Flood Stories from Around the World
Chaldean:The god Chronos in a vision warned Xisuthrus, the tenth king of Babylon, of a flood coming on the fifteenth day of the month of Daesius.
6/21/2006: Remove two probably inauthentic myths (Samo-Kubo, 2nd Chaldean).
5/27/2001: From Frazer: new Greek, Arcadian, Samothrace, Gypsy, Hebrew, Hindu, Munda, Santal, Tsuwo, Bunun, Shan, Karen, Mandaya, Ami, Narrinyeri, Samoa, Nanumanga, Rakaanga; revised Chaldean, Zoroastrian, Bhil, Batak, Mangaia.
Miller reference and Chaldean, Tahiti myths from there; revised a Hindu myth.
"The Chaldean Account of the Deluge", in Dundes.
Traditions of Atlantis
George Smith, in the Chaldean account of the Creation (p.
78), deciphered from the Babylonian tablets, shows that there was an original race of men at the beginning of Chaldean history, a dark race, the Zalmat-qaqadi, who were called Ad-mi, or Ad-ami; they were the race "who had fallen," and were contradistinguished from "the Sarku, or light race." The "fall" probably refers to their destruction by a deluge, in consequence of their moral degradation and the indignation of the gods.
We thus find the sons of Ad at the base of all the most ancient races of men, to wit, the Hebrews, the Arabians, the Chaldeans, the Hindoos, the Persians, the Egyptians, the Ethiopians, the Mexicans, and the Central Americans; testimony that all these races traced their beginning back to a dimly remembered Ad-lantis.
Civilization an Inheritance
Such is the first and richest source of these master faculties from which historical events take their rise; and one sees that if it be powerful it is because this is no simple spring, but a kind of lake, a deep reservoir, wherein other springs have, for a multitude of centuries, discharged their several streams." In other words, the capacity of the Egyptian, Aryan, Chaldean, Chinese, Saxon, and Celt to maintain civilization is simply the result of civilized training during "myriads of centuries" in some original home of the race.
Some Consideration of the Deluge Legends
If we suppose the destruction of Atlantis to have been, in like manner, accompanied by a tremendous outpour of water from one or more of its volcanoes, thrown to a great height, and deluging the land, we can understand the description in the Chaldean legend of "the terrible water-spout," which even "the gods grew afraid of," and which "rose to the sky," and which seems to have been one of the chief causes, together with the earthquake, of the destruction of the country.
And in this view we are confirmed by the Aramæan legend of the Deluge, probably derived at an earlier age from the Chaldean tradition.
And when the work of destruction is finished, we are told "the fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped." This is a reminiscence by an inland people, living where such tremendous volcanic disturbances were nearly unknown, of "the terrible water-spout which "rose to the sky," of the Chaldean legend, and of "the enormous volumes of water issuing from the earth" of the Aramæan tradition.
This is doubtless "the archangel of the abyss" spoken of in the Chaldean tradition.
In the Hindoo legend we find the fish-god, who represents Poseidon, father of Atlantis, helping Manu over "the Mountain of the North." In the Chaldean legend Khasisatra's vessel is stopped by "the Mountain of Nizir" until the sea goes down.
We find in the Chaldean legend something of the same kind: Khasisatra says, "I looked at the sea attentively, observing, and the whole of humanity had returned to mud." In the "Popol Vuh" we are told that a "resinous thickness descended from heaven," even as in Dominica the rain was full of "thick gray mud," accompanied by an "overpowering smell of sulphur."
In the Chaldean legends the god Ea ordered Khasisatra to inscribe the divine learning, and the principles of all sciences, on tables of terra-cotta, and bury them, before the Deluge, "in the City of the Sun at Sippara."
Berosus, in his version of the Chaldean flood, says:
The Deluge Legends of America
"It is a very remarkable fact," says Alfred Maury, "that we find in America traditions of the Deluge coming infinitely nearer to that of the Bible and the Chaldean religion than among any people of the Old World.
extended; and therefore it is not strange to find, as Alfred Maury says, American traditions of the Deluge coming nearer to that of the Bible and the Chaldean record than those of any people of the Old World.
The tradition of the latter is still more strikingly in conformity with the story as we have it in Genesis, and in Chaldean sources.
In the Chaldean legend "the great goddess Ishtar wailed like a child," saying, "I am the mother who gave birth to men, and, like to the race of fishes, they are filling the sea."
And the Lord smelled a sweet savor; and the Lord said in his heart, 'I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake.'" In the Chaldean legend we are told that Khasisatra also offered a sacrifice, a burnt offering, "and the gods assembled like flies above the master of the sacrifice." But Bel came in a high state of indignation, just as the Aztec god did, and was about to finish the work of the Deluge, when the great god Ea took ''pity in his heart and interfered to save the remnant of mankind.
where they resemble on the one hand Plato's record, and on the other the Chaldean legend.
But still more striking analogies exist between the Chaldean legend and the story of the Deluge as told in the "Popul Vuh" (the Sacred Book) of the Central Americans:
Observe the similarities here to the Chaldean legend.
