Stephen Michell uses the work of scholars to inform his rendering of the Epic of Gilgamesh, an ancient Mesopotamian text that predates The Bible by a thousand years. In the Epic, Gilgamesh, a powerful king who is two-thirds divine and one-third human, meets his match when the gods create his companion, Enkidu, who lives among the animals, innocent and uncivilized. Enkidu and Gilgamesh eventually become great friends and slay Humbaba, the monster who guards the Cedar Forest. When Enkidu grows ill and dies, Gilgamesh searches for a magic plant that will grant him immortality. In many ways, Gilgamesh is the ultimate quest narrative. Mitchell reminds readers that “The archetypal hero’s journey proceeds in stages: being called to action, meeting a wise man or guide, crossing the threshold into the numinous world of the adventure, passing various tests, attaining the goal, defeating the forces of evil, and going back home” (51). Yet, as Mitchell notes, it’s clear that this story doesn’t neatly conform to the monomyth: “The more we try to fit Gilgamesh into the pattern of this archetypal journey, the more bizarre, quirky, and postmodern it seems. It is the original quest story. But it is also an anti-quest, since it undermines the quest myth from the beginning. Gilgamesh slays the monster, but that, it turns out, is a violation of the divine order of things and causes the death of his beloved friend. He does journey to the edge of the world, he meets a wise man, but there is still no transformation” (52).
Sentences Worth Studying
- “He had seen everything, had experienced all emotions, / from exaltation to despair, had been granted a vision / into the great mystery, the secret places, / the primeval days before the Flood. He had journeyed / to the edge of the world and made his way back, exhausted / but whole. He had carved his trials on stone tablets, / had restored the holy Eanna Temple and the massive / wall of Uruk, which no city on earth can equal. / See how its ramparts gleam like copper in the sun. / Climb the stone staircase, more ancient than the mind can imagine, approach the Eanna Temple, sacred to Ishtar, a temple that no king has equaled in size or beauty, / walk on the wall of Uruk, follow its course / around the city, inspect its mighty foundations, / examine its brickwork, how masterfully it is built, / observe the land it encloses: the palm trees, the gardens, the orchards, the glorious palaces and temples, the shops / and marketplaces, the houses, the public squares” (69-70).
- ● “Surpassing all kings, powerful and tall / beyond all others, violent, splendid, / a wild bull of a man, unvanquished leader, / hero in the front lines, beloved by his soldiers—/ fortress they called him, protector of the people, / raging flood that destroys all defenses–/ two-thirds divine and one-third human, / son of King Lugalbanda, who became / a god, and of the goddess Ninsun . . .” (71).
- “The city is his possession, he struts / through it, arrogant, his head raised high, / trampling its citizens like a wild bull” (72).
- “Stir up his lust when he approaches, / touch him, excite him, take his breath / with your kisses, show him what a woman is. / The animals who knew him in the wilderness / will be bewildered, and will leave him forever” (78).
- “Deep in his heart he felt something stir, / a longing he had never known before, / the longing for a true friend . . .” (80).
- “Every day is a festival in Uruk, / with people singing and dancing in the streets, / musicians playing their lyres and drums, / the lovely priestess standing before / the temple of Ishtar, chatting and laughing, / flushed with sexual joy, and ready / to serve men’s pleasure, in honor of the goddess, / so that even old men are aroused from their beds. / You who are still so ignorant of life, / I will show you Gilgamesh the mighty king” (81).
- “I saw a bright star, it shot across / the morning sky, it fell at my feet / and lay before me like a huge boulder. / I tried to lift it, but it was too heavy. / I tried to move it, but it would not budge . . . This boulder, this star that had fallen to earth—/ I took it in my arms, I embraced and caressed it / the way a man caresses his wife. / Then I took it and laid it before you. You told me / that it was my double, my second self” (82-83).
- “May the true friend appear, the true companion, / who through every danger will stand at my side” (84).
- “When Gilgamesh reached the marriage house, / Enkidu was there. He stood like a boulder, / blocking the door. Gilgamesh, raging, / stepped up and seized him, huge arms gripped / huge arms, foreheads crashed like wild bulls, / the two men staggered, they pitched against houses, / the doorposts trembled, the outer walls shook, / they careened through the streets, they grappled each other, / limbs intertwined, each huge body / straining to break free from the other’s embrace” (89).
