Term paper on A Comparison Of Sumerian And Hebrew Views Of The Afterlife
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A Comparison: Sumerian and Hebrew Views of the Afterlife
For centuries religion has been a significant and intricate part of human societies. Some would say that religion is as important to mankind as food and water. While food and water keeps us going,religion provides a reason and purpose for that life. In short, religion is man s attempt to understand the world around them and their place in it. Furthermore, religious values maintain order and a code of how mankind should behave among their peers and families. As religion is man-made, it can reveal much about a society s standards and sense of self. So, religion is both a shaper as well as a reflection of society. The ancient Sumerian and Hebrew societies both held detailed religious beliefs which shaped their different perspectives. Each society also, under the canopy of their own religion, had a belief in and perception of the afterlife. Hense, their different beliefs in that afterlife can be seen as an explanation for the ways in which they perceived and lived life.
The Sumarians pursued life with voracious thirst and believed in enjoying life to the fullest, savoring all human pleasures. On the other hand, the Hebrew religion stressed the importance of
traditions and accordance with repressive laws that pleased their God, believing that their real life was after death in heaven. The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Old Testament of the Bible provide good sources for the comparison of these different civilization s perceptions of life and death.
The Epic of Gilgamesh presents a clear picture of Sumerian religious beliefs. Similar to Greek mythology, the Sumarians believed in many imperfect gods. These gods were not flawless or
unconditionally loving but could be playful, mischievous, fickle, and even unfair in their dealings with mankind. So in temperament, these gods were human-like and not always dependable. Furthermore,
there was no promising afterlife for Sumarians. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Enkindu, upon his death, reveals a dream of the underworld to his friend Gilgamesh. Enkindu describes the world as desolate,
endless darkness, and says, dust is their food and clay is their meat. (29) This underworld, ruled by the goddess Irkalla, (29) is obviously not a fun place. It is in this belief that one glean an explanation for the Sumarians way of life. The Sumarians believed in living to the fullest. They took on life voraciously and
valued those heroes, like Gilgamesh and Enkindu who did the same. Gilgamesh and Enkindu were handsome and strong and battled and fought to increase their fame. The Sumarians as a society heartily
embraced all that men could enjoy: wealth, pleasure, food. They lived in the ever now, seeing this life as their greatest fulfillment. This mentality is a direct result of their perception of the afterlife.
Furthermore, after Enkindu s death, Gilgamesh realizes his own mortality and is hense unable to enjoy life s pleasure. He begins to dwell on the unfairness and inevitability of death and is greatly distraught and depressed. So, he goes out on his search for everlasting life. He travels and suffers in search of the one mortal to achieve immortality: Utnapishtim. Upon his search he encounters Siduri, the woman of...
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