Epic of Gilgamesh
Epic of Gilgamesh
Epic of Gilgamesh
The ancient Babylonian epic originated in Sumerian times. After a long period of word of mouth, it was collected, sorted out and edited in Babylon. This is the earliest epic ever discovered. This epic, found in the Baniba Library in Nineveh, the ancient capital of Assyria, is carved on 12 clay tablets with cuneiform characters, with a total of more than 3,000 lines. It brings together the essence of myths and legends spread in the two river basins from the end of primitive society to the beginning of slave society.
The epic poem 1 1 on the first clay tablet mainly tells the legendary story of Sumerian hero forgotten. Forgetting one, the ruler of Uruk City is "one third of Er Shen, one third of people". People can't stand his cruel rule and pray for the salvation of the gods. Enqi, a warrior who was created by the gods to be half man and half beast, is the enemy. The two men fought fiercely regardless of the outcome, admired each other and became close friends. Later, they cooperated for the benefit of the people, defeated the lions in the desert and killed the forest monster Fenbaba who persecuted the people. The Forgotten rejected the courtship of the goddess Ishdar, and with the help of Enchidu, he killed the longicorn who came for revenge. Enzi was sentenced to death. Out of fear of death and the threat of being dominated by God, the Forgotten decided to explore ways of eternal life. At the suggestion of Utna Bishtin, who survived the flood, he found long grass. After being swallowed by a snake, he was very sad. 12 clay tablet said that he didn't understand that human beings could not live forever until he talked with the undead of Enzidu. Epic eulogizes the contribution of ancient heroes to the people, and reflects the efforts of ancient people to explore the laws of nature and the mysteries of life and death, as well as their desire to control their own destiny.
In 6 12 BC, the ancient city of Nineveh was destroyed by war, and the clay tablets engraved with epic poems were buried underground. 1872, george smith, an Englishman, found the epic 1 1 clay tablets from the fragments of clay tablets unearthed from Nineveh Palace site, and later found them one after another, with a total of 12 pieces. 1884 ~ 189 1 year, P. Haupt first sorted out these clay tablets and published them in full. 1930, the Assyrian Babylonian version with the title of Epic of Gilgamesh was published, and English, German and French versions came out one after another. Versions in other major languages were published in the 1940s and 1960s. The Chinese version of the epic was published in 198 1.