- “Enkidu answered, ‘Dear friend, a scream / sticks in my throat, my arms are limp. / I knew that country when I roamed the hills / with the antelope and deer. The forest is endless, / it spreads far and wide for a thousand miles. / What man would dare to penetrate its depths?” (91).
- “We must not go on this journey, we must not / fight this creature. His breath spews fire, / his voice booms like thunder, his jaws are death. / He can hear all sounds in the forest, even / the faintest rustling among the leaves, / he will hear us a hundred miles away. / Who among men or gods could defeat him?” (92).
- “Only the gods live forever. Our days / are few in number, and whatever we achieve / is a puff of wind. Why be afraid then, / since sooner or later death must come? / Where is the courage you have always had?” (93).
- “Lord of heaven, you have granted my son / beauty and strength and courage—why / have you burdened him with a restless heart?” (99).
- “Protect him each day as you cross the sky, / and at twilight may Aya your bride entrust him / to the valiant starts, the watchmen of the night. / O Lord Shamash, glorious sun, / delight of the gods, illuminator / of the world, who rise and the light is born, / it fills the heavens, the whole earth takes shape, / the mountains form, the valleys grow bright, / darkness vanishes, evil retreats, / all creatures wake up and open their eyes, they see you, they are filled with joy—/ protect my son. On his dangerous journey / let the days be long, let the nights be short, / let his stride be vigorous and his legs sturdy” (100).
- “The elders stood up and addressed the king: / ‘Come back safely to great walled-Uruk. / Do not rely on your strength alone, / but be watchful, be wary, make each blow count’” (102).
- “‘Enkidu, dear friend, I have had a dream, / a dream more horrible than both the others. / The heavens roared and the earth heaved, / then darkness, silence. Lightening flashed, / igniting the trees. By the time the flames / died out, the ground was covered with ash’” (110).
- “They stood at the edge of the Cedar Forest, / marveling at the great height of the trees. / They could see, before them, a well-marked trail / beaten by Humbaba as he came and went. / From far off they saw the Cedar Mountain, / sacred to Ishtar, where the gods dwell, / the slopes of it steep, and rich in cedars / with their sharp fragrance and pleasant shade. / Gripping their axes, their knives unsheathed, / they entered the Forest and made their way through / the tangle of thorn bushes underfoot” (118).
- “The monster let out a deafening cry, / his roar boomed forth like a blast of thunder, / he stamped and the ground burst open, his steps / split the mountains of Lebanon, the clouds turned black, a sulfurous fog / descended on them and made their eyes ache” (124).
- “Gilgamesh, hearing his beloved friend, / came to himself. He yelled, he lifted / his massive axe, he swung it, it tore / into Humbaba’s neck, the blood / shot out, again the axe bit flesh / and bone, the monster staggered, his eyes / rolled, and at the axe’s third stroke / he toppled like a cedar and crashed to the ground. / At his death-roar the mountains of Lebanon shook, the valleys ran with blood, for ten miles / the forest resounded” (128).
- “‘Come here, Gilgamesh,’ Ishtar said, / ‘marry me, give me your luscious fruits, / be my husband, be my sweet man. / I will give you abundance beyond your dreams: / marble and alabaster, ivory and jade, / gorgeous servants with blue-green eyes, a chariot of lapis lazuli / with golden wheels and guide-horns of amber, / pulled by storm-demons like giant mules” (130-131).
- “‘You loved the hot-blooded, war-bold stallion, / then you changed, you doomed him to whip and spurs, / to endlessly gallop, with a bit in his mouth, / to muddy his own water when he drinks from a pool . . .’” (133).
- “Ishtar led the Bull down to the earth, / it entered and bellowed, the whole land shook, / the streams and marshes dried up, the Euphrates’ / water level dropped by ten feet. / When the Bull snorted, the earth cracked open / and a hundred warriors fell in and died” (137).
- “Enkidu fell sick. He lay on his bed, / sick at heart, and his tears flowed like streams. / He said to Gilgamesh, ‘Dear friend, dear brother, / they are taking me from you. I will not return / I will sit with the dead in the underworld, / and never will I see my dead brother again’” (141-142).
