Shamash

Hello there! Up here! My name is Shamash, and every single morning, I get to drive the most amazing golden chariot across the big, blue sky. As I climb over the mountains in the east, the world below wakes up. The mighty Tigris and Euphrates rivers sparkle like shiny ribbons, and the tall ziggurat temples in the cities of Babylon and Ur glow in my first light. I am the sun god, and this is the story of my daily journey, a myth the people of ancient Mesopotamia told to understand the magic of the sun.

My job is more than just bringing warmth and light for the crops to grow. As I travel, I see everything that happens on the Earth. I see children sharing their food, builders carefully placing bricks, and kings making important promises to their people. Because I see everything, the people believed I was also the god of justice and truth. They knew that nothing could be hidden from the light of the sun. A very famous king named Hammurabi even said that I gave him his big list of rules, the Code of Hammurabi, to help everyone be fair and kind to one another. When people made a promise, they would often look up at me in the sky, knowing I was a witness to their words. They drew pictures of me on clay tablets and carved my symbol—a circle with four points and wavy lines—to remind them to always be truthful.

At the end of the day, my journey comes to an end as I guide my chariot down behind the western horizon. The sky turns orange and purple, and the moon, my friend Nanna, comes out to watch over the night. But this isn't a sad goodbye! It's a promise. The people of Mesopotamia knew that just as I set every evening, I would always, always rise again the next morning. My journey taught them about cycles, promises, and the power of light to chase away darkness. Today, thousands of years later, the story of Shamash still inspires people. It lives on in museums where you can see the art they made for me, and in the way we still feel hopeful and happy when the sun shines. So next time you feel the warm sun on your face, you can remember my golden chariot and the ancient story of light, truth, and the promise of a brand new day.