Chaoskampf

The **Chaoskampf** is a recurring motive across mythologies in which a god of war, storms, or heavens battles an evil force, who is usually either a god of evil, chaos, or is a dragon, serpent, or monster of the seas.

## Overview

The motif of Chaoskampf (German for "struggle against chaos") is ubiquitous in myth and legend, depicting a battle of a culture hero deity with a chaos monster, often in the shape of a serpent or dragon. The same term has also been extended to parallel concepts in the Middle East and North Africa, such as the abstract conflict of ideas in the Egyptian duality of Maat and Isfet or the battle of Horus and Set.

The reason why a primordial sea monster can accurately be associated with a concept of "chaos" or "Chaoskampf" is due to various considerations: the first is that the sea monster is primordial or pre-creation and is the stuff upon which the cosmos are established; the second is that it is portrayed as monstrous in form, suggesting it is unlike other more benevolent anthropomorphic deities; the third is that it is associated with the watery deep and sea, which are inherently chaotic and dangerous; and lastly is it is located at the periphery of the cosmos from the perspective of humans and thus occupies a pole opposite from the ordered center.

## Description

The origins of the Chaoskampf myth most likely lie in the Proto-Indo-European religion whose descendants almost all feature some variation of the story of a storm god fighting a sea serpent representing the clash between the forces of order and chaos. Early work by German academics in comparative mythology popularized translating the mythological sea serpent as a "dragon." Indo-European examples of this mythic trope include Thor vs. Jörmungandr (Norse), Tarhunt vs. Illuyanka (Hittite), Indra vs. Vritra (Vedic), Θraētaona vs. Aži Dahāka (Avestan), and Zeus vs. Typhon (Greek), among others.

In Mesopotamia Ninurta, the god of war and agriculture, was known to battle and kill the Anzû, a rebellious throne guardian of Enlil who tried to corrupt the world order with the Tablets of Destiny. Other monsters that Ninurta vanquished were Asag the mountain demon as well as the serpents Bašmu and Mušmaḫḫū.

The Chaoskampf would eventually be inherited by descendants of these ancient religions, perhaps most notably by Christianity. Examples include the story of Saint George and the Dragon as well as depictions of Christ and/or Saint Michael vs. the Devil (as seen in the Book of Revelation among other places and probably related to the God (or specifically Yahweh) vs. Leviathan and later Gabriel vs. Rahab stories of Jewish mythology).

## Instances of Chaoskampf

* God/Yahweh vs the Leviathan
* Jesus vs Satan
* Woman of the Apocalypse vs Great Red Dragon
* Michael vs Lucifer
* Michael vs Herensuge
* Gabriel vs Rahab
* Hadad vs Lotan/Yam
* Tarḫunz vs Illuyanka
* Teshub vs Ullikummi/Illuyanka
* Marduk vs Tiamat
* Ninurta vs Anzû, Asag, Bašmu, and Mušmaḫḫū
* Ra vs Apep
* Zeus vs Typhon
* Apollo vs Python
* Heracles vs Lernaean Hydra
* Dian Cecht vs Meichi
* Thor vs Jormungandr
* Perun vs Veles
* Perkunas vs Velnias
* Vahagn vs Vishap
* Indra vs Vritra
* Yu the Great vs Xiangliu
* Susanoo vs Yamata no Orochi
* Nanabozho vs the Great Serpent
* Glooscap vs the Horned Serpent
* Tezcatlipoca vs Cipactli
* Anu vs Tathamet

## Image Sources

* (Destruction of Leviathan.png) The Destruction of Leviathan by Gustave Doré