and Shmuel (disagreed). One said he [Ham] castrated him [Noah] and the other said he raped him. The one who claims that he castrated him explains in this way; that Ham thus prevented Noah from having a fourth son, which is why Ham’s fourth son, Canaan, is cursed. The other claims he raped him by a comparison of expressions. Here it is written, “And Ham, the father of Canaan saw the nakedness of his father” and there (Genesis 34:2) “And Shechem, son of Hamor the Hivite, chief of the country, saw her (Dina) and took her and lay with her by force.” [Translation by Rabbi Steven Greenberg]

While the Babylonian Talmud dates to late Antiquity, it is fairly clear from the context that these are rabbis deducing more than their own textual tradition records.  But, Rav’s theory is supported by the accounts of the Hittites, Greeks, and Phoenicians.

In Hebrew "Noah" is written with only two letters. NU.  This root is found in the name of the chief god of nearly all the pantheons. (OurANOs, JaNUs, NEreus, ANUs, ANU, VishNU) 

​From the Hittites: (ANET 120-125  Hittite myth, “Kingship in Heaven”, P. 120)

First Alalus was king in heaven, rules 9 years. Then, Anus vanquishes Alalus and rules 9 years in heaven, Kumarbis is his right hand man.

“In the ninth year Anus gave battle to Kumarbis and like Alalus, Kumarbis gave battle fo Anus. When he could no longer withstand Kumarbis’ eyes, he Anus, struggled forth from the hands of Kumarbis. He fled, he Anus: like a bird he moved in the sky. After him rushed Kumarbis, seized him Anus, by his feet, and dragged him down from the sky.  He (Kumarbis) bit his knees and his manhood went down into his inside. When it lodged there, and when Kumarbis had swallowed Anus’ manhood, he rejoiced and laughed. Anus turned back to him, to Kumarbis he began to speak: “Though rejoicest over thine inside, because though has swallowed my manhood.  Rejoice not over thine inside! In thine inside I have planted a heavy burden.  Firstly, I have impregnated thee with the noble Storm-god. Secondly, I have impregnated thee with the river Aranzahas, not to be endured. Thirdly, I have impregnated thee with the noble Tasmisus.  Three dreadful gods have I planted in thy belly as seed. Thou shalt go and end by striking the rocks of thine own mountain with thy head!”

When Anus had finished speaking, he went up to heaven and hid himself. Out of his mouth spat Kumarbis the wise king. Out of his mouth he spat [ …] mixed with [...] That which Kumarbis spat out fell on Mount Kanzuras; [...] an awesome god therein.

The story goes on to tell how the Storm god and two other gods come out and overthrow Kumarbis. [Comment: the story of Cush, Sidon, and Heth]

The Hittite myth names Anu as "Anus" and specifies that the son "bit him in the knees".  While it sounds silly, the myth includes the same elements of the Bible story of Noah's nakedness.  Kumarbis humiliates his father (by damaging his gonads), and his father curses him to be overthrown by his three sons.  Kum-arbis is identifiable by his actions as Ham, and his name Khum is also recognizable.

From Sanchoniatho the Phoenician (Cory's Ancient Fragments):

"In the thirty-second year of his power and reign, Ilus, who is Kronus, having laid an ambuscade for his father Ouranos in a certain place in the middle of the earth, and having gotten him into his hands, cuts off his private parts near fountains and rivers.  There Ouranos was consecrated, and his spirit was separated, and the blood of his private parts dropped into the fountains and the waters of the rivers; and the place is shown even to this day."

From the Greek poet, Hesiod's, Theogeny:

Gaia says, “My children with a reckless father, if only you agree to obey me. We would avenge the evil outrage of this father of yours, for he first devised unseemly deeds.” Thus she spoke, and binding fear grabbed them all, and none of them spoke. Then great Kronos of crooked counsel, embolden, quickly addressed his dear mother with words: “Mother, I promise that I will bring to completion this deed, since I do not care for that ill-named father of ours. For he first devised unseemly deeds.” Thus he spoke, and monstrous Gaia laughed loudly in her heart. She hid him in an ambush and placed in his hands a serrated sickle, and apprised him of her whole cunning. Great Ouranos came, bringing the night, and spread out around Gaia, desiring philotês, and was extended. His son reached out from ambush with his left hand, and in his right he held the sickle, long and serrated and the genitals of his father he quickly reaped and threw them behind his back to be carried away. But they did not flee from his hand fruitlessly. As many drops of blood spurted forth, all of them Gaia received. In the revolving years, she bore the powerful Erinyes, and great Giants, gleaming in their armor, holding long spears in their hands, and the nymphs whom they call the Ash Tree Nymphs across endless Gaia. As soon as Kronos lopped off the genitals with the sickle, they fell from the mainland into the much-surging sea, so that the sea carried them for a long time. Around them a white foam from the immortal skin began to arise. In it, a maiden was nurtured. First, she drew near holy Kythera, and from there she arrived at Kypros surrounded by water. From within, a majestic and beautiful goddess stepped, and all around grass grew beneath her slender feet. Aphrodite 195 [foam-born goddess and fair-wreathed Kythereia]

Comments: The mother goddess, Gaia is angry that Ouranos locked up monstrous beings under the Earth, which signifies that Noah was blamed for the people killed by the Flood and buried under the earth.  She encourages Kronos to avenge the dead by castrating Ouranos.  Here it seems to me that the Greeks have interposed Naamah as Gaia, making her the wife of Noah instead of the wife of Ham.  But perhaps Noah’s wife was also angry at the Flood.  It seems more likely to me that it was Naamah who put Kronos up to this, especially as the stated desire is to avenge the dead. Remember Lamech’s song about being avenged.  The Jews and Muslims make Naamah Noah's wife rather than Ham's wife.  Perhaps that is correct.  Maybe she successively married Noah, Cush, and Nimrod, rather than Ham, Cush, and Nimrod.

