This cycle is a crucial aspect of many ancient cultures, and in the Sumerian Epic it mostly takes form through the symbol of water-a manifestation of the gods’ divine will. At the start of the Epic of Gilgamesh, the main character and his friend, Enkidu, are 2 thirds god, 1 third man, with super human powers and intelligence. Now we are going to get into the tale itself and have a deeper look in an effort to decode some of its hidden or underlying meaning. You read a brief account of the tale and learned a little of its origins and discovery. ![]() ![]() This is a point that the academics and other researchers seem to miss. The Epic of Gilgamesh: Underlying Meaning Last time, we introduced the ancient mythical tale, The Epic of Gilgamesh. Ultimately, then, water is a complex symbol encompassing the ideas of physical cleansing, spiritual rejuvenation, and the cycle of destruction and rebirth. The overall theme of the Epic of Gilgamesh is a degeneration of Mankind, much like the Book of Genesis. The destruction is inseparable from the rebirth. In bathing, the “old self” symbolically dies and a new self is reborn, but in Enlil’s flood mankind as a whole was destroyed and then reborn. Though now immortal, he lives a straightforward life relaxing far from civilization. As Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh, the flood was sent by the god Enlil because Enlil was tired of hearing the noises of the city, and only Utnapishtim, his animals, and a few others survived the deluge. He listened to the dream in which Ea told him to build a great ship before the flood, and spent a great deal of time and effort to protect his family. While bathing is mostly a symbolic cleansing and rejuvenation, the other main water motif in the Epic-the flood that drowns most of mankind-is presented as a literal death and rebirth on a massive scale. Each time Gilgamesh and Enkidu bathe, then, we can interpret them as being rejuvenated and as reaffirming their connection to the gods. Spiritual cleansing through bathing has similarities to the significance of baptism in Christian practice, in which water is a means of absolution and conversion. In practical purposes, the bath cleans and rejuvenates the heroes after their adventures, but it also seems to have ritual purpose-a spiritual as well as a physical cleansing. ![]() After slaying Humbaba, when Enkidu leaves the wilderness, and after every other crucial action in the epic, there is always a bath. Notably, after every important event in the Epic, Gilgamesh (and Enkidu if he is with Gilgamesh) bathes himself. It is neither good nor evil, but simply a force and representation of the gods’ will and the cycle of birth and death inherent to all life. The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia that was first published circa 2100 BC. Water is a source of both rejuvenation and destruction in the Epic.
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