Here we have the image of the ark; here we have a white man coming with the news that "the waters had overflowed the land," and that all the people were destroyed except himself; here we have the sacrifice to appease the spirit that caused the Flood, just as we find the Flood terminating, in the Hebrew, Chaldean, and Central American legends, with a sacrifice.
The Deluge Legends of Other Nations
A collection of the Deluge legends of other nations will throw light upon the Biblical and Chaldean records of that great event.
India affords us art account of the Deluge which, by its poverty, strikingly contrasts with that of the Bible and the Chaldeans.
[paragraph continues]--Satyravata,' the man who loves justice and truth,' strikingly corresponding to the Chaldean Khasisatra.
It is too much to ask us to believe that Biblical history, Chaldean, Iranian, and Greek legends signify nothing, and that even religious pilgrimages and national festivities were based upon a myth.
9), we seem to catch traditional glimpses of a terrible catastrophe, which reminds us of the Chaldean legend:
The silence of all other myths of the Pharaonic religion on this head render it very likely that the above is merely a foreign tradition, recently introduced, and no doubt of Asiatic and Chaldean origin."
The Story of Atlantis
Of the 1st sub-race of our Aryan Race who inhabited India and colonial Egypt in prehistoric times we know practically nothing, and the same may be said of the Chaldean, Babylonian, and Assyrian nations who composed the 2nd sub-race—for the fragments of knowledge obtained from the recently deciphered[2] hieroglyphs or cuneiform inscriptions on Egyptian tombs or Babylonian tablets can scarcely be said to constitute history.
The Lost Civilization of Atlantis
Ignatius Donnelly argued that the flood myth in the Bible, along with similar legends in Chaldean records and other ancient texts, could be a cultural memory of the catastrophe that submerged Atlantis (5).
The origin of Nimrod
Nimrod's rule over Assyria reflects the long-standing cultural superiority of Babylonia over Assyria, pointing to a period before 2000 BC under the Akkadian or Ur III dynasties, or around 610 to 539 BC during the Neo-Babylonian Chaldean rule.
The Deluge of the Chaldeans
We have two versions of the Chaldean story--unequally developed, indeed, but exhibiting a remarkable agreement.
After speaking of the last nine antediluvian kings, the Chaldean priest continues thus.
These three copies were, by order of the King of Assyria, Asshurbanabal, made in the eighth century B.C., from a very ancient specimen in the sacerdotal library of the town of Uruk, founded by the monarchs of the first Chaldean empire.
Here, then, we have convincing testimony that the country referred to in the Chaldean legends was the land of Chronos, or Saturn--the ocean world, the dominion of Atlantis.
Hea or Ea, the god of the Nineveh tablets, was a fish-god: he was represented in the Chaldean monuments as half man and half fish; he was described as the god, not of the rivers and seas, but of "the abyss"--to wit, the ocean.
In those respects wherein the Chaldean legend, evidently the older form of the tradition, differs from the Biblical record, we see that in each instance we approach nearer to Atlantis.
In the Chaldean legend, on the contrary, the rain lasted but seven days; and we see that the writer had a glimpse of the fact that the destruction occurred in the midst of or near the sea.
The ark of the Chaldeans was a veritable ship; it had a prow, a helm, and a pilot, and men to manage it; and it navigated "the sea."
The Chaldean legend represents not a mere rain-storm, but a tremendous cataclysm.
In the original it appears that Izdhubar, when he started to find the deified Khasisatra, travelled first, for nine days' journey, to the sea; then secured the services of a boatman, and, entering a ship, sailed for fifteen days before finding the Chaldean Noah.
The vailx, powered by currents derived from the Night-Side of Nature
Chaldea: Mentioned as the homeland of Chaldeans (captured people brought to Suern).
"I did not send the Chaldeans unto Gwauxln as objects of lust, neither as a retributive punishment, that by exile from their native Chaldea they might atone to Suern for their fathers, sons, brothers, or husbands who worked harm to Suernis.
Now the Chaldean women needed to learn that conquest, bloodshed, and pillage is a sin.
The Chaldean nation needed a lesson also.
And thou shalt become few where thou art many, a derision before men, and a prey to the Chaldeans; thou shalt dwindle and shalt wait until the centuries—even ninety centuries, are fled into eternity.
August 2024 Update
Hea or Ea, the god of the Nineveh tablets, was a fish-god: he was represented in the Chaldean monuments as half man and half fish; he was described as the god, not of the rivers and seas, but of “the abyss”–to wit, the ocean.
Cyclical Time in Ancient Legends
Chaldean antediluvian history: 432,000 years.
The 10 Chaldean Epochs: 432,000 Years
The Babylonians and Chaldeans had a concept similar to the Hebrew Adam-Kadmon, or first man, and recorded ten epochs from their head mortal to the Flood.
This structured timeline provides a clear view of the Babylonian and Chaldean epochs leading up to the Flood, reflecting Randolph’s discussion of ancient chronologies in "Pre-Adamite Man."
Our history – A Shemitic Myth
That was the figure of the sun; precisely such as had before been found amidst the ruins of Nineveh and Memphis, Tanta and Heliopolis; and consequently it spoke, not merely of four thousand five hundred, or five thousand years ago, but it speaks of the early days of the Chaldean empire; of commerce and art; and hints, not merely at the Jebusite reign, but of Ninus and of Nimrod.