Conclusions for identification #1.  Noah is called Ouranos, Anus, Anu, and also Janus.  Ham is called Kronos, Kum-arbis, and Ilus.  Ilus could be a reference to El or Enlil.  This differs from my later identification of him as Enki.  But once we recognize Anu as the deified Noah, made into the god of heaven, then as the son of Anu/Noah (heaven) and Ki (earth), EnKi is entirely reasonable as the Sumerian name for the deified Ham.

2. Nimrod Built Nineveh

The ancient chroniclers considered Ninus to be the same person as Nimrod. Appollodorus, a pagan who wrote his chronicles in 115 B.C., asserts that "Ninus is Nimrod." Berossus likewise used the names Ninus and Nimrod interchangeably.

Strabo (Strabo, Geography xvi.i.2.) relates that:

“When the historians of the Syrian empire say that the Medes were overthrown by the Persians, and the Syrians by the Medes, they mean no other Syrians than those who built the royal palaces at Babylon and Nineveh; and Ninus, who built Nineveh in Assyria, was one of these Syrians. His wife, who succeeded her husband, and founded Babylon, was Semiramis.”

While Strabo is a late source, this tells us that Ninus must be Nimrod, the builder of Nineveh according to the Bible.

From Castor:

"Belus was the king of the Assyrians. During his reign, the Cyclopes brought lightning and thunder to assist Zeus during his battle against the Titans. At the same time, the kings of the Titans were in their prime - including king Ogygus." And shortly afterwards he says: "The giants attacked the gods, [p55] and were killed, after Heracles and Dionysus, who were descended from the Titans, came to the aid of the gods. Belus, whom we mentioned before, came to the end of his life, and was regarded as a god. After him, Ninus ruled the Assyrians for 52 years. His wife was Semiramis. After Ninus, Semiramis ruled the Assyrians for 42 years. Then Zames, who was also called Ninyas, [was king]."

Ogygus in the passage above is the leader of the Titans.  Kuk and Gyg mean "old man" in the Anatolian languages, as in the later King Gyges of Lydia who was defeated by Mursilis/Tugdamme.  Ogyges the old man who was the leader of the Titans is fairly obviously Noah.  Belus is the predecessor of Nimrod, therefore we would guess he is probably Nimrod's father, Cush.  Other sources state this explicitly.

From Cephalion: 

"In ancient times, the Assyrians ruled over Asia, and Ninus the son of Belus was their king. In his reign, many great events occurred."

​If Ninus is Nimrod, then since the Bible tells us that Cush begot Nimrod, then Belus, the father of Ninus must have been Cush.

Belus comes from Bel, Baal, and means Lord.  This title also was applied by some to Ham.

From Eupolemus, Concerning Belus:

"For the Babylonians say that the first was Belus, who is the same as Kronus. And from him descended Belus and Canaan; and this Canaan was the father of the Phoenicians… Another of his sons was Khum, who is called by the Greeks Asbolus, the father of the Ethiopians, and the brother of Mestriam, the father of the Egyptians. The Greeks say, moreover, that Atlas was the discoverer of astrology."

We have to be careful with Belus as we can see this title is sometimes applied to Ham and sometimes to Cush, and sometimes, also to Nimrod.  And much later it was also applied to Sesostris III (Egyptian Belus) and Shalmaneser I (Assyrian Belus).

From Thallus:

"Thallus makes mention of Belus, the King of the Assyrians, and Kronus the Titan, and says that Belus with the Titans made war against Zeus, and his compeers, who are called gods. He says moreover, that Gygus was smitten, and fled to Tartessus."

​Here Gygus, or Ogyges, is mentioned again.  Here it says that Gygus was smitten and fled to Tartessus in the very far West. This tells us that the "Clash of the Titans" resulted in the flight of Noah to the West.  This would have occurred during the Babel period which lasted from the division of the earth in the days of Peleg to the Dispersion in 2191 BC, 57 years later.

The Peruvians record that Virachocha (Noah) sent out colonists to Peru and came with them 150 years after the Flood. This was seven years before the Dispersion.  Atlantis is in some accounts connected with Tartessos, though there was also a city by that name in Spain.

So now we have a established a chain of six post-flood rulers from Noah to Ninyas Zames:

Bible Name: Pagan Titles

Noah = Anu, Ouranos, Anus, Janus, Ogyges

Ham = Kronos, Kum-arbis, Belus I, Utu

Cush = Picus, Zeus, Belus II, Bel Marduk

Nimrod = Ninus

[?] = Semiramis.  Will get to her in part II.

[?] = Ninyas Zames

That concludes part I.   In Part II I will look at these characters in the Sumerian and Assyrian pantheons, as well as the identities of Semiramis and Ninyas Zames.