The Epic of Gilgamesh and Genesis have many similarities, or parallels, that connect the two great works. It is amazing how two stories were written at completely different times, yet have so many things in common. Drawing parallels can even help you understand the stories more. So, what do Gilgamesh and Genesis have in common? Using a bird to see if the flood is gone, making a sacrifice to God/ the gods, and the serpent in each story causes the main characters not to have immortality are only a few examples of connecting the stories together. In Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh the story of the flood. When Utnapishtim hits land when there is a flood, he needed to know when the flood was gone. During the end of his story, he says, “When …show more content…
the seventh day dawned I loosed a dove and let her go” (Gilgamesh 26). Utnapishtim uses a dove to see if the flood was gone. He also uses a raven and a swallow, which were all used to see if the flood was gone. If the birds did not return, it means the bird found a spot to land which means that the flood has vanished. This relates to Genesis; Noah also uses birds to see when the waters abated, both during the time of the floods that their God/ gods had sent. In both Gilgamesh and Genesis, Utnapishtim and Noah also both use a dove and a raven as their birds, although Utnapishtim also used a swallow and Noah did not. “And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro” (Genesis 49). “Also he sent forth a dove from him” (Genesis 49). Noah uses a dove and a raven as well to monitor the flood. This is a parallel between the two stories that we can compare. After the flood was gone, Utnapishtim and Noah immediately make a sacrifice to God/ the gods. They both want to show that they are thankful for being saved, and want to show their thankfulness. In Gilgamesh, at the end of the story of the flood, Utnapishtim makes his sacrifice. “I made a sacrifice and poured out a libation on the mountain top” (Gilgamesh 25). “When the gods smelled the sweet savor, they gathered around like flies over the sacrifice” (Gilgamesh 26). All the gods, even Enlil, became sorry for what they had done. Utnapishtim making a sacrifice to his gods connects to Genesis, where Noah makes a sacrifice to God. “Noah builded an altar unto the Lord” (Genesis 50). “And the Lord smelled a sweet savor” (Genesis 50). Noah as well makes a sacrifice to God and God is apologetic towards Noah. God says that he will not do anything like this again. Noah and Utnapishtim both knew that they had to thank God/ the gods before they went to their own needs, like to build a house, or to feed themselves to show their appreciation for saving them from the flood. In the story of Gilgamesh, his purpose for his quest was his desire to get immortality.
He was, in fact, on the verge of doing just that. As Gilgamesh was taking a bath in a well on his way home to Uruk, all his hard work to become immortal was wasted. “It rose out of the water and snatched it away”(Gilgamesh 27). The “it” refers to the serpent that was in the well who snatched the sweet flower, the flower that gives you immortality. If the serpent had not have snatched that flower, Gilgamesh would be immortal. In Genesis, the serpent makes Adam and Eve not be immortal as well, but in an opposite way as Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh loses nothing that he had before his quest, but Adam and Eve lose their immortality. Gilgamesh starts off without immortality, and has to eat the flower to become immortal. Adam and Eve are already immortal, and God tells them not to eat the fruit from one of the trees, but ate it, making Gilgamesh’s and Adam and Eve’s situations opposites. However, we can link these two situations by the serpent. In Genesis, Adam and Eve are told by God that they could eat from any tree except the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and that if you do, you will die. When the serpent hears that God had said this, he tries to trick Eve into eating from the tree. “‘Ye shall not surely die:’ ‘For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil’” (Genesis 42). The serpent says that God even knows that if you eat the fruit off of this tree, you will not die, you will be like God and know good from evil. So, Eve is tricked into eating the fruit and shares it with her husband. Since they do this, they will die, and lose their immortality because of the
serpent. A serpent ruining immortality for the characters, making sacrifices to the gods, and using birds to see if the flood had subsided are parallels that all contribute to connecting Gilgamesh and Genesis. Even though works of literature are written in different periods of times, does not mean that there is no connection to link them together. An important aspect of parallelism towards any two stories are knowing them, and similarities will come much easily. Searching for parallelism will also help you understand the story better and may help you pay more close attention to it. There are other similarities that can be found between Gilgamesh and Genesis to parallel the two great works together.
