What is the purpose of the sweeping ceremony?

The purpose is to make the king understand that even the king is still a servant of the gods, and the king's duty is only to manage the world, not God. The ritual process includes: first, the high priest took the king's scepter, sword and other things symbolizing the throne and put them all in front of the Marduk statue; Then, the high priest grabbed the king by the ear, forced him to worship God, and explained to God that he had done nothing wrong to the people of Babylon. Finally, the high priest returned the symbol of the throne to the king and slapped him twice. At this time, the king had to shed tears to show that Marduk had fallen in love with him. On the eighth day, the "son of Marduk" king, led by Marduk, set out from Marduk Temple in a luxurious carriage inlaid with jewels, along the holy road decorated with tents, left the city from Istar Gate and went to Akitu Temple on the Euphrates River. After staying here for three days, I returned to Sakkila, Marduk Temple in Babylon, and held a ceremony to predict the fate of the king and his country within one year.