Reflection
When I started reading The Epic of Gilgamesh I thought that Gilgamesh the King of Uruk would destroy the living world, but after I finished reading it I found out the opposite. Gilgamesh creates a kingdom that will prevail for many generations. Although, it is not until the end that he realizes that he is mortal and starts thinking about sharing with his people.
Many parts of the poem are similar with the Holy Bible. For example, throughout the poem it is mentioned seven days and seven nights. The Bible states that it took God seven days and seven nights to create the world. Also, the Bible states that a flood took place in the history of human kind and only selected living creatures were saved in an ark. In the poem Utanapishtim was saved from a flood along with living creatures in a boat.
I think the bottom line of the poem is trying to tell us that we as humans being should live in peace and harmony, and if one of us has great powers we should leave something positive so that our predecessors follow our footsteps.
Connection
War is destruction, terror, evil and death. the New York Times article states that President Obama had a meeting with Middle East leaders to talk about ending the war that has prevailed between Palestinians and Israelis for decades. This war can be compared to Humbaba In the Epic of Gilgamesh Humbba is described as:
“Humbaba’s roar is Flood
his mouth is Fire, his breath Death!
He can hear any rusting in his forest 100 leagues away!
Who would go down into his forest?
Who among even the Igigi gods can confront him?
In order to keep the Cedar safe, Enlil assigned him as a terror to human beings” (A,68)
It tells us that Humbaba is an evil to society; therefore he should be eliminated. That is what the great king of Uruk decides to do, but in order to accomplish the task he needs help. The only person who can help him is Enkidu because he knows how to navigate the forest where the enemy is located. The former enemies decided to pursue this task even though they knew the danger that waited ahead. The only thing that was important to them was to leave a footprint that would be inerasable in our society.
the New York Times article states that, “In some fashion , that is Mr. Netanyahu’s own claim – that only someone like himself, with hawkish credentials, can and will produce lasting peace because only such a leader can bring his people with in him” (New York times Thursday, September 2, 2010.) Mr. Netanyahu seems to be willing to end this war, but he needs help to accomplish this difficult task. Therefore, it is important that the leaders of our society reunite and come together because they might know something about the enemy as Enkidu knew how to navigate in the forest. So coming together as one is a major step to solve the problem that is affecting the land of our civilization. If together these leaders are able to put an end to the destruction they will leave a footprint that will be remembered for the generations to come.
Click to read the article: New York Times.