As human beings, we are designed to belive in something. Although the belief in a higher power or religion is diverse, many theologies share common themes. “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and the Hebrew book of “Genesis” are seemingly polar opposites. Christianity, demonstrated in Genesis, is monotheistic, and the Hebrews base their faith on their relationship with God. On the other hand, Sumerian philosophy, found in Gilgamesh, is polytheistic, and the Sumerian people base their theology on fear. Ancient polytheistic literature forms an archetypical pattern of the mortals trying desperately to please the gods. A mortal’s entire existence rests in the hands of the sometimes childish gods. In spite of this, these two stories
While Gilgamesh was a hero thought to be more beautiful, more courageous, more terrifying than all of the people of Uruk. Even though his desires, attributes, and accomplishments were just as there’s, he was still mortal.
The Epic of Gilgamesh has many similarities to The Legend of King Arthur. Although Gilgamesh and King Arthur have comparison they also have differences. The main difference is that one is an Epic and the other is a Legend. To compare and contrast The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Legend of King Arthor, one must first know what the words, "Epic" and "Legend" mean. Primarily, "epic" is a long narrative poem about the deeds of a semi-god, also known as a superhuman hero who's actions are depended on as the fate of a nation, tribe or a human race. This usually consists of an adventure filled plot and is concerned with timeless human problems such as honour, jealousy, war and hatred. These contain gods and goddesses and the setting is fixed in a far distant place at a time long past. Epics are based on legends and myths.
The whole reason Gilgamesh takes this journey to search for eternal life is due to the death of Enkidu, with whom he was close with. Before all of the events occurred, Gilgamesh had never thought about the topic of death. It’s as if it never crossed his mind; as though he would live forever. He went through phases along his journey. The first was not accepting reality, the second was fighting for eternal life, and the last was accepting reality. Now, his aspirations for immortality are no longer apparent as he enters the last stage.
is the idea of a divine being or, in other words, god. Early humans were
The relationship between the gods and humanity in The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey are the same. In each saga, the gods seem to live nearby and are always present. Both epic poems portray humans as simply at the mercy of the gods. The gods feel that it is their duty to intervene if they feel that man is traveling off course from his destiny. However, the gods are not all powerful.
A good number of people know the famous story of the Genesis flood, but do they know how it resembles to the Gilgamesh flood story? It is mind bending how the main stories are so alike. The main theme is the biggest similarity between the two. They also differ greatly in the smaller details in the events that take place. In both stories the number of days for events are different, but the same basic event takes place. Along with many other similarities and differences. The stories are very much the same, but when comparing the details within they are very different.
...reat flood. Gilgamesh was not worthy of being a full god. Instead, Utnapishtim granted Gilgamesh the opportunity of the life he wished for so deeply by challenging him to stay awake for six days and seven nights. Being the human being that he was, Gilgamesh was unable to stay awake for the duration of that time. Prior to Gilgamesh’s reluctant return to Uruk, Utnapishtim bestowed upon him the secret of the magical plant that grows in the depths of the seas that which makes man youthful again. After successfully retrieving the plant, Gilgamesh unfortunately loses possession of the motif to a snake whom according to mythology now acquires “eternal life” or “everlasting youth” due to the continuous shedding of the skin. So, once again, Gilgamesh had been cheated of his supernatural gift yet again, demonstrating his true identity of a mortal human being (Gresseth, 6).
Although many versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh exist, the poem holds the distinction by many as being the world’s oldest written story. Gilgamesh predated the Book of Genesis in the Bible by more than a thousand years. However, there are many similarities worth examining. The most prominent theme both works share is one of a great flood which destroys all of humanity. Although the reason for the flood in Gilgamesh is not explicitly stated, it is evident that the assembly of the great gods, at Enlil’s urging, brought the flood as judgement for the sins of mankind.
