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The Akītu (New Year Festival)
Once a year the king was stripped, struck, and made to swear his innocence before the god who alone could renew his crown.
The akitu was the most important festival of the Mesopotamian year, celebrated above all at Babylon in the spring. Over several days the gods' statues processed, the creation epic Enuma Elish was recited to re-proclaim Marduk's victory and kingship, and the king underwent a striking rite in which the high priest stripped him of his insignia, struck his cheek, and made him declare before Marduk that he had not sinned against the city — before his rule was renewed for another year. The festival renewed cosmos, kingship, and community together, fixing the destinies of the year ahead.
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