Following the passing of Enkidu, his closest companion, he transforms into a man with a new purpose. Throughout his life, Gilgamesh has ruled his kingdom from afar, never connecting with his people. He has always been envious of the immortal gods because, though he is two-thirds god, he will never be immortal. Along his journey, he constantly grasps with chances to prove his equality to the gods, depicted perfectly in his defeat of Humbaba. With that in mind, it is clear Gilgamesh demonstrates his power as a king whenever he is given the opportunity. Though Gilgamesh may think that demonstrating his power prove his equality to the deities, it actually makes him more human in many ways. After Enkidu’s death, Gilgamesh begins to truly and deeply understand the capabilities of the gods he has strived his entire life to become. When he loses the plant of life, Gilgamesh realizes that he is not fit for immortal life and that he should move on because the dead will stay dead. Finally, because of this new found enlightenment, Gilgamesh is finally able to forgo his past desires and live freely without the weight of death, specifically Enkidu’s, on his shoulders. From Gilgamesh’s story of painful lessons turned positive, people can conclude and learn that at the end of every difficult journey, there will be development. However, in order to obtain the acceptance that although generations go by and people pass away, the cycle of life and the hand of time never stops, in essence, humanity never fades away. People going through hardships similar to that of Gilgamesh’s, need to learn the extremely difficult lesson, and undergo the journey, about life and more importantly, self-discovery. For Gilgamesh this means living in the moment, not in the past or the…