Would an infinite life be better than a finite life? Many people throughout history have pondered such thoughts and, The Epic of Gilgamesh, by an anonymous author from ancient Mesopotamia, is a story that focuses on this idea of eternal life. Gilgamesh who is a powerful king in the city of Uruk is two thirds god and one third man and therefore mortal. The idea of death does not fully penetrate him until his best friend, Enkidu, dies. Enkidu is much like Gilgamesh in being both part god and part human. Enkidu’s death is what sparks Gilgamesh’s motivation to set out on a journey to find eternal life. At first Gilgamesh fears death because Enkidu died; his feelings change after his quest when Gilgamesh accepts death, and he realizes mortals are not meant to live forever.
The Epic of Gilgamesh has many similarities to the Bible, especially in Genesis and it’s not just that the both begin with the letter “g”’! One major similarity being the flood story that is told in both works. The two stories are very similar but also very different. Another being the use of serpents in both works and how they represent the same thing. A third similarity being the power of God or gods and the influence they have on the people of the stories. Within these similarities there are also differences that need to be pointed out as well.
The book of Genesis and The Epic of Gilgamesh have come a long way. They were both passed down from generation to generation through oral presentation and eventually made its way onto scripts. Today, these two iconic literary pieces have spread its way into the knowledge base of many nations. As a result, when discussing ancient texts like the Epic of Gilgamesh and the book of Genesis from the bible and the term ‘heroes’ is used, most readers can name some characters, like Gilgamesh, Enkidu, Abraham, and Jacob, but what many fail to discern is the differences amongst the heroes from the two different cultures.
... of these epics share quite many similarities. For example, the archetypes used, the types of settings, and the themes are a few of plenty of comparabilities found among The Odyssey and The Epic of Gilgamesh. However, the most important similarity is that both of these epics are timeless; they have been passed down through generations spanning thousands of years, and they will continue to be read for many years to come.
For one thing, Noah is the ninth generation of Adam and Eve's lineage and its assumed that Noah lived in the Mesopotamian Valley. Archaeological evidence proves that the floods in Mesopotamian occurred around 3500BC and again around 2600BC. Mesopotamian deluge or flood myths such the Eridu Genesis, the Epic of Atra-Hasis and the Epic of Gilgamesh all possess similarities to the biblical version of Noah and The Flood. More importantly, the Epic of Gilgamesh is the most well-known as well as the best detailed of the three Mesopotamian deluge myths along with many similarities to the Old Testament version of The Flood. The main character, Gilgamesh, appears as a mythic character in Mesopotamian literature, but in fact was a real person. Historians generally agree that Gilgamesh lived in the period of 2700 to 2600BC which coincides with the timeline of the floods that occurred in Kish and
Death is an inevitable and unavoidable reality of human life, which is Gilgamesh’s greatest lesson learned. Gilgamesh is bitter that only the gods can live forever and say a lot when Enkidu warns him against their battle with Humbaba. Gilgamesh and Enkidu tell each other on their way to the deadly confrontation in the Cedar Forest, and the only thing that they have is their fame. But when Enkidu is cursed with a shameful, painful death. Shamash, who is the son god, solaces Enkidu reminding him of his rich life has been, but although Enkidu eventually resigned himself to his fate, Gilgamesh is scared by his own. Mesopotamian theology gives a perspective on the afterlife, but it shows comfort, the dead take the time to die. If Gilgamesh's mission to the Cedar Forest though he dies, his second task is to get Utnapishtim a way to escape from it. Utnapishtim's account of the floods shows how ridiculous such a goal is, because death is an inseparable combination of fabric of creation. But life is also adorned, and although man dies, mankind continues to live. The lesson that Gilgamesh made from his search was not the last of death, it was about life.