Epic Of Giglamesh Essay
World Literature
September 12, 2012
Epic of Giglamesh Analysis (1299)
The amazing thing about religion is through the thousands of years it has existed; we see hardly any change in its core values and traditions. In the the story the Epic of Giglamesh, we embark on a journey with a hardheaded ruler named Giglamesh. As we follow his voyage, we are introduced to the many traditions and beliefs of his society. There are numerous God’s with different purposes that guide Giglamesh’s path and leave the readers confident that every aspect of his life has direction. We as readers may not be used to some of these religious ideas, but if we read further we may be surprised. The Gods depicted in the Epic of Giglamesh share some of the same prominent …show more content…
and important traits and values as the Christian God and religion worshiped in today’s society.
The god’s in the Epic of Giglamesh and the Christian worshiped God both create companions for their people. In The Epic of Giglamesh, a companion needed to be made for Giglamesh, someone that could equal his own strength and maybe calm him down from being such a power driven ruler. When the Gods saw the problem Giglamesh had become, they begged his creator to give him a companion, an equal, which is where Enkidu came in to play.
“You made him, O Aruru, now create his equal; let it be as like him as his own reflection, his second self, stormy heart for stormy heart. Let them contend together and leave Uruk in quiet” (Bedford Anthology 49).
When one soul needs another, it is up to the Gods to create that other being. This is just like the worshiped Christian God today who created the companionship between Adam and Eve; one soul needing another soul. It is in the partnerships created by the God’s that fulfill purpose on earth. Enkidu and Giglamesh felt their purpose was to spread their might and power, and gain fame.
While trying to show their strength and power by defeating Humbaba, Giglamesh and Enkidu looked to their God’s for direction and protection just like the Christian society today looks to their God in hard times. On their way to defeat Humbaba the guys are looking for direction from Shamesh the god of the sun who gives wisdom.
“O glorious Shamash, I have followed the road you commanded but now if you send no succor, how shall I escape?’ Glorius Shamash heard his prayer and he summoned the great wind” (Bedford Anthology 59).
Not only does Shamesh hear the prayer, and the request for assistance, but Shamesh also takes the steps to fulfill the wish. People who worship the Christian God also ask for assistance through prayer and guidance in moments of fear. Whenever wishes and prayers get taken care of, they can call this a blessing. It is very similar how the people of Uruk worship their Gods in comparison to the way our society worships the Christian God. Gilgamesh also prays to the moon god, Sin, to grant him a vision.
“In these mountain passes long ago I saw lions, I was afraid and I lifted my eyes to the moon; I prayed and my prayers went up to the gods, so now, O moon god Sin, protect me” (Bedford Anthology 67).
This is another example of how Giglamesh is praying to the gods above for protection and guidance, just as Christians in today’s society pray to their God for answers. In hope for these answers and protection, Giglamesh and even Enkidu give offerings to persuade the God’s to watch over them. Throughout their journey to defeat Humbaba we hear of multiple offerings Giglamesh is laying before Shamash.
“How can I succeed if you will not succor me? If I die in that country I will die without rancor, but if I return I will make glorious offering of gifts and of praise to Shamash” (Bedford Anthology 54).
Even in today’s society Christians still give offerings to their God.
It can be in many forms, from money to service. Some people dedicate their whole lives to serving God in today’s society. It is interesting to see how highly the Gods in the Epic of Giglamesh are held, just like how highly the Christian God today is as well.
The main thing that goes along with faith in our society is knowing that we don’t have control, and only God does, this is just like the council of Gods in The Epic of Giglamesh. When Enkidu and Giglamesh complete their task of killing Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven, they have a higher power to answer to. “O my brother, such a dream I had last night. Anu, Enlil, Ea, and heavenly Shamash took counsel together, and Anu said to Enlil ‘Because they have killed the bull of Heaven, and because they have killed Humbaba who guarded the Cedar Mountain one of the two must die” (Bedford Anthology 62). The Gods meet up in council to decide what to do with Giglamesh and Enkidu. They have the last say, just like God in today’s Christian society always has the last say. Christians today believe that how they live on earth determines what happens when they die. It is always God who has the last say on what should and what will
happen.
The most obvious similarity between the Gods in the Epic of Giglamesh and the Christian God today is the order they both gave to destroy all humankind with a giant flood. The reasons for both these floods can be amounted to the downfall of human kind and a hope to restore life all over again. In order to do this, the god Ea in The Epic of Giglamesh saved Utnapishtim and told him to collect one of every specimen to board a boat when the rains started. The Christian God gave the same orders to Noah who saved two of every species by boarding them all on his ark when the rains started as well. Both these stories end in the same manner. The world flooded and all that was left were the two men and the species they accumulated on their boats. Utnapishtim knew it was time to get off the boat when the bird did not fly back that he had set free. The same thing happened when Noah set one of his birds loose and it did not come back, meaning it had found dry land to live on. The goals of these God’s to create a better society were the same, and the means of doing so through massive floods were the same as well. A theme to recognize is that these God’s gave both Utnapishtim and Noah mercy. They chose to salvage their lives regardless of anything, this is a common theme found in today’s Christian society.
All in all it is evident that The Epic of Giglamesh and the Christian religion today share very similar views about the nature of God and a higher power. Multiple times throughout the story we are shown the all-powerful ways of the ones above us. From creation to guidance, to discipline and mercy, the God’s in the Epic of Giglamesh are one in the same to the Christain God worshiped in today’s world. It is more fascinating to realize that The Epic of Giglamesh dates back to somewhere between 2750 BCE to 2500 BCE and still holds so many core values of religion that we still practice today. As stated earlier, the most convincing aspect of religion is how through thousands of years it hardly changes. This is a main reason I believe the Gods represented in The Epic of Giglamesh so closely relate to the Christian God worshiped today.
