Many people know the biblical story of the Noah’s Arkbut few know of the existence of a sumerian story in many points identical to that of the Judeo-Christian Genesis.
The history of Noah’s Arkof how he made an immense boat to save animal and human life during a divine flood that drowned a world of sinners, was written in the Genesis. But there is another myth, earlier and very similar, that comes from the literature mesopotamian.
The story of Noah’s Ark
The history of Noah’s Arkof how he built an immense ship to save animal and human life during a divine flood that drowned a world of sinners, appears for the first time in the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament, in the Genesischapters 6 to 9.
Indeed, this story tells how Yahweh, tired of evil and human wickedness, decides to send a universal flood on the face of the Earth to eliminate all remnants of that civilization. However, out of all the men Yahweh rescues one, Noah, a good and just man.
Yahweh then entrusts Noah to build an ark in which to save his family, children and their wives. But he also urges him to take with him various species of animals. Specifically, he must take 7 animals of the so-called “pure” and a couple of the “impure”. That is how noah begins to build the Ark to withstand the universal flood. It is not clear how long it took, although from the story it can be extracted that it was 20 years.
According to the story, when Yahweh sent the flood he was raining nonstop for 40 days and 40 nightsthe water level reached the top of the highest mountains and all living beings on the surface died. face of the earthexcept those who were on Noah’s Ark.
after going down Noah and his family from the ArkYahweh makes an appearance and Noah offers him a sacrifice. Yahweh then promises that he will never again send a universal flood to extinguish living beings. So that everyone and himself remember his promise, he put the rainbow in the sky.
Many of us have believed for a long time that it was an original story from the Bible (and many of you still believed it until now). But there is another myth, earlier and very similar, that comes from Mesopotamian literature.
What is Utnapishtim
This poem talks about the time when humans and gods lived together on earth, in the city of Shurupakk. Formerly, the gods worked the land, but they needed a lot of help, because the gods alone could not. That is why they created human beings. only fourteen seven men and seven women that began to multiply in such a way that they made a lot of noise. And not only that, because the gods saw how humans became more and more violent, noisy and rebellious, the god Enlil, decided to delete them all, but Hey, he loved the humans and decided to protect even the righteous and warned Utnapishtim to destroy his house and build a boat, where he keepsrdar his family and the living animal species and acquaintances and a few select people.
A storm was unleashed so wild that the gods themselves were frightened and ascended to heaven, so as not to suffer it. After this, a great storm arose on earth that lasted six days and six nights. On the seventh day the storm calmed down and when Utnapishtim looked out to see the landscape, all humanity was clay. After seven days of waiting, Utnapishtim he released a dove and later, he released a swallow. Both birds returned, but when she released a raven, it did not return, which meant that she had found a place to perch and the waters were receding.
So, as an offering, he burned reeds and cedar and myrtle wood.
When Enlil, saw his plan failed, he got furious and went to discuss it with Hey, but he defended everything he did, seeing that the animals and Utnapishtim’s family were safe and he defended them with such passion that Enlil He was moved to the point of bless him Utnapishtim and his wife, so that he resemble the gods.
All of this is recorded in year 2,500 BC. This story is not the first time we have heard it. As we have all realized, it is very similar to the one we know about the Noah’s Arksince it shows similarities that are not beyond human knowledge.
The poem of Utnapishtim
In the Gilgamesh poem, the Sumerian epic that is also the oldest narrative we know, it is described how the Babylonian god Ea decides to eliminate humans and other animals from the planet with a great flood that will be known as “the end of all mankind”. meat”. He chooses Utnapishtim (also Ut-napishtim, or Ziusudra, or Atrahasis) to build an ark and save some humans and animals.
In both texts we find important similarities:
- The Genesis describes how mankind had become sinful and weak, unworthy before God. In the Gilgamesh poemthey were too numerous and noisy.
- In both stories, the gods decide to send a flood on a large scale to drag everything in its path.
- Both gods choose a wise and upright man, Utnapishtimeither noah.
- The two gods order their hero to build a ark wooden giant
- Both arks were to be closed hard
- Both arks had several compartments internal
- Both arks had a single gate central and at least some window
- In the two coffers would go the heroalong with some humans and animals selected
- A great rain would cover the earth with water
- The two arks would remain in one mountain from the Near East
- In both stories, the hero sends birds at regular intervals so that they find dry land nearby
- The first two birds returned to the ark, the third did not return, a sign that he had found Earth dry
- The “heroes” and their families leave the ark, kill an animal in a ritual as a sacrifice to the gods
- God (or the Mesopotamian gods) smell the charred flesh of the sacrifice
- the hero is blessed
- The Babylonian gods appear to be genuinely repentant. the god of noah shows something similar, because he promises not to do it again
This story did not end up being written in a book, as a Bible, like the one we know of the Christian faith, but was collected in the form of a poem, recording data so similar to those of the Noah’s Ark, which gives chills, since it has many similarities, but with small differences. The most striking: both were good and just men, but Noah was a simple humble peasant who lived with his family, instead Utnapishtim, it was king. He was also good and fair and had no problem disposing of his material possessions to start building the ship.
The truth is that the myth, the legend or the text (call it what you want) of the Noah’s Ark continues to arouse great interest, both in fiction films or literature and in more serious research carried out by renowned historians.
The controversy and theories strangers have also been constant, in fact the Odyssey Channel has recently broadcast the following documentary in which new hypotheses are given about what the origin and reason for being of that genesis story.
Although the controversy has been unleashed after the discovery of the poem by Utnapishtim, is much more studied historians and scientists than the Church, as far as we know, since curiosity is greater.
The part of origin of the earth, has raised much more expectation and several more theories are already being released. Whom overstory, we will keep an eye on them.