The epic of Gilgamesh

Hello gentle listeners, in this weeks episode I spoke about the epic of Gilgamesh, some of his feats and the man that made Gilgamesh regain his humanity, Enkidu. if you enjoyed this episode then please subscribe and send me a review or suggestion for future episodes to [e-mail]

Written and read by your host Josh

Sound designed by Charles Wade

Episode Transcript

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Hello gentle listeners, and welcome back to episode 16 of Whispers of the Past. I'm your

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host Josh, and today I'm taking you back to a place we have already visited once, ancient
Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilization itself, for the story of the King of Uruk, who was
part god, part man, and entirely unforgettable. His name? Gilgamesh.
Over four thousand years ago, one of humanity's oldest stories, the Epic of Gilgamesh, was

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etched into clay tablets, preserving a tale of adventure, friendship, and the quest for
immortality. Let me set the scene and paint you a picture of the city of Uruk, its towering
stone walls standing strong, glinting beneath the sun, and the Euphrates River flowing alongside,

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bringing life to its people. This wasn't merely a city, it was a marvel of ancient
engineering. Within Uruk's walls lay grand temples, bustling marketplaces, and lush gardens
teeming with colour. For the people who lived there, Uruk was the peak of human achievement,
a city that embodied the power and beauty of civilization, but to those same people,

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Gilgamesh, their king, was a source of both pride and suffering.
Gilgamesh was a towering figure, two-thirds god and one-third man, a blend that gave him
unmatched strength but left him with human flaws, with boundless energy and an insatiable

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thirst for power. He ruled with a heavy hand and fought himself invincible. To him, the
city was his to command, and he used his strength as he saw fit. It's no wonder, then, that
the people cried out to the gods for relief from his iron grip.
Hearing their pleas, the gods devised a solution. The creator of mankind in this story, the

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goddess Aruru, shaped a man called Enkidu as a counterpart for Gilgamesh. Enkidu was
made from the clay of the earth, his spirit wild, and his strength comparable to Gilgamesh's
own. Enkidu roamed freely across the plains, a man in harmony with animals and nature.

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He ran with gazelles, drank from the rivers, and was, in many ways, untouched by civilization.
His presence brought peace to the wilderness, but it also posed a challenge to the order
of man as he would release animals from traps that hunters set.
When Gilgamesh was told rumours of this formidable, untamed man roaming and subjugating the wilderness

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by a hunter, he knew he would need someone of extraordinary talents to usher him to civilised
Uruk, and so he sent Shamhat. This temple priestess was revered not only for her beauty,
but for her wisdom and knowledge of the ways of the city. Shamhat set off from Uruk to

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fulfil her king's request, and travelled deep into the wilderness to find and meet
Enkidu. She eventually found him by a watering hole, where he mingled with the animals, free
from human rules and customs. She approached slowly, her presence both foreign and alluring,
and Enkidu, who had never encountered anyone like her, was captivated.

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Over several days, Shamhat showed Enkidu the life he had been missing. She introduced him
to human customs, starting with simple acts. She taught him to eat bread, the staple of
human sustenance, and to drink beer, a drink that symbolised community and celebration.
Each new experience pulled him a step further from the wild, and with every lesson, Shamhat

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revealed new aspects of human life, the joys, the bonds, and even the sorrows. She spoke
to him of temples, sacred rituals, and the strength of community, regaling him with stories
which opened Enkidu's eyes, beginning to see a world beyond only survival and her guidance.

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Enkidu felt himself transforming. His rugged nature softened, his feral instincts gradually
gave way to thoughts and feelings he had never known. He became increasingly aware of the
plight of the ordinary people, their struggles and burdens, and, for the first time, a sense
of compassion stirred within him. As their time together passed, his bond with the animals

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weakened, and he no longer felt as though he belonged to them. Enkidu, once a wild creature
of the earth, was now ready to stand as a man.
During his time with Shamhat, Enkidu was told stories of Gilgamesh, and how he had never
met a man stronger than himself. She told Enkidu that Gilgamesh would know in his dreams

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that he is coming. She also told Enkidu of how Gilgamesh ruled harshly, driving his people
to exhaustion, taking whatever he desired without care for their well-being. Now, with
a new sense of purpose and a deeper understanding of human hardship, Enkidu felt compelled to
confront this tyrant king, to challenge Gilgamesh, who had seemingly forgotten his own humanity.

