Epic of Gilgamesh

"Let me harness you a chariot of lapis lazuli and gold, its wheels shall be gold and its horns shall be amber. Driving lions in a team and mules of great size, enter our house amid the sweet scent of cedar!"

"Read out the travails of Gilgamesh, all that he went through!"

"He carved on a stone stela all of his toils, and built the wall of Uruk-Haven, the wall of the sacred Eanna Temple, the holy sanctuary."

"The day grew still, darkness came forth, there was a flash of lightning, fire broke out.The flames flared up, death rained down. ... and the flashes of fire went out, where it had fallen turned into cinders."

"Father, give me, please, the Bull of Heaven, so in his dwelling I may slay Gilgamesh! If you do not give me the Bull of Heaven, I shall smash the gates of the Netherworld, right down to its dwelling, to the world below I shall grant manumission, I shall bring up the dead to consume the living, I shall make the dead outnumber the living."

"The destiny was fulfilled which the father of the gods, Enlil of the mountain, had decreed for Gilgamesh: "In nether-earth the darkness will show him a light: of mankind, all that are known, none will leave a monument for generations to come to compare with his. The heroes, the wise men, like the new moon have their waxing and waning. Men will say, 'Who has ever ruled with might and with power like him?' As in the dark month, the month of shadows, so without him there is no light. O Gilgamesh, this was the meaning of your dream. You were given the kingship, such was your destiny, everlasting life was not your destiny. Because of this do not be sad at heart, do not be grieved or oppressed; he has given you power to bind and to loose, to be the darkness and the light of mankind. He has given unexampled supremacy over the people, victory in battle from which no fugitive returns, in forays and assaults from which there is no going back. But do not abuse this power, deal justly with your servants in the palace, deal justly before the face of the Sun."

"Ever do we build our households, ever do we make our nests, ever do brothers divide their inheritance, ever do feuds arise in the land.Ever the river has risen and brought us the flood, the mayfly floating on the water. On the face of the sun its countenance gazes, then all of a sudden nothing is there!"

"Even the gods took fright at the Deluge, they left and went up to the heaven of Anu, lying like dogs curled up in the open. The goddess cried out like a woman in childbirth, Belet-ili wailed, whose voice is so sweet: The olden times have turned to clay, because I spoke evil in the gods' assembly. How could I speak evil in the gods' assembly, and declare a war to destroy my people? It is I who give birth, these people are mine! And now, like fish, they fill the ocean!" The Anunnaki gods were weeping with her, wet-faced with sorrow, they were weeping..."

"The seventh day when it came, I brought out a dove, I let it loose: off went the dove but then it returned, there was no place to land, so back it came to me. I brought out a swallow, I let it loose: off went the swallow but then it returned, there was no place to land, so back it came to me. I brought out a raven, I let it loose: off went the raven, it saw the waters receding, finding food, bowing and bobbing, it did not come back to me. I brought out an offering, to the four winds made sacrifice, incense I placed on the peak of the mountain."

"What should I do and where should I go? A thief has taken hold of my flesh! For there in my bed-chamber Death does abide, and wherever I turn, there too will be Death."

"He who saw the deep, the country's foundation, ... He came a far road, was weary, found peace, And set all his labours on a tablet of stone."

"Enkidu opened his mouth, saying to Gilgamesh: "where you've set your mind begin the journey, let your heart have no fear, keep your eyes on me!""

"O Gilgamesh, where are you wandering? The life that you seek you never will find: when the gods created mankind, death they dispensed to mankind, life they kept for themselves. But you, Gilgamesh, let your belly be full, enjoy yourself always by day and by night! Make merry each day, dance and play day and night! Let your clothes be clean, let your head be washed, may you bathe in water! Gaze on the child who holds your hand, let your wife enjoy your repeated embrace! For such is the destiny [of mortal men]."

"A story of learning to face reality, a story of "growing up.""

"A document of ancient humanism."

"Acceptance of human limitations, insistance on human values—this is the teaching of the life of Gilgamesh."

"...this discovery is evidently destined to excite a lively controversy. For the present the orthodox people are in great delight, and are very much prepossessed by the corroboration which it affords to Biblical history. It is possible, however, as has been pointed out, that the Chaldean inscription, if genuine, may be regarded as a confirmation of the statement that there are various traditions of the deluge apart from the Biblical one, which is perhaps legendary like the rest."

"To the extent that Gilgamesh does not achieve the desired immortality, the history also seems to deal with the importance of enjoying life. It is as if to say: that is man's life."

"The Epic of Gilgamesh is not just the world’s oldest poem. It is a classic, in the sense that it remained central to the literature and thought of a whole series of cultures across the Near East over millennia. We can account for its significance in several ways. Some of its themes are universal. We still agonize that even the greatest human life is limited in span; we mourn and rage against the loss of our loved ones; and like Gilgamesh we still want to know about our origins and the meaning of things. One title for the epic was He Who Saw the Deep. Gilgamesh goes on a quest for meaning. His failure to find acceptable answers is our failure, too. His fortitude in the face of that failure is true heroism."

"The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the earliest examples of what is sometimes termed a “Mirror of Princes,” a book that illustrates the conduct of both bad and good rulers, and makes clear the difference between them."

"Who is there, my friend, can climb to the sky? Only the gods dwell forever in sunlight. As for man, his days are numbered, whatever he may do, it is but wind."