Throughout the course of history, there have been many stories that have gotten passed down among the generations. These stories reveal much about a culture including: how their leaders behaved, the nature of their gods, the relationships between humans and their gods, and the possibility of achieving eternal life. The Bhagavad Gita and the Epic of Gilgamesh are two of these types of works. From reading these stories, many similarities and differences can be found in regards to religious, cultural, and societal views in the ancient Indian and Mesopotamian civilizations from which they originated.
Gilgamesh, the powerful king of Uruk, who is one-third man and two-thirds god, begins abusing his power and mistreating his people. As a result,…show more content… Each caste had a clearly defined role in the society. The Brahmin and the Kshatriya were both at the top of the caste system. The Brahmin were the caste in which the priests resided. They were responsible for learning and teaching sacred knowledge such as dharma. “Dharma are the actions and practices that encourage righteousness” (Dr. Godshalk’s Presentation on India). The Kshatriya were apart of the warrior caste, those who made decisions and ran the government. Arjuna was a member of this caste. The Vaishyas were skilled farmers and merchants. On the bottom of the caste system were foreigners, lawbreakers, and people that contracted contagious diseases. These people were known as untouchables.
In the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Bhagavad-Gita, the roles of the gods are essential to the story plot. However, these roles are played in very different ways. The Epic of Gilgamesh shows gods who have human-like traits. Throughout the epics, the gods assist specific humans. However, the gods in the epic are not always highly respected as well. These gods have flaws unlike the gods in ancient Indian culture. The gods in the Bhagavad-Gita are divine, all-powerful individuals. They hold very strong bonds with humans and include them in the cycle of death and rebirth, also know as