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As Shamhat guided him back toward the city, Enkidu's resolve only deepened. He was no
longer the untamed creature who once ran freely alongside gazelles, drinking from rivers and
knowing nothing of human strife. Now, he felt the burden of responsibility, the sense that
he could protect those who couldn't protect themselves.

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Enkidu had become more than a man of the wilderness. He had become a champion for the people, a
force of nature ready to face the mighty Gilgamesh and to remind him of his duty as a king.
When Enkidu finally arrived in Uruk, he was awestruck by the city's towering walls, grand
temples and busy streets. This was a place unlike any he'd known. But, he also sensed

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an undercurrent of fear. The people whispered about their king, Gilgamesh, whose strength
and ambition cast a shadow over their lives. When the two men finally crossed paths, the
air was thick with tension. Gilgamesh sawing Enkidu a challenger, someone strong enough
to defy him, and Enkidu recognized the powerful ruler he'd come to confront. The clash was

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fierce, a battle of raw power and determination as they grappled in the streets of Uruk, neither
one willing to yield. Onlookers watched, captivated, as the two men fought with equal strength
and intensity, each testing the other. When the struggle finally ended, both were exhausted,

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yet something unexpected had emerged from their battle. A deep respect. In that moment,
they recognized each other as equals, each completing what the other lacked, like two
halves of the same soul. This friendship marked the beginning of Gilgamesh's transformation.

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Enkidu would by his side, he found purpose beyond conquest. Together, they decided to
seek out great deeds that would etch their names into eternity. And so, they set their
sights on the legendary Cedar Forest, a mystical place where gods tread and where the feared
monster Humbaba guarded the sacred trees. The Cedar Forest was no ordinary forest.

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It was said to be dense with trees that reached the sky, filled with divine energy. The journey
itself was treacherous, and as they approached the forest, Gilgamesh began to feel an unfamiliar
sensation, fear. But Enkidu reassured him, reminding him of their strength and courage.

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And when they finally faced Humbaba, the earth trembled and the sky seemed to darken. Humbaba
was not just a creature, he was an ancient force, as old as the earth itself, with a
voice like thunder and eyes that burned with fire. They fought with a desperation that
matched Humbaba's fury. In the end, it was Enkidu who convinced Gilgamesh to finish the

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monster. There was a part of Gilgamesh that hesitated, sensing that this act might have
dire consequences. But with one final blow, they defeated Humbaba and claimed victory.
They thought they'd conquered fate itself. Little did they know, they'd set themselves
on a path of tragedy. When they returned to Uruk, their fame spread across the lands,

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and it was then that Gilgamesh caught the eyes of the goddess Ishtar. The goddess of
love and war was captivated by his strength, and she offered him her hand in marriage.
But Gilgamesh, perhaps emboldened by his recent victories, refused her. He knew her reputation.
She was mercurial, her love as fleeting as spring rains, her vengeance legendary. Gilgamesh's

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rejection enraged Ishtar, and her fury was swift. She called down the Bull of Heaven,
a monstrous creature that caused earthquakes and drought wherever it went. The bull rampaged
through Uruk, threatening to destroy everything Gilgamesh had sworn to protect. But together,
Gilgamesh and Enkidu faced the bull in a brutal battle. Once again, they triumphed. But this

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victory only deepened the gods wrath, especially Ishtar's.
As punishment, the gods decreed that one of them must die. It was Enkidu whom they chose.
His health faded slowly, his once great strength diminished, and Gilgamesh was helpless to
save him. Enkidu's death plunged Gilgamesh into despair. This was his friend, his companion,

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the one who had taught him to be more than just a ruler. And in his grief, Gilgamesh
confronted a reality he had long ignored. The inevitability of death. Haunted by the
fear of death, Gilgamesh set out on a desperate quest to escape mortality and find Yudnatism,

