TRANSLATIONS

next page previous page up home

The rectangular outline, in which a kind of well is located, could be depicted in the sky too, viz. as the Pegasus square:

"Utnapishtim is spry enough to tell [Gilgamesh] in great detail the story of the Deluge. He tells how Enki-Ea has warned him of Enlil's decision to wipe out mankind, and instructed him to build the Ark, without telling others of the impending danger.

'Thus shalt thou say to them: (I will ... go) down to the apsu and dwell with Ea, my (lor)d'.

He describes with great care the building and caulking of the ship, six decks, one iku (acre) the floor space, as much for each side, so that it was a perfect cube, exactly as Ea had ordered him to do. This measure '1-iku' is the name of the Pegasus-square, and the name of the temple of Marduk in Babylon, as is known from the New Year's Ritual at Babylon, where it is said: 'Iku-star, Esagil, image of heaven and earth'.

Shamash had let Utnapishtim know when to enter the ship and close the door. Then the cataracts of heaven open, 'Irragal (= Nergal) pulls out the masts; Ninurta comes along (and) causes the dikes to give way; The Annunaki raised (their) torches, lighting up the land with their brightness; The raging of Adad reached unto heaven (and) turned into darkness all that was light. ... (Even) the gods were terror-stricken at the deluge. They fled (and) ascended to the heaven of Anu; The gods cowered like dogs (and) crouched in distress (?).

Ishtar cried out like a woman in travail; the lovely-voiced lady of the g(ods) lamented ... 'How could I command (such) evil in the assembly of the gods! How could I command war to destroy my people, For it is I who bring forth (these) my people ..." (Hamlet's Mill)

Pisces has moved to spring equinox (north of the equator) since then, and with it the Pegasus-square. They belong together, as if to indicate a connection beteween the square and water.

Aquarius is the constellation which brings the deluge, of that I am sure. He comes next after Pisces to spring equinox, and that will be soon.

The Maya indians apparently have remembered the myth of the deluge, yet their 'well' (Ch'en) comes after midsummer, and then arrives the rainy season:

9 Ch'en 10 Yax 11 Sac 12 Ceh

Logic tells me that after sky has been 'created' by letting light in (as if it was Tane who pushed sky and earth apart), and after earth has emerged from the ocean, there should be a following stage where the movement continues one more step downwards (Sky → Earth → Underworld), before the cycle is renewed again (the underworld is the original water). This logic explains why the 'well' appears at the end of the pushing apart.

If Aquarius had stood at midsummer it would have been perfect.