The Great Flood

The tradition of a great flood is common to the literature of many civilizations. While the Mesopotamian story is usually credited as the earliest, it is uncertain whether there was a relationship among the various tales, but geologists have proven that the Tigris and Euphrates rivers did periodically overflow their banks. Perhaps one flood was so catastrophic that it formed the basis for the Babylonian tale known as "The Great Flood."

what reason shall I give for building a boat large enough to hold my family, my possessions, and my animals?" Utnapishtim asked.

"My dear Utnapishtim," answered Ea, the god of the waters, "say only that the god Enlil dislikes you and you wish to live in the land of Ea."

Utnapishtim bolted upright in his bed. Was he dreaming, or had the god Ea come to warn him as he slept? Utnapishtim looked gently at his sleeping wife and then at all their treasured possessions in the comfortable reed hut. "Yes, I must abandon this and obey Ea, for he is just," he thought.

Anxiously, he told his shipwright of his plans for a boat and explained what materials were to be used and what the dimensions should be. All went faster and more smoothly than Utnapishtim could believe.

One day, as Utnapishtim rechecked his boat's fittings, the sun god, Shamash, spoke softly to him: "Tonight the rains begin. Dark shadows will fall, and I shall be gone for many days."

Hours later, drops of water began to fall. Soon the wind began to blow, thunder roared, lightning flashed, and torrential rains beat down upon the land.

The tempest raged for six days and nights. On the seventh day, it ceased, and an eerie silence fell over the land. Utnapishtim looked out from his tiny porthole and saw water everywhere. Tears fell from his eyes as he realized that nothing else had survived. Suddenly, the hull of his vessel scraped land, and the ship came to rest. Utnapishtim let loose a dove. Within minutes, the bird flew back to its master, unable to find a single twig on which to alight. Utnapishtim waited a while, then sent out a crow. When the crow did not return, Utnapishtim rejoiced and sacrificed to the gods.

The gods, too, rejoiced, and assembled to receive Utnapishtim's sacrifices. Only Enlil was absent. Ishtar, the queen of all the deities, held him responsible for the devastating flood and forbade him to attend the gathering. But Enlil defied Ishtar and came anyway. Enlil vowed revenge when he heard that a human had escaped destruction.

"Listen!" Ea exclaimed. "I told Utnapishtim what was to come and how to escape it. But so that you may feel your storm accomplished its purpose, I shall make Utnapishtim and his wife immortal."

Enlil slowly turned to Ea, then to Utnapishtim piously sacrificing to the gods, and relented. Ea sped to earth and led the devout couple to a remote area in the West, to a place beyond the Waters of Death, where they continue to live in harmony and happiness.

By: Baker, Rosalie F., Calliope, Oct2006