86 Chaldean Kings – 34,080 years
In "Pre-Adamite Man," Paschal Beverly Randolph discusses Chaldean chronology, providing a detailed account that challenges traditional historical timelines.
Randolph cites ancient records which list 86 Chaldean Kings reigning for a total of 34,080 years.
This is followed by various dynasties, including Median, Chaldean, Arabian, and Assyrian rulers, amounting to a total of 222 kings over 36,000 years .
He discusses the staggering figures provided by Chaldean records, suggesting that these extended timelines imply an ancient and advanced civilization.
He suggests that ancient civilizations like the Chaldeans provide evidence of a much older human history.
Randolph references a list of Chaldean kings from ancient records, asserting that these kings ruled over an extensive period of time, indicating a long and complex history of civilization in Chaldea (Babylonia).
First Dynasty: Consists of 86 Chaldean kings who reigned for a total of 34,080 years.
Subsequent Dynasties: Include Medians, Chaldeans, Arabians, and Assyrians, adding up to a total of 222 kings over 36,000 years.
The following table provides a structured overview of the Chaldean dynasties as mentioned by Randolph:
Extended Timelines: The timelines provided challenge conventional historical narratives, suggesting that the Chaldean civilization existed much longer than traditionally accepted.
The beginning of the Cacas-u “Caucasoid Race”
And dates are given for this Salal “Race” which by his Ranan “Name” as both a Shakhas-u “People” and a Shaaab “Tribe” or Salal “Race” is found between the (Hebrew/Chaldean Strong’s Numbers #119-132).
The Pyramid, the cross and the Garden of Eden
It was the symbol of symbols, the mystical Tau, 'the bidden wisdom,' not only of the ancient Egyptians but also of the Chaldeans, Phœnicians, Mexicans, Peruvians, and of every other ancient people commemorated in history, in either hemisphere, and is formed very similarly to our letter T, with a roundlet, or oval, placed immediately above it.
This, to be brief, was the recognized conventional mode of expressing a particular primitive truth or mystery from the days of the Chaldeans to those of the Gnostics, or from one extremity of the civilized world to the other.
According, to Herodotus, they were introduced by the Hyksos; and Proclus, the Platonic philosopher, connects them with the science of astronomy--a science which, he adds, the Egyptians derived from the Chaldeans.
Ad-, Atl-, At-, Atlantis
Chaldean legends, as deciphered from Babylonian tablets, mention an original race of men called Ad-mi or Ad-ami, who were distinct from a "light race." This race's fall and subsequent deluge echo the destruction of Atlantis:
Conclusions of the Great Flood story
Chaldean Deluge
The Deluge Legends of America
Alfred Maury noted that American flood legends closely resemble those of the Bible and Chaldean records, suggesting a common origin from Atlantis rather than migration from Asia.
Popul Vuh: Describes a great flood caused by the god Hurakan, resulting in a resinous rain and darkness, akin to the Chaldean and biblical accounts.
The Chaldean legend's "terrible water-spout" and the Aramæan tradition's "enormous volumes of water" issuing from the earth reflect similar events.
The Chaldean and Hindoo legends also reference significant mountains, like the Mountain of Nizir and the Mountain of the North, respectively.
This aligns with the Chaldean legend where humanity returned to mud and the "Popol Vuh" describing a "resinous thickness." Historical volcanic eruptions have shown similar impacts, such as the eruption in Iceland in 1783, which covered the sea with pumice, and the Sumbawa eruption in 1815, which impeded ships with floating cinders.
Chaldean legends describe Khasisatra burying inscribed tables in the City of the Sun.
The Deluge Legends (I)
Chaldean and Syrian Traditions:
Chaldean Legend: Xisuthros (Khasisatra) is warned by the god Cronos (Ea) of a flood.
The Chaldean Deluge
The Chaldean Deluge story has two versions, both showing remarkable agreement.
Differences from Biblical Account: The Chaldean legend’s emphasis on a sea-based cataclysm and a navigable ship points to an origin by a maritime people, unlike the inland-focused Biblical flood story.
Cataclysmic Nature: The Chaldean flood involved multiple natural disasters, akin to Plato’s description of Atlantis’s destruction.
Little People
Chaldean
In Chaldean mythology, there are references to various earth spirits and beings, some of which were believed to dwell underground.
Egypt first discovered by a woman
23 The land of Egypt being first discovered by a woman, who was the daughter of Ham, and the daughter of Egyptus, which in the Chaldean signifies Egypt, which signifies that which is forbidden;
The statement also mentions that the name "Egyptus" in the Chaldean language signifies "Egypt." This seems to suggest a linguistic or etymological link between the name of the character Egyptus and the name of the country.
The Chaldean language, known as a Semitic language historically spoken in the Chaldean Dynasty of Babylon, does not have a direct connection to the naming of Egypt.
Note: Chaldea, historically, refers to a region in southern Babylonia, in modern-day Iraq, known for its rich history and as the center of the Chaldean Dynasty.