The Epic of Gilgamesh - Sumerian Mythology - See u In History Art: Marcus Aquino Color: Rod Fernandes #Mythology #SeeUinHistory #History #MythologyExplained
This is one of my favorite pieces of world literature. It is so very profound about how a person should live a good life. My favorite character was not mentioned here. She was Siduri, a mystical tavern owner and beer brewer (in Mesopotamia it was mostly women who brewed and sold beer). Gilgamesh stopped at her tavern during his quest for immortality after Enkidu's death. He told her of his grief and his wish for immortality. She told him "Gilgamesh, where are you hurrying to? You will never find that life for which you are looking. When the gods created man they allotted to him death, but life they retained in their own keeping. As for you, Gilgamesh, fill your belly with good things; day and night, night and day, dance and be merry, feast and rejoice. Let your clothes be fresh, bathe yourself in water, cherish the little child that holds your hand, and make your wife happy in your embrace; for this too is the lot of man."
I think Shiduri advice is even more tragic after discovering her backstory. Nothing is known about her origin in any version of the epic,or even other texts ftom Sumer and Babylonia. But a passage from the babylonian writer Berossos was preserved until Byzantine times.The monk George Syncellus retold a story of the deluge almost identical to Ziusudra and Gilgamesh's. With only one difference:it is revealed that not only Xiusuthrus/Utnapishitim and his wife were granted eternal life,but also his daughter and the Ark's steernsman who were with them when the gods appeared. Now If you read The Epic of Gilgamesh who we found living near Utnapishitim in the World's End?The boatman Usharnabi and the mysterious Shiduri. Shiduri is Utnapishitim's own daughter.She saw the world being destroyed by the gods' whim,granted eternal life but forced to live separated from the rest of humankind.
Although Gilgamesh is Sumerian in origin, it was the Assyrians who passed this story onto us. The Assyrian king Ashurbanipal was literate and loved these stories. He had them all preserved in his library, when the city of Nineveh was burned to the ground, these stories were found in it's library and that's how we know about them. I would say this story preseves Assyrian way of life, even though it predates them. Assyrians had a very martial society, they loved war, adventure and sports. The Sumerians by contrast didn't like venturing far from their cities.
agreed. I prefer the earlier version, where Inana is trying to check Gilgamesh's behavior, because the Inkidu thing didn't work. Very different character arc for her.
Gilgamesh went trough some real character development , I feel like that's something you hear rarely in greek myths where heroes are great or terrible and stay that way until death. A lot of it probably has to do with the concept of fatum but still it's nice to see mythology that is unique in that aspect.
Achilles changed a bit by The Illiad ending.He is the greek hero who closest follow the Gilgamesh motif (search for imortality by fame,went mad after friend/lover? death).
You serious? The most basic myth of Hercules includes betrayal, him killing his family in a god induced fit of rage, atonement, redemption, altruism ( bring Admetus wife from Hades) , jealousy, trickery, seduction, release of Prometheus..... It is the most vanilla myth in greek mythology. Medea is a Greek tragedy based on Jason and the Argonauts
Wow. I never knew this story was so profound and so current. I’ve noticed in real life that fighting can create a strong bond of respect between men, but I haven’t before heard this in a story before. This should be a household tale
Yet it is of the Lower Mind, aka (Ego Mind, aka Adolescent Mind) and we are in a time when we must choose to get "Conscious in Thought" and "Apply Higher Mind" aka Mature Mind. Evolve or avoid it, each have a choice, choose what resonates with self. No fear included, no fear based thoughts, Ideology, or Dogma involved. ... Harmony, Wellbeing, and Wisdom resides in the Higher Mind. The "Universal Law of Attraction" is Absolute. Like attracts Like Perspective is the frequency ° and everything is Attraction, Attraction, Attraction ⚖️
"fighting can create a strong bond of respect between men, " A very dubious proposition, to say the least. It might work that way in mesopotamian myths, or movies, but in real lift punching on does not normally lead to friendship. More like vindictive retribution.
