The Epic of Gilgamesh and Hammurabi's Code Essay

The Epic of Gilgamesh and Hammurabi's Code - Essay Example Gilgamesh was going to the temple of Shamash to consult with the god before undertaking a major mission also shows the great influence religion had in Mesopotamia. In both of these texts, it can be noted that the sun – god Shamash, who was also the Mesopotamian god of justice, plays a major role in some of the major events which take place considering that he granted Hammurabi the laws and always gave guidance to Gilgamesh so that he would succeed in his missions (Hawkins, 277 – 278). The values of the ancient Sumerians seem to have been guided by their religion and many believed that they needed the authority of a god while doing anything important to ensure that their actions were a success. One would notice in these texts that the relationships between the people of this society in the ancient times were very close and that friendships had a higher value then than they have today. Friends tended to treat each other more like siblings than as people from different bac kgrounds and a good example of this is the relationship between Gilgamesh and Enkidu. Although Gilgamesh was the king of Uruk and Enkidu was wild man from the fields, these two strike a friendship that would be very unlikely in the current times. It can further be noted that the rulers of ancient Mesopotamia tended to place a very high value to their connection with the gods most likely in an attempt to justify their authority over their people. We note that Hammurabi claims to have been in direct communication with a god when he was given the laws, which would be imposed, on his people (Beaulieu, 11). Gilgamesh on the other hand is said to have been two-thirds god and one-third man and that his mother was the goddess Ninsun who is repeatedly seen to intercede on his behalf to the other gods.