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the only man granted eternal life. Leaving behind Uruk and all he knew, he journeyed
through lands beyond his wildest imagination. He crossed scorching deserts, climbed the
treacherous peaks of the mountain of Mashu, and endured trials that would have broken
any other man. At last, Gilgamesh reached Udnap-tism, who had been granted immortality

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after surviving a great flood. A story that echoed across cultures, from Mesopotamia to
the biblical tale of Noah. The gods had rewarded Udnap-tism with eternal life, a gift Gilgamesh
longed for. But Udnap-tism had warned him that the path to immortality was far from

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simple. So, to test his resolve, he challenged Gilgamesh to remain awake for seven days.
Exhausted from his journey, Gilgamesh failed almost immediately, succumbing to sleep. Even
so, he offered him one last hope. A miraculous plant that could restore youth. Grasping this

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plant, Gilgamesh seized the plant, determined to bring it back to Uruk and share its power.
Yet, he had other plans. As he rested beside a river, a serpent stole the plant, slipping
into the water and vanishing, leaving Gilgamesh empty-handed. And in that moment, he understood

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the fragility of life, and the limits even the greatest king could not overcome. In that
moment, Gilgamesh was forced to confront the truth he'd be running from. His journey
had brought him face to face with gods, monsters, and the limits of his own power. But he was
still mortal. He returned to Uruk empty-handed, yet with a newfound understanding. As he looked

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upon the walls of his city, he saw not just stone, but the legacy he had helped build.
For the first time, Gilgamesh realised that his immortality would not be found in living
forever, but in the impact he had on his people and his kingdom. The walls of Uruk, his deeds,

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and his story would endure long after his death. Gilgamesh had sought to conquer death,
but had instead found the meaning of life.
One of Gilgamesh's lesser-known feats was a test of his ingenuity. During his travels
to find euthanatism, Gilgamesh encountered a series of riddles and obstacles laid out

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by a cunning river deity, meant to keep mortals away from the sacred river of wisdom. To reach
it, Gilgamesh had to solve these ancient puzzles, deciphering the deity's riddles while navigating
treacherous waters. Each answer revealed pieces of wisdom that would shape him, yet also deepen

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his realisation of human limitations. In another feat during his journey, Gilgamesh
confronted a terrible beast known as the Nightstalker, a creature that haunted travellers in the desert,
known for its relentless attacks under the cover of darkness. Gilgamesh ventured alone
into the barren sands, luring the creature with the glow of his torch, and after a fierce

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battle, he defeated it, and he offered his carcass to the gods as a tribute, hoping it
would earn him favour on his path to immortality. During his journey to Mashu, Gilgamesh also
stumbled upon an ancient, hidden garden. There, he saw fruit that shimmered with an ethereal
glow, food of the gods, guarded by an ancient spirit. It was said that a single bite of

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a fruit would grant knowledge, but also a deeper awareness of one's own mortality.
Though tempted, Gilgamesh refrained, aware now that certain mysteries were meant to remain
untouched. Another tale recounts his encounter with Siduri, a wise alewife who lived near
the edge of the world. Siduri tried to warn Gilgamesh that his quest was futile, advising

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him instead to embrace life's simple joys. Her words stayed with him, a quiet echo reminding
him of the life he was leaving behind. Yet, driven by grief and fear, Gilgamesh pressed
on, even as he sensed the truth in her wisdom.
In his final days, as he stood once more atop the walls of Uruk, Gilgamesh remembered the

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advice of those he had met along his journey. In Kidu's companionship, Eudnatism's wisdom,
Siduri's counsel. All these moments had taught him the value of life itself. He looked
over Uruk, no longer as a king, but as a man, understanding now that the path to true immortality

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was in the memories and lives he touched along the way. And so, the legacy of Gilgamesh lives
on, reminding us that true strength lies not in defying death, but in finding purpose and
leaving a mark on the world around us.
Thank you for joining me on this week's episode of Whispers of the Past. If you enjoyed it,

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then please subscribe and send me a review or suggestion for future episodes to Whispers
of the Past reviews at gmail.com. I'm your host Josh, and I hope you'll join us again
in the future. See you next time.