of Tari and Bella Pennu are
conceived of ethically. The weapons (comets, winds, mountains) employed
by the two deities indicate that the basis of the representation is a
nature myth. Advanced eschatological thought appears in the opinion,
held by some natives, that the good god was victorious in the
contest.[1781]

+973+. In the great ancient religions, with the exception of
Zoroastrianism, no dualistic scheme appears. An Egyptian god may be
angry, as, for example, Ra, who in a fit of resentment causes men to be
slain but soon repents; and Set, the enemy of Osiris, a nature god,
seemed at one time to be on the way to become an embodiment of evil, but
the Egyptian cult rejected this idea and Set gradually
disappeared.[1782] The Babylonian cosmogonic myth, in which Tiamat is
the enemy of the gods of order, has no cultic significance; the great
mass of demonic beings was not organized into a kingdom of evil, and the
Underworld deities, nature gods, while subject to ordinary human
passions, are not hostile to the gods of heaven and earth. The Hebrews
adopted the Babylonian cosmogonic myth,[1783] but it became a mere
literary attachment to the conception of the supreme god Yahweh, and was
otherwise ineffective.

+974+. The same thing is true of certain cosmogonic myths of the Greeks,
such as the war of the Titans against Zeus and similar episodes. Ate and
the Erinyes are embodiments of man's own evil nature or represent the
punishment that overtakes guilt, but they do not represent a formal
opposition to goodness nor are they organized into a definite
body.[1784] The Roman Furies are practically identical in function with
the Erinyes. In the old Teutonic religion the only figure who approaches
essential badness is Loki; but he, though at times malignant and
treacherous (as a human chieftain might be), remains a recognized member
of the assembly of gods. As a nature god he may represent the elements
of darkness and unhappiness in life, just as the various evil spirits in
the world do, but he never approaches the position of an independent
creator of evil.[1785] The Celtic deities Llew and Dylan are said to
stand over against each other and to represent good and bad tendencies
and elements of life; but they are not very distinct and are probably
nothing more than somewhat developed local deities.[1786] In the Chinese
and Japanese cults there is no indication of a conflict; evil spirits
there are in abundance, but no cosmic a