Erra and Leviathan

On page 211, Bahrani says that the removal and destruction of Marduk's statue is the reason that war can reign so fully. In this way, I was reminded of the state of nature and the social contract made for Leviathan. Except in the case of the Erra epic, the roles are reversed. There was a state of civilization in the beginning, but by the end, chaos reigned. The fact that these themes continued for centuries afterward shows that war is an important, but scary part of society. When Erra rules over Babylon and subsequently destroys it reminds me of the state of nature where anarchy is the only governmental system and people live in a constant state of fear. However, in Hobbes, this fear is a fear of one another; while in the Erra epic, it is a fear of a higher power. Anu gives Erra "The Seven" which are personified parts of war that make up all of destruction.

The idea of human versus divine fear is an interesting subject. Hobbes, however, was an atheist, which could be why he saw the fear of no rule to stem from human rather than holy sources. Also, there is a distinction between no rule and rule by a vindictive god. These distinctions are partially due to the time difference. However, the similarities in themes are too close to dismiss. War, whether more modern or more ancient, is still a huge subject of concern.