September 12, 2012
Epic of Giglamesh Analysis (1299)
The amazing thing about religion is through the thousands of years it has existed; we see hardly any change in its core values and traditions. In the the story the Epic of Giglamesh, we embark on a journey with a hardheaded ruler named Giglamesh. As we follow his voyage, we are introduced to the many traditions and beliefs of his society. There are numerous God’s with different purposes that guide Giglamesh’s path and leave the readers confident that every aspect of his life has direction. We as readers may not be used to some of these religious ideas, but if we read further we may be surprised. The Gods depicted in the Epic of Giglamesh share some of the same prominent …show more content…
and important traits and values as the Christian God and religion worshiped in today’s society.
The god’s in the Epic of Giglamesh and the Christian worshiped God both create companions for their people. In The Epic of Giglamesh, a companion needed to be made for Giglamesh, someone that could equal his own strength and maybe calm him down from being such a power driven ruler. When the Gods saw the problem Giglamesh had become, they begged his creator to give him a companion, an equal, which is where Enkidu came in to play.
“You made him, O Aruru, now create his equal; let it be as like him as his own reflection, his second self, stormy heart for stormy heart. Let them contend together and leave Uruk in quiet” (Bedford Anthology 49).
When one soul needs another, it is up to the Gods to create that other being. This is just like the worshiped Christian God today who created the companionship between Adam and Eve; one soul needing another soul. It is in the partnerships created by the God’s that fulfill purpose on earth. Enkidu and Giglamesh felt their purpose was to spread their might and power, and gain fame.
While trying to show their strength and power by defeating Humbaba, Giglamesh and Enkidu looked to their God’s for direction and protection just like the Christian society today looks to their God in hard times. On their way to defeat Humbaba the guys are looking for direction from Shamesh the god of the sun who gives wisdom.
“O glorious Shamash, I have followed the road you commanded but now if you send no succor, how shall I escape?’ Glorius Shamash heard his prayer and he summoned the great wind” (Bedford Anthology 59).
Not only does Shamesh hear the prayer, and the request for assistance, but Shamesh also takes the steps to fulfill the wish. People who worship the Christian God also ask for assistance through prayer and guidance in moments of fear. Whenever wishes and prayers get taken care of, they can call this a blessing. It is very similar how the people of Uruk worship their Gods in comparison to the way our society worships the Christian God. Gilgamesh also prays to the moon god, Sin, to grant him a vision.
“In these mountain passes long ago I saw lions, I was afraid and I lifted my eyes to the moon; I prayed and my prayers went up to the gods, so now, O moon god Sin, protect me” (Bedford Anthology 67).
This is another example of how Giglamesh is praying to the gods above for protection and guidance, just as Christians in today’s society pray to their God for answers. In hope for these answers and protection, Giglamesh and even Enkidu give offerings to persuade the God’s to watch over them. Throughout their journey to defeat Humbaba we hear of multiple offerings Giglamesh is laying before Shamash.
“How can I succeed if you will not succor me? If I die in that country I will die without rancor, but if I return I will make glorious offering of gifts and of praise to Shamash” (Bedford Anthology 54).
Even in today’s society Christians still give offerings to their God.
It can be in many forms, from money to service. Some people dedicate their whole lives to serving God in today’s society. It is interesting to see how highly the Gods in the Epic of Giglamesh are held, just like how highly the Christian God today is as well.
The main thing that goes along with faith in our society is knowing that we don’t have control, and only God does, this is just like the council of Gods in The Epic of Giglamesh. When Enkidu and Giglamesh complete their task of killing Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven, they have a higher power to answer to. “O my brother, such a dream I had last night. Anu, Enlil, Ea, and heavenly Shamash took counsel together, and Anu said to Enlil ‘Because they have killed the bull of Heaven, and because they have killed Humbaba who guarded the Cedar Mountain one of the two must die” (Bedford Anthology 62). The Gods meet up in council to decide what to do with Giglamesh and Enkidu. They have the last say, just like God in today’s Christian society always has the last say. Christians today believe that how they live on earth determines what happens when they die. It is always God who has the last say on what should and what will
happen.
The most obvious similarity between the Gods in the Epic of Giglamesh and the Christian God today is the order they both gave to destroy all humankind with a giant flood. The reasons for both these floods can be amounted to the downfall of human kind and a hope to restore life all over again. In order to do this, the god Ea in The Epic of Giglamesh saved Utnapishtim and told him to collect one of every specimen to board a boat when the rains started. The Christian God gave the same orders to Noah who saved two of every species by boarding them all on his ark when the rains started as well. Both these stories end in the same manner. The world flooded and all that was left were the two men and the species they accumulated on their boats. Utnapishtim knew it was time to get off the boat when the bird did not fly back that he had set free. The same thing happened when Noah set one of his birds loose and it did not come back, meaning it had found dry land to live on. The goals of these God’s to create a better society were the same, and the means of doing so through massive floods were the same as well. A theme to recognize is that these God’s gave both Utnapishtim and Noah mercy. They chose to salvage their lives regardless of anything, this is a common theme found in today’s Christian society.
All in all it is evident that The Epic of Giglamesh and the Christian religion today share very similar views about the nature of God and a higher power. Multiple times throughout the story we are shown the all-powerful ways of the ones above us. From creation to guidance, to discipline and mercy, the God’s in the Epic of Giglamesh are one in the same to the Christain God worshiped in today’s world. It is more fascinating to realize that The Epic of Giglamesh dates back to somewhere between 2750 BCE to 2500 BCE and still holds so many core values of religion that we still practice today. As stated earlier, the most convincing aspect of religion is how through thousands of years it hardly changes. This is a main reason I believe the Gods represented in The Epic of Giglamesh so closely relate to the Christian God worshiped today.