The ancient cosmogonies that shaped foundational myths, from the Babylonian Enuma Elish to Hesiod’s Theogony, mentioned in chapter 1, tell of a world in which the order is established by a great god, Marduk or Zeus, who takes power. Following a long period of battles and confusion, a deity triumphs and establishes an order that is at once cosmic, s

The Celtic Sun god Belenus, for instance, is one of the oldest and most widely known deities in Europe. An even older goddess, Innana spread through space and time across Mesopotamia and into Greek civilization, where she became Aphrodite.

The Greek poet Hesiod names the three sisters as Alecto — “unceasing in anger,” the punisher of moral crimes; Megaera — “jealous one,” the punisher of infidelity, oath-breaking, and theft; and Tisiphone — “avenger of murder.”