The Epic of Gilgamesh

Summary

A great king was born of the union between a mortal woman and the god Anu. He was born a demi-god who was destined to rule over the great city of Uruk. He was given the name Gilgamesh and rose to power. Though his great destiny made him cruel and prideful. He brought the city of Uruk to prominence and expanded his empire but ignored the needs of the people. The gods turned a blind eye to this for a while but at one point Gilgamesh's lack of care for his people became too much. They convened and decided the best course of action was to remove Gilgamesh from the throne. The god Enki was given the task of doing so. So he created a warrior on par with gilgamesh himself. He named this warrior Enkidu and tasked them with destroying Gilgamesh. When they clashed the fight lasted for 50 days and 50 nights in the end there was no true winner. Instead they grew a respect for each other and became great friends. They left the city and began to travel the world searching for great treasures and even greater fights.
As the gods watched the two one fell in love with Gilgamesh. A god named Ishtar. She tried to court Gilgamesh presenting herself as a beautiful young woman unmatched by any other in the world. However this didn't work as Gilgamesh had fallen in love with Enkidu. This enraged Ishtar. She wanted to kill Gilgamesh so she released the great boar of the underworld without asking Ereshikigal, the god of the underworld. The fight that ensued took the life of Enkidu. Gilgamesh managed to kill the boar in his rage.
After loosing his friend Gilgamesh spent the rest of his life looking for a potion to bring Enkidu back and grant them both immortality. He managed to find this potion in the underworld, he found a potion of youth. But as he claimed it he was startled by Ereshikigal and he dropped it, shattering the potion. Knowing he had wasted years of his life and lost his chance at immortality so he returned to Uruk and spent the rest of his days ruling over his empire.

Historical Basis

The legend appears to be historically accurate but it is unsure as not much is known about the word prior to Paradise.

Spread

The legend is not as well known. It is only repeated by members of the Words of Gilgamesh religion.

Variations & Mutation

The Words of Gilgamesh believe after Gilgamesh's death he was revived as a god and went on to bring Enkidu back from the dead.