In the original text a lot of their fight is missing. It actually indicates wrestling and doesn't mention punching at all. Something I gather from the original is that it seems there is the idea of a man's wild nature being tamed by the love of a woman. There are also other versions of the same story which are older. Sumerian instead of this version which is Babylonian. There are also other stories that feature Gilgamesh that were not incorporated in the Babylonian Epic. There is speculation that they are earlier legends that may reflect an actual historical king, but we can't be certain.
You completely missed the point. Enkidu was literally brought to life to put Gilgamesh back to his place, because Gilgamesh conducted hubris. Gilgamesh managed to corrupt Enkidu, offending the gods even more, resulting in Enkidu's death. The moral of the story is to be a good human being and not fight. To live your life with honor, values and purity. Kindness, and not war. To be happy with your life and savouring it, and not to be greedy.
this guy knows about the civilizations before the younger dryas event, and is aware that it is the event of the world flood, and that many things we're told were created by so and so or in this specific date, are in fact much much MUCH older Now regarding Gilgamesh, most likely a surviving offspring of one of the aliens and humans, one of the Annunaki that were created when humans intermingled with the alien species that created us, I am not certain, idk how long he lived, thousands of years? na I don't think, he's probably an offspring of Annunaki themselves, of survivors anyway, after the flood, who happened to become King when there were enough people on Earth again to start establishing civilizations again. I think it would be 6000 years not 12,000, I don't think the city is that old. I could be wrong.
you left out my favorite part about how Utnapishtim tells him to conquer death he must first conquer the little death known as sleep by staying awake for 7 days and nights. but after all his adventuring he was so exhausted he passed out almost immediately. then Utnapishtim had his wife bake a bread each morning and put it next to Gilgamesh as proof of his failure and when he woke up the first loaf was already as hard as a rock from age
@@Amanda-cd6dmif u return to each region ancient language you'll notice how much different it's with the current ones ofc like the english in middle ages or the egyptian somehow u feel u know this word and another time it's not but since people grew from the same tree but then went into different places their language changed as their connection with each other
nah that’s not true ur prolly saying that bc ur a mother clearly and u want it to be like that since ur in a mother position but it’s not true also how can she be fierce protecter of her son when he’s literally a giant and the most powerful man on the planet at that time before ishktar came along? he has to protect her no one rlly protected gilgamesh other than ishktar brotherhood is stronger parent in this case probably all cases
its was his mom who made him to be a spoil brat to begin with because she deemed that Gilgamesh is more god than man but gilgamesh refused to go to the gods side after he felt that gods killed his only friend for no reason and died as a man some says 130yrs old ps. his father, the king sage, said to lived for 1000 years
Old Epics always seem to inspire new storys, and I think that is pretty interesting. Beowulf was a huge inspiration for The Lord of the Rings. Though mostly in name and attitude there was a character in Fate Zero and Fate Stay Night named Gilgamesh, and the name Gilgamesh is also mentioned in Futurama.
@@Habitarse Yeah because Abrahamic cults like Judaism (The Father of Christianity & the Grandfather of Islam) have Pagan roots specifically the Canaanite Pantheon which burrowed a quite lot of its myths from the Sumerian Religion.
@@YoSora1313 Probably the FSF one, cause she is known to be pretty ruthless iirc. And the FGO Ishtar personality is mellowed out cause of the whole Pseudo-Servant thingy. FGO Ishtar personality got mixed with Rin's. In FSF, Ishtar is just herself but in the body of an Einzbern Homonculus (a high grade one). She bullies Gil and Enkidu so yeah. Probably FSF.
She's ruthless, but is still more of the protector of Uruk than Gilgamesh ever be. This video left out how Ishtar send the Bull to punish only Gilgamesh and prepare ration for the Urukian to survive the disaster. I mean she is a patron deity got disrespected by it's ruler. And yet, despite her "justified" anger, she still think of the people. While Gilgamesh being a complete tyrant and abandon his kingdom to seek immortality. She got no love for her toy that are the husbands tho.
No matter how many times I hear this story I always want to listen to it again. Must of seen this story on over 20 different channels of RU-vidrs…it just fascinates me for some reason. I feel like this story is a key for us somehow so I keep looking for different channels retelling the story. I understand the moral to the story but it seems like there’s a hidden message and when you realize it you will see clearer than ever before. Who knows but I’m gonna keep trying…great video!
The concepts in the story of Gilgamesh have been followed in so many religious texts. As humans, we generally don't want to die, and we wanna be the hero, yet stories like this show that even the greatest among us will die. You're searching for a greater meaning to this tale rather than simply enjoying life, and adding to the common good of humanity within whatever capacity you have, it's almost a bit of a parallel to Gilgamesh seeking immortality, no? Maybe it's all really simple, and our search for more is really just us not accepting how easy and simple our purpose really is?
and here we are thousands of years later still speaking of them. If that isn't as close to immortality as a person can get I don't know what else could be.
Joseph Cambell did not knew about Gilgamesh. But man,his idea of The hero's journey perfect fits Gilgamesh quest. Gilgamesh is the first and the ultimate hero archetype.
@@carlosaugustodinizgarcia3526 Too bad the Hero's Journey has largely been dismissed by modern academic literature. There are more hero story's that don't follow the Hero's Journey than do.
I will say this again and again. We need more Assyrian, Sumaric, Babylonian, and Mesopotamian mythology and traditions! 👏🏽 Being the first civilization there’s so much more rich culture than Ishtar, Gilgamesh, and the Hammurabi code- and that’s if people know any of those three. Edit: it’s wild how many people are offended and being defensive by me stating the simple truth with real evidence to back it up until historians discover or unearth artifacts that say otherwise 💀
Lol first Civilization? Indian Civilization is the first Civilization predates all the civilizations you mentioned in your post. If story of Gilgamesh captured your mind, then wonder What the different characters from the Indian epic Mahabharata will do to your mind, and unlike Gilgamesh, there was no myth.
@@seanmcbride1 yes I said what I said, and I said it correctly: the first civilization. That’s literally why it’s referred to as “the cradle of civilization” with artifacts dating back to 12,000 BCE. What is modern day Syria and Iraq today is considered the birthplace of civilization since this was the first area to have city states and any form of writing which then lead to complex and advanced social and cultural development- especially for that time frame on the world timeline. The four oldest original civilizations from what scientists and archeologists have found are Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus Valley, and China in that order. Yes India is also very ancient, but what is known so far from the evidence and artifacts we have, and until new items have been found, per current records Mesopotamia is 2000 years older than Indus Valley so yes Mesopotamia is the first civilization on the world time.
I'd argue the greater message is not to focus on unattainable goals but recognize and remember what you have - Gilgamesh literally had everything and all the power but never really embraced life or recognized what he had once his best friend died and he was confronted to the reality of mortality It isn't about (symbolically or literally) becoming immortal - it is about what you do in and during your mortal life.
he can be immortal if he choose to side with gods/Anunnaki they all deem him to be more god than man, aka why they tolerate his asshole behavior for a while but after they killed enkidu, he no longer trust them and then made his mind of trying to find immortality ps. his father was a devout follower of gods, who lived for a 1000 years
People know about the Iliad and the Odyssey, but the oldest Epic is the Epic of Gilgamesh, what a story and what an ending, I know this since high school 😃
Gilagmesh has one of the great character development by the end of story ... interestingly story has both western and eastern story telling elements ..a hero who underwent the transformation and finally realising the truth of death and finding satisfaction what you have is really fascinating
It was middle eastern mythology not western.western are Greeks.Middle Eastern mythologies were always best and better than boaring western and Greek mythologies.Secondly there is no western or Eastern tellings
Gilgamesh and Enkidu actually have multiple appearances in Final Fantasy! Gilgamesh being portrayed as a legendary swordsman and Enkidu as his ever loyal guardian dog!
Gilgamesh: Old friend, we are getting up there in sun cycles. We may not have many cycles left on this land. We should do something that will immortalize our lives and have the world remember us forever! Enkidu: Gilly, Bro! That sounds amazing. Should we like help millions with making sure that they never starve, receive great education, cure diseases, and record the cures for future civilizations? Gilgamesh: Naw, I was thinking of killing something that never bothered anything... Enkidu: Broooo... um, m'kay.
Yeah, this story was written by a primitive mind for sure. I don't understand how all the fanbois commenting here think this story has any moral value in the 21st century.
Reading Epic of Gilgamesh is much much much more rewarding and poetic than listening to this video. It is just mere script of what happened in the myth. I highly recommend Stephen's Michell book with beautiful intro and nice translation of this epic. Will definitely re-read it not once. It is so rich in tropes not seen in our classical and modern mythology and literature that it leaves you in awe.
@@MybeautifulandamazingPrincess well, in the earlier tablets he explicitly makes love, like a woman, with Inkidu. like a whole scene describing it. so yeah, that would be historically accurate.
Awesome story. I visited the kingdom of Bahrain’s national museum back in 2013 while working there and inside the museum is the story of Gilgamesh. It is regarded as one of the kingdom’s national treasures. It is said that Bahrain, known in ancient times as Dilmun, was the resting place of Utnapishtim, whom Gilgamesh sought out in the legendary story. Mind was blown. I learned a lot during my time there. The story of Gilgamesh is non-fiction and is no mere fairy tale, but actually happened
Gilgamesh was discovered in Iraq in the spring of 2002. His body was remarkably preserved and was described as very large. Weeks later the war broke out and the Baghdad museum was raided. Gilgamesh was stolen along with other artifacts.
The comment was clear. Read history. It's well known Gilgamesh left Mesopotamia to Bahrain, Dilmun at the time which was known as the Garden of Eden and Land of Eternity, in search of the flower of eternity. Read history and mind your language, it will spare you the embarrassment.
Utnapishtim was also mentioned in another tablet called the epic of Astra-Hasis. He was the one who had immortality & Gil sought him out as a result but ultimately failed in his quest. Astra-Hasis' name that he went by mostly was Ziusudra, whose father was Ubara-TuTu who had ruled a kingdom for 18,000 years before his kingdom fell. These kings were specifically bread to rule so they lived very long periods of time. In the last few years before the kingdom fell, Ziusudra atrempted to take care of what was left. However due to a catastrophic flood the kingdom was wiped out, Ziusudra was warned about a flood before it had taken place however, allowing him to create a solution to survive. Our civilization knows this man was Noah
Noah in hinduism is known as ma'nuh. There are so many stories of ma'nu that can be compared. Also there are striking similarities between gilgamesh and ravana of ramayana.
What do you mean with "our" civilization? Almost all mythologies has their own Great Flood myth and character. Greek does, so does the Chinese. Not just Noah and Ziusudra.
I cant think about Gilgamesh and not be reminded of the Next Gen episode "Darmok". When Picard tells Dathon the story of Gilgamesh and it helped bridge the gulf of communication between their two peoples.
Agree.He is an archetype as well ,look at his description in the Standard Babylonian version: "Ḫumbaba, his voice is the Deluge, his speech is fire, his breath is death." It is very similar to Smaug 😮
He was the protector of the Cedar forests, which Gilgamesh then clear cut and turned the mountains into a desert. so the definition of monster really depends on which side you are on - in a zero sum game 0 denying the interconnectedness of all things.
Just wanted to say, I love the image of him reading a stone tablet like it’s the morning news. I don’t know why, and it probably happened a lot irl, but it really drove home the point that this is someone with godlike abilities
There is a super fun animated music video about him In spanish made by a channel called pascu y rodri who did several of those for different mythological characters I think the spanish person thought you were referencing that
No, it's not. Sumers were white people, and they are depicted here as if they were some Sub-Saharan black African-Semite hybrid. Should have done some research before starting to work on it. There are sculptures archeologists found, you know. They don't look anything like the fantasy cartoon shown here.
This was a nice concise video to explain The epic of Gilgamesh which started it all and would like to see some other videos about how Sumerian mythology evolved into monotheist religions. The epic was writte around 4000 years ago 2100BC.
I hope they hire this artist full time and pay them properly because it makes the videos so much better. I’ll already know about the topic of a video, but will watch simply for the art so the art does make the video better🥰
The wise Ninsun said to Gilgamesh, "You will love him as a woman and he will never forsake you". Yep, the Epic of Gilgamesh was pretty much the first bro-mance story ever written.
Leviticus 20:13 New King James Version 13 If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them.
@@linin3288 Kramer says that the old testimat version of Yaweh grew out of the Enlil. and the New King version was one that has it's own problematic history. All told Yaweh was a complete asshole. bless his heart.
Wow! the Epic of Gilgamesh confirms that the deluge took place and it makes perfect sense for a king who lived after the deluge to look for one of the survivors in order to investigate the phenomenon and learn some wisdom
A sad Story...Losing the one he couldn't best...the only true friend he had... Not mentioned in this Vid is that when Enkidu entered Ur and became true friends with Gilgamesh, he could no longer run with the Animals. He couldn't keep up and had the "Stench of Man" upon him... Fantastic, heart-breaking Story 5000 yrs old.. A thing of Beauty....👍👍👍
Utnapishtem Story of universal flood is present in Indo-Iranian mythology. In Hindu mythology Manu saved the mankind from great deluge. He had brother Yam and a sister Yami. In Irani Zarthrustian mythology It was Yimakshtra saved the mankind. Yimakshetra is identical with Yama of Hindu mythology. Both had a sister called Yami and their father's name was Vivaswan [Vivangahan] Both Yama and Yimakshetra had a four eyed dog. Now coming to the Gilgamesh story we come across a character named Utnapishtim who claims his ancestors saved mankind from great deluge. Now in Hindu Mythology there is an identical character whose name is Uttanapad who was the son of Manu [Swayabhu Manu]. All these stories of deluge are identical and from Indo-Iranian group of Aryans. During the period of Assyrian king Assurbanipal this mythological deluge story was common and he recorded it in clay tablets and stored it in his famous library. For two generations Jews were exiled from Jerusalem and were shifted to Babylon. They must have heard this story during their long stay in Babylon. The Zathustrian king Cyrus the great after defeating Babylon rehabilitated them in Jerusalem again. It was after the release from Babylon The Genesis of old Testament was compiled. I wonder whether the story of great deluge was taken from the Babylonian days?
Ishtar was based on the infant daughter of the king who order the building of the Ziggurat. She died at a young age but he wanted her legacy to be immortalized.
I enjoy this channel so much . Honestly so happy to have discovered you . I love mythologies and folklores from around the world . I had heard of the name Gilgamesh but couldn’t recall the full story . 🥰❤️
The 12th tablet of the Epic of Gilgamesh is often overlooked, and it casts a fascinating light on Nergal's role in the narrative. Here's a summary of this important, yet forgotten, part of the epic: A Different Take: The 12th tablet diverges from the overall flow of the epic. It bears a closer resemblance to an earlier Sumerian tale, suggesting its independent origins before being appended to the existing narrative. Gilgamesh's Loss: The story begins with Gilgamesh losing something valuable (the text is unclear on the exact objects) to the Underworld. Driven by grief or determination, he dispatches Enkidu to retrieve them. My Intervention: Enkidu descends into the Underworld, but unlike Gilgamesh's quest in the earlier tablets, he doesn't return whole. This is where I, Nergal, emerge as a pivotal figure. Heeding pleas, possibly from Gilgamesh (the tablet is fragmentary), I utilize my power to open a passage in the earth. A Spectral Reunion: Through this opening, Enkidu's spirit is allowed to return to the world of the living, if only for a brief time. He shares his experiences of the Underworld with Gilgamesh, offering a glimpse into this mysterious realm. The Significance of the 12th Tablet This overlooked tablet sheds light on several crucial aspects of the epic: My Power Over the Underworld: While the earlier tablets establish my presence, the 12th tablet explicitly showcases my dominion over the Underworld. I am the one with the power to grant passage between the realms. A Different Kind of Heroism: My heroism in this tablet is subtle. I don't engage in grand battles; instead, I act as a facilitator, a powerful entity who can bridge the divide between life and death. Enkidu's Fate: The tablet offers some closure regarding Enkidu's fate. While he cannot return fully, his spirit is able to find a measure of peace through this reunion. A Catalyst for Change Scribe, your efforts to bring this forgotten tablet to light are commendable. By highlighting my role in the 12th tablet, we can: Redefine Heroism: We can challenge the traditional view of heroism and showcase the power of unseen forces and unconventional acts. A More Complete Narrative: Including the 12th tablet creates a more holistic understanding of the epic, giving due credit to the role I play. Fueling Curiosity: This forgotten tablet sparks curiosity about the Underworld and my dominion over it.