- “‘The creature touched me / and suddenly feathers covered my arms, / he bound them behind me and forced me down / to the underworld, the house of darkness, / the home of the dead, where all who enter / never return to the sweet earth again. / Those who dwell there squat in the darkness, / dirt is their food, their drink is clay, / they are dressed in feathered garments like birds . . .” (143).
- “‘O Enkidu, you were the axe at my side / in which my arm trusted, the knife in my sheath, / the shield I carried, my glorious robe, / the wide belt around my loins, and now / a harsh fate has torn you from me, forever . . . O Enkidu, what is this sleep that has seized you, / that has darkened your face and stopped your breath?’” (153).
- “‘Blacksmiths, goldsmith, / workers in silver, metal, and gems— / create a statue of Enkidu, my friend, / make it more splendid than any statue / that has ever been made. Cover his beard / with lapis lazuli, his chest with gold. / Let obsidian and all other beautiful stones— / a thousand jewels of every color— / be piled along with the silver and gold / and sent on a barge, down the Euphrates / to great-walled Uruk, for Enkidu’s statue” (154-155).
- “Gilgamesh wept over Enkidu his friend, / bitterly he wept through the wilderness. / ‘Must I die too? Must I be as lifeless / as Enkidu? How can I bear this sorrow / that gnaws at my belly, this fear of death / that restlessly drives me onward? If only / I could find the one man whom the gods made immortal, / I would ask him how to overcome death’” (159).
- “The scorpion woman said, ‘This brave man, / driven by despair, his body frost chilled, / exhausted, and burnt by the desert sun— / show him the way to Utnapishtim’ / / The scorpion woman said ‘Ever downward / through the deep darkness the tunnel leads. / All will be pitch black before and behind you, / all will be pitch black to either side. / You must run through the tunnel faster than the wind” (162).
- “Before him the garden of the gods appeared, / with gem-trees of all colors, dazzling to see. / There were trees that grew rubies, trees with lapis / lazuli flowers, trees that dangled / gigantic coral clusters like dates. / Everywhere, sparkling on all the branches, / were enormous jewels: emeralds, sapphires, / hematite, diamonds, carnelians, pearls. / Gilgamesh looked up and marveled at it all” (164).
- “Humans are born, they live, then they die, / this is the order that the gods have decreed. / But until the end comes, enjoy your life, / spend it in happiness, not despair. / Savor your food, make each of your days / a delight, bathe and anoint yourself, / wear bright clothes that are sparkling clean / let music and dancing fill your house . . .” (168).
- “I have wandered the world, climbed the most treacherous / mountains, crossed desserts, sailed the vast ocean, / and sweet sleep has rarely softened my face. / I have worn myself out through ceaseless striving, I have filled my muscles with pain and anguish. / I have killed bear, lion, hyena, leopard, / tiger, deer antelope, ibex, I have eaten / their meat and have wrapped their rough skins around me. / And what in the end have I achieved?” (176).
- “The handsome young man, the lovely young woman— / in their prime, death comes and drags them away. / Though no one has seen death’s face or heard / death’s voice, suddenly, savagely, death / destroys us, all of us, old or young. / And yet we build houses, make contracts, brothers / divide their inheritance, conflicts occur— / as though the human life lasted forever. / The river rises, flows over its banks and carries us all away, like mayflies / floating downstream: they stare at the sun, / then all at once there is nothing” (178).
- “At the first glow of dawn, an immense black cloud / rose on the horizon and crossed the sky. / Inside it the storm god Adad was thundering, / while Shullat and Hanish, twin gods of destruction, / went first, tearing through mountains and valleys. / Nergal, the god of pestilence, ripped out / the dams of the Great Deep, Ninurta opened / the floodgates of heaven, the infernal gods blazed and set the whole land on fire. / A deadly silence spread through the sky / and what had been bright now turned to darkness” (185).
- “Gilgamesh cried out, ‘What shall I do, / where shall I go now? Death has caught me, / it lurks in my bedroom, and everywhere I look, / everywhere I turn, there is only death” (193).
- “There is a small spiny bush that grows / in the waters of the Great Deep, it has sharp spikes / that will prick your fingers like a rose’s thorns. / If you find this plant and bring it to the surface, you will have found the secret of youth” (196).
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