In many cases, however, this guardian deity might be a heavenly body, as the moon or sun or stars, all of which were supposed to regulate the fate of mankind or some force of nature, as the rain or the storm; and even if this were not originally the case, the protecting deity might, in the course of time, become identified with one of the forces of nature; and, if for no other reason, simply because of the prominence which the worship of the force in question acquired in the place.

As a consequence, the mixture of local and nature cults is so complete that it is often impossible to distinguish the one from the other.

It is hard in many cases to determine whether the deity which is identified with a certain city was originally a mere local spirit watching over a certain restricted territory, or a personification of a natural force associated in some way with a certain section of Babylonia..