The Journey of Gilgamesh

Gilgamesh’s journey started off with the death of his dearest friend, Enkidu. Seeing that a man with such power could come to an end, he realized that he would also follow the same faith. Gilgamesh had everything he ever wanted in Uruk and he was not ready to leave all this behind. His love for his life set him out on an adventure so he could cherish it for eternity. The part I find ironic about this journey of his is that he put his life at risk and the path he took, he could have killed himself and he did all this to make is life longer. So, he sets off into the wilderness, determined to find Utnapishtim, the Mesopotamian Noah. fter the flood, the gods had granted Utnapishtim eternal life, and Gilgamesh hopes that Utnapishtim can tell him how he might avoid the grasps of death too. Gilgamesh’s journey takes him to the twin-peaked mountain called Mashu, where the sun sets into one side of the mountain at night and rises out of the other side in the morning. Utnapishtim lives beyond the mountain, but the two scorpion monsters that guard its entrance refuse to allow Gilgamesh into the tunnel that passes through it. After a dreadful passage through total darkness, Gilgamesh emerges into a beautiful garden by the sea. There he meets Siduri, a tavern keeper, and tells her about his quest. She warns him that seeking immortality is pointless and that he should be satisfied with the pleasures of this world. However, when she can’t turn him away from his purpose, she directs him to Urshanabi, the ferryman. Urshanabi takes Gilgamesh on the boat journey through the Waters of Death to Utnapishtim. After reaching Utnapishtam, he had told Gilgamesh about the miraculous plant that could restore youth as he would not granted immortal life by the gods. Gilgamesh finds the plant and takes it with him, planning to share it with the elders of Uruk. But a snake steals the plant one night while they are camping. As the serpent slithers away, it sheds its skin